Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Juvenile Rank Acquisition Is Associated With Fitness Independent Of Adult Rank, Eli D. Strauss, Daizaburo Shizuka, Kay E. Holekamp

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Social rank is a significant determinant of fitness in a variety of species. The importance of social rank suggests that the process by which juveniles come to establish their position in the social hierarchy is a critical component of development. Here, we use the highly predictable process of rank acquisition in spotted hyenas to study the consequences of variation in rank acquisition in early life. In spotted hyenas, rank is ‘inherited’ through a learning process called ‘maternal rank inheritance.’ This pattern is very consistent: approximately 80% of juveniles acquire the exact rank expected under the rules of maternal rank inheritance. …

Modelling Pinniped Abundance And Distribution By Combining Counts At T Terrestrial Sites And In-Water Sightings, Steven L. Whitlock, Jamie N. Womble, James T. Peterson

United States National Park Service: Publications

Pinnipeds are commonly monitored using aerial photographic surveys at land- or ice-based sites, where animals come ashore for resting, pupping, molting, and to avoid predators. Although these counts form the basis for monitoring population change over time, they do not provide information regarding where animals occur in the water, which is often of management and conservation interest. In this study, we developed a hierarchical model that links counts of pinnipeds at terrestrial sites to sightings-at-sea and estimates abundance, spatial distribution, and the proportion of time spent on land (attendance probability). The structure of the model also allows for the inclusion …

A Review Of Web-Based Special Education Resources Provided To Parents By State Departments Of Education, Jennifer Farley, Jacqueline N. Huscroft-D'Angelo, Alexandra L. Trout, Kristin Duppong-Hurley

University of Nebraska Public Policy Center: Publications

Parents who are knowledgeable of special education are more likely to engage in their child’s education. Parents seek information about special education from a number of sources including State Departments of Education (SDEs). However, little is known about the web-based special education resources SDEs provide to parents. We sought to address this gap by conducting a comprehensive review of SDE websites and special education resources. Two-thirds of SDEs provided special education resources in a parent-designated section of their website. The number of resources provided varied greatly by state and the majority of resources were specific to conflict/dispute resolution. Future research …

Dental Microwear As A Behavioral Proxy For Distinguishing Between Canids At The Upper Paleolithic (Gravettian) Site Of Predmostí, Czech Republic, Kari A. Prassack, Josephine Dubois, Martina Laznickova-Galetova, Mietje Germonpre, Peter S. Ungar

United States National Park Service: Publications

Morphological and genetic evidence put dog domestication during the Paleolithic, sometime between 40,000 and 15,000 years ago, with identification of the earliest dogs debated. We predict that these earliest dogs (referred to herein as protodogs), while potentially difficult to distinguish morphologically from wolves, experienced behavioral shifts, including changes in diet. Specifically, protodogs may have consumed more bone and other less desirable scraps within human settlement areas. Here we apply Dental Microwear Texture Analysis (DMTA) to canids from the Gravettian site of P�redmostí (approx. 28,500 BP), which were previously assigned to the Paleolithic dog or Pleistocene wolf morphotypes. We test whether …

Aggregates, Formational Emergence, And The Focus On Practice In Stone Artifact Archaeology, Zeljko Rezek, Simon J. Holdaway, Deborah I. Olszewski, Sam C. Lin, Matthew J. Douglass, Shannon P. Mcpherron, Radu Iovita, David R. Braun, Dennis Sandgathe

Department of Anthropology: Faculty Publications

The stone artifact record has been one of the major grounds for investigating our evolution. With the predominant focus on their morphological attributes and technological aspects of manufacture, stone artifacts and their assemblages have been analyzed as explicit measures of past behaviors, adaptations, and population histories. This analytical focus on technological andmorphological appearance is one of the characteristics of the conventional approach for constructing inferences from this record. An equally persistent routine involves ascribing the emerged patterns and variability within the archaeological deposits directly to long-term central tendencies in human actions and cultural transmission. Here we re-evaluate this conventional approach. …

Nebraska Agricultural Machinery And Equipment Sales Tax Exemption, Austin Duerfeldt

Cornhusker Economics

Nebraska sales and use tax for farmers and ranchers can be a difficult subject. When purchasing or leasing depreciable agricultural machinery and equipment for commercial agricultural use those purchases are listed as exempt from Nebraska and local sales and use taxes. The purchase of a 200- horsepower tractor or a new 12-row planter often is the first to come to mind when thinking of assets that fall into that category. The question that often arises though is what about other items such as a seed tender, auger wagon, or skid steer? For that answer you have to do research on …

Value Added Fed And Feeder Cattle Practices: Are They Paying?, Elliott James Dennis

Extension Farm and Ranch Management News

Summary

Some value added management programs clearly pay more than others and some do not pay at all. However, just like with a breeding or forage management strategy where not every year the cow gets bred back or the grass has sufficient protein, a value added program strategies premiums vary year to year. Switching the way cattle are managed and raised, handled, and fed requires planning and an understanding of labor and management capabilities. Not every cattle producer could or even should switch management practices an animal health protocol – even if premiums do exist. Thus, careful planning and consideration …

Roadmap For Open Science (Canada), Mona Nemer

Copyright, Fair Use, Scholarly Communication, etc.

The objective of the Roadmap for Open Science is to provide overarching principles and recommendations to guide Open Science* activities in Canada. The recommendations are intended for science and research funded by federal government departments and agencies.

The Roadmap for Open Science was developed in the context of the Directive on Open Government, the Model Policy on Scientific Integrity and the Data Strategy Roadmap for the Federal Public Service. It builds on the Tri-Agency Open Access Policy on Publications and the Statement of Principles on Digital Data Management. A federal approach to supporting Indigenous data strategies is outlined in the …

Bird Community Monitoring At Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, Kansas, Status Report 2001–2018, David G. Peitz, Kathleen A. Kull

United States National Park Service: Publications

Executive Summary

In 2001, the Heartland I&M Network initiated breeding bird surveys on Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, Kansas, to assess the ecological integrity of the preserve’s habitat. Birds are an important component of ecosystems and can serve as good indicators of habitat change in an ecosystem. In the 17 years of bird surveys at the preserve (2001 to 2018, excluding 2003), there were 2,089 plot visits and 119 different bird species recorded, 96 of which have the potential to breed within the preserve. These 96 species represent approximately 81% of the total species one would reasonably expect to have breeding …

Homestead National Monument Of America, Acoustic Monitoring Report, 2017, Emma Brown

United States National Park Service: Publications

Executive Summary

This report presents acoustical data gathered by Student Conservation Association interns and the Natural Resource Specialist at Homestead National Monument of America in 2017. Data were collected at one site to provide park managers with information about the acoustical environment, sources of noise, and the existing ambient sound levels within the monument. This deployment also captured acoustic conditions during the total solar eclipse on 8/21/2017. (Results of the eclipse monitoring effort are provided in Appendix B.)

In this deployment, sound pressure level (SPL) was measured continuously every second by a calibrated sound level meter. Other equipment included an …

Homestead National Monument Of America, Acoustic Monitoring, 2011-2012

United States National Park Service: Publications

Executive Summary

This report presents acoustical data gathered by Student Conservation Association interns and the Natural Resource Specialist at Homestead National Monument of America in 2011 and 2012. Data were collected at four sites to provide park managers with information on the acoustical environment, sources of noise, and the existing ambient sound levels within the monument. The data will also inform the park managers with information regarding the potential impact of traffic on Highway 4.

Monitoring occurred at each site during two different seasons (except HOME002) in order to document seasonal variations. In each deployment, sound pressure level (SPL) was …

Natural Resources Condition Assessment, Agate Fossil Beds National Monument (February 2020 Revision), Reilly R. Dibner, Nicole Korfanta, Gary Beauvais

United States National Park Service: Publications

Executive Summary

In collaboration with the National Park Service, the University of Wyoming Ruckelshaus Institute of Environment and Natural Resources and the Wyoming Natural Diversity Database completed the Natural Resource Condition Assessment (NRCA) for Agate Fossil Beds National Monument (NM). The purpose of the NRCA is to provide park leaders and resource managers with information on resource conditions to support near-term planning and management, long-term strategic planning, and effective science communication to decision-makers and the public.

Agate Fossil Beds NM was authorized in 1965 and established in 1997. The purposes of the park include protecting the paleontological resources on the …

Algorithms Of Oppression [Uno Pa Theory Proseminar Presentation], Sue Ann Gardner

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries: Presentations

Slides of two classes taught in the Theory Proseminar in the School of Public Administration at the University of Nebraska at Omaha by Sue Ann Gardner on February 11 and 18, 2020.

Connects information theory to applicable knowledge frameworks in public administration. Includes an in-depth discussion of the concepts addressed in Samiya Umoja Noble's book Algorithms of Oppression (published by New York University Press, New York, New York, United States, 2018) in the context of public administration and public academic libraries.

Osi 2019 Annual Report, Glenn Hampson

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OSI’s 2019 work focused on building a bridge to 2020—continuing our pivot from being an organization focused on understanding facts and perspectives, to one poised to pursue a significant, global reform agenda. This is a challenge for any group—doubly so for a group like OSI at the pioneering edge of a nebulous field, while also trying to maintain a republic format where all participants are co-equal leaders. OSI’s strategy in 2019 focused primarily on these three agenda items:

1. Find sustainable financing.

2. Help coordinate the construction of a new global roadmap for open.

3. Prepare for and start work …

Measuring Spatial And Temporal Shifts In Forest Structure And Composition In T High Elevation Beech Forests In Response To Beech Bark Disease In Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Lee Rubmle, Glenn Taylor, Joshua B. Grinath, Ashley B. Morris

United States National Park Service: Publications

Exotic forest pests and pathogens are among the most serious environmental threats to millions of hectares of forested land worldwide. Beech Bark Disease (BBD) is a non-native, pathogenic complex consisting of associations between scale insects and fungi. First confirmed in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GRSM) in 1986, this complex has since threatened local high elevation beech forests, which are G-1 ranked (critically imperiled) forest communities where American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) is a foundational tree species. In 1994, GRSM initiated the BBD Monitoring Protocol at 10 high elevation beech forest plots in the Park. The plots were sampled biennially …

Internships In Nebraska Agricultural Cooperatives, Greg Mckee

Cornhusker Economics

Agricultural cooperatives are prominent employers across Nebraska. Several have developed internship programs. Cooperatives recruit interns to attract fulltime position applicants, to expose interns to various aspects of the cooperative business model as well as addressing short term labor needs. Students participate in internships to develop skills for career planning.

Nebraska agricultural cooperatives offered approximately one 100 internships in 2019. The number of cooperatives offering internships is increasing; at least two offered internships for the first time last year. Others are looking to strengthen their existing programs.

Internship program design varies across cooperatives. Relatively small agricultural cooperatives provide an overall work …

Texas Decreased Caseworker Turnover. The Qic-Wd Is Implementing And Testing Some Of Their Strategies And Building Evidence, Quality Improvement Center For Workforce Development

Other QIC-WD Products

The QIC-WD is dedicated to building evidence. Foundational work in the early years of the Center included combing the literature from multiple fields (e.g., business, education, industrial-organizational psychology) to inform strategies to strengthen the child welfare workforce. In 2018, Casey Family Programs reported on how the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) reduced caseworker turnover by implementing multiple changes to system operations (How did Texas decrease caseworker turnover and stabilize its workforce?). This post discusses how the QICWD is working with eight other jurisdictions and building on what was learned in Texas. According to the report, Texas initiated …

Prey Of Reintroduced Fishers And Their Habitat Relationships In The Cascades T Range, Washington, Mitchell A. Parsons, Jeffrey C. Lewis, Jonathan N. Pauli, Tara Chestnut, Jason I. Ransom, David O. Werntz, Laura R. Prugh

United States National Park Service: Publications

Conservation and recovery of forest carnivores requires an understanding of their habitat requirements, as well as requirements of their prey. In much of the western United States, trapping and habitat loss led to extirpations of fishers (Pekania pennanti) by the mid-20th century, and reintroductions are ongoing to restore fishers to portions of their former range. Fisher recovery in Washington State has been limited by isolation from other populations, but other potentially important factors, such as diet of fishers in this region and prey availability, have not been thoroughly investigated. We collected hair samples from potential prey and fishers for stable …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: January 22, 2020, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator – Nebraska (LEI-N) 1 rose by 1.10% during December of 2019. The increase in the LEI-N, which is designed to predict economic activity six months into the future, confirms expectations for moderate economic growth in Nebraska through mid-2020. The leading indicator primarily rose due to strong business expectations. Respondents to the December Survey of Nebraska Business reported plans to increase sales and employment at their businesses over the next six months. There also was a rebound in building permits for single-family homes during the month, suggesting an increase in construction activity mid-year.

Comparison Of 2018 And 2019 Market Facilitation Program Payments For Nebraska Producers, Anil Giri, E. Wesley F. Peterson, Sankalp Sharma

Cornhusker Economics

In a previous issue of Cornhusker Economics ( October 3, 2018, available at https://agecon.unl.edu/ cornhusker-economics/2018/market-facilitationprogram) we reviewed the sequence of events surrounding the trade war between the United States and China, and, in particular, the response of the Trump administration to the retaliatory tariffs imposed by China on soybeans and other agricultural commodities. The Market Facilitation Program (MFP) has been the main mechanism for compensating farmers for losses associated with the trade war. In the past year, there have been several important changes related to these events:

1. On January 15, 2020, the first phase of a trade deal between …

Do People Really Become More Conservative As They Age?, Johnathan C. Peterson, Kevin Smith, John Hibbing

Department of Political Science: Faculty Publications

Folk wisdom has long held that people become more politically conservative as they grow older, although several empirical studies suggest political attitudes are stable across time. Using data from the Michigan Youth-Parent Socialization Panel Study, we analyze attitudinal change over a major portion of the adult life span.We document changes in party identification, self-reported ideology, and selected issue positions over this time period and place these changes in context by comparing them with contemporaneous national averages. Consistent with previous research but contrary to folk wisdom, our results indicate that political attitudes are remarkably stable over the long term. In contrast …

Heebie & Jeebie's Shortcut, Liz Husmann

Zea E-Books Collection

Heebie & Jeebie take a shortcut home because they played too long after (ghost) school. It's an exciting journey.

Dear President Trump,, Coalition Of Open Access Policy Institutions (Coapi)

Copyright, Fair Use, Scholarly Communication, etc.

We strongly endorse updating existing U.S. policy to eliminate the current 12-month embargo period on articles that report on publicly funded research, as instituted by the Obama administration, and to ensure that they are made immediately available to the public.

Assessing The Feasibility Of A Life History Calendar To Measure Hiv Risk And Health In Older South Africans, Enid Schat, Lucia Knight, Robert F. Belli, Sanyu A. Mojola

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Life history calendars capture patterns of behavior over time, uncovering transitions and trajectories. Despite the growing numbers of older persons living with HIV in southern Africa, little is known about how HIV testing and risk unfold in this population. Operationalizing a life course approach with the use of an innovative Testing and Risk History Calendar [TRHC], we collected pilot data on older South Africans’ risk and HIV testing. We found older persons were able to provide (1) reference points to facilitate recall over a 10-year period, (2) specifics about HIV tests during that decade, and (3) details that contextualize the …

How Emotions Affect Farm And Ranch Succession, Allan Vyhnalek

Cornhusker Economics

Whenever a family has a discussion about agricultural estate planning, conversations can become emotionally charged. Stakes can be high and feelings can be hurt just by using the wrong words in a sentence. If things go south and parties are upset, they will likely withdraw from the dialogue or leave the gathering altogether.

When communications or negotiations break down, one way to help is to think about the five emotional blocks that need to be overcome if possible. They are: appreciation, affiliation, autonomy, status and role. Let's examine each to see how these blockages can interfere with a family moving …

The Congressional Review Act (Cra): Frequently Asked Questions, United States Congressional Research Service

United States House of Representatives: Documents

Summary

The Congressional Review Act (CRA) is an oversight tool that Congress may use to overturn rules issued by federal agencies. The CRA was included as part of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA), which was signed into law on March 29, 1996. The CRA requires agencies to report on their rulemaking activities to Congress and provides Congress with a special set of procedures under which to consider legislation to overturn those rules.

Under the CRA, before a rule can take effect, an agency must submit a report to each house of Congress and the comptroller general containing …

Intensive Referral Of Veterans To Mutual-Help Groups: A Mixed-Methods Implementation Evaluation, Lance Brendan Young, Kathleen M. Grant, R. Dario Pulido, Jamie L. Simpson, Kimberly A. Tyler, Christine Timkof

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Community-based support group participation protects against substance use disorder (SUD) relapse, but referrals during treatment are inconsistently delivered and may not acknowledge barriers facing rural patients. This formative evaluation of a rural intensive referral intervention (RAIR) to community-based support groups for veterans seeking SUD treatment surveyed patients (N = 145) and surveyed and interviewed treatment staff (N = 28). Patients and staff did not differ significantly on quantitative ratings of the helpfulness of, or satisfaction with, seven RAIR components, but staff did not deliver the intervention consistently or as designed, citing two themes: lack of commitment and lack of resources.

Final Presentation To The Library Of Congress On Digital Libraries, Intelligent Data Analytics, And Augmented Description, Elizabeth Lorang, Leen-Kiat Soh, Yi Liu, Chulwoo Pack

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries: Presentations

This presentation to Library of Congress staff, delivered onsite on January 10, 2020, presents a tour through the demonstration project pursued by the Aida digital libraries research team with the Library of Congress in 2019-2020. In addition to providing an overview and analysis of the specific machine learning projects scoped and explored, this presentation includes a number of high-level take-aways and recommendations designed to influence and inform the Library of Congress's machine learning efforts going forward.

A Close And Supportive Interparental Bond During Pregnancy Predicts Greater Decline In Sexual Activity From Pregnancy To Postpartum: Applying An Evolutionary Perspective, Tierney K. Lorenz, Erin L. Ramsdell, Rebecca L. Brock

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

A common topic for advice given to parents after childbirth – both from relationship experts and popular media – is how to “bounce back” to one’s pre-pregnancy sexuality, with warnings that postpartum declines in sexual frequency will take a serious toll on one’s relationship. However, these admonishments may not accurately reflect the ways in which the unique reproductive context of pregnancy and the postpartum transition alter associations between sexual frequency and relationship quality. Evolutionary perspectives on reproductive strategies would suggest that in the postpartum context, decreased sexual activity would help target parental investment in the current offspring (rather than creating …

Digital Libraries, Intelligent Data Analytics, And Augmented Description: A Demonstration Project, Elizabeth Lorang, Leen-Kiat Soh, Yi Liu, Chulwoo Pack

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries: Faculty Publications

From July 16-to November 8, 2019, the Aida digital libraries research team at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln collaborated with the Library of Congress on “Digital Libraries, Intelligent Data Analytics, and Augmented Description: A Demonstration Project.“ This demonstration project sought to (1) develop and investigate the viability and feasibility of textual and image-based data analytics approaches to support and facilitate discovery; (2) understand technical tools and requirements for the Library of Congress to improve access and discovery of its digital collections; and (3) enable the Library of Congress to plan for future possibilities. In pursuit of these goals, we focused our …