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The Cost of Political Polarization: Authoritarianism in the United States
Get PDFDoes congressional polarization contribute to authoritarian tendencies within the United States? The growing political divide in the government and the general public raises concern regarding possible long-term changes to the institution, including the threat of democratic backsliding - the gradual movement of an institution away from democratic values toward authoritarian values. Although diverse political ideas promote healthy democratic function, complete polarization erodes democratic institutions while supporting authoritarian behavior. Authoritarianism thrives on the exclusion of out-groups and division among the populace. Under the current American institution, a polarized Congress is ineffective in producing policy. This project explores how the political system of the United States adjusts to these congressional deficiencies and the degree to which these adjustments are considered authoritarian.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2025/1058/thumbnail.jp
Social Integration and Memory Task: Investigating Moral Judgement Formation
Get PDFThis study investigated how emotional and explicit relational information interact in memory and guide our opinions of people. Participants viewed faces paired with two moral behaviors that were either congruent (e.g., positive-positive) or incongruent (e.g., negative-positive). Participants provided morality ratings of these faces after each behavior. After a delay, it was assessed whether participants remembered their opinions of the people they studied, as well as whether they remembered the actual behaviors those people performed. Initial results show that participants successfully update their ratings of each face, integrating both behaviors into their ratings, even when incongruent. After the delay, the same pattern of morality ratings generally held, though it was overall weaker, suggesting the strong opinions formed in the moment were not held with the same intensity. Interestingly, this pattern was only present when participants remembered explicit details about each face, suggesting morality judgments and explicit memory are perhaps intertwined.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2025/1059/thumbnail.jp
Locke(d) Away or Free for All? Alaskan Homesteading, the Permanent Fund Dividend, and Shifting Property Models
Get PDFAccounts of U.S. property formation along the colonial frontier generally follow a Lockean model, in which occupation and improvement of land confer title. This project explores an underappreciated exception to this rule: the shift in Alaskan resource use models from the late 19th to the early 21st century. During this period, homesteading gave way to new resource-sharing models exemplified by the oil-revenue-sharing program known as the Permanent Fund Dividend (PFD). While the Homesteading Act adhered to John Locke’s labor theory of property, the PFD follows Thomas Spence’s wealth-sharing model as outlined in The Rights of Man (1775). Building on scholarship regarding Lockean property formation and evaluations of the PFD, this project consults legislation, legal documents, and government reports to examine how this transformation redefined Alaskan land ownership and shaped broader debates about resource allocation, economic policy, and Indigenous land claims.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2025/1061/thumbnail.jp
Public and Self-Perceptions of Gender Queerness in Middle Eastern and North African Communities
Get PDFDespite increased acceptance and legal recognition of queer identities in Western societies within the past 25 years, there remain stark differences in representation of LGBTQ+ voices between white and nonwhite communities. Particularly within Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) communities, this underrepresentation is exacerbated by societal pressures to adhere to strict heteronormative, gender-stratified roles, with little room for deviation from the norm. This paper examines the experiences of genderqueer individuals with MENA heritage at Binghamton University, exploring how they fit into their cultural definitions of gender and how this differs from the broader gender expectations of a majority-white campus. Research attained through surveys and interviews indicates that individuals across the gender spectrum have difficulty deviating from pervasive gender roles, particularly in collectivist cultures wherein familial influence colors all aspects of one\u27s self-presentation. Understanding and resisting these constructions is essential to dismantling them and building ones with more freedom of expression.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2025/1064/thumbnail.jp
Correlation between Cocaine Use, Gambling Behaviors, and Body Image
Get PDFCocaine use, gambling behaviors, and concerns about negative body image are common among college students and may be interrelated. Previous research suggests a connection between cocaine use and gambling, but little is known about how these behaviors intersect with practices related to body image. This study explores the relationships between cocaine use, gambling behaviors, and body image issues. An anonymous online survey conducted through Google Forms received 878 responses, gathering self-reported data on cocaine use, gambling behaviors, and body image-related practices. The data were analyzed using Pearson’s Correlation Coefficient in SPSS version 28.0. The findings indicate that individuals who use cocaine also encounter financial difficulties due to gambling (p\u3c0.01). Fasting for weight control was positively associated with cocaine use (p\u3c0.01), while self-induced illness for weight control was linked to gambling behaviors (p\u3c0.01). These findings emphasize the interconnected nature of these behaviors, highlighting the need for targeted prevention strategies and efforts.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2025/1066/thumbnail.jp
Expanding the Bibliographic Palette: Diversifying the Binghamton University Libraries Fine Arts Collection
Get PDFThe classical music canon, often emphasizing Western Art Music, remains the primary focus of academic music curricula. As a result, academic library collections may omit materials presenting diverse global musical traditions and cultures. In light of the emphasis on inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility in 21st century academic libraries, it is crucial to decolonize fine arts collections to allow exposure to underrepresented composers and marginalized musical communities. This research project explores strategies for diversifying the Fine Arts Collection at Bartle Library, aiming to reflect a broader range of cultural, historical, and artistic perspectives. Providing access to materials relating to African drumming ensembles, Eastern European folk music, and Indonesian Gamelan would expand our understanding of music across cultures. With this change, fostering a more inclusive and equitable space for all students to engage with the rich, diverse fabric of ethnomusicology and global music heritage will be more likely to occur.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2025/1068/thumbnail.jp
Exploring Gut Biofilm Dynamics: Effects of TiO₂, Antibiotics, and Probiotics in the Small Intestine
Get PDFChemicals like nanoparticles and antibiotics are increasingly used in daily life, raising concerns about their effects on gut microbiota. Titanium dioxide (TiO₂), a common food additive, and antibiotics can disrupt microbial communities, affecting gastrointestinal function and contributing to gut-related diseases. Microbial disruption may be alleviated by probiotics, known for stabilizing and protecting the gut microbiome. This study focused on the small intestine, a key site for nutrient absorption, microbial diversity, and immune regulation. The hypothesis was that probiotics could mitigate the effects of TiO₂ on a synthetic small intestine microbiome. A biofilm of four bacteria was established, and probiotics, TiO₂ and doxycycline were introduced separately in the system. Probiotics did not affect the healthy gut microbiome, indicating its stability, which is beneficial as it shows probiotics do not disrupt normal gut conditions. TiO₂ and doxycycline had dose-dependent effects, particularly reducing S. salivarius. These findings highlight the probiotics do not have any effect on health microbiome, TiO₂ and doxycycline have selective impacts on gut microbial communities.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2025/1075/thumbnail.jp
Climate Equality in the Classroom: An Assessment of Climate Justice Education in Public Schools
Get PDFDespite the US public education system expanding to include lessons on climate change, it often ignores climate justice, meaning that many students fail to understand the intersection between social inequality and global warming. As a result, they are faced with an incomplete view of a major problem in their soon-to-be future, despite schools intending to prepare them for the greater world. Thus, this paper explores current roadblocks preventing climate justice from being taught, such as growing right-wing pressures and climate denial, and the pathways for expanding the subject within US schooling. My findings indicate that gaps in climate justice education–though expanding in some areas of the US–have seen progress in being filled, gradually making their way into more classrooms across the nation.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2025/1106/thumbnail.jp
Too Cool for Camouflage?: The Effects of Dive-Related Thermal Loss on Body Coloration in a Semi Aquatic Lizard
Get PDFRapid body color change is well documented in animals, but the variety of environmental factors that induce this change are not fully understood. Anolis aquaticus is a tropical lizard with rapid body color changes and that uses colder-than-average refugia, namely diving underwater for extended periods, to flee from predators. Using underwater refugia causes these lizards to lose several degrees of body heat. This research tested the relationship of low body temperatures on body coloration. First, an observational study was conducted in the field of the correlation between body temperature and body color. Then, body temperature was experimentally reduced in the laboratory to observe the effect on body color. Body color was quantified from standardized photographs, and visual modeling was used to determine lizard body coloration changes as seen by their primary predators (birds). Preliminary results show significant differences between cooled and controlled temperature lizards across certain color metrics.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2025/1105/thumbnail.jp
Overshadowed, but Not Devalued: Harpur College, A Hidden Gem of Political Activism
Get PDFThe 1960s and 70s were a time of socio-political turmoil with the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War, sparking demonstrations across the nation. Accounts of these movements generally highlight demonstrations in the South or at a handful of high-profile universities in the Northeast and West. This podcast analyzes the political engagement of students at Harpur College (now Binghamton University) during the 1960s and 1970s, introducing the political voices of students at smaller universities to national conversations. Objectives of this podcast include research on the difference in advocacy for both causes, as Harpur students supported the Civil Rights Movement both on and off campus, but anti-war protests drew many more participants. Utilizing local and university newspapers, oral histories, student records in Special Collections, and documents from the Broome County Historical Society, this project illuminates student voices and seeks to remind local residents and students of their history of political advocacy.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2025/1113/thumbnail.jp