2008 Annual Research Symposium Abstract Book

2008 annual volume of abstracts for science research projects conducted by students at Trinity College

Movement across scales: red fox spatial ecology

Rødrevens forflytningsmønster på forskjellige romlige skalaer Menneskelig påvirkning på naturlige habitater kan medføre reduserte bevegelsesmuligheter for noen dyrearter, eller fasilitere typiske generalister som rødrev Vulpes vulpes. Vår forståelse av rødrev i landskaper dominert av menneskelige aktiviteter er begrenset av manglende kunnskap om hvordan revene beveger seg i disse områdene. I denne avhandlingen undersøkte jeg temporale og romlige mønstre i forflytningene til rødrever langs en gradient av menneskelig påvirkning ved bruk av GPS-telemetridata innhentet i Norge og Sverige fra 2011 til 2019. Rødrevenes leveområder var langt større enn observert i tidligere studier, og med en markant individuell variasjon som delvis kunne relateres til miljøfaktorer langs en landskapsgradient. I lavereliggende sørlige områder med relativt høy primærproduksjon og mye landbruk var revenes leveområder fire ganger mindre enn i høyereliggende nordlige barskogområder. I gjennomsnitt var 43% av revenes posisjoner innenfor klustere som dekket bare 1% av leveområdene. Dette indikerte at rødrevenes kognitive kartlegging innebar repetitive bevegelser som bidro til avgrensing av leveområdene. Noen rever viste også en betydelig evne til å forflytte seg lange avstander under spredning, mellom populasjoner og landskaper, og potensielt over nasjonale grenser. Allikevel viste revene en genetisk struktur på liten romlig skala som var knyttet til sosiale mekanismer heller enn forflytningsevne og spredningskapasitet. Parvise distanser mellom nært beslektede hunndyr (gjennomsnitt = 6.3 km) var signifikant kortere enn avstandene mellom beslektede hanner (37.8 km). Dette understreker at sosiale forhold (som slektskap) spiller en viktig rolle i rødrevenes romlige organisasjon. Mine resultater viser at forståelsen av rødrevens forflytninger forutsetter god innsikt i hvilken temporal og romlig skala bevegelsene foregår. Å klassifisere unike og variable atferdstrekk hos en svært fleksibel art som rødrev er veldig vanskelig, og dette understreker artens økologiske plastisitet. Alt i alt har denne avhandlingen gitt ny innsikt i hvordan rødrevens forflytningsmønster er påvirket av sosial struktur og miljøfaktorer på forskjellige romlige skalaer. Dette har betydning for framtidig forskning og forvaltning, samt for modellering av revenes demografi og sykdomsspredning. Informasjonen gir økt innsikt i rødrevens områdebruk og spredning i rurale områder, og åpner for nye muligheter for forskning på denne artens påvirkning på økosystemer.Movement across scales: red fox spatial ecology The impact of human activities is altering natural habitats, reducing the ability of some animals to move, while facilitating other, generalist species, such as the red fox Vulpes vulpes. Our understanding of red foxes in rural and human modified landscapes is constrained by a lack of knowledge about how foxes use these landscapes. In this thesis I investigated the spatiotemporal movement patterns of red foxes along a landscape gradient of human influence using individual based GPS telemetry data from red foxes collected in Norway and Sweden between 2011- 2019. Herein, I identified much larger home ranges than previously recorded for red foxes and a high degree of individual variation, partially explained through environmental factors along a landscape gradient. At lower elevations, where productivity and the amount of available agricultural land increased, red foxes had home ranges approximately four times smaller than the home ranges of foxes in the northern boreal vegetation areas. I also identified cognitive mapping as a feature of red fox space use, linked to recursive movements within home ranges and contributing to bounded space use. On average, 43% of a red fox’s positions were found in defined clusters that covered a proportional area of only 1% of their home range. I highlighted the red fox’s ability to traverse between populations, across landscapes, and potentially across international boundaries, by identifying six long-distance dispersal events, representing some of the longest dispersal distances recorded for red foxes. However, I also showed that fine scale familial structuring in red foxes occurred by social mechanisms not linked to their movement ability or dispersal capacity. I found significant differences in pairwise geographic distances between highly related same sex pairs with the average distance between related males, 37.8 km, being six times farther than that of related females, averaging 6.3 km. This highlights how social dynamics (e.g. kin clustering and female philopatry) play a role in the spatial organization of red foxes. Finally, I showed that recognizing red fox behaviors is dependent on not only identifying their associated movement patterns, but also understanding the temporal and spatial scales at which their movements occur. Identifying the unique and variable behaviors of a highly flexible species such as the red fox is difficult and shows the ecological plasticity of the species. Together, this information represents new observations that greatly expand our knowledge of red fox space use and dispersal in rural landscapes and opens the door for future research into the broader ecosystem consequences of such movements. Overall, this thesis increases our understanding of red fox movement behaviors and their interactions with social and environmental factors at multiple spatial scales, with implications for future research, management and demographic and disease modeling.publishedVersio

05. 2014 IMSAloquium Student Investigation Showcase

https://digitalcommons.imsa.edu/class_of_2015/1003/thumbnail.jp

2014 IMSAloquium, Student Investigation Showcase

The ability to work with professionals is a life-changing experience for our students. Working with world-class scholars and advisors, students have contributed to advances in a variety of fields from science, technology, engineering and mathematics, to the performing arts and history.https://digitalcommons.imsa.edu/archives_sir/1006/thumbnail.jp

Ecology of translocated pine martens Martes martes and their impacts on grey squirrels Sciurus carolinensis

The rate of biodiversity loss has been increasing since the beginning of the Anthropocene, driven by climate change, human population expansion and environmental degradation. Consequently, ecosystems have become simplified through the loss of important processes and species. Ecological restoration aims to reverse such changes through reinstating habitats, native species and their associated relationships, as well as removing invasive, non-native species. One strategy to restore ecological function is through the re-establishment of top-down processes driven by predators. The cascading effects of these predators, through direct predation and the fear they induce in prey can restore predator-prey dynamics in a disrupted food web. In this thesis, I investigate the restoration of a native and recovering predator, the pine marten Martes martes, with particular focus on its ecology and behaviour after a translocation event from Scotland to Wales. Subsequently, I assess its impact on the behaviour of one of its prey species, the invasive, non-native grey squirrel Sciurus carolinensis to better understand the relationship between these two species. I first introduce predator restoration using translocation in a project that aims to reintroduce and restore the native pine marten. I demonstrate that the phases of post-translocation movement comprise a period of ‘exploration’ followed by ‘settlement’ in all individuals, however the extent and duration of these movements differ between release groups. I show that conspecific presence is important in site fidelity and the resulting habitat in which martens establish themselves. I then investigate the diet of translocated martens at a population and individual level, before and after translocation. I reveal that pine martens consume a more diverse diet post-translocation, which incorporates grey squirrels, a prey item not found in their source sites in Scotland. Furthermore I document a degree of dietary specialisation within individuals, which is maintained relative to others after translocation. This suggests pine martens are facultative specialists with dietary preferences that they are able to supplement with readily available prey groups, enhancing their probability of survival after translocation. 6 Next, I address the impact of translocated pine martens on grey squirrel space use and survival. Grey squirrel range size and daily distance travelled was found to increase with increasing marten exposure. However, an impact on grey squirrel survival and range location was not found within the timeframe of this study. I then investigated the role that fear plays in the relationship between pine martens and grey squirrels. Using feeding experiments, I document a reduced volume of food consumed by squirrels in woodlands containing pine martens, suggesting that squirrels ‘give-up’ foraging earlier under such conditions. This suggests that squirrels display a fear-mediated response to pine marten risk, which in time may be detrimental to grey squirrel fitness. I consider the role of predation and fear in predator-prey dynamics and its importance in species management. Finally I conclude the key findings of this thesis with regards to pine marten and grey squirrel management in the UK, as well as their contribution to carnivore restoration and species management strategies. This work identifies that social structure and dietary flexibility are key considerations for predator restoration projects. Furthermore, the cascading effects of predators can play a potential role in the management of invasive non-native species, which may be more economically and socially acceptable than current strategies. This work highlights the importance of studying ecological processes underlying landscape-scale patterns to better inform the management of native and non-native species alike

Using MapReduce Streaming for Distributed Life Simulation on the Cloud

Distributed software simulations are indispensable in the study of large-scale life models but often require the use of technically complex lower-level distributed computing frameworks, such as MPI. We propose to overcome the complexity challenge by applying the emerging MapReduce (MR) model to distributed life simulations and by running such simulations on the cloud. Technically, we design optimized MR streaming algorithms for discrete and continuous versions of Conway’s life according to a general MR streaming pattern. We chose life because it is simple enough as a testbed for MR’s applicability to a-life simulations and general enough to make our results applicable to various lattice-based a-life models. We implement and empirically evaluate our algorithms’ performance on Amazon’s Elastic MR cloud. Our experiments demonstrate that a single MR optimization technique called strip partitioning can reduce the execution time of continuous life simulations by 64%. To the best of our knowledge, we are the first to propose and evaluate MR streaming algorithms for lattice-based simulations. Our algorithms can serve as prototypes in the development of novel MR simulation algorithms for large-scale lattice-based a-life models.https://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/scs_books/1014/thumbnail.jp

Active Methodologies for the Promotion of Mathematical Learning

In recent years, the methodologies of teaching have been in a process of transition. Multiple active methodologies have proliferated, with the aim of changing the concept we have had of teaching so far. These advocate for a student who plays a leading role in the process of building learning, while the teacher acts as a figure who facilitates and glimpses the paths to learning. In order to be able to carry out this type of teaching in an optimal way, it is necessary for the teaching and research community to be correctly trained in its pedagogical principles and in the tools that boost its implementation. Among these principles and tools, it is of vital importance that information and communication technologies (ICT) be adequately handled. The use of active methodologies (project-based learning, problem-based learning, service learning, flipped classroom, mobile learning, etc.) or innovative pedagogical approaches (simulation, role-playing, gamification, etc.) promotes an improvement in the motivation of students as well as their skills. This aspect is especially important in the area of mathematics, whose contents are characterized by their abstraction, thus highlighting the need for its dynamization in classrooms of different educational stages

Research on Teaching and Learning In Biology, Chemistry and Physics In ESERA 2013 Conference

This paper provides an overview of the topics in educational research that were published in the ESERA 2013 conference proceedings. The aim of the research was to identify what aspects of the teacher-student-content interaction were investigated frequently and what have been studied rarely. We used the categorization system developed by Kinnunen, Lampiselkä, Malmi and Meisalo (2016) and altogether 184 articles were analyzed. The analysis focused on secondary and tertiary level biology, chemistry, physics, and science education. The results showed that most of the studies focus on either the teacher’s pedagogical actions or on the student - content relationship. All other aspects were studied considerably less. For example, the teachers’ thoughts about the students’ perceptions and attitudes towards the goals and the content, and the teachers’ conceptions of the students’ actions towards achieving the goals were studied only rarely. Discussion about the scope and the coverage of the research in science education in Europe is needed.Peer reviewe

RFID Technology in Intelligent Tracking Systems in Construction Waste Logistics Using Optimisation Techniques

Construction waste disposal is an urgent issue for protecting our environment. This paper proposes a waste management system and illustrates the work process using plasterboard waste as an example, which creates a hazardous gas when land filled with household waste, and for which the recycling rate is less than 10% in the UK. The proposed system integrates RFID technology, Rule-Based Reasoning, Ant Colony optimization and knowledge technology for auditing and tracking plasterboard waste, guiding the operation staff, arranging vehicles, schedule planning, and also provides evidence to verify its disposal. It h relies on RFID equipment for collecting logistical data and uses digital imaging equipment to give further evidence; the reasoning core in the third layer is responsible for generating schedules and route plans and guidance, and the last layer delivers the result to inform users. The paper firstly introduces the current plasterboard disposal situation and addresses the logistical problem that is now the main barrier to a higher recycling rate, followed by discussion of the proposed system in terms of both system level structure and process structure. And finally, an example scenario will be given to illustrate the system’s utilization