Nanotechnologies continue to permeate a multitude of industries, with diverse applications ranging from pesticides to fuel additives. The unusual behavior of nanomaterials that drives their innovation also complicates the job of toxicologists tasked with assessing their potential environmental and public health impacts. This dissertation investigates the underlying reasons for uncertainty...
This mixed methods qualitative thesis examined the relationships between co-mentors in the Faculty Student Mentor Program at Oregon State University through the reported experiences/perceptions of peer mentors. The researcher gathered information for this study utilizing data from two focus groups, a survey of peer mentors, and a review of relevant...
This dissertation focuses on personal privacy in human-robot interaction, which we call "privacy-sensitive robotics." Our understanding of "privacy" is very broad, including not just information privacy but also physical, psychological, and social privacy. We begin by surveying the scholarly literature on privacy and talking about why it applies to interactions...
The use of timber harvest residue as an energy source is thought to have environmental benefits relative to food-based crops, yet the ecological impact of this practice remains largely unknown. We assessed whether the abundance and diversity of wild bees (Apoidea) were influenced by the removal of harvest residue and...
Advancing the understanding of natural resource management is an important step in mitigating the effects of human activity on the environment, and ensuring efficient outcomes for many sectors of the economy. As humanity’s role in the natural world becomes better understood, the importance of interdisciplinary modeling has grown in leaps...
Rebuilding of some U.S. West Coast rockfish (Sebastes spp.) stocks relies heavily on mandatory fishery discard, however the long-term condition of discarded fish experiencing capture-related barotrauma is unknown. We conducted two studies designed to evaluate delayed mortality, physical condition,and behavioral competency of yelloweye rockfish, Sebastes ruberrimus, experiencing barotrauma during capture...
Concentrated solar power (CSP) plants have the potential to reduce the consumption of nonrenewable resources and greenhouse gas emissions in electricity production. In CSP systems, a field of heliostats focuses solar radiation on a central receiver, and energy is then transferred to a thermal power plant at high temperature. However,...
Concentrations of H₂O and CO₂ in olivine-hosted melt inclusions can be used to estimate crystallization depths for the olivine host. However, the original dissolved CO₂ concentration of melt inclusions at the time of trapping can be difficult to measure directly because in many cases substantial CO₂ is transferred to shrinkage...
A Finite Element Model of a deployed Fiber-Optic Micro Cable (FOMC) was performed using the marine cable modeling software, OrcaFlex. The focus of this study was a parametric analysis of a two-part, towed cable array with the FOMC dragged behind a depressor and connected to a drogue chute. Length-to-diameter ratios...
Transcriptome and genome data from twenty stony coral species and a selection of reference bilaterians were studied to elucidate coral evolutionary history. We identified genes that encode the proteins responsible for the precipitation and aggregation of the aragonite skeleton on which the organisms live, and revealed a network of environmental...