Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

The Planet, 2006, Spring, Sarah M. Kuck, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

The Planet

No abstract provided.

A Dft Study Of Iron-Oxide Nanoparticle Ground-State Geometries, Danielle Mcdermott

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

Density Functional Theory was used to construct a ground state configuration for Fe203, or maghemite. The bipyramidal structure that resulted from a numerical optimization scheme was computationally stable with a lower energy than individual (free) components of the molecule. These stable bipyramids form a basic building block to generate iron-oxide nanoparticles. The primary focus of the study is understanding appropriate input geometries and using proper basis sets to model the real system, and to approximate possible reaction kinetics with other compounds.

Characterization Of Sputtered Fe Thin Films, Cedar S. Wolf

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

The temperature dependence of the electrical resistance for Fe films with thicknesses of 20-400 nm has been investigated. The films were prepared by DC magnetron sputtering onto SiO2 substrates. The investigation was prompted by the purchase of new lab equipment by Western Washington University and the necessity to test their basic functionality. The film thicknesses were characterized by x-ray diffraction for films up to about 200 nm. Temperature effects were observed by using a closed-cycle refrigerator. An anomalous dip in resistance was detected around 40-50 K for all samples. The resistivity of these films was also calculated and compared to …

My Experiences With Obstinate Autoanalyzers While Doing Water Quality Analysis, Deborah Wilson

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

I started work at the Institute for Watershed Studies (IWS) in June of 2005. On my first day I incorrectly weighed out ammonium chloride thus making that a mistake I would never make again. Despite this hiccup, under the careful tutelage of my boss I have become proficient at a great many necessary skills. This report serves as a summary and description of what I have learned over the past year. I have experience in water quality procedures covering the processing and analyzing of samples.

Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 2004/2005 Report, Robin A. Matthews, Michael Hilles, Joan Vandersypen, Robert J. Mitchell, Geoffrey B. Matthews

Lake Whatcom Annual Reports

This report is part of an on-going series of annual reports and special project reports that document the Lake Whatcom monitoring program. This work is conducted by the Institute for Watershed Studies and other departments at Western Washington University.

The major objective of this program is to provide long-term baseline water quality monitoring in Lake Whatcom and selected tributaries. Each section contains brief explanations about the water quality data, along with discussions of patterns observed in Lake Whatcom.

Depth Distribution Of Magnetofossils In Near-Surface Sediments From The Blake/Bahama Outer Ridge, Western North Atlantic Ocean, Determined By Low-Temperature Magnetism, Bernard A. Housen, Bruce M. Moskowitz

Geology Faculty Publications

Fe-oxide and Fe-sulfide trace minerals in sediments and sedimentary rocks provide proxy records of biogeochemical processes, record past variations in the geomagnetic field, and can serve as proxies for climatic variations. An important class of these Feoxides is produced by bacteria. Magnetic particles produced by magnetotactic bacteria have been proposed as a primary recorder of the geomagnetic field in many terrestrial marine sediments, and have also been suggested to represent fossil evidence of life on the planet Mars. To better understand their distribution and preservation in the sediment column, and their relationship to other biochemical processes, we present rock-magnetic data …

Trends In Satellite-Observed Circumpolar Photosynthetic Activity From 1982 To 2003: The Influence Of Seasonality, Cover Type, And Vegetation Density, Andrew Godard Bunn, Scott J. Goetz

Environmental Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

Time series analyses of a 22-yr record of satellite observations across the northern circumpolar high latitudes were conducted, and trends in vegetation photosynthetic activity were assessed using a series of statistical tests. The results indicate that most of the northern circumpolar high latitudes (>85%) showed no significant trend in vegetation activity despite systematic climate warming during the period of analysis. Of the areas that did change, many showed the expected trends in “greening” of vegetation activity. There were, however, significant differences in the magnitude and even in the direction of trends when stratified by vegetation type and density. Tundra …

Best Constants For Certain Multilinear Integral Operators, Árpád Bényi, Tadahiro Oh

Mathematics Faculty Publications

We provide explicit formulas in terms of the special function gamma for the best constants in nontensorial multilinear extensions of some classical integral inequalities due to Hilbert, Hardy, and Hardy-Littlewood-Polya.

Self-Assembly And Conformation Of Tetrapyridilporphyrin On The Ag(111) Surface, Willi Auwärter, Alexander Weber-Bargioni, Andreas Riemann, Agustin Schiffrin, R. Fasel, O. Gröning, Johannes V. Barth

Physics & Astronomy

We present a low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) study on the supramolecular ordering of tetrapyridyl-porphyrin (TPyP) molecules on Ag(111). Vapor deposition in a wide substrate temperature range reveals that TPyP molecules easily diffuse and self-assemble into large, highly ordered chiral domains. We identify two mirror-symmetric unit cells, each containing two differently oriented molecules. From an analysis of the respective arrangement it is concluded that lateral intermolecular interactions control the packing of the layer, while its orientation is induced by the coupling to the substrate. This finding is corroborated by molecular mechanics calculations. High-resolution STM images recorded at 15 K allow …

The Planet, 2006, Winter, Sarah M. Kuck, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

The Planet

No abstract provided.

A Contemporary Review Of 1975-1976 Elevated Activity Levels At The Mount Baker Complex, Washington, And Current Community Awareness Of Volcanic Hazards, Janna Juday

WWU Graduate School Collection

This investigation seeks to understand the changes in the associated volcanic and human systems during and after the 1975-1976 sudden thermal events at Mount Baker volcano. Included are reviews of some of the conclusions made by scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey and universities around the U.S. during that event. A questionnaire was also presented to people in communities around the volcano to outline current understanding of volcanic activity and hazards associated with Mount Baker.

The source of the Mount Baker thermal activity in 1975-1976 was never conclusively identified at the time. There appears to have been a small decrease …

Regional Correlations Of Late Pleistocene Climatic Changes Based On Cosmogenic Nuclide Exposure Dating Of Moraines In Idaho, Cody Sherard

WWU Graduate School Collection

Multiple post-last glacial maximum (LGM) moraines occur in the Sawtooth Range of the Rocky Mountains in central Idaho. Although relative ages of the moraines have been studied, few numerical ages exist for these moraine sequences. In this study, the ages of LGM and late glacial (Younger Dryas) moraines in the Redfish Lake drainage of Idaho are constrained with 23 new, cosmogenic, ¹⁰Be dates. Results of this study include developing a new chronology for the Redfish Lake late Pleistocene moraines that are consistent with regional morainal ages.

New cosmogenic ¹⁰Be data from boulders on Bull Lake moraines at Redfish …

Streamflow Calibration Of Two Sub-Basins In The Lake Whatcom Watershed, Washington Using A Distributed Hydrology Model, Katherine D. (Katherine Delia) Kelleher

WWU Graduate School Collection

Lake Whatcom provides drinking water to the City of Bellingham and portions of Whatcom County. Therefore, quantifying streamflow into the lake is important to establish the contribution of ground water and surface water runoff in the Lake Whatcom water budget. Runoff is nearly 74% of the total inputs to the lake, thus the runoff provides the most water and nutrients to the lake. The primary goal of this study was to determine the ability of the Distributed Hydrology-Soils-Vegetation Model (DHSVM) to simulate the hydrologic processes in two sub-basins of the Lake Whatcom watershed.

DHSVM is a physically based model that …

Environmental Records In A High-Altitude Low-Latitude Glacier, Sierra Nevada, California, Alison J. (Alison Jane) Gillespie

WWU Graduate School Collection

Glaciers are sensitive and detailed recorders of changes in local, regional, and global climate. Stable isotope variations reflect seasonal temperature changes, physical stratigraphy relates to net precipitation, and trace element concentrations mark seasonal surfaces in the ice. Previous studies have largely focused on polar ice cores because cold, dry conditions in such locations are ideal for preserving ice stratigraphy. Conversely, low-latitude alpine glaciers have been generally ignored because warmer, wetter conditions in them have been presumed to destroy or obscure the original stable isotope stratigraphy. Here, I evaluate the potential to obtain viable environmental records from an ice core of …

The Nature And Transport Of The Fine-Grained Component Of Swift Creek Landslide, Northwest Washington, Tovah M. (Tovah Michelle) Bayer

WWU Graduate School Collection

Extreme sedimentation in Swift Creek, located in the Cascades foothills in NW Washington (48°55’N, 122°16’W), results from erosion of the oversteepened, unvegetated toe of a large (0.55 km²) active earthflow. The amount of bedload in the creek has necessitated several mitigation projects in the channel including annual dredging and temporary sediment traps in an attempt to reduce the risk of flooding and damage to manmade structures downstream.

The bedload and suspended sediment in the creek are a direct result of the weathering process of the serpentinitic bedrock, in which the landslide is rooted. The serpentinite weathers to asbestiform …

The Simple Random Walk On A Random Voronoi Tiling, Amites Sarkar, Louigi Addario-Berry

Amites Sarkar

Let P be a Poisson point process in ℝ^d with intensity 1. We show that the simple random walk on the cells of the Voronoi diagram of P is almost surely recurrent in dimensions d = 1 and d = 2 and is almost surely transient in dimension d ≥ 3.

Austin Creek And Beaver Creek Sampling Project, Robin A. Matthews, Michael Hilles, Joan Vandersypen

Lake Whatcom Other Reports

Beaver Creek and Austin Creek were sampled intensively on November 20, 2004 to measure temperature, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, total suspended solids, and fecal coliforms. The objective was to assess the amount of variability that can be expected for water quality measurements collected from these creeks at different times during the day and in different locations within the Austin Creek and Beaver Creek watersheds.

The Planet, 2005, Fall, Sarah M. Kuck, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

The Planet

No abstract provided.

Satellite-Observed Photosynthetic Trends Across Boreal North America Associated With Climate And Fire Disturbance, Scott J. Goetz, Andrew Godard Bunn, Gregory J. Fiske, Richard A. Houghton

Environmental Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

We analyzed trends in a time series of photosynthetic activity across boreal North America over 22 years (1981 through 2003). Nearly 15% of the region displayed significant trends, of which just over half involved temperature-related increases in growing season length and photosynthetic intensity, mostly in tundra. In contrast, forest areas unaffected by fire during the study period declined in photosynthetic activity and showed no systematic change in growing season length. Stochastic changes across the time series were predominantly associated with a frequent and increasing fire disturbance regime. These trends have implications for the direction of feedbacks to the climate system …

Observed And Predicted Responses Of Plant Growth To Climate Across Canada, Andrew Godard Bunn, Scott J. Goetz, Gergory J. Fiske

Environmental Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

Using satellite observations from 1981–2000, and data interpolated from surface weather stations, we examined the association between gross photosynthetic activity (Pg) and climate across the boreal forest and tundra of Canada. The response of annual and interannual Pg was tightly coupled to climate, and seasonal associations between Pg and climate varied with plant functional types. The most important variable for modeling summer growth of conifer forests was the previous spring minimum temperature, whereas tundra responded primarily to summer maximum temperature. Using general circulation model predictors to 2050, we project that tundra will continue to grow vigorously in the coming decades …

Paleomagnetism And Tectonic Significance Of Albian And Cenomanian Turbidites, Ochoco Basin, Mitchell Inlier, Central Oregon, Bernard A. Housen, Rebecca J. Dorsey

Geology Faculty Publications

Understanding continental growth and convergent margin dynamics associated with terrane accretion and modification of the Cordilleran margin of North America is prevented by conflicts in paleogeographic models for major terranes, oceanic plates, and the North American margin. We present new paleomagnetic data suggesting that the Blue Mountains superterrane, located at an inboard portion of the Cordilleran margin, has undergone substantial northward translation and clockwise rotation relative to North America since mid-Cretaceous time. Positive baked-contact, conglomerate, and fold tests, provide evidence that the magnetization of these rocks dates from their deposition. These results yield a mean direction of D = 10.8°, …

On Multiscale Approaches To 3-Dimensional Modeling Of Morphogenesis, Rajiv Chaturvedi, Chengbang Huang, Bogdan Kazmierczak, T. Schneider, Jesus A. Izaguirre, Tilmann Glimm, H. George E. Hentschel, Stuart (Stuart A.) Newman, Mark Alber, James A. Glazier

Mathematics Faculty Publications

In this paper we present the foundation of a unified, object-oriented, three-dimensional (3D) biomodeling environment, which allows us to integrate multiple submodels at scales from subcellular to tissues and organs. Our current implementation combines a modified discrete model from statistical mechanics, the Cellular Potts Model (CPM), with a continuum reaction-diffusion (RD) model and a state automaton with well-defined conditions for cell differentiation transitions to model genetic regulation. This environment allows us to rapidly and compactly create computational models of a class of complex developmental phenomena. To illustrate model development, we simulate a simplified version of the formation of the skeletal …

Reddening And The Extinction Law At High Galactic Latitude, Kristen A. Larson, D. C. B. Whittet

Physics & Astronomy

We present near-infrared (JHKL) photometry of 103 southern stars located behind translucent interstellar clouds at high Galactic latitude. Our data are combined with visual photometry and spectral type information from the literature in a detailed analysis of the wavelength dependence of interstellar extinction by dust in these high-latitude clouds. We investigate the shape of the near-infrared extinction curve and evaluate the total line-of-sight extinction ( A_V) and ratio of total-to-selective extinction ( R_V) in each line of sight. Sources of uncertainty in R_V arising from photometric errors and spectral classification errors are carefully assessed …

The Planet, 2005, Spring, Lucas Henning, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

The Planet

No abstract provided.

Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 2003/2004 Report, Robin A. Matthews, Michael Hilles, Joan Vandersypen, Robert J. Mitchell, Geoffrey B. Matthews

Lake Whatcom Annual Reports

This report is part of an on-going series of annual reports and special project reports that document the Lake Whatcom monitoring program. This work is conducted by the Institute for Watershed Studies and other departments at Western Washington University.

The major objective of this program is to provide long-term baseline water quality monitoring in Lake Whatcom and selected tributaries. Each section contains brief explanations about the water quality data, along with discussions of patterns observed in Lake Whatcom.

Comment On "Paleomagnetism And Geochronology Of The Ecstall Pluton In The Coast Mountains Of British Columbia: Evidence For Local, Myrl E. Beck Jr., Bernard A. Housen

Geology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

On The Supersymmetry Group Of The Classical Bose-Fermi Oscillator,", Tilmann Glimm, Rudolf Schmid

Mathematics Faculty Publications

Applying the concept of a momentum map for supersymplectic supervectorspaces to the one-dimensional Bose-Fermi oscillator, we show that the largest symmetry group that admits a momentum map is the identity component of the intersection of the orthosymplectic group OSp(2|2) and the group of supersymplectic transformations. This gives a systematic characterization of a certain class of odd supersymmetry transformations that were originally introduced in an ad hoc way.

Connectivity Of Random K-Nearest-Neighbor Graphs, Paul Balister, Béla Bollobás, Amites Sarkar, Mark Walters

Mathematics Faculty Publications

Let P be a Poisson process of intensity one in a square S_n of area n. We construct a random geometric graph G_n,k by joining each point of Pto its k ≡ k(n) nearest neighbours. Recently, Xue and Kumar proved that if k ≤ 0.074logn then the probability that G_n,k is connected tends to 0 as n → ∞ while, if k ≥ 5.1774logn, then the probability that G_n,k is connected tends to 1 as n → ∞. They conjectured that the …

Review Of: Newton Methods For Nonlinear Problems: Affine Invariance And Adaptive Algorithms, By P. Deuflhard, Tjalling Ypma

Mathematics Faculty Publications

In the context of solving nonlinear equations, the term "affine invariance" was introduced to describe the fact that when a function F: Rⁿ → Rⁿ is transformed to G = AF ,where A is an invertible matrix, then the equation F(x) = 0 has the same solutions as G(x) = 0, and the Newton iterates X_^k+1 = X_k-F'(X_k)^-1F(X_k) remain unchanged when F is replaced by G. The idea was that this property of Newton's method should …

Mechanisms Of Telomerase Binding To Telomeres, George Czerlinski, Tjalling Ypma

Mathematics Faculty Publications

There are essentially two alternative mechanisms for the binding of telomerase to telomeres, assuming that a protective component is initially bound to the telomerase binding region on the telomeres. Either the protective (or blocking) agent first dissociates and telomerase binds thereafter, or telomerase binds first and the protective agent then dissociates from the ternary complex. In the limit, this second possibility permits the ternary complex to become a transition complex (creating another possible mechanism). Numerical simulation of both rapid mixing and chemical relaxation is used to study these alternatives. We aim to determine how the mechanisms may be distinguished experimentally …