Indiana University South Bend’s Publication Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Undergraduate Research Conference Edition

Indiana University of South Bend: Committed to Teaching Students about the Joys of ResearchBy KELSIE FERGUSONStaff Writer

Developing your understanding of a topic can be time consuming and complex however, IU South Bend provides an opportunity for students in

any program to develop their research and showcase its results to their peers and professors. This opportunity is called the Undergraduate Research Conference. The Conference was held on Friday April 8, and show-cased nearly 50 students’ works. The hallways of first floor Wiekamp were filled with anxious students starting early in the morning at 9:00a.m for the first session of students presenting. In each room there were 3 to 4 students who were given 10 to 15 minutes to present their research and answer any questions. Afterward the next student would take the podium until all had spoken. After the first wave was a break for coffee and dough-nuts, as well as an opportunity for students to display and discuss their posters. Professors, peers, and friends gath-ered around one another’s research and talked one on one about their findings and questions. Here students were more relaxed, speaking less formally about the work they put into developing their topics. It was in this portion of the day that you could truly see the students’ excitement at showcasing their works. IUSB has a mission that, according to their official web-site, seeks to “foster an experiential learning environment that engages students in the joy of researching and ex-panding the knowledge base of their academic area.” Without a doubt, the Undergraduate Research Conference helped to further these goals magnificently. The second morning session went mostly like the first

followed by a Keynote Presentation given by Dr. Alan Ward from the University of Michigan. The crowd gath-ered in the campus Grille for a quick lunch and, before the speech was given Hannah Stowe was presented with the SMART Merit Award for her research. Lastly the day was wrapped up with the afternoon ses-sions and editors’ round table discussion. As the hallways cleared and nerves settled students exited Wiekamp with

smiles and lively banter IUSB successfully provided a place for students not only to present, but to learn from each other’s presentations. Research was given ranging from black holes to masculinity influences in American film. There was something for everyone to relate to, and learn about. I mark down the 2011 Undergraduate Re-search Conference as a brilliant success.

IUSB Schurz Library prize: Get paid for doing researchBy MANDI STEFFEYStaff Writer

It is a little-known fact that you could get paid for knowing what you’re doing in the library. Good, ex-tensive research (think: thesis paper) takes a lot of

know-how, but if you’re good at it, the IUSB Schurz library is offering a prize. The library prize is a $500 reward for an extensive ex-ample of thorough research. This research may only come from work that you had to complete for class credit. In addition to the research, a 500-700 word essay describing what kind of research you did must accompany the final product. According to the IUSB Schurz Library website, a candi-date for the prize must “focus on the research process and application of information literacy: the demonstration of

library research skills, adept use of library resources, and the reflection upon the strategies utilized to investigate a research problem.” So, using the resources that we all learned in Q-110 will come in handy in consideration for this award. Other things that will be looked at to determine who will receive the prize are the actual content of the research project and if it seems as if something was learned or gained as a result of this research. While the 2011 deadline has passed, you can still get started for next year’s competition if you are interested. This year’s prize winner was Sara Lowe for her 36 page re-search paper on a speech made by JFK. All the fine details about the prize can be found at library.iusb.edu/about/li-braryprize.shtml or by simply asking your librarian. COURTESY OF FLICKR.COM

The IUSB Schurz Library has many resources for your next research project

PHOTO BY JEFF TATAYProfessors Lee Kahan, Paul Mishler, Benjamin Balthaser and keynote speaker Alan Wald

2 Preface Wednesday, April 13, 2011

The PrefaceThe Preface is the official weekly student newspaper of IU South Bend and is published every Wednesday during the fall and spring semesters. The paper receives funding from the Student Government Association and through advertising revenue. The Preface is a student written, edited, and designed newspaper.

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Research 101: What is undergraduate research and why is it important?By JEFF TATAYStaff Writer

Conducting research as an undergradu-ate student may seem to some like a difficult task that requires a lot of ex-

tra work outside of class; however, seeing re-search as laborious extra work that takes place only as extra initiative on part of the student is a misconception of what the term research re-ally means. Conducting extensive research, on the other hand, is a difficult task that requires more work than undergraduate students are often as-signed; yet the work that many students do ev-eryday in their classes qualifies as research. “Research is a means of investigation to create knowledge, said the Dr. Elizabeth E. Dunn, Dean of College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. “It could be knowledge new to just you or it could be new to humankind. Once the new knowledge is acquired it needs to be commu-nicated effectively to others.”  The communication of research is where the research paper, presentation and demonstra-tions becomes the next step in the process of relaying the acquired knowledge to the dis-courses of the academic disciplines; however, there is a process to conducting research, which Dean Dunn refers to as the “phases” of research. Dean Dunn clearly illustrates the research “phases” in her five brief and precisely articu-lated steps: First is the recognition of an interesting problem to solve or investigate. This requires intellectual curiosity, creativity, a willingness to speculate, and the ability and enough prior knowledge to notice that there is a question to be asked. In many ways this is the hardest part. Second is the design phase—how do I go about solving or understanding the question

raised? More creativity needed but also rigor-ous logic, knowledge of design principles, and broad knowledge of related knowledge. Thirdis the collection of evidence. This re-quires persistence and thoroughness. Fourth is the analysis of the evidence and inferring conclusions. More rigorous thinking, logic, and ability to see patterns and connec-tions, the ability to contextualize, etc. Five and Finally, you must communicate your conclusions effectively and persuasively. Obviously, here is where communication skills are key. Dean Dunn’s five “phases” of research clearly demonstrates that all academic work and studyat a university is a part of one of the steps to investigation, creating and sharing knowl-edge. “You are no doubt doing research in every class you take at IUSB—whether you are inves-tigating the interaction of two chemical com-pounds, exploring the rhetorical construction of an essay, trying to figure out the most effec-tive means of communication in a large orga-nization, or searching for a way to understand the meaning of human existence. It’s all re-search, said Dean Dunn. “In many ways, this is the goal of all education. We often talk about the two key goals of the university—educating students and creating new knowledge—but they both rely on research.” The importance of undergraduate research can simply be answered by remembering why it is that we enroll in universities in the first place. Perhaps one wants a better job, or a piece of paper that says they are qualified; however, one cannot avoid the fact that the college experience or any education for that matter, is a means of enriching the self and the academic community with an investigation of the world around us.

PHOTO BY JEFF TATAYCalvin Streeter…:“Once the new knowledge is acquired it needs to be communicated effectively to others,” said Dean Dunn. L to R: Calvin Streeter, Matthew Bobus and Mitchell Moseng communicating their research in the form of a poster presentation

at the 2011 Undergraduate Research Conference.

Undergraduate Research ConferencePresenters and Research TitlesJohn Baldwin: The Markale Mortar: Unraveling the Mystery

John Baldwin: Unintended Consequences: Cause for the Rus-sian Famine of 1921

Kellirae Boann: Teen Pregnancy

Melissa Brandenberger Marriage and Conflict

Elaina Breznau: The Intraflagellar Transport Proteins of Tetra-hymena thermophila

Lance Burchett: Flood Narratives: Fiction or FACTion?

Lance Burchett: Virtual Culture?: An Ethnography of Facebook Behavior

Meghan Coughlin: The Almighty’s Umbrella: Practicing Free Will in Piers Plowman

Timothy Dann-Barrick: Production and Reproduction: A Feminist Look at the Implications of les Politiques Natalistes in Contemporary France

Brandi David: How to Kill for Profit: The Attack on Objectivity Present in the Mockumentary Man Bites Dog

James DeBew: Words as Weapons: The CIA’s Propaganda Efforts and Connections to the American Press in the 1950’s and 60’s

Hannah Dill: Expanding the Base of Civically Engaged College Students

Christopher Drapeau: Commonalities of Creativity and Suicide in College Students

Joshua Eby: Cosmic Censorship in Extremal Black Holes

Sharon Eggleston: Organ Donation: The Ethical Challenges Within the Current System

Bryan Foster: Langland’s Will, Recklessness, and Search for Grace

Rebecca Gibson: Looking at Me, Looking at You: What Does the Camera in American Film Represent?

Angela Johnson: Women in the Legal Profession: Disparity in Law School, Inequality as Lawyers

Andrea F. Jones: Exposure to, Attitudes Toward and Knowl-edge of Suicide

Andrea F. Jones: Symptoms of ADHD, Coping Skills and Reasons for Living

Jake Jones Felon: Disenfranchisement: How the a Focus on Punishment has Damaged Democracy Throughout

Adam Kaylor: Electrocatalytic Oxidation of Phenolic Estrogen-ic Compounds at a Nickel Modified Glassy Carbon Electrode

Adriana Klinedinst: An Assessment of Commercial Mouth-washes on Oral Bacteria

Emily Grace: Kuehnemund Designing, Constructing, and Test-ing the Sono Clamp

Emily Grace Kuehnemund: The Effects of Specular Reflec-tion in Acoustic Transducer Backings Used for Dark Matter Detection

Kristin L. LaFollette: A Modern Day Edgar Allan Poe: The Contemporary Gothic Works of Stephen King

Kristin L. LaFollette :Piers the Plowman: An Allegorical Repre-sentation of Christ’s Power and Humanity and the Importance of Hard Work

Evelynn Lape: The Role of Dynein Light Chain 4 in Cilia Function

Ethan Legg: The True Approval of Going Public

List Continued on Page 7

3 Preface Wednesday, April 13, 2011

By TJ DALENBERG

Chris Wachs, a senior here at IU South Bend, is a self-proclaimed history buff. “History is why we

are who we are today, along with our soci-ety, culture, and individuality,” Wachs said. He is the editor-in-chief of the His-tory Undergraduate Research Journal, making its annual debut on April 14.The HURJ is a campus wide academic journal published through IUSB each year, along with its partners, the Under-graduate Research Journal, the Analecta, and the New Views on Gender. The HURJ solicits research papers from history classes and uses the best research done for that year by students. “We want to show-case the best history research at IUSB,” stated Wachs. The HURJ is peer-reviewed by a group of trained students and faculty. Students must apply and take a one-credit course, learning the process of editing and pub-lishing an academic journal. “The stu-dents learn the submission process, as well as how to critically read an academic work,” Wachs said. Three student editors read each paper anonymously. Then, the group meets and votes on the best work. “These papers go beyond simple report-ing,” Wachs said. “We look for good argu-

ments, unique theses, and different as-pects of a story.” Wachs said that the journal is a great op-portunity for students because it is some-thing they can put on their resumes and graduate school applications. Being pub-lished in a journal like this can set them apart from other students.The benefit of this journal is evident, al-though the workers behind the scenes of-ten go unnamed.“I definitely have to give a shout out to Dr. Lisa Zwicker, our faculty advisor. She was a huge help and this was her brainchild last year,” said Wachs. The HURJ is currently conducting inter-views for next year’s editor-in-chief. The students and faculty at IUSB now anx-iously wait for the release of the History Undergraduate Research Journal.

By KRYSTAL VIVIANStaff Writer

When senior Mo Pickar read “The history of the Miracu-lous Apparition of the Vir-

gin of Guadalupe in 1531” for an Eng-lish class, she had tons of questions that she needed answered. She wondered about the role of the church during the colonization of Mexico, what coloniza-tion was like, and how the text she had read played a role during that time. While searching for the answers, Pick-ar found herself on a journey of research that had never been done before. The research resulted in her research paper “Let It Be Written in Different Languag-es: La Virgen and Problems in (Re)Writ-ing the Early American Literary Canon.” “I spent weeks just figuring out how it was published,” she said. “Nobody is even sure who wrote it.” Because the piece was part of an an-thology she was reading for Dr. Jake Mattox’s L350 class, she had assumed that the piece would be well-situated. However, because it wasn’t, it changed her course of research. “I had to frame this piece of writing

written and published by the church that complicated hybridity,” Pickar said. “How does that form how we think about the literary canon and the mar-ginalization of indigenous people?” Pickar looks at all of that in her essay, which was officially published on April 7, 2011. While she spent a lot of time researching, which was difficult, she ap-preciated the opportunity to delve into a new area of research as an undergradu-ate in college. “For me, it was exciting to write it. There’s not a lot written about this par-ticular historical literary document,” she said. Pickar is a Women’s and Gender Stud-ies major and is also pursuing a minor in English. As she heads toward gradu-ating this May, she is especially grateful for her professors who helped push her to expand her research “to really not just focus on gender, but the interconnect-edness of all sites of oppression.” “For me, this means race, class, eth-nicity, colonization, gender. It means generally challenging what we are taught and what we think about the American literary canon.”

Chris Wachs, Editor-in-chief of the History Undergraduate Research Journal

Chris Wachs on the steps of Martha’s Midway Tavern; a local place that is know to have a history in bootlegging. “Martha’s opened in 1924 and Martha did some bootlegging on the side.”

“One of the ways that people got alcohol during prohibition was by using industrial alcohol; unfortu-nately, this alcohol was poisoned by the federal government in order to discourage consumption. Boot-leggers didn’t care and sold the poisoned alcohol and as a result many citizen died or went blind.”

PHOTO BY JEFF TATAY

The original literary research of an undergraduate

Graduating senior Mo Pickar published an essay on the American literary canon for the 2011 Undergradu-ate Research Journal, in which she completed research that had not been done before.

PHOTO BY KRYSTAL VIVIAN

4 Preface Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Advice from the expertsUndergraduate Research Panel talks about what makes a good research paperBy MANDI STEFFEYStaff Writer

On April 8 at the Undergraduate Research Confer-ence, a panel comprised of editors and research-ers for the various research journals got together

to present what makes a good journal article. These people included Rebecca Gibson, editor of the Undergraduate Research Journal, Sara Lowe, the 2010 winner of the Li-brary Prize for Undergraduate Research, and Chris Wachs, editor of the Undergraduate Research Journal in History. Each member of this panel had a chance to describe a bit of what their journal/research was about and how they went about working on it or writing it. Rebecca Gibson was the first to speak. She spoke about what went on at the Undergraduate Research Journal this year and how it was put together. According to Gibson, out of 64 submissions, only 22 were chosen. These 22 works of research “flow from one submission to the next” in the journal, which has been published and can be picked up around campus. When asked what typically goes into the Undergraduate Research Journal, Gibson simply stated that “no one subject is more publishable than another” and that the articles really do stand alone—the one aspect that makes each article stand out is the en-thusiasm that is put into the work by its author. As far as

what happens behind editorial lines, Gibson said it took a lot of work to complete all the tasks this year, and that the time in between original submission from contributors and publishing was around one month. Gibson said that even though most of the submissions were extremely well-put together and polished, work still needed to be done to make the articles ready for publishing. The editor for the history journal, Chris Wachs, also said that a lot of work was put in this year. Out of 25 works submitted to the history journal, only 9 were chosen, and all of them needed a little work. Wachs put emphasis on the fact that no matter how finished a research paper can seem to be, they are always in a “constant state of almost being finished.” When asked what specifically makes a re-search paper good, Wachs said that when a research paper goes beyond just simply “talking about” an event or a sub-ject, that is when it becomes remarkable. Wachs said that the most important thing is when the authors of the pa-pers try to really dig into their research to come up with new ideas. This meshes with the high standard that the Undergraduate Research Journal in History holds for its submissions and content—Wachs said that the various editors and people behind the scenes of this journal worked to make sure the 9 chosen articles were as good as they could possibly be. This year’s journal should be ready

to read by the end of the semester. The last to speak about her work was Sara Lowe, the win-ner of the Library Prize. Lowe, who graduated in 2010, wrote a 36-page paper about a speech that JFK gave in 1963 on civil rights. The Library Prize is a prize that awards only the highest quality research here at IUSB, and Lowe’s work made the cut. Lowe described how overwhelmed she was at the beginning of the process, not really knowing what the entire library had to offer specifically. “The librarians are there to help you,” Lowe said. After talking to the librarians and delving deeper into her re-search, Lowe went through several primary and secondary sources to construct her paper. Previously thinking she knew quite a bit on JFK’s stance on civil rights, Lowe actu-ally learned new things that surprised her. “I thought that JFK was compassionate towards the civ-il rights movement, but I learned through my research that he was much more interested in the health of the na-tion,” Lowe said. Throughout all the submissions and re-submissions of her paper to her professor, she found out that writing the paper was a very interesting experience. All the research journals (including all the fantastic ar-ticles inside) should be available for reading by the end of the semester.

The Undergraduate Publications and Research Panel

PHOTO BY JOHN BATLINER

5 Preface Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Keynote speaker highlights role of literary leftBy KRYSTAL VIVIANStaff Writer

The Undergraduate Research Conference took a lunch break Friday afternoon to listen to a keynote speaker that addressed the campus theme, the meaning of work. Dr. Alan Ward, a professor of English Literature at the University of Michigan, gave a speech called “American Night: Labor and the Radical Novel After World War II.” He spoke about the literary left novel “The Big Clock” by Kenneth Fearing, published in 1946. He called it a “psy-cho-sexual roman-noir.” “Fearing showed the virtuoso importance that conveys the manic gothic-like loneliness… of the middle classes,” Ward said. He also talked about how Fearing’s novel, as well as other literary left radical novels from the 30s to 50s, dis-cussed the use of mass communication as propaganda. Ward said that these added to “the postwar makeover” of America, and that after WWII, American literature accu-rately portrayed the middle class in ways that other pieces of literature did not do. He said Fearing “took the pulse of the growing middle class” and wrote about it in his novels, especially in “The Big Clock.” “This post-war radical literature pays tribute to the 1940s era of doom and gloom,” Ward said. “Left wing writ-ers wrote about the labor movement, and trade unions.” Ward was introduced by IUSB English professor Ben Balthaser.

Hannah Stowe (right) receiving the SMART Merit Award from Dr. Andrea Rusnock (left).

PHOTO BY JEFF TATAY

What’s in the water that you’re drinking?

A research study conducted by an IUSB student discovers our “not so clean” drinking water.BY JESSICA FARRELL Editor in Chief

Nestle Pure Life, Fiji, Ice Mountain, and Aquafina are just a few brand names of the most common-ly used water that people drink. It says on the

bottle that it’s purified and enhanced with minerals to give it a “better taste”. But the true question is what are we re-ally drinking? Adam Kaylor, IU South Bend bio chemistry major, re-searched the electrocatalyic oxidation of phenolic estro-genic compounds at a nickel modified glassy carbon elec-trode. In every day terms, Kaylor explains what this could all mean. “There are dangerous amounts of hormones or hormone like compounds in our water and in our environment,” he says. “We are trying to figure out a way to usefully mea-sure these concentrations.”During the IUSB Undergraduate Research Conference, Kaylor was one of the few students who gave a presenta-tion on his own study. With a classroom full of fellow col-leagues, professors, and family, Kaylor explained that these exact hormones are even in our city water. The hormones (phenolic estrogenic compounds) are found to cause an increase of breast cancer in women and can be a source of early development in young girls. Since these chemicals are so small, they may not get filtered out of the water because not many people know of them. Kaylor’s research, which he collaborated with the Uni-versity of Notre Dame, was to inform those about these chemicals and be able to measure how much of these hor-

mones are in the water. Therefore, it can be filtered out and people can have true “purified” drinking water. Before hebecame involved with this complicated yet re-warding research, Kaylorwas a carpenter. “When I came back to school,” he said, “I wanted to make sure I got the most out of my education here and most prepared for what I could do.” Kaylor went to the professors in the chemistry depart-ment and asked them “what he needed to do to ensure his career path and to get the most exposure he could while he was at IUSB”. He was then introduced to Dr. Grace Muna who started the research program and became a great mentor for Kay-

lor. “Now I think that I am ready for graduate school,” he said, “which I wouldn’t have thought I would have chosen that path if it wasn’t for this research.”Cleaner water and a cleaner environment would help ev-eryone’s health. The research that Kaylor studied will hopefully bring more awareness to these chemicals that are found in drinking water, and inspire others to take ac-tion and ask for these dangerous hormones to be filtered out. To read more about Kaylor’s research pick up your copy of IUSB’s Undergraduate Research Journal.

PHOTO BY JEFF TATAY

Adam Kaylor

6 Preface Wednesday, April 13, 2011

RICKY TEITLOFF

In 1991 Yugoslavia erupted into civil war, ultimately leading to its separation into seven different

countries known as the Yugosphere. IU South Bend senior, Gordan Skaro, was a six year old living in the region that became Bosnia. With his background, it is no surprise that he is majoring in History and minoring in European Studies. When professor Zwicker approached him to present at the Undergraduate Research Conference (URC), Skaro knew immediately what he was going to research. Skaro decided to write about how musical festivals and concerts are beginning to bring the people of the war-torn region back together. “To me, (the presentation) has a special meaning because I’m from there,” Skaro said. The presentation hits on all seven of the countries that used to form Yugoslavia, but is focused on Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia. Skaro’s message is simple and clear. The Yugosphere is a region on the rebound. The musical festivals and concerts Skaro described are reminiscent of the musical movement in the United States during the 1960s and 1970s and the civil rights movement. “Music is powerful,” Skaro said, “The lyrics of the songs are bringing

back a feeling of nostalgia and bringing the people together.” The concerts have shown a sense of unity and acceptance that hasn’t been demonstrated since before the war began. “Artists are starting to perform in countries other than their own now. A band from Bosnia performing in Serbia really shows an improvement in relations in the region,” Skaro said with a smile on his face. “People are bringing the old country flags to the concerts. It makes me optimistic that things are getting better.” There is a large population of people from the Yugosphere in our community, including many students at IUSB. A large portion of that population that moved here because of the war has negative feelings towards their homeland because of what they witnessed during the war. Skaro hopes to enlighten these people of the improvement in the region. “ My goal is to provide a different light for the critics of Yugoslavia. I want to show them that there are positive things happening; that there are things worth missing,” Skaro said. “I left Yugoslavia in 1994 when I was nine years old,” Skaro shared, “I want to return to Bosnia some day. That is where I am from and I want to help my country in any way that I can. After doing the research for this project I am very hopeful for the future.”

By JEFF TATAYStaff Writer

Angela Johnson, a political sci-ence major at IU South Bend is going to begin a juris doctorate

program in fall 2011 and has been ac-cepted to the University of Notre Dame, IU Maurer School of Law, IU Indianap-olis School of Law, Valparaiso, Michigan State, Chicago-Kent, and John Marshall. She will graduate with honors in the summer of 2011; however, the near completion of her B.A. and acceptance to law school did not come without a passion for acquiring and sharing knowledge.Johnson, who is a campus intern for the American Democracy Projectand serves as chief justice of the Student Govern-ment Association has done extensive research since she enrolled in an inde-pendent study course to earn a political science credit for her in-chambers in-ternship with St. Joseph County Judge Michael Scopelitis.Since then, Johnson has conducted research on the process of judicial selection in the U.S. and has written a research paper titled “The Merits of Judicial Selection,”which has been selected for publication in the 2011

IUSB Undergraduate Research Journal.“During one of the first few meetings with Judge Scopelitis at the court, he spoke about the difference in the way St. Joseph County Judges are appointed to the bench and Elkhart County Judges (where I live) have to endure popular elections which closely resemble other political/legislative races,” said Johnson.“I was immediately intrigued and Dr. Elizabeth Bennion, who super-vised my internship so that I could get the political science credit, encouraged me to research and write about the top-ic.”With the encouragement and knowl-edge of IUSB’s Dr. Bennion and Judge Scopelitis, Johnson set out to explore the affects that the different processes of ju-dicial selection have on the citizen.“At first I was mainly interested in better understanding how the method of se-lecting a judge to serve on the bench im-pacts parties to a given case. But as I continued my research, I realized that selection methods impact all tax-paying

Music provides hope for SkaroGordon Skaro, IUSB Student and Undergraduate Research Presenter.

PHOTO BY RICKY TEITLOFF

Angela Johnson and undergraduate research

Angela Johnson: “I have learned that there are a lot of changes that could be made to make the profession more gender-neutral and available to aspiring lawyers of all walks of life,” said Johnson.

COURTESY OF LINDA PHILLIPS

See JOHNSON/ Page 8

7 Preface Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Undergraduate Research ConferencePresenters and Research Titles (Continued from Page 2)

Ryan Lubelski: Presence of Genes Associated With Increased Virulence Found in Fusarium Species Associated With the Plant Hydrophyllum

Meredith McCabe: Cuckoo for Cacao: The Significance of Cacao Use Among the Maya

Bridget McGann: Colic: A Culture-Bound Syndrome

Mandy McKee: Piers Plowman: Achieving Salvation in a Corrupt World

T.J. McNally: Piers Plowman: Passus V and the Intrusion of Authorial Anxiety

Stephanie C. Merryfield: Vico: Curtailing Mechanistic Cartesian-ism in Food Safety

Mathieu Ndong: Assembly and Testing of the Large Area multi-institutional Scintillator Array

Michael H. Passini: Beverage Bottles Found on Dig Sites: Possible Origins and Contents

Michael H. Passini: Facebook and Social Networking

Brian Payne: The Criminal Justice Dilemma—Individual Rights and Social Order

Brandon Rickey: The Constitutionality of Indiana’s Voter ID Law and the Burdensome Effects it Has On The Fundamental Right to Vote; Why Indiana’s Voter ID Law Does not Withstand Strict Scrutiny and A Criticism of the Supreme Court’s Decision in Crawford v Marion County Elections Board not to Apply the Standard

Jared Shepherd: Analyzing Richard Dawkins’ Treatment of Ein-stein and Einsteinian Religion: Convergences and Divergences in Dawkins’ The God Delusion

Jared Shepherd: Cannabinoids in Insects?

Gordon Skaro: Yugo-nostalgia: Remembering and Rebuilding a Nation through Music

Nathan Smith: Detectors and Data Acquisition for the St. George Recoil Mass Separator

Patrick Stevens: High Stakes on the High Seas: The Cold War, the CIA, and Project Azorian, 1968-74

Hannah Stowe: Anti-Imperialist Implications of Charles W. Chesnutt’s The Conjure Woman

Calvin Streeter: Mitchell Moseng & Matthew Bobus Dandeli-ons Used to Determine Presence of Tomato Ring Spot Virus in Orchards

Lynlee Swartz: Facebook and Self-Identity

Michael R. Szymanski: Frankenstein: The United States in Af-ghanistan during the 1980s and 1990s

Kristen Thomasberger: The Soil Conservation Service: Rebuild-ing the Dust Bowl

McKenzie Tozan: The Equivocal Nature of Free Will: The Miscon-ception of Free Will in Piers Plowman Throughout

Chris Wachs: An Analysis of Industrial Alcohol and Government Policy During Prohibition

Celeste Warrell: Unique Thermal Hysteresis Antifreeze Glycolipid Confers Cryoprotection to Non-cold-tolerant Geranium Cells

Megan Waugh & Sikholisile Nyoni: Work and Play in Facebook Profiles

Drew Whiteford: SUDS and the Expressive Writing Paradigm

Publishing as an undergrad helps build resume, other skills not learned in classroomBy KRYSTAL VIVIANStaff Writer

While in college, students are preparing them-selves for their lives after graduation. By completing research, turning in assignments

and taking exams, students learn a basis that will help them enter their chosen professional career fields. How-ever, one thing that many students do not consider dur-ing undergraduate studies is resume building, especially by publishing. IU South Bend offers five opportunities to become published officially while an undergraduate. By joining the staff at the Preface or submitting work to the Under-graduate Research Journal, the History Undergraduate Research Journal, New Views on Gender, or The Ana-lecta, students are given many chances to be officially published, no matter what their major.And according to Rebecca Gibson, editor- in-chief of the 2011 Undergraduate Research Journal, publishing as an undergraduate does more than give students a byline.“Submitting your work for publication takes guts, and shows that you’re not afraid to take risks,” she said.“Sure you could get rejected, but you could also get accepted and you’ll never know if you don’t try. It also shows fu-ture employers and graduate schools the quality of your work, and that you can follow through on a project from its inception to its publication.”Gibson has also served as editor-in-chief for New Views on Gender for two years previous to being editor-in-chief of the URJ.She says the first thing she looks for, as an editor, is an interesting topic. In order for people to read the publica-tion, the work inside of it must be interesting. It must also be cohesive and flow well both individually and col-lectively.“The one thing I do not look for is who wrote the paper,” said Gibson. “I take the identifying information off be-fore I begin my own editing process.” This helps her en-

sure that the process is entirely fair, and that she is only accepting or denying each paper based on the paper it-self.However, once a paper has been accepted, Gibson works closely with each author during the editing process. Sometimes papers need to be cut because they are too long, and the individual authors are responsible for deci-sions like that. Also, if there are any major styling or for-matting issues, Gibson works with the authors on those as well.And for students who think that publishing as an under-graduate may not be beneficial, think again.“It’s beneficial for all majors to publish, but students who are in a very artistic discipline may want to consider pub-lishing a research work to bolster their credibility as scholars and show that they can think critically and ana-lytically about their topics,” said Gibson.“Play to your strengths. Do not try to publish in a re-search journal if you are doing literary work, and vice versa.”The publications offered at IUSB are professionally print-ed and look very neat and clean. They are much more impressive to hand to potential employers as opposed to loose-leaf papers or unprofessional publications.However, there are more publishing opportunities for undergraduates than just the IUSB publications options. For students who are interested in becoming published, including students looking to get artwork published, it is best to start by talking to professors, says Gibson.“Professors are wonderful resources for opportunities on and off this campus, and can steer you in the correct di-rection to best frame your work for publication.”For more information about student publications, visit http://www.iusb.edu/~sblife/publications.shtml.

PHOTO BY JOHN BATLINER

IUSB Student Rebecca Gibson, also Editor In Chief for the Undergraduate Research Journal

8 Preface Wednesday, April 13, 2011

JOHNSON: From Page 6

citizens,” said Johnson. The more I learned, the more in-terested I became and before I knew it I had written over 30 pages based on my research.”It takes great personal determination and passion to con-duct an extensive research project; however, Johnson is grateful for the support and guidance she has received from the knowledgeable and experiencedDr. Bennion and Judge Scopelitis.“Dr.Bennion was extremely instrumental in teaching me how to look critically at what I was learning and how to formulate what I was finding into a scholarly piece,” said Johnson. “Judge Scopelitis was an excellent resource be-cause he had testified in front of the Indiana Judiciary Committee in support of merit selection and in doing so, had already gathered some materials to support his argu-ment.”Although Johnson’s research was passionately conducted with a focus and determination that produced 30 men-tored pages of research, her goal to share her findings with the campus did not arrive immediately and easily. The Un-dergraduate Research Journal (URJ) rejected her research paper in 2010. “The deadline fell over spring break and my husband and I were traveling to Washington D.C. so that I, for the first time ever, could see the United States Supreme Court in person. I was literally in the passenger seat with my laptop editing my paper during the entire drive,” said Johnson.“I

finally submitted it when we checked into our hotel in Ar-lington! When I found out that my paper had ultimately been rejected, I was certainly disappointed because I felt so passionate about letting my classmates know what I had found.” Johnson did not read her paper again until 2011 when she turned her back on the wake of rejection, and with deter-mination to be a part of the university journal, she again submitted the same research paper, “The Merits of Judicial Selection,” to the URJ.“When I had learned that I made the cut I was totally ec-static…until I learned I still had to cut another four pages. [However], the URJ Staff was absolutely amazing. We spent 2+ hours in the Café going over it and I feel good about the final piece, though I hope that those who are interested in reading the full version of my paper will check it out on the URJ website.”Johnson also presented her research on judicial selection in the IUSB Undergraduate Research Conference (URC) in 2010 and her most recent research, “Women in the Le-gal Profession: Disparity in Law School, Inequality as Lawyers,” in the 2011 URC.“I presented my research on judicial selection last year at the URC and absolutely loved it, so I knew for sure that I wanted to present something again this year and chose to research women’s experiences in law school and women as lawyers in preparation of my own future as a law student beginning this fall,” said Johnson. “I feel strongly that the URC provides a wonderful opportunity for researchers to gain experience presenting their work in a comfortable environment.”

As part of her research and her desire to bring knowledge to the discourse of law and gender politics, Johnson has created a blog that she regularly publishes her research forall to read, enjoy and benefit from. Her blog is titled “Researching Women as Lawyers,” and is located at:womenaslawyers.wordpress.com. She publishes her findings on women as lawyers and has created an environ-ment that encourages discussion and development on the subject. “I kept wishing and searching for some sort of website that would layout all of the information I hoped to find on women in the legal profession,” said Johnson. “When I didn’t find it, I realized one needed to be created, and I self-selected myself to take thison.For each article/source I read and analyze, I summarize the findings and if applicable, how those findings compare with what I have already read.”The purpose of Johnson’s blog and much of her research is to show that the discipline of law has some issues ofinequality that need to be brought to the attention of the American public and inevitably must see change if there is to be any true justice in law.“I hope that by making them publicly available I will spark an increase in the attention being paid to the clear dispar-ity that women face both in law school and in the profes-sion generally,” said Johnson.“I have learned that there are a lot of changes that could be made to make the profession more gender-neutral and available to aspiring lawyers of all walks of life, but that the ‘old boys’ network’ prevails.”

For the Library Prize, Sara Lowe won with her 36 page research paper on JFK’s

speech over civil rights. For Humanities, Hannah Stowe with her research titled Anti-Im-perialist Implications of Charles W. Chesnutt’s The Conjure Wom-an. For Social Sciences, Angela Johnson with her research titled Women in the Legal Profession: Disparity in Law School, Inequal-ity as Lawyers. For the Sciences, two students tied and will split the prize. Adam Kaylor (Chemistry) for oral pre-sentation, and Emily Grace Kue-hnnemund (Physics) for poster.

Prize Winners at the Undergraduate Research Conference

Emily Grace Kuehnnemund

PHOTO BY JEFF TATAY