STRATA
STRATA, the STudent Research, Academic, and Talent Archive, is a collection of selected Fort Lewis College student work, including undergraduate research, senior seminar papers, published works, conference presentations, and other creative and artistic projects. Search by name, subject, title, or academic department.
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- Food for All Souls: The Functional Importance of Food in Diá De Los Muertos Celebrations in Mexico
- Diá de los Muertos is a celebration rich in tradition, especially those surrounding food, the most important resource to society. By examining Diá de los Muertos celebrations and the foods utilized form an important part of the celebrations, it is possible to learn how the ceremony benefits individuals as well as the relationships individuals have to the supernatural world. More importantly, however, it is possible to gain an understanding of how social power works in Mexico by looking at how food is distributed and utilized to maintain the functioning of society at Diá de los Muertos celebrations.
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- For the Love of Her Son
- Poem by James Addoms, published in the Fall 2010/Winter 2011 edition of Images.
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- For the Love of Ranching: Surviving a Fading American Tradition in Ouray County, Colorado
- It is well-known that agriculture is deeply rooted in American tradition, historically placing the farmer and rancher in a special place that forms American national identity and shapes our national character. To this day, cattle ranchers arguably remain practitioners of the most romantic and most American of all occupations. However, over the last 80 years, small independent cattle producers have rapidly dwindled in number. The purpose of this research is to portray and explain the interrelated transformations that are currently occurring on family cattle ranches in Ouray County, Colorado. Based on ethnographic research on five family-operated cattle ranches, this paper explores how Federal farm policies, industrialization, and global and local economic forces intersect with the realities of these cattle ranchers. Furthermore, it reveals that these cattle ranchers remain in the industry because of the lifestyle it creates, and that they implement various managerial strategies similar to those used during the 1980s farm crisis to achieve their long term goals, while struggling to survive in a continuous state of hardship.
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- Forensic Entomology: The Effects of Burning on Insect Successional Patterns on a Porcine Corpse
- An experiment to determine the effects of burning on insect succession on a corpse was conducted using the carcasses of domestic pigs, Sus scrofa, with one being burned, the treatment pig, and one being unburned, the control pig. A CGS Level II burn was achieved on the burnt carcass (Glassman and Crow 1996). The study was conducted in an agricultural field near the San Juan River in Bloomfield, New Mexico, from August 10, 2010 to September 27, 2010. There was no difference in the stages of decomposition between the control and treatment carcasses. The succession of fly species was nearly identical between both carcasses except for a two day delay in the colonization of the treatment carcass by Muscidae species. The most notable difference in succession was a 10day delay in colonization of the control carcass by Coleoptera species. However, this is more likely due to an event that occurred between the site visit on August 14, 2010, and the visit on August 15, 2010, that appears to have caused all the maggots on this carcass to die. Further study is needed to conclusively determine the effects of burning on insect succession on carrion.
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- Formation and Characterization of Porous Silicon
- In this paper, the anodization of porous silicon is explained. Porous silicon is formed through electrochemical etching. Several variable parameters are explored, garnering different results. In addition to these, a relay timer and a four point probe were fabricated to aid in the anodization process and the characterization process, respectively. Electrical characterization was done with this four point probe, which was constructed at Fort Lewis College with a cost effective setup. Anodized wafers exhibited higher resistivities than unanodized wafers. Furthermore, longer anodized wafers had more uniform anodizations. It was found that longer four point probe measurements read increased resistivities, a result that should not have been the case. This was likely caused by fluid within the pores, and as such allowed a potential application for these wafers to be used as a humidity sensor. With an applied electrical current, the fluid can evaporate, and increase the resistivity. This can be analyzed in such a way that the precipitation in the air can be monitored. These wafers can be recreated for use in electrical devices, physical filters, sensors, or other applications.
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- Fractual
- Poem by Mareesa Villair from Fall 2012 - Winter 2013 issue of Images.
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- From the World to the Next: New Perspectives on Native American Oral Histories and Archaeological Data as Evidence for Nautical Migration to the Americas
- By examining linguistic, biological and archaeological evidence in combination with the oral traditions of Native Americans, this paper seeks to prove that the colonization of the Americas occurred not only through multiple terrestrial migrations, but via watercraft. Through archival research various sources of information regarding the linguistic similarities and differences between modern Native American groups, biological data supporting a genetic link between Native American populations and populations in Asia, as well as archaeological data from three different continents stands as evidence for the watercraft migration hypotheses. Numerous Native American oral traditions suggest that at one point in their history watercraft were used as a means by which they could have traveled from one continent to the other.
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- Functionalism and Rock Art in Africa, Australia, and the American Southwest
- Valued for its context, rock art is an important tool for gaining knowledge about the past. It provides a glance into the values and beliefs of previous cultures in the form of imagery. As a reliable form of communication, rock art functions as a method of transferring social values through religious and mythical imagery, representational style, and the location in which rock art appears. Current rock art research focuses on the stylistic trends and meaning of the images themselves. However, applying a functional analysis rock art can provide a deeper understanding of how values and beliefs were passed on through the generations. From a functionalist perspective, rock art may be considered a social institution which mediates and maintains social structure. In times of conflict, rock art images are publically available to guide the community. In the three areas of the world, individual functional analysis was slightly different. In Africa, the representational images appear regionally and are easily recognizable by the general public. These images often depict religious and mythical imagery which can explain everyday misfortune. In Australia, animal images found in the rock art were found to be associated with clans and totemic religions, used as a method to show clan ownership. In the Southwest, various stylistic characteristics were found to communicate messages differently. Worldwide there are certain similarities among the way rock art images function, yet the individual messages presented differ. Although rock art analysis remains controversial, the fundamental ability to communicate ideas and values makes rock art crucial to our understanding of the past.
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- GPS Time Integration in Support of VLF Lightning Research: A Project Focused on Time-Stamping a Live Data-Stream
- The origin of the formal study of lightning as an electrical phenomenon is attributed to Benjamin Franklin. While not his first design, or experiment, to test the electrical nature of lightning - it was Franklin's kite in the storm that would become the most famous of his experiments. The study of lightning is of long standing human interest, and the methods of this study have evolved with advances in modern technology. To further the local study of lightning, a Global Positioning System (GPS) time signal needs to be integrated with data collected by a Very-Low Frequency (VLF) receiver. The VLF device is used to detect electromagnetic emissions associated with lightning events. GPS time can provide accuracy in excess of the required 1ms resolution for VLF research needs. This level of timing accuracy is necessary to determine event coincidence with data from the National Lightning Data Network (NLDN) or the World Wide Lightning Location Network (WWLLN). LabView virtual-instruments can provide a convenient platform for signal integration in a PC environment. VLF and time-stamp data can be written to storage for later evaluation. Data file-size issues encourage live data-stream evaluations but come at a cost of potentially excessive CPU demands.
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- Gardens as Places of Therapy & Education
- Gardens have the ability to restore human mental and physical health while providing a place for education and community enhancement. Gardens also provide individuals with a direct link to nature. The intent of this paper is to bring attention to human-nature interdependence through garden therapy and education. The purpose is to strengthen and enhance current understanding of the therapeutic benefits related to garden activities and how gardens can be used for educational settings as gardens are catalysts for greater exposure to the natural environment. This paper includes an overview of the history of gardens as places having healing qualities, with reference to ancient Egyptians, monasteries in the Middle Ages, and the first western physician, Dr. Benjamin Rush, who used plants as a medium for therapy. The professional uses of Horticultural Therapy include applications for patients with brain injuries and spinal cord injuries, and correctional facilities including prisons and jails. These applications indicate the ability of gardens to heal the individual through inclusion and meaningful activity. In addition, this paper addresses the historical role of the garden as a medium for education. The paper looks into the garden's modern uses in school districts and magnet schools. In closing, a discussion of the reciprocity created between nature and humans from active participation in the garden is given attention.
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- Gender Sensitivity to Disgust
- Many studies suggest the emotion of disgust is an adaptation that serves as a defense against microbial disease (e.g. protecting oneself) and it is universal. The potential contact with people who have poor hygiene and appear diseased or have body issues such as open wounds often evokes disgust. The disgust should be evoked most strongly by disease-carrying situations and especially among women who need to protect themselves from disease that could potentially affect their fetus and/or children. This study examined gender difference sensitivity to disgust. It was hypothesized that the female participants would be more sensitive to disgust than male participants. The ninety undergraduates (45 females and 45 males) participated in a survey study which used a modified version of the Disgust Scale and disgusting pictures. The results showed a significant gender difference regarding bed bugs, vomit, maggots, fish hooks, ect. There were gender differences in sensitivity to disgust.
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- Gender, Racial, and Ability Homogeneity and Disparity in Popular Outdoor Magazines: A Content Analysis of Images
- Evidence suggests advertising may reinforce stereotypes about the demographics of outdoor recreation participation in the United States (Martin, 2004). Addressing this concern, we conducted a content analysis of images containing people in three popular outdoor magazines - Backpacker, Climbing, and Rock and Ice, for the period between 2011-2014 - by quantifying who was represented, in terms of gender, race, and ability. In addition, in images depicting outdoor activities, we also analyzed images by risk level. Of the 2192 images we analyzed (published in the 48 issues that made up our sample), most represented white males or females. For instance, 95.7%, 98%, and 99% of the images depicting people in Backpacker, Climbing, and Rock and Ice, respectively, depicted white individuals. By contrast, a small percentage of images, ranging from 1-4.3%, portrayed people of color. Similar disparities were found for ability, as images overwhelmingly displayed able-bodied individuals. At the same time, disparities in gender representation were also high for the period, particularly in the case of Climbing and Rock and Ice, in which 29% and 24.5% of images, respectively, represented females. Similarly, in images showing outdoor activities, high-risk activities (e.g., ice climbing) overwhelmingly depicted white males doing these activities. In short, for the three magazines we examined, white, able-bodied males were disproportionately represented. By comparison, a 2013 study on the demographics of outdoor recreation participation nationally (Outdoor Foundation, 2014), revealed a much more diverse population. For instance, of the 143 million individuals who participated in outdoor recreation in 2013, 46% were females and 30% were non-white. While our study did not examine some of the most-widely circulated outdoor magazines, our findings may help explain assumptions some individuals hold about who participates in outdoor recreation activities, including the ways in which commercial media might influence these assumptions.