Presenter: Andrew Aaberg
Project Adviser: Benjamin Narvaez (History)
Title: Race, Imperialism, and Freedom: The United States’ Encounter with Cuba’s Ten Years’ War
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #109, 3:00 p.m.
Through an analysis of nineteenth-century American newspapers, academic work, and secondary sources this project seeks to understand American responses to the Ten Years’ War. My project answers several interrelated questions. How did the American government respond to Cuba’s first war of independence? Why didn’t the American government actively insert itself into this war if Cuba was central to U.S. foreign policy at this time? How did the American public respond to the Cuban struggle for independence and how did this response compare to and interact with the U.S. government’s response to developments in Cuba? Moreover, how did concepts of race, freedom, and imperialism during the rise and fall of Reconstruction in the United States shape these positions? Preliminary research suggests that the American public and U.S. government understood these conflicts differently, and this project ultimately seeks to expand on the context of these American responses to explore these questions.
Presenter: Genevieve Berendt
Project Adviser: Sarah Buchanan (French)
Title: Silence and Scream; Women’s Options and Oppressions in Maghrebi Cinema
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #114, 2:00 p.m.
My research analyzes how women represented in certain North African films use silence and screams to resist their subjugation. Les Silences du palais (Moufida Tlatli, Tunisia, 1994), Rachida (Yamina Bachir-Chouikh, Algeria, 2002) and L’Enfant endormi (Yasmine Kassari, Morocco, 2004) are female-directed and female-centered films from the Maghreb. All three of these films have powerful and dynamic scenes in which women who are oppressed, especially in their use of speech, respond to their domination with silence and screaming. Patriarchal structures in their societies strictly regulate when, where, and with whom they can speak. My argument is that, although screaming is often seen as empty and silence is interpreted as passive acceptance, screaming and silence become a language act for the women in these films, a linguistic performance allowing them to counteract their oppression. While scholars have studied screaming in Les Silences du palais, there has been no research into how silence and screaming interplay in other women’s films from North Africa. I have filled this gap in scholarship. My methodology begins by using Florence Martin’s critical work on women’s voices in the Maghreb as my theoretical framework. I then engage in close-readings of certain scenes in the films to elucidate nuances of voice and silence. In my presentation, I will discuss one of these dynamic scenes where women who have little to no options in their impossible situations voice silence or scream as both defiance of their oppression and as solidarity with each other.
Presenter: Rani Bezanson
Project Adviser: Farah Gilanshah (Sociology)
Title: Conquering Gender Stereotypes One Football at a Time
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #114, 2:40 p.m.
In the U.S., gender stereotypes in sports are real. As a result, women who are involved with professional sports, either as players or have professional positions face negative stereotypes. When women have coaching positions, they feel unsupported from administrators and colleagues, which has a direct impact on their involvement and prove their credibility at their jobs (LaFountaine and Kamphoff 2016). My thesis here is that there is a relationship between the impact of negative stereotypes for women who are active in sports and their involvement. For, they do not receive sufficient support. The hypothesis, taken from the above thesis, is that is there a relationship between the negative stereotyping of women and the impact on their involvement in their job? In order to test my hypotheses, I used qualitative research methods, reading extensive literature research from the articles of peer-reviewed journals, books, and stories of personal experiences of professional women in sports. The results showed that women who have profession in sports do receive negative stereotyping and it’s impact on their involvement. Therefore, I believe, this is an area that needs to be addressed and dealt with, so that women can enter in this profession positively.
Presenter: Kaylee Christenson
Project Adviser: Nadezhda Sotirova (Communication, Media, Rhetoric)
Title: Instagram and Tattoo Artists: The Social Media Portfolio
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #112, 3:00 p.m.
Having faced previous challenges with sharing work and content, tattoo artists has made major advances in terms of business and marketing on social media platforms. Specifically, these artists have made themselves noticeably present on Instagram in recent years, so the push to analyze the strategies they utilize to sell a service successfully possesses valuable information for those interested in personal branding and social media marketing. The results from this content analysis hone in on specific strategies, techniques, and trends that have been employed by these particular users of Instagram such as the utilization of Instagram's logarithm, implementing visual themes, and personalizing their connection with their audience through Instagram stories.
Presenter: Amanda Donley
Project Adviser: Athena Kildegaard (English)
Title: Baptist Buddhist
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #112, 2:20 p.m.
The creative nonfiction piece I have written expands on how I was raised, the religious and social contexts in which I grew up, and how my education has brought me to where I am today. Unlike writers like Brian Doyle, Anne Carson, or Amy Leach who present a more lyrical, almost poetic form of essay, I have written an essay that, in its current draft, is more like those of John McPhee which offers a narrative telling of a story. Creative nonfiction writing allows me to process through words how I feel or think about certain topics in a way that others can understand. The meandering way through which I tell my story reflects the way I and many others go about dealing with faith. I work with peers and professors both in and out of the classroom to edit and assist in telling my stories in the most understandable way possible. I work on each sentence meticulously to hone in to what I am trying to say—each and every word is vital. It is an exhaustive process that lacks any sort of rubric or rules. This is what makes creative writing so difficult. It is also what makes it so unique.
Presenter: Jessica Gardner
Project Adviser: Daniel Demetriou (Philosophy)
Title: Defense of Excluding Psychopath from the Insanity Plea
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #114, 3:00 p.m.
Psychopath Jerrod Murray woke up one day in December 2012 and decided to murder a stranger to experience the feeling of taking a life. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity and sent to a mental institution where he was recommended for release one month later. Cases similar to this one have provoked several states, most recently Oklahoma, to exclude psychopathy from the insanity plea. Several legal theorists, including Antony Duff, argue that psychopaths are not responsible for their crimes because they lack the mental framework that aids in moral understanding. In my presentation, I counteract this point and defend the decision by psychopath-skeptical states to hold these individuals responsible and exclude them from utilizing the insanity plea. I advance my objection to Duff based on analysis of other legally excused biological impairments. This leads to my conclusion that psychopaths can be reasonably expected to adhere to societal laws even without full moral understanding.
Presenter: Charles Hassinger
Project Adviser: Farah Gilanshah (Sociology)
Title: The impact of family support of the victims of sex trafficking who seek professional care
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #114, 2:20 p.m.
According to the Polaris Project, the International Labor Organization estimates currently 4.5 million people are victims of human trafficking globally. My project investigates the intersection of conventional health professionals’ treatments for the victims of sex trafficking and the role of supportive family in helping victims reintegrate into mainstream society. My thesis is, that there is, for victims to recover, a relationship between strong family support and professional health care. My research questions are: 1) Is there a relationship between strong family support of victims and successful reintegration into the mainstream of society after professional health care? 2) Will the victims with supportive families maintain an ordinary life after receiving professional care, compared to those with non (or no) supportive families? In order to answer my questions, I did an extensive literature research from books, peer-review journal articles, newspapers, and websites related to the case studies that were done in the United States and selected countries from Asian societies (Cambodia, India, Laos, Myanmar (Burma), Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, and Yunnan Province of China). My findings show that in the case of the United States, professional health care combined with strong family support, helps the victims achieve a better quality of life. However, in the case of Asian countries, it is more likely for victims to be introduced to sex trafficking through family members. In these cases, the treatment from professional health care is more complex and care for these victims need to take the cultural context into consideration and I suggest more research to be done in this area.
Presenter: Sarah LaVoy
Project Adviser: Julia Dabbs (Art History)
Title: Preserving Gaawaabaabiganikaag: a Project to Document and Analyze the Ceramic Traditions of the White Earth Reservation
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #101, 2:40 p.m.
The White Earth reservation in Minnesota contains an ideal intersection of natural resources that has influenced the traditional way of life for indigenous people for thousands of years. Because of its richness, the land was chosen by tribal leaders over six hundred years ago and was called Gaawaabaabiganikaag, or “the place of white clay”. However, the significance of the clay to the Anishinaabe, to their traditions, and to their way of life is unrecorded. Two questions directed my UROP research: 1) What was and is the significance of the clay to the people of the White Earth reservation?; and 2) What factors led to the decline of this ceramic traditions? I answered these questions through interviewing tribal elders and by researching the historical impacts of boarding schools, treaties, and the fur trade on Anishinaabe tradition. Although my research has obtained answers to these questions, it has also demonstrated that the answers are more complex than we might assume.
Presenter: Feifan Lu
Project Adviser: Barbara Burke (Communication, Media, Rhetoric)
Title: Everybody can be a live streamer, What's more in Chinese live streaming Apps?
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #101, 3:00 p.m.
Living in a world with different types of social media at our hand, user-generated content flourished in Chinese live streaming App. The behavior of sending virtual gifts has become so popular in Chinese context. Why would viewers want to spend money on buying virtual gifts and sending to live streamers they don’t even know? I conducted a mixed methods study of content analysis and survey looking at the engaging experience between the streamer and the viewers on the App DouyuTV. More specifically, I examined the pattern of the current live streaming sessions in face value categories. And the survey responses helped me better understand people’s attitudes towards current live streaming. The findings uncovered a complex live streaming industry in China, highlighting that steamers’ collaboration, good looking and streamer having talent can provide a better viewing experience.
Presenter: Corinne McCumber
Project Adviser: Tisha Turk (English)
Title: Action, Experience, and Responsibility: Using "I" and "We" in High School Writing
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #112, 2:40 p.m.
In the field of composition studies, scholars often debate how educators should train students to use different forms of academic writing. Of particular interest, a trend has emerged in high schools where students are banned from using the words “I,” “me,” “we,” and “us” to avoid sounding subjective--even though scholars consistently employ these first-person pronouns for rhetorical effect. In this presentation, I will closely examine how scholars use first-person pronouns in award-winning works. In particular, I will show how scholars employ “I” and “we” to introduce personal examples, to call readers to action, and to reassert responsibility for their work. Then, I will argue that high school teachers must accurately represent these rhetorical techniques in their classrooms, even to younger writers, and I will suggest possible lesson plans to help students use their first-person pronouns responsibly.
Presenter: Jacob Miller
Project Adviser: Athena Kildegaard (English)
Title: Red Wing, Minnesota: An Exploration of Place
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #112, 2:00 p.m.
The need to explore the realities of life, which drives my writing, necessitates the exploration of place. Other creative nonfiction writers have also published works on place—see, for example, Bill Holm’s The Music of Failure, a collection of essays on southeastern Minnesota. However, Red Wing has not been the focus of a creative nonfiction essay. I have drawn on histories, geological surveys, and my own experiences living in Red Wing to try to understand the specific joys and problems of living there. I made a discovery that surprised me: the issues of white and Native American relations were more integral to my community than I had thought. Deep and honest reflection on these relations became essential to understanding my relationship to my place. During this reflection, I met my original goals of reaching a new understanding of my home. I hope to encourage my audience to examine their relationships with the places they inhabit, and provide insight on what it means to share them.
Presenter: Jennifer Peterson
Co-Presenter: Lily Fulton
Project Adviser: Tracey Anderson (Biology)
Title: Decomposition and macroinvertebrate colonization of riparian leaf species
in the Pomme de Terre River
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #101, 2:20 p.m.
Riverbank vegetation provides leaves and wood to the stream which provide food and habitat to macroinvertebrates, which in turn provide food to fish and other organisms. Invasive plants and agricultural stream banks change the leaves and wood that fall into the stream, and thus the food webs that depend on decomposing organic matter. We studied the role of riverbank plant leaves as habitat and food for macroinvertebrates in the Pomme de Terre River. Our objectives were to characterize tree cover along the riverbank using GIS, the decomposition of leaves of four native and invasive plant species, and the abundance and diversity of macroinvertebrates colonizing experimental leaf packs. Leaf packs contained boxelder, cottonwood, buckthorn or cattail leaves. Leaves were dried, put into mesh bags and attached to submerged logs in the river. Paper punchers were used to take leaf samples. Macroinvertebrate abundance differed significantly between leaf species (ANOVA, p= 0.0284), but taxon richness did not. Riverbank species with more robust leaves such as cottonwood and cattail provide stable habitat to the stream. Delicate leaved species such as buckthorn and boxelder decompose more quickly and may provide food to macroinvertebrates in the form of coarse and fine organic matter.
Presenter: Khondoker Prio
Co-Presenter(s): Yujing Song, Abenezer Monjor
Project Adviser: Nicholas McPhee (Computer Science)
Title: UMM Energy Consumption and Prediction Software System
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #109, 2:40 p.m.
UMM has long valued renewable energy and sustainability and has invested in solar cells and wind turbines. Since they both however heavily depend on time and weather conditions, the power harvested fluctuates. They produce, on average, about 60% of the electricity used on campus, but there are times when we produce more than the campus uses. When these specific occasions arise,the power harvested cannot fully be utilized and is sent back to the grid due to the lack of local storage. The rate we receive for contributing this excess electricity is typically substantially less than the rate at which the university buys power from the grid. We are working on a real time power monitoring system that compares the power consumption of the entire campus with the power from renewables.. If, for instance, students had our access to our forecasting system on their phones could see when the campus is likely to be producing excess electricity and plan energy intensive activities like laundry.
Presenter: Khondoker Prio
Co-Presenter(s): Kriss Baye, Denis Oshtroushko, Justice Robinson, Michael Small, Samuel Yuan
Project Adviser: Barbara Burke and Jennifer Zych Herrmann (Communication, Media, Rhetoric)
Title: UMM Marketing Technologies Efforts for International Recruitment
Type of Presentation: John Q. Imholte Hall, Room #101, 2:00 p.m.
Our marketing team interned with the UMM Admissions office in Spring 2018, working with Jennifer Herrman and faculty adviser Barbara Burke. Our goal is to boost international student recruitment which would expand our student diversity and intercultural relations. We determined a baseline for prospective student engagement by examining current web page traffic statistics on UMM’s international website and social media in terms of specific geographic regions and page access. We researched better alternative practices through scholarly journals and current international student surveying. Based on our research we offered a variety of suggestions for our pages such as making user-focused adjustments and making international pages more visually pleasing. We monitored resulting page traffic biweekly. We worked on search engine optimization (keyword targeting for visibility) to reach a wider audience with our newly implemented content. All of these efforts will help provide prospective international students with a positive and engaging impression of UMM.