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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The Geometry and Statistical Analysis of Music
According to the book A Geometry of Music, by Dmitri Tymoczko, in Contemporary Music Theory, it is believed that musicians take on a mathematical approach when creating progressions of chords in their music. Because of this mathematical approach, musicians construct music as opposed to composing it. In the construction of their music, musicians strive to create sound that is pleasing to their audience's ears. In order to reach this goal, musicians stray away from creating progressions of chords that are chaotic and random because these progressions create noise that is not pleasant to the ears. Musicians also tend to avoid progressions that are completely symmetrical because symmetrical progressions are boring and not appealing to the ear. When musicians construct their music, they strive to create progressions of chords that are almost-symmetrical. Because of these almost symmetrical progressions of chords, barriers between musical styles have fallen and Western music of the twentieth century in fact is related to the classical music of past centuries. The music of these different eras are related because they contain progressions of chords that create similar geometric patterns that are short and efficient. In this paper, we will explore the math that underlines Contemporary Music Theory. We will then use the theory to analyze two songs from different eras.
The Graceful Predator
Artwork by Liz Dahlman from the Fall 2012 - Winter 2013 issue of Images
The Hopi Tribe and Peabody Energy: A History of Water Usage and Cultural Loss on Tribal Lands, 1966-2010
The largest coal deposit in the United States, Black Mesa, rests upon the border of the Navajo and Hopi reservations in northwest Arizona. Peabody Energy gained permits to mine coal in 1966 and the subsequent mining operation shaped the history of the Southwest. The coal powered many western cities and was profitable for Peabody Energy. The Hopi reservation was not only home to the largest coal mine, its 650,000 acres are situated above the N-Aquifer. It is arguable that water is the most sacred essence to Hopi culture. Their beliefs are deeply spiritual and rooted in respect for the earth and balance. Water is not only crucial in this area for survival, but also their spiritual ceremonies. Therefore, water is a cultural resource to the Hopi. Access to this natural resource was gained through deceptive politics and exploitation of two indigenous populations. Peabody Energy needed a way to transport the coal from remote northwest Arizona to the Mohave Generating Station, 273 miles away. The company created a slurry pipeline; the coal was crushed into small pieces, mixed with underground water, and pushed through the pipeline to the Mohave Generating Station. The water used for this slurry line came from the N-Aquifer, the only water resource in the region. Peabody Energy pumped an average of 3.3 million gallons of water a day for 35 years from this aquifer. The health of the aquifer and surrounding springs are showing declines upwards of 25 percent. Peabody Energy's extensive use of the aquifer devastated the Hopi tribe's sacred water resource, and thus is a cultural injustice.
The Hopkopter: A Solution to Maneuvering in Cluttered Environments for Extended Periods of Time
The goal of this project is to design an autonomous robot to operate and avoid objects in the air as well as navigate and avoid obstacles along the ground. Currently robots only move in one of three domains: air, land, or water. Flying robots are very agile, but use a great deal of energy and cannot be deployed for very long. Robots that move along the ground have longer deployment time, but have difficulty maneuvering around obstacles. By combining these qualities we can improve navigation by allowing the robot to move over or around obstacles. This allows the robot to better survey it's environment, and conserve energy while deployed. This blend of features will enable long-term autonomy in cluttered and hazardous environments. The robot should have a one-day deployment time, and must be built for a for a wide range of applications, as it will serve for a platform for further research. Interested parties could include: academia, military, government, industrial, agricultural, and search and rescue units.
The Impact of Appearance on Memory and Perception
Often appearance is a controversial issue with regard to the cliché: don’t judge a book by its cover. Perception and memory were examined in a survey of perception of a woman dressed casually or professionally regarding appearance. There was significant difference in the perception of a photo of a person professionally dressed and a person casually dressed. The person in the photo that was professionally dressed was perceived to be more timely, successful, conscientious, emotionally stable and older than the person in the photo that was casually dressed. Our research shows that there is an effect on how people perceive you based on your appearance. The findings also suggest that females remember more details from the photo they were shown in contrast with how many details males remembered.
The Impact of Appearance on Memory and Perception
Poster presentation from 7th Annual Natural & Behavioral Sciences Undergraduate Research Symposium, Fort Lewis College.
The Impact of Facies Heterogeneity on Fluid Storage and Transport in the Lower Burro Canyon Formation, Lisbon Valley, Utah
In Lisbon Valley, Utah, Early Cretaceous braided stream deposits of the Lower Burro Canyon Formation form the primary host beds for high-grade copper ore bodies that are potential targets for in-situ leach mining. Variations in the lithology, facies associations, and depositional architecture of the Lower Burro Canyon Formation represent major controls on the porosity, permeability, and connectivity of ore host beds, and are poorly understood in this area. The goal of this study is to constrain and characterize the lithologic (facies-scale), architectural (element-scale) and stratigraphic (member-scale) heterogeneity that exists within the Lower Burro Canyon Formation in Lisbon Valley in the context of its effect on modern fluid storage and transport. Detailed logging along a closely spaced (less than 150 meters) transect of five drill-cores revealed the presence of 8 major lithofacies within the Lower Burro Canyon Formation, primarily composed of sandstones, mudstones, and pebble conglomerates. Outcrop-based observations and measurements resulted in the description of 4 distinct architectural element types. Quantitative porosity and permeability data are limited, with existing data showing porosities ranging from approximately 11-22% and permeabilities ranging from approximately 20-325 millidarcies.
The Influence of Guns on Aggressive Attitudes and Behavior
The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of guns on people's aggressive attitudes and behaviors. We used 46 students from a small liberal arts college in Durango, Colorado. They were broken into a control and an experimental group. The experimental group was shown a video of how to safely shoot a gun and the control group was shown a video of how to make strawberry shortcake. The dependent variable was their aggressive attitudes and behaviors resulting from the video they were shown. We found that the control group said they would act more aggressively, but showed less aggressive behavior because they gave strangers less vile hot sauce to drink in a follow-up measure. These findings did not support our hypothesis that the participants showed the gun video would have more aggressive attitudes and behaviors. This research illustrates the importance of further research on this subject; many people assume that guns inspire violence, but this assumption cannot be made without further evidence.
The Influence of Mid Foot Cleat Placement on Anterior Femoral Muscle Recruitment in Cyclists
This study was designed to compare the traditional Fore-Foot cleat placement in a road cycling shoe with a new Mid-Foot cleat placement theory on vastus laterals recruitment. Eight subjects participated in three trials. The subjects consisted of 7 men, 1 woman (mean age: 22 ±3 years, weight: 150 ±35 lbs, height 69 ±6 in.). All subjects were trained cyclists with a minimum of 1 year road racing experience. All trials were done using a Velotron Cycling Ergometer and an EMG Bio-Pac BSL Pro 3.7 system. The first trial was a GXT to determine maximum wattage and heart rate. For trials experimental two and three the subjects cycled at 60% of their maximum wattage. The experimental trials were randomized with one trial conducted with fore-foot cleat placement, and the other trial being conducted with mid-foot cleat placement. In both trials the subjects were connected with surface electrodes on their vastus laterales muscle to the EMG Bio-Pac BSL Pro 3.7 system, which measured their motor recruitment units (mV). The results indicated a mean decrease of 5mV (P < 0.00063) in vastus lateralis recruitment at the same intensity while using the mid-foot cleat placement. The findings of this study suggest that mid-foot cleat placement could be a more efficient position for the usage of the vastus laterales muscle during a pedal stroke.
The Initial Flooding of The Paradox Basin; The Sequence Stratigraphy of The Pennsylvanian (Atokan) Pinkerton Trail Formation, San Juan Mountains, SW Colorado
The Pennsylvanian (Atokan) age Pinkerton Trail Formation of the eastern Paradox Basin (SW Colorado) displays an uncommon stratigraphic signature that is composed of subtidal carbonate sediment packages punctuated by coal layers, reflecting large scale sea level change. These high amplitude relative sea level changes are attributed to combined glacial eustasy and rapid tectonic subsidence on the complexly faulted basin margin during the second order transgressive system tract of the basin. The field area stretches along a 55km strike oblique transect from a southern fault block that was inundated in clastic sediment after the Pinkerton Trail carbonate deposition, to a northern block which continued to have shallow water carbonate deposition into the Lower Desmoinesian Barker Creek interval. Stratigraphic sections were measured at four outcrops on the western side of US Highway 550 north of Durango, CO. Three were within 7km of each other between Goulding Creek and Cascade Creek, and the fourth was 42km north of the others near Molas Lake, north of the Snowden fault (Spoelhof, 1974). In the three downdip locations, three carbonate-dominated sequences bounded by thin clastic fluvial packages were found. The clastic packages were topped by 10-15cm thick anthracitic coals and rooted zones indicating subaerial exposure. Above the coals, one to two centimeter thick black shales with brachiopods mark knife-sharp flooding surfaces overlain by subtidal spiculitic wackestones, consistent with a transgressive system tract signature. The lower sequences at the Molas Pass location were also dominated by subtidal spiculitic wackestones; however, this location contains more parasequences and shallower, photic zone carbonates with stromatolites, phylloid algae, and Chaetetes . The facies variation between the three down dip locations and the shallower water facies of the Molas Pass area is likely due to its location on a higher fault block on the eastern shelf of the Paradox Basin near the uplifted Grenadier block (Spoelhof, 1976).
The Interaction of Monsoonal Precipitation and River Discharge on Riparian Aquifer Recharge Along the Impounded Dolores River, Southwestern Colorado, 2011
To what extent does site specific monsoonal precipitation influence riparian aquifers on impounded streams in the arid southwest, and how might that role change during extended droughts? Using 2011 data from three sites along the Dolores River, in southwestern Colorado, we examined the importance of site specific precipitation on aquifer recharge. One site is above McPhee Dam and reservoir, while the other two are below the dam and at lower elevations. Each site contains a transect of three piezometers with pressure transducers to measure water height and barometric pressure every thirty minutes as well as a tipping rain gauge to measure site specific precipitation events. Quantification of river discharge and dam releases are compiled from the US Geological Survey and the Colorado Division of Water Resources stream gauges near the study sites, but are not site specific. During the weak monsoon of 2011, only the higher elevation above dam site, which also received the greatest amount of precipitation (12mm in one event), shows a clear relationship between precipitation and aquifer recharge (an observed 10cm groundwater rise during the largest precipitation event). At this site, well height rise was observed in all precipitation events greater than 2mm. Greater substrate permeability, precipitation magnitude, and precipitation duration may influence aquifer recharge from precipitation at this site. In the drier, lower elevations below the dam where all precipitation events were less than 4mm, no associated well height increases were observed. Precipitation at the remaining sites may be lost to evapotranspiration, and infiltration may be inhibited by low permeability of substrates, resulting in no aquifer recharge. At these sites the only changes in well heights were influenced by changes in river discharge from precipitation and or dam releases upstream, as was also observed during the stronger monsoon of 2010 (Clutter et al.,2011). These data suggest that the recharge of riparian aquifers (and the ecosystems dependent upon them) at orographically-starved lower elevations on impounded streams are highly dependent on hyporheic flow and bank recharge from dam releases or unimpeded stream flow during times of drought.
The Juniper Jury
Poem by Meghan Doenges from Fall 2013 - Winter 2014 issue of Images.

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