An Investigation of Tree Biomass in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park

We determined the biomass (carbon storage) of four forest types in the Great Smokey Mountains National Park: pine/oak, cove hardwood, northern hardwood, and spruce/fir. Based on the GLOBE Programs land cover protocols (www.globe.gov), and the University of New Hampshire\u27s GLOBE Carbon Cycle Program (http://globecarboncycle.unh.edu/), we knew that species and tree circumference would be the two most critical factors in determining biomass, but we also hypothesized that number of trees in a study site and the elevation of the site would impact biomass. We hypothesized that old growth forest would contain greater biomass than a young forest. We recorded tree species and circumference for every tree that had a circumference greater than 15 centimeters in each plot of 900 square. The circumference of a total of 219 trees represented by 22 different species, as well as forest type, elevation, and GPS coordinates for each plot, were recorded

Do the ends justify the means? Problematizing social acceptance and instrumentally-driven community engagement in proposed energy projects

Proposed energy projects across rural working landscapes play an important role in energy transitions. While community engagement has been increasingly a part of these projects, instrumental motivations for engagement and the emphasis placed on achieving social acceptance has remained uncritically examined. Here, we aim to highlight relationships between actor rationale, the structuring of engagement processes, and how communities perceive the driving forces behind engagement practices. To do so, we draw on lived experiences of communities facing proposed shale gas and wind energy projects across rural working landscapes in the UK and Canada, respectively. We find that engagement is often perceived by community members as insincere, insufficient, ineffective and instrumentally-driven. We suggest that a more community-centered approach to engagement is necessary and will require a move beyond existing engagement and acceptance practice and frameworks. This can include creating more inclusive decision-making processes where powers are balanced and designing community engagement to incorporate multiple rationales beyond achieving social acceptance of energy projects.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Chloroplast DNA and Nuclear DNA Content Variations among Cultivars of Switchgrass, \u3ci\u3ePanicum virgatum\u3c/i\u3e L.

Switchgrass, Panicum virgatum L., is a native, cross-pollinated, morphologically diverse species with an array of ploidy levels and ecotypes. Switchgrass is found throughout most of the USA and Canada, primarily east of the Rocky Mountains and south of Hudson Bay. The objective of this research was to determine if chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) occur among switchgrass cultivars and experimental strains that differ in ploidy level or ecotype classification. Eighteen switchgrass cultivars or experimental strains representative of reported ecotypes, ploidy levels, and the geographical range of switchgrass were surveyed for cpDNA polymorphisms by means of four restriction endonucleases and 20 sorghum cpDNA probes. One polymorphism was detected which was associated with the lowland-upland ecotype classification. The lowland cultivars contained a restriction site change that was not present in the upland cultivars. The two cytotypes discovered have been designated as the U (upland) or L (lowland) cytotype. The lowland cultivars had 3 pg DNA/nuclei as measured by flow cytometry while the upland types had either 3 or 6 pg DNA/nuclei. There were no cpDNA polymorphisms among the upland cultivars regardless of ploidy level as measured by DNA content. These results demonstrate that cpDNA differs among switchgrasses and that this variation is associated with ecotype variation but not with nuclear DNA content

Creating the first indoor tan-free skin smart college campus

Given the prevalence and risk associated with indoor tanning among college students, university campuses constitute a prime target for skin cancer prevention. This report identifies the successes and challenges faced in promoting a campus-wide tan-free policy through the National Council on Skin Cancer Prevention (NCSCP) Indoor Tan-Free Skin Smart Campus Initiative. Beginning in February 2016, we communicated with university faculty or staff members who have participated in skin cancer prevention via education, clinical care, or research at 20 universities regarding the steps to adopt the tan-free policy. One campus, East Tennessee State University (ETSU), successfully fulfilled all criteria and implemented the policy change to become the first US Indoor Tan-Free Skin Smart Campus. The greatest challenge faced in recruiting campuses was gaining administrative support. Reported reasons for not adopting the policy change included wanting to wait for other schools to join first and not seeing it as a top priority. Despite the importance of improving skin cancer awareness and decreasing tanning among university students, we faced several challenges in promoting campus-wide policy change. We identify a need for research on effective ways to disseminate university health policies and increased involvement of healthcare providers in policy-related work

Satellite-based delivery of educational content to geographically isolated communities: A service based approach

Enabling learning for members of geographically isolated communities presents benefits in terms of promoting regional development and cost savings for governments and companies. However, notwithstanding recent advances in e-Learning, from both technological and pedagogical perspectives, there are very few, if any, recognised methodologies for user-led design of satellite-based e-learning infrastructures. In this paper, we present a methodology for designing a satellite and wireless based network infrastructure and learning services to support distance learning for such isolated communities. This methodology entails (a) the involvement of community members in the development of targeted learning services from an early stage, and (b) a service-oriented approach to learning solution deployment. Results show, that, while the technological premises of distance learning can be accommodated by hybrid satellite/wireless infrastructures,this has to be complemented with (a) high-quality audio–visual educational material, and (b) the opportunity for community members to interact with other community members either as groups (common-room oriented scenarios) or individuals (home-based scenarios), thus providing an impetus for learner engagement in both formal and informal activities

Overcoming cross-cultural group work tensions: mixed student perspectives on the role of social relationships

As universities worldwide rapidly internationalise, higher education classrooms have become unique spaces for collaboration between students from different countries. One common way to encourage collaboration between diverse peers is through group work. However, previous research has highlighted that cross-cultural group work can be challenging and has hinted at potential social tensions. To understand this notion better, we have used robust quantitative tools in this study to select 20 participants from a larger classroom of 860 students to take part in an in-depth qualitative interview about cross-cultural group work experiences. Participant views on social tensions in cross-cultural group work were elicited using a unique mediating artefact method to encourage reflection and in-depth discussion. In our analysis of emergent interview themes, we compared student perspectives on the role of social relationships in group work by their academic performance level. Our findings indicated that all students interviewed desired the opportunity to form social relationships with their group work members, but their motivations for doing so varied widely by academic performance level

The CO Molecular Outflows of IRAS 16293-2422 Probed by the Submillimeter Array

We have mapped the proto-binary source IRAS 16293-2422 in CO 2-1, 13CO 2-1, and CO 3-2 with the Submillimeter Array (SMA). The maps with resolution of 1".5-5" reveal a single small scale (~3000 AU) bipolar molecular outflow along the east-west direction. We found that the blueshifted emission of this small scale outflow mainly extends to the east and the redshifted emission to the west from the position of IRAS 16293A. A comparison with the morphology of the large scale outflows previously observed by single-dish telescopes at millimeter wavelengths suggests that the small scale outflow may be the inner part of the large scale (~15000 AU) E-W outflow. On the other hand, there is no clear counterpart of the large scale NE-SW outflow in our SMA maps. Comparing analytical models to the data suggests that the morphology and kinematics of the small scale outflow can be explained by a wide-angle wind with an inclination angle of ~30-40 degrees with respect to the plane of the sky. The high resolution CO maps show that there are two compact, bright spots in the blueshifted velocity range. An LVG analysis shows that the one located 1" to the east of source A is extremely dense, n(H_2)~10^7 cm^-3, and warm, T_kin >55 K. The other one located 1" southeast of source B has a higher temperature of T_kin >65 K but slightly lower density of n(H_2)~10^6 cm^-3. It is likely that these bright spots are associated with the hot core-like emission observed toward IRAS 16293. Since both two bright spots are blueshifted from the systemic velocity and are offset from the protostellar positions, they are likely formed by shocks.Comment: 27 pages, 8 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ, minor typos correcte

Mixing quantum and classical mechanics and uniqueness of Planck's constant

Observables of quantum or classical mechanics form algebras called quantum or classical Hamilton algebras respectively (Grgin E and Petersen A (1974) {\it J Math Phys} {\bf 15} 764\cite{grginpetersen}, Sahoo D (1977) {\it Pramana} {\bf 8} 545\cite{sahoo}). We show that the tensor-product of two quantum Hamilton algebras, each characterized by a different Planck's constant is an algebra of the same type characterized by yet another Planck's constant. The algebraic structure of mixed quantum and classical systems is then analyzed by taking the limit of vanishing Planck's constant in one of the component algebras. This approach provides new insight into failures of various formalisms dealing with mixed quantum-classical systems. It shows that in the interacting mixed quantum-classical description, there can be no back-reaction of the quantum system on the classical. A natural algebraic requirement involving restriction of the tensor product of two quantum Hamilton algebras to their components proves that Planck's constant is unique.Comment: revised version accepted for publication in J.Phys.A:Math.Phy

Quantitative Assessment of Liver Stiffness Using Ultrasound Shear Wave Elastography in Patients With Chronic Graftâ Versusâ Host Disease After Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation: A Pilot Study

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/147792/1/jum14717_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/147792/2/jum14717.pd