Miami University Honors Program

http://hdl.handle.net/2374.MIA/5060

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The White Slave Trade and the Yellow Peril: Anti-Chinese Rhetoric and Women’s Moral Authority
Zmuda, Hannah; Hamlin, Kimberly; Johnson, Katie
Despite the mid-to-late nineteenth and early twentieth century’s cultural preoccupation with white women’s sexual vulnerability, another phenomenon managed to take hold of public consciousness: “yellow slavery.” Yellow slavery was the variation of white slavery (known today as sex trafficking) that described the practice when Asian women were the victims. This thesis attempts to determine several of the reasons why Chinese women were included as victims in an otherwise exclusively white victim pool. One of the central reasons was the actual existence of the practice, which this thesis attempts to verify through the critical examination of found contracts and testimony of Chinese women. However, beyond just the existence of the practice of yellow slavery, many individuals used the sexual exploitation of Chinese women for their own cultural, religious, and political ends. Anti-Chinese agitators leveraged the image of the Chinese slave girl to frame anti-Chinese efforts as anti-slavery efforts, as well as to depict Chinese immigrants as incapable of assimilating into American culture and adhering to American ideals of freedom. Additionally, white missionaries created mission homes to shelter and protect the Chinese women and girls escaping white slavery. However, within these homes, the missionaries were then able to push their perceived cultural and religious superiority by pushing the home’s inmates into their ideals of Protestant, middle-class, white womanhood. Finally, suffragists utilized concern for Chinese sex workers to call for women’s suffrage based on women’s unique moral authority to stop immorality, an authority that men did not share.
News Media Reporting of United States Senate Campaigns: The Role of Gender in Local Television Coverage of Elections from 2006 to 2014
Fedeli, Sophia
One explanation for the lack of women in elective office concerns the role of media in both shaping and reinforcing gender stereotyping through coverage of elections. Studies have identified gender stereotypes in nationwide television and print media as well as local newspapers, yet none have examined local television news. In this study, I reexamine these findings using a novel data set of local television transcripts of Senatorial campaigns over five election cycles, from 2006 to 2014. The findings reveal that media coverage of female candidates tends to be less biased than previous research shows. Female and male candidates received nearly equal amounts of coverage; however, gender differences in trait and issue coverage remains an issue.
Comparative Education Tier 3 Reflection
(2013-05-29) Banchefsky, Jessica; Armstrong, Rachel
The Comparative Education Tier 3 Reflection details the educational experience of students of the middle school age in various areas of Southwest Ohio as well as Europe. Specifically, conclusions are drawn based on research and observation to compare educational systems in Austria, Luxembourg, and the United States. Topics such as special needs treatment, student engagement, cultural differences, and technology are included.
It will all fit
(2013-05-24) Trout, Evan
A collection of poetry that explores the different moods of life, framed by five sections, each introduced by a stanza from a work describing life as a free verse poem written by God.
Ghana Design and Build Studio
(2013-05-24) Dalga, Julie; Armstrong, Rachel; Elliott, J.E.
In the summer of 2012 I, along with 15 other design students and our professor, travelled to Ghana Africa for a 6 week experience. We spent the first two weeks traveling the country and learning about the culture. The last four weeks were spent taking the knowledge we gained and combining it with our architecture and interior design knowledge to design and build a double occupancy teachers' cottage for the village of Abrafo Odumasi.
Sensory Reduction
(2013-05-20) Bayer, Molly; Gallagher, Patrick; Trapp, Christian; Richani, Chris; Calori, Devin; Bailey-Van Kuren, Michael
The purpose of the design project was to examine the methodologies involved in the development of a design solution to a given problem. Students worked in teams of five and worked with a client to consultatively identify a problem, develop a strategy to meet the client’s needs and compose a proposal for a solution. The team created a project management plan in the form of a Gantt chart, which was kept up to date as the project evolved, up until the final day. The team was encouraged to think creatively, using their individual backgrounds to enhance the group’s creative capacity. This required each member to respect the diverse disciplines at play and to understand the ever-evolving roles of each member of the group. The goal was to present a final deliverable to the client in a timely and professional manner. The client in this project was Kidspace, a multidisciplinary pediatric therapy clinic located in San Francisco, Californa. Kidspace provides occupational therapy, speech therapy, physical therapy and psychotherapy. Their clients seek treatment for a broad range of child development challenges including sensory processing disorders, Austism Spectrum Disorders, ADD/ADHD and a few neurological disorders. The teams worked closely with the therapists to understand their perspectives and concerns and to identify the problem that the design team would attempt to solve. Many of the children at Kidspace are sensitive to sensory feedback and are easily overstimulated by a variety of sensory inputs. During the busier times and transitions at Kidspace, the high levels of sensory input can create a difficult environment to have a productive therapy session. The goal of the project is to design an environment to reduce auditory and visual stimulation throughout the facility. A very thorough, human-centered design approach was followed, guided by the policies with which the design consultative firm, IDEO, has become so successful. This process included facility and interaction observations, large group brainstorming sessions, rapid prototyping, proposal analysis and selection, refinement and implementation. To address the issue of sensory reduction in Kidspace, the team inevitable designed three final products, which were formally presented to the client four weeks after the first meeting. The first deliverable was a working prototype of a partition that would be used to close off the gap in the wall between the waiting room and the main hallway to reduces the sound travel between the two areas. The second design was a working model of a door made of several overlapping 6” PVC strips. which provided a safe alternative to a solid door and also reduces sound travel between the gyms The final deliverable was a sound sensor implemented into a structure that hangs on the wall and provides feedback in the form of LED lights to indicate the noise level of the room. After the presentation, the client was very pleased with the products delivered, and it is likely many of these designs will come to fruition within the facility in the near future.
Measuring heart rate variability: a comparison of devices
(2013-04-30) Krekeler, Brittany; Scarborough, Donna; Bailey-Van Kuren, Micheal
Conducted by the Dysphagia Research Lab, Department of Speech Language Pathology. Proposed research is required to provide a comparison on the accuracy and efficiency of heart rate measurement devices. Results will allow for the improved collection of heart rate data in a series study relating to the alteration of the afferent limb of the gag reflex via a hand-glove device (in terms of autonomic response).
Outdoor Educational Center for Talawanda High Shool
(2013-04-29) Kotula, Stacy
For my Tier 3 experience, I will be designing an outdoor educational center for Talawanda High School. The new high school site includes a natural area consisting of wetlands, forests, planes, and agriculture. The high school is looking for ways for students to utilize and be integrated with the outdoor spaces to enhance their education.
Wertz Art + Architecture Library
(2013-04-26) Groth, Reid; Helen, Armstrong
The Wertz Art + Architecture Library needs more recognition from the Miami student population. The main objective of my thesis is an awareness campaign for the library, to not only help students find the library but also understand the available resources as well. This includes an informational brochure, wayfinding and signage, promotional material, and participatory events to get students involved in creating and promoting the library space. A secondary objective is to identify, understand and anticipate what students want and need from the Wertz Art + Architecture Library. By gathering data and surveying students I hope to help promote the needs of students. In the end, the library should be a welcoming, studious and inspirational space making students want to come back to study time and time again.
Geographic Factors in School Choice: Spatial and Social Accessibility in the Cincinnati Public Schools
(2012-05-04) Kay, Samuel; Prytherch, David; Medley, Kim; Quinn, Kelly
Open enrollment and school choice have been used throughout the United States for decades as a tool for desegregation, and in the Cincinnati, Ohio Public Schools (CPS) since 1973. Scholars have debated the effectiveness and fairness of school choice, but more geographical analysis is needed on the spatial opportunities and constraints that parents face. This paper explores the how geography factors in school choice. What are Cincinnati parents' geographic understandings and preferences including location, transportation, associations and assigned meanings? Using a survey of 25 CPS parents interviews with 11 CPS parents, I explored how these preferences affect parental school choice. CPS parents are particularly concerned with issues of safety, identity, and transportation. The paper concludes by discussing how a better understanding geographical factors in parental school choice may provide a basis for more effective policies to promote racial and socioeconomic equity.
The Delay of Gratification in Latina Mother/ Child Dyads
(2012-05-04) Farley, Holly; Harris, Yvette
The aim of this study is to explore the relationship among parental attitudes, parental teaching techniques and maternal level of acculturation and how these influence their child’s ability to delay gratification. This study is an extension of the one conducted by Mauro and Harris (2000), whereas the current study focuses solely on Latina mothers. The task consisted of a mother/ child patience teaching session and a contrived gift scenario, in which the child was instructed to wait to open a tempting gift. A modified assessment, excluding the mother/ child interaction and the child-waiting task, was used to learn more about the connection between parental attitudes and maternal level of acculturation. For the delay of gratification task, behavioral distractions were the strategy used most frequently. Overall the results showed that there was a significant correlation between restrictive parenting behaviors and the maternal level of acculturation.
The Geography of Remittances in Ghana
(2012-05-01) Adams, Christian; Yeboah, Ian
Migrant transfers and their remittances provide a significant source of capital flows and foreign exchange for Developing Countries. While peripheral regions like Sub-Saharan Africa are underrepresented in the remittance literature there is growing recognition that the region is globally important as a migrant sending zone and that subsequent remittances influence local economies (Yeboah 2008). For example, Ghana has experienced increased migration in the post-SAP era of decentralization, and Bank of Ghana estimates place national remittances in the $1billion range (Mazzucato, van den Boom and Nsowah 2008). However, research has largely failed to address the geography of remittances. In particular, little attention has been given to the usage of remittances by receiving households and how these uses vary with respect to their origin and destinations. My specific objective is to address the disparity in geographical research on remittances and Sub-Saharan African subjects by investigating the geography of remittances between migrant sending and receiving scales in Ghana, how this relates to the uses to which payments are put, and from these what deductions may be drawn about the impact of remittances on development.
Unpacked | A Girls Inc. Design Analysis
(2012-05-01) Griebel, Allison; Simmons, Dr. W. Michele
Organizations today communicate their missions and values primarily through the Internet and promotional materials. They are able to reach wider audiences, however they are also faced with the challenge of anchoring the abstract “audience” to concrete individuals with stories, thoughts, and experiences. Communicating with younger audiences adds a layer of complexity to this issue. How does an organization of adults create materials that connect with younger audiences? This is precisely the position of Girls Inc., a national nonprofit that works to inspire girls between the ages of six and eighteen to be strong, smart, and bold. This question is not only complex, but also broad. I therefore chose to analyze Girls Inc. messaging and materials in a holistic way by examining the materials from several angles. I applied two different visual rhetoric frameworks. Anne Wysocki’s The Multiple Media of Texts focuses primarily on the visual elements of texts including color, proportions, typeface, and the relationships between elements on a page. Roland Barthes’s Rhetoric of the Image focuses on the symbolic nature of linguistic and iconic messaging including cultural and societal contexts. In order to better understand what resonated with and empowered the actual young women who are the audience for these materials, and to give them a voice in the designs that address them, I conducted an IRB-approved focus group with high school women in Girls Inc.'s Teen Impact Initiative. Based on the feedback from the focus group with high school women, I identified strategies for ways visuals and texts may work together to resonate and create a sense of empowerment with these young women. Lastly, I created a mockup of a Girls Inc. website homepage based on the strategies identified in the focus group and design principles from Wysocki and Barthes.
Investigation of the use of Raman Spectroscopy for Non-invasive Glucose Calculation in Blood
(2012-04-30) Kleykamp, Jeffrey; Bayram, Burcin
According to a study by the American Diabetes Association, 171 million people or 2.8% of people in the world suffered from diabetes. It is important to get more information about blood sugar levels which would allow them to better control their blood sugar levels and help reduce complications. This project was motivated by similar work recently studied by a MIT group. This project uses a simulation of Raman spectroscopy to calculate the glucose content of the simulated blood. Specifically, we back out how much glucose is in our simulated sample and quantitatively understand error within the analysis.
Investigation of Double Resonance Spectroscopy of Iodine Molecules for Use in Quantum Beat Experiments
(2012-04-30) Corey McDonald; Dr. Burcin Bayram
The resonant B3PI+u to X0+g and resonant E0+ g to D02g to B3PI+u to X0+g transitions of I2 vapor have been studied by direct observation of fluorescence emitted from the B, E and D' states, respectively. Potential energy curves for the X0+g , B3PI+u , D0+u , D02g, A02u and E0+g states are calculated using Dunham coefficients from literature via the Rydberg-Klein-Rees Inversion Method. The generated turning points are then used to calculate Franck-Condon factors and Einstein A-coefficients. Both one and two-photon emission spectra are observed and analyzed.
The Effect of Bacterial Lipopolysaccharides on Immune Function and Adult Neurogenesis in the cricket, Acheta domesticus
(2012-04-30) Mendoza, Megan Ann; Killian, Kathleen
Neurogenesis is the phenomenon in which the brain produces new neurons. Neurons, which are located in the brain and spinal cord, are especially important to an organism’s function, as they allow for communication and information processing. Although the exact function of neurogenesis is unclear, recent studies suggest its importance in learning and memory. As a whole, our lab investigates the factors that can affect neurogenesis, such as environment and behavior. My study specifically looked at how the immune system of an organism could affect adult neurogenesis. We chose to look at immune function because many studies have linked immunocompetence to neurogenesis in vertebrate animals; it is our goal to investigate this relationship in an invertebrate model, the house cricket Acheta domesticus. To activate the immune system, we injected experimental crickets with bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). We compared immune activity and neurogenesis between experimental and control crickets. The cricket model was chosen because crickets have relatively simple immune and nervous systems which are easy to manipulate. Going further, they also have adult neurogenesis in brain regions functionally similar to those of mammals. We found that crickets treated with LPS exhibit a change in immune function, as shown by a decrease in phenoloxidase (an enzyme important in insect immune function) activity levels, a decrease in survival rate, and an increase in nodule number and size. We found inconclusive results on the effect of LPS injection on neurogenesis due to low sample sizes.
Wow Writing: An Emergent Writing Program for Kindergarten Students
(2012-04-30) Marcangelo, Alyssa; Montgomery, Karen
Wow Writing is an original writing program for kindergarten students, designed for classroom use half way through the academic year. Wow Writing encourages young students to take their writing to the next level by examining the overall quality of different writing samples before producing their own work. This approach gives children ownership of their learning because they are making discoveries on their own and determining as a class what makes their writing stand out. The goals and expectations of each writing lesson are clearly defined through three levels: below expectations, meets expectations, and exceeds expectations. Teacher-created writing samples exemplify what student work looks like at each level, which children discuss in-depth. These visualizations not only help students to understand what their writing should look like, but also give children a source of intrinsic motivation by encouraging them to consistently go above and beyond what is expected of them. Each writing lesson is differentiated to meet the varied needs of diverse learners, and includes differentiated learning centers and activities to encourage students to practice the focus of the lesson in different educational settings.
The Economics of English Soccer: Why the Financial Fair Play Regulations Were Necessary
(2012-04-30) Rubey, Christopher; Anderson, Sheldon
This thesis analyses the economics of present-day professional football (soccer), in order to understand how and why the Financial Fair Play Regulations were developed. The role of economics in football is not new and has existed since the founding of the football clubs. The thesis examines the extent to which the corporatization of the clubs has affected the sport. Given the influx of capital, it is somewhat perplexing that many clubs do not seek to make money and often deal with constant debt. This thesis begins with case studies of Liverpool Football Club and Manchester United Football Club, the two most successful clubs in English history. Then this thesis moves to describe the formation of the English Premier League and the court case known as the Bosman Decision, and the consequences of these actions. Finally, the thesis explores Financial Fair Plays Regulations produced by the Union of European Football Clubs. This thesis shows that the Financial Fair Play Regulations were developed as a response to the development of professional football in England as shown by the histories of Liverpool Football Club, Manchester United Football Club, and the English Premier League.
Proper Footwear While Wearing an Orthopedic Walker Boot
(2012-04-27) Bowker, Samantha; Massie, Brett; Walsh, Mark
As the use of Orthopedic Walker Boots increases it is important to study the effects of these boots. Walker boots have been shown to change kinetic and kinematic gait factors. However, the advantages of walker boots compared to casts often outweigh the possible negative effects of these changes. Specific advantages include the ease of application, easy adjustment to swelling and easy access for cleaning. Also, by maintaining some forces through the injured limb, proper healing can be encouraged. Besides the changes of gait, the decreased compliance and increased risk of falling are disadvantages that must be considered when using walker boots as treatment. The current study investigated the kinematic gait difference associated with walker boots and footwear worn on the opposite foot. The purpose of the study was the compare the changes in gait while wearing a walker boot and running shoe with the changes while wearing a walker boot and flip-flop. It was hypothesized that the flip-flops will lead to increased kinematic changes. To test this hypothesis, participants walked at self-selected speeds while motion capture systems were used to analyze the motion of the ankle, hip, knee and pelvic joints. Assessment of the self-selected speed indicates that there is a trend to support the hypothesis, but these differences are not significant to confirm the hypothesis. Full results were not able to be published in this work.
Heavy Metal Adsorption Using Renewable Adsorbents with Honors Thesis Addendum:A global look at where this work can be applied
(2012-04-27) Dolan, Daniel; Handley, Grace; Hummel, Jordan; Dolan, Daniel; Thrash, Marvin
The purpose of this project was to investigate the heavy metal adsorption capabilities of biomass. The overall goal was to design a process that will replace current nonrenewable water treatment technologies with a cheap and biodegradable alternative. In this case, the research team tested the ability of orange peels to uptake cadmium and nickel from solutions created in the lab. From previous research done to test heavy metal adsorption, the team developed a method of testing using mainly a peel-packed glass column. The column was used to run metal solutions through the peels and then ICP-MS testing was used to evaluate metal concentrations in the effluent liquid. The team’s results proved promising, as the orange peels reduced the concentration of a 90ppm nickel solution by 54.2%. A sample of cadmium solution was reduced in concentration by 33.9% under normal conditions and 48.2% under acidic conditions. However, the team has strong recommendations for future work. The experimental techniques can be improved with some procedural adjustments, and the results can be reproduced to assess service life of the peels and verify results.

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