Well after a coal mine has stopped production, it can strongly impact the environment around it through a process called acid mine drainage (AMD). Water discharging from local coal mines and flowing through the tailings becomes contaminated with heavy metals due to the dissolution of minerals such as pyrite and acidified by the subsequent oxidation of the reduced iron. After being oxidized, the iron precipitates out of the water leaving behind a distinctive orange sediment along the banks of local waterways. The poorly crystalline mineral ferrihydrite, Fe(OH)₃, makes up most of the orange sediment lining waterways impacted by AMD. If this AMD sediment is dredged from a stream or a settling pond, it can be used as a coloring agent of varying pigments formed from a series of mineralogical transformations. By analyzing these mineralogical and geochemical transformations of the ferrihydrite extracted from the sediment through X-ray powder diffraction and scanning electron microscopy, we can better understand the development of crystalline mineral phases in the sediment and how they pertain to the development of varying pigments. This should also help us to understand the similar transformations of iron oxides occurring in the sediments impacted by AMD.

Recent mapping in SW Utah frontier has revealed one of the largest landslides ever found, extending over 3,400 km². Although this slide appears to be related uplift associated with volcanic activity in the region 21-22 million years ago, the low angle of slope at which the large mass movement was triggered is difficult to explain. The leading hypothesis is that it is related to low-friction on the slip surface, due to plate collision, which is in a weak, clay unit. For the purpose of this experiment, an analogue landslide model was created, consisting of a thin 1 inch sand layer on a slowly tilting board, with acetate representing the low-friction slip surface. Videos recorded, as the board is slowly tilting, allows us to determine timing, location, extent, and style of the slope failure to be analyzed as the extent and position of the low-friction layer on the slope is varied. Our results showed that low-friction layer increases the coherence of the resulting landslide, especially when it extend a long way up the tilting slope. Further experiments are required to understand the factors that best reproduce Markagunt gravity slide.

The data analysis conducted by myself and Dr. Reynolds sought to answer a question on the topic of property tax salience: do voters truly understand the types of property taxes which appear on the ballot in local elections, and are they fully aware of the effects of such taxes in order to vote in their own self-interest? This question is fundamentally important to local elections and the improvement of our local school districts, as much of the income acquired from property taxes goes towards the funding of school districts. The data was all released voting data on local school levies from the 600+ school districts in Ohio dating back to 2003, and included variables such as percent who voted for the levy, total millage, total millage categorized by type of levy, and dummy variables for levy type, as well as categorical variables such as district name and county. Thus far, initial regression analyses have been completed using SAS. Our regression results allowed us to come to the preliminary conclusion that people are unaware of types of levies and the general setup of the property tax collection and distribution system. These initial results led to conclusions which have formed a solid foundation for future research that delves deeper into this topic.

Homeowners Associations (HOAs) exercise power over residential landscape structure and management, which has implications for the sustainability of urban ecosystems and resources. This study focuses on Maricopa County Arizona which encompasses the city of Phoenix. As an arid environment, Phoenix is sensitive to landscape structure requirements that determine resource consumption. This is primarily differentiated by the use of native, drought tolerant landscaping versus the mesic turf grass landscaping that requires more resource inputs. This study identifies the location of HOAs and examines content of landscaping rules and regulations codified in subdivision Covenants, Codes, and Restrictions (CCR) documents to determine how and where HOAs exert influence over residential ecology and resources. We found that, HOAs constituted approximately 40% of the single family residential subdivisions in our sample and most frequently regulated pets and pests, landscape structure, water resources, and albedo. The number of HOAs, CCR length, and number of clauses regulating landscape structure and management practices have generally increased over time. CCR language was generally permissive using words like “may” instead of “required,” suggesting potential to encourage environmental best management practices. This study informs a larger study of residential landscape ecology where high resolution land-cover imagery will be used to determine the extent that HOAs rules are enforced.

The state parks, nature preserves, and metro parks of northeastern Ohio offer unparalleled views and insight into the natural processes that shaped the landscape into what it is today. Every year, millions of visitors come to these parks to view gorges and waterfalls, explore hiking trails, and relax along lake shores. However, detailed geologic information about these parks is lacking for the public to better understand their ancient history and how they connect to the regional geologic picture. A detailed investigation was conducted to better understand the geologic history of northeast Ohio as viewed from the geology found in the state parks. Research within the parks was conducted to acquire surficial geology data, as well as using well logs and geologic map data to obtain subsurface geology information. Using this acquired data, in addition to previously published geology reports, cross sections through northeastern Ohio, traversing through several of the major parks, was produced. This data reveals Paleozoic bedrock deposits of sedimentary origin deposited during Devonian to Pennsylvanian ages. Results also show that a majority of the parks are situated on the glaciated Allegheny plateau where Pleistocene glaciers advanced over the gentle hills and stream valleys, and blanketed the area in glacial sediments ranging from 5 to 200+ feet in thickness. Glacial features left behind include moraines, kames, eskers, kettle lakes, glacial erratics, and glacial grooves or striations on exposed bedrock. The more southeasterly parks of the region are located just south of the glacial boundary, on the unglaciated portion of the Allegheny plateau. These parks are distinguished by sharper topographic relief, glacial outwash, and a higher amount of bedrock exposures. The overall goal of this research was to gain an understanding of the geologic processes that shaped northeastern Ohio by studying the unique geology within the state parks, and to eventually present these findings to the park-going public via an educational brochure distributed through the parks.

The lack of female representation in the political sphere is an undeniable issue of concern. One possible cause may be the stereotypes surrounding political careers. This study aims to establish what stereotypic image exists of what a president ought to look like. 73 children in second grade were asked by the classroom teacher to “draw a picture of the president in 20 years,” and the teacher noted the race and gender of each child, maintaining anonymity otherwise. When these images were analyzed, it was found that children drew images of men in 58.9% of cases, women in 35.62% of cases, and the gender was unclear in 5.48% of cases. There was a significant split in who was drawing each gender, with girls much more likely to draw an image of a female president, leading to 88.46% of the female images drawn by girls. On the other side, the images of male presidents were drawn by both girls and boys far more evenly, with 32.56% of the images drawn by girls and 67.44% drawn by boys. Significant differences emerged in how boys and girls approached the role of the president, and images of females were more likely to be based on real people. With the findings of this study, we can establish the differences between boys and girls in how they view the presidency, which could provide insight into why girls are so much less likely to go into politics, and hopefully give us a way to remedy that wrong.