A Geographic Ontology and GIS Model for Carolina Bays

Carolina bays are a unique geomorphologic entity located along the Atlantic coastal plain. Even without the benefit of an overhead view, they have been noted as a distinct feature of the coastal plain as first described by the South Carolina Geological Survey of South Carolina in 1848. The first aerial photographs in the 1930 coastal South Carolina region revealed that the unique depression wetlands were more than just a strange local phenomenon. Aerial photos enabled observers to see qualities in addition to their relative distribution that make them unique: their oval shape, northwest to southeast orientation and the presence of raised sand rims along their eastern and southeastern edges in many instances. Being such a distinctive surface feature and recognized for their ecological value, it would seem that Carolina bays would have been defined within their own map coverage across the Atlantic Coastal plain. However, just two statewide inventories have been completed for South Carolina and Georgia, and one for North Carolina has never been conducted. While previous inventories have employed onscreen digitization with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in order to inventory bays, researchers have raised concerns over how individuals define Carolina bay as a geographic entity. The differences in human perception make the classification of geographic entities that exist on a continuum such as Carolina bays a challenge and may have contributed to widely varying estimates of their numbers. In order to explore the classification issues related to Carolina bays, and the usefulness of geographic ontology and cartographic modeling for inventory, a cartographic model was constructed for use within the Ocean Bay quad in Francis Marion National Forest in Berkeley and Charleston Counties, South Carolina. To test the model’s selective ability, a comparison was made between Carolina bay features that a researcher selected and bays identified by a cartographic model. The model positively identified 76 percent of Carolina bays that a researcher identified in an image within a single quadrangle. The approach used in this model showed that the initial identification rule of any pixel within a bay’s border counted as a positive identification was inadequate. Other aspects not accounted for, including false positive identification, neither researcher nor model being able to identify a bay, or bays that the model was able to select that the researcher was not were added into a subsequent model. Results from the amended model show fewer researcher identified instances of Carolina bays, but a slightly higher rate of mutual identification by the model and the researcher. With these complications in mind, a similar approach was taken with Bladen County North Carolina, but with significant revisions. A cartographic model was created for Bladen County North Carolina in which bay characteristics were selected from the North Carolina Gap Analysis Program (GAP) land use/landcover dataset, the Soil Survey Geographic Database (SSURGO) and National Wetlands Inventory (NWI). The predictive ability of the model was assessed by manually selecting Carolina bays from a high resolution image and comparing the manually selected bays with the model identifications. In order to remedy the issue of forcing all instances of bays into one of two categories (either an object is a bay or it is not), a ranking system was developed that was based upon a core/radial cognitive model, and the approach taken with the Savannah River Ecology Lab (SREL) inventory. The rule for positive identification was changed from a single pixel to a visual estimation of 50 percent coverage of a Carolina bay. As a whole, the predictive model identified 57 percent of the features also identified manually by the researcher, but the bay ranking system gives a different breakdown of how well the model worked within each category: exemplar (86 percent), less distinct (79 percent), bay-like (53 percent), and destroyed (19 percent) show significant differences. In addition to the ranking system, other attributes were assessed, such as the presence or absence of a sand rim, water visibility, overlap, diverging, long axis length and orientation. The analysis shows that the model has the potential to identify well defined bays with at least 50 percent areal coverage, and as such offers the first iteration of a computational ontology for the Carolina bays of Bladen County, North Carolina. Results from this research may provide a basis for modeling the entire range of Carolina bays, defining one of the most curious features of the Atlantic Coastal Plain and uniting differing definitions under one digital concept

An investigation of the possibility of differential effects of color upon human emotions

"Color affects our emotional attitudes and our behavior even when we are not aware of it."1 This statement from the pamphlet, Color Planning for School Interiors, exemplifies the viewpoint of the popular books and articles which have been written about the uses of color in such areas as advertising, merchandising, education, hospital administration, and home decoration. In the popular literature, certain emotional values are consistently attributed to each color: orange and red are supposed to be stimulating and exciting; yellow is warm, vibrant, and cheerful; blue is subduing, depressing, and soothing; green, neither stimulating nor sedative, is tranquil and peaceful; violet and purple are cold, exotic, subduing, and depressing; blue-green is cool and soothing; and magenta is exotic and pleasing. Red, yellow, and orange are supposed to make one energetic and active; blue and green to make one meditative and listless. 2,3,

Crisis in Myanmar and Bangladesh: Sociocultural Underpinnings and Political Barriers to the 2016-2018 Rohingya Ethnic Cleansing

2018 University Libraries Undergraduate Research Award Winner---On October 9, 2016, armed residents of Rakhine, Myanmar ambushed three Border Guard posts, triggering a massive military backlash against the local Rohingya population. United Nations human rights chief Zeid Ra‘ad al-Hussein has described the military's actions as a "textbook example of ethnic cleansing," and nearly 1.04 million Rohingya have sought refuge in neighboring Bangladesh since the crisis erupted. This scope of violence and displacement begs the following questions: are there underlying social causes to the 2016-2018 Rohingya ethnic cleansing crisis beyond the October 9, 2016 ambush, and if so, how can these underlying social causes inform appropriate solutions moving forward? Further, what political barriers stand in the way of resolution? Utilizing a qualitative research analysis this project identified which social causes have contributed to the current crisis’s emergence: 1) periods of political turnover from 1784 to 1826, 2) the historical tension between Buddhist and Muslim communities in Rakhine, and 3) the military’s functional defense of the Burmese-Buddhist identity. Using these findings, this project then evaluates the 2017 bilateral repatriation agreement between Myanmar and Bangladesh, concluding that the agreement is insufficient to address underlying social causes to the crisis, and argues that future relief efforts rather should prioritize local, aid-based solutions and humanitarian concerns in Bangladesh

Geophysical remote sensing of North Carolina’s historic cultural landscapes: studies at house in the Horseshoe State historic site

This dissertation is written in accordance with the three article option offered by the Geography Department at UNC Greensboro. It contains three manuscripts to be submitted for publication. The articles address specific research issues within the remote sensing process described by Jensen (2016) as they apply to subsurface geophysical remote sensing of historic cultural landscapes, using the buried architectural features of House in the Horseshoe State Historic Site in Moore County, North Carolina. The first article compares instrument detection capabilities by examining subsurface structure remnants as they appear in single band ground-penetrating radar (GPR), magnetic gradiometer, magnetic susceptibility and conductivity images, and also demonstrates how excavation strengthens geophysical image interpretation. The second article examines the ability of GPR to estimate volumetric soil moisture (VSM) in order to improve the timing of data collection, and also examines the visible effect of variable moisture conditions on the interpretation of a large historic pit feature, while including the relative soil moisture continuum concepts common to geography/geomorphology into a discussion of GPR survey hydrologic conditions. The third article examines the roles of scientific visualization and cartography in the production of knowledge and the presentation of maps using geophysical data to depict historic landscapes. This study explores visualization techniques pertaining to the private data exploration view of the expert, and to the simplified public facing view

Managing chronic hepatitis B: A qualitative study exploring the perspectives of people living with chronic hepatitis B in Australia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The implementation of a comprehensive public health response to hepatitis B in Australia is urgently required to reduce the increasing burden of hepatitis B infection on the health system and the community. A significant gap in the public health response to hepatitis B is an understanding of how people with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) respond to CHB.</p> <p>Findings</p> <p>A qualitative study involving semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions was conducted. Interviews were held with 20 people with CHB from three states of Australia. In addition, four focus group discussions were held with a total of 40 community and health workers from culturally and linguistically diverse communities in four Australian states.</p> <p>People with CHB reported no formal or informal pre or post test discussion with little information about hepatitis B provided at the point of diagnosis. Knowledge deficits about hepatitis B were found among most participants. Few resources are available for people with CHB or their families to assist them in understanding the infection and promoting their health and well-being. A lack of confidence in the professional knowledge of service providers was noted throughout interviews.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>People with CHB need culturally and linguistically appropriate education and information, particularly at the point of diagnosis. Primary health care professionals need the knowledge, skills and motivation to provide appropriate information to people with CHB, to ensure they have the capacity to better manage their infection.</p

Moving interdisciplinary science forward: integrating participatory modelling with mathematical modelling of zoonotic disease in Africa

This review outlines the benefits of using multiple approaches to improve model design and facilitate multidisciplinary research into infectious diseases, as well as showing and proposing practical examples of effective integration. It looks particularly at the benefits of using participatory research in conjunction with traditional modelling methods to potentially improve disease research, control and management. Integrated approaches can lead to more realistic mathematical models which in turn can assist with making policy decisions that reduce disease and benefit local people. The emergence, risk, spread and control of diseases are affected by many complex bio-physical, environmental and socio-economic factors. These include climate and environmental change, land-use variation, changes in population and people’s behaviour. The evidence base for this scoping review comes from the work of a consortium, with the aim of integrating modelling approaches traditionally used in epidemiological, ecological and development research. A total of five examples of the impacts of participatory research on the choice of model structure are presented. Example 1 focused on using participatory research as a tool to structure a model. Example 2 looks at identifying the most relevant parameters of the system. Example 3 concentrates on identifying the most relevant regime of the system (e.g., temporal stability or otherwise), Example 4 examines the feedbacks from mathematical models to guide participatory research and Example 5 goes beyond the so-far described two-way interplay between participatory and mathematical approaches to look at the integration of multiple methods and frameworks. This scoping review describes examples of best practice in the use of participatory methods, illustrating their potential to overcome disciplinary hurdles and promote multidisciplinary collaboration, with the aim of making models and their predictions more useful for decision-making and policy formulation

Molecular Pathogenesis and Therapy of Polycythemia Induced in Mice by JAK2 V617F

BACKGROUND: A somatic activating mutation (V617F) in the JAK2 tyrosine kinase was recently discovered in the majority of patients with polycythemia vera (PV), and some with essential thrombocythemia (ET) and chronic idiopathic myelofibrosis. However, the role of mutant JAK2 in disease pathogenesis is unclear. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We expressed murine JAK2 WT or V617F via retroviral bone marrow transduction/transplantation in the hematopoietic system of two different inbred mouse strains, Balb/c and C57Bl/6 (B6). In both strains, JAK2 V617F, but not JAK2 WT, induced non-fatal polycythemia characterized by increased hematocrit and hemoglobin, reticulocytosis, splenomegaly, low plasma erythropoietin (Epo), and Epo-independent erythroid colonies. JAK2 V617F also induced leukocytosis and neutrophilia that was much more prominent in Balb/c mice than in B6. Platelet counts were not affected in either strain despite expression of JAK2 V617F in megakaryocytes and markedly prolonged tail bleeding times. The polycythemia tended to resolve after several months, coincident with increased spleen and marrow fibrosis, but was resurrected by transplantation to secondary recipients. Using donor mice with mutations in Lyn, Hck, and Fgr, we demonstrated that the polycythemia was independent of Src kinases. Polycythemia and reticulocytosis responded to treatment with imatinib or a JAK2 inhibitor, but were unresponsive to the Src inhibitor dasatinib. CONCLUSIONS: These findings demonstrate that JAK2 V617F induces Epo-independent expansion of the erythroid lineage in vivo. The fact that the central erythroid features of PV are recapitulated by expression of JAK2 V617F argues that it is the primary and direct cause of human PV. The lack of thrombocytosis suggests that additional events may be required for JAK2 V617F to cause ET, but qualitative platelet abnormalities induced by JAK2 V617F may contribute to the hemostatic complications of PV. Despite the role of Src kinases in Epo signaling, our studies predict that Src inhibitors will be ineffective for therapy of PV. However, we provide proof-of-principle that a JAK2 inhibitor should have therapeutic effects on the polycythemia, and perhaps myelofibrosis and hemostatic abnormalities, suffered by MPD patients carrying the JAK2 V617F mutation

The Advantage of Standing Up to Fight and the Evolution of Habitual Bipedalism in Hominins

BACKGROUND: Many quadrupedal species stand bipedally on their hindlimbs to fight. This posture may provide a performance advantage by allowing the forelimbs to strike an opponent with the range of motion that is intrinsic to high-speed running, jumping, rapid braking and turning; the range of motion over which peak force and power can be produced. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: To test the hypothesis that bipedal (i.e., orthograde) posture provides a performance advantage when striking with the forelimbs, I measured the force and energy produced when human subjects struck from "quadrupedal" (i.e., pronograde) and bipedal postures. Downward and upward directed striking energy was measured with a custom designed pendulum transducer. Side and forward strikes were measured with a punching bag instrumented with an accelerometer. When subjects struck downward from a bipedal posture the work was 43.70±12.59% (mean ± S.E.) greater than when they struck from a quadrupedal posture. Similarly, 47.49±17.95% more work was produced when subjects struck upward from a bipedal stance compared to a quadrupedal stance. Importantly, subjects did 229.69±44.19% more work in downward than upward directed strikes. During side and forward strikes the force impulses were 30.12±3.68 and 43.04±9.00% greater from a bipedal posture than a quadrupedal posture, respectively. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: These results indicate that bipedal posture does provide a performance advantage for striking with the forelimbs. The mating systems of great apes are characterized by intense male-male competition in which conflict is resolved through force or the threat of force. Great apes often fight from bipedal posture, striking with both the fore- and hindlimbs. These observations, plus the findings of this study, suggest that sexual selection contributed to the evolution of habitual bipedalism in hominins