State-and-transition models (STMs) have been successfully used to
describe ecological dynamics in woodlands, shrublands, grasslands, and several other ecosystems. Changes in vegetation and soil are measured to gauge and predict plant community dynamics within ecological states and transitions between alternative ecological states. Ecological states and their boundaries are defined by...
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of contaminants of great concern due to their toxicity and ubiquity in the environment. Remediation efforts historically have focused on granular activated carbon (GAC) because of its low maintenance and relatively low cost. However, GAC is not PFAS selective and is especially...
Design in secondary mathematics teacher education must prepare teacher candidates to do the work of ambitious and equitable mathematics teaching with skill by situating development in the work of teaching and incorporating opportunities to investigate and enact teaching. Teacher education designs must also be responsive to the work that mathematics...
The purpose of this study was to describe the leadership development process
of former student leaders at Snow College. More specifically, the study focused on
understanding how, when, and where leadership development took place in their
"lived experience" within the student government at Snow College (Van Manen,
1998). Examining the...
A scalable synthesis of the "flat" tridecameric inorganic cluster [Al₁₃(μ₃-OH)₆(μ-OH)₁₈(H₂O)₂₄]¹⁵⁺ has been realized by treating an aqueous aluminum nitrate solution with zinc-metal powder at room temperature. Single crystals and polycrystalline samples are readily obtained in yields exceeding 55% relative to the starting reagent Al(NO₃)₃. Products have been characterized by X-ray...
Health effects stemming from animal feeding operations pollution in the contiguous United States are analyzed using a 20-year, county-level data set. Several quasi-experimental, potential outcome models are used to estimate the impact of high concentrations of animal units on mortality rates and other health and economic outcomes over a 20-year...
Polyoxometalates (POMs) are anions consisting of three or more early transition metals ™ (Gr V and VI) oxoanions (in their highest oxidation state) linked together by a shared oxygen bond to form a 3D framework. Polyoxometalates (POMs) are a rapidly growing class of metal oxo clusters with a wide range...
In this dissertation, the spectroscopic properties and thermodynamic stability of a class of materials known as metal oxo and hydroxo clusters are studied. In aqueous solutions, many metals can aggregate into discrete clusters of metals bridged by oxo or hydroxo ligands. These clusters are of particular interest to us for...
Children's early self-regulation skills have long-term implications for a variety of academic, social, and health outcomes. Unfortunately, children facing multiple family risk factors (e.g., harsh parenting, economic disadvantage) are more likely to struggle with early self-regulation. Despite early disparities in self-regulation, promising intervention evidence suggests that high quality prekindergarten experiences...
Because many coral-reef fishes are observable in situ, are amenable to transplantation, have small home ranges and short generation times, they provide a excellent system to investigate many topics within general ecology, fisheries biology, and conservation biology. The primary goal of this dissertation was to use the coral-reef fishes system...