JBC Commons (New College of Florida)
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THE BEATLES GET BACK: CONNECTION AND CREATIVITY
No full textThe basic aim of this thesis is to highlight the relationship between the Beatles’ connections with each other and with people and how it impacted their creativity, and then show how their creative progress often required letting go of a connection to open themselves to new connections, and how these new connections brought them closer to who each of them wanted to be. To study this, I use Peter Jackson’s documentary Get Back (2021), which was based on a filmed live album project they did where they attempted to get back together to make something creative as a unified band again. I look at what happens in the film, and then I link it together with some of the Beatles’ history in order to give context to what the audience sees and hears in the film. Then I show what the result of this project was, and why the project was successful in some ways, but unsuccessful in other ways
ELUCIDATION OF CELL SIGNALING PATHWAYS IN THE DROSERA CAPENSIS PREY CAPTURE RESPONSE
No full textDrosera is a genus of carnivorous plants commonly known as the sundews. Sundews capture insects to supplement nutrient intake in nutrient-poor environments by entrapping prey in sticky mucus secreted by specialized trichomes referred to as tentacles. They exhibit thigmonasty, non-directional movement in response to physical stimuli, in their tentacles and leaves during their prey capture process. There is evidence that carnivory in the Droseraceae evolved from existing plant defense signaling pathways. The goal of this study was to explore the potential of reactive oxygen species (ROS) being involved as signals in prey capture response; of particular interest was singlet oxygen. Sundew plants were stimulated by applying mechanical and/or chemical stimuli to the leaf blades and tentacles of a trap. For the majority of experiments, samples treated with the singlet oxygen sensor, Singlet Oxygen Sensor Green® (SOSG), and control samples were observed under a fluorescent microscope and examined for singlet oxygen fluorescence or background autofluorescence, respectively. Additionally, DPI (diphenyleneiodonium, an NADPH oxidase inhibitor) was used in further experiments to inhibit the latter enzyme, which is a potential source of ROS. It was found that leaves that were mechanically or chemically stimulated and treated with SOSG exhibited more visible fluorescence than control samples. Notable circumferential banding patterns occurred on stimulated tentacle stalks stained with SOSG. The visualization of singlet oxygen following chemical stimulation with the plant hormone jasmonic acid (JA) implies that singlet oxygen is downstream of JA signaling in the prey capture response. The DPI results were inconclusive and require further testing. Nonetheless, overall, there is evidence that ROS are involved in post-stimulation signaling of the Drosera prey capture response
WATER DISTRIBUTION NETWORKS IN INDONESIA: A COMPARATIVE CASE ANALYSIS
No full textThis thesis explores the distribution of water as an invaluable resource in the context of two case studies taking place within Indonesia. I first lay fundamental understandings of the international community’s water and sanitation prerogatives which are expanded by Elinor Ostrom’s contributions to the understanding of how and why resources are managed. The core of this thesis describes the history of water networks in Jakarta and its neighboring foil of Bali. Jakarta’s colonial history offers insights into how centuries of resource mismanagement can create a dire and almost impossibly damaged resource management system. Alternatively, Bali’s fields of rice paddy irrigation, left mainly untouched by the colonial Dutch, present an example of what could have been, and, ideally what could be. The case for Indonesia’s water future is constructed through conceptual, historical, environmental, and anthropological lenses. The ways in which a resource is managed can have drastic impacts on the effectiveness and sustainability of its distribution. Although a perfect solution may not exist, this thesis brings to light the importance of collectivization and equitable distribution of water as a key path forward in the fight for effective Indonesian water management
BETWEEN NATIONALIST POLITICS AND TRADITIONAL GENDER IDEOLOGIES: CHINESE WOMEN’S HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE LATE QING AND REPUBLICAN ERAS
No full textPrior to 1907, elite Chinese women typically received private education at home. However, by 1919, public universities were established for the first time in Chinese history for women to enroll. How to explain the rapid growth of Chinese women’s higher education during this period? This thesis aims to answer this important question by tracing the development of three types of higher education available for Chinese women then: public, private, and overseas. It first traces the establishment of higher learning institutions for female students since the late Qing in the context of national crises. It then focuses on sex-segregated institutions, specifically missionary and normal schools, that helped to alleviate conservative concerns about gender mingling and to uphold traditional female virtue. Finally, it shifts to examine Chinese women’s overseas higher education in Japan and the United States as important alternatives to domestic educational opportunities, analyzing the similarities and differences in their educational experiences. Throughout the thesis, particular attention will be given to the social backgrounds of students, their curriculums, their learned gender ideologies, and their political engagement. It demonstrates that while social progressives and conservatives had different objectives in promoting education for women, their intertwining influences led to the substantial and rapid development of higher education for Chinese women. Consequently, the progress of Chinese women’s higher education was shaped by the unique forces of nationalist politics and traditional gender ideologies during the late Qing and Republican eras
Soranus - in The Shadow of Hippocrates - Medicine’s Failure to Empower Women
No full textThis thesis will examine the foundations of Western Medicine as derived from the Hippocratic Corpus. It will outline those ethical frameworks which Hippocrates innovated. Further, it will examine how ancient physicians failed to apply these guidelines to their female patients, particularly when treating uniquely female conditions. Since modern medicine traces its development to the work of Hippocrates, these inequities in women’s healthcare still exist. Additionally, this thesis will present that despite the heavy reliance on Hippocratic teachings, medicine could have avoided carrying forward this ancient misogyny. It will do this by examining Soranus of Ephesus, a first century CE Roman physician, whose writings addressed many of the failings of Hippocrates. Although there has been little attempt to separate Soranus’ work from the Hippocratic background, one of his greatest works, Gynecology, clearly demonstrates an unusual respect for women and midwives. This thesis will use primary textual evidence to assert that Soranus’ writings represent a revolutionary advancement in medical practice at the time. If his revelatory teachings were carried through history as Hippocrates’ have been, women’s medical treatment would almost certainly be much more equitable today
THE UNIVERSE IN A SINGLE ROCK
No full textThe Tabby House Ruins are located at the Desoto National Memorial within Shaw’s Point Archeological District in Bradenton, Florida. This research study is a continuation of the Integrated Heritage Pilot Project conducted in 2021. DNA extraction and analysis were the goals of continued research to prevent the loss of microbial heritage. The loss of access to the Tabby House Ruins is predicted to occur due to rising sea levels by 2040. 29 total samples were collected across two non-consecutive days in 2021 of both surface soil, soil cores, and tabby. Each sample was categorized by either soil or tabby, exposed versus buried. This delineation between each category ensures a multidimensional assessment of relative closeness as samples can be correlated in turn with ANOVA testing between microbial taxa. Two QIAGEN DNeasy® PowerSoil® kits were used to extract DNA before being sent to be processed by Molecular Research LP (MR DNA). Decontamination of control samples\u27 taxonomic information was done prior to categorization. Although taxonomic data were provided by MR DNA from subsets of prokarya only the bacterial subset will be examined during this research study. The three primary research questions are: (i) Do we observe more photosynthetic taxa in tabby exposed to light; (ii) do we find higher biodiversity in soil or exposed tabby or buried tabby; (iii) since this is projected to be underwater, if there are there concerning taxa - can tabby become a reservoir for unwanted taxa. If so, then which abundant taxa may lead to algal blooms. The results of this study observed that there indeed are abundant taxa and a significant association between buried soil and exposed tabby. Of which, there are abundant Families and Genera of bacteria with the pathogenic potential to harm human life and marine ecosystems with the likelihood to cause harmful algal blooms (HAB) and lead to coral death
ETHEREAL HIT: A VIRTUAL RAGE ROOM
No full textIt has been shown through various studies that college students experience stress, both financially and academically. While there are some accessible ways for students to cope with stress, students often resort to other unhealthy practices. Therefore, providing college students with an accessible, sustainable, and eco-friendly stress-relief resource is a crucial part of this project. The purpose of this project is to contribute to the literature on how virtual reality (VR) affects college students\u27 stress levels. To achieve this aim, a new generation of rage rooms named Ethereal Hit was designed, including a Training/Introduction Scene, a Rage Room Scene, and a Zen Garden Scene. The Training/Introduction Scene was created to allow users to get familiar with the environment and teach them how to interact with assets in the simulation using controllers. The Rage Room Scene was designed to provide users with a realistic stress-relieving experience using three different weapons (axe, sword, and hammer). Lastly, the Zen Garden Scene was designed as a blend of a traditional Zen Garden and a magical forest, aiming to neutralize the user\u27s adrenaline and complete the simulation. This thesis explores designing a realistic simulation and implementation of the design choices. Ethereal Hit was designed as realistically as possible, with various areas included, and is ready to be used in future studies
STRANDS IN THE WEB OF LIFE: THE MAYAN MILPA AND WAYS OF RELATING TO NATURE
No full textThe indigenous Maya people of the Yucatán cultivate milpa, a complex agroecosystem. The milpa system involves maize, beans, and squash in a polyculture along with a wide array of other plants and animals in a shifting cultivation style in which patches of forest are periodically cleared, cultivated for a few years, and then allowed to grow back into the surrounding forest. The milpa is integrated into both the community of Mayan society and the forest ecosystem, guided by an epistemic value system based on a respect for the interdependent animacy of the land and the life in the ecology. In this thesis, I engage in a dialogic conversation with Pedro Uc Be, a Mayan poet, writer, and activist. I use an epistemologically-plural inclusive dialog framework to investigate the different epistemic orientations both Western science and Mayan indigenous philosophy bring to understanding the milpa. Western science has described the ecological, environmental benefits of plants and animals involved in the milpa, providing critically valuable data and detailed mechanisms behind these relationships. Although this is powerful, western science can bring an incomplete viewview to conceptualizing the milpa and the nature/culture dichotomy. The Mayan perspective emphasizes an interdependent, animate and holistic system-based orientation to the milpa and nature. I investigate how each orientation approaches the value of the milpa, human-nonhuman and nonhuman-nonhuman ecological interactions in the milpa, and the question of conceptualizing Nature and its relationship to human culture in this context. I explore the complementarity between these two different ways of understanding this agricultural system, the ecological relationships in such a system, and ultimately the relationship between the human community and the rest of the natural world. Cultivating a more interdependent and animate worldview and relationship to the natural world, complementing ways of knowing, can help heal the crises of climate change and colonialism
“GO GO GROCERY:” THE CREATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF A VIRTUAL REALITY SIMULATION GAME
No full textIn this thesis paper, I describe the process of independently developing a video game for the Meta Quest 2 virtual reality headset. I begin by giving a brief history of virtual reality video gaming, the Oculus brand and its acquisition by the company known at the time as Facebook, and the Unity video game engine. From there, I explain my original intentions for this project, and how they have evolved as I learned the limits of my abilities and time. I describe how to set up the basic template for a virtual reality game in Unity, how I designed the grocery store level itself for a casual “free play” mode, and how I tried to include minigames that would be enjoyable for players looking for a bit more of a challenge. Finally, I look back at my progress in retrospect, and consider what I should have done differently, how I would have changed my development schedule and methods, and how I could improve upon what I have already made. The code for this project can be found at https://github.com/NatalieMK9/ThesisVRGame
FROM LOL TO ??: THE RETENTION OF MEANING IN MEMES ACROSS ENGLISH-SPEAKING AND CHINESE-SPEAKING CULTURES
No full textThis thesis is about the differences and similarities between the memes found on Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, Reddit, and other similar social media platforms, and the memes found on Douban,Weibo,Weixin, and other similar social media platforms. The reason this subject matter was chosen is because of the conflicting, but valid, perspectives that exist on the ability of humans across different cultures to convey sentiments ordinarily expressed to an in-group, outside of the in-group. While the discussion will continue to take place, this thesis offers a newer perspective, being that all concepts in memes exist on a continuum from untranslatable to translatable, and challenges the very same continuum by adding the layer of context associated with the translation. The aim of this thesis is to bring forth the idea that nothing is truly untranslatable