Continental flood basalts represent short-lived but immense blasts of mafic magma to the continental crust. The youngest and smallest continental flood basalt worldwide, the Columbia River Basalt, initiated with the eruption of the most mafic member, the Steens Basalt (~16.9 Ma). The Steens Basalt is exposed in southeast Oregon, southwest...
Phytochemicals from cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, contain a multitude of bioactive compounds that prevent and suppress cancer and promote optimal health. Some of the health promoting effects of cruciferous vegetables are attributed to a class of compounds known as isothiocyanates (ITCs), a potent nuclear factor erythroid 2–related factor 2...
Consistent with its charge under Oregon House Bill 3543, the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute (OCCRI) conducts a biennial assessment of the state of climate change science, including biological, physical, and social science, as it relates to Oregon and the likely effects of climate change on Oregon. This sixth Oregon...
We do not know how to align a very intelligent AI agent's behavior with human interests. I investigate whether—absent a full solution to this AI alignment problem—we can build smart {\ai} agents which have limited impact on the world, and which do not autonomously seek power. In this thesis, I...
The seismic response of deep deposits of liquefiable and cyclic-softening susceptible soils has presented the geotechnical profession with significant engineering challenges. Strong ground motions may serve to soften soils under cyclic shear, trigger liquefaction, and produce damaging displacements as a consequence. This study improves the understanding of the in-situ, nonlinear,...
This study employed ethnographic methodology to investigate and record the post-camp, pre-assimilation period of Laotian refugees.The primary goal was to document the special problems and experiences of the Laotian population as they attempted to adjust to new roles and expectations within mainstream North American society.Oral histories and biographical statements focused...
This analysis concerns the life and scientific work of Henry
Augustus Rowland (1848-1901), organizer and the first chairman of
the physics department at The Johns Hopkins University in 1876.
Special materials used in this research included three pieces of
Rowland's experimental apparatus which are extant in the Smithsonian
Institution Division...