Intensive Cultural Resources Survey For El Paso Natural Gas Project: Texas Gas Service Line Expansion Lateral And Meter Station, El Paso County, Texas

This report details the results of an intensive archaeological survey by SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) for the proposed El Paso Natural Gas Project: Texas Gas Service Line Expansion Lateral and Meter Station. El Paso Natural Gas (EPNG), a subsidiary of Kinder Morgan, Inc. (KMI) is proposing to extend the existing Line No. 20121 approximately 3.59 miles, install the Transmountain Delivery Meter Station (TDMS), and install a new pressure regulating station in order to supply Texas Gas Service Company with additional natural gas. The pipeline lateral would be constructed within an existing utility corridor, approximately 50 percent of which would be through a densely populated area within the city of El Paso, Texas, and would include approximately 15 public road crossings. Approximately 3.59 miles of 12-inch-diameter pipe will be installed to extend EPNG’s existing Line No. 20121 towards the city of El Paso. The extension of Line No. 20121 will be installed parallel to EPNG’s Line No. 2034 and Line No. 2058. In addition to the lateral pipeline extension, EPNG proposes to build a new meter station and pressure regulating facility. The new lateral begins at approximately Milepost (MP) 0+0000 (Engineering Station [E.S.] 0+00), and continues north where it will terminate at the new Transmountain Delivery Meter Station (TDMS) located at approximately MP 3+3062 (E.S. 189+02). The new pressure regulating facility will be installed at the southernmost end (MP 0+0000) located in Track 2, Larkin Survey 264, Abstract 10031. The Transmountain Delivery Meter Station, measuring 100 × 105 feet (0.24 acre), will include one 4-inch rotary meter, one 6-inch ultrasonic meter, and one 8-inch header assemblies, and be located in Section 10, Block 82, Township 1, Texas & Pacific Railroad Company Survey, El Paso County, Texas. EPNG will own and operate the lateral, delivery meter station and pressure regulating facility. The new lateral pipeline will have a maximum allowable operating pressure of 1,080 pounds per square inch gauge, and the meter station will be designed to deliver up to 59 million cubic feet per day. The lateral line will be installed within EPNG’s existing permanent right-of-way. The project is located on both private land and land owned by the City of El Paso. This project can be accomplished under blanket authority granted to EPNG by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in its order issued September 8, 1982 in Docket No. CP82-435-000; Section 157.208(a) and Section 157.211(a). Archaeological survey was conducted on City of El Paso land under Texas Historical Commission Archaeological Permit No. 7077. The background literature review determined that one archaeological site and a portion of the Elephant Butte Irrigation District (EBID) was located within the project area. Upon completion of the archaeological survey; the previously recorded site originally thought to be within the project area was outside the area of potential effect (APE). However, a new archaeological site was discovered within the APE (Atlas 2014). During the SWCA field investigation, one new archaeological site and one isolated occurrence were encountered. Because the project will be rerouted more than 40 feet away from the contributing elements of the site and temporary fencing will be installed to mark the area as a no disturbance zone, SWCA recommends a finding of no historic properties affected for the project. No further archaeological work is recommended for the project area. However, if previously undocumented buried cultural resources are identified during ground-disturbing activities, all work in the immediate vicinity of the discovery should stop until the find can be evaluated by a professional archaeologist

Exploring the Intersection Between Facial Movement, Physiology, and Emotional Regulation: Developing a Method for Children

For children in therapy, emotional regulation is frequently a focus of treatment. Identifying, understanding, and managing emotions are all key tasks in one’s development. Developing these skills at a young age has proven to be beneficial for one’s overall wellbeing. Approaching emotional regulation through a dance/movement therapy lens requires a focus on not only one’s cognitive perception of emotion but one’s physical sensation of emotion. Dr. Paul Ekman’s Facial Action Coding System provides a means of systematically creating the sensation of emotion. An individual can experience a physiological response by creating universally identified facial expressions. This thesis introduces a method for children utilizing Dr. Paul Ekman’s Facial Action Coding System to elicit emotion and explore how one experiences and understands their feelings. The intervention was tested in a session with a child in a mental health center. The case study demonstrates the therapeutic benefits of eliciting emotion and the strengths of approaching emotion from an embodied perspective

The Role of Functional, Social, and Mobility Dynamics in Facilitating Older African Americans Participation in Clinical Research

Purpose: Older African Americans experience disproportionately higher incidence of morbidity and mortality related to chronic and infectious diseases, yet are significantly underrepresented in clinical research compared to other racial and ethnic groups. This study aimed to understand the extent to which social support, transportation access, and physical impediments function as barriers or facilitators to clinical trial recruitment of older African Americans. Methods: Participants (N=221) were recruited from six African American churches in Atlanta and surveyed on various influences on clinical trial participation

The Role of Social Information Processing in the Relation between Interparental Conflict and Child Aggression

Crick and Dodge’s SIP theoretical model proposes that children use previously stored memories, past experiences, and formed representations that influence six mechanisms that are in turn used in deciding how to act in social situations (Crick & Dodge, 1994). Research has demonstrated a strong link between social information processing (SIP) and child aggression. Furthermore, SIP has been shown to mediate the relation between several parenting practices and child aggression. Research has also shown a strong relation between interparental conflict and child aggression. The focus of the current study was to determine if SIP serves as a mediator between parental conflict and aggression in children. This study conducted secondary analyses of longitudinal data from the Child Development Project. Participants were children, parents, and teachers across three sites and two cohorts who were recruited as the child participants entered kindergarten. Data were collected across seven waves from child ages 5 through 11. Interparental Conflict was assessed using mother and father reports on the Conflict Tactics Scale and four SIP steps were measured using four paper and pencil measures. Child aggression was assessed by mothers and teachers using the aggression scales on the Child Behavior Checklist and Teacher Report Form, respectively. Longitudinal mediation models following guidelines outlined by McKinnon (2008) were used to test SIP as a mediator between interparental conflict and aggression. Confirmatory Factor Analysis supported the creation of latent variables for SIP and child aggression. A composite score was calculated and used for interparental conflict in the SEM models. SEM revealed that interparental conflict did not predict changes in SIP or changes in child aggression. For the most part, SIP also did not predict concurrent child aggression or changes in child aggression over time. Direct effects of aggression on interparental conflict, indirect effects of aggression on SIP and of SIP on interparental conflict, and total effects in the models were not significant. The data did not support the hypothesis that SIP mediates the relation between parental conflict and child aggression. Study strengths and limitations and future research directions are discussed

Utility of the General Validity Scale Model: Development of Validity Scales for the Co-parenting Behavior Questionnaire

Validity scales for child-report measures are necessary tools in clinical and forensic settings in which major decisions affecting the child and family are in question. Currently there is no standard model for the development and testing of such validity scales. The present study focused on 1) creating the General Validity Scale (GVS) Model to serve as a guide in validity scale development and 2) applying this model in the development of validity scales for the Co-parenting Behavior Questionnaire (CBQ), a child-report measure of parenting and co-parenting behaviors for children whose parents are divorced. Study 1 used the newly developed GVS Model to identify threats to CBQ validity and to develop procedures for detecting such threats. Four different validity scales were created to detect inaccurate responding due to 1) presenting mothering, fathering, and/or co-parenting in an overly negative light, 2) rating mothering and fathering in a highly discrepant manner, 3) inconsistent item responses, and 4) low reading level. Study 2 followed the GVS Model to test the newly developed scales by comparing CBQ responses produced under a standard instruction set to responses from contrived or randomly generated data. Support for the ability of each validity scale to accurately detect threats to validity was found

Exploring Mars Glass Tube Anomalies

This practical article provides information regarding the use of Edward de Bono CoRT thinking skills to broaden and enhance critical and creative thinking skills in twice exceptional students using the Mars Glass Tube Mystery as a vehicle to explore possibilities and spark creative thinking. The exceptionalities addressed in this lesson plan are gifted learners who have one or more additional exceptionalities of slow processing speed and / or poor fine motor skills. Throughout the lesson, the Mars Mystery photos leveraged both prior knowledge and student curiosity to create an engaging activity for the participants. CoRT thinking skills provided a robust structure for guiding meaningful discussions, a means of encouraging deeper thought, and facilitating productive group discourse. The mystery-focused lesson encouraged imagination, allowing students to not only stretch independent thought but to actively participate in sharing and validating each other’s ideas and to explore creativity as a way to express ideas and generate conclusions

Adolescents and communication regarding safer sex behavior.

As adolescent pregnancy, childbearing and STD transmission has continued to be a pervasive problem in American society, it has become more and more critical to understand the nuances of teen sexual behavior. Policy makers, parents, teachers, and community advocates are actively searching and advocating for interventions that will assist young people in reducing the risk associated with sexual involvement. Understanding the antecedents that predict adolescent sexual behavior has become an important part of developing interventions aimed at reducing risky sexual behavior among adolescents. Thus, this research focused on understanding the antecedents that predict adolescents' communication behaviors regarding sexual activity and contraceptive use.Overall, the results of this research did not find strong support for a relationship between identity, self esteem, attachment and adolescent communicative behavior regarding sex and contraception. However, this study adds to the research in interpersonal communication and adolescent development by probing what theoretical perspectives may offer a framework for understanding adolescent communication related to sex and contraception. This study illustrates that adolescents' identity status does increase one's communication efficacy, but the results did not confirm the relationship between identity status and sex and contraceptive discussions. It remains to be seen whether identity status differences influence adolescents' communication about their sexual behavior. While this study did not confirm many of the assertions of this research, it does provide a foundation for future research aimed at increasing our understanding of adolescent communication regarding sex and contraception.This study focused on 18- and 19-year old adolescent males and females. The research sought to advance our understanding of the theoretical frameworks that may predict or be associated with adolescent sexual and contraceptive communicative behavior. Identity, self esteem and attachment theories were used to investigate these antecedents' influence on adolescent sexual and contraceptive communication. In particular, how these theoretical perspectives affect adolescents' communication self efficacy, comfort discussing sex and contraception and perceived communication self efficacy regarding sex and contraception

A Cultural Resources Investigation For The Ramsey North Residue Line Project, Reeves And Culberson Counties, Texas

This report details the results of an intensive archaeological survey by SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) for the proposed Ramsey North Residue Line (Residue Line). The 51-cmdiameter (20-inch-diameter) Residue Line will be located in Reeves and Culberson Counties, Texas (2.35 and 7.21 km [1.46 and 4.48 miles], respectively) and Eddy County, New Mexico (4.83 km [3.0 miles]). The line will start at the Ramsey Gas Plant in Reeves County, Texas, and then run northwest for approximately 14.5 km (9 miles), largely following existing rights-of-way (ROWs). The Residue Line will be constructed in a 15-m-wide (50-foot-wide) ROW. The 15-m (50-foot) ROW in Texas and New Mexico will consist of 6 m (20 feet) of temporary ROW to be used only during construction and 9 m (30 feet) of permanent ROW. The pipeline will be strung along the pipeline route as it arrives at the site, so there will be no additional staging areas needed. Five horizontal direction drills (HDDs) are anticipated at two county road crossings, the crossing of the Delaware River, crossing an historic ditch, and at an abandoned railroad grade. In addition to proposed pipeline, there is also a proposed surface facility that will be located on a 61 × 61–m (200 × 200–foot) (approximately 1-acre) site with a short (75 m; 245 feet) access road. The surface facility will include a coalesce separator, a measuring station that will meter the gas prior to the tie-in with the KM lines, and a temporary diesel generator until a permanent power source is available. This report includes the findings of the cultural resources investigations within the Texas portion of the project. Sound Environmental Solutions, Inc. selected SWCA to conduct an intensive pedestrian archaeological survey of the area of potential effect (APE) to aid in complying with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. The fieldwork was completed between February 11 and 19, 2015. The Texas portion of the project is entirely on private lands with the exception of one small segment that crosses state lands. The project will be permitted by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) as well as the Texas Historical Commission (THC) (Antiquities Permit #7262), which is mandated by the inclusion of public lands within the project APE. The SWCA archaeological investigations were conducted within a 45.7-m-wide (150-foot-wide) corridor totaling approximately 9.56 km (5.94 miles) of the overall project length within Texas. The Texas portion of the project area is depicted on the Red Bluff and Screw Bean Draw NE U.S. Geological Survey 7.5-minute topographic quadrangles. The survey in Texas recorded one newly discovered archaeological site (41CU804). The site is an abandoned railroad grade with an associated historic assemblage and is recommended undetermined for the National Register of Historic Places. The site will be avoided by boring under the site, and there will be no impact to the site. No further management is recommended for this site associated with this project. In accordance with 33 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 325, Appendix C, and Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (36 CFR 800.4), SWCA has made a reasonable and good faith effort to identify historic properties within the proposed project area. Based on the results of the current effort, it is SWCA’s opinion that the proposed Texas portion of the project would have no adverse effect on significant cultural resources within the investigated project area. As such, SWCA recommends no further archaeological investigations within the investigated project area and that the project be allowed to proceed

Greener Golf: An Ecological, Behavioral, and Communal Study of the University of Michigan Golf Courses

As one of the leading public universities in the world, the University of Michigan, owns two 18-hole golf courses: Radrick Farms Golf Course (RFGC) and the University of Michigan Golf Course, also known as the Blue Course. The land on which RFGC is situated has a long and diverse history. Over 18,000 years ago, the area was covered by the Wisconsin glacier, the recession of which left a unique till mix and geological features, including Fleming Creek and deposits of sand and gravel. The presence of these resources led to the transformation of the landscape into a gravel mine, which functioned through the 1920s. In the early 1930s, University of Michigan alumnus Fredrick C. Matthaei, Sr., purchased the land from Cadillac Sand and Gravel, along with additional acreage surrounding the mine, and began the process of restoring the gravel pit by re-grading the area, planting alfalfa and red clover, and converting portions of the area to farmland. Following its donation to the University in 1957, the land was converted into a championship 18-hole golf course designed by world-renowned golf course architect Pete Dye. From its beginning, environmental considerations have been a priority at the RFGC. In 2001, the management of RFGC committed to the Michigan Turfgrass Environmental Stewardship Program (MTESP), initiating a series of strong sustainability objectives. Since 2001, RFGC has received special recognition from the Washtenaw County Pollution Prevention Program, in addition to becoming “one of only four courses in the state [of Michigan] with both MTESP and Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary certifications.”1 Radrick Farms Golf Course is also the only club in the state to become a Groundwater Guardian Green Site; in 2012, Washtenaw County presented RFGC with the 2012 Washtenaw County Environmental Excellence Award for Water Quality Protection, and in 2014, RFGC was recognized by the Department of Environmental Quality of the State of Michigan as a Clean Corporate Citizen (C3), the first golf course in the state to receive this recognition. The Blue Course, is located near the iconic Michigan football stadium, south of Central Campus. Prior to becoming a golf course, the area was used for farmland. In 1929, the Blue Course was designed by Dr. Alister Mackenzie, now revered as one of the greatest golf architects. The course officially opened in the spring of 1931 and immediately drew praise as one of the finest in America. At the time of its opening, the Blue Course was only the fourth course to be located on a college campus. In the mid-1990s, a multi-million dollar renovation was completed to restore the prestige of the Blue Course to the ranks of Mackenzie's other classics. A new practice range was added to assist Michigan's golf squads, as well as a number of practice greens and bunkers. The popularity of golf carts necessitated large stretches of cart paths that partition landscaped medians around the course. The unique combination of such a highly regarded and historic golf campus with a strong research university presented an opportunity to conduct a holistic exploration into the benefits that golf courses offer to the ecological, social, economic, and cultural health of the communities that contain them, as well as the opportunity to identify potential recommendations to enhance these benefits. The project team utilized an exploration of current trends in the golf industry, specifically the growing movement for integration of sustainability management techniques, in conjunction with a broader multi-disciplinary focus to inform a working definition of sustainable golf. This definition correlated with the three tenets of permaculture: care for the land, care for the people, and the concept of fair share. The project team assessed the current state of the Blue Course and RFGC in research designed around these three tenets. Specific research included an ecological inventory and site analysis, community perception survey and a study of pre- and post-test cognitive function in golfers, and a high-level, qualitative analysis of economic implications. Using the findings and results from this research, the project team provided recommendations informed by the tenets of sustainable golf. The recommendations presented by the Greener Golf Master’s Project Team highlight three approaches to pushing the boundaries of what it means to be a sustainable golf course. The Greener Golf Master’s Project Team has broadly labeled these three recommendations as engagement, accessibility, and innovation. In addition to the recommendations provided, the Greener Golf Master’s Project Team provided the design for a golf course and event space at RFGC that would provide multiple beneficial functions; one of them being the creation of a “living laboratory” where innovations in sustainable golf course management can be tested prior to implementation on the 18-hole golf courses. The team has preliminarily recommended the site be named the Gateway Course due its proximity to the entrance to RFGC as well as its mission to open a new door to how golf courses can play a role in society in the future. Appendix I is a project summary that includes further discussion of the team’s recommendations. This summary is intended for those who wish to learn more about the project, but cannot read the full report below. In addition, the project summary can be used in public distribution for press and other media opportunities.Master of Science Master of Landscape ArchitectureNatural Resources and EnvironmentUniversity of Michiganhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/111007/1/GreenerGolfWhitePaper_FINAL.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/111007/2/GreenerGolf_GatewayDesignGuide_FINAL.pdfDescription of GreenerGolfWhitePaper_FINAL.pdf : Greener Golf DocumentDescription of GreenerGolf_GatewayDesignGuide_FINAL.pdf : Greener Golf Design Guid