Bioculture Journal
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Prized: Memories with University of Washington Wind Ensemble and University of Washington Symphonic Band April 20, 2015
No full textConcert ProgramPrized: Memories with University of Washington Wind Ensemble and University of Washington Symphonic Band April 20, 201
How Eco-Drone Monitoring and Successful Conservation Methodology can Mitigate Deforestation
No full textForest cover is declining at an unsustainable rate as development frontiers expand. Though the amount of conservation science being conducted and policy being implemented is ever increasing, forests continue to decline faster than ever before. The conservation science being conducted and policy being implemented is often ineffective and inadequate for conserving forests. To address the issues surrounding forest conservation science and policy, I conducted a literature review, and participated in conservation fieldwork, which lead to me identified four main areas of improvement: (1) diversity of stakeholders in the policy development process; (2) increased communication between conservation scientists and policymakers; (3) integration of multiple current conservation science methods and technology; and (4) utilizing place-based analyses to increase data. Additionally, scientists developing policy may benefit from integrating current science and technologies such as drones which can strengthen and expedite the process of data collection and forest monitoring. Through integrating these approaches the policy developed and implemented will be more effective in conserving forests
Ophthalmic Application of Optical Coherence Tomography Based Angiography for Choroidal Imaging
No full textThesis (Master's)--University of Washington, 2015We demonstrated in vivo choriocapillaris imaging in normal human subjects with a Cirrus HD 5000 spectral domain OCT prototype. With the tracking system installed in the prototype and the montage scanning protocol, wide field OCT angiograms of 9 mm * 11 mm were created. OCT angiography utilizes the intrinsic motion of red blood cells as contrast mechanism therefore requires no exogenous contrast agents as fluorescein angiography and indocyanine green angiography do. Four consecutive OCT scans were acquired at the same location for angiography generating, intensity based, phase based and complex signal based OCTA were all computed and compared. With the ability to resolve fine and detailed vascular lobules, complex signal based OMAG were selected for en face visualization. In consistency with histological studies, lobular vascular networks were observed and corresponding feeding arterioles were identified in OMAG images. Structural OCT en face image was also generated and at periphery regions, lobular structures can also be recognized with distinct brightness patterns. This study showcased the feasibility of using commercialized SD-OCT for in vivo choriocapillaris visualization and essentially opens the possibility for clinical imaging studies on choriocapillaris’ role in pathogenesis and early diagnosis of ocular disease
Spectral Theory of Z^d Substitutions
No full textThesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2015In this paper, we generalize and develop results of Queffelec allowing us to characterize the spectrum of an aperiodic substitution in Z^d by describing the Fourier coefficients of mutually singular measures of pure type giving rise to the maximal spectral type of the translation operator on L^2. This is done without any assumptions on primitivity or height, and provides a simple algorithm for determining singularity to Lebesgue spectrum for such substitutions, and we use this to show singularity of the spectrum for Queffelec's noncommutative bijective substitution, as well as the Table tiling, answering an open question of Solomyak. Moreover, we also prove that the spectrum of any aperiodic bijective commutative Z^d substitution on a finite alphabet is purely singular. Finally, we show that every ergodic matrix of measures on a compact metric space can be diagonalized, which we use in the proof of the main result
A Corpus-Linguistic Analysis of News Coverage in Kenya's Daily Nation and Great Britain's Times
No full textThesis (Master's)--University of Washington, 2015This study uses institutional theory and corpus linguistics to understand the differences between press systems. Institutional theory suggests that institutions, including the press, develop some shared characteristics across organizations within the same eld, but also develop unique tendencies that reflect the social and political system within which each organization exists. Thus, one should see differences in output between organizations operating in systems faced with different institutional influences. This research uses word frequency comparison, an analytical technique from the corpus linguistics toolkit, to address the following question: What are the similarities and differences in word use between two newspapers representative of press systems whose institutional characteristics have developed within different political and social environments? The answer to this question advances empirical scholarly understanding of non-Western press systems as institutions. Using Britain's Times and Kenya's Daily Nation as comparative case studies, this analysis finds that many professional stylistic habits and norms of journalists are portable across significant geographic and cultural distances, as a majority of heavily used words are shared across the two newspapers. Where there are differences, the Daily Nation tends to rely more on language indicative of nation-building and an Africa-based identity, while language in the Times indicates an orientation that views citizens as important change agents in political processes and Great Britain as a player in global events. This study shows that in spite of the globalization of journalism culture, local political and social institutions are still important to understanding how journalism works
Russian Information Operations and the Rise of the Global Internet
No full textThesis (Master's)--University of Washington, 2015For centuries the pursuit of competing political objectives has led to military conflict. Prussian military theorist Major-General Carl von Clausewitz wrote, “War is thus an act of force to compel our enemy to do our will.” History has shown that the ability to affect an adversary’s information and information systems augments the effects of kinetic operations. Therefore, command and control and communication nodes are frequently early targets during times of war. Disrupting the flow of information is essential for militaries seeking an advantage over an adversary. Attacks on communication centers have been documented in numerous conflicts including the American Civil War, World War I, and World War II. Information operations were a supporting element of military strategy, secondary to kinetic operations until Operation Desert Storm. The use of information technologies to exploit an information differential in Iraq contributed to the swift success of coalition forces. Operation Desert Storm marked the first time information technologies were used to create an asymmetric advantage in modern warfare. Military strategists around the globe began exploring the value of these technologies in information operations. Understanding how these new technologies are used to create an asymmetric advantage in wartime is critical for developing effective countermeasures. This piece addresses the adoption of information technologies and cyber tools in Russian information operations in Chechnya, Estonia, Georgia, and Ukraine
"Turn on the Sunshine": A History of the Solar Future
No full textThesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2015This dissertation examines the history of solar energy technology alongside broad changes in the politics and geography of energy since the nineteenth century. I argue that solar technologies evolved as expressions of the anxieties of the fossil fuel age which, while never widely adopted, informed a persistent cultural interest in alternative energy futures that shaped larger developments in energy politics. I link the evolution of common types of solar technologies and ideas about their potential to four additional contexts: late nineteenth and early twentieth century imperial expansion, the advent of the Cold War, the convergence of environmentalism and the energy crisis in the 1970s, and the more recent emergence of sustainability as a framework for global energy and environmental politics. In each of these contexts, solar technologies developed as instruments of politics as well as forms of politics in their own right, reflecting and contributing to new conceptions of the limitations of fossil fuel dependence and the promise of alternatives. I also address the geographic dimensions of solar politics in each of these periods. My focus on California primarily, but also Arizona, North Africa, and - in the chapter on photovoltaic cells - outer space, reflects the importance of these places as nexuses in the development and global travel of solar technologies. Linked as peripheries of an expansionist fossil fuel society, they became sites of experimentation in new ways of deriving energy from nature and organizing society around energy. Overall, this study reveals a higher incidence of geographic variance, contestation, and uncertainty in energy technology politics during the fossil fuel age than historians typically acknowledge. It also complicates common assumptions about the origins and potentialities of existing solar technologies, drawing attention to their early associations with the politics of empire and the Cold War prior to their reformulation in the 1970s as tools promoting countercultural and environmentalist visions of the future. By situating solar technology development in time and place, this study seeks to historicize meanings commonly attached to solar and, in doing so, provide a historical basis for evaluating present debates over energy alternatives
The archaeology, chronology and stratigraphy of Madjedbebe (Malakunanja II): a site in northern Australia with early occupation
No full textPublished ages of >50 ka for occupation at Madjedbebe (Malakunanja II) in Australia’s
north has kept the site prominent in discussions of the colonisation of Sahul. The site also
contains one of the largest stone artefact assemblages in Sahul for this early period. However, the stone artefacts and other important archaeological components of the site have never been described in detail, leading to persistent doubts about its stratigraphic integrity. We report on our analysis of the stone artefacts and faunal and other materials recovered during the 1989 excavations, as well as the stratigraphy and depositional history recorded by the original excavators. We demonstrate that the technology and raw materials of the early assemblage are distinctive from those in the overlying layers. Silcrete and quartzite artefacts are common in the early assemblage, which also includes edge-ground axe fragments and ground haematite. The lower flaked stone assemblage is distinctive, comprising a mix of long convergent flakes, some radial flakes with faceted platforms, and many small thin silcrete flakes that we interpret as thinning flakes. Residue and use-wear analysis indicate occasional grinding of haematite and woodworking, as well as frequent abrading of platform edges on thinning flakes. We conclude that previous claims of extensive displacement of artefacts and post-depositional disturbance may have been overstated. The stone artefacts and stratigraphic details support previous claims for human occupation 50–60 ka and show that human occupation during this time differed from later periods. We discuss the implications of these new data for understanding the first human colonisation of Sahul
Disabling Pregnancy: Revealing how prenatal testing messages shape reproductive choices
No full textThesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2015Amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling to diagnosis Down syndrome has long been an exemplar for prenatal genetic testing. With nearly 50 years of clinical application, the public has some awareness, knowledge, and expectations about such tests and Down syndrome. Yet, current evidence suggests that accepting or refusing testing is complex; the rationales for and narratives about doing so are nuanced. This scholarship highlights that patient expectations about commonly accepted tests are not necessarily always well-informed. While some enter this process as informed consumers seeking information, many accept testing with the hopes of reassurance about a healthy baby, and others accept a routine offer from their clinician. I qualitatively explore policy statements, health education, radio, newspapers, YouTube videos, and epidemiological data about Down syndrome birth prevalence to illuminate the interrelated, normative expectations about parental responsibilities, testing utility, and reproductive choices. Across all data types, repetitive medical language about Down syndrome and limited discussion about testing purpose, risks, and benefits may offer inadequate or misinformation about such testing, making it difficult for risk-benefit assessments. Sources often frame prenatal testing as offering valuable, personal knowledge. They also suggest that prenatal testing provides early detection and disability prevention by means of pregnancy termination. In order to empower patients with the information and support needed to make the best reproductive choices for themselves and their families, we need: to ensure accurate and up-to-date information about Down syndrome and other prenatally diagnosable conditions is readily available; to include diverse perspectives in related health education and communication; and to direct attention to access issues that may constrain these choices