Vole Population Dynamics in Cover Crops Transitioning to Soybeans With Integrated Pest Management by Habitat Modification

The use of cover crops has been a wildly used method in rotational row crop production. Cover crops have minimized soil runoff and aided in maintaining nutrients in agricultural fields. Increased use of cover crops has seen a corresponding increase in the amount of damage done to soybeans by voles. Currently, there are no mitigation methods that successfully decrease vole populations in agricultural fields. The use of habitat manipulation as an integrated pest management solution has not been studied as a practical solution for vole population management. During 2019 and 2020, I tested the impacts of various cover crop termination timings as an integrated pest management solution for decreasing population of voles and small mammals in cover crop fields transitioning to soybean. I used a Pollock’s Robust Design Model and a generalized linear model to determine impacts of cover crop termination treatments and time covariates on Total Number of Individuals (TNI) in plots, survival rates, and emigration rates. Treatments consisted of removing cover crop 4 weeks, 2 weeks, and one day prior to planting soybeans. Overall, survival rates for small mammals ranged from 50%-90% and followed a similar decreasing trend after termination of cover crops. The analysis of TNI for small mammals and voles both showed that treatment impacted their numbers and followed the trend of decreasing or leveling of populations after cover crop termination. Overall, I found support for cover crop termination timing as an integrated pest management for small mammal population control technique however this may not be enough to drastically reduce vole damage to soybean plants at the locations of colonies. Investigating if this method combined with other mitigation methods like raptor perches may provide a more efficient solution for farmers seeking to manage voles and other small mammal populations

Tailoring the carrier mobility of semiconducting nanowires by remote dielectrics

The dielectric environment of thin semiconductor nanowires can affect the charge transport properties inside the wire. In this work, it is shown that Coulomb impurity scattering inside thin nanowires can be damped strongly by coating the wire with a high-k dielectric. This will lead to an increase in the mobility of free charges inside the wire.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

An Unbiased Approach to Identify Genes Involved in Development in a Turtle with Temperature-Dependent Sex Determination

Many reptiles exhibit temperature-dependent sex determination (TSD). The initial cue in TSD is incubation temperature, unlike genotypic sex determination (GSD) where it is determined by the presence of specific alleles (or genetic loci). We used patterns of gene expression to identify candidates for genes with a role in TSD and other developmental processes without making a priori assumptions about the identity of these genes (ortholog-based approach). We identified genes with sexually dimorphic mRNA accumulation during the temperature sensitive period of development in the Red-eared slider turtle (Trachemys scripta), a turtle with TSD. Genes with differential mRNA accumulation in response to estrogen (estradiol-17β; E(2)) exposure and developmental stages were also identified

On the quantum and classical scattering times due to charged dislocations in an impure electron gas

We derive the ratio of transport and single particle relaxation times in three and two - dimensional electron gases due to scattering from charged dislocations in semiconductors. The results are compared to the respective relaxation times due to randomly placed charged impurities. We find that the ratio is larger than the case of ionized impurity scattering in both three and two-dimensional electron transport.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Hippocampal Global Remapping Can Occur without Input from the Medial Entorhinal Cortex.

The high storage capacity of the episodic memory system relies on distinct representations for events that are separated in time and space. The spatial component of these computations includes the formation of independent maps by hippocampal place cells across environments, referred to as global remapping. Such remapping is thought to emerge by the switching of input patterns from specialized spatially selective cells in medial entorhinal cortex (mEC), such as grid and border cells. Although it has been shown that acute manipulations of mEC firing patterns are sufficient for inducing hippocampal remapping, it remains unknown whether specialized spatial mEC inputs are necessary for the reorganization of hippocampal spatial representations. Here, we examined remapping in rats without mEC input to the hippocampus and found that highly distinct spatial maps emerged rapidly in every individual rat. Our data suggest that hippocampal spatial computations do not depend on inputs from specialized cell types in mEC

Characterizing and understanding self-assembling, nanocapsule host-guest systems

Title from PDF of title page (University of Missouri--Columbia, viewed on October 25, 2010).The entire thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file; a non-technical public abstract appears in the public.pdf file.Dissertation advisor: Dr. Sheryl A. Tucker.Vita.Ph. D. University of Missouri--Columbia 2010.Supramolecular, self-assembled nanocapsules have been shown to be capable of entrapping fluorescent guests. Previous solid- and solution-state research, focusing on hydrogen-bonded C-alkylpyrogallol[4]arenes (PgC6)nanocapsules, have shed light on the host-guest-relationship potential of these materials. Investigations of these nanocapsules with different fluorophores were undertaken to better understand the guest properties (e.g., size, shape, molecular volume, and functionality) needed to facilitate robust encapsulation. In addition, another relatively new nanocapsule containing metal ions in place of some of the hydrogen bonds was also examined. UV-Visible absorption and steady-state and dynamic fluorescence spectroscopic techniques were used to examine the host-guest interactions between the capsule interior and the fluorescent reporter molecule pyrene butanol that became encapsulated in the PgC6 nanocapsule. Solution-state spectroscopic data was compared with solid-state, single-crystal, X-ray crystallographic results. This work supported the hypothesis that the tail functionality of the encapsulated guest is a critical feature for encapsulation and potentially ensures the robustness of that association. The research laid the foundation for understanding how to achieve successful encapsulation of future entities. The work advanced the understanding of the goodness-of-fit criterion between guest and host for these PgC6 supramolecular, self-assemblies.Includes bibliographical reference

SU(2) Chiral Sigma Model Study of Phase Transition in Hybrid Stars

We use a modified SU(2) chiral sigma model to study nuclear matter component and simple bag model for quark matter constituting a neutron star. We also study the phase transition of nuclear matter to quark matter with the mixed phase characterized by two conserved charges in the interior of highly dense neutron stars. Stable solutions of Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkoff equations representing hybrid stars are obtained with a maximum mass of 1.67$M_{\odot}$ and radius around 8.9 km.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figure

Deliverables towards HR Sustainability: A conceptual Review

The hallmark of sustainability is that it brings about long-term thinking and for HR portfolio building an establishment as an "employer of choice" is synonymous with sustainability. One of the prime tenets of sustainability is maximizing the positive benefits of a business operation for all stakeholders and precisely it should start with its internal people resources. There is a growing consensus that effective human capital is critical to an organization’s success and that the human resource functions must be strategically sustainable. The very word sustainability is a new and interesting topic for most HR professionals; at the same time the nexus between sustainability and human resources is an intangible one. In contemporary times human resources is under incredible pressure to ascertain its value, facing intense demands to create a more productive, results-oriented workforce. This review paper will try to revisit the “HR to do list” and will explore an effectiveness mechanism to address the factors like employee engagement, performance, competence and retention as a powerful engine for propelling sustainability of the domain. Keywords: HR sustainability, HR effectiveness, Employee engagement, Employee performance, Employee competence, Employee retentio