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Flood Narratives and Catastrophic Lessons: the Cultural Reminders of Apocalyptic Mythology
No full textFlood narratives are a recurring aspect of the cultural record, particularly within religious and mythological traditions. Considering these occurrences, this research project endeavors to explore the similarities and differences among the varying narratives—specifically drawing upon excerpts from The Bible, Ovid’s Metamorphoses, and the Sumero-Babylonian Gilgamesh Epic. This composition explores common themes among these written accounts with the intent of revealing the symbolic structures buried within the narratives’ characters and environs. After concluding an analysis of the metaphors and symbolisms which shape these mythologies, this essay finally investigates more recent explorations regarding “ark mania” with the intent of discovering an underlying theme that motivates human obsession with divine destruction. Summarily, the project concludes with an argument explaining the multi-millennia fascination with flood mythology
The First Inoculation Debate: A Quantitative Text Analysis of the Boston Smallpox Epidemic of 1721
No full textDespite scientific research supporting the use of vaccination to protect against disease, some individuals choose not to vaccinate their children for religious or political reasons. Vaccination is a topic of heated debate today, but this debate actually started in early eighteenth-century America when a Puritan minister promoted the practice during an outbreak of smallpox in Boston. By the end of the 1721 epidemic, inoculation (a primitive form of vaccination) saved almost 300 people, but it also ignited fierce protests. Many Puritan colonists viewed inoculation as distrust in God or were afraid of the spread of disease, and the meddling of ministers in the affairs of “learned men” outraged physicians. This debate provides a case study for analyzing the influence of religious beliefs on public views of inoculation before the development of modern medicine. The study examines a set of digitized documents from the debate using an online tool called Voyant to quantify the word frequencies of religious and secular language used by both supporters and opponents of inoculation. The resulting graphs visually reveal patterns in the language of ministers and physicians and suggest an interwoven relationship between religion and science during this time period. In addition, the study compares this quantitative analysis to a traditional close reading of the texts to suggest limitations of a quantitative analysis and refine conclusions on the relationship between religion and science during the debate. Future research can further develop this text analysis method and potentially apply it to study texts from more contemporary vaccination debates
The Polar Front: A Historical Narrative Derived from the Oral History of the American North Russian Expeditionary Forces
No full textIn the summer of 1918, with the Armistice of World War I rapidly approaching, President Woodrow Wilson sent the American North Russia Expeditionary Force (ANREF), colloquially known as the Polar Bears, to Northern Russia in order to secure allied munitions from the Bolshevik Army and reclaim the Russian front for Allied forces. Out of the 5,500 men sent to Arkhangelsk, Russia, 75% percent were from Michigan. In 1978, a group of Hope College students interviewed fifteen members of the ANREF who hailed from West Michigan, inquiring about their experiences. Thirty-eight years later, the interviews, diaries, and other primary sources gathered from the veterans by the students have been converted into a digital timeline, one which narrates these soldiers’ journey through the frozen North. Through both audio-visual and graphic media, the timeline also illuminates the thoughts and sentiments of the soldiers, particularly regarding their trials and tribulations throughout the campaign. After being marooned, starved, and neglected by the U.S. military for almost a year, the men’s opinions of their country varied. This project revisits the role of small town America in the nation’s first major international conflict
The Justice of God and The New Jim Crow
No full textPlato and Aristotle saw justice as the highest of all virtues. In a nation of 320 million, the scale and dramatic effects of violent crime, theft, and trafficking in sex or drugs render elusive the pursuit of virtue and justice. When prominent leaders of the African American community proclaim “We’ve gone from plantations to penitentiaries,” there is ample cause to question the annual expenditure of $74 billion for correctional facilities in the United States of America. Does this system of mass incarceration bring justice? If so, what kind of justice is enacted? Following the teachings of Jesus and the minor prophets, the Christian church is called to seek justice, forgive, and show mercy (cf. Micah 6:8). Far from limiting the justice of God to the domain of retribution, a fully-orbed biblical theology of justice presses Christians to seek the restoration of peace, reconciliation, and shalom, thus calling into question our nation’s misguided appetite for a form of justice divorced from the Gospel virtues of faith, hope, and love. Given the work of Karl Barth and Nicholas Wolterstorff, the distinct contribution of this research lies in providing a theologically robust engagement with Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. The research methodology utilizes close readings of primary and secondary sources, theological and historical documents alongside biblical material. The primary goal of this research is to offer the Church a public theology of justice calling all who identify with Christ to respond to mass incarceration in prayer and solidarity with the suffering, reconciliation, and advocacy
Religious-body Affirmations Protect Body Esteem for Women Who Base Self-worth on Appearance or Others’ Approval
Get PDFWomen who base their self-worth on appearance or others’ approval are especially vulnerable to low body esteem when they view media images of thin models. We explored one way religion might mitigate the harmful media effects in these women. We tested whether basing self-worth on appearance or others’ approval was positively related to body comparisons and body surveillance. We tested whether reading religious body-affirming statements enhanced feelings of being loved, which would increase body esteem in women who base self-worth on appearance or others’ approval. This experiment manipulated the type of body-affirming statements (religious, spiritual, control) and assessed women’s body esteem before and after they viewed thin models. Results showed basing self-worth on appearance or others’ approval was positively related to body comparisons and surveillance. Furthermore, reading religious body-affirmations increased feeling loved, which in turn increased weight esteem in women who based self-worth on appearance or others’ approval
Relational Spirituality and Forgiveness of Offenses Committed by Religious Leaders
No full textIn the present article, we extend a model of relational spirituality and forgiveness to the context of major offenses by clergy. In Study 1, undergraduate students (N = 208) described a major offense that they had experienced by a religious leader and then completed several questionnaires in relation to the offense and the religious leader. Appraisals of relational spirituality were significantly associated with forgiveness, after controlling for known predictors of forgiveness (i.e., hurtfulness, time since the offense, and commitment to God or another source of spirituality). In Study 2, we replicated and extended the findings from Study 1 using an independent sample of undergraduates (N = 365). In a series of structural equation models, we found that relational engagement of God (or another source of spirituality) partially mediated the relationship between anger toward God (or another source of spirituality) and unforgiving motivations. We conclude by discussing implications for future research
A Course-Based Research Experience Approach to Examining Host Factors Involved in Viral Replication
No full textPositive-strand RNA [(+)RNA] viruses are significant threats to human health and include pathogens that are the leading cause of liver cancer and foodborne illnesses in the U.S. Despite the threat (+)RNA viruses pose to human health, few antivirals exist to combat virus infection and replication. As obligate parasites, viruses modulate host functions to create a favorable environment for replication. In turn, host cells modulate their own functions (i.e., immune systems) in a cat-and-mouse game to halt virus replication. Elucidating virus-host interactions may provide novel routes for controlling viruses. As part of a Course-Based Research Experience, students examined the role of host factors in viral replication using the model (+)RNA virus Flock House virus (FHV). Drosophila melanogaster cells are hosts for FHV, allowing us to perform our screens in these cells in culture. Target genes were selected from previous screens performed in yeast or from transcriptomic studies of FHV infected cells. Using a Crispr/Cas9 gene-editing approach, students knocked-out selected genes, and then tested the effect on FHV replication. Our results identified multiple host genes that affected FHV replication. Follow up studies were, and are being, performed to determine the precise role these genes play in (+)RNA virus replication
Chiari Malformation in a Collegiate Football Player
No full textThis is a case study on the topic of Type I Chiari Malformation in a Collegiate Football Player, occurring with many other complex associations. Chiari Malformation is defined as the caudal descent of the cerebellar tonsil through the foramen magnum measuring more than three to five millimeters. Chiari I malformations are often isolated abnormalities, however, in this case it is associated with cervical cord syrinx, platybasia, headaches, and cervical spine instability. Cervical cord syrinx, also known as hydrosyringomyelia, is characterized as a collection of cerebral spinal fluid inside the central canal of the spinal cord. Cervical cord syrinx can cause flaccid weakness of the upper extremity and cause a “cape-like” distribution of pain and sensory loss through the neck and shoulders. Platybasia is defined as an abnormal flattening of the base of the skull. This is measured by a base skull angle greater than 143 degrees. Platybasia is common in patients with Chiari I Malformation. In this case, the Chiari is resolved with a posterior fossa decompression and a fusion of the first three cervical vertebrae, C1 to C3. This project reviews the correction method as well as limitations to returning to high-contact athletics according to the National Athletic Trainers’ Association Position Statement: Preparticipation Physical Examinations and Disqualifying Conditions in 2014
Does Helping Increase Well-Being? Experimental Evidence for the Role of Virtuous Behavior in Meaning in Life
No full textRecent research suggests that many social motives are oriented to the overarching goal of creating and maintaining a sense of meaning in life (Heine, Proulx, & Vohs, 2006). The present study uses empirical methods to establish a link between the social motive of helping and a sense of meaning in life. In this study, we hope to discover whether virtuous behavior increases self-reported meaning in life by randomly assigning participants to either a prosocial action or a neutral action condition. In the prosocial condition, after participants gave informed consent, the researcher appears stressed and asks for help moving boxes in the laboratory. In the neutral condition, participants are told that the study is about obedience and they were instructed to move the boxes. In both situations, participants moved boxes for the experimenter; however, the perceived rationale for the behavior (helping vs. obedience) was experimentally manipulated. Following this interaction, participants in both groups filled out a questionnaire that measured their perceived meaning in life and other indices of well-being. Participants were then debriefed. Results revealed that the effect of the prosocial behavior prime on well-being was moderated by the participant’s religiousness. In general, this research helps provide insights for positive ways for people to find meaning in their lives
Exploring Technology Usage and Leisure Activities from Childhood to Emerging Adulthood
No full textIn the past 20 years, there has been a surge in daily technology use. Concurrently, there have been significant changes in childhood leisure activities. We investigate technology usage and activity preference from childhood through emerging adulthood. Electronics usage at various developmental stages may influence perceptions of the usefulness of technology, current activity preferences, and activity levels. Additionally, Leary et al. (2008) showed that the activity preference of parents is correlated with the activity preference of their children. Further, research suggests that physical activity can also influence brain health and learning (Cotman, Berchtold, & Christie, 2007; Ratley & Loehr, 2011). Similarly, Rideout, Foehr, and Roberts (2010) demonstrated that media use was associated with academic performance. Participants were recruited from various collegiate departments. The online Qualtrics survey takes approximately 25 minutes to complete. It examines electronic media use and activity preferences during childhood, during emerging adulthood, and as a prospective parent. We predict that age will correlate with perceptions of and initial implementation of technology and that participants’ enjoyment of childhood activities would be related to the influence and encouragement of their parents. We expect that GPA will be related to how students interact with their environment, such as their activity level, time spent outdoors, and time engaging with electronic media. We predict a negative correlation between age and favorable perceptions of technology and a positive correlation between current age and age of initial technology use. Media usage is nearly ubiquitous in our society, but technology develops at such a rate that makes it difficult to track its impact. Many interventions target childhood media use, yet their effectiveness is dependent upon the perceptions of their caregivers and community. College students will be the next generation of parents, and their perceptions of technology will influence how they raise their children