Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Use Of Chemical Tracers In Assessing The Diet And Foraging Regions Of Eastern North Pacific Killer Whales, Margaret M. Krahn, David P. Herman, Craig O. Matkin, John W. Durban, Lance Barrett-Lennard, Douglas G. Burrows, Marilyn E. Dahlheim, Nancy Black, Richard G. Leduc, Paul R. Wade

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

Top predators in the marine environment integrate chemical signals acquired from their prey that reflect both the species consumed and the regions from which the prey were taken. These chemical tracers—stable isotope ratios of carbon and nitrogen; persistent organic pollutant (POP) concentrations, patterns and ratios; and fatty acid profiles—were measured in blubber biopsy samples from North Pacific killer whales (Orcinus orca) (n = 84) and were used to provide further insight into their diet, particularly for the offshore group, about which little dietary information is available. The offshore killer whales were shown to consume prey species that were …

Use Of Chemical Tracers In Assessing The Diet And Foraging Regions Of Eastern North Pacific Killer Whales, Margaret M. Krahn, David P. Herman, Craig O. Matkin, John W. Durban, Lance Barrett-Lennard, Douglas G. Burrows, Marilyn E. Dahlheim, Nancy Black, Richard G. Leduc, Paul R. Wade

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

Top predators in the marine environment integrate chemical signals acquired from their prey that reflect both the species consumed and the regions from which the prey were taken. These chemical tracers—stable isotope ratios of carbon and nitrogen; persistent organic pollutant (POP) concentrations, patterns and ratios; and fatty acid profiles—were measured in blubber biopsy samples from North Pacific killer whales (Orcinus orca) (n = 84) and were used to provide further insight into their diet, particularly for the offshore group, about which little dietary information is available. The offshore killer whales were shown to consume prey species that were …

Space–Time Zero-Inflated Count Models Of Harbor Seals, Jay M. Ver Hoef, John K. Jansen

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

Environmental data are spatial, temporal, and often come with many zeros. In this paper, we included space–time random effects in zero-inflated Poisson (ZIP) and ‘hurdle’ models to investigate haulout patterns of harbor seals on glacial ice. The data consisted of counts, for 18 dates on a lattice grid of samples, of harbor seals hauled out on glacial ice in Disenchantment Bay, near Yakutat, Alaska. A hurdle model is similar to a ZIP model except it does not mix zeros from the binary and count processes. Both models can be used for zero-inflated data, and we compared space–time ZIP and hurdle …

Provisioning Strategies Of Antarctic Fur Seals And Chinstrap Penguins Produce Different Responses To Distribution Of Common Prey And Habitat, Taro Ichii, John Bengston, Peter Boveng, Yoshimi Takao, John Jansen, Lisa Hiruki-Raring, Michael Cameron, Hiroshi Okamura, Tomonari Hayashi, Mikio Naganobu

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

Central-place foragers that must return to a breeding site to deliver food to offspring are faced with trade-offs between prey patch quality and distance from the colony. Among colonial animals, pinnipeds and seabirds may have different provisioning strategies, due to differences in their ability to travel and store energy. We compared the foraging areas of lactating Antarctic fur seals and chinstrap penguins breeding at Seal Island, Antarctica, to investigate whether they responded differently to the distribution of their prey (Antarctic krill and myctophid fish) and spatial heterogeneity in their habitat. Dense krill concentrations occurred in the shelf region near the …

Estimating Abundance Of Killer Whales In The Nearshore Waters Of The Gulf Of Alaska And Aleutian Islands Using Line-Transect Sampling, Alexandre N. Zerbini, Janice M. Waite, John W. Durban, Rick Leduc, Marilyn E. Dahlheim, Paul R. Wade

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

Killer whale (Orcinus orca Linnaeus, 1758) abundance in the North Pacific is known only for a few populations for which extensive longitudinal data are available, with little quantitative data from more remote regions. Line-transect ship surveys were conducted in July and August of 2001–2003 in coastal waters of the western Gulf of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands. Conventional and Multiple Covariate Distance Sampling methods were used to estimate the abundance of different killer whale ecotypes, which were distinguished based upon morphological and genetic data. Abundance was calculated separately for two data sets that differed in the method by which …

Killer Whales And Marine Mammal Trends In The North Pacific—A Re-Examination Of Evidence For Sequential Megafauna Collapse And The Prey-Switching Hypothesis, Paul R. Wade, Vladimir N. Burkanov, Marilyn E. Dahlheim, Nancy A. Friday, Lowell W. Fritz, Thomas R. Loughlin, Sally A. Mizroch, Marcia M. Muto, Dale W. Rice, Lance G. Barrett-Leonard, Nancy Black, Alexander Burdin, John Calambokidis, Sal Cerchio, John K. B. Ford, Jeff Jacobsen, Craig Matkin, Dena Matkin, Amee Mehta, Robert Small, Janice Straley, Shannon Mccluskey, Glenn Vanblaricomm, P J. Clapham

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

Springer et al. (2003) contend that sequential declines occurred in North Pacific populations of harbor and fur seals, Steller sea lions, and sea otters. They hypothesize that these were due to increased predation by killer whales, when industrial whaling’s removal of large whales as a supposed primary food source precipitated a prey switch. Using a regional approach, we reexamined whale catch data, killer whale predation observations, and the current biomass and trends of potential prey, and found little support for the prey-switching hypothesis. Large whale biomass in the Bering Sea did not decline as much as suggested by Springer et …

The Origin Of 2 Sexes Through Optimization Of Recombination Entropy Against Time And Energy, Bo Deng

Department of Mathematics: Faculty Publications

Sexual reproduction in nature requires two sexes, which raises the question why the reproductive scheme did not evolve to have three or more sexes. Here we construct a constrained optimization model based on the communication theory to analyze trade-offs among reproductive schemes with arbitrary number of sexes. More sexes on one hand lead to higher reproductive diversity, but on the other hand incur greater cost in time and energy for reproductive success. Our model shows that the two-sexes reproduction scheme maximizes the recombination entropy-to-cost ratio, and hence is the optimal solution to the problem.

Deep Mid-Infrared Silicate Absorption As A Diagnostic Of Obscuring Geometry Toward Galactic Nuclei, N. A. Levenson, M. M. Sirocky, L. Hao, H. W. W. Spoon, J. A. Marshall, Moshe Elitzur, J. R. Houck

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

The silicate cross section peak near 10 μm produces emission and absorption features in the spectra of dusty galactic nuclei observed with the Spitzer Space Telescope. Especially in ultraluminous infrared galaxies, the observed absorption feature can be extremely deep, as IRAS 08572+3915 illustrates. A foreground screen of obscuration cannot reproduce this observed feature, even at a large optical depth. Instead, the deep absorption requires a nuclear source to be deeply embedded in a smooth distribution of material that is both geometrically and optically thick. In contrast, a clumpy medium can produce only shallow absorption or emission, which are …

Mid-Infrared Galaxy Classification Based On Silicate Obscuration And Pah Equivalent Width, H. W. W. Spoon, J. A. Marshall, J. R. Houck, Moshe Elitzur, L. Hao, L. Armus, B. R. Brandl, V. Charmandaris

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

We present a new diagnostic diagram for mid-infrared spectra of infrared galaxies based on the equivalent width of the 6.2 μm PAH emission feature and the strength of the 9.7 μm silicate feature. Based on the positions in this diagram, we classify galaxies into nine classes ranging from continuum-dominated AGN hot dust spectra and PAH-dominated starburst spectra to absorption-dominated spectra of deeply obscured galactic nuclei. We find that galaxies are systematically distributed along two distinct branches: one of AGN and starburst-dominated spectra and one of deeply obscured nuclei and starburst-dominated spectra. The separation into two branches likely reflects …

Evaluating P And K Fertilizer Prescriptions From Site-Specific Technologies, John H. Grove, E. M. Pena-Yewtukhiw

Soil Science News and Views

Developing a field's fertilizer prescription as a part of a site-specific nutrient management plan can be one of the more costly tasks undertaken. Those costs are traditionally associated with gathering of a number of plant and/or soil samples, their testing, as well as acquiring and applying amendments. Soil sample analysis is particularly important for traditional phosphorus (P), potassium (K) and soil acidity (pH) management. Soil sampling requires skill and time, time that may be in short supply when crop harvest is to be soon followed by establishment of a succeeding crop. Soil test results are not always timely, further delaying …

Effect Of Avail® Polymer Applied To Phosphorus Fertilizers On Dry Matter Production And P Uptake Of Fescue At Princeton, Ky, Lloyd W. Murdock, John James Olson, Gene Olson

Soil Science News and Views

A study was conducted near Princeton, KY to determine if a polymer (AVAIL^®) applied to diammonium phosphate (DAP, 18- 46-0) and mono ammonium phosphate (MAP, 11-52-0) would increase (P) phosphorus use efficiency in fescue production on a low P testing soil, when compared to an untreated phosphate fertilizer. AVAIL^® (Specialty Fertilizer Products, Belton, MO) is presently being sold in Kentucky as a product to improve phosphorus fertilizer efficiency.

Groundwater Quality In Kentucky: Iron, R. Stephen Fisher, Bart Davidson

Information Circular--KGS

Iron is one of the most abundant elements in rocks and soils, and one of the most common problems in groundwater supplies. Rainwater seeping through soils and bedrock dissolves iron and carries it to wells and springs. In deep groundwater systems that lack oxygen, iron occurs as dissolved ferrous ion and the water is clear. Under oxidizing conditions such as in shallow groundwater systems or where the water is exposed to air at a tap or faucet, however, iron converts to a ferric form when it combines with oxygen to form reddish-brown rust particles. In addition to natural sources, elevated …

Groundwater Quality In Kentucky: Manganese, R. Stephen Fisher, Bart Davidson

Information Circular--KGS

Manganese is a common constituent of Kentucky rocks and soils and, along with iron is one of the most widespread causes of problems in groundwater supplies. Rainwater seeping through soils and bedrock dissolves manganese and carries it in the groundwater system to wells and springs. In deep, slow-moving systems that lack oxygen, manganese remains in solution. Under oxidizing conditions, however, such as in shallow groundwater systems or where the water is exposed to air, manganese combines with oxygen to form black particles that can clog plumbing fixtures and stain containers and clothing.

Groundwater Quality In Kentucky: 2,4-D, Bart Davidson, R. Stephen Fisher

Information Circular--KGS

2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid, commonly known as 2,4-D, is an herbicide used for selective control of broadleaf and grassy weeds in crops such as corn and wheat, along roadways and rights-of-way, and on pasture and rangeland. 2,4-D is the most widely used herbicide in the world, and the third most widely used in North America after metolachlor and atrazine. 2,4-D is a synthetic, organic, white to yellow, odorless, crystalline powder that dissolves readily in water. It is widely used today primarily because of its low cost.

Groundwater Quality In Kentucky: Atrazine, Bart Davidson, R. Stephen Fisher

Information Circular--KGS

Atrazine is an organic herbicide used for selective control of broadleaf and grassy weeds in crops such as corn, soybeans, sorghum, sugarcane, macadamia nuts, pineapples, pine trees, grasslands, and roses. Atrazine does not harm the crops, which can absorb and metabolize the herbicide, thereby removing the toxins. It controls targeted plants by inhibiting photosynthesis (Wilkes University Center for Environmental Quality, 2003). Atrazine is a white, odorless, crystalline powder that dissolves readily in water and does not occur naturally. It is widely used because of its low cost and ability to reduce crop losses from weed interference.

Vector Diffraction Theory Of Refraction Of Light By A Spherical Surface, Glen D. Gillen, Shekhar Guha

Physics

Focusing of light by a curved surface is described using the vector Kirchhoff diffraction theory. The electromagnetic fields of a light beam incident as a plane wave on a curved surface separating two transparent media having different refractive indices are expressed as dimensionless double integrals. The integrals are evaluated for a few specific cases, and the three-dimensional distribution of irradiance near the focus is determined. The role of aberration in limiting the maximum achievable irradiance is studied. The distribution of the longitudinal components of the electric field in the focal region is also studied, and the region where the longitudinal …

Nearshore Surface Temperatures In Antofagasta Bay (Chile) And Adjacent Upwelling Centers, A. Piñones, J. C. Castilla, R. Guiñez, J. L. Largier

CCPO Publications

Several years of sea surface temperature data (1997-2003) for the coast of Antofagasta Bay-a semi-enclosed bay in northern Chile-were analyzed in order to further exploring the nature of a warm-water retention pattern inside the bay. Based on time series techniques, we were able to confirm the persistence of warm water in the bay. This warm feature was found immediately downwind of the upwelling center at Jorgillo Point, where temperatures averaged 2-3 degrees C more than at the exposed upwelling sites outside and the bay. Temporal and spatial patterns in sea surface temperature were determined and showed being well associated with …

Employing Intelligent Agents To Automate Sla Creation, Halina Kaminski, Mark Perry

Computer Science Publications

Service Level Agreements (SLAs) are commonly prepared and signed agreements that form the contracts between a service provider and its customers, defining the obligations and liabilities of the parties. Naturally, SLAs should reflect the business needs of both customer and supplier. SLAs are usually formed through either the adoption of a boilerplate agreement from the provider, or through a mediation/negotiation process between the parties. With the increasing adoption of software supply being implemented as a network service, such schemes are rigid or slow and costly, This paper proposes a system that the parties can use to facilitate both fast and …

Open Source Software Licensing Patterns, Halina Kaminski, Mark Perry

Computer Science Publications

No abstract provided.

Outcrop Analog For Lower Paleozoic Hydrothermal Dolomite Reservoirs, Mohawk Valley, Ny, Brian E. Slater

Geology Theses and Dissertations

Geochemical analysis and field relations of linear dolomite bodies occurring in outcrop in the Mohawk Valley of New York suggest that they have undergone significant fault-related hydrothermal alteration. The dolomite occurs in the Lower Ordovician Tribes Hill Formation, which is regionally an early Ordovician shaley limestone with patchy dolomitization. The outcrop has an en echelon fault, fracture, and fold pattern. A 3D ground penetrating radar survey of the quarry floor has helped to map out faults, fractures, anticlines, synclines and the extent of dolomitization. Most of the dolomitization occurs in fault-bounded synclines or “sags” flanked by anticlines. The dolomite structures …

Interdecadal-Decadal Climate Variability From Multi-Coral Oxygen Isotope Records In The South Pacific Convergence Zone Region Since 1650ad, Peipei Zhang

Geology Theses and Dissertations

Annual average oxygen isotope (δ18O) time series from five coral cores collected from Fiji and Tonga are used to construct a Fiji-Tonga Interdecadal-Decadal Pacific Oscillation (F-TIDPO) index of low frequency (>9yr and <55yr) climate variability in this area back to 1650 A.D. Presently, both Fiji and Tonga are located in the South Pacific Convergence Zone (SPCZ) salinity front region where the Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation (IPO) variation is most pronounced. We first demonstrate the consistency between this F-T IDPO index and a MSL pressure-based SPCZ Position Index (SPI) (1891-2000), thus verifying the ability of coral δ18O to record past interdecadal-decadal climatic variations in this region back to 1891. The F-T IDPO index is then shown to be synchronous with the IPO index (1856-2000), suggesting that this coral-based index effectively represents the interdecadal-decadal scale climate variance back to 1650. The consistently anti-phase spectrums of the F-T five-coral composite and the interdecadal-decadal components in equatorial Pacific coral δ18O series from Maiana [Urban et al., 2000] and Palmyra [Cobb et al., 2001] suggest that the simultaneous eastern expansion (western contraction) of the eastern salinity front of Western Pacific Warm Pool (WPWP) occurs at the same time as the northeast (southwest) movement of the SPCZ during a positive IPO (negative IPO) phase.

A Centre-Stable Manifold For The Focussing Cubic Nls In R 1+3, Marius Beceanu

Mathematics and Statistics Faculty Scholarship

Consider the focussing cubic nonlinear Schr\"odinger equation in R 3 : iψ t +Δψ=−|ψ| 2 ψ.

It admits special solutions of the form e itα ϕ , whereϕ is a Schwartz function and a positive (ϕ>0 ) solution of −Δϕ+αϕ=ϕ 3 .

The space of all such solutions, together with those obtained from them by rescaling and applying phase and Galilean coordinate changes, called standing waves, is the eight-dimensional manifold that consists of functions of the form e i(v⋅+Γ) ϕ(⋅−y,α) . We prove that any solution starting sufficiently close to a standing wave in the Σ=W 1,2 (R 3 …

Storage Of Captured Anthropogenic Co2 In Ocean Sediment, Kurt Zenz House

Link Foundation Energy Fellowship Reports

An essential problem of CO2 capture and storage technologies is finding sufficiently large geologic depositories to store the captured anthropogenic CO2. Additionally, due to the subsurface temperature profile of terrestrial storage sites, CO2 stored in these reservoirs is buoyant. As a result, a portion of the injected CO2 can escape if the reservoir is not appropriately sealed. In addition, CO2 capture with geologic storage can only serve to limit the rate of rise of CO2 concentrations. To decrease the concentration of atmospheric CO2, processes must be developed to remove CO2 directly from the atmosphere. The central objective of this Link …

Purification By Fire : 2 Peter 3 And The Stoic Cosmos, Peter G. Speiser

Master of Arts Theses

No abstract provided.

Extreme Values For The Area Of Rectangles With Vertices On Concentrical Circles, Eugen J. Ionascu

Faculty Bibliography

No abstract provided.

Heron Triangles With Two Fixed Sides, Eugen J. Ionascu

Faculty Bibliography

In this paper, we study the function H(a, b), which associates to every pair of positive integers a and b the number of positive integers c such that the triangle of sides a, b and c is Heron, i.e., has integral area. In particular, we prove that H(p, q) ≤ 5 if p and q are primes, and that H(a, b) = 0 for a random choice of positive integers a and b.

A Parametrization Of Equilateral Triangles Having Integer Coordinates., Eugen J. Ionascu

Faculty Bibliography

We study the existence of equilateral triangles of given side lengths and with integer coordinates in dimension three. We show that such a triangle exists if and only if their side lengths are of the form p 2(m2 − mn + n2) for some integers m, n. We also show a similar characterization for the sides of a regular tetrahedron in Z 3 : such a tetrahedron exists if and only if the sides are of the form k √ 2, for some k ∈ N. The classification of all the equilateral triangles in Z 3 contained in a given …

Pollution Status Of Tinishu Akaki River And Its Tributaries (Ethiopia) Evaluated Using Physicochemical Parameters, Major Ions, And Nutrients, Samuel Abegaz

Faculty Bibliography

The present investigation provides data on physico-chemical parameters, some major ions and nutrients on water samples of Tinishu Akaki River (TAR), Ethiopia. The pH, temperature, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids (TDS), dissolved oxygen (DO), chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand (BOD), Ca2+, Mg2+, HCO3- , SO42-, NO3- , NO2- , PO43-, Cland NH3 have been determined to asses the chemical status and pollution levels of the TAR and its tributaries. The values of certain parameters have been evaluated with respect to the acceptable standard limits for drinking and surface water to indicate the pollution level of the TAR. Increasing …

A Proof Of Two Conjectures Related To Erdos-Debrunner Inequality, Eugen J. Ionascu

Faculty Bibliography

In this paper we prove some results which imply two conjectures proposed by Janous on an extension to the p-th power-mean of the Erdös–Debrunner inequality relating the areas of the four sub-triangles formed by connecting three arbitrary points on the sides of a given triangle.

Volcanic Arc Emplacement Onto The Southernmost Appalachian Laurentian Shelf: Characteristics And Constraints., Clinton Barineau

Faculty Bibliography

In the southernmost Appalachians, the Hillabee Greenstone, an Ordovician volcanic arc fragment, lies directly atop the outermost Laurentian Devonian–earliest Mississippian(?) shelf sequence at the structural top of the greenschist facies Talladega belt, the frontal metamorphic allochthon along this orogenic segment. The Hillabee Greenstone was emplaced between latest Devonian and middle Mississippian time. It and the uppermost Laurentian section were later repeated together within a series of map-scale imbricate slices of a postmetamorphic, dextral, transpressional, Alleghanian thrust duplex system that placed the high-grade eastern Blue Ridge allochthon atop the Talladega belt. Geochemical and geochronologic (U-Pb zircon) studies indicate that the Hillabee …