The Ethics of Climate Change: Considering Scale and Responsibility

Efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change are being undertaken at a variety of geographic and political scales, ranging from personal behavior to large-scale international treaties. These activities represent a spectrum of agent behaviors and policies related to the climate change phenomenon. Underpinning these behaviors and policies are daunting ethical and moral questions pertaining to response and responsibility. On the international stage, the discourse often focuses on measuring responsibility between developed and developing nations. At smaller scales, the discourse attempts to determine responsibility and “right” action at the level of institutions, corporations, and regional governance. However, agents and stakeholders also exist across the temporal dimensions of past, present, and future generations. This research attempts to offer a survey and meta-analysis of the ethical discourse surrounding climate change. The chosen literature addresses the major ethical dilemmas from a variety of scales and perspectives for the purposes of better understanding present policy and the future trajectory of ethical thought around climate change

Water Allocation Law and the Oil1 and Gas Industry in Kansas: An Update to the 1981 Neufeld Article

The Spring 1981 issue of the Journal of the Kansas Bar Association contained Eva Neufeld's article "The Kansas Water Appropriation Statutes and Their Effect Upon the Oil and Gas Industry in Kansas" (the 1981 Article).' We are updating the 1981 Article because in the intervening 30 years great changes have occurred in Kansas law and in oil and gas recovery methods, particularly in coalbed methane (CBM)production and fracing. The 1981 Article focused on the Kansas Water Appropriation Act (KWAA)2 administered by the chief engineer of the Division of Water Resources (DWR)of the Kansas Department of Agriculture (KDA). The 1981 Article cited other non-KWAA statutes, including sections dealing with the Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC), civil procedure, and taxation. Over the last 30 years, the Kansas legislature has made numerous additions and amendments to the KWAA and other relevant statutes, and we analyze the effect of these changes on the oil and gas industry. The 1981 Article began with a brief history of the KWAA and the KWAAs initial impact on oil and gas production. The 1981 Article then covered (1) water use in the initial drilling operation, (2) water as a by-product of oil and gas production, and (3) water use in secondary or enhanced oil and gas recovery. The final three sections dealt with the question of attachment of water rights to land in Oklahoma, Colorado, and Kansas; discussed policy issues and made suggestions; and advised on obtaining a water appropriation permit. This article updates and supplements the 1981 Article, but does not replace it; so, the articles should be read together. We use the same 1981 Article format and subtitles, 3 but in some cases add sub-subsections, and we do not discuss Oklahoma and Colorado law. Like the 1981 Article, this article focuses primarily, but not exclusively, on water allocation. Several developments in legislation, administrative regulations, and n methods of oil and gas recovery necessitate mentioning several water quality concerns as they relate to allocation, but we do not discuss water quality concerns in detail. This article summarizes changes in the KWAA and the other related statutes and in DWR since 1981, and it ties them to recent advancements in oil and gas recovery methods. We deal with attachment of water rights, but only in Kansas and not in Colorado or Oklahoma. The section describing policy issues and making suggestions is reviewed as to current applicability. The final section on obtaining a water appropriation permit is updated and expanded

Solar Sails: Towards An Early Profitable PowerSat

Successful development of space solar power would provide vast quantities of clean electrical energy for the next few billion years. Such a prize is worth considerable effort and risk. However, the technical difficulties and the huge scale of proposed systems, requiring enormous up front costs and long development times, have prevented SSP from making much progress. If a way could be found to field a small SSP system profitably, even if limited to niche markets, operational progress could be made with relatively small investments over short time scales. This visualization explores the concept of a “thin-film heliogyro” – a solar sail - as a lower cost approach to producing energy in space and transmitting it to earth as an infrared (IR) power beam. Advisors: Al Globus, Tyler Ayres, John Bowditch Solar Sails: Towards an Early Profitable PowerSat from Space Communication Journal on Vimeo

Fecundity of Wild Northern Bobwhite Hens Under Hatchery Conditions

We describe egg production by 88 pairs of randomly selected, mature, wild-caught northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) hens housed under optimal conditions of food, water, climate, and a 17-hr photoperiod in a hatchery. We collected eggs daily using an 18-day period to differentiate between clutches. Hens continuously laid eggs until ceasing production. We evaluated number of eggs laid by each hen individually and hens collectively including total number, number/clutch, number/day, hatching success, and egg mass. Eighty-six hens produced 5,888 eggs. Number of eggs produced by individual hens ranged from 0 to 172 over ~ 200 days. Mean number of eggs laid/hen/day was 0.86. Clutch size ranged from 0 (n 1⁄4 2) to 12 (n 1⁄4 1). Mean number of eggs/clutch was 8.57. There was a strong correlation between clutch size and number of clutches. Some hens demonstrated continuous production of several large clutches. Hatching success of 5,793 eggs included for analysis was 61.6% (3,571 hatched, 2,222 failed to hatch). Hatched eggs had a greater mean mass compared to those that did not hatch

Prospectus, April 14, 1975

CIA INFORMANT AT P.C.?; Angela Davis At PC; Pfaab Should Resign: McMullen; Biology Students Replant Trees As Part Of Park -land Master Plan; Next Prospectus\u27 New Column; The Kaleidoscope; Photography 35: A Focus on Lenses; The Short Circuit; Skylines; Special Feature: Earth Week 1975; Environmental Educators Hold Role Seminar; CU Observes Earth Week April, 12: Lincoln Square Exhibits, Individual Exhibits; Want To Know More?; How Many Clean Lungs At PC?; Grad Petitions; Instructors Participate; Deadline For Southwest Tour Is April 15; Walk For The Eagles; EPA Seminar On Pollution Held On Campus; Classified Ads; Sports Views; Sportscape; Vet\u27s Corner; Parkland Sports Car Club; Parkland Events; Arts And Crafts For The Aged; Meeting For All STU-GO Candidates Set For May 1; Spring Carnival Topic Of Meeting; Top Hot Fifteenhttps://spark.parkland.edu/prospectus_1975/1013/thumbnail.jp

Convergent evolution of hetero‐oligomeric cellulose synthesis complexes in mosses and seed plants

In seed plants, cellulose is synthesized by rosette‐shaped cellulose synthesis complexes (CSCs) that are obligate hetero‐oligomeric, comprising three non‐interchangeable cellulose synthase (CESA) isoforms. The moss Physcomitrella patens has rosette CSCs and seven CESAs, but its common ancestor with seed plants had rosette CSCs and a single CESA gene. Therefore, if P. patens CSCs are hetero‐oligomeric, then CSCs of this type evolved convergently in mosses and seed plants. Previous gene knockout and promoter swap experiments showed that PpCESAs from class A (PpCESA3 and PpCESA8) and class B (PpCESA6 and PpCESA7) have non‐redundant functions in secondary cell wall cellulose deposition in leaf midribs, whereas the two members of each class are redundant. Based on these observations, we proposed the hypothesis that the secondary class A and class B PpCESAs associate to form hetero‐oligomeric CSCs. Here we show that transcription of secondary class A PpCESAs is reduced when secondary class B PpCESAs are knocked out and vice versa, as expected for genes encoding isoforms that occupy distinct positions within the same CSC. The class A and class B isoforms co‐accumulate in developing gametophores and co‐immunoprecipitate, suggesting that they interact to form a complex in planta. Finally, secondary PpCESAs interact with each other, whereas three of four fail to self‐interact when expressed in two different heterologous systems. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that obligate hetero‐oligomeric CSCs evolved independently in mosses and seed plants and we propose the constructive neutral evolution hypothesis as a plausible explanation for convergent evolution of hetero‐oligomeric CSCs

Turbine airfoil net heat flux reduction with cylindrical holes embedded in a transverse trench.

ABSRACT Film cooling adiabatic effectiveness and heat transfer coefficients for cylindrical holes embedded in a 1d transverse trench on the suction side of a simulated turbine vane were investigated to determine the net heat flux reduction. For reference, measurements were also conducted with standard inclined, cylindrical holes. Heat transfer coefficients were determined with and without upstream heating to isolate the hydrodynamic effects of the trench and to investigate the effects of the thermal approach boundary layer. Also the effects of a tripped versus an un-tripped boundary layer were explored. For both the cylindrical holes and the trench, heat transfer augmentation was much greater with no tripping of the approach flow. A further increase in heat transfer augmentation was caused by use of upstream heating, with as much as a 150% augmentation with the trench. With a tripped approach flow the heat transfer augmentation was much less. The net heat flux reduction for the trench was found to be significantly higher than for the row of cylindrical holes