@mastersthesis {438, title = {Analysis of Radial Growth Patterns of Strip-bark and Whole-bark Bristlecone Pine Trees in the White Mountains of California: Implications in Paleoclimatology and Archaeology of the Great Basin}, volume = {PhD}, year = {2006}, month = {2006}, school = {University of Arizona}, abstract = {

Dendrochronology focuses on the relationship between a tree\’s growth and its environment and thus investigates interdisciplinary questions related to archaeology, climate, ecology, and global climate change. In this study, I examine the growth of two forms of bristlecone pine (Pinus longaeva): strip-bark and whole-bark trees from two subalpine adjacent sites: Patriarch Grove and Sheep Mountain in the White Mountains of California. Classical tree-ring width analysis is utilized to test a hypothesis related to a proposed effect of the strip-bark formation on trees\’ utilization of atmospheric carbon dioxide. This effect has grown to be controversial because of the dual effect of temperature and carbon dioxide on trees\’ growth. The proposed effect is hypothesized to have accelerated growth since 1850 that produced wider rings, and the relation of the latter topic to anthropogenic activities and climate change. An interdisciplinary approach is taken by answering a question that relates temperature inferences and precipitation reconstructions from the chronologies developed in the study and other chronologies to Native Americans\’ subsistence-settlement patterns, and alpine villages in the White Mountains. Strip-bark trees do exhibit an enhanced growth that varies between sites. Strip-bark trees grow faster than whole-bark trees; however, accelerated growth is also evident in whole-bark trees but to a lesser degree. No evidence can be provided on the cause of the accelerated growth from the methods used. In the archaeological study, 88\% of the calibrated radiocarbon dates from the alpine villages of the White Mountains cluster around above average precipitation, while no straightforward relationship can be 10 established with temperature variations. These results confirm that water is the essence of life in the desert.

}, keywords = {Geology}, author = {Ababneh, Linah N.} } @mastersthesis {649, title = {Archaeomagnetic research in the United States midcontinent}, volume = {PhD}, year = {2004}, school = {University of Arizona}, abstract = {This dissertation combines archaeomagnetic and independent chronometric data from 240 archaeological features to develop a regional secular variation curve for the U.S. midcontinent. These data were obtained from features located between 31.5-40.5{\textdegree} N latitude and 82.5-93.5{\textdegree} W longitude that have been dated to between 60 and 10,700 cal BP. The archaeomagnetic samples were collected from 41 sites within this region over the past 35 years under the direction of four different researchers: Robert DuBois (University of Oklahoma), Daniel Wolfman (University of Arkansas and New Mexico State Museum), Wulf Gose (University of Texas at Austin), and myself. In this project, the data are initially smoothed through the moving windows method to form the first approximation of the curve. Outlier analyses and pairwise statistical comparisons are utilized to refine the smoothed curve, and the results are compared to other Holocene-aged secular variation records from North America. These analyses indicate that the final curve should be treated as three distinct segments with different precision and use recommendations. First, the 850-75 cal BP segment can be used to date archaeomagnetic sample from the project area with expected temporal precision of 100-200 years. Second, the 2528-850 cal BP segment can be used cautiously to date archaeomagnetic samples with an expected temporal precision of 200-300 years. Third, the 9755-4650 cal BP segment should be used for contextual dating purposes only, in that an undated sample can be put into a regional context through comparison with the segment{\textquoteright}s constituent samples. Finally, three archaeological problems are addressed through the archaeomagnetic data. First, archaeomagnetic data are used to resolve the temporal conflict between an eastern Tennessee structure{\textquoteright}s morphology and a much earlier radiocarbon date obtained for the structure. Then, archaeomagnetic data are used to address a number of internal chronology questions regarding three Powers phase sites in eastern Missouri. Finally, the sequencing of several protohistoric and historic sites in eastern Tennessee is examined through a series of archaeomagnetic data. }, keywords = {Archaeomagnetic research, Chronometrics, Midcontinent, Missouri, Tennessee}, url = {http://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=765928991\&sid=6\&Fmt=2\&clientId=43922\&RQT=309\&VName=PQD}, author = {Stacey Lengyel} } @mastersthesis {542, title = {Analysis and reconstruction of the relationship between a circulation anomaly feature and tree rings: Linear and nonlinear approaches}, volume = {PhD}, year = {2000}, school = {University of Arizona}, abstract = {Tree rings can be reliable recorders of past weather and climate variations. Tree rings from mountain regions can be linked to upper air atmospheric sounding observations and large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns. A {\textquotedblleft}synoptic dendroclimatology{\textquotedblright} approach is used to define the relationship between tree rings and a specific upper air anomaly feature that affects climate in the western US. I have also reconstructed this anomaly feature using both regression and fuzzy logic approaches. Correlation analysis between 500 mb geopotential heights and tree rings at a site near Eagle, Colorado reveals an important anomaly centered over the western US. This center can be viewed as a circulation anomaly center index (CACI) that can quantitatively represent the relationship between atmospheric circulation and tree growth variations. To reconstruct this index from tree rings, I used both a multiple linear regression (MLR) and a fuzzy-rule-based (FRB) model. The fuzzy-rule-based model provides a simple structural approach to capture nonlinear relationships between tree rings and circulation. The reconstructing capability of both models is validated directly from an independent data set. Results show that the fuzzy-rule-based model performs better in terms of calibration and verification statistics than the multiple linear regression model. The reconstructed anomaly index can provide a long-term temporal context for evaluation of circulation variability and how it is linked to both climate and tree rings.}, keywords = {Statistics}, url = {http://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=731915311\&sid=23\&Fmt=2\&clientId=43922\&RQT=309\&VName=PQD}, author = {Ni, Fenbiao} } @mastersthesis {653, title = {Aspen: Ecological processes and management eras in northwestern Wyoming, 1807--1998}, volume = {PhD}, year = {2000}, school = {University of Arizona}, abstract = {Quaking aspen stands in many areas of the intermountain west are currently dominated by older (>100 year) age classes and may be in decline. The goals of my research are to: (1) place current observations of aspen decline into context by using historical and ecological data to investigate the interaction of fire, ungulate browsing, climate and human institutions in the regeneration of aspen stands over the last two centuries; (2) evaluate the challenges and limitations associated with using ecological history for management of aspen and other systems; and (3) compare current and historical aspen regeneration across three elk winter range areas in the intermountain West. Based on results from stand age structures, aspen regeneration in the Jackson Valley has occurred episodically since 1830, with three major periods of regeneration: 1860-1885; 1915-1940; and 1955-1990. These multi-decadal episodes of aspen regeneration are related to similar variability in precipitation, where above average periods of annual precipitation are associated with aspen regeneration. However, significant levels of aspen regeneration have only coincided with low or moderate elk population estimates and fewer aspen have regenerated than expected when elk populations are high ( X 2 = 59.92, p < 0.0001). Current aspen reproduction, though minimal, is strongly affected by elk browse with percent browse significantly higher in elk winter range than outside of elk winter range (p = 0.051). Though extensive or frequent fires may have maintained aspen communities during the pre-settlement era, current management controlled fires have not affected aspen sucker density. The influence of multiple interacting processes and drivers in the Jackson Valley suggests that reconstructing past ecosystems as benchmarks for ecological management should be considered carefully. Given future environmental variability, reconstructions of past systems should focus on ecological relationships rather than on single states or processes. Comparison of aspen in the three elk winter range areas indicates that heavy browsing by elk populations has had a strong influence on episodes of aspen regeneration for the last 150 years in all three elk winter ranges. However, elk are not having strong impacts on aspen outside of elk winter range. }, keywords = {Ecology, Geography, Paleoecology}, url = {http://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=731957311\&sid=11\&Fmt=2\&clientId=43922\&RQT=309\&VName=PQD}, author = {Amy Hessl} } @mastersthesis {656, title = {The architecture of Grasshopper Pueblo: Dynamics of form, function, and use of space in a prehistoric community}, volume = {Phd}, year = {1999}, school = {University of Arizona}, abstract = {Architecture can be an enigmatic class of material culture to understand archaeologically and a single approach to its analysis has defied archaeologists. This study views pueblos as analogous to organisms that are constantly developing and degenerating. The ability to draw behavioral inferences from the architecture of Grasshopper Pueblo (A.D. 1300-1400) is impacted not only by these everyday processes of growth and degeneration, but also by the activities of the different social or ethnic groups who were responsible for assembling the pueblo. Fortunately, this study benefits from a long and productive history of architectural research in the American Southwest and from a thirty-year excavation program at Grasshopper itself, which produced a large and representative sample of this complex architectural organism. This extensive sample insures reliable inferences about the growth and degeneration of Grasshopper Pueblo because it is representative of the parameters of time, space, and behavior at the site. This study reinforces previous work at Grasshopper and provides new insights into intrasite community dynamics that have implications for both Grasshopper research and for studies of architecture and community patterns at other southwestern pueblo sites.}, keywords = {Architecture, Arizona, Grasshopper Pueblo, Prehistoric, Use of space}, url = {http://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=733967641\&sid=16\&Fmt=2\&clientId=43922\&RQT=309\&VName=PQD}, author = {Charles Riggs} } @mastersthesis {663, title = {The archaeological measures and social implications of agricultural commitment}, volume = {Phd}, year = {1996}, school = {University of Arizona}, abstract = {This is a case study of the causes and consequences of the shift from a forager-farmer adaptive strategy to village agriculture in the Southwest{\textquoteright}s mountainous Transition Zone. The earliest inventions and adoptions of agriculture have attracted a steady stream of archaeological research, but far less attention has been given to the subsequent change to dietary dependence on and organizational dedication to food production--agricultural commitment. Although there is little doubt that the Southwest{\textquoteright}s large villages and small towns were committed to successful farming, methodological and conceptual problems have impeded archaeological analyses of the ecological and evolutionary implications of this revolutionary shift in how people related to the world and to one another. The rapid and radical change that occurred in the Transition Zone{\textquoteright}s Grasshopper Region during the late AD 1200s and early 1300s provides a high resolution glimpse at the processes and products of agricultural commitment--notably increasing reliance on farming and the development of permanent towns and institutionalized systems for resource and conflict management. The model proposed for the Grasshopper Region involves population immigration and aggregation leading to increased agricultural reliance and related changes in settlement and subsistence ecology as well as social organization. Critical issues involve the ecological, social, and theoretical significance of these shifts, the methodological capacity to track dietary, settlement, and organizational change archaeologically, and the implications for understanding Western Pueblo social development in terms of seeing the Grasshopper occupation as an experiment in agriculturally-focused village life.}, keywords = {Fort Apache Indian Reservation, Mogollon culture, White Mountain Apache Tribe}, url = {http://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=739663551\&sid=2\&Fmt=2\&clientId=43922\&RQT=309\&VName=PQD}, author = {John Welch} } @mastersthesis {727, title = {An Application of Climatological Water Balance Modeling to Dendroclimatology in the Black Hills of South Dakota}, volume = {Master of Science}, year = {1993}, pages = {138}, school = {University of Arizona}, abstract = {

Tree-ring data from bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) and ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) were used to investigate the relationship between annual ring width and soil moisture in the Black Hills area of western South Dakota and eastern Wyoming. Soil moisture values were developed from a water balance model (SNWBAL), using climate data from weather stations in the area.

The response between the tree-ring chronologies and climate and water-balance variables shows a strong relation between annual ring growth and precipitation and soil moisture. The best variable combinations for reconstructing the local drought history were identified from this analysis.

Several statistical approaches were used to check the internal consistency of the data and to determine the relationship between the various data sets.

A scenario for further study, especially for the reconstruction of past climate variables was drawn based on the results of response analysis.

}, author = {Wanmei Ni} } @mastersthesis {728, title = {Age structure and fire disturbance in the southern Sierra Nevada subalpine forest}, volume = {M.S.}, year = {1991}, school = {University of Arizona}, abstract = {I used age structure to examine the role of fire disturbance and climate on the population dynamics of the subalpine forest in the southern Sierra Nevada. I cored trees on ten 0.1 ha plots (3300-3400 m elevation) that varied in species composition, from single-species foxtail pine (Pinus balfouriana) or lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta, var. murrayana), to mixed-species stands of both pines. Crossdating was used to produce accurate dates of tree recruitment and fire events. Age structure varied by plot species composition: lodgepole pine recruitment pattern is pulsed, sometimes forming single-cohort patches in response to fire; foxtail pine plots have a more steady pattern of recruitment; mixed-species plots show an intermediate recruitment pattern. Fire may maintain a species composition mosaic in the subalpine forest. Foxtail pine regeneration may increase in areas opened by fire, although not immediately following fire. Low-intensity fire may spread over areas larger than previously reported under certain conditions in the subalpine zone. In addition, unusually frequent, extreme, and/or extended periods of drought may severely limit subalpine tree regeneration. Growing season frost events and grazing before 1900 may also have affected trees establishing in the subalpine zone.}, url = {http://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=747829851\&sid=7\&Fmt=2\&clientId=43922\&RQT=309\&VName=PQD}, author = {MaryBeth Keifer} } @mastersthesis {526, title = {Agroclimate, Harvest Variability, and Agricultural Strategies on Prehistoric Black Mesa, Northeasthern Arizona}, volume = {PhD}, year = {1991}, school = {Indiana University}, author = {Lebo, Cathy J.} } @mastersthesis {533, title = {Applications of Box-Jenkins Methods of the Time Series Analysis to the Reconstruction of Drought from Tree Rings}, volume = {PhD}, year = {1981}, school = {University of Arizona}, abstract = {The lagged responses of tree-ring indices to annual climatic or hydrologic series are examined in this study. The objectives are to develop methods to analyze the lagged responses of individual tree-ring indices, and to improve upon conventional methods of adjusting for the lag in response in regression models to reconstruct annual climatic or hydrologic series. The proposed methods are described and applied to test data from Oregon and Southern California. Transfer-function modeling is used to estimate the dependence of the current ring on past years{\textquoteright} climate and to select negative lags for reconstruction models. A linear system is assumed; the input is an annual climatic variable, and the output is a tree-ring index. The estimated impulse response function weights the importance of past and current years{\textquoteright} climate on the current year{\textquoteright}s ring. The identified transfer function model indicates how many past years{\textquoteright} rings are necessary to account for the effects of past years{\textquoteright} climate. Autoregressive-moving-average (ARMA) modeling is used to screen out climatically insensitive tree-ring indices, and to estimate the lag in response to climate unmasked from the effects of autocorrelation in the tree-ring and climatic series. The climatic and tree-ring series are each prewhitened by ARMA models, and crosscorrelation between the ARMA residuals are estimated. The absence of significant crosscorrelations implies low sensitivity. Significant crosscorrelations at lags other than zero indicate lag in response. This analysis can also aid in selecting positive lags for reconstruction models. An alternative reconstruction method that makes use of the ARMA residuals is also proposed. The basic concept is that random (uncorrelated in time) shocks of climate induce annual random shocks of tree growth, with autocorrelation in the tree-ring index resulting from inertia in the system. The steps in the method are (1) fit ARMA models to the tree-ring index and the climatic variable, (2) regress the ARMA residuals of the climatic variable on the ARMA residuals of the tree-ring index, (3) substitute the long-term prewhitened tree-ring index into the regression equation to reconstruct the prewhitened climatic variable, and (4) build autocorrelation back into the reconstruction with the ARMA model originally fit to the climatic variable. The trial applications on test data from Oregon and Southern California showed that the lagged response of tree rings to climate varies greatly from site to site. Sensitive tree-ring series commonly depend significantly only on one past year{\textquoteright}s climate (regional rainfall index). Other series depend on three or more past years{\textquoteright} climate. Comparison of reconstructions by conventional lagging of predictors with reconstructions of the random-shock method indicate that while the lagged models may reconstruct the amplitude of severe, long-lasting droughts better than the random-shock model, the random-shock model generally has a flatter frequency response. The random-shock model may therefore be more appropriate where the persistence structure is of prime interest. For the most sensitive series with small lag in response, the choice of reconstruction method makes little difference in properties of the reconstruction. The greatest divergence is for series whose impulse response weights from the transfer function analysis do not die off rapidly with time.}, keywords = {Hydrology}, url = {http://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=753124981\&sid=10\&Fmt=2\&clientId=43922\&RQT=309\&VName=PQD}, author = {Meko, David Michael} } @mastersthesis {575, title = {Allometric Analysis of Plant Growth in Woodland Communities}, volume = {PhD}, year = {1980}, school = {Utah State University}, abstract = {Several allometrically-based equations were derived to describe the changes and the similarities in the structure and shape of semiarid woody plants that occur with growth. The derivations utilized general hypotheses based on the assumption that one of the principal purposes of a plant{\textquoteright}s structure is the efficient support and distribution of its leaves. Results from analyses of plant branching systems were used to derive allometric relationships between selected variables of plant size and shape. A close correspondence often occurred between the parameters resulting from the derivations and those that resulted from empirical analyses of field data. The variability of some relationships was found to be linked to increasing tree dominance, and/or increasing tree size. Changes potentially linked to differing site quality were also observed for some relationships. Other relationships remained relatively uniform over a range of successional stages and also potentially uniform over a range of site quality. The analyses revealed important crown structure and foliage distribution similarities, as well as differences, between the plant species studied. In general, large plants were often less variable, relative to their size, than small plants. Each species also has a relatively consistent leaf distribution within its crown. A number of implications and applications of the results to plant sampling and vegetation analyses were discussed. This includes discussions of the need for, and possible means of obtaining, adequate methods of determining site quality for woody plant communities in non-timber producing regions. Overall, the analyzed allometric relationships resulted in a generalized working model of plant growth and development, particularly for the changes in size, shape and biomass that occur with growth.}, keywords = {Ecology}, url = {http://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=749271331\&sid=1\&Fmt=2\&clientId=43922\&RQT=309\&VName=PQD}, author = {Tausch, Robin} } @mastersthesis {487, title = {An Attempt to Verify Dendroclimatic Reconstructions using Independent Tree-Ring Chronologies}, volume = {MS}, year = {1979}, school = {University of Arizona}, abstract = {An attempt was made to verify dendroclimatic reconstructions of July Palmer Drought Severity Indices (PDSI) and of seasonal temperature and precipitation in the contiguous United States by means of tree-ring chronologies not used in the calibration procedure. Eight tree-ring chronologies were developed from white oak (Quercus alba L.) on five sites in Iowa and were used in statistical verification procedures along with 26 other chronologies from the eastern and central U.S. Six types of statistical test were used to detect linkages between tree-ring series and actual or reconstructed climatic series. Only those chronologies showing significant linkages with actual climatic data were used in verification attempts. Successful verifications of two PDSI reconstruction sets for two regions of Iowa using the Iowa chronologies were attributed to validity of these reconstructions and strong linkages of the Iowa chronologies to actual July PDSI data, and it was concluded that verification of dendroclimatic reconstructions using independent tree-ring chronologies is possible. Unsuccessful verification attempts in all areas tested for the temperature precipitation reconstructions and for one PDSI reconstruction in four regions of the Ozarks area were attributed to invalidity of these reconstructions and secondary to weaker linkages of the independent chronologies to actual data of these variables.}, author = {Duvick, Daniel Nelson} } @mastersthesis {552, title = {An Analysis of Radial Growth of Chestnut Oak and Pitch Pine}, volume = {MS}, year = {1977}, school = {Virginia Polytech Institute and State University}, keywords = {Forestry and Forest Products}, author = {Rauscher, Harald M.} } @mastersthesis {537, title = {An Analysis of Periglacial Climatic Indicators of Late Glacial Time in North America}, volume = {PhD}, year = {1972}, school = {University of Wisconsin}, keywords = {Meterology}, url = {http://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=759016511\&sid=7\&Fmt=1\&clientId=43922\&RQT=309\&VName=PQD}, author = {Moran, Joseph Micheal} } @mastersthesis {482, title = {Analysis of the Winter Climatic Pattern at the Time of the Mycenaean Decline}, volume = {PhD}, year = {1971}, school = {University of Wisconsin}, url = {http://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=761858411\&sid=4\&Fmt=1\&clientId=43922\&RQT=309\&VName=PQD}, author = {Donley, David Lee} } @mastersthesis {555, title = {An Assessment of the Role of Volcanic Dust in Determining Modern Changes in the Temperature of the Northern Hemisphere}, volume = {PhD}, year = {1971}, school = {University of Wisconsin}, keywords = {Meterology}, url = {http://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=756913801\&sid=8\&Fmt=1\&clientId=43922\&RQT=309\&VName=PQD}, author = {Reitan, Clayton Harold} } @mastersthesis {443, title = {An Aid to Help Park Naturalists to Acquaint Visitors with the Subalpine-Alpine Ecotone of Wesern North America}, volume = {MF}, year = {1967}, school = {University of Montana}, abstract = {This paper attempts to survey timberlines of western North America in a manner primarily designed to serve public interpreters of natural history, such as park naturalists. Hopefully, this broad discussion of the timeberlines will also be of interest to biologists and some members of the public. Much of the discussions is based upon personal observation of timeberlines...(no abstract provided, passage taken from introduction p.2)}, keywords = {Forestry}, author = {Arno, Stephan F.} } @mastersthesis {899, title = {The Archaeological Interpretation of Tree-Ring Specimins for Dating Southwestern Ceramic Styles}, volume = {Doctor of Philosophy}, year = {1963}, month = {1963}, school = {University of Arizona}, address = {Tucson}, abstract = {

The interpretation of approximately 5715 dated tree-ring specimens from about 342 archaeological sites in the American Southwest is the basis for \“dating\” the pottery types found in association. The time involved spans the period from the introduction of fired ceramics to the Spanish Entrada, approximately A.D. 1550.

The provenience and site situation information for both the dated tree-ring specimens and the associated pottery is tabulated for each site and site-area which has tree-ring dates, except when these data are accessible in the literature.

Criteria for establishing the validity of the association and provenience of the tree-ring specimens and the pottery are formulated. The interpretation and evaluation of the validity of these dates and associations is the basis for \“dating\” the various pottery types. The occurrence of pottery in \“Indigenous\” and \“Trade\” situation is presented separately; the pottery types in these categories are dated separately, in so far as possible, and then evaluated in terms of total distribution and context. Approximately 325 pottery types, varieties, and ceramic categories are dated on the basis of archaeological associations with tree-ring specimens. The data presented do not change the gross time placements of previous workers, but they do (1) refine some pottery dates, (2) reject others, and (3) give differing validity to additional ceramic dates.

The concept of \“pottery type\” is used as the analytical unit for dating Southwestern ceramics. The concept of \“Ceramic Style\” represents synthesis at a higher level of abstraction and does not lend itself to dating based on tree-ring material.

A progressive increase in the amount and range of traded pottery is noted through time. The increase in the distribution of various pottery types after about A.D. 1250 is also accompanied by an increase in attempts to make local copies of certain pottery types obtained by trade.

Decorated pottery types which occur as trade products tend to persist in later archaeological contexts and this situation is discussed as the \“Lasting Phenomenon of Traded Ceramics.\”

Southwestern pottery is distributed in prehistoric times on the basis of hand-to-hand or person-to-person contact and although the amount of trade and the spatial dispersal increase in time, particularly after 1250, this trade never reaches the same degree of institutionalization that is seen in Mesoamerica.\  An associated feature is an emphasis on the trading of small, decorated vessels, as opposed to large, utility or undecorated, ceramic containers.

}, keywords = {anthropology, Archaeology, ceramic, dating, dendrochronology, indiginous, lasting phenomenon of traded ceramics, pottery, site, southwest, spanish entrada, specimen, style, trade, tree ring}, author = {Breternitz, David Alan} }