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The field of aesthetics uses a range of model systems in its research, including natural landscapes, animals, abstract art, and computer-generated graphics. Each of these models have different strengths and weaknesses, some of which make it difficult to conduct in-depth, extensive research. In the midst of a larger study into the human aesthetic preference, many of
the existing model systems were evaluated, and it was found that a new model system, Butterflies and Moths, may provide a comprehensive solution to many of the problems currently faced by these models. This article provides commentary on the existing model systems, and provides an evaluation of this new proposed model as a feasible alternative for research in
aesthetics.
Keywords: Aesthetics, model system, aesthetic preference, lepidoptera, research design
The Gothic movement of the 17th and 18th centuries is characterized by supernatural horror and frightening settings, but the literary label of “gothic” is notoriously difficult to define. Explication of the word’s two historical meanings—that of the barbaric Gothic tribes and the medieval European Gothic architecture movement—reveals a dual-sided interpretation of
cultural history. Gothic texts portray the past as something simultaneously barbaric and illustrious, and this contradiction is what makes history itself a subject of terror and confusion. Through historical settings like castles and figures like vampires, Gothic fiction confronts complicated history and seeks to expose its threatening nature and its tendency to try to haunt the
present and restrict both social and individual progress. This gives the Gothic genre adaptability, as these same devices can reflect upon any society’s history by exploring past violence and power structures that the culture anxiously seeks to both repress and romanticize.
Keywords: gothic fiction, history, temporality, romanticism, vampires
The African diaspora saw slave traders transport millions of Africans to the New World. Arriving in the Americas, enslaved Africans produced a culture which synthesized their bondage with traditional African ideologies. The first element vital to American slave philosophy—the soul—integrated all individual objects into a single cosmological unit fashioned by an
omnipotent deity. Music, the second fundamental aspect of African life, mingled with slave principles creating the spiritual. Long assumed to be solely religious, spirituals represented slave life. Sewing, cooking, chopping wood, raising children, tending crops, and death served as material in the creation of spirituals and displayed the complexity of African slave life.
Keywords: Spiritual, Religion, Philosophy, Slavery, Ring Shout
This study researches the controversial social institution of lobbying. The author outlines the nature of lobbying and its role in American economic and political history. A brief overview of laws relating to lobbying is also included. The author particularly focuses on the role of lobbying in the American political establishment as well as its potentially corrupt influence on the legislative processes. There is a discussion regarding the merits of lobbying and potential ways to combat corruption while taking advantage of lobbying’s benefits. A comparison is also made between America and the European Union, including how much they spend and the comparative levels of corruption. The paper concludes by offering potential regulations that could make lobbying practices in America less corrupt.
❐ PDFKeywords: Lobby, Corruption, Representative, Legislature, Influence
Sharon Draper’s Out of My Mind tells the story of Melody, a fifth grader with cerebral palsy who cannot verbally communicate through speech, as she navigates the challenges she faces while searching for a way to speak her mind within her classroom spaces. Using Kenneth Burke’s dramatistic model, I analyze characters’ motives in two scenes of Draper’s novel. In addition, I examine motives—Melody’s and those of the people around her—as they interact with and in the narrative’s spaces. This research helps to deepen readers’ understanding of how inclusion and exclusion can be explored within spaces of literature. As a future educator, I want to expand the conversations regarding both inclusion and exclusion within educational spaces and to advance theories that can help educators to be more aware of inclusion within their classrooms.
❐ PDFKeywords: Dramatism, Narrative Spaces, Motives, Young Adult Literature, Disabilities
The oxeye daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare), is a prolific flowering species and noxious weed found in 49 countries worldwide. A factor that may contribute to the invasive success of L. vulgare is the process of allelopathy, which is the chemical inhibition of the germination or development of one species of plant by a neighboring species. L. vulgare has been shown to produce candidate allelopathic chemicals specifically in its inflorescence. However, the specific identity of possible allelopathic chemicals remains to be thoroughly explored, and the rhizomes, roots, and leaves of the oxeye daisy have never been analyzed for these species. We employed both Head Space-Solid Phase Microextraction (HS-SPME) and Soxhlet extraction with Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) to investigate the volatile organics of the roots, rhizomes, and rosettes of L. vulgare. A total of fifty-seven volatile organic analytes were identified including five potential allelopathic species: caprolactam, nonanoic acid, dihydroactinidiolide, dibutyl phthalate, and tetracosane.
❐ PDFKeywords: allelopathy, gas chromatography, solid phase microextraction, Soxhlet extraction
Terror Management Theory (TMT) claims that humans seek meaning and significance to manage the fear of death by investing in self-esteem and cultural worldviews. Both symbolic and literal immortality serve to protect individuals from the threat of death by providing a sense of significance to life. There has been little research within TMT that investigates issues of groups within the United States, including the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women (MMIW). Misclassification, inaccuracy in documentation, and lack of data are some factors that contribute to the ongoing issue and have made it difficult to analyze. The purpose of this research was to measure how thoughts of death, versus thoughts of immortality, affect the compassion that individuals exhibit towards MMIW. Seventy-seven college students in the southwest United States participated in the current study. A between-subjects design was utilized to compare the degree of compassion exhibited towards MMIW when conditioned with one of the three primes (death, immortality, neutral). We hypothesized that the immortality group would exhibit the most compassion towards MMIW and found that neither condition showed greater compassion. Certain demographic characteristics of our sample population may have had an effect on the results.
❐ PDFKeywords: Terror management theory, missing and murdered Indigenous women, compassion
Terror Management Theory (TMT) claims that humans seek meaning and significance to manage the fear of death by investing in self-esteem and cultural worldviews. Both symbolic and literal immortality serve to protect individuals from the threat of death by providing a sense of significance to life. There has been little research within TMT that investigates issues of groups within the United States, including the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women (MMIW). Misclassification, inaccuracy in documentation, and lack of data are some factors that contribute to the ongoing issue and have made it difficult to analyze. The purpose of this research was to measure how thoughts of death, versus thoughts of immortality, affect the compassion that individuals exhibit towards MMIW. Seventy-seven college students in the southwest United States participated in the current study. A between-subjects design was utilized to compare the degree of compassion exhibited towards MMIW when conditioned with one of the three primes (death, immortality, neutral). We hypothesized that the immortality group would exhibit the most compassion towards MMIW and found that neither condition showed greater compassion. Certain demographic characteristics of our sample population may have had an effect on the results.
❐ PDFKeywords: Terror management theory, missing and murdered Indigenous women, compassion
Marie Kondo’s The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing has quickly become a cult favorite since its American publication in 2014. The popularity of the KonMari Method combines various Japanese spiritual and architectural influences to improve the physical and spiritual lifestyles of participants. Kondo continues to surpass other organizational influencers, as her name has become a worldwide, household staple in many countries—a direct result of the new wave in the minimalist culture. Although, as Kondo’s philosophy has become marketed to create a brand that includes various products, a Netflix show, and numerous publications, it seems that much of her original philosophy is becoming Westernized. Despite the extension of her brand and continued work, Kondo still reflects major Japanese cultural components that differentiate the KonMari Method from other modern-day organizational techniques.
❐ PDFKeywords: Marie Kondo, Japanese Aestheticism, “spark joy,” organization, “tidying up”
With current focus on clean energy options for the goal of reducing pollution and climate change, thermoelectric materials are seeing a renewed interest. While the operating principles are easy to understand and apply experimentally at the undergraduate level, increasing the efficiency of thermoelectric materials remains a challenge at all levels of research. The
work presented here is a complete module of thermoelectric undergraduate study, from modeling in Comsol Multiphysics to fabrication and thermal characterization. The Comsol model of a thermoelectric 3 component generator successfully mimics the experimental prototype while mechanical grinding leads to a stable compound of Bismuth and Tellurium with the same melting point as a compound fabricated at high temperatures followed by grinding and cold pressing.
Keywords: Thermoelectric, materials science, Comsol Multiphysics, thermoelectric generator model
This research analyzes how American media culture depicts a desirable male through representations of masculinity and body image, and how these representations shape the identities of young males. The processes that culminate in identification formation will be described, and the thorough evaluation of personal narratives will examine how my exposure to hegemonic messages within popular American youth television influenced the formation of my plus-size identity. This will aid in clarifying how these representations can damage social perceptions of plus-size males, therefore also impacting how plus-size males form their own identities. Through the use of autoethnography, I will be dissecting American media culture, and furthermore exposing the greater experience of plus-size male youth within American culture.
❐ PDFKeywords: Body-image, masculinity, identification, television, adolescents
Trends related to Virtual Reality (VR) and its application in the field of advertising have been predominantly positive. Yet, there are instances where it has had a negative impact on consumer buying decisions. Evidence indicates that consumers support and invest in a brand after experiencing a VR based product simulation. However, when simulations are not realistic, or are viewed to be overwhelming they can elicit a negative brand image. My study thus aims to specifically understand if VR based advertising can reduce brand value. I thus propose a VR simulation for a top online retail brand founded on prior research and discuss its research design model to study its impact on brand value. Implications and future research are discussed.
❐ PDFKeywords: Virtual Reality, Brand Value, Brand Attitude, New Age Advertisements, Purchasing Intentions