Life in the sun and the deep-freeze

The future effects of climate change will potentially have massive impacts upon society, infrastructure, energy and food supplies. Considerable research is focused upon the development of sophisticated predictive climate models that forecast the implications and effects of climate change over the next few millennia. However, two obvious questions arise. Firstly, how can we test whether these models work? Secondly, are we being short-sighted and not looking far enough into the future? Both of these questions can be examined by looking at analogues from the geological record

Studies on the electromagnetic structure of the nucleon by free and quasi-free Compton scattering at MAMI (Mainz)

Using hydrogen and deuterium targets, Compton scattering by the proton and neutron have been studied at the tagged photon beam of the MAMI (Mainz) accelerator using different experimental setups. The theoretical tools for the analysis of the experimental data have been investigated, as there are the nonsubtracted dispersion theory and the theory of quasi-free reactions on the proton and neutron bound in the deuteron. Experimental Compton scattering data are understood in the first and second resonance region with good precision. Precise electromagnetic polarizabilities and spin polarizabilities for the proton and neutron have been determined

Disaster Relief Medicaid Evaluation Project

[Excerpt] This study is a retrospective evaluation of the enrollment processes and service delivery associated with DRM. It examines this unexpected experiment and assesses the outcomes. This report begins with an overview of the Medicaid/Family Health Plus program in September 2001, and is followed by a description of the challenges of, and responses to, the World Trade Center disaster. It then looks at how well the DRM process worked, how accessible needed services were for recipients, how costs compared to costs associated with those previously enrolled in the traditional Medicaid program, and how the different eligibility/verification procedures affected program integrity. Finally, in the section Background Information: Detailed History of Disaster Relief Medicaid, it presents a narrative timeline, detailing the decision steps by which DRM was implemented

Electric polarizabilities of proton and neutron and the relativistic center-of-mass coordinate

We argue that the relativistic correction $\delta{\bf R}_{c.m.}$ to the center-of-mass vector can lead to the approximate equality of the proton and neutron electric polarizabilities in the quark model. The explicit form of $\delta{\bf R}_{c.m.}$ depends only on the non-relativistic potential between quarks. In particular, this correction is the same for the potential generated by Lorentz-vector and -scalar interactions.Comment: 8 pages, LaTeX, conclusion extende

Evaluating the Effects of Morrow\u27s Honeysuckle Control on Vertebrate and Vegetation Assemblages, and Small Mammal Foraging Ecology at Fort Necessity National Battlefield

Exotic, Japanese bush honeysuckles (Lonicera spp.; Caprifoliaceae) are tied to a variety of impacts on wildlife and ecosystems. Morrow\u27s honeysuckle (Lonicera morrowii) has become a persistent invader in eastern North America. We organized a restoration initiative at Fort Necessity National Battlefield (FONE), Pennsylvania, USA from 2004--2010. Concurrently, we studied the consumption of Morrow\u27s honeysuckle fruits by small mammals from October--November 2009 and July--August 2010, and determined habitat variables that affected visitation rate to foraging stations. Areas of FONE were invaded by Morrow\u27s honeysuckle after the land had been cleared for agriculture, and routine mowing ceased in the mid-1980s. Our restoration goals were to control honeysuckle and restore native vegetation with a plan to promote both early-successional habitat and mimic the historical conditions from the mid-1700s. Treatment and reference sites were established, and treatment sites received a combination of yearly mowing and broad-spectrum herbicides from October 2006--August 2010. The vegetation and vertebrate communities were monitored pre-removal from 2004--2006, and throughout the restoration from 2007--2010.;Our control techniques were highly effective at reducing the presence of Morrow\u27s honeysuckle in the treatment area. The percent cover of Morrow\u27s honeysuckle declined dramatically from 2005--2010. No direct, short-term adverse impacts on the monitored vegetation and vertebrate communities occurred. In fact, most species varied as a function of time over the study, rather than because of the presence or removal of Morrow\u27s honeysuckle. We found that small mammals were better indicators of changes in the vegetation community than were songbirds. Competitive interactions between small mammals appeared to produce an indirect negative effect of restoration. Overall, our restoration efforts were successful at controlling Morrow\u27s honeysuckle with minimal impact on the monitored communities.;When compared to native soft mast, Morrow\u27s honeysuckle was generally less consumed by white-footed mice (P. leucopus). Honeysuckle fruits had significantly less protein (0.66%) and lipids (0.67%) than all natives. Morrow\u27s honeysuckle had one of the highest moisture contents, which was important in the use of its fruits. Despite high moisture content, Morrow\u27s fruits are still lacking key nutrition, likely leading to its overall low consumption. Total energy always distinguished the highest selected fruits: black cherry (P. serotina) (0.45 kcal), and common dewberry (R. flagellaris) (0.36). Morrow\u27s honeysuckle creates monocultures that exclude natives, which are the more nutritious and utilized food items. This may force small mammals to forage longer, or travel further distances with the possibility of increasing their risk of predation. This result corresponds to our finding that high visitation rate to foraging stations was negatively associated with shrub coverage in fields. The most common shrub in the field was Morrow\u27s honeysuckle, found to be the closest shrub to 85% of stations. Since honeysuckle is less nutritious and a lesser-used food item, animals would lose energetic profit if they continued to feed in areas of honeysuckle, and it likely explains why they do not often forage in dense honeysuckle areas

Synthesis and characterization of silver nanoparticles

Thesis (M.S.) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 2005Silver nanoparticles may be prepared in aqueous solution by reducing silver nitrate with borohydride in the presence of sodium citrate and 4-4-(phenylphosphinidene) bis-(benzene sulfonic acid) (BSPP). Variation of the reaction conditions produces nanoparticles of different sizes, shapes, and chemical properties. For instance, the resistance to oxidation in the presence of cyanide can be increased by synthesizing nanoparticles using a high concentration of citrate. The differing chemical properties also show different results when using silver nanoparticles as a catalyst for the reduction of dichlorofluorescein. An induction time for the reduction reaction to begin was longer when nanoparticles were used that had been synthesized with a high concentration of BSPP. Finally, the surface effects of sulfur containing molecules on silver nanoparticles differ depending upon nanoparticle preparation. For example, silver nanoparticle solutions that were prepared with a high concentration of citrate showed a smaller shift in the Amax than those with a low concentration of citrate with the addition of L-cysteine

Stimulus Regulation in Pediatric Trichotillomania

Previous research on pediatric trichotillomania (TTM) has focused on the difference between two different subgroups of hair-pullers: “focused” pullers (i.e. those who pull within their awareness) and “automatic” pullers (i.e. those who pull outside of their awareness; Christenson et al., 1992; Flessner et al., 2008; Penzel, 2003). To date, only one other study has examined how sensory processing may differ between these two groups, or how these differences may impact these groups’ hair-pulling triggers (Falkenstein et al., 2018). Thus, the aim of the current study was to analyze how sensory processing patterns may differ between predominantly focused pullers and predominantly automatic pullers ages 7–17. The current study also examined how differences in sensory processing relate to hair-pulling triggers. I utilized a parent-report survey, which included (a) demographic questions, (b) a modified version of the Milwaukee Inventory for Subtypes of Trichotillomania-Child version (MIST-C), (c) Christenson and colleagues’ Cues Checklist (CCL; Christenson et al., 1992), and (d) a sensory processing scale. I then used parents’ ratings on the MIST-C to categorize their children into four different subgroups, based on their pulling styles: high focused/high automatic pullers (HFHA), high focused/low automatic pullers (HFLA), low focused/high automatic pullers (LFHA), and low focused/low automatic pullers (LFLA). The results did not support my original hypotheses that the main sensory processing and hair-pulling trigger differences would be between HFLA (i.e. predominantly focused pullers) and LFHA pullers (i.e. predominantly automatic pullers). However, the results did reveal differences in sensory processing between LFHA and LFLA pullers and differences in hair pulling triggers between HFLA and LFLA pullers. I discuss how these findings may reveal a need for an augmented version of Habit Reversal Therapy (HRT) that includes sensory regulation skills. I also discuss the limitations of the current study, which include (a) the small sample size, (b) the parent-report format, (c) the unvalidated nature of many of the measures, (d) comorbidity, and (e) the recruitment strategies. Keywords: trichotillomania, hair-pulling, focused, automatic, pulling styles, sensory processing, childre

Effects of emergent vegetation on wetland microbial processes

Wetland areas with varying amounts of emergent and free-floating vegetation may have very different microbial carbon and energy processing rates and and pathways. In Goose Lake Marsh, a natural prairie pothole wetland in central Iowa, transect measurements, continuous monitoring, and synoptic surveys were used to examine patterns light availability, temperature, dissolved O2 concentrations, dissolved CH4 concentrations, plant densities, litter densities, and CH4 flux due to diffusion and ebuliation within and outside emergent vegetation zones. Water column light availability was less than 2% of ambient light in emergent vegetated areas due to canopy cover, small floating plants (lemnids), and plant litter. Water temperatures and dissolved oxygen concentrations were significantly lower and varied less diurnally in vegetated areas. Photosynthesis and aerobic respiration rates in the water column were much greater in open water than emergent vegetation zones. CH4 concentrations in the water column were lower in open water than in emergent vegetation zones. But CH4 flux rates differences were not different due to increased plant cover and thicker stagnant boundary layers in the emergent zones which slow gas. Three habitat zones could be identified based on patterns in vegetation and dissolved oxygen: (1) a zone of dense emergent macrophytes providing significant submerged structure but with nearly or completely anoxic water, (2) a transition zone of sparse emergent macrophytes providing less structure but with more aerobic water, and (3) an open water zone with consistently aerobic water but with little submerged structure. A summary of the carbon budgets for the different zones indicates that the emergent zone was autotrophic while the open water and transitional zones were heterotrophic. Vegetation patterns are likely to control major aspects of wetland biogeochemistry and trophic dynamics. As a result, wetlands should be viewed as complex mosaics of habitats with distinct structural and functional characteristics

G3 Facebook Campaign

G3 Enterprises, started by the third generation of the Gallo family, provides packing and supply chain services within the wine industry. The transportation department focuses and specializes in transporting wine grapes from vineyards to the wineries for Gallo and external companies. In some ways, marketing a service as business-to-business can be more complex than marketing a business-to-consumer product according to B2B International (Hague, Harrison, 2017). Therefore, G3 needs to branch out of its traditional marketing and keep up with current trends by creating a greater social media presence. If G3 Transportation can successfully showcase its trucking service through social media, the company will be able to reach a larger audience, generate new customers, and also build better employee/customer relationships. This project will overcome G3 Transportation’s lack of social media presence with a Facebook campaign

Electric Polarizability of Hadrons

The electric polarizability of a hadron allows an external electric field to shift the hadron mass. We try to calculate the electric polarizability for several hadrons from their quadratic response to the field at a=0.17fm using an improved gauge field and the clover quark action. Results are compared to experiment where available.Comment: 3 pgs, 5 figs, LATTICE2002(spectrum