College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University
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On the Task of Today\u27s Theologian
Get PDFThis piece was written as a reading response paper for Kristin Colberg’s Documents of Vatican II course in the Spring of 2022. It argues that today’s theologian must take seriously the demands of the Second Vatican Council and that the task of the theologian is, in light of contemporary culture, offer an ever-new articulation of the Gospel of Christ Jesus that does not lose its ever-ancient truths. In that vein, the piece utilizes the assigned readings for a particular course meeting to, with the aid of Bernard Lonergan, outline a kind of pro-Vatican II panegyric
La Convivencia: A Perspective on How Spain\u27s Diverse Religious Past Influences the Present
No full textWhile studying abroad in Spain this semester, and as a participant in the Jay Phillips Center’s Student Interfaith Research and Leadership Program, Maddie Anderson has been conducting a deep exploration of existing interfaith relationships and how they have evolved since a period often referred to as La Convivencia in Medieval Spain. Personal experiences, observations, and research have helped to guide Maddie\u27s understanding as she has discovered the many ways in which Spain\u27s interreligious history continues to shape the values, experiences, and dialogue between Muslims, Christians, and Jews in present day Spain.Maddie Anderson is a senior and a member of the CSB/SJU honors program completing a Hispanic studies major while on a pre-medicine track. She is from Cambridge, Minnesota, and graduated from Totino-Grace High School in Fridley, Minnesota, in 2018. Maddie worked for CSB/SJU’s Fine Arts Programming as a box office assistant and ticket coordinator and worked for CSB Group Exercise as a Zumba instructor. She has also been working as a certified nursing assistant at Prairie Senior Cottages, a memory care facility, for more than four years and has recently started working as a home health aide as well. Maddie volunteers with UpChieve as a virtual tutor and advisor for low-income students in the United States and went to Honduras in 2019 to volunteer with Global Medical Brigades. She was also an executive board member of CSBeats, the all-female a capella group at CSB, for three years and the vice president of the Global Health Affairs club in the fall of 2021. Maddie is currently studying abroad in Spain where she is conducting her interfaith research. “I find inspiration in interfaith dialogue because it allows for greater understanding of others as well as a greater understanding of ourselves, which can change the lens through which we experience our reality to be more centered, grounded, and connected,” writes Maddie. “I appreciate this interfaith research opportunity because it allows me to continue seeking ways in which I can benefit from the unique perspectives of others by listening with intention, sharing with honesty, and conversing with an open mind.
Rethinking Public Health Risk Mitigation Strategies: Recognizing the Biosocial Nature of COVID-19
Get PDFThe SARS-CoV-2 virus has rippled throughout every aspect of society and influenced how we live, breathe, and interact with one another. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the interdisciplinary biosocial impacts of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and the resulting disease, COVID-19. In order to understand the complexities of caregiving during COVID-19, we conducted 75 semi-structured interviews with 55 healthcare providers across 18 states over a span of two years. This research assesses how COVID-19 risk mitigation strategies were designed with the primary intention to stop the spread of the virus rather than account for the longer-term social and biological consequences. In particular, this thesis discusses three areas in healthcare: workplace reorganization, delayed and deferred care, and death & dying. In these areas, new protocols were implemented that prioritized reducing proximal biomedical risk (largely preventing spread and preparing for surges of COVID-19 patients) over accommodating for long-term biological and social consequences. To address public health crises more comprehensively, we must facilitate conversations across disciplines to create collaborative and innovative public health risk mitigation strategies. Additionally, we must incorporate pandemic preparedness into healthcare systems at all levels. Finally, we must improve our health communication skills to promote greater public understanding and support of risk mitigation strategies. By recognizing the complexities of risk and the interconnectedness of the biological and social consequences of infectious disease, we can better respond to the public health issues of today and tomorrow
The development of inhibitors for SARS-CoV-2 ORF8
Get PDFAn unexpected outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 caused a worldwide pandemic in 2020. Many repurposed drugs were tested, but there are currently only three FDA approved antivirals (Merck’s antiviral Molnupiravir, Pfizer’s antiviral Paxlovid, and Remdisivir).1 Most of the antiviral drugs tested SARS-CoV-2 main protease and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase. However, it is important to explore different drug targets of SARS-CoV-2 to prepare for the virus mutations of the future. This research looks at an alternative approach in which SARSCoV- 2 Open Reading Frame 8 (ORF8), which has been shown to be a rapidly evolving hypervariable gene, was chosen to be the protein of interest. A series of computational strategies were developed to generate pharmacophores and identify lead compounds. In addition to the lead compound identification pipeline, this thesis also presents an automated method for generating pharmacophore models from molecular docking output. The pharmacophore-based models resulted in four potential FDA-approved compounds. This thesis focuses on the binding activity of one of the four compounds, novobiocin. To collect data on the binding activity, the ORF8 protein was expressed and purified. Results suggest that novobiocin binds to ORF8, and it might be a potential inhibitor for further developments of an antiviral for SARS-CoV-2.
From the Ground Up
No full textThis installation was inspired to express femininity and sustainable fashion practices. The three dresses were handcrafted and constructed from a 1950’s Vogue pattern. On display, the mauve dress was made from recycled vintage fabric at SR. Harris, the last fashion house fabric goes before dumped in a landfill. Similarly, the white dress was constructed from a pillowcase, organic silk satin and chiffon. To further explore sustainable fashion practices, the third dress was made from cotton muslin and dyed using food and plants. The bodice was boiled in avocado skins and pits which turns fabric a delicate pink. It’s gathered skirt was eco-printed with recycled rose petals from Floral Arts, a flower shop in St. Joseph. The hanging fabric installation include swatches used along this process and panels recycled from past theater productions. Close friends were photographed in these gowns who express movement, delicacy, and positivity. The best of this work provokes a conversation between nature’s connection to humankind and fashion’s progression toward a more sustainable future
Transcultural Intellectuals Throughout the Cultural Revolution in China
Get PDFI have been researching transcultural Intellectuals throughout the cultural revolution in China that lasted from 1966-1976. My Project focuses mainly on two specific individuals, Niencheng, author of life and death in shanghai, and Yangxianyi, author of white tiger. They were both imprisoned, and vastly mistreated for their international ties. I take a deeper look into These intellectuals and what societal values they tapped into, whether western or Chinese. Despite losing several years of their lives in prison, and each lost one of their children due to the revolution, they both hold their own stories of determination and strength. The cultural revolution resulted in the death of millions of people, and was a turning point for Chinese society. The country has grown significantly from this time period, and the experiences of these two individuals acts as an inspiration for Chinese citizens, as well as those abroad
Building A World that Includes Disability
No full textRosemarie Garland-Thomson is a disability justice and culture thought leader, bioethicist, teacher, and humanities scholar. Her 2016 editorial, “Becoming Disabled,” was the inauguralarticle in the ongoing weekly series in the New York Times about disability by people living with disabilities.
She is a professor of English and bioethics at Emory University, where she teaches disability studies, bioethics, American literature and culture, and feminist theory. Her work develops the field of critical disability studies in the health humanities to bring forward disability access, inclusion, and identity to a broad range of institutions and communities.
She is co-editor of About Us: Essays from the New York Times about Disability by People with Disabilities (forthcoming) and the author of Staring: How We Look and several other books. Her current project is Embracing Our Humanity: A Bioethics of Disability and Health
Daily Mindfulness Meditation and Exercise Impact Stress, Anxiety, and Mindfulness in Students During the Pandemic
Get PDFStress and anxiety are often elevated in college students and were exacerbated by the uncertainty of learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Physical activity and mindfulness meditation are small lifestyle changes that can have a large effect on stress and anxiety.
PURPOSE: Identify the effects of daily walking or daily mindfulness meditation on stress, anxiety, and mindfulness in college students during the spring 2021 semester.
METHODS: Sixty-five college students were randomly assigned to three groups: control (N=22), exercise (N=24), or mindfulness (N=19). The control group did nothing in addition to their normal routine, the exercise group walked 15 minutes every day, and the mindfulness group completed a 10-to-12-minute daily mindfulness meditation. Most participants identified as female (84.7%) and as non-Hispanic/white (87.3%), and all ranged from 18 to 22 years old. The Perceived Stress Scale, Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire were completed by participants before and after the six-week intervention. Participants also reported their daily physical activity during the six-week intervention.
RESULTS: Overall, there were significant improvements in stress (t(64)= 3.77; p\u3c.001), anxiety (t(64) =2.75; p\u3c.001), and mindfulness (t(63)=-4.69; p=0.004) from baseline to post-test. The daily walking group experienced a significant increase in mindfulness (t(23)=-3.41; p=.002; d=l 1.0) and a non-significant improvement in stress (t(23)=2.01; p=.056; d=5.38). The daily meditation group experienced a significant improvement in stress (t(18)=3.07; p=.007; d=5.46), anxiety (t(18)=2.86; p=.010; d=12.1), and mindfulness (t(l 7)=-3.62; p=.002; d=12.1). The control group experienced no significant changes in stress (t(21)=1.45; p=.162; d=4.71), anxiety (t(21)=.683; p=.502; d=l2.8), nor mindfulness (t(21)=-1.25; p=.225; d=l 1.3). Although there were some individual group differences over time, there were no significant interactions between time and group for stress (F(2,62)=1.12; p=.334), anxiety (F(2,62)=1.16; p=.319), nor mindfulness (F(2,61)=2.15; p=.125). Physical activity was not significantly different between groups over time (F(7 .13,214 )= .694; p= .680).
CONCLUSION: Daily exercise and mindfulness meditation improved mindfulness and stress in college students while the latter intervention also had a significant impact on anxiety. These short, daily practices have potential to be incorporated into students\u27 lives to enhance quality of life and improve mental health, especially during uncertain and challenging situations
Relational Aggression in College Students: Associations with Emotion Regulation, Sleep, Social Anxiety, and Psychopathy
Get PDFRelational aggression is defined as aggression that attempts to harm others through the manipulation of relationships, reputation, and status. This can be seen when one spreads rumors, gossips, excludes someone, ignores someone, or gives them the silent treatment (Crick & Grotpeter, 1995; Lento-Zwolinksi, 2007). Previous research has found that behaviors of relational aggression are more common in adolescence, but tend to decrease in emerging adulthood. Men and women are equally likely to engage in relationally aggressive behavior; however, in women, it is associated with more maladaptive outcomes (Werner & Crick, 1999). The current study found that relational aggression was associated with difficulties in emotion regulation, negative affect, social anxiety, depression, egocentricity, antisocial traits, and spitefulness. There were no significant associations with positive affect, sleep difficulties, and callousness. Potential gender differences in these relationships were also explored
