Recent Ph.D Thesis Statements

The quality of facilities and the strength of faculty support allow students to study a diversity of topics within Natural Resources Science and Management, as shown by the completed Ph.D. theses below.

2009

Amundson C. (expected 2009); Advisor: T. Arnold
The effects of predation and brood density on mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) duckling survival in northeastern North Dakota.

Danz, N. (2009); Advisors: P. Reich and L. Frelich
Spatial vegetation-environment relationships and distributional changes in the presettlement Minnesota prairie-forest boundary.

Kirk, R. (2009); Advisor: P. Bolstad
Land use and terrestrial carbon storage in western North Carolina from 1850-2030: A historical reconstruction and simulation study.

Schroeder, S. (2009); Advisor: D. Fulton
Quality connections: Recreation, property ownership, place attachment, and conservation of Minnesota lakes.

2008

Cook, B. (2008); Advisor: P. Bolstad
Reducing uncertainties associated with remotely sensed estimates of forest growth and carbon exchange in the Great Lakes region.

Defrenne, Y. (2008); Advisor: S. Ramaswamy
Three dimensional structural analysis of porous materials via micro-tomography image processing.

Lehrer, N. (2008); Advisors: D. Becker and R. Schurman
From competition to national security: Policy change and policy stability in the 2008 farm bill.

Ma, Zhao (2008); Advisors: M. Kilgore and D. Becker
The integration of cumulative environmental impact assessments and state environmental review frameworks.

Martin, J. (2008); Advisor: P. Bolstad
Quantifying spatial and temporal variation of soil respiration within and among northern temperate forest types.

Moya, L. (2008); Advisors: W. Tze and J. Winandy
Using fire-impacted trees for wood composites: Characterization and modeling of oriented strand board.

Narayanan, R. (2008); Advisor: P. Wang
Self-assembling multienzyme systems at oil-water interface for biphasic biotransformations.

Norris, M. (2008): Advisor: P. Reich
Plant-soil interactions: Ecosystem functions in an oak savanna.

Salk, R. (2008); Advisor: I. Schneider
Organizational learning in a public management agency: An exploration of mechanisms and antecedents.

Wilhelm-Stanis, S. (2008); Advisor: I. Schneider
Constraints to leisure time physical activity on public lands: Integrating stages of changes.

2007

Abbas, D. (2007); Advisor: K. Brooks
Harvesting forest biomass for energy in Minnesota: an assessment of guidelines, costs and logistics.

Amundson, C. (2007); Advisor: T. Arnold
The impacts of helminthic parasites on survival of American coot (Fulica americana) chicks.

Borman, S. (2007); Advisors: S. Galatowitsch and R. Newman
Aquatic plant communities and lakeshore land use: Changes over 70 years in northern Wisconsin lakes.

Bruskotter, J. (2007); Advisor: D. Fulton
Value orientations and the practice of conservation: Applications in fisheries management and agriculture.

Demma, D.J. (2007); Advisor: L.D. Mech
Use of GPS telemetry to study wolf territory use and predation on deer fawns during summer in the Superior National Forest of northeastern Minnesota.

Finley, A. (2007); Advisor: A. Ek and M. Bauer
Application of Bayesian spatial models in multi-source forest inventory.

Gormanson, D. (2007); Advisor: T. Burk
Can a Forest/Non-forest change map increase the precision of estimates of forest attributes in greater Minnesota?

Gwena (Muton), B. N. (2007); Advisor: D.H. Anderson and F. Finley
Decentralizing forest management in Cameroon: a conceptual look at the perception of procedural justice in community forest management process.

Huff, D.D. (2007); Advisors: B. Vondracek and R. Newman
Ecological and genetic aspects of a native fish reintroduction program in Minnesota's Driftless Area.

Molina-Murillo, S. (2007); Advisor: T. Smith
How much is too much? The role of complex information in environmental communications settings.

Pagano, A. (2007); Advisor: T. Arnold
Examining detection probabilities in waterfowl pair and brood surveys in northeastern North Dakota.

Peck, J, (2007); Advisors: L. Frelich and A. Ek
Toward the sustainable management of commercially harvestable epiphytic bryophytes.

2006

Barber-Meyer, S. (2006); Advisor: L.D. Mech
Elk calf mortality following wolf restoration to Yellowstone National Park.

Holdsworth, A.R. (2006); Advisors: P. Reich and L. Frelich
Earthworm invasion: patterns, ecological effects, and implications for conservation in northern hardwood forests.

Keefe, Meagan. (2006); Advisors: D. Current and K. Nelson
The use of social networks in community wildfire preparedness.

Magner, J.A. (2006); Advisor: K. Brooks
Total maximum daily loads, cohesive-sediment channel stability and water quality associated with geology and grazing in selected eastern Minnesota watersheds.

2005

Baskaya, F. S. (2005); Advisor: Dr. J. R. Elliott
Phase equilibrium at supercritical (sc) conditions: solubility analysis of curcumin in supercritical carbon dioxide and co-solvent mixtures, and phase equilibrium analysis of cis-1,4-(poly)isoprene in propane and co-solvent mixtures.

DeJong, M.T. (2005); Advisor: H. Hoganson
Embracing values conflict and diverse perspective: a grounded strategy for public involvement in forest planning and modeling.

Leahy, J.E. (2005); Advisor: D.H. Anderson
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Kaskaskia River Watershed Community relationships: Social capital, trust, and benefits.

Rich, R.L. (2005); Advisors: P. Reich and L. Frelich
Large wind disturbance in the Boundary Waters Canoe Wilderness: Forest dynamics and development changes associated with the July 4th 1999 blowdown.

2004

Guo, J. (2004); Advisor: S. Severtson
Inhibition of calcium carbonate nucleation with organic additives.

Hale, C.M. (2004); Advisors: L. Frelich and P. Reich
Ecological consequences of exotic invaders: interactions involving European earthworms and native plant communities in hardwood forests.

Wei, Y. (2004); Advisor: H. Hoganson
Modeling spatial management objectives for USDA Forest Service planning in Minnesota.

2003

Nowak, M. J. (2003); Advisor: S. Severtson
Characterization and Development of Environmentally Benign Wax Coatings and Thermoplastic Pressure Sensitive Adhesives.