Digital Commons Network^™

Protecting Your Search Privacy: A Lesson Plan, Maria Bernhey

LACUNY Institute 2015

Each year search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo, complete trillions of search queries online. Students are especially dependent on these search tools because of their popularity, convenience and accessibility. However, what students are unaware of, by choice or naiveté is the amount of personal information that is collected during each search session, how that data is used and who is interested in their online behavior profile. Privacy policies are frequently updated in favor of the search companies but are lengthy and often are perused briefly or ignored entirely with little thought about how personal web habits are being exploited …

Clickers In The Classroom, Don Sutherland

Bronx EdTech Showcase 2015

No abstract provided.

Pedagogical Aspects Of Using Mobile Devices In The Biology Classroom, Vyacheslav Dushenkov, Zvi Ostrin

Bronx EdTech Showcase 2015

The ubiquity and power of personal digital devices make them attractive tools for STEM instructors who would like to stimulate active learning. These devices offer both abundant pedagogical opportunities and worrisome challenges. We will discuss our two years of experience in using mobile devices to teach biology in a community college setting, as well as our observations on the best ways to organize digital-based activities to facilitate student active learning.

Virtual Office Hours Using Blackboard Collaborate, Natasha Nurse

Bronx EdTech Showcase 2015

Virtual Office Hours are a possibility that any professor can take advantage of using Blackboard Collaborate. Why not cater to your online students by allowing them to have live chats with you as if you were face to face during regular office hours? Come learn about this innovative way to use Blackboard Collaborate with your students.

Teaching Evolution: A Students’ Perspective, Abdullah Allaoa, Tyniqua Hinton

Publications and Research

Many may wonder “where do we come from?” Over time, scientists have pondered and tested the concept of evolution. Simply put, evolution is gradual change over time. A major tenet of evolution is natural selection, which includes three principles which are variation in population, differential reproduction due to competition, and heredity. These principles are supported by multiple lines of evidence, including biochemical, geographical, fossil, and anatomical evidence. By providing tangible, real-world examples of evolution, we hope to provide a clear understanding of this long-studied scientific breakthrough, while at the same time showing how animals (including us) are related to each …

Valpo-Sat: The Software And 3d Models For The Satnogs Open-Sourced Satellite Ground Station, Michael Good, Joshua Wawak

Symposium on Research and Creative Expression (SORCE)

This project attempts to utilize the open-sourced SatNOGS project in order to create and operate a satellite communications ground station at Valparaiso University, IN. SatNOGS is an open source ground station, optimized for modularity, and is built from readily available and affordable tools and resources. The long term goal of SatNOGS is to establish a world-wide network of operator-less ground stations.

As part of implementing the SatNOGS project at Valparaiso, Joshua Wawak is re-designing the 3D models for the mechanical components in order to optimize them for the northwest Indiana climate. Michael Good is assembling, programming, and maintaining the single …

Accomplished And Noxious: The Legacy And Image Of President Richard M. Nixon From 1974 To 2014, Alexander K. Uryga

Symposium on Research and Creative Expression (SORCE)

Overall, what is President Richard M. Nixon's lasting legacy? The public, consisting of historians, journalists, scholars, and other writers, have retrospectively, written about President Richard M. Nixon and what his contribution, impact, or lasting legacy is to America since his resignation over 40 years ago. At one point in time or another, the perception of President Richard M. Nixon has been either good, favorable, and positive because of his fighting instincts, or bad, negative, and unfavorable because of the scandal known as Watergate. But what most of these accounts fail to address is whether or not there has been a …

Acts Of Defiance: Symbols Of Liberty, Alexander K. Uryga

Symposium on Research and Creative Expression (SORCE)

Major national symbols that represent both freedom and United States identity include the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Fourth of July. Yet acts of defiance against these obvious national symbols also provide the public with important symbols of American liberty. Failing to consider these more complex symbolic acts leaves out a large part of what makes liberty truly liberty and America truly America. Studying such defiant acts allows people to understand the powerful status of the destructive acts as symbols of freedom, and the special image that America has as a bastion of liberty. The acts of defiance …

Endurance Of Sybr Safe In Agarose Gel Electrophoresis, Michelle B. Sopetti, Lauren J. Hargrave

Symposium on Research and Creative Expression (SORCE)

SYBR Safe is used for the detection of DNA. SYBR Safe is a safe alternative to ethidium bromide and it is more cost effective. The endurance of SYBR Safe is of special interest to teaching labs, like Valparaiso University. 0.7% agarose gels were poured with SYBR Safe, electrophoresed, and examined under Ultraviolet light to detect fluorescent DNA bands. When poured under ambient light, all of the bands could be visually detected up to three days after a gel was poured. When poured in the dark, all DNA bands were detectable for up to five days after the gel was poured. …

Rhetoric Of Restoration And Reform: Franklin Delano Roosevelt's 1932 Campaign For The Presidency, Alexander K. Uryga

Symposium on Research and Creative Expression (SORCE)

Oftentimes, President Franklin Roosevelt's first One Hundred Days in office and his New Deal are treated as a rupture, according to the most recent histories. But did Franklin D. Roosevelt frame his 1932 campaign for the presidency as a revolution and rupture or a restoration and reforming of the American republic? Therefore, this paper undergoes a thorough rhetorical analysis of speeches made by Franklin Delano Roosevelt during the 1932 campaign as Roosevelt tries to send a message of why the American people should vote for him. This paper will show that Franklin Delano Roosevelt's 1932 campaign for the presidency employed …

Valpo-Sat: The Rotator Software And Hardware For The Satnogs Open-Sourced Satellite Ground Station, Kaitlin M. Werth, Elise R. Devol, Zach D. Scheve

Symposium on Research and Creative Expression (SORCE)

This project attempts to utilize the open-sourced SatNOGS project in order to create and operate a satellite communications ground station at Valparaiso University, IN. SatNOGS is an open source ground station, optimized for modularity, and is built from readily available and affordable tools and resources. The long term goal of SatNOGS is to establish a world-wide network of operator-less ground stations.

As part of implementing the SatNOGS project at Valparaiso, Zach Scheve is ordering a thermoplastic box as well as trying to find a suitable source that other teams could use. The thermoplastic box is used to house the stepper …

Somite-Notochord Spreading In Xenopus Laevis, Sophia L. Robinson

Symposium on Research and Creative Expression (SORCE)

The vertebrate embryo's first organ is the notochord, a stiffening rod later replaced by the backbone. Cells fated to become notochord first rearrange themselves extensively as their array changes from wider than long to much longer than wide. The cause of this presumptive notochord elongation was investigated in gastrulating frog embryos. Somite-notochord spreading (SNS) theory suggests that presumptive notochord cells and neighboring presumptive somatic cells will rearrange to increase their cell-to-cell contact with one another. If so, destroying the middle but leaving the notochord-somite boundaries intact should not inhibit gastrulation. This is in opposition with the theory of convergent extension …

Indie Labs, Jessica Sunblade

Symposium on Research and Creative Expression (SORCE)

My submission is a website entitled Indielabs.com. The purpose of the website is to display projects being developed by engineers on a single website. This site serves to be a platform in which engineers from Valparaiso University can collaborate on their designs/projects. Also, it can display student projects and serve as an example to what prospective student engineers can expect. Much like Facebook, groups and projects will have their own profile pages to display their projects. Within these profile pages, students will display videos, summaries, and photos of their work as well as kick-start links to make contributions to the …

Digigogy: Toward A Pedagogy Of Connections, Chris Kirk, Patricia Hogan, Breanne R. Carlson

Conference Presentations

No abstract provided.

Development And Validation Of A Physical Activity Games Playability Scale (Pagps), T. Eng Wah, Z. Weimo

Research Publications (2011 to 2015)

Children’s interest and participation rates in daily physical education (PE) declines with age (CDC, 2008). In contrast, engagement time on sedentary activities e.g., watching television and computer gaming is on the rise (CDC, 2009; Hancox & Poulton, 2006). In line with goal to reduce childhood obesity and promotion of active lifestyle; the reintroduction of fun physical activity (PA) games could hold the key to achieving this goal. Caillois (1961) suggested that PA games could lead to better health, fun, enjoyment, relaxation and a chance to develop skills. Even though children’s PA games (e.g., playground games, street games, party games, or …

Vitamin D Status & Bone Health Lifestyle Evaluation In Malaysian Children With Epilepsy, F. Choong Yi, A.N. Kong, B.K. Poh, A.R. Mohamed, T.B. Khoo, T. Nadarajaw, L.C. Ong

Research Publications (2011 to 2015)

No abstract provided.

The Major Dilemma, Erin Bohan

Senior Honors Projects

The variety of academic majors offered by universities seems to become more eclectic each year. From public relations to environmental economics to 3D graphics, the coursework and journeys taken by students across the country are exceptionally diverse. The University of Rhode Island offers over 100 majors, making it undeniable that some disciplines are disparate. My project calls attention to similarities in an area where the focus is customarily on the contrary. Before students were categorized, they all faced the same question – “What should my major be?”

At an age where we search for ways to identify ourselves, we often …

We Built A Research Toolkit. You Can, Too!, Stephanie M. Margolin, Wendy Hayden

Publications and Research

Poster describing, briefly, how we developed our Research Toolkit.

Hodge-Podge Hybridity: Luo And Western Identities In The Kenyan Development Context, Hannah Tuttle

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

Kinship ties in Africa form the basis of social organization. Far different from the Western conception of individual agency, individuals in Africa often define themselves in terms of their community or lineage. The tension between these two forms of identity-formation is visible in the field of international development. The aim of this research project is to understand the ways in which the social organization of the Luo people of Kisumu, Kenya has interacted with the various projects implemented by both governmental and non-governmental actors. Do those programs emphasize the agency of the individual in ways that complement the larger social …

Human Elephant Conflict, Madeleine Johnson, Sara Miller

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

Human elephant conflict is a serious issue around the world. There are various cases, all of which problematic, with many different solutions. By comparing human elephant conflict in various countries throughout the world, we seek to find possible solutions for Sri Lankan communities.

Examining Environmental Injustice In Florida, Samuel Wasserman, Jeffrey Vaz

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

This project analyzes potential areas of environmental injustice on a census tract level throughout Florida. Data on race and median household income were compiled into ArcGIS 10.2.2 along with Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) locations to determine if communities with low income or large minority population are disproportionately exposed to sources of heavy pollution. Statistical tests found that high minority and low income census tracts were more likely to be within two miles of a TRI site and that census tracts containing two or more TRI sites had significantly lower median household incomes than census tracts with only one or fewer …

Predicting At-Risk Areas For Deforestation In Malawi, Robin Lewis, Andrew Currier

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

One of the poorest nations in Africa, the small country of Malawi has recently experienced severe deforestation. From 1990-2010, Malawi lost 17% of its forest cover (FAO 2013). Malawi also has the 6th highest population growth rate in the world (3.3% per year) (CIA 2014). Given this information, our study aimed to predict areas of future deforestation in Malawi. We constructed a spatial model to predict deforestation using the following parameters: distance from roads, distance from major markets, and population density. Our model predicted tree cover loss from 2000-2010 with some degree of accuracy. We then applied this model to …

The Utilization Of Spatial Analysis To Predict Areas Of High Shark Attack Risk, Emily Walker, Laurel Whitney

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

In the past twelve months, Australia has faced five fatal shark attacks. Some researchers have attributed this spike in shark attacks to increased populations. Since 1990, the Australian population has increased from 17 million to 23 million. As sharks are relatively common in Australia, the governments of some states have implemented culling as a shark attack mitigation strategy. However, under the Fisheries Management Act 1994 and the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995, this program is listed as a Key Threatening Processes as it has harmed two or more threatened species listed under those acts, which has rendered it quite controversial …

What Is A Feasible Solution To The Problem Of Cyberbullying From Yik Yak And Other Social Media At Colby?, Annabel Darling

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

This project is part of a larger research project focused on an issue or problem that affects the Colby community. I will present an overview of the problem and present a feasible solution.

A Proposal For Composing Change At Colby, Brian Levenson

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

This project is part of a larger research project focused on an issue or problem that affects the Colby Community. I will present an overview of the problem and present a feasible solution

Suicidal Thought And Depression At Colby College, James Gonzalez

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

This project is part of a larger research project focused on the causes and stimulants for depression and suicide ideation among Colby students, like academic pressure/stress, lack in a strong social life, and reduction in familial interactions.

A Proposal For Composing Change At Colby, Kaci Kus

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

This project is part of a larger research project focussed on an issue or problem that affects the Colby community. I will present an overview of the problem and present a feasible solution.

Examining The Problems Or Sexual Assaults At Colby College And Proposing A Change, Steven Zieselman

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

This project is part of a larger project focused on the issues of sexual assaults in the Colby community. I will present an overview of the problem and present a feasible solution.

A Proposal For Composing Change At Colby: Preventing Sexual Assault, Laura Wu

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

This project is part of a larger research project focused on an issue or problem that affects the Colby community. I will present an overview of the problem and present a feasible solution.

I Don't Mess With The Pugh: Finding Ways To Integrate The Colby Community, Marnay Avant

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

This project is part of a larger research project focused on an issue or problem that affects the Colby community. I will present an overview of the problem and and present a feasible solution.