Consequences of Beaver, Castor canadensis, Flooding on a Small Shore Fen in Southwestern Quebec

We describe the changes in a small peatland in Gatineau Park, Quebec, between 1878 and 2004. We correlate these changes with water levels and Beaver activity during this period. A shore fen persisted until 1980 under a regime of relatively stable water levels interspersed with episodes of somewhat higher water that killed encroaching trees. Significantly higher water levels in the early 1980s transformed the fen into a shallow water wetland containing a few partially-floating fragments of the fen. In 2003 a beaver dam collapse lowered the water level dramatically, exposing the peat surface and making it available for colonization by existing aquatic and shoreline communities. If maintaining the fen had been part of the Park’s beaver control program, water levels should have been allowed to fluctuate in order to control tree growth but not permitted to rise high enough or for long enough to drown the fen

Phenology, Population Dynamics, and Flowering Dynamics of Case's Ladies'-tresses, Spiranthes casei var. casei (Orchidaceae), in Ottawa, Ontario

We describe a seven-year study (2002–2008) of a population of Case’s Ladies’-tresses (Spiranthes casei var. casei) in the western Greenbelt in Ottawa, Ontario, that had been extant since at least 1972. We also record a temporary colonization in the eastern Greenbelt for 11 years (1998–2008). The seven life history stages identified were seed, juvenile, immature, flowering, vegetative, offshoot (ramet), and non-emergent. Mature plants present in the first two years of the study had mean half lives of 9.4 years. Flowering and seed production were limited by damp, cloudy weather when fall rosettes develop, by gastropod herbivory in early summer, by drought in mid-summer, and by deer herbivory in late summer. Given the resulting wide fluctuations in the fractions of plants flowering, as well as the lack of visibility of vegetative plants, this study demonstrates the limitations of annual censuses of flowering stems for determining the actual sizes of populations and for detecting long-term population trends

A review of utility issues for the integration of wind electric generators

A review of issues and concerns of the electric utility industry for the integration of wind electric generation is offered. The issues have been categorized in three major areas: planning, operations, and dynamic interaction. Representative studies have been chosen for each area to illustrate problems and to alleviate some concerns. The emphasis of this paper is on individual large wind turbines (WTs) and WT arrays for deployment at the bulk level in a utility system

Experimental investigation of a variable speed constant frequency electric generating system from a utility perspective

As efforts are accelerated to improve the overall capability and performance of wind electric systems, increased attention to variable speed configurations has developed. A number of potentially viable configurations have emerged. Various attributes of variable speed systems need to be carefully tested to evaluate their performance from the utility points of view. With this purpose, the NASA experimental variable speed constant frequency (VSCF) system has been tested. In order to determine the usefulness of these systems in utility applications, tests are required to resolve issues fundamental to electric utility systems. Legitimate questions exist regarding how variable speed generators will influence the performance of electric utility systems; therefore, tests from a utility perspective, have been performed on the VSCF system and an induction generator at an operating power level of 30 kW on a system rated at 200 kVA and 0.8 power factor

Case Studies of Standard Financial Accounting Procedures

What follows is a series of case studies concerning standard financial accounting procedures completed in the 2017-2018 academic school year. The following case studies dive into particular concepts and theories within financial accounting that I had not seen or been exposed. I was challenged throughout the year to dissect scenarios seen in the real world and attempt to solve real accounting issues. I was exposed to many different theories, methods, and situations where an inquisitive accounting mind was essential. The purpose of our honors accounting class was to complete, individually, various case studies in order to expand our accounting prowess. As opposed to other theses, this thesis covers a vast array of topics, thus, giving me a wider breadth of knowledge. Every case took numerous hours per week to finalize. Some cases were group work and some cases were individual work, giving our class experience working as a team and working by ourselves. Without this class, my intrigue with accounting would be drastically minimalized, and I would not have nearly as much exposure to real-life scenarios with accounting while still an undergraduate

A conceptual framework for evaluating variable speed generator options for wind energy applications

Interest in variable speed generating technology has accelerated as greater emphasis on overall efficiency and superior dynamic and control properties in wind-electric generating systems are sought. This paper reviews variable speed technology options providing advantages and disadvantages of each. Furthermore, the dynamic properties of variable speed systems are contrasted with synchronous operation. Finally, control properties of variable speed systems are examined