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These publications showcase the significant science conducted in our Science Centers.

Filter Total Items: 16731

Mineral Resource of the Month: Iodine Mineral Resource of the Month: Iodine

Iodine is a bluish-black lustrous solid (violet-colored in its gaseous state) found primarily in seaweed, underground brines associated with petroleum deposits and caliche ore deposits.
Authors
Emily Schnebele

Localization and seasonal variation of blue pigment (sandercyanin) in walleye (Sander vitreus) Localization and seasonal variation of blue pigment (sandercyanin) in walleye (Sander vitreus)

Several fish species, including the walleye (Sander vitreus), have “yellow” and “blue” color morphs. In S. vitreus, one source of the blue color has been identified as a bili-binding protein pigment (sandercyanin), found in surface mucus of the fish. Little is known about the production of the pigment or about its functions. We examined the anatomical localization and seasonal variation...
Authors
Wayne Schaefer, Mark Schmitz, Vicki S. Blazer, Tim Ehlinger, John Berges

Soil geochemical survey of abandoned mining sites in the Eastern-Central Peloritani Mountains, Sicily, Italy Soil geochemical survey of abandoned mining sites in the Eastern-Central Peloritani Mountains, Sicily, Italy

This investigation focused on topsoils (n = 122) and vertical profiles (n = 6) distributed over an area of 250 km2 in the eastern-central Peloritani Mountains, northeastern Sicily. Georeferenced concentration of 53 elements (including potentially harmful ones), determined by ICP-MS after an aqua regia leach, were used to produce geochemical maps by means of a GIS-aided spatial...
Authors
A. Consenza, A. Lima, Robert A. Ayuso, Nora K. Foley, S. Albanese, A. Messina, B. De Vivo

Preface to the special issue on gas hydrate drilling in the Eastern Nankai Trough Preface to the special issue on gas hydrate drilling in the Eastern Nankai Trough

Methane hydrate traps enormous amounts of methane in frozen deposits in continental margin sediments, and these deposits have long been targeted for studies investigating their potential as an energy resource. As a concentrated form of methane that occurs at shallower depths than conventional and most unconventional gas reservoirs, methane hydrates could be a readily accessible source of
Authors
Koji Yamamoto, Carolyn D. Ruppel

Geochemical legacies and the future health of cities: A tale of two neurotoxins in urban soils Geochemical legacies and the future health of cities: A tale of two neurotoxins in urban soils

The past and future of cities are inextricably linked, a linkage that can be seen clearly in the long-term impacts of urban geochemical legacies. As loci of population as well as the means of employment and industry to support these populations, cities have a long history of co-locating contaminating practices and people, sometimes with negative implications for human health. Working at...
Authors
Gabriel M. Fillipelli, Martin R. Risch, Mark A. S. Laidlaw, Deborah E. Nichols, Julie Crewe

Suburban watershed nitrogen retention: Estimating the effectiveness of stormwater management structures Suburban watershed nitrogen retention: Estimating the effectiveness of stormwater management structures

Excess nitrogen (N) is a primary driver of freshwater and coastal eutrophication globally, and urban stormwater is a rapidly growing source of N pollution. Stormwater best management practices (BMPs) are used widely to remove excess N from runoff in urban and suburban areas, and are expected to perform under a wide variety of environmental conditions. Yet the capacity of BMPs to retain...
Authors
Benjamin J. Koch, Catherine M. Febria, Roger M. Cooke, Jacob D. Hosen, Matthew E. Baker, Abigail R. Colson, Solange Filoso, Katharine Hayhoe, J. V. Loperfido, Anne M.K. Stoner, Margaret A. Palmer

On the reconstruction of palaeo-ice sheets: Recent advances and future challenges On the reconstruction of palaeo-ice sheets: Recent advances and future challenges

Reconstructing the growth and decay of palaeo-ice sheets is critical to understanding mechanisms of global climate change and associated sea-level fluctuations in the past, present and future. The significance of palaeo-ice sheets is further underlined by the broad range of disciplines concerned with reconstructing their behaviour, many of which have undergone a rapid expansion since the...
Authors
Chris R. Stokes, Lev Tarasov, Robin Blomdin, Thomas M. Cronin, Timothy G. Fisher, Richard Gyllencreutz, Clas Hattestrand, Jakob Heyman, Richard C. A. Hindmarsh, Anna L. C. Hughes, Martin Jakobsson, Nina Kirchner, Stephen J. Livingstone, Martin Margold, Julian B. Murton, Riko Noormets, W. Richard Peltier, Dorothy M. Peteet, David J. W. Piper, Frank Preusser, Hans Renssen, David H. Roberts, Didier M. Roche, Francky Saint-Ange, Arjen P. Stroeven, James T. Teller

Fluvial geomorphology and suspended-sediment transport during construction of the Roanoke River Flood Reduction Project in Roanoke, Virginia, 2005–2012 Fluvial geomorphology and suspended-sediment transport during construction of the Roanoke River Flood Reduction Project in Roanoke, Virginia, 2005–2012

Beginning in 2005, after decades of planning, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) undertook a major construction effort to reduce the effects of flooding on the city of Roanoke, Virginia—the Roanoke River Flood Reduction Project (RRFRP). Prompted by concerns about the potential for RRFRP construction-induced geomorphological instability and sediment liberation and the detrimental...
Authors
John D. Jastram, Jennifer L. Krstolic, Douglas Moyer, Kenneth Hyer

Effects of Hydrocarbon Extraction on Landscapes of the Appalachian Basin Effects of Hydrocarbon Extraction on Landscapes of the Appalachian Basin

An important and sometimes overlooked aspect of contemporary natural gas exploration, development, and delivery activities is the geographic profile and spatial footprint that these activities have on the land surface. The function of many ecosystems and the goods and services they provide, in large part, are the result of their natural spatial arrangement on the landscape. Shale-gas...
Authors
Terry E. Slonecker, Lesley E. Milheim, Coral M. Roig-Silva, Siddiq S. Kalaly

A new method for discovering behavior patterns among animal movements A new method for discovering behavior patterns among animal movements

Advanced satellite tracking technologies enable biologists to track animal movements at fine spatial and temporal scales. The resultant data present opportunities and challenges for understanding animal behavioral mechanisms. In this paper, we develop a new method to elucidate animal movement patterns from tracking data. Here, we propose the notion of continuous behavior patterns as a...
Authors
Y. Wang, Ze Luo, John Y. Takekawa, Diann J. Prosser, Y. Xiong, S. Newman, X. Xiao, N. Batbayar, Kyle A. Spragens, S. Balachandran, B. Yan

Seasonal temperature and precipitation regulate brook trout young-of-the-year abundance and population dynamics Seasonal temperature and precipitation regulate brook trout young-of-the-year abundance and population dynamics

Abundance of the young‐of‐the‐year (YOY) fish can vary greatly among years and it may be driven by several key biological processes (i.e. adult spawning, egg survival and fry survival) that span several months. However, the relative influence of seasonal weather patterns on YOY abundance is poorly understood.We assessed the importance of seasonal air temperature (a surrogate for stream...
Authors
Yoichiro Kanno, Kasey C. Pregler, Nathaniel P. Hitt, Benjamin Letcher, Daniel Hocking, John E. B. Wofford

Flood-inundation maps for the Tippecanoe River at Winamac, Indiana Flood-inundation maps for the Tippecanoe River at Winamac, Indiana

Digital flood-inundation maps for a 6.2 mile reach of the Tippecanoe River at Winamac, Indiana (Ind.), were created by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs. The flood-inundation maps, which can be accessed through the USGS Flood Inundation Mapping Science Web site at http://water.usgs.gov/osw/flood_inundation/, depict...
Authors
Chad D. Menke, Aubrey R. Bunch
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