Presentations

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Sharanya Ananth

Electing Jokes: Late Night Comedy, Political Knowledge, and Bitter Partisanship

In this presentation I examine the impact of late night comedy television shows upon elections and the greater political discourse. This topic for my paper and presentation was chosen due to the increased viewership of late night comedy during and following the 2016 presidential election. I look at ways that late night shows have, on some occasions, shaped perceptions of policy and politicians. Additionally, I discuss how many viewers receive a great deal of political rhetoric from these late night comedy shows and share both personal anecdotes and statistics regarding the issue of political knowledge based on a survey that I conducted of 56 individuals who ranged in age from 16 to 57. I also explore how late night comedy often reflects the culture around us, from expansion of programming to online formats to the representation of marginalized groups to overwhelming partisan attitudes. The findings indicate that late night comedy presents difficult political matters in a more palatable form and encourages political discourse.

Fidaa F Almuhaysh

Evolution of Antagonistic Anti-Metal Epistasis in Escherichia coli

Jessica Barselow

Roller Derby in the Media

Serena Brown, Seleta Jaggernauth, Risuin Ksor

Deep Listening in the Grassroots: Community Building in District 2

The local non-profit, Beloved Community Center, feels that as a community, Greensboro has not been successful in guiding and nurturing the city’s low-income youth and black and brown youth. Beloved has termed their approach to changing this culture, a “paradigm shift” (Pursuing a Neighborhood Paradigm Shift, 2017, p. 1). The organization believes that, in the public’s eyes, this group of young people is looked at negatively, and the paradigm shift aims to change that perception. As part of this initiative, Beloved Community Center is recruiting, and training youth in organizing and for jobs through the Beloved Organizing, Training, and Healing Institute (BOTHI). To support Beloved’s efforts, Guilford College students in the Community & Justice Studies Capstone course are partnering with the organization and community researchers to help identify young people in Greensboro’s District 2 to mobilize for BOTHI. Drawing on a Participatory Action Research method, students and community members are doing individual interviews and focus groups with thirty District 2 residents. The purpose of the research and these conversations is to identify assets and needs in young people’s neighborhoods, stimulate them to think critically about their community, and ways to address the issues they face, and engage their interest in BOTHI. This presentation will highlight the preliminary findings of this project.

Abby Carter

Quality TRANSmission: A look at trans characters on TV and what makes "good" representation

Media has a very powerful effect on people’s perceptions. The way minority groups are represented in popular media impacts the the daily life of individuals within those groups, in a variety of ways. Through an analysis of nine TV shows, Sense8, Orange is the New Black, The OA, Transparent, The Fosters, Faking It, Shameless (US), Billions, and Doubt and the transgender character(s) in each of those shows, this research forms an idea of what is necessary for accurate representation of the transgender community, representation in general, and how to consider and consume “good” or “bad” media representation.

Alice Croom

Drugs, Fashion, Sex, and Despair: An Adults Struggle to Connect with Alice

Lewis Carroll’s 1865 masterpiece Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland seems to have an immortal life in endless forms making it a relevant piece of literature in 2018. The curious aspect of this is that Alice lives on most popularly in forms that Carroll could never imagine. Many of the most recent adaptations contain allusions to the life Charles Dodgson (the real name of Lewis Carroll) led, which included an obsession with young girls and their innocence. Music, movies, and runway collections, have claimed inspiration from these original characters and have interpreted them in ways that make the modern Carroll historian cringe with discomfort. Why then, we must ask, have adults used Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to help them express sexual, dark, and substance-related desires? Through an analysis of the company that modern-day Alice from Wonderland keeps, I will attempt to answer this question.

Hadis Daqiq

Stay or Leave: Living Conditions of Refugees’ and Immigrants’ in Greensboro

Through small focus groups, with interpreter assistance as needed we better understood millennial awareness within refugee populations about Fair Housing Resources available through the Landlord Tenant Dispute program. Our proposed project attempted to tap into the 18-35 years age group, investigating to what degree they are aware of the Fair Housing Resources as well as what factors influence their decision to reside in or leave Greensboro. We assessed the program effectiveness by soliciting feedback on program use. We also assessed why residents choose to live in or would leave substandard housing, and what they believe their housing options are.

An important, powerful motive underlying this effort was for relatively recent arrived Asian-American community members (especially, refugee families from Bhutan and Nepal, Central Highlands of Vietnam and Burma) to share the question, “What do we have in common?” Based on responses from community partners, we believe this question must be openly pursued in order to deliver meaningful results to the residents while respecting, amplifying and reinforcing the work of community partners.

Mei Fujie

The Sense of a Space in “Archaic Torso of Apollo,” by Rainer Maria Rilke.

Rainer Maria Rilke is an Austrian Poet from the end of 19th to the early 20th. When readers read Rilke’s “Archaic Torso of Apollo,” they feel they exist the creative art world beyond their existing world. The poem plunges the readers into the pure and natural world of “mysterious entities” which Rilke experienced. “Archaic Torso of Apollo,” is his response to a torso carved by Auguste Rodin, the French sculptor. However, the poem does not merely explain the detail of the torso, but shares the inexpressible experience with the readers. His transcendence is to share his experience with readers, which is the idea of a space. One of Rilke’s ideas of a space relies on Nature, which Rodin also followed in his artwork. Besides, Rilke intentionally takes up a space between readers and his work, and he inevitably holds a space between his inner world and his terms. I will talk about these three ideas of Rilke’s space in “Archaic Torso of Apollo.”

Jeniffer Gonzalez Reyes

Is the Yellow Laser like Sodium?

Sodium lamps have been a part of our everyday lives for almost 100 years. The yellow-orange glow of urban skies at night comes from sodium street lamps. For us to perceive light as yellow, the wavelength of the light must be between 570-590 nm, but the wavelength of "true" yellow is the same as the sodium D-line, which measures 589 nm. Lasers only emit at one single wavelength, but until recently, colors beyond red, green, and blue have been prohibitively expensive. Yellow laser pointers claiming to emit at 589 nm are now selling for a few hundred dollars. Yellow lasers could become an option to replace harmful LED lights today and decrease the amount of light pollution in the United States and Europe. As yellow lasers become more affordable to the public, we can ask: how accurate are the claims of the laser manufacturers? Do they truly emit at 589 nm, matching the sodium D-line? I will report on an experiment to test the wavelength of the 589 nm DPSS Yellow Laser System F Series. This experiment is based on an article by James Lincoln: Introducing the yellow laser. If the wavelength of the laser matches that of sodium, laser light should be absorbed by sodium burning in a candle flame. I will compare the brightness of the yellow laser behind burning sodium with that of a red laser, which should show no absorption.

Sarah Hammood

Metal/Antibiotic Pleiotropy and Epistasis in E.coli.

Heavy metals, such as silver (Ag), have been used as antimicrobial agents. In contrast, metals, such as iron (Fe) is essential for bacterial growth. We utilized experimental evolution to create to create 5 Fe3+-resistant populations of Escherichia coli K12MG1655. These cell lines/cells or strains exhibited superior growth in increasing concentrations of Fe3+ compared to controls. These resistant populations were also tested for resistance to traditional antibiotics (ampicillin, tetracycline, polymyxin B, rifampicin, and bacitracin) and showed superior growth at increasing concentrations of these antibiotics. Whole genome sequencing revealed genomic variants that contributed to Fe3+ resistance. Selective sweeps of de-novo mutations occurred in fur (ferric iron uptake regulator), nusA (transcription/anti-transcription terminator), rhoA (transcription terminator), and fecA (ferric citrate outer membrane transporter). This study examines whether fitness epistasis due to ferric iron genetic background impacts selection for ionic silver resistance and the correlated trait antibiotic resistance. Five Ag+Fe3+ cell lines were established. After selection, the AgFe3+ populations were tested for antibiotic resistance. It was shown that antibiotic resistance gained from Fe3+mutations was lost after being selected for Ag+ resistance. We are preparing to sequence the Ag+Fe3+ populations to determine the genomic mutations associated with the loss of antibiotic resistance.

Sophia Hazlett

Hidden from the Headlines: Human Trafficking

The term mass media encompasses the diverse collection of mediums that are responsible for communicating information to the general public. In modern American culture, one such medium has become increasingly influential as a primary facet for information: online news outlets. These news outlets have the power to alter consumers’ perspectives on prevalent global issues. One such issue, human trafficking, remains hidden from the headlines of mainstream American news media. In conjunction with poor coverage, the pressing global issue is displayed in a manner that is not suggestive of its prominence nor its complexity. As a result, the general public is left with dangerous misconceptions.

Brad Hennings

Sleep Paralysis and Lucid Dreaming

This paper aims to examine the relationship between lucid dreaming and sleep paralysis. These phenomena are ostensibly related; they are both dissociative states entered into in the REM stage of sleep. Sleep paralysis is often entered into at the dissolution of a lucid dream; lucid dreams can be achieved from the grips of sleep paralysis. Yet, as anyone familiar with both of these states can attest, the experiences of these two phenomena are markedly different. The questions explored here are (1) what are the differences in predisposing factors for these two experiences?, (2) how are the effects they have on the dreamer different from one another? and (3) how can studying sleep paralysis and lucid dreaming in relation to one another help minimize the negative effects of these experiences while enhancing their benefits?

Michael Johnson

Principal Component Analysis of Mass Extinctions Using the Paleobiology Database

Anna Kelly

Moving Towards Internal Authenticity: Religious Tourism, Journey Narratives, and SBNRs

In their “About Me” section, a tour company called Sacred Earth Journeys declares, “Now is the time to set forth on an adventure of self-discovery at one of the world’s most powerful sacred sites. Where will your journey take you?” In this presentation, I will be sharing one section of my senior thesis research, which investigates religious tourism and the Spiritual, but Not Religious (SBNR) movement as facets of the modern American religious climate, showing the ways in which religious tourism offers a practical application of SBNR performance and how inversely the SBNR movement offers a theoretical method of analysis for religious tourism. In this abridged version, I will demonstrate the ways which these two phenomena rely on journey narratives, in both physical and spiritual manifestations, which remain firmly rooted in traditional pilgrimage rhetoric. I argue that by shifting to an individualistic evaluative mechanism, scholars can more accurately analyze religious tourism as a form of religious practice, rather than simply a niche market within the general tourism sector.

Anna Kelly, Billie Dunn-McMartin, Christopher Collins

Moving Towards Internal Authenticity: Religious Tourism, Journey Narratives, and SBNRs

his project is the culmination of the AsiaNetwork Student-Faculty Fellows grant, which contributed $20,000 toward a month-long fieldwork trip to Southwest China. Our project tells the stories of students and their families’ experiences with mandatory, centralized state boarding schools in Shangri-la (Chinese: 香格里拉, Tibetan: Gyalthang). The core themes of our project include the trials faced by familial separation due to obligatory boarding at centralized schools, students’ perspectives on their experiences in these schools, and the effects school centralization has on local Gyalthangpa Tibetan identity. We also seek to understand how ethnic traditions and language use affect the lives of our interviewees in light of the changing contexts of education. Although we were based in the town of Shangri-la, through fieldwork visits to schools and villages throughout the county, we learned from teachers, students, school administrators, and rural parents about their perspectives and experiences with this new educational system.

Nima Lama

Making Connections: Model Minority and Do the Right Thing

The histories and stories of Asian Americans and the consequence of their Model Minority identity will be traced through a scene between the Korean American store owner and the African American residents of Bed-Stuy in the movie, Do the Right Thing. Asian Americans are underrepresented in their views and struggle due to the misconception fostered by the Model Minority stereotype when in reality it's evident that Asian Americans are also going through similar dilemmas as faced by other minorities.

Rosie Magura

Conservation Significance of Scientific Whaling in Japan

Whaling stands out as one of the most controversial and emotionally charged environmental issues today, due to heated moral debates and conservation concerns. The ethical and cultural complexities surrounding this issue are essential to understanding the issue, but this project focuses on the scientific side of Japan’s whaling. Drawing from a variety of scientific literature sources, this project addresses the significance of molecular testing, the necessity of lethal sampling, and other aspects of Japan's scientific whaling projects.

Eli Phillips

Excerpts: Life and College through Composition and Recording

This presentation will highlight my experiences writing and recording my own album. This project also serves as my senior thesis for the Guilford College Honors Program. I will explain the methodology behind my work and give a brief demonstration of a few features on Logic Pro X, the software I used to record and produce this music. I will speak to my process concerning both writing and recording original songs. I will also compare the process of working alone to my time collaborating with others, both within this project and in other musical endeavors. Lastly, I will discuss my imminent plans for this album as well as my future writing and recording goals.

Travis Poulos

Unbarred: Exploring the Role of Jailhouse Lawyers in Freeing the Wrongfully Convicted

Mumia Abu Jamal once wrote that law practiced in jail is "law written with stubs of pencils...law learned in a stew of bitterness, under the constant threat of violence, in places where millions of people live, but millions of others wish to ignore or forget” (2009, p. 32). This presentation will focus on jailhouse lawyers, prisoners who learn the law while incarcerated with hopes of getting or giving others around them a second chance. The talk will begin with a brief explanation of what a jailhouse lawyer is, while also looking at the process of becoming a jailhouse lawyer and why jailhouse lawyers are necessary and important in the criminal justice system. Following the explanation, the topic will shift focus to the role that jailhouse lawyers play in freeing individuals who have been convicted and incarcerated for a crime that they did not commit. The National Registry of Exonerations along with other news databases provide several cases of exonerations that were obtained with the help of jailhouse lawyers. Through a content analysis of news reports, National Registry of Exoneration case files, and legal decisions, this presentation will examine the nature and extent of efforts by pro se innocent inmates and jailhouse lawyers in contributing to the exonerations of wrongfully convicted prisoners.

Ridge Ren

A Photograph at a Time: The Impact of Photography on America’s Social Reforms and Its Wars

First enabled for mass production by William Henry Fox Talbot’s development of negative form printing, photography has since become a staple in newspapers. Often accompanied with articles to explain a phenomenon or demonstrate an idea, photography serves a crucial role in how the news is conveyed. As a standalone medium, photography can recreate a scene with little to no context, what Neil Postman called “a particular fragment of the here-and-now” in Amusing Ourselves to Death. Of course, the context in which a photograph was taken gives it historical relevance and a target towards which the audience can direct their emotions. However, written discourse alone cannot duplicate the efficiency of photography in conveying raw emotions. Throughout the 20th century, journalists utilized the camera to document the various internal and external struggles America faced. From the Great Depression to the Vietnam War, photography has prevailed as an iconic medium for reflecting the public sentiment and contributing to citizens urging the government towards change.

This presentation focuses on five notable photographs from American history and analyze their historical contexts and lasting impressions. The presentation also discusses the nature of photography as a medium and its impact.

Addison Ronis (PECS 350 Class Panel), Tessa Young, Sierra Mendez-Neff, Amelia Wellman, Ginger Mandel, Dyamond Jefferies Kerr, Tay Bornstein

Food Security at Guilford College

This student panel discussion will address our research regarding food accessibility at Guilford College. We have conducted several focus groups, sampling a variety of Guilford College students, as a part of PECS/SFS 350: Food Justice, Sovereignty, and Peace. We have come to have an understanding of some of the systemic food issues that exist on this campus and have gathered a number of potential actions to be made in order to address these issues. After conducting this research, we also have grasped the sheer urgency for change on this campus. Our food system is reflective of our sense of community, inclusivity, accessibility, and sustainability. As Guilford College continues to strive for these values, it is imperative for us to be critical of our food system in order to drive positive change.

Finn Shepherd, Hayden Young, Rachel Chmelko

Implications of Gendered Perceptions of Facial Features

Perceptions of facial features can affect individuals in numerous facets. Previous research has failed to appropriately examine these perceptions in relation to non-binary people, as well as the aspects of facial features related to gender ambiguity and androgyny. The current study examined participant ratings of four faces with round or angular cheekbones and jawlines as masculine and feminine, as well as which feature combinations would be coded as non-binary, male, or female. Our analyses showed that round jawlines resulted in high ratings of femininity and gender coding as female. Other facial features did not result in significant effects on ratings of masculinity or femininity or on coding gender. Because gender perceptions can be associated with facial features, specifically a round jawline, individuals who have these features and identify as non-binary may be affected by these perceptions in multiple dimensions of their lives, including in the Guilford College community.

Praveena Somasundaram, Abigail Bekele, Julia Martins de Sa, Andrew Walker

The Journalist as Witness: Politics, Protests & Displaced Peoples

The journalist as witness is a fundamental force in a democracy and our world. In this current political climate, some politicians and members of the public challenge the role and legitimacy of the news media. With our experiential program, professional journalists coach and inspire the next generation of journalists who will serve the public interest.

During this weekend, students learn what it’s like to tackle a story on deadline, to work in a team with an editor to produce a story for print, the web or broadcast. They have a chance to spend time with experienced professional journalists who will inspire and mentor them. The students will leave campus and spend time in the community. Members of the community are then invited to campus to see their stories—the students’ work—screened on the final evening. The students will forge friendships and build networks in the community and among their peers and professional journalists. It’s a rewarding experience of both learning and service.

Participating colleges and universities: Guilford College, Ohio University, University of Mississippi, Allegheny College, University of North Carolina Greensboro, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University.

The conference and multimedia workshop is hosted in partnership with the Center for Principled Problem Solving.

Mara Stewart

Breaking Down Barriers: HIV/STD Testing

Building on an internship from this past summer at Triad Health Project (a local HIV/ STD testing clinic), I used my experience to establish two testing events this past year. From these events, I learned about different barriers that prevent people from getting tested and how to break these barriers down.

Risa Suzuki

Having Fun in Learning German

I enjoy learning German at Guilford College. I had been interested in German because of my curiosity for languages, some songs I knew, and some facts about Germany. Also, people told me that Dave was a great professor, and when I got to his class, his teaching fascinated me. We practice communicating in class after we study by ourselves with Dave’s unique textbook. He uses various approaches such as visual materials, group activities, and songs. I always look for what I can “steal” from him as a language education major and hopefully, a future English teacher. Since singing is an effective way to learn languages, I am going to try teaching some Japanese with a song in this presentation.

Julia Tasho

Anti-Homophobia with Anti-Trans Implications

Caroline Webster

It's Getting Hot In Here: Tariff Pressures on Solar Panels and Their Effect on Labor Within the Solar Electric Power Generation Industry

While a trade war with China looms due to President Trump’s proposed tariffs on steel and aluminum, these tariffs are not the first to be levied upon China in the name of protectionism. Roughly one year after Trump’s inauguration, tariffs on solar panels from China were imposed using the justification that these trade moves would bring back jobs to the United States. This analysis will attempt to clarify what can happen to an industry when the federal government interferes due to a protectionist outlook on the economy through the lens of labor economics. An examination of the demand for labor in the Solar Electric Power Generation Industry will be examined from multiple angles. First, the expected demand for labor resulting from tariffs will be discussed, followed by an examination of the factors that affect general demand for labor. Then, employment and unemployment trends will be discussed in terms of past employment trends, current occupations, and future employment trends. Lastly the business cycle and economic conditions will be discussed, and how those have affected firms within the solar electric power generation industry. Market predictions based on this analysis will include economic and political indicators within the United States.