Geology of the Butte Ore Deposit

Dr. John Dilles discusses the geochemistry of the porphyry Cu-Mo resource found at at Butte, Montana. The porphyry formed from dilute magmatic fluids that contained 1,000s of ppm Cu between 66 and 64 Ma, and at depths of ~8 km. The porphory is zoned from innermost Cu (Ag) ore; to mixed intermediate Cu (Zn, Ag) / Zn-MJn-Ag (Cu, Pb, Au) ore; to an outer Mn-Ag (Pb) ore that grades to barren quartz.

Looking at Chemistry in Hard to See Places: Understanding Energy Conversion at 1400° Celsius

Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) are promising devices for stationary and portable power and heat generation, because they can use complex fuels such as hydro-carbons, CO, and alcohols. Extreme, non-equilibrium conditions and high tem-peratures (≥ 700 ˚C) required for SOFC operation hamper efforts to understand the mechanisms of component degradation in SOFCs. This talk focuses on new insights into SOFC chemistry and the conversion of carbon-containing fuels (both hydrocarbons and oxygenated) into electricity, carbon dioxide and water, gleaned from a combination of techniques including electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, voltammetry, and vibrational Raman scattering.

Road Ecology: A Practitioner's Tale

Road Ecology is a relatively new sub-discipline of ecology that focuses on understanding the interactions between road systems and the natural environment. Wildlife crossings that allow animals to safely cross human-made barri-ers such as roads, are intended not only to reduce animal-vehicle collisions, but ideally to provide connectivity of habitat areas, combating habitat fragmentation. Wildlife mitigation strategies to improve the permeability of our infrastructure can include a combination of structures (overpasses/underpasses), at-grade crossings, fencing, animal-detection systems, and signage. One size does not fit all and solutions must be considered on a case-by-case ba-sis. Often, the feasibility of the preferred mitigation solution depends on a combination of variables including road geometrics, topography, traffic patterns, funding allocations, adjacent land use and landowner cooperation, the target wildlife species, their movement patterns, and habitat distribution. Joe and Deb will speak to the current road ecolo-gy practices in Montana and some real-world applications from the Department of Transportation.

Tracking Montana’s Groundwater: 20 Years of Lessons Learned

Long-term water-level measurements provide a fundamental indicator of the health of Montana's groundwater resources. For more than 20 years the Groundwater Assessment Program has monitored groundwater levels across the state. This lecture reviews the State's groundwater use and shows how climate variability, groundwater development, and land-use has impacted different aquifers.

Opportunities in Materials Processing: Metal Casting

Revitalizing manufacturing in the US is a hot topic, and the $1B National Network for Manufacturing Innovation (NNMI) has three new centers focused on metal casting. For structural applications, magnesium casting, structural die-cast alloys, austempered ductile and compacted graphite cast iron, and high strength steel promise dramatic weight reduction and improved performance. Recent experiments and modeling at UAB focus on the development of such new materials and processing routes. A study of the rare earth content in an aerospace magnesium alloy is presented.

Why is this Grizzly Bear in My Backyard?

This presentation provides an overview of the type of work that involves trying to resolve human/grizzly bear conflicts. Much of this work involves public education, cap-turing, handling, and monitoring grizzly bears, the use of Karelian Bear Dogs, and using new technology. Some of the new technology includes the use of remote cameras, an au-tomated bear trap, microchips, DNA, GPS radio collars, and an Electro-Optic/Infrared imagery system to locate grizzly bears.

Affirmative Action Endures Three Decades of Challenges: The Pursuit of Diversity on Campus

Race and affirmative action are among the most contentious issues in higher education. This talk will explore the constitutionality of affirmative action in college admissions. What principles and technicalities are dominating the discussion, and what strategies show the most promise?

Photonics Crystals: The Future of Microwave Signal Processing

The ability of cryogenic photonic crystals to carry out high performance microwave signal processing operations has been developed into systems that can: rapidly record broadband microwave spectra with fine resolution and high dynamic range; search for patterns in 40 gigabits per second data streams; and communicate via spread- spectrum signals that are well below the noise floor. The basic concepts of the technology and its many applications, along with an overview of university-industry partnerships and the growing photonics industry in Bozeman, will be presented.

Carbon Sequestration in the Kevin Dome, Nothern Montana

The Big Sky Carbon Sequestration Partnership examines the ability of geologic systems to safely trap anthropogenic carbon dioxide to mitigate its impact on climate. One such system is the Duperow Formation within Kevin Dome, a large sedimentary trap and cap structure that has a long history of oil and gas production. To test storage potential of the dome, naturally trapped carbon dioxide is extracted, compressed, and reinjected. Geophysical methods and monitoring wells provide evidence of the fate and transport of the re-injected carbon dioxide. This study and others like it demonstrate the efficacy carbon sequestration at an industrial scale.

Effects of Coalbed Methane Production on Stream Flow

Coalbed methane production has the potential to reduce instream flows in Powder River Basin streams. Quantifying this effect is difficult, but important, for water users in both Wyoming and Montana. Isotope tracing of coal aquifer groundwater entering the streams can help.

Applications of Stable Isotope Ratio Analysis for Social Science Research

Stable Isotope Ratio Analysis (SIRA) is the measurement of variation in different isotopes of same elements in a material. This technique is well-established in the natural sciences and has been long part of the methodological arsenal in fields such as geology and biology. More recently this technique has begun to be utilized in the social sciences, moving from initial applications in anthropology to potential uses in geography, public health, forensic science, and others. This presentation will discuss the techniques behind SIRA, examples of current applications in the natural and social sciences, and potential avenues of future research.

Archiving Montana’s Geologic Data

Since the 19th century, enormous amounts of time and money were invested in the exploration and development of Montana’s natural resources. These investments generated tremendous volumes of geologic, geophysical, and environmental data. Over the years, many of these data have been stored, forgotten, lost, or destroyed. In this lecture, Peggy discusses the steps the Bureau is taking to rescue and make the data available to the public.

The Technocrat - v. 35, no. 1

In this issue...movie review, Lady Diggers, collegiate volleyball, driverless cars, orientation, Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks, Mount Haggin, HPER, public lecture series

Euthanasia and assisted suicide in selected European countries and US states: systematic literature review

BACKGROUND Legal in some European countries and US states, physician-assisted suicide and voluntary active euthanasia remain under debate in these and other countries. OBJECTIVES The aim of the study was to examine numbers, characteristics, and trends over time for assisted dying in regions where these practices are legal: Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Oregon, Washington, and Montana. DESIGN This was a systematic review of journal articles and official reports. Medline and Embase databases were searched for relevant studies, from inception to end of 2012. We searched the websites of the health authorities of all eligible countries and states for reports on physician-assisted suicide or euthanasia and included publications that reported on cases of physician-assisted suicide or euthanasia. We extracted information on the total number of assisted deaths, its proportion in relation to all deaths, and socio-demographic and clinical characteristics of individuals assisted to die. RESULTS A total of 1043 publications were identified; 25 articles and reports were retained, including series of reported cases, physician surveys, and reviews of death certificates. The percentage of physician-assisted deaths among all deaths ranged from 0.1%-0.2% in the US states and Luxembourg to 1.8%-2.9% in the Netherlands. Percentages of cases reported to the authorities increased in most countries over time. The typical person who died with assistance was a well-educated male cancer patient, aged 60-85 years. CONCLUSIONS Despite some common characteristics between countries, we found wide variation in the extent and specific characteristics of those who died an assisted death.