Thesis (M.A.)--Ohio University, March, 2003. / Title from PDF t.p. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 126-132)

O gênero Doris está representado no Brasil por quatro espécies: Doris verrucosa, Doris bovena, Doris ilo e Doris kyolis, a maioria delas com um histórico taxonômico confuso. Através da revisão taxonômica do gênero Doris, do estudo da anatomia comparada entre as espécies e com dados da literatura foi possível separar D. verrucosa em duas espécies, mantendo D. verrucosa como a espécie com distribuição para a Europa e Mar Mediterrâneo e Doris januarii, um sinônimo revalidado, com distribuição para a costa Atlântica brasileira. Também foi possível confirmar e completar as informações sobre a anatomia de D. bovena, D. ilo e D. kyolis. As principais características anatômicas que corroboram a distinção entre as espécies estudadas foram encontradas no odontóforo, rádula, sistema reprodutor e sistema nervoso / The genus Doris in Brazilian shelf is represented by four species: Doris verrucosa, Doris bovena, Doris ilo e Doris kyolis. This species have a misunderstood taxonomy. In this study was carried out a taxonomy revision, utilizing comparative anatomy and previous literature data. As a result, was possible to separate D. verrucosa in two species, maintaining D. verrucosa with distribution to Europe and Mediterranean Sea, whereas Doris januarii, a revalidated synonym, is restricted in Brazilian Atlantic coast. In addition, anatomical data complementary validates the species status of D. bovena, D. ilo e D. kyolis. The distinctive anatomical characteristics that justify the separation among these species are found in the following structures: odontophore, radula, reproductive system and nervous system.

Atlantic Scotland provides plentiful and often dramatic evidence for settlement during the Iron Age but, like much of Europe, very little is known of the funerary traditions of communities in this region. Formal burial appears to have been rare, and evidence for alternative mortuary treatments is dispersed, varied and, to date, poorly understood. This study sets out to examine for the first time all human remains dating to the Iron Age in Atlantic Scotland, found in a variety of contexts ranging from formal cemeteries to occupied domestic sites. This data-set, despite its limitations, forms the basis for a new understanding of funerary treatment and daily life in later prehistoric Atlantic Scotland, signifying the development of an extraordinary range of different methods of dealing with, and harnessing the power of, the dead during this period. This information in turn can contribute to wider issues surrounding attitudes to the dead, religious belief, domestic life and the nature of society in Iron Age Europe. / Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, Marinell Ash fund, Strathmartine Trust

The purpose of this study was to determine if strategic planning was being employed by the intercollegiate athletic programs of the Atlantic Coast Conference. This research study was designed to examine the marketing procedures utilized by the athletic administrators of the Atlantic Coast Conference that would be beneficial in conducting a strategic plan for their organization. The population for the study consisted of the eight member institutions of the Atlantic Coast Conference. All eight of the intercollegiate athletic organizations participated in the study. The study consisted of two parts: (1) a written survey and (2) personal interviews with the administrators of five of the member institutions. Each of the following areas were examined: (1) formal plans, (2) macroenvironmental factors, (3) target markets, (4) pricing techniques, and (5) management information systems. These areas were selected after the review of the literature revealed that these areas were necessary components in the development of a strategic plan. Data were analysed using STAT PAC by Walconik Inc. and reported through the use of descriptive statistics consisting of frequencies and percentages. Data were also compiled from the interviews and reported in tabular and descriptive formats. Findings of the study revealed that the administrators of the Atlantic Coast Conference had the necessary tools to develop strategic plans but were not committed to developing any long range plans. Marketing tactics necessary for strategic planning are not perfected in the intercollegiate athletic programs of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The administrators had not acquired the necessary information to develop strategic plans for their organizations. / Ed. D. / incomplete_metadata

Northeastern and mid-Atlantic United States are understudied from the perspective of hurricane vulnerability. In an attempt to fill this gap in research, this dissertation attempted to assess the hurricane vulnerability of the northeastern and mid- Atlantic United States through the construction of a Composite Hurricane Vulnerability Index (CHVI) for 184 counties extending from Maine to Virginia. The CHVI was computed by incorporating indicators of human vulnerability and physical exposure. Human vulnerability was derived from demographic, social and economic characteristics whereas physical exposure was based on attributes of the natural and built up environments. The spatial distribution of the CHVI and its component indices were examined and analyzed to meet the research goals, which were a) to develop indices of human vulnerability, physical exposure and composite hurricane vulnerability for all counties; b) to assess vulnerability distribution in terms of population size, metropolitan status (metropolitan versus non metropolitan counties) and location (coastal versus inland counties); c) to identify the specific underlying causes of vulnerability; d) to identify the significant clusters and outliers of high vulnerability; and e) to examine overlaps between high human vulnerability and high physical exposure in the region. Results indicated high overall vulnerability for counties that were metropolitan and / or coastal. Vulnerability clusters and intersections pointed towards high vulnerability in the major cities along the northeastern megalopolis, in the Hampton Roads section of Virginia and in parts of Delmarva Peninsula. Evidence of relationship of population size, metropolitan status and location with vulnerability levels provides a new perspective to vulnerability assessment. / by Shivangi Prasad. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2013. / Includes bibliography. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / System requirements: Adobe Reader.

Maritime forests are a critical interface between ocean and terrestrial ecosystems, providing important ecosystem services and functions. Along the U.S. southern Atlantic coast, maritime forests are dominated by <i>Quercus virginiana</i>. Maritime forests and <i>Q. virginiana</i> have been heavily impacted by conversion to agriculture, residential development, and pine stands. Southern pine beetle outbreaks have led to salvage and thinning silvicultural treatments of pine stands which offer an opportunity to restore more complex maritime forests. This research project is comprised of two experiments which allowed me to study the performance of planted <i>Q. virginiana</i> seedlings in response to (1) animal browse, (2) competing vegetation, and (3) varying overstory pine canopies. For both experiments, one-year-old bareroot seedlings were planted as split-plot experimental designs. The first experiment evaluated control of deer browse (fenced and not fenced whole plots) and competing vegetation (0, 1, and 2-yr vegetation control subplots) as independent variables. Overall seedling survival was 60% after two years. There was a significant interaction between deer browse and competing vegetation for seedling height, diameter, crown width, and lateral branches. Seedlings were larger for all response parameters when fenced with vegetation control. Vegetation control significantly improved seedling performance only in fenced plots, indicating a shift in pressure from herbivory to competition when deer were excluded. Foliar nitrogen (N) was significantly greater in fenced plots than non-fenced plots and in 2-yr vegetation control subplots than non-weeded subplots. The second experiment evaluated varying pine overstories (clearcut, heavy thin, light thin, and no thin whole plots) and competing vegetation control (0 and 2-yr vegetation control subplots). Overall seedling survival was 78% after one growing season, with clearcut plots at the greatest survival (83%) and no thin at the lowest (72%). Seedling growth and foliar nitrogen were significantly greater in clearcut plots followed by the heavy thin, light thin, and no thin plots. Vegetation control consistently promoted seedling height, but was only beneficial to diameter and crown width in clearcut/heavy thin plots. <i>Q. virginiana</i> seedlings demonstrated plasticity in their ability to acclimate to the varying microclimates created by silvicultural treatments, as demonstrated by light response curves, stomatal density, and specific leaf area. These results highlight the importance of fencing to remove deer browse, introducing light in the understory, and further improving seedling performance by removing competing vegetation.

This paper examines the regional longshore sediment transport pattern of the seaward coast of the United States and Gulf of Mexico from northern Maine to Tampa Bay, Florida. From previous studies it is known that along the coast there are variations in direction of sediment transport known as nodal zones as well as variations in sediment transport rate. Wave Information Study (WIS) hindcast data for the interval 1976 through 1995 (United States Army Corps of Engineers, 2003) provide a spatially continuous model of the regional longshore current directions in the study area. In chapter one, all available published field studies of longshore current direction and sediment transport directions and rates are compiled to create a description of the direction and, whenever possible, magnitude of longshore transport. A detailed compilation of regional and local published studies are provided in tables. An interpretation of sediment transport rates and directions is provided in eight regional maps of the study area. In chapter two the results of the literature compilations are compared with gross and net potential sediment transport directions and rates modeled using WIS hindcast data. The WIS deep-water wave characteristics are used to predict the directions and rate of longshore sediment transport at local outer coast positions using the method of Ashton et al. (2003a). The WIS-derived transport directions, including nodal zones, generally agree with the published field studies, although there are a few local inconsistencies particularly near inlets, shoals and irregular bathymetry. Trends in longshore transport rates, such as increases and decreases in gross transport rates are well represented by the WIS-derived potential transport rates. The discrepencies between the published field studies and WIS results are apparently primarily due to assumptions in the WIS model, such as assuming shore-parallel bathymetric contours.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Florida State University, 2005. / Advisor: Dr. Jerome Quarterman, Florida State University, College of Education, Dept. of Sport Management, Recreation Management, and Physical Education. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed Sept. 22, 2005). Document formatted into pages; contains xiv, 117 pages. Includes bibliographical references.

Contemporary and future relative sea-level (RSL) rise that can be attributed to anthropogenic climate change sees significant spatial variability as a result of the processes that underlie it. Some of the processes that contribute to RSL rise unrelated to anthropogenic climate change can and have had significant contributions. In this work, we examined the contributions of one of these processes, glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA), in the coastal regions of Atlantic Europe. These regions have seen significant RSL rise associated with a collapsing peripheral bulge throughout the Holocene and are expected to see more throughout the Anthropocene. Using the recently published paleo sea level database (García-Artola et al., 2018) which follows the HOLSEA RSL data assessment and reporting protocol (Khan et al., 2019) we determined optimal Earth model parameters for much of Atlantic Europe. These optimal parameters fit the data well and largely agree with values determined for previous works on peripheral bulges along the coasts of North America. We further used these results to perform a rudimentary sea-level budget analysis at 10 tide gauge stations, yielding results with high uncertainties and significant discrepancies between observed and projected rates of RSL change for half (5) of the tide gauge stations. Our results lead to the conclusion that GIA remains an important factor when predicting present and future RSL change.

Recently, there has been an increase in marine mammal mortalities, most commonly Atlantic bottlenose dolphins, Tursiops truncatus, which is an alarming indication of the health status of the marine ecosystem. Studies have demonstrated that some free-ranging dolphins exhibit a suppressed immune system possibly because of exposure to contaminants or infectious microorganisms. However, this research has been limited due to a lack of commercially available marine-specific antibodies. Therefore, the first chapter of this thesis aims to identify cross-reactive terrestrial-specific antibodies that could be used to phenotype and compare the immune cell populations of dolphins under human care and free-ranging dolphins. The second chapter aims to utilize terrestrial-specific growth factors and dendritic cell (DC) surface markers to generate, characterize, and compare ex vivo DCs from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of dolphins under human care and free-ranging dolphins. In summary, I have identified differences within the PBMCs and ex vivo generated DCs of dolphins under human care and free-ranging dolphins that could potentially shed light on the impact of environmental contaminants and infectious microorganisms on immune cells which could lead to increased morbidity and mortality. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2015. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection