Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Geologic Modeling Of Magnetic Data For Cypress Island, Washington, Ian Mynatt

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

Cypress Island, Washington is composed of three distinct rock units separated by two major faults with east-west trending surface traces. The rock units are from south to north; an ultramafic unit with varyingly serpentinized harzburgite, a volcanic/ sedimentary unit composed of basalt, numerous pelagic sediments and serpentine, and a greywacke unit. The orientations of the fault contacts at depth are not interpretable by surface data. This study compiled magnetic data from several sources to model subsurface geologic aspects of the island. Magnetic anomaly profiles were created from the data, then analyzed and modeled using the computer program GM-SYS. The primary …

Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 2000/2001 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.

Ecotones: The Heartbeat Of Huxley, 2002, Winter, Issue 01, Laurel Eddy, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

Historical Collection of Huxley Newsletters

No abstract provided.

The Brunn-Minkowski Inequality, Richard J. Gardner

Mathematics Faculty Publications

In 1978, Osserman [124] wrote an extensive survey on the isoperimetric inequality. The Brunn-Minkowski inequality can be proved in a page, yet quickly yields the classical isoperimetric inequality for important classes of subsets of Rⁿ, and deserves to be better known. This guide explains the relationship between the Brunn-Minkowski inequality and other inequalities in geometry and analysis, and some applications.

Form Domains And Eigenfunction Expansions For Differential Equations With Eigenparameter Dependent Boundary Conditions, Branko Ćurgus, Paul Binding

Mathematics Faculty Publications

Form domains are characterized for regular 2n-th order differential equations subject to general self-adjoint boundary conditions depending affinely on the eigenparameter. Corresponding modes of convergence for eigenfunction expansions are studied, including uniform convergence of the first n - 1 derivatives.

Hurricane Mitch: Impacts On Mangrove Sediment Elevation Dynamics And Long-Term Mangrove Sustainability, Donald R. Cahoon, Philippe Hensel, John M. Rybczyk, Brian Christopher Perez

Environmental Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

Hurricane Mitch left three very different impacts on mangroves in the coastal zone of Central America. First, in the Caribbean, direct wind and flood-induced mangrove mortality was seen in the Bay Islands. Second, wave-induced erosion of beaches and subsequent sediment deposition buried mangrove forests of Punta de Manabique, Guatemala. Finally, along the Pacific coast, some mangroves of the Gulf of Fonseca were buried under up to 100 cm of sediments eroded from uplands and carried down slope by river flooding. Each of these three impacts left a different footprint on the mangrove communities, and these communities are expected to follow …

The Planet, 2002, Winter, Levi Pulkkinen, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

The Planet

No abstract provided.

Huxley Horizon, 2002, Winter, Volume 02, Issue 01, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

Historical Collection of Huxley Newsletters

No abstract provided.

A New Hypothesis For The Origin Of Dune Ridges, Neil Duffin

WWU Graduate School Collection

In support of a new hypothesis concerning the origin of dune ridges, fieldwork was carried out on the Long Beach Peninsula, SW Washington State, between 1997 and 2002. Procedures included coring, profiling, measuring and recording cross-section stratigraphy, and collected data analyzed and compiled at Western Washington University. The proposed hypothesis envisions coseismic subsidence, formation of a berm or beach ridge, subsequent uplift, and eolian deposition on the berm or beach ridge to form a new dune ridge. Geomorphic and stratigraphic evidence from the Long Beach Peninsula is presented and compared to the standard models outlined in the literature.

Most of …

Paleomagnetism Of The Jura-Cretaceous Kyuquot Group, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Chad K. Hults

WWU Graduate School Collection

The Kyuquot Group is a series of marine clastic deposits of Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous age located on the NW portion of Vancouver Island. These sediments have been folded, but not metamorphosed, and so provide an attractive target for paleomagnetic study. Results from these rocks fill a significant (50 m.y.) time gap in our knowledge of the paleomagnetic paleolatitude record of Wrangellia. Paleomagnetic results from the underlying Bonanza Volcanics (Symons, 1984) show no significant relative latitudinal displacement of Wrangellia with respect to North America. This, along with geological correlations between other similar-aged clastic sediment units, has led several workers …

Paleogeography Of The Spieden Group, San Juan Islands, Washington, Patricia Allison Dean

WWU Graduate School Collection

The Spieden Group in the San Juan Islands of Washington State consists of the Lower Cretaceous Sentinel Island Formation and the Upper Jurassic Spieden Bluff Formation. In order to constrain the location of its origin, paleomagnetism of the sedimentary rocks of the Spieden Group was studied to obtain paleolatitudes. Two components of magnetization were measured in most of the Sentinel Island Formation specimens. The second-removed component had a mean in-situ direction of D = 34.1°, I == 44. 2°, α₉₅ = 12.0° and a mean tilt-corrected direction of D = 49.3°, I = 71.5°, α₉₅ = 6.9°. Uncertainty …

Ecotones: The Heartbeat Of Huxley, 2001, Issue 10, Kate Koch, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

Historical Collection of Huxley Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Ecotones: The Heartbeat Of Huxley, 2001, Fall, Issue 09, Kate Koch, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

Historical Collection of Huxley Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Ecotones: The Heartbeat Of Huxley, 2001, November 05, Kate Koch, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

Historical Collection of Huxley Newsletters

No abstract provided.

The Planet, 2001, Spring, Tiffany Campbell, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

The Planet

No abstract provided.

The Planet, 2001, Fall, Levi Pulkkinen, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

The Planet

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Salmon-Derived Nitrogen On Riparian Forest Growth And Implications For Stream Productivity, James M. Helfield, Robert J. Naiman

Environmental Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

Anadromous Pacific salmon ( Oncorhynchus spp.) transport marine-derived nitrogen (MDN) to the rivers in which they reproduce. Isotopic analyses indicate that trees and shrubs near spawning streams derive 22-24% of their foliar nitrogen (N) from spawning salmon. As a consequence of this nutrient subsidy, growth rates are significantly in­creased in Sitka spruce ( Picea sitchensis ) near spawning streams. As riparian forests affect the quality of instream habitat through shading, sediment and nutrient filtration, and production of large woody debris (LWD), this fertilization process serves not only to enhance riparian production, but may also act as a positive feedback mechanism …

Seismic And Acoustic Signals Detected At Loihi Seamount By The Hawaii Undersea Geo-Observatory, Jacqueline Caplan-Auerbach, F. Duennebier

Geology Faculty Publications

The Hawai'i Undersea Geo-Observatory (HUGO) is an ocean bottom observatory located on the summit of Lo'ihi seamount, Hawai'i. An electro-optical cable connects the HUGO junction box to a shore station on the Big Island of Hawaii, thereby enabling the first real-time monitoring of a submarine volcano. HUGO was active for 3 months in 1998, collecting nearly continuous, real-time data on a high-rate hydrophone. Signals detected during that time include local as well as teleseismic earthquakes, T phases from Pacific-wide earthquakes, landslides on the submarine flank of Kilauea, and eruption sounds from the current Kilauea eruption. The data do not indicate …

Effects Of Sampling Standardization On Estimates Of Phanerozoic Marine Diversification, J. Alroy, C. R. Marshall, R. K. Bambach, K. Bezusko, M. Foote, F. T. Fürsich, Thor A. Hansen, S. M. Holland, L. C. Ivany, D. Jablonski, D. K. Jacobs, D. C. Jones, M. A. Kosnik, S. Lidgard, S. Low, A. I. Miller, P. M. Novack-Gottshall, T. D. Olszewski, M. E. Patzkowsky, D. M. Raup, K. Roy, J. J. Sepkoski Jr., M. G. Sommers, P. J. Wagner, A. Webber

Thor A. Hansen

Global diversity curves reflect more than just the number of taxa that have existed through time: they also mirror variation in the nature of the fossil record and the way the record is reported. These sampling effects are best quantified by assembling and analyzing large numbers of locality-specific biotic inventories. Here, we introduce a new database of this kind for the Phanerozoic fossil record of marine invertebrates. We apply four substantially distinct analytical methods that estimate taxonomic diversity by quantifying and correcting for variation through time in the number and nature of inventories. Variation introduced by the use of two …

Hydroacoustic Detection Of Submarine Landslides On Kilauea Volcano, Jacqueline Caplan-Auerbach, Christopher G. Fox, Frederick K. Duennebier

Geology Faculty Publications

Landslides produced at the site where lava flows into the ocean at Kilauea volcano have been detected hydroacoustically. Up to 10 landslides per day were detected by a hydrophone on the Hawaii Undersea Geo-Observatory (HUGO), located 50 km south of the entry site. The largest of these landslides, partly subaerial events known as bench collapses, were detected by a network of hydrophones in the eastern Pacific, 5000–7000 km away from the source. The landslides display a characteristic spectral signature easily recognizable among other signals such as earthquake T-phases and anthropogenic noises. The fact that signals are detected at great distances …

Ecotones: The Heartbeat Of Huxley, 2001, Spring, Issue 04, Kate Koch, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

Historical Collection of Huxley Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Ecotones: The Heartbeat Of Huxley, 2001, April 16, Kate Koch, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

Historical Collection of Huxley Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Ecosystem Factors Influencing The Success Of Riparian Restoration In Whatcom County, Crystal Elliot

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

Riparian corridors are complex and diverse ecosystems that are essential to the maintenance of global health. The total area occupied by riparian ecosystems in the United States has plummeted in the last 200 years to only 20% of its initial size. The recent movement to restore these fragile and complex ecosystems has produced outcomes of variable success. The Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association’s riparian restoration project at Schell Creek in Femdale, WA provides an example of an effort that exhibits mixed results. Our experiment explored reasons for the variable success of the restoration vegetation and investigated several ecosystem factors that may …

An Investigation Into The Mechanistic Interplay Between Th1 And Th2 Cells In Allergic Disease, Christine Marie Rose

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

The incidence of allergic disease has increased steadily in western countries over the past few decades. Substantial amounts of research have been geared toward elucidating the mechanisms whereby some people develop allergies and others do not. As with all development theories, the question revolves around the debate of genetics versus environment - attempting to determine the relative contribution from heredity and nurture in the development of an allergic phenotype.

Heredity has long been identified as a risk factor for allergies. Children born of atopic (allergic disease attributed to heredity) parents are at an increased risk for developing atopy themselves. Consequently, …

Topics In Extremal Graph Theory: Ramsey Numbers And The Turan Function, Damon J. (Damon John) Gulczynski

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

"Topics in Extremal Graph Theory: Ramsey Numbers and the Turan" Function by Damon J. Gulczynski

A Strategy For Improved Expression Of Permuted Myoglobins, Anna Buser

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

Our research is aimed at generating and characterizing topological mutants of sperm whale myoglobin (swMb). The long-term experimental design involves the production of circular permuteins from swMb genes fused by a linker and determination of the effect of linker sequence on protein stability. We have expressed circularly permuted sperm whale myoglobins in E. coli including variants that start at the C helix and end with the B helix (CBLx), and others beginning at the H helix and ending with the G helix (HGLx). Expression yields for mutant myoglobins have been shown to correlate with stabilities of the mutants (Hargrove et …

Molecular Dynamics Simulations Of Large Systems, Patrick B. (Patrick Brian) Kohl, David L. Patrick

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

Chiral symmetry breaking in a fluid of achiral molecules at a liquid-solid interface was studied using atomistic molecular dynamics simulation. The molecules were achiral in three dimensions, but left- and right-handed forms could be distinguished in the reduced symmetry environment of an interfacial fluid. The system consisted of a thick fluid film in contact with a crystalline monolayer adsorbed to a solid surface. When molecules in the crystalline monolayer were arranged in uniformly chiral configurations, a homochiral enantiomeric excess developed in the adjacent interfacial fluid. Fluid properties were characterized through measurements of chiral, nematic, and ferroelectric order parameters, and diffusion …

Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 1999/2000 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.

Park Place Wet Pond Monitoring Project 1994–2000 Summary Report, Robin A. Matthews, Mark R. Saunders, Michael Hilles, Joan Vandersypen

Lake Whatcom Other Reports

The Park Place monitoring program is an on-going study of the effectiveness of storm water treatment in a small wet pond located in the northwestern portion of the Lake Whatcom watershed. Water quality in the Lake Whatcom watershed has been monitored since the 1960’s by researchers at Western Washington University. During this time it has been noted that the some of the streams and storm drains entering the lake contained contaminants associated with residential development. In 1990, a comprehensive storm water runoff monitoring project was undertaken by the Institute for Watershed Studies (IWS) at Western Washington University on behalf of …

A Brunn-Minkowski Inequality For The Integer Lattice, Richard J. Gardner, Paolo Gronchi

Mathematics Faculty Publications

A close discrete analog of the classical Brunn-Minkowksi inequality that holds for finite subsets of the integer lattice is obtained. This is applied to obtain strong new lower bounds for the cardinality of the sum of two finite sets, one of which has full dimension, and, in fact, a method for computing the exact lower bound in this situation, given the dimension of the lattice and the cardinalities of the two sets. These bounds in turn imply corresponding new bounds for the lattice point enumerator of the Minkowski sum of two convex lattice polytopes. A Rogers-Shephard type inequality for the …