Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Impact Of Temperature Increase On Freshwater Fish Species: Energetics And Muscle Mechanics Of Two Centrarchids, Israt Jahan

Masters Theses

Fishes have evolved physiologically to live within a specific range of environmental variation and existence outside of that range can be stressful or fatal. These ranges can coincide for fishes that evolved in similar habitats. This study investigates physiological processes limiting thermal tolerance, specifically how changes in water temperature affect the swimming energetics and muscle mechanics in largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) and bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus). I focused on the impact of temperature change at the muscle level in these two species and the capacity to adapt to rapid changes in the environment. Fish were housed at …

Anthropogenic-Induced Changes To Weather And Climate: An Overview, Robert Cataneo

Masters Theses

Human activities, since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, have caused measurable and significant changes to local and regional weather and climate, as well as to global climate.

There is substantial evidence to show that anthropogenic influences have caused statistically significant changes to local and regional weather and climate, and have played a major role in the 0.6°C increase in global, low level temperature observed in the last 100 years. There is also an abundance of data that establishes a causal relationship between the 32% increase in atmospheric CO₂ concentration that has occurred since the beginning of the Industrial …

A Comparison Of Vertical Velocity Profiles From The Balloon Borne Sounding System And The 915/50 Mhz Radar Wind Profiler/Radio Acoustic Sounding System To Parcel Theory At The Arm Sgp Site, Joshua R. Ravenscraft

Masters Theses

In this study we characterized vertical wind velocity profiles in the troposphere using the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) equipment facility at the Southern Great Plains (SGP) site in Lamont OK established by the Department of Energy (DOE) and administered through Argonne National Laboratories (ANL). Using the Balloon Borne Radio Sonde (BBSS) system launched four times per day, we collected ambient temperature profiles and lapse rates from the period of June to September of

2001. Concurrently the Rass Radar Wind Profiler collected vertical wind speed data at 915 MHz continuously throughout this period. The BBSS data is visualized using a Skew-T …

The Effects Of Beaver-Created Wetlands On Surface Water Quality Of Streams And Rivers In Dupage County, Illinois, Brian Conklin

Masters Theses

Dam construction by beavers creates wetlands which have the potential to improve water quality, especially in areas near urban centers. However, beaver dams may also cause flooding problems which can result in the removal of the beaver(s) and the destruction of their dam. A further understanding of how beaver-created wetlands affect water quality will provide additional data which can be utilized in beaver management decisions.

In this study, 41 chemical parameters were examined from water taken above and below beaver-created wetlands that existed in DuPage County, Illinois between May and September 1991. This study was designed to examine the effects …

Sediment Oxygen Demand In Streams Receiving Sewage Effluent, John J. Schultz

Masters Theses

Sediment oxygen demand is an important factor in determining dissolved oxygen concentrations in streams and rivers subjected to sewage effluents and other sources of organic pollution. Resuspension of sediments during bottom-scouring after periods of heavy precipitation exerts an immediate and increased oxygen demand on the water and is expected to decrease sediment oxygen demand at the site.

Sediment samples were collected monthly from April through November, 1983 from three small streams subjected to sources of organic pollution. The samples collected were arbitrarily categorized into wet and dry period samples based on the total precipitation between collection dates. Sediment oxygen demand …

Raw Water Quality In The New Charleston, Illinois Pump Storage Reservoir, Kevin G. Lookis

Masters Theses

Charleston, Illinois, a city located in east-central Illinois, recently implemented a new concept in a raw water system. Due to storage capacity-sedimentation problems in the old Lake Charleston-Embarras River raw water supply, the Charleston Pump Storage Reservoir was constructed. The new system involved building a dike separating the Lake Charleston impoundment from the Embarras River. Water to increase the storage capacity of the reservoir can now be selectively pumped into the impoundment from the river.

Raw water quality in the reservoir was monitored on a weekly basis for a full year from August, 1981 to August, 1982. The levels of …

Range And Optimum Growth Concentrations Of Phosphate And Nitrate For Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii, Thomas E. Hill

Masters Theses

A study was conducted on the alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii to determine the range and optimum growth concentrations of phosphate and nitrate. There are only a few species of algae for which this type of data is known. Inorganic nutritional data is basic to the understanding of the complexities of phytoplankton ecology and eutrophication.

The "plus" strain of this heterothallic alga was cultured in a TRIS-buffered inorganic medium with various concentrations of sodium phosphate and potassium nitrate and adjusted to a pH of 7.4. The axenic cultures were evaluated at the end of 6 days with a spectrophotometer, at a wavelength …

Water Quality And Benthos Of A Small East Central Illinois Stream, With A Selected Literature Review, Kenneth Lloyd Brummett

Masters Theses

Polecat Creek is an occasionally intermittent stream which drains approximately 18,368 acres in eastern Coles County, Illinois. It travels 15.2 miles through cropland and a partially wooded valley before it enters the Embarrass River 3 miles upstream from Lake Charleston. The stream ranges from 0.5 foot to 5 feet deep at a normal water level, with an average depth of 16 inches. It averages 12 feet wide, with a range from 4 to 20 feet.

A water quality study with 5 stations along the stream was conducted from January 1971 to July 1971. A qualitative benthos study at the same …