2010 MU theses - Access restricted to UM
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Item Upgrading conventional cold-formed steel connections to protect against moderate blast events(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2010) Agee, Brett Michael; Salim, Hani A., 1966-[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] Most research in the area of blast resistant and retrofit designs has focused on high threat levels to meet the DOD and DOS needs. This report shows the need for moderate blast threat level protection and proposes ways to achieve that protection. Cold-formed steel stud wall systems are already used in many applications and could be effectively adapted to meet these threat levels. The objective of this report is to increase the strength of the connection of cold-formed steel stud-track systems to allow the studs to utilize part or all of the inherent tensile membrane resistance. The proposed solutions of upgrading stud-track wall connections with extra screws, larger screws, larger track and thicker track, etc. are evaluated and compared against each other and the current typical connection design. To accomplish this evaluation, four-foot long samples are constructed and loaded using a four-point loading tree. The results are compiled and trends are developed which are used to develop a matrix of full-length (ten-foot) samples. This study concludes that adding extra screws, along with stud thickness, are practical and efficient methods of altering the failure mechanisms and increasing the blast resistant characteristics of these wall systems. With these upgraded connections, lighter gauge sample show some tensile membrane behavior. Also discussed are the United Facilities Criteria (UFC) limits on deflection and data to support revising those criteria.Item Translocation and Conservation of Hellbenders (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis) in Missouri(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2010) Bodinof, Catherine Michelle; Millspaugh, Joshua J.[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] Populations of eastern hellbenders (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis) and Ozark hellbenders (C. a. bishopi) in Missouri have declined precipitously in recent decades for unclear reasons. As a result, both subspecies are endangered in Missouri and the Ozark hellbender is a candidate for listing under the Endangered Species Act. In addition to working towards identifying the ultimate drivers of declines in Missouri, state agencies are considering release of captive-reared hellbenders as a strategy to bolster wild populations. However, few herpetofauna translocations have been successful, commonly due to long distance movements of animals away from selected release sites or the persistence of factors involved in original declines. To determine whether one suspected driver of hellbender declines, the pathogenic fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, was present when declines occurred and may have caused declines, we used histological techniques and an immunoperoxidase stain to detect the fungus in hellbenders archived in museum collections. As an immediate attempt to improve wild populations we also released 36 captive-reared Ozark hellbenders at 2 sites on the North Fork of the White River, Missouri, and used radiotelemetry to monitor movements, resource selection and survival post release. We detected B. dendrobatidis prior to or during declines in 4 of 7 rivers including the North Fork of the White (1969, 1973, 1975), Meramec (1975, 1986), Big Piney (1986) and Current (1988) rivers, which suggests the pathogen may have contributed to hellbender declines. However, the fungus occurred in the North Fork of the White River for over a decade while hellbenders were intensively studied and populations appeared to remain stable. Therefore, if B. dendrobatidis were responsible for declines in the North Fork, effects of the fungus there were likely indirect as opposed to the mass mortality of adult amphibians other studies have observed. We collected 3635 locations of 36 captive-reared hellbenders translocated to the North Fork of the White River between May 2008 and August 2009. At the end of our study 16 hellbenders were alive, 13 were dead and we could not confirm status of 7 animals. We observed 3 distinct types of hellbender dispersal including non-dispersal (n = 11), slow-and-steady dispersal (n = 9), and abrupt long-distance dispersal (n = 16). Most hellbenders (26 of 36) dispersed downstream and mean dispersal distance at the upper site ( mean = 318.28 m, SE = 115.39 m) was over 2 times larger than at the lower site ( mean = 121.95 m, SE = 34.13 m). At both sites, daily movements of hellbenders were fewer and covered shorted distances, and home range sizes were reduced in the second season of monitoring, suggesting most hellbenders had settled at least semi-permanently in the wild. At the home range and reach scale, hellbender resource selection was positively associated with presence of coarse substrate relative to fine substrates; and with decreasing distance to nearest rock in all meso-habitats (i.e., pool, run, riffle). In 3 of 4 models, the negative association between increasing distance to rock and selection was intensified as benthic water velocity increased. Annual survivorship of captive-reared hellbenders was 0.7467 (lower site) and 0.4816 (upper site). Release site was the most strongly supported factor associated with the nearly two-fold difference in annual survival rates, though site specific factors driving the difference were not obvious. Annual survival rates of captive-reared hellbenders at the lower site were similar to estimated annual survival rates (0.81) of wild hellbenders from the same river in 1978-1979; but annual survival rates observed in our study were 30-100 % lower than indicated annual survival (0.975) in a wild population from the same river consisting primarily of 12 to 20 year old hellbenders. In addition to having lower survival rates, upper site hellbenders tended to gain less weight post release, and a greater proportion carried B. dendrobatidis, leech parasites and accrued injuries and open sores. Our study is the first to intensively monitor captive-reared or juvenile hellbenders via radiotelemetry for over 1 year. The site differences we observed in dispersal, survival and body condition of captive-reared hellbenders following translocation emphasizes the importance of release site selection and the usefulness of pilot studies to determine suitability of release sites. Regardless of site differences, our study demonstrates that captive-reared hellbenders were capable of remaining and settling in release sites while maturing in a wild environment for over 1 year.Item Structural analysis of basin margin laramide folding and fault reactivation in the south-central Wind River Basin, Schoettlin Mountain quadrangle, Fremont County, Wyoming(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2010) Alward, William S., 1986-; Bauer, Robert L. (Robert Louis)[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] The southwestern margin of the Wind River basin contains a series of southwest verging, left-stepping, en-echelon Laramide-aged folds that fold Paleozoic and Mesozoic strata dipping off the uplifted Precambrian core of the Wind River Mountains. The origin of such basin margin folds and their mechanics of formation are significant to the understanding of Laramide fold mechanics and the structural localization of hydrocarbons. Geologic mapping of the southernmost, up-plunge end of these basin-margin fold structures shows the region to be divided into two structurally distinct zones: a northern zone containing Sheep Mountain anticline (ShMA) and a southern zone containing Schoettlin Mountain anticline (ScMA). The two structural zones contain fundamentally different structural orientations and basement-cover fault displacements. The ShMA is a SW vergent fold that plunges shallowly toward [about]N15 degree W and is similar in geometry and structural orientation to other Laramide folds that extend to the northwest along the basin-margin fold trend. Folding of ShMA is interpreted to be controlled by a blind basement-involved thrust with a vertical throw of [about]190 feet. Conversely, the Schoettlin Mountain anticline (ScMA) in the southern structural zone, is a variably plunging, ENE-WSW trending, basement cored anticline that is bounded to the south by the Beaver Creek thrust (BCT). The complex geometry of the ScMA is interpreted to be the result of fault-related folding along the BCT; however, the fault displacement along the BCT has an estimated vertical throw of [about]3,000 feet, which is substantially larger than the [about]190 feet inferred for ShMA. The clear boundary between the two distinct structural zones, the Clear Creek fault (CCF), is a steep southerly dipping, ENE-WSW trending fault with a south-side-up sense of displacement in the study area. Using results from geologic mapping, balanced cross-sections, fold-related fracture analyses, and a 2-D seismic reflection and refraction experiment, this study argues that both the ShMA and ScMA fold structures are fault-related forced folds. Furthermore, the CCF is interpreted to represent a pre-Laramide feature reactivated late in the overall development of the local folds. The sharp contrasts in fold orientations and fault offsets between the two structural zones are argued here to be a result of complex stress perturbations created by the reactivation of both the CCF and BCT.Item The relationship between negative affectivity, affective instability, and interpersonal stressors in borderline personality disorder(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2010) Brown, Whitney C., 1985-; Trull, Timothy J., 1960-[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] Using ecological momentary assessment, this study found a relationship between daily negative affect, affective instability, and negative interpersonal events in outpatients with borderline personality and depressive disorders. The two groups differed in their experience of negative interpersonal events over 28 days, but showed a similar relationship between affect and interpersonal stressors. More research is needed in order to determine what interpersonal variables are unique to the functioning of those with borderline personality disorder.Item The myth of monetary surrogacy : the geographical logic of campaign contributions in state legislative campaigns(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2010) Crider, Kayla J., 1985-; Squire, Peverill[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] In this thesis, I analyze the geographic origins of state legislative campaign contributions. Previous studies have addressed the origins of campaign contributions at the national level finding that congressional contributions come from primarily wealthy, individual donors who are not necessarily constituents of the recipient candidate. This study will apply the idea of "monetary surrogacy," or the pattern of individual campaign contributions at the congressional level, to state legislative races in Missouri. The findings from this study demonstrate that the "monetary surrogacy" pattern of individual campaign contributions do not appear to exist at the state legislative level. At the state level, the proportion of state legislative candidates from metropolitan areas is directly proportional to the amount of total individual contributions provided by the area. Further, at the state level committees contribute more money overall to legislative candidates than do individuals. Thus, committee contributions rather than individual contributions should be the center of study in state legislative campaigns.