All Highlighted Student Scholarship

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Alexander, Margaret '12

Recombination Junction Cleaving Enzymes and Their Role in Mitochondrial DNA Maintenance

Homologous recombination results in a four-way DNA junction that must be cleaved by a resolvase enzyme before cell division can occur. One of these enzymes has been identified in the yeast S. cerevisiae, and has been termed cruciform-cutting enzyme (CCE1). Deletion of the CCE1 gene results in an increased fraction of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) molecules that are linked together by recombination junctions resulting in loss of mtDNA during cell division. Recently, a homolog to the CCE1 protein has been identified in S. pombe (a distantly related species of yeast). This gene product, termed YDC2, has only limited homology to the CCE1 protein. However, our experiments indicate that increased expression of CCE1, YDC2, or an YDC2 mutant that can bind, but not cleave, recombination junctions leads to mtDNA loss in S. cerevisiae. These results suggest that the CCE1 and YDC2 proteins share a functional homology for recognizing recombination junctions.

This work was supervised by Stephan Zweifel

Alster, Charlotte '12

Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Accumulation in a 15-Year Prairie Restoration Experiment

Prairie restoration following agricultural abandonment can lead to the accumulation of soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N). Understanding the rate and patterns of C and N accumulation is important for determining how quickly these systems recover from agriculture and the capacity for restored prairies to act as a carbon sink. Studies on the dynamics of C and N accumulation following prairie restoration from agriculture are generally based on chronosequence studies. However, few studies have compared the results of using a chronosequence to direct measures of accumulation over time. We present the results of a 15-year study to determine the rate of C and N accumulation in restored tallgrass prairies in the Cowling Arboretum of Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota, USA. Restored prairies were established annually from 1995-2007. In 2000 and again in 2010, we sampled for soil C and N content at different soil depths. Soil cores were taken from 12 permanent plots in each field and pooled to determine average C and N content for each restoration age. In 2000 we sampled both restored prairies and those planning to be restored, but at the time still in agriculture. Thus, we are able to determine both the effects of prairie age using the chronosequence of restored fields as well as the change in pool sizes within a specific location over time. In both 2000 and 2010, there was no effect of field age across the chronosequence on C and N pools at any either 0-10 or 10-20 cm soil depth. However, when we compared the accumulation C and N in each field over time there was a significant positive effect of field age on N content (p = 0.037; r2 = 0.61) and a marginally significant positive effect on C content (p = 0.109; r2 = 0.217) at the 0-10 cm depth. Furthermore, C accumulation rate (g C m-2 y-1) increased with the number of years between sampling dates that a field was planted in prairie (p <0.001; r2 = 0.80). Our findings suggest that both soil C and N content increases significantly with prairie age, even in the early stages of successional development and that chronosequence studies may not accurately capture C and N accumulation in restored tallgrass prairie ecosystems.

This work was supervised by Daniel Hernandez

Amaefuna, Steve '12

Novel therapies for drug resistance in chronic myeloid leukemia

The uncontrolled kinase activity of the oncogenic protein Bcr-Abl is a hallmark of Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML). Although the drug imtanib is highly effective at shutting down aberrant Abl kinase activity, some CML patients harbor additional mutations in their bcr-abl gene that renders their gene product, the Bcr-Abl protein, resistant to this drug. Since second generation Abl kinase inhibitors such as dasatinib are effective only against particular resistant mutant proteins, new targeted agents are needed to combat drug resistance. Two combi-inhibitors ZRF1 and ZRF2, which block Bcr-Abl activity and damage DNA in the cell, have been shown to be more potent than imatinib in cellular assays. Because ZRF1 is hydrolyzed in the cell to ZRF0, an imatinib analog, we wondered why it was so much more potent. To determine whether ZRF1/2s' increased potency was due to the DNA damaging agent attached to the parent compounds, we sought to co-crystallize the Abl kinase domain with these two inhibitors.

This work was supervised by Nidanie Henderson

Anderson, Ben '12

A Modified Loehr-Warrington Map on Partitions

Loehr and Warrington produced an involution on partitions that gives a combinatorial proof of the equidistribution of certain partition statistics. By performing their involution on each critical rational in turn, one can extend it to a bijection on partitions. This bijection often turns out to be the conjugate bijection, but not always. In this project, we exploited a symmetry property of their involution to construct a modified involution that always extends to the conjugate bijection.

This work was supervised by Eric Egge

Cerjan, Ben '12

Creation of Integrated Optofluidic Devices

This project is working toward creating integrated optofluidic devices, or centimeter scale devices, out of photo-sensitive polymer. These devices are a burgenoning field, with applications from blood sugar testing to computer memory storage. Ben worked to characterize the optical properties of the cured polymer, mainly be measuring its index of refraction.

This work was supervised by Marty Baylor

Chael, Andrew '13

Weaving an Effective Web of Writing Center Relationships at Small Liberal Arts Colleges

This project studies the importance of good relationships between different constituencies in a liberal arts college for the success of its writing center. It looks at the different ways in which writing is defined and understood, and the tensions that arise as a result. It asks the questions of "What is writing? Who owns writing? What does it mean to be a good writer?" and seeks to find a balance between the various competing answers, in order that writing center staff might best serve the needs of all parties - professors and students alike.

Presented at the Midwest Writing Centers Association conference

This work was supervised by Kathy Evertz

Cvitkovic, Milan '13

Asymmetric Organocatalytic Synthesis

Organocatalysis is an emerging and versatile strategy in synthetic chemistry which uses small, organic molecules to enable difficult chemical transformations. Our research group is currently pursuing two projects, both of which focus on designing organocatalytic methods to create useful asymmetric molecules out of biorenewable starting materials. Milan assisted professors Gretchen Hofmeister and David Alberg at all levels of the project, from research to experimental design to synthesis and lab-work.

This work was supervised by Gretchen Hofmeister and David Alberg

Deeg, Katie '12

CO2 Preferential Adsorption Sites in MFI-Type Zeolites

This project studied CO2 adsorption in zeolites, silicon-based crystalline materials. Empty space in the zeolite crystal framework allows CO2 molecules to adsorb (adhere) to its attractive surface. This makes zeolites ideal for separating CO2 from other gases, which could be applied to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Substituted aluminum atoms in the framework of zeolites and accompanying mobile, metallic cations drastically change adsorption of small alkanes in zeolites, but their effect on CO2 adsorption has not been studied extensively. Understanding on a molecular level how location and number of aluminum substitutions and cations affect the adsorption of CO2 could aid in the search for more useful zeolites. Using atomistic simulations of CO2 adsorption in MFI-type zeolites, we found that cations change the location and increase the number of preferential CO2 adsorption sites. Evenly spaced cations and low CO2 loading maximize the number of preferential sites in straight channels.

This work was supervised by Daniela Kohen

Dhakal, Prasit '12

Dirichlet Process Prior in a Catch-Effort Hierarchical Model for Animal Abundance

The Dirichlet Process Prior (DPP) in Bayesian Statistics offers useful insight in studying animal abundance if heterogeneity of animal abundance has been unobserved. We used DPP to add to a previous statistical model that estimated animal abundance.

This work was supervised by Katie St. Clair

Duggins, Peter '13

Non-Monotonic Behavior of the Lyapunov Exponent in the Quantum-Classical Transition

Chaos, a property of certain dynamical systems, is defined as extreme sensitivity to initial conditions -- as the system evolves, a small initial separation between trajectories becomes exponentially larger in time. In this project, we investigated how chaotic behavior is affected as a system transitions in size from that described by classical mechanics to that described by quantum mechanics. Specifically, we calculate the Lyapunov Exponent, a measure of chaos describing a system's sensitivity to initial conditions, as we make the system size smaller and smaller (go deeper into the quantum regime). We find that for a specific system, the damped driven double-well Duffing oscillator, there is a non-monotonic change in the degree of chaos in the quantum-classical transition. This novel result indicates that systems in an intermediate regime can display unique behavior not found in the limiting cases.

Published in Physical Review.

This work was supervised by Arjendu Pattanayak

Duncan, Anne '13

The Bacterial Wilt Pathogen, Ralstonia Solanacearum: Effector Proteins and Plant Root Responses

Ralstonia solanacearum is a root-invading phytopathogen that causes bacterial wilt, a devastating disease that affects hundreds of plant species including tomato and potato on a worldwide scale. There is a complex interplay between bacterial virulence strategies and plant defense mechanisms in the progression of the plant disease. Our lab focuses on bacterial proteins, called effector proteins, and the plant root response against them. Over the summer, Anne and Nana Tanamoto worked on cloning the effector genes and developing a method for tomato root transformation to express the cloned effector in planta for GFP localization studies. In future, this project will also look at tomato gene expression level analysis to better understand the interaction of Ralstonia and its host plant.

This work was supervised by Raka Mitra

Einstein, Michael '12

Examining the Pathogenesis of Ralstonia Solanacearum

The bacterial wilt pathogen, Ralstonia Solanacearum, infects hundreds of different plant species, resulting in millions of dollars of crop loss worldwide. A genomic-scale strategy was used to identify putative bacterial effector proteins which are translocated into plant root cells and essential for virulence. Once identified, effector protein genes were fused to the fluorescent reporter GFP. Transformed Medicago truncatula roots were examined with fluorescent confocal microscopy to determine effector subcellar localization, providing information about effector function. Most notably, PopP2, an effector protein that putatively interacts with transcription factors to activate plant immune response, was found to localize to the nucleus. However, further studies need to be conducted in solanaceous plant species, such as tomato, in order to assess effector function in a natural host.

This work was supervised by Raka Mitra

Epping, Madeline '13

Determination of Phylogenetic Position and the Role of Xanthine Dehydrogenase in Sceloporus Lizards

This project was designed to offer a genetic explanation for the differing pigmentation and behavioral patterns of the Sceloporus lizards. We examined the role of the Xanthine Dehydrogenase gene as a potential site of variation between the morphs. We also worked to determine the phylogenetic position of our population in the recently updated tree of the Sceloporus lizards. Madeline collected DNA samples and amplified them for sequencing.

This work was supervised by Matt Rand

Finke, Cody '12

Recombination Junction Cleaving Enzymes and Their Role in Mitochondrial DNA Maintenance

Homologous recombination results in a four-way DNA junction that must be cleaved by a resolvase enzyme before cell division can occur. One of these enzymes has been identified in the yeast S. cerevisiae, and has been termed cruciform-cutting enzyme (CCE1). Deletion of the CCE1 gene results in an increased fraction of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) molecules that are linked together by recombination junctions resulting in loss of mtDNA during cell division. Recently, a homolog to the CCE1 protein has been identified in S. pombe (a distantly related species of yeast). This gene product, termed YDC2, has only limited homology to the CCE1 protein. However, our experiments indicate that increased expression of CCE1, YDC2, or an YDC2 mutant that can bind, but not cleave, recombination junctions leads to mtDNA loss in S. cerevisiae. These results suggest that the CCE1 and YDC2 proteins share a functional homology for recognizing recombination junctions.

This work was supervised by Stephan Zweifel

France, Katherine '12

Investigating the Mechanism of Action of Human Mitochondrial Alanyl-tRNA Synthetase

This project studied the larger question of how the human mitochondrial alanyl-tRNA synthetases attach the amino acid alanine to a tRNA molecule including a codon coding for alanine. This included experiments aimed at investigating the importance of the C-terminal domain in the human mitochondrial synthetase by using both human mitochondrial and E. coli examples of the alanyl-tRNA synthetase. These experiments were perfected from literature examples and used complex formation between the enzyme and substrate as a sign of successful enzyme function. The project also studied the mechanism by which two recently discovered mutations in human mitochondrial alanyl-tRNA synthetases cause fatal cardiomyopathy in infants. Through site-directed mutagenesis, the target mutations were made and their effect on the enzyme's ability to attach amino acids to their tRNA complements were tested. A larger goal of the research was to discover the mechanism of the wildtype synthetase in detail.

This work was supervised by Joe Chihade

French, Holly '13

Towards Self-Healing Networks: Browser-Based Measurement of Video Quality

In our research, we aim to quantify what a "high-quality" video actually is. Once this is accomplished, we hope our research will lead to more effective protocols, video streaming applications, and networks to improve video streaming. Through the use of Dynamic Time Warping to analyze video stream data, we have found that in general, for standard definition video, many of the parameters we tested (frame rate, bandwidth, and bitrate) either alone or in combination performed well. However, making good predictions of quality in high definition video is different - using more parameters (frame rate, bandwidth, and bitrate) in combination yields more accurate results.

Presented at IEEE Int'l Performance, Computing & Communications Conference

This work was supervised by Amy Csizmar Dalal

Gessner, Dylan '12

Examining Public Opinion on America's Changing Political System

This project focused on the evolving American political system since the 1960s. We show that, while America's political system is organized to represent a greater plurality of political views than ever before, the sheer size of government presents itself as a confusing blur to many citizens and thus they choose not to participate in the political process at all. Dylan collected and organized data, performed and interpreted statistical analyses, and created charts to display trends in the data.

Published in America's Dysfunctional Political System.

This work was supervised by Steven Schier

Gick, Jess '13

Visualizing Material History: Using Google Earth and ArcGIS to Create an Interactive Map of Theaters Throughout the Roman Empire

This project consisted of creating an interactive database and map of theaters built throughout the Roman Empire using Google Earth and ArcGIS. Its purpose was to (1) create a visual representation of this aspect of material history and (2) show that faculty and students can collaboratively conduct humanities research. A brief description of each theater was obtained using Frank Sear's book, Roman Theaters: An Archaeological Study. Information was recorded for each theater, including its geographic coordinates, size, and the date it was built, converted into a Roman theater and/or renovated. Often Sear's description of theater location was not precise enough to locate them on Google Earth, which in turn affected their accuracy in ArcGIS. To ensure accuracy, this was solved by cross-referencing information available on several hundred websites. At present, Jess has obtained the geographic coordinates of over 200 theaters in Italy, Greece, France, Spain and the Middle East.

This work was supervised by Chris Polt

Gottesman, Rachel '12

Genetic Control of Flowering in the non-Papilionoid Chamaecrista fasciculata

Chamaecrista fasciculata, a prairie legume, presents itself as a interesting model species based on its phylogenetic position and indicator of climate change. The Singer laboratory sought to unwrap the intricacies of the flowering cascade with respect to temperature, photoperiod, autonomous, and gibberellin related pathways. In addition to genetic analysis, the lab group investigated phenotypic plasticity between ecotypes of multiple field sites not only in Minnesota, but also in Oklahoma and Kansas. Chamaecrista offers a mechanism to understanding the impact of changing temperatures over growing season on the phenotypes of populations. Rachel collected extensive flowering field data at multiple sites and as well as running a rigorous photoperiod experiment. In addition, Rachel investigated the potential role of Flowering Locus T in Chamaecrista flowering pathway.

This work was supervised by Susan Singer

Granowski, Brooke '13

Research on the Religious Thought and Political Context of Marianne Weber (1870-1954)

This project examines the work of Marianne Weber, today remembered as wife of Max Weber but known in her own time as a public intellectual who published nine books and served as a leading voice for women's rights in Germany in the early decades of the twentieth century. Professor Lori Pearson and Brooke Granowski focused on Weber's theories of religion, domination, and emancipation in her works on the history of legal norms concerning women and the family. Brooke Granowski also conducted research on the womens' movement in late-nineteenth-century Germany, particularly in relation to the formation of Germany's new Civil Code of 1900. She also examined definitions of "female culture" in sociological analyses of modernity during this period.

This work was supervised by Lori Pearson

Groeneman, Michael '12

Recommender Systems for Wikipedia Editors

This project examines ways to encourage Wikipedia editors to contribute more content to the encyclopedia. Specifically, we use news articles and sources preferred by a particular editor to recommend relevant Wikipedia articles for editing. Michael studied methods of computerized text matching, built a web-based tool that identifies related Wikipedia articles for a given news source, and helped manage a database containing the full text of every revision of every Wikipedia article ever created.

This work was supervised by Dave Musicant

Hallman, Kevin '12

Non-Monotonic Behavior of the Lyapunov Exponent in the Quantum-Classical Transition

Chaos, a property of certain dynamical systems, is defined as extreme sensitivity to initial conditions -- as the system evolves, a small initial separation between trajectories becomes exponentially larger in time. In this project, we investigated how chaotic behavior is affected as a system transitions in size from that described by classical mechanics to that described by quantum mechanics. Specifically, we calculate the Lyapunov Exponent, a measure of chaos describing a system's sensitivity to initial conditions, as we make the system size smaller and smaller (go deeper into the quantum regime). We find that for a specific system, the damped driven double-well Duffing oscillator, there is a non-monotonic change in the degree of chaos in the quantum-classical transition. This novel result indicates that systems in an intermediate regime can display unique behavior not found in the limiting cases.

Published in Physical Review.

This work was supervised by Arjendu Pattanayak

Hardt, Andy '13

Restricted Symmetric Signed Permutations

The symmetry group D4+Z2 acts on the set of signed permutations by rotations, reflections, and bar operations (flip the sign of each entry). Following Professor Egge's work on unsigned permutations, we enumerate the signed permutations that, given a symmetry subgroup H and a set R of length-2 signed patterns, are invariant under H and avoid R. Mansour and West began this work by enumerating the signed permutations that avoid R, not taking symmetries into account. Dukes and Mansour continued by enumerating signed involutions that avoid R. This paper considers the remaining subgroups of D4+Z2, thus completing the enumeration. The resulting sequences include the Catalan numbers and the central binomial coefficients, and many of them are given recursively. A few of the sets can be counted in two different ways, yielding combinatorial identities.

This work was supervised by Eric Egge

Heckman, Ned '13

Swimming in a Sea of Complexity: Characterizing Integrative Learning in Student Work

This research seeks to characterize integrative learning done by Carleton students in term-long group projects that connected the science of abrupt climate change with an issue of human concern. The methods of concept mapping and naming were used to analyze, classify, and understand a range of "integrative moves" in student project work. This has ultimately led to a framework that describes the type, purpose, and sophistication of a particular "integrative move". The research examines integration at all levels of student work (i.e. sentence level, page level, and higher).

This work was supervised by Tricia Ferrett

Her, Koua '13

Human Mitochondrial Alanyl-tRNA Synthetase: An Important Enzyme for tRNA Recognition

Animal mitochondrial tRNAs are not well-defined. Their tRNAs are highly diverged in both sequence and structure. The loops and stem size in their predicted secondary structures are variable and the conserved nucleotides are often not present. The tRNAs are recognized and charges by nuclearly-encoded mitochondrial aminoalanyl-tRNA synthetase. Koua focused on the interaction between the human mitochondrial alanyl-tRNA synthetase and their tRNA substrate to locate the interaction site, and to identify what is being recognized on the tRNA.

This work was supervised by Joe Chihade

Hommeyer, Camille '12

Researching the Life and Career of Thomas Gomez

As a Humanities Student Research Assistant, Camille Hommeyer researched the life and career of Thomas Gomez for Greg Hewett's upcoming biography, THE HEAVY: The Life of Thomas Gomez, Hollywood's Quintessential Character Actor. She designed and created the website, thomasgomezactor.com, for informational and promotional purposes, investigated the whereabouts of Gomez's "lost" films, read and compiled all New York Times' play and movie reviews mentioning Gomez (over 200 articles), contacted an old friend of Gomez's, checked relevant immigration, birth and death records, and read and offered feedback on Hewett's biography.

Link: www.thomasgomezactor.com

This work was supervised by Greg Hewitt

Houser, Emily '12

Are Child Care Centers in the Twin Cities Metro Area Exposed to Dangerous Levels of Traffic Noise?

This GIS-based project aims to assess the exposure level of child care centers in the Twin Cities seven-county metro area to aircraft and road traffic noise. Studies have shown that high levels of noise can not only be annoying and distracting to children, but can also have detrimental physiological and cognitive effects, which can impede learning at this crucial stage in development. Emily did a review of the literature on noise exposure in children, as well as some preliminary geospatial analysis using ArcMap software. She is working on a paper with Tsegaye Nega, with whom she plans to co-author a paper on her research.

This work was supervised by Tsegaye Nega

Johnson, Anya '12

Evolving Altruism in Digital Organisms

This project explores the circumstances under which altruism would evolve in digital organisms. The research this summer was an extension of previous research by Professor Sherri Goings. To study the evolution of altruism we use software called Avida that creates a digital world in which simple digital organisms evolve.

This work was supervised by Sherri Goings

Lai, Alexandra '13

Asymmetric Thiolysis of Citric Anyhdride Using Enantioselective Organocatalysis

This research investigates the enantioselectivity of thiols as nucleophiles in the organocatalytic desymmetrization of anhydrides derived from citric anhydrides, a reaction which is synthetically useful as an alternative to using heavy metal catalysts and large amounts of expensive chiral reagents. Our group had previously synthesized this citric anhydride, as well as cinchona alkaloid-derived organocatalysts, and then used the organocatalysts and methanol to perform asymmetric desymmetrization reactions on the citric anhydride. With these results in mind, we decided to try to replicate these reactions using thiols as nucleophiles instead of methanol, in order to increase stereoselectivity. Thiolysis reactions proved to be slower but more stereoselective than methanolysis reactions, thus offering more synthetic utility. Alex carried out the thiolysis reactions in the laboratory and analyzed their results.

This work was supervised by Dave Alberg and Gretchen Hofmeister

Leichter, Kyle '12

Design and Development of Low-Cost, High-Efficiency Liquid Helium Transfer Tubes

This project was part of a larger endeavor to study the superfluid transition of thin films of helium in the presence of disorder. Kyle's work allowed liquid helium to be moved around the lab quickly and efficiently, helping to reduce operating costs.

This work was supervised by Dwight Luhman

Lerman, Dania '13

Social Ontology of Immigrant Exlcusion

This project explores the sources of exclusive attitudes of receiving cultures towards those of immigrants'. Both empirical and theoretical methods were used to collect data. Lerman helped find/read related papers, examine roots of self-other delineation in European school curricula, and generate a survey to be distributed.

This work was supervised by Anna Moltchanova

Lin, Jonathan '13

Hip-Hop Music as Identity in the UAE; and Masquerades of Nigeria

Jonathan worked with Professor Willis of the history department on a number of assignments for his two research projects, involving photomanipulation, video-editing, transcribing interviews, microfilm scanning and transcription, and researching the slave trade in East Africa during the 19th century. The first project examined the social force generated from major figures in the hip-hop music scene of countries of the United Arab Emirates such as Dubai, and other Middle Eastern countries. As a powerful and emotive form of cultural expression, hip-hop music and its controversial nature become a crucial aspect of identity for many artists and individuals living in the Middle East. The second project centered on footage Professor Willis took in Nigeria of traditional masques and masquerades. Their vibrant performances and exquisite costumes currently make up a digital exhibition in Gould Library.

Exhibited in Gould Library.

This work was supervised by John Thabiti Willis

Lin,Jie '14

Self-Healing Networks: Real Time Video QoE Analysis of RTMP Streams

This project aimed to develop self-healing networks that can detect degradation of streaming video quality of experience (QoE), react, and correct the pathology on the network. We presented a set of architecture to assess real time video QoE of RTMP streams. Results from a small set of preliminary experiments demonstrated that we can predict video QoE with 70-80% accuracy based on stream state measurements and previous users' ratings, using at little as 20 seconds of stream state information. Jie and his co-workers designed measurement tools and coded rating predictor together. Jie also collected data from experiments, managed the database, and analyzed results.

This work was supervised by Amy Csizmar Dalal

Mixa, Tyler '12

Independent Component Analysis Through Optical Signal Processing

The project studies the design and implication of an optical system used to address the 'cocktail party problem' - separating mixed audio signals without any prior knowledge of how they were mixed. The system takes two input audio mixtures representing left and right ear inputs and encodes them onto a laser beam. The beam goes through a series of optical and electrical devices to detect statistical correlations and distinguish between the two signals, amplifying one and suppressing the other. Tyler wrote the program necessary to mix and encode the signals, and he designed and built electrical components for the optical system.

This work was supervised by Marty Baylor

Nachbor, Kristine '12

Climate Change and Human Learning

This research seeks to characterize integrative learning done by Carleton students in term-long group projects that connected the science of abrupt climate change with an issue of human concern. The methods of concept mapping and naming were used to analyze, classify, and understand a range of "integrative moves" in student project work. This has ultimately led to a framework that describes the type, purpose, and sophistication of a particular "integrative move". The research examines integration at all levels of student work (i.e. sentence level, page level, and higher).

This work was supervised by Tricia Ferrett

Nygaard, Kayla '12

Determination of Phylogenetic Position and the Role of Xanthine Dehydrogenase in Sceloporus Lizards

This research is a continuation of Professor Matt Rand's work with the lizard Sceloporus undulatus erythrocheilus. The Sceloporus lizards from Boulder, Colorado have an interesting sexually dimorphic color polymorphism. The males display orange, yellow or white chin coloration which is correlated with territorial behavior and mating strategies. Based on recent outside research Professor Rand, Kayla and Madeline Epping designed a project to determine the new phylogenetic position of the Sceloporus lizard from Boulder Colorado. In addition to finding the new name for the lizard, the Rand lab is also working to establish a genetic basis for the color polymorphism seen in the male Sceloporus lizards. Kayla and Maddie have worked to sequence the Xanthine Dehydrogenase gene in Sceloporus in search for genetic differences between the three color morphs. Past research by Kayla and Professor Rand has ruled out the MC1R gene as the source for genetic variation.

This work was supervised by Matt Rand

Orr, Laurel '13

Recommender Systems for Wikipedia Editors

This project examines ways to encourage Wikipedia editors to contribute more content to the encyclopedia. Specifically, we use news articles and sources preferred by a particular editor to recommend relevant Wikipedia articles for editing. Michael studied methods of computerized text matching, built a web-based tool that identifies related Wikipedia articles for a given news source, and helped manage a database containing the full text of every revision of every Wikipedia article ever created.

This work was supervised by Dave Musicant

Reich, Robin '12

Japanese Maps in Meiji Era Japan

Robin researched the historical use and composition of Japanese maps in order to identify and contextualize one of the Gould Library's recent acquisitions. The acquisition was a Meiji-era multi-volume text that contained a map framed by a drawing of imperial soldiers.

This work was supervised by Victoria Morse

Roberts, Sean '12

Enantioselective Organocatalysis

The purpose of this project was to research the asymmetric desymmetrization of a citric acid derivative using quinine derived organocatalysts.

This work was supervised by Dave Alberg and Gretchen Hofmeister

Rownd, Henry '13

The Stewardesses: 3D Porno Camp that Kills

This paper explores the phenomenal success of a softcore 3D porno from the early 70's known as "The Stewardesses," the highest grossing 3D film until "Avatar" surpassed it in 2009. In the paper, I examine the film, its social context as well as its marketing in order to explain just how such a film became so successful.

This work was supervised by Jay Beck

Schmidt, Kathryn '12

China: Ancient and Modern. Understanding the Heart of the Dragon Through the Eyes of American Students

Kathryn Schmidt has worked on several projects with Chinese Professor Qiguang Zhao. She has done research, translation, and editing for his works on Daoist traditions and their application to modern society, but their latest project was to put together a book of students' photo journals from Carleton's 2010 Tianjin program. The threads throughout the book are the students' impressions of modern China and cross-cultural understanding to forge better relations between China and the United States.

This work was supervised by Qiguang Zhao

Skinner, Ryan '13

Initial Observation of Silicon Quantum Dot Behavior at 3 K

This past summer, Ryan worked with Dwight Luhman in Carleton's Physics Department to set up and take initial measurements of silicon quantum dots at low temperatures. We are collaborating with researchers at Sandia National Labs to investigate applications in quantum computing. Normally, the dots are made of GaAs, a very "clean" substance that has very predictable and extensively studied quantum properties. However, because all of our commercial electronics infrastructure is silicon-based, comparatively "dirty" silicon quantum dots are the focus of our research. Using LabVIEW and a GPIB interface between the computer and lab instruments, Ryan set up and automated the data collection environment from scratch. By the end of the summer, we had observed clear quantum oscillations at 3 K in a sample fabricated at Sandia. Eventually, we will manipulate the state of the dot as it is cooled to study the effects on the resulting quantum behavior.

This work was supervised by Dwight Luhman

Smyth, Alison '12

Particle Sources in Milwaukee, WI Studied With Single-Particle Mass Spectrometry

Single particle mass spectrometry was used to broaden our understanding of urban aerosols in the Great Lakes region. Specifically, the impacts of Lake Michigan's shipping traffic and coal-fired power plants on Milwaukee were explored. Data collected with an Aerosol Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometer (ATOFMS) in Milwaukee during a summer intensive study in 2010 will be emphasized here. A variety of data analysis methods were utilized to find relationships between metal ions detected in the particles, in order to better elucidate possible sources of these particles. Clustering was used to investigate particle types, with a focus here on the particle types that included significant metals peaks, such as Pb, Ag, and Bi. Species such as V, Br, Se, Mo, Sb, and Cd, were studied by comparing temporal trends and correlating them with back-trajectory modeling results to investigate possible particle sources.

This work was supervised by Deborah Gross

Tan, Deborah '13

Auditory Sequence Test in Monkeys

This project tests tamarins' ability to detect variation in sound patterns. We presented patterns of phonemes and musical notes either as an AAB sequence or as an ABB sequence for 5 days to habituate the monkeys (n=15) to the sounds. We then tested their reactions to novel sounds either presented in the same pattern (AAB--AAB) or a novel pattern (AAB -- ABB). The monkeys noticed the novel sounds and also were most surprised when the pattern also changed. This demonstrated that monkeys can learn an abstract relation among notes and language sounds, and may use that to parse auditory information. Deborah was a research assistant.

This work was supervised by Julie Neiworth

Tan, Deborah '13

Theory of Mind Tests of Tamarins

We trained tamarins to follow a pointing gesture to search for food in one of two containers. Then we tested their notion of what we know, by having foils (guessers) sometimes do the pointing when they could not know where the food had been hidden. The tamarins (n=5 thus far) do not follow the guesser's point reliably, but they do follow the point of a "knower" -- someone who actually hid the food. This indicates that the tamarins may be distinguishing between what people may know, a concept that comes with theory of mind. Deborah was a research assistant.

This work was supervised by Julie Neiworth

Tanamoto, Nana '13

The Bacterial Wilt Pathogen, Ralstonia Solanacearum: Effector Proteins and Plant Root Responses

Ralstonia solanacearum is a root-invading phytopathogen that causes bacterial wilt, a devastating disease that affects hundreds of plant species including tomato and potato on a worldwide scale. There is a complex interplay between bacterial virulence strategies and plant defense mechanisms in the progression of the plant disease. Our lab focuses on bacterial proteins, called effector proteins, and the plant root response against them. Over the summer, Nana and Anne Duncan worked on cloning the effector genes and developing a method for tomato root transformation to express the cloned effector in-planta for GFP localization studies. In future, this project will also look at tomato gene expression level analysis to better understand the interaction of Ralstonia and its host plant.

This work was supervised by Raka Mitra

Tandler, Jane '12

Consistency in Real-Life Decision-Making

This study looks into the process by which students make important decisions. These choices include: academic major, class schedule, campus housing, and summer plans. The investigation centers on the ways in which the decisions are similar across decisions, and across participants. Students' decision-making style is relatively consistent, with about half of the decision criteria appearing in multiple decisions. That said, participants' self-report reflects more consistency, suggesting that they believe themselves to show less variety in their decision-making style than our measures suggest is the case. Jane Tandler's summer involvement included data analysis and organization, database searching, and bibliography annotation, among other tasks.

This work was supervised by Kathleen Galotti

Troyka, Justin '13

Restricted Symmetric Signed Permutations

The symmetry group D4+Z2 acts on the set of signed permutations by rotations, reflections, and bar operations (flip the sign of each entry). Following Professor Egge's work on unsigned permutations, we enumerate the signed permutations that, given a symmetry subgroup H and a set R of length-2 signed patterns, are invariant under H and avoid R. Mansour and West began this work by enumerating the signed permutations that avoid R, not taking symmetries into account. Dukes and Mansour continued by enumerating signed involutions that avoid R. This paper considers the remaining subgroups of D4+Z2, thus completing the enumeration. The resulting sequences include the Catalan numbers and the central binomial coefficients, and many of them are given recursively. A few of the sets can be counted in two different ways, yielding combinatorial identities.

This work was supervised by Eric Egge

VanDis, Erik '12

Examining the Effects of Deer Herbivory on Plant Reproduction

The objective of this study was to define the effect of deer herbivory on the reproductive fitness of the prairie forb Desmodium canadense, and to determine whether or not deer are selecting plants non-randomly. Browsed and unbrowsed plants were selected at five locations in the prairies of the Cowling Arboretum and reproductive fitness was quantified. We determined that deer are selectively browsing larger plants and that this browsing delays reproduction, ultimately causing a shift in plant reproductive effort towards tertiary shoots.

This work was supervised by Daniel Hernadez and Mark McKone

Vang, Andrea '13

Emission Line Survey of M33 and Local Group Dwarf Galaxies

Local group galaxies allow astrophysicists to study individual stars as well as gas and dust in order to better understand the interplay between stars and a galaxy's interstellar medium. As part of the Local Group Galaxy Survey (LGGS-Massey et al (2006)), emission-line and continuum images were obtained of M31, M33, and seven dwarf galaxies (including NGC6822 and IC10). We analyzed these emission-line images to determine fluxes of ionized hydrogen regions in M33 and two of the dwarf galaxies. We have also begun looking at the interior structure of these ionized hydrogen regions by breaking up larger, complex ones. Finally, we have been working on a program to make our M33 data available to other astrophysicists working on similar projects.

This work was supervised by Cindy Blaha

Wadleigh, Laura '14

Understanding CaF2 Surfaces With Adsorption-Desorption Isotherms and Atomic Force Microscopy

We are interested in using rough CaF2 films to study the superfluid transition in two-dimensional helium films. These experiments require quantitative information regarding the topography of the CaF2 surfaces. The surface roughness of CaF2 films is known to increase with film thickness as has been shown with previous atomic force microscopy (AFM) measurements. In this work we verify these results using AFM and further characterize the surfaces using adsorption-desorption isotherm measurements at T=77 K with liquid nitrogen. These complementary techniques produce results that are consistent with each other and previous experiments. In addition, hysteresis in the isotherms demonstrates the emergence of pores in the substructure of the film as the film thickness of CaF2 increases. Our combined results provide a detailed description of CaF2 surface roughness which can be utilized in the planned superfluid experiments.

This work was supervised by Dwight Luhman

Walters, Diane '12

CO2 Preferential Adsorption Sites in MFI-Type Zeolites

This project studied CO2 adsorption in zeolites, silicon-based crystalline materials. Empty space in the zeolite crystal framework allows CO2 molecules to adsorb (adhere) to its attractive surface. This makes zeolites ideal for separating CO2 from other gases, which could be applied to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Substituted aluminum atoms in the framework of zeolites and accompanying mobile, metallic cations drastically change adsorption of small alkanes in zeolites, but their effect on CO2 adsorption has not been studied extensively. Understanding on a molecular level how location and number of aluminum substitutions and cations affect the adsorption of CO2 could aid in the search for more useful zeolites. Using atomistic simulations of CO2 adsorption in MFI-type zeolites, we found that cations change the location and increase the number of preferential CO2 adsorption sites. Evenly spaced cations and low CO2 loading maximize the number of preferential sites in straight channels.

This work was supervised by Daniela Kohen

Andrykovich, Kristin '13

Investigating the Molecular Basis of Notochord Loss in Molgula Occulta

Of 3,000 total ascidian tunicate species, only approximately 20 are anural. Almost all of these anural ascidians are within the Molgulidae, a clade containing three groups of geographically differentiated species found primarily in the Northern Hemisphere. As there are closely related anural and urodele species in the Molgulidae, this clade offers an opportunity to identify pathways present only in the urodele species and effectively characterize elements necessary for notochord development. During this study Kristin isolated "prickle," a gene involved in the convergence and extension of ascidian notochordal cells, by PCR from cDNA in preparation for in situ hybridization. We were especially interested in in situ hybridizations of the isolated genes in M. occulta, M. oculata and M. occulta x M. oculata hybrid embryos. Future studies will use the same transcriptome-guided molecular methods to isolate and perform in-situs for other prospective "notochordal genes."

This work was supervised by Billie J. Swalla (University of Washington)

Barber, Alice '13

Zinc Oxide Nanomaterials Increase the Activity of RNAse

This project examines the effects of zinc oxide nanomaterials on the activity of RNAse A and B. If nanomaterials are to be effective as a mechanism for therapeutic RNA delivery, their interactions with RNA-degrading enzymes must be understood. Alice's preliminary experiments using gel electrophoresis indicate that incubation with nanomaterials increases the amount of RNA degraded upon exposure to RNAse.

This work was supervised by Robert K. DeLong (Missouri State University)

Beckwith, Sean '12

Characterization of At4g33666 in Arabidopsis thaliana

Plants must adapt to variable conditions including environmental stresses and suboptimal nutrient availability. Sean Beckwith, in collaboration with Christine Palmer and Mary Lou Guerinot, studied the chloroplast-localized gene, At4g33666, which encodes a short peptide and is crucial for proper seed development in the model plant organism Arabidopsis thaliana. We show At4g3366 to be involved in the salt stress response. Loss-of-function mutants show delayed germination and decreased germination efficiency in the presence of salt while overexpression improves germination rates under saline conditions. Further study of this gene holds promise for improving crop yields under poor soil conditions. Experiments were designed by Sean Beckwith, Christine Palmer and Mary Lou Guerinot and performed by Sean Beckwith. This research was supported by the New Hampshire IDeA Network of Biological Research Excellence (NH-INBRE) summer SURF program.

This work was supervised by Mary Lou Guerinot (Dartmouth)

Benson, Katherine '12

Role of Echocardiography in Determing the Physiologically Significant PDA

Patent ductus arteriosis(PDA) is a common premature fetal heart defect that frequently resolves itself after several days of life. In some cases, however, the condition can cause severe symptoms such as organ failure and chronic lung disease. There is currently no gold standard for evaluating whether a PDA will become symptomatic. Our project was focused on collecting data on the use of echocardiography in PDA, and what signs on the echocardiogram were associated with more severe symptoms. Katie assisted in developing the database and collected data from patient charts.

This work was supervised by Richard Parad (Brigham and Women's Hospital)

Brewer, Alex '12

Conflict Resolution in Dyadic Relationships

This project, coordinated through Berkeley's Psychology Graduate program, sought to explore how dyadic couples overcome conflict in their relationships. For the summer, Alex reviewed and coded numerous videos of couples engaging in a conflict conversation, and then performed the relevant statistical analysis necessary to interpret the data.

This work was supervised by Serena Chen (University of California-Berkeley) and Amie Gordon (University of California-Berkeley)

Campbell, Josh '13

Protein Carbonylation and Detection in Various Mouse and Human Tissues

Protein carbonylation occurs when lipid peroxidation products form covalent complexes with lysine, histidine, or cysteine amino acids. High levels of lipid peroxidation leads to oxidative stress, which has been linked to a variety of diseases such as muscular dystrophy and insulin resistance. This study was conducted to determine if obese subjects have higher levels of carbonylated protein than lean subjects and to assess the effects of bariatric surgery on carbonylation. A variety of mouse tissues were examined, including muscle, liver, subcutaneous and visceral fat. In addition, human adipose tissue samples from before and after bariatric surgery were analyzed. Contrary to our hypothesis, obese subjects did not have higher levels of carybonylated protein than lean subjects in any tissue studied. The human post-operation samples show elevated carbonylation when compared to the pre-operation samples. This increase may be due to the localized inflammation that occurs after surgery.

This work was supervised by David A. Bernlohr (University of Minnesota)

Cardiel, Allison '13

Chemically Directed Assembly of Photoactive Metal Oxide Nanoparticle Heterojunctions via the Copper-Catalyzed Azide-Alkyne Cycloaddition "Click" Reaction

Metal oxides are used in a wide variety of emerging applications in renewable energy, such as dye-sensitized solar cells and photocatalysts. The separation of charge can be facilitated at junctions between metal oxides, which can lead to solar energy harvesting. We demonstrate use of the Copper-catalyzed Azide-Alkyne Cycloaddition Reaction, widely referred to as "click" chemistry, to form heterojunctions between metal oxide nanoparticles, using WO3 and TiO2 as a model system. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Fourier-transform Infrared Spectroscopy verify the nature and selectivity of the chemical linkages, while scanning electron microscopy reveals that the TiO2 nanoparticles form a high-density, conformal coating on the larger WO3 nanoparticles. Time-resolved surface photovoltaic measurements show that the resulting dyadic structures support photoactivated charge transfer, while measurements of the photochemical degradation of methylene blue show that chemical grafting of TiO2 nanoparticles to WO3 enhances the photocatalytic activity. Allison Cardiel worked on every aspect of this research.

Published in ACS Nano.

This work was supervised by Robert J. Hamers (University of Wisconsin-Madison)

Cawthon, Ross '12

Infrared Spectroscopy of a Dense Dust Cloud

Interstellar dust is made of tiny solid particles in space. These small particles can eventually combine to form planets and in our case, life. One way to study the composition of dust is to view starlight through a dust cloud. Any unexpected absorption lines in the star's spectrum can be attributed to the dust. The wavelength and depth of these absorption lines tell us what is in the dust, and how much of it. This project involved infrared spectral images of a dense dust cloud, the Pipe Nebula, which has many bright stars behind it. Ross processed these images, calibrated the wavelengths, and ran models to determine the amount of absorption due to dust. The study focused primarily on the amount of absorption due to water-ice and silicates in the dust. Ross worked on this project as an REU student at the SETI Institute in Mountain View, CA.

Chael, Andrew '13

Analyzing Pulsar Timing Data in the Presence of Correlated Noise

Timing noise in pulsars makes it difficult to accurately predict their behavior. Correlated (systematic) noise, while not well understood, may also mask physical behavior like orbiting planets. Under the direction of Professor Joel Weisberg and Ryan Shannon, Cornell University, at the Australia Telescope National Facility in Sydney, Andrew applied the Cholesky decomposition process to account for correlated noise in 150 pulsars. He also developed a series of programs to collect and display the resulting data and to speed up the analysis process. The improved timing models will help future researchers in their studies of these pulsars and in searches for the physical origin of correlated noise.

This work was supervised by Joel Weisberg and Ryan Shannon (Cornell University)

Chen,Xin '13

The Isoperimetric Inequalities on Constant Gauss Curvature Surfaces

This project works on a new proof for the isoperimetric inequalities on spheres and hyperbolic planes using metacalibration. Unlike the classical optimization approach calculus of variations, metacalibration compares competitors directly to the proposed minimizer via vector fields and the divergence theorem. It paves the way to solve open problems such as multiple bubbles and isoperimetric problems with boundary on constant Gauss curvature surfaces.

Published in Involve.

This work was supervised by Donald Sampson (Brigham Young University) and Becca Dorff (Brigham Young University)

Coughlin, Michael '12

Third-Generation Gravitational Wave Detector Placement

One of the most immediate challenges associated with third-generation gravitational wave detectors is to select site candidates. There are numerous factors that must be taken into consideration, including surface topography, seismicity, population density and many more. The project analyzes a number of US-wide data sets, including seismic, wind, topography, and geology, as well as seismic data from around the world. The combination of these data sets indicates the suitability of possible site locations. Other analyses with the seismic data include tracking seismic noise levels at various frequencies over large periods of time as well as microseismic peak correlation in various locations. Michael wrote computer software to access, download, and perform the data analysis.

This work was supervised by Jan Harms (California Institute of Technology)

Greenstein, Rebecca '13

Characterization of the protein amx-1 in C. elegans

This project studied mutant amx-1 and spr-5; amx-1 Caenorhabditis elegans to see if these mutant worms displayed the same phenotypes exhibited by the previously characterized spr-5 worms. A plate phenotyping analysis, apoptosis assay, and DAPI staining analysis were conducted. No definite conclusions can be drawn from this set of data, although it seems like amx-1 and spr-5; amx-1 mutant worms display similar phenotypes to spr-5 mutant worms.

This work was supervised by Monica Colaiacovo (Harvard)

Johnson, Traci '12

Toward a Unified Understanding of Radio Emission from Novae

Traci Johnson worked with the Nova Team at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory collecting historical radio data sets of galactic novae. Highly-sensitive, frequent, and early sampling methods used in the Expanded Very Large Array observations of recent galactic novae have shown results startlingly different than earlier data sets, as well as strong deviations from previously developed models. To gain a better understanding of these results,Traci compiled a complete collection of historical radio observations of novae and performed model fits to these data. Comparisons were made with the new data to determine whether these deviations were fundamental or a function of more consistent observations. She and her mentors concluded that many of the deviations in the new data are mimicked in the older data sets. They suggest model modifications and plans for future observations of novae which could provide better clues into the true nature of nova outbursts.

This work was supervised by Miriam Krauss (National Radio Astronomy Observatory)

Jun, YeJi '12

The Regulation of E2-2 and Id2 Expression in Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells

Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) are one subset of dendritic cell types, which are involved in the antiviral response of innate immunity. When activated through viral infection or TLR stimulation, the secretion of type I interferon (IFN) is induced in pDCs including IFN-alpha, which is involved in pDC differentiation process. Several transcription factors that are specifically involved in DC-pDC lineage development have been identified, such as E2-2 and Id2. Id2 is an antagonist of E2-2 that inhibits pDC generation and IFN secretion. To investigate whether IFN-alpha also directly regulates Tcf4 and and Id2 gene expression, we focused on STAT1's involvement, which is a major intracellular signaling pathway activated by IFN-alpha. YeJi conducted immunoblotting and dual luciferase assay to measure the level of STAT1 under IFN-alpha stimulation and detect Id2 level.

This work was supervised by Stephanie S. Watowich (University of Texas)

Lim, Min Yao '12

Mapping Optical Trapping Energy of Nanoparticles via Confocal Microscopy

Optical traps are highly focused laser beams that can hold and manipulate objects of microscopic scale. They are used to study the motion and energy of particles such as colloids or DNA molecules. In order to achieve this purpose we first seek to measure the energy associated with optical traps. We use a fluorescent nanoparticle ensemble within the optical trapping volume to determine the depth of the potential well of the trap. Min Yao used confocal microscopy to map the fluorescence intensity distribution of nanoparticles which allowed us to calculate the trapping energy profile in two dimensions. We repeated this process with different trapping powers to find the depth of the trapping potential well as a function of trapping power. With this technique of mapping trapping energy we can further study particle-particle interactions.

This work was supervised by H. Daniel Ou-Yang (Lehigh University)

Lucal, Hannah '12

Research Assistant for the Sexual and Gender Based Violence Team at the International Center for Reproductive Health

Hannah worked as a research assistant with the Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) team of the International Center for Reproductive Health, a World Health Organization affiliate housed at the Hospital of Ghent University in Ghent, Belgium. The ICRH is a multidisciplinary organization with a gender sensitive approach to improving reproductive health globally. The ICRH works in collaboration with local experts and community organizers around the world to conduct research and policy change as well as implement trainings and public health initiatives on a local level. Working on various projects related to forced marriage and child marriage, honour-related violence and female genital mutilation, Hannah assisted with literature review, policy research, and transcription work for the SGBV team.

Link: http://www.icrh.org/projectcategories/sexual-and-gender-based-violence

This work was supervised by Els Leye (University of Ghent)

Lum, Kenneth '13

Structure-Activity Relationship of JZL-184: A Potent and Selective Irreversible Inhibitor of Monoacylglycerol Lipase

Monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL) is the primary enzyme responsible for the degradation of 2-arachidonoylglycerol, a lipid that modulates mood, appetite, memory, and pain-sensation through the endocannabinoid system in the brain. Structure-Activity Relationship (SAR) studies were conducted on JZL-184, a potent, selective, and irreversible MAGL inhibitor. A library of related compounds was synthesized and screened against mouse brain proteomes using gel-based Activity Base Protein Profiling. A lead compound, KML-29, with potentially less toxic metabolites than JZL-184 was identified. KML-29 showed slightly higher potency than JZL-184 and better selectivity against an off-target, fatty acid amine hydrolase (FAAH), in vitro. An in vivo experiment of KML-29 in mice suggested similar results.

Miller, David '13

Environmental Noise of VSR4 and Preparing for Advanced Virgo

In effort to increase detector sensitivity of the Virgo interferometer to detect gravitational waves, David identified noise lines using the Noemi and coherence tools. David produced a list of all noise lines between 10 and 100 Hz for VSR4 (Virgo's 4th Scientific Run). Additionally, David tested new cooling fans for Advanced Virgo to replace the noisy VSR4 cooling fans.

Link: https://tds.ego-gw.it/itf/tds/index.php?callContent=2&callCode=8833

This work was supervised by Irene Fiori (European Gravitational Observatory)

Modlin, Chelsea '12

Nutritional Survey of HIV Positive Patients in the DarDar Pediatric Program: Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

This project assesses the nutritional status and levels of malnutrition seen within pediatric patients of the DarDar Pediatric HIV Program (DPP) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania by methods of 24-hour food recall and measuring household food insecurity. Results will be compared to current recommended nutritional standards and anthropometric data of participants. The primary purpose is to make recommendations for the nutritional counseling services at the DPP. Chelsea designed the study that was overseen by Ford vonReyn, M.D. of Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and Dr. Goodluck Lyatu of the DPP. Chelsea also oversaw the start up of the survey at the clinic and is currently entering, coding, and analyzing the data.

This work was supervised by Ford vonReyn (Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center) and Dr. Goodluck Lyatu (DarDar Pediatric HIV Program)

Norden, Justin '13

The Effect of Rituximab on Serum Immunoglobulin Levels in Patients with Newly Diagnosed Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma and Burkitt Lymphoma Undergoing Immunochemotherapy

This project investigated the effect of Rituximab on serum immunoglobulin levels for newly diagnosed Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma and Burkitt Lymphoma patients undergoing immunochemotherapy. Patients immunoglobulin levels were sampled up to 12 months out of treatment. There were no cases of low immunoglobulin (IGG) levels in patients treated with only chemotherapeutic agents at 12 months out of treatment, as opposed to a fourth of patients showing low immunoglobulin (IGG) levels in patients treated with chemotherapeutic agents and Rituximab at 12 months out of treatment. Although it has been shown that low immunoglobulin (IGG) levels can lead to increased levels of serious infection, this study did not show whether or not these low immunoglobulin (IGG) levels lead to higher rates of infection. Justin Norden collected information from patients about infection, as well as analyzed the data for trends in serum immunoglobulin levels across patients.

This work was supervised by Wyndham Wilson (National Institutes of Health)

Olson, Erik '12

Examining the Monomer-Dimer Equilibrium of Segments of the HIV-1 RNA Genome

The ultimate goal of this project was to obtain more data on the tertiary structure of elements in the HIV-1 RNA genome using small angle x-ray scattering (SAXS). To obtain good SAXS data, the segments of HIV-1 genomic RNA under analysis must be homogenously pure. This is difficult, however, as the HIV-1 genome naturally forms loose dimers in solution, which would distort the SAXS data. To this end, mutant RNA constructs were designed that should result in shifting the natural equilibrium that exists between monomer and dimer towards monomer. These constructs were created and transcribed, and their monomer-dimer equilibria were assayed by both native polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and size exclusion chromatography monitored by UV-spectroscopy. The mutant constructs were found to be successful in shifting the equilibrium preferentially towards monomer.

This work was supervised by Karin Musier-Forsyth (Ohio State University)

Padilla, Christian '13

Visible Light Photocatalysis: Intramolecular [4+2] Cycloaddition

The forming of carbon-carbon bonds is of immense importance to the chemical industry and to society at large. This work, lead by the Yoon group at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, seeks to use visible light to activate organic molecules. Having shown that [2+2] cycloaddition is accessible with oxidative visible light photocatalysis the group hoped to expand on this method by exploring its utility in promoting [4+2] cycloaddition, an important reaction in industrial and laboratory chemistry. Conventionally this reaction requires heat or a Lewis acid catalyst. It was expected that [4+2] cycloaddition would be accessible through the same oxidative cycle, using Ru(bpy)32+ previously reported for [2+2] cycloaddition. Christian Padilla and Shishi Lin spent this summer investigating this possibility. In the process, Shishi and Christian discovered novel reactivity and were able to propose a reasonable mechanism based on previous work.

This work was supervised by Tehshik P. Yoon (University of Wisconsin-Madison)

Peters, Andrew '13

HIV Protein Gp120 Promotes T Cell Apoptosis via the Transcription Factor Foxo3a.

HIV infection causes the progressive loss of T lymphocytes, leading eventually to immune suppression and AIDS; a major contributor to this process is apoptosis, or programmed cell death. This study investigates a mechanism by which gp120, an HIV protein responsible for viral entry, contributes to T cell apoptosis. We hypothesize that gp120 inhibits microRNAs which normally suppress the transcription factor foxo3a. Freed of this inhibition, foxo3a becomes active and mediates the transcription of proteins which sensitize the cell to apoptosis. Our results suggest foxo3a as a major contributor to T cell loss in HIV infection, and therefore as a potential target for HIV therapies. Andrew designed and performed many of the experiments involved in the project.

This work was supervised by Andrew Badley (Mayo Clinic) and Nathan Cummins (Mayo Clinic)

Tan, Shao Min '12

Solar-Cycle Variation of Oscillation Frequencies and Surface Magnetic Field

Working at the High Altitude Observatory in Boulder, CO, Shao Min did a project investigating the relationship between solar oscillation frequencies and surface magnetic fields over the course of the last solar cycle. The project found a strong linear correlation between the frequencies and magnetic fields, consistent with a similar study done in 2001. However, the correlation was strong for both the rising and declining phases of the solar cycle, which is interesting since other studies have indicated a deviation in similar quantities during the declining phase.

Presented at the American Geophysical Union conference

This work was supervised by Kathy Evertz

Wong, Debbie '13

Weaving an Effective Web of Writing Center Relationships at Small Liberal Arts Colleges

This project studies the importance of good relationships between different constituencies in a liberal arts college for the success of its writing center. It looks at the different ways in which writing is defined and understood, and the tensions that arise as a result. It asks the questions of "What is writing? Who owns writing? What does it mean to be a good writer?" and seeks to find a balance between the various competing answers, in order that writing center staff might best serve the needs of all parties - professors and students alike.

Presented at the Midwest Writing Centers Association conference

This work was supervised by Kathy Evertz

Yang, Heather '12

Competing Instincts: Semantic Versus Physical Size Processing of Numbers

Heather undertook research in the field of cognitive psychology with Professor Avishai Henik, the Head of the Cognitive Neuropsychology Laboratory at the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, in Israel. The project examined the relationship between the Semantic Congruity Effect and the Size Congruity Effect; an important link that has not been previously examined. This work in magnitude processing was undertaken in order to aid our understanding of numerical processing and possibly help understand Developmental Dyscalculia. Heather assisted in designing the study, creating an experiment paradigm using E-Prime software, running participants, as well as analyzing data using Statistica

This work was supervised by Avishai Henik (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev)

Zhao, Sen '12

Prediction by Iterative Supervised Principal Components

In this statistical genetics project, we tried to classify people based on their gene expressions. We found that existing methods, including LASSO, Tibshirani's Nearest Shrunken Centroids, Supervised Principal Components (PCA), and 2-Means did not work well with datasets which were unbalanced and had high mislabeling rate. However, unbalancedness and mislabeling do exist commonly in the real-world. Therefore, we developed an iterative method which extends the algorithm of Supervised PCA proposed by Bair, Hastie, Paul, and Tibshirani (2006). This method worked better than traditional Supervised PCA in terms of error rate, sensitivity, and specificity. Zhao was the main investigator of the project.

This work was supervised by Eric Bair (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)

Burr-McNeal, Mahal '12

Leading Every Day: A Child Abuse Prevention Leadership Program

Mahal Burr created and implemented a child abuse prevention leadership project for teen mothers. The project aimed to empower young mothers to become leaders on child abuse prevention both for their children and other children in Memphis. The participants were treated as community organizers. They recieved a small stipend, were given professional training on child abuse (including prevention techniques, sign recognition, response and reporting skills and much more) from six leading organizations on child abuse prevention and recovery in Memphis. In addition the participants received leadership training and put these skills to the test with an accumulative community event. Following the program, Mahal Burr is working to create a child abuse prevention week-long curriculum that will be implemented into a Memphis City School starting in Spring 2012.

This work was supervised by Anita Chikkatur

Denny, Adam '12

Geochemistry of the Eocene Crescent Formation Basalt, Washington State: Implications for Mantle Plume Activity

The Coast Range Basalt provinces of Oregon, Washington, and Vancouver Island consist of an estimated 250,000 cubic kilometers of extrusive lavas generated between 62 and 50 Ma. Although previous studies have linked this Large Igneous Province (LIP) to subduction of a mid-ocean ridge (Haeussler et al., 2003) or accreted seamounts potentially associated with a mantle plume (Duncan, 1982), unambiguous evidence concerning the origin of Coast Range volcanism remains elusive. Ongoing investigation of the trace element and isotope compositions of the Crescent Formation basalts of Washington State demonstrates a range of basalt compositions consistent with an enriched mantle source. Compositional heterogeneity of the Crescent Formation requires the tapping of multiple mantle reservoirs as volcanism progressed. This study presents an expanded geographical survey of Crescent Formation compositions in an e_x001E_ffort to further constrain the origins of the Coast Range LIP.

This work was supervised by Bereket Haileab

Foran, Rachel '12

Made and Making: The Construction of Somali Muslim Selves in Rural Minnesota

Existing scholarship has largely overlooked the role of religion in the formation and maintenance of Somali selves in the diaspora. This project seeks to address the lack of scholarship on Somali Islam. Rachel conducted extended fieldwork with the Somali Muslim immigrant community in Faribault, Minnesota. Based on conversations and observations from the field augmented by with theoretical analysis, this study looks at the formation of Somali Muslim identities for Somali female youth in rural Minnesota.

This work was supervised by Shana Sippy

Gupta, Lipi '12

So You Want to Start an NGO?: Why "Empowering" People Takes More Mentors and Time Than You Might Think

This series of qualitative case studies of three NGO programs investigates how the organizations' "empowerment" strategies simultaneously undermine and enhance the quality of their impact in ways that that are not fully revealed or obvious at a glance. This study comprises independent and faculty-supervised fieldwork at Jagori in Delhi, Indi;, the Esilalei Women's Cultural Boma in Esilalei, Tanzania; and Project Why, in Delhi, India. Research in Esilalei was co-conducted with Emily Houser '12. Gupta concludes that interventions aiming to "empower" seem to require a great deal of face-to-face time within a set of new relationships; and these relationships in the NGO spaces take years to influence individuals' broader roles and abilities in daily life. Further analysis will be complete spring term.

Link: https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B80E2CnG9xYJYWFhZmI4NmUtOTg1Yy00NmM5LWEwYWEtYTlmODNkZjk5YjU5&hl=en

Kelati, Beserat '12

Polarization of Memory in the Eritrean Diaspora

As a Mellon Mays Fellow Beserat Kelati is studying the development of the Eritrean identity and community cohesion, both in the nation-state and in the context of the Houston diaspora experience. Kelati's research questions are: How has politics in the Eritrean nation-state affected community cohesion in the Houston Eritrean diaspora? And what role has the sociopolitical disjunction between Eritrea's political fronts played in fostering or impeding cultural cohesion with the Houston's Eritrean community? To determine community cohesion in the Houston Eritrean diaspora, she used a multi-method approach. Life histories, participant observation and interviews were conducted in the form of a qualitative approach. Kelati hopes historical memories, personal experiences, community dynamics and emotion will provide alternative narratives that have been excluded from recent literature due to the complexity that exists between the Eritrean diaspora community and the nation-state.

This work was supervised by Van Dusenbery

Kunkel, William '12

Lamp Tag: Building a Safe, Cheap Alternative to Commercial Laser Tag

Lamp Tag is a game of virtual paintball that is played with electronic equipment designed by a group of Carleton physics majors. In the game, each player is equipped with an infrared "lamp gun" emitter and a set of sensors that enable communication along line of sight for distances up to 60 m. While commercial laser tag equipment typically costs over $3000 per set, we have developed a laser-free substitute that can be assembled at a cost of $40 per set.

Link: http://www.people.carleton.edu/~kunkelm/Lamp_tag_report.pdf

This work was supervised by Marty Baylor

Lopez, Paulina '12

The Relevance of Mexican Political Printmaking

This project investigates the relevance of Mexican printmaking as a sociopolitical tool in the 20th and 21st centuries. Paulina researched the historical and social contexts that surround Mexican prints from both eras, and conducted formal analyses of primary sources from art institutions and conferences in the mid-west and along the El Paso-Juarez border. Her research focuses on the way contemporary Mexican artists are embracing form over content in order to preserve the medium's relevance in the digital age. She is incorporating the traditional and contemporary Mexican printmaking methods studied from primary sources into a series of artist's books that document the experiences of Mexican immigrants living in southeastern Minnesota. Paulina collected the oral histories of these immigrants as part of the project during the summer of 2010. Professor Fred Hagstrom assisted Paulina on the studio aspect of this project, which is funded by the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship program.

This work was supervised by Fred Hagstrom

Cushing, Benjamin '12

What’s Worth Knowing? A Quantitative Approach to the Debate Over What Fills Young Americans’ Minds

Borrowing tools from sociology, this paper challenges generational arguments made by popular writers about the essential knowledge that every American must have. These critics, including recent bestseller Mark Bauerlein, overlook the possibility that definitions of essential knowledge change over time and are particular to a historical moment. Through surveying members of the Carleton College and Northfield, MN communities, we set out to find whether peoples' perceptions of essential knowledge and skills are affected by certain sociodemographic or behavioral characteristics. The results of our study provide evidence that older people value categories of academic-content knowledge more strongly than younger people do. The results also show that as people value their education more, they increasingly value these categories of knowledge. The only type of knowledge that younger people valued more than older people did was proficiency in foreign languages. These results demonstrate that the effects of age and generation play important, but perhaps different, roles in shaping an individual’s educational values.

This work was supervised by Bill North and Annette Nierobisz

Bellos, Nicholas '12

What’s Worth Knowing? A Quantitative Approach to the Debate Over What Fills Young Americans’ Minds

Borrowing tools from sociology, this paper challenges generational arguments made by popular writers about the essential knowledge that every American must have. These critics, including recent bestseller Mark Bauerlein, overlook the possibility that definitions of essential knowledge change over time and are particular to a historical moment. Through surveying members of the Carleton College and Northfield, MN communities, we set out to find whether peoples' perceptions of essential knowledge and skills are affected by certain sociodemographic or behavioral characteristics. The results of our study provide evidence that older people value categories of academic-content knowledge more strongly than younger people do. The results also show that as people value their education more, they increasingly value these categories of knowledge. The only type of knowledge that younger people valued more than older people did was proficiency in foreign languages. These results demonstrate that the effects of age and generation play important, but perhaps different, roles in shaping an individual’s educational values.

This work was supervised by Bill North and Annette Nierobisz

Alexander, Michael '12

What’s Worth Knowing? A Quantitative Approach to the Debate Over What Fills Young Americans’ Minds

Borrowing tools from sociology, this paper challenges generational arguments made by popular writers about the essential knowledge that every American must have. These critics, including recent bestseller Mark Bauerlein, overlook the possibility that definitions of essential knowledge change over time and are particular to a historical moment. Through surveying members of the Carleton College and Northfield, MN communities, we set out to find whether peoples' perceptions of essential knowledge and skills are affected by certain sociodemographic or behavioral characteristics. The results of our study provide evidence that older people value categories of academic-content knowledge more strongly than younger people do. The results also show that as people value their education more, they increasingly value these categories of knowledge. The only type of knowledge that younger people valued more than older people did was proficiency in foreign languages. These results demonstrate that the effects of age and generation play important, but perhaps different, roles in shaping an individual’s educational values.

This work was supervised by Bill North and Annette Nierobisz

McClellan, Michael '13

Cyclodextrin-Containing Air Fresheners: A New Pathway for Inhaling Pollutants?

The indoor environment contains many pollutants that can be damaging to health and offensive to human senses. A new generation of air fresheners contains beta-cyclodextrin, a cyclic glucose oligomer that is reported by manufacturers to "eliminate" odors by trapping offensive smelling molecules in its core, rendering it scent-free. In this study, the kinetics and mechanism of cyclodextrin-pollutant complexation were studied in solution and in the aerosol phase using spectroscopy and mass spectrometry techniques. Aerosol Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry was used to collect mass spectra of aerosol mixtures of beta-cyclodextrin and naphthalene derivatives (simulated indoor pollutants), which were shown to complex in solution using spectroscopic methods. Markers that indicate complexation of naphthalene derivatives in cyclodextrin-containing mixtures have been identified in the ATOFMS spectra, leading to the possibility of identifying beta-cyclodextrin-pollutant complexes in real-world particles.

This work was supervised by Deborah Gross

McMurtrey, Owen '12

Cowling Arboretum Grassland Breeding Bird Survey

The Arboretum Grassland Breeding Bird Survey establishes the diversity and overall numbers of grasslands bird species of interest. The survey is envisioned as a long-term study that will help Arboretum managers and prairie restorationists understand avian responses to a variety of management decisions. The survey data also serves as an aid in understanding the ecology of grassland birds generally. After three years, the data show an increase in the numbers of grassland species that avoid trees during the nesting season and a coinciding decline in the numbers of species that associate with trees during nesting. The removal of trees from Arboretum prairies is ongoing, and we hypothesize a relationship between tree removal and species composition changes. An example of temporal allocation of niche space among three abundant grassland species is noted, as well as increases in species diversity and overall numbers over the last three years.

Link: https://apps.carleton.edu/campus/arb/connections/student_research/

This work was supervised by Nancy Braker

Overholt, True '12

XXXX Desea Usted? Consumer and Survey Participant Behavior within a Multiethnic Community

Seeing a lack of research sufficiently addressing the issue of acculturation's impact on the ethnocentric tendency of consumers regarding the country of origin effect, we presented Mexican-Americans living in Northfield, Minnesota, with a two-part questionnaire. The first asked participants to rate, according to favorability and purchase intent, advertisements of 12 goods and six services; the second concerned cultural preferences (Mexican or American) and a construal of self scale. We encountered many difficulties cultural and methodological throughout the process working with an under-sampled population that limited statistically significant results. The lessons we learned were rather those of surveying a multicultural immigrant population, the difficulties arising in undertaking such a project, and how to improve future academic studies within a nonacademic population.

This work was supervised by Annette Nierobisz and Mija Van Der Wege

Vang, Pachee '14

Speech Surrogates of the White Hmong: A Study of the Representation of Hmong Tones as Musical Pitches on the Nkauj Nog Ncas (Two-Stringed Violin)

Hmong musicians surpass the combination of melodies by transforming the ineffable through instruments, one pitch representing one word; a phenomenon called speech surrogacy. Unlike our elders, we did not understand the words played from Hmong speech surrogates. Therefore, we looked into studies on Hmong music and language from Poss (2005) flute, Catlin (1981) sung poetry, and Falk (2003) open-reed pipe organ who found similar pitch-system patterns. We expanded on these studies with the two-stringed violin, examining the lexical-tones correspondence to musical-pitches, tones collapsing into one pitch, and the instrument's style of "speech." We collected music pieces from seven musicians and analyzed the pitches of each word. In short, a pattern of high tones to high pitches and vise versa suggests that tones assist in the understanding of the instrument. Through this work, we hope that Hmong youth understand Hmong speech surrogacy better and that advancements in Hmong speech surrogacy continues.

This work was supervised by Annette Nierobisz, Katie Fortin, and Melinda Russell

Vue, Bill '12

Speech Surrogates of the White Hmong: A Study of the Representation of Hmong Tones as Musical Pitches on the Nkauj Nog Ncas (Two-Stringed Violin)

Hmong musicians surpass the combination of melodies by transforming the ineffable through instruments, one pitch representing one word; a phenomenon called speech surrogacy. Unlike our elders, we did not understand the words played from Hmong speech surrogates. Therefore, we looked into studies on Hmong music and language from Poss (2005) flute, Catlin (1981) sung poetry, and Falk (2003) open-reed pipe organ who found similar pitch-system patterns. We expanded on these studies with the two-stringed violin, examining the lexical-tones correspondence to musical-pitches, tones collapsing into one pitch, and the instrument's style of "speech." We collected music pieces from seven musicians and analyzed the pitches of each word. In short, a pattern of high tones to high pitches and vise versa suggests that tones assist in the understanding of the instrument. Through this work, we hope that Hmong youth understand Hmong speech surrogacy better and that advancements in Hmong speech surrogacy continues.

This work was supervised by Annette Nierobisz, Katie Fortin, and Melinda Russell

Vue, Bao '12

Speech Surrogates of the White Hmong: A Study of the Representation of Hmong Tones as Musical Pitches on the Nkauj Nog Ncas (Two-Stringed Violin)

Hmong musicians surpass the combination of melodies by transforming the ineffable through instruments, one pitch representing one word; a phenomenon called speech surrogacy. Unlike our elders, we did not understand the words played from Hmong speech surrogates. Therefore, we looked into studies on Hmong music and language from Poss (2005) flute, Catlin (1981) sung poetry, and Falk (2003) open-reed pipe organ who found similar pitch-system patterns. We expanded on these studies with the two-stringed violin, examining the lexical-tones correspondence to musical-pitches, tones collapsing into one pitch, and the instrument's style of "speech." We collected music pieces from seven musicians and analyzed the pitches of each word. In short, a pattern of high tones to high pitches and vise versa suggests that tones assist in the understanding of the instrument. Through this work, we hope that Hmong youth understand Hmong speech surrogacy better and that advancements in Hmong speech surrogacy continues.

This work was supervised by Annette Nierobisz, Katie Fortin, and Melinda Russell

Walker, Alex '12

What Factors Regulate the Automobile Related Negative Consequences of Alcohol Consumption in the Twin Cities Metro Area of Minnesota?

This project investigated negative consequences of alcohol consumption in the seven county metro area surrounding the Twin Cities, Minnesota. After using statistical modeling to isolate useful variables, a spatial analysis was conducted on the appropriate variables to predict three negative consequences: motor vehicle crashes (MVCs), motor vehicle fatalities MVFs) and arrests for driving while intoxicated (DWIs). The intention was to provide a snapshot of risk for the metro counties relative to each other, for example: which counties have the highest predicted rates of drinking and driving? Demographic, economic, geographic and legal information were incorporated into the model with the intent of identifying the factors that contribute to illegal roadway actions and their consequences. Analysis showed that prediction models for MVFs and DWIs contained serious issues and that only the MVC model was appropriate for prediction. Analysis of the MVC model showed that a wide range of variables determined negative consequences and that differences in legislation did not have an effect in determining the extent of alcohol related issues.

This work was supervised by Tsegaye Nega

Williams, David '12

XXXX Desea Usted? Consumer and Survey Participant Behavior within a Multiethnic Community

Seeing a lack of research sufficiently addressing the issue of acculturation's impact on the ethnocentric tendency of consumers regarding the country of origin effect, we presented Mexican-Americans living in Northfield, Minnesota, with a two-part questionnaire. The first asked participants to rate, according to favorability and purchase intent, advertisements of 12 goods and six services; the second concerned cultural preferences (Mexican or American) and a construal of self scale. We encountered many difficulties--cultural and methodological--throughout the process working with an under-sampled population that limited statistically significant results. The lessons we learned were rather those of surveying a multicultural immigrant population, the difficulties arising in undertaking such a project, and how to improve future academic studies within a nonacademic population.

This work was supervised by Annette Nierobisz and Mija Van Der Wege

Xiong, Milah '14

Speech Surrogates of the White Hmong: A Study of the Representation of Hmong Tones as Musical Pitches on the Nkauj Nog Ncas (Two-Stringed Violin)

Hmong musicians surpass the combination of melodies by transforming the ineffable through instruments, one pitch representing one word; a phenomenon called speech surrogacy. Unlike our elders, we did not understand the words played from Hmong speech surrogates. Therefore, we looked into studies on Hmong music and language from Poss (2005) flute, Catlin (1981) sung poetry, and Falk (2003) open-reed pipe organ who found similar pitch-system patterns. We expanded on these studies with the two-stringed violin, examining the lexical-tones correspondence to musical-pitches, tones collapsing into one pitch, and the instrument's style of "speech." We collected music pieces from seven musicians and analyzed the pitches of each word. In short, a pattern of high tones to high pitches and vise versa suggests that tones assist in the understanding of the instrument. Through this work, we hope that Hmong youth understand Hmong speech surrogacy better and that advancements in Hmong speech surrogacy continues.

This work was supervised by Annette Nierobisz, Katie Fortin, and Melinda Russell

Abadian-Heifetz, Ariana '12

Following the Flame

I journeyed to India to travel the path Persian Zoroastrians took to escape persecution following Islamic conquest of their lands 1,400 years ago. As a Zoroastrian by birth, I intended to reclaim my heritage by better understanding the essence of my religion, how others practice it, the significance it holds, and how the religion has evolved. In each community I explored Zoroastrian fire temples and interviewed those still practicing. I wanted to deeply understand: What vital messages might this ancient religion have for us today that has managed to stay alive despite the pressures of persecution and modernity? How can I internalize the  Zoroastrian message of good thoughts, good words, and good deeds?

Beck, James '12

Tracing Uighur Identity from the East to the West of China

This experiential research project mostly took place in Xinjiang, the western-most province in China. The project was designed to gain a fuller understanding of the lifestyles, culture, and changing identities of the Uighurs - a Turkic ethnic group that flourished in the time of the silk road. James Beck developed relationships, stayed in villages with Uighurs, and expanded his understanding of the current complex power structures and politics in China.

Clark, Julia '12

Constructing a Soul: the Origins of Pinoko in Tezuka Osamu's Black Jack

This paper, which was presented at the School Girl and Mobile Suits Conference at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design in September, outlines Tezuka Osamu's overall vision of the self as shaped by the narratives and texts that we consume, demonstrated by instances of allusion and Noh and Bunraku symbolism in the chapter entitled "Teratoid Cystoma" from Black Jack Volume 1. "Teratoid Cystoma" represents a fascination with intertextuality which is found more subtly throughout Tezuka's work, blurring the boundary between reality and a world of text. In this paper, Julia traces these themes throughout Tezuka's vast body of work and explores what this intertextuality means in terms of Tezuka's ideas about identity and mortality.

Ea, Dennis '13

Medicine for Sick Children - Kampala, Uganda

The Medicine for Sick Children Foundation serves to bring first aid medical cabinets to the neediest children's orphanages in Kampala, Uganda. Our long-term study seeks to provide data on the impact that basic first aid medicine has on child health and development and whether household treatment can be effective in orphan care. Dennis constructed first aid cabinets and collected children measurements and medical backgrounds.

Fishman, Joseph '13

Men With Arms

Men with Arms is a feature film written, directed, edited, and produced in New York City by three Carleton students over the course of the summer. The film is about a young man who slowly escapes his deteriorating family and discovers himself through the sounds of New York City. The objective of this project was to project our skills learned in the CAMS department onto a large scale piece that could potentially garner national and international recognition for the directors, the CAMS department, and Carleton. Carleton was a major contributor to the film and without the help of the college, we would not have been able to make such a large scale collaborative project. Gabriel Loeb, Matt Spevack and I shared equivalent roles in the production, editing, producing, and directing.

Will be screened at Carleton in the end of winter or the beginning of spring.

Link: http://www.indiegogo.com/menwitharms

Frumkin, Rebekah '12

Nebeneinander, Nacheinander: James Joyce, Bertrand Russell and the Philosophy of Language

I received a Class of 1963 Scholarship to conduct scholarly research at the James Joyce Foundation in Zurich, Switzerland. I was an attendee at the International James Joyce Workshop, where I presented my research. This Workshop's theme was "Pierced but not Punctured," a phrase from Finnegans Wake that more or less means "punctuation." I'm a philosophy major, so it was nice for me to be able to incorporate my specific knowledge of the Philosophy of Language into a presentation on modern literature. I spoke about dialogue in "Ulysses" and "Dubliners," incorporating Russell's philosophy of meaning and denotation from "On Denoting."

Hockenbury, Laura '12

The Way of Water: Examining the Environmental and Human Impacts of the Arun River in the Koshi Region of Nepal

The idea is simple enough: to follow a river and see where it goes. Laura traced the Arun River as it flows through Nepal, from the High Himalayas (elevation ranging from 10,000 to 20,000 feet) to the Terai region (elevation 300 feet) on the border of India. Along the way, she took water samples and performed various water quality tests from each distinct ecosystem. Investigation was also made into the people in the villages along the Arun regarding their perceptions, beliefs, and attitudes towards and about the river itself, with special focus on climate change and development, and chronicled the difference between mountain and plains culture in Nepal.

Ngo, Hai '12

Fovea Centralis: A Visual Commentary on the Medium of Photography in the 21st Century

Failure is one of the most valuable moments to a photographer. In this moment contains the conscious aspects that the artist has put in the photograph, but also many other aspects waiting to be realized by the audience and, more importantly, the photographer. In a journey of self-discovery through the medium of photography, Hai Ngo returns to Vietnam to conduct a genealogy project and a photography project.

Exhibited in Gould Library.

Spevack, Matthew '13

Men With Arms (Feature Film)

Men With Arms is a feature-length fiction film that was written, directed, produced, and edited by three Carls over the course of one summer in New York City. The project was a collaboration between Matt Spevack, Joey Fishman, and Gabriel Loeb, the three co-founders of Mothers Favorite Pictures, Inc. The film is slated for its Carleton premiere early Spring 2012 and will hit the international film festival circuit the following Fall/Winter.

Link: http://www.indiegogo.com/menwitharms

Trees, Hannah '12

Exploring the Sources of Moral Authority: Religion, the State, and Personal Autonomy

Interested in dealing with ethics as an existential issue, Hannah explored the work of Sartre and Kierkegaard in order to grapple with the question of whether or not complete moral autonomy benefits an individual's personal existence. Unsatisfied both with Sartre's morally self-defined individual and Kierkegaard's individual defined by religious ethical standard, she looked to Charles Taylor's work in communitarianism for a more complete account of individual moral existence. Finding in Taylor's work a portrait of the individual as one necessarily embedded in the moral norms of a community, she concluded that complete moral autonomy is never a realistic goal, nor is it one that deals with the existential anxiety to which both Sartre and Kierkegaard call our attention.

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