Political Science Commons^™

Faulty Phrases: "Only Human", Jaret Kanarek

The Intellectual Standard

After a forceful lesson demonstrating his incompetence as a green lantern, Hal Jordan, the hero of 2011's blockbuster Green Lantern, claims, ''I'm done. He's right. I'm only human" (IMDB, 2011). This anti-man attitude pervades the movie, and seems warranted given the portrayal of a reality in which there are non -human species capable of accomplishing feats incomprehen­sible to mankind. Unfortunately, this anti-man attitude is not limited to the realm of fantasy and science fiction where the facts of reality, i.e. laws of logic and physics, have no bearing. For millennia, this attitude has been just as prevalent in the earthly …

United States House Elections Post-Citizens United: The Influence Of Unbridled Spending, Laura L. Gaffey

Honors Projects

After the Citizens United decision in 2010 allowed corporations and unions to spend freely in elections, much media attention was given to the influence of unlimited and undisclosed donations during the 2010 midterm elections. This research attempts to determine the impact of increased outside spending by super PACs and other groups post-Citizens United by comparing United States House races in 2006 and 2010. The analysis controls for other factors that influence election outcomes in order to determine the influence of outside spending, confirming that outside money did have a small measurable effect in both elections when spent to support challengers. …

Introduction To The Intellectual Standard, Jaret Kanarek

The Intellectual Standard

It is with great pleasure that I introduce The Intellectual Standard to Illinois Wesleyan University. The Intellectual Standard is an interdisci­plinary' student-run academic journal. With philosophy as its fundamen­tal base, it covers a myriad of topics, including the social sciences, the natu­ral sciences, current events, culture, and art. Its goal is to bring intellectual thought into the mainstream environment of Illinois Wesleyan University, and thereby set an intellectual standard for students, professors, and publi­cations alike.

On Man, Jaret Kanarek

The Intellectual Standard

There is an all-pervasive assault, especially in schools, on "gen­dered" language. Increasingly, it is not acceptable to say he or she, him or her, et cetera (Martyna, 1980). These terms are seen as exclusionary to any and every unspecified party. Instead, students are required to say one, person, s/he or some other non-specific,arbitrary, "gender-neutral" term. The epicenter of the assault, posited as the pinnacle of linguistic evil, is the term man. Man, the assailants say, only denotes males. Females are the excluded party, and thus the use of the term is sexist (Kleinman, 2007). The solution, then, …

On Reason, Michael Christison

The Intellectual Standard

It challenges us to face the truth. It tells us when we are wrong. It can sometimes bewilder us with its brutal simplicity. Some call it logic or rational thinking. Others refer to it as "pure reason:' Whatever you want to call it, we have no choice but to utilize this cognitive ability if we want to achieve our goals. Few, however, tend to figure out what it is that they are doing. If you cannot explain reason, it becomes that much harder to justify any given action. If an action is not taken according to reason, a justification will …

Philosophy And Nascar, Jake K. Bates

The Intellectual Standard

Philosophy is typically considered a thought-provoking science appropriately reserved for discussion between "intellectuals;' and NAS­CAR contrarily carries a stigma of uneducated masses of fans supporting a racer of their choice with a frequently drunken passion. Thus, the mar­riage of these two topics may seem entirely inappropriate. Despite their conflicting stereotypes, philosophy and NASCAR must not necessarily be separated. Philosophy-at least the right philosophy-exalts the use of the mind in furthering man's capabilities and simultaneously seeks to under­stand the limitations imposed by nature. It is the science presented and, ideally, answering questions such as "Where am I?;' "How can I discover …

The Learning Process: Inspiration For Computer Scientists, Nick A. Nichols

The Intellectual Standard

The human brain is capable of tasks with which the most com­plex computers have trouble. Comprehending language, a task that chil­dren can begin to develop by their second or third birthday, has only just reached a consistently usable level. Even with years of research, IBM's Wat­son, which competed against two all-time Jeopardy! contestants, was un­able to detect many of the nuances of human communication. Puns, con­text clues, and more are critical parts of communication, but given several of Watson's "confused" answers, they were clearly misinterpreted.1 From this, an important question becomes apparent, "What makes a human able to understand this …

Finding The Consistent Self, Jacob Comer

The Intellectual Standard

Individual identity is absurd in itself. It is excessively complex. Each one of us has our own, so identity is not uniform between people. In fact, we generally think that its purpose is to distinguish ourselves from others as well as from just being that guy or girl over there. Sometimes, our identity is tied to another person, object, circumstance, or idea. Some­times, it is just a feeling, a presence. And as time passes, the item to which we think our identity is bound changes. Perhaps, as adults, we will all find that thing that is "me': or so we …

Introduction To "Faulty Phrases", Jake K. Bates

The Intellectual Standard

Regardless of setting and no matter the circumstances, language is at the root of human interaction. A perplexing phenomenon picked up by toddlers at an almost inconceivably rapid rate, language has been used since the first days of recorded history-because recording history without it would be near impossible. Every voluntary exchange amongst men, and every emerging educational discipline has required effective and efficient communication. From thoughts expressed only in our heads to legal con­tracts manifesting a mutual agreement, language is necessary. Not only in literature, but also in the natural and social sciences, language plays an indispensable role in communicating …

Faulty Phrases: "Good Things Come To Those Who Wait", Jake K. Bates

The Intellectual Standard

"Good things come to those who wait" has become such a staple of English -speaking culture that it has been used in Guinness and Heinz ad campaigns. Just as Heinz encouraged ketchup consumers to endure the bottle's slow trickle, people use the words in a variety of contexts to encour­age patience. A friend or parent may console a student anxious to receive essay results by declaring "good things come to those who waif' In hon­estly analyzing each of the words and the possible meanings interpreted from their interaction, without endowing any white-washed meaning, it should be easily observed that "good …

Making Human Rights Really Real, Jake K. Bates

The Intellectual Standard

In lieu of Illinois Wesleyan's "Making Human Rights Real" endeav­ors this school year, questions arise concerning the meaning of human rights and how we can effectively apply such a concept in the world around us. The discussion of human rights has long been one of the most contested among political philosophers and ordinary citizens alike. And rightfully so, because its conclusions hold drastic implications for individuals every­where at all times. In order to avoid a muddled debate on the subject, it is critical to concretely define human rights. Thus, the concept of a "human;' the concept of a "right:' and …

Institutions And Elites: Democracy And Stability In Sub-Saharan Africa, Michael R. Burgess

Honors Projects

Sub-Saharan Africa is one of the most politically unstable and undemocratic regions in the world. Theories of power-sharing and recent studies have indicated that institutions that allow for higher levels of power-sharing are often more successful at consolidating democracy and stability in highly divided societies, like those common in Sub-Saharan Africa. By examining the electoral system, executive type, and level of decentralization, this study first determines the level of institutional power-sharing for each of the 48 sub-Saharan states. Next, it compares these levels of power-sharing with indicators of democracy and state stability to determine if more power-sharing does correspond with …

Redistricting And The Public Interest: Developing A Value-Explicit Dialogue, Amy B. Uden

Honors Projects

Throughout the coming year, legislators will take up the decennial responsibility of drawing new boundaries for legislative districts. Political scientists and practitioners often emphasize the profound impact of redistricting on political careers, process, and policy. However, the ultimate goals of redistricting remain controversial. Redistricting plays a large role in establishing the framework for American politics, and is thus directly linked to representation and the “public interest,” a contested theoretical concept. Using the lens of previous public interest theory, this study examines the historical redistricting dialogue through a content analysis of redistricting-related Supreme Court cases. By applying an analysis of Brian …

Supreme Court Responsiveness: An Analysis Of Individual Justice Voting Behavior And The Role Of Public Opinion, Michael Browning

Honors Projects

This study aims to explain why the Supreme Court responds to public mood by analyzing individual justice liberalism and comparing it to public liberalism between the years of 1953 and 2005. Three theories suggesting why the Court may respond to public opinion are discussed, including the replacement, political adjustment, and the attitude change hypotheses. The argument of using Court reversals to determine the ideology of the Court is presented and implemented. Public reaction to Court decisions is analyzed along with the Court’s institutional legitimacy as means to determine the Court’s strategic behavior. Ideology, public mood, the parties controlling the House, …

Redistricting And The Public Interest: Developing A Value-Explicit Dialogue, Amy Uden, Jim Simeone, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

No abstract provided.

Supreme Court Responsiveness: An Analysis Of Individual Justice Voting Behavior And The Role Of Public Opinion, Michael Browning, Greg Shaw, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

No abstract provided.

Westside Of Bloomington: Crime Climate Survey, Ryan Lambert, '10

Projects

The city of Bloomington conducted a large city-wide survey at the end of 2009. One of the major revelations from this survey was that the west-side of Bloomington had a higher perception rate of crime in comparison to other parts of the city. Members of the Bloomington Police Department (BPD) theorized that one of the possible causes for this heightened perception was due to victimization. Victimization occurs when people refuse or neglect to report crimes, thus fostering an atmosphere where crimes could occur unpunished. This caused Karen Schmidt, a city council member, to set out and create a survey focused …

The Rise And Fall Of Maududi's Jamaat-E-Islami In The Light Of Social Movement Theory, Mujtaba Isani, James Simeone, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

No abstract provided.

Greg Shaw, Charlie Schlenker

Interviews for WGLT

Charlie Schlenker of WGLT interviews Professor of Political Science Greg Shaw about his book, The Healthcare Debate. (requires RealPlayer)

Presidential Success In Congress: Factors That Determine The President's Ability To Influcence Congressional Voting, Christine Gibbs

Res Publica - Journal of Undergraduate Research

This study examines the factors that contribute to presidential success in Congress. Results show that, overall, presidential popularity, the president’s party’s control of Congress and the misery index positively and significantly affect presidential success in Congress, whereas party is not a significant factor. The study also demonstrates that the honeymoon period does not increase a president’s success rate. The results indicate that these variables interact differently within foreign policy compared to domestic policy and in the Senate compared to the House.

Can Resource Mobilization Predict The Level Of Success Among Social Movement Organizations?, Kathryn Brannan, '09

Honors Projects

This paper is a series of case studies of social movement organizations within the AIDS Awareness Movement of the 1980s. By examining ACT UP, the Names Project, and Gay Men's Health Crisis, we see that resource mobilization theory can help explain varying levels of success among SMOs that worked in the same context and within the same subculture. Internal organization, networking, innovation and the use of violence are all strategies which are found to be insignificant in explaining the success of each SMO. This paper shows the predictive ability of resource mobilization theory. It closes with suggestions for future work, …

Presidential Success In Congress: Factors That Determine The President's Ability To Influcence Congressional Voting, Christine Gibbs, '09

Honors Projects

This study examines the factors that contribute to presidential success in Congress. Results show that, overall, presidential popularity, the president's party's margin of control in Congress and the misery index positively and significantly affect presidential success in Congress, whereas party unity, presidential effort and saliency are, overall, not significant determinants of success. The study also demonstrates that the honeymoon period does not increase a president's success rate. The results indicate that these variables interact differently within foreign policy than domestic policy and in the Senate than the House.

Trust On The Internet: A Virtual Reality?, Adam Clark, '09

Honors Projects

Social capital has recently gained popularity, but it is not a new topic. The relationship between civic engagement and trust has been well tested, and it has been used in the past to help diagnose the well being of a society. Unfortunately with evolving technology, some of this research may be now obsolete. The Internet has changed the way that people communicate and learn. Since the Internet has reached such high proliferation rates, especially among the younger generations, it is likely to have an effect on the relationship between civic engagement and trust. Using NES survey data from 1996 to …

World Piece Discusses The Presidential Election, Heather Lindquist ’09

News and Events (Discontinued Series)

No abstract provided.

Transparent Politics Or Empty Legislation?, Connor Mcgee '08

Honors Projects

The Bipartisan Campaign Refonn Act (BCRA) was passed in 2003 as a way to clean up and make transparent the way in which congressional elections are funded. The legislation succeeded in banning soft money from the election process, however fell short of closing the gap between incumbents and challengers and clearing up the process. Using data from the Federal Election Commission this project analyzes the total receipts, contributions from parties and PACs, and, most importantly, the proportion of small donors for five traditionally Democratic districts, five traditionally Republican districts, and five districts that have been highly contested in recent elections. …

Greg Shaw, Charlie Schlenker

Interviews for WGLT

Charlie Schlenker of WGLT interviews Professor of Political Science Greg Shaw about his book, The Welfare Debate. (requires RealPlayer)

Of Minorities, Markets And Mongols: Re-Imagining The Relationship Between Ethnicity And Rationality In Russian Center/Periphery Conflict, Brett A. Strand '07

Honors Projects

What causes regions of the Russian Federation to opt for conflict with the central authority? Why do some regions legitimate their conflict with Moscow in overtly ethnic tones, while others do not? In attempting to answer these questions, this research responds to the need for a reconfigured understanding of federalism and ethnicity in modern society; more specifically, it answers several lingering questions from previous investigations of primordial and rational choice theories. This research concludes that the likelihood of future conflict with Moscow can, in fact, be broken down systematically and predicted. In support of its arguments, the study (1) suggests …

Social Security Reform: What Are The Options?, Greg Shaw, Susan Swanlund, Tari Renner

Roundtables

Recorded in 2005, this Roundtable set the social security issue in the context of public opinion, strategies of the political parties, and changes in the Medicare program. The goal of the discussion was to help citizens understand the political and economic challenges confronting the efforts to reform social security.

A transcript of this discussion is available at the download link above and to the right of this page.

Tax Reform: What Are The Options?, James Simeone, Ruth Ann Friedberg, Diego Mendez-Carbajo

Roundtables

This roundtable used the claim-objection-rejoinder format to address the strengths and weaknesses of tax policy reforms brought before the public in 2005. Using a liberal arts format, the discussion aimed to help citizens understand the principles, values and tradeoffs at stake in the tax policy debate.

Political Commentator And Author Arianna Huffington To Speak At Illinois Wesleyan, Anna Deters '05

News and Events (Discontinued Series)

No abstract provided.