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Found in the Archives: Scrapbooks
No full textKaren Valencia narrates as Lily Bauer films some scapbooks found the the CWU archives
Assessing the Severity of Dorsal Pubic Pit Scarring on Human Female and Male Innominates, Based on Known Variables
No full textDorsal pubic pitting (DPP) occurs on the posterior side of the pubis bone in humans. The severity of DPP can range from shallow circular pits to deep valley-like ridges. Since DPP first appeared in the literature in 1931, there has been an assumed association between DPP and an individual\u27s pregnancy status. Although this relationship is often debated among biological anthropologists, due to some studies reporting DPP on male innominates, the etiology of DPP remains unknown. Previous studies on dorsal pubic pits have used archaeological or anatomical documented skeletal collections that often have either an inferred or unknown parity status. This not only limits the data but also continues the unethical use of non-consensually collected skeletal remains. This research examined 180 innominates from modern documented skeletal collections to investigate if the severity of DPP is affected by an individual’s sex, parity status, height, weight, body mass index (BMI), age, or geographical location. The outcome of this study is a systematic scoring system that future researchers can use to standardize the recording and investigation of DPP. In total, the innominates of 59 males, 37 nulliparous females, 30 uniparous females, and 54 multiparous females between the ages of 29 and 103 were examined. DPP was observed in 3.4%, 32.4%, 40%, and 50% of these groups, respectively. To calculate the severity of DPP, the volume of the pitted area was measured and separated into four groups using the Jenks Natural Breaks method. These four groups, 1-4, along with 0 representing no DPP, created the outline for the systematic scoring system. Using nonparametric statistical analysis, the relationship between the donors’ demographic traits and the severity of DPP was tested. An individual’s parity status, sex, number of births, and height were found to have a statistically significant relationship with the severity of DPP. Although the severity of DPP does increase with the number of births, the high number of nulliparous females with DPP suggests that there is a separate sex-related cause of DPP, which parity status does not cover
Literary Networks Everywhere: An Analysis of Literary Connections Across Time and Culture
No full textProject Mentor(s): Katharine Whitcomb
This paper explores the concept of literary discourse as a networked form, using Caroline Levine’s theory of “networks” as expansive systems of meaning. Through the poetry of several postmodern poets and their texts such as Terrance Hayes’ American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin, Anne Carson’s The Beauty of the Husband, and Maggie Nelson’s Bluets, this essay analyzes how contemporary poets use intertextuality, historical references, and classical forms not as rigid structures but as connective nodes in a broader literary web. These texts illustrate how poetry continues to participate in an evolving cultural and literary conversation that transcends time, geography, and genre to communicate common human experiences. Through this networked discourse, poets challenge hierarchical traditions and assert marginalized voices, while also engaging in an ongoing dialogue with the past. Literary networks provide a lens for understanding the interconnectivity of texts that perpetuate the enduring human desire to find meaning through shared cultural memory. This specialized discourse is foundational and expandable to the growing inclusivity of the literary canon and community. Presentation recording available in the SOURCE 2025 playlist: https://www.youtube.com/@cwusource551
A (Mini) Mathematics Research Experience in a Math Teachers’ Circle Session
No full textWe describe a single Math Teachers’ Circle session during which a group of teachers collectively engaged in a “mini mathematics research experience.” This provides a model for providing research experiences for mathematics teachers through content-based professional development programs. We conjecture that these experiences will have many of the same benefits as research experiences for teachers in lab sciences
Assessing Potential for Managed Aquifer Recharge on the Manastash Alluvial Fan: A Geochemical Analysis
No full textIn south-central Washington, the Yakima River Basin spans 6,100 square miles, encompassing approximately 10% of the state. With a growing population and over 400,000 acres of irrigated cropland, reliable water availability is vital for supporting agricultural irrigation, municipal needs, and aquatic habitats. To ensure water for future use, Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR), the practice of applying surface water to aquifers for storage or hydrologic system benefit, has been proposed within the Yakima Basin Integrated Plan (YBIP). This research explores the Manastash alluvial fan–located west of Ellensburg, Washington as a potential region for two MAR methods: Shallow Aquifer Recharge (SAR) and Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR). Within this study, six subsurface lithologic cross-sections were developed from well logs and geologic maps to characterize hydrogeologic relationships. Water levels within Manastash Creek and two unused wells were monitored using in situ devices to identify surface/groundwater level correlations. Major ion, trace element, and stable isotope geochemistry of 22 groundwater and nine surface water samples were analyzed to further support surface water/groundwater interactions and classify groundwater groupings. Three groundwater hydrochemical groups were identified: Group 1 (high to medium sodium values suggesting older waters), Group 2 (sedimentary wells with light isotopic signatures suggesting little-to-no surface water influence), and Group 3 (relatively heavy isotopic signatures suggesting influence from Yakima River derived waters, likely irrigation). Sedimentary wells with evidence of strong surface water influence (Group 3) were combined with soil infiltration and drainage data, tax parcel information, and estimated seepage velocity calculations to identify four suitable locations for SAR. Additionally, a region of concentrated basalt wells and tax parcel data were combined to identify one potential location for ASR at the fan apex. Suitability analysis results identify specific locations to be further assessed for MAR on the Manastash alluvial fan
Shrubsteppe birds under fire: Guiding post-wildfire habitat restoration in the Whiskey Dick and Quilomene Units, Washington
No full textBird species, globally, are declining at an alarming rate. Birds of the shrubsteppe are particularly vulnerable to habitat loss caused by agricultural development, invasive vegetation, and heightened wildfire frequency and severity. Fire and invasive vegetation create a positive feedback cycle that threatens complete conversion of shrubsteppe to grasslands. Restoring habitat following wildfire is a top priority for land managers. As bioindicators of ecosystem health, bird populations reflect landscape changes and restoration efficacy. I analyzed bird populations in the Whiskey Dick and Quilomene units of the L.T. Murray Wildlife Area in Kittitas County, Washington following the 2022 Vantage Highway fire. Using in-person surveys and autonomous recording units, I inventoried bird species in burned and unburned upland and riparian habitat and investigated fire’s impact on diversity metrics through its effect on habitat characteristics. I discovered that species richness and Shannon diversity are significantly lower in burned upland areas, but not different among riparian areas. Sagebrush cover is driving diversity trends and influencing the occurrence of sage thrashers (+), brewer’s sparrows (+), two sagebrush-obligate birds, and grassland-associated horned larks (-). Tree cover influences diversity trends in riparian areas (+), but more research is needed to understand riparian fire-impact. Wildlife area managers should focus restoration efforts on re-establishing sagebrush to promote biodiversity and support habitat of sagebrush-obligate bird species
APPLYING MULTI-METHOD P-T ESTIMATION TECHNIQUES TO CONSTRAIN DEEP CRUSTAL TECTONIC PROCESSES: AN EXAMPLE FROM HP GRANULITES NORTH QAIDAM TERRANE, CHINA
No full textHigh pressure (HP) granulites form within collisional and subduction zone tectonic environments. Due to high temperature and presence of melt, it is difficult to recover their pressure and temperature (P-T) history by conventional methods. An integration of multi-method P-T estimations provides insight on these deep crustal processes.
We apply petrographic analysis, Zr-in-Rt thermometry, phase equilibria modeling, and conventional thermobarometric calculations to constrain metamorphic conditions of Early Paleozoic HP granulite samples formed during late stage continental subduction/collision from the North Qaidam terrane.
HP granulites contain the mineral assemblage Grt + Pl ± Cpx + Qtz + Ky + Rt ± Czo. Compositional banding is common throughout samples and is interpreted to record migmatization. All samples exhibit various degrees of amphibolite facies overprinting. Whole rock compositions range from basaltic (dark bands) to rhyolitic (light bands).
Phase equilibria models combined with Zr-in-rutile thermometry of two granulite samples reproduce the peak observed mineral assemblages + melt at 20-22 kbar and 800-825°C, which we interpret to be the most robust record of peak conditions in these samples. The peak P-T conditions suggest that these HP granulite samples originated from a high-temperature part of the subducted slab rather than from the overlying plate. Thermobarometric calculations using the Ky-Cpx-Grt-Qtz, Ky-Grt-Pl-Qtz, Grt-Pl-Cpx-Qtz, and Ab-Jd-Qtz systems of mafic bands yield pressure estimates of 13-17 kbar (at 775°C), which we interpret to reflect compositional resetting during retrogression, recording the conditions when melt was last stable in the given assemblage. Thermobarometric calculations within compositionally felsic bands are not coherent.
We interpret the P-T discrepancy within felsic bands to stem from an inaccurate bulk composition as a result of melt loss during metamorphism. We conclude that the alteration of bulk composition and mineral chemistry through deep crustal migmatization and exhumation respectively obscure the results of single-method thermobarometry, but an integration of thermobarometric methods provides a segment of the P-T path showing high-T, melt-present decompression late in the continental subduction/collision process
From Old English Genitives to Modern English Possessives: Tracing Grammar Evolution Through Biogrammar and Grammatical Biology
No full textProject Mentor(s): Charles X. Li, PhD
This paper presents a biologically grounded and historically informed framework, Biogrammar, as a means to explain grammatical evolution and cognitive processing. It compares Biogrammar with two foundational theories in the study of language: the Nature-Nurture Hypothesis and Chomsky’s Universal Grammar. As a case study, the paper examines the historical evolution of English plural and genitive constructions, focusing on morphological developments such as the -as/-es mergers, his-genitives, group genitives, and the rise of the of + noun phrase pattern. These diachronic changes are interpreted as evidence of grammar functioning as a biologically adaptive system shaped by cognitive constraints and cultural usage. The study further explores how neural mechanisms, especially Broca’s area and the FOXP2 gene, support grammatical processing, as demonstrated by impairments in individuals with Broca’s aphasia. By linking morphological change with neurogenetic evidence, the paper argues that Biogrammar and its companion model, Grammatical Biology, provide a robust, bidirectional account of grammar’s evolution, rooted in the interaction between neural architecture and communicative ecology
CWU Horn Club 2025 Northwest Horn Symposium Performance and Presentation
No full textProject Mentor(s): Jeffrey Snedeker, DMA
CWU Horn Ensemble: Ellie Brower, Quentin Chamberlain, Alec Chinnery, Alex Coon, Chone Ewell, Jordyn Gribble, Eamon Hill, Lucy Jacky, Gabrielle Kosoff, Julia McConnachie, Sadie Papp, Lillian Record, Tori Seward, Jaeden Tellvik
The CWU Horn Ensemble will give a performance featuring music for 14 CWU Horn Club members led by director, Dr. Jeffrey Snedeker. This performance represents a concert that the ensemble performed at the Northwest Horn Symposium, a regional professional conference hosted by the Northwest Horn Society in April 2025 in Eugene, Oregon. The invited program includes a varied repertoire that stretches both the individuals and the ensemble as a whole. Our program contrasts with the programs of the past several years, which have focused on standard horn ensemble repertoire and experiences. The repertoire is diverse, but a common thread is that these pieces push the boundaries of what our ensemble can do. The program includes an assortment of Renaissance dance music, which is non-standard repertoire for horn ensemble; two pieces by the ensemble’s director, Dr. Snedeker, that incorporate improvisation into a group setting: Ostinati, where ensemble members are challenged by improvising as a group, as accompaniment, and as soloists, and Natural Horns, a piece written for cow horn, ram horn, kudu horns, and conch shells; and concludes with an arrangement of Abreu’s Latin jazz hit Tico Tico featuring two student soloists. The CWU Horn Club is grateful to have received grants from OUR and foundry10 to make the conference performance possible. Recording of the SOURCE 2025 performance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkEWPszu9B
Tassel Turning versus Tossing in the Towel: An Analysis of Undergraduate Student Persistence and Challenges
No full textProject Mentor(s): Pamela McMullin-Messier, Bernadette Jungblut
Completing college is no easy feat. All higher education has barriers and obstacles students must face and overcome. Observations have been used to gather various student perspectives that have been compiled alongside research in the field to create a picture of what student barriers look like at Central Washington University specifically. Some of these barriers include navigating academic requirements, challenges with academic advisors, unique challenges first-generation students face, and financial challenges including balancing employment and academics. Within the personal lives of students, there are several internal factors that impact their success such as their persistence, grit, and stress levels. All aspects work together to impact student well-being and student success. As an institution, there are ways to improve conditions that impact student success. Academic advising is a critical part of a student’s ability to complete their degree. Training advisors to be able to accurately answer student questions or to direct students to the right department or resources to assist them is one way this barrier to student success can be improved. Integrating financial literacy learning into beginning student classes can be one way to aid students in learning to manage the additional financial stressors that come with moving to college. Individual experiences are at the core of student success and retention, which is why individual student perspectives are the most important ones to gather. This study aims to produce suggested solutions for institutional change to help improve student success and outcomes