The Laurentian Great Lakes are the largest system of freshwater on earth containing 22% of the world’s supply. Although part of a single system, each lake shows substantial variation regarding physical, chemical and biological parameters. The main goals of this thesis were to characterize the nutrient status of natural phytoplankton communities while comparing several commonly used measurements of nutrient status and Chlorophyll a (Chl a) fluorescence measurements. The study sites include the western basin (WB), west-central basin (WCB), and central basin (CB) of Lake Erie, the Bay of Quinte in Lake Ontario, and Colpoys Bay in Lake Huron. Independent measures of nutrient status were assessed by measurements of nitrogen (N) debt, phosphorus (P) debt, particulate C:N:P ratios, and alkaline phosphatase activity (APA). Variable fluorescence of chlorophyll a was measured by pulse amplitude modulated (PAM) fluorometry and fast repetition rate (FRR) fluorometry in parallel with the independent measures. In 2005, the phytoplankton communities in Lake Erie were generally N deficient in May, P deficient in June, and neither N nor P deficient in September. The maximum dark adapted quantum yield (Fv/Fm) measured by PAM or FRRF was lower in May and June, and maximal in September, while the functional absorption cross section of photosystem II (σPSII) was maximal in May and June, and minimal in September. Relationships between the variable fluorescence indicators and independent measures of nutrient status showed strong associations with N or P deficient sites having low Fv/Fm and high σPSII. In 2006, the electron transport rate (ETR) and the initial slope (α) derived from the PAM fluorescence rapid light-response curves (RLC) were compared to independent measures and Fv/Fm measurements in Lake Erie. Relationships between ETR, α, independent measures of nutrient status, and Fv/Fm measurements revealed strong associations with nutrient status. Confirming previous reports, N deficiency was highest in the WB during isothermal conditions while P deficiency was highest in the CB during summer stratification. The fluorescence parameters generally decreased as the severity of N and P deficiency increased. N and P enrichment assays also revealed increased values of Fv/Fm, ETR, and α from N and P deficient samples over twenty-four hours. Additionally, spatial variability of P status was evaluated during summer stratification. Colpoys Bay, the most oligotrophic site, had the strongest P deficiency, and evidence for existence of P deficiency was weakest in the Bay of Quinte, the most eutrophic site. Nutrient enrichment assays revealed that all fluorescence parameters showed a positive response to P additions in oligotrophic sites, with no response in eutrophic sites. Community structure was also associated with nutrient status and Chl a fluorescence at all locations. In P deficient sites, nano-flagellates such as chrysophytes and cryptophytes were prevalent; cyanobacteria were dominant at sites that displayed N deficiency.

The Great Lakes side-wheel steamboat Anthony Wayne was built in 1837 at Perrysburg, OH and participated in lakes shipping during a time when such vessels were experiencing their heyday. Designed as a passenger and cargo carrier, the steamer spent 13 years transporting goods and people throughout the Upper Lakes until succumbing to a boiler explosion while headed to Buffalo on 28 April 1850. The remains of Anthony Wayne were discovered in 2006 and two years later a collaborative project was begun for the purposes of documenting and assessing the present day condition of the wreck. Anthony Wayne is the oldest steamboat wreck on the Great Lakes to be studied by archaeologists and represents an important piece of maritime heritage that can aid researchers in understanding architectural and machinery specifics that are unknown to us today. This thesis presents the results of an archaeological and archival investigation of Anthony Wayne. Information pertaining to the discovery and significance of the vessel are presented, followed by descriptions of Perrysburg and its shipping industry, the steamer's owners, and how the vessel was built. The operational history of Anthony Wayne is then outlined chronologically, including ports of call, cargoes, masters, and incidents the steamer experienced. Details of the explosion and the aftermath of the sinking are then discussed, followed by a brief summary of other Great Lakes steamboat catastrophes from 1850 and why boilers explode. Focus then shifts to the two-year archaeological investigation, including project objectives, methodology, and findings. The construction specifics of the steamboat's hull, drive system, and associated artifacts are then presented, followed by post-project analysis and conclusions. A catalog of Great Lakes steam vessels, vessel enrollment documentation, the coroner's inquest following the disaster, and the initial dive report from the discoverers are furnished as appendices.

Thesis (M.B.A.)--Naval Postgraduate School, June 2004. / Thesis advisor(s): Alice M. Crawford, Susan P. Hocevar, Philip J. Candreva. Includes bibliographical references (p. 87-88). Also available online.

I investigated whether Neogobius melanostomus, an invader of biodiversity “hot-spots” in Ontario facilitates or inhibits unionid mussel recruitment by serving as a host or as a sink for their parasitic larvae (glochidia). Infestation and metamorphosis rates of four mussel Species at Risk (Epioblasma torulosa rangiana, Epioblasma triquetra, Lampsilis fasciola, and Villosa iris) and one common species (Actinonaias ligamentina) on N. melanostomus were compared to rates on known hosts in the laboratory. All species successfully infested N. melanostomus, but only E. triquetra, V. iris, and A. ligamentina successfully metamorphosed, albeit at low rates. Neogobius melanostomus collected from areas of unionid occurrence in the Grand and Sydenham rivers exhibited body burdens of 39.4% and 5.1%, respectively. Analyses indicate that N. melanostomus serves more as a sink for glochidia than as a host for unionids, thereby limiting recruitment, which is a novel way by which N. melanostomus is affecting native mussel species.

Thesis (M.S.) -- Central Connecticut State University, 2008. / Thesis advisor: Peter A. Kyem. "... in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in International and Area Studies." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 78-83). Abstract available via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.A.)--Catholic Theological Union at Chicago, 2004. / Vita. "October 2004." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 188-197).

Thesis (M.A.)--Catholic Theological Union at Chicago, 2004. / Vita. "October 2004." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 188-197).

I evaluated diet and food selection of 5 species of spring-migrating female waterfowl including 3 dabbling ducks (Blue-winged teal, Anas discors, Mallard, Anas platyrhynchos, Gadwall, Anas strepera) and 2 diving ducks (Lesser Scaup, Aythya affinis, and Ring-necked duck, Aythya collaris). Diet was evaluated with regards to the proportion of invertebrates and seeds consumed, and compared to forage availability data collected in habitats available to them at 6 study locations throughout the Upper Mississippi River and Great Lakes Region. I found latitude (i.e., stage of migration), longitude, food availability, and date all influenced the diet of spring migrating waterfowl, with some factors having a stronger influence than others. I observed differing diet trends with regard to foraging guild (e.g., dabbling and diving ducks), as each foraging guild was represented by 1 species that was heavily dependant on invertebrates (dabbling duck - Blue-winged teal; diving duck - Lesser scaup) and 1 species that was heavily dependant on seeds (dabbling duck - Mallard; diving duck - Ring-necked duck). The proportion of invertebrate foods in the diet increased throughout spring for all species of waterfowl, suggesting the importance of invertebrate food sources during spring staging. Data from this study provides valuable information to habitat managers and conservationists wishing to improve spring habitat conditions for migrating waterfowl, which likely influences waterfowl productivity.

The Great Lakes region covers central, eastern and some parts of southern Africa. It is situated strategically in the middle of the African continent and its stability, peace and development is imperative for the African continent. Inter and Intra-state conflicts have gone on in the region for the past couple of decades. These conflicts, which threatened to become a regional war, seem to have come to an end, but have left terrible reminders including the presence of masses of internally displaced persons. Various attempts have been made within the Great Lakes at state and regional level to address the issue of internal displacement. This study has highlighted these attempts while outlining the major setbacks and the gaps manifesting in existing institutional and legal framework. The study further has proposed the need for a comprehensive legal framework which should among other things codify the standards of protection; provide for the means and institutions of coordinating protection and assistance in all phases of displacement; serve as a legal basis for coordinating various regional and international actors and agencies involved in providing protection and assistance for internally displaced persons in Africa; highlight the measure or level of political will to achieve this; and finally provide means of monitoring such protection and assistance and ensure compliance by states. The study has also highlighted that existing frameworks, legal and institutional within the Great Lakes region and through additional aid from international mechanisms and actors are not adequate to resolve the issue of internal displacement within the region permanently and find durable solutions to millions of people laboring from protracted displacement. The study suggests alternative reliance on African systems and their conceptual contribution to the resolution of conflict and displacement in Africa and the Great Lakes in particular. The Final part of the study looks at national attempts to address the problem of internal displacement. Kenya and Uganda are discussed and contrasted in depth whilst highlighting their similarities and differences in addressing internal displacement. Both countries have at one point or the other experienced internal displacement, although not necessarily on the same scale, dynamics, time frame or even severity. They both seem to have taken incredible steps to address the issue of internal displacement including drafting policies, laws as well as assigning responsibilities for the displaced to specific ministries of government. Internally displaced persons in both countries seem to be in the process of returning home, even though at very different scales, and not always necessarily as a durable solution. These two countries have been used as case studies for identifying the domestic process of addressing internal displacement as well as determining the degree of comprehensiveness of the frameworks set up to address internal displacement. / Thesis (LLD)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Jurisprudence / unrestricted

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / This dissertation is an exploration of everyday social interactions among and between migrants from the Great Lakes Region and South Africans, who live together as neighbours in a post-apartheid South African community. It focuses on the ways through which migrants who are diverse among themselves forge social relations with one another and with the South Africans in an urban township of lower middle class setting. It is an ethnography that interrogates the understandings of belonging and difference in concrete arenas of interaction in these two groups, and how they both mediate their diversity encounters in everyday life.