Digital Commons Network^™

"Quartet:" Dissecting A Story, Elizabeth H. Williams '06

Honors Projects

From the beginning of my investigation of Quartet, the text has intimidated me; after all, the script is infused with a multitude of literary, historical, and philosophical references and quotes all of which Heiner Mueller, himself, prefers to dissociate himself from. "The theatre has nothing to do with ideas," Mueller once stated. Paradoxically his theatre is one that is full of ideas and whether Mueller chose, in his own lifetime, to recognize the ideas of his theatre or not, it is precisely his provocative ideas and images that has been the basis for this paper. In his dramatic text, Quartet, …

Unsupervised Learning To Improve Anomaly Detection, Daniel H. Garrette '06

Honors Projects

An intrusion detection system (IDS) is used to determine when a computer or computer network is under attack. Most contemporary IDSs operate by defining what an intrusion looks like and checking traffic for matching patterns in network traffic. This approach has unavoidable limitations including the inability to detect novel attacks and the maintenance of a rule bank that must grow with every new intrusion discovered. An anomaly detection scheme attempts to define what is normal so that abnormal traffic can be distinguished from it. This thesis explores the ways that an unsupervised technique called "clustering" can be used to distinguish …

Team Success And Personnel Allocation Under The National Football League Salary Cap, John Haugen '06

Honors Projects

A pre-Super Bowl article published in the Wall Street Journal labels the personnel spending and business model of the Seattle Seahawks, the National Football Conference representative to Super Bowl XL, as "extraordinary." Much to the surprise of the author, "they plucked their entire defense from the discount bins" and still made it to the Super Bowl (Walker 2006). Seattle spent far less on its defense in comparison not only to their Super Bowl opponents, the Pittsburgh Steelers, but compared to every single other NFL team. They valued "underpriced or underappreciated players who were as long on character and potential as …

Effects Of The Federal Income Tax Structure And Social Security On The Changing Us Family Composition, Adam M. Gray '06

Honors Projects

From dual-earner, married couples, to opposite and same-sex cohabitation, America's family structure, lifestyles, and attitudes have been changing in recent years. This paper provides a framework of understanding how families interact and make economic decisions. It examines whether external and internal benefits to family formation exist. The government should develop policies are both equitable and efficient depending on what benefits exist for society, if any. Currently, one of the biggest gains married partners make occurs within the Federal Income Tax and Social Security Systems. However, this structure was created at a time when families were very traditional-a working husband and …

The Evolution Of Hominid Bipedalism, Michael J. Friedman '06

Honors Projects

Paleoanthropologists mark the divergence between apes and hominids with the adaptation ofbipedalism five to six million years ago. In this paper, I argue that while the first upright hominids occurred in this time frame, the process ofbecoming a fully efficient biped took much longer and was not complete until Homo erectus at 1.8 million years ago. To provide context to the puzzle ofhow and why our ancestors evolved upright walking, I examine many of the prevailing theories ofbipedal origins, including the aquatic ape hypothesis, the heat hypothesis, and the carrying hypothesis.

"Loss Of Estrus" And Concealed Ovulation In Human Evolution: A Reevaluation., Joshua S. Wagener '06

Honors Projects

Accounts ofhuman evolution tend to highlight a number ofsignificant characteristics as critical in defining humanity including bipedalism (Jolly 1970, Lovejoy 1981, Wheeler 1984), enlarged brains (Falk 1990, Foley 1996), hairlessness (Morris 1963, Schwartz and Rosenblum 1980), and language (pinker and Bloom 1990, Dunbar 1996). Less frequently, scholars have focused on the unique aspects of human sexuality. In this paper, I seek to demonstrate that sexual swellings are not the norm among alloprimates and that the prevailing absence ofestrus among female humans is better viewed as a derived trait which is no more unique than that of any other primate. As …

The Gospel Of Thomas And The Historical Jesus, Jennifer Labrenz '06

Honors Projects

The New Testament Gospels offer two different pictures of Jesus: there is Jesus of Nazareth, and then there is Jesus Christ. The distinction between these two figures is most clear in terms of time period, either before or after Easter. Most people, particularly members of the Christian tradition, are more familiar with the post-Easter Jesus Christ, the divine savior who was crucified and resurrected. But pre-Easter, Jesus of Nazareth was a historical figure, a first-century Palestinian Jew. Christ is not Jesus' surname; it is a title given to him by those who believed him to be the christos, or Messiah.

The Role Of Fault In Defensive Killing, Adam Betz '06

Honors Projects

This paper deals with the conditions of liability to self-defense. When I use the term liability, I mean moral liability. This is different from desert. If I am liable to be killed in self-defense, it does not follow that I deserve to be killed (say, as a means of punishment). In short, desert entails liability but liability does not entail desert. My use of the term in this paper may be stated succinctly as follows: if killing a person will neither wrong him nor violate his rights, he is morally liable to be killed. A person poses an unjust threat …

Who's In Charge? An Examination Of Societal Impacts On Gender Roles In American And English Witchcraft, Austin J. Buscher '06

Honors Projects

Since its genesis in the 1970s, American Witchcraft has shown itself to be one of the most forward-looking and tolerant religions in the area of women's roles and gender theory. Women leaders, gay couples, and even polyamorous relationships are all tolerated and encouraged within American Wiccan theology. Although Witchcraft was formed in England in the 1950s, with its move to the U.S. in the 1960s, it was soon appropriated by the growing American feminist movement. With this collation, Witchcraft has become one of the largest and most long-lived new religious movements in America. However, there are many differences between American …

"Spirit Of Health" And "Goblin Damned": The Ghost Of King Hamlet As A Symbol For The Religious Ambialence In England During The Religious Reformation, Bridget O'Connor '06

Honors Projects

A mysterious apparition appears during the opening scene of Hamlet, paradoxically seeking revenge and eternal peace. The Ghost of King Hamlet, unlike the supernatural spirits in most of Shakespeare's plays, is one of the most significant characters in Hamlet because he is the catalyst that sets the play in motion. Without him, Hamlet would never have known the truth about his father's death and would never have embarked upon the mission to kill Claudius. Because the Ghost's role is so pivotal to the plot, it was essential that the Elizabethan audience believed that the Ghost was real in order for …

Economic Development And The Gender Wage Gap, Sherri Haas '06

Honors Projects

Economic inequality between men and women is an important problem deserving of in-depth study because of the large number of people it affects. Not only do current gender wage gaps affect women, they also likely affect their children and future generations. A number of studies have found evidence that women tend to spend income differently then men, with greater shares being put back into the household and more equally allocated between children of both sexes (Blau, Ferber, and Winkler, 2001). This in tum improves equality between genders if both girls and boys receive similar benefits and education.

This study will …

The Gender Wage Ratio: Does It Differ Between Races?, Britanny Kirkpatrick '06

Honors Projects

In 1964 the Civil Rights Act made it illegal for employers to discriminate against individuals on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, and national origin (Coleman, 2003). This act was passed to help bring equality to men and women of all races; however, a gender wage gap still exists. Up until the 1970s it was estimated that women made only 60% compared to their male counterparts in earnings. Since then the wage difference between men and women has continually decreased due to the large number of women entering the labor force, the outlawing of gender discrimination, and an increase …

High School Dropout Determinants: The Effect Of Socioeconomic Status And Learning Disabilities, Adrienne Ingrum '06

Honors Projects

Considering the growing importance of higher education due to increased global competition, one might wonder why some students still opt to drop out of high school. Previous literature has focused on a number of determinants of high school dropouts, such as socioeconomic status and learning disabilities. However, this literature has not systematically explored the interaction between these two variables. Therefore, my research extends past literature by focusing on this interaction. A logit model is used to predict the dichotomous variable, high school dropouts, and to run simulations with varying values of the independent variables. The results show that low socioeconomic …

And I Will Open And Close My Petals, Molly M. Mclay '06

Honors Projects

I have found that poetry provides not only a space for the articulation of voice, but also a space for vocal play. Unlike spaces containing singular, masterful voices, poetic space can be poly-vocal. Much more than the voice of a critical essay, the voices of poems can dream, argue, create, question, collide, sometimes all at the same time, in new and relevant ways. While some poems function with linearity and mastery-they make arguments and stick to them--others employ a more sensing, associative language. Some navigate the space between such states, or take on both at the same time, and still …

The Pricing Effects Of European Union Insurance, Andrew Heikes '06

Honors Projects

Shifting from a government-controlled system ofmotor insurance regulation to a marketbased system has caused unexpected outcomes in Italy. Although there is more competition since deregulation occurred twelve years ago, the government has had mixed results attempting to continue to control the market. This paper will examine how pricing deregulation on the European Union level has caused significant changes in the Italian market. Furthermore, it will seek to develop a national solution for regulation ofauto insurance pricing within the United States using Italian experience. Regulation in the insurance industry in the United States has been a subject ofdebate for quite some …

The Development And Structure Of Feeding Arms In Antarctic Species Of Pterobranchs (Pterobranchia, Hemichordata), Catherine Krahe '06

Honors Projects

Pterobranchs are of particular interest to evolutionary biologists because as members of the phylum Hemichordata, they share characteristics with vertebrate animals and other chordates. The focus of this study is an examination of the development, structure, and function of the feeding arms in several species of pterobranchs collected from depths greater than 500 m from waters surrounding Antarctica. Pterobranch zooids in the genus Cephalodiscus feed using a crown of arms held over the dorsal surface of the body to filter particles from the water. Larvae released from adult tubes are ciliated, but lack feeding arms and are thought to derive …

Limits Of Diagonalization And The Polynomial Hierarchy, Kyle Barkmeier '06

Honors Projects

Determining the computational complexity of problems is a large area of study. It seeks to separate these problems into ones with "efficient" solutions, and those with "inefficient" solutions. Of course, the strata is much more fine-grain than this. Of special interest are two classes of problems: P and NP. These have been of much interest to complexity theorists for quite some time, because both contain many instances of important real-world problems, and finding efficient solutions for those in NP would be beneficial for computing applications. Yet with all this attention, there are still important unanswered questions about the two classes. …

The Effects Of 9/11 On The Fire Fighter Labor Market, Kathleen E. Frawley '06

Honors Projects

The purpose of this study is to look at this apparent increase in demand for fire protection services in the theoretical framework of derived demand. The theory of derived demand tells us that the demand for labor in a certain field is determined by the demand for the goods or services produced by that labor (Freeman, 1972). More specifically, we should expect to see a shift to the right of the demand curve for fire fighters from the increased demand for fire protection services since September Eleventh. This should lead to greater employment levels and higher wages in the labor …

The Effect Of Oil Prices On Exchange Rates: A Case Study Of The Dominican Republic, Jennifer C. Dawson '06

Honors Projects

Oil imports represent a significant fraction of the trade balance for energy-dependant economies. In the case of small open economies with floating exchange rates, the variability in oil prices is expected to have a large impact on the relative value of the currency. Since oil contracts are denominated in US dollars, changes in the price of oil have significant implications for the demand and supply of foreign exchange. This relationship between the price of oil and the exchange rate has been established by the literature for oil-producing countries but not for oil-importing countries. This paper uses the case of the …

The Effect Of Financial Ratios And Market Hype On Short Term Stock Prices, Adam F. Turk '06

Honors Projects

This paper considers possible sources of short term changes in stock price. By predicting these changes, analysts can learn about the forces that drive the stock market enabling investors to earn greater returns. Studies conducted throughout the twentieth century have provided a conclusive basis for stock market analysis. The concept behind these studies is the use of intrinsic ratios to determine a change in stock price. Unfortunately, few studies have produced truly relevant results. This failure led to the introduction of a new variable into stock market analysis: hype. Hype consists of non-market factors that can affect the price of …

Serving Sophomore Students, Jessica S. Lothman '06

Honors Projects

College sophomores have been deemed "invisible students." This label is the result of a combination of issues students typically face during their sophomore year. Problems include: integration into social networks, declaration of a major, decisions regarding study abroad and/or internships, and disenchantment with the university, among others. A review of survey data reveals that sophomores at Illinois Wesleyan University are no different and face all of these problems. In addition to the above, sophomores at Illinois Wesleyan University have some expectations of the University that are not being met, such as course availability, adequacy of food service, and advising. These …

Intuition Versus Analysis- Which Process Is Most Appropriate For Solving Everyday Problems With Differing Levels Of Social Content And Complexity?, Amy E. Kowalski '06

Honors Projects

The investigators wanted to test the theories laid out by Hammond (1987) and McMackin and Slovic (2001) that problem attributes affect the appropriateness of intuition for solving problems. The study investigated the appropriateness of strategy (intuition, analysis, or no strategy) for everyday problems that varied in social nature and complexity. It was hypothesized that problems high in social nature and complexity would be solved more accurately using intuition. Results were partially supported but only among novice participants. Results indicate that highly intuitive novice individuals score more accurately than those who are highly analytical when solving everyday problems. One of the …

The Development Of Perfectionism Among Adolescents: Comparing The Influence Of Friends And Parents, Heather Kwoka '06

Honors Projects

This study investigated the development of perfectionism in adolescence by examining the associations between perfectionism, parenting styles, and friendship experiences. Furthermore, this study investigated the nature of perfectionism by examining whether internal psychological characteristics (i.e., loneliness, depressive symptoms, anxiety, self-esteem, and life satisfaction) were associated with the development of types of perfectionism (i.e., adaptive and maladaptive) or orientations of perfectionism (i.e., self-oriented or socially prescribed). Gender differences regarding each of these components were also explored. Questionnaires were completed by sixth, seventh, and eighth grade adolescents that measured perfectionism, internal psychological characteristics, perspective on parenting styles, and friendship quality. Three general …

The Relationship Between Gay-Related Stress And Ethnicity For Homosexual And Bisexual Males, Keyona Jarrett '06

Honors Projects

This was a two-part study that aimed to explore the relations between ethnicity and internal and external gay-related stress for homosexual and bisexual males. In the first study, ethnic participants exhibited more internal and external gay-related stress than Caucasian participants. Ethnicity was found to be closely related to internal gay-related stress, and less related to external gay-related stress. In the second study, which' was a secondary analysis of data from the Lighthouse Institute, ethnicity and/or sexual orientation did not seem to be closely related to substance abuse or mental/emotional health issues.

Social Interactions Of Siblings Of Children With Autism: A Pilot Experiment, Sarah Janota '06

Honors Projects

Despite the overwhelming amount of typical sibling relationship research available, there are few studies regarding sibling relationships involving autism. Of those, even fewer use experimental designs. The present study explored the hypothesis that siblings of children with autism-spectrum disorders develop increased compassion for others. Compassion was operationally measured through three dependent variables: participants' willingness to help, like, and interact with others. The study used an experimental design testing the social response of siblings of children with autism to potential peers who varied with respect to three independent variables: disability status (cystic fibrosis, cerebral palsy, mental retardation, autism, or typically-developing), priming …

The Perceived Attractiveness Of Adult Facial Prototypes, Ashley Whittington '06

Honors Projects

This study investigated attractiveness ratings of individual faces and facial prototypes while controlling for symmetry. Symmetry was controlled by comparing symmetric individual faces to prototypes composed of 2, 4, 8, and 16 symmetric faces, morphed together by blending facial features such as eyes, nose, eyebrows, mouth, and outer contour. Adult male and female participants (N = 139, M age = 19.12 years) viewed stimuli presented on a computer monitor and rated the attractiveness of each facial stimuli on a 10 point scale, with higher values representing increased attractiveness. Results indicated that attractiveness ratings increased as the number of faces in …

An Evaluation Of Envy Within Adolescent Friendships, Natalie A. Pawluk '06

Honors Projects

Envy may be an unexplored component of adolescent social relationships. The main goal of the study was to determine if envy is experienced to a higher degree between best friends than with non-friends. A second goal was to assess the correlations between envy and friendship characteristics. A total of 109 seventh-grade students responded to 3 questionnaires, the Friendship Grid, the Best Friend/Non-Friend Envy Survey and the Friendship Qualities Questionnaire. No significant differences were found between reported envy for friends and non-friends. Envy significantly correlated with conflict (p < .01) and exclusivity (p < .05). A major challenge for future research is to develop a more accurate measure of envy-a survey format may not be the most useful technique. The relationship between envy and conflict and exclusivity demonstrates the importance of further research of envy in order to better understand the potentially negative effects of envy on friendships.

Emotional Knowledge Development In Preschoolers Receiving Head Start Services, Meghan E. Mcgrady '06

Honors Projects

This study examined the ability of 3-to 5-year-olds (N = 76; 37 males, 39 females) receiving Head Start services to freely label six emotions (happiness, sadness, anger, fear, disgust, and surprise) using photographs of facial expressions in condition 1 or stories containing an emotion-eliciting event and behavioral consequence in condition 2. The presentation of a story elicited better performance than the presentation of a facial expression for anger, fear, and disgust. After hearing the story, performance significantly improved for participants who initially incorrectly labeled photographs of facial expressions of anger, fear, disgust, and surprise, F(1, 68) = 119.10,p<.001. The addition of stories to the curriculum of current Head Start emotion knowledge programs may increase program effectiveness.

Conflict In Adolescent Friendships Across Cultures: Indonesia, South Korea And The United States, Melissa Mccandless '06

Honors Projects

Traditionally, adolescence is conceptualized as a period of turmoil during which adolescents are moody, hostile and behave in maladaptive ways. In reality, this stage of development is not as terrible as the stereotypes suggest. Of particular interest during this time is an adolescent's experience of rapid physical, cognitive, and social changes which necessitate interpersonal adjustment to maintain positive relationships with others (Collins & Laursen, 1992). During this developmental period, there is a transformation in children's networks of interpersonal relationships in that there is a substantial increase in the relative importance of friends as confidants while dependence on parents falls as …

Detecting Suicide Risk In Adolescents In An Emergency Department: An Implementation Study, Rebecca L. Hahn

Honors Projects

A study was conducted to detect suicide risk in adolescents and adults seeking treatment in an Emergency Department (ED) in the Midwest, as well as to test the reliability, validity, and inter-rater reliability of the 4-item Risk of Suicide Questionnaire (RSQ) developed by Horowitz et al. (2001). The feasibility and need for the ED staff to conduct suicide screening of all patients who present to the ED was also assessed. This study expanded the implementation of the RSQ beyond its initial use with children and adolescents with psychiatric symptoms seeking treatment in a pediatric ED to include adolescent, adult, and …