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Articles 1 - 21 of 21
Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Sediment And Vegetation Monitoring During A Levee Removal Project On The Stillaguamish River Delta At Port Susan Bay, Wa, Alec Barber
WWU Graduate School Collection
Sea levels around the world are on the rise in due to the effects of climate change. Coastal wetlands and estuaries are at risk of being submerged as water levels continue to increase, unless they can move inland or gain surface elevation. These wetland systems provide vital ecosystem services that would be difficult or impossible to provide by other means. In the Puget Sound, Washington, 80% of the original estuarine and coastal wetland habitat has been replaced by human infrastructure, making the monitoring, preservation, and restoration of the remaining stock important both ecologically and economically. The objective of this project …
Exploring A Ring-Closing Metathesis Approach To The Archazolids, Brianne R. King
Exploring A Ring-Closing Metathesis Approach To The Archazolids, Brianne R. King
WWU Graduate School Collection
The archazolids are a complex family of natural products with distinct structural features. Inspired by these unique structural characteristics, our group sought to synthesize an analogue of this family, dihydroarchazolid B. We were encouraged to synthesize this analogue due to its high potential to be a potent cytotoxic agent against the vacuolar-type ATPases (V-ATPases) and because it is a simpler analogue than the parent natural products from a synthetic perspective. Within this work, a ring-closing metathesis (RCM) approach was explored in depth towards the completion of our target. From these efforts, a metathesis deactivating stereotriad was uncovered in a key …
Synthetic Studies On Guaipyridine Alkaloids, Patrick M. M. (Patrick Michael Mcphee) Shelton
Synthetic Studies On Guaipyridine Alkaloids, Patrick M. M. (Patrick Michael Mcphee) Shelton
WWU Graduate School Collection
The guaipyridines are a class of naturally occurring alkaloids isolated from plants native to the Pacific Islands and Southeast Asia. One member of this family, cananodine, has displayed potent in vitro cytotoxic effects against two different types of hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines. More recently discovered guaipyridine compounds, rupestines A-M, share structural similarities to cananodine and might possess similar anti-cancer properties. The potential medical benefits and the rare and interesting structure of the guaipyridines make them desirable and challenging synthetic targets. Two distinct synthetic routes were developed to access the guaipyridine core, and in doing so the total synthesis of cananodine …
Temperature And Moisture Effects On Respiration In The Organic Horizon Of A Pacific Northwest Forest Soil, Hanna M. (Hanna Maria) Winter
Temperature And Moisture Effects On Respiration In The Organic Horizon Of A Pacific Northwest Forest Soil, Hanna M. (Hanna Maria) Winter
WWU Graduate School Collection
Ecosystem responses to temperature and moisture influence whether terrestrial ecosystems act as sources or sinks of atmospheric CO2, an important greenhouse gas. Soil respiration—defined here as microbial release of CO2 during decomposition—is a key process of CO2 release to the atmosphere. This study focused on the response of soil respiration to temperature, moisture, and their interaction, and developed quantitative models to describe the nature of this interactive effect. This study addressed several underexamined components of the temperature and moisture effect on C and N dynamics: organic soils, multiple soil layers, a broad range of moistures, and a relevant, lowtemperature range. …
Systematic Analysis Of Terrestrial Carbon Stocks In A Small Catchment Of The Kolyma Watershed, Kathryn E. (Kathryn Eliazbeth) Heard
Systematic Analysis Of Terrestrial Carbon Stocks In A Small Catchment Of The Kolyma Watershed, Kathryn E. (Kathryn Eliazbeth) Heard
WWU Graduate School Collection
With the strongest climate warming occurring and predicted in the high-latitudes, understanding arctic carbon (C) cycling and the feedback of terrestrial C pools is increasingly important. Arctic terrestrial ecosystems comprise about one-third of the global terrestrial ecosystem C total with most of the C stored in soils, making the response of arctic systems to accelerated warming an issue of global concern. For this research, above- and belowground C stocks were quantified in a small catchment of the Kolyma River watershed in northeastern Siberia, with the primary goal of contributing to a more precise estimate of arctic C pools. Eighteen sites …
Effectiveness Of Time-Lapse Videos As A Method To Teach Rates Of Surface Geological Processes, Zachary P. Schierl
Effectiveness Of Time-Lapse Videos As A Method To Teach Rates Of Surface Geological Processes, Zachary P. Schierl
WWU Graduate School Collection
Understanding the wide range of rates at which geological processes operate can be challenging for introductory geology students, and yet is crucial to understanding how the Earth’s landscapes evolve over time. Research has shown that student misconceptions in this area are common. Time-lapse videos can capture processes that cannot be observed by students in the field and offer promise as a way to improves student understanding of rates of landscape evolution on certain timescales. This thesis explores the effectiveness of using time-lapse videos to teach intro geology students about the rates of surficial geological processes compared to before/after photo pairs …
Dietary Characteristics Of Juvenile Trout And Char In Seasonally Inundated Stream Segments In Ross Lake, Washington, Emily Derenne
Dietary Characteristics Of Juvenile Trout And Char In Seasonally Inundated Stream Segments In Ross Lake, Washington, Emily Derenne
WWU Graduate School Collection
I investigated available prey items and the diet characteristics of juvenile fishes in three seasonally inundated tributaries to Ross Lake, Washington from March through June, 2013. Native fishes include Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), Bull Trout (Salvelinus confluentus), and Dolly Varden (Salvelinus malma). Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii), Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) and Redside Shiner (Richardsonious balteatus) comprise the introduced fishes in the lake. Both Cutthroat Trout and Redside Shiner are native to Washington, but not Ross Lake. Juvenile Bull Trout, Rainbow Trout, and Brook Trout are known to feed on items along the bottom of lakes or streams, such as larval …
Sediment And Phosphorus Inputs From Perennial Streams To Lake Whatcom, Northwestern Washington State, Katherine Beeler
Sediment And Phosphorus Inputs From Perennial Streams To Lake Whatcom, Northwestern Washington State, Katherine Beeler
WWU Graduate School Collection
Nutrient enrichment presents a common problem in lakes and streams by promoting algae growth and the depletion of dissolved oxygen. Lake Whatcom in northwestern Washington State is subject to a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) to limit phosphorus input. The 20-km2 lake is supported by runoff from numerous perennial streams in a steep, 125-km2, moderately developed, forested watershed. Much of the phosphorus entering the lake is adsorbed to suspended sediment in streams and is transported to the lake during storm events. Understanding sediment and phosphorus transport to the lake is important for managing the TMDL and for maintaining water quality …
High-Resolution Lidar Mapping And Analysis To Quantify Surface Movement Of Swift Creek Landslide, Whatcom County, Wa, Benjamin R. Ferreira
High-Resolution Lidar Mapping And Analysis To Quantify Surface Movement Of Swift Creek Landslide, Whatcom County, Wa, Benjamin R. Ferreira
WWU Graduate School Collection
I investigated the applicability of using terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) to quantify surface displacement of the Swift Creek landslide, an active earth flow in the foothills of northwest Washington State. Five surveys were completed from October, 2009-April, 2011 to identify and measure spatial and temporal changes in the movement of the landslide. The seasonally variable movement patterns at the site provide an ideal environment to test the effectiveness of newly emerging methods to measure surface displacement. Iterative closest point (ICP) analysis and image cross-correlation via particle image velocimetry (PIV) were applied to sequential TLS datasets to identify and match features …
Pedagogy For Restoration: Addressing Social And Ecological Degradation Through Education, David Krzesni
Pedagogy For Restoration: Addressing Social And Ecological Degradation Through Education, David Krzesni
WWU Graduate School Collection
This work seeks to understand the conditions leading the degradation of Earth in order to discover pedagogy for restoration. The degradation of natural environments and of social conditions is identified as a significantly anthropogenic process. This suggests that degradation of Earth is a moral issue and thus human morality and its development are explored in depth. Individual moral development is found to be deeply related to socialization and provides insight into how and why we fail to live to our potential as a naturally moral species. However, through education we can achieve a greater potential. This process cannot be scripted, …
Block Copolymer Templated Bimetallic Nanoparticles For Fuel Cell Applications, Kyle Mikkelsen
Block Copolymer Templated Bimetallic Nanoparticles For Fuel Cell Applications, Kyle Mikkelsen
WWU Graduate School Collection
This study explored the use of a block copolymer, polystyrene-block-poly(4-vinylpyridine), as a template for the synthesis of platinum-gold bimetallic nanoparticles. The polymer forms spherical micelles in solution which can be cast onto a substrate and subsequently undergo film reconstruction in an orthogonal solvent. The film is then placed into an acidic bath containing varying ratios of K2PtCl6 and KAuCl4 to load metals into the film. The nanoparticles are then formed by a reactive argon ion etch to remove polymer and reduce metal salts to a metal (0) state. The polymer selected had a polystyrene to poly(4-vinylpyridine) ratio …
Influence Of Watershed And Soil Parameters On Water Quality In Fifty Western Washington Lakes, Susan F. (Susan Farmer) Horton
Influence Of Watershed And Soil Parameters On Water Quality In Fifty Western Washington Lakes, Susan F. (Susan Farmer) Horton
WWU Graduate School Collection
The purpose of my study was to find reliable patterns in the data that linked watershed characteristics to water quality. The project area was regional in scope, spanning two very different ecoregions, involving 50 lakes many of which have been sampled for 7 years. I found highly significant correlations (Kendall's tau > 0.500, pvalue < 0.001) between total phosphorus, chlorophyll α, total nitrogen, and turbidity. Total phosphorus, chlorophyll α, total nitrogen, and turbidity also strongly correlated with mean and maximum lake depths. I also found highly significant correlations between watershed area, fetch, road length, and population. Road length and population were the parameters that best described residential development in my study. By evaluating lake water quality with regard to total phosphorus, chlorophyll α, and using road length and population as indicators of development, I identified lakes that were at-risk due to development within the watersheds and the likelihood of nutrient resuspension. The most at-risk lake was Reed Lake. Currently Reed Lake is at the high end of the mesotrophic range, but it is at risk of becoming more permanently eutrophic due to the pressures of development on the water quality exacerbated by the likelihood of nutrient resuspension. Using clustering analysis based on principal components, the watersheds in my study formed three stable groups that were related to water quality and lake and watershed morphology. The extent to which soils affect water quality in these lakes was not fully revealed by the results of my work and is worthy of further investigation.
Mycorrhizal Availability In The Basin Of Lake Mills And Influence On Colonization And Growth Of Salix Scouleriana Under Drought Stress, Andrew Cortese
Mycorrhizal Availability In The Basin Of Lake Mills And Influence On Colonization And Growth Of Salix Scouleriana Under Drought Stress, Andrew Cortese
WWU Graduate School Collection
In September 2011, the removal of two dams on the Elwha River was initiated as part of the largest dam removal project in history. The drainage of Lakes Mills and Aldwell exposed 300 hectares of reservoir bottom. Reestablishment of native vegetation in the lakebeds is critical for the restoration of ecosystem function, but the reservoir sediment composition may inhibit revegetation due to poor water holding capacity. It is known that mycorrhizae can ameliorate the effects of drought stress for host plants but little is known about their availability in the Lake Mills basin. In my project, I first assessed the …
Magnetostratigraphy And Block Rotation Of The Mecca Hills, Ca, Graham T. (Graham Thomas) Messe
Magnetostratigraphy And Block Rotation Of The Mecca Hills, Ca, Graham T. (Graham Thomas) Messe
WWU Graduate School Collection
The sedimentary Palm Spring Formation crops out in the Mecca Hills, CA and preserves valuable information about the evolution of the San Andreas fault system in the transtentional Salton Trough. Constraining the timing of deposition for the Palm Spring Formation upper unit is useful for estimating timing of basin development due to fault motions. Magnetostratigraphic correlation is used as the most viable means of dating this sequence because the unit lacks well constrained age indicative fossils and strata. Paleomagnetic analysis is also used to constrain the amount of vertical axis rotation that the region has undergone within the southern San …
Calculating Risk Change With Management Actions Using Bayesian Networks For The South River, Virginia, Usa, Annie F. (Annie Franklin) Johns
Calculating Risk Change With Management Actions Using Bayesian Networks For The South River, Virginia, Usa, Annie F. (Annie Franklin) Johns
WWU Graduate School Collection
Ecological managers often implement one or more management options to manage risk without the direct integration of a quantitative risk assessment and evaluation of management alternatives. Throughout the decision making process a manager should consider multiple stressors as well as stressor interactions and the resulting effects. In my study, I used Bayesian networks in a relative risk assessment model framework (BN-RRM) to integrate two management options into existing risk assessment models for biotic endpoints and water quality endpoints in the mercury contaminated site, South River, VA. The two management options assessed were agricultural best management practices (BMPs) and bank stabilization. …
Age, Origin, And Tectonic Evolution Of The Yellow Aster Complex: Northwest Washington State, Eric A. (Eric Adam) Hoffnagle
Age, Origin, And Tectonic Evolution Of The Yellow Aster Complex: Northwest Washington State, Eric A. (Eric Adam) Hoffnagle
WWU Graduate School Collection
The Yellow Aster Complex in northwest Washington is a basement portion of the Chilliwack composite terrane and appears throughout the western foothills of the North Cascades as fault bounded tectonic blocks (Brown, 1987; Brown et al. 2010). This study was undertaken in part to refine and understand the significance of the depositional, magmatic, and metamorphic history of the Yellow Aster Complex. Field work and petrographic analyses reveal that the Yellow Aster Complex consists of calc-silicate and quartzo-feldspathic paragneisses with minor amounts of marble and quartzite. Leucocratic and mafic intrusions are also present throughout the terrane. Zircons from six Yellow Aster …
Estimating Sediment Yield From The Swift Creek Landslide, Whatcom County, Washington State, Curtis R. Clement
Estimating Sediment Yield From The Swift Creek Landslide, Whatcom County, Washington State, Curtis R. Clement
WWU Graduate School Collection
The amount of suspended sediment carried by streams in mountainous watersheds is an important factor in environmental and engineering planning, especially when the material happens to be of toxic nature. The Swift Creek watershed contains a deep-seated landslide composed of weathered serpentinite, which includes chrysotile (capable of asbestiform morphology), chlorite, illite, and hydrotalcite. The United States Environmental Protection Agency has determined that the asbestiform material contains particles of sufficient size and quantity that could be hazardous to human health. The suspended sediment load from Swift Creek is primarily influence by the steep, disturbed and unvegetated toe of the landslide which …
A Geochemical Study Of The Riddle Peaks Gabbro, North Cascades: Evidence For Amphibole Accumulation In The Mid-Crust Of An Arc, Angela C. Cota
A Geochemical Study Of The Riddle Peaks Gabbro, North Cascades: Evidence For Amphibole Accumulation In The Mid-Crust Of An Arc, Angela C. Cota
WWU Graduate School Collection
Mid-crustal arc rocks are not commonly exposed, hampering our understanding of magma differentiation processes and mineral crystallization in the mid-crust of arc systems. This thesis presents results of the study of one exposed mid-crustal arc pluton, which is a unique laboratory to understand the geochemical effects of crystallization in this type of system. I report on the major and trace element characteristics of amphibole, plagioclase, and apatite in hornblendite and hornblende gabbro cumulates from the ~44 km2 Riddle Peaks pluton (~77 Ma) in the North Cascades Crystalline Core (NCCC), Washington. Electron microprobe and laser ablation-induced mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS), coupled with …
Deoxygenation Properties Of Ru-Based Phosphide Catalysts, Bo Carrillo
Deoxygenation Properties Of Ru-Based Phosphide Catalysts, Bo Carrillo
WWU Graduate School Collection
Bio-oil derived from fast pyrolysis of bio-mass is becoming a more viable option for addressing the growing demand for oil while being more environmentally friendly than fossil fuels. However, bio-oils have poor chemical stability and high acidity due to their high oxygen content. Metal phosphides such as ruthenium phosphide (Ru2P) have been investigated by the Bussell group to catalytically upgrade compounds contained in bio-oil, but further optimization is required before their commercial viability can be accessed. In current research, less expensive, more abundant metals (Co or Ni) are being used to replace some of the ruthenium, which is both expensive …
Doped Quantum Dot Luminescent Solar Concentrators, Christian S. (Christian Soren) Erickson
Doped Quantum Dot Luminescent Solar Concentrators, Christian S. (Christian Soren) Erickson
WWU Graduate School Collection
Optical concentration has the potential to lower the cost of solar energy conversion by reducing photovoltaic cell area and increasing photovoltaic efficiency. Luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) offer an attractive approach to combined spectral and spatial concentration of both specular and diffuse light without expensive solar tracking, but they have been plagued by luminophore self-absorption losses which limit them from achieving their full potential. This thesis introduces doped semiconductor nanocrystals as a new class of phosphors for use in LSCs. In proof-of-concept experiments, visibly transparent, ultraviolet-selective luminescent solar concentrators have been prepared using colloidal Mn2+-doped II-VI semiconductor nanocrystals that …
Quantifying Submarine Eruptive Flux From Interpretation Of Hydroacoustic Signals, West Mata Volcano, Lau Basin, Chelsea J. (Chelsea Joy) Mack
Quantifying Submarine Eruptive Flux From Interpretation Of Hydroacoustic Signals, West Mata Volcano, Lau Basin, Chelsea J. (Chelsea Joy) Mack
WWU Graduate School Collection
West Mata is a submarine volcano in the northeast Lau Basin. Hydroacoustic data from a 5-month period provide insight into the nature of eruptive behavior at this volcano. Previous studies have used acoustic data to estimate the eruption velocity at subaerial volcanoes (Woulff and McGetchin, 1976; Vergniolle et al., 2004; Vergniolle and Caplan- Auerbach, 2004, 2006; Caplan-Auerbach et al., 2010). In this study, the hydroacoustic data from West Mata are used to calculate eruption velocities and volumes (both lava and gas) for explosions during the 5-month hydrophone deployment. The method used in this study, developed by Vergniolle and Caplan-Auerbach (2006), …