Oregon Undergraduate Research Journal: Vol. 16 No. 1 (2020)

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https://hdl.handle.net/1794/25121
Cover art by Clara Hollowgrass

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    Art Feature—“Orange Cup Coral (Balanophyllia elegans)”
    (University of Oregon, 2020-01) Hopkins, Lincoln
    This is a photo of a member of the species Orange Cup Coral (Balanophyllia elegans) taken underneath a dissection scope at the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology—one of the University of Oregon’s satellite campuses. The specimen was collected by University of Oregon students from the intertidal zones off the coast of Charleston, Oregon to better understand and examine different types of corals as B. elegansis is different from other corals in that it grows separately from a colony.
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    Behavioral and Neural Predictors of Individual Differences in Concept Generalization
    (University of Oregon, 2020-01) Iwashita, Takako
    Concept learning involves linking related pieces of information to a shared label, such as learning that furry creatures that bark are called “dogs.” People vary in how well they learn concepts and apply them to new situations (generalization). What factors drive these individual differences? In the present study, we tested whether stable aspects of intelligence or transient activations in the brain best predicted concept generalization abilities. To measure aspects of intelligence, subjects underwent an assessment that included measures of working memory, processing speed, perceptual reasoning, and verbal comprehension, which could be combined into an overall IQ. Subjects also completed a concept generalization task while undergoing functional MRI, allowing us to measure activations in brain regions that are part of the explicit rule-learning system (hippocampus, prefrontal cortex) or part of an implicit system that learns without awareness (caudate, posterior visual cortex). To elucidate the shared or dissociable roles of behavioral and neural predictors in concept generalization, we tested the relationship between accuracy in concept generalization and individual differences in measures of intelligence and activation in each brain region of interest. Behaviorally, we found that overall IQ, but not its subcomponents, predicted concept generalization abilities. Neurally, we found that only the activation in the hippocampus predicted concept generalization abilities. Finally, we found that IQ and hippocampal activation each predicted concept generalization independent of each other, indicating that they represent two separate processes that both contribute to generalization success. These results show dissociable contributions of behavioral and neural predictors of concept generalization, suggesting that both stable cognitive abilities and transient brain states influence the ability to learn new concepts.
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    Caliban Yisrael: Constructing Caliban as the Jewish Other in Shakespeare’s The Tempest
    (University of Oregon, 2020-01) Rolnick-Wihtol, DeForest Ariyel
    This paper seeks to introduce new data into the discussion of William Shakespeare’s portrayal of Jewish people through intertextual and close reading of Shakespeare’s The Tempest and The Merchant of Venice, sections from the Geneva Bible, and primary documents discussing Anglo-Jewish life in the Elizabethan era. Shakespeare’s relationship to and purported views of Jewish people have been scrutinized for centuries. However, almost all conclusions put forth by scholars about Shakespeare’s ties to Elizabethan Jewish communities and anti-Semitism have been drawn from one work, The Merchant of Venice. Merchant contains Shakespeare’s only explicitly Jewish characters, Shylock and his daughter, Jessica, although she happily converts to Christianity. In this paper, I propose that Shakespeare has an implicitly Jewish character lurking in The Tempest: Caliban, the play’s main antagonist, a native to the island on which the play is set, and Prospero and Miranda’s slave. I will support the interpretation of Caliban as a Jewish-coded figure through cross-reading The Tempest with The Merchant of Venice, sections of the Geneva Bible, and non-fiction testimonials from English residents during and before the Elizabethan era. Using both these plays alongside other scholarly and historical texts, I will bring cultural and historical context to these portrayals in order to explore a deeper understanding of the complicated and nuanced depictions of Jewish people in Shakespeare’s work.
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    Cover Art—“The Woman”
    (University of Oregon, 2020-01) Hollowgrass, Clara
    This piece is part of a series I did which focuses on the refinement found in a face. The medium is scratchboard, which I made myself from wood and black and white paint, and I used an old, empty fountain pen as my carving tool. I focus on the face because it is the part of people that we usually judge first. Ancient humans used a person’s smile or eyes to distinguish between friend and foe. But why do we still make such snap judgements today, and what could we be missing by relying on the physical appearance of solely a face? What is going on beneath someone’s surface? What about them can we not see? The process of making art on scratchboard itself exemplifies this concept. Through the action of scraping back layers to reveal a new dimension on the board, I mimicked the process of getting familiar with a person. You work to look beneath the surface, realizing that there is more than meets the eye.
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    Guest Editorial—“Celebrating a Decade of UO Undergraduate Research”
    (University of Oregon, 2020-01) Hatfield, Kevin D
    In 2010 student leaders began advocating for three initiatives to support undergraduate research and creative work— an annual conference, a student-edited journal, and a dedicated office. They approached Karen Sprague, Vice Provost for Undergraduate Studies, who shared their excitement about undergraduate research. First, Vice Provost Sprague wanted to find out how other universities were developing these areas, so I was asked to investigate the undergraduate research programs of the 62 universities that belong to the Association of American Universities (AAU). I found that 49 institutions hosted an annual undergraduate research conference, 31 sponsored a university-wide undergraduate research journal, and 59 had a dedicated undergraduate research office.
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    Letter from the Editor
    (University of Oregon, 2020-01) Chambrose, Starla
    OURJ is just one of the many platforms on campus that seek to broadcast undergraduates’ research achievements. I would be remiss to neglect mentioning the Undergraduate Research Symposium (URS), which celebrates its tenth anniversary in May of this year. This edition of the journal is fortunate enough to feature a guest editorial from one of the co-chairs of the symposium, Kevin Hatfield, Assistant Vice Provost for Undergraduate Research. Additionally, all four of the authors featured in this issue presented their work at the URS last year. Literature, political science, psychology, cultural anthropology—the types of papers featured in this issue represent merely a sliver of the breadth of research both OURJ and the URS are committed showcasing.
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    Meet the Editorial Board
    (University of Oregon, 2020-01)
    Editorial board for Volume 16 Issue 1 Winter 2020 of Oregon Undergraduate Research Journal
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    Negotiating Freedoms: Women Experience Homelessness in Eugene, OR
    (University of Oregon, 2020-01) Fox, Violet
    This research includes a literature review, historical background and policy overview, as well as three interviews with women experiencing homelessness, and two interviews with shelter staff in Eugene, Oregon. The purpose of this research is to inquire into the unique nature of women’s homelessness using feminist ethics and urban anthropological methods. Notable facets of existing research include postfeminist and neoliberal perspectives, issues in defining “homelessness,” worthiness, mental health, domestic violence, and much more. This paper offers a place-based approach that is meant to lead to more specific and achievable local change for women in the Eugene homeless community. The findings include a rich and diverse array of stories that indicate the spectral nature of women’s homelessness, as well as highlight flaws in the current bureaucratic structures which are meant to support women out of homelessness both locally, and nationally. Stories and experiences within this paper include themes of resistance, addiction, victimhood, and relationships. The conclusions and recommendations indicate the need for more transitional housing, “wet” shelters, prevention and intervention initiatives, and increased opportunities for healthy relationship and skill-building.
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    Technology and Scientific Authority in United States Abortion Policy: Concerns Over a Mechanistic Approach and a Better Way Forward
    (University of Oregon, 2020-01) Wilms-Crowe, Momo
    Building on the pragmatist philosophical tradition and work done by scholars in the field of feminist technological studies, this paper considers abortion as a case study to examine how science and technology interact with systems of knowledge, truth, and power. Paying special attention to how technological authority and notions of expertise have influenced public policy and legislative agendas, I consider the role of technological artifacts in shaping our realities and our legal frameworks. Through a historical review of changes in abortion policy and in conversation with various social philosophers, I make the argument that scientific information has not objectively informed abortion opinion and policy, but rather always been a tool of power, reflective of and contributing to larger systemic inequalities. Moreover, because the fundamentally nuanced biology of human fetal development directly conflicts with the legal and moral urge to clearly demarcate personhood from non-personhood, I outline why any attempts to define personhood or viability based purely on biological evidence is arbitrary, deceptive, and ultimately inappropriate. For this reason, I conclude by advocating for the use of a more contextual approach to policy making, considering larger sociopolitical dynamics of gendered power and oppression as well as the lived experiences of those impacted directly by the legislation. In the current political moment, technology is playing an increasingly large role in our lives, and access to abortion and reproductive rights are being actively threatened by those in the highest ranks in the US government. This paper attempts to provide a deeper understanding of the philosophical journey our society took to reach this junction and suggest a better path forward, centering the values of democracy, dignity, and justice.