Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Differences In Pathogenesis-Related Protein Expression And Polyphenolic Compound Accumulation Reveal Insights Into Tomato-Pythium Aphanidermatum Interaction, Seham A. Soliman, Abdulaziz A. Al-Askar, Sherien Sobhy, Marwa A. Samy, Esraa Hamdy, Omaima A. Sharaf, Yiming Su, Said I. Behiry, Ahmed Abdelkhalek

Publications

Plant diseases significantly reduce crop yields, threatening food security and agricultural sustainability. Fungi are the most destructive type of phytopathogen, and they are responsible for major yield losses in some of the most crucial crops grown across the world. In this study, a fungus isolate was detected from infected tomato plants and molecularly identified as Pythium aphanidermatum (GenBank accession number MW725032). This fungus caused damping-off disease and was shown to be pathogenic. Moreover, the expression of five pathogenesis-related genes, namely PR-1, PR-2, PR-3, PR-4, and PR-5, was quantitatively evaluated under the inoculation of tomato with …

Red Wolf Multispecies Justice Publication 2023, Eskar, Elizabeth Bennett, Finley Schad, Alex Baldwin, Oluwaseyifunmi Adejugbe, Mufti Nadimul Quamar Ahmed, Maisie Schad, Sadie Braddock, Azra Soyer, Melih Soyer, Anne-Laure Blanche, Zubair Barkat, Amol K, Sarah Ann Woodbury, Kirsten Vinyeta

Publications

Our understanding of multispecies justice is still solidifying. In spring 2023, a group of Utah State University undergraduate and graduate students attended a course by Dr.Kirsten Vinyeta on Multispecies Justice and Indigenous Approaches to the Environment. Throughout this course, we studied the works of scholars and writers from a variety of social locations and identities who challenge Western theoretical frameworks in social science.

This publication celebrates our intellectual struggle with this emerging field and opens a forum for conversations about justice for humans and additional species. This issue features various writings, reflections, and photos from students taking the Multispecies Justice …

Chesapeake Bay Watershed Residents’ And Farmers’ Views On Urban And Suburban Growth, Edem Avemegah, Jessica D. Ulrich-Schad

Publications

What the future of agriculture in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed (CBW) will look like is uncertain due to issues such as the loss of farmland to sprawling suburban development. In this rapidly urbanizing landscape, tension can also arise between farmers and their non-farm neighbors due to their proximity to each other. Understanding the concerns of these stakeholders regarding the urban and suburban growth and the potential problems that are likely to occur with farmers being in close contact with their non-farm neighbors is a good step in ensuring an economically thriving and environmentally beneficial agricultural system that all residents depend …

Chesapeake Bay Watershed Residents’ And Farmers’ Views On Water Quality, Edem Avemegah, Jessica D. Ulrich-Schad

Publications

Poor water quality is an issue in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed (CBW). In this rapidly urbanizing landscape, both farmers and non-farm residents contribute to nutrient pollution of rivers and streams. Understanding these important stakeholders’ views of water quality problems and how to address them is essential for creating an economically thriving and environmentally beneficial agricultural system that all residents depend upon. To understand stakeholder views on water quality both locally and regionally, researchers from Utah State University and the Pennsylvania State University surveyed residents of the CBW and agricultural producers of the southern part of the CBW (Maryland, Delaware, and …

Chesapeake Bay Watershed Residents’ And Farmers’ Concerns And Perceptions Of Water Quality, Edem Avemegah, Jessica D. Ulrich-Schad

Publications

Poor water quality is an issue in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed (CBW). In this rapidly urbanizing landscape, both farmers and non-farm residents contribute to nutrient pollution of rivers and streams. Understanding these important stakeholders’ views of water quality problems and how to address them is essential for creating an economically thriving and environmentally beneficial agricultural system that all residents depend upon. To understand key stakeholders’ views on water quality both locally and regionally, researchers from Utah State University and the Pennsylvania State University surveyed residents of the CBW and agricultural producers of the southern part of the CBW (Maryland, Delaware, …

How Education On Climate Change Affects Consumers' Willingness To Participate In Carbon Offsetting Programs?, Leila Halawi, Deanna Demattio

Publications

If airlines could have a better understanding of how to induce sustainable behavior in their customers, they can use these methods when building sustainable initiatives such as voluntary carbon offsetting programs. The purpose of the study was to determine if education on the consequences of climate change affects how consumers behave related to their interaction with carbon offsetting programs. Regional Scenarios were introduced with a natural disaster comparable to the region under review. A multistage sampling technique was utilized in this study. Firstly, using a cluster sample, groups were used rather than individual units of the target population. The results …

Adapting To Low Colorado River Flows And Storage: Lessons From 3 Computer Exercises, David E. Rosenberg

Publications

As Colorado River flows and reservoir levels decline, discussion is ramping up about adapting operations to low flow and storage because existing operations adapt only to storage. This post reviews three recent computer exercises that adapted Colorado River operations to low flow and low storage. Three final paragraphs synthesize lessons to build towards more equitable and sustainable operations.

The Economic Value Of America’S Estuaries: 2021 Report, Tracy Rouleau, Charles S. Colgan, Jefferey Adkins, Castelletto Anthony, Dirlam Patty, Shannon Lyons, Hilary Stevens

Publications

This study builds on the work completed in 2009, “The Economic and Market Value of Coasts and Estuaries: What’s At Stake?,” a report by NOAA in collaboration with the Center for the Blue Economy and the Ocean Foundation, at the request of Restore America’s Estuaries. Like the 2009 study, the 2021 update uses the same data sources (Census, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Bureau of Economic Analysis and NOAA), and looks in detail at the same five major sectors of the U.S. economy (fisheries, energy infrastructure, marine transportation, real estate, and recreation) from 2009-2018.

The 2021 update includes the economic …

Fracking Florida, Emily Faulconer

Publications

• Traditional Hydraulic Fracturing
• Why Frack?
• Why it’s Controversial
• Acid Fracking
• What’s in the Wastewater?
• Ethylene Glycol
• 2-Butoxyethanol
• Benzene
• So Where Does the Wastewater Go?
• “Halliburton Loophole”
• Drilling in Florida
• Timeline of Events at Collier-Hogan Well
• Lease Termination & Permit Revocation
• Frack Fluid used at Collier-Hogan Well
• Groundwater Monitoring Wells
• FDEP Tested 142 Analytes
• House Bills 71 & 157: Fracturing Chemical Usage Disclosure Act
• Proposed Sabal Trail Pipeline
• Hands Across the Sand” Rally
• My $0.02

A Low-Cost, Open Source Monitoring System For Collecting High Temporal Resolution Water Use Data On Magnetically Driven Residential Water Meters, Camilo J. Bastidas Pacheco, Jeffery S. Horsburgh, Robb J. Tracy

Publications

We present a low-cost (≈$150) monitoring system for collecting high temporal resolution residential water use data without disrupting the operation of commonly available water meters. This system was designed for installation on top of analog, magnetically driven, positive displacement, residential water meters and can collect data at a variable time resolution interval. The system couples an Arduino Pro microcontroller board, a datalogging shield customized for this specific application, and a magnetometer sensor. The system was developed and calibrated at the Utah Water Research Laboratory and was deployed for testing on five single family residences in Logan and Providence, Utah, for …

Simulation-Optimization For Conjunctive Water Resources Management And Optimal Crop Planning In Kushabhadra-Bhargavi River Delta Of Eastern India, Madan K. Jha, Richard C. Peralta, Sasmita Sahoo

Publications

Water resources sustainability is a worldwide concern because of climate variability, growing population, and excessive groundwater exploitation in order to meet freshwater demand. Addressing these conflicting challenges sometimes can be aided by using both simulation and mathematical optimization tools. This study combines a groundwater-flow simulation model and two optimization models to develop optimal reconnaissance-level water management strategies. For a given set of hydrologic and management constraints, both of the optimization models are applied to part of the Mahanadi River basin groundwater system, which is an important source of water supply in Odisha State, India. The first optimization model employs a …

Machine Learning Predicts Reach-Scale Channel Types From Coarse-Scale Geospatial Data In A Large River Basin, Hervé Guillon, Colin F. Byrne, Belize A. Lane, Samuel Sandoval Solis, Gregory B. Pasternack

Publications

Hydrologic and geomorphic classifications have gained traction in response to the increasing need for basin-wide water resources management. Regardless of the selected classification scheme, an open scientific challenge is how to extend information from limited field sites to classify tens of thousands to millions of channel reaches across a basin. To address this spatial scaling challenge, this study leverages machine learning to predict reach-scale geomorphic channel types using publicly available geospatial data. A bottom-up machine learning approach selects the most accurate and stable model among∼20,000 combinations of 287 coarse geospatial predictors, preprocessing methods, and algorithms in a three-tiered framework to …

Evaluating Artificial Shelter Arrays As A Minimally Invasive Monitoring Tool For The Hellbender Cryptobranchus Alleganiensis, Catherine M. Bodinof Jachowski, Beth E. Ross, William A. Hopkins

Publications

Hellbenders Cryptobranchus alleganiensis are critically imperiled amphibians throughout the eastern USA. Rock-lifting is widely used to monitor hellbenders but can severely disturb habitat. We asked whether artificial shelter occupancy (the proportion of occupied shelters in an array) would function as a proxy for hellbender abundance and thereby serve as a viable alternative to rock-lifting. We hypothesized that shelter occupancy would vary spatially in response to hellbender density, natural shelter density, or both, and would vary temporally with hellbender seasonal activity patterns and time since shelter deployment. We established shelter arrays (n = 30 shelters each) in 6 stream reaches and …

Knowledge Exchange And Social Capital For Freshwater Ecosystem Assessments, Lauren M. Kuehne, Angela Strecker, Julian Olden

Publications

The 1972 Clean Water Act (CWA) provided crucial environmental protections, spurring research and corresponding development of a network of expertise that represents critical human capital in freshwater conservation. We used social network analysis to evaluate collaboration across organizational types and ecosystem focus by examining connections between authors of freshwater assessments published since the CWA. We found that the freshwater assessment network is highly fragmented, with no trend toward centralization. Persistent cohesion around organizational subgroups and minimal bridging ties suggest the network is better positioned for diversification and innovation than for learning and building a strong history of linked expertise. Despite …

Thermodynamic Model Of Co2 Deposition In Cold Climates, Sandra K. S. Boetcher, Ted Von Hippel, Matthew J. Traum

Publications

A thermodynamic model, borrowing ideas from psychrometric principles, of a cryogenic direct-air CO2-capture system utilizing a precooler is used to estimate the optimal CO2 removal fraction to minimize energy input per tonne of CO2. Energy costs to operate the system scale almost linearly with the temperature drop between the ingested air and the cryogenic desublimation temperature of CO2, driving siting to the coldest accessible locations. System performance in three Arctic/Antarctic regions where the proposed system can potentially be located is analyzed. Colder ambient temperatures provide colder system input air temperature yielding lower CO2 removal energy requirements. A case is also …

Developing A Monthly Radiative Kernel For Surface Albedo Change From Satellite Climatologies Of Earth's Shortwave Radiation Budget: Cack V1.0, Ryan M. Bright, Thomas L. O'Halloran

Publications

Due to the potential for land-use–land-cover change (LULCC) to alter surface albedo, there is need within the LULCC science community for simple and transparent tools for predicting radiative forcings (ΔF) from surface albedo changes (Δαs). To that end, the radiative kernel technique – developed by the climate modeling community to diagnose internal feedbacks within general circulation models (GCMs) – has been adopted by the LULCC science community as a tool to perform offline ΔF calculations for Δαs. However, the codes and data behind the GCM kernels are not readily transparent, and the climatologies …

Expanding Beyond Carnivores To Improve Livestock Protection And Conservation, Shari L. Rodriguez, Christie Sampson

Publications

Promoting human–wildlife coexistence is critical to the long-term conservation of many wild animal species that come into conflict with humans. Loss of livestock to carnivore species (e.g., lions, tigers, wolves) is a well-documented occurrence and the focus of mitigation strategies around the world. One area that has received little research is the impact of noncarnivores on livestock. Both African and Asian elephant species are known to cause livestock injuries and deaths. Livestock owners within elephant ranges perceive elephants as a risk to their livestock, which may reduce their tolerance towards elephants and jeopardize conservation efforts in the area. Though feral …

Cape Elizabeth Culvert And Habitat Assessment Study, Steve Harding, Jake Aman, Matthew Craig, Robert Malley, Maureen O'Meara

Publications

Executive Summary:

In early 2017, Jake Aman, representing the Wells National Estuary Research Reserve (WNERR), met with the Cape Elizabeth Public Works Director and Town Planner to talk about culverts. Jake shared aerial photos of culverts located in the Spurwink Marsh where scouring of adjacent habitat areas was evident. He inquired if the town was considering any culvert replacements, in which case WNERR and The Nature Conservancy might be able to partner with the town to promote a habitat sensitive replacement. The outcome of the meeting was a jointly sponsored assessment of major town culverts, including those located in the …

A Performance Comparison Of Machine Learning Algorithms For Arced Labyrinth Spillways, Fernando Salazar, Brian M. Crookston

Publications

Labyrinth weirs provide an economic option for flow control structures in a variety of applications, including as spillways at dams. The cycles of labyrinth weirs are typically placed in a linear configuration. However, numerous projects place labyrinth cycles along an arc to take advantage of reservoir conditions and dam alignment, and to reduce construction costs such as narrowing the spillway chute. Practitioners must optimize more than 10 geometric variables when developing a head–discharge relationship. This is typically done using the following tools: empirical relationships, numerical modeling, and physical modeling. This study applied a new tool, machine learning, to the analysis …

Long Reach Lane At Long Marsh, Harpswell, 2018 Post-Project Monitoring Report; Year 5 Of 5, Matthew Craig

Publications

No abstract provided.

Software Defined Networks Based Smart Grid Communication: A Comprehensive Survey, Mubashir Husain Rehmani, Alan Davy, Brendan Jennings, Chadi Assi

Publications

The current power grid is no longer a feasible solution due to ever-increasing user demand of electricity, old infrastructure, and reliability issues and thus require transformation to a better grid a.k.a., smart grid (SG). The key features that distinguish SG from the conventional electrical power grid are its capability to perform two-way communication, demand side management, and real time pricing. Despite all these advantages that SG will bring, there are certain issues which are specific to SG communication system. For instance, network management of current SG systems is complex, time consuming, and done manually. Moreover, SG communication (SGC) system is …

Stem And Sustainability: Creating Aviation Professional Change Agents, P. Clark, Doreen Mcgunagle, L. Zizka

Publications

With the evolution of the workforce and the growing needs of the aviation industry, a clear need for concrete sustainability initiatives and actions have emerged. Sustainability in this sense becomes a matter of survival. For this reason, in this chapter, we will attempt to close three gaps in current sustainability studies: Theory vs practice, intention vs behavior, and education vs workplace.

Our purpose is to develop a ‘simple’ strategy for integrating all three pillars of sustainability into STEM HE programs that create authentic engagement and real buy-in from the students that are then replicated in the workplace. Based on the …

Rapid Screening Of Ellagitannins In Natural Sources Via Targeted Reporter Ion Triggered Tandem Mass Spectrometry, Jeremiah J. Bowers, Harsha P. Gunawardena, Anaëlle Cornu, Ashwini S. Narvekar, Antoine Richieu, Denis Deffieux, Stéphane Quideau, Nishanth Tharayil

Publications

Complex biomolecules present in their natural sources have been difficult to analyze using traditional analytical approaches. Ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC-MS/MS) methods have the potential to enhance the discovery of a less well characterized and challenging class of biomolecules in plants, the ellagitannins. We present an approach that allows for the screening of ellagitannins by employing higher energy collision dissociation (HCD) to generate reporter ions for classification and collision-induced dissociation (CID) to generate unique fragmentation spectra for isomeric variants of previously unreported species. Ellagitannin anions efficiently form three characteristic reporter ions after HCD fragmentation that allows for the classification of unknown …

Algal Biofuel: The Future Of Green Jet Fuel In Air Transportation, Rajee Olaganathan

Publications

The aviation industry is one of the major contributors for the greenhouse gases. As air travel has become inevitable in this modern era, and fossil fuel usage is not sustainable, it is essential to produce renewable fuel and commercialize it to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions. In order to produce an alternate aviation biofuel a lot of industrial and academic collaborations have been developed worldwide. The main concern of this collaborative research is to produce aviation biofuel from renewable resources with low environmental impacts, and which is sustainable at an economically viable price. This mini-review briefly discusses the biotechnological approaches …

Estimating Discharge In Low-Order Rivers With High-Resolution Aerial Imagery, Tyler V. King, Bethany T. Neilson, Mitchell T. Rasmussen

Publications

Remote sensing of river discharge promises to augment in situ gauging stations, but the majority of research in this field focuses on large rivers (>50 m wide). We present a method for estimating volumetric river discharge in low-order (wide) rivers from remotely sensed data by coupling high-resolution imagery with one-dimensional hydraulic modeling at so-called virtual gauging stations. These locations were identified as locations where the river contracted under low flows, exposing a substantial portion of the river bed. Topography of the exposed river bed was photogrammetrically extracted from high-resolution aerial imagery while the geometry of the remaining inundated portion …

Research Of Sustainable Jet Fuel Production Using Microbes, Rajee Olaganathan

Publications

Global climate change, coupled with rapidly increasing oil prices and energy demand around the world, has paved a way for intense research in the biofuel sector. Stakeholders in the aviation industry have started to focus on bio-jet fuel. Bio-jet fuel is regarded as a sustainable solution to greenhouse gas emissions and energy demand. This paper provides a brief review of the biofuel production technologies, the role of bacteria in producing hydrocarbons and the recent advancements in microbial engineering to enhance the biofuel production. Finally, this paper concludes by highlighting the challenges and future research implications in bio-jet fuel production.

Annual Report 2018, Casco Bay Estuary Partnership

Publications

CBEP has been collaborating for over 25 years with a multitude of partners working hard to protect Casco Bay. 2018 brought us new and exciting collaborations.

The Casco Bay Nutrient Council, convened by CBEP, met for almost two years and produced a report that laid a path forward for all partners to tackle nutrient pollution.

CBEP worked closely with the EPA to establish the Casco Bay Monitoring Network, made up of over 20 member organizations, aimed at coordinating and upgrading monitoring in the Bay. The Network is currently updating the Casco Bay Monitoring Plan.

CBEP is an active participant in …

A Decision Support Tool For Building Integrated Renewable Energy Microgrids Connected To A Smart Grid, Damilola A. Asaleye, Michael D. Murphy, Michael Breen

Publications

The objective of this study was to create a tool that will enable renewable energy microgrid (REμG) facility users to make informed decisions on the utilization of electrical power output from a building integrated REμG connected to a smart grid. A decision support tool for renewable energy microgrids (DSTREM) capable of predicting photovoltaic array and wind turbine power outputs was developed. The tool simulated users’ daily electricity consumption costs, avoided CO₂ emissions and incurred monetary income relative to the usage of the building integrated REμG connected to the national electricity smart grid. DSTREM forecasted climate variables, which were used …

Correlation Of Trichome Density And Length And Polyphenol Fluorescence With Susceptibility Of Five Cucurbits To Didymella Bryoniae, Gabriel Rennberger, A. P. Keinath, M. Hess

Publications

The fungal pathogen Didymella bryoniae causes gummy stem blight and black rot on a broad spectrum of cucurbits. However the substantial differences in susceptibility among Cucurbitaceae are not well studied. Susceptibility was characterized with muskmelon (Cucumis melo), watermelon (Citrullus lanatus), cucumber (Cucumis sativus), pumpkin (Cucurbita pepo), and zucchini (C. pepo). Lesion diameters on leaf disks inoculated with agar plugs were measured 7 days after inoculation, and the necrotized areas of leaf disks inoculated with conidial suspensions were measured 48 h after inoculation (hai). For each species, the number of trichomes …

A Revision Of Prespelea Park (Staphylinidae, Pselaphinae), Michael S. Caterino, Laura M. Vásquez-Vélez

Publications

We revise the genus Prespelea Park, redefining and redescribing the two previously known species, P.copelandi Park and P. quirsfeldi Park, and adding ten new species: P. parki Caterino & Vásquez-Vélez, sp. n., P.minima Caterino & Vásquez-Vélez, sp. n., P. morsei Caterino & Vásquez-Vélez, sp. n., P. divergens Caterino & Vásquez-Vélez, sp. n., P. carltoni Caterino & Vásquez-Vélez, sp. n., P. myersae Caterino & Vásquez-Vélez, sp. n., P. georgiensis Caterino & Vásquez-Vélez, sp. n., P. enigma Caterino & Vásquez-Vélez, sp. n., P. wagneriCaterino & Vásquez-Vélez, sp. n., and P. basalis Caterino …