Matching Items (133)
Description
This paper explores two areas of study: Colony Collapse Disorder and urban apiculture--the practice of keeping bees in urban areas. Additionally, this paper discusses the ways in which Colony Collapse Disorder has encouraged an increase in urban beekeeping, and the possible role of urban apiculture as a means of combatting the negative effects of Colony Collapse Disorder. The symptoms, history, and possible causes of Colony Collapse Disorder are presented, as well as the important role that honey bees play in human agriculture. Following the discussion of Colony Collapse Disorder is a description of my urban beekeeping apprenticeship at Desert Marigold School where I kept bees, researched various hives, attended a beekeeping workshop in Tucson, and eventually built a hive and established a colony with my mentor. This paper includes a guide to beekeeping basics, as well as a guide to starting a hive based upon the lessons learned during my apprenticeship.
ContributorsRomero, Madelyn Rattan (Author) / Schoon, Michael (Thesis director) / Silcox, Holly (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
In this paper, I analyze representations of nature in popular film, using the feminist / deconstructionist concept of a dualism to structure my critique. Using Val Plumwood’s analysis of the logical structure of dualism and the 5 ‘features of a dualism’ that she identifies, I critique 5 popular movies – Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Brave, Grizzly Man, and Planet Earth – by locating within each of them one of the 5 features and explaining how the movie functions to reinforce the Nature/Culture dualism . By showing how the Nature/Culture dualism shapes and is shaped by popular cinema, I show how “Nature” is a social construct, created as part of this very dualism, and reified through popular culture. I conclude with the introduction of a number of ‘subversive’ pieces of visual art that undermine and actively deconstruct the Nature/Culture dualism and show to the viewer a more honest presentation of the non-human world.
ContributorsBarton, Christopher Joseph (Author) / Broglio, Ron (Thesis director) / Minteer, Ben (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor) / School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
The purpose of this study is to identify, analyze, and understand the concept of microcredit lending as a method of combating poverty, as well as the political, financial, and cultural difficulties of operating such an organization. The study investigates microcredit lending organizations (also referred to as microlending organizations or microlending banks) in the State of Israel and the Palestinian Territories of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip; these organizations are used as a case study to analyze the challenges faced by microlending organizations around the world, as well as an interesting lens to observe the geopolitical and socioeconomic difficulties of small-scale economic engagement in this area of heavy conflict. Finally, interesting patterns, behaviors, policies, and operating methods of microlending banks are scrutinized in order to deeply understand the challenges and philosophies behind microlending.
ContributorsPatil, Sharath (Author) / Larson, Elizabeth (Thesis director) / Benkert, Volker (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
Defines the concept of the arcology as conceived by architect Paolo Soleri. Arcology combines "architecture" and "ecology" and explores a visionary notion of a self-contained urban community that has agricultural, commercial, and residential facilities under one roof. Two real-world examples of these projects are explored: Arcosanti, AZ and Masdar City, Abu Dhabi, UAE. Key aspects of the arcology that could be applied to an existing urban fabric are identified, such as urban design fostering social interaction, reduction of automobile dependency, and a development pattern that combats sprawl. Through interviews with local representatives, a holistic approach to applying arcology concepts to the Phoenix Metro Area is devised.
ContributorsSpencer, Sarah Anne (Author) / Manuel-Navarrete, David (Thesis director) / Salon, Deborah (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
"Gastrodiplomacy: Opening Minds by Filling Stomachs" explores the role of food as an instrument of cross-cultural exchange and understanding, in three parts: why food is an ideal medium of communication, how food exchange can be an effective catalyst of conflict resolution, and a study that highlights the relationship between ethnic food consumption and positive or negative stereotyping of racial and ethnic groups. The study revealed that those who ate food that lies beyond their culture's traditional culinary boundaries fairly often were more likely to have a higher opinion of different racial and ethnic groups; those who rarely strayed beyond those boundaries were more likely to negatively stereotype different cultures. "Gastrodiplomacy" works its way through the foods of the world, and how innately geography, food, and politics are connected, whether it's through French discrimination against kebabs \u2014 a traditionally Middle Eastern food \u2014 or through the use of the dolma to help settle long-standing disputes between the warring countries of Armenia and Azerbaijan.
ContributorsSpear, Maggie Marie (Author) / Larson, Elizabeth (Thesis director) / Bluhm, Michael (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
Physicians generally agree that immunizations save lives, but parents are starting to opt out of vaccinations for their children at alarmingly high levels. This has caused a debate. Some feel that full immunization coverage is essential to this country's future. Others are choosing alternative medicines and taking their chances with deadly diseases. I first became truly aware of the vaccine debate when my baby cousin, Jacob, passed away in 2002. He was 1 years old. Jacob contracted seizures soon after receiving the routine MMR vaccine. Doctors signed papers contributing his death to a severe reaction to the MMR vaccine, and my aunt and uncle were given a $250,000 settlement for their pain and suffering. My family has been involved in the vaccine world for nearly 15 years, and it is this involvement that drove me to want produce a documentary about immunizations. To view the documentary visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqW7fEntc1A
ContributorsSposato, Laura Jean (Author) / Silcock, Bill (Thesis director) / Snyder, Brian (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
Sound is immediate and ever-present, pushing in, around, and through physical boundaries to blend together in whichever way it best sees fit, no matter the controls we seek to impose on it. It builds associations for us: physical spaces become distinctive based on the quality and familiarity of sounds which inhabit them. With this spirit, I see sound as the central arbiter of sense of place, particularly in alternative community spaces, wherein individual and collaborative expression is not only encouraged, but essential to its experience, separating it from commonly-held mainstream and/or programmed social space. By recording the sounds of three distinctive such alternative cultural spaces in central Phoenix—The Trunk Space, Lawn Gnome Publishing, and Welcome Diner, rooted in art and music, literature, and food and drink, respectively—I captured the soundscapes in which the community around theses spaces democratically builds its sense of place. Compiling them into a soundscape composition, I installed the piece in the non-place of an art gallery, immersing listeners in fleeting glances at theses soundscapes, then inviting them to use the fluctuating sonic environment to cite their own associations with art, literature, and food-based senses of place right on the gallery walls. Through this exercise, and research on the experience of sound and meanings of sense of place, I express the intersection and essentiality sound, ambient and performative, in building sense of place.
ContributorsDescheemaker, Connor Patrick (Author) / McHugh, Kevin (Thesis director) / McKay, John (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / School of Public Affairs (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
Honey bee (Apis mellifera) colonies have experienced substantial losses due to colony collapse disorder (CCD) since the first officially reported cases in 2006. Many factors have been implicated in CCD, including pests, pathogens, malnutrition, and pesticide use, but no correlation has been found between a single factor and the occurrence of CCD. Fungicides have received less research attention compared to insecticides, despite the fact that fungicide application coincides with bloom and the presence of bees. Pristine fungicide is widely used in agriculture and is commonly found as a residue in hives. Several studies have concluded that Pristine can be used without harming bees, but reports of brood loss following Pristine application continue to surface across the country. The primary objectives of this study were to determine whether Pristine causes an aversive gustatory response in bees and whether consumption of an acute dose affects responsiveness to sucrose. An awareness of how foragers interact with contaminated food is useful to understand the likelihood that Pristine is ingested and how that may affect bees' ability to evaluate floral resources. Our results indicated that Pristine has no significant effect on gustatory response or sucrose responsiveness. There was no significant difference between bee responses to Pristine contaminated sucrose and sucrose alone, and no significant effect of Pristine on sucrose responsiveness. These results indicate that honey bees do not have a gustatory aversion to Pristine. A lack of aversion means that honey bees will continue collecting contaminated resources and dispersing them throughout the colony where it can affect brood and clean food stores.
ContributorsMcHugh, Cora Elizabeth (Co-author) / Jernigan, Christopher (Co-author, Committee member) / Burden, Christina (Co-author) / DeGrandi-Hoffman, Gloria (Co-author) / Smith, Brian (Thesis director) / Fewell, Jennifer (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / School of Art (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
I am double majoring in Film & Media Production and Geography, and whenever I tell anyone that their first reaction is one of polite incredulity. The two disciplines seem so far from each other that there doesn't seem to be any possible way of combining them. With this project, I wanted to incorporate these two very different fields into one meaningful product. Using film as a medium, I explored how impactful a geographical location can truly be on someone. When we think about our pasts, we often focus on the people and events, losing sight of the physical location where these memories take place. Life in a Museum attempts to shine a light on this forgotten aspect of memory. I moved to Prescott, Arizona when I was 11 and moved away when I was 18, living there for only 7 years. Yet as time passes, I am starting to realize how impactful Prescott has been on me. For my Honors Creative Project, I created a video essay in an attempt to "map" my relationship with Prescott and how it has changed over time. Incorporating digital video, Google SketchUp Animations and historical photographs, Life in a Museum acts as collage that attempts to mimic the tangential aspects of memory. The film addresses my upbringing in Prescott, the town's intense pride for its history, and how living there has affected my own perception of time, memory, death and the future. Link to video: https://vimeo.com/126633587
ContributorsJones, Zachary Loren (Author) / Larson, Elizabeth (Thesis director) / Kitson, Jennifer (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / School of Film, Dance and Theatre (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
Since its discovery in 1524, many people have characterized the vermiform appendix. Charles Darwin considered the human appendix to be a vestige and a useless structure. Others at the time opposed this hypothesis. However, Darwin's hypothesis became prevalent one until recently when there became a renewed interest in the appendix because of advancements in microscopes, knowledge of the immune system, and phylogenetics. In this review, I will argue that the vermiform appendix, although still not completely understood, has important functions. First, I will give the anatomy of the appendix. I will discuss the comparative anatomy between different animals and also primates. I will address the effects of appendicitis and appendectomy. I will give background on vestigial structures and will discuss if the appendix is a vestige. Following, I will review the evolution of the appendix. Finally, I will argue that the function of the appendix is as an immune organ, including discussion of gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT), development of lymphoid follicles in GALT and their comparison within different organs, Immunoglobulin A (IgA) function in the gut, biofilms as evidence that the appendix is a safe-house for beneficial bacteria, re-inoculation of the bowel, and protection against recurring infection. I will conclude with future studies that should be conducted to further our understanding of the vermiform appendix.
ContributorsPrestwich, Shelby Elizabeth (Author) / Cartwright, Reed (Thesis director) / Lynch, John (Committee member) / Furstenau, Tara (Committee member) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05