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The starkeeper
No full textDaisy Katz never knew much about her family or heritage, except for the Jewish myths her mother told her growing up. But when her mother suddenly dies in a synagogue shooting on Rosh Hashanah, Daisy has no choice but to travel to a strange invisible town that doesn’t appear on any maps—Middle—and reconnect with an estranged family she’s heard nothing about. With her girlfriend Angel hiding her own secret that could very well jeopardize the existence of Middle, Daisy discovers that there might be some truth to the Jewish myths she’s always been fascinated by—but never believed in: Angels…Giants…Golems…and a Starstone that has protected her family for generations. My project, The Starkeeper consists of the first two opening chapters to a novella about faith, the intersections of queerness, Jewish joys and generational traumas, and asks an ageless question at the heart of most Jewish people: is it better for the Jewish people to hide who they are, assimilate into white culture, and stay alive, or embrace their faith and heritage, and risk death in the face of irrational hatred?M. A
Flora
No full textFlora is an exhibition of ceramic sculptures inspired by different flower species found in the Midwest that have been combined into new botanical forms. Using hand building techniques, mostly coil and pinch methods, I have created botanical sculptures that vary in size and shape. The surfaces are lightly colored with a wash of underglaze pigments. This is to not only accentuate the warmth of the clay body, but also the textures of the hand from the pinch construction. The sculptures are displayed on the wall and wooden pedestals of varying heights with artificial turf grass on the tops, creating a display that gives an artificially natural aesthetic. The rationale for this type of display is to give the viewer a visual narrative that reflects the notions of a garden. The wooden open-faced pedestals break the white box facade and give the sculptures a sense of importance and quiet space. The ceramic sculptures in Flora represent my contradicting desires of longing for the new that parallel my fear of being trapped that have become part of my identity. The pieces do not have a singular identity, but are an amalgam of different species, many of which are native to Illinois or Indiana. The goal of this exhibition is to create a space for the viewer to engage with these sculptures, discuss, and question the identity of these botanical forms in what makes them whole.M. A
Embracing incoherence: perspectives on the performance of Almeida Prado's fourteen nocturnes
No full textThis dissertation lecture-recital delves into the interpretation of Almeida Prado's fourteen
Nocturnes. Using a multidisciplinary approach that includes an investigation of the composer's
output and musical philosophy, postmodernist ideology, comparison of currently available scores
of the fourteen Nocturnes, and analysis of the composer's writing and use of borrowed material,
this study evaluates the intersection between these categories to provide examples of a musical
interpretation process that goes beyond reading the scores.
The findings of this research indicate that Almeida Prado's attitude towards the performance of
his works encourages performers to engage in a creative search for sound and emotional
expression, rather than a literal interpretation of his writing. Furthermore, the currently available
scores contain inaccuracies that require attention from performers and welcome possible new
editions. Lastly, in accordance with postmodernist thought, Prado's borrowings and distortions of
well-known source materials can be approached by the performer in contrasting manners.
Overall, this dissertation lecture-recital makes a valuable contribution to the dissemination of
Almeida Prado's music outside of Brazil, as well as to the interpretation of Prado's musical
thought and the fourteen Nocturnes in particular. It provides insights and recommendations for
performers and scholars of Almeida Prado's music, and highlights the significance of a
multidisciplinary approach to musical interpretation.D. A
"No picture": time, trauma, and ineffability in The Mysteries of Udolpho
No full textStatements of ineffability are abundant in Gothic literature, especially during its
burgeoning period of the late 18th into early 19th century in Western Europe. Despite their
fundamental status as a convention of the language of the genre, the “unspeakable” continues to
be glossed or rejected by critics and scholars. This essay takes as its main focus the Gothic
ineffable statement and focuses on a specific example in a famous scene of traumatic unveiling
in Ann Radcliffe’s The Mysteries of Udolpho . I argue that “excessive,” passionate, ineffable
language in literary works like Radcliffe’s are symptomatic of the pressures that epistemological
empiricism placed on the phenomenology of human subjectivity, where prominent science and
philosophy influenced cultural understandings of emotional life. By looking at the failure of
expression in the moment, and the later natural explanation of the phenomenon, Udolpho
performs what Cathy Caruth and others in trauma studies identify as trauma and its subsequent
“belatedness.” Ineffability functions most meaningfully in identifying a very particular
experiential response , especially to trauma, and is very much less useful as a description of any
such experience. This seems most logically evident in the fact that even if we explain away all of
the metaphysical happenings of our reality, it does not reject the emotional landscape of that
reality.By treating the ineffable statement with legitimacy, we see linguistic events wherein
language falls short in relaying the emotive reality of the present – in communicating human
interiority in the midst of the traumatic.M. A
And counting
No full textThis creative project is a body of work inspired by the experience of motherhood and feelings of maternal ambivalence. Informed by historically gendered objects, the works of art in And Counting examine themes including passage of time, accumulation, and elevation of mundane daily routine. I created these pieces to better understand the complexity and nuance involved in the full experience of motherhood, including the tension created by parenting in a culturally patriarchal system.
Tools of care incorporate elevated materials such as sterling silver, fused glass, and vitreous enamel juxtaposed with the detritus of caregiving activities, including hair, children’s scribbled drawings, and candy wrappers. These contrasting materials invite viewers to consider what is precious or valuable and whether their values are internally authentic or socially conditioned
Effect of charge and hydrophobicity on molecular adsorption at oin-in-water nanoemulsion interfaces
No full textNanoemulsions (NEs) are mixture of two immiscible liquids, commonly oil droplets in water (O/W) or water droplets in oil (W/O) which are stabilized by relatively low concentration of surfactants. Different types of NEs are widely used in industrial and environmental remediation applications, including oil recovery, drug delivery, food processing, water purification and cleaning up oil spills. However, there are only limited studies pertaining to adsorption of organic molecules at the NE interfaces. For example, the effect of surfactant charge on the adsorption of organic compounds is not well-established. Second harmonic generation (SHG) has been found to be an effective method to study micro- and nano- particle/liquid interfaces. It is an interface-specific technique that can probe equilibrium and dynamic processes occurring at a variety of interfaces. In-situ measurements of kinetics and isotherms for the adsorption of organic molecules at different types of NE interfaces can be studied using SHG spectroscopy. The overall goal of this project has been to deduce the role of coulombic and hydrophobic interactions on the adsorption of organic molecules at the interface of NEs. To achieve this, the objectives of this thesis project are (1) preparing oil-in-water (O/W) NEs using charged, neutral, and aromatic surfactants and characterizing the NEs before and after molecular adsorption using dynamic light scattering, (2) characterizing the dye and surfactant molecules by measuring their surface tension to assess their
hydrophobicity, (3) carrying out in-situ measurements of adsorption kinetics and isotherms of charged and neutral dyes for the prepared NEs using SHG to determine Gibbs free energy of adsorptions. Our findings suggest that coulombic interaction is pivotal for molecular adsorption, and other type of interactions can also minimally impact SHG dye adsorption. Different adsorption characteristics in the context of NE interfacial charge properties and their stability following molecular adsorption has been explored in this study.M. S
A study of holonomic knots
No full textA holonomic knot is an embedding C : S1 → R3 which is of the form C(t) = (f(t), f′(t), f′′(t)),
where f : S1 → R is a smooth function. Victor Vassiliev showed in his paper titled “Holonomic
knots and Smale Principles for Multisingularities” that any smooth knot in R3 is
isotopic to a holonomic one. This theorem has two proofs, one using Reidemeister moves
and the other using a braid theoretic framework, in conjunction with contributions by Garside.
We give a detailed exposition of both methods, while also providing a demonstration
with examples. A key ingredient in the proofs is a collection of conditions that are shown to
characterize the knot diagrams of holonomic knots.M. S
Case studies on the impact biophilic patters have on the post-pandemic workplace
No full textIn the past two years since the pandemic, the workplace environment has faced its share of challenges, including the balance between working from home. Throughout 2020 and 2021, COVID-19 has swept our lives and brought drastic changes to how we live and work. The constant use of media platforms and experiences emphasized the fragility of our planet and made us stop and consider our core values. (Digital,2023.)
Employees now returning to the office, workplace, and businesses are designing office spaces that help the employees' mental and physical health, including biophilic design. According to research from the Mental Health Foundation, mental health was one of the significant factors affected during the pandemic. Coming back to the office can be overwhelming and stressful for employers due to the factor that the pandemic is still occurring. According to Oliver Heath, director at Oliver Heath design firm, "There has been a surge in awareness that nature plays a fundamental role in helping to maintain one's physical and mental well-being." (Hendershot,2021).
The research will examine the impact of biophilia design in the workplace to help with employees' mental and physical health during the pandemic. The research will analyze five cases that show the use of biophilic patterns in the workplace. This study aims to discover how employees can return to the workplace by designing spaces with biophilic elements. Discussions and keeping within the research will allow for investigating current strategies to incorporate biophilia patterns in the workplace to improve employees' health and strategies for finding how biophilia can help create a valuable work environment. (Ayazullah,2021). In addition to answering the key questions, they have limited studies, including whether biophilic patterns are a Standard design method for a post-pandemic workplace. Can biophilia help the workplace come back after COVID-19? Do biophilic patterns help employees' mental and physical health at the workplace?
The best use of biophilic patterns incorporated into the interior design of office spaces could significantly improve employee workplaces. Biophilic patterns could improve workplace productivity and the overall well-being of an employee's health and lessen stress. A collection of case studies and a literature review investigate the critical design aspect of improving workplaces for employees and conclude that they should be the standard design strategies to use in a post-pandemic workplace.M. S
Navigating the new norm: the rise of remote work in the post-pandemic era
No full textThe COVID-19 pandemic has precipitated a seismic shift in the traditional landscape of work, with remote work emerging as a prominent feature of the new normal. This paper examines the multifaceted phenomenon of remote work in the post-pandemic era, exploring its impact on productivity, employee well-being, company culture, and collaboration. Drawing upon a comprehensive review of primary sources including research papers, industry reports, and expert insights, this creative project provides a detailed analysis of the challenges and opportunities associated with remote work and offers recommendations for organizations and policymakers to effectively navigate this new paradigm of work. The accompanying journalistic story provides context and a personal lens into the lived experience of remote work.M. A
And counting
No full textThis creative project is a body of work inspired by the experience of motherhood and feelings of maternal ambivalence. Informed by historically gendered objects, the works of art in And Counting examine themes including passage of time, accumulation, and elevation of mundane daily routine. I created these pieces to better understand the complexity and nuance involved in the full experience of motherhood, including the tension created by parenting in a culturally patriarchal system.
Tools of care incorporate elevated materials such as sterling silver, fused glass, and vitreous enamel juxtaposed with the detritus of caregiving activities, including hair, children’s scribbled drawings, and candy wrappers. These contrasting materials invite viewers to consider what is precious or valuable and whether their values are internally authentic or socially conditioned.M. A