T. Brendan Leahy

SDI and the Popular Conception of Science

Brendan’s thesis is a wonderful integration of scientific analysis and political science. He assesses the evolution of the Strategic Defense Initiative, an initiative of the Reagan administration to develop defensive weapons in space. Brendan shows that the United States scientific community was far from achieving any such defense shield at that time; in fact, the science did not exist to test whether they were possible, much less make SDI a reality. He then considers the public reaction to the SDI initiative, especially the public’s tendency to equate science and technology. From a political science perspective, he takes into account the climate of the cold war, and the manipulation of public perception by the Reagan administration. His case study is not only a useful guide to a particular time in this country’s history, but a cautionary tale about the ways in which politics, science, technology, and public opinion interact and are subject to manipulation.

Aaron Dillard

Have you Heard? Rethinking Gender Differences in Propensity to Gossip

Aaron’s thesis reviews some of the most significant literature on social interactions and the tendency to gossip—by some estimations human conversations are composed of 70 percent gossip!—when gossip is defined as speaking about others, sharing, and spreading information. His own research challenges some of society’s basic assumptions about the nature of conversation and the gender balances in gossip. Aaron identifies an important bias in existing research on the nature of gossip that tends to center on gendered topics such as celebrity gossip. He found some gender stereotypes—such as women talking more than men—to be upheld by his study, but others directly challenge gender stereotypes—most notably, he found that in his study, men showed a slightly greater propensity to gossip. His empirical process was thorough, detailed, and impressive, particularly given such a nuanced topic, and others agree: his paper has been accepted for presentation at the American Psychological Association convention.

Jamie Wittenberg

Behind the Bloody Chamber

Folklore is nearly always grounded in a country or culture, and Jamie uses this as a lever for insight. Specifically, she considers folklore in France, Scandinavia, and Russia. Her choice of nations and eras is astute—looking at France in the 17th century, Scandinavia in the 19th and 20th century, and Russia in the 20th century, she thus juxtaposes folkloric tales with periods in these nations’ histories that served as ripe staging grounds for nationalism and patriotism. Jamie’s thesis is further refined by identifying feminist conceptions of the folktale, both in undercurrents of earlier stories and in the contemporary re-telling of stories. She makes a sophisticated case for folklore as an evolving literature; one that cannot be simply described as authentic or inauthentic, but which is subject to constant revision. The elegance of Jamie’s thesis is that it uses literary analysis, history, and political and cultural observation to help us understand more thoroughly how national identity and gender issues can be developed, manipulated, transmitted, and appropriated.

Maria Terres

Invading Lake Mansfield Forest: A Study of Local Invasive Plants

By studying the effects of history and development on a plot of land literally in our own backyard, Maria has provided an important window on how land use and human decisions affect the ecology and health of a community. She studied a piece of land near Lake Mansfield, reviewing its historic uses and then assessing the current plant population. She uses direct observation, with GPS, field research, and statistical analysis, to determine the type and coverage of invasive plant species in this plot of land. She found significant coverage of six invasive species—coverage that could lead them to choke out native plants, and decrease the total plant species richness. Maria provides an outline for management of the land that could lead to re-vegetation of native species. The thesis is a wonderful example of focused research, from questioning through to testing and application. And thanks to the GPS and GIS photos, along with pictures of the invasive species, I will have a much better idea of what I am seeing when I walk around Lake Mansfield!