The reliability and survivability of a wave energy converter (WEC) is highly dependent on the variability and non-linearity of the ocean itself. Ocean variability occurs on many time scales. Climate variability occurs decade-to-decade, and year-to-year in the number and intensity of winter storms. Seasonal variation of wave height and period...
Introduction Tuna is one of the worlds most traded and sought after species
of fish. The global tuna market is worth in the region of $6billion and
annual catch volumes of around 4 million tonnes. The tuna supply chain is
global and it is broad and complex involving multiple stakeholders....
The credit crunch has had a dramatic effect within the seafood industry. Recent years saw a buoyant UK economy with increasing sales of chilled seafood material and a growing interest in sustainability. Credit tightening and declining consumer confidence has placed pressures on these trends. This is unlikely to be reversed...
This qualitative study examines how FIESTAS (Family Involved in Education, Sociocultural Teaching and STEM) partners (comprised of out-of-school time (OST) educators, university student STEM instructors, and local business representatives) came together to facilitate a local STEM Club located in two dual-immersion elementary schools in the Pacific Northwest. The study addresses...
In regards to animation created and aimed at them, girls are largely underserved and underrepresented. This underrepresentation leads to decreased socio-cultural capital in adulthood and a feeling of sacrificed childhood. Although there is a common consensus in entertainment toward girls as a potentially deficient audience, philosophy and applied ethics open...
The motion of floating objects are of importance to engineers and scientists in a
range of applications. For example, in the design of ships and wave energy convertors
and the study of debris mobilized by tsunamis. Measuring the movement of floating
objects in the laboratory can be challenging. Six degrees...
Background: Patellar tendinopathy is a common condition resulting in persistent pain, frequently reported during physical activity. The relationship between dynamic postural stability and pain in these individuals is unclear and how it may affect postural stability.
Research Question: Is there a relationship between acute pain and dynamic postural stability indices...
Storm events can pulse nutrients and carbon from soils and provide an important subsidy to food webs in oligotrophic streams and lakes. Bacterial nutrient limitation and the potential response of stream aquatic bacteria to storm events was investigated in arctic tundra environments by manipulating both water temperature and inorganic nutrient...
To understand mechanisms linking ecosystem processes and microbial diversity in freshwater ecosystems, bacterial productivity and the metacommunity dynamics of species sorting and mass effects were investigated in an 18 ha headwater lake in northern Alaska. On most sampling dates, the phylogenetic composition of bacterial communities in inflowing streams (inlets) was...
Stripe rust is a foliar disease of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) caused by the air-borne fungus Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici and is present in most regions around the world where commercial wheat is grown. Breeding for durable resistance to stripe rust continues to be a priority, but also is...
Muddy and/or musty off-flavors in farmed-raised catfish occur as a result of the absorption of geosmin (GEO) and 2-methylisoborneol (MIB), compounds produced by algae. Previous research suggests the acid pH-shift method may be able to reduce off-flavors to produce a consumer acceptable product. The objective of this research was to...
To test the utility of otolith chemical composition as a tool for determining the natal stream of origin for salmon, we examined water chemistry and otoliths of juvenile and adult Chum Salmon Oncorhynchus keta and Coho Salmon O. kisutch from three watersheds (five rivers) in the Norton Sound region of...
Marine teleost fishes often experience over 99% mortality in the early life stages (eggs and larvae), yet larval survival is essential to population sustainability. Marine fish larvae from a wide range of families display elaborate, delicate features that bear little resemblance to adult forms and hinder their swimming escape ability...
Trait-mediated indirect interactions (TMIIs) are an important component of food web structure and dynamics. We determined whether TMIIs occur in rocky tidepool communities on the west coast of the USA. In the laboratory, both adults and juveniles of the keystone predator Pisaster ochraceus and adults of a smaller predatory seastar...
Dietary restriction (DR) is the gold standard intervention used to delay aging, and much recent research has focused on
the identification of possible DR mimetics. Energy sensing pathways, including insulin/IGF1 signaling, sirtuins, and
mammalian Target of Rapamycin (mTOR), have been proposed as pathways involved in the antiaging actions of DR,...
Foresters face new and evolving challenges as society reconsiders the balance of its interests between wood production and the provision of ecosystem services in the management of forests. Whatever paths this process may take, sound and broad-based decisions will continue to require accurate and relevant measurements of current forest conditions...
The quantification and description of sea surface temperature (SST) is critically important because it can influence the distribution, migration, and invasion of marine species; furthermore, SSTs are expected to be affected by climate change. To better understand present temperature regimes, we assembled a 29-year nearshore time series of mean monthly...
The New Zealand endemic Maui’s dolphin Cephalorhynchus hectori maui is characterized by several life history traits thought to be important predictors of extinction risk in marine mammals, including a slow rate of reproduction, small geographic range, small group size, and coastal distribution. We continued the genetic monitoring of the remnant...
In the study of nutritional variability in potato it is desirable to know the present range of expression and genetic potential for increase. Potato breeding lines and varieties in two separate trials were evaluated for potassium and phosphorus content by wet ashing and Inductively Coupled Argon Plasma Emission Spectrophotometer analysis....
Sulfur and copper are important for human health.
Sulfur deficiency is rare, but may occur in the elderly. However,
a large percentage of the U.S. population is deficient in
copper. The purpose of this study was to determine the range
of values for sulfur and copper available in advanced potato...
Calcium and magnesium are two minerals that play prominent roles in animal and plant metabolism. The purpose of this study was to determine if genetic variation exists among advanced potato breeding clones for tuber calcium and magnesium content and the extent of genotype x environment interactions on these two traits....
Abstract: During recent human history, human activities such as overhunting and habitat destruction have severely impacted many large top predator populations around the world. Studies from a variety of ecosystems show that loss or diminishment of top predator populations can have serious consequences for population and community dynamics and ecosystem...
Stomata control tree transpiration by sensing and integrating environmental signals originating in the atmosphere and soil, and co-occurring species may differ in inherent stomatal sensitivity to these above- and belowground signals and in the types of signals to which they respond. Stomatal responsiveness to environmental signals is likely to differ...
Background:
As global climate change and exponential human population growth intensifies pressure on agricultural systems, the need to effectively manage invasive insect pests is becoming increasingly important to global food security. Drosophila suzukii is an invasive pest that drastically expanded its global range in a very short time since 2008,...
Crystallographic studies of ligands bound to biological macromolecules (proteins and nucleic acids) represent an important source of information concerning drug-target interactions, providing atomic level insights into the physical chemistry of complex formation between macromolecules and ligands. Of the more than 115,000 entries extant in the Protein Data Bank (PDB) archive,...
Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura) (Diptera: Drosophilidae) is a pest of small fruits and cherries, and has also been noted to infest a variety of wild, ornamental, and uncultivated hosts. Identifying alternative hosts is critical for pest management. Research objectives were to: 1) survey fruits in the field for natural infestation of...
The southeast Pacific Ocean is covered by the world's largest stratocumulus cloud layer, which has a strong impact on ocean temperatures and climate in the region. The effect of anthropogenic sources of aerosol particles on the stratocumulus deck was investigated during the VOCALS field experiment. Aerosol measurements below and above...
BACKGROUND: Little is known regarding the prevalence or risk factors for non-comprehension and non-compliance with discharge instructions among older adults.
OBJECTIVE: To quantify the prevalence and identify patient characteristics associated with non-comprehension and non-compliance with discharge instructions.
RESEARCH DESIGN: Prospective cohort study
SUBJECTS: 450 adults aged ≥65 admitted to medical...
BACKGROUND: Identifying patients at high risk of hospital readmission may facilitate
interventions to improve care. Depressive symptoms are prevalent among hospitalized older
adults and may provide a target for these interventions if associated with readmission. The aim of
this study was to quantify the risk of 30-day unplanned hospital readmission...
The promise of epigenome-wide association studies (EWAS) and cancer specific somatic changes in improving our understanding of cancer coupled with the decreasing cost and increasing coverage of DNA methylation microarrays, has brought about a surge in the use of these technologies. Here, we aim to provide both a review of...
INTRODUCTION: Many species of ambystomatid salamanders are dependent upon highly variable temporary wetlands
for larval development. High larval densities may prompt the expression of a distinct head morphology that may
facilitate cannibalism. However, few studies have characterized structural cannibalism within natural populations of
larval salamanders. In this study we used...
The Coastal Storm Modeling System (CoSMoS) applies a predominantly deterministic framework to make detailed predictions (meter scale) of storm-induced coastal flooding, erosion, and cliff failures over large geographic scales (100s of kilometers). CoSMoS was developed for hindcast studies, operational applications (i.e., nowcasts and multiday forecasts), and future climate scenarios (i.e.,...
Feedback loops involving soil microorganisms can
regulate plant populations. Here, we hypothesize that microorganisms
are most likely to play a role in plant–soil feedback
loops when they possess an affinity for a particular plant and
the capacity to consistently affect the growth of that plant for
good or ill. We...
Because rapamycin, an inhibitor of the nutrient sensor mammalian target of rapamycin, and dietary restriction both increase life span of mice, it has been hypothesized that they act through similar mechanisms. To test this hypothesis, we compared various biological parameters in dietary restriction mice (40% food restriction) and mice fed...
Occlusive thrombi that cause cardiovascular diseases form on the walls of blood vessels and propagate across the lumen under pressure gradient-driven flow, impaired antithrombotic, and enhanced prothrombotic conditions. Development of a well controlled and validated ex vivo model that can mimic these pathological conditions would provide a useful tool for...
Background:
Very few closed genomes of the cyanobacteria that commonly produce toxic blooms in lakes and reservoirs are available, limiting our understanding of the properties of these organisms. A new anatoxin-a-producing member of the Nostocaceae, Anabaena sp. WA102, was isolated from a freshwater lake in Washington State, USA, in 2013...
Alien grass invasions in arid and semi-arid ecosystems are resulting in grass–fire cycles and ecosystem-level transformations that severely diminish ecosystem services. Our capacity to address the rapid and complex changes occurring in these ecosystems can be enhanced by developing an understanding of the environmental factors and ecosystem attributes that determine...
We measure the thermal conductivities of nano-grained strontium titanate (ng-SrTiO₃) films deposited on sapphire substrates via time-domain thermoreflectance. The 170 nm thick oxide films of varying grain-size were prepared from a chemical solution deposition process. We find that the thermal conductivity of ng-SrTiO₃ decreases with decreasing average grain size and attribute...
Analyses of long-term records at 35 headwater basins in the United States and Canada indicate that climate change effects on streamflow are not as clear as might be expected, perhaps because of ecosystem processes and human influences. Evapotranspiration was higher than was predicted by temperature in water-surplus ecosystems and lower...
To examine whether stream nitrogen concentrations in forested reference catchments have changed over time and if patterns were consistent across the USA, we synthesized up to 44 yr of data collected from 22 catchments at seven USDA Forest Service Experimental Forests. Trends in stream nitrogen presented high spatial variability both...
To examine whether stream nitrogen concentrations in forested reference catchments have
changed over time and if patterns were consistent across the USA, we synthesized up to 44 yr
of data collected from 22 catchments at seven USDA Forest Service Experimental Forests.
Trends in stream nitrogen presented high spatial variability both...
Targhee Russet is a darker-skinned russet potato variety that has shown higher total and marketable yields than Russet Burbank in most yield trials conducted in the western United States. A major strength of Targhee Russet is resistance to tuber soft rot, and it also has moderate resistance to common scab,...
Mountain Gem Russet is a potato variety notable for having both high early and full-season yields of oblong-long, medium-russeted tubers with higher protein content than those of standard potato varieties. Mountain Gem Russet has greater resistance to soft rot, tuber late blight, growth cracks and second growth than Russet Burbank....
Teton Russet is an early-maturing, medium-russeted, potato cultivar with high merit for both fresh-pack and processing. In early harvest trials in the Pacific Northwest, Teton Russet had total yields similar to Russet Norkotah, and higher than Ranger Russet and Russet Burbank. Marketable yield of Teton Russet in the early harvest...
Exotic species dominate many communities; however the functional significance of species’ biogeographic origin remains highly contentious. This debate is fuelled in part by the lack of globally replicated, systematic data assessing the relationship between species provenance, function and response to perturbations. We examined the abundance of native and exotic plant...
Invasions have increased the size of regional species pools, but are typically assumed to reduce native diversity. However, global-scale tests of this assumption have been elusive because of the focus on exotic species richness, rather than relative abundance. This is problematic because low invader richness can indicate invasion resistance by...