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Taphonomy and Bryophytic Growth on Porcine Bones in PNW Microclimates
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/42292424-6d5c-49c8-a673-b04e2695847a/thumb/128.jpgThe basis of this thesis relies on the hypothesis that as soil moisture in a location increases, the bryophyte propagation rate in that location increases until the maximum colonization rate for that plant is reached. To investigate this relationship, porcine rib bones were transported to three different locations in Oregon representing a high soil moisture, low soil moisture, and intermediate soil moisture. for a period of 4.5 months (May-Oct), and the propagation of the moss was measured via segment count and length. The relationship between soil moisture and bryophyte propagation could not be fully investigated due to scavenging activity across all of the sites. Bryophytic propagation was observed at the intermediate soil moisture site (Reed College Canyon) beginning in early October and resulted in 1 segment of growth at 23 mm. This result indicates that particular bryophytes in the PNW have the potential to propagate on skeletonized remains at a rate of one segment per wet and dry season, and may have the potential to be regularly studied for chronometry defending on speciation. Establishing standards for the chronometry of bryophyte growth on porcine remains provides an additional method of estimating post-mortem interval in addition to already established standards that largely ignore biological processes
Arktoi
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/d698755c-104b-44f8-95d0-7b4bc620e6b8/thumb/128.jp
The Starving Artist? Analyzing Dance Major Graduation Rates During Recessions
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/5dcd9d23-6c30-41e8-9396-218156360c06/thumb/128.jpgThe field of dance has often been perceived as a realm of “creative passion,” marked by limited financial prospects and professional opportunities. This thesis investigates how recessions affect the number of dance major graduates and examines changes in student major choice behavior during economic uncertainty. Utilizing data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED), we conduct an exploratory analysis of trends among bachelor’s degrees in the United States from 2003 to 2018. Our findings indicate an increase in STEM degrees and a decrease in degrees within the arts division, alongside growing diversity across all fields, notably with rising Hispanic student representation. Additionally, we model the empirical relationship between recessionary measures – real GDP and the unemployment rate – and the percentage of dance degrees, revealing the resilience of the major amidst economic downturns. This study sheds light on the dynamics influencing student major choice and the adaptability of artistic pursuits during challenging periods
Symbolic Analysis on C Binaries
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/96a74631-22fb-4e55-a60d-38e865dc39ba/thumb/128.jpgWithin the field of static analysis, symbolic analysis is a powerful tool for verfying the behavior of computer programs. The work presented here extends an existing library for symbolic analysis to operate on binary programs in addition to the structure-rich source code or intermediate representation it already supports. This addition brings symbolic analysis into scope as a possible tool for reverse engineering binaries, as well as confirming expected behavior between a model and a binary or source code and a binary. The code of this thesis is novel in that it brings P-Code into direct communication with this symbolic ecosystem, allowing for testing of the ecosystem itself via differential testing as well the more typical uses such as compiler verification. In addition, it brings new symbolic analysis to new architectures in a uniform way through P-Code rather than being supported individually as is the case for those currently supported
Control Liberate the Narrative: Black Liberation Through Re-Appropriations in Modern Art
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/cf2bd6b3-3896-416c-ae16-bf47c4fdd8df/thumb/128.jpgThis thesis explores the utilization of re-appropriation in the practices of six black artists, who uniquely employ this technique as a means of addressing and reimagining oppressive narratives of blackness. A framework of appropriation is built upon various understandings of the term as it refers to historical practices within artmaking as well as cultural appropriation in wider popular culture. A further distinction is made between oppressive examples of cultural appropriation, and the ways in which the examined artists are using appropriation as a liberative practice. The first chapter sees two works by Henry Taylor and Robert Colescott, who utilize Pablo Picasso’s Les Demoiselles d’Avignon to explore the culturally appropriative westernization of African aesthetics found in the art historical canon. Chapter two discusses contemporary re-appropriations by Kehinde Wiley and Tschabalala Self, who utilize Édouard Manet’s Le Déjeuner sur l’herbe to problematize the privileged styles and techniques associated with western canonical masterworks. The third and final chapter explores the works of Betye Saar and Arthur Jafa, who use assemblage as a re-appropriative method to critique and liberate oppressive stereotypes of blackness. Each artist acts as a different example of the potential liberative power of re-appropriative techniques, and further problematizes preconceived notions of history and the narrative
Relieving the Hubble Tension - Exploring the Paths Forward
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/219bc02a-1f4e-4953-b716-74904f3d36e9/thumb/128.jpgThe subject of the Hubble tension -- one of the most prominent dilemmas facing astrophysicists today -- is introduced, and the current endeavors to resolve this issue are explored. This introduction begins with a discussion of the early- and late-time techniques employed by astrophysics to measure extragalactic distances, as well as an introduction to the CDM model of the universe and the ongoing challenges it faces. This preface to the Hubble tension is followed by an account of the modifications to the CDM model that could resolve this dilemma. Next is a comparison of both the present conclusions reached by many cosmologists regarding the ultimate solution to this tension and the categorizations of these proposed solutions. Given the current efforts of many cosmologists to compare the relative effectiveness of these solutions, an analysis is performed for the data obtained through some of these model comparisons. This concludes with a statement regarding the current front-runners among the proposed solutions and the prospect of resolving the Hubble tension through a combination of multiple solutions
Community Owned Community Solar in the United States: Emergence and Organizational Strategies for Success
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/6236bd1f-1c84-45fe-b1b3-f28345d7254b/thumb/128.jpgAs the world continues to demand more energy for consumption, the question of how to provide clean energy for everyone, solar energy in particular, is ever more pressing. In response to the failure of profit-oriented market actors in providing equitable access to solar, I explore the possibilities of community owned community solar (COCS) in the United States as an alternative approach to develop solar facilities and expand access to clean energy in a more equitable fashion, addressing the urging need for a Just Transition in the clean energy economy. I treat the emergence and growth of COCS projects across the country as a case study of an alternative organization that upholds a specific set of economic and environmental agenda. I create a comparative research design with three case studies to answer three research questions: How can COCS developer organizations scale up, after building and operating their first few projects? Over the course of developing and replicating COCS projects, how have these organizations been enabled or restricted by economic, social, and political factors? And how and why do their responses to these various challenges differ? Through mobilizing the existing organizational research on the formation and development of alternative enterprises and understandings of economic democracy and energy democracy, I identify two sets of challenges COCS developers face as they work hard to expand and scale up. They need to overcome costs associated with organizing their projects in a way that facilitates community ownership, while employ strategies to gain and maintain cognitive legitimacy and sociopolitical legitimacy, as these alterative developers stand as a rising competitor to the conventional form in the community solar market
O-Sequences and some Surrounding Complexity Problems
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/8f7bffea-3f54-48ae-8473-c32b6c96ee60/thumb/128.jpgThis thesis gives an introduction to O-sequences through multicomplexes, monomial ideals, and matroids, as well as complexity theory. It then proves that the problem of verifying if a sequence is an O-sequence is in P when the numbers are represented in unary. It also walks through a proof that the problem of computing the codimension of a monomial ideal is NP-complete, which shows that computing the Hilbert series of a monomial ideal is NP-hard by reductio
One Albuquerque? Crime, Security, and Dispossession in Albuquerque’s Sacrifice Zone
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/344b7fce-6d91-495e-9b27-cc05835a1f56/thumb/128.jpgAlbuquerque’s infamous War Zone has an extensive history of crime, poverty, and security that influence the lives of all within the community. Through an examination of the recent closure of the community’s Walmart, I explore these histories and their roles in shaping both businesses’ operations in the community and the lives of residents. Drawing upon ethnographic data, I argue that the Walmart’s decision to close their store in the War Zone, informed in large part by the presence of crime and poverty in the community, coupled with their continued presence in the community through private security and the dispossession of unhoused and transient individuals, has had a much deeper impact on the community than the simple loss of a grocery store. By reworking and applying the concept of “sacrifice zones” from environmental anthropology, I argue that the Walmart closure and its ongoing ramifications for the community have contributed to the isolation and transformation of the War Zone into an urban sacrifice zone
Towards a Weighted Joint Statistical Model for Rankings and Ratings
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/73427c97-82d1-4b39-9080-4ed7a7a81ac3/thumb/128.jpgIn many applications, both ranking and rating preference data are available but without a clear methodology for merging them. Adjusting their relative importance or understanding what amounts of information they each provide is difficult. This thesis addresses this issue by developing a method for weighting the preexisting Mallows-Binomial joint statistical model for rankings and ratings, introduced by Pearce & Erosheva (2022). I describe the modifications to the Mallows-Binomial, the implementation of its fitting procedure, methods for uncertainty quantification, and conduct initial tests of the model’s functionality and interpretation