Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection
Barrett, The Honors College at Arizona State University proudly showcases the work of undergraduate honors students by sharing this collection exclusively with the ASU community.
Barrett accepts high performing, academically engaged undergraduate students and works with them in collaboration with all of the other academic units at Arizona State University. All Barrett students complete a thesis or creative project which is an opportunity to explore an intellectual interest and produce an original piece of scholarly research. The thesis or creative project is supervised and defended in front of a faculty committee. Students are able to engage with professors who are nationally recognized in their fields and committed to working with honors students. Completing a Barrett thesis or creative project is an opportunity for undergraduate honors students to contribute to the ASU academic community in a meaningful way.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 30
Description
INTRODUCTION: This thesis delves into how PR-media relations evolved in the past 20 years (since 1997). It discusses several aspects of media relations, such as relationships, old and new media relations tools, pitching and predictions about the future of media relations. LITERATURE REVIEW: A review of previous literature on media relations guided this research. Past research explained stigmas about the relationship between public relations professionals and journalists, how pitching has evolved, social media's role in modern day media relations and the dynamic between earned and owned media. METHODOLOGY: The research involved a mixed method approach with qualitative and quantitative methods. First, in-depth interviews were conducted with both journalists and public relations professionals who work in Arizona. These interviews were conducted either in-person or over the phone. Second, two in-depth interviews were conducted over the phone with a public relations professional who worked at Intel for over 20 years for a case study. Finally, a survey was distributed to public relations professionals in Arizona via email and through social media websites (Facebook and Twitter) to provide insight on the media relations tactics they have recently utilized, as well as their use of social media. There were also five follow-up interviews conducted with survey respondents. FINDINGS: After conducting these three methods of research, the qualitative (quotes) and quantitative (survey) data were analyzed to provide detailed opinions about media relations including: the relationships between public relations professionals and the media, the use of old and new media relations tools, what an effective pitch looks like, the use of social media, comparisons between less and more experienced PR professionals, and predictions on the future of media relations. DISCUSSION: The findings from this research led to several conclusions regarding media relations such as: the importance of maintaining a trusting and respectful relationship, traditional tools' place in modern day media relations, email's dominance as a media relations tool, the hesitation by PR professionals to use social media as a communication tool with journalists, more experienced PR professionals' lack of hesitation to use social media as a communication tool with journalists, and the prediction that relationships will remain key in media relations despite the changes in media relations tools themselves. CONCLUSION: Based on all of the findings from this research, it was concluded that media relations has evolved to keep up with the changing media landscape, however, traditional tools and practices remain relevant and essential to media relations.
ContributorsTillman, Krista Michelle (Author) / Wu, Xu (Thesis director) / Bovio, Sonia (Committee member) / College of Integrative Sciences and Arts (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor) / Department of Marketing (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-12
Description
Research on human grasp typically involves the grasp of objects designed for the study of fingertip forces. Instrumented objects for such studies have often been designed for the simulation of functional tasks, such as feeding oneself, or for rigidity such that the objects do not deform when grasped. The goal of this thesis was to design a collapsible, instrumented object to study grasp of breakable objects. Such an object would enable experiments on human grip responses to unexpected finger-object events as well as anticipatory mechanisms once object fragility has been observed. The collapsible object was designed to be modular to allow for properties such as friction and breaking force to be altered. The instrumented object could be used to study both human and artificial grasp.
ContributorsTorrez, Troy (Author) / Santos, Veronica (Thesis director) / Santello, Marco (Committee member) / Artemiadis, Panagiotis (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2012-05
Description
The generation of walking motion is one of the most vital functions of the human body because it allows us to be mobile in our environment. Unfortunately, numerous individuals suffer from gait impairment as a result of debilitating conditions like stroke, resulting in a serious loss of mobility. Our understanding of human gait is limited by the amount of research we conduct in relation to human walking mechanisms and their characteristics. In order to better understand these characteristics and the systems involved in the generation of human gait, it is necessary to increase the depth and range of research pertaining to walking motion. Specifically, there has been a lack of investigation into a particular area of human gait research that could potentially yield interesting conclusions about gait rehabilitation, which is the effect of surface stiffness on human gait. In order to investigate this idea, a number of studies have been conducted using experimental devices that focus on changing surface stiffness; however, these systems lack certain functionality that would be useful in an experimental scenario. To solve this problem and to investigate the effect of surface stiffness further, a system has been developed called the Variable Stiffness Treadmill system (VST). This treadmill system is a unique investigative tool that allows for the active control of surface stiffness. What is novel about this system is its ability to change the stiffness of the surface quickly, accurately, during the gait cycle, and throughout a large range of possible stiffness values. This type of functionality in an experimental system has never been implemented and constitutes a tremendous opportunity for valuable gait research in regard to the influence of surface stiffness. In this work, the design, development, and implementation of the Variable Stiffness Treadmill system is presented and discussed along with preliminary experimentation. The results from characterization testing demonstrate highly accurate stiffness control and excellent response characteristics for specific configurations. Initial indications from human experimental trials in relation to quantifiable effects from surface stiffness variation using the Variable Stiffness Treadmill system are encouraging.
ContributorsBarkan, Andrew Robert (Author) / Artemiadis, Panagiotis (Thesis director) / Santello, Marco (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Program (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
The amount of connection one has, whether it is digitally or in-person can have an overall affect on a person's business, their being, and their interaction- these interactions are considered social capital. The main premise of social capital is that social networks have value. This means that the collective value of which people know will affect their inclination to do things for each other. In this case, social capital is not about the warm feeling one gets when someone does something for them, it refers to the information flow and mutual aid that bonds people who are interested in the same things. With technology at an all time high, these connections are made infinitely possible through social media. This project uses Cuisine of Arizona, a regional restaurant guide, to exemplify how strategies of social capital can be used via social media in order to build trustworthy and valuable connections and build a larger audience for the brand. Research on the benefits of Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for social media marketing was conducted and was then adapted to benefit the Cuisine of Arizona restaurant guide. A social media calendar was implemented for organizational purposes and the social media sites were updated to keep their look current. Research on how business websites keep their audience was conducted as well. The current Cuisine of Arizona website was outdated, but still useful. A mock-up website was created on Wix.com to give the website a new look and bring in new interactive features, like the online flipbook version of the restaurant guide and a dynamic homepage, but still gave the audience the same useful information as the old site. The mock-up website was also mobile optimized for use on smartphones and tablets. The three social media methods were chosen because of their capabilities to interact with one another. For example, Instagram posts can be shared on both Facebook and Twitter, resulting in more unique viewers for each site. If the website's content is shared on any of these sites, it will build a larger audience for the Cuisine of Arizona website as well. If used carefully, the proposed social media plan will draw a larger audience to the entire Cuisine of Arizona brand and in turn, build trust and credibility among its audience.
ContributorsGuillen, Alejandra (Author) / Gilpin, Dawn (Thesis director) / Bovio, Sonia (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of English (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
In the 2016 Presidential Election, Republican candidate, Donald Trump, used a communication strategy in which he labeled his opponents and naysayers with negative nicknames. Throughout his campaign he labeled opponents as "Crazy Bernie," "Crooked Hillary," "Little Marco," "Lyin' Ted," "Low Energy Jeb" and "Goofy Elizabeth Warren." Donald Trump repeated these nicknames at rallies and over his social media platforms. Donald Trump was elected President in November 2016 and took office the following January. Did these nicknames that Donald Trump used resonate with voters? And if so, who did they resonate with the most? In order to research these questions, the U.S. eligible voting population was given the opportunity to complete a survey asking them a series of questions about choosing the word that best describes these politicians that Trump has labeled. They were also asked questions regarding what political party they are registered to and who they voted for in the 2016 Presidential Election. Results indicated that Trump voting respondents and registered Republican respondents felt the words Donald Trump used to label his opponents described those politicians best, in comparison to other groups and demographics. These findings demonstrate that the nicknames Donald Trump used during his campaign did resonate with certain groups of voters.
ContributorsBrewer, Jennifer Marie (Author) / Renzulli, Virgil (Thesis director) / Bovio, Sonia (Committee member) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
Most daily living tasks consist of pairing a series of sequential movements, e.g., reaching to a cup, grabbing the cup, lifting and returning the cup to your mouth. The process by which we control and mediate the smooth progression of these tasks is not well understood. One method which we can use to further evaluate these motions is known as Startle Evoked Movements (SEM). SEM is an established technique to probe the motor learning and planning processes by detecting muscle activation of the sternocleidomastoid muscles of the neck prior to 120ms after a startling stimulus is presented. If activation of these muscles was detected following a stimulus in the 120ms window, the movement is classified as Startle+ whereas if no sternocleidomastoid activation is detected after a stimulus in the allotted time the movement is considered Startle-. For a movement to be considered SEM, the activation of movements for Startle+ trials must be faster than the activation of Startle- trials. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect that expertise has on sequential movements as well as determining if startle can distinguish when the consolidation of actions, known as chunking, has occurred. We hypothesized that SEM could distinguish words that were solidified or chunked. Specifically, SEM would be present when expert typists were asked to type a common word but not during uncommon letter combinations. The results from this study indicated that the only word that was susceptible to SEM, where Startle+ trials were initiated faster than Startle-, was an uncommon task "HET" while the common words "AND" and "THE" were not. Additionally, the evaluation of the differences between each keystroke for common and uncommon words showed that Startle was unable to distinguish differences in motor chunking between Startle+ and Startle- trials. Explanations into why these results were observed could be related to hand dominance in expert typists. No proper research has been conducted to evaluate the susceptibility of the non-dominant hand's fingers to SEM, and the results of future studies into this as well as the results from this study can impact our understanding of sequential movements.
ContributorsMieth, Justin Richard (Author) / Honeycutt, Claire (Thesis director) / Santello, Marco (Committee member) / Harrington Bioengineering Program (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
Electromyography (EMG) and Electroencephalography (EEG) are techniques used to detect electrical activity produced by the human body. EMG detects electrical activity in the skeletal muscles, while EEG detects electrical activity from the scalp. The purpose of this study is to capture different types of EMG and EEG signals and to determine if the signals can be distinguished between each other and processed into output signals to trigger events in prosthetics. Results from the study suggest that the PSD estimates can be used to compare signals that have significant differences such as the wrist, scalp, and fingers, but it cannot fully distinguish between signals that are closely related, such as two different fingers. The signals that were identified were able to be translated into the physical output simulated on the Arduino circuit.
ContributorsJanis, William Edward (Author) / LaBelle, Jeffrey (Thesis director) / Santello, Marco (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Computer Science and Engineering Program (Contributor)
Created2013-12
Description
This project aims to use the shape memory alloy nitinol as the basis for a biomimetic actuator. These actuators are designed to mimic the behavior of organic muscles for use in prosthetic and robotic devices. Actuator characterization included in the project examines the force output,electrical properties, and other variables relevant to actuator design.
ContributorsNoe, Cameron Scott (Author) / LaBelle, Jeffrey (Thesis director) / Santello, Marco (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Harrington Bioengineering Program (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
Starting in 2002, Arizona State University (ASU) began a rebranding effort to transition from having a reputation as a top 10 party school to being known as a prestigious research institution. Over the last 15 years, ASU has successfully reached some of these goals, eventually being named the #1 most innovative university in the country by the U.S. News and World Report. Part of this success can be attributed to the university's communication and marketing efforts, which seek to improve the university's reputation and build relationships with stakeholders. This study analyzes ASU's communication entities, how they interact and what messages they push out to stakeholders, particularly in regards to the #1 in innovation award. Primary research in this study looked at keywords used by different stakeholder groups affiliated with ASU, how they viewed ASU's reputation and how they receive communication from the university. Overall, the closer the relationship with ASU, the more positively the respondent viewed the university. Perception also varied based on geographic location and proximity to the university. Innovation is clearly a key brand perception of ASU from stakeholders, and the party school image is still persistent among those not affiliated with the university.
ContributorsHarrelson, Savannah Lee (Author) / Renzulli, Virgil (Thesis director) / Bovio, Sonia (Committee member) / School of Community Resources and Development (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
Organ, cornea and tissue donation is a widespread public health need that has high rates of public approval, but lower rates of action. In Arizona, an individual can register as an organ donor at 15 years and six months old, and this ever-growing demographic is a hard-to-influence, yet important part of the pool of registered donors. There are many factors that serve to influence or dissuade adolescents from registering, and it is the duty of organ procurement organizations (OPOs) and others involved in the donation process to appeal to this audience. This undergraduate research project explores the overall idea of what makes someone register as an organ, cornea and tissue donor by looking into several factors of the decision-making process, such as social media usage and engagement, hesitation or support surrounding spiritual beliefs, and how personal opinions and beliefs shape views and action toward organ donation. Based on the data collected, the researcher found relationships between the registration status of adolescents and their social media use, spiritual beliefs and personal relationships and opinions.
ContributorsReddy, Miranda Adelyn (Author) / Wu, Xu (Thesis director) / Bovio, Sonia (Committee member) / Department of Marketing (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor) / School of Community Resources and Development (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05