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Racial Ideology in Government Films: The Past and Present of the US Information Service’s Men of the Forest (1952)
No full textMovies beyond the scope of Hollywood and entertainment have shaped notions of race in American culture since the early decades of cinema. A range of nontheatrical sponsors and creators in the US made films to serve practical functions in society—to inform, to organize, to persuade, to promote, etc. The US federal government was a major sponsor of many of these films, which provided American and foreign audiences depictions of race that differed considerably from popular commercial images. For example, Men of the Forest, a film made in 1952 by the United States Information Service focuses on the Hunters, a Black family who owns land and a forestry business in rural Georgia. A documentary of sorts, the film highlights Black life, work, and land ownership in the South in ways not seen in popular feature films of the day. Yet, in the film and others like it, histories of institutional racism are woven into cinematic form and content in ways that are distinct from the entertainment industry. The creators of Men of the Forest omit details of segregation in the South to emphasize the Hunter family as examples of American democracy, a choice suited to the film’s Cold War purpose: to counter the anti-American message of Soviet propaganda for foreign audiences. On one hand, by producing and distributing the film, the federal government acknowledged Black farmers and landowners in the Jim Crow South. On the other hand, it avoided the structural inequality surrounding the Hunters to frame their reality as an example of American democratic progress for international circulation. Today, government films like Men of the Forest prompt contemporary reflection on the institutional histories they represent and their evolution into the present. The film and many others are available online due to the digitization of collections from the National Archives, Library of Congress, and elsewhere. With this increase in access, contemporary scholars have the ability to investigate how the federal government and its various internal entities mediated racial ideologies with moving image technologies. As an example of such research, this essay examines Men of the Forest by focusing on the past and present contradictions that arise from its depiction of a Black family with land and an agricultural business in rural Georgia. Two recent events shed light on the histories reflected in the film and their contemporary significance. In 2018, Descendants of Men of the Forest, The Legacy Continues—a documentary created by family members of the film’s original participants—contextualized the original production as evidence of the Hunter family’s legacy in the community of Guyton, Georgia. Underlying this local effort, Men of the Forest serves as an important historical event and record of the family and the community. On a broader scale, in March 2021, Congress passed a large relief package for disadvantaged minority farmers, intended to help alleviate decades of systemic racism in government agricultural programs. Lawsuits from white farmers and conservative organizations followed quickly, challenging the provision of government aid based on race. In this federal context, Men of the Forest exposes an institutional image of individual success that downplays the structural racism facing people of color, especially those with agricultural livelihoods. Even as politics and legislation evolve, this vision of democracy once exported by the federal government has widespread currency and accumulating effects. The connections between Men of the Forest and these recent events reveal the racial politics at play in government films and the ways in which they take shape in the real world beyond the screen
Impact of a Puppet on Music Performance Anxiety in Elementary Students
Get PDFMusic Performance Anxiety (MPA) is a common problem among musicians and has been shown to impact young children. There are many factors that may contribute to student feelings of MPA including perfectionism. Music educators are in a unique position and have a responsibility to assist students with MPA. While some strategies have been used to help individuals cope with feelings of MPA, music educators do not have researched strategies available to them which are easily implemented in general music classrooms. In music therapy and psychology, puppets have been used in work with children. In this study I research the use of a puppet to help students combat feelings of MPA. Four classes of second grade students were invited to sing a solo to their class with and without a puppet present. Results indicate the use of a puppet as a familiar and non-judgmental singing tool can decrease student feelings of MPA. This study is one small first step in finding solutions for educators to help students struggling with the effects of MPA
Can Close Reading Improve Skills and a Desire to Read? (Action Research Proposal)
Get PDF“I have no idea what this paper is talking about, what does this word mean, do we have to read all of it?” I hear these phrases and questions repeatedly in my eighth-grade classroom from students that not only struggle reading but also to dig deeper and pull out the meaning of specific passages given to them. This school year I realized that students are being required to read less (for numerous reasons this action research will not cover) and when they are expected to complete a reading assignment; there is pushback, apathy and a lack of desire to read. How will close reading help my students build confidence in reading and analyzing a text, improve in retention and comprehension of content, and develop an overall desire to read because they believe in the doors it will open in their lives?
The following will provide a small literature review that builds evidence supporting close reading implementation in classrooms. This will encompass scholarly, peer reviewed work relating to close reading, definitions needed to understand the scope of research and any possible gaps in my research. The methodology included will include setting/demographics, research design, and data collection. Limitations and concluding thoughts will also be provided as to how will close reading help my students build confidence in reading and analyzing a text, improve in retention and comprehension of content, and develop an overall desire to read because they believe in the doors it will open in their lives
Analysis of Human Cervical Cell Images from Pap Smears for Classification
Get PDFCervical cancer is the fourth most commonly occurring cancer in women. It can be prevented by regular screenings to find precancerous cells through the Papanicolaou Smear Test and microscopy which can show cellular abnormalities. However, the manual microscopic screening for the nuclear abnormalities is subjective and prone to error, making automated detection a necessity. This study aims to quantify the nuclear features related to shape characteristics of normal and abnormal cells from pap smear images and examine potential detection of multi classes. Using the ground truth images of normal and abnormal cells we extracted the nuclear shape features that corresponded to the classified cells such as normal and three categories of abnormal: mild, moderate and severe; that is four classes. The dataset of the nuclear shape features were visually plotted as a heat map and bubble plots using the ground truth or known predetermined labelled normal, mild-, moderate- or severe abnormal cells, and also without any such labeling. By clustering, 78 - 89% of the cells were successfully matched with the ground truth. Further, we found that more than 4 classes were obtained. In conclusion, by data visualization techniques we can classify precancerous cells
Predicting Gene Function of Unknown Yeast ORFs Through Phylogenetic Comparative Analysis
Get PDFYeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) has been an instrumental model system for an extraordinary diverse array of research applications for over a century now. The S. cerevisiae genome was fully sequenced in 1996, and, as a result, 6,753 potential proteins were identified. These putative proteins were established by investigating likely open reading frames within the genome. Over the past few decades, nearly 5,000 open reading frames (ORFs) and their expressed proteins have been described, and the remaining undefined open reading frames are labeled as open reading frames of unknown function (ORFans). To better understand the remaining gaps within the S. cerevisiae genome, past investigations have identified the function, localization and phenotypes of each ORFan. Here, the ORFan sequences YOR280C, YGR066C, and YLR359W have been selected to compare across an array of other model organisms, including Caenorhabditis elegans, Drosophila melanogaster, Rattus norvegicus, Mus musculus, Homo sapiens, and Schizosaccharomyces pombe. This preliminary study aims to illustrate fundamental evolutionary and molecular features of these three ORFs across species. Our comparative approach will aid in the prediction of the true localization of each protein in S. cerevisiae by leveraging known features of related species and sequences. In the future, the localization of each protein is to be examined via green fluorescent protein (GFP) tagging and fluorescent microscopy. We also plan to generate mutations on these genes and identify to stressor conditions that would reveal mutant phenotypes to further investigate functions of the, YOR280C, YGR066C, and YLR359W protein products
Custom Elements Shoe Collection
No full textCustom Elements Shoe Collection 2022 Acrylic Leather paint and wood on leather shoes
Sneaker Culture has always been around but in the past couple years it has become increasingly popular. Though the idea of customizing sneakers has caused quite a stir in the community with certain brands not wanting people to put their own designs onto a silhouette they created. Customizing is all about adding your own flare to express yourself and controlling how people perceive you.
For as long as I can remember I have always been into two things: art and shoes. So, when I discovered that I could put my own art on my shoes I always wanted to try it. When I decided to do this project for my capstone, I wanted to represent what art is at its core. The Elements of Art are the foundation of any piece regardless of medium which is why they represent what art truly is and can be. Yaacov Agam said “There are two distinct languages. There is the verbal, which separates people... and there is the visual that is understood by everybody”. I believe that the Elements of Art are that visual language that allows everyone to understand art. For each shoe I painted a design that is inspired by the Elements of Art and gives each shoe its own personality.https://kb.gcsu.edu/abundance/1003/thumbnail.jp
Wired: Creamsicle
No full textWired: Creamsicle 2022 Mixed media works consisting of resin, acrylic, and three-dimensional objects
In Wired, a series of mixed media works consisting of resin, acrylic, and three-dimensional objects, I bring awareness to mental health by illustrating pills in patterns. Scattered pills are a common thread among the works to illustrate that medication is the primary route as opposed to nontraditional therapy, such as cognitive behavioral. With this, I briefly delve into chemical imbalances as a side effect. My work invites the viewer to think and experience second hand the life of the one in five adults who live with mental illness. I chose to work symbolically to keep the viewer’s attention on the important message rather than the intricacy of my work. My work is easy to digest but facilitates discussion as it lingers in the mind.https://kb.gcsu.edu/abundance/1021/thumbnail.jp
Resume and Interview Refresher
No full textAssociate Professor of Music and Musicologist, Dana Gorzelany-Mostak, shared tips and strategies for improving professional resumes and preparing for interviews.
Resume and Interview Refresherhttps://kb.gcsu.edu/cme_profdev/1000/thumbnail.jp
Female Rage, Revenge, and Catharsis: The Good for Her Genre Defined in Promising Young Woman (2020)
Get PDFBy analyzing relevant cultural contexts to the popularity of the “Good for Her” genre, such as the “#MeToo” movement, the Trump presidency, and the resurgence of conservatism in the United States, the development of the “Good for Her” genre and its impact can be made clear. Given the genre’s development through social discourse on social media, it has become a universal and collaborative representation of liberation from oppressive experiences under a patriarchal society. The lead women in these films give those who experience patriarchal oppression a reprieve and an opportunity for catharsis they would not typically get in a male-led, male-focused film. The genre reinforces and builds upon the works of feminist film theorists such as Carol Clover and Laura Mulvey by offering a more contemporary evolution of Clover’s “Final Girl” through the combination of slasher and Final Girl to create the “Good for Her” films’ “victim-villain” and Mulvey’s theory of the “male gaze” by subverting and satirizing the typical female objectification of the old-school horror genre. Promising Young Woman acts as a definitive example of the genre and a crucial representation of the reality of rape culture while depicting a sense of voyeuristic and vicarious revenge and catharsis against the systems of patriarchal oppression that exist within the United State