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The Quatrain - Volume 6

The Quatrain

The Quatrain is managed by students at Louisiana Tech University and advised by faculty from the College of Liberal Arts. The journal is housed in George T. Madison Hall, where undergraduates collect, assess, and edit submissions from student writers and artists.

The Quatrain is a print and electronic project for people who value quality undergraduate writing and art. Full-dress researched, academic essays and scholarly explorations; photography; life-writing; sculpture; cultural criticism; work that has a reflective, autobiographical style; and creative writing in all its forms: We simply seek to display samples of the interesting, original, and quality work being produced by …

Urgent Expertise, Explored Together: A Scholarly Communication Peer-Mentoring Group, Alex Crowley, Lily Susman, Rosemary Farrell, Michael Kahn, Caroline Jedlicka, Eric Silberberg, Michelle Ehrenpreis, Marta Bladek, Jill Cirasella

Urban Library Journal

In Spring 2025, the authors participated in a structured peer-mentoring program designed to deepen their knowledge of scholarly communication topics and issues. In this article, based on our panel at the 2025 LACUNY Institute, we share our perspectives on the program and discuss how current events are making scholarly communication expertise more essential than ever.

The Quatrain - Volume 8

The Quatrain

The Quatrain is managed by students at Louisiana Tech University and advised by faculty from the College of Liberal Arts. The journal is housed in George T. Madison Hall, where undergraduates collect, assess, and edit submissions from student writers and artists.

The Quatrain is a print and electronic project for people who value quality undergraduate writing and art. Full-dress researched, academic essays and scholarly explorations; photography; life-writing; sculpture; cultural criticism; work that has a reflective, autobiographical style; and creative writing in all its forms: We simply seek to display samples of the interesting, original, and quality work being produced by …

A Review Of Alberto Toscano’S Late Fascism, Clint Burnham

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

No abstract provided.

Exploring The Relationship Between Man And Nature In A Postmodern Context：A Review Of Ecocriticism And Chinese Literature: Imaginary Landscapes And Real Living Spaces, Jiyong Geng, Jie Yang

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

No abstract provided.

A Review Of Zahi Zalloua's The Politics Of The Wretched: Race, Reason, And Ressentiment, Benjamin Davis

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

No abstract provided.

Exploring Chinese Elements In J.D. Salinger’S Works: A Response To Mccarthyism In The Early Cold War Era, Yixin Lu

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

Since the publication of “The Laughing Man” in 1949, various ideas about “China” have emerged in J. D. Salinger’s famously obscure works. This article aims to argue that Salinger’s incorporation of elements related to China and ancient Chinese philosophy in his works illustrates an artistic response to American anxieties during the McCarthy Era. The article uses “The Laughing Man” and “De Daumier-Smith’s Blue Period” as case studies to demonstrate how Salinger’s engagement with “China,” including the concept of indiscrimination from Zen Buddhist ideas, as well as notions of naturalness and non-action from Taoist ideas, develops not only a mystical writing …

Ginsberg’S China Experience And Its Influence On His Series Of Poems On China, Xiankai Ren

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

As a renowned poet and representative of the Beat Generation, Allen Ginsberg was invited to be a member of the US Writers’ Delegation to visit China in 1984. His China trip as well as his reading of traditional Chinese literature constitute his China experience, which is represented in Ginsberg’s poetry. This essay examines Ginsberg’s series of poems on China. It first shows that Ginsberg’s introduction to the Beat Generation poets and their poetics provided the inspiration for his poetry writing. Then it discusses Ginsberg’s observation of Chinese society during his visit and his reading of the Chinese poet Bai Juyi. …

Cyborg Feminism And Toxic Colonialism In Chen Qiufan’S Waste Tide, Yuan Yuan

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

The article probes into the interrelationships among cyborg technology, sexual violence, and toxic colonialism represented in the Chinese SF novel Waste Tide by Chen Qiufan. It applies methodologies in posthumanism and ecofeminism and situates the text in the Chinese as well as a global context. It intends to provide a non-Western perspective to understand cyborg feminism by associating the Chinese historical reality with trans-species thinking. It argues that the SF author Chen Qiufan is critical about the anthropogenic body modifications which may challenge the process of female resistance and resilience in the face of gender and colonial oppression. By doing …

In Memoriam Gwangju: Transnational Memoryscapes Of Gwangju And Buenos Aires In The Works Of Han Kang And Im Heung-Soon, Heewon Chung

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

Currently acclaimed as the first Asian female author who won the Nobel Prize in literature, Korean writer Han Kang has persistently struggled with memoryscapes and traumascapes. Han’s collection of poems Winter Beyond the Mirror delineates the poetic “I”’s experiences of visiting Argentina and describes how she senses the interconnectedness between Gwangju and Buenos Aires. Korean artist-filmmaker Im Heung-soon’s recent film Good Light, Good Air addresses the same issue, and actually Im and Han have shared a mutual concern about it since Han’s novel Human Acts. This essay defines Winter Beyond the Mirror and Good Light, Good Air, coupled …

“I Have Got Rid Of, For Good, Eastern Backwardness”: Ra’Fat’S Guilty Assimilation In Al Aswany’S Chicago: A Novel, Rimun Murad

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

Where scholars of Arab studies have asserted that conversations of integration or assimilation in Arab American and Arab immigrant literature have shifted to notions of hybridity and multiculturalism, Alaa Al Aswany’s Chicago: A Novel stresses that the question of assimilation remains relevant due to the power differentials that exist between “East” and “West.” Chicago’s Dr. Ra’fat Thabit who insists on replacing his Egyptian identity with an “American” one—and embracing highly problematic norms—offers an understanding of assimilation as an emotional process that occasions violence towards the other. This violence, in turn, brings about feelings of guilt and shame rechanneled as …

Daoist Philosophy And Stephen Mitchell’S The Frog Prince: A Fairy Tale For Consenting Adults, Yunfei Yu, Senlin Yu

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In 1999, Stephen Mitchell published The Frog Prince: A Fairy Tale for Consenting Adults, in which he added “a good deal of background materials” and “a certain number of necessary explanations” to the “six-and-a-half-minute” world-famous Grimms’ fairy tale The Frog Prince, making it a psychological and philosophical novella. This paper illustrates how Daoist philosophy is entailed in Stephen Mitchell’s Frog Prince by analyzing the protagonists’ practice of Daoist philosophy: the Princess’s pursuit of a Daoist natural, simple and carefree life; the Frog’s transformation from an ugly frog to a handsome prince by practicing meditation; and the King’s love …

Las Filipinas: The Persistence Of Spain In Jessica Hagedorn's Dogeaters, Blake Seana Locklin

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

This essay argues for the significance of the legacy of Spain in Jessica Hagedorn's Dogeaters. Critical analyses have explored many aspects of the novel's portrayal of relations between the Philippines and the United States, a more recent colonizer whose influence on politics and culture is prominent in Dogeaters. The effects of Spanish colonization are more subtle in the novel, but pervade its representation of characters, language, and society. While highlighting the fragmentation of individual and national identities, Dogeaters depicts a Philippines in which many social and political problems have roots in the Spanish colonial era. Building on the …

Using What We’Ve Got: Activating Institutional Archives In Uncertain Times, Dorian Onifer, Iris Finkel

Urban Library Journal

Activating institutional archives can provide rich opportunities for original research, the development of multiple literacies, and cultivating a sense of student belonging. This proceedings paper outlines a place-based, primary source research project presented at the 2025 LACUNY Institute. Implemented in a 100-level Library Research course, the project utilized historical yearbooks from our institutional archives to investigate the undergraduate experiences of notable alumni. The replicable design of the project allows for adaptation across disciplines and institutions, offering a flexible model for integrating archival pedagogy and primary source literacy into a broad range of disciplines.

Book Review: Facing The Victorious Turks: How The French Misread The Turkish War Of Independence, Michael S. Neiberg

Parameters Bookshelf – Online Book Reviews

Author: Andrew Orr

Reviewed by: Dr. Michael S. Neiberg, chair of war studies, US Army War College

After World War I, French officials viewed the Middle East through a lens of Orientalism and imperial anxiety, leading them to misinterpret the rise of Turkish nationalism. In this gripping study, Andrew Orr reveals how flawed intelligence and racial biases shaped France’s response to Mustafa Kemal’s revolutionary movement. Facing the Victorious Turks offers a compelling reexamination of colonial misjudgment and its impact on the birth of modern Türkiye.

Book Review: Valiant Women: The Extraordinary American Servicewomen Who Helped Win World War Ii, Christine Cook

Parameters Bookshelf – Online Book Reviews

Author: Lena Andrews

Reviewed by: Dr. Christine Cook, director of theories and war, Department of Distance Education, US Army War College

In Valiant Women, author Lena Andrews compiles stories that were largely gathered through interviews with women who served during World War II and uncovers their important but often overlooked contributions to the war effort. Although the reviewer regrets Andrews’s missed opportunity to include academic sources alongside the firsthand accounts, she still sees this compilation of untold stories as relevant and important.

©2025 Christine Cook

Book Review: The Clausewitz Myth: Or The Emperor’S New Clothes, Darren W. Buss

Parameters Bookshelf – Online Book Reviews

Author: Azar Gat

Reviewed by: Colonel Darren W. Buss, faculty instructor, Department of Military Strategy, Planning, and Operations, US Army War College

Azar Gat, the author of The Clausewitz Myth, takes a closer look at Carl von Clausewitz’s On War and argues through looking at historical documents and unpublished versions of the text that there have been misinterpretations of his thoughts. The reviewer believes Gat’s assertions are not earth-shattering but still notes “engaging with [Clausewitz’s] thoughts through the lens of Gat is a valuable experience for readers.”

Report On A Self-Directed Pilot Study (For Researchers), Yoshihiko Ariizumi

Spiritual Proficiency

Strategic Self-Regulation for Spiritual and Cognitive Enhancement

This pilot study investigates the impact of structured spiritual interventions on cognitive processing and emotional regulation. By integrating meta-cognitive tools—such as narrative accountability, systematic scripture application, and "mental toggles" via hymns—the research demonstrates a significant acceleration in learning efficiency and a reduction in emotional recovery time. The findings suggest that spiritual experiences are not merely random occurrences but "probability-controllable phenomena" that can be systematically cultivated through intentional environmental settings and habitual reflection.

Insight Into The Decalcification Mechanism Of Calcium Silicate Hydrate Under A Water–Heat–Salt Environment, Wei Zhang, Boya Zhang, Jia Sun, Juntao Dang, Xiangke Guo, Keliang Li, Bo Tao Huang, Biqin Dong, Hongyan Ma, Dongshuai Hou

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Understanding the decalcification mechanism of calcium silicate hydrate (C–S–H) under marine environments is crucial for concrete durability. In this study, the decalcification behavior of C–S–H under a water–heat–salt environment was systematically investigated through immersion experiments and reactive molecular dynamics simulations. Experimental results showed that elevated temperature and NaCl solution significantly accelerated Ca leaching and reduced the Ca/Si ratio of C–S–H. Simulation results further revealed that both high temperature and NaCl reduce the dissolution free energy of Ca, making its release more thermodynamically and kinetically favorable. Local structure analysis indicated that Cl^– disrupts Ca–Os (O atoms in silicate tetrahedra) connection …

Reformulation Of The Protein Databank For Real-Time Search Of Geometrical Attributes Of Protein Structures, Musa Azeem, Christopher Lee, Aaron Hein, Christopher Ott, Homayoun Valafar

Faculty Publications

Introduction:

In this study, we introduce the design and implementation of PDBMine, a large-scale, queryable platform for mining sequence-structure statistics from the Protein Data Bank (PDB). PDBMine enables rapid analysis of local conformational trends across proteins by extracting dihedral angles and sequence patterns at scale. In addition to the design and implementation of PDBMine, we also present results validating its ability to return structurally meaningful information.

Methods:

We first assess the accuracy of its dihedral angle distributions by comparing them to established Ramachandran space and verifying expected behaviors of residues such as glycine and proline. We then use PDBMine to …

High-Dose Oral Pyrophosphate Inhibits Connective Tissue Calcification In Abcc6 Null Mice But May Affect Bone Structure, Ibtesam Rajpar, Nicholas Yancy, Jacob Beiriger, Christina Shao, Syed Naqvi, Deana Mancuso, Fatemeh Niaziorimi, Ryan E Tomlinson, Koen Van De Wetering

Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Faculty Papers

Pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE) is a rare inherited disorder marked by abnormal calcium phosphate deposition in soft connective tissues, particularly the skin, arteries, and eyes. It is caused by inactivating mutations in the ABCC6 gene, which encodes a hepatic efflux transporter. Loss of ABCC6 function leads to reduced plasma levels of pyrophosphate (PPi), a key inhibitor of calcification, thereby promoting ectopic mineralization. Oral PPi therapy has emerged as a potential treatment, but its effectiveness is uncertain. Most ingested PPi is hydrolyzed in the gut to inorganic phosphate, which may worsen calcification. Moreover, its impact on mineralized tissues remains largely unexplored. Abcc6−/− …

Global Insight 2026, Masey Smith, Chance Carden, Hayley Pounds

Books

Global Insight 2026 is the annual publication of the International Institute at Mississippi State University, documenting the university’s global engagement across education, research, service, and institutional partnerships. This issue highlights Mississippi State University’s international impact through faculty‑led study abroad programs, international research and development initiatives, global fellowships, and comprehensive international student support services. Featured content includes narrative case studies of student and faculty experiences abroad, data‑driven insights into study abroad participation and international enrollment trends, and in‑depth examinations of international research collaborations spanning Africa, Latin America, Europe, and Asia. The magazine also showcases the work of the English Language Institute …

Lean Strategy Implementation In Sme Manufacturing In Developing Countries: A Systematic Literature Review, Corrine Keke Chen

Management Faculty Publications

Purpose

The review examines how small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in developing nations adopt and implement Lean manufacturing. Despite their central role in economic development, SMEs often face inefficiencies from limited resources, skill shortages and institutional barriers. Although Lean is widely promoted, evidence on the sustained application of Lean in SMEs across diverse contexts remains limited. Design/methodology/approach

A systematic review, following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines, synthesized 123 empirical studies (2015–2025) and developed the SME Lean Capability Pathway, a three-phase model of context-driven Lean maturity. The analysis identifies implementation trends, contextual adaptations and performance outcomes, focusing on core Lean tools, such …

Wedded To Power: Dynastic Marriages And The Hidden Diplomacy Of Women In Early Modern Europe, Amelia H. Earl

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

The diplomatic power of women in the ‘Great Power’ dynasties of Europe has been passed over in historiography because very often their power rested in their relationships to their male counterparts. Dismissing these women’s diplomatic and political power as “soft power” of the domestic sphere overlooks the fact that the political structure of Europe relied heavily on familial ties. In early modern Europe, the whole continent was a kinship; thus, familial relationships between two dynasties were inherently political. The daughters and mothers of these dynasties discovered that there was permeable access to the European political arena through marriage and motherhood. …

Implementing Person-Centered Planning In Stem To Enhance Self-Determination And Self-Advocacy For Transitioning High School Students With Disabilities, Lynda Shanahan

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation investigated person-centered planning as an evidence-based approach for high school students with disabilities. The primary objective of this research was first to determine the impact of person-centered planning on the development of self-advocacy and self-determination skills among high-functioning students with disabilities embedded in a special education STEM curriculum, and to explore students' perceptions of transition services. To address this objective, the study employed a Mixed-Methods Action Research Design, consisting of focus group interviews with 11th- and 12th-grade high school students with disabilities. This study drew on a transformative theoretical framework grounded in quality-of-life and communities-of-practice theories. Key findings …

Meet Brother Tim, Eric F. Spina

President's Blog: From the Heart

After spending his entire life on Long Island, Brother Timothy Driscoll, S.M., likes to joke that this is his first time "living on the mainland."

High School Dropout Rates Among Latin Students In The United States, Taryn T. Marriott

Student Works

An ongoing concern of educators and community members is the disproportionately high amounts of Latinx students dropping out of high school in the United States. Although there has been notable research done and action taken, the problem still remains. Lack of familial support, discrimination, and residence in low-income areas all contribute to the low retention rates of Latinx youth on track to graduate high school. As a result, youth who do not complete their education and set their sights on career goals have a harder time with employment, communicating in their society, and tend to show higher levels of engagement …

Adaptable Psychopathic Traits: Military And Para-Military Organizations, Mariana Ramirez

Student Theses

Although culturally distinct, both military and law enforcement careers demand individuals to operate effectively in high-risk environments; a characteristic shaped through processes of military and para-military occupational socialization, reinforced by an adaptable personality. Understanding the distinctions between military and law enforcement cultures provides a foundation for examining individual-level factors such as personality, behavior, and mental health. Recent research (e.g. Anestis et al., 2019; Batastini et al., 2023; Falkenbach et al., 2017; Falkenbach et al., 2018; McKinley & Verona, 2023; Patton et al., 2018; Preston et al., 2020; Roșca et al., 2021) has increasingly applied a psychopathic framework to study these …

Sustainability Assurance, Luca Enriques, Alessandro Romano, Andrew F. Tuch

Law and Contemporary Problems

No abstract provided.

Report On A Self-Directed Pilot Study (For Students), Yoshihiko Ariizumi

Spiritual Proficiency

Level Up Your Life: The Science of Spiritual Growth

Ever feel like you're stuck in "mental noise" or struggling to stay focused? This study explores how a simple 4-week routine can literally "accelerate" your brain and emotional resilience. By using checklists and specific mental "switches," I found that we can turn daily frustrations into moments of gratitude and even boost our ability to learn complex subjects. This isn't just about faith; it's about a practical "system" to help you stay calm, sharp, and connected to your higher purpose in a busy world.