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The Essentialism Of Music In Human Life And Its Roots In Nature, Katricia D. F. Stewart

Senior Theses

The connections between our emotions, music, and the natural world have only been examined in dualities, rather than as an interwoven triangle of elements that are innate and stem from our evolutionary history as a species. Our emotions are profoundly tied to musical sounds, while we also have a deeply rooted emotional connection with nature. The music of the natural world provided the foundation for crucial aspects of our human evolution, making our connections with both music and nature innate. Composers, musicians, poets, and storytellers have recognized this for centuries, exploiting these inherent connections in order to convey emotion and …

A Pedestal Of Power: Analyzing Consciousness In Nonhuman Animals, Conner Lee Varnell

Senior Theses

Humans have an understanding of a concept called consciousness. This idea of consciousness has been the main separating factor between animals and humans regarding humankind's purported superiority of intelligence: humans are conscious and other animals are not. Specifically, it is self-consciousness, awareness of oneself as oneself, that is. Yet extensive research throughout the last few decades shows that this may not be the case. Animals and humans alike show a variety of forms of consciousness and self-consciousness based on the structure of their bodies, brains, habitats and other contributing factors of survival. Hence, I will argue that humans are not …

Forget The Dreamer And Remember The Dream: A Study Of Sylvia Plath's Fiction, Summer Yasoni

Senior Theses

Sylvia Plath’s life and writing has generated endless amounts of controversy since her suicide in 1963. A common tendency among critics is to read her life and writing as parallels to each other, because of this prominent controversy. This reductive reading is problematic for many reasons. In addition to the gender anxieties she writes about at length in her journals, Plath also writes about her lack of experience hindering her writing, and ways to combat her lack of novel topics to write about. Plath wants to use events and aspects of her life to strengthen the stories she writes, instead …

Islamic Feminism: A Discourse Of Gender Justice And Equality, Breanna Ribeiro

Senior Theses

This paper examines Islamic feminism using structural methodology and the phenomenological approach to examine the component of Muslim feminists' activism that utilizes ijtihad and tafsir to reinterpret patriarchal rhetoric and highlight Islamic discourses that validate gender equality. These scholars and activists critically analyze Islamic theology by employing hermeneutics in order to produce Islamic exegeses that affirm social justice, gender equality, and liberation. Religion plays a critical role in building collective cultural identities; therefore, examining sacred texts' representation and prescription of gender roles and mores generates an understanding of the gender order in the community of believers, while simultaneously exposing contextual …

Mix Tape, Michael Davis

Senior Theses

This creative writing thesis contains short stories, a piece of memoir writing, and a screenplay by Michael Davis.

• Grey Giants
• Purple Jasmines
• The Cameraman
• Bubby Rose

The Development And Production Of The Comodo Keeper, Ashley Cook

Senior Theses

As a musician of large ensembles, I have seen the destruction the harsh sound of a metal mouthpiece cap falling onto the cold, hard floor can do to both the concentration of the members of the rehearsal as well as the mood of the conductor. Many saxophonists and clarinetists keep their mouthpiece caps on the edge of their flimsy music stands because during periods of rest, it is best to preserve the reed with the cap. However, with virtually every rehearsal I partake in, shuffling one’s music and grabbing pencils off the stand results in an accident. Witnessing this interruption …

Special Needs In The Community, William Lightle

Senior Theses

Currently, there are very few summer camps for children with special needs. I co-founded a special needs camp called Camp Chip and Love for children who have mild physical and mental disabilities. The camp was created to help give special needs children the opportunity to become involved in a summer camp and introduce them to golf, tennis, and arts and crafts. Starting a camp is very challenging. I was responsible for ordering supplies, t-shirts, trophies, obtaining medical releases for the participants, and registration of campers. I made this camp free of charge by going to different corporations and asking for …

Live Musical Steganography, Latia Hutchinson

Senior Theses

Live Musical Steganography is a project created as a way to combine the two typically unrelated fields of music and information security into a cohesive entity that will hopefully spark one’s imagination and inspire further development that could one day be beneficial in the world of security. For those who are unfamiliar with the term steganography, it can be defined as the art and science of preserving the integrity and confidentiality of a message by hiding the existence of that message within some larger body of data. In the field of steganography, much research and development has gone into methods …

The Chemistry Of Baking, Jillian Claire

Senior Theses

The processes of cooking and baking can be described by molecular-level chemical reactions. By identifying the key variables of flour-based baked goods, it is possible to manipulate recipes and create an improved overall final product. This thesis explores the effects of manipulating proteins, water, lipids, air, and the biochemical reactions of yeast in baked goods.

Genome Sequence And Phenotypic Characterization Of Caulobacter Segnis, Sagar Patel

Senior Theses

Caulobacter segnis is a unique species of Caulobacter in that it is slow growing, found in soil samples, and has other phenotypic differences from the freshwater Caulobacter that it is most closely related to. Initially deemed Mycoplana segnis, it was reclassified after a 16s rRNA analysis and found to be most closely related to the Caulobacter NA1000 branch. Because the annotated sequence available in GenBank contained a large number of pseudogenes (126), we compared the original sequencing data to the GenBank sequence and determined that many of the pseudogenes were due to sequence errors in the Genbank sequence. Consequently, …

Inactive To Active: A Positive Life Change, William Mclachlan

Senior Theses

Not only has research unanimously supported the claim that physical activity is good for you, it is an idea that many people see as wide-spread enough to be considered banal. However, at a time when the United States is facing rising rates of obesity (Haskell et al., 2007), it is important to appreciate the importance of that information. In order to gain a personal understanding of the importance of physical activity, I engaged in resistance training five days per week and an additional four hours and 40 minutes, on average, of other physical activities, including yoga, stretching, and tennis, for …

Design And Construction Of A Chemical Engineering (Cheme) Car Using Thermoelectrics, Timothy Barnhill, Sara Davino, Spencer Faltin, Lauryn Jamison, Christina Papadimitrio, Mccall Rogers

Senior Theses

Six chemical engineering undergraduates at the University of South Carolina formed a team to compete in the 2014 AIChE Chem-E-Car competition at the Southern Regional Student Conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in March. In the Chem-E-Car competition, students must design and build a vehicle powered by an unconventional form of chemical energy to carry a specified weight over a given distance (1). The group used knowledge gained through undergraduate study to construct a small-scale vehicle that is powered by a set of thermoelectric generators utilizing a heat gradient between boiling water and an ethanol-dry ice mixture (2). An iodine …

Preparation And Characterization Of Pc And San Composites And Pc/San Blends With Graphene Nanofiller, Marc Olivier-Blais

Senior Theses

For my thesis defense I plan to focus on both the scientific merit of my research and a reflection of what I personally gained from my experience in Germany. The central goal of this scientific study was to prepare a polymer blend with fine co-continuous blend morphology which contains well dispersed graphene nanofiller. Graphene is currently of great interest as a filler within the polymer nanocomposite community due to its excellent electrical conductivity, favorable mechanical properties, and high surface area. The polycarbonate (PC)/ Poly (styrene acrylonitrile) (SAN) blend system is of interest due to their ubiquitous use in both industrial …

High School Female Recruiting Guide To College Soccer, Elizabeth Sinclair

Senior Theses

Ask any athlete how she got to where she is today. Did she play on an Olympic Development Team (ODP), or did she get recruited from a showcase tournament? There are a variety of paths when trying to play collegiate soccer, and one path is not better than the other. Even the thirty girls on the same college team may experience a vastly different recruiting process, but, somehow, they all end up in the same place. This paper offers mere overall guidance to the recruiting process for female high school soccer players, with helpful tips to use along the way. …

Let's Talk Science, Krupesh Dave, Courtney Malo, Savannah Savage

Senior Theses

The focus of our senior thesis, “Let's Talk Science!", was to increase the exposure of elementary school-aged students to science. In particular, we focused on increasing the students’ opportunity to experience fun science experiments that still presented a strong take-home lesson. In doing this, our goal was to increase the students’ interest in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) careers.

We coordinated our outreach program with the Waverly After-School Program, a student organization that operates through the University of South Carolina Honors College in Columbia, South Carolina. Through the Waverly After-School Program, we were able to carry out our senior …

Does Being An Only Child Affect The Attitudes Of Chinese Students?, Yuwei Wei

Senior Theses

Three decades has passed since China started implementing regulations and policies for population control. Today, the ever-famous “One-Child Policy” is starting to not only lose its popularity, but also its effectiveness in spurring economic growth. This paper will discuss the heavy social cost the last generation had to pay for the growth of economy and the slowing down of population growth, as well as the challenges in social adaptation young adults face today. As part of the literature review, this paper examines the issue of the “Upside down pyramid” and analyzes the family planning policy’s impact on China’s demography. The …

Role Model Fathers Or Deadbeat Dads? A Study Of Peromyscus Paternal Behavior, Taylor Wapshott

Senior Theses

Paternal behavior is a largely understudied and poorly understood topic, especially in mammalian species. Many current mammalian models for paternal behavior use a comparative approach, taking advantage of natural differences in behavior between closely related species. This study compared paternal behavior in two rodent species, namely Peromyscus maniculatus (BW) and Peromyscus polionotus (PO). PO rodents have been shown to be monogamous, but there have been no studies of their paternal behavior at this time. 10 PO males and 12 BW males were filmed in their home cage for a 10 minute period following initial disturbance of their nest and removal …

Injuries In Youth Football: A Descriptive Two Year Study Of Local South Carolina Football Leagues, Marie Morrissette

Senior Theses

Objective: To collect and analyze injury data from two leagues in the Midlands area of South Carolina. One of the leagues is an age-weight league, meaning athletes have to be within a certain age range and weight range to play on a specific team. The other league was an age-only league, meaning athletes have to be within a certain range to play on a specific team. Results: For the two seasons that injury data was collected, the age-weight league had 208 injuries and the age-only league had 109. For both leagues, the majority of the injuries sustained were contusions. Each …

To Hell... And Back? An Examination Feminism And Its Consequences, Kaylee Mahaffey

Senior Theses

The goal of this thesis is to give an in depth analysis of the feminist movement and the effects it has had on society and the family unit. The first portion of the thesis will be allotted to a historical account of the feminist movement and the various feminist theories that it spawned throughout the three waves of the movement. After the account of the movement itself, a description of the four categories of feminist ideologies will be explained and mildly critiqued. Once the historical stage has been set, a thorough criticism feminism will be performed and particular emphasis will …

Determining A Correlation Between Individual Differences In Eye Movements And Working Memory, Mackenzie Sunday

Senior Theses

This study determined if a relationship exists between individual differences in eye movements and working memory measures. The eye movement system can provide insight into processes that occur in the mind as well as a better understanding of the relationship between quantifiable aspects of eye movements and the more abstract inner workings of the mind. Recently, consistent and reliable individual differences have been found in individuals’ eye movement behaviors. For example, individuals with longer fixation durations for one visual task have longer fixations across all other visual tasks. The eye movements of participants were collected during four different viewing tasks …

A Case Study In How French Teachers Understand Purpose In Educating Immigrant Students, Dana Doggett

Senior Theses

The purpose of the study was to comprehend how two French teachers understood their roles in teaching immigrant students. To achieve this goal, I observed classes at a middle school in Pau, France over the course of three months. I recorded extensive field notes and conducted two in-depth interviews with both of the teachers I observed. After returning to the United States, I coded my notes, identifying and analyzing patterns in the data. Among other conclusions, I discovered that these teachers emphasized students’ individual identities, including their diverse national and cultural backgrounds, while at the same time pushing the students …

Your Guide On Learning How To Play The Piano, Jankiben Patel

Senior Theses

I’ve had a strong desire to learn how to play a piano ever since my first music class in elementary school. I asked my parents if I could receive piano lessons. They saw how extremely excited I was and they agreed to seek out a piano instructor for me. Unfortunately, my parents soon realized that they simply could not afford the fees. I brought up the topic a few more times, but to no avail. In middle school, I joined the band to play the clarinet. Although my hopes of playing the piano were put on hold, I grasped this …

Functional Space Management In The Hospitality Industry And Its Future Outlook, Katherine Dail

Senior Theses

In recent years, profit made from ancillary revenues has become more vital to the success of service companies. This phenomenon is very pronounced in the airline industry, but is also beginning to become more relevant to hotels as it is applied to functional space and meetings. Most of these ancillary revenues, including meetings, are typically not considered an important source of revenue for hotels, but rather as tools to draw in primary activities. This thesis seeks to delve into the importance of the meetings industry to the economy and to the hospitality industry by considering underutilized functional space and customer …

"Transforming Care Through Disruptive Design": Incorporating A Midwifery Model Of Care Into Obstetric Practices, Lauren Marsh

Senior Theses

Maternal and child health outcomes in the United States are far poorer than in other industrialized nations. To improve women’s experiences with the maternity care system, nurse-midwife Sharon Schindler-Rising developed the CenteringPregnancy (CP) group model of prenatal care (PNC). Research comparing CP with ‘traditional’ one-on-one PNC has found that implementing CP results in decreased rates of preterm birth and low birth weight, increased rates of breastfeeding, and improved outcomes for women who typically experience health disparities, including African Americans. Documented success of the model in the Greenville Health System convinced the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services of …

Exercise And Diet Program For The College Student, Brooks Briel

Senior Theses

Oftentimes college students can be seen going to the gym with simply no direction in exercise or nutrition. They go through the motions of exercising, but have no real understanding of what they are doing. These students may see some progress, but plateau early and find it discouraging to continue to workout. The goal of this project was to create a personal diet and exercise program that could be used by the average college student to improve their physical fitness levels. The exercise program attempts to improve body composition, cardiovascular fitness, muscular strength and endurance, and flexibility. This is done …

Ranking World Class Chess Players Using Only Results From Head-To-Head Games, Sterling Swygert

Senior Theses

This honors thesis explores a method of ranking the world’s top ten chess grand- masters using only the outcomes of games containing only players in that very set. This method allows for players in a single era to be quickly ranked via algorithmic and numerical means, including very specific information, from a statistical stand- point. Furthermore, unlike the rating systems that are commonly used, the Elo and the Glicko systems, this method is Classicist in its statistical approach, rather than Bayesian. Finally, this ranking method also differs from others as it limits the infor- mation to games between the individuals …

The Role Of Lipocalin 2 In Early Stage Colon Cancer Metastasis To The Liver, Fides Elamparo

Senior Theses

Metastasis, frequently from the colon to the liver, is the major cause of death with colorectal cancer, reducing the five-year survival to less than 6%. Metastasis occurs due to productive collaborations between tumor cells and host-derived cells in the tumor microenvironment, where a pre-metastatic niche is created to prime for cancer cell invasion into the target organ. In a highly metastatic colorectal cancer cell line implanted into the cecum of Balb/c mice, microarray analysis showed lipocalin 2 (Lcn2) is one of the most highly expressed proteins in the liver of tumor-bearing mice prior to metastasis.

When RT-PCR was performed, greater …

Bodypump And The Rep Effect: An Instructor's Evaluation Of The Low-Weight, High-Repetition Group Exercise Program, Meredith Pritchett

Senior Theses

My senior thesis project was to become a certified Les Mills BODYPUMP instructor. In order to obtain my certification I had to go through training, which was paid for by the University of South Carolina. Training was a mentally and physically demanding weekend full of lifting weights and learning everything there is to know about BODYPUMP techniques, choreography, and coaching. Afterwards, I had sixty days to send in a video of myself teaching the class to a group of participants in order for my teaching skills to be evaluated by Les Mills. I passed my evaluation and am now a …

A Comparison Of Angiography Versus Intravascular Ultrasound In The Treatment Of Peripheral Arterial Disease, Michael Pompliano

Senior Theses

Peripheral Arterial Disease is a growing epidemic throughout the United States. It is estimated that 8 to 12 million Americans currently suffer from PAD, a disease of the circulatory system that limits blood flow to your hands and feet. This limited blood flow is due to the narrowing of the arteries that supply blood throughout your body and can disrupt the balance of the nerves and tissues that make up your extremities. If left untreated, it can cause irreparable, life- threatening damage that may result in amputation of the diseased limb. Although the mechanism of PAD is known and well …

From Drum Beats To Beach Music: The Development Of Music In South Carolina, Elizabeth Oliphant

Senior Theses

This thesis examines musical genres present in South Carolina from the time of the Native Americans through 20th century rhythm and blues. Each style of music has combined musical elements over time to create the state’s rich cultural heritage. For thousands of years before the arrival of European explorers, Native American music put a high emphasis on the voice, as the absence of a written language facilitated a strong oral tradition. Free- flowing vocals with rhythmic accompaniment were relied upon to pass down sacred legends of the tribe, stressing vocal musicality as the highest art form. With the arrival of …