IDA Mount Holyoke College Institutional Digital Archive
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Search for Z’ boson and model discrimination
No full textDeveloped in the early 1970s, the Standard Model of particle physics has been very successful in explaining various phenomena in the universe. The Standard Model has been built by finding the right symmetry group for each of the proposed new fields. With the announcement of the discovery of the Higgs boson on July 4th in 2012, the Standard Model was completed and interest in high energy physics has grown. However, there are still open problems in explaining the structure of the universe, such as particle-antiparticle asymmetry and the hierarchy problem. Some models that extend the Standard Model to address these problems require a Z’ field, which corresponds to U(1)’ symmetry.
This study explores methods to discriminate among the Standard Model and seven different Beyond Standard Models that include the Z’ boson, from its mass, angular distribution, rapidity distribution, and likelihood, using Monte Carlo simulations on proton-proton collisions at 14 TeV at ATLAS.Physic
Scaling Development Policy of Sub-Saharan Africa: Local to Global Perspectives
No full textThe dialogue on war and peace has existed throughout time. Historically, textbooks have conceptualized post-conflict states as inadequate entities, and peace has been glamorized and associated with the civilized men. Today, we associate these civilized men with international institutions and romanticize the roles they play, while overlooking the roles of women and local communities within conflict-stricken states. My time at the Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa in Liberia made me question these very historic notions. It demystified this work from an elitist field to a locally driven effort. In post-conflict Liberia, I understood the importance of women and local communities in perpetuating peaceful ideas, which are then capitalized upon by international institutions. It exposed me to the importance of this work on a local plane. In my presentation, using Liberia as a broader lens, I will re-evaluate predetermined notions in the field of peace and conflict resolution, and promote the significance of indigenous people in initiating peaceful communities.Within the breadth of policy-making, development, and education, Sub-Saharan Africa offers a vast range of opportunities. The members of this panel dispersed their interests and skills among the fields of community engagement, local and international government work, and scholarly research, thus assessing Sub-Saharan Africa from within its many socio-political environments. These panelists challenged their knowledge of what it means to: explore the differences of education systems in Ghana, build peace after war from locals and NGOs in Liberia, develop sustainable business environments through policy research with the Ghanaian government, practice diplomacy at the United Nations, and develop economic data on health and education for numerous African states. As they come together in the panel, "Scaling Development Policy of Sub-Saharan Africa: Local to Global Perspectives," Donari, Javeria, Rhema, Edith, and Sabah invite you to explore how the conventional notions of development were challenged during their internships and share in their experiences that incite cross-cultural discussion
Project Stream Soils Data
No full textSoil properties -
Soil data have been collected at Project Stream each summer from 2014-2016. Data were collected using the same quadrat system utilized for vegetation cover data. The dataset includes denitrification potential, microbial biomass C, respiration, soil NO3, soil NH4, soil TIN, microbial biomass N, mineralization potential, nitrification potential, soil moisture, soil organic matter, bulk density, pH, soil temperature, and redox. Most variables are located in the Project Stream Soil Data_MasterSheet.xlsx file. Additional data for pH, soil temperature, redox are located in the ProjectStreamGHGData_MasterSpreadsheet.xlsx file.
Greenhouse gas data -
Measures of greenhouse gas emissions from the soil have been collected at Project Stream each summer from 2015-2016. Data were collected using the same quadrat system utilized for vegetation cover and soil properties data. The dataset includes soil moisture, headspace measures to indicate the volume of the chamber being sampled, whether there was standing water on site, site temperature, and fluxes of CH4, CO2, and N2O. These data are stored in the ProjectStreamGHGData_MasterSpreadsheet.xlsx file.Annual data 2014-201
Mount Holyoke, We Pay Thee Devotion: Ritual and the Collegiate Religion at MHC
No full text“Mount Holyoke College is a cult.” This phrase, undoubtedly familiar to most MHC students, refers to the intricacies of College traditions which mark events as singular as graduation and mundane as ascending the Library stairs. Some traditions, like the Pangy Day barbecue, serve as quaint moments of respite from the rigor of academic life, while others, like the century-old procession of the Laurel Parade, in which Seniors dressed in white bring offerings of laurel and roses to the grave of Mary Lyon, take on a distinctly religious flair. What is it about Mount Holyoke traditions that makes them so compelling, pervasive, and critical to the College’s self-understanding? Does Mount Holyoke have its own religion?
This thesis, entitled “Mount Holyoke, We Pay Thee Devotion: Ritual and the Collegiate Religion at MHC,” argues that Mount Holyoke traditions constitute a “collegiate religion,” based on the theory of “civil religion” developed by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and expanded by Robert Bellah. The collegiate religion is the means by which the College sacralizes itself through ritual, and is defined by common practice and group identity formation rather than dogma or personal belief. Challenging the notion that colleges are purely rational spaces, or that higher education is just a “head thing,” collegiate religion is a framework for understanding the embodied, affective, and communal dimensions of institutional participation.
My argument employs theoretical, archival, and ethnographic methods. Through close analysis of both civil religion and ritual theory, I differentiate collegiate religion from civil religion, contextualizing collegiate religion within a longstanding scholarly conversation on the political role of ritual, and applying detailed ritual analysis to key Mount Holyoke traditions, including Mountain Day, May Day, and the Laurel Parade. My archival analysis traces the development of these traditions through history, and ethnographic interviews demonstrate how these traditions are understood, practiced, and marketed today.Religio
Are We in Hot Water?: Comparing Macroinvertebrate Communities and Water Quality over Time
No full textFreshwater ecosystems, which support a significant portion of the world’s biodiversity, are often plagued by pollution, particularly excess nitrogen and phosphorus. Additionally, freshwater ecosystems are strongly impacted by climate change. In 2003, two macroinvertebrate studies were conducted at Mount Holyoke College to investigate the health of different sites according to biotic indices. This project repeats the macroinvertebrate surveys at four stream sites and two lakes sites to compare and analyze how the macroinvertebrate communities and abiotic factors of the freshwater ecosystems have changed over time. Abiotic water quality data has been collected every two weeks since 1996 using probes. Diversity and biotic indices were calculated from the macroinvertebrate samples and the changes in abiotic factors over time were examined. According to the general decrease in the biotic indices, the water quality has improved across all sites since 2003. The species richness was generally higher in the stream sites compared to the lake sites and the restored stream site. Since 1996, the average annual temperature and pH have both increased significantly. Although the health of the freshwater ecosystems on campus seem to be improving, there is some discrepancy between the different sites and the abiotic effects of climate change are alarmingly evident.Biological Science
Mer Bleue fertilization lab incubation with PK amendment data 2016
No full textLaboratory incubations of peat samples collected at the water table of treatment plots in the Mer Bleue fertilization experiment. Peat samples were incubated with and without PK amendment.Data have been published in the following:
Juutinen, S.,T.R. Moore, J.L. Bubier, S. Arnkil, E. Humphreys, B. Marincak, C. Roy, T. Larmola. 2018. Long-term nutrient addition increased CH4 emission from a bog through direct and indirect effects. Nature Scientific Reports 8:3838; DOI:10.1038/s41598-018-22210-2.summer 201
Shifting Paradigms Across Borders
No full textThis past summer, I was an Undergraduate Intern with KARAMAH: Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights, a non-profit organization that fights for human rights, including civil rights, religious freedom, and especially gender equity. KARAMAH defends these causes through providing legal services, research, educational programs, and events that assert human rights and empower people, especially those whose rights have been ignored or violated by society. KARAMAH’s work often addresses abuses both of and within the Muslim community. A significant part of their research examines interpretations of Islam that have been used to hurt women and challenges the validity of these interpretations. Their research also examines civil rights and freedom of religion within the U.S. and calls out instances of them being violated. KARAMAH looks to empower those who have been neglected or oppressed by society, and challenge the forces that limit them. During my internship, I was able to work with all sides of KARAMAH’s work. My presentation will present the different operations of KARAMAH’s non-profit work and the importance of continuing it.During an era of immense gender inequality, Mary Lyon founded Mount Holyoke in order to provide greater educational opportunities for women. She recognized the importance of education as a means of overcoming oppression. As an institution, Mount Holyoke has always stressed the importance of female empowerment. This past summer, we collaborated with different communities in Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Cape Town, South Africa to further this vision. We worked with institutions and organizations that sought to empower women and challenge the limitations forced upon them. Though our work was in a range of fields, including the non-profit sector and technological training, we all sought to empower women through knowledge. By participating in education and activism, we offered a new perspective on women's roles and abilities and ultimately helped to change the way women view themselves
Trails, Failures, and Optimizations: The Cycle to Visualize the Basic Building Blocks of Life
No full textThe deformation of proteins under the impact of high temperature has been the main interest of many biochemical researches. However, very little is known about protein’s behavior at low temperature. In recent years, when the computation power is dramatically improved to allow the simulations of seemingly impossible experimental conditions, cold denaturation starts raising questions in the curious mind of scientists. My summer research aimed at modifying a coarse-grained implicit-solvent protein model so that it could correctly capture all the side chain-side chain and side chain-backbone interactions, using the basic theories of Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations. The model that I was working on originated from the previously proven models, namely Warshel and Mercedes-Benz. I experimented with building in a new parameter that took into account the temperature-dependent hydration enthalpy of the system. While the project currently requires some revision, the ultimate goal is to create a model which denatures at low temperature. I envision the next step to be the incorporation of the crowding agents, which mimic the cellular environment, allowing more precise understanding of proteins’ behavior in vivo.New research paradigms rely on existing knowledge of protein structure, behavior, and genomic data. This panel brings together four scientists who visualized the basic building blocks of life from genetic code to protein structure in the quest to answer some of the most challenging questions in human health. Using big data, toxicant-resistant fish, and mechanisms of drug discovery, each utilized unique methods to visualize the basic components of life including computer modeling, genomic sequencing, luminescence, and bacterial growth. This panel hopes to show possible applications of knowledge and skills gained in class as well as to impress one of the main principles of research: significant achievements are made possible through interdisciplinary collaboration that involves trials, failures, and optimization
Mer Bleue fertilization CH4 flux data 2015
No full textMethane flux data from May-August 2015 at the Mer Bleue fertilization experiment.Data have been published in the following:
Juutinen, S.,T.R. Moore, J.L. Bubier, S. Arnkil, E. Humphreys, B. Marincak, C. Roy, T. Larmola. 2018. Long-term nutrient addition increased CH4 emission from a bog through direct and indirect effects. Nature Scientific Reports 8:3838; DOI:10.1038/s41598-018-22210-2.May-August 201
Intersections Between Entreprenuership, Technology, and Education
No full textThis panel will introduce a new aspect of the industry: cross section between finance and technology to those students who are interested in pursuing a career in financial services. The panel shows the summer experience of working in an Asset Management firm’s media outreach subsidiary, a fast-paced environment focused on one of the fastest growing capital markets in the World, China. Since there is a recent trend of entering the “internet finance” field, the goal of panelist’s internship was to development an “online social media e-trading platform” (I know, it’s a mouthful). What are some challenges we might face when exploring a new market? Can technicians and financial strategists work together in a team environment? What are some ways to enter this field with an established user base? What can an intern do to support this process? This panel will show how these two fields come together and how asset management can also be forward-looking.What do internships at a Silicon Valley tech startup, a NYC ecommerce startup, a NYC academic publishing press, and an asset management firm in Hong Kong have in common? Through collaboration in small and high impact teams, we’ve been flexible and resourceful, and are proud to have developed remarkable leadership skills and increased autonomy in our chosen industries. Our experiences ranged from partnership building and educational app development, to training in product development, sales, and customer analysis. In our panel, we hope to address both the challenges we have faced, and how they prompted our growth, respectively proffering four unique perspectives from internships in progressively intersectional fields