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Elrod, Eileen Razzari, English, interviewed by
No full textIn this interview, Dr. Eileen Razzari Elrod reflects on her journey as a first-generation college student from a large family and how that experience shaped her deep commitment to supporting others like her. As a professor of English at Santa Clara University and a key contributor to the LEAD Scholars Program, she has worked to uplift first-generation students by fostering spaces of belonging and academic empowerment. Dr. Elrod is passionate about the transformative power of education, emphasizing that true learning is not just about acquiring information, but about growth, connection, and purpose. Her gratitude for being a lifelong learner is apparent, as does her dedication to teaching, which earned her the Brutocao Award for Excellence in Teaching. With scholarly expertise in early American literature and identity, and a long history of leadership at SCU—including roles in faculty development, diversity initiatives, and program development—Dr. Elrod offers profound wisdom and inspiration to the Santa Clara community. Listen to hear more about her time before and during SCU, with sprinkles of wisdom and life advice everyone should hear
Jonte-Pace, Diane, Religious Studies, interviewed by
No full textDr. Diane Jonte-Pace always thought her passion for learning starts from “the library”, which is the library at home because “Books can talk about anything!”. After finishing her undergraduate studies at UCSC, Dr. Jonte-Pace earned a Ph.D. in the Psychology of Religion from the University of Chicago in 1984. She began teaching at Santa Clara University in 1988 and served for 32 years in the Department of Religious Studies. Her field of research includes psycho-analysis of religion, culture and gender, inspired by this simple question “Why are people like they are?” Over the years, Dr.Jonte-Pace held several key administrative roles, including Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs (2013–2017), Vice Provost for Academic Affairs (2010–2013), and Vice Provost for Undergraduate Studies (2007–2010) and the founder of the faculty development program. She retired in 2020 with the title of Professor Emeritus and has stayed involved with SCU by leading the retired and retiring faculty group which hosts speakers and events on campus. Her words of wisdom for the Santa Clara community? You have to click and find out yourself
Computers: Their Human and Cultural Impact
Full text linkIn January 1983 the cover ofTIME magazine featured not the usual photograph of the Man of the Year but an illustration of the Machine of the Year: the personal computer.
TIME\u27s cover was a dramatic illustration of how the computer, in only six or seven years, had entered the everyday world of the average American. The computer was becoming ubiquitous and commonplace, as familiar a household item as television set and telephone.
But the TIME cover reminds us that the computer is more than a mere consumer durable. According to TIME the greatest influence for good or evil in 1982 was the computer. In the popular imagination the computer is more than a mere machine; it is a potent force actively shaping our social and private lives.
What does the assimilation of this powerful machine into daily life mean for the lives of individuals and societies? How will people in various countries and cultures, not to speak of different generations, come to terms with the computer at work, at home or in school? Will contact with computers encourage people to think differently about themselves, their cultures, and their world? How will people in a computer-rich society differ from their forebears or their contemporaries in other less industrialised countries? What effects will the computer have on communication, on work and leisure?
This issue of TRENDS highlights research which has begun to explore such questions. A future issue will consider the computer and its place in education
Communication, Technology, and Culture
Full text link...from the alphabet to the motorcar, Western man has been steadily refashioned in a slow technological explosion that has extended over 2,500 years. From the time of the telegraph onward, ••• Western man bega\u27l to live an implosion. He began suddenly ... to play the movie of his 2,500 year explosion backward .
In characteristically vivid imagery Marshall McLuhan in Understanding Media expresses his belief in the power of technology to transform culture. McLuhan\u27s words raise a host of questions about the complex interrelationship of culture, technology, and human consciousness. Questions such as: does technology determine cultural change? how do changes in technology alter patterns of communication? what is the effect on human consciousness and culture of rapid technological change? and, most importantly, can human beings control the rate and direction of either cultural or technological change?
All these questions seem especially pertinent in an age that is constantly presented as a period of transition to a new society and culture. In the face of the exhortations and warnings concerning the coming \u27information\u27, \u27wired\u27 or \u27post-industrial\u27 society, people in all societies need to be able to stand back and examine their relationship with technology. The rhetoric of progress, of doom, or even of, Utopia, is no substitute for reflection. This issue aims to assist that process of reflection by bringing together and analysing some of the recent research that attempts to elucidate the significance of technological change in communication for the lives of individuals, cultures and societies
Can Jesuit/Catholic Universities Remain So Without Any Jesuits or Catholics?
No full textJesuit and Catholic higher education has much to offer our students and the world but with fewer and fewer Jesuits and Catholic clerics or laypersons in the classrooms or anywhere else at our universities, this 500 century old Jesuit tradition and 2,000 year old Catholic is seriously threatened. Strategic hiring for mission and identity, being proactive with evangelization, and retaining our approach to academic life, learning, and formation are critically needed, especially now. Otherwise, our Jesuit and Catholic institutions run the risk of being overwhelmed with secularization that will ultimately lose the richness that Jesuit and Catholic inspired education and perspectives offer our students and ultimately the world when the world most desperately needs it
The Ethics of Mass Communication
Full text linkRecent years have seen an unprecedented uncertainty and debate over the ethics of mass media. James Thomson, curator of Nieman fellowships for journalists at Harvard University, detects in experienced journalists increasing doubt - even cynicism - regarding the morality of many accepted media practices. John Birt, associated with ITV in London, notes much more questioning of the morality of television programming in Britain.
One might expect the churches to help in clarifying issues of media ethics. The Catholic Church, for example, has a strong tradition of philosophical analysis of ethical problems. Yet, surprisingly, except in Spain, one finds little involvement of Catholic philosophers and theologians in current discussions of communication ethics. More consistent and serious study of media ethics is going on in Protestant circles, especially in the United States.
The moral guidance of media professionals is regarded by many as a priority work for the church. But there is little consensus on the best method of education in media ethics. As a case in point, the pastoral instruction of the Catholic Church on communication, Communio et Progressior, recommends that professional associations of communicators draw up codes of ethics. However, many media professionals and leading scholars in media ethics argue that the emphasis on codes has been an obstacle to a reasoned, systematic ethics of mass communication.
The rise of mass-televised entertainment and news poses responsibilities for both the media professionals and the public. This issue of COMMUNICATION RESEARCH TRENDS surveys current study of this difficult question and examines progress toward more systematic values in media ethics
Ambulatory Monitoring of Biomarkers for Enhanced Recovery
Full text linkThe objective of our project is to create, design and test a fully functional continuously monitoring hydrogen peroxide sensor. This sensor aims to identify early detection of diseases associated with oxidative stress which can include certain types of cancer, neurodivergent diseases and cardiovascular diseases. Early detection of hydrogen peroxide levels can provide patients with early treatment and can help reduce disease progression. Overall, the biosensor prioritizes early detection of ROS levels allowing various consumers such as healthcare sectors, patients, and research institutions to benefit from continuous monitoring for health management and disease prevention
Microplastic Eaters
Full text linkThis thesis evaluated Alcanivorax Borkumensis’ (A. Borkumensis) ability to degrade polystyrene in a pyruvate-rich environment to determine if the bacteria could degrade the microplastic when grown in pyruvate. The thesis explored the metabolic behavior of A. Borkumensis when pyruvate is used to start the gluconeogenesis pathway, which is the start of the metabolic pathway when degradation occurs. The bacterium was grown in ONR7a medium, that was adjusted to a pH of 8.1, and 1% pyruvate; then it was processed by centrifugation and washing before experimentation began. Trials were conducted to iteratively refine the process and verify trial results. Bacterial growth was determined by creating OD600 curves and verifying with Zobell Marine agar plates to ensure OD600 results were not the result of debris. The findings of this thesis established conditions for which A. Borkumensis was able to degrade polystyrene and suggests a metabolic pathway that can appear from A. Borkumensis adapting to a nutrient deficient environment. The analysis and discussion explore a CO2 metabolic pathway that has no prior literature
Novel 3D Printable QCM–DNA Biosensor for \u3ci\u3eAspergillus niger\u3c/i\u3e Detection
No full textAspergillus niger (A. niger) is a soilborne, airborne, and seedborne fungal pathogen which is causing significant postharvest losses in agricultural crops. In this work, a novel quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) and aptamer-based biosensor capable of detecting A. niger conidia, with high specificity and sufficient sensitivity, was developed. The detection of A. niger conidia involves the use of selective aptamers (AN01-R9-006) immobilized on the active electrode on the QCM, causing complex mass loading phenomena resulting in resonant frequency shifts of the QCM. Under optimal conditions, the resonant frequency shifted non-linearly according to an empirically derived equation, △f = −1.64 · Ps0.28 , with an increasing A. niger conidia concentration over a range of 103 conidia/mL to 107 conidia/mL. Due to the high specificity of the A. niger conidia binding aptamer, AN01-R9-006, this QCM A. niger conidia biosensor exhibits high selectivity. The aptamer-based QCM biosensor allows label-free, easy to use, and cost-effective detection of A. niger conidia showing great promise for on-field detection of A. niger
\u3ci\u3ein vitro\u3c/i\u3e Hydrogel Blood Clots Phantoms
Full text linkThis thesis presents a mechanical and microstructural characterization of agarose-based hydrogels as synthetic thrombus analogs for balloon catheter testing. Agarose gels ranging from 0.25% to 1.0% (w/v) were fabricated and analyzed using dynamic shear rheometry, capillary flow porometry, and gas pycnometry. Rheological data showed a nonlinear increase in storage modulus (G′), from 110 ± 66 Pa at 0.25% agarose to 4,900 ± 1,600 Pa at 1.0%, effectively mimicking the viscoelastic spectrum of acute to chronic thrombi. Gas pycnometry measurements indicated that true density (Ptrue) increased modestly from 1.03 g/mL to 1.13 g/mL over the same concentration range. This disproportionate relationship, where a ~10% increase in Ptrue corresponds to over a 40-fold increase in G′, suggests that minor changes in material density, likely due to matrix densification, lead to major alterations in mechanical stiffness. Drying methods significantly influenced mass and volume retention: freeze-dried samples lost up to 0.79 g/cm³ in apparent density, while vacuum-dried gels experienced volume shrinkage of up to 0.67 cm³. Porometry failed to resolve consistent through-pore networks post-lyophilization, underscoring the fragility and collapse-prone nature of low-density gels. Together, these results demonstrate that true density serves as a sensitive indicator of microstructural changes that dramatically affect the mechanical properties of thrombus analogs, and they validate agarose hydrogels as cost-effective, tunable test beds for thrombectomy device development