Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Year Long Water Quality Analysis Of White Horn Brook, Kevin Dyer

Senior Honors Projects

KEVIN DYER (Marine Biology)

Year-long Analysis of the Water Quality of White Horn Brook

Sponsor: Thomas Boving (Geological Sciences)

Water is the foundation for all life on earth and is the most vital resource on this planet. Despite this, oceans and waterways all over the world are being polluted and exploited in ways detrimental to their fundamental hydrologic functions. For instance, excess nitrate levels can lead to eutrophication which gives rise to harmful algae blooms. Low pH can cause the breakdown of CaCO3 exoskeletons of organisms, such mollusks. High temperature variations are major stressors to living things and can cause …

Roger Williams Park Edible Forest Garden, Mark S. Scialla

Senior Honors Projects

An edible forest garden is a low-maintenance system that uses edible native and regionally-adapted plants arranged in beneficial relationships to meet human, wildlife and ecosystem needs. The forest garden in Roger Williams Park will transform underutilized urban land into a highly productive parcel producing market-viable fruits, nuts, vegetables, medicine and fiber. Forest gardens mimic natural forest systems in architecture and complexity. The design follows ecological principles to create a system that promotes biodiversity and enhances the surrounding ecosystem. This project also demonstrates the potential to grow food and create land-based livelihoods in the city.

Located on the edge of a …

Facilitating Behavior Change Of Coastal Communities In Regards To Climatic Hazards, Marisa Nixon

Senior Honors Projects

For my Senior Honors Project I participated in the Climate Change Collaborative, which is a new interdisciplinary research project studying the ways in which coastal communities in Rhode Island can better adapt to the environmental, cultural and economic consequences of climate change. As a member of this collaborative, I worked in a vertically integrated team of faculty (psychology researchers, climate scientists and communications science practitioners and researchers) as well as undergraduate and graduate students, to begin an endeavor through which behavior change will be assessed in regards to climate change. For the purposes of this study, we specifically focus on …

A South County Almanac: Recollections And Observations Of The Outdoors In Southern Rhode Island, Nevan Richard

Senior Honors Projects

Since its publication in 1949, “A Sand County Almanac: With Sketches Here and There” has served as the benchmark for writing about the environment and nature. “Sand County” was written by famed environmentalist Aldo Leopold, who for most of his lifetime worked towards the conservation of wildlife and natural resources. In “Sand County,” Aldo Leopold recounts his experiences and observations in various essays and journal entries from his many years of living in Wisconsin, as well his travels across the North American continent. With its publication after Mr. Leopold’s death, it changed the face of the American conservation movement, later …

Records Of Natural Fires And The Sorption Of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (Pahs) By Black Carbon And Carbon Chars In Sediments From Oriole Lake (Sequoia National Park), Kevyn Bollinger

Senior Honors Projects

This project investigates the interaction between Black Carbon and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in lake sediments from Oriole Lake in Sequoia National Park California. The interaction between Black Carbon and PAHs is of interest because little is known with respect to the availability and the time scale within which black carbon adsorbs PAHs in a natural system. Black Carbon and PAHs both will eventually be degraded in the environment but the relevant timescales of sorption and degradation are unknown. Field work for this project was conducted July 16-21, 2007 at Oriole Lake in Sequoia National Park California. Sequoia National Park …

The Katrina Project, Alison Traver

Senior Honors Projects

No abstract provided.

Time Post-Hatch Caloric Value Of Artemia Salina, Jessie M. Sanders

Senior Honors Projects

In aquatic animal collections, such as those in the collection of Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration’s Fish & Invertebrate department, live food is an essential part of the diet of animals that are on display, used in education, and kept in reserve for exhibits. For Mystic Aquarium’s Fish & Invertebrate department, newly hatched Artemia salina, or brine shrimp, are fed to an assortment of fishes and invertebrates, including soft corals and jellyfish. Hatch brine is an important source of fatty acids, which are essential for proper growth and development. Hatch brine starts encapsulated in a cyst form and are …

Nitrogen Inputs To Rhode Island Coastal Salt Ponds - Too Much Of A Good Thing, Scott W. Nixon, Betty A. Buckley

Special Collections (Miscellaneous)

Reviews concerns about increase of nitrogen in Rhode Island salt ponds as a result of human activities.

Importance Of Early Successional Forest For Wildlife In Southern New England, Amy Wynia

Senior Honors Projects

Many bird species that require early successional forest are declining in the Northeast U.S. because such habitat is relatively rare and when they inhabit the more common mature forests or suburban areas they are less successful. Early successional forest is maintained by regular disturbance (wind, fire, clear-cutting, and flooding) which has been happening less frequently during the past 50 years. Bird species that have declined during this time and which inhabit early successional forest include ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus), blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata), chestnut-sided warbler (Dendroica pensylvanica), gray catbird (Dumetella carolinensis), field sparrow (Spizella pusilla), golden-winged warbler (Vermivora chrysoptera), eastern …