Feeding trials.showed that ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) performed well on diets containing 20% Christmas hollyfem (Polystichum acrostichoides) or mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia), but diets containing 40% of these forages resulted in lower protein and energy intake and the Christmas hollyfem diet caused a loss of body mass. Grouse were not able to maintain themselves solely on evergreen leaves. Glucuronide excretion was greatest for the 40% mountain laurel diet. Ornithine conjugate excretion was greatest for a diet with 40% deciduous leaves. Sulfate excretion did not vary among diets. Intake rate of leaves was an asymptotic function of bite size when the density of bites did not limit intake. Intake rate of leaves decreased at plants densities < 322 plants/m2. The maximum intake rate of leaves was 25% of the intake rate of aspen buds observed in wild grouse (Huempfuer and Tester 1988). Intake rate of raisins was an asymptotic function of bite size and was 20 times greater than the intake rate of leaves. Ruffed grouse in the Southeast must forage for> 100 min/day under ideal conditions to satisfy energy requirements. / Ph. D.

Interpretive reprocessing of seismic reflection data and correlation of the seismic data with gravity data have elucidated Paleozoic and Grenvillian structures in the southern Appalachians. The seismic data include ADCOII, Seisdata, and COCORP reflection profiles which traverse the Blue Ridge and Inner Piedmont geologic provinces of South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia. Based on the reprocessed data, all of the major faults within the allochthonous upper crust, including the Brevard fault zone and the Hayesville fault, are interpreted to root in the Blue Ridge master decollément. Reflectors extending beneath the surface location of the Hayesville fault may be a deformational zone that extends in the direction of structural strike and is associated with Alleghanian transpression. Alternatively, the reflectors may actually represent the subsurface location of the J layesvil1e fault, in which case convergent reflector geometry of the Hayesvi1le fault and the Blue Ridge thrust suggest that the Blue Ridge thrust occupied a zone of weakness previously created by the Hayesville fault. Both the Blue Ridge thrust and Brevard fault zone ramps are interpreted to have a genetic re1ation to underlying basement topography. Relative amplitude data enabled the discrimination between Blue Ridge-Inner Piedmont crystalline rocks from underlying Lower Paleozoic shelf strata, thereby allowing the delineation of the Blue Ridge thrust. The revised geometry of the Blue Ridge thrust constrains the top of the shelf sequence beneath the Blue Ridge to depths less than 3 km. This relatively shallow depth of the shelf sequence, and the presence of duplex structures and bright spots within the sequence are auspicious factors for hydrocarbon exploration. Reflectors within the upper-to-lower crust are interpreted to be preserved Grenvillian structures that were reactivated at the basement surface during Late Proterozoic-Early Cambrian extension. The reflectors are cross-cut by proposed post-Grenvillian, pre-Alleghanian low density intrusions that have acoustically transparent bases. Correlation of seismic and gravity data suggests that disturbances in the Douguer gravity field can be attributed to these structures within the autochthonous crust. Discontinuous reflection packages from depths of 36-42 km are interpreted to originate from the Mohorovicic Discontinuity. The reflectors trend about N 15°E with a true dip of approximately 15°NW. / Master of Science

Drift was measured monthly at four sites on a southern Appalachian stream in order to examine spatial and temporal patterns along elevational and stream size gradients. Measurements consisted of four, one-hour samples corresponding to dawn, mid-day, dusk, and mid-night monthly for 14 months. On average, only 10% of the drifting insects were terrestrial, but terrestrial inputs became numerically important during summer and fall. There were no significant differences among sites in aquatic insect drift density, although taxa richness and total drift (#/sec) increased significantly downstream. None of the sites exhibited a consistent diel pattern. But, all of the lower three sites exhibited decreased drift density during the day. <i>Baetis</i>, the dominant aquatic taxon in the drift, exhibited a typical alterans patterns at UBC, LBC, and CC. Aquatic insect drift density was highest in summer when flows were lowest, while total drift (#/s) was highest in late spring and winter. FPOM and mean daily water temperature accounted for 64% of the variation in total aquatic insect drift density and 60% of <i>Baetis</i> drift density, suggesting both passive and active components in drift. Both variables were also highly correlated with drift density. Taxonomic composition of drift differed from that of the benthos, indicating drift was not simply random, but that taxa vary in the propensity to drift. Overall, this study found more evidence of temporal (diel and seasonal) drift patterns than spatial (along the gradient). / Master of Science

This is a qualitative study of women and change in the coalfields and nearby mining areas of Southwest Virginia in the Central Appalachian mountains, a peripheral region in a core country at the end of the twentieth century. Intensive interviews with working-class women in grassroots associations explicate women’s experiences in the intersection of social structures of class, gender, and Appalachian ethnicity. Conditions and positions of marginalization are explored through analysis of women’s lives in the family, through work, and in communities. The study also examines grassroots associations as contexts for empowerment, and how women struggle for development and change. A grounded theory of empowerment as a process of coming to personal autonomy through political community is presented as an alternative to the economism and individualism of conventional women in development analysis. / Ph. D.

This study presents a theory of melodic creation, transmission, memory, and recall within the Anglo- and Celtic-American culture of lower Appalachia, from the time of the earliest European settlers until the present. This theory and its attendant hypotheses draw upon earlier published ideas, current theories of memory and recall, and the results of applying a computer-supported analytical system developed by the author. Sources include previous studies of folksong melody, song collections, and earlier investigations of the psychology of memory. Also important are portions of an anonymous treatise on traditional Celtic musical scales and an authoritative, modern interpretation of this document. A final body of sources is a small group of sound-recordings.

Text in English / The southern Appalachian mountain region is home to a sincere group of religious fundamentalists. They obey Jesus' last command that serpents should be taken up (Mark 16:17-18). They believe the Holy Ghost anoints them and gives them the power to handle serpents, drink poisons, handle fire, and to heal the sick. Nevertheless, they are fully aware that they may be bitten and may even die. Each church is autonomous. / Religious Studies and Arabic / M.A. (Religious Studies)

Text in English / The southern Appalachian mountain region is home to a sincere group of religious fundamentalists. They obey Jesus' last command that serpents should be taken up (Mark 16:17-18). They believe the Holy Ghost anoints them and gives them the power to handle serpents, drink poisons, handle fire, and to heal the sick. Nevertheless, they are fully aware that they may be bitten and may even die. Each church is autonomous. / Religious Studies and Arabic / M.A. (Religious Studies)

Rural West Virginia has a very high percentage of older adults. The age-related disease of Alzheimer’s threatens the health of older Appalachians, yet research on Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in this population is scarce. In order to improve screening rates for cognitive impairment, Appalachians need to understand their vulnerability. The first step would be to assess their knowledge about AD but a suitable AD knowledge test has not been developed. The purpose of this study was to test the reliability and validity of a new measure of knowledge about AD that is culturally congruent, and to examine factors that may predict AD knowledge in this rural population. A correlational descriptive study was conducted with 240 participants from four samples of older adults in south central rural Appalachian West Virginia using surveys and face-to-face interviews. Results from tests for stability, reliability including Rasch modeling, discrimination and point biserial indices, and concurrent, divergent, and construct validity were favorable. Findings were that although more diversity in test item difficulty is needed, the test discriminated well between persons with higher and lower levels of education [F(2, 226) = 170.51, p = .001]. Using multiple regression, the predictors of AD knowledge included caregiver status, miles from a healthcare provider, gender, and education; (R2=.05, F(4,187) = 2.65, p =. 04). Only years of education accounted for a significant proportion of unique variance in predicting the total BKAD score (t = 2.14, p =. 03). Implications include the need for further tool refinement, testing for health literacy, coordination with recent statewide efforts to educate the public regarding AD, and community based participatory research in designing culturally effective education programs that will ultimately increase screening and detection of Alzheimer’s disease in rural populations. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2013.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin, 1966. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

National Forest timber management in the southern Appalachians is changing from traditional even-aged management and clearcutting to uneven-aged management and group selection silviculture. Group selection, with its small 1/2-to-2-acre patch cuts widely dispersed throughout a timber stand, has the potential to substantially increase timber harvesting costs over traditional clearcutting. This could exacerbate the below-cost timber sale issue. The objective of this study was to assess the impact of groups election silviculture on timber harvest productivity and cost in hardwood stands of the southern Appalachians. This was accomplished by collecting and analyzing field production and cost data from typical Appalachian loggers operating on group-selection timber sales. Three logging systems were chosen for the study: (1) cable yarder ,(skyline) system; (2) feller-buncher/cable skidder system; and (3) motor-manual chainsaw felling/cable skidding system. At least one full week of time-study production data was collected at each location. cost information was obtained from the cooperating loggers' records, as well as historic production and cost data from previous clearcut sales for comparison purposes. study results show that production was reduced and unit cost increased for all three logging systems when operating on group-selection timber sales as compared to clearcutting. unit cost per ton for the cable yarder system was $40.18, a 29 percent increase over their previous average clearcutting cost. The fellerbuncher/cable skidder system unit cost per ton was $14.79, a 19 percent increase over this system's average clearcutting cost. The chainsaw felling/cable skidder system cost of $16.15 per ton was 33 percent above their normal clearcutting cost. A large increase in delays and unproductive time as a result of specific group-selection timber sale characteristics appears to be the major cause of reduced logging productivity and increased costs. / Master of Science