Feeding conjugated linoleic acids (CLA) improves reproductive performance in dairy cows; however, the molecular mechanisms by which CLA improves reproduction are not well understood. Therefore, we evaluated whether the CLA isomers, trans-10, cis-12 CLA and cis-9, trans-11 CLA altered synthesis of steroidogenic hormones in bovine luteal cells by measuring concentrations...
The first part of the dissertation chronicles irrigation technology changes to progressively improve water application efficiency, water use efficiency, irrigation water productivity and crop production. Technological innovation in irrigation, from 6000 BC to present, has been driven by an unchanging need to provide support for growing populations. The first irrigation...
Lake Chad is a vitally important wetland in the semi-arid Sahel corridor. It provides the basis of many thousands of livelihoods which depend on its seasonal fluctuations to renew fish stocks, farmland and rangeland. This paper describes how the institutions which govern access to fishing rights has evolved on the...
Renewable energy is a topic of significant interest and importance in the world today. Ocean wave energy, particularly in areas such as the Oregon Coast, has considerable potential as a renewable resource. However, to rightly evaluate the overall cost of energy for wave energy converters, survivability and maintenance issues must...
Athletic activities have always carried an inherent risk for injuries, and basketball is no
exception. Basketball is the second most popular team sport in the United States in
which 984,777 high school boys and girls participated during the 2010-2011 season.
Athletic trainers and strength and conditioning staff are pressured to...
This thesis pursues a flexible understanding and definition of
dis/ability as a broadly and liberally applied mark of stigma. It asks questions that develop a deeper understanding of how disability influences mētis, a knowledge or cunning use of the body. Through this framework of mētis, this thesis explores technologies as...
Forest disturbances, such as wildfires, pine beetle outbreaks, and floods are important features of many landscapes and ecosystems. Many disturbances are increasing in size, frequency, and intensity due to changing climates and land management decisions. The changing ecological and aesthetic conditions following a disturbance can lead to negative short- and...
Environmental scientists, land managers, and policy actors are increasingly presented with high-stakes high-uncertainty problems stemming from human-ecosystem interactions. To help address these problems, scientists frequently use models that produce enormous geospatial and temporal datasets that are constantly modified and often seek input from communities outside their discipline. To assist scientists—as...
Within the sagebrush steppe ecosystem, invasive annual grasses are of growing management concern as they outcompete native vegetation, change the fundamental nutrient cycling processes, decrease biodiversity, and increase frequency of wildfires. The most widely used and effective management tool to decrease invasive annual grass abundance, is the use of pre-emergent...
Culturally based stereotypes are a pervasive force behind quick judgments about behavior, intent, and beliefs which allow individuals to interact efficiently to meet their own goals. Gender stereotypes are present in marketing media and servicescapes, where they define the behavior, needs, and wants of shoppers. The literature on consumer behavior...
Background: Training and quality assurance (QA) are important to high fidelity program implementation in practice settings but are rarely the focus of translation research. Thus, it is important to conduct studies that specifically address training and QA.
Methods: Using the maximum variation case study method, we examined training and QA...
Multiple outbreaks of foodborne illness (Salmonella and E. coli O157:H7) have been associated with tree nuts and tree nut products since the early 2000s. In response to these outbreaks and many others in fresh produce and peanut butter, Congress created and passed the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) to require...
A novel, low-cost instrument capable of measuring surface water PCO₂ was designed for use in dynamic, shallow-water environments. The instrument was tested in the Yaquina River Estuary, a macrotidal estuary known to experience a wide range of conditions ranging from dominance by the coastal ocean during summer upwelling to substantial...
Microalgae has been under careful consideration as a sustainable feedstock for renewable fuel recently due to its year round production with high energy yields per unit area, reduced need for arable land, water treatment benefits with nutrient cycling, and minimal competition with the food industry. Despite of all these advantages,...
The change process for clients in long-term adolescent residential treatment has received heightened research attention for the past 15-year (Gass, 2006). The research indicates that individuals enrolled in long-term adolescent residential treatment centers, on average, experience improved psycho-social functioning to degrees that are statistically and clinically significant (Behrens & Satterfield,...
Linkages between land use and its influence on the atmosphere have been a long-standing research area. For example, what is the impact of irrigated agriculture on downwind rainfall? Global-scale models show that moisture recycling is an important source of water for inland regions around the world, but they do not...
The United States is the third-largest producer of raspberries in the world. Washington
State leads the nation in red raspberry (Rubus idaeus L.) production. 'Meeker', the
most grown red raspberry cultivar in the Pacific Northwest (Washington, Oregon and
British Columbia, Canada) is highly susceptible to Raspberry crumbly fruit, a virusinduced...
The cultivated potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is one of the world’s most important staple crops, ranked fourth after maize, rice, and wheat. While the potato’s success is due largely to its high yield, it also benefits from its broad global acceptance, and its ability to be used by the consumer...
As managers of agricultural and natural resources are confronted with uncertainties in global change impacts, the complexities associated with the interconnected cycling of nitrogen, carbon, and water present daunting management challenges. Existing models provide detailed information on specific sub-systems (e.g., land, air, water, and economics). An increasing awareness of the...