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College Of Natural Sciences 2021 Year-End Publication, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

Page 2 Welcome, Table of Contents
Page 3 Our Departments: Highlights From 2021
Page 4 Overview of the College
Page 5 Overview of Bold & Blue
Pages 6, 7 Announcing the First Endowed Professorship in the College of Natural Sciences
Page 8 Spooky Science, Astronomy Outreach, SDSU Chemistry Research Features on Journal Cover
Page 9 Students Win Business Plan Competition With Aims to Improve Shelf Life of Produce, Summer Researchers
Page 10 NIH Grant Helps Unravel Rare Inflammatory Genetic Disorders, International Excellence in South Dakota
Page 11 The Next Frontier of Science Education: Virtual Reality, SDSU Researchers Uncover how Cancer …

College Of Natural Sciences 2020 Year-End Publication, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

This is the inaugural issue of the College of Natural Sciences' year-end publication.

Contents:

[Page] 4 COVID-19 Response
[Page] 6 Student Success
[Page] 8 Faculty Excellence
[Page] 10 Awards and Recognition

College Of Natural Sciences Newsletter, November 2020, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

Volume 1. Issue 10

Content:

Dean’s Update P.1
Awards & Recognition P.2
Student Club Spotlight P.3
Open PRAIRIE | Interest in Science P.4
Bioethics Lecture P.5
External Advisory Board P.6
Science as Art Competition P.7

College Of Natural Sciences Newsletter, October 2020, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

Volume 1. Issue 9

Content:

Dean’s Update P.1
Awards & Recognition P.2
Student Club Spotlight P.3
Open PRAIRIE | Research Overview P.4
Interest in Science | Updates P.5
Where’s Wil? P.6 Art
Competition Announcement P.7

College Of Natural Sciences Newsletter, September 2020, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

Issue 1. Volume 8

Contents:

Dean’s Update P.1
Awards & Recognition P.2
Interest in Science | Competitions P.3
Open PRAIRIE | ODFS Recap P.4
ODFS Recap | Research Spotlight P.5
Spring 2020 Dean’s List P.6-7

College Of Natural Sciences Newsletter, August 2020, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

Volume 1. Issue 7

Contents:

Dean’s Update P.1
Awards & Recognition P.2
New Faculty | Student Clubs P.3
Research Spotlight | Open PRAIRIE P.4
ODFS | Interest in Science P.3

College Of Natural Sciences Newsletter, July 2020, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

Volume 1. Issue 6

Contents:

Dean’s Update P.1
Awards & Recognition P.2
Interest in Science | Updates P.3
Research Spotlight | Open PRAIRIE P.4
Monthly Photo Series: Books P.5

College Of Natural Sciences Newsletter, June 2020, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

Volume 1. Issue 5

Contents:

Dean’s Update P.1
Awards & Recognition P.2
Club Spotlight P.3 Interest in Science | Welcome P.4
Research Spotlight | NSO Update P.5
Monthly Photo Series: Gardens P.6

Samsts Satellite Time Series Gap Filling Source Codes - Landsat, Lin Yan, David P. Roy

SAMSTS Satellite Time Series Gap Filling Source Codes

• SAMSTS is open-source software (coded in C) for gap filling of Landsat multispectral time series developed by Drs. Lin Yan and David Roy.
• SAMSTS 1.1.1 release includes source codes, user manual and test data.
• The test data are year-2013 time series of Landsat 7 ETM+ and Landsat 8 OLI ARD surface reflectance products (http://landsat.usgs.gov/ard) over Kansas and Iowa. Each ARD tile is composed of 5000 x 5000 30m pixels with six bands (blue, red, green, NIR, SWIR 1, SWIR 2).
• Major Software functionality:
  
  • Automatic gap filling of Landsat multispectral time series caused by clouds, shadows, SLC-off (for Landsat-7 …

How Much Variation In Land Surface Phenology Can Climate Oscillation Modes Explain At The Scale Of Mountain Pastures In Kyrgyzstan?, Monika A. Tomaszewska, Geoffrey M. Henebry

NASA Land-Cover Land-Use Change Data Sets

Climate oscillation modes can shape weather across the globe due to atmospheric teleconnections. We built on the findings of a recent study to assess whether the impacts of teleconnections are detectable and significant in the early season dynamics of highland pastures across five rayons in Kyrgyzstan. Specifically, since land surface phenology (LSP) has already shown to be influenced by snow cover seasonality and terrain, we investigated here how much more explanatory and predictive power information about climatic oscillation modes might add to explain variation in LSP. We focused on seasonal values of five climate oscillation indices that influence vegetation dynamics …

College Of Natural Sciences Newsletter, May 2020, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

Volume 1. Issue 4

In this issue:

Dean’s Update P.1
Awards & Recognition P.2
Club Spotlight | Academic Tips P.3
Interest in Science | Face Masks P.4
Research Spotlight | Welcome P.4
Meet the Pets of CNS P.5

Land Surface Phenology In The Highland Pastures Of Montane Central Asia: Interactions With Snow Cover Seasonality And Terrain Characteristics, Monika A. Tomaszewska, Lan H. Nguyen, Geoffrey Henebry

NASA Land-Cover Land-Use Change Data Sets

Many studies have shown that high elevation environments are among very sensitive to climatic changes and where impacts are exacerbated. Across Central Asia, which is especially vulnerable to climate change due to aridity, the ability of global climate projections to capture the complex dynamics of mountainous environments is particularly limited. Over montane Central Asia, agropastoralism constitutes a major portion of the rural economy. Extensive herbaceous vegetation forms the basis of rural economies in Kyrgyzstan. Here we focus on snow cover seasonality and the effects of terrain on phenology in highland pastures using remote sensing data for 2001–2017. First, we describe …

College Of Natural Sciences Newsletter, April 2020, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

Volume 1. Issue 3

In this issue:

Dean’s Update P.1
Awards & Recognition P.2
Club Spotlight | Academic Tips P.3
Personnel Updates P.4
Research | Interest in Science P.5

College Of Natural Sciences Newsletter, March 2020, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

Volume 1. Issue 2

In this issue:

Dean’s Update P.1
Awards & Recognition P.2
Club Spotlight | Academic Tips P.3
Research | Interest in Science P.4

College Of Natural Sciences Newsletter, February 2020, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

Volume 1. Issue 1

In this issue:

Dean’s Update P.1
Awards & Recognition P.2
Upcoming Events | Research P.3
Fundraising | Celebration of Life P.4
Student Jobs & Internships P.5

Vicarious Methodologies To Assess And Improve The Quality Of The Optical Remote Sensing Images: A Critical Review, Sakib Kabir

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Over the past decade, number of optical Earth observing satellites performing remote sensing has increased substantially, dramatically increasing the capability to monitor the Earth. The quantity of remote sensing satellite increase is primarily driven by improved technology, miniaturization of components, reduced manufacturing, and launch cost. These satellites often lack on-board calibrators that a large satellite utilizes to ensure high quality (e.g., radiometric, geometric, spatial quality, etc.) scientific measurement. To address this issue, this work presents “best” vicarious image quality assessment and improvement techniques for those kinds of optical satellites which lacks on-board calibration system. In this article, image quality categories …

Responses Of Land Surface Phenology To Wildfire Disturbances In The Western United States Forests, Jianmin Wang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Land surface phenology (LSP) characterizes the seasonal dynamics in the vegetation communities observed for a satellite pixel and it has been widely associated with global climate change. However, LSP and its long-term trend can be influenced by land disturbance events, which could greatly interrupt the LSP responses to climate change. Wildfire is one of the main disturbance agents in the western United States (US) forests, but its impacts on LSP have not been investigated yet. To gain a comprehensive understanding of the LSP responses to wildfires in the western US forests, this dissertation focused on three research objectives: (1) to …

Burning With Potential: Understanding The Relationship Between Biochar And Agriculture Of The Northern Glaciated Plains Ecoregion, Kaitlyn Abrahamson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Achieving global sustainable agriculture is one of the most incredible challenges of this century, yet many continue to try to solve this problem through the development of precision technologies. Biotechnologies, such as biochar, can perform like a precision technology while protecting agricultural land from soil erosion and fertility loss. The Northern Glaciated Plains ecoregion of the United States is little researched in the benefits from the use of biochar through improved soil nutrient capture and water retention, crop health improvements, and yield increases. The study plot has four sections of corn stover biochar and eight sections of control sections. This …

Biophysical And Socioeconomic Impacts Of Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration In Burkina Faso, Basnewende Brice Fulgence Zoungrana

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Human actions such as overgrazing, the development of cities at the expense of forests, high intensity and poor agricultural management, and so forth, reduce the resources available for future generations. Because Earth has limited resources, it is important to judiciously use and manage natural resources. Human actions towards nature are the focus of my research in Africa. Increased demands for grazing, agriculture, and ecosystem services led some farmers in developing countries to use unsustainable practices, which may lead to low incomes and poor food nutrition for households. Farmer managed natural regeneration (FMNR) may be a solution to these issues. FMNR …

College Of Natural Sciences Newsletter, January 2021, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

Volume 2. Issue 1

Contents:

[Page] 1 Dean's Message
[Page] 2 -3 Awards & Recognition
[Page] 4 Student Club Spotlight: BMGSA
[Page] 5 Open PRAIRIE Data
[Page] 6 Research Spotlight: Dr. Michael Hildreth
[Page] 7 Celebrating the Life of Dr. Auger

An Analysis On The Correlation Between Atmospheric Parameters And Toa Reflectance Of Pseudo Invariant Calibration Sites (Pics), Yugeen Chaulagain

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Plan B Projects

The objective of this work is to understand and quantify the relationship(s) between atmospheric parameters and TOA reflectance. The analysis uses Landsat-7 ETM+ and Landsat-8 OLI images data acquired over the Algodones Dunes and a desert site near Wadi ad-Dawasir, Saudi Arabia. The analysis focuses on atmospheric water content and barometric pressure, as ground truth measurements of these quantities are likely to be readily available from relatively nearby weather stations. Section II of the paper discusses the methodology used in the analysis. Section III presents the analysis results. Finally, Section IV provides a summary and considers potential directions for future …

Augmenting Land Cover/Land Use Classification By Incorporating Information From Land Surface Phenology: An Application To Quantify Recent Cropland Expansion In South Dakota, Lan Hoang Nguyen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Understanding rapid land change in the U.S. NGP region is not only critical for management and conservation of prairie habitats and ecosystem services, but also for projecting production of crops and biofuels and the impacts of land conversion on water quality and rural transportation infrastructure. Hence, it raises the need for an LCLU dataset with good spatiotemporal coverage as well as consistent accuracy through time to enable change analysis. This dissertation aims (1) to develop a novel classification method, which utilizes time series images from comparable sensors, from the perspective of land surface phenology, and (2) to apply the land …

Characterizing Spatiotemporal Patterns Of White Mold In Soybean Across South Dakota Using Remote Sensing, Confiance L. Mfuka

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Soybean is among the most important crops, cultivated primarily for beans, which are used for food, feed, and biofuel. According to FAO, the United States was the biggest soybeans producer in 2016. The main soybean producing regions in the United States are the Corn Belt and the lower Mississippi Valley. Despite its importance, soybean production is reduced by several diseases, among which Sclerotinia stem rot, also known as white mold, a fungal disease that is caused by the fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum is among the top 10 soybean diseases. The disease may attack several plants and considerably reduce yield. According to …

Classification Of North Africa For Use As An Extended Pseudo Invariant Calibration Sites (Epics) For Radiometric Calibration And Stability Monitoring Of Optical Satellite Sensors, Mahesh Shrestha

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

An increasing number of Earth-observing satellite sensors are being launched to meet the insatiable demand for timely and accurate data to help the understanding of the Earth’s complex systems and to monitor significant changes to them. The quality of data recorded by these sensors is a primary concern, as it critically depends on accurate radiometric calibration for each sensor. Pseudo Invariant Calibration Sites (PICS) have been extensively used for radiometric calibration and temporal stability monitoring of optical satellite sensors. Due to limited knowledge about the radiometric stability of North Africa, only a limited number of sites in the region are …

Methods For Earth-Observing Satellite Surface Reflectance Validation, Moe Talal Badawi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this study an initial validation of the Landsat 8 (L8) Operational Land Imager (OLI) Surface Reflectance (SR) product was performed. The OLI SR product is derived from the L8 Top-of-Atmosphere product via the Landsat Surface Reflectance Code (LaSRC) software and generated by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center. The goal of this study is to develop and evaluate proper validation methodology for the OLI L2 SR product. Validation was performed using near-simultaneous ground truth SR measurements during Landsat 8 overpasses at 13 sites located in the U.S., Brazil, Chile and France. The ground …

How Are Interannual Variations Of Land Surface Phenology In The Highland Pastures Of Kyrgyzstan Modulated By Terrain, Snow Cover Seasonality, And Climate Oscillations? An Investigation Using Multi-Source Remote Sensing Data, Monika Anna Tomaszewska

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the semiarid, continental climates of montane Central Asia, with its constant moisture deficit and low relative humidity, agropastoralism constitutes the foundation of the rural economy. In Kyrgyzstan, an impoverished, landlocked republic in Central Asia, herders of the highlands practice vertical transhumance—the annual movement of livestock to higher elevation pastures to take advantage of seasonally available forage resources. Dependency on pasture resource availability during the short mountain growing season makes herds and herders susceptible to changing weather and climate patterns. This dissertation focuses on using remote sensing observations over the highland pastures in Kyrgyzstan to address five interrelated topics: (i) …

The Impacts Of Land Use And Land Cover Change On Water Quality In The Big Sioux River: 2007-2016, Dinesh Shrestha

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Between 2006 and 2012, conversion of 485,000 acres of grassland to cropland in eastern South Dakota was reported. In 2012, the Big Sioux River (BSR) running through most of eastern South Dakota was listed among the dirtiest rivers in the nation. This rating convinced state authorities to study trends of land cover changes in the BSR watershed and its association with BSR water quality with respect to increases in nitrate levels. This research i) quantifies spatial and temporal changes in the land cover types within the BSR watershed, and ii) identifies any correlation between these changes and changes in BSR …

Land Cover Changes Within And Around Protected Areas In Côte D’Ivoire From 1986 To 2017: A Case Study Of The Mabi-Yaya-Songan-Tamin Reserved Forests, Olena Boiko

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Tropical forests mitigate climate change, provide habitat for the most biologically diverse terrestrial communities, and yield ecosystem services that support human wellbeing. These forests are some of the most threatened ecosystems because of the increasing human impact on the environment. Côte d’Ivoire has one of the highest deforestation rates in sub-Saharan Africa, and the expansion of agriculture to produce cash crops, such as cocoa and rubber, is presented as the primary reason for forest loss. These changes are apparent even within the boundaries of the protected areas, which raises concerns about the effectiveness of the protection strategies. This project illustrates …

New Approach For Temporal Stability Evaluation Of Pseudo-Invariant Calibration Sites (Pics), Fatima Tuz Zafrin Tuli

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Pseudo-Invariant Calibration Sites (PICS) are one of the most popular methods for in-flight vicarious radiometric calibration of Earth remote sensing satellites. The fundamental question of PICS temporal stability has not been adequately addressed. However, the main purpose of this work is to evaluate the temporal stability of a few PICS using a new approach. The analysis was performed over six PICS (Libya 1, Libya 4, Niger 1, Niger 2, Egypt 1 and Sudan 1). The concept of a “Virtual Constellation” was developed to provide greater temporal coverage and also to overcome the dependence limitation of any specific characteristic derived from …

Empirical Absolute Calibration Model For Multiple Pseudo-Invariant Calibration Sites, Bipin Raut

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This work extends an empirical absolute calibration model initially developed for the Libya 4 Pseudo-Invariant Calibration Site (PICS) to five additional Saharan Desert PICS (Egypt 1, Libya 1, Niger 1, Niger 2, and Sudan 1), and demonstrates the efficacy of the resulting models at predicting sensor top-of-atmosphere (TOA) reflectance. It attempts to generate absolute calibration models for these PICS that have an accuracy and precision comparable to or better than the current Libya 4 model, with the intent of providing additional opportunities for sensor calibration. In addition, this work attempts to validate the general applicability of the model to other …