Theses and Dissertations from UMD

Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2

New submissions to the thesis/dissertation collections are added automatically as they are received from the Graduate School. Currently, the Graduate School deposits all theses and dissertations from a given semester after the official graduation date. This means that there may be up to a 4 month delay in the appearance of a give thesis/dissertation in DRUM

More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.

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    Applying Vegetation Dynamics Theory to the Long-Term Ecological Design and Management of Urban Public Parks: Upper Long Branch Stream Valley, Maryland
    (2021) Podietz, Emma; Myers, David N; Plant Science and Landscape Architecture (PSLA); Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    Calls for ecological applications in landscape architecture have increased as the world faces compounding crises of climate change, biodiversity loss, and human disconnection with natural systems. Landscape architects are uniquely situated to address these crises as practitioners who engage at multiple scales with ecological systems, placemaking, and land use planning. A sustainability ethic exists within the discipline, but ecological principles and theory are inconsistently applied in built work. Vegetation dynamics theory generalizes the mechanisms of plant community change over time, and presents a useful framework for the planting design, long-term adaptive management, and stewardship of urban parks. The principles of the theory can be interwoven with ecological and aesthetic goals of designed landscapes. This thesis demonstrates how centering vegetation dynamics theory in urban park design can enhance ecological function of urban landscapes, create heightened place attachment through aesthetic and interpretive experience, and guide the long-term management and stewardship of urban ecosystems in the Mid-Atlantic United States.
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    Ecological Risk To Cetaceans From Anthropogenic Ocean Sound; Characterization Analysis Using A Professional Judgment Approach To Uncertainty
    (2007-11-26) Truett, Amanda Ann; Mihursky, Joseph; Fogarty, Michael; Marine-Estuarine-Environmental Sciences; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    The recommendations of anthropogenic ocean sound impact criteria by an expert community of scientists have been monitored over the 10-year period from 1996 - 2006. This dissertation approaches this topic in three ways; 1: by content analyzing 94 peer-reviewed publications specific to this topic (representing 20 countries and 27 species of cetaceans, and virtually all oceans), from which up to fifteen variables were coded for exploratory analysis, 2: by an anonymous Internet survey questionnaire administered to 91 of the 119 authors of these 94 publications, one that was designed to identify common patterns and points of departure in how these expert scientists currently independently and anonymously characterize their data on the species they study, and 3: Logistic regression analysis to help determine the functional relationship, or measure of association (risk) between anthropogenic ocean sound and impacts to cetaceans and fish. Results indicate an increasing risk of disturbance behaviors in response to increasing anthropogenic sound levels, and that observed free-ranging populations (n >1486 animals) have lower behavioral thresholds to anthropogenic sound than observed captive individuals (n = 25 animals). Empirical estimates indicate a .945 probability that the sound threshold for free-ranging animals lies below the 180dB rms NMFS status quo criterion. Survey data suggests a significant increase in the concern over global ocean sound over the 10-year period - with 51% of criteria recommendations dropping from the 180dB rms status quo to 140dB p-p and below, representing more than a 50% shift toward the 100dB rms average ambient assumed in this study. It is concluded that these empiricists demonstrated a cooperative strategy which is in the early stages of adaptive management favoring integrating solutions to sustainability problems by way of collective management, and advocate precautionary behavior. Communications strategies are identified and discussed and recommendations include open data base collaborations. This project thus demonstrates the utility of a transparent international data base instrument and suggests a broader strategy for greater scientific leadership in guiding policy toward achieving sustainable management of living marine resources.