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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Fdi And Environmental Externalities In Southeast Asia, Kevin Bloodworth May 2023

Fdi And Environmental Externalities In Southeast Asia, Kevin Bloodworth

Undergraduate Honors Theses

In this paper I explore the relationship between foreign direct investment (FDI) and deforestation in Cambodia. Through an event study framework, I show that economic land concessions have a negative relationship with tree cover, over time, having stronger and stronger negative effects. This relationship is more pronounced in foreign economic land concessions when compared to domestic economic land concessions. Through the use of a difference in differences research design I examine the relationship between foreign and domestic concessions through the implementation of a ELC concession ban. The ban only led to worsening levels of deforestation within the borders of foreign …


Development Of 3d And 360 Gis-Based Models To Visualize Projected Sea Level Rise In Coastal Virginia, Candice M. Vinson Jan 2023

Development Of 3d And 360 Gis-Based Models To Visualize Projected Sea Level Rise In Coastal Virginia, Candice M. Vinson

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

Science communication is a skill that can be strengthened with practice. Like any skill, it helps to know what you need to practice in order to get better at it. When presenting information to an audience, the skill of science communication comes into play as early as the first draft of a presentation. As you think about how you will tell your story to the audience, you likely consider including text on slides, images, graphs, maps, or even videos. However, it is crucial to remember that accessibility barriers are something we must often consciously work to rid our presentations of, …


Asking For Forgiveness: Negotiating The Creation Of Memory Through Public Memorialization, Alyssa Castronuovo May 2022

Asking For Forgiveness: Negotiating The Creation Of Memory Through Public Memorialization, Alyssa Castronuovo

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The practice of spatializing culture, or “examining space through theories of embodiment, discourse translocality, and effect,” localizes the global and separates hegemonic narratives of space from how it is actually utilized by the people who interact with it. Setha Low argues that this perspective is especially useful to the anthropologist committed to challenging the discipline’s historically eurocentric approach to studying culture. She writes that a spatial focus “[draws] on the strengths of studying people in situ, producing rich and nuanced sociospatial understandings.” This project began with an interest in theorists such as Edward Soja, Michel de Certeau, and Henri Lefebvre, …


Filling In The Gaps: Applications Of Deep Learning, Satellite Imagery, And High Performance Computing For The Estimation And Distribution Of Geospatial Data, Seth Goodman Jan 2020

Filling In The Gaps: Applications Of Deep Learning, Satellite Imagery, And High Performance Computing For The Estimation And Distribution Of Geospatial Data, Seth Goodman

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

Many regions around the world suffer from a lack of authoritatively-collected data on factors critical to understanding human well-being. This challenges our ability to understand the progress society is making towards reducing poverty, improving lifespans, or otherwise improving livelihoods. A growing body of research is exploring how deep learning algorithms can be used to produce novel estimates of sparse development data, and how access to such data can impact development efforts. This dissertation contributes to this literature in three parts. First, using Landsat 8 satellite imagery and data from the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, convolutional neural networks …


Human Induced Cyclical Erosion Due To Altered Sediment Bypassing Mechanisms Of A Barrier Island And The Resultant Impact On The Housing Market, Andrew R. Fallon Jan 2015

Human Induced Cyclical Erosion Due To Altered Sediment Bypassing Mechanisms Of A Barrier Island And The Resultant Impact On The Housing Market, Andrew R. Fallon

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.


Development Of A Large-Scale Storm Surge And High-Resolution Sub-Grid Inundation Model For Coastal Flooding Applications: A Case Study During Hurricane Sandy, Jon Derek Loftis Jan 2014

Development Of A Large-Scale Storm Surge And High-Resolution Sub-Grid Inundation Model For Coastal Flooding Applications: A Case Study During Hurricane Sandy, Jon Derek Loftis

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

Coastal inundation initiated via storm surge by hurricanes and nor'easters along the U.S. East Coast is a substantial threat to residential properties, community infrastructure, and human life. During and after the storm, compounding with heavy precipitation and upland drainage, inundation can be caused by the combination of storm surge and river-induced inland flooding in various locations throughout the coastal plain. Thus, coastal inundation can be expanded from the open coast upstream into the tributaries of the New York Bay including the Hudson and East River systems. Given the cross-disciplinary nature of the dynamics (encompassing hydraulics, oceanography, and hydrology), and the …


From The Middle Of Nowhere: Place-Making On My Supermodern American Road, Maxwell Allen Werner Jan 2013

From The Middle Of Nowhere: Place-Making On My Supermodern American Road, Maxwell Allen Werner

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.


A Case Study In The Effectiveness Of Marine Protected Areas (Mpas): The Islands Of Bonaire And Curacao, Dutch Caribbean, Noelle J. Relles Jan 2012

A Case Study In The Effectiveness Of Marine Protected Areas (Mpas): The Islands Of Bonaire And Curacao, Dutch Caribbean, Noelle J. Relles

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

The islands of Bonaire and Curacao, Dutch Caribbean, were both mapped along their leeward coasts for dominant coral community and other benthic cover in the early 1980s. This mapping effort offers a unique baseline for comparing changes in the benthic community of the two islands since that time, particularly given the marked differences between the two islands. Bonaire is well-protected and completely surrounded by a marine protected area (MPA), which includes two no-diving marine reserves; additionally, Bonaire's population is only around 15,000. In contrast, the island of Curacao is home to 140,000 inhabitants and marine protection is limited, with a …


The Consequences Of Shoreline Development For Near-Shore Communities In Chesapeake Bay, Usa: A Before-After Control-Impact Study, Theresa M. Davenport Jan 2012

The Consequences Of Shoreline Development For Near-Shore Communities In Chesapeake Bay, Usa: A Before-After Control-Impact Study, Theresa M. Davenport

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

Hardened shorelines and their construction introduce stressors to a system by altering near-shore habitats. They can reduce biodiversity and abundance of benthic infauna and marsh-edge nekton and epifauna. In this study, I investigated the impacts of shoreline development on near-shore communities using a temporal and spatial approach, by use of a before-after control-impact (BACI) study design at four sub-estuaries within Chesapeake Bay that represent three different types of shoreline change. The BACI study was used to examine infaunal density, biomass, and diversity for two size classes of infauna (3-mm: larger species and adults, 500-!m: smaller species and juveniles), as well …


Modeling Shoreline Change And Resulting Wetland Response Due To Erosion And Sea-Level Rise: A Case Study In Dorchester County, Maryland, Mirtha Karinna Nunez Jan 2010

Modeling Shoreline Change And Resulting Wetland Response Due To Erosion And Sea-Level Rise: A Case Study In Dorchester County, Maryland, Mirtha Karinna Nunez

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

The present study was focused on developing a shoreline change forecast and wetland response model for Dorchester County, MD, to evaluate the vulnerability of wetlands to shoreline erosion and inundation due to relative sea level rise. The model considers the following forces involved in wetland stability and sustainability: inundation (as a function of topography and sea-level rise), shoreline erosion, vertical accretion and horizontal migration. To predict the long-term risk to nearshore wetlands and the potential habitat zone for wetlands in the next 50 years, shoreline change due to inundation and erosion/accretion was assessed within the frameworks of two-dimensional and three-dimensional …


Observations Of Storm Morphodynamics Using Coastal Lidar And Radar Imaging System (Claris): Importance Of Wave Refraction And Dissipation Over Complex Surf-Zone Morphology At A Shoreline Erosional Hotspot, Katherine L. Brodie Jan 2010

Observations Of Storm Morphodynamics Using Coastal Lidar And Radar Imaging System (Claris): Importance Of Wave Refraction And Dissipation Over Complex Surf-Zone Morphology At A Shoreline Erosional Hotspot, Katherine L. Brodie

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

Elevated water levels and large waves during storms cause beach erosion, overwash, and coastal flooding, particularly along barrier island coastlines. While predictions of storm tracks have greatly improved over the last decade, predictions of maximum water levels and variations in the extent of damage along a coastline need improvement. In particular, physics based models still cannot explain why some regions along a relatively straight coastline may experience significant erosion and overwash during a storm, while nearby locations remain seemingly unchanged. Correct predictions of both the timing of erosion and variations in the magnitude of erosion along the coast will be …


Quantifying The Overwash Component Of Barrier Island Morphodynamics: Onslow Beach, Nc, Amy C. Foxgrover Jan 2009

Quantifying The Overwash Component Of Barrier Island Morphodynamics: Onslow Beach, Nc, Amy C. Foxgrover

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

A quantification of the role that barrier island overwash plays in the evolution of Onslow Beach, a barrier island located on Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, is presented. Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and sediment vibracores provide an estimate of the relevant-sand prism above a silty/peat contact underlying the island. The average thickness from the surface, as determined from lidar, to this geologically-defined base, is less than 1 m and equates a total volume of approximately 1.8 ± 1.1 × 106 m3 over the 4.8 km stretch of Onslow Beach from 1 km north of the New River Inlet to …


Utopian Spaces: Mormons And Icarians In Nauvoo, Illinois, Sarah Jaggi Lee Jan 2009

Utopian Spaces: Mormons And Icarians In Nauvoo, Illinois, Sarah Jaggi Lee

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

Nauvoo, Illinois was the setting for two important social experiments in the middle of the nineteenth century. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also known as the Mormons, made this city their headquarters of their rapidly expanding church from 1838 until 1846. Only three years after the departure of the Mormons, a group of Frenchmen calling themselves Icarians came to the same spot to realize a system of communal living and brotherhood that lasted in Nauvoo until 1856. While several studies have been devoted to these groups, as yet none have combined a study of the two communities …


Variability In Geologic Framework And Shoreline Change: Assateague And Wallops Islands, Eastern Shore Of Virginia, Geoffrey L. Wikel Jan 2008

Variability In Geologic Framework And Shoreline Change: Assateague And Wallops Islands, Eastern Shore Of Virginia, Geoffrey L. Wikel

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.


Predicting Future Shoreline Condition Based On Land Use Trends, Logistic Regression, And Fuzzy Logic, Lynne M. Dingerson Jan 2005

Predicting Future Shoreline Condition Based On Land Use Trends, Logistic Regression, And Fuzzy Logic, Lynne M. Dingerson

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

The lower Chesapeake Bay and adjacent coastal waters serve as the primary summer nursery areas for juvenile sandbar sharks (Carcharhinus plumbeus) in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean. The large population of juvenile sandbar sharks in this ecosystem benefits from increased food availability that fuels rapid growth and from limited exposure to large shark predators. Juvenile growth and survival is the most critical life history stage for sandbar sharks, and juvenile nursery grounds will continue to play an important role in the slow recovery of this stock from severe population declines due to overfishing. The goal of this study was to assess …


King Bacca's Throne: Land, Life, And Labor In The Old Bright Belt Since 1880, Evan Patrick Bennett Jan 2005

King Bacca's Throne: Land, Life, And Labor In The Old Bright Belt Since 1880, Evan Patrick Bennett

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

In the late nineteenth century, bright tobacco came to dominate the agricultural production of the Virginia-North Carolina Piedmont. as the cultivation of bright tobacco spread, it created a new economy and social order centered on small, family-operated farms. For over a century, tobacco remained at the center of the region's economic and social order, even as numerous economic, technological and cultural forces reshaped the realities of tobacco agriculture. This dissertation explores the effects of these forces on the lives of the region's farm families. While many historian's have described tobacco farm life in terms of inexorable decline, this work takes …


Continuity And Change In A Southern Community: Commercial And Occupational Development In Mid-Nineteenth Century Orange County, North Carolina, Andrew Hunter Heffner Jan 2005

Continuity And Change In A Southern Community: Commercial And Occupational Development In Mid-Nineteenth Century Orange County, North Carolina, Andrew Hunter Heffner

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.


The Development Of The Calipso Lidar Simulator, Kathleen A. Powell Jan 2005

The Development Of The Calipso Lidar Simulator, Kathleen A. Powell

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.


A Semi-Empirical Cellular Automata Model For Wildfire Monitoring From A Geosynchronous Space Platform, Brian D. Killough Jan 2003

A Semi-Empirical Cellular Automata Model For Wildfire Monitoring From A Geosynchronous Space Platform, Brian D. Killough

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

The environmental and human impacts of wildfires have grown considerably in recent years due to an increase in their frequency and coverage. Effective wildfire management and suppression requires real-time data to locate fire fronts, model their propagation and assess the impact of biomass burning. Existing empirical wildfire models are based on fuel properties and meteorological data with inadequate spatial or temporal sampling. A geosynchronous space platform with the proposed set of high resolution infrared detectors provides a unique capability to monitor fires at improved spatial and temporal resolutions. The proposed system is feasible with state-of-the-art hardware and software for high …


Effects Of Urbanization And Land Use On Pah Accumulation In Wetland Sediments, Kimani L. Kimbrough Jan 2002

Effects Of Urbanization And Land Use On Pah Accumulation In Wetland Sediments, Kimani L. Kimbrough

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

The relationship between wetland polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) concentrations and adjacent land use was assessed using surface sediments, sediment cores and global information systems (GIS) in the Elizabeth River, Virginia, an urbanized subestuary of the Chesapeake Bay. Wetlands adjacent to parking lots and petroleum industrial sites exhibited the highest PAH concentrations of all land uses in surfaces sediment and historically. Automobile and coal are the dominant sources of PAHs in wetland sediments historically as determined by relative concentration, fingerprinting and source specific compounds. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) test used to compare sixteen surface sediment sites based on land use …


Coastal Zone Landscape Classification Using Remote Sensing And Model Development, Kevin R. Slocum Jan 2002

Coastal Zone Landscape Classification Using Remote Sensing And Model Development, Kevin R. Slocum

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

Coastal zone landscape characterization and empirical model development were evaluated using multi-spectral airborne imagery. Collectively, four projects are described that address monitoring and classification issues common to the resource management community. Chapter 1 discusses opportunities for remote sensing. Chapter 2 examines spectral and spatial image resolution requirements, as well as training sample selection methods required for accurate landscape classification. Classification accuracy derived from 25nm imagery with 4m pixel sizes outperformed 70nm imagery with 1m pixel sizes. Eight natural and five cultural landscape features were tested for classification accuracy. Chapter 3 investigated the ability to characterize 1m multispectral imagery into rank-ordered …


Use Of Remote Sensing To Identify Essential Habitat For Aeschynomene Virginica (L) Bsp, A Threatened Tidal Freshwater Wetland Plant, Elizabeth M. Mountz Jan 2002

Use Of Remote Sensing To Identify Essential Habitat For Aeschynomene Virginica (L) Bsp, A Threatened Tidal Freshwater Wetland Plant, Elizabeth M. Mountz

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.


Assessment Of Development Impacts On Coastal Zone: Integrated Approach, Northampton County, Eastern Shore, Virginia, Sarunas Zableckis Jan 2001

Assessment Of Development Impacts On Coastal Zone: Integrated Approach, Northampton County, Eastern Shore, Virginia, Sarunas Zableckis

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.


Reflections Of Thought: Land Plats Of Gloucester County, Virginia, 1733-1849, Isabel Rebecca Jenkins Jan 2001

Reflections Of Thought: Land Plats Of Gloucester County, Virginia, 1733-1849, Isabel Rebecca Jenkins

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.


Sediment Budgets, Estuarine Sediment Loads, And Wetland Sediment Storage At Watershed Scales, York River Watershed, Virginia, Julie D. Herman Jan 2001

Sediment Budgets, Estuarine Sediment Loads, And Wetland Sediment Storage At Watershed Scales, York River Watershed, Virginia, Julie D. Herman

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

Three separate but related aspects of sediment allocation in a river/estuarine system were examined. The main purpose was to compare sediment budgets for a series of eleven nested sub-watersheds as a function of watershed size, ranging from 65 to 6900 km2. The approach quantified six budget components: upland erosion; stream bank erosion; colluvial storage; wetland storage; stream channel erosion and storage; and sediment flux at the outlets. Three budgets were developed for each sub-watershed to examine the relative proportions of budget components, budget sensitivity (the influence of individual components on the overall budget), and the uncertainty of budget components. The …


Ruled With A Pen: Land, Language, And The Invention Of Maine, Gavin James Taylor Jan 2000

Ruled With A Pen: Land, Language, And The Invention Of Maine, Gavin James Taylor

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

As Europeans expanded across North America in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, they parceled their territorial acquisitions into a variety of administrative subdivisions. Naming and dividing the land became an integral part of the project of colonization; the conquest of territory involved the transformation of unknown places into clearly defined jurisdictions. This dissertation examines the invention of one jurisdiction, the state of Maine, viewing the evolution of its borders as a reflection of the growth of state power in the region. Seeing an inextricable link between social and territorial boundaries, it ties the development of the territory of Maine to …


Use Of A Digital Multispectral Video System And Spectroradiometer For Bottomland Hardwood Forest Remote Sensing: A Jurisdictional Boundary Accuracy Assessment And Radiance Examination, Jill E. Meyer Jan 2000

Use Of A Digital Multispectral Video System And Spectroradiometer For Bottomland Hardwood Forest Remote Sensing: A Jurisdictional Boundary Accuracy Assessment And Radiance Examination, Jill E. Meyer

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.


Application Of The Shoreline Instability Model Along The Western Side Of The Chesapeake Bay, Va, Kevin G. Skunda Jan 2000

Application Of The Shoreline Instability Model Along The Western Side Of The Chesapeake Bay, Va, Kevin G. Skunda

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.


The Illustrated Map: Cartography And Power In Seventeenth Century Virginia, Christine Jeanette Green Jan 2000

The Illustrated Map: Cartography And Power In Seventeenth Century Virginia, Christine Jeanette Green

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.


Accuracy Assessment Of Remote Sensing In A Tidal Wetland, Jason S. Goldberg Jan 2000

Accuracy Assessment Of Remote Sensing In A Tidal Wetland, Jason S. Goldberg

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.