Psychological therapy is the process of understanding, treating, and maintaining a healthy psyche. Psychological therapy comes in many shapes and sizes. Different methods of therapy include but are not limited to cognitive behavioral therapy, psychodynamic therapy, psychoanalytic therapy, group therapy, and humanistic therapy. Most of these major therapeutic options fall under the umbrella of “talk therapy”. Although talk therapy is effective, practicing talk therapy exclusively limits not only the capabilities of therapy, but also potential clientele who would benefit from alternatives to talk therapy. Because each psyche is as unique and individual as fingerprints, each person seeking therapy should be able to create a personalized therapy program. Generating unique combinations of various therapy methods that are catered specifically to the client is a way to achieve this lofty goal. This research intends to better understand whether this proposal of combining various therapeutic techniques and methods in order to achieve individualized therapy programs will increase the effectiveness of the therapy being administered. In this meta analysis, the focus will be on animal therapy and poetry therapy used in conjunction theoretically as an example of potential applications for various combinations in conjunctive therapy. Conjunctive therapy is the main idea being piloted in this thesis and is a new form of therapy that involved the usage of two therapeutic techniques together while maintaining and equal prevalence and importance between them.

This paper examines the physics behind cancer treatment and more specifically radiation therapy. A phenomenon known as Compton scattering has played a substantial role in the treatment of breast cancer and improvement of lives of women around the world. Through Compton scattering, radiation therapy has been tremendously improved and has allowed for the most accurate and effective treatment in breast cancer patients today.

A brief history of the Mediterranean diet and its geographical origins as a meeting point for cultures will guide understanding of the construction of this specific dietary pattern. The nutrients and foods typical of the Mediterranean diet will be outlined as well as their health benefits, allowing for a deeper analysis of the ways in which the Mediterranean diet is associated with reducing the risk of certain chronic diseases. The lifestyle choices and physical activity practiced adjacently to the diet will establish the positive synergistic effects of conviviality and moderate exercise on general human health. Contemporary movements in the Mediterranean region, like Slow Foods, aim to preserve traditional dietary and lifestyle choices. In comparison, the U.S. food system seems to be most shaped by the influences of globalization and industrialization. Economic and health-cost perspectives as well as the role of modern-day media in diet trends, body image, and food marketing will establish and deepen the complexities of food choices and health disparities in Western societies. The diagnosis of the Mediterranean Diet in the U.S. as a solution to poor general population health will be challenged and holistic perspectives on eating will provide an exploratory lens for understanding health and food choice as a modern-day consumer.

In September 2022, production company Netflix released their limited series Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, a series that focuses on the life and crimes of infamous serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. Shortly thereafter the series would become one of the most successful series in Netflix history. However, this popularity did not come without extensive criticism from viewers, critics, and family members of Dahmer’s victims. This project seeks to evaluate the mass appeal of Netflix’s Dahmer through the theoretical framework of Carl Jung’s collective unconscious and the shadow archetype. Scholars have previously tried to explain the appeal of true crime as a genre without reaching a consensus. This project analyzes the existing explanations for the appeal of true crime along with why these explanations are unsatisfactory when seeking to explain the appeal of Dahmer, followed with an analysis of how the shadow engages with Netflix’s Dahmer through the ability to become secondarily conscious through Dahmer and the projection of one’s shadow qualities onto Dahmer.

Mast cells are granulated immune cells with a known role in allergies due to the mediators they release upon activation, for example histamine, leukotrienes, prostaglandins, TNF-α, IL-6, and MCP-1 . Environmental factors like nutrient availability can impact the survival, proliferation and activation of these cells. In this study, we investigated whether fasting induced by reducing the amount of nutrient source, FBS (fetal bovine serum) affects the allergic activation of mast cells. To accomplish this, mature bone marrow-derived mast cells were incubated in media containing different concentrations of FBS overnight along with anti-DNP IgE. The cells were stimulated with DNP-BSA (the antigen) and the activation of cells was quantified using ELISA (for TNF-α and IL-6). Results showed that fasting state prevented TNF-α and IL-6 production in a dose dependent manner, suggesting that fasting state prevents allergic activation of mast cells. Therefore, it can be concluded that a nutrient factor present in the FBS serum contributes to mast cell activation upon allergen challenge. The understanding of the precise mechanisms underlying prevention of mast cell activation to allergens will highlight new therapeutic avenues for hypersensitivities.

Sex education curricula often do not discuss topics of pleasure and pain, thus perpetuating a cycle of stigma within intimate partnerships. This thesis examines the current research surrounding conversations about pleasure and pain within interpersonal relationships and comprehensive sex education curricula. Interviews were conducted with upper-class undergraduate women at Arizona State University about their sex education history and how this impacted their knowledge and perceptions of sexual pleasure and pain. The interviews also focused on how pleasure and pain have impacted a woman’s sexuality and intimacy both personally and with a partner. This study found that women value sexually fulfilling lives with the absence of pain; however, the sex education they were given did not provide them with the confidence or language to discuss pleasure and pain with their partners. These findings allow for recommendations for developmentally appropriate sex education programs that focus on encouragement and teach women to confidently discuss their pleasure and pain with their partners to ensure they feel safe, comfortable, and fulfilled during sex.

My paper focuses on the existence of God in the face of the existence of evil. I provide a summary of the topic as it stands and provide my own arguments as well as counterarguments to try and provide a logical reconciliation of the existence of God and the necessity of evil in the world.