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Faculty Mentor: Rebecca Benefiel, Assistant Professor of Classics
Students: Jacqueline DiBaisie '09, Colin Fuess '08, Faith Hunter '08
Abstract: Graffiti in Ancient Pompeii
More than 10,000 individual graffiti have been discovered thus far in
Pompeii. By the end of one summer, our team had examined more than one-third
of them. Our main challenge was to decipher where these texts appear
throughout the city. After orientating ourselves to the technical volumes of
Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum, we translated from Latin the information on
the location of each graffito, and entered this and other data into an Excel
database. Along the way, we discovered the wide variety of forms that these
graffiti present, including: political campaign posters, lines of poetry,
gladiatorial combat records, drawings of boats, erotically explicit
messages, salutations, record-keeping, alphabets, and many more that defy
categorization. We also each pursued an individual project: popular poetic
verses, the use of Greek, and concentrations of political advertisements.
These are our first steps toward understanding the culture of writing on the
wall in antiquity.
Faculty Mentor: Paul Bourdon, Professor of Mathematics, & Tom
Williams, Professor of Physics
Students: Joseph Patrick McDonald '10
Abstract: Dense Coding with Partially Entangled Quantum Systems
When each of two parties, Alice and Bob, has one particle from a
"quantum-entangled'" two-particle system, Alice can send more messages to
Bob using her particle than one would think possible. This is accomplished
via a process known as dense coding. In this context, we studied encoding
and decoding, generalizing to arbitrary dimensions a well-known decoding
procedure for two-dimensions. We proved several results suggested by
numerical studies in a paper by Mozes et al. (Physical Review A 71 (2005)).
For example, it is possible for a state with lower-entanglement level to
support the sending of more messages than one with higher entanglement
level. We also constructed families of encoding operators that Alice may use
for efficient communication with Bob. Our families confirm, for dimensions 3
and 4, the truth of a conjecture made by Mozes et al. Our results have been
submitted to Physical Review A for publication.
Faculty Mentor: Anna Brodsky, Associate Professor of Russian
Students: William Thomas Campbell '08
Abstract: Without Heroes: Wars in Russia and Chechnya
When Professor Brodsky traveled to Europe in summer 2006 to discuss life,
religion, and politics with Chechen émigrés, she was particularly surprised
to learn that many Chechens still regard Russia—and, in some instances, even
Stalin—with affection and admiration, despite the brutality they have
suffered at the hands of their oppressors. Equally surprising is that many
Chechens look favorably upon the oppressive Shari’a law and the current
fundamentalist regime in Grozny. Based on her research and interviews,
Professor Brodsky concluded that while an ideology hollows out, as occurred
with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the basic structure remains, and the
Chechens simply filled their ideological void with a similar structure in
order to recreate their conception of reality; Islamic fundamentalism simply
replaced Marxism, hence the admiration the Chechens hold for both
ideologies. However, it still remained unanswered why an oppressed group
would look fondly upon the oppressive ideology. This question formed the
basis of my research this past summer, which was supplemented by literature
regarding the theories of ideology, myth, and identity as well as the
similarities between Marxism and Islamic fundamentalism.
Faculty Mentor: Alexandra Brown, Jesse Ball DuPont Professor of
Religion
Students: Laura Nugent '08
Abstract: The Letter of the Apostle Paul
I have spent the past two summers assisting Professor Brown’s research for
her commentary on I Corinthians. I focused on medieval and patristic
interpretations of I Cor 10. The history of interpretation is a fascinating
field in religious research. The current trend in Biblical interpretation is
to read each book of the Bible as a representation of the culture in which
it was written. However, theologians from the patristic and medieval period
viewed the Bible as one, cohesive text, and as such, searched for
connections among the books, both Old and New Testament, for a common theme.
Theologians refer to passages from the Bible to support their opinions in
sermons or in letters regarding political or religious issues of the period.
Though the text of I Corinthians has remained essentially unchanged for
centuries, the way the text is read and interpreted changes as cultures
develop.
Faculty Mentor: Marc Conner, Associate Professor of English
Students: Rebecca Koval '09, Taylor Walle '07
Abstract: Authors and the Irish Landscape
This summer I worked with Professor Marc Conner and junior Rebecca Koval on
research regarding James Joyce’s Poetry. Editing an upcoming collection of
essays on Joyce’s poetry, Professor Conner has been conducting a
comprehensive study of the existing scholarship and information on the
poetry, to which Rebecca and I contributed this summer. Significantly less
scholarly attention has been paid to Joyce’s poetry than to his prose;
hence, Professor Conner’s forthcoming book pioneers a largely uncharted
field. In an effort to glean what little information exists on the poetry,
Rebecca and I scrutinized several biographies of Joyce, read various
scholarly essays, and closely examined the poetry itself. Our frequent group
meetings involved reconciling the biography with both the scholarship and
the ideas generated by our conversations about the poetry, seeking to debunk
the common perception of Joyce’s poetry as lesser than his other work. While
previous scholarship paradoxically announces the insignificance of the
poetry even while devoting several pages to its analysis, Professor Conner’s
book seeks to evaluate the poetry as meaningful both independently and in
the broader context of Joyce’s work. As a Joyce-enthusiast, I relished the
opportunity to work on this groundbreaking project and read widely on an
author whose work I hope to consider in my own career as an academic.
Additionally, Rebecca and I worked on Professor Conner’s Irish Web Studies
site, a valuable resource to anyone interested in Irish literature. I worked
primarily on tagging pictures in the database, invoking the knowledge I
gained on my study abroad trip to Ireland in Spring 2007.
Faculty Mentor: Katherine Crowley, Assistant Professor of Mathematics
Students: Kathryn George '08
Abstract: The Combinatorics of Negatively Curved Manifolds
Our goal for the summer was to improve upon a previous theorem proven by
Professor Crowley, which draws connections between the fields of topology
and geometry. First, I studied the mathematical techniques of Morse Theory
and combinatorics so that Professor Crowley and I could work
collaboratively. Within a few weeks, we achieved our goal by eliminating an
unnecessary hypothesis from the theorem, making it applicable in a wider
setting.
With a few weeks left in the summer, we began work on another problem, once
again using combinatorics. More specifically, we began investigating the
Shelling Extension Conjecture. We began by breaking the conjecture into
smaller and more manageable cases. We have written results for several of
these smaller problems and are currently trying to generalize our results. I
hope to continue working on it in the future, perhaps as part of my honors
thesis.
Faculty Mentor: Tyler Dickovick, Assistant Professor of Politics
Students: Shannon Brunner '10, Kavita DeVaney '09, Estefania McPhaul
'09, Jessica
Steinmetz '08
Abstract: Legacies of Leftism: Post-Socialist Paths to Democracy in
Africa
Four R.E. Lee Scholars worked in a group with Tyler Dickovick in summer
2007: Shannon Brunner, Kavita DeVaney, Estefania McPhaul, and Jess
Steinmetz. Jointly, the group produced eight individual case studies on
Africa’s democratic experiments (two per student), in addition to four
independent research papers (one per student). The case studies, written on
templates prepared by Dickovick in advance (and added to similar case
studies from 2006), constitute the basis for continued comparative study of
Africa’s legacies of leftism. Topics for related independent papers were
defined in consultations between Dickovick and each student individually.
The students’ case studies and independent paper topics follow.
Shannon Brunner: Nigeria, Cameroon, and “Religious Diversity’s Impact on
African Politics”
Kavita DeVaney:Zambia, Namibia, and “Survey of African Colonialism”
Estefania McPhaul: Guinea-Bissau, Zimbabwe, and “Electoral Authoritarian
Regimes: why do they endure?”
Jessica Steinmetz: Uganda, South Africa, and “The Industrial Revolution and
the Rise of Socialism”
Faculty Mentor: Nathan Feldman, Associate Professor of Mathematics
Students: Isaac Lambert '09
Abstract: Matrices and Distance Estimates
How well can one approximate a given matrix A by a normal matrix N (a matrix
is normal if N*N=NN* where N* is the conjugate transpose of N)? For example,
given a matrix A, can we estimate the distance from A to the set of normal
matrices? Can we find the closest normal matrix to A? When does A have a
unique closest normal matrix? If A is a real matrix, then must one of the
closest normal matrices to A be real? Which normal matrices N are the
closest normal matrices to some non-normal matrix A? We have answered these
and other questions for 2x2 matrices, but some of these are still unsolved
math problems even for 3x3 matrices. We use the mathematical software Maple
to investigate these problems. Much experimentation takes places, in testing
certain examples, looking for patterns, making conjectures, proving
theorems, and writing up polished results.
Faculty Mentors: Megan Fulcher, Assistant Professor of Psychology, &
Karla Murdock, Associate Professor of Psychology
Students: Amy Roberson '08, Caroline Tomeny '08, Julee Farley '09, & Sally Bittinger
'08, Will Hartmann '08, Will Kelly '08
Abstract: Psychological Development
The Transitions Project was a collaborative pilot study conducted by six R.E.
Lee Scholars working with Karla Murdock, Ph.D. and Megan Fulcher, Ph.D. in
the Department of Psychology. Its purpose was to examine psychosocial
processes in families and youth experiencing the transition into puberty.
Thirty six Rockbridge County families with rising 6th-9th graders
participated. Young adolescents completed a one-on-one interview and an
online at Washington and Lee. Parents also completed an online survey.
Dr. Murdock’s team will use these data to test a theoretical model focusing
on young adolescents’ engagement with ideas and activities as predictors of
their psychosocial well being. Five dimensions of engagement were assessed:
Spiritual (i.e., religiosity and/or a transcendence of self-interest),
Cognitive (i.e., interest in school and the curiosity about the world);
Social (i.e., mattering to others and peer relationships); Behavioral (i.e.,
number, intensity, and perceived abilities in activities); and
Responsibility (i.e., trustworthiness, acceptance of the consequences of
one’s actions).
Faculty Mentor: Genelle Gertz, Assistant Professor of English
Students: Micah Fergenson '08, Robert Modlin '08, Deborah Newell '08, Elizabeth
Williams '08
Abstract: Heresy Trials in Early Modern England
Less popular only than the English Bible, Foxe’s Book of Martyrs was the
premiere text to represent Protestant identity in Early Modern England. The
book, totaling in the thousands of pages, collected a history of the
Protestant martyrs, especially those who stood trial during Mary’s reign
(1553-1558). Our research group worked on a systematic reading of Marian
trial narratives in the Book, establishing a set of questions that we then
answered in template form. These ultimately led, in the words of researcher
Micah Fergenson, to our analysis of “heresy trial [as] essentially a
dramatization of faith,” and interrogation as “the efficacy (or, perhaps
more accurately, the illusion or pretence) of persuasion as concerns debate
and performance.” The summer’s work culminated in a trip to Washington, DC,
where we examined the Folger Shakespeare Library’s copies of Foxe (1563 and
1570) and took a special tour of the library’s rare book vault.
Faculty Mentor: Lisa Greer, Assistant Professor of Geology
Students: Elizabeth Rhea '09, Alexander Burpee '08
Abstract: A New Paleo-Sea Level Indicator
This study attempts to understand the sudden demise of the Caribbean species
Acropora cervicornis by examining modern day isotope concentrations
in skeletons. Growing coral deposits aragonite consisting of carbon and
oxygen derived from its environment; these elements preserve records of
coral growth through their chemical isotope composition. Depending on light
intensity, water temperature, and other conditions, different isotopes of
carbon and oxygen are utilized by the coral in formation of skeletons. This
study examines aragonite skeletons of Acropora cervicornis to
distinguish any clear isotopic patterns, most importantly, the relation of δ13C
and depth. Further understanding of how cervicornis grows in
relation to the environment around it may confirm or disprove suspicions
that changes in seawater are affecting the coral’s livelihood. Results of
this study do begin to show the nature of A. cervicornis isotopic
deposition, but analysis of more samples is necessary for broader analysis.
Faculty Mentor: Bill Hamilton, Associate Professor of Biology
Students: Briana Gregory '08
Abstract: Communities in Yellowstone National Park
The Yellowstone Soil Research Project is a multi-dimensional, ongoing
project to determine the effects of grazing on the soil. The small portion
of the project I worked on during the summer used several methods of
analysis to determine how grazing and the presence of animals affected
microbial growth and diversity. A total of five sites were studied including
Mammoth, Norris, Crystal Bench, Specimen Ridge and Canyon; each with a
five-year exclosure that prevented the soil from being affected by mammals.
Each of these sites, including a soil sample from both inside and outside of
the exclosure, were analyzed using DNA sequencing, microbial mass analysis,
and terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP). The DNA
sequencing results are analyzed using a computer database known as BLAST
that can give taxonomic information based on public databases. Microbial
mass data interprets the abundance of microbial organisms but does not
provide any taxonomic information. T-RFLP ultimately provides an indication
of microbial diversity within the soil. Together, these methods provide a
comprehensive analysis of the soil to determine what effects, if any,
grazers have on microbial communities in the soil. The research is still
being conducted and further T-RFLP analysis as well as a new qPCR technique
will provide conclusive results.
Faculty Mentor: Rebecca Harris, Assistant Professor of Politics
Students: Dwyn Jolly '09
Abstract: Behavioral Genetics in the Criminal Courtroom
Behavioral genetics, in lay terms, is a quantitative method of proving the
source of personality characteristics, such as anger, aggression, and
sexuality. This summer, we tried learned how it is being used in the courts
by searching court cases with LexisNexis. Searching state cases that
included “genetic predisposition” we found that the majority of cases dealt
with worker’s compensation, the employer presenting evidence that the
employee would have succumbed regardless of work environment. Criminal cases
used genetics as supplementary material, with the evidence being a family
history rather than a hard test. We found behavioral genetics as defined
above was used only in cases concerning pit bulls: even then, the courts
decided that there was no consensus in the scientific community that pit
bulls were inherently aggressive, unless their environment prompted this
trait. The project was concluded by tracing the history of character
predisposition through astrology, corporal characterization and genetics.
Faculty Mentor: Fred LaRiviere, Assistant Professor of Chemistry
Students: Andrew Ackell '08, Lucas Carmalt '08, Michael McArdle '08, Carly Levin
'08
Abstract: Ribosomal RNA Decay
Andrew Ackell: Ribosomes are
subcellular organelles which make the proteins needed for living organisms.
Each ribosome is a ribonucleoprotein complex comprised of two different
subunits, which have to correctly associate with each other in order to make
a functional ribosome. Structural studies show that bacterial ribosomes
contain regions of contact between the subunits deemed “intersubunit
bridges” (ISBs). The identity and significance of these ISBs in eukaryotic
organisms is currently not well understood. We have begun screening for
yeast ISB’s using a chemical approach known as “modification interference.”
This approach will allow us to locate specific ribosomal RNA sequences
involved in ISBs. The first step in this process is to separate and purify
individual ribosomal subunits. We have likely achieved successful ribosomal
subunit separation, and we are currently refining our protocol to achieve
greater purity. Future work will continue to follow modification
interference protocols in order to identify ISB units using these separated
ribosome subunits.
Carly Levin: The ribosome,
comprised of ribosomal RNAs (rRNAs) and ribosomal proteins, is an abundant
macromolecular machine that functions to translate messenger RNA into
proteins. Nonfunctional rRNA Decay (NRD) is a recently discovered quality
control mechanism in eukaryotes that eliminates nonfunctional ribosomes that
form from mutant rRNA. In order to investigate the mechanism of NRD, we
transformed galactose-induceable plasmids that encode mutant rRNAs into
Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We then exposed colonies of S. cerevisiae to
ultra-violet (UV) radiation in order to induce a dominant lethal phenotype
via a mutation in the trans-acting factors. In order to determine which
cells acquired a dominant lethal phenotype, we replica plated the UV exposed
colonies onto galactose to allow expression of the plasmid-encoded rRNAs. To
date, we have isolated ten different S. cerevisiae colonies that cannot grow
on galactose after UV exposure. Experiments are now underway to determine
the identity of the resulting mutant trans-acting factors and to establish
their roles in NRD.
Michael McArdle: Ribosomes,
composed of a large and a small subunit, are responsible for translating our
genetic material into active proteins. X-ray structures of prokaryotic
ribosomes suggest that the two subunits are held together by interactions
known as intersubunit bridges (ISBs). It is also believed that similar ISBs
are important for the stability of eukaryotic ribosomes. This hypothesis was
previously tested by the LaRiviere group for a particular ISB (B3), and I
continued this research by investigating another ISB (B7a). To do this, a
plasmid containing the yeast ribosomal DNA sequence was used as a substrate
for site-directed mutagenesis. This procedure was used to introduce
single-base mutations in the DNA region corresponding to ISB B7a in the
expressed rRNA. The mutated plasmid DNA was then transformed into bacterial
cells, which resulted in the isolation of four potentially successful
mutated plasmids. DNA sequencing is underway to confirm the isolated
plasmids contain the desired ISB mutations.
Lucas Carmalt: Ribosomes are
the organelles responsible for the synthesis of proteins. Found within all
cells, ribosomes are composed of two subunits comprised of both RNA
molecules and proteins. According to X-ray crystal structures of bacterial
ribosomes, the two subunits interact via several cross-subunit interactions
known as intersubunit bridges (ISBs). The interactions can be between RNA
molecules from each subunit, between RNA from one subunit and protein from
the other, or between proteins from each subunit. It is believed that
similar ISBs are found in eukaryotic ribosomes, which were what we
investigated this summer. Since the two subunits only interact during
protein synthesis, the ISBs may be essential for proper ribosome assembly
and functionality. In an attempt to test how essential a single ISB is for
ribosome assembly and functionality, we introduced mutations in the region
of ISB 7a. If the mutant ribosomes cannot assemble or are nonfunctional,
then we can assume ISB 7a is an essential ISB.
Faculty Mentor: Richard Marks, Professor of Religion
Students: Hila Yashar '09
Abstract: A Travelogue by the Explorer and Scientist Jacob Sapir
Ha-Levi(1822-84)
The travelogue, entitled Even Sapir, is unique and fascinating because it
offers us a rare view into the mind of a thoughtful and poetic Jewish
thinker, immersed in the rabbinic culture of his day, who had little
influence from Western ideas and who engaged in the modern enterprise of
gathering information about new worlds and attempting to judge them
objectively. In his travelogue, Sapir studies and describes the cultures,
rituals and peoples of India and Yemen and their Jewish communities. In our
project we carefully translated and explained Sapir’s six chapters about the
Jews of Cochin. Translating his detailed descriptions was a fascinating and
revealing as well as a challenging process, because Sapir, himself immersed
in the history of Hebrew literature since biblical times, blended ancient
phrases into nearly every sentence of his narrative. Therefore our
combination of knowledge of Modern Hebrew and of classical and medieval
Hebrew literature produced a better translation than either of us could do
on our own.
Faculty Mentor: Bernard Means, Assistant Professor of Anthropology
Students: Elisa Turner '09
Abstract: Virtual Exploration of Archaeology on Washington and Lee's
Colonnade
The Spring 2005 and Spring 2007 archaeological investigations on Washington
and Lee University’s Colonnade were conducted by W&L students with faculty.
These investigations explored intact archaeological deposits associated with
the 19th century Washington College campus. The R.E. Lee project’s ultimate
goal is to create a multi-layered virtual exploration of the archaeological
investigations on the Colonnade. The end result of this project will be a
Web-based virtual report and exploration of Colonnade excavations. As such,
it will make an ideal supplement to the teaching of archaeology in courses
such as ANTH101: Introduction to Anthropology, and ANTH205: Archaeology, and
students involved with future Spring semester archaeology field and
laboratory courses. Students and faculty studying the history of W&L would
also find information of interest on the virtual exploration of the
Colonnade archaeological investigations. Final implementation of this web
project will await completion of ongoing modifications to the overall web
site for the Department of Sociology and Anthropology.
Faculty Mentor: Holt Merchant, Professor of History
Students: Ashleigh Nicole Scinta '09
Abstract: The American Revolution
Through the History Department, I worked with Dr. Frank Grizzard, the Lee
Family Digital Archivist. Dr. Grizzard intends to create a database online
where members of the academic community would be able to access the original
writings, manuscripts, letters, and political publications of the extended
Lee family. Furthermore, he has been accumulating relevant secondary sources
on the Lee family. My primary responsibility was the Arthur Lee section of
the Digital Archive. Arthur Lee, the second cousin of Robert E. Lee, was a
prominent penman and statesman in the Revolutionary Era. I utilized the
online databases, primarily Early American Newspapers, to accumulate as many
primary and secondary sources written by and on Arthur Lee. Many of the
newspapers in which Arthur Lee’s writings are included have yet to be
digitized or Washington and Lee does not currently subscribe to them. In
order to ascertain these writings for the Digital Archive, I had to find and
order these newspapers on microfilm through Interlibrary Loan with the help
of Elizabeth Teaff. A majority of my time was spent using the microfilm
viewer to examine the reel and scan Arthur Lee’s writings.
Faculty Mentor: Lad Sessions, Professor of Philosophy
Students: Stephanie Jordan '08, Adam Hockensmith '08, Jessie McCormack
'08
Abstract: Honor for Us
Adam Hockensmith: This paper consists of four sections. In Section One I
explicate the concepts “honor” and “loyalty” and attempt to show that they
typically exist in a mutually supportive relationship. Section Two indicates
ways in which honor stabilizes political institutions and thereby upholds
the integrity of democratic government. Section Three traces the evolution
of honor as feudal systems transitioned to democratic forms of government,
and proposes that the concurrent shift from personal loyalties to
institutional ones significantly influenced the development of democratic
honor. In Section Four I argue that honor most reliably stabilizes political
institutions in liberal democracies when it rests on institutional
loyalties. For this reason I advocate cultivating a sense of democratic
honor from institutional values and creating a framework that fosters
professional (institutional) loyalties between government officials and the
offices they hold.
Jesse McCormack: My paper is an exploration of a possible
concept of deviant honor. It examines what exactly it means to be a deviant
group and, more importantly, what it means to deviate with respect to honor.
In my exploration, I apply concepts of honor defined by William Lad
Sessions—positional, commitment, trust, and personal honor—to several
American utopian communes and discern what concepts are reflected in
communes and how they are deviant, if they are. Using analysis of the
compatibility of Sessions’ concepts of honor and the deviant culture of
utopian communes, I end the paper by speculating on what insights the
examination of these communes can provide in defining a concept of deviant
honor.
Stephanie Jordan: By the grant of the RELee Fellowship, under
the direction of Professor Lad Sessions, I have spent this summer studying
the concept of honor in modern political arrangements, particularly in a
liberal democracy. Honor has been tainted by a notorious “dark side” and
many malevolent actions performed in its name, leading most moderns to
abandon the concept altogether. I believe however that honor is worth
salvaging; its condemnation, I think, has been premature. The purpose of my
research was to recover honor as a modern, relevant concept which is
applicable and desirable for liberal democratic society at large and its
members individually. Most, I have found, consider politics the least likely
location for discovering honorable behavior and conduct. I am, however,
hopeful that my research has yielded an option, however slight, that
politics can and should be conducted with honor in mind.
Faculty Mentor: Maryanne Simurda, Associate Professor of Biology
Students: William Covington '09, John Wren '10
Abstract: Isolation and Sequence Analysis of genomic DNA from
Serratia marcescens transposon-mutants
Serratia marcescens is an opportunistic pathogen involved in infections of
patients with catheters, such as urinary tract infections and septicemias.
We study the genes involved in the swarming motility and biofilm formation
processes that allow for bacterial multiplication and movement along
semi-solid and solid surfaces. This summer (2007) we studied the effect of
different temperatures (25ºC, 37ºC, and 39ºC) on the ability to swarming
across agar plate and produce prodigiosin (a red dye uniquely produced by
this species) shown by the wildtype bacteria and two mutant strains, each
with changes in a single gene. The strain with a mutation in the tar gene
(Methyl-accepting Chemotactic Protein) responded more than the wildtype to
changes in the medium, especially when serine was added. The strain with a
mutation in the cspE gene (Cold Shock Protein E) swarmed more extensively
and produced more prodigiosin than the wildtype strain at 25º, but not at
37º or 39º.
Faculty Mentor: Kathryn Szramek, Visiting Assistant Professor of
Geology
Students: Nic Fox '09
Abstract:
Investigations into watershed hydrogeochemistry is important to the study of
mineral weathering fluxes from rivers to oceans. The Upper James River of
Virginia is a ideal location to study weathering in a forested humid
subtropical climate over Paleozoic carbonate and siliclastic bedrock.
The focus of this research is to identify geochemical variability in
elemental concentrations in surface waters along with soil weathering
contributions to the drainage. Streams were sampled for field parameters and
laboratory analysis. USGS gauge locations were sampled to use discharge to
characterize the elemental fluxes and long term trends from subcatchments.
Soils were collected over representative lithologic units and leached to
determine the readily soluble carbonates and hydroxides, allowing for
endmember characterization of the bedrock.
Preliminary data show smaller streams within the drainage have HCO3-
concentrations and elemental chemistries that are consistent with the
catchment lithologies. Long-term data from USGS gauging stations show an
inverse relationship between elemental concentrations and discharge.
Faculty Mentor: Erich Uffelman, Associate Professor of Chemistry
Students: Kehvon Clark '09, Christopher Diebold '09, Elizabeth Webb
'09
Abstract: Polyamide Macrocyclic Ligands, and 1H-15N
HMBC NMR Spectroscopy
The Uffelman group synthesized several different macrocyclic polyamide
ligands and metallated each of them with anhydrous FeCl3. The complexes,
which could have relevance to Green Chemistry-based catalytic oxidation,
were all characterized by NMR spectroscopy and electrospray MS. X-ray
crystallography was performed in summers 2005, 2006, and 2007 on H4Cl2Carla,
H3EtSarah, Fe(1-Me-Im)2(EtSarah), and H3tBuSarah. Catalytic results were
obtained using orange (II) dye and hydrogen peroxide at pHs 8, 10, 11, and
12 with [Bu4N]2[Fe(CN)2(EtSarah)]. The NMR characterization was generated at
Washington and Lee; the electrospray MS and catalytic data were generated
via collaboration with Dr. Terry Collins’ group at Carnegie Mellon
University. The X-ray crystallography data were generated via collaboration
with Dr. Ross Angel and Dr. Carla Slebodnick at Virginia Polytechnic
Institute and State University.
Faculty Mentor: Eduardo Velasquez, Professor of Politics
Students: Lucy Hundley '10, Elliot O'Brien '10, Han Qi '09
Abstract: Science and Theology after Nietzche's "Death of God"
This research project examines the state of religiosity, or more
specifically spirituality, as it relates to modern concept of the “self.”
Despite culture’s disenchantment with religion, American was shown to be a
place of blossoming rather than fading meaning. Drawing perspective from
many different sources, scientific, literary, and scholarly, this paper
strives to explain the rising popularity of spirituality in the United
States as a reaction to the religious dogmatism of old and the modern
expansion of scientific and technological knowledge. Furthermore, this work
looks towards the future of man’s modern search for meaning and whether it
ultimately requires a belief in a god or god-substitute. While alternative
forms of spirituality were researched, the project was unable to find an
ideology acceptable to today’s materialistic culture, meaning that it
fulfilled man’s desire for comfort without sacrificing rationality and the
concept of individual control.
Faculty Mentor: Wythe Whiting, Assistant Professor of Psychology
Students: Mila Sugovic '08, Xiaoxi Liang '09
Abstract: Effects Visual Noise have on Age Differences in Visual ...
Our 2007 summer R.E. Lee project research examined the role of neural noise
as an explanation of the general slowing of cognitive processes as adults
age. The theory is that as we age neural circuitry in the brain begins to
break down to some degree, and as a result, neural connections may be lost
resulting in slower cognitive processing speeds. In two experiments we
tested this hypothesis by adding external noise (i.e., static) to computer
displays in which younger (18-29 years) and older (60+ years) searched for a
target item among distractor items. Experiment 1 provided some support for
our hypothesis, and in Experiment 2 refinements in our design lead to
greater support of the neural noise theory. That is, in Experiment 2
increasing the amount of external noise (i.e., static) lead to greater
slowing of target identification times for older adults compared to younger
adults.
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Projects are chiefly of two types: assisting a professor
in research or
carrying out a student-planned project under the supervision of a
professor. In either case, the supported work is conducted during
the summer months.
