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Becoming America’s Captives, Living Varied Identities: Experiences of European Prisoners of War in the High Plains During World War II
No full textThis dissertation examines wartime experiences of German and Italian prisoners of war (POWs) on the American home front through case studies. After Axis soldiers were captured by the Allies on the war front, the United States took over 420,000 prisoners of war from Europe to stateside between 1942 and 1946. Even though the United States had never incarcerated foreign enemy prisoners of war on that scale, the nation abided by the provisions of the Geneva Convention of 1929 as much as possible and offered humane and fair treatment to the Axis POWs. This is not to say, however, that the United States, American society, and hosting communities accepted America’s captives based on purely humanistic ideals. At federal level, on one hand, America employed various top-down approaches to soften their enemies’ pro-Nazi or pro-fascist ideologies and make them malleable to the U.S. democratic principles. Almost everything POWs encountered was meant to convince them of America’s political, economic, and military greatness incomparable to POWs’ home countries while trivializing socioeconomic and political inequalities experienced by racial minorities. At the local level, on the other hand, many hosting communities expended their effort to employ POWs as agricultural laborers. Daily encounters between locals and prisoners helped them conclude that they were not each other’s enemies but rather friends. In dominantly white rural communities, what helped them understand each other was their cultural closeness and European POWs’ white, Christian, and male identity that offered them a ticket to temporary membership in localities.doctoral, Ph.D., History -- University of Idaho - College of Graduate Studies, 2021-1
A Study of Crystallinity in the Blue Dragon Lava Flow and the Ross Flow Using Visible Near-Infrared Spectroscopy
No full textLava flows are volcanic hazards that have emplacement pathways and speeds that are difficult to predict. One variable that contributes to this unpredictability is the viscosity of the flow which changes by several orders of magnitude from eruption to solidification. To accurately estimate viscosity we must know the temperature, geochemistry, crystal content and vesicularity of the lava. While temperature and geochemistry can be quickly and safely assessed using a thermal camera and portable x-ray fluorescence spectrometer (XRF), crystal content and vesicularity require sample collection and microscopy. We propose that visible near-infrared spectroscopy (VNIR) can inform viscosity estimates with rapidly collected mineralogic data. Previous studies have used VNIR spectral features to distinguish mafic glass from olivine and plagioclase in basalt in laboratory settings. We test a handheld in-situ instrument protocol to estimate crystallinity on the Blue Dragon lava flow (BD) and the Ross Flow (RF), selected for their differing sizes, crystallinity, and vesicularity to determine the sensitivity of the instruments and any limitations. XRF was used to obtain bulk geochemistry. Samples were collected and the proportion of phases are identified from scanning electron microscope backscatter images. I hypothesize that prominence of VNIR absorbance features positively correlate with distance from the vent and increased crystallinity; RF will show decreased changes compared with BD due to size. The potential for improved modeling of lava flows for hazard management with remote VNIR rests on the instruments ability to detect typical ranges of crystallinity in natural lava. If successful, these spectrometers can be attached to high resolution satellites or drones for safe and distant data collection in real timemasters, M.S., Geology -- University of Idaho - College of Graduate Studies, 2021-0
Estimation of the Strength of Mate Preference from Mated Pairs Observed in the Wild
No full textA number of key processes in evolution are driven by individuals preferring mates with particular phenotypes. However, despite longstanding interest, it is difficult to quantify the strength of mate preference from phenotypic observations in nature in a way that connects directly to key parameters in theoretical models. To bridge the gap between mathematical models and empirical data, we develop a novel maximum likelihood-based method to estimate the strength and form of mate preference, where preference depends on traits expressed in both males and females. Using simulated data, we demonstrate that our method accurately infers model parameters, including the strength of mate preference and the optimal offset match between trait values in mated pairs, when model assumptions are satisfied. Applying our method to two previous studies of assortative mating in marine gastropods and the European common frog, we support previous findings, but also give additional insight into the role of mate preference in each system. Our method can be generalized to a variety of plant and animal taxa that exhibit mating preferences to facilitate the testing of evolutionary hypotheses and link empirical data to theoretical models of assortative mating, sexual selection, and speciation.masters, M.S., Statistical Sciences -- University of Idaho - College of Graduate Studies, 2021-1
KEEPING DAIRY PRODUCERS IN BUSINESS: THE EFFICACY OF RISK MANAGEMENT PORTFOLIO’S ABILITY TO PROVIDE FINANCIAL STABILITY
No full textDairy production is one of the most significant segments of the agricultural industry in the United States providing for jobs, value added processing, and nutritious products to countless consumers. In Idaho, the dairy industry is equally impactful to the state’s agricultural industry. In a state where every dairy is family owned and agriculture is a lifestyle. Tragically, dairy farms in Idaho and nationwide are going out of business due to increasing pressures on profit margins on dairy farms, leading to consolidation in dairy farms. It is important to provide this industry the tools so that dairy operations have a greater ability to stay profitable and in business. Marketing risk (the risk of changing prices for a commodity) is one of the greatest factors influencing the dairy industry consolidation. Risk management tools are available for dairy farms of all sizes to use allowing for the offsetting of marketing risk; yet they are used at a rate fractional to that of other agricultural industries such as grains and livestock. This thesis details the current risk management tools and strategies available to the dairy industry. A panel of dairy risk management experts provided risk management potential strategies for dairy producers to be able to reduce margin risk. The efficacy of different risk management strategies was analyzed for potential use in production by applying each treatment to historical data. These treatments are compared to the control of no risk management practices. Performance was compared using stochastic dominance. The results of this work will benefit dairy farms of all sizes, especially smaller farms who might not have the time or resources to determine an optimal risk management strategy.masters, M.S., Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology (Applied Economics) -- University of Idaho - College of Graduate Studies, 2021-0
Examining Present-Day School Travel Risks
No full textThe risk management of school travel is complex and has many variables that influence safety including vehicle design and equipment, daily operations, infrastructure and environmental factors, and societal issues. The purposes of this research were to explore school travel risk in all modes and determine how things like travel safety, risk, behavior, and needs have changed, or have not changed, in the last two decades. These purposes were achieved by interviewing transportation professionals and analyzing a twenty-year crash data set from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS). The responses from the interviews were separated into ten common themes. The three most mentioned themes were education programs, concerns of roadway environments, and school bus safety. Based on the responses, concerns about the roadway environment, poor driver behavior, and the role of parents on mode choice have not changed in the last twenty years; however, safety education programs, vehicle centric travel, community planning, and pick up/drop off safety have evolved over time. The twenty-year FARS data set was analyzed for school travel-related fatality and injury information and compared trends between urban and rural areas. This comparison revealed that despite perceived safety and risk concerns, fatalities in urban and rural environments have declined by 10% and 36%, respectively.masters, M.S., Civil Engineering -- University of Idaho - College of Graduate Studies, 2021-1
Developing and Implementing a UAS-Based Reach-Scale Protocol to Understand and Test Indicators for Monitoring Beaver Dam Analog Effectiveness
No full textBeaver Dam Analogs (BDAs) and other Beaver-Related Restoration (BRR) techniques have increased in use across the western US in response to losses in ecosystem function related to degraded stream systems, head-cuts, entrenched channels, and floodplain and riparian disconnectedness. In hopes of restoring riverscapes and riparian areas and the ecosystem services they provide, managers have implemented these techniques with limited research concerning their effectiveness. Monitoring the effectiveness and the long-term ecological impacts of restoration activities such as BDAs is required to inform managers if objectives have been met and to guide maintenance to ensure effective restoration. I developed and implemented a quantitative monitoring approach that focuses on indicators representing key riparian and stream processes related to reach-scale riverscape changes including: channel length, flow, gradient, BDA structure density, and proportions of riparian vegetation groups, surface water types, and potential riparian/stream area within the valley bottom. Spanning three different ecosystems, I used unmanned aerial systems (UAS) along with in-field measurements to implement the procedure across 31 stream reaches from six BDA projects in Idaho. Univariate and multivariate analyses highlighted possible short-term indicators of treatment effectiveness and the need for more research regarding broader, longer-term impacts. This work supports common short-term expectations such as an increase in percent channel length that is wetted following BDA installation. With a quantitative monitoring approach, effects of riparian and stream restoration can be documented, providing detailed descriptions of the effectiveness of these treatments on different systems and specific functions that managers hope to restore.masters, M.S., Natural Resources -- University of Idaho - College of Graduate Studies, 2021-0
The Impact of Intrapersonal and Environmental Visual Impairment on Pedestrian Safety
No full textEach year more than 140,000 adult pedestrians are struck by motor vehicles, resulting in heavy costs of both life and economy. Research has endeavored to investigate the etiology of pedestrian injury for decades. Recently a need has been identified – and begun to be addressed – for empirical work systematically examining the roles of vision and audition in various components in the pedestrian task. I designed and carried out two studies with the overall aim of investigating how safety is impacted if a pedestrian's perception is impaired on a sensory level rather than, for example, via distraction. Specifically, I conducted one study to examine the intrapersonal visual perceptual impairments introduced by alcohol intoxication, and another study to examine environmental sources of visual occlusion. The aforementioned intrapersonal and environmental sources of impairment were examined across two important components of the pedestrian task, time-to-contact estimations and gap selections. Secondary constructs known to be associated with one or both types of impairment were also be examined, including visuospatial performance, visual acuity, and contrast sensitivity. Alcohol intoxication negatively impacted time-to-contact judgment accuracy; no other significant effects of either intrapersonal or environment visual impairment emerged. I discuss my findings in terms of their implications for pedestrian safety research and for injury prevention efforts, and conclude with considerations for future research.doctoral, Ph.D., Psychology -- University of Idaho - College of Graduate Studies, 2021-0
Seasonal and Diel Changes in Phosphorus Transport and Retention in an Intermittent Agricultural Stream
No full textPhosphorus (P) is an essential nutrient for an aquatic ecosystem, however, excess contributions of P from anthropogenic sources, mainly from agricultural land use, can lead to poor water quality, impair aquatic beneficial uses and, in extreme cases, can lead to the development of toxic algal blooms. P is a commonly studied element in agriculture streams, nevertheless, there is still a lack of understanding about the geochemical, and biological processes driving the retention, release, and transport of P. Geochemical pathways consist of metal-P complexes, and biological pathways consist of direct uptake of soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP). Diel SRP patterns have been observed at Missouri Flat Creek (MFC), a stream flowing through the Cook Agronomy Farm in Pullman, Washington. This suggests potential dynamic P retention and release processes at MFC. The purpose of this research is to assess which of the two pathways drive SRP diel cycling at MFC. Understanding stream P release and retention in stream ecosystems can provide insight into the impacts of management and climate on P export, and lead to realistic restoration goals of these agroecosystems. The objectives of this study were to: (1) Monitor seasonal and diel changes in stream temperature, DO, pH, Soluble Reactive Phosphorus (SRP) concentration and dominant forms of extractable P bound to metals in bed sediments six times throughout the water year (Fall, Spring, and Summer), (2) Quantify seasonal variability in the proportion of soluble and particulate P loading transported in the stream six times throughout the water year (Fall, Spring, and Summer), (3) Quantify the extent to which diurnal and seasonal variation in pH, temperature, DO, flow, stream SRP, and dissolved metal concentration in streams, drive SRP adsorption pathways for each of the 6 sampling days. The results of this study indicate that during the cooler months, Ca/Mg-SRP is the dominant metal-P complex found in sediments, with peak concentration occurring at midday. Ca/Mg-SRP complexes gradually decreases in the warmer month as Fe/Mn-SRP and assimilation becomes more dominant, likely due to increased DO concentration and temperature. In June, low DO concentrations are observed concurrently with higher SRP concentrations and lower sediment Fe/Mn-SRP complexes. Diel cycling of SRP, pH, DO, and temperature was also observed in the spring and summer, making biological assimilation of P a plausible retention pathway. A second, interdisciplinary goal of the project, was to increase the knowledge and understanding of the role stream ecosystems play in watershed management of high school students. This goal was addressed by working with local high school teachers on developing hands-on, stream chemistry and ecology curriculum that can be implemented in the classroom. This outreach effort increased student knowledge and interest in stream chemistry.masters, M.S., Water Resources -- University of Idaho - College of Graduate Studies, 2021-1
Public Perceptions of Lead in the United States: Exploring Perceived Risk, Trust, and Subjective Knowledge
No full textLead exposure remains a pertinent public health issue in the United States (U.S.) despite multiple policies and regulations to control sources of lead in the environment. Existing social science research on human interactions with lead has primarily focused on at-risk population groups and areas with high levels of contamination. As such, little is known about perceptions of lead for a cross-section of the public, which can contribute to improved health protective remediation and messaging. This research contributes to a broader understanding of public perceptions of lead in the U.S. using data from a national online survey of U.S. residents (n = 1,035). In the first chapter, I 1) compare the perceived risk of lead exposure to other common environmental risks and 2) explore the relationships between trust in government management of lead, subjective knowledge about lead, and the perceived risk of lead exposure. Results reveal that lead exposure is perceived to be less risky than air pollution, pollution of rivers and lakes, climate change, and habitat loss. Our regression analyses indicate that both trust in government management of lead and subjective knowledge about lead significantly and positively predict perceptions of lead exposure risk. When considering the potentially moderating effect of subjective knowledge, I found evidence contradicting past findings that trust is a stronger predictor of perceived risk when knowledge is low. In the second chapter, I further investigate trust in government management of lead as a function of reliance and skepticism. Reliance is defined as the general trustworthiness of a risk management entity. Skepticism refers to the existence of any doubtful views regarding the risk management entity and how risk policies are enacted. We first categorize respondents into four different groups related to their level of trust in government management of lead – rejection, distrust, critical trust, and acceptance – based on levels of reliance and skepticism. We then examine predictors of group membership using sociodemographic, environmental, and other variables including trust in scientists and subjective knowledge. Findings indicate that a majority of respondents demonstrate high levels of skepticism in government management of lead. I discuss implications for results from Chapters 1 and 2 in the broader context of lead risk management in the U.S and opportunities for future research.masters, M.S., Natural Resources -- University of Idaho - College of Graduate Studies, 2021-1
Potlatch High School, Class of 2021
No full textGroup Photograph of Class of 2021 at Potlatch High School