Radioxenon detection is a technique used to monitor nuclear explosion and verify the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT). Because of an ultra-low concentration of radioxenon at radioxenon monitoring stations, radioxenon detection systems must have high sensitivity. This sensitivity is measured in terms of detector's minimum detectable concentration (MDC). It is required...
Developmental thresholds and thermal unit (degree
day) requirements for eggs, different larval instars,
pupal stage and preoviposition period were determined
for the obliquebanded leafroller (OBLR), Choristoneura
rosaceana (Harris). Separate thresholds and degree day
requirements were determined for males and females, but
differences between the sexes were not significant.
However, there...
The development of micro total analysis systems (µTAS), also called “lab-on-a-chip”, or microfluidic analysis systems, is presented in this dissertation. Various research areas, covering subjects from magnetic particles synthesis to novel microchip fabrication techniques, are explored to develop a lab-on-a-chip system capable of performing magnetic bead-based bioassays. These devices are...
Determination of the source and fate of natural (higher plant lipids, marine
lipids, etc.) and anthropogenically (e.g., petroleum, coal emissions) derived
hydrocarbons and oxygenated compounds in the environment was accomplished
using gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS)
to characterize or identify molecular biomarkers to be utilized as tracers....
Pacific whiting (Merluccius productus) is the most abundant
groundfish species off the California, Oregon and Washington Coasts.
The fish are mainly used as a raw material for the production of surimi.
However, it is not economically wise to depend only on one product.
There is a need to diversify the...
The overall concept of reducing laboratory operations to a scale that fits on a single microfluidic chip has been an attractive area of research over the last several decades. Despite a surge in research, few commercial success stories have been written. Lab-on-a-chip technologies have the capability to be cost effective...
Long-run food price changes respond to long-run changes in food demand, quasi-fixed and variable production factors, and agricultural productivity. Recent global food-price volatility puts a renewed spotlight on the trends and sources of any agricultural productivity growth. Because food prices’ most critical effects are on human hunger, it is especially...
The Melnikov method is applied to a model of parametrically generated cross-waves in a long rectangular channel in order to determine if these cross-waves are chaotic. A great deal of preparation is involved in order to obtain a suitable form for the application of the Melnikov method. The Lagrangian for...
Agricultural revenues, the product of stochastic prices and yields, lead to markets which are
incomplete, thereby entreating and complicating economic inquiry. The following three essays
explore the incomplete nature of agricultural markets and consider the implications of
incompleteness for a range of policy questions and economic tools.
The first essay,...
Due to a number of disadvantages associated with the use of antibodies as
affinity stationary phases, researchers have recently began to explore the use of RNA
and DNA aptamers for use as affinity stationary phases. These molecules have been
shown to be a viable choice for applications in many methods...
Analytical chemistry is an area of chemistry primarily focused on the study and use of instruments for separation, identification, and quantification of an analyte of interest. Specifically, separation science within analytical chemistry often refers to the process of dividing mixtures into their small component parts based on differences in their...
Most vertebrates exhibit seasonality in many life history traits. Such seasonal rhythms are temporally organized via the transduction of environmental cues (e.g., photoperiod, temperature) into appropriate endocrine signals. However, among ectothermic vertebrates that undergo continuous winter dormancy, temperature is the only environmental cue available for synchronizing seasonal rhythms. Most intriguing...
Damage estimates to the built environment from tsunamis are important for disaster mitigation, including planning emergency response and recovery. This dissertation evaluates the damage states of buildings in a small urban coastal city, Seaside, Oregon, from tsunami hazards generated by a Cascadia Subduction Zone (CSZ) event. This study is separated...
Governments in less developed countries have recognized
in recent years the need to liberalize economic policies in
order to increase efficiency in agricultural commodity
markets. In an attempt to help decision makers assess
alternative choices, most policy studies, however, have
focused on the efficiency norm criterion without much
consideration for...
Bedrock meandering rivers are sinuous channels that pair steep bedrock outside banks with lower gradient slip-off slopes on the inside of bends. These rivers have the potential to record information on climatic and tectonic “external” forcings in their morphology (e.g., longitudinal profiles, strath terraces, channel and valley dimensions). However, geology...
The nuclear level structure of ¹⁰¹Ru has been investigated
through the decay of 14.0 minute ¹⁰¹Tc produced by thermal neutron
irradiation of molybdenum targets. Gamma-ray energies and relative
intensities have been measured with the high resolution Ge(Li) spectrometers.
Based on the energy sum and the intensity balancing, a
consistent level...
The decay of ⁶¹Cu and ⁵⁹Cu produced by (d, n) reactions on
natural nickel has been investigated. Gamma-ray energies and relative
intensities were measured with a high resolution Ge(Li) spectrometer.
The gamma-gamma coincidence spectrum of ⁶¹Cu was
studied with a Ge(Li)-NaI(T1) system. From these data decay
schemes of ⁶¹Cu and...
The Harderian gland is a large cephalic gland present in most groups of terrestrial vertebrates. Although the Harderian gland has been the focus of numerous studies for more than 300 years, its physiological function has remained largely unresolved. Harderian gland secretions are diverse among different taxa, and many putative functions...
Role of temperature and photoperiod on development of the filbert leafroller, Archips rosanus L., (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) from the Willamette Valley, Oregon was studied in the laboratory and in the field. Both temperature and photoperiod had a significant influence on the developmental rate of this species from neonate larva to adult...
The atmospheric detection of four radioxenon isotopes (131mXe, 133mXe, 133Xe, and 135Xe) released during a nuclear detonation is a key tool utilized by the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) to identify clandestine nuclear weapon testing activity. These radioxenon isotopes all decay via the near-simultaneous release of an electron and a...
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Abi T. Farsoni
The atmospheric detection of four radioxenon isotopes (131mXe, 133mXe, 133Xe
Anchoring systems are used to hold floating offshore devices (e.g., energy devices, oil platforms) to keep them on their stations. Anchors are embedded into the seabed soils. In some cases, the interface shear between anchor and seabed soils together with anchor self-weight provide the holding capacity of the anchoring systems....
The challenges prompted by miniaturization of chromatographic systems have led scientists to explore new avenues in the synthesis of stationary phases. Packed capillary columns have found limited application in routine analysis due to a number of technical difficulties, most of which are attributable to the frits. New column designs insure...
Over the last decade, the miniaturization of analytical systems has become an increasingly important and interesting research area. Miniaturized systems offer many advantages, including reduced reagent and sample consumption, shorter analysis times, portability and disposability. This dissertation describes novel approaches in this direction, focusing on two areas: the miniaturization of...
Symbiotic associations are established between non-leguminous
(actinorrhizal) nitrogen-fixing flowering plants and two categories
of microorganisms: mycorrhizal fungi and a filamentous actinomycete.
The actinomydete induces nodule formation and produces nitrogenase,
the enzyme responsible for the reduction of atmospheric nitrogen to
a form available to higher plants. The mycorrhizal fungus is found...
A global solution is presented that accurately accounts for the
singular behavior at all irregular points. The linearized boundary
value problem in a semi-infinite strip in the physical plane is
transformed into a smooth unit disk by two successive conformal
mappings. The global solution results from a Fredholm integral
equation...
Bio-cementation is a promising method for the liquefiable mitigation of loose saturated sands. In the improvement process a bacterium that can be found naturally in soil deposits is fed urea. The bacterium consumes and breaks down the urea to form ammonium and carbonate. In the presence of calcium, calcium carbonate...
Laboratory data of free surface elevations and fluid velocities were
obtained using a laser-Doppler velocimeter for the case of a periodic wave
plunging over an impermeable, steep (1:10) slope with a fixed bottom roughness.
The measurements were conducted over 15 cross-shore locations from the outer
surf zone to the swash...
Calls continually are made to provide economic assessments of research program achievements and efficiency. Yet little effort has been given to develop an assessment framework that would focus on the research discovery itself, treating the research manager as a producer and the research technology as a knowledge production function. The...
Life cycle exposures to hazards from existing and newly developed products and production processes, demands from external stakeholders for compliance with regulations, requirements from internal stakeholders for connecting management systems to lean company initiatives and market pressures have motivated U.S. based semiconductor companies to adopt an integrated-lean approach to environment,...
River basins provide essential services for both humans and ecosystems. Understanding the connections between ecosystems and society and their function has been at the heart of resilience studies and has become an increasing important endeavor in research and practice. In this dissertation, I define basin resilience as a river basin...
The decay of Pd¹⁰⁹, Pd¹¹¹ [superscript g], and Pd¹¹¹ [superscript m] produced by thermal neutron irradiation of palladium targets has been investigated. Gamma ray energies and relative intensities have been measured with a high resolution Ge(Li) spectrometer. From energy sums and relative intensity considerations level schemes for Ag ¹⁰⁹ and...
The question of why carboxylic acids and phenols are stronger
acids than alcohols has been investigated experimentally and theoretically.
The experimental approach involves comparison of gas-phase
acidities and core-ionization energies. The theoretical treatment uses
calculated point potentials and acidities.
The ease of proton removal is related to two factors known...
Soil erosion by mass wasting is the major problem on forest
lands of the Pacific Northwest, The clay fractions of soils from a
large number of sites in Oregon's Western Cascades were characterized
in order to determine the relationships of various clay materials to
mass movements. Each site was either...
Individuals who are parents and students on TANF experience challenges accessing and persisting in higher education. This study explored the experiences of TANF recipients who are navigating a return to higher education and the impact of college on how they construct a future self. Two theoretical frameworks were used to...
The objective of this study was to compare the total collection
(in vivo), nylon bag, and in vitro digestibility techniques under
standardized conditions. Twin steers were used simultaneously to
measure the digestibility of five rations consisting of the following
ratios of alfalfa hay to steamed roller barley: 4:0 (I), 3:1...