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Our immune defenses have the ability to thwart efforts by microbes to invade our body and cause disease. One particular immune cell type, the macrophage, is central to this protective function. Two roles of these cells, phagocytosis (cell eating) and bacterial degradation, are vital to removing invaders from the body and directing the type of immune response that is generated. Phagocytosis involves ingestion, killing and degradation of microbes by macrophages. An important element involved in bacterial killing is the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), an enzyme involved in the inflammatory immune response that produces molecules that are toxic to bacterial cells. Different nutrients have been shown to influence the function of macrophages and the resulting immune response. One such nutrient is vitamin A, commonly found in colorful vegetables and animal livers. Retinoic acid (RA), a form of vitamin A, has been shown to promote a less inflammatory immune response, which is desirable for healing. Our research objective was to determine whether RA changed macrophage function at the level of phagocytosis and microbial killing. Phagocytic activity of RAW and J774 macrophages was quantified microscopically by enumerating ingested yeast in non stimulated and LPS-stimulated cells that were pre-treated with RA. These 2 cell lines were treated similarly, then lysates were prepared and either immunoblotted or tested by ELISA to detect iNOS. Our results indicated that pretreatment with RA reduced, but did not eliminate, both phagocytic activity and iNOS expression in RAW macrophages. This is consistent with the prediction that vitamin A promotes less inflammatory immune responses.
❐ PDFKeywords: immune system, biology, iNOS Expression, bacteria, macrophage
This study tested the hypothesis that individuals evaluate social media (i.e., Facebook) status updates more or less negatively depending upon the degree to which others have endorsed ('liked') the status update previously. For instance, we hypothesized that people would rate a status update (and the individual who has posted it) as more humorous if it has already been 'liked' by a large number of individuals. In addition, it was hypothesized that negative priming information about the person posting the status update (the 'poster') would negatively impact raters' evaluation of the status update and the poster.
Through Teagle Foundation Project distance mentoring, Amanda DeCarlo worked with Dr. Karol Maybury, Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Maine at Farmington.
Keywords: social media, priming, psychology
Between March 1942 and 1945 the War Relocation Authority (WRA) forced over one hundred and twenty thousand Japanese Americans into internment camps hastily constructed across the country. Small communities outside of the rural towns of McGehee and Denson, Arkansas located in the historically racially charged Delta housed two of these internment camps: WRA Internment Camps Jerome and Rohwer. At these two internment camps Japanese-Americans from the far West entered into Jim Crow era Arkansas and into a hotbed of established racial stratification. There is a distinct lack of academic research on these two particular internment camps, especially concerning the impact of racial stratification on the experience of the internees and their perceptions of the local populace. This research project intends to further investigate the racial tensions between whites, African-Americans, and Japanese-American internees by exploring the racially-charged modern history of the region, analyzing specific instances of violence and prejudice against the Japanese-Americans as case studies, and identify and explain the mentality of the internees. Primary source documents obtained during a research trip to the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, including numerous newspaper editorials from local newspapers and the Rohwer camp newspaper, WRA commission documents, and internee interviews are utilized to illustrate the history of the region and the resultant tension.
❐ PDFKeywords: internment camps, Japanese-Americans, race, racial tension, racial stratification, World War II
With the growing Latino population in the United States, Latino health concerns affect the nation as a whole. Data from the 2010 Census reports that Latinos currently make up 16 percent of the national population. Furthermore, while the total national population increased by 10 percent, the Latino population specifically grew by 43 percent. Clearly, this is a minority group whose presence in the nation is steadily increasing. With Latino population rates expected to continue rising, it is imperative to the overall physical health of the nation to explore and understand the structural factors contributing to adverse Latino health. Moreover, improving Latino health would also positively impact the nation’s economic and social health, as economic productivity is likely to increase with healthier workers. By addressing the disparities of a vulnerable group, the nation would demonstrate genuine concern and respect for its residents, thereby improving the social health of the nation through increased community participation and sense of national belonging. Through Teagle Foundation Project distance mentoring, Analia Albuja worked with Dr. Sumi Colligan, a medical anthropologist and faculty member at MCLA.
❐ PDFKeywords: Latino, Latino health, healthcare, US healthcare
In recent years there have been numerous movies, television shows, and novels that emphasize a strong heroic character. Extraordinary events typically result in a metamorphosis whereby the once mundane character becomes extraordinary. Previous research pertaining to audience identification with mass-media heroes holds that the individual characteristics of the consumer may determine the extent to which a person may exhibit vicarious self-inflation through mass-media heroes. Much of the research conducted on this area pertains to children; however, the present study focused on college-aged participants to determine whether certain personality traits correlate with vicarious self-inflation. The present study assessed whether self-esteem, introversion or extraversion, anxiety, high or low sensitivity, and self-efficacy could predict either a greater or lesser degree of vicarious self-inflation. It was hypothesized that lower scores on the self-efficacy and self-esteem scales, higher scores on sensitivity, introversion, and anxiety scales would result in greater vicarious self-inflation with mass-media heroes. While there was partial support for our hypotheses, the pattern was more complex and in some cases opposite to expectations. Specifically, lower anxiety and introversion scores were associated with higher reported levels of identification with the fictional hero(ine), rather than the converse. Implications for future research are discussed.
❐ PDFKeywords: mass media, heroism, self-inflation, self-esteem, superhero
Although the literary genre of memoir is defined somewhat differently from that of autobiography, essentially the scope of this research deems them one in the same. This project pertains to all forms of life writing: memoir, autobiography, journals, diaries, letters, and any other form of creative nonfiction. Through the comprehensive analysis of the literary women’s memoir in both style and substance, this research investigates the genre from its definition and construction to its intentional dialogic quality. The communicated episodes within each memoir converge with readerly understanding to dispatch dialogue, linking the memoirists’ narrative voices and the readers’ interpretive voices. This discourse illuminates patterns of identity both captured by the narrated experiences of the memoirist and discovered through interpreted meanings by the readers. Disregarding caveats against intentional fallacy, the objective is to reveal a deliberate camaraderie between memoirists and readers; this project reflects on such intentions as disclosed through the dialogic memoir, explains the theory supporting this thesis, and analyzes three distinctive examples of the genre under consideration. The memoirist is both creating non fictional stories that will reveal information about herself and probing her reader by innovatively urging her to analyze her own stories that mimic or relate, so that the reader, in the course of this examination, develops a stronger assertion of self through her relationship with the memoirist. The reader of memoir is not a fact-checker, but rather a seeker of patterns of meaning that she can relate to, which teach her more about herself and her own stories.
❐ PDFKeywords: memoir, nonfiction, literature, autobiography
Americans have a culture that celebrates violence. In 2002, 66.7 percent of the violent crime in the United States was committed with a gun. If we take the 5.6 murders per 100,00 population and subtract two-thirds, we obtain 1.86 per 100,000 non-gun homicides. This number is still higher than most other developed nations in the world.1 Could this inclination for violence be due to a cultural need for economic success. If so, how do states combat this violence? What kinds of social policy investments would be most effective? Might states investments in welfare spending create a situation where citizens are satisfied with the wealth they have, and therefore not tempted to commit crimes? The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effectiveness of state welfare spending in reducing violent crime. Through Teagle Foundation Project distance mentoring, Chris Rieve worked with Dr. Bill Lofquist, Professor of Sociology at the State University of New York at Geneseo.
❐ PDFKeywords: crime, violent crime, welfare, gun violence, government spending
The world of ecology is constantly changing and species survival often depends on approximations and measurements taken by biologists. These approximations help to ensure and predict the future of the given species. Our ecological community of interest involves a unique mixture of competition and predation known as omnivory – feeding on more than one trophic level. We then use a sensitivity analysis to determine how small changes in parameter values affect the solution to the system. Sensitivity analysis proves the importance in determining which parameters require the most attention from biologist to ensure the survival of that species. This mathematical evidence gives biologist crucial information about the future of these species and how each species reacts when small changes occur in parameter values. Our results showed that the mortality rate of the predator was the most sensitive parameter and the time the predator handles the consumer was the least sensitive of our parameter values.
❐ PDFKeywords: ecology, biology, omnivory model, omnivores
There exists a closed-form summation expression equivalent to the integral ∫ erx xn dx that is commonly encountered in the study of Calculus. After proof of this formula using the method of integration by parts combined with both cases of the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus, special cases are investigated and connections to other famous formulas are found. This culminates in an alternate and rather oblique proof of the well-known equivalence shared between the factorials and the Gamma function. Finally, it is shown that the sums of permutations of roots allow for a solution to be found for any given constant values present in the integral. Through further investigation using the simplifications and alternate closed-form functional representations found and proven in this paper, it can be shown that an interesting pattern emerges if we seek to solve ∫ erx xn dx = 0 for real values of r ≠ 0 and natural numbers n. Pairing programs such as Mathematica and MATLab with the simplified version of this integral, it becomes a possibility to discuss these patterns.
❐ PDFKeywords: mathematics, calculus, polynomial
Over time, memories can become layered, modified, or lost entirely. What does a moment look like after it has undergone these changes? To emulate this breakdown of memory and process of recollection, the artist has created a series of oil paintings that uses polyptychs, or multiple-canvas compositions, for the her exhibition Remnants of Fleeting Moments. The paintings reference new research in psychology and neuroscience; these studies have found that memories are reconstructed every time they are recalled, which distorts the perception of a moment further and further with time. Gaining inspiration from the artwork of David Hockney, Cubist painters, and Alex Kanevsky, these canvases form a single composition showing a figure repeated in a slightly different positions on each panel. The movement conveyed illustrates the fracturing of a single remembered moment, expressing the passage of time and relating to the fleeting nature of memory. Loose, amorphous layers of paint juxtaposed against sections of detailed rendering represent how some elements are remembered, while others are forgotten. The polyptych format compiled with the sense of continuous fading created by selective abstraction creates disorder; this encourages viewers to mimic the process of memory recollection by actually reconstructing the moment in the painting themselves.
❐ PDFKeywords: memory, oil painting, polyptych, art, painting
How do you tell how healthy an ecosystem is? There are different scientific methods to address this question, one of which is to look at the reptiles and amphibians which are present at a given site. Reptiles and Amphibians are good indicators of a healthy ecosystem since their lifestyle is dependent on water and the quality of their habitat to thrive. During my study I studied the health of two riparian buffer locations along the Guest River, in Wise County Virginia, using amphibian and reptile communities as a study system. Amphibians are especially susceptible to the degradation of an ecosystem due to their affinity to water. The locations used were a heavily-disturbed buffer zone in Norton, Virginia, and an undisturbed reference buffer zone at the Guest River Gorge in Coeburn, Virginia. At each site we placed coverboards and frog pipes in order to attract herpetofauna. We went to each site weekly, at different times, during the summer of 2012 in order to get a good sample size. At the Norton site, we found species that are known to be found in disturbed habitats, but few of the species known to be strong habitat specialists. From the differences of species found at each site, we determined that fewer disturbances in a riparian buffer zone will prove to be beneficial to herpetofaunal populations. Destroying the habitat in a riparian zone is harmful to many different species, even if it is not easily seen. The use of herpetofauna as indicator species is not commonly done in riparian buffer zones, but this study shows that it can be a good determinant for evaluating ecosystem health.
❐ PDFKeywords: ecology, reptiles, amphibians, buffer zones
This paper intends to further explore the reconciliation process within Rwanda. A post-genocide nation, Rwanda has set high standards for itself to overcome the divisions and ethnic tension of the past currently effecting citizens’ quality of life. The goal of this paper is to explain three of the institutions currently in place to help smoothly adjust Rwanda into a peaceful coexistence. Through theoretical analysis, these three programs designed to promote peaceful coexistence will be elaborated upon: Gacaca courts, ingando re-education camps, and the National Unity and Reconciliation Commission of Rwanda. These tools of reconciliation will be evaluated based on an expansive literature review as well as qualitative data collected by the researcher while in Rwanda. This paper will provide a more nuanced view of the complexities of reconciliation in post-conflict societies and a wider perspective on Rwandan culture and its political history.
Keywords: Rwanda, reconciliation, Rwandan genocide, reconciliation programs
As American presidential rhetoric has evolved over the last 225 years, presidents have increasingly sought new instruments to affect policy change and new mechanisms to communicate with the American people. Over the course of the last century, many have noted the rise of the rhetorical presidency where the quantity of speeches has dramatically increased and the purpose of presidential rhetoric has changed. In the Presidencies of George W. Bush and Barack Obama, their respective post-State of the Union tours have typified a relatively new dynamic of the rhetorical presidency. After a close examination of Bush and Obama’s Post-State of the Union tours in their second terms, one can see the continuing evolution of the rhetorical presidency and a predominantly personal mode of persuasion of the modern presidency. Through Teagle Foundation Project distance mentoring, John Tienken worked with Dr. Jay Self, Professor of Communication at Truman State University.
❐ PDFKeywords: United States of America, rhetoric, State of the Union, Barack Obama, George W. Bush
Iki (いき), as described by Kuki Shuzo, exists somewhere “between the lines” of consciousness. It is, in essence, a phenomenon of being which appears naturally, seemingly without intent to exist, as though it has manifested through the human unconscious – this ability of iki to blend into the culture can be seen through its multiple meanings in the Japanese language: iki (息) as “breath,” and iki (行き) as “going (outbound),” are two interpretations of the word; though its most interesting form comes from its place in the Japanese verb “to live,” or “to exist” as ikiru (生きる) – and as the stem of such an influential verb, this phenomenon is applicable to a wide variety of areas from art to architecture to music and even, as I intend to prove, to literature (which is an area neglected by Kuki). There remains, however, the question of the universality of iki – is it a concept unique to the Japanese people, or can it be found in societies around the world? Through Teagle Foundation Project distance mentoring, Kalynn Smith worked with Dr. Nozomi Irei, Assistant Professor of English at Southern Utah University.
❐ PDFKeywords: iki, Japan, Japanese culture
During an ethnographic study of Helpmate, a domestic violence shelter in Asheville, NC that provides "crisis-level services... [to] victims of domestic violence and their children" an intriguing question arose: where are the male counterparts to the predominately female volunteer and professional advocates at Helpmate? Through surveys and face-to-face informal interviews, Helpmate’s advocates expressed different positions on the role of men in domestic violence and intimate partner violence (DV/IPV) advocacy. The prevailing theme was that only a few males are involved in advocacy at the shelter and the broader DV/IPV advocacy community. Furthermore, participation was not only wanted by the respondents but also necessary to curb DV/IPV. In order to understand the complex role of men in DV/IPV advocacy and corroborate these findings, further investigation is required, namely a large scale study that complements and expands on the original research that will serve as a pilot study. Thus, the study has expanded into a full-scale, national research project and every DV/IPV agency in the U.S. will be approached for participation. The survey is available at DV-IPV-Advocacy.org and at the conclusion of the study, the site will become a repository for information related to DV/IPV for academics and advocates. The research will illuminate male roles in DV/IPV advocacy and provide insights on how to increase the participation of males in DV/IPV advocacy.
❐ PDFKeywords: Helpmate, domestic violence, intimate partner violence
The purpose of this quantitative research study was to evaluate a holistic perioperative medicine program that used non-pharmacological strategies to help patients manage pain and anxiety related to surgery. The research occurred in two phases. Phase one occurred before surgery and examined the effects of a one-hour holistic healing therapies (HT) session on anxiety and pain pre-post session (n=111). HT session modalities included guided imagery, eye pillow, aromatherapy, and a written personal healing plan. As predicted, patients significantly reduced anxiety and pain after the HT session. Phase two occurred after surgery, wherein patients (n=72) rated their satisfaction with how well the HT program addressed their physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. In addition, they reported how often they used HT components before, during, and after surgery. Most patients rated the program favorably. The majority of patients reported using program components to prepare for surgery, and many used them after during recovery. Findings offer promising scientific support for integrative medicine programs to help patients manage anxiety and pain related to surgery. Future studies should include randomized control trials to examine effective ingredients and underlying mechanisms of effects.
❐ PDFKeywords: holistic medicine, anxiety, surgery, nursing
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was an important civil rights victory for people with disabilities, granting them equal access to public life. Title III of the ADA requires public establishments to be accessible in both their business practices and their physical structures. Business owners who fully comply with the law serve the interests of a more ethical society, but small business owners may think that complying with the ADA is too complicated and burdensome. This research discusses feasible solutions for small business owners who find it difficult to comply with Title III of the ADA. Criteria for analysis include legal requirements, financial and time costs, and the interests of people with disabilities. The researcher concludes that education, careful planning, and creative solutions can make ADA compliance both profitable for business owners and beneficial to society as a whole.
❐ PDFKeywords: ADA, Americans With Disabilities Act, small businesses, civil rights, ableism
Renowned draftsman, printmaker, and painter Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec is made most famous by his depictions of performers. Female dancers, sex workers, and circus performers dominate many of his most well-known works. With their stereotypically low social class, sexualized performances, bare outfits, and attention gained from members of the opposite sex, it is sometimes easy to place female performers such these in the role of a powerless victim of commodification. Lautrec, however, through his dynamic depictions of these sexualized performances, subverts this notion and instead depicts these women as celebrities in power of their situation and surroundings.
Through Teagle Foundation Project distance mentoring, Mamie Cox worked with Dr. Elizabeth Gand, Assistant Professor of Art History at Fort Lewis College.
Keywords: Henri de Toulouse Lautrec, art, fine art, feminism
In our time of apparent global warming, pollution, overpopulation, and degradation of the planet in general, environmental attitudes, knowledge, and related behavior may well determine the survival of our species. Understanding the psychology of inaction may be the most pressing issue of our time. While attitudes and knowledge may be useful in determining who can best help in the monumental task of changing culture to accept that we must become caretakers of the planet if we are to survive, it will be behavior that actually makes this happen. The current study assessed attitudes, knowledge, and behavior concerning environmental issues to see if personality traits could predict who would or would not be active in working toward a sustainable world. Findings included a positive significant correlation between a measure of self-efficacy and environmental concern, but self-esteem and other measures were not related to environmental knowledge, attitudes, or behavior. Future research will continue to grapple with the complexity of this issue, as the research is inconsistent about who is motivated to work toward environmental sustainability and under what conditions this will occur. Implications of the research and possible future studies will be discussed.
❐ PDFKeywords: environment, environmental activism, psychology, climate change
Given enough time any science fiction television show will have an episode where two characters will temporarily switch bodies. This interest rises from our fascination with the idea of personal identity and wondering what makes an individual persist as the same person through time. The Doctor from the hit British cult series “Doctor Who” is a unique situation where despite undergoing drastic, sudden, and irreversible changes to both his personality and body he continues to remain The Doctor. While not necessarily a 'swap' the situation is similar; the person that was The Doctor is now in a new body and that body has an associated psychology, or personality different from what was The Doctor's. Philosophers through the ages have often addressed what constitutes personal identity. Many of these arguments address conceptions of the soul as the source of continuity and personal identity. Using The Doctor as an example I will attempt to formulate a criterion for determining personal identity based on how different philosophers have addressed the questions of soul and identity as well as looking at how they would address one of The Doctor's regenerations. In doing this I aim to determine if he is in fact the same person or a whole new entity completely separate from the person he was before. Robert Manley is a philosophy and religion major from Windsor, Ontario. He plans to teach English abroad and pursue graduate studies in epistemology and philosophy of mind.
❐ PDFKeywords: Doctor Who, identity, psychology
“The Merits of the ‘Christianization’ of Early American Blacks” is inspired by pre-1800 texts written by both oppressed and freed black authors such as Phillis Wheatley, Frederick Douglas, Olaudah Equiano, and John Marrant. Each author is critically assessed to situate their narratives within the most accurate confines of race, nationality, history, publishing culture, and religious perspective. This literary study is combined with historical background and post-colonial criticism to determine how Christianity defined the style of these writers and lead slaves to freedom. Antebellum South slave-owners and legislators intentionally used Christian doctrine to keep blacks in chains; however, this plan backfired: an increased faith in God among slaves lead to their physical as well as spiritual liberation. All these writers eventually rose up and defied the station white society had given them, and in the process each group exuded a confidence in their actions supported by their own independent understanding of the same biblical texts meant to humble them. With both the words of great black writers and the beginnings of black bible literacy, this essay is a celebration of redemptive literary power as much as a spotlight over conspicuously overlooked historical truths and figures, such as George Whitfield.
❐ PDFKeywords: literature, African-Americans, slavery, Christianity