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Nazi Weapons: Bad People, Good Technology
No full textThis project explores the integration and historical significance of three iconic World War II-era German weapons: the V-2 rocket, the STG-44, and the MG-42. Each of these weapons helped revolutionized military technology in its own right, reshaping the battlefield dynamics and influencing future weapon design. The V-2 rocket, as one of the first long-range guided missiles, marked the dawn of modern missile technology, while the STG-44 is recognized as a precursor to the modern assault rifle, blending the characteristics of both submachine guns and rifles. The MG-42, with its high rate of fire and advanced design, set the standard for machine gun development. This examines the history of these three weapons and how they managed to change the world
GamerGate And The Woke Mind Virus
No full textThis text concerns the formation of beliefs that would shape the 2014 harassment campaign of GamerGate. Specifically, how GamerGate was perpetuated by stereotypes and ideas in Geekdom that spanned from the 60’s Disco Demolition to the Internet’s Wild West that ended in 2013. These include ideas like simulated ethnicity, geek melodrama, nerd determinism, and nerd fatalism. It also discusses the views and beliefs on anonymity, critique, and social capitals of the Wild West Internet and how the changing views of these led to resentment that started the movement. Drawing from historical research, I studied the history of moral panics like the Disco Demolition, Satanic Panic, and ElevatorGate and their influence on GamerGate. It will also examine online sources that gave their personal retrospectives of the events or culture around that time, which I verified by looking through news articles, forums, and reactionary videos of the time. I also looked through the BurgerandFries chat log and read feminist and journalism scholarly articles related to the subject.
The results of this paper and my historiography cover the many facets that influenced Gamergaters to harass those they viewed as being in line with progressivism. It also provides an explanation of terms like woke and the exact relationship between Gamergaters and the BurgerandFries chat log. All to pave scholarly avenues of research to understand GamerGate and other online harassment campaigns. Harassment campaigns that have been shown to have an effect on our physical world and politics
Research and the Information Landscape
No full textThis open textbook accompanies the University of Missouri-St. Louis class INTDSC 1010: Research and the Information Landscape. Intended for undergraduates new to academic research, the course covers practical search and evaluation skills as well as a basic introduction to the world of scholarly communication. In Fall 2025, the course’s learning objectives were: Evaluate whether a source is appropriate for college-level research. Navigate library search tools to find relevant results and improve research efficiency. Analyze the goals and limitations of non-library tools in the research landscape. Explain the basic history and current broad practices of scholarly communication. Contribute to a small-scale version of the “scholarly conversation.”
A web version of this text can be found athttps://umsystem.pressbooks.pub/information/
Fixation Duration as Effective Biomarker for Cognitive Function: A Developing Systematic Review
No full textEye-tracking technology has transformed psychological research by providing a non-invasive, real-time window into attention, perception, and cognitive processing (Ahlstrom & Friedman-Berg, 2006). Fixation duration—defined as the length of time the gaze remains stable between saccades—has been continually utilized as a key biomarker of cognitive function, providing measurable insights into variant populations and their stage of cognitive development (Negi & Mitra, 2020). This ongoing systematic review synthesizes research examining fixation duration in relation to constructs such as attentional control, working memory, processing efficiency, and effortful or inhibitory control. The current review aims to answer whether longer fixation durations equate to better or worse cognitive outcome. Studies were included if they (1) utilized empirical methodologies with eye-tracking data (2) included fixation duration as a reported biomarker, and (3) examined a single aspect of cognitive function. Data extraction was compiled categorically to allow for comparison. Across 48 studies, fixation duration varied systematically with developmental stages, cognitive profiles, and stimulus type (static vs. dynamic). Studied patterns suggest a parabolic curve across the lifespan, with developing children and healthy, older adults consistently showing longer fixations than young adults. Clinical populations frequently demonstrated altered fixation durations, reflecting atypical cognitive processing and reinforcing the potential utility of fixation duration as an index of cognitive processing. These general findings highlight that while fixation duration serves as a meaningful indicator of cognitive function, its interpretation is highly sensitive to methodological variations, requiring further review to advocate for definitive standardization
Stonewall:The Spark of Queer Culture
No full textThe rebellion classified as Stonewall didn’t birth the gay liberation movement but spread it farther than it had gone before. Stonewall challenged people’s understanding of the laws pertaining to gender expression. The history was portrayed as being a reflection of white centralism, while the reality is that the event was built off the backs of racial minorities. Through a further understanding of 1960s gay counterculture, people can better realize the reasons for Stonewall. Stonewall was the historical event that popularized the spread of gay liberation movements, it gave people hope for a more accepting future. The present still feels the impact of Stonewall and through the annual pride parades, Stonewall is determined to be remembered
Trailblazing Pathways: Personal Traits Fueling Success for Underrepresented Minority Entrepreneurs
No full textThis study examines how entrepreneurial personality traits influence business outcomes among underrepresented minority entrepreneurs in the United States. Specifically, it investigates the effects of entrepreneurial self-efficacy, locus of control, risk tolerance, and extraversion on entrepreneurial performance, as well as the moderating role of grit and the mediating role of business networking. Although underrepresented minority entrepreneurs contribute significantly to innovation and economic growth, they continue to face persistent barriers, including limited access to capital, mentorship, and supportive entrepreneurial ecosystems. Guided by Trait Theory of Entrepreneurship and Social Cognitive Theory, this study employed a quantitative, cross-sectional survey design with embedded open-ended questions using validated measures. Results indicate that entrepreneurial self-efficacy and extraversion are strong predictors of entrepreneurial performance, while grit strengthens the relationship between personal traits and outcomes. Business networking partially mediates the relationship between extraversion and entrepreneurial performance, underscoring the importance of persistence and relational capital. Open-ended responses provided additional context regarding how entrepreneurs demonstrate resilience and adaptability in navigating structural challenges. Overall, the findings advance understanding of the psychological and social mechanisms that support entrepreneurial performance and offer practical implications for promoting inclusive entrepreneurship
2025 Program
Full text linkUniversity of Missouri-St. Louis Undergraduate Research Symposium Program 202
Trauma-Informed Gatekeeping in Counselor Education and Supervision: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis
Full text linkGatekeeping is a challenging ethical and legal obligation for counselor educators and supervisors. Many counseling students demonstrate some sort of problem of professional competence in their counseling programs, and it is critical that counselor educators utilize gatekeeping practices to prevent gateslipping (Brown-Rice & Furr, 2016a; Gaubatz & Vera, 2002; Kimball et al, 2019). According to The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA, 2023), there is an increasing need to address trauma as a critical element of providing effective mental health services. Trauma-informed care and trauma-informed principles began to appear in the mental health literature in 2001, and the prevalence of trauma has increased since the COVID-19 pandemic (Knight, 2018; Rajkumar, 2020). There are currently developmental gatekeeping models (Gaubatz & Vera, 2002), remediation-focused models (Henderson & Dufrene, 2017), decision-making models for PPCs (Kress & Protivnak, 2009), and constructivist gatekeeper development models (Ziomek-Daigle & Christensen, 2010). However, none of these models emphasize the presence of trauma in students and in counselor education and supervision. This study focuses on interpretations of how counselor educators employ trauma-informed gatekeeping in counselor education and supervision with an interpretative phenomenological analysis (Creswell, 2013; Smith et al., 2022). The findings from this study aim to help develop a definition of trauma-informed gatekeeping and to expand its framework and application. Changes are needed in how counselor educators and supervisors assess, conceptualize, evaluate, and remediate counselors-in-training due to the prevalence of trauma in counselors in counseling programs. The findings of this study have significant implications for gatekeeping generally as well as defining what trauma-informed gatekeeping is in CES through the interconnected themes of humanism, alliance building, assuming trauma is present, dialectics, and the necessity of self-care. The findings of this study could be utilized in not only shaping courses to highlight the prevalence and exposure to triggering material for CITs, but also their safe exposure to utilizing their skills and knowledge during each of their courses
Performances in Prison: Identity Transformations Through Role-Taking
No full textIn The Presentation of Self, Goffman (1959) uses the metaphor of theatre to describe how individuals maintain a stable self-image by performing social roles. Despite a robust body of work regarding dramaturgical presentations of self, few scholars have teased apart how context might matter for the kinds of performances people are able to display and the identity work in which they engage. Namely, total institutions, such as prisons, might restrict individuals’ access to limited kinds of performances and identity work. With rehabilitative programs increasing within these punitive spaces (Garland, 2001; Bureau of Justice Statistics, 1995), tensions between rehabilitation and punishment change the relationship between social roles and identity work. In this dissertation, I ask the research question: What is the relationship between social roles and identity in a correctional context? This study utilizes over 170 hours of ethnographic observations of currently incarcerated men in a medium security prison to investigate how role-taking in a prison theatre program influences their identity change. In line with the dramaturgical perspective, I examine a setting in which currently incarcerated people are taking on different roles, both literally as characters in a play and figuratively as they embody social roles. This work pays explicit attention to the carceral context whereby tensions between different correctional goals of rehabilitation and punishment may shape role access and identity work. Findings suggest that the carceral context provides opportunity for punitive practices to invade rehabilitative programs, and thus shape the programmatic experience and participant’s access to social roles. Further, insights from the dissertation uncovers how the kinds of audiences that individuals perform for encourage the practice of role distance and result in participants’ “role purgatory.” Finally, the dissertation closes by considering how the art form that participants engage in facilitate opportunities for the expression of moral identities. This project has theoretical implications for understanding potential mechanism(s) of how individuals desist from crime by incorporating social roles and identity work into understandings of stigmatized identities. The policy implications of this study include potential changes for how the criminal justice system deploys in-prison programming to rehabilitate individuals and encourage the desistance process
The Write Time for an Autoethnography: How Writing Project Has Shaped My Understanding of Professional Learning in Community
Full text linkThis study critically examines the cultural and societal phenomenon that comprises the National Writing Project (NWP), specifically reflecting on my experiences of re-designing Gateway Writing Project professional learning experiences as a leader in the organization. I reflect on my encounters, collaborations, and decisions as an Institute instructor and analyze them within the theoretical framework of Communities of Practice using autoethnography as my research methodology. This autoethnographic narrative documents my analysis and understanding of NWP’s framework of social practices, chronicling my journey from participant to advocate and from organizer to leader. Employing the autoethnographic method enabled me to illuminate my own personal and professional growth that has come from continued engagement in social learning practices, leading me to a call of action for educators to find, create, and sustain their own professional learning communities