Western Lake Trout – Just Say Whoa!

In Montana lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) are a self-sustaining introduced species in approximately 20 lakes west of the Continental Divide. Less than half those lakes were intentionally stocked and lake trout naturally invaded the others through connected waterways. Lake trout populations are a detriment to native fish recovery in the majority of waters where they occur, including large lakes in Glacier National Park as well as Flathead, Swan, Whitefish, and others. In lakes with threatened native bull trout (S. confluentus), lake trout management runs headlong into the Endangered Species Act. In addition, ongoing lake trout expansion ranks high amongst future threats to bull trout in the Clearwater lakes (Salmon, Seeley, Alva, Inez, etc.), Lindbergh Lake, Holland Lake, Lake Koocanusa, and others. In oligotrophic lakes of the Columbia Basin, introduced lake trout are well adapted and reproduce liberally, preying upon and competing with other native and sport fishes. Lake trout preference for deepwater habitat and in-lake spawning limits their exposure to land-based and avian predators. Lake trout are long-lived, hardy and resistant to starvation. In systems where Mysis relicta are added to the mix, a tipping point has often been exceeded for maintaining a diverse native ecosystem. Historically, lake trout management strategies were often designed to produce both maximum yield and trophy specimens. A recent review of seven western states revealed agencies are increasingly implementing strategies to reduce lake trout populations in attempts to minimize their impacts. However, management action to deter proliferation of lake trout has often been too little, with too few viable options, too costly, and sometimes too late. In addition, marginal support for lake trout suppression from an unhappy and divided angling public is also an issue

Biogeographic origin of the Hawaiian pteridophyte, Diplopterygiutn pinnatum, (Gleicheniaceae) as assessed by phylogenetic analysis of atpfi and trnG-R chloroplast DNA regions

Despite the fact that pteridophytes, commonly known as ferns, account for a large percentage of Hawaii’s vascular plants, few studies have been conducted to determine their biogeographical origins. This study aimed to determine an origin and a pathway of dispersal for the endemic Hawaiian fern, Diplopterygium pinnatum (Gleicheniaceae). Molecular and evolutionary phylogenetic analysis was employed using obtained chloroplast DNA sequences from the gene atpfi and the genes and noncoding spacer region trnG-R. Combined analysis with trnL-F and rbcL sequences from another study was also performed. Taking into account conclusions from a previous study, two possible origins and dispersal mechanisms were considered. The first hypothesis was that D. pinnatum originated in the Indo-Pacific region and was dispersed through spores in the Pacific jetstream. The second hypothesis was that D. pinnatum was dispersed to Hawaii via ITCZ/Hadley Cell Shift from an origin somewhere in the Austral region of the Pacific Ocean. Maximum likelihood and maximum parsimony trees produced similar relationships with similar bootstrap support. However, this study failed to differentiate between the two hypotheses and therefore the most likely origin and dispersal mechanism could not be determined

Investigation of Basal Imnaha Basalt Flows and their Relationship to the Picture Gorge Basalt of the Columbia River Basalt Group

The lower American Bar flows (AB 1 and 2) of the Imnaha Basalt have previously been observed as being chemically similar to those of the Picture Gorge Basalt (PGB). Previous age data separate eruption of the Imnaha and Picture Gorge Basalts by approximately 1.5 Ma, precluding the possibility of a genetic link between the two basalt units. New age data for the Picture Gorge Basalt has expanded the eruptive timeframe and the earliest flows coincide with the eruption of the Imnaha Basalt, making it possible that the lower American Bar flows of the Imnaha Basalt and the Picture Gorge Basalt may be more closely related than previously thought. This research focuses on expanding Imnaha Basalt chemical dataset by sampling basalt exposures in Hells Canyon of northeastern OR and northwestern ID. A total of forty-eight samples of the Imnaha Basalt were analyzed and classified. Basal American Bar samples were compared to the overlying American Bar flows and the Picture Gorge Basalt. Magma evolution models suggest that fractionation alone cannot derive the main American Bar flows from the basal flows, suggesting that two different sources must have been tapped to produce the two chemical types. The expanded chemical dataset corroborates the findings of previous researchers in that the lowest flows, American Bar flows 1 and 2, are very similar to the PGB, especially in their incompatible element concentrations. In line with observations from other researchers, AB flows 1 and 2 from south of the Wallowa Mountains possess some chemical characteristics different from those in the northern part of Hells Canyon in that they are more enriched in Ba and depleted in Nb along with being more primitive in their major element compositions

Novel Multi-layer Wiring Build-up using Electrochemical Pattern Replication (ECPR)

Abstract This paper discloses a novel, high accuracy and low cost integration method based on an Electrochemcial Pattern Replication (ECPR) technology for multi-level stacking applications such as integrated passives, multi-level redistribution layers and top level IC interconnect structures. It is demonstrated how a first copper layer is coated with BCB (Bisbenzocyclobutene), which is planarized with CMP (Chemical Mechanical Polishing) to uncover the first layer, where after a second patterned copper layer is fabricated with ECPR. This approach shows the feasibility of fabricating highly accurate multi-level wiring layers and still avoiding the issues related to increasing topography, which are particularly severe for thick metal layers. In addition, the constraints for the dielectric material is significantly reduced, since it does not have to be photosensitive or planarizing, which in turn opens up for the use of alternative dielectric materials, which may have better electrical and physical properties, that have not been usable with the traditional multi-level fabrication methods. Introduction The integration of more and more complex functions such as wireless communication capabilities on chips or packages puts new demands on the manufacturing methods for top metal layers. High density interconnects and integrated passives require a combination of resolution, accuracy, thickness uniformity typically offered only by dual damascene processes. At the same time there is a need for thicker metal, high deposition rates and low cost per layer, which is typically offered only by through mask plating processes. These combined requirements are difficult to address by most existing methods of today. The increasing demand for further miniaturization and functionality for electronic systems, particularly for mobile and wireless applications, has been driving the trend of fabricating multi-layer wiring, such as integrated passives and redistribution layers for Wafer Level Packaging (WLP) applications Particular for above-IC integrated passives and Integrated passive devices (IPDs) there has been a trend of fabricating thicker metal (copper circuits) since it lowers the series resistance of the devices, which in turn results in better performance (e.g higher capacitance or inductance value per area

Province-Wide Tapping of a Shallow, Variably Depleted, and Metasomatized Mantle to Generate Earliest Flood Basalt Magmas of the Columbia River Basalt, Northwestern USA

The Miocene Columbia River Basalt Group (CRBG) of the Pacific Northwest of the United States is the world’s youngest and smallest large igneous province. Its earliest formations are the Imnaha, Steens, and now the Picture Gorge Basalt (PGB), and they were sourced from three different dike swarms exposed from SE Washington to Nevada to northcentral Oregon. PGB is often viewed to be distinct from the other formations, as its magmas are sourced from a shallow, relatively depleted, and later subduction-induced metasomatized mantle, along with its young stratigraphic position. It has long been known that the lowermost American Bar flows (AB1&2) of the Imnaha Basalt are chemically similar to those of the PGB, yet the Imnaha Basalt is generally thought to carry the strongest plume source component. These opposing aspects motivated us to revisit the compositional relationships between AB1&2 and PGB. Our findings suggest that tapping a shallow, variably depleted, and metasomatized mantle reservoir to produce earliest CRBG lavas occurred across the province, now pinpointed to ~17 Ma. Moreover, compositional provinciality exists indicating regional differences in degree of depletion and subduction overprint that is preserved by regionally distributed lavas, which in turn implies relatively local lava emplacement at this stage