Reed Digital Collections (Reed College)
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It’s Getting Hot in Here: Phenotypic Effects and Gene Expression Changes in Response to Chronic UVB Radiation Exposure
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/d35b1ae4-4ed7-4c40-abb4-71f4969a6deb/thumb/128.jpgLiving organisms are continuously being exposed to environmental stressors, including direct DNA-damaging ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun. To maintain genomic integrity, cells have evolved specialized DNA damage responses to prevent the propagation of mutations caused by endogenous or exogenous injuries, including solar radiation. Research on the impact of UV radiation in several organisms has established the biphasic nature of UV light, such that low doses of UV radiation stimulate protective responses, while exposure to high doses induces detrimental damage to living systems. The phenotypic effects and changes in transcription and gene expression after UV radiation exposure are of large interest, but have yet to be fully characterized. The current study investigates the expression of stress response genes responsible for the synthesis of heat shock proteins and superoxide dismutase enzymes (Dm-Cu/Zn-SOD, Dm-Mn-SOD, HSP60, and HSP90), as well as follows life-long fecundity and survivorship among individuals from multiple lineages, in two Daphnia species exposed to chronic UVB radiation. Reproductively mature D. magna and D. pulex females were exposed to narrowband UVB, during which time survival and fecundity were recorded. Individual clutches from each focal individual were isolated, exposed to UVB radiation for seven days, and used to assay gene expression profiles. The findings from this investigation shows evidence to support that chronic UVB radiation has an effect on Daphnia gene expression and survivorship across species and genotypes
Vertical Distribution of Birds and Epiphytes in the Forest Canopy
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/3ce31668-9c82-4af7-bb4c-74ad0ad9ba43/thumb/128.jpgArboreal epiphytes are an important part of canopy environments, and their abundance and composition differ between height and urbanization contexts. However, little is known about the relationship between arboreal epiphytes and the bird communities that live amongst them. To investigate this question, I surveyed the vertical distribution of epiphyte coverage on trees at the urban Reed College site and peri-urban Sandy River Gorge site using tree-climbing techniques. I paired this with audio recordings from the top and bottom of the trees, identified bird species by their vocalizations using machine learning software, and described which bird species were present, where, and how frequently vocalizations occurred. I found that birds at Sandy River Gorge had greater differences in vocal density between heights than Reed College, possibly due to a greater difference in epiphyte coverage between heights at Sandy River Gorge. Nonetheless, the species recognition capabilities of the machine learning software require improvements before it is possible to make stronger claims. The present preliminary description only started to the relationship between canopy epiphytes and bird communities, highlighting the need for further research into the impact of canopy epiphytes on bird habitat, and the potential of novel methodologies
Indonesian and Malaysian Mak Yong: Making and Remaking Culture, Ritual, and Identity
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/ed705c78-433d-4aa7-b14a-646bff0a555e/thumb/128.jpgMak Yong is a theatre dance form that interacts with global forces and concepts such as: nationalism, religion; culture formation, loss, and reconstruction; identity, and gender. The effects of international cultural authorities such as UNESCO often being outside the culture and using culture to their own ends has changed the way the dance is performed and thought about. Cultural revitalization is a complex system of processes that functions as identity making in the intertwining religious, social, and personal worlds. Mak Yong serves as a window into the formation and reformation of culture. The impact of colonialism, globalization, and nationalism has continued to shape cultural developments, especially in a deeply localized dance theatre art. The connection of local identity to Mak Yong being co-opted by larger governmental entities who are attempting to tie to national identity serves as a contention point between the will of the people and the will of the government. The dance also functions as a way to observe how Islamic interpretation and ideology has shifted and changed due to political and socioeconomic pressures. Time will tell how not just the dance, but the entire climate of Southeast Asia, continues to shift and evolve
Garden Quilt
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/22cd8158-be8b-4cfe-a1b4-a8d8ca279157/thumb/128.jpgIn deciding my senior thesis I knew I wanted to spend the year on a project that I could take with me. I’ve been making fiber crafts for a long time; I learned to knit from an aunt when I was in elementary school and I taught myself to crochet and embroider. I’ve always loved the process of creating with my hands, but I’ve never made something for myself to use, I’ve made things for the whole house to use (like blankets) and I’ve made many gifts for others over the years. For this project I knew I would be committing myself to the longest project I’ve ever worked on. I want all this work to be work in honor of myself. This whole creative process has been an act of self love. I will bring this quilt home with me to live in my bed for as long as I may have it. I can’t help but wonder, will this quilt survive me? Will I be able to pass this one along to future family? Working this process now I know this quilt is only the first
Pockets of Sun: Documenting Generational Relationships to the Environment
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/107583e2-db46-4037-ad7a-5dbba0ffb2b7/thumb/128.jpgThis is a creative thesis that is complementary to a documentary of interviews with different generations about climate change and the environment. This written thesis is about the research, scholars, and experience of interviewing across three different generations. In the introduction, the origin story of Skywoman lays the foundation of interrelational connections between human and non-human lives through respect, reciprocity, and care. I weave together solastalgia and eco-anxiety through Warmth: A Coming of Age at the End of Our World and providing definitions from Daniel Sherrell, Glen Albrecht, and Paul Bogard. In Chapter 1, I write about Sharon Lockhart’s video work, the film Podwórka, and how she employs specific film techniques to show the connections between people and place. Following this chapter, I write about Henry David Thoreau’s transcendental writings in contrast to modern writings by Joanna Zylinksa who calls for a ‘Feminist Counter-Apocalypse.’ Her philosophy incorporates the breakdown of the complex relationships between human and non-human lives and how to begin reshaping and rethinking our conceptions of the environment. Chapter 3 outlines my interview process and details about the interviewees of the documentary. They are organized in the order in which they were interviewed and include information about my relationship with each of them and what I learned from the interviews. I conclude the thesis by mapping out the connections between each of the chapters and expressing the importance of acknowledging the climate crises
“Whut ‘n Gawd’s name’re yew sayin’?” : Exploring Ideas of Race, Gender, and Labor in the Dialect of Early Twentieth-Century Southern Short Fiction
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/37e46901-9ccd-413d-a5e4-631337b1d0b2/thumb/128.jpgIn this thesis, I focus on “Barn Burning” by William Faulkner and “Sweat” by Zora Neale Hurston, two short stories written in the early twentieth century which both connect themes of labor and race to their respective uses of dialect. After detailing the uses of literary dialect in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, I demonstrate how these short stories push back against the Othering effect of dialect from the nineteenth century and how one falls into the “racial ventriloquism” idea of the twentieth. Faulkner uses the essentialized Black and female characters as an Other by which to explore the opinions and views of more complex characters whose identities he shares: White men. Hurston instead completely resists the tendency to reduce dialect speakers to instrumental stereotypes by creating a narrator that affirms the dialect speaking main character’s point of view as authoritative. Hurston reclaims previously racially oppressive functions of dialect to create a story that celebrates Black womanhood and her labor. Parallel to this dialect reclamation, Hurston additionally reclaims portions of the traditional, patriarchally oppressive narrative of the Garden of Eden and transforms it into a new and original work. These explorations ultimately demonstrate how authorial identity intersects with the use of dialect in fiction in the twentieth century
Investigating Waldorf Education through Teachers' Perspectives: A Case Study
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/6be92f41-50d3-424c-83c0-83a70acca119/thumb/128.jpgWaldorf education is a sprawling global alternative school system, with approximately 1,150 independent schools and nearly 1,800 kindergartens across 75 countries. Despite its global presence and status as a widely recognized alternative education system, psychological research on Waldorf education remains limited. As highly trained practitioners and interpreters of Steiner’s philosophy, Waldorf teachers’ voices are crucial for accurately understanding the broader impact of Waldorf education. Through an exploratory, iterative process of thematic analysis of interviews with Waldorf teachers (N=4), four overarching, narrative-driven themes of Waldorf-specific teacher identity were identified and situated within existing research on teacher identity (Hong et al., 2024): 1) Teaching style: flexibility, rigidity, interpretation, goals, and evolution; 2) Spirituality as a Professional Compass; 3) Pathways to becoming a Waldorf teacher; and 4) Waldorf outside the classroom: impact, interpretation, and self-conception. Waldorf teachers described their professional identities as intentional pursuits of spiritual self-actualization, closely tied with their personal identities and extending beyond the classroom. These accounts suggest that philosophically-oriented educational like Waldorf may foster unique environments for self-exploration and growth, contributing new insights into the intersection of personal and professional identity development in alternative education contexts
Gender Differences in Alcohol-Related Behavior and Risk Perception Among Cisgender and Gender Diverse Emerging Adults
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/c7faf558-ddb6-4768-8327-ce1f8d676d4a/thumb/128.jpgThis study examined gender differences in risk perception, behavioral willingness (BW), and protective behavioral strategies (PBS) in simulated emerging adult drinking settings. Research has shown that cisgender women are consistently more aware of alcohol-associated risks and more likely to practice PBS than cisgender men, largely due to the risk of being sexually victimized by a man while intoxicated. No study has successfully replicated these patterns among TGD samples, but extensive research on TGD-focused stigma and discrimination would support similar risk-aware behavior. A community sample of 273 emerging adults (ages 18-25, n = 186 cisgender men/women, n = 87 TGD individuals) completed the CollegiateSimulated Intoxication Digital Elicitation (C-SIDE) auditory simulation. Participants reported willingness to accept alcohol offers, perceived risk of the simulation, and PBS use. A subset of participants gave additional open-ended responses and completed a structured interview. Using mixed-methods analysis, I hypothesized that cisgender women and TGD participants, as compared to cisgender men, would report higher risk perception, would be less willing to accept alcohol from someone of another gender, and would report greater PBS use, and that thematic analysis of interview transcripts would support these differences. Several quantitative gender differences emerged, but no uniform differences between cisgender men and all other gender groups were identified, contrary to hypotheses. However, thematic analysis largely supported hypotheses, especially in relation to risk perception. Several explanations and implications of these findings are discussed. Future research should continue to oversample TGD individuals and ensure all measures reflect the nuances of gender transition
Hooked on Reed Lake: Competitive interactions between non-native pumpkinseed sunfish (Lepomis gibbosus) and native threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) with consideration of barriers to establishment
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/decfb1c9-b166-4691-8f1b-ec764d69bc19/thumb/128.jpgThe non-native pumpkinseed sunfish (Lepomis gibbosus) has been recognized as invasive across the Pacific Northwest and associated with the decline of native fish species, including the threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus). This pumpkinseed was recently observed in the canyon, raising concerns regarding the future of Reed Lake’s biodiversity. In this thesis, I conducted short-term feeding competition assays in order to evaluate the effects of intraspecific and interspecific competition between stickleback and pumpkinseed, and model the future outcome of this competition. I found that pumpkinseed have a strong detrimental effect on stickleback feeding success, as well as on the success of other pumpkinseed fish, while stickleback do not act as substantial competitors for pumpkinseed or other stickleback. I then used a two species model of competition along with zero growth isoclines to predict the eventual outcome of competition between these two species. The model results indicate that either stickleback will outcompete non-native pumpkinseeds, or stable coexistence with both species present will occur, depending on whether the per capita negative effect of sticklebacks on pumpkinseed is truly zero or slightly negative. In considering the potential mechanisms behind pumpkinseed introduction, I took water speed measurements along Crystal Springs Creek, which connects Reed Lake to the Willamette River and rest of the world, and found speeds ranging from 0.0645 to 1.86 m/s. A Fish Treadmill was constructed to pilot tests considering fish endurance and swimming behaviors, and preliminary results suggest the capacity for pumpkinseed to reenter the lake. Beyond the outcomes our models predicted, pumpkinseed populations anecdotally appear to be declining. While these fish may no longer pose a significant threat to native populations in Reed Lake, their introduction and time in our community reflect the potential for other non-natives, maybe even invasives, to enter our community in a more destructive way
Strange Beasts, Everyday Evils: An Examination of Othering in Yan Ge's Strange Beasts
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/473d6a2d-129a-4079-ba1d-7f7a227541a9/thumb/128.jpgStrange Beasts by Yan Ge is a 2006 novel set in the fictional city of Yong'an, in a world populated by humans who live alongside humanlike beasts. In this thesis, I examine how Yan explores social othering through these beasts and their interactions with the humans surrounding them. I investigate three ways in which she interrogates the construction and application of the category of "other." In the first chapter of this thesis, I review the way the novel uses language to construct the category of "other." In the second chapter, I examine the ways in which the construction of "others" is used to influence people. In the third chapter, I focus on how the novel demonstrates that these categorizations are fundamentally and unavoidably harmful to everyone involved