Silica bodies in short cell epidermal leaf cells of the Early Cretaceous Programinis laminatus (Poales) in Burmese amber are characterized. The great majority are rondels and elongated quadrates aligned horizontally in relation to the leaf axis. Rondel types include circular, elliptical, oblong, long and short forms. Quadrate types include short...
In this study we present 42 new ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar incremental heating age determinations updated age progression for the Louisville seamount trail. Louisville is the South Hawaiian‐Emperor seamount trail, both trails representing intraplate volcanism (~80 Ma to present) and being examples of primary hot spot lineaments. Our age‐progressive trend from 71 to...
We propose the Breathing Earth System Simulator (BESS), an upscaling approach to quantify global gross primary productivity and evapotranspiration using MODIS with a spatial resolution of 1-5 km and a temporal resolution of 8 days. This effort is novel because it is the first system that harmonizes and utilizes MODIS...
We report zero kinetic energy (ZEKE) photoelectron spectroscopy of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) via resonantly enhanced multiphoton ionization (REMPI). Our analysis concentrates on the vibrational modes of the first excited state (S₁) and those of the ground cationic state (D₀). Similar to pyrene, another peri-condensed polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon we have investigated, the...
Biofortification of staple crops like potato via breeding is an attractive strategy to reduce human micronutrient deficiencies. A prerequisite is metabolic phenotyping of genetically diverse material which can potentially be used as parents in breeding programs. Thus, the natural genetic diversity of thiamin and folate contents was investigated in indigenous...
Melt inclusions trapped in phenocryst phases are important primarily due to their potential of preserving a significant proportion of the diversity of magma composition prior to modification of the parent magma array during transport through the crust. The goal of this investigation was to evaluate the impact of formational and...
Nanostructured ZnO films were obtained via thermal oxidation of thin films formed with metallic Zn-nanoparticle dispersions. Commercial zinc nanoparticles used for this work were characterized by microscopic and thermal analysis methods to analyze the Zn-ZnO core shell structure, surface morphology and oxidation characteristics. These dispersions were spin-coated on SiO₂/Si substrates...
As ornamental container nurseries face diminishing water allocations, many are looking to automated irrigation solutions to increase their water application efficiency. This thesis presents the findings of a study conducted at a commercial container nursery to determine 1) whether a capacitance or load cell sensor was better suited for monitoring...
Thin-film transistors (TFTs) are primarily used as a switching element in liquid crystal
displays. Currently, amorphous silicon is the dominant TFT technology for displays, but
higher performance TFTs will become necessary to enable ultra-definition resolution
high-frequency large-area displays. Amorphous zinc tin oxide (ZTO) TFTs were
fabricated by RF magnetron sputter...
This document provides the latest science and best biological judgment to assist in making management decisions. Fortunately, recent emphasis on sage-grouse conservation has resulted in a substantial number of publications dealing with a variety of aspects of sage-grouse ecology and management, summarized in the 2010 listing petition (75 FR 13910),...
From 6 April – 19 September 2011 we monitored the distribution, abundance and productivity of the federally Threatened Western Snowy Plover (Charadrius nivosus nivosus) along the Oregon coast. From north to south, we surveyed and monitored plover activity at Sutton Beach, Siltcoos River estuary, the Dunes Overlook, North Tahkenitch Creek,...
During the 2008 and 2009 breeding seasons of murres Uria spp., we combined visual observations of these predators with active acoustics (sonar), fish trawls, zooplankton net tows, and hydrographic measurements in the area surrounding breeding colonies in the southeastern Bering Sea. We acoustically detected thousands of bubble trails that were...
Experimental game theory is the use of game theoretic abstractions—games, players, and strategies—in experiments and simulations. It is often used in cases where traditional, analytical game theory fails or is difficult to apply. This thesis collects three previously published papers that provide domain-specific language (DSL) support for defining and executing...
The First Gulf War that took place in Kuwait in 1991 resulted in one of the worst environmental disasters in the history of mankind. Extreme pollution affected the soil, waters, and the air in Kuwait. In this research I try to look into how the Kuwaiti government reacted to those...
Resistive random access memory (RRAM) is a non-volatile memory technology based on resistive switching in a dielectric or semiconductor sandwiched between two different metals. Also known as memristors, these devices are potential candidates for a next-generation replacement for flash memory. In this thesis, bipolar resistive switching is reported for the...
This presentation was given as part of Oregon State University's College of Oceanographic and Atmospheric Sciences graduate student seminar series. It describes the basics of wave forecasting and then focuses on work implementing a wave forecasting system for the Oregon and Southwestern Washington Coast.
This presentation was given as part of Oregon State University's College of Oceanographic and Atmospheric Sciences graduate student seminar series. It is critical to understand waves dynamics in order to design wave energy convertors and then deploy them in arrays. Modelling suggests that array interactions lead to constructive and destructive...
This presentation was given as part of Oregon State University's College of Oceanographic and Atmospheric Sciences graduate student seminar series. Sherman describes the concept of marine spatial planning and then applies to the Oregon nearshore environment. The updating of Oregon's Territorial Sea plan requires new information about uses of the...
In 2004, the Transition Mathematics Project (TMP), funded by the state of Washington and The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, was established to create projects to help high school students gain the necessary skills to become college and work-ready. Aligned to TMP's College Readiness Mathematics Standards, a fourth-year capstone mathematics...
Thermoelectric materials are playing a larger role in the global effort to
develop diverse, efficient, and sustainable energy technologies: primarily through
power-generating thermoelectric modules. The principal components of
thermoelectric modules are solid-state thermoelectric materials – typically heavily
doped semiconductors – that convert heat directly into electricity. However, this
conversion efficiency...
This dissertation integrates a process-based hydrological investigation with an
ongoing paired-catchment study to better understand how forest harvest impacts
catchment function at multiple scales. We do this by addressing fundamental questions
related to the stocks, flows and transit times of water. Isotope tracers are used within a
top-down catchment intercomparison...
The increased demand for wood and fiber from a continually shrinking land base has resulted in the use of intensively managed forest plantations. The concentration of timber production on the most suitable sites allows the world's demand for forest products to be met on less land and enable native forests...
Circadian clocks generate rhythms in molecular, cellular, physiological, and behavioral processes. Recent studies suggest that disruption of the clock mechanism accelerates organismal senescence and age-related pathologies in mammals. Impaired circadian rhythms are observed in many neurological diseases; however, it is not clear whether loss of rhythms is the cause or...
Palisade Russet is a medium-late maturing, lightly russeted potato cultivar notable for its resistance to late blight (Phytophthora infestans) infection of foliage and tuber. Palisade Russet is suitable for processing with low tuber glucose concentrations observed following long-term storage at a temperature as low as 5.6A degrees C with consistently...
Evaporation of saline solutions from porous media, common in arid areas, involves complex interactions between mass transport, energy exchange and phase transitions. We quantified evaporation of saline solutions from heterogeneous sand columns under constant hydraulic boundary conditions to focus on effects of salt precipitation on evaporation dynamics. Mass loss measurements...
This dissertation explores the real world problem of rural youth out-migration and finds that the central problem is one of persistent class difference in this rural Oregon town. The research that informs this dissertation was conducted in a rural community of approximately 2300 residents in Eastern Oregon, here called Talltown....
As drop-on-demand (DOD) applications continue to gain ground in desktop inkjet-printing, 3D printing, fluid mixing, and other areas the demand for higher frequency operations are beginning to push against the current physical boundaries in DOD technology. The current research is exploring the possibility of controlling drop volume and velocity at...
Insects are important forest disturbance agents, and mapping their effects on tree mortality and surface fuels represents a critical research challenge. Although various remote sensing approaches have been developed to monitor insect impacts, most studies have focused on single insect agents or single locations and have not related observed changes...
Global vegetation models require the photosynthetic parameters, maximum carboxylation capacity (V[subscript cm]), and quantum yield (alpha) to parameterize their plant functional types (PFTs). The purpose of this work is to determine how much the scaling of the parameters from leaf to ecosystem level through a seasonally varying leaf area index...
Cryopreservation depends on the equilibration of cells with high concentration of cryoprotective agents (CPAs). However, the addition of CPAs can induce damages to the cells. One of the damages is due to too much shrinkage or swell of the cell volume which lead to the cell death during the addition...
Information on land cover at global and continental scales is critical for addressing a range of ecological, socioeconomic and policy questions. Global land cover maps have evolved rapidly in the last decade, but efforts to evaluate map uncertainties have been limited, especially in remote areas like Northern Eurasia. Northern Eurasia...
Objective. To determine the utility of the capacity ratio to measure and compare solvency in experiential
education in 6 colleges and schools of pharmacy in the Northwestern United States.
Methods. The 6 colleges and schools of pharmacy combined data on student placements needed, site
availability, and changes made to placements...
Anomalous uplift is observed at the Lop Nor, China nuclear test site using ERS satellite SAR data. Using an InSAR time‐series analysis method, we show that an increase in absolute uplift with time is observed between 1997 and 1999. The signal is collocated with past underground nuclear tests. Due to...
Incidences of uterine infections in dairy cattle are high between parturition and Day 21 postpartum. Dairy cows with uterine infections are at risk for prolonged periods of days open and multiple services before becoming pregnant. Neutrophils are the first wave of immune system defense against uterine contamination. Neutrophil function seems...
Halogenated organic compounds have had widespread and massive applications in industry, agriculture, and private households, for example, as degreasing solvents, flame retardants and in polymer production. They are released to the environment through both anthropogenic and natural sources. The most common chlorinated solvents present as contaminants include tetrachloroethene (PCE, perchloroethene)...
Understanding continental crust formation and modification is a fundamental and longstanding geologic problem. Influx of mantle-derived basaltic magma and partial melting of the crust are two ways to drive crustal differentiation. This process results in a low density upper crust and denser, more refractory lower crust, creating significant and vastly...
In a software development cycle, programs go through many iterations. Identifying and
understanding program changes is a tedious but necessary task for programmers, especially when
software is developed in a collaborative environment. Existing tools used by the programmers
either lack in finding the structural differences, or report the differences as...
The hydrogen economy is a possible component of an energy future based on use of alternative and renewable energy sources, deemed desirable from the general consensus of the worldwide community that we do not want to further exacerbate the climate problems that we have introduced over the last two centuries...
This report outlines the current evacuation plan for Oregon State University's Hatfield Marine Science Center and makes recommendations for enhancements and changes. The physical setting is described along with detail on evacuation strategies. Recommendations include reducing personnel working on the South Beach Peninsula, improving current evacuation point, improving communication and...
Topological defects, such as monopoles, vortex lines or domain walls, mark locations where disparate choices of a broken-symmetry vacuum elsewhere in the system lead to irreconcilable differences(1,2). They are energetically costly (the energy density in their core reaches that of the prior symmetric vacuum) but topologically stable (the whole manifold...
We examine the thermal effects of seamount subduction. Seamount subduction may cause transient changes in oceanic crust hydrogeology and plate boundary fault position. Prior to subduction, seamounts provide high-permeability pathways between the basaltic crustal aquifer and overlying ocean that can focus fluid flow and efficiently cool the oceanic crust. As...
We examine the thermal effects of seamount subduction. Seamount subduction may cause transient changes in oceanic crust hydrogeology and plate boundary fault position. Prior to subduction, seamounts provide high‐permeability pathways between the basaltic crustal aquifer and overlying ocean that can focus fluid flow and efficiently cool the oceanic crust. As...
Assessing impacts of future anthropogenic carbon emissions is currently impeded by uncertainties in our knowledge of equilibrium climate sensitivity to atmospheric carbon dioxide doubling. Previous studies suggest 3 K as best estimate, 2–4.5 K as the 66% probability range, and non-zero probabilities for much higher values, the latter implying a...
Homelessness has many faces, several of which society will never truly see. The homeless population has begun to change during the recession, as families lose their homes to foreclosures due to high interest mortgages or become evicted from rental dwellings as one or both wage earners lose employment. The initial...
The marine and freshwater fishery resources of West Africa are some of the most productive in the world, and hold vast potential to provide economic prosperity and food security for the developing nations of that region. Nevertheless, the realized social benefits from fishery resources to West African nations have fallen...
The Multi-Application Small Light Water Reactor (MASLWR) is a small natural circulation pressurized light water reactor design that was developed by Oregon State University (OSU) and Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) under the Nuclear Energy Research Initiative (NERI) program to address the growing demand for energy and electricity....
In this thesis we develop a theoretical framework for the identification of situations where the equal frequency (EF) or equal variance (EV) subclassification may produce lower bias and/or variance of the estimator. We conduct simulation studies to examine the EF and EV approaches under different types of model misspecification. We...
High performance concrete (HPC) provides a long lasting, durable concrete that is typically used in bridge decks due to its low permeability, high abrasion resistance, freeze-thaw resistance and strength. However, this type of concrete is highly susceptible to the deleterious effects of both autogenous and drying shrinkage. Both types of...