MacEwan Open Journals (MacEwan University)
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The Mabinogion: The First Branch, designed and edited by Kaitlyn Tupper
No full textThe Mabinogion is a collection of ancient Welsh myths, folklore, and legends, first translated in entirety by Lady Charlotte Guest between 1838 and 1845. In designing a book edition for the First Branch of the Mabinogion, my goal was to make the translation more accessible to a modern audience through annotations and design.
The body text is set in serif typeface Verdigris Pro Text, preserving the classic literature sensibility of the text without feeling austere. The centred chapter titles and drop caps continue this classic design. The sans serif typeface Roboto is used in the annotations and provides a contemporary contrast to the body serif. Roboto is also compatible with the International Phonetic Alphabet, necessary for the goal of accessibility.
The annotations highlight uncommon words, cultural references, Welsh proper nouns, and passages that may be difficult to follow by modern standards. The annotations are placed next to the text for easy reference. The live area for the body text is closer to the inside border to accommodate this.
The book’s illustrations are reminiscent of linocut carving; the unpolished style suggests the handicraft of the ancient people who would have orally passed on these myths. The illustration above each chapter title shows a significant symbol from the branch as well as a plant native of Wales. The cover imagery shows a significant character in a similar linocut style with an inked paper texture. The title is in the typeface Celtic, evoking the locale and era of the ancient Welsh and Celtic legends in the Mabinogion.
Faculty Mentor: Constanza Pacher 
Modern Rhetoric Through a Classic Lens: An Exploration of Andrew Tate, Cancel Culture, and the Art of the Clip
No full textEmory Andrew Tate III, commonly known as Andrew Tate or the Top G, catapulted himself to the peaks of internet stardom in a fashion previously unmatched through his stylistic rhetoric and strategic implementation of the art of the clip; an artform popularized through Tate to have supposedly proved a paved road to besting cancel culture. In order to effectively analyze the rhetorical art of the clip, this document will provide embedded videos and live links to some of the most viral oratory moments leading up to and following the cancellation of Tate. In addition to the videos, this paper will ensure the integral transmission of the clip is still preserved in a transcribed form, emphasized and contextualized where necessary, protecting the expression lost in translating stylistic discourse into the confines of a research-based analysis. Furthermore, contrasting, reflecting, and comparing Tate’s rhetoric to the ancient work of Aristotle’s “The Art of Rhetoric” will clear the way for an objective assessment of Tate’s stylistic abilities. Ultimately serving as a classical lens with a focalized point to view modern rhetoric in the context of Tate and the pressures of cancel culture on the unbounded art of the clip.
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Robert Einarsson 
Heating Up the Market: A case analysis on Kaiso Hot Sauce
No full textKaiso Pepper Sauce is a locally based company that wished to expand their consumer base and market reach. The relationship between consumer attitudes and brand perception was examined to identify potential marketing approaches. Results were gathered through a market questionnaire (n= 136), in order to model consumer profiles and analyze their affect on product perception. The resulting multivariate regression model (Cl: 90%) indicated that the difference in receptiveness to Kaiso’s branding between the Black/African demographic and the Caucasian demographic was significant. The average Black/African participant perceived the product more negatively than the average Caucasian participant. The same observation applied to South Asian demographics. Perception was positively correlated with an increase in consumption rate across all participant profiles. Notably, the demographics that exhibited a negative perception of Kaiso are associated traditional spicy cuisine, which is a trait correlated with the desire for perceived authenticity over other product attributes.
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Fernando Angulo-Ruiz 
The Accumulation of Microplastics in Craig Bay, British Columbia
No full textMicroplastics originate from large plastic materials degraded by physical, chemical, or biological means. They are transported to marine environments by wind and water before deposition into sediment. Estuaries are microplastic sinks that can provide information about dominant plastic types and microplastic retention in marine environments. Large, heavy microplastics are expected to be deposited closer to their source than smaller particles. Samples were collected from Craig Bay to determine if depositional environments affect microplastic deposition. To determine grain size distributions and dominant grain size, 12.5g of each sample was sifted through various sieves (4000, 2000, 1000, 500, 250, 125, and 63µm, respectively). The amount of organic matter was determined by combusting 30g of each unsorted sample in a muffle furnace. Another portion (25g) of each unsorted sample was used to extract microplastics by density floatation and enzyme digestion. Microplastics were isolated onto stainless steel filters and underwent Raman spectroscopy to identify the chemical composition. Microplastics were quantified visually within three strips along each filter, and 10% of identified particles underwent Raman spectroscopy. Particles were classified as fiber, film, or fragment. Samples dominated by silt and clay contained the least amount of microplastics, but the most organic matter. Samples that were dominated by fine sand had the most microplastics, but the least organic matter. Polytetrafluoroethylene was found to be the most abundant microplastic among all the samples. The work is part of a new and emerging research area within sedimentology that focuses on the correlation between sediments and microplastics.
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Matthew Ross 
Childhood Pet Ownership and The Strength of Sibling Relationships
No full textThe human-animal bond and its potential positive effects are a relatively new area of study. We decided we wanted to do an exploratory study to investigate the relationship between childhood pet ownership and the strength of sibling bonds and how this relationship might be mediated by empathy. Based on the lack of literature we found pertaining to this specific topic, we are hoping to contribute and expand on the positive effects that pet ownership has. Previous studies found that owning a pet within a family unit contributed to an increase in family cohesion. Another study found that owning a pet increased empathy in romantic relationships, and this contributed to increased strength in the overall relationship. Finally, within the literature, we found that affective empathy contributed to stronger familial relationships with siblings, increased life satisfaction, and a reduction in stress later in life. Our study will be conducted online through SONA using a university student population, there will be five measures administered; a demographics survey, Pet Attachment Questionnaire (PAQ), Adult Sibling Relationship Questionnaire (ASRQ), The Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scale (FACES IV), and Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). We hypothesize that childhood pet ownership will increase the strength of sibling relationships, and this relationship will be mediated through empathy.
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Eric Legge 
Wake up Sheeple!: Personality traits and belief in pseudoscience
No full textDifferentiating between truth and falsehoods can be challenging due to the prevalence of false information widely spread through social media and various technological platforms.
Understanding who is most susceptible to belief in false information may play an important role in devising strategies to help people become better consumers of information. The objective of this study is to investigate the correlation between personality traits and the propensity to adopt pseudoscientific beliefs. Previous research suggests that conscientious individuals are better at detecting online misinformation, while dark triad traits are associated with selfishness and conspiracy ideation. Our research further explores the relationship between personality traits and susceptibility to misinformation, with a focus on belief in different types of pseudoscience. We hypothesize that different categories of pseudoscientific beliefs may have a connection with self-interest, which could be moderated by dark or light triad personality traits. The results of this study will be used as the basis for future research to formulate successful tactics to counteract the dissemination of false information.
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Rodney Schmaltz 
The cannabis terpene bisabolol increased locomotion but had no affect on anxiety-like behaviour in zebrafish
No full textTerpenes are fragrant compounds found in many animals and plants, giving them their pigment, smell and taste. They are also the main components of essential oils. Bisabolol is one terpene commonly found in certain strains of cannabis, sage, and chamomile that has been shown to have potential anxiolytic effects. This study investigated the effect of different concentrations of bisabolol (0.001%, 0.0015%, 0.002%) on anxiety-like behaviour and locomotion in zebrafish using the open field and novel object approach tests. Bisabolol increased zebrafish locomotion at the highest concentration of bisabolol (0.002%) but did not significantly affect anxiety-like behaviour at any concentration. In conclusion, this study shows that bisabolol increases locomotion at the highest concentration used here (0.002%) but does not affect anxiety-like behaviour in zebrafish.
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Trevor Hamilton 
The Impact of Positive Animal Stimuli on Stress and Well-being
No full textInteracting with animals, particularly dogs, has been shown to reduce stress and improve mood in humans. The current research aimed to test whether this phenomenon extends to an online program where positive animal stimuli are displayed to participants. Specifically, participants (N = 171) were recruited and completed a stressful task online, which significantly increased participants’ stress relative to baseline. Following this, participants were randomly assigned to one of three intervention conditions: viewing positive animal stimuli (images of puppies), positive non-animal stimuli (images of desserts), or neutral stimuli (images of school supplies). Participants completed pre- and post-intervention measures assessing state stress, anxiety, and positive and negative affect. Repeated-measures ANOVAs were conducted to determine whether the intervention conditions differed in impacting participants’ scores on measures of well-being from pre- to post-intervention. Preliminary results revealed that the positive animal stimuli group had significantly larger reductions in negative affect post-intervention compared to the positive non-animal or neutral stimuli groups. Data collection and more comprehensive analyses are underway. These findings provide evidence of the efficacy of an accessible online animal-based intervention in helping improve state well-being in participants.
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Eric Legge 
The Visual Categorization of Handwritten Letters
No full textHandwriting is a ubiquitous form of visual communication. Most research into the perception of handwriting has investigated the role of motor production on the perception of handwritten stimuli. For example, previous research has found that motor production of straight letters (e.g. j, k, w) interferes with the visual perception of straight letters but not curvy letters, suggesting that these two classes of letters are categorically different. However, very little research has investigated the perception of handwriting from a purely visual perspective. For our research, we will measure visual thresholds for identifying male or female handwriting using a two-alternative force choice interval (2AFC) procedure. In order to determine if straight letters are perceived differently from curvy letters, we will measure thresholds separately for a stimuli composed mostly of curvy letters (e.g. obscured) vs stimuli composed mostly of straight-line letters (e.g. twilight). Furthermore, to investigate if local or global visual information contributes to thresholds, we will measure thresholds when stimuli are presented in both upright and inverted conditions. We will evaluate thresholds for all conditions in four to five participants. This study will help inform our understanding of how we perceive handwritten information as well as determine whether different forms of handwritten letters are classified separately.
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Nicole Anderson 
Social anxiety response to acute nerolidol exposure in Zebrafish
No full textThe impacts of cannabis and its constituents on mental health symptoms such as anxiety remain understudied. Of the cannabis compounds, the most well-studied are delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), associated with the psychoactive effect of cannabis, and cannabidiol (CBD). However, the cannabis plant contains nearly 400 chemical compounds spanning various classes (Levinthal & Hamilton, 2021). One of these classes is terpenes: the compounds responsible for the scents associated with cannabis and all other plants (Cox-Georgian et al., 2019).
Zebrafish (Danio rerio) represent an ideal model organism to investigate the impacts of these compounds as they share an evolutionarily conserved endocannabinoid system (ECS) and nearly 80% gene homology with humans (Horzmann & Freeman, 2016). Furthermore, they are able to be tested with high throughput efficiency. The current study investigates the impacts of nerolidol on anxiety-like behaviours in Zebrafish through the use of a well-validated measure of zebrafish behaviour, the shoaling test (In press in Scientific Reports). Fish were tested in groups of four and either received a low dose (375ug/L), high dose (750 ug/L), or no dose for the trial condition. Results indicate that nerolidol does not significantly impact zebrafish motility or anxiety-like behaviours.
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Melike Schalomon