Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Home Energy Capstone

Activities

The other three weeks of the Home Energy Module study energy flow and usage in our homes. In the R-Factor activity, we observed that the material used in the construction of our homes has a tremendous impact on the rate at which heat flows through its exterior surfaces. In Home Audit and Home Analysis activities, we performed an energy audit of our homes to estimate the amount of money that it costs to power it. As you have seen during our studies, there are many factors that affect the cost of energy in our homes. The right choices of materials, …

Home Analysis

Activities

The average household spends over $1,300 a year for energy to run the many devices found in the home. In this week's lab, we are going to investigate ways to save both energy and money that will not seriously impact your current lifestyle, i.e. you can keep watching as much television as you like, but you might want to put on a sweater to do it. In order to do this, we are going to have to use the measurements of our homes that we made two weeks ago. Last week, we studied how different materials affect the amount of …

R-Factor Of Various Materials

Activities

Even though it has been over 150 years since the First Law of Thermodynamics was discovered, we still find that heat is misunderstood. For example, the many environmental science textbooks define heat as "the total kinetic energy of atoms or molecules in a substance not associated with bulk motion of the substance." THIS IS WRONG! What these books are describing is the thermal energy of a system. This is a common misconception. While heat is energy, it is not a containable form of energy since, by its very definition, heat is energy that is transferred. In particular, heat is the …

Home Energy Audit

Activities

In the 1800's, scientists found, empirically, that rules exist that determine how energy can be transferred. The first of these rules is called the First Law of Thermodynamics. This law is usually stated as, "Energy can neither be created nor destroyed; it can only be transferred from one form to another." This often leads to the re-titling of this law as the Conservation of Energy Principle since it says that energy must be conserved. This statement of the First Law does not say anything about how energy can be transferred, though. It turns out that there are only two ways. …

Basic Skills Capstone B

Activities

If you look at the leaves that fall off of the trees in autumn, you will notice that not all leaves of the same kind are alike. Some are larger than others, some are longer or wider, some have different stem lengths, and some may have slightly different shapes. This is not surprising if you consider that they may be from different trees. Just as two people have hands or feet of different sizes, so different trees may have leaves of different sizes. If you do further observations, however, separating out leaves found under one tree from leaves found under …

Basic Skills Capstone A

Activities

In the late spring and summer, many parts of the United States experience smog alert days - days when the concentration of pollutants in the air has been considered unhealthy. Many of these pollutants are produced by automobiles - particularly hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and, indirectly, ozone. Most discussion of the adverse effects of smog center on humans, and the effects on other forms of life, such as plants, are scarcely mentioned. So how does air pollution from automobiles affect plant growth? Let's think about how this hypothesis might be tested. Two problems must be addressed. The first is …

Measurement

Activities

In general, you are quite familiar with measurements, as almost any occupation requires measurements of some kind. Carpenters measure boards for cutting, nurses measure blood pressure in patients, tailors measure fabric for garments, and advertising executives measure the public's acceptance of their sales pitches. You will therefore undoubtedly be utilizing measurement in your chosen career, regardless of the field you enter. Measurement plays a particularly large role in science. In their studies, scientists gather data, and to do this they use measurements. Scientists measure the concentration of gases in the atmosphere, the growth of organisms under varying conditions, the rate …

Statistics And Graphing

Activities

Statistics - they're all around us, and we're exposed to them every day. They allow us to summarize large volumes of mathematical information, and so are found wherever there's data to be presented. Let's say you're watching your favorite college football team, and the game has come down to a last second thirty-five yard field goal attempt for the win. When describing the kicker's past performance in this range, the play-by-play announcer doesn't list all of the kicker's attempts one by one and their outcome, he simply states the percentage of kicks made in this yard range. If the kicker's …

Experimental Analysis

Activities

Central to good science are accurate observations, testable hypotheses, well-designed experiments or other tests, and reasonable data analyses. The purpose of Laboratory 1 is to introduce you to the basics of designing and analyzing experiments. The following two laboratory exercises will provide you with further steps in organizing and analyzing data. Many interesting experiments are impossible to do in a normal undergraduate science laboratory setting. For this reason, your introduction to designing an experiment that has relevance in “the real world” involves a computer simulation. The program involves a growing industry, that of farming fish. What is your favorite kind …

2017 Fall Engr333 Project Assignment, Matthew K. Heun

ENGR 333

The Fall 2017 ENGR333 project focused on campus energy cost savings.

I asked the students two questions:

• Section A: What would it take for Calvin to save $75k/year on natural gas costs?
• Section B: What would it take for Calvin to save $150k/year on energy costs (mostly electricity) using a new on-site co-gen plant?

Customer

The customer for this project was Phil Beezhold, Director of Calvin’s Physical Plant.

Physical Water Scarcity Metrics For Monitoring Progress Towards Sdg Target 6.4: An Evaluation Of Indicator 6.4.2 “Level Of Water Stress”, D. Vanhama, A. Y. Hoekstra, Y. Wada, F. Bouraoui, A. De Roo, Mesfin Mekonnen, W. J. Van De Bund, O. Batelaan, P. Pavelic, W. G.M. Bastiaanssen, M. Kummu, J. Rockström, J. Liu, B. Bisselink, P. Ronco, A. Pistocchi, G. Bidoglio

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Target 6.4 of the recently adopted Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) dealswith the reduction ofwater scarcity. To monitor progress towards this target, two indicators are used: Indicator 6.4.1 measuring water use efficiency and 6.4.2 measuring the level of water stress (WS). This paper aims to identify whether the currently proposed indicator 6.4.2 considers the different elements that need to be accounted for in a WS indicator.WS indicators compare water use with water availability.We identify seven essential elements: 1) both gross and net water abstraction (or withdrawal) provide important information to understand WS; 2) WS indicators need to incorporate environmental flow requirements …

Walking As Ontological Shifter: Thoughts In The Key Of Life, Bibi (Silvina) Calderaro

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

With walking as ontological shifter I pursue an alternative to the dominant modernist episteme that offers either/or onto-epistemologies of opposition and their reifying engagements. I propose this type of walking is an intentional turning towards a set of radical positions that, as integrative aesthetic and therapeutic practice, brings multiplicity and synchronicity to experience and being in an expanded sociality. This practice facilitates the conditions of possibility for recurring points of contact between the interiority perceived as ‘body’ and the exteriority perceived as ‘world.’ While making evident the self’s at once incoherence with it-self, it opens to a space beyond the …

Trends In The Environmental Health Job Market For New Graduates, Jason W. Marion, Timothy J. Murphy Phd, Anne Marie Zimeri Phd

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

The question of whether the job market can support future graduates of environmental health programs remains an important and difficult question for environmental health programs, current and prospective students, parents, and other stakeholders. Our previous report using 2014 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics demonstrated anticipated growth and higher than average pay in the profession through at least 2022 for baccalaureate degree holders (Marion & Sinde, 2015). Growth in the profession does not necessarily translate into job availability if the market is saturated with job candidates. While university programs produce graduates, local health departments (LHDs) have suffered tremendous …

Water Use In Irrigated Agriculture: An Approach To Water Productivity In Drip And Sprinkler Systems, Fernanda Lamede Ferreira De Jesus, Jéssica Garcia Nascimento, Rubens Duarte Coelho, Sergio Nascimento Duarte, Fernando Campos Mendonça

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Irrigation plays an important role in agriculture and the increase in the irrigated area and scarce water resources have encouraged the use of irrigation systems and management systems that increase the efficiency of water use. Thus, maximize water productivity has been one of the most important challenges in agriculture. The present study aimed to relate information on water productivity for two irrigation systems, drip and sprinkler systems, with the purpose of understanding the characteristics of these systems and contributing to the advancement of studies and research carried out in the area. Technological innovations aimed at reducing consumption and increasing water …

Lyme Disease And Youtube™: A Cross-Sectional Study Of Video Contents, Corey H. Basch, Lindsay A. Mullican, Kwanza D. Boone, Jingjing Yin, Alyssa Berdnik, Marina E. Eremeeva, Isaac Chun-Hai Fung

Environmental Health Sciences Faculty Publications

Objectives: Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne disease. People seek health information on Lyme disease from YouTubeTM videos. In this study, we investigated if the contents of Lyme disease-related YouTubeTM videos varied by their sources.

Methods: Most viewed English YouTubeTM videos (n = 100) were identified and manually coded for contents and sources.

Results: Within the sample, 40 videos were consumer-generated, 31 were internet-based news, 16 were professional, and 13 were TV news. Compared with consumer-generated videos, TV news videos were more likely to mention celebrities (odds ratio [OR], 10.57; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.13–52.58), prevention of Lyme disease …

Interpretations, Analyses And Suggestions On The Pollution Prevention Measures In The Polar Code, Hecheng Yan

Maritime Safety & Environment Management Dissertations (Dalian)

No abstract provided.

Monitoring Responsibility And Measures Of The Recycling Company In Water Pollution Prevention During The Process Of Ship Recycling, Rui Tu

Maritime Safety & Environment Management Dissertations (Dalian)

No abstract provided.

Study Of Ship Air Pollution Control In Caofeidian Port, Feng Zhu

Maritime Safety & Environment Management Dissertations (Dalian)

No abstract provided.

Analysis And Research Of The System For The Prevention And Control Of Vessel-Induced Pollution In Shanghai Port, Longxue Wang

Maritime Safety & Environment Management Dissertations (Dalian)

No abstract provided.

Research On Sulfur Emission Control Of Ships In China, Longteng Zhou

Maritime Safety & Environment Management Dissertations (Dalian)

No abstract provided.

Model Application Niche Analysis: Assessing The Transferability And Generalizability Of Ecological Models, Jessica B. Moon, Theodore H. Dewitt, Melissa N. Errend, Randall J. F. Bruins, Mary E. Kentula, Sarah J. Chamberlain, M. Siobhan Fennessy, Kusum J. Naithani

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

The use of models by ecologists and environmental managers, to inform environmental management and decision-making, has grown exponentially in the past 50 yr. Due to logistical, economical, and theoretical benefits, model users frequently transfer preexisting models to new sites where data are scarce. Modelers have made significant progress in understanding how to improve model generalizability during model development. However, models are always imperfect representations of systems and are constrained by the contextual frameworks used during their development. Thus, model users need better ways to evaluate the possibility of unintentional misapplication when transferring models to new sites. We propose a method …

Rethinking Urban Green Infrastructure As A Means To Promote Avian Conservation, Allen Lau

Master's Projects and Capstones

There is an under-recognized potential for cities to use urban green infrastructure to contribute to avian biodiversity conservation. At the global scale, climate change and growing urbanization are primary global drivers leading to decline and homogenization in world bird populations. Birds are fundamental and intricate species in ecosystems, and even in urban areas, act as indicator and regulator species contributing to healthy ecosystem function. While many cities have recognized the economic and social benefits associated with green spaces, such as the vast benefits ecosystem services provide to the urban dweller, the use of green spaces to concurrently contribute to avian …

Understanding Household, Network, And Organizational Drivers Of Adoption Of Cleaner Cooking Fuels In Rural India, Praveen Kumar

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Adoption of evidence-based cleaner cooking systems such as Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) is a crucial first step in eventually providing a sustainable solution for household air pollution. To promote adoption of LPG in below poverty line households, we require evidence-based implementation strategies. For these strategies to be feasible and scalable, they need to be grounded in a thorough understanding of the household, network, and organizational level drivers of LPG adoption. However, systematic research on adoption of LPG by poor communities is still lacking.

The overall objective of the study was to develop a better understanding about new insights on the …

Responses Of Agroecosystems To Climate Change: Specifics Of Resilience In The Mid-Latitude Region, Menas Kafatos, Seung Hee Kim, Chul-Hee Lim, Jinwon Kim, Woo-Kyun Lee

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

This study examines the productivity and resilience of agroecosystems in the Korean Peninsula. Having learned valuable lessons from a Chapman University project funded by the United States Department of Agriculture which concentrated on the semi-arid region of southwestern United States, our joint Korea—Chapman University team has applied similar methodologies to the Korean Peninsula, which is itself an interesting study case in the mid-latitude region. In particular, the Korean Peninsula has unique agricultural environments due to differences in political and socioeconomic systems between South Korea and North Korea. Specifically, North Korea has been suffering from food shortages due to natural disasters, …

Loss Of Buffer Value Due To Aquifer Depletion: The Case Of High Plains Aquifer, Mani Rouhi Rad, Timothy Foster, Nicholas Brozovic

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Existing literature in economics and engineering do not realistically capture the effects of aquifer depletion on loss of profits from agricultural production. While the former literature ignores the physical characteristics of aquifer and the relationship between aquifer levels and groundwater availability, the latter strand of literature does not consider farmers' decisionmaking as a result of aquifer depletion. Misspecification of these relationships and their effect on irrigation decisions can result in misunderstanding the consequences of aquifer depletion and may provide ineffective policies. This paper provides a framework to study the effects of aquifer depletion on the profit of agricultural production. We …

On The Pursuit Of Relevance In Standards-Based Curriculum Development: The Ccny Approach, Angelo Lampousis

Publications and Research

The Society for Standards Professionals (SES) has a significant history of documenting the use of standards in research and academia. For instance, during the 62nd Annual SES Conference in 2013 in Savannah, Georgia, the author participated in such a session highlighting examples of relationships between academic institutions, government, and standards developing organizations. In this article, we attempt to capture the current advances made from similar relationships specific to our home institution, the City College of New York (CCNY) of the City University of New York (CUNY.) These advances have become possible through a grant issued under the Standards Services Curricula …

Large Marine Protected Areas Represent Biodiversity Now And Under Climate Change, T. E. Davies, S. M. Maxwell, K. Kaschner, C. Garilao, N. C. Ban

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Large marine protected areas (>30,000 km²) have a high profile in marine conservation, yet their contribution to conservation is contested. Assessing the overlap of large marine protected areas with 14,172 species, we found large marine protected areas cover 4.4% of the ocean and at least some portion of the range of 83.3% of the species assessed. Of all species within large marine protected areas, 26.9% had at least 10% of their range represented, and this was projected to increase to 40.1% in 2100. Cumulative impacts were significantly higher within large marine protected areas than outside, refuting the …

A Comparison Of Outdoor Bioaerosol And Particulate Measurements In Las Vegas, Tanviben Yogeshkumar Patel

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The urbanization of the Las Vegas Valley has turned the desert into a green oasis by introducing many non-native plant species, some of which are allergenic. Outdoor bioaerosols consist of microorganisms, pollen, spores, and other agents that could cause infections or affect the health of humans. Studies have suggested that exposure to bioaerosols through inhalation can lead to various human health risks. Typically, one monitoring station is established per city to obtain pollen and mold counts for an entire metropolitan area, and the site may not be representative of community exposures. The objective of this study was to measure and …

Estimation Of Bubble-Mediated Air–Sea Gas Exchange From Concurrent Dms And Co2 Transfer Velocities At Intermediate–High Wind Speeds, Thomas G. Bell, Sebastian Landwehr, Scott D. Miller, Warren J. De Bruyn, Adrian H. Callaghan, Brian Scanlon, Brian Ward, Mingxi Yang, Eric S. Saltzman

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Simultaneous air–sea fluxes and concentration differences of dimethylsulfide (DMS) and carbon dioxide (CO2/ were measured during a summertime North Atlantic cruise in 2011. This data set reveals significant differences between the gas transfer velocities of these two gases (1kw/ over a range of wind speeds up to 21ms􀀀1. These differences occur at and above the approximate wind speed threshold when waves begin breaking. Whitecap fraction (a proxy for bubbles) was also measured and has a positive relationship with 1kw, consistent with enhanced bubble-mediated transfer of the less soluble CO2 relative to that of the more soluble DMS. However, the correlation …

Nuclear Weapons In A Changing Climate: Probability, Increasing Risks, And Perception, Adam Liska, Tyler R. White, Eric Holley, Robert J. Oglesby

Adam Liska Papers

Many people tend to think that the outcome of any nuclear weapons use today will result in an escalatory situation with apocalyptic outcomes for the countries involved. Yet many factors are increasing the probability of the limited use of nuclear weapons (e.g., 1 to 20 warheads) in a range of conflict scenarios. Previous atmospheric model simulations of regional nuclear conflicts employing many relatively small bombs have been estimated to cause a global “nuclear autumn,” with great reductions in agricultural productivity, stratospheric ozone loss, and spread of hazardous radioactive fallout. The totality of these effects would result in widespread damage …