Gemstone Team Research

Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/9070

The Gemstone Program at the University of Maryland is a unique multidisciplinary four-year research program for selected undergraduate honors students of all majors. Under guidance of faculty mentors and Gemstone staff, teams of students design, direct and conduct significant research, often but not exclusively exploring the interdependence of science and technology with society. Gemstone students are members of a living-learning community comprised of fellow students, faculty and staff who work together to enrich the undergraduate experience. This community challenges and supports the students in the development of their research, teamwork, communication and leadership skills. In the fourth year, each team of students presents its research in the form of a thesis to experts, and the students complete the program with a citation and a tangible sense of accomplishment.

Browse

Subject: search.filters.subject.Chesapeake Bay

Search Results

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Interactive Effects of Plant Species and Organic Carbon on Nitrate Removal in Chesapeake Bay Treatment Wetlands
    (2013) Agarwal, Arsh; Bradford, Allie; Cheng, Kerry; Dewan, Ramita; Disla, Enrique; Goodley, Addison; Lim, Nathan; Liu, Lisa; Place, Lucas; Ramadorai, Raevathi; Shankar, Jaishri; Wellen, Michael; Ye, Diane; Yu, Edward; Tilley, David R.
    Nitrate from agricultural runoff are a significant cause of algal blooms in estuarine ecosystems such as the Chesapeake Bay. These blooms block sunlight vital to submerged aquatic vegetation, leading to hypoxic areas. Natural and constructed wetlands have been shown to reduce the amount of nitrate flowing into adjacent bodies of water. We tested three wetland plant species native to Maryland, Typha latifolia (cattail), Panicum virgatum (switchgrass), and Schoenoplectus validus (soft-stem bulrush), in wetland microcosms to determine the effect of species combination and organic amendment on nitrate removal. In the first phase of our study, we found that microcosms containing sawdust exhibited significantly greater nitrate removal than microcosms amended with glucose or hay at a low nitrate loading rate. In the second phase of our study, we confirmed that combining these plants removed nitrate, although no one combination was significantly better. Furthermore, the above-ground biomass of microcosms containing switchgrass had a significantly greater percentage of carbon than microcosms without switchgrass, which can be studied for potential biofuel use. Based on our data, future environmental groups can make a more informed decision when choosing biofuel-capable plant species for artificial wetlands native to the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Using sediment flocculation to reduce the impacts of Chesapeake Bay Microcystis aeruginosa harmful algal blooms
    (2011) Certner, Rebecca; Cho, Haena; Gallo, Natalya; Gibbons, Alexander; Kim, Christine; Liu, Tina; Miller, Hannah; Parikh, Neelam; Wooten, Matthew; Sellner, Kevin
    Harmful algal blooms (HABs) are proliferations of phytoplankton in marine ecosystems. Cyanobacteria, often referred to as algae, are one of the many microorganisms capable of reaching bloom abundances. In recent years, HABs have increased in prevalence in the Chesapeake Bay due to eutrophication from nutrient and pollution runoff into the watershed. Our research focused on the mitigation of HABs, specifically blooms of Microcystis aeruginosa, a cyanobacterium that blooms annually in the upper Chesapeake and its tributaries. Our mitigation approach used sediment-flocculant mixtures to remove cyanobacteria cells from the water column. We explored the environmental impact of our efforts and the potential for indigenous grass restoration by incorporating submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) seeds into our mitigation technique. Based on our data regarding efficacy, cost, environmental safety, and public opinion, we suggest mixtures consisting of local sediments and the flocculant chitosan for use in mitigating M. aeruginosa HABs in the Chesapeake Bay.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Excluding mammalian predators from diamondback terrapin nesting beaches with an electric fence
    (2009-05) Bennett, Curtis; Chaudhry, Sona; Clemens, Marjorie; Gilmer, Lacy; Lee, Samantha; Parker, Thomas; Peterson, Emily; Rajkowski, Jessica; Shih, Karen; Subramaniam, Sasika; Wells, Rachel; White, Jessica; Adams, Lowell
    Over the past century, diamondback terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin) populations in the Chesapeake Bay region of the United States have declined from their historic abundance. One factor contributing to the decline is increased predation on terrapin nests by raccoons (Procyon lotor) and foxes (Vulpes vulpes and Urocyon cinereoargenteus). We studied the use of electric fences to deter these predators from nesting beaches along the lower Patuxent River, Calvert and St. Mary’s Counties, Maryland. Over the two-year study, the predation rate within treatment (fenced) plots was 40% (4 of 10 nests) compared to 69% (20 of 29 nests) in control plots. We believe that electric fences have potential as a conservation technique for reducing mammalian predation on diamondback terrapin nests.