No description available.

This research expected pit bull coverage to become more violent and more negative in the wake of the Vick trial, so a content analysis was conducted of "pit bull" mentions in the year 2006 and in 2009. The first year was intended to provide a comparison for this study, documenting the pit bull's mediated depiction before the Vick trial. Mentions from 2009 were intended to represent the aftermath of this trial, pinpointing its effects on the breed's mediated depiction. Tonal mentions of the breed were almost 17 percentage points more negative in 2009 than in 2006. Violent mentions increased by a more than 20 percentage points during this period. Topical selections also shifted, and 2009 coverage chose to focus more on pit bull attacks than in 2006. This research proposes a theory of collateral fallout for mediated subjects, and pit bulls, as a brand, have suffered from this fallout.

In order to investigate the formation of different types of pit shapes on the crystalline surfaces, a mathematical model has been considered, which does not take into account surface diffusion and which defines the removal or transformation of different characteristic sites on the surface according to a set of frequencies. The characteristic sites are defined according to Terrace-Ledge-Kink model for the simple cubic crystal. With the help of the geometry of the step systems, specific conditions have been obtained under which the step systems considered could be obtained for a pit of monoatomic thickness. The dissolution of a simple cubic crystal has been simulated according to a set of probabilities. / Thesis / Master of Engineering (ME)

The Spanish slug, Arion vulgaris, is an invasive species in Sweden and the rest of northern Europe, dispersing rapidly and widely and it has become a significant pest for both gardening enthusiasts and commercial farmers. In this study, I examined the relationship between dispersal movements and temperature, relative humidity, illuminance, and individual body mass of the slugs. The investigation was based on data from a field experiment where PIT-tagged slugs were telemetrically tracked for 12 hours and data from the experiment were used to develop a model for how the local dispersal movement of the slugs was affected by the environmental factors. There was no correlation between slug body mass and dispersal movement. Movement decreases with increasing temperature in the range 14–19°C. Movement was similarly affected by illuminance. Relative humidity did not have a significant effect on movement. Spanish slug actively moves between adjacent gardens and within plantations, and the local dispersal has an impact on the extent of damage it causes in gardens and farms. It is therefore important to gain knowledge about what affects the local dispersal. This study contributes to that knowledge. / Mördarsnigeln, Arion vulgaris, är en invasiv art i Sverige och övriga Nordeuropa, med snabb och vid spridning och den har blivit ett betydande skadedjur för både trädgårdsentusiaster och kommersiella odlare. I den här studien undersökte jag sambandet mellan förflyttning och temperatur, relativ luftfuktighet, ljus samt sniglarnas massa. Undersökningen baserades på data från ett fältförsök där PIT-märkta sniglar spårades telemetrisk under 12 timmar och data från försöket användes för att ta fram en modell för hur sniglarnas förflyttning påverkades av miljöfaktorerna. Det fanns inte något samband mellan massan hos sniglarna och deras förflyttning. Förflyttningen minskade med ökande temperatur i intervallet 14–19°C. Förflyttningen påverkades på liknande sätt av illuminans. Relativ luftfuktighet hade inte en signifikant påverkan på förflyttning. Mellan närliggande trädgårdar och inom odlingar förflyttar sig mördarsniglar aktivt och den lokala spridningen har betydelse för hur stora skador som uppstår inom odlingar. Det är därför viktigt att få kunskap om vad som påverkar mördarsnigelns spridning, även på en mer lokal nivå, vilket den här studien bidrar till.

No description available.

This Master’s degree study examined concentration and isotopic trends of dissolved methane, isotopic trends of phospholipid fatty acids (PLFA), and generated 1st order flux calculations to identify and assess biogeochemical cycling of dissolved methane in the first full-scale demonstration of EPL technology in the Alberta Oil Sands Region (AOSR). Base Mine Lake (BML) was commissioned by Syncrude Canada Ltd. in 2012 to facilitate the long-term storage and remediation of Fluid Fine Tailings (FFT) that are generated as a result of bitumen extraction via the Clark Hot Water Extraction (CHWE) processes. The results of this project provide evidence of methane oxidation by type I methanotrophs in BML, reducing dissolved oxygen concentrations in the hypolimnion layer. The FFT layer is identified as a source zone of fermentative methanogenesis, creating saturated conditions of dissolved gases. Dissolved methane is transferred to the water column primarily by advective processes related to FFT consolidation, while diffusion is a significant secondary transfer mechanism. Dissolved methane concentrations decrease significantly across the FFT-water interface where diffusive flux rates decrease by several orders of magnitude. Concentrations decreased linearly through the hypolimnion to trace concentrations by the metalimnion, resulting in a minor enrichment of δ13C of the residual dissolved methane pool. A minor enrichment of δ13C in C14:0, C16:0, and C16:1 PLFA coincided across the same interval, indicating utilization of a less depleted carbon source further away from the FFT-water interface where dissolved methane concentrations were lower. PLFA δ13C signatures were depleted relative to expected values of typical DOC substrates, further supporting the incorporation of a depleted signature by transfer of depleted carbon from dissolved methane. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

AbstraktStudiens bakgrund ligger i bristen på semiotiska aspekter och laborativaundervisningsmetoder inom matematikundervisningen i Sverige som fortfarande är ettrelativt outforskat område. Syftet med examensarbetet var att undersöka om införandetav laborativt arbete som undervisningsmetod skulle förbättra yrkesgymnasieeleversförmåga att använda och beskriva matematiska begrepp och procedurer inom områdettal. Två huvudfrågor behandlades: Ökar elevernas förmåga att använda och beskrivabegrepp och procedur inom arbetsområdet tal enligt Skolverkets kunskapskriterier omman arbetar på ett laborativt arbetssätt? Uppvisar experimentgruppen god säkerhet i sinakunskaper jämfört med kontrollgruppen? För att svara på dessa frågeställningaranvändes både kvalitativa och kvantitativa metoder. Inom det laborativa arbetetanvändes pedagogiska metoder såsom “The Learning Pit” och “The Open Approach”,tillsammans med uppgifter av typen rika problem. I den kvantitativa delen analyseradeselevernas studieresultat i relation till Skolverkets lärandemål och betygskriterier.Teoretiska perspektiv som användes inkluderade Duvals och Peirces teorier. Resultatenvisade en positiv effekt av det laborativa arbetssättet på elevernas förmåga att användaoch beskriva matematiska begrepp och procedurer inom området tal. Detta bekräftadesinte direkt, utan i längden av statistiska analyser som visade signifikanta förbättringarhos eleverna över tid. Alla elever i experimentgruppen uppvisade god säkerhet i sinakunskaper jämfört med eleverna i kontrollgruppen. En av studiens implikationer är attlaborativt arbete kan hjälpa elever att förstå matematik på ett djupare och mermeningsfullt sätt. Det betonar vikten av att skapa en utforskande, kreativ och interaktivlärmiljö, samt att variera undervisningen för att möta elevernas olika behov ochkunskapsnivåer

Poor reproductive performance by turkey hens compared with chickens is partially due to the early cessation of egg production associated with the onset of incubation behavior. Prolactin (Prl) is involved in the induction and maintenance of incubation behavior in birds, and understanding the regulatory mechanism(s) of Prl gene expression will provide fundamental information to manipulate Prl production for better reproductive performance in turkey hens. / Ph. D.

Habitat alteration (i.e. degradation, fragmentation, and destruction) is the primary driver of amphibian decline and extinction. Despite their ecological importance and threatened status, very little long-term research has been conducted on how methods of forest management impact salamanders. In this research, I examine how experimental silviculture impacts plethodontid salamander relative abundance and count, and I compare three different body condition indices. Chapter 1 focuses on plethodontid salamander relative abundance 30 years after experimental treatments (including clearcut and shelterwood harvests, understory herbicide, uneven-aged management, and an untreated control) were first applied. I found that plethodontid salamander populations in all silvicultural treatments without stand re-entry have reached pre-harvest relative abundance levels. Chapter 2 describes how artificial tip-up mounds that could be used to mimic old-growth forest characteristics impact plethodontid salamander count. Salamander count significantly declined in treatment units with artificial tip-up mounds but this could be an artifact of the heavy disturbance required for installation. Chapter 3 compares three different body condition indices for plethodontid salamanders. I found that bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) is likely not suitable for use with plethodontid salamanders and mass divided by snout-to-vent-length is likely a superior estimate to tail width divided by snout-to-vent-length. These findings further our understanding of how different forest management practices affect salamander populations and provide guidance for evaluating body condition. / Master of Science / Forest understory salamanders play an important role in energy transfer and their position in leaf litter food webs affects multiple ecosystem functions. Despite their ecological importance, very little long-term research has been conducted on how habitat change impacts salamanders. This research investigates how different forest management techniques influence forest-dwelling salamanders and compares three different ways to evaluate salamander health. Chapter 1 focuses on the salamanders 30 years post-harvest. I found that salamander populations in all silvicultural treatments except one had recovered. Chapter 2 described how tipping over trees to mimic old-growth forest characteristics impacts the number of forest-dwelling salamanders. There were significantly fewer salamanders in treatment units after the disturbance created by installing artificial tip-up mounds. Chapter 3 compares three different ways to evaluate forest-dwelling salamander health. I found that bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA)is likely not suitable for forest-dwelling salamanders, and weight divided by body length is likely a superior estimate to tail width divided by body length. These findings together further our understanding of how different forest management practices affect salamander populations and provide guidance for evaluating body condition.

No / Excavation at a cropmark enclosure in the Upper Severn Valley was undertaken to try and obtain material from which to provide relative and absolute dating for the site. Lying within an area rich in Neolithic and Bronze Age archaeology and in close proximity to a proven long barrow, the conventional later prehistoric date postulated for the enclosure was questioned. Excavation proved the site to have been a ditched enclosure with internal bank and a possible gate structure. Post-pits ran inside the bank. Finds were few but radiocarbon dates from the floor of the ditch proved the early Neolithic credentials of the monument which seemed to have continued in use for at least some 500 years.