But, You\u27re Just A Girl

This paper explores an emerging genre of the female hero archetype that is rooted in Joseph Campbell’s traditional definition and exemplified by Buffy Summers of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Kara “Starbuck” Thrace of Battlestar Galactica. As representations of the female hero within this genre, they reimagine pre-existing stereotypes, such as the female victim and the male hotshot pilot, and then pursue a hero’s journey of death and resurrection that is unique because of their gender. This new trend is the result of third-wave feminism and necessary for the further development of feminist literary works, particularly within the realm of Sci-Fi/Fantasy

The biogeochemistry of elemental sulfur contaminated soils: insights into effective remediation

Soil contamination that results from elemental sulfur (S0) deposition is a new occurrence. Elemental sulfur is stockpiled as a byproduct from the oil and gas industry and is deposited by biodegradable trap and skeet targets at shooting ranges. Chemolithotrophs and mixotrophs can oxidize S0 to H2SO4. Consequently, in areas where excess S0 is deposited or stockpiled, soils can acidify to pH values observed with acid mine drainage. I studied S0 contamination at a former sporting clay range. For seven years, the range used biodegradable trap and skeet targets that contained S0. I analyzed the chemistry of the targets and sampled and analyzed range soils. We then conducted batch experiments to investigate whether amendments restore contaminated soils. Amendments included CaCO3 by itself and in combination with: fertilizer, compost, biochar, chitin, or biochar and fertilizer. I paired the batch experiments with a similar study that tested the ability of the amendments to restore vegetative cover. Targets were composed of approximately 53% CaCO3, 41% S0,and 6% modifiers, and on a molar basis, there was 2.3 times more S0 than CaCO3. From field data, I observed a positive correlation between target cover and SO42- (ρ = 0.82, P \u3c 0.001),which indicated the oxidation of S0 to H2SO4. Sulfatewas negatively correlated with pH (ρ = -0.93, P \u3c 0.001) because insufficient CaCO3 existed in the targets to neutralize all the acid produced from S0 oxidation. Plant cover decreased with decreasing soil pH (ρ = 0.62, P = 0.006). The addition of CaCO3 in the batch experiments raised contaminated soil pH from 3.3 to 6.3, which equaled the pH in uncontaminated soils. Total plant biomass was the greatest for “CaCO3”, “CaCO3 + Fertilizer” and “CaCO3 + Biochar + Fertilizer” amended soils. The oxidation of S0 to H2SO4 was likely responsible for the decrease in soil pH over time. The experiments demonstrated that techniques to restore acidic soils may be used for acidic soils contaminated with S0, but in the long term, the acid generating potential of S0 must be considered to avoid future acidification

School-to-career curriculum

The mission of this project is to develop a school-to-career curriculum that can be utilized by all middle school students. It is designed to help educate these students in the skills they will need to become successful in their future careers

Better Bullets: How to Shoot Varmints Without Poisoning Scavengers

Recreational shooters kill millions of varmints each year. The carcasses can contain fragments of lead that scavengers can ingest. Less toxic bullets may alleviate the problem but their performance needs to be determined. In this study, ground squirrels were shot with .17 HMR, .22 LR, and .223 Rem rifles with expanding and non-expanding lead and nonlead bullets. We monitored whether the bullets instantly incapacitated ground squirrels and then estimated lead concentrations in each carcass using radiographs. We found lead in the majority of ground squirrel carcasses that were shot with five out of six lead bullets tested. Expanding ammunition in the .17 HMR and the .223 Rem calibers left the highest estimated concentrations of lead in ground squirrels, which had, on average, 23.6 and 91.2 mg/carcass, respectively. Within a caliber, expanding bullets did not contaminate ground squirrels more than non-expanding bullets. Non-lead bullets incapacitated ground squirrels as well as lead bullets. Recreational shooters and land managers may reduce the amount of lead available to scavengers by using non-lead bullets when shooting ground squirrels and other varmints

Retreat in Northern California

Thesis (M. Arch.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1988.Includes bibliographical references (leaf 77).This design thesis explores the relationship between building and the natural environment. The design and site, a retreat in a wild area of the California coast, were chosen to provide ample engagement of this theme. The design concept is to design a retreat whose architecture is inspired by rhythms of time in nature. The site , Sinkyone Wilderness Park, provides a diverse landscape with several specific sites that are dominated by temporal rhythms in nature. Four such sites have been chosen: 1. The Redwood Grove , temporal rhythm is long , the trees are two thousand years old and insulate the micro-climate under the forest canopy from seasonal changes; 2. The Sea Cliff, temporal rhythm is the periodicity of the tides; 3. The Hilltop, temporal rhythm is dominated by the yearly changes in the sky and heavens ; 4. The fault-line Rift Valley, a micro-climate of high seasonal response in foliage and animal life. The retreat occupies all four sites. A guest stays a few nights at each. Although each retreat fragment has been designed to respond to its micro-environment, the experience of the whole is to accentuate a way of being in and looking at the landscape that is consistent, and is based on the initial design concept. The retreat's function is divided programatically into two basic divisions; chapel or meditation spaces, and the sleeping and eating spaces. The chapel spaces have responded most directly to the sites' temporal nature, capturing in their focus the unique quality about the site. The dwelling spaces, though architecturally linked to the chapel space, play off of the intense focus of the chapel space by accentuating the act of habitation and dwelling on that site. The four retreat dwellings are explored in site models and the development of the designs. A narrative that leads one through the site will give an experience of the retreat.by Christopher McTee Lyon.M.Arch

Biodegradable Shooting Targets Acidify Soils, Limit Plant Growth, and Mobilize Lead

Environmental waste from recreational shotgun shooting includes lead pellet and target debris. The main risk of lead pellets is that they can be ingested by birds as they swallow pebbles and grit that aid in digestion. Another possible vector of toxicity is when acidic soil conditions mobilize lead ions from the solid pellets into the soil and groundwater. Historically, secondary waste resulted from petroleum pitch based targets that persisted in the environment for years. To reduce the environmental lifetime of targets, biodegradable targets were developed. At a former sporting clay shooting range in Florence, Montana, we found that as biodegradable targets degraded, their sulfuric components oxidized to release acid; as a result, soil pH was as low as 2. Target abundance correlated with decreased soil pH (?=-0.681, P<0.001) and decreased plant cover (p=-0.770, P<0.001). These acidic soils increased the mobility of lead from shot pellets and now lead concentrations exceed background. Our results demonstrate that biodegradable shooting targets exacerbate the environmental hazards that result from lead shotfall. Careful considerations regarding target composition and shooting locations may minimize environmental exposure to toxicants

Aggregating behaviour in invasive Caribbean lionfish is driven by habitat complexity

Caribbean lionfish (Pterois spp.) are considered the most heavily impacting invasive marine vertebrate ever recorded. However, current management is largely inadequate, relying on opportunistic culling by recreational SCUBA divers. Culling efficiency could be greatly improved by exploiting natural aggregations, but to date this behaviour has only been recorded anecdotally, and the drivers are unknown. We found aggregations to be common in situ, but detected no conspecific attraction through visual or olfactory cues in laboratory experiments. Aggregating individuals were on average larger, but showed no further differences in morphology or life history. However, using visual assessments and 3D modelling we show lionfish prefer broad-scale, but avoid fine-scale, habitat complexity. We therefore suggest that lionfish aggregations are coincidental based on individuals’ mutual attraction to similar reef structure to maximise hunting efficiency. Using this knowledge, artificial aggregation devices might be developed to concentrate lionfish densities and thus improve culling efficiency

Faculty Recitals

Faculty lecture presented at the UNT College of Musi