Invasive and native plant species compete for resources in similar pools, with disturbances often favoring the invader. Yet, increased climate variability may be shifting the competitive edge back toward the natives. We conducted field studies in perennial grasslands to determine the effects of clipping and drought on resource aVailability (light and moisture) and subsequent establishment of Ca...

Research on rice drying and tempering has shown that high drying temperatures (up to 603C) and high moisture removal rates (up to 6 percentage points moisture content) can be used without reducing milling quality as long as sufficient tempering at a temperature above the glass transition temperature (Tg) is allowed between drying passes. Using drying air temperatures above the Tg of the rice si...

UNLABELLED Large volumes of fine particulate matter or "dust" (soil, hulls, and shells) generated when hulls and shells are removed from almond kernels complicate cleaning and sanitation procedures in the huller-sheller (HS) environment. This study evaluated the efficacy of 3 aqueous quaternary ammonium sanitizers (AQuats) and an isopropyl alcohol-based quaternary ammonium sanitizer (IPAQuat) f...

The loss of fluid and electrolytes in sweat during endurance exercise can be extensive, resulting in dehydration and poor performance if these losses are not replaced. Feeds high in fiber, especially those high in soluble fiber, possess a high water-holding capacity. Therefore, feeding strategies that optimize the level of dietary fiber and fiber type have the potential to benefit endurance hor...

Ethanol has been widely used as an alternative to fossil fuels. In recent years, much attention has been devoted to ethanol production from lignocellulosic biomass. In previous research, low-moisture anhydrous ammonia (LMAA) pretreatment was investigated due to its high efficiency and less washing compared to other pretreatment methods. The purpose of this study was to determine optimal conditi...

Antarctic Mesoscale Prediction System (AMPS) forecasts of atmospheric moisture and cloud fraction (CF) are compared with observations at McMurdo and Amundsen–Scott South Pole station (hereafter, South Pole station) in Antarctica. Overall, it is found that the model produces excessive moisture at both sites in the midto upper troposphere because of a weaker vertical decrease of moisture in AMPS ...

The development of satellite-based forecasting systems is one of the few affordable solutions for developing regions (e.g., West Africa) that cannot afford ground-based observation networks. Although low-frequency passive microwave data have been used extensively for land surface monitoring, the use of high-frequency passive microwave data that contain cloud information is very limited over lan...

Knowledge of surface hydrology is essential for many applications, including studies that aim to understand permafrost response to changing climate and the associated feedback mechanisms. Advanced remote sensing techniques make it possible to retrieve a range of land-surface variables, including radar retrieved soil moisture (SSM). It has been pointed out before that soil moisture retrieval fro...

Environmental monitoring is a significant driver for wireless sensor communication. Its potential to provide dynamic real-time data about monitored variable will enable to measure properties that have not previously been observable. A low cost consumer version soil moisture monitoring system was built using a gypsum block to take moisture readings, a peripheral interface controller (PIC) with a...

...................................................................................................... i Acknowledgements .................................................................................... ii Table of contents ....................................................................................... iv List of original publications ...................................................