Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Stratified Turbulence In The Nearshore Coastal Ocean: Dynamics And Evolution In The Presence Of Internal Bores, Ryan K. Walter, Michael E. Squibb, C. Brock Woodson, Jeffrey R. Koseff, Stephen G. Monismith

Physics

High-frequency measurements of stratified turbulence throughout the water column were collected over a 2 week period in the nearshore environment of southern Monterey Bay, CA, using a cabled observatory system and an underwater turbulence flux tower. The tower contained a vertical array of acoustic Doppler velocimeters and fast-response conductivity-temperature sensors, providing a nearly continuous data set of turbulent velocity and density fluctuations and a unique look into the stratified turbulence field. The evolution of various turbulence quantities and direct measurements of the vertical turbulent diffusivity is examined in the presence of nearshore internal bores, both in the near-bed region and …

Bayesian Estimation Of Asymmetric Jump-Diffusion Processes, Samuel J. Frame, Cyrus A. Ramezani

Statistics

The hypothesis that asset returns are normally distributed has been widely rejected. The literature has shown that empirical a<>set returns are highly skewed and Ieptokurtic. The affine jump-diffusion (AJD) model improves upon the normal specification by adding a jump component to the price process. Two important extensions proposed by Ramezani and Zeng (1998) and Kou (2002) further improve the AJD specification by having two jump components in the price process, resulting in the asymmetric affine jump-diffusion (AAJD) specification. The AAJD specification allows the probability distribution of the returns to be asymmetrical. That is, the tails of the distribution are …

Leadership - A Lifetime Quest For Excellence, Douglas D. Piirto

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

This paper is written for aspiring leaders and managers. Each of us will be asked to lead, manage, and/or follow at various times and in many different situations in our journey of life. This paper is written to assist aspiring leaders and managers discover and develop their leadership and management abilities.

The paper is organized per the following outline:

• Introduction
• Establishing Credibility
• Enthusiasm and Desirable Habits of Effective People
• Leadership and Management
• Situational Analysis and Leadership Styles
• Leadership as a Student [discussed in Introduction)
• Leadership as a Forest Scientist
• Leadership as a Teacher and Professor
• Leadership as a Department Head …

A Heterogeneous Compute Solution For Optimized Genomic Selection Analysis, Trevor Devore, Scott Kenneth Winkleblack, Bruce Golden, Chris Lupo

Computer Science and Software Engineering

This paper presents a heterogeneous computing solution for an optimized genetic selection analysis tool, GenSel. GenSel can be used to efficiently infer the effects of genetic markers on a desired trait or to determine the genomic estimated breeding values (GEBV) of genotyped individuals. To predict which genetic markers are informational, GenSel performs Bayesian inference using Gibbs sampling, a Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) algorithm. Parallelizing this algorithm proves to be a technically challenging problem because there exists a loop carried dependence between each iteration of the Markov chain. The approach presented in this paper exploits both task-level parallelism (TLP) and …

Exploring The Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay In The Inverted Neutrino Hierarchy With Bolometric Detectors, D.R. Artusa, F.T. Avignone Iii, O. Azzolini, M. Balata, T.I. Banks, G. Bari, J. Beeman, F. Bellini, A. Bersani, M. Biassoni, C. Brofferio, C. Bucci, X.Z. Cai, A. Camacho, L. Canonica, X.G. Cao, S. Capelli, L. Carbone, L. Cardani, M. Carrettoni, N. Casali, D. Chiesa, N. Chott, M. Clemenza, C. Cosmelli, O. Cremonesi, R.J. Creswick, I. Dafinei, A. Dally, V. Datskov, A. De Biasi, M.M. Deninno, S. Di Domizio, M.L. Di Vacri, L. Ejzak, D.Q. Fang, H.A. Farach, M. Faverzani, G. Fernandes, E. Ferri, F. Ferroni, E. Fiorini, M.A. Franceschi, S.J. Freedman, B.K. Fujikawa, A. Giachero, L. Gironi, A. Giuliani, J. Goett, P. Gorla, C. Gotti, T.D. Gutierrez, E.E. Haller, K. Han, K.M. Heeger, R. Hennings-Yeomans, H.Z. Huang, R. Kadel, K. Kazkaz, G. Keppel, Yu. G. Kolomensky, Y.L. Li, C. Ligi, X. Liu, Y.G. Ma, C. Maiano, M. Maino, M. Martinez, R.H. Maruyama, Y. Mei, N. Moggi, S. Morganti, T. Napolitano, S. Nisi, C. Nones, E.B. Norman, A. Nucciotti, T. O'Donnell, F. Orio, D. Orlandi, J.L. Ouellet, M. Pallavicini, V. Palmieri, L. Pattavina, M. Pavan, M. Pedretti, G. Pessina, V. Pettinacci, G. Piperno, C. Pira, S. Pirro, E. Previtali, V. Rampazzo, C. Rosenfeld, C. Rusconi, E. Sala, S. Sangiorgio, N.D. Scielzo, M. Sisti, A.R. Smith, L. Taffarello, M. Tenconi, F. Terranova, W.D. Tian, C. Tomei, S. Trentalange, G. Ventura, M. Vignati, B.S. Wang, H.W. Wang, L. Wielgus, J. Wilson, L.A. Winslow, T. Wise, A. Woodcraft, L. Zanotti, C. Zarra, B.X. Zhu, S. Zucchelli

Physics

Neutrinoless double beta decay (0νββ" style="position: relative;" tabindex="0" id="MathJax-Element-1-Frame">0νββ) is one of the most sensitive probes for physics beyond the Standard Model, providing unique information on the nature of neutrinos. In this paper we review the status and outlook for bolometric 0νββ" style="position: relative;" tabindex="0" id="MathJax-Element-2-Frame">0νββ decay searches. We summarize recent advances in background suppression demonstrated using bolometers with simultaneous readout of heat and light signals. We simulate several configurations of a future CUORE-like bolometer array which would utilize these improvements and present the sensitivity reach of a hypothetical next-generation bolometric 0νββ" style="position: relative;" tabindex="0" id="MathJax-Element-3-Frame">0νββ experiment. …

Boresight Alignment Station, Marco A. Scussat, Richard M. Goeden, Jeffrey S. Scott, Richard G. Lane, Gary B. Hughes

Statistics

A boresight alignment system facilitates aligning a plurality of cameras and/or images of the cameras with respect to one another. The system may have a mount configured to facilitate attachment of a bezel containing a plurality of cameras to the mount. The system may have a plurality of targets and each target may be configured to provide light of at least two different wavelengths and/or ranges of wavelengths. One or more baffles may be disposed optically between the mount and the target assembly to inhibit stray light from being incident upon the cameras.

Fluid-Induced Propulsion Of Rigid Particles In Wormlike Micellar Solutions, David A. Gagnon, Nathan C. Keim, Xiaoning Shen, Paulo E. Arratia

Physics

In the absence of inertia, a reciprocal swimmer achieves no net motion in a viscous Newtonian fluid. Here, using tracking methods and birefringence imaging, we investigate the ability of a reciprocally actuated particle to translate through a complex fluid that possesses a network. A geometrically polar particle, a rod with a bead on one end, is reciprocally rotated using magnetic fields. The particle is immersed in a wormlike micellar (WLM) solution that is known to be susceptible to the formation of shear bands and other localized structures due to shear-induced remodeling of its microstructure. Results show that the nonlinearities present …

Undulatory Swimming In Shear-Thinning Fluids: Experiments With C. Elegans, David A. Gagnon, Nathan C. Keim, Paulo E. Arratia

Physics

The swimming behaviour of microorganisms can be strongly influenced by the rheology of their fluid environment. In this manuscript, we experimentally investigate the effects of shear-thinning viscosity on the swimming behaviour of an undulatory swimmer, the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Tracking methods are used to measure the swimmer’s kinematic data (including propulsion speed) and velocity fields. We find that shear-thinning viscosity modifies the velocity fields produced by the swimming nematode but does not modify the nematode’s speed and beating kinematics. Velocimetry data show significant enhancement in local vorticity and circulation, and an increase in fluid velocity near the nematode’s tail, compared …

First Cuore-0 Performance Results And Status Of Cuore Experiment, L. Canonica, D.R. Artusa, F.T. Avignone Iii, N. Chott, R.J. Crewick, H.A. Farach, S. Newman, C. Rosenfeld, J. Wilson, O. Azzolini, A. Camacho, A. De Biasi, G. Keppel, V. Palmieri, C. Pira, V. Rampazzo, T.I. Banks, S.J. Freedman, L. Kogler, Yu. G. Kolomensky, T. O'Donnell, J.L. Ouellet, T. Bloxham, B.K. Fujikawa, K. Han, Y. Mei, G. Bari, M.M. Deninno, N. Moggi, F. Rimondi, S. Zucchelli, J. Beeman, E.E. Haller, F. Bellini, L. Cardani, C. Cosmelli, R. Faccini, F. Ferroni, G. Piperno, I. Dafinei, S. Morganti, F. Orio, C. Tomei, M. Vignati, A. Bersani, S. Didomizio, G. Fernandes, M. Pallavicini, M. Biassoni, C. Brofferio, S. Capelli, M. Carrettoni, D. Chiesa, M. Clemenza, M. Faverzani, E. Ferri, E. Fiorini, A. Giachero, L. Gironi, C. Gotti, C. Miaino, M. Maino, A. Nucciotti, M. Pavan, E. Sala, M. Sisti, L. Zanotti, L. Carbone, O. Cremonesi, V. Datskov, G. Pessina, S. Pirro, E. Previtali, C. Rusconi, F. Terranova, X.Z. Cai, X. Cao, D.Q. Fang, Y.L. Li, Y.G. Ma, W.D. Tian, H.W. Wang, A. Dally, L. Ejzak, K.M. Heeger, D. Lenz, R.H. Maruyama, L. Wielgus, T. Wise, M.A. Franceschi, C. Ligi, T. Napolitano, A. Guiliani, M. Tenconi, T. D. Gutierrez, E.E. Haller, H.Z. Huang, X. Liu, S. Trentalange, B.X. Zhu, R. Kadel, Yu.G. Kolomensky, K. Kazkaz, E.B. Norman, M. Pedretti, S. Sangiorgio, N.D. Scielzo, B.S. Wang, M. Martinez, C. Nones, F. Rimondi, S. Zucchelli, A.R. Smith, L. Taffarello, G. Ventura, A. Woodcraft

Physics

The CUORE (Cryogenic Underground Observatory for Rare Events) experiment will search for neutrinoless double beta decay in 130" style="position: relative;" tabindex="0" id="MathJax-Element-1-Frame">130Te. Observation of the process would unambiguously establish that neutrinos are Majorana particles as well as provide information about the absolute neutrino mass scale and mass hierarchy.The CUORE setup will consist of an array of 988 tellurium dioxide crystals (containing 206 kg of 130" style="position: relative;" tabindex="0" id="MathJax-Element-2-Frame">130Te in total), operated as bolometers at a temperature of ∼" style="position: relative;" tabindex="0" id="MathJax-Element-3-Frame">∼10 mK. The experiment is now under construction at the Gran Sasso National Laboratory in …

Spatially Resolved Spectra Of The “Teacup” Active Galactic Nucleus: Tracing The History Of A Dying Quasar, J.P. Gagne, D.M. Crenshaw, S.B. Kraemer, H.R. Schmitt, W.C. Keel, S. Rafter, T.C. Fischer, K. Schawinski, V.N Bennert

Physics

The Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Galaxy Zoo project has revealed a number of spectacular galaxies possessing extended emission-line regions (EELRs), the most famous being Hanny’s Voorwerp galaxy. We present another EELR object discovered in the SDSS endeavor: the Teacup active galactic nucleus (AGN). Nicknamed for its EELR, which has a “handle”-like structure protruding 15 kpc into the northeast quadrant of the galaxy. We analyze the physical conditions of this galaxy with long-slit, ground-based spectroscopy from the Lowell, Lick, and KPNO observatories. With the Lowell 1.8 m Perkin’s telescope we took multiple observations at different offset positions, allowing us to …

Directed Energy Active Illumination For Near-Earth Object Detection, Jordan Riley, Philip Lubin, Gary B. Hughes, Hugh O'Neill, Peter Meinhold, Jonathan Suen, J Bible, Isabella E. Johansson, Janelle Griswold, Brianna Cook

Statistics

On 15 February 2013, a previously unknown ~20 m asteroid struck Earth near Chelyabinsk, Russia, releasing kinetic energy equivalent to ~570 kt TNT. Detecting objects like the Chelyabinsk impactor that are orbiting near Earth is a difficult task, in part because such objects spend much of their own orbits in the direction of the Sun when viewed from Earth. Efforts aimed at protecting Earth from future impacts will rely heavily on continued discovery. Ground-based optical observatory networks and Earth-orbiting spacecraft with infrared sensors have dramatically increased the pace of discovery. Still, less than 5% of near-Earth objects (NEOs) 100 m/~100 …

Optical Modeling For A Laser Phased-Array Directed Energy System, Gary B. Hughes, Philip Lubin, Janelle Griswold, Brianna Cook, Durante Bozzini, Hugh O'Neill, Peter Meinhold, Jonathan Suen, J Bible, Jordan Riley, Isabella E. Johansson, Mark Pryor, Miikka Kangas

Statistics

We present results of optical simulations for a laser phased array directed energy system. The laser array consists of individual optical elements in a square or hexagonal array. In a multi-element array, the far-field beam pattern depends on both mechanical pointing stability and on phase relationships between individual elements. The simulation incorporates realistic pointing and phase errors. Pointing error components include systematic offsets to simulate manufacturing and assembly variations. Pointing also includes time-varying errors that simulate structural vibrations, informed from random vibration analysis of the mechanical design. Phase errors include systematic offsets, and time-varying errors due to both mechanical vibration …

De-Starlite: A Directed Energy Planetary Defense Mission, Kelly Kosmo, Mark Pryor, Philip Lubin, Gary B. Hughes, Hugh O'Neill, Peter Meinhold, Jonathan Suen, Jordan Riley, Janelle Griswold, Brianna Vail Cook, Isabella E. Johansson, Qicheng Zhang, Kevin Walsh, Carl Melis, Miikka Kangas, J Bible, Caio Motta, Travis Brashears, Shana Mathew, Justin Bollag

Statistics

This paper presents the motivation behind and design of a directed energy planetary defense system that utilizes laser ablation of an asteroid to impart a deflecting force on the target. The proposed system is called DE-STARLITE for Directed Energy System for Targeting of Asteroids and ExploRation – LITE as it is a small, stand-on unit of a larger standoff DE-STAR system. Pursuant to the stand-on design, ion engines will propel the spacecraft from low-Earth orbit (LEO) to the near-Earth asteroid (NEA). During laser ablation, the asteroid itself becomes the "propellant"; thus a very modest spacecraft can deflect an asteroid much …

Multiple Transient Memories In Experiments On Sheared Non-Brownian Suspensions, Joseph D. Paulsen, Nathan Keim, Sidney R. Nagel

Physics

A system with multiple transient memories can remember a set of inputs but subsequently forgets almost all of them, even as they are continually applied. If noise is added, the system can store all memories indefinitely. The phenomenon has recently been predicted for cyclically sheared non-Brownian suspensions. Here we present experiments on such suspensions, finding behavior consistent with multiple transient memories and showing how memories can be stabilized by noise.

Transcritical Generation Of Nonlinear Internal Waves In The Presence Of Background Shear Flow, Marek Stastna, Ryan Walter

Physics

While the occurrence of large amplitude internal waves in the Earth's natural bodies of water is widely documented, the generation of these waves remains an active area of exploration. We discuss numerical simulations of transcritical flows of a density stratified fluid with a dual focus on the role of a background shear current and transitions of the background current from super to subcritical. We demonstrate that the presence of a background shear can lead to the formation of large quasi-trapped regions of high vorticity over the downstream slope of the topography, but that this vorticity leads to only moderate perturbations …

Is There Progress Toward Sustainability?: Despite The Inherent Human Resistance To Change., Jens Pohl

Collaborative Agent Design (CAD) Research Center

The theme of this paper is to briefly survey the status of current efforts to maintain our natural environment and then discuss prospects for achieving future sustainability. The author finds that while there has been general recognition of the need for environmental sensitivity and conservation of natural resources, progress toward achieving sustainability goals has been slow. A principal reason for this lack of action is found in the reactive nature of the human species. Situated by biological design in our environment we typically respond to environmental changes only after they have occurred. Accordingly, while a number of revolutionary proposals have …

Laboratory Evaluation Of Black Carbon Deposition Onto Snow And Transport Via Snowmelt, Larry D. Hermanson, Joshua P. Schwarz

STAR Program Research Presentations

Black carbon (BC) is an aerosol material produced by incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and biomass. BC has been shown to be the second most important anthropogenic climate warming agent after carbon dioxide due to its ability to absorb solar radiation, influence cloud behavior, and accelerate snow melt. BC in otherwise clean snow can significantly reduce its reflectivity. In order to learn about the significance of BC contamination in snow, we explored the deposition of BC onto snow and the transport of BC in snow during snowmelt. A Single Particle Soot Photometer (SP2), was used to measure the concentration and …

Remote Exploration: Understanding Martian Surface Processes, Sarah M. Bass, Virginia C. Gulick, Natalie Glines, Patrick Freeman

STAR Program Research Presentations

Earth and Mars share many similar physical features, including canyons, valleys, craters, volcanoes, ice, and gullies. My research focuses on two distinct projects. The first concentrates on the formation of gullies, which are channel networks generally formed on mid-latitude crater walls on Mars. Debated gully-forming processes include the melting of snowpacks, sublimation of accumulated carbon dioxide frost, melting of snow-rich dusty mantle material, and groundwater flows. Using High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) images of gullies and working with Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) in ENVI, we are able to perform detailed studies of gully morphology, including volume calculations using slope, …

Laser Frequency Stabilization For Lisa, Andrew B. Parker, Andrew J. Sutton, Glenn De Vine

STAR Program Research Presentations

This research focuses on laser ranging developments for LISA (Laser Interferometer Space Antenna), a planned NASA-ESA gravitational wave detector in space. LISA will utilize precision laser interferometry to track the changes in separation between three satellites orbiting 5 million kilometers apart. Specifically, our goal is to investigate options for laser frequency stabilization. Previous research has shown that an optical cavity system can meet LISA's stability requirements, but these units are large and heavy, adding cost to the implementation. A heterodyne Mach-Zehnder interferometer could be integrated onto LISA’s existing optical bench, greatly reducing the weight, provided the interferometer meets the stability …

Environmental Testing Of Lasers For Jpl's Cold Atom Laboratory, Carey L. Baxter

STAR Program Research Presentations

NASA’s Cold Atom Lab (CAL) is a multi-user facility designed to study ultra-cold quantum gases in the microgravity environment of the International Space Station (ISS). One of the main goals of CAL is to explore the unknown territory of extremely low temperatures—possibly as low as the picokelvin range!—where new and fascinating quantum phenomena can be observed. At such temperatures matter stops behaving as particles and instead becomes macroscopic matter waves. CAL will be remotely controlled to perform a multitude of experiments and is scheduled to launch in 2016. In order to anticipate problems that might occur during and post-launch, including …

A Prototype Microwave Cavity Control Circuit For Use In Next Generation Free Electron Laser, Josh Thompson, Peter Neal Barrina, Jiayi Jiang, Joe Frisch, Steve Smith, Daniel Van Winkle

STAR Program Research Presentations

One of the current programs at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory is the Linac Coherent Light Source, or LCLS. Using the existing hardware of the last third of their linear accelerator (or “linac”), SLAC has created one of the most energetic X-ray free electron lasers (or “FEL”). Since 2009, LCLS has used this FEL to perform a wide range of experiments across all sciences, most notably ultrafast filming at the molecular scale. As requests for beam-time with this laser increases, SLAC is purposing a linac upgrade to better match this demand. This upgrade, named LCLS-II, will replace existing copper radio frequency …

Assessing The Influence Of Mineral Surface Chemistry On Soil Organic Matter Stability In The Us In Response To Climate Change, Alexandra Toledo, Katherine Heckman

STAR Program Research Presentations

Soils represent a significant pool for carbon storage and sequestration. Previous field experiments have indicated that some mineral compositions are more effective in preserving soil organic matter (SOM) from microbial degradation. Due to climate change, it is important to quantify which soil types are changing in mineral surface chemistry. One way to do that is by differentiating the SOM stabilization mechanisms in different soil types at various depths. This study focused on examining the distribution of soil mass and composition by the soils density and mineral classification and the soils stability by measuring the amount of carbon and radiocarbon abundance. …

Using Remote Sensing Data To Predict The Spread Of Mosquito Borne Disease, Mary Ellen O'Donnell, Erika Podest

STAR Program Research Presentations

There is interest in how environmental variables derived from satellite data such as temperature, vegetation cover, and precipitation correlate to vector borne disease occurrence such as malaria and dengue fever. This study will be carried out using a decision tree based open source software called Random Forests to find correlations between the remote sensing variables and mosquito abundance. Software will be written in C# to take large amounts of data from the NASA satellite database and automatically format it for the Random Forest Software input. Correlations found, using Random Forests, between disease incidence and the variables can be used as …

Hunting Starstuff: Searching For Calcium-Aluminum-Rich Inclusions In Cometary Dust, Christian Engelbrecht

STAR Program Research Presentations

NASA’s Stardust mission (1999 - 2006) returned physical samples of the particles ejected by the comet 81P/Wild 2, collected in ultralight and extremely low density aerogel. These samples have been extensively analyzed using X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF), among other techniques, to determine the elemental, chemical and mineralogical composition of Wild 2. Because comets are thought to be formed in the icy outer regions of the solar system, billions of years ago, the Stardust data gives us details of the composition of the ancient solar system and its subsequent evolution. One of the surprises to come out of the data is the …

Salinity And Temperature Distribution Of Jellyfish In The San Francisco Estuary, Trisha Huynh, Brooke Bemowski, Lindsay Sullivan, Wim Kimmerer

STAR Program Research Presentations

Jellyfish are generally characterized by their jelly-like bodies and internal lining (two tissue layers). They found both in the phylum Ctenophora and the phylum Cnidaria. Ctenophores differ from cnidarians primarily due to the rows of “combs”, or cilia, which are used for transportation. Additionally, ctenophores possess sticky cells while cindarians possess stinging cells. Jellyfish depend on zooplankton (small floating aquatic animals) as a food source; as a result, they are potential competitors and predators to plankton-eating fish and may negatively impact fish populations.

As recently as 1950, jellyfish have entered the San Francisco Bay from the Mediterranean Sea (probably …

Maximizing Precision Of Variable Star Photometry With Digital Cameras In Suburban Environments, David Hergesheimer

STAR Program Research Presentations

Photometry is the measure of the brightness of an object. When making such measurements on stars, it is done is units of magnitude, which is on a logarithmic scale with a base of ~2.512. Variable star photometry using a commercially available digital camera is not going to be as accurate and precise as equipment used by astronomers, and because of the logarithmic scale of magnitude used, determining how much of an effect different error reduction strategies have is not straightforward, and is best done experimentally.

My research is conducting photometry on variable stars (changing brightness) with a digital camera, and …

Measuring K-Shell Transitions In L-Shell Ions Of Aluminum Using Llnl Ebit, Grecia Ramos

STAR Program Research Presentations

We measured the transition energies of the 1s-2p Kα transitions in Al4+ through Al11+. The aluminum ions were created and trapped using the LLNL’s Electron Beam Ion Trap (EBIT). Once created and trapped, upper levels were collisionally excited by electrons in EBIT's electron beam. X-ray emission following radiative decay of excited levels was detected using the EBIT Calorimeter Spectrometer (ECS). We have measured the centroids of the strongest lines to an accuracy of less than 1 eV. These results will be used to properly identify line emission from celestial x-ray sources, such as elliptical galaxy NGC 4472 and black hole …

The Power Plant Mapping Student Project, Kelsey Tayne, Tom Oda

STAR Program Research Presentations

The Power Plant Mapping Student Project: Bringing Citizen Science to Schools

Kelsey Tayne¹, Tom Oda²

¹STEM Teacher and Researcher (STAR) Fellow, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA 94132

²NOAA ESRL, Global Monitoring Division, Boulder, CO 80303

Emissions inventory (EI) is a conventional tool to monitor changes in anthropogenic emissions and can visually show geographical patterns of emission changes. The EI community is aware of significant errors in the geographical locations of point sources, including power plants. The Power Plant Mapping Student Project (PPMSP) is a platform designed for students in 4^th through 12 …

Geochemical Analysis Of Ice Age River Deposits From Turlock Lake Formation, Cemex Quarry Fresno, Ca, Ray J. Bargas

STAR Program Research Presentations

Nineteen bags of Pleistocene Age river deposited samples were taken from the Cemex Quarry in Fresno, CA. There are three formations in the area, deposited from rivers derived from glaciers, consisting of the Modesto, Riverbank, and Turlock Lake; youngest deposited to oldest respectively.

Phi sizes refer to each of the individual grains diameter, larger sized grains are in the negative spectrum while smaller grains are positive. Each sample has phi size bags that range in sizes from -5 to 4+, excluding phi size -2. For the phi sizes of -3 to -5, each individual rock was measured on its three …

Phylogenetic Diversity Of Microbial Isolates From The Mars Pathfinder, Kyla Bradylong, Adriana Blachowicz, Parag Vaishampayan, James N. Benardini, Wayne Schubert

STAR Program Research Presentations

As spacecraft are sent to different planets, they take with them microscopic pieces of life from Earth. It is the task of the Biotechnology and Planetary Protection Group to keep as much of this life off other planets as possible as well as document any life that may have been sent. During the construction of the Mars Pathfinder, samples were collected from various locations on the spacecraft to test for contamination. These samples were then isolated, grown, documented, preserved and their 16S rRNA genes were sequenced for identification. The 16S rRNA gene sequence is utilized because it is a highly …