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Memory and the Written Word
No full textStelzer presents a recent paper that compares ideas from Plato’s dialogue in Phaedrus and Gabriel García Márquez’s novel One Hundred Years of Solitude. In my paper I discuss the idea put forth by Plato’s Socrates that writing things down often doesn’t fully convey ideas for others and merely serves as a reminder to the people who already understand the ideas. Socrates’s idea aligns with the experiences of the characters in One Hundred Years of Solitude, which specifically happens when the town of Macondo is thrown into a frenzy of writing things down during the memory loss epidemic. I analyze the section in One Hundred Years of Solitude in which José Arcadio Buendía and his son desperately try to write things down to save the town of Macondo. They describe what a cow is and how to milk it and they make a sign to remind the town of God’s existence. I then compare this to Plato’s ideas that are expressed in Phaedrus. This four-page paper was written for my Literary Theory Criticism class that I am taking with Dr. Michlitsch
Higher Education for the Digital Age: A Correlational Study of Undergraduate Study and Digital Citizenship
No full textThe purpose of this non-experimental correlational study was to examine the extent to which there exists a relationship between undergraduate study and digital citizenship knowledge and skills as measured by the digital citizenship scale, a previously validated quantitative instrument. A web-based survey including the DCS, demographic questions, and a Higher Education Engagement questionnaire was distributed to all full-time undergraduate students at a public university in the Upper Midwestern United States. Data was collected from a sample of 349 undergraduate students who completed the entire DCS and the question about number of post-secondary credits earned. A bi-variate correlational analysis revealed that there is no relationship between digital citizenship knowledge and skills as measured by the DCS and number of post-secondary credits earned. Results of multiple regression analysis showed that the absence of correlation remained constant regardless of student demographic characteristics and campus involvement. Study results also provide insight into the mean level of digital citizenship as expressed by DCS scores. Respondents scored in the low-to-moderate range for three of the DCS subscales: Critical Perspectives, Internet Political Activism, and Networking Agency. Respondents who identified as non-cisgender and respondents with majors in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences had higher mean DCS scores than their peers
Cultivating Sustainability: A Proposal to Reduce Campus Food Waste Through Composing
No full textPromoting sustainable practices within academic institutions such as Winona State University is crucial in addressing the environmental crisis and fostering a culture of sustainable living. Chartwells, the dining service at Winona State University, produces about 400 lbs of food waste weekly that goes to landfills; this justifies our need for a large-scale industrial composting system. Composting offers waste reduction, soil enrichment, and carbon sequestration benefits. Winona State University currently has a small-scale industrial composter called Earth Cube in the SEED garden on campus. This project measures the composting process in the Earth Cube by assessing soil nutrient levels and temperature change. We use this data to predict the efficiency and impact of the larger-scale composter that we are proposing. In addition, our project outlines a comprehensive plan for Chartwells to divert all dining hall food waste into a new composting system to reduce food waste from campus and increase Winona’s dedication to sustainable living. We make recommendations on location, design, budget, and feasibility in the proposed plan based on the following resources: (1) professional support from Green Mountain Technologies, (2) other established campus composting systems, and (3) the local situation on campus. This project aims to help create a campus that produces less food waste; by embracing composting, our institution will reduce its ecological footprint and inspire a further transition towards sustainability objectives
Experimental Impact Craters into Sloped Targets
Get PDFImpact cratering is a process that shapes every planetary body in our solar system, including the Earth. On smaller planetary objects without atmospheres like the Moon and asteroids (e.g. Vesta and Ceres), impact cratering creates a rough surface with varying topography as opposed to a flat, horizontal surface. In general, impact cratering experiments are performed into flat targets to simplify the physics and model craters at larger planetary scales. However, the smallest craters that form on planetary surfaces are greatly affected by the local topography and cannot be understood by looking at experiments into flat targets. Dr. Anderson and her undergraduate research group are working to better understand experimental targets that are more realistic to what we see at small scales on the Moon and asteroids: layered targets and sloped targets. My research focuses on the experiments into sloped targets. At the NASA Johnson Space Center Experimental Impact Laboratory, the Vertical Impact Facility was used for our sloped-target experiments. You can think of the Vertical Impact Facility as a standard powder gun that is pointed directly downward and fires a 4.76-mm-aluminum sphere into targets consisting of 0.4-0.8 mm rounded, sieved sand at speeds of 1.5 km/s (3400 mph) for these experiments. The targets had slopes of 0°, 5°, 10°, 15°, and 20° above horizontal. A NextEngine 3D Laser Scanner was used to scan the targets before and after impact. I then used CloudCompare, a software program that processes point cloud data, to generate topographic maps of the experiments based on the three-dimensional scans. With CloudCompare, I drew eight transects through the center of each crater and then processed these data using Excel. I created cross-sections and measured the craters\u27 dimensions. The measurements, topographic profiles, and topographic maps of the final experimental craters can then be compared to our control crater into the horizontal target (0°) as well as observations of craters into sloped surfaces on the Moon and asteroids
Exploring the Interrelationship Between Anxiety, Academic Apathy, and Avoidance in Community College Students
Get PDFThe purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate aspects of mental health and the approaches students take when coping with stress. Specifically, this study sought to understand the interrelationship between anxiety levels, feelings of academic apathy, and the use of avoidance coping strategies. Students from seven public, two-year colleges within a Midwest college and university system served as this study’s sample. Data collection took the form of a non-experimental self-report structure and included the use of three empirically established and valid measures: The Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), Bresso’s Academic Burnout Questionnaire, and the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS). In order to answer the questions posed by this study, data analysis involved correlational analyses, linear regression analyses, and a moderation analysis. Results indicated no significant associations between the key variables (r = -0.095 to -0.183, p \u3e 0.05) or significant predictive relationships (t = -1.241 and -1.146, p \u3e 0.05). In addition, it was found that academic apathy was not a significant moderator in the relationship between anxiety and the use of avoidance coping, t(147) = -1.149, p = 0.253. However, significant findings in exploratory analyses, in combination with the limited anxiety reported by the participants and the strong empirical and theoretical background supporting the hypotheses, suggest further research is warranted. In the face of rising and alarming rates of anxiety and burnout among college students today and the lack of research on the community college student population, this study plays a role in furthering our understanding of the mental health and well-being of community college students
Guest Artist Residency: Jon Irabagon
Get PDFThis jazz concert was performed in the Vivian Fusillo Main Stage Theatre on March 14, 2024, by saxophonist Jon Irabagon, with Josh Shively, Larry Prince, and Eric Graham. This performance includes original compositions by Irabagon, a Filipino-American saxophonist with several awards, including being named one of New York City\u27s 25 Jazz Icons by Time Out New York. As a member of and advocate for minority communities, his musical works involve open dialogue with his co-performers to promote communication and understanding.https://openriver.winona.edu/musicprograms/1007/thumbnail.jp
Faculty Recital: Deanne Mohr
Get PDFThis recital was performed in the WSU Recital Hall on March 26, 2024, by Deanne Mohr (piano), featuring Eric Brisson as narrator for the final piece of the program. Mohr’s performance featured music from the Baroque, Classical, Neoclassical, and Romantic Eras. This performance portrayed how the music from various periods differ in form, style, and subject matter.https://openriver.winona.edu/musicprograms/1008/thumbnail.jp
Better Together: Attitudinal and Institutional Change for Stereotype and Prejudice Reduction
Get PDFThis article begins by examining the adverse effects of ostracization on students\u27 mental health and academic performance. It identifies deficit thinking within educational institutions as contributing to the social exclusion experienced by students, leading to their psychological need for belonging going unmet. Deficit thinking, fuelled by racist and classist ideologies, theorizes that the blame for a student’s failure in school results from their inherent deficiencies. Deficit thinking oppresses and marginalizes students by justifying harmful practices such as school segregation and scientific racism. Schools serving communities of color are disproportionately impacted, compromising students’ educational achievement and prospects. To disrupt deficit thinking, a discussion on stereotypes and prejudice is included to provide an understanding of how hidden assumptions operate. The article concludes with recommendations for addressing deficit thinking and diminishing its detrimental impact on students\u27 academic success
Inauguration of Dr. Kenneth Janz [metadata to be created]
No full textThis photograph is from the Presidential Inauguration of Dr.Kenneth Janz as the sixteenth president of Winona State University. The Presidential Inauguration took place on Friday, November 1, 2024 at 2:00pm in Kryzsko Commons Ballroom at Winona State University in Winona, Minnesota.https://openriver.winona.edu/wsuphotographs/5207/thumbnail.jp
Inauguration of Dr. Kenneth Janz [metadata to be created]
No full textThis photograph is from the Presidential Inauguration of Dr.Kenneth Janz as the sixteenth president of Winona State University. The Presidential Inauguration took place on Friday, November 1, 2024 at 2:00pm in Kryzsko Commons Ballroom at Winona State University in Winona, Minnesota.https://openriver.winona.edu/wsuphotographs/5216/thumbnail.jp