Archeological And Geoarcheological Investigations For The New Baylor University Football Stadium In Waco, Mclennan County, Texas

Between May 21 and 31, 2012, Prewitt and Associates, Inc., conducted archeological and geoarcheological investigations over a 93-acre area proposed for construction of the new Baylor University football stadium in Waco, Texas. The work included visual assessment of the project area, excavation of 63 trenches, and collection of 4 Geoprobe sediment core samples. Deep trench excavations were hampered by an elevated water table. As a result, most observations were limited to deposits at depths of 3 m or less, though the sediment cores did provide information to depths of 5.5–11.0 m. The investigations determined that all but the northern edge of the project area is on a lower alluvial surface that was created by a series of Brazos River flood events over the last 200–300 years and that has a very low potential for prehistoric archeological sites. The higher alluvial surface at the north edge of the project also is blanketed with these recent deposits, with a buried soil found through coring at a depth of 7.5 m suggesting that deep burial of cultural material of Holocene age is possible here. The survey identified a single historic archeological site, 41ML301, consisting of a railroad bed that was abandoned between 1957 and 1970; it is not considered eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. The potential for the project to impact undiscovered archeological resources is low to nonexistent because of the recent age of the deposits, the fact that the area never saw much historic development, and the fact that much of it has been disturbed. Prewitt and Associates, Inc., recommends that the project be allowed to proceed without additional archeological work

Barrett Site (41MM382) Assessment, Milam County, Texas

The Bryan District of Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) proposes to replace the existing bridge at the San Gabriel River along a farm-to-market road and expand the width of the existing two-lane roadway in Milam County (CSJ: 0590-05-027). In response to that proposed development, TxDOT staff archeologists from the Archeological Studies Program in Austin reviewed the Texas Historical Commission (THC) Archeological Sites Atlas, a database which contains previously documented cultural resource sites, and conducted an intensive archeological field survey with mechanical trenching along the proposed area of potential effect (APE) in February 2012. During that survey a buried prehistoric site (41MM382), named the Barrett site, was discovered in Backhoe Trench 7 at the northern end of the APE and on the western edge of the existing roadway. The 1.75 meter (m) deep trench revealed multiple levels/zones of cultural material, which included chipped stone debitage and tools, freshwater mussel shells, and burned rocks. These same types of cultural materials were also observed on the disturbed surface in the spoil from the right-of-way fence posts and a recently installed waterline through the length of the site. Subsequently, TxDOT, through the Environmental Affairs Division, Archeological Studies Program, contracted with TRC Environmental Corporation (TRC) (Scientific Services Contract No. 57- 1XXSA003) to conduct site eligibility assessment to determine if this prehistoric site was eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) and designation as a State Antiquities Landmark (SAL). TxDOT issued Work Authorization 57-111SA003 to TRC to conduct the fieldwork, subsequent analysis, report the findings, and make recommendations concerning the site’s eligibility for the NRHP and for designation as a SAL. The TRC fieldwork was conducted in May 2012 under Texas Antiquities Committee Permit No. 6244 issued to J. M. Quigg (Principal Investigator). Site eligibility/assessment investigations, directed by P. M. Matchen (Project Archeologist), consisted of excavation of 4 mechanical trenches (ca. 42 linear meters) plus 11.4 m3 of hand-excavations in 9 test units (1.00-by-0.5 m) to a depth of roughly 1.6 m below surface across the APE as defined by TxDOT, plus initial geoarcheological assessment of the deposits in the APE. The excavations yielded a sample of 3,123 artifacts, dominated by lithic debitage (49 percent), burned rocks (38 percent) and fragments of freshwater mussel shells (8 percent), as well as 8 formal chipped stone tools that include 3 diagnostic projectile points. Twelve radiocarbon dates from noncultural materials (humates and Rabdotus shells) indicate that the cultural materials represent a roughly 1,500-year period from about 2500 to 3900 B.P. Culturally, this relates to the general Late Archaic I period within the cultural chronology proposed by Johnson and Goode (1994) and supported by Collins (2004). The vertical distribution of materials in the 1.6 m thick target zone revealed three primary peaks that likely represent different occupational episodes. The horizontal distribution of multiple material classes indicates unique task areas were in use across the APE at different periods. This supports the conclusion that the peaks represent separate episodes of occupation rather than the operation of some sort of post-abandonment site formation process. Based on the results of the geoarcheology, the results of the hand-excavations combined with the analyses of materials, it is apparent the cultural deposits within the APE contain a rare opportunity to investigate a site dated to the Late Archaic period in alluvial deposits on the Blackland Prairie. Based on the projected yield, the Barrett site has the potential to contribute to a greater understanding of the population movements, paleoenvironment, technology, land use, and a number of other important issues centered on the use of the Blackland Prairie region of Texas. Therefore, TRC recommends the Barrett site (41MM382) eligible for listing on the NRHP under Criterion D and for designation as a SAL. The following report documents the 2012 eligibility investigations and geoarcheological observations at the Barrett site (41MM382), reports the findings and analyses of the materials, and suggests a research design for data recovery. The final reporting of the assessment of the Barrett site was conducted under Work Authorization 57- 306SA004 issued by TxDOT in November 2013 (Scientific Services Contract No. 57-3XXSA004)

Constrained Spacecraft Relative Motion Planning Exploiting Periodic Natural Motion Trajectories and Invariance

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/143124/1/1.G002914.pd

Long View (41RB112): Data Recovery of Two Plains Village Period Components in Roberts County, Texas, Volume 1

This archeological data recovery investigation in Roberts County in the northeastern panhandle of Texas was necessitated by the proposed widening of State Highway 70 (CSJ: 0490-04-037) by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), Amarillo District. This proposed highway rehabilitation program will directly impact a roughly 10 meter (m, 30 ft.) wide north-south section of prehistoric site 41RB112, the Long View site. This site consists of two horizontally distinct Plains Village period occupations shallowly buried along a linear interfluvial ridge between two small tributary creeks to the Canadian River in the midslope of this broad, dissected valley. This site was initially discovered by TxDOT archeologist, Dennis Price in June 2004 during an archeological inventory of the proposed 9.7 kilometer (6 mile) section north of the Canadian River in response to the planned highway rehabilitation program. Based on Mr. Price’s discovery of multiple artifact classes in buried context he recommended this site be assessed for its eligibility for listing on the National Register of Historic Places under criterion d and possible designation as a State Archeological Landmark (SAL) per the requirements of Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) and other related legislation. Following the Texas Historical Commissions concurrence with that recommendation, TxDOT through the Environmental (ENV) Affairs Division, contracted to TRC Environmental Corporation (TRC) under an existing Scientific Services Contract No. 57XXSA006 and issued a Work Authorization to TRC of Austin to conduct the site eligibility assessment. During a site visit by TxDOT geoarcheologist James Abbott and TRC archeologist Mike Quigg in February 2005, the site boundaries were expanded to nearly 300 meters (m) along the proposed area of potential effect (APE). Investigative strategies were devised to assess the Long View site. In May 2005, TRC’s archeologists from Austin conducted archeological testing for a NRHP and SAL eligibility assessment investigation at 41RB112. The assessment along the 10-m-wide by 300-m-long APE was accomplished by hand-excavating 28 1-by-1 m units (totaling 16.8 m3), hand-excavating four narrow ca. 30 centimeter (cm) wide trenches (two in each area totaling nearly 32 linear meters), as well as cleaning and inspecting 28 m of existing road cut exposures. These investigations determined that cultural materials clustered at the northern and southern ends (Areas A and C respectively) of the site with nearly 120 m of noncultural bearing deposits (Area B) between the two concentrations. A 4-m-wide mechanically bladed fireguard paralleled the existing fenceline throughout the length of the APE and disturbed much of the near surface materials in that zone. The opposite, eastern side of the highway was investigated through the excavation of six 50-by-50 cm shovel tests, surface, and road cut inspection. Based on the results from the hand-excavations and various collections conducted during the site assessment, it became apparent that the two ends (Areas A and C) of the Long View site in TxDOT’s proposed APE contained well-defined cultural components in the top 50 cmbs. Each end appeared to represent habitation remains from single occupation episodes with potential structures, restricted to a narrow time period of less than 100 years between uncalibrated 630 and 710 B.P. of the Plains Village period. Rodent and natural disturbances had vertically displaced some small cultural objects within the sandy deposits, but the restricted period of occupation to roughly a 100 year period reduces this impact. TRC recommended the site was eligible for listing on the National Register and as a State Landmark. The Texas Historical Commissions concurred with that recommendation, and subsequently the ENV Affairs Division of TxDOT, again contracted to TRC under an existing Scientific Services Contract No. 575XXSA008 and issued a Work Authorization to TRC Austin to perform the mitigation of the proposed impacts. Data recovery investigations were conducted during August through November 2006 along the western side of the existing highway. The previously identified northern-Area A and southern–Area C areas with high concentrations of cultural materials were targeted. These investigations began with a thorough geophysical survey that employed three noninvasive electrical detective instruments across Areas A and C anticipating to detect the locations of subsurface cultural features to target by hand-excavations. Some excavations targeted the detected anomalies, whereas others targeted previously identified features. In the end, hand-excavated blocks were completed in Areas A and C. The excavations totaled 128 m2 in Area A and 93 m2 in Area C for a grand total of 221 m2 or 103.4 m3. In conjunction with the archeological excavations, geoarcheological investigations focused on defining the age and development of the natural Holocene sediments that contained the cultural materials. The geoarcheological assessment included detailed stratigraphic documentation of site and near site deposits, sediment texture characterization, soil thin sections, magnetic susceptibility, multiple chemical analyses (organic, calcium, and phosphorus). Detailed stratigraphic data was also collected at two rare pithouse structures to pursue construction and filling episodes. The excavations yielded significant and diverse cultural assemblages from the two occupations assigned Component A and C. Both components are attributed to the Plains Village period with two discrete occupations dating to uncalibrated 460 to 535 B.P. (cal A.D. 1398 to 1447) in Component A and 530 to 700 B.P. (cal A.D. 1280 to 1437) in Component C. The two assemblages are significant not only in their diversity and quality of materials but also in the information they yielded. This report represents one of the first complete documents to present the entire cultural assemblage from a single site for this time period and region. The total recovered assemblage includes 157 formal chipped and ground stone tools, 226 informal tools, 3,414 pieces of lithic debitage, over 6,400 faunal fragments (1.4 kg), some 1,541 ceramic sherds, 1,790 burned rocks, at least 116 macrobotanical samples that includes 16 maize cobs, two human burials, and remains of a third, juvenile scattered along a previously bladed fireguard, 32 intact cultural features that include two rare pithouses, and other cultural debris related to these two campsites. The human remains and associated artifacts will be repatriated in accord with the requirements of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). A suite of 10 technical analyses directed at mostly the cultural assemblages included; use-wear, phytolith, diatom, petrography, macrobotanical, starch grain, instrumental neutron activation, bison bone isotopes, obsidian sourcing, radiocarbon and optical stimulated dating. This data was used to address 11 specific research questions concerning these Plains Village period occupations. Not only does the cultural debris contribute to our understanding of the time period but the geoarcheological information obtained explains the conditions and how the materials were preserved, and inform us concerning the past depositional environment in this immediate area. The combined information contributes to a significant understanding to a specific part of the Plains Village cultures in the Texas panhandle. Following the acceptance of the final report by the TxDOT and the Texas Historical Commission these cultural materials and all the documentation from the combined investigations will be permanently curated at Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas. The curated materials will provide important data that can be researched by interested parties in the future

High Resolution Cine Displacement Encoding with Stimulated Echoes (DENSE) at 3T with Navigator Feedback for Quantification of Cardiac Mechanics

Background: Measures of cardiac mechanics such as myocardial wall strain are better predictors of outcomes in patients with heart disease compared to traditional clinical measures and ejection fraction. Cine displacement encoding with stimulated echoes (DENSE) is an ideal method for quantifying cardiac motion which encodes tissue displacement in the phase of the MR signal and provides pixel-level resolution for quantifying cardiac mechanics. To date, DENSE has been implemented with resolution limited to 2-3 pixels across the myocardium. While this resolution is higher than most other techniques for quantifying cardiac mechanics, it may limit the ability of DENSE to quantify finer details such as transmural strains (subendocardial, midmyocardial and subepicardial) and right ventricular mechanics. We hypothesized that it is possible to efficiently increase the resolution of DENSE by a factor of 4 utilizing a navigator feedback system. Methods: 10 subjects (age 27 ± 3) with normal ECG and no history of cardiovascular disease were consented. A 3.0T Siemens Tim Trio with a 6-element chest and 24-element spine coil was configured with a navigator feedback system. The feedback system projected the navigator image of the diaphragm to the subject in real time to optimize breathold position. Standard resolution 2D cine DENSE was acquired with: 6 spiral interleaves, FOV = 340 mm, matrix = 96 × 96, thickness = 8 mm, TE/TR = 1.08/17, flip angle = 20, averages = 1, navigator acceptance window = ± 3 mm. High resolution 2D cine DENSE images were acquired by quadrupling the number of spirals to 24, increasing the matrix to 256 × 256, and increasing the averages to 3. Three short- and two long-axis images were acquired with each technique. Left ventricular strains and torsion were compared between the techniques using Bland-Altman. Results: The high resolution images took 11 times longer to acquire but the navigator feedback system provided good efficiency (69 ± 9%) for a total acquisition time of roughly 5 minutes per slice. The high resolution images had excellent quality with a noticeable improvement over standard resolution. There was a systematic but negligible difference between standard and high resolution data for circumferential and longitudinal strains. Radial strains showed the largest differences consistent with a systematic under-estimation of radial strain from standard resolution DENSE. Torsion was not significantly different between the two methods. Conclusions: High resolution cine DENSE MRI with navigator feedback is feasible at 3T and produces high quality images with 4 times the resolution of standard DENSE. Left ventricular circumferential strains, longitudinal strains, and torsion showed negligible differences between high and low resolution DENSE. Radial strains were significantly different, potentially due to better accuracy with high resolution DENSE due to the increased number of pixels within the thickness of the myocardial wall

Quantification of Right Ventricular Function from Short-Axis Displacement-Encoded Images

Background Right ventricular (RV) function is important in many disease states, but is difficult to quantify from routine MR imaging. Previous work has shown that long-axis deformation/strain is the most critical contributor to global RV function; however, short-axis datasets allow for better coverage of the RV. Thus it would be ideal to be able to quantify RV long-axis function using short-axis slice orientations. We hypothesized that a stack of three-dimensional (3D) displacement encoded (DENSE) images could reliably quantify longitudinal deformation of the RV to overcome the need for acquiring additional long-axis views of the RV. Methods A contiguous stack of cine short-axis DENSE images encompassing the entire RV was acquired with 3D encoding in eight healthy volunteers (Age: 27 ± 3 years) using a 3T Siemens Tim Trio scanner. Endo- and epicardial boundaries were manually drawn on each image to generate a 3D reconstruction of the RV myocardium. The measured displacement field was used to deform the mesh and longitudinal strains were computed at every point throughout the volume. For comparison to the short-axis stack with 3D encoding, a standard four-chamber DENSE image with two-dimensional in-plane displacement encoding was acquired. Similar to the 3D analysis, a mesh was deformed using the measured displacements and was subsequently used to determine longitudinal RV strain values. For comparison with the four-chamber data, only short-axis points lying within the four-chamber imaging slices were used to compute peak longitudinal strain. All strains were compared using a two-tailed paired t-test. Results Right ventricular longitudinal strains derived from short-axis 3D DENSE images (-20 ± 4%) were comparable to values obtained from four-chamber images (-16 ± 2%) (p = 0.14). In addition to obtaining information solely at the four-chamber/short-axis intersection, we computed a global RV longitudinal strain of -17 ± 2% from 3D DENSE data (p = 0.64 relative to four-chamber only). Bland Altman analysis yielded a non-significant bias of 3 ± 11% between four-chamber and short-axis longitudinal strain estimates. Conclusions We have demonstrated that short-axis 3D DENSE imaging allows for accurate characterization of right ventricular longitudinal strain compared to a standard long-axis four-chamber acquisition which is typically used to look at RV function. In addition, 3D DENSE acquired in a short-axis orientation allows for more complete coverage of the RV compared to acquisitions based on long-axis image planes. It is likely that the more complete assessment of RV function provided by 3D DENSE could potentially improve upon the accuracy, reproducibility and prognostic ability of common echocardiographic techniques such as the tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE), but future work will need to investigate this

Simultaneous control of spectroscopic and electrochemical properties in functionalised electrochemiluminescent tris(2,2\u27-bipyridine)ruthenium(II) complexes

Using a combination of electrochemical, spectroscopic and computational techniques, we have explored the fundamental properties of a series of ruthenium diimine complexes designed for coupling with other molecules or surfaces for electrochemiluminescence (ECL) sensing applications. With appropriate choice of ligand functionality, it is possible to manipulate emission wavelengths while keeping the redox ability of the complex relatively constant. DFT calculations show that in the case of electron withdrawing substituents such as ester or amide, the excited state is located on the substituted bipyridine ligand whereas in the case of alkyl functionality it is localised on a bipyridine. The factors that dictate annihilation ECL efficiency are interrelated. For example, the same factors that determine ΔG for the annihilation reaction (i.e. the relative energies of the HOMO and LUMO) have a corresponding effect on the energy of the excited state product. As a result, most of the complexes populate the excited state with an efficiency (Φex) of close to 80% despite the relatively wide range of emission maxima. The quantum yield of emission (Φp) and the possibility of competing side reactions are found to be the main determinants of ECL intensity

Two-Dimensional Estimates of Left Ventricular Strains are Significantly Affected by Through-Plane Motion

Background Advanced measures of cardiac mechanics such as left ventricular (LV) strains can be used in conjunction with classical biomarkers to gauge cardiovascular health and improve prediction of patient outcomes. Several imaging techniques, including displacement-encoded magnetic resonance imaging (DENSE), are used to non-invasively assess cardiac mechanics. These data are predominantly acquired in two dimensions (2D) due to simplified post-processing and shorter acquisition times; however, this type of acquisition and subsequent analysis cannot account for through-plane motion caused by longitudinal contraction of the left ventricle. We hypothesized that through-plane motion has a significant effect on 2D strain estimates. Methods Cine DENSE data were acquired in eight healthy volunteers (Age: 27 ± 3 years) with a 3T Siemens Tim Trio scanner. Short-axis slices with 2.8 mm in-plane resolution and an 8 mm slice thickness were acquired to span the entire LV. Displacements were encoded in both through-plane and in-plane directions with an effective temporal resolution of 34 ms. Endocardial and epicardial boundaries were delineated on the magnitude image of all short axis DENSE images. Radial and circumferential strains were computed based upon the deformation of the myocardium relative to the end-diastolic frame. Through-plane displacements were ignored for 2D analysis. For three-dimensional (3D) analysis, a 3D representation of the myocardium derived from the same endocardial and epicardial boundaries was deformed using the measured displacement field. The resulting radial and circumferential strain values were compared directly between the 2D and 3D analyses using a two-tailed paired t-test. Results Two dimensional processing consistently overestimated radial strain and underestimated circumferential strain. Peak circumferential strain was significantly different at the basal and mid-ventricular segments (p = 0.001 and 0.009, respectively). Peak radial strain decreased from the base to the apex in both 2D and 3D analyses; however, 2D significantly overestimated radial strain at the mid-ventricular and apical slices compared to 3D (p = 0.002). Global peak radial and circumferential strains from 3D were 30 ± 5% and -20 ± 2%, respectively, compared to 36 ± 5% and -18 ± 2% for 2D (both p \u3c 0.001). Conclusions Two-dimensional imaging methods for assessing left ventricular mechanics consistently overestimate radial strain and underestimate circumferential strain when compared to three-dimensional imaging. This limitation of two-dimensional imaging is likely due to the through-plane motion of the heart, which is ignored in two-dimensional techniques but easily accounted for when using three-dimensional techniques. Future research needs to determine the clinical and prognostic significance of this difference. Funding This research was funded in part by an NIH Early Independence Award to BKF (DP5 OD012132); contributions made by local businesses and individuals through a partnership between Kentucky Children\u27s Hospital and Children\u27s Miracle network; and the University of Kentucky Cardiovascular Research Center, grant UL1RR033173 from the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), funded by the Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health (NIH) and supported by the NIH Roadmap for Medical Research. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the funding sources

A Revisited Phylogeography of Nautilus Pompilius

The cephalopod genus Nautilus is considered a “living fossil” with a contested number of extant and extinct species, and a benthic lifestyle that limits movement of animals between isolated seamounts and landmasses in the Indo-Pacific. Nautiluses are fished for their shells, most heavily in the Philippines, and these fisheries have little monitoring or regulation. Here, we evaluate the hypothesis that multiple species of Nautilus (e.g., N. belauensis, N. repertus and N. stenomphalus) are in fact one species with a diverse phenotypic and geologic range. Using mitochondrial markers, we show that nautiluses from the Philippines, eastern Australia (Great Barrier Reef), Vanuatu, American Samoa, and Fiji fall into distinct geographical clades. For phylogenetic analysis of species complexes across the range of nautilus, we included sequences of Nautilus pompilius and other Nautilus species from GenBank from localities sampled in this study and others. We found that specimens from Western Australia cluster with samples from the Philippines, suggesting that interbreeding may be occurring between those locations, or that there is limited genetic drift due to large effective population sizes. Intriguingly, our data also show that nautilus identified in other studies as N. belauensis, N. stenomphalus, or N. repertus are likely N. pompilius displaying a diversity of morphological characters, suggesting that there is significant phenotypic plasticity within N. pompilius