Marine protected areas (MPAs) are used in ecosystem-based management (EBM) to increase the abundance and biomass of targeted species and protect their ecosystems by restricting certain human activities. Marine reserves (i.e. no-take MPAs) aim to achieve this by prohibiting harvest in the area. While MPAs are currently evaluated through assessments...
Keywords: cabezon; Scorpaenichthys marmoratus; recruitment; recruitment rate; otolith asymmetry; larval fish mortality; developmental success; survivorship; time-series; SMURF; Standard Monitoring Units for the Recruitment of Fishes; sea surface temperature; SST
Rockfishes (Sebastes) are important species for commercial and recreational fishing, as well as evolutionary and ecological research. It can be impractical to identify the sex of rockfishes using visual identification or lethal dissection, and the sex-determination systems of these species have not been studied extensively. The aim of this research...
Dungeness crab (Cancer magister) is an important commercial species along the west coast of North America, and its population dynamics are highly influenced by interactions between environmental variability and early life history distribution. However, the distribution of the early larvae stages of Dungeness crab offshore is poorly known. To fill...
Keywords: common murre; Uria aalge; nestling; colony; Northern California Current System; nCCS; diet; prey; northern anchovy; Engraulis mordax; rockfish; Sebastes; Pacific sand lance; Ammodytes hexapterus; smelt; Osmeridae; opportunistic foraging; Triangle Island, British Columbia; Tatoosh Island, Washington; Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area, Oregon; Devil's Slide Rock, California; Castle Rock National Wildlife...
Keywords: humpback whales; feeding grounds; genetics; breeding group; Distinct Population Segments; DPS; DNA profiles; Monterey, California; Central America DPS; Megaptera novaeangliae; genotyping; microsatellite; population
Keywords: light; temperature gradient; larval fish behavior; Arctic cod; walleye pollock; Boreogadus saida; Gadus chalcogramma; vertical migration; thermocline; early life stages
Aquaculture is a continuously growing industry, but rising problems are disease and antibiotic resistance. A common disease-causing pathogen in oyster aquaculture is Vibrio coralliilyticus (Vcor). Vcor infection of oyster larvae causes near 100% mortality within 48 hours, which is devastating to oyster hatcheries. One potential method of controlling Vcor outbreaks...
Keywords: Oregon Marine Reserves; species richness; community composition; abundance; baited video landers; video landers; nearshore; monitoring; Otter Rock Marine Reserve, Oregon; Cape Foulweather Comparison Area, Oregon; Seal Rock, Oregon
Plastic contamination in the world’s oceans is a considerable threat to the health of the environment, marine ecosystems and humans. In this study, the distribution and quantity of microplastics amongst mussels (Mytilus californianus) was investigated. Mussels were collected and outplanted for a year at 9 sites along the Oregon and...
TiO₂ typically crystallizes into three polymorphs: brookite, rutile, and anatase. The phase selection problem in TiO₂ is the lack of understanding what conditions cause amorphous TiO₂ to crystallize into one of its three polymorphs during an annealing process. It has been recently shown that phase selection in TiO₂ is highly...
The data retrieved from gt;momic sequencing techniques provides the raw information required to infer the basis of mutations and their resulting phenotypes, wherein plant ontologies can be utilized in annotating said phenotypes using a common, shared vocabulary. By relating mutant genes of similar phenotypes both within and between plant species,...
Fluorescent proteins have emerged as an essential toolset for bioimaging, creating a demand for engineering proteins with new and improved fluorescent properties. In this thesis, I explore the atomistic structure of REX-GECO1, a newly engineered protein biosensor that has unique optical properties. Since this protein has no available crystal structure,...
Research poster for Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium 2019. Research was conducted with CURE funding in the Perez lab studying cellular senescence in the PS19 mouse model.
Sablefish is a highly sought after seafood delicacy for which aquaculture of this species has recently been developed. By understanding the immunological functions in sablefish, our goal was to develop a mammalian fluorescent bioparticle assay that can viably analyze the efficiency of phagocytosis, an important function of the immune system....
Skin condition assessment of wildlife can provide insight into individual and population health. Yet, logistics can limit skin condition assessment of large whales. We developed a standardized, quantitative protocol using photographs to assess skin condition of blue whales in New Zealand, and demonstrate the value gained by testing hypotheses, documenting...
This project describes the investigation of marine cyanobacteria collected from the Red Sea with an emphasis on the identification and prioritization of biologically active fractions for future purification and molecular structure elucidation of medicinally relevant secondary metabolites.
Five crude extracts of taxonomically unidentified Red Sea cyanobacteria supplied by Egyptian collaborators...
Recent studies have shown that novel continuous dropout methods can be viewed as a Bayesian interpretation of model parameters, though most such studies have shown results using normal distributions. As the posterior distributions over neural network nodes and parameters are intractable, given that they are a result of artificial construction...
The nasal spray market is growing as rates of use are increasing, however, there has been little research on the topical of how the mechanical properties of nasal sprays affect loading, comfort, and usability. To gather to make these comparisons, the data of 20 participants were gathered by measuring muscle...
This thesis describes the implementation of ultrasonic sensors to trigger a stimulus to increase peer interaction for children with disabilities using modified ride-on-cars for mobility. Modified ride-on-car technology has improved mobility for children with disabilities by effectively replicating the social benefits of a powered mobility device, yet there are opportunities...
Using X-ray computed tomography (CT) scanning to characterize the physical characteristics of soil and sediment cores allows scientists to observe and analyze stratigraphy without destroying the integrity of different layers. Microbiologists often work with geologists to characterize the microbial communities in such cores; however, X-rays are known to be destructive...
With the rise of resistant bacterial pathogens, currently prescribed antibiotics are rendered useless. In recent years, marine natural products (MNPs) have emerged as novel sources for drug leads. The ocean is a complex environment where marine animals cohabitate with many, and sometimes harmful microorganisms and viruses, but resist infections. Developed...
In the field of religious studies, it is common to separate meta theories about the concept of religion itself into two equally problematic categories that both make claims about the truth of religious doctrine. This is done by attempting to define religion by historically excluding non-Christian religious traditions from the...
Heat flux measurements of radiation emissions from turbulent premixed flames diluted with N 2 and CO 2 were taken to identify sensitivities of radiation heat loss to diluent fraction and species. This work is motivated by the desire to better characterise radiant heat transfer in the presence of combustion products,...
Under the Paris Agreement, parties submitted documents outlining their commitments to climate change mitigation and adaptation, called Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), which are set to be updated to increase ambition by 2020. Costa Rica and México are known for their significant national actions on climate change, so comparing these two...