Colorado State University

About: Colorado State University is a education organization based out in Fort Collins, Colorado, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Laser. The organization has 31430 authors who have published 69040 publications receiving 2724463 citations. The organization is also known as: CSU & Colorado Agricultural College.

Sol−Gel Template Synthesis of Semiconductor Oxide Micro- and Nanostructures

Abstract: The template method for synthesizing nanostructures involves the synthesis of the desired material within the pores of a nanoporous membrane or other solid. Our work has involved using porous alumina and polymeric filter membranes as the templates. Fibrils or tubules of the desired material are formed within each pore of the template membrane. A number of synthetic methods have been used to synthesize these nanostructures. This paper reviews sol−gel template synthesis: the use of sol−gel chemistry to synthesize semiconductor oxide micro- and nanostructures within the pores of micro- and nanoporous membranes. For example, TiO2 nanotubules and nanofibers of the anatase form have been synthesized. The high surface area offered by these TiO2 nanostructures has been used for photodecomposition of salicylic acid in sunlight. Enzyme immobilization by stannous bridges inside the TiO2 tubes has also been studied. In addition, V2O5 fibrous electrode materials have been prepared by this method and Li intercalation ...

Amphibian fungal panzootic causes catastrophic and ongoing loss of biodiversity

Abstract: Anthropogenic trade and development have broken down dispersal barriers, facilitating the spread of diseases that threaten Earth's biodiversity. We present a global, quantitative assessment of the amphibian chytridiomycosis panzootic, one of the most impactful examples of disease spread, and demonstrate its role in the decline of at least 501 amphibian species over the past half-century, including 90 presumed extinctions. The effects of chytridiomycosis have been greatest in large-bodied, range-restricted anurans in wet climates in the Americas and Australia. Declines peaked in the 1980s, and only 12% of declined species show signs of recovery, whereas 39% are experiencing ongoing decline. There is risk of further chytridiomycosis outbreaks in new areas. The chytridiomycosis panzootic represents the greatest recorded loss of biodiversity attributable to a disease.

DAYCENT and its land surface submodel: description and testing

Abstract: A land surface submodel was developed for the daily version of the CENTURY ecosystem model (DAYCENT). The goal of DAYCENT to simulate soil N 2 O, NO x , and CH 4 fluxes for terrestrial ecosystems determined the structure and processes represented in the land surface model. The land surface model was set up to simulate daily dynamics of soil water and temperature from a multi-layered soil system (0–1, 1–4, 4–15, 15–30 cm, etc.) and included surface runoff and above field capacity soil water dynamics during intense rainfall events and snowmelt into frozen soils. The comparison of the simulated soil water content (0–10 cm) with observed data from four sites was quite favorable (squared correlation coefficient— γ 2 =0.87, 0.65, 0.86 and 0.58) and the simulated results were comparable for the soil temperature model ( r 2 =0.92 and 0.95 for minimum and maximum 10 cm soil temperatures). Detailed soil water and temperature data during snowmelt time periods and following rainfall events are needed to fully evaluate the performance of the water flow model.

Contracts, Norms, and Plural Form Governance

Abstract: The organization of interfirm exchanges has become of critical importance in today’s business environment. Many scholars have criticized the inadequacies of legal contracts as mechanisms for governing exchange, especially in the face of uncertainty and dependence. Other scholars argue that it is not the contracts per se but the social contexts in which they are embedded that determine their effectiveness. This study investigates the performance implications of governance structures involving contractual agreements and relational social norms, individually and in combination (plural form) under varying conditions and forms of transactional uncertainty and relationship-specific adaptation. Hypotheses are developed and tested on a sample of 396 buyer-seller relationships. The results provide support for the plural form thesis—increasing the relational content of a governance structure containing contractual agreements enhances performance when transactional uncertainty is high, but not when it is low. Implications for theory and future research are discussed.

Estimation of the number of alpha-helical and beta-strand segments in proteins using circular dichroism spectroscopy.

Abstract: A simple approach to estimate the number of alpha-helical and beta-strand segments from protein circular dichroism spectra is described. The alpha-helix and beta-sheet conformations in globular protein structures, assigned by DSSP and STRIDE algorithms, were divided into regular and distorted fractions by considering a certain number of terminal residues in a given alpha-helix or beta-strand segment to be distorted. The resulting secondary structure fractions for 29 reference proteins were used in the analyses of circular dichroism spectra by the SELCON method. From the performance indices of the analyses, we determined that, on an average, four residues per alpha-helix and two residues per beta-strand may be considered distorted in proteins. The number of alpha-helical and beta-strand segments and their average length in a given protein were estimated from the fraction of distorted alpha-helix and beta-strand conformations determined from the analysis of circular dichroism spectra. The statistical test for the reference protein set shows the high reliability of such a classification of protein secondary structure. The method was used to analyze the circular dichroism spectra of four additional proteins and the predicted structural characteristics agree with the crystal structure data.