Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

The Economic Impacts Of Blackbird (Icteridae) Damage To Sunflower In The Usa, Karina Ernst, Julie Elser, George Linz, Hans Kandel, Jason Holderieath, Samantha Degroot, Steven Shwiff, Stephanie Shwiff

Jason Holderieath

BACKGROUND: Blackbird (Icteridae) damage to ripening sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) has been a persistent economic issue in the USA for the last five decades. To quantify losses, we surveyed blackbird damage from 2001 to 2013 (excluding 2004) to physiologically mature sunflower in eight states: North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas, Nebraska, Minnesota, Colorado, Kansas, and Vermont.

RESULTS:We pooled data gathered during the most recent 5 years (2009 to 2013) of the survey and found losses averaged $US2.5 million and $US11.3 million for confectionery and oilseed hybrids, respectively. Three states, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Nebraska, had sufficient acreage and bird damage …

Deep Open Storage And Shallow Closed Transport System For A Continental Flood Basalt Sequence Revealed With Magma Chamber Simulator, Jussi S. Heinonen, Arto V. Luttinen, Frank J. Spera, Wendy A. Bohrson

All Faculty Scholarship for the College of the Sciences

The Magma Chamber Simulator (MCS) quantitatively models the phase equilibria, mineral chemistry, major and trace elements, and radiogenic isotopes in a multicomponent–multiphase magma + wallrock + recharge system by minimization or maximization of the appropriate thermodynamic potential for the given process. In this study, we utilize MCS to decipher the differentiation history of a continental flood basalt sequence from the Antarctic portion of the ~ 180 Ma Karoo large igneous province. Typical of many flood basalts, this suite exhibits geochemical evidence (e.g., negative initial εNd) of interaction with crustal materials. We show that isobaric assimilation-fractional crystallization models fail to …

Reversing Interfacial Catalysis Of Ambipolar Wse2 Single Crystal, Zegao Wang, Hong-Hui Wu, Qiang Li, Flemming Besenbacher, Yanrong Li, Xiao Cheng Zeng, Mingdong Dong

Chemistry Department: Faculty Publications

An improved understanding of the origin of the electrocatalytic activity is of importance to the rational design of highly efficient electrocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction. Here, an ambipolar single-crystal tungsten diselenide (WSe2) semiconductor is employed as a model system where the conductance and carrier of WSe2 can be individually tuned by external electric fields. The field-tuned electrochemical microcell is fabricated based on the single-crystal WSe2 and the catalytic activity of the WSe2 microcell is measured versus the external electric field. Results show that WSe2 with electrons serving as the dominant carrier yields much higher activity than WSe2 with holes …

A Computational Study Of Sleep And The Hemispheres Of The Brain, Tera Ashley Glaze

Dissertations

Sleep and sleep cycles have been studied for over a century, and scientists have worked on modeling sleep for nearly as long as computers have existed. Despite this extensive study, sleep still holds many mysteries. Larger and more extensive sleep-wake models have been developed, and the circadian drive has been depicted in numerous fashions, as well as incorporated into scores of studies. With the ever-growing knowledge of sleep comes the need to find more ways to examine, quantify, and define it in the context of the most complex part of the human anatomy – the brain. Presented here is the …

Fluids In Music: The Mathematics Of Pan’S Flutes, Bogdan Nita, Sajan Ramanathan

Department of Mathematics Facuty Scholarship and Creative Works

We discuss the mathematics behind the Pan’s flute. We analyze how the sound is created, the relationship between the notes that the pipes produce, their frequencies and the length of the pipes. We find an equation which models the curve that appears at the bottom of any Pan’s flute due to the different pipe lengths.

Short- And Intermediate-Range Structure And Dynamics Of Fe-Ni-C Liquid Under Compression, Jianwei Wang

Faculty Publications

Properties of liquid Fe alloys under high-pressure conditions are crucial for understanding the composition, thermal state, and dynamics of Earth's core. Experiments on such liquids, however, are often performed under pressures far below those of the outer core, necessitating long extrapolations of experimental results to core conditions. Such estimates can be complicated by light elements possibly forming pressure-dependent molecular clusters that can significantly affect the physical properties of liquids as core conditions are approached. First-principles molecular dynamics simulations were employed to compute the properties of an Fe-Ni-C liquid with a composition of Fe3.7Ni0.37C at 1673 K and pressures from 0 …

Short- And Intermediate-Range Structure And Dynamics Of Fe-Ni-C Liquid Under Compression, Jianwei Wang

Faculty Publications

Properties of liquid Fe alloys under high-pressure conditions are crucial for understanding the composition, thermal state, and dynamics of Earth's core. Experiments on such liquids, however, are often performed under pressures far below those of the outer core, necessitating long extrapolations of experimental results to core conditions. Such estimates can be complicated by light elements possibly forming pressure-dependent molecular clusters that can significantly affect the physical properties of liquids as core conditions are approached. First-principles molecular dynamics simulations were employed to compute the properties of an Fe-Ni-C liquid with a composition of Fe3.7Ni0.37C at 1673 K and pressures from 0 …

Nanoaperture Fabrication Via Colloidal Lithography For Single Molecule Fluorescence Analysis, Ryan M. Jamiolkowski, Kevin Y. Chen, Shane A. Fiorenza, Alyssa M. Tate, Shawn H. Pfeil, Yale E. Goldman

Physics & Engineering Faculty Publications

In single molecule fluorescence studies, background emission from labeled substrates often restricts their concentrations to non-physiological nanomolar values. One approach to address this challenge is the use of zero-mode waveguides (ZMWs), nanoscale holes in a thin metal film that physically and optically confine the observation volume allowing much higher concentrations of fluorescent substrates. Standard fabrication of ZMWs utilizes slow and costly E-beam nano-lithography. Herein, ZMWs are made using a self-assembled mask of polystyrene microspheres, enabling fabrication of thousands of ZMWs in parallel without sophisticated equipment. Polystyrene 1 mu m dia. microbeads self-assemble on a glass slide into a hexagonal array, …

The Grass Grows Green In Virginia: A Grassroots Effort Leading To Comprehensive Change In Removing Mathematics Barriers For Students., Patricia Parker

Inquiry: The Journal of the Virginia Community Colleges

The Virginia Community College System (VCCS) embarked on a comprehensive mathematics pathways project in October 2015 with a move from design to implementation in spring 2017. The VCCS Mathematics Pathways Project (VMPP) aimed not only to develop strategies to improve retention and completion, but also to address foundational barriers to students’ success. This grassroots effort involved collaboration among all 23 community colleges, over 200 mathematics faculty, and staff from career and technical support departments. Collaboration extended to the K–12 and university sectors, professional organizations, publishers, and foundations. VMPP goals focused on creating structured mathematics pathway courses for all program levels, …

Implementing Mth 155: Statistical Reasoning Co-Requisite, Pansy Waycaster

Inquiry: The Journal of the Virginia Community Colleges

Virginia Highlands Community College (VHCC) implemented MTH 155 — Statistical Reasoning Co-Requisite — in the spring semester of 2018. MTH 155 replaced MTH 146 on VHCC’s campus. Prerequisites for this course are the first five developmental MTE modules. The intended co-requisite audience for this new course consists of students having successfully completed at least three of the five MTE modules. These students co-enrolled in MCR 5 and received targeted assistance for the MTH 155 course. Successful completion of MTH 155 resulted in the prerequisite MTE modules 1-5 being satisfied. This paper will present the results of this study along with …

Novel Highly Porous Ceramic And Metal Aerogels From Xerogel Powder Precursors, And Methods For Their Production And Use, Nicholas Leventis, Chariklia Sotiriou-Leventis, Malik Adnan Saeed, Parwani Rewatkar, Tahereh Taghvaee

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

The present invention discloses novel methods for producing highly porous ceramic and/or metal aerogel monolithic objects that are hard, sturdy, and resistant to high temperatures. These methods comprise preparing nanoparticulate oxides of metals and/or metalloids via a step of vigorous stirring to prevent gelation, preparing polymer-modified xerogel powder compositions by reacting said nanoparticulate oxides with one or more polyfunctional monomers, compressing said polymer-modified xerogel powder compositions into shaped compacts, and carbothermal conversion of the shaped xerogel compacts via pyrolysis to provide the highly porous ceramic and/or metal aerogel monolithic objects that have the same shapes as to their corresponding xerogel …

Exploration Of Sputtered Thin Films—E.G., In Sample Preparation And Material Characterization, Tuhin Roychowdhury

Theses and Dissertations

My dissertation focuses on (i) the development sputtered films for solid phase microextraction (SPME) and (ii) the comprehensive characterization of materials using a suite of analytical techniques. Chapter 1 reviews the basics of SPME. This chapter also contains (i) a discussion of various sputtering techniques, (ii) a discussion of two techniques I focused on most of my work: spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Chapter 2 focuses the major part of my work, which is to prepare new solid phases/adsorbents for SPME via silicon sputtering followed by thermal deposition of a polymer, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). PDMS was deposited by …

Assessing Environmentally Sensitive Land To Desertification Using Medalus Method In Mongolia, Eun Jung Lee, Dongfan Piao, Cholho Song, Jiwon Kim, Chul-Hee Lim, Eunji Kim, Jooyeon Moon, Menas Kafatos, Munkhnsan Lamchin, Seong Woo Jeon, Woo-Kyun Lee

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Desertification is a global phenomenon caused by various processes, including climate change, vegetation processes, and human activities. The need to combat desertification is increasing in many countries. A reasonable assessment of the vulnerability or sensitivity of land cover to desertification at national scales is crucial to formulate appropriate strategies or policies for combating it. The main purpose of this work was to quantitatively assess the sensitivity of land cover to desertification in Mongolia using the MEDALUS approach. The MEDALUS method is a widely known technique for assessing desertification in the Mediterranean area. In this study, the method was adjusted to …

Ensemble Streamflow Forecasting Using An Energy Balance Snowmelt Model Coupled To A Distributed Hydrologic Model With Assimilation Of Snow And Streamflow Observations, Tseganeh Zekiewos Gichamo, David G. Tarboton

Publications

In many river basins across the world, snowmelt is an important source of streamflow. However, detailed snowmelt modeling is hampered by limited input data and uncertainty arising from inadequate model structure and parametrization. Data assimilation that updates model states based on observations, reduces uncertainty and improves streamflow forecasts. In this study, we evaluated the Utah Energy Balance (UEB) snowmelt model coupled to the Sacramento Soil Moisture Accounting (SAC‐SMA) and rutpix7 stream routing models, integrated within the Research Distributed Hydrologic Model (RDHM) framework for streamflow forecasting. We implemented an ensemble Kalman filter for assimilation of snow water equivalent (SWE) observations in …

Development Of Spatiotemporal Congestion Pattern Observation Model Using Historical And Near Real Time Data, Betty Kretlow

Master of Science in Computer Science Theses

Traffic congestion is not foreign to major metropolitan areas. Congestion in large cities often is associated with dense land developments and continued economic growth. In general, congestion can be classified into two categories: recurring and nonrecurring. Recurring congestion often occurs at certain parts of highway networks, referred to as bottleneck locations. Nonrecurring congestion, on the other hand, can be caused by different reasons, including work zones, special events, accidents, inclement weather, poor signal timing, etc. The work presented here demonstrates an approach to effectively identifying spatiotemporal patterns of traffic congestion at a network level. The Metro Atlanta highway network was …

Turn-On Near-Infrared Fluorescent Sensors For Selective Monitoring Of Kinase Activity, Gerard Thomas Ducharme

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Reliable and selective detection of specific biopolymers is critical in a broad range of biomedical and technological areas, including availability of simple and efficient point-of-care-compatible systems for the detection of prognostic, pharmacodynamic and predictive biomarkers. Monitoring epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase is of major significance due to its link to many epithelial cancers. This task is complicated by the high rate of mutation occurring in patients treated with kinase inhibitors. This dissertation describes a conceptually novel design and synthesis of turn-on near-infrared fluorescent sensors for selective and sensitive detection of EGFR. The fluorescent signal generation mechanism is based …

Altering The Optoelectronic Properties Of Boron Difluoride Formazanate Dyes Via Conjugation With Platinum(Ii)-Acetylides, Jasveer S. Dhindsa, Adyn Melenbacher, Stephanie M. Barbon, Martin J. Stillman, Joe Gilroy

Chemistry Publications

The combination of π-conjugated organic compounds and Pt(II)-acetylides is a powerful strategy for the production of functional optoelectronic materials. The presence of the heavy element, Pt, in these compounds enhances electronic delocalization generally resulting in low-energy absorption and emission maxima and often leads to intersystem crossing, resulting in phosphorescence. When boron complexes of N-donor ligands, such as boron dipyrromethenes (BODIPYs), are involved the molecular and polymeric materials produced have properties that are advantageous for their use as oxygen-sensors, in triplet–triplet annihilation, and as the functional components of photovoltaics. Based on these exciting results, we endeavored to thoroughly examine the effect …

Reinforcing The Number Of Disjoint Spanning Trees, Damin Liu, Hong-Jian Lai, Zhi-Hong Chen

Zhi-Hong Chen

The spanning tree packing number of a connected graph G, denoted by _T(G), is the maximum number of edge-disjoint spanning trees of G. In this paper, we determine the minimum number of edges that must be added to G so that the resulting graph has spanning tree packing number at least k, for a given value of k.

Even Subgraphs Of A Graph, Hong-Jian Lai, Zhi-Hong Chen

Zhi-Hong Chen

No abstract provided.

Zinc–Phosphorus Clusters For Solution Synthesis Of Zinc Phosphide Nanoparticles, Kyungseop Lee

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Synthesis of zinc phosphide (Zn₃P₂) nanoparticles is an emerging topic of investigation as Zn₃P₂ is a candidate material for the next generation solar cells. Despite the early discovery of its favorable electronic properties that are well-suited for photovoltaic applications, a major focus of synthetic strategy was with vapor/chemical deposition methods. Solution methods with greater control over size, crystal structure and composition at a lower production cost, has been underdeveloped in comparison. In this context, this thesis describes the synthesis, characterization and reactivity of zinc phosphido clusters: [Zn₂(μ-PPh₂)₂(PPh …

Mattes J., 2019. Wissenskulturen Des Subterranen. Vermittler Im Spannungsfeld Zwischen Wissenschaft Und Öffentlichkeit. Ein Biographisches Lexikon. [The Culture Of Subterranean Knowledge. Mediators In The Field Of Tension Between Science And Public. A Biographical Lexicon], Monika Schöner

International Journal of Speleology

No abstract provided.

The Lampenflora In Show Caves And Its Treatment: An Emerging Ecological Problem, Carlos Baquedano Estévez, Luis Moreno Merino, Almudena De La Losa Román, Juan J. Durán Valsero

International Journal of Speleology

The artificial lighting of caves adapted for touristic visits, leads to the appearance and propagation of a complex community of phototrophic organisms known as “lampenflora”. Formed mainly by algae and cyanobacteria, they produce the degradation of the colonized substrates and decrease the show value of the caves. This phenomenon became famous worldwide in the 1960s due to the damage caused to the paintings in the Lascaux Cave (France). Since then it has become an issue of serious concern to both managers of show caves and to the international scientific community. Over time, the problem has been approached following two complementary …

Resilience Reconciled, Craig R. Allen, David G. Angeler, Brian C. Chaffin, Dirac Twidwell, Ahjond Garmestani

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Resilience scholarship continues to inspire opaque discourse and competing frameworks often inconsistent with the complexity inherent in social–ecological systems. We contend that competing conceptualizations of resilience are reconcilable, and that the core theory is useful for navigating sustainability challenges.

Resilience as a scientific concept exploded in the early 2000s and is now being adopted by a range of disciplines and by a wide diversity of actors, from city planners to networks of global protectedarea managers. Resilience concepts are now integrated within national and international calls for proposals, research initiatives and centres in both the biophysical and social sciences. However, resilience …

Drought Early Warning And The Timing Of Range Managers’ Drought Response, Tonya R. Haigh, Jason A. Otkin, Anthony Mucia, Michael Hayes, Mark E. Burbach

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

'e connection between drought early warning information and the timing of rangeland managers’ response actions is not well understood. 'is study investigates U.S. Northern Plains range and livestock managers’ decision-making in response to the 2016 flash drought, by means of a postdrought survey of agricultural landowners and using the Protective Action Decision Model theoretical framework. 'e study found that managers acted in response to environmental cues, but that their responses were significantly delayed compared to when drought conditions emerged. External warnings did not influence the timing of their decisions, though on-farm monitoring and assessment of conditions did. 'ough this case …

Dissipative Correlated Dynamics Of A Moving Impurity Immersed In A Bose-Einstein Condensate, Simeon I. Mistakidis, F. Grusdt, G. M. Koutentakis, P. Schmelcher

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

We Unravel The Nonequilibrium Correlated Quantum Quench Dynamics Of An Impurity Traveling Through A Harmonically Confined Bose-Einstein Condensate In One-Dimension. For Weak Repulsive Interspecies Interactions The Impurity Oscillates Within The Bosonic Gas. At Strong Repulsions And Depending On Its Prequench Position The Impurity Moves Towards An Edge Of The Bosonic Medium And Subsequently Equilibrates. This Equilibration Being Present Independently Of The Initial Velocity, The Position And The Mass Of The Impurity Is Inherently Related To The Generation Of Entanglement In The Many-Body System. Focusing On Attractive Interactions The Impurity Performs A Damped Oscillatory Motion Within The Bosonic Bath, A Behavior …

Why Does Ramanujan, The Man Who Knew Infinity, Matter?, Ken Ono

Dalrymple Lecture Series

Dr. Ken Ono is the Thomas Jefferson Professor of Mathematics at the University of Virginia, the Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Mathematics at Emory University, and the vice president of the American Mathematical Society.He is an associate producer of the film The Man Who Knew Infinity starring Dev Patel and Jeremy Irons about Srinivasa Ramanujan, a self-trained two-time college dropout who left behind three notebooks filled with equations that mathematicians are still trying to figure out today. Ramanujan claimed that his ideas came to him as visions from an Indian goddess. This lecture is about why Ramanujan matters. The answers …

Syntheses, Characterization, And Preliminary Evaluation Of Potential Ruthenium Anticancer Complexes Containing Schiff Base Ligands, Stephen Mensah

Theses and Dissertations

Platinum-based drugs have over the years been administered in the treatment of tumours.

Unfortunately, platinum resistance and the severe side effects associated with the treatments has necessitated the research for new anti-cancer drugs. Ruthenium(II) and Ruthenium(III) complexes have shown promise as useful alternative anticancer agents. The lead candidates include the Ru(II) complex RAPTA-C, a ruthenium(II)-arene complex [Ru(η6-p-cymene)Cl2(1,3,5-triaza-7-phosphaadamantane)] and the Ru(III) complex NAMI-A [imidazoleH][trans-Ru(imidazole) (dimethyl sulfoxide)Cl4]. Both compounds have shown potent cytotoxic activity in several primary human tumor models. Unfortunately, NAMI-A could not advance in clinical evaluations due to limited efficacy in vivo, while the clinical evaluation of RAPTA-C is unknown. …

A University-Based Forensics Training Center As A Regional Outreach, Education, And Research Activity, Rayford B. Vaughn, David A. Dampier

David Dampier

This paper describes a university-based Forensics Training Center (FTC) established by a Department of Justice grant for the purpose of improving the ability of state and local law enforcement in the Southeastern part of the United States to address the rising incidence of computer based crime. The FTC effort is described along with supporting evidence of its need. The program is not only a service activity, but also contributes to the Mississippi State University (MSU) security program pedagogy, and research effort.

Effects Of Stormwater Green Infrastructure On Watershed Outflow: Does Spatial Distribution Matter?, Benjamin Fahy, Heejun Chang

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) has become a popular method in urban stormwater management. We examined how spatial distribution of GSI affected rainfall-runoff relationships in a recently developed neighborhood in Gresham, Oregon, USA for the 2017-2018 water year. Runoff ratio, peak discharge, and flashiness were compared under four precipitation scenarios (of differing intensity and duration) and different spatial arrangements of GSI. Distributed GSI reduced runoff ratio (10 - 20%), peak discharge (26 - 68%), and flashiness index (56 - 70%). Distributed GSI outperformed centralized structures for all metrics, reducing runoff ratio (22 - 32%), peak discharge 67 to 69%, and flashiness …

A Look Under The Hood: Energy & Sustainability Initiatives At New Jersey Transit, John Geitner

Sustainability Seminar Series

New Jersey Transit (NJT) is the nation's largest statewide public transportation provider. To move its nearly one million daily customers, NJT operates Rail, Bus and Light Rail systems. Finding ways to use that energy efficiently and with an eye on sustainability is the focus of the Environment, Energy & Sustainability team at NJT. Join us for a detailed discussion on NJT's operations and how the agency works to incorporate various technologies and programs into those operations with the goal of using energy wisely. This presentation will discuss current capital projects and how they work to incorporate resiliency, reliability and sustainability …