Geography Commons^™

The Psychogeographic Relationship With Memories, Popular Music, And Identity: A Case Study From 1995-2022 Of The Grateful Dead, Margaret Lane Walton

Theses

This paper will explore sonic geography and its impact on human and cultural geography through popular music, specifically the Grateful Dead, from 1995 to 2022. This research focuses on the eventization of the band and popular music post-Jerry Garcia’s death, whereas previous research has focused primarily on the band from 1965 to 1995. The infamous psychedelic rock and roll band was widely known for the created and imagined communities that it forged over their 30-year run. Recent research on soundscapes and music’s role in the study of geography precipitated the need for more attention to music geography. This paper explores …

Reduced Fire Severity Offers Near-Term Buffer To Climate-Driven Declines In Conifer Resilience Across The Western United States, Kimberly T. Davis, Marcos D. Robles, Kerry B. Kemp, Teresa Chapman, Philip E. Higuera, Kerry L. Metlen, Jamie L. Peeler, Andres Holz, Multiple Additional Authors

Geography Faculty Publications and Presentations

Increasing fire severity and warmer, drier postfire conditions are making forests in the western United States (West) vulnerable to ecological transformation. Yet, the relative importance of and interactions between these drivers of forest change remain unresolved, particularly over upcoming decades. Here, we assess how the interactive impacts of changing climate and wildfire activity influenced conifer regeneration after 334 wildfires, using a dataset of postfire conifer regeneration from 10,230 field plots. Our findings highlight declining regeneration capacity across the West over the past four decades for the eight dominant conifer species studied. Postfire regeneration is sensitive to high-severity fire, which limits …

Short Warm Distribution Tails Accelerate The Increase Of Humid-Heat Extremes Under Global Warming, Paul Loikith, Yianna Sotirios Bekris, J. D. Neelin

Geography Faculty Publications and Presentations

Humid-heat extremes threaten human health and are increasing in frequency with global warming, so elucidating factors affecting their rate of change is critical. We investigate the role of wet-bulb temperature (TW) frequency distribution tail shape on the rate of increase in extreme TW threshold exceedances under 2°C global warming. Results indicate that non-Gaussian TW distribution tails are common worldwide across extensive, spatially coherent regions. More rapid increases in the number of days exceeding the historical 95th percentile are projected in locations with shorter-than-Gaussian warm side tails. Asymmetry in the specific humidity distribution, one component of TW, is more closely correlated …

Assessing The Impact Of Alfalfa (Medicago Sativa) Crop On Groundwater Resources In The Emirate Of Abu Dhabi Using Geospatial Techniques, Abdulaziz Abdulla Aljaberi

Theses

Groundwater is a major source of fresh water in the world, especially in arid and semi-arid countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where rainfall is not evenly distributed through the four seasons of the year. Therefore, it is necessary to pay serious attention to the importance of preserving groundwater resources. The agriculture sector poses a real threat to groundwater. Irrigated crop cultivation practices change groundwater levels as a result of cultivating crops or farming plants that consume large amounts of water. Alfalfa is an example of a high-water consuming crop, being a widely cultivated crop in the UAE. This …

Factors Affecting Groundwater Nitrate Concentration In Madinah Area, Saudi Arabia, Majed M. Almutairi

Masters Theses

High levels of nitrate in groundwater are a serious problem in Madinah Area, Saudi Arabia. Identifying factors affecting groundwater nitrate contamination is important for managing groundwater quality. This study examined factors that have significant impacts on the high level of groundwater nitrate in Madinah Area. Factors examined included well-depth and land cover. Relationships between variables were explored using three statistical approaches: the Kruskal-Wallis test and two types of regression (ordinary least squares [OLS] and geographically weighted regression [GWR]).

Nitrate concentration data show that 73% of obtained groundwater samples exceeded the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) maximum contaminant level (MCL) …

Assessing The Total Economic Value Of Parks In Kalamazoo County, Samuel Herman Ayivi

Masters Theses

Urban parks and green spaces have become an important part of the urban ecosystems in recent years, and there is growing evidence on the positive relationship between having green spaces and good health. Indeed, access to urban parks is part of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development goals (Goal 11 target 7). In recent years, these parks and green spaces have become a subject of development pressures because of the inability of planners and researchers to clearly articulate the value of these parks. The Total Economic Value Framework (TEVF) situates resources (Parks and green spaces in this case) in the minds …

From Public Sewer To Public Park: The Story Of The James River In Richmond, Va, Todd R. Lookingbill

Geography and the Environment Faculty Publications

Book Review of Ralph Hambrick’s Transforming the James River in Richmond (2020) by Todd Lookingbill, Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Geography, Environment, and Sustainability, University of Richmond

Distribution Of Fire Incidents And Fire Fighting Services In Dki Jakarta Province, Muhammad Zakaria, Mangapul P. Tambunan, Hafid Setiadi

Jurnal Geografi Lingkungan Tropik (Journal of Geography of Tropical Environments)

The rapid development of the city results in the risk of disasters, one of which is a fire disaster. Fire incidents have increased from time to time, this occurs in line with the continued increase in population and density of settlements. Fire can cause material loss or loss of life. Efforts to minimize fire disasters can be carried out by providing fire fighting service facilities whose numbers can reach all areas. The purpose of this study is to determine the distribution of fire incidents and to determine the distribution of fire services in DKI Jakarta Province. The type of research …

The Dwelling Places Of Israel: Historical Ashkenazi Migration And Settlement, Eliott Buyce

Honors Projects

Ashkenazi Jews hold a unique place in the history of Europe and the United States resulting from maintaining a distinct religion and culture while often facing legal restrictions and violent persecution. Both the legal restrictions and frequent violence have forced Jews to live in segregated spaces to differing extents depending upon where and when. Understanding the changes in such spaces over time offers a glimpse not only into Jewish history, but also into how communities deal with limitations on their civil liberties, take measures to protect themselves, integrate with surrounding cultures, and create a place for their religion and culture …

The Flower Garden Banks Siderastrea Siderea Coral As A Candidate Global Boundary Stratotype Section And Point For The Anthropocene Series, Kristine L. Delong, Kylie Palmer, Amy J. Wagner, Mudith M. Weerabaddana, Niall Slowey, Achim D. Herrmann, Nicolas Duprey, Alfredo Martínez-García, Jonathan Jung, Irka Hajdas, Neil L. Rose, Sarah L. Roberts, Lucy R. Roberts, Andrew B. Cundy, Pawel Gaca, J. Andrew Milton, Handong Yang, Simon D. Turner, Chun Yuan Huang, Chuan Chou Shen, Jens Zinke

Faculty Publications

The proposed Anthropocene Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) candidate site of West Flower Garden Bank (27.8762°N, 93.8147°W) is an open ocean location in the Gulf of Mexico with a submerged coral reef and few direct human impacts. Corals contain highly accurate and precise (<±1 year) internal chronologies, similar to tree rings, and their exoskeletons are formed of aragonite and can be preserved in the rock record. Here we present results from a large Siderastrea siderea coral (core 05WFGB3; 1755–2005 CE) sampled with annual and monthly resolutions that show clear markers of global and regional human impacts. Atmospheric nuclear bomb testing by-products (14C, 239+240Pu) have clear increases in this coral starting in 1957 for 14C and the first increase in 1956 for 239+240Pu (potential bases for the Anthropocene GSSP). Coral δ13C declined especially after 1956 consistent with the Suess effect resulting from the burning of fossil fuels. Coral skeletal δ15N starts to increase in 1963 corresponding with the increase in agricultural fertilizers. Coral Hg concentrations (1933–1980) loosely track fluctuations in industrial pollution and coral Ba/Ca increases from 1965–1983 when offshore oil operations expand after 1947. Coral temperature proxies contain the 20th-century global warming trend whereas coral growth declines during this interval.

North Flinders Reef (Coral Sea, Australia) Porites Sp. Corals As A Candidate Global Boundary Stratotype Section And Point For The Anthropocene Series, Jens Zinke, Neal E. Cantin, Kristine L. Delong, Kylie Palmer, Arnoud Boom, Irka Hajdas, Nicolas Duprey, Alfredo Martínez-García, Neil L. Rose, Sarah L. Roberts, Handong Yang, Lucy R. Roberts, Andrew B. Cundy, Pawel Gaca, James Andy Milton, Grace Frank, Adam Cox, Sue Sampson, Genevieve Tyrrell, Molly Agg, Simon D. Turner

Faculty Publications

Corals are unique in the suite of proposed Anthropocene Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) archives, as living organisms that produce aragonite exoskeletons preserved in the geological record that contain highly accurate and precise (<±1 year) internal chronologies. The GSSP candidate site North Flinders Reef in the Coral Sea (Australia) is an offshore oceanic reef, and therefore less vulnerable to local human influences than those closer to the coast. Here, we present geochemical records from two Porites sp. corals sampled at an annual to pluri-annual (i.e. 3–5 years) resolution that shows clear global and regional human impacts. Atmospheric nuclear bomb testing by-products (14C,239+240Pu) show a clear increase in the Flinders Reef corals coincident with well-dated nuclear testing operations. By contrast, the radionuclides 241Am and 137Cs are present at low or undetectable levels, as are spheroidal carbonaceous fly-ash particles. Coral δ13C shows centennial variability likely influenced by growth effects in the 18th century and with a progression to lower values starting in 1880 CE and accelerating post-1970 CE. The latter may be related to the Suess effect resulting from 13C-depleted fossil fuel burning. Coral δ15N decreased between 1710 and 1954 CE with a reversal post-1954 CE. Coral temperature proxies indicate prominent centennial variability with equally warm conditions in the 18th and end of 20th century. However, the exact mechanisms responsible for the mid-20th century changes in these parameters need to be scrutinised in further detail. Plain Language summary: This work proposes a candidate natural archive for the official marker of the Anthropocene that geologists will use to mark this important interval in time. Our candidate is a live coral from North Flinders Reef in the Coral Sea (Australia), located 150 km east of the Great Barrier Reef, a location that is remote from direct local human influences. Corals are a unique archive of tropical ocean change because they incorporate the geochemical signature from seawater into their limestone skeleton during their long life-spans. Here we investigated a number of geochemical markers in yearly growth layers of the corals to define several markers for the Anthropocene based on changes in temperature, water chemistry, chemicals from pollution and fertilisers, radioactive products from nuclear bomb testing, and by-products from burning fossil fuels. We have detected clear human influences in several of these markers.

Analysis Of Small Lake Water Level Fluctuations By Remote Sensing In Twin Lake, Michigan., Eric Carballido

Masters Theses

Accurate analysis of lake level fluctuations is critical for water resources management. However, it remains a challenge to estimate lake level fluctuations in ungauged small lakes such as East Twin Lake. Located in Twin Lake, Michigan, East Twin Lake has experienced a drastic reduction in water surface area since 2020. To understand the nature of water level fluctuations in East Twin Lake, this study utilized a combination of Landsat and National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP) data to make surface water area estimations of East Twin Lake for the period of 1993-2022. In total, 27 years of water surface area estimations …

Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems: Operator Workload And Situation Awareness Utilizing First Person View Techniques, Ross Lucas Stephenson Jr

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

The small, unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) sector within the aviation industry is experiencing unprecedented growth. However, the regulatory guidance for the safe integration of sUAS into the National Airspace System (NAS) has not kept pace with this technological growth within the market. Current regulatory limitations of line-of-sight operations may have an impact on the establishment of an equivalent level of safety for sUAS operations as maintained by manned aircraft. The focal point of the discussion of line-of-sight operations has been the ability of the sUAS pilot to see and avoid all obstacles and other aircraft in a safe and timely …

Comparison Result For The Prediction Accuracy Of Seawater Intrusion Based On Different Sample Sizes And Land Cover Characteristics Using Inverse Distance Weighting And Kriging, Ni Made Mega Melliana Suastini, Mochammad Firman Ghazali, Ananda Dermawan, Choirunnisa Salsabila, Lauditta Zahra, Mila Aulia

Jurnal Geografi Lingkungan Tropik (Journal of Geography of Tropical Environments)

This study aims to determine seawater intrusion (SWI) based on sample sizes' contribution to land cover characteristics' accuracy using inverse distance weighting (IDW) and Kriging. The SWI is explained based on the extracted salt concentration from the dissolved soil. Here, this study used 24 samples of salt concentration, namely salinity samples collected by systematic random sampling and divided into two groups: ground control points (GCP) and independent checkpoints (ICP). Two interpolation methods, namely IDW and Kriging, are used to make a spatial prediction of the SWI, and their results are evaluated based on their accuracy by observing the root mean …

Resources, Amy J. Hirshman, Madison Mccormick, Riley Bowers, Bonnie M. Brown

Hidden No More: The Enduring Impact of Native American and Enslaved People on the Evansdale Neighborhood and WVU Campus

No abstract provided.

A Flood Of Information: Assessing The Effectiveness Of An Enhanced Flash Flood Warning Social Media Graphic, Christopher John Long

Theses and Dissertations

Flash flooding is the most frequent and damaging type of severe weather globally. In the United States, heat is the only weather-related cause of death more frequent than flooding. However, while the number of deaths associated with other types of severe weather has decreased since the 1950s, the number of flash flood-related deaths has remained steady. Therefore, there exists a need to improve flash flood warning communication.

In this project, it is hypothesized that improving the National Weather Service’s flash flood warning social media graphic by including areas that commonly flood may increase individuals’ perceived storm risk, their intended compliance …

Assessment Of Industrial Policies In Ghana: A Case Study On The Current Policy Of One District One Factory Policy (1d1f), Ama Nyamekye Obenewa Otoo

Masters Theses

Industrialization has been the weakest link in Ghana’s economic development efforts. Import-substitution industrialization policy of the 1960s-1980s and the outward liberalized industrialization policy of 1990-2020 (Vision 2020), have failed to achieve the goals of industrialization. This is due to several reasons including the selfish interests of these political leaders and lack of technological advancement. In 2017, the elected New Patriotic Party (NPP), announced a new industrialization policy known as “one district, one factory" (1D1F), which was a political campaign promise to realign industrial strategies. The goal of this policy is to ensure that industries are spread equitably among the country's …

Changes In Nigeria’S Enabling Environment For Nutrition From 2008 To 2019 And Challenges For Reducing Malnutrition, Olutayo Adeyemi, Mara Van Den Bold, Nicholas Nisbett, Namukolo Covic

Student Publications [Scholarly]

Key 2025 global nutrition targets are unlikely to be met at current rates of progress. Although actions necessary to reduce undernutrition are already mostly known, knowledge gaps remain about how to implement these actions in contextually appropriate ways, and at scales commensurate with the magnitude of the problem. This study describes the nutrition enabling environment in Nigeria, a country that contributes significantly to the global undernutrition burden, and identifies potential entry points for improving the enabling environment that could facilitate implementation and scale-up of essential intervention coverage. Study data were obtained from two sources: content analysis of 48 policies/strategies from …

Comparing The Trajectory Of Urban Impervious Surface In Two Cities: The Case Of Accra And Kumasi, Ghana, Thomas Mumuni Bilintoh, Andrews Korah, Antwi Opuni, Adeline Akansobe

Student Publications [Scholarly]

In this study, we present methods to assess newly developed urban impervious surface (UIS) datasets derived from satellite imagery of the cities of Kumasi and Accra, Ghana, at three different time points. Each city has three binary maps from 2000, 2011, and 2021, in which one shows the presence of UIS and zero shows its absence. We employed the binaryTimeSeries method to compare the gross gains and losses in the two cities. In addition, we show how three components of change—quantity, allocation, and alternation—compare across the two sites. The results show that both cities experienced a large proportion of gains …

Community Participation And Perspectives Of Ambondrolava Mangrove Restoration Project, Nadine Shannon

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Madagascar’s mangrove forests are intertidal ecosystems that provide numerous valuable ecosystem services but are nonetheless under pressure from large amounts of deforestation. On the southwestern coast of Madagascar, the village of Ambondrolava practices community led management of the mangrove and its resources. This research project studied the evolution of the mangrove area using GIS data, and investigated, through interviews, the relationship between the local community of Ambondrolava and the organizations that manage the mangrove ecosystem. From 2000 to 2018, the zone of the mangrove has experienced a net loss in area every year, despite reforestation efforts. Most community members interviewed …