1811 research outputs found
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Back to the Future: Classics and Science Fiction
No full textThe past is an alien planet. Just as the other worlds and speculative futures of science fiction reflect on our contemporary present through their similarities to and radical differences from our world, so too do the literature, mythology, and thought of ancient Greece and Rome. This online course pairs the Greek and Roman classics with works of modern science fiction—sometimes through direct influence, other times through thematic connections—to explore a range of crucial contemporary topics. These topics include social and ecological issues such as technology, ecological catastrophe, empire, race, and gender. Students will also receive training in intertextuality, classical reception studies, and the ways in which the cultural output of the classical past continues to shape our own society, culture, and worldviews
The Economics of Friendship: How Socioeconomic Status is Involved in Friendship Formation and Selection on Campus
No full textThis study explores the role socioeconomic status (SES) and race play in friendship formation and selection. I use interviews and a survey to investigate if, how, and why individuals become friends with people of similar SES. My study expands upon previous research that explains the friendship formation process and shows the prevalence of many forms of homophily, the tendency for us to befriend others who are like us. My research reveals that SES and race heavily influence friendship formation at Hamilton. However, my research also reveals how Hamilton students navigate SES differences in less common socioeconomically heterophilous friendships. Additionally, my study shows that SES heterophily is often driven by interest homophily. This information is important for schools looking to promote diverse friend groups and help students of a lower SES succeed in college
Transforming Legacy Spatial Data into Testable Hypotheses about Socioeconomic Organization
No full textAs archaeologists expand the accessibility of legacy data, they have an opportunity to use these datasets to design future research. We argue that legacy data can be a critical resource to help predict characteristics of sites and socioeconomic systems. In this article, we present a combined geographic information system (GIS) and network analysis methodology that turns site location data into testable hypotheses about site characteristics and the organization of regional settlement systems. We demonstrate the utility of this approach with a case study: Bronze Age (2700–1100 BC) settlement patterns in the mining region of Hunedoara in southwest Transylvania, Romania. We leverage unsystematically collected site location information in legacy datasets to develop testable predictions about sites, regional networks, and socioeconomic systems that can be evaluated through future systematic surveys and large-scale excavations. Such testable hypotheses can inform archaeological research design by providing a quantitative basis for determining where to focus research efforts and can also help secure funding and fieldwork permits. The method developed here can be applied in diverse archaeological contexts to reinvigorate legacy data as part of future archaeological research design
Bioarchaeology and Mountain Landscapes in Transylvania’s Golden Quadrangle
No full textThe Apuseni Mountains of southwestern Transylvania (Romania) are home to the richest gold and copper deposits in Europe, key resources that fueled the development of social complexity during the Bronze Age (ca. 2700–800 B.C.E.). This landscape encompasses a significant amount of topographic and ecological diversity, with upland landscapes incorporating major mineral deposits, forests, pastures, and salt springs, and lowland agropastoral landscapes abutting the major interregional Mureș River corridor. Local Early Bronze Age (ca. 2700–2000 B.C.E.) communities typically buried their dead in stone-covered tumuli in the uplands, though there are also examples of burial in lowland settlements. The relationship between upland and lowland mortuary contexts is an enduring question within the regional archaeological record. In this paper we present a case study that compares individuals from two sites: the lowland settlement of Alba Iulia-Pârâul Iovului and the upland cemetery of Meteș-La Meteșel. We ask whether there were differences between the uplands and the lowlands in terms of mortuary practices and eligibility for burial, or differences in the lived experience of pathology or trauma. Our results show that there are few significant differences between the two samples. Adults and subadults, as well as males and females, are represented at both sites, and levels of skeletal pathology are low, while dental insults are more frequent. We conclude by outlining a strategy for developing a regional bioarchaeology that will incorporate multiple lines of archaeological and bioarchaeological evidence and enhance our understanding of the biocultural dynamics of the region
Archaeology as Advocacy: Celebrating Cultural Heritage and Promoting Sustainability in Transylvania Mining Communities
Get PDFIn this paper, I examine the practice of cultural heritage preservation. In particular, I seek to understand how cultural heritage in rural landscapes, both in its intangible and tangible aspects, can be sustainably preserved. I focus my discussion on traditional rural landscapes in southwest Transylvania, Romania. Specifically, I ask how can we design the Ramet Museum Project to preserve and promote the cultural heritage of rural Transylvania? I apply the knowledge gained through exploring this question to propose some best practices in developing a community museum in Transylvania that promotes sustainable engagement with cultural heritage that is rooted in placemaking perspectives
Social Justice Education as Anti-Poverty Work: Undergraduates’ Experiential Learning in Childhood and Youth Spaces
Get PDFExperiential learning is a growing commitment in higher education and often takes the form of undergraduates venturing off of their campuses and into the communities surrounding their colleges. Through the lens of experiential learning theory (Kolb, 1984), this qualitative study examines the lived experiences and outcomes of undergraduates delivering literacy based social justice education lessons in local childhood spaces. As a further focus, this study also seeks to illuminate the role of social justice education as a form of anti-poverty work when implemented through college-community partnerships. Analysis of the experiences of ten undergraduate students at a small private liberal arts college in Central New York will work to demonstrate the role college-community partnerships can play in fostering social justice and class equity, specifically in the context of undergraduates working with children and youth
Beauty Is in the Eye of the Beholder, but Our Eyes are Not Colorblind: White Beauty Standards’ Impact on Black and South Asian American Women
No full textBlack women and South Asian women are both minorities, but their lived experiences may lead to them having different perceptions of beauty. Ideas of beauty are constructed based on many factors, such as family, social media, and peer influence. However, few studies have compared these two racial groups in relation to the standards in the United States. This study explores how Black and South Asian women navigate college while developing gendered and racialized beauty ideals. This research suggests that South Asian women’s model minority status may indirectly have a negative influence on their perceptions of themselves. It also suggests that South Asian were also less inclined to seek out friend groups with people of color
Do the Formal and Informal Administrative and Faculty Practices at Elite College Force Students Question, Harden, or Change Their Political Beliefs?
No full textDespite the fact that Elite College’s student body hails from a variety of socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds, numerous students at Elite College have complained of a lack of political diversity on campus. In this project I examine whether the formal and informal administrative and faculty practices at Elite College effectively promote political discussion in which students can form, question, and/or change their political beliefs. I used a detailed interview guide to further understand students at Elite College familial background and their experiences at Elite College. Given the time constraints, I was not able to make any overarching findings regarding Elite College. However, I was able to categorize the interview data into three critical section which effectively set the stage for further research. Upon interviewing 12 students at Elite College I identified the 1) Transition Period from high school to college (independence, clashing of socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds, becoming informed), 2) the Environmental Factors that exist at Elite College (Semi-open discussion, classroom and office hours, discussion with peers) and Political Bashing (Making fun of or dismissing opposing viewpoints) that takes place in the classroom and around campus as the most salient. In this paper, I will further enumerate and contextualize these preliminary findings as they pertain to the broader literature regarding the way students form, question, and/or change their political beliefs on small liberal arts campuses