Honors College

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The College of Charleston Honors College expands on partnerships between faculty and student by creating a vibrant living-learning community where personal attention gives the support students need to reach their goals during and after college. Inside the CofC Honors community, motivated students live, learn, and grow together while pursuing their unique interests and goals – everything from study abroad, internships, research and service projects at home and globally.

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Browsing Honors College by Issue Date "2014-05"

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    A Comprehensive Study on Cybersecurity
    Grooms, Krista Lee; Stalvey, RoxAnn
    President Obama has declared that the “cyber threat is one of the most serious economic and national security challenges we face as a nation”. Worldwide, cyber-attacks happen almost constantly. The targets of these attacks include not only individuals, but larger organizations and even countries. I believe by understanding current risks, predicting future risks, and putting safeguards in place we may be able to diminish cybersecurity threats in the future. It is important that we not only teach these strategies to adults, but also to children as they are more accepting of technology which leaves them vulnerable to cyber-attacks. Furthermore, it is a necessity that we begin teaching these techniques to current computer science students who will be able to integrate what they have learned into their future computer programs; in turn leading to the replacement of risky code with programs that can battle cyber-attacks.
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    A Quarter Century of Coastal Change on San Salvador Island: 1988-2014
    Hefron, Christina; Carew, James L
    In 1988, Daryl Clark completed a Masters thesis outlining the characteristics of modern beach sediment for 18 beaches on San Salvador Island, Bahamas. This study provides an assessment of 9 of the 18 beaches 25 years after Clark’s study. Samples collected from the lower beachface, upper beachface, backbeach, and dune environments were processed to determine particle size, grain texture, sample sorting, sample skewness, and kurtosis. The results of this study, and a smaller study completed by a College of Charleston student in 2010, were compared to Clark’s results to determine coastal changes on the island during the past quarter century. Clark concluded the major determinant of sediment texture and sorting on the island was platform geomorphology and antecedent topography. He also attributed coastal development to major storm events. Clark conducted his research during a relatively calm period in Bahamian hurricane history. From 1990 to 2013, multiple hurricanes have impacted the Bahamas, including San Salvador Island. Despite these storms, no conclusive results support Clark’s conclusion that storm events are a major determinant of modern subaerial sedimentation. Therefore, antecedent topography and platform geomorphology appear to be the greatest factors in coastal development on San Salvador Island.
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    A Student's Approach to College Retention
    Walker, Aleisha C.; Finnan, Christine
    This study focuses on how potentially "at-risk" college students successfully remain at the College of Charleston until graduation. Some factors that influence college retention are race, gender, socioeconomic status, parents’ educational background, academic ability, financial assistance, social integration, and environmental push factors. More specifically, students, especially females, from high-income families who had high educational aspirations and were committed in some way to the institution graduated more than those who were not. Therefore, students who are not white or female or from a high income background are seen as being more at risk of not retaining at the institution or graduating from it. Black males are less successful in their college careers than black females. Despite the high risk of non-retention among these types of students, some of them do remain in college and graduate. This study collects the stories of College of Charleston students’ experiences before and during college that potentially influence their retention. Students were interviewed and patterns in influences and experiences have been identified. This research will potentially assist the College of Charleston and similar institutions better serve students who may be at risk for dropping out.
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    Angelina dai bei capelli
    Mangione, Lucia; Maher, Michael
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    Are Coach-led Intervention Programs Effective in Reducing ACL Injury? A Systematic Review
    Schumacher, Brandi Avis; Pfile, Kate R
    <b><i>Objective:</b></i> To systematically review the available literature to determine whether coach led prevention programs are as effective as a mixed leadership group in reducing the incidence of ACL injury in athletes. <b><i>Data Sources:</b></i> We searched PubMed, CINAHL, SPORTDiscus, and Medline for articles published through February 2014 using the terms anterior cruciate ligament, ACL, prevention, prevention program, and neuromuscular training. <b><i>Study Selection:</b></i> Criteria for inclusion required that (1) the article was published in a peer-reviewed journal and available in English, (2) a preventative training program was implemented, (3) a description of who led the prevention program was provide, and (4) ACL injury incidence and athlete exposure were reported. Eight articles met inclusion criteria and were rated using the Phsyiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) Scale. PEDro scores ranged from 3 to 8 with a mean of 5.44 and a standard deviation of 1.51. <b><i>Data Synthesis:</b></i> The eight articles were divided based on intervention leader. Incidence rates for ACL injury in each study were compared to determine prevention program efficacy. When ACL injury rates weren’t given, they were calculated based on reported results. <b><i>Conclusion:</b></i> Many variations were found between prevention program designs and implementation. All interventions but one resulted in a decreased incidence with an equal amount of coach led programs and mixed group led programs reaching statistical significance. In conclusion, prevention programs are effective at reducing ACL injury incidence regardless of the personnel in charge of implementing them. Future studies should focus on isolating the intervention leader variable while keeping other variables consistent.
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    Body and Soul: Nathaniel Hawthorne's Conceptions of Human Identity
    Wise, Emily C; Peeples, Scott; Peeples, Scott
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    Bread Riots as a Challenge to Autocratic Regimes in the Middle East
    Johnson , Morgan Marie; Creed, John; Watson , Annette $
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    Candidates’ Head and Eye Orientations in Job Interviews: Effects on Impression Formation
    Hatch, Molly C; Toris, Carol
    This study examined the effects of job candidates’ head and eye orientations on observers’ impressions across six different head/eye orientation combinations. Sixty-six undergraduate participants (51 males, 15 females, Mage = 19.61 years) viewed simulated interview excerpts of six job candidates, and rated them across eighteen bipolar rating scales. One-way analyses of variance comparisons of the six head/eye orientations on the impression measures revealed that mean ratings on the confident, focused, calm, dominant, and outgoing traits differed as a function of head/eye orientation, with the level eye gaze orientations being judged as more confident, focused, calm, dominant, and outgoing, and the eye gaze avoidance orientations being judged as less. When candidates displayed a level head/eye orientation they were more frequently selected by the participants to be hired than the other head/eye orientations. When candidates tilted their heads upwards and maintained a level eye gaze they were perceived as the most proud.
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    CHARLESTON’S SMALL-SCALE LODGING INDUSTRY: AN INVENTORY AND INVESTIGATION
    Jacobson, Aaron; McLeod, Brumby
    This Bachelor’s Essay is being submitted for fulfillment of the graduation requirements of the College of Charleston Honors College for the Spring 2014 semester. The following research explores the non-hotel segment of the lodging industry, i.e. accommodations of less than 15 rooms which are eligible for rental periods of less than one month. These “small-scale” lodging properties, as they are collectively referred to in this essay, are most typically short-term vacation rentals, but may also include small inns, bed and breakfasts, timeshares, hostels, campsites, boats, and other non-hotel forms of short-term lodging. Whereas data from hotels and lodging properties of 15 or more rooms is collected and inventoried by Smith Travel Research, the lodging industry’s leading data provider, there is no comparable data provider or standard source for these small-scale lodging properties. Lack of operational inventory for lodging properties of less than 15 rooms is problematic in multiple ways. In Charleston, South Carolina, for example, research has shown that a significant portion of unexplained accommodations tax revenue is likely attributable to smaller non-hotel lodging properties. An accurate inventory of these properties could help close the gap between explainable and unexplainable accommodations tax revenue, while also helping to ensure the completion of accommodations tax payments owed to the City of Charleston, Charleston County, and the State of South Carolina. Moreover, a deeper and more complete understanding of Charleston’s lodging industry will provide the basis for more accurate and precise decision making by all concerned parties, including but not limited to the City of Charleston, the Charleston Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, and the College of Charleston’s Hospitality Department and Office of Tourism Analysis. Thus, the research culminates in a comprehensive inventory of downtown Charleston’s lodging properties of less than 15 rooms, specifically in an area on the peninsula of Charleston known as the Historic District (defined herein as the combined 29401 and 29403 zip codes). Finally, the essay acknowledges limitations and suggests directions for further research.
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    Construction of a Disdrometer Prototype and Analysis of Rainfall Interarrival Times
    Jenks, Cassidy; Larsen, Michael L
    Disdrometers are devices used in many disciplines which determine individual raindrop size, location, and arrival time. All disdrometers currently on the market cost around ve thousand dollars or more. The goal of the project was to create an inexpensive disdrometer with a useful degree of precision. Six designs were theorized and one was built. An analysis was then completed on the data collected by this disdrometer. It was determined that the new disdrometer is not yet able to give reliable results, but there is potential for cheaper disdrometers in the future.
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    Consumer Vulnerability Among U.S. Migrants
    Crowell, Alli; Mueller, Dr. Rene
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    CORTISOL LEVELS IN RESPONSE TO LONGTERM PHYSIOLOGICAL STRESSORS AS A RESULT OF CHRONIC NEUROPATHIC PAIN
    Lyons, Shannon C; Meyer-Bernstein, Elizabeth; Riegel, Arthur $
    The interaction between chronic pain and severe stress is of particular importance considering the increased population experiencing neuropathic pain. We studied the impact of a chronic physical pain stressor on corticosterone levels in rats. Animals underwent spared nerve injury (SNI) surgery or served as sham or naïve controls. A separate group was divided into either acute (1 day) or chronic (5 days) fox urine exposure and served as a reference as to the effects of a purely psychological stress source. The SNI procedure induces physiological stress that can be measured 28 days (chronic pain) post-surgery. Each animal’s plasma was tested using radioimmunoassay with Iodine125 to determine corticosterone levels. While SNI surgery resulted in an increase in corticosterone in both groups as compared to controls, chronic pain rats had less corticosterone than both groups of fox urine exposed rats. The corticosterone reduction in chronic stress rats may be explained by prolonged activation of the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis negative feedback loop. This experiment provides insight into the effect of prolonged stress which may lead to future treatment therapies for neuropathic pain.
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    Definitions of Feminine Virtue in Epic Romance: Exploring the Ideologies of Ariosto, Tasso, and Spenser
    Doty, Phoebe Wellington; Russell, William; Thomas, Catherine$; Beres Rogers, Kathleen$
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    Determinants of Civil Liberty
    Kubie, Amy Campbell; Calcagno, Peter; Hefner, Frank$; Witte, Mark$
    Past empirical research shows strong relationships between the institutions that promote freedom and economic well-being, namely the institutions of civil liberty, economic freedom, and political freedom. Few studies make the distinction between civil liberty and political freedom. Civil liberty is defined in this paper as an individual’s right to maintain preferences and to act freely upon them in the private sector, without governmental interference. By using panel data for 151 countries and yearly observations for the period 2000-2011, the purpose of this paper is to examine the determinants of civil liberty, to be able to recommend effective policies with which to promote this important institution of freedom.
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    Developing the Snapping Shrimp, Alpheus angulosus, as a Model System for Development and Plasticity
    Tracey, Erica Renee; Korey, Christopher A
    Neural asymmetry is usually considered in the context of handedness and language processing in humans, but handedness and behavioral side preferences (reflecting asymmetry in neural organization) can be found to some degree in all vertebrate and invertebrate families. This universality suggests that lateralized specialization is a beneficial characteristic under strong evolutionary selection. Despite this, few solid conclusions have been drawn as to what bilateral asymmetry may require from the nervous system and how phenotypic differences are representative of the underlying circuitry. Other related processes, such as neural regeneration and plasticity, are also poorly understood, especially as they relate to neural asymmetry. Simple systems with extreme phenotypic characteristics, like some crustaceans, can provide a window into mechanisms associated with successful neuroplasticity, regeneration and organization of asymmetric systems that traditional model systems cannot. Like many crustaceans, those of the genus Alpheus, or snapping shrimp, present with extreme bilateral asymmetry in their front limbs. Wild type shrimp have a large hammer claw (also known as snapper) used for defense and a smaller pincer claw used to burrow and feed. These functional differences are echoed by the set of setae present on the claw surface that relay sensory input back to the central nervous system. Setae are small hairs outside the crustacean’s cuticle that are either chemo or mechanosensory in nature. These setae are diverse in form and distribution among specific regions of the claw in a single species. Studies of Alpheus heterochaelis, closely related to Alpheus angulosus, show that these setae are innervated with nerves that branch and that different types of setae may serve varied purposes. Snapping shrimp stand out from the rest of crustaceans because if one claw is removed, the “handedness” of the shrimp often becomes switched—the pincer morphing into a snapper, while the removed limb grows back as a pincer, in a process beginning as early as a week after removal. This transformation occurs in a stepwise fashion, the transforming pincer looking more like a snapper after each molt. During this transformation, the sensory hairs (setae) and internal neuromuscular system must be completely rewired to compensate for the behavioral and functional differences between the two claws. As the pincer transforms into snapper, up to 5000 myelinated and 9000 unmyelinated neurons are regenerated and send axons to synapse in the thoracic ganglion5. This process is recognized as an example of neural regeneration coupled with neural plasticity. Some work has been done to characterize how the muscles and their associated motor neurons change functionally to support the move from pincer to snapper. Almost nothing is known, however, about the significant neural reorganization that occurs in the peripheral and central nervous systems to support these radical changes in wiring. Also unique to the snapping shrimp, “handedness” appears to be random as opposed to environmentally determined or genetically preferred, as in most crustaceans. This feature suggests that snapping shrimp have evolved to optimize plasticity rather than fixed asymmetry. This ability is probably the basis for the regeneration and switching described earlier, and the randomness should be reflected during development. As such, my research group proposes to use the development of Alpheus as a model system for neural development and plasticity as it will provide significant insights into fundamental problems in neurobiology. The following compilation of papers reflects two years of data collection. We undertook a multidirectional approach to begin building the snapping shrimp as a model species, exploring both embryological development and claw form and function. The first paper, published in Crustaceana, represents the beginning of our embryological studies. It is essentially an atlas of morphological markers that we are currently using to match early neurological patterns with phenotypic characteristics. Paper two, submitted for publication in Marine and Freshwater Behavior and Physiology, analyzes changes in claw shape and function as it transforms from a small claw into a large claw. Taken together, this work forms a solid basis on which to begin understanding how deeply the neural asymmetry and plasticity of snapping shrimp is integrated into their system.
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    Education for Extinction: A History of Native American Education Policy
    Wyche, Emily C; Boucher, Christophe; Jestice, Phyllis$