Spring 2020 – Academic Creativity and Excellence Day

The purpose of this study was to identify the correlation between verbal aggressiveness and humor. The hypothesis was that individuals who utilize a greater level of humor while communicating are less verbally aggressive and individuals that use less humor are more verbally aggressive. This study consisted of seventy-five people participating in a survey that was made up of two questionnaires. The questionnaires measured humor and verbal aggression. The participants’ sense of humor was measured as it related to the situation, level of detail, prior planning, and number of different humor behavior types. Verbal aggression was measured based on how individuals influenced others to do what they wanted. After we applied a Pearson correlation test, a minimal negative correlation resulted. However, the study did not support the hypothesis to a significant extent.

COMM 413, Advanced Interpersonal Communication

Doyle Srader

10 AM – Noon

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Danielle Baker, Canyon Dwyre, Madeleine Rosebrook & Nicolas Schapochnik

BUS 499 Capstone Presentation: Baldwin Company

In this capstone presentation, my teammates and I will discuss and analyze what we have learned while operating our virtual censor manufacturing company this semester. First, we will present our company mission statement and clearly define our business strategy. We will follow this with an explanation of the different products we created, their life cycles, positions in the market, and how this contributed to an increase or decrease in our success measures. After this, we will discuss our success measures, why we chose them, and how we did or did not achieve them. Finally, we will clearly project measurable results for our final round of competition. We will end our presentation with a short discussion on the experience we gained while running our own company and answer any questions the audience might have.

BUS 499, Business Strategy and Policy

Dave Quirk

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Kinkade Barreiro

Engaging with Skeptics: Existentialism

Evangelizing is a key part of the Christian faith. For the Christian, it is important to learn how to evangelize so that they can share their religions teachings. For the atheist though, this practice is not as common, nor is it a key part of the belief system. So, then, how does the atheist share their beliefs. Through the eyes of an atheist philosophy known as Existentialism, this paper examines the pieces of this particular philosophical tradition, how it contrasts Christian teachings, and how Christians may critique the Philosophy. The purpose of the paper is to make the Existentialist aware of how their beliefs may interact with Christianity to prepare for discourse among Christians while also showing Christians and other people of faith how the Existential tradition sees their reality and the ways that Christianity relates to it.

BTM 335, Connecting with a Skeptical World

AJ Swoboda

1 – 1:30 PM

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Kinkade Barreiro

Existential Themes in Gothic Literature

Gothic Literature is known for its dark, mysterious, and dreadful imagery and stories. The Existential tradition is a response to Nihilism, which proposes what we live in a dark, mysterious reality with no inherent meaning. Existentialism attempts to show that our human experience isn’t dreadful, even if it is dark, mysterious, and devoid of meaning.

ENG 217, Studies in Gothic American Literature

James Watson

2 – 2:30 PM

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Kinkade Barreiro

Papers or People

With an understanding of the issues at hand in the process of deciding who holds authority over the land in Palestine and Israel, this presentation discusses various reasons for the development of one single state on this land with equal representation in government for all people who occupy the land today. After this is well explained and understood, the presentation will go over the various topics that people put forward believing that they currently prevent this sort of state from existing. The main idea that the presentation asserts is that in making a decision on this land, the development of ones opinion on the issue revolves around one question, does the individual invest more in legal papers or in the human rights of the land’s people?

HIST 410, History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict

Melisa Ortiz Berry

Bushnell History Symposium II: 3:05 – 3:25

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Liam Bedford, Shanay Dotson, Jose Magana & Ana Paradones

Chester Inc.

In this presentation we will be discussing Chester Inc. performance in the Capsim simulation. We will discuss how we set up products, how we marketed products, organized the production of our products and managed the sales and finances of the company.

BUS 499, Business Strategy and Policy

Dave Quirk

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Cameron Binaley

The Effect of Pentecostalism on Contemporary Christian Music

The assignment that will be presented is my argument that the Pentecostal movement has propelled Contemporary Christian Music to its current form today for History 332: History of Christianity II. The first part of the presentation will include an introduction and explanation as to what Pentecostalism is and its immediate impact on Christianity in the early 1900s. The second part of the presentation will discuss how modern gospel music derives its roots from African American Spirituals, with many of the first songs of worship sung at the Azusa Street Revival being African American Spirituals. The third part of the presentation will discuss how the effect of Classical Protestant denominations embracing charismaticism leads to a need for Contemporary Christian Music to help evangelize to the youth. The fourth part of the presentation will discuss how with the rise of Protestant denominations Pentecostalizing and churches like Hillsong have grown into a worship music powerhouse, Contemporary Christian Music becomes more than just worship music, but as God’s presence and divine healing. The last part of the presentation will conclude with a recap and ending with stating that whether we know it or not, what we sing in church becomes our theology, so it is important to understand where our music comes from.

HIST 332, History of Christianity II

Melisa Ortiz Berry

Bushnell History Symposium: 11:00 – 11:20 AM

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Cameron Binaley

The Effectiveness of Active Learning through Reacting to the Past

The assignment that will be presented is my argument that Active Learning techniques should be utilized more in the classroom and this will be explained through the classroom roleplaying game Reacting to the Past (RTTP) for History 152: History of Western Civilization II. The first part of the presentation will include an introduction and an explanation as to what RTTP and its use in the classroom. The second part of the presentation will discuss what researchers and college professors have found in looking at the results and growth in students while playing RTTP. The third part of the presentation will look at my experiences playing RTTP, the experiences of other students who have also played RTTP at NCU, and the data I compiled from those students. The last part of the presentation will look at all of the research obtained and conclude with stating that the Active Learning techniques that were utilized in RTTP should be continued in the future.

HIST 152, History of Western Civilization II

Melisa Ortiz Berry

Bushnell History Symposium: 10:05 – 10:30 AM

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Cameron Binaley

The Problem with Palestine

The assignment that will be presented is my solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict in Palestine for History 410: History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict. The first part of the presentation will include an introduction and explanation as to what the Arab-Israeli conflict is and how it started. The second part of the presentation will include the history of the Israeli’s claim to Palestine through showing how the Israeli people have had a claim to the land for about 2000 years. The third part of the presentation will include the history of the Arab’s claim to Palestine through showing that though the Arabs were not first to claim the land, they are the most recent owners of the land. The fourth part of the presentation will include my solution for the Arab-Israeli conflict, where I will explain that both sides are unwilling to make compromises for one another and the best way to resolve this complex issue is to leave all of the boarders the exact way they are right now and end the fighting between the Arabs and the Israelis. The last part of the presentation will conclude with a recap of the presentation and stating that the only way true peace between the Arabs and the Israelis will ever be met is if they both lay down their weapons and attempt to work together.

HIST 410, History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict

Melisa Ortiz Berry

Bushnell History Symposium II: 2:45 – 3:05 PM

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Cameron Binaley, Toby Carter, Nate Graham & Caleb Plummer

Living in Christ: A Greek Exegetical Study through Romans 12 to 14

The assignment that will be presented is an exegetical presentation of the Romans 12:1-14:4, translated from Greek to English by the students of Greek 302. The first part of the presentation will include an overall introduction to the book of Romans, including the author, the recipients, and the reasons as to why Romans was written and then looking at the themes of each section of Romans. The second part of the presentation will be looking at Romans 12:1-8 and its theme of humble and full service in our calling. The third part of the presentation will be looking at Romans 12:9-21 and its theme of selfless love defining the Christian community. The fourth part of the presentation will be looking at Romans 13:1-10 and its themes of government, fear, and love. The fifth part of the presentation will be looking at Romans 13:11-14:4 and its theme of love transforming the lives of the Christian community. The last part of the presentation will conclude with a recap of Romans 12:1-14:4 by looking at the four themes and how they reveal that the love that is brought to us through Christ is at the center of them all.

GRK 302, Elementary Greek 2

Melisa Ortiz Berry

1 – 2 PM

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Mary Grace Blaser & Tanner Dean

Non-Religiousness and Compassion: Correlation of the Religiousness Commitment Inventory and the Lovingkindness-Compassion Scale

Mental health has become a more prevalent topic in societal discussions. People are constantly searching for ways to improve their mental health. Religious commitment and lovingkindness-compassion both have a positive correlation to mental health. We wanted to ask the question, is there a correlation between religious commitment and lovingkindness-compassion? We thought that one did not have to have high religious commitment to have lovingkindness-compassion and vice versa. To test this hypothesis, we created a Google form that listed all the statements used in the religious commitment inventory and lovingkindness-compassion scale in which participants rated how true or untrue the statements were to them. After performing a Pearson test on the participant’s scores, the results showed that there is no correlation between religious commitment and lovingkindness-compassion.

COMM 413, Advanced Interpersonal Communication

Doyle Srader

10 AM – Noon

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Caitlin Bowen

Portrayals of Feminism Through the Novels of Jane Austen

Jane Austen is one of the most well-known British-English authors that lived the 18th century. While her novels and writings are often praised for their portrayal of day-to-day living in the English countryside, she also portrays the restrictions that were put on women during this time. In her novels Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, and Persuasion, Austen uses her female characters not only to illustrate the rigid expectations that society had for them but also to illustrate the different degrees of feminism available to these women while they still, for the most part, followed society’s rules. Her other novels, Emma, Mansfield Park, and Northanger Abbey provide other relevant examples of feminism in 18th century England; however, they do so in a different manner. This presentation will look at what feminism is and how it differed in the 18th century. It will also analyze the different women found in Austen’s novels and their situations in life, and try to understand what possible ideas, regarding feminism, Austen was trying to get her readers to comprehend.

ENG 499, Capstone

James Watson

1 – 1:30 PM

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Arthur Breidenbach, Logan Davis, Blake Doran, Zachary Drach & Luis Diaz Menendaz

Capstone Final Presentation Team Digby

For our presentation we will explain the mission statement and strategy we chose to use and why we chose them for our organization/simulation. We will also discuss our three products and how they fit into our strategy, their product life, and whether they were a successful product or not. We will also discuss the troubling times we went through and how we are going to reinvent our business to be more successful. In addition, we will cover the struggles we encountered in our business. For several weeks, unfortunately, we took out several emergency loans in order to stay open. Finally, we will discuss the measures we took in order to turn Digby into a profitable firm.

BUS 499, Business Strategy and Policy

Dave Quirk

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Katia Burke & Maddy Guiger

Collectivism in Connection to Child-Parent Communication Apprehension

Previous research has examined the correlation between collectivism and communication apprehension. This research has suggested a link between individuals who score higher in collectivism and the experience of communication apprehension. The present study sought to build upon this research and explore if a similar correlation exists between collectivism and child-parent communication apprehension. The hypothesis for this study was that participants who scored higher in collectivism would also score high in child-parent communication apprehension. This hypothesis was tested via a survey which collected participants’ measures on the Auckland Individualism Collectivism Scale and the Child-Parent Communication Apprehension Scale. The data was then coded and compared through a Pearson correlation test. The data showed a weak correlation between collectivism and child-parent communication apprehension. The significance of these findings and implications for future research are discussed.

COMM 413, Advanced Interpersonal Communication

Doyle Srader

10 AM – Noon

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Shawn Carson, Andres Martinez, Jane Taimalie & Alexis Westbrooks

Andrews Company

Our presentation will include all of our company’s decisions week by week illustrating the main highlights. At Andrews Company we sell radars with the goal of providing the public consumer with multiple options. We will be selling radars in the high tech, low tech, and in between categories in order to help our consumers find their preferred radar. Week 1 highlighs our all-out investment of our company and its products. You will see that in the following weeks we get ambitious by continuing our creation of a new product for the company. To keep up with our business strategy, we try our best to provide the best prices for consumers while still continuing to make a profit. We have found that through our low prices, we are able to draw in consumers from all over, providing our company with the upmost success.

BUS 499, Business Strategy and Policy

Dave Quirk

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Tanner Dean

One or Many: Many Short Messages as More Persuasive Over One Fully Explained Message

Loneliness is a silent struggle of many people. Most people are fearful of talking to others, think they do better on their own, or sometimes are just silent when in public spaces. What if there was a way to convince people to go up to strangers? Could loneliness be combated with persuasive appeals? People processes appeals centrally and peripherally, but which one is more effective? Central route processing of messages is taxing. Most people think that they are quite efficient at determining the validity of information. Most of the time people don’t have the mental capacity to think over every bit of information of every argument that is presented to them. That is why people often default to peripheral route processing of information. Many small appeals can be more effective at persuading someone in the long term over a single long detailed message.

COMM 450, Persuasion

Doyle Srader

11:30 AM – Noon

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Tanner Dean

The Polysemy of “Political”: Shared Senses and Network as a Framework for Dealing with Lexical Ambiguity

Political discourse seems to be fraught with competing definitions for what is and is not “political.” These competing definitions can lead to people checking out from these conversations because there seems to be no overlap of these definitions. Polysemy allows for the examining of the shared network people use for creating these definitions. Etymology and the senses attached to these words are polysemous and connect to these shared networks. These shared networks then allow for people to understand that even though these definitions are different they can have an overarching overlap which can pull people back into conversations regarding “politics” and the “political” instead of leading to confusion over difference. Polysemy has the possibility to enrich our understanding of everyday political discourse.

COMM 499, Capstone

Doyle Srader

1 – 1:30 PM

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Jared Dodson

A Unified Israel

The Arab and Israeli people groups both have long and storied histories that influence the modern dilemma of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Arab people have lived in their land for an extensive period of time, and now feel threatened by recent Jewish immigration following the Holocaust. The Jews, however, also have roots in the region and feel a God-given right to live in the land. Following the events of the Holocaust, the Jews were given land in Palestine, thus creating the state of Israel, inflaming tension in the region. The religious and historical history of both of these people groups have a great deal to do with how the land of Palestine should be ruled and the role of governance in the region itself. If there is to be peace, it can only come from understanding the diverse history of both sides.

RELS 210, The Abrahamic Faiths of Judaism and Islam

Melisa Ortiz Berry

Bushnell History Symposium II: 2:05 – 2:25 PM

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Flint Du Tell

Changenge the world by making bu bed

What has been dubbed the “If you want to change the world, make your bed” speech, was given as a commencement address to the 2014 graduating class of the University of Texas as Austen by Admiral Wiliam McRaven. It is a Rhetorical vision composed of ten different life lessons he learned in Navy Seal book camp. Life lesson he believes the graduates and anybody else, could use to help them follow the university’s modo, “what starts here changes the world.

If one wants to change the world, they must take action. So, it only makes sense if Admiral McRaven is going to give advice on how to change the world, he would tell you what actions to take. Although his speech contains some vivid character and setting themes, a fantasy themed analyses of this speech reveals in most of these settings and character themes are overshadowed by the actions someone could take to help them change the world. In accordance with a fantasy themed analysis, Admiral McRaven calls into existences the group of people who want to change the world.

COMM 441, Rhetorical Criticism

Doyle Srader

10 AM – Noon

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Flint Du Tell

Talking to strangers while social distancing

A pandemic is probably the worst time to try and encourage people to talk to strangers. This is this turned out to be the assigned task for the term project in Doyle Srader’s Communication 450 persuasion class in 2020. The plan was to conduct a scientific study to determine if scientific based facts given to a group of test subjects who are low conversationalists, and see if the new scientific information encouraged them to be more outgoing and talk with strangers. The same goal was also sought for a second group of test subjects but with Biblical based facts. . At the end of the study, the Test subjects would be questioned to see if the new information encouraged them to be more of a conversationalist to strangers. I would then take the data and determine if the scientific or Biblical information was more persuasive in encouraging people to be more outgoing. The Carona Virus pandemic swept across the world, so in the middle of the experiment, I started to receive negative feedback from my participants about being in close enough contact with strangers to have a conversation with them. They were very skeptical about doing this in the middle of government and every media outlet advising them to stay home and “social distance” I was sup to try and convince people to be more sociable and talk to strangers. I would then remind them, this experiment was designed to test your willingness to talk to strangers, rather than if you actually do it or nlt. So, an added element to the experiment was convincing my test subjects there were not going to be in any danger by continuing with my experiment. Do to this and other complications, this experiment is still underway. Results will be available when it is finished.

COMM 450, Persuasion

Doyle Srader

11:30 AM – Noon

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Daniel Gerlach & Maya Jenkins

Do Individualistic People Experience Lower Communication Apprehension Than Collectivists? An Advanced Interpersonal Research Study

A great deal of research has been conducted regarding communicator apprehension (CA) and individualism/collectivism as separate topics. However, little research has been done to analyze connections they have with each other. Based on prior research regarding CA and individualism/collectivism, we hypothesize that participants who identify as individualistic will also report lesser amounts of CA. We propose that the opposite is also true: participants who report identifying as collective will report higher CA. Results of the study found that there was little to no correlation.

COMM 413, Advanced Interpersonal Communication

Doyle Srader

10 AM – Noon

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Jesse Gerlach

Bushnell Apparel Analysis

The following examination is based on the visual analytical tool designed and described by Paul Martin Lester in his book Visual Communications: Images With Messages. This tool thoroughly deconstructs each component of a visual text so that its content and context are effectively comprehended and synthesized. This analysis was done on the 2020 Bushnell University attire. The first portion of the research was to analyze the apparel with the aforementioned analytical tool. It was concluded by the researcher that the products of Bushnell University are primarily informative in nature, in that they are designed to communicate a simple message of a group membership. Additionally, the minimalist style of the products, including the logo of the beacon and name, adds to the emphasis on the community rather than to extraneous details that a more complex design might include. In this way, given the intended function of the merchandise, it was concluded that the message communicated by the apparel’s design was effective. The second portion was, based upon the results of the instrument, to offer additional apparel designs that address the critiques of the original designs as well as provide a more diverse range of options for the university. Two possible applications to increase product diversity are the use of nontraditional text placements and nontraditional textile styles. For the nontraditional text placements, the university’s mission statement could be both plain-texted on the back and inverse-texted on the back. For nontraditional textile styles, a long sleeve, extra long, curved hem, shirt is an excellent example of more modern styles that could be adopted for product diversity.

Keywords: Bushnell University, Apparel, Designs,

COMM 407, Special Topics: Visual Communication

Doyle Srader

10 AM – Noon

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Jesse Gerlach & Madison Hoke

A Study on the Relation Between Nonverbal Knowledge and Touch Avoidance

The following study looked to compare the relationship between an individual’s knowledge of nonverbal cues and their level of touch avoidance. The study was conducted online with a total of 33 participants. Participants were asked to complete the Test of Nonverbal Cue Knowledge (TONCK) and Touch Avoidant Measure (TAM). For the Touch Avoidant Measure, both section one and two were included, testing an individual’s level of touch avoidance in same-sex and opposite-sex social interactions. Prior to conducting the study, the experimenters examined the past research done in each of these areas. The studies found that Touch Avoidance is more common with individuals who suffer from Social Anxiety (SA). In particular, SA was discovered to be most prominent with women who were being approached by men they did not originally know. Therefore, the researchers wanted to focus on touch avoidance within the same-sex and opposite-sex spectrum. This was designed so that a thorough understanding of which instances people may feel Touch Avoidant, and whether or not their knowledge of nonverbals is attributed to that avoidance may be reached. The results of the research found that there was little to no correlation between an individual’s knowledge of nonverbal cues, and their level of touch avoidance with both people of the same and opposite sex. Limitations of the study are centered around both the small participant number and the absence of male and female categories for the results. Future research can, therefore, look into both other variables relating to Touch Avoidance and the implications of gender as they relate to Touch Avoidance.

COMM 413, Advanced Interpersonal Communication

Doyle Srader

10 AM – Noon

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Matthew Geronimo

Exploring the formative nature of liturgical actions: Eucharist, Word, song, and prayer

We live in a world that is prideful, individualistic, and unjust. God calls all people, through the redemption of Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit, to participate with God through liturgical actions: Eucharist, Word, song, and prayer. Based on biblical, historical, and theological research, this paper will propose the aforementioned liturgical actions to form worshipers to be holy and living sacrifices.

CW 499, Capstone

Karen De Young

2:30 – 3 PM

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Maya Jenkins

Capstone: Generosity Feeds

In September of 2019, I chose to take part of an organization committed to addressing childhood food insecurity. I saw Generosity Feeds as a great way to practice what I had learned in my COMM 450 Persuasion class. I saw an opportunity to be a persuader and to practice organizing events. I created a strategic plan composed of persuasive strategies consisting of four conditions: potential donors, volunteers, broadcasting, and a one-on-one condition. In each of these conditions, persuasive strategies were implemented that would have ideally influenced the likelihood that people were to donate, volunteer, and buy into the message of Generosity Feeds. In this presentation, I will be reflecting on the work that I got to complete for this project before it was cancelled.

COMM 499, Capstone

Doyle Srader

2:30 – 3 PM

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Bradley Keller

Keeping Secrets and its Relation to Humanity and God

Secret keeping and topic avoidance is detrimental to a person’s mental and physical health. Through research that has shown that keeping secrets and avoiding topics reduces relational satisfaction and causes physiological stress, this capstone aimed to encourage a community to consider how they are living into that. This capstone was a service learning event that took place on March 11th at Northwest Christian University’s Night Chapel. This event wanted to take this idea of topic avoidance and secret keeping further and consider how this is affecting our relationship with God. From looking at scripture, and taking from theologians such as C.S. Lewis and Timothy Keller, this event explained how we can return to a glorifying relationship with God. This service learning event effectively encouraged a community to consider getting rid of the secrets they are keeping out of fear and guide their hearts towards Christ’s sacrifice as an invitation back into the God’s glorifying relationship.

COMM 499, Capstone

Doyle Srader

2 – 2:30 PM

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Bradley Keller & Ben Womack

Attachment Style Dimensions and Receiver Apprehension

The purpose of this study was to explore whether there was a relationship between attachment style dimensions and receiver apprehension. There were three hypotheses for this study. The first hypothesis was that people who are associated with a preoccupation attachment style dimension would have the lowest receiver apprehension score. The second was that people who are associated with fearful avoidance attachment style dimensions or relationships as secondary attachment style dimensions would have the highest receiver apprehension score. The third was that people who are associated with a general avoidance attachment style dimension or lack of confidence attachment style dimension would have a moderate receiver apprehension score. Thirty-two people participated in a survey. The survey consisted of two questionnaires, one measuring attachment style dimensions, and the other measuring receiver apprehension. However, the statistical significance of the study was found to be insignificant.

COMM 413, Advanced Interpersonal Communication

Doyle Srader

10 AM – Noon

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Kaylyn LeRoy

What’s More Persuasive: Social Media or Texting?

The idea behind this study was to see if it was possible to use a set of persuasive messages to try and get people to talk to strangers more often. The study consisted of 2 groups of people who were receiving the same persuasive message, the only difference is that some people received it over a Snapchat video and some received it over a text message. My hypothesis was that sending video messages over Snapchat would be more persuasive than text messaging due to the person being able to see my face and the expressions that I was making when I sent the message. The participants willingness to comply with talking to strangers was measured by an entry level survey on how willing they were and an exit level survey on how willing they were, with the hope that they would become more willing after hearing a series of persuasive messages on why it would be good for them to talk to strangers. After all of the persuasive messages were sent and the exit level survey was completed, the hypothesis of video messages being more persuasive was proven to be true by just a bit more than the participants that received text messages.

COMM 450, Persuasion

Doyle Srader

11:30 AM – Noon

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Katy Matteucci

The Science of Cancer and the Preventable Mechanisms Behind It

Cancer is one of the most morbid killers across the globe, and its obliteration has been the focus of thousands of studies over the past 250 years. And while the vast majority of cancers are caused by a myriad of ineluctable factors, such as growth and inheritance, over a third of cancer deaths are attributable to multitudinous preventable causes, such as poor lifestyle choices, contraction of certain viruses, usage of tobacco and alcohol, among other factors. As such, this presentation seeks to explain the underlying mechanisms of cancer, along with the precise means by which these preventable carcinogenic factors promote its emergence.

BIOL 200, General Biology

Paul Allee

10 – 10:30 AM

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Jasmine Pannu

Multiple Sclerosis, and the role of T cells

This presentation reviews the autoimmune disease, Multiple Sclerosis, and its’ association with the role of T cells along with causes and possible treatments. Multiple Sclerosis is a disease of the central nervous system which includes the brain and also spinal cord. Myelin specific T cells play a major role in this disease and there are other factors which can play a role in the risk of getting multiple sclerosis, such as vitamin D deficiency, gut bacteria dysbiosis and certain gene alterations. T cells are seen working throughout these causes and in the disease itself. Although there is no cure for multiple sclerosis, there are medications which can help those affected and are used to prevent frequent attacks. Further research is being done for treatment and cure of MS.

BIOL 499, Capstone

Paul Allee

10:30 – 11 AM

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Alyssa Perovich

Reading and Analysis of the Original Short Story: Black Whiskey

In this presentation, I will be sharing a selection from my short story, Black Whiskey, followed by an analysis of its themes and structure. The story follows Saphia Deering, a woman with a seemingly mundane life, as her past comes back to haunt her. As Saphia faces her demons, a series of new events and people lead her back to the church. In my analysis, I break the story down into categories to determine the influences behind it. The character of Saphia develops throughout the story and reaches a point of divine intervention before passing away. Supporting characters in the story are paired with different settings to help Saphia along the way, experiencing little development themselves. Themes include addiction, depression, sadness, faith, and healing. The plot is focused around a journey of spiritual development and includes multiple peaks and plateaus. Black Whiskey is influenced heavily by authors in the genre of literary fiction, such as Toni Morrison, Ayn Rand, and Ray Bradbury.

ENG 499, Capstone

James Watson

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1:30 – 2 PM

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Alyssa Perovich

Neo-Aristotelian Criticism of Aly Raisman’s Court Speech in the Larry Nassar Case

During the trial of Doctor Larry Nassar, dozens of women came forward and filed civil lawsuits against Nassar. Aly Raisman was among the 150 women to come forward with compelling testimonies and victim impact statements to help determine Nassar’s sentencing. A Neo-Aristotelian criticism is applied to the speech to analyze organization, style, delivery, memory, and success. Aly identified her abuser as Larry Nassar, and used language such as “sick” and “manipulative” to describe him. She used imagery phrases, spoke in a formal format, and made a case for the #MeToo movement. Aly’s speech is analyzed to prove the connection between her method and the sentencing of Doctor Larry Nassar.

COMM 441, Rhetorical Criticism

Doyle Srader

10 AM – Noon

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David Reed

The New Testament Usage of πνεῦμα for the Holy Spirit and Textual Parallels with the Old Testament- A Lexical Study

The New Testament deals with the activity of God’s Spirit (literally “the Breath of God”) more frequently than the Old Testament. The student of the Spirit is inevitably led to ask, “Where did the New Testament authors get their understanding of the Holy Spirit?” Jesus speaks comparatively infrequently about Him (as little as 6% of NT passages which mention the Spirit are on Jesus’ lips). Were the authors informed by teachings of Jesus which were left unrecorded? Was Paul illuminated on this topic while receiving visions in the third heaven? Or did they get their understanding of the Spirit primarily from the Old Testament? In other words, when comparing the use of “Spirit” in the New Testament with the Old, do we find more continuity or discontinuity? How much pneumatological innovation do we see by the apostles?

The hypothesis to be put to the test in this study is that, rather than fueled by fresh innovation in pneumatology, the understanding of the Holy Spirit by the apostles and New Testament authors is almost completely founded on the Old Testament material, which was then applied to the miraculous outworking of the Spirit which they saw occurring around them in the Church.

PH 693, Supervised Research

Dennis Lindsay

2 – 2:30 PM

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Elliott Rinehart

A biblical analysis of the nature of sin

An investigation of sin in the Bible. The aim of the Christian life is righteousness contrasted by the sinful nature of humans. A Christian understanding of sin is seen through language and the Bible. Sin may be understood better through the words used for sin in the Bible. There are many different types of sin, and aspects to sin. Examining the sins shown in the book of Genesis provides an overview of how sin is represented in Christianity. Temptation may be categorized as sin part of the time. A proper understanding of sin in the Bible should ease the hearts and minds of Christians as well as provide a more accurate understanding of how to live a Christian life.

BTM 499, Capstone

AJ Swoboda

1:30 – 2 PM

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Nicholas Rodriguez

Really Real

In African American communities, there are a disproportionate amount of people that are affected by generational poverty. Now while many of these people choose to embrace this lifestyle and the things that it has to offer, there are others who try their best to rise above it and make a better life for themselves than what their parents had. Kendrick Lamar’s song “Poe Mans Dreams” is written from the perspective of a man who came from the hood and has since escaped that lifestyle and sees the wrong in his old ways. It is easy to listen to this song and see the surface level messages, but Kendrick makes use of several terms that have a very prominent connotation and uses them to convey something else. Using Kenneth Burke’s Cluster Criticism to analyze the song, it is unveiled that Lamar is trying to persuade African Americans to not accept the circumstances that they were born into and to seek a better life.

COMM 441, Rhetorical Criticism

Doyle Srader

10 AM – Noon

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Emmalee Rusk

One-State-New-Government Solution for the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict

A one-state-new-government solution will be revealed through the careful consideration of both the Islamic and Judaist religions and desires, the history and political standing of both Palestinians and Israelis, as well as world politics, the pros, and cons to the popular two-state solution, and the benefits of a one-state-new-government solution, as the best solution.

There are two primarily popular solutions to the Palestine-Israeli conflict: the one state and the two-state solution. The one-state solution is the state of Israel as one collective state that involves both the Jews and Arabs in Palestine. One-Stae would involve Arabs being given the opportunity to be seen as equal and have the same rights, including voting, as the Israelites/Jews. The two-state solution is the idea that Palestine would be divided into a Palestinian state and an Israeli state. This solution would offer benefits for the Jews and the Palestinians in both having set borders so the conflict over who’s land is who’s can end. Both of these solutions seem simple at first glance. However, there are complications. Either group getting a whole and pure “state” of their own would require a middle eastern version of the trail of tears or a literal mass genocide for one side or the other – so a two-state is ruled out as a viable option.

A one-state solution is the only solution.

The Legatum Institute did a survey that ranks the most prosperous countries in the world. All of these countries have either a constitutional monarchy, representative democracy or parliamentary system. I suggest that in a one-state solution, the Israeli-Palestinian people adopt one of these systems of Government. If a Parliamentary system was adopted, chosen representatives would present the desires of the people, both Israeli and Palestinian, to a greater elected group of individuals to negotiate terms of legislation and seek compromise. This way, both have equal representation and have the ability to vote in a land that is just as their own as the others who inhabit it, without the fear of being outnumbered.

Through the course of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the two nations have been mushed into one land through the years of war, politics and local issues despite desperate efforts to give the two peoples their own state. The one-state-new-government solution does not dissipate the wounds of the past or solve all of the issues the Palestinians and the Israelis face. Instead, it creates a structure that after the wounds of the past heal, the country can thrive as others do with their own pasts of war and hurt in a unified desire for peace, equality, and the possession of land through the legal process instead of biased on a historical claim. This One-State-New Government solution provides the opportunity of a new beginning; something neither country has had the opportunity to receive since WWII.

HIST 410, History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict

Melisa Ortiz Berry

Bushnell History Symposium II: 2:25 – 2:45 PM

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Emmalee Rusk

The Trial of Arius

There is argument on the validity of the trial of Arius’ outcome. From the history of Arius’ process of creating his dual-converging theology, to the flawed heretical arguments that lead to the trial forcing investigation of the Arian church communities, and the actions and arguments after Arius was indeed convicted as a Heretic, these cemented the correct verdict of guilty – resulting in separation of Arianism from Orthodoxy.

The birth of Arius’ understanding of God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit comes from dyohypostatic theology and miahypostatic theology. Both theories do not stand alone, and cannot stand alone, but together they made the heretical threshold for Arius to thoughtfully build upon. Arianism is the belief that there is a Father and a Son; the Son, like any child/parent relationship, is subordinate to his father. This is known as the Subordinationism Theory.

The debates involving Arius were extensive, they even spread faster than Arius could travel. Arius’ theology caused so much discourse in the church, and therefore in the empire, that Constantine, the emperor, felt the need to involve himself. Constantine called a great council, the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. Constantine wished to have a unified Christianity in his empire. His concern was not so much for theological debates; it was on the unity of the church to result in unity for his empire concerning all religions. After the conclusion that Arianism was heresy, Constantine took sides with the council and determined Arianism a denial of faith to the empire, with

The most compelling argument for an unjust verdict at Nicaea is the recognition of the recalls, however, the same issues found at Nicaea still stand. Through the many arguments, old and new, Arius and his followers are continually found to be heretics.

In Conclusion, Arius’ developed a dual-converging heretical theology from dyohypostatic theology and miahypostatic theology, both heretical thoughts; this new theology lead to serious question of Arian and Orthodox church communities. Arius was justifiably left out of the determined Creed of Nicaea at the Council of Nicaea on the grounds of misplacement of Jesus Christ in the divine hierarchy in both chronological and power placement. What Christ accomplished for all does not commute with the theology Arius held. Therefore, the Church is better off without the confusing heresy Arius taught and the trial that determined him unorthodox was correct then, as it is correct now.

HIST 331, History of Christianity I

Melisa Ortiz Berry

Bushnell History Symposium: 11:20 – 11:40 AM

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Emmalee Rusk

Unitarian Universalism VS Coexistence

Unitarian Universalism is related to the term “coexist”, but it is not the same as Unitarian Universalism. It is important to understand the difference between these two to not muddle the intent and authenticity of both. Unitarian Universalism is a religion while the term “coexistence” is a social cry out for religious and social tolerance. From when Unitarian Universalism and the “coexist” symbols were originated, one far in the past and the other extremely recent, to the furthered development of theological history Unitarian Universalism possesses in its own origination and the arguments of social peace in comparison to religious security and peace surrounding each side: Unitarian Universalism and coexistence are not the same belief.

Unitarian “1. one who believes that the deity exists only in one person and 2. a member of a denomination that stresses individual freedom of belief, the free use of reason in religion, a united world community, and liberal social action.” Universalism is thought to be traced back to Origen, the well-known theologian, around A.D. 140-150. Unitarian Universalism was forged from Unitarianism and Universalism in the mid-20th century, specifically in 1961, seeing that their religions, since they were similar enough, would be stronger in their efforts together.

The “COEXIST” sticker began at a competition in Jerusalem, created by Piotr Mlodozeniec. The design was originally with just the David Star, the crescent moon “c” and the cross. The David Star is a symbol for Judaism, the Crescent moon is for Islam and the Cross is for Christianity.

Unitarian Universalists seem to collectively agree that coexistence ideology is part of UU principles but is not an adequate description of their beliefs. There is no denying that these two are similar, but they are clearly not the same. Distinguishing the two comes down to an argument of Religion versus Social argumentation.

Unitarian Universalism is a religion while the term “coexistence” is a social cry out for religious and social tolerance. From when Unitarian Universalism and “coexist” were originated, to the furthered theology UU possesses than coexistence, and the arguments surrounding each side: UU and coexistence are not the same belief. The two beliefs are both commendable in their own way and have similarities in their desires, but due to their differences in root desires, historical upbringings, and modern applications of social or religious arguments they are related by a desire for unity, but by nothing more significant.

HIST 332, History of Christianity II

Melisa Ortiz Berry

Bushnell History Symposium: 10:30 – 11:00 AM

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Kaylin Salladay

Gene Therapy

In September of 1990 Gene therapy was delivered to its first patient, a four-year old girl suffering from adenosine deaminase deficiency. Research on Gene therapy had begun in 1985 when trying to discover a new way to deliver a human gene via a retrovirus. Since its creation, Gene therapy has been met with major push back based on its ethical concerns. However, it has also been proven through clinical trials to be an effective way of treating diseases we have not had the methods to be able to treat. This presentation reviews the techniques associated with Gene therapy as well as a review of a few of the clinical trials. It also addresses some of the ethical concerns and the regulations in the United States. The further development of Gene therapy could change the course of people’s lives who currently live with untreatable diseases.

BIOL 499, Capstone

Paul Allee

11 – 11:30 AM

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Abby Spencer

Exploring the impact of Identity in the Role of Firefighting

Symbolic interactionism shapes an individual’s way of thinking and identity. Our self-concept is part of our own experience and also part of what we think others believe about us. Through this process, labels can become self-fulfilling prophecies. The purpose of this literature review is to explore the impact of identity regarding the role of firefighting.

COMM 499, Capstone

Doyle Srader

1:30 – 2 PM

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Ben Womack

Research Based or Affectionate messages

The purpose of this study was to find out if research based or affectionate messages were more persuasive? The hypothesis for this study was that messages that cite research from experts would be more persuasive than messages with expressions of affection and references to shared experiences. Nineteen people participated in the study. The study consisted of an entry survey, a series of persuasive messages sent to the participants, and an exit survey. The entry survey determined the participants willingness to interact with strangers. Then over a six week span a series of research-based messages were sent to a group and a series of affectionate messages were sent to another group persuading them to interact with strangers. The exit survey reassessed their willingness to interact with strangers. The Research conducted in the study showed that messages with expressions of affection and references to shared experiences were more persuasive than messages that cite research from experts.

COMM 450, Persuasion

Doyle Srader

11:30 AM – Noon

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