Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Minerva 2015, The Honors College

Minerva

This issue of Minerva includes an interview with Honors alumnus and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Bernard Lown; a celebration of retiring Assistant Dean, Barbara Ouellette; and memorial articles celebrating the lives of notable Honors supporters, Betsy Leitch and Dennis Rezendes. Other highlights include a spread on Honors student travel and community engagement; and an article on Honors graduate, Jill Pelto, whose artwork graces the front and back covers of the 2015 Minerva.

Biogeography And Conservation Of Tidal Marsh Bird Communities Across A Changing Landscape, Maureen D. Correll

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Given the current mass extinction crisis and continued fragmentation of resources worldwide, the outlook is dire for global biodiversity. Rising global temperature, sea levels, and storm frequency all create environmental conditions that can drive change in species abundance and distribution across a landscape. Those species reliant upon a single type of habitat and resource for survival, termed “specialists”, are particularly vulnerable to change due to their inability to utilize a variety of resources well. As a result, specialism is now considered one of the dominant factors determining extinction of species. In this dissertation I explore the effects of disturbance on …

Method Development For Vitamin C Quantification In Two Complex Matrices, Hannah D. Hutt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The following liquid chromatographic (LC) method developments and applied research studies were done using two complex food matrices, potatoes and elderberries, which are common to the state of Maine. Potatoes are Maine’s largest agricultural crop, a staple food in most U.S. households, and are, from an analytical standpoint, considered a complex matrix due to the high starch content that can be difficult to remove without degrading or removing nutrients in the process. Elderberries are an emerging crop in the U.S. because of their antioxidant and anti-viral properties and are found growing wild, throughout Maine. Elderberries are also considered a complex …

Individual Tree Measurements From Three-Dimensional Point Clouds, Elias Ayrey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study develops and tests novel methodologies for measuring the attributes of individual trees from three-dimensional point clouds generated from an aerial platform. Recently, advancements in technology have allowed for the acquisition of very high resolution three-dimensional point clouds that can be used to map the forest in a virtual environment. These point clouds can be interpreted to produce valuable forest attributes across entire landscapes with minimal field labor, which can then aid forest managers in their planning and decision making.

Biometrics derived from point clouds are often generated on a plot level, with estimates spanning many meters (rather than …

Evaluation Of A Waistband For Attaching External Radiotransmitters To Anurans, Luke Alexander Groff, Amber Pitt, Robert Baldwin, Aram J K Calhoun, Cynthia Loftin

Publications

Radiotelemetry provides fine-scale temporal and spatial information about an individual's movements and habitat use; however, its use for monitoring amphibians has been restricted by transmitter mass and lack of suitable attachment techniques. We describe a novel waistband for attaching external radiotransmitters to anurans and evaluate the percentages of resulting abrasions, lacerations, and shed transmitters. We used radiotelemetry to monitor movements and habitat use of wood frogs (Lithobates sylvaticus) in 2006 and 2011–2013 in Maine, USA; American toads (Anaxyrus americanus) in 2012 in North Carolina, USA; and, wood frogs, southern leopard frogs (L. sphenocephalus), and green frogs (L. clamitans) in 2012 …

Notes On Contributors

The Catch

No abstract provided.

Ghostshipping, Margot A. Kelley

The Catch

No abstract provided.

Yesterday's Edges: Land, Sea, Sky, Ellen Goldsmith

The Catch

No abstract provided.

Editor's Note, Linda Buckmaster

The Catch

No abstract provided.

Full Issue, Volume Iii

The Catch

No abstract provided.

Old Roots And New Shoots: How Locals And Back-To-The-Landers Remade Maine's Local Food Economy, Eileen Hagerman

Maine History

Back-to-the-landers who relocated to Maine in large numbers during the 1970s often lacked traditional rural skills and encountered a variety of agricultural challenges related to the state’s harsh climate and poor soils. Many who remained on the land often did so, at least initially, because they received support from elderly neighbors who still practiced low-input, small-scale farming. These neighbors tended to freely share their knowledge and skills and, in return, often benefited from the young newcomers’ assistance with laborious on-farm tasks. The newcomers worked with their local allies to form organizations, share knowledge, and coordinate marketing efforts tailored to meet …

Understanding Social Resilience In The Maine Lobster Industry, Teresa R. Johnson, Anna M. Henry

Publications

The Maine lobster Homarus americanus fishery is considered one of the most successful fisheries in the world due in part to its unique comanagement system, the conservation ethic of the harvesters, and the ability of the industry to respond to crises and solve collective-action problems. However, recent threats raise the question whether the industry will be able to respond to future threats as successfully as it has to ones in the past or whether it is now less resilient and can no longer adequately respond to threats. Through ethnographic research and oral histories with fishermen, we examined the current level …

Promotingclimate Change Awareness And Adaptive Planning In Atlantic Fisheries Communities Using Dialogue-Based Participatory Vulnerability Analysis, Mapping, And Collaborative Systems Dynamic Modeling, Thomas Webler, Seth Tuler, Esperanza Stancioff, Elizabeth Fly

University of Maine Office of Research Administration: Grant Reports

The goals for the proposed project are twofold:

• First, the project will improve understandings of how a changing climate will affect fishing communities’ abilities to maintain marine fisheries and the local economies historically dependent upon them.

• Second, the project will investigate the role of a structured dialogue and participatory modeling process to support decision makers in fishing communities addressing consequences, vulnerabilities, and adaptive strategies in a context of climate stressors.

The American Lobster Settlement Index: An Early Warning System?, Maine Sea Grant College Program

Maine Sea Grant Publications

The harvest of American lobsters is the Gulf of Maine’s largest, most valuable, and most iconic fishery. The catch has never been higher, but how long will it last? Fishing communities in eastern Maine and southern Nova Scotia are seeing historically high landings, some five times higher than the 1980s. At the same time, the lobster fishery south of Cape Cod has all but collapsed, plagued by shell disease and stressfully warm summers. It has never been more important to monitor this vital fishery. The American Lobster Settlement Index measures the annual pulse of baby lobsters to rocky nurseries some …