Biology Commons^™

Biology Of The Tao, Matthew D. Sellers

Whittier Scholars Program

Much of this project is merely based on perspective. My perspective, that of the philosophies that I am attempting to highlight, and that of the sources where I am lifting facts from as fast as I can grab them, all go into this work. I feel myself to be somewhat of an editor, quilting together pieces of intuition and data in ways that attempt to unify these perspectives. The essays that follow seek to look at ways in which nature follows the quiet, yielding tenets of the Tao; reciprocally, the Tao Te Ching will be shown to accurately reflect the …

The Surveillance And Control Of Foodborne Diseases, Donal J. Daly

Theses

There is great variation in the extent of surveillance of foodbome disease throughout the world. Some countries contribute important epidemiological and microbiological data to the WHO Surveillance Programme for Foodbome Diseases in Europe. While the UK is a major contributor to this programme, data from Eire has been non-existent. Trends in the incidence of foodbome disease in the UK may have particular relevance to Eire given the similarity of culture. Microbiological and epidemiological data in relation to foodbome pathogens, foods most frequently incriminated in outbreaks, places where outbreaks occur, together witli the main contributory factors are discussed. The broader area …

Availability And Use Of Food Resources By Two Species Of Automolus (Aves, Furnariidae), Grace Patricia Servat-Valenzuela

Theses

Foraging specialization is one mechanism that has been hypothesized to promote species coexistence and, thus, higher bird species diversity in tropical forests. Dead-leaves suspended in vegetation above the forest floor constitute a focal substrate that may promote specialization (Rosenberg 1990a, b). In a study locality in Amazonia, Remsen and Parker (1984) reported 16 species of birds closely associated with this system. Therefore, it represents a microcosm of high diversity in tropical forests. As such, one natural question is how this substrate can support so many coexisting species, and at what level does specialization occur? In the present study, I address …

Natural History Of The Spider Genus Lutica (Araneae, Zodariidae), Martina G. Ramirez

Biology Faculty Works

Spiders of the genus Lutica are fossorial inhabitants of coastal dunes of southern California, Baja California and the California Channel Islands. They live in silk-lined burrows concentrated beneath dune vegetation. Lutica are sit-and-wait predators that subdue insects that walk near or over burrows . They are sedentary and do not engage in aerial dispersal via ballooning . Adult males abandon their burrows during the late summer and early fall to wander in search of females . Females produce eggsacs and guard them till they die; spiderlings emerge in the spring. Dune trapdoor spiders (Aptostichus simus) prey on Lutica, …

The Effect Of Fluctuating Substrate Salinity On The Yield And Flag Leaf Photosynthesis Of Wheat, Philippa M. Drennan

Biology Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

The Majority Of Yeast Upf1 Co-Localizes With Polyribosomes In The Cytoplasm, Audrey L. Atkin, Nicola Altamura, Peter Leeds, Michael R. Culbertson

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

In Saccharomyces cerevisiae the UPF1 protein is required for nonsense-mediated mRNA

decay, the accelerated turnover of mRNAs containing a nonsense mutation. Several lines

of evidence suggest that translation plays an important role in the mechanism of

nonsense mRNA decay, including a previous report that nonsense mRNAs assemble in

polyribosomes. In this study we show that UPF1 and ribosomal protein Li co-localize in

the cytoplasm and that UPF1 co-sediments with polyribosomes. To detect UPF1, three

copies of the influenza hemagglutinin epitope were placed at the C-terminus. The tagged

protein, UPF1-3EP, retains 86% (± 5%) of function. Using immunological detection, we

found …

Hyla Albopunctata, Rafael O. De Sá

Biology Faculty Publications

Hyla albopunctata is a medium-sized species in the albopunctata group, adults range in size from 42-52 mm SVL (males average 47 mm and females 49 mm). The head is triangular in outline, always longer than wide. The snout is moderately long and acuminate in dorsal view, whereas in lateral view, it is acuminate and protrudes beyond the mandible to form an angle of 45 degrees over the mandible. The canthus rostralis is rounded and distinct, the loreal region is slightly concave, and the internarial region is slightly convex. The eyes are large, approximately twice the diameter of the tympanum. The …

Phylogeny And Historical Biogeography Of The Spider Genus Lutica (Araneae, Zodariidae), Martina G. Ramirez

Biology Faculty Works

Spiders of the genus Lutica from 19 populations in southern California and Baja California, including all the California Channel Islands except Anacapa, were compared electrophoretically on the basis of variability at 15 gene loci. Fixed allelic differences clearly define two species: new species A [Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties, northern Channel Islands (San Miguel, Santa Rosa, Santa Cruz), southern Channel Islands (San Nicolas, Santa Barbara, Santa Catalina)] and new species C [Guerrero Negro, central Baja California], while morphological features define two others: new species B [Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego Counties, northern Baja California] and clementea [San Clemente Island] …

" Redescription Of The African Fresh-Water Crab Sudanonautes Africanus" , Neil Cumberlidge

Journal Articles

No abstract provided.

"Redescription Of Sudanonautes Floweri From Nigeria And Central Africa" , Neil Cumberlidge

Journal Articles

No abstract provided.

" Étude Épidémiologique Sur Paragonimus Sp. Dans Le Sud Cameroun" , G Ollivier, M Boussinesq, J J. Albaret, Neil Cumberlidge, J P. Chippaux, C Bassade-Dufour

Journal Articles

No abstract provided.

Mechanisms For Soil Moisture Effects On Activity Of Nitrifying Bacteria, John M. Stark, M. K. Firestone

Biology Faculty Publications

Moisture may limit microbial activity in a wide range of environments including salt water, food, wood, biofilms, and soils. Low water availability can inhibit microbial activity by lowering intracellular water potential and thus reducing hydration and activity of enzymes. In solid matrices, low water content may also reduce microbial activity by restricting substrate supply. As pores within solid matrices drain and water films coating surfaces become thinner, diffusion path lengths become more tortuous, and the rate of substrate diffusion to microbial cells declines. We used two independent techniques to evaluate the relative importance of cytoplasmic dehydration versus diffusional limitations in …

Normal Kinetic Patterns Of The Lower Extremities During Natural Walking In Children Aged Six To Ten, Thomas Ellexson, Christopher Nawrocki, Darrin Schober

Masters Theses

The purpose of this research was to initiate a normative pediatric three-dimensional lower extremity kinetic database specific to the Mary Free Bed Hospital/Grand Valley State University Center for Human Kinetic Studies. Twenty healthy children (eleven girls and nine boys) with a mean age of 7.9 years volunteered for this study. Lower extremity kinetic data were obtained using a computerized three-dimensional motion analysis system coupled with a force plate. Kinematic and kinetic data were pooled and mean/standard deviations at each one percent of the gait cycle were determined for the twenty normative children. Results of the pediatric kinetic data were similar …

The Effects Of Partial Unweighting On Hemiplegic Gait, Natasha A. Creaser, Michael W. Jones

Masters Theses

This study investigated the effects of 30% body weight support on gait in two individuals with hemiplegia secondary to stroke. Two subjects with right hemiplegia were tested. Each completed four trials, two full weight bearing and two unweighted 30%, in random order. Each trial consisted of walking six meters on a treadmill at the subjects' self-selected speed. Temporal distance data were collected via Stride Analyzer footswitches. Subjects were also videotaped from the side during all trials. We expected velocity, cadence, stride length, uninvolved limb swing time, and involved limb stance time to increase with unweighting. Subjects 1's results agreed only …

Topography Of Anterior Lateral Line Nerve Branches In The Electrosensory And Mechanosensory Lateral Line Nuclei Of The Channel Catfish, Ictalurus Punctatus, Sanjay Singh

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Growth Rate As A Function Of Food Consumption In Hatchling Sceloporus Virgatus (Sauria: Iguanidae), Geoffrey R. Smith

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Flow And Feeding By Swimming Scyphomedusae, John H. Costello, Sean Colin

Arts & Sciences Faculty Publications

The mechanical basis of prey capture by scyphomedusae has been largely ignored, despite the importance of these predators in a variety of planktonic ecosystems. Interactions between swimming, fluid motions, and prey capture were examined during 1991–1992 for a species from the three scyphozoan orders having planktonic medusae: Rhizostomeae, Stomolophus meleagris Agassiz, 1862; Coronatae, Linuche unguiculata (Schwartz, 1788); and Semaeostomeae, Cyanea capillata (Linnaeus, 1758). All three species used flow created during bell pulsation to capture prey, but the type of flow used for prey capture and the capture surface morphology were different for each species. The mechanics of capture by these …

The Effects Of Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether (Mtbe) On The Hexadecane Mineralization Potentials Of Microbial Consortia, Christopher Matthew Horan

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The environmental fate and biological effects of the fuel oxygenate methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) is of concern because, among other factors, it is highly soluble (4.8g/100g H2 0) in water. Therefore, ground and surface water contamination may occur through accidental spills and leaks from underground storage tanks. Little is known about the biodegradability and ecotoxicity of MTBE. Continuous culture technique was used to enrich for MTBE degrading consortium or single species of microorganisms. Radiorespirometry was used to confirm that continuous culture enrichments would metabolize MTBE to carbon dioxide. Radiorespirometry was also used to measure the effects of MTBE on …

The Effect Of Family Participation On The Outcome Of Patients With Traumatic Brain Injury In Rehabilitation, Grant Middleton, Brett Ransom

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between physical therapists' perceptions and institutional policies relating to family participation in rehabilitation and rehabilitation outcome of patients with traumatic brain injury. Utilizing surveys, we collected information about institutional policy from institutions that were members of the Commission for Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) in the Midwestern United States. Thirteen institutional surveys provided usable Functional Independence Measure (FIM) scores for patients rehabilitated in 1993, which were used as the outcome measure. The therapists' perceptions survey (n = 104) gathered data about the belief of physical therapists relating to family involvement …

Pre-Instructional Student Conceptions Of Natural Selection And Evolution And Their Relationship To Cognitive Level, Terence John Coleman

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a correlation between cognitive level and misconceptions regarding the concepts of natural selection and evolution in twenty-eight ninth grade students prior to instruction in tenth grade biology. In addition, the study examined the nature of student misconceptions. There were three major questions which guided the study: (a) What knowledge do ninth grade students possess regarding the concepts of natural selection and evolution prior to instruction in tenth grade? (b) What are the specific misconceptions that ninth grade students possess regarding the concepts of natural selection and evolution? (c) To …

Nitrous Oxide: Mechanism Of Its Antinociceptive Action, Raymond M. Quock, Linda K. Vaughn

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Nitrous oxide (N₂O) is an anesthetic gas known to produce an analgesic effect at sub-anesthetic concentrations. This analgesic property of N₂O can be clinically exploited in a broad range of conditions where pain relief is indicated. The mechanism of this analgesic effect was long thought to be nonspecific in nature, but a landmark study by Berkowitz and others in 1976 first implicated an opioid mechanism of action, possibly via N₂O-stimulated neuronal release of endogenous opioid peptides to activate opioid receptors. N₂O-induced release of opioid peptide has been demonstrated in both in vivo …

A New Approch To Low Drift Ta₂O₅ By Ph Reactive Sputtering And Sol-Gel Method, Chang-Soo Kim, Dae-Hyuk Kwon, Byung-Woog Cho, Byung-Ki Sohn

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

No abstract provided.

A New Ph-Isfet Based Dissolved Oxygen Sensor, Chang-Soo Kim, Dae-Hyuk Kwon, Byung-Ki Sohn

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

"A new dissolved oxygen sensor based on pH-ISFET has been discussed. A platinum working electrode surrounding a pH-sensing gate of the pH-ISFET electrolyzes dissolved oxygen, resulting in a corresponding pH change. The pH-ISFET can determine dissolved oxygen concentration through detecting this pH change."--Summary

Measurement Of Fungal Biomass In Wooden Art Objects Using Atp Photometry And Energy Charge, Fernando Nieto

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In this study ATP photometry and energy charge (EC) measurements were used to detect and quantify fungal biomass in wood. Three species of wood decaying fungi were used: Phanerochaete chrysosporium (white rot), Poria placenta (brown rot), and Chaetomnium globosum (soft rot). The fungi were grown in malt extract broth (MEB) for one month at 25 °C, and sampled at selected intervals to measure the ATP content and the EC of the mycelium. The mycelia were ground and extracted with cold 5% trichloroacetic acid (TCA) for 20 hours. The conversion factors calculated were based upon the EC of the mycelium. When …