Digital Commons Network^™

Freedom Now!: The Function Of Jazz In The Civil Rights Movement, Christa R. Gammage

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Multidisciplinary Studies of Bard College

Cedar Hill: A Case Study In Preservation And Education In A Digital World, Lin Barnett

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Visit Cedar Hill (now Annandale-on-Hudson) as it stood over a century ago, reconstructed in virtual reality. This interactive project retells an important aspect of Hudson Valley History, its mill communities, which do not get preserved in the archeological record and are not as closely maintained as its neighboring communities of Bard College and Montgomery Place. The project analyzes the structures' changing purposes, as well as their changing architectural qualities, to trace the story of the hamlet's decline.

Programming Proletarian Literature: Kobayashi Takiji’S "Kani Kôsen" And Gaming As Reading, Jacob Philip Fisher

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Abstract

This project translates a novel, Kobayashi Takiji’s, Kani Kôsen (The Crab Cannery Ship, 1929) into a video game. As a joint project between Computer Science and Japanese, its focus is to develop a game for the original Game Boy (1989) narratively based on a work of Japanese proletarian literature. Specific tools used in development were the Game Boy emulator: bgb, the Game Boy Developers Kit (gbdk), the Game Boy CPU manual, as well as a foundation in the C programming language, and some lower level systems experience. Being based on a novel, the play style utilizes text …

Thawra, Olivia Snow Smith

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Languages and Literature of Bard College.

New York Citadel: A Future History Of Hudson Yards, Pansy D. Schulman

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Multidisciplinary Studies of Bard College.

The Racialization Of The Pan-Ethnic Asian American Identity, Nina Tanujaya

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Social Studies of Bard College.

Does Aerobic Exercise Or Cardiovascular Exercise Facilitate Explicit Memory?, Nicole Paige Ellin

Senior Projects Spring 2019

This study examined whether cardiovascular or aerobic exercise aids in explicit memory. Five male and twenty-four females on the Bard College campus either engaged in cardiovascular or aerobic exercise (experimental condition) or watched a video (control condition). Before beginning these tasks, participants read a list of 15 words. After the task, participants recalled as many words as they could from the previous list. The participants’ test scores did not indicate that a specific condition aided in their received score, meaning memory did not differ across conditions, F(2,29)= .420, p>.05. Future directions would implement a longer period of time for …

Upper Bounds For The Number Of Lattice Edges Needed To Represent 4-Regular Graphs As Lattice Graphs, Shenze Li

Senior Projects Spring 2019

A lattice graph is a graph whose drawing, embedded in Euclidean space R2, has vertices that are the points with integer coecients, and has edges that are unit length and are parallel to the coordinate axes. A 4-regular graph is a graph where each vertex has four edges containing it; a loop containing a vertex counts as two edges. The goal for my senior project is to find upper bounds for the number of lattice edges needed to represent 4-regular graphs as lattice graphs.

Color X Line, Vittoria Ciaraldi

Senior Projects Spring 2019

COLOR x LINE

VITTORIA CIARALDI

The four main paintings that are 6x6 foot are my central concept of the Color by Line theme. In these paintings I chose to work from sketches I made two years ago. My past sketch paintings revolved around a self reflective human figure. As I was thinking about the bigger scale and what those paintings meant to me, I wanted to deconstruct the notion of the figure and really break it down to the basics that for me, revolve around: Color and Line.

My four central paintings are meant to emphasize colors and how lines …

Polygonal Analogues To The Topological Tverberg And Van Kampen-Flores Theorems, Leah Leiner

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Tverberg’s theorem states that any set of (q-1)(d+1)+1 points in d-dimensional Euclidean space can be partitioned into q subsets whose convex hulls intersect. This is topologically equivalent to saying any continuous map from a (q-1)(d+1)-dimensional simplex to d-dimensional Euclidean space has q disjoint faces whose images intersect, given that q is a prime power. These continuous functions have a Fourier decomposition, which admits a Tverberg partition when all of the Fourier coefficients, except the constant coefficient, are zero. We have been working with continuous functions where all of the Fourier coefficients except the constant and one other coefficient are zero. …

Affects Of Elimination: Foundations Of Collectivity, Oskar Coltrane Dye-Furstenberg

Senior Projects Spring 2019

This paper examines specific indigenous social movements in the United States. Two examples are considered: the occupation of the decommissioned Fort-Lawton, Seattle military base in 1970 and the contemporary movement for missing and murdered indigenous women (MMIW). Both are examples of resistance to assimilation and ‘elimination’ in the form of collective action by indigenous persons. The paper explores the relation between coming together as a group and responding to the experience of violence, injury, or suffering. This dynamic between collective formation and shared affective experience constructs the foundation upon which these movements imagine and work to enact a social and …

Casualty Of Design: An Exploration Of The Zeniths And Nadirs Of American Public Diplomacy, Tonery Rose Rogers

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Social Studies of Bard College. This thesis is an examination of various factors inhibiting effective American public diplomacy. A unique case study, American public diplomacy operationalized through educational and cultural exchanges, radio broadcasting and American cultural centers and libraries and implemented through American public diplomacy agencies such as the World War II era Office of War Information and the Cold War era United States Information Agency has been an effective tool for pursuing U.S. foreign policy objectives. Despite positive impacts, for example, helping to dismantle the Soviet Union, facilitating cross-cultural understanding and respect …

Primo Levi And Frantz Fanon: The Seizure Of Human Dignity, Reprisal, And Thereafter, Jake Cicero

Senior Projects Spring 2019

History has proven that memory, both collective and individual, can act as a trigger for revolution – the question at stake is the extent to which violence is appropriate, or furthermore beneficial, to the revolutionaries. There are limits to rational, ideological, and theological approaches to humanity amidst defining 20th century experiences for humanity. The path to modernity is a contested one. Primo Levi and Frantz Fanon give voice to the internalized debates of the oppressed and uncover historical truths to shed light on the reality of revolution in the 20th century. Fanon, the anti-colonial revolutionary and Levi, the survivor of …

Becoming Ourselves: Black Women’S Autobiographical Interrogation Of Tropes Of Identity, Christina L. Duncan

Senior Projects Spring 2019

A central premise of this project is that Black female identity has historically been seen as a fixed identity. Much of the imposed rigidity on Black female identity has been informed by conservative strategies for survival. Such conservative strategies include respectability politics, as racial leaders have found utility in upholding the principle that if they or others work hard, they can uphold the race. Only by maintaining these standards of respectability have Black women been deemed as worthy and able to uphold and reinforce positive images of Blackness. Many of the stories written by Black women generally fall into the …

Body Dissatisfaction: Searching For A Link Between Depressive Symptoms, Body Image, And Eating Patterns, Lucy Sorrell

Senior Projects Spring 2019

The ideal body sizes for men and women in the United States have decreased significantly over the last 50+ years, while average body sizes increased. This discrepancy has been accompanied by elevated levels of body dissatisfaction in both women and men. In turn, body dissatisfaction can predict unhealthy eating habits and weight loss behaviors such as dieting. Body image research has found a relationship between body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms. The present cross-sectional study aimed to test if depressive symptoms moderated the relationship between body dissatisfaction and eating patterns. The Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale (CES-D; Radloff, 1977) measured depressive …

Dispatches From The Nest: Falconry And Pest Management In Semiotic Worlds, Finn Domingo West

Senior Projects Spring 2019

How did a line of ink become a line of crows? Read the project to find out.

Checking White, Feeling Brown: Iranian-American Racial Ambiguity In Relation To Whiteness And Blackness, Lily Yasmin Mojdehi

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Social Studies of Bard College.

Optimizing Glide-Flight Paths, Rory Cveta O'Daly Maglich

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Flight is no rare event in today's society, and aviation is a global industry that significantly contributes to carbon emissions and global warming. Thus, my project theorizes how aviation might be better optimized at a fundamental level to improve aerodynamic efficiency and reduce carbon emissions. This is done by analyzing two systems of flight: gliding and powered flight. In pursuit of an understanding of a hybrid of these flight systems, I first look to qualitatively analyze the benefit of gliding over powered aviation. Powering an aircraft involves an engine that generates thrust, while gliding only involves three forces: lift, drag, …

Myth Busting: Rethinking Social Contract Theory And Reorienting Sovereignty From John Locke To Georges Bataille, Mandalay Maelee Win

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Social Studies of Bard College.

Black Market Baby Otters: An Investigation Into The Origins And Consequences Of The Otter Pet Trade, Summer Alexis Tuverson

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Social Studies of Bard College.

Time And Finance: Exploring Variance In The Black-Scholes Model, Edward Chase Skorupa

Senior Projects Spring 2019

In their 1973 paper, The Pricing of Options and Corporate Liabilities, Fischer Black and Myron Scholes published mathematical methods they had devised with the goal of accurately pricing European options. When using the model to predict future options prices, all input variables in the model can be empirically viewed, and calculated, at present time except for the future volatility of the underlying security. Retrospectively analyzing the volatility implied by the Black-Scholes model using price history shows that this implied volatility is an inaccurate estimate of actual future volatility. This project sought to explore the relationship between the implied future volatility …

An Ethical Examination Of Libertarian Paternalism: The Impact Of Retirement Savings Nudges On Autonomy And Welfare, Edward E. Dunn V

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Behavioral economists have recommended the use of nudges to promote welfare through public and private policies as a form of ‘libertarian paternalism’. It remains a controversial topic and opponents of nudging claim that it violates individual liberty and autonomy. Even so, nudging has found success in helping people save more for retirement. Automatic enrollment and the Save More Tomorrow™ plan use defaults to encourage higher participation and contribution rates in 401(k) retirement savings plans. I argue that these policies violate individual autonomy and fail to determine individuals’ preferences. Ethical interventions prioritize the intelligibility of preferences, enhance individual autonomy, and promote …

What Is So Bad About Veganism?, Rhys Vk Nordstrom

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Social Studies of Bard College.

"Rebel Girls: Radical Feminism And Self-Narrative In Early 20th-Century Japan And China", Corrina Gross

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Languages and Literature of Bard College.

Another Massacre In Mexico, Sidney B. Smith

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Social Studies of Bard College.

Democratization Of Finance In China: The Role Of Internet Finance In China’S Economic Transformation, Shuying Han

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Democratization of finance in China is both effective and risky. This is a comprehensive study of the benefits and risks associated with China’s Inclusive Finance Policy and the rapid development of Chinese internet financial industry. Through a retrospective of the emergence of finance, this study will introduce the concept of democratization of finance and evaluate its development in China. The author further examines the approach of Inclusive Finance and Internet-based financial industry and their contributions to the overall financial industry. In addition, this study will also explore the role of Internet-based financial industry to Chinese economy in the context of …

How To Be Okay, Isabel G. Van Den Heuvel

Senior Projects Spring 2019

I began this line of thought with the desire to understand human connection. I want to know how people operate both as individuals being perceived as well as how they connect to each other in small, casual ways. Acts like introducing yourself, or navigating in a crowded place seemed like skills that everyone had learned on the day I had skipped class. This began as a private venture, an intensifying of my day to day attempts of applied observation. My result, rather than gradual mastery of interpersonal relations, was deeper confusion and frustration. I wanted instruction, but the construction of …

The Wrightly Crumple, Eleanor Rose Rudnitsky-Brown

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Languages and Literature of Bard College.

Between Branching Paths, Amanda Christine Silva

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Languages and Literature of Bard College.

Mrs. Harbinger And Her Elf Present: Instant Wisdom At Swan Lake, Sarah Lynne Bastacky

Senior Projects Spring 2019

Instant Wisdom is a puppet show about one Mrs. Harbinger, and old green woman whose pet bird has escaped. Haunted by swans and in search of a new bird to call her own, Harbinger embarks on a gritty and befuddling journey to restore order to her life.