2022 Honors Theses (Spring)

The COVID-19 pandemic has had adverse effects on almost everyone, of all ages, races, genders, etc. It has been linked to an increase in mental health issues across the globe. This study aims to look at the impacts that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on stress and anxiety levels in male and female college students and compare the two genders. It is hypothesized that both genders will have an increase of stress and anxiety levels during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is also hypothesized that females will have significantly higher levels of stress and anxiety than males before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The data used in this study will be collected through an online survey. The survey will consist of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and the General Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) to retrospectively measure stress and anxiety levels before COVID- 19 and during COVID-19. Along with these questions to measure mental health symptoms, the survey also gathered information about the different COVID-19 factors that have influenced mental health. Results show that both genders have had an increase of stress and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results also support the hypothesis that females had more of an increase in stress and anxiety than males before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is recognized that not all college students identify as either male or female, but this study only focuses on these two genders. This study provides evidence that mental health among college students during the COVID-19 pandemic was a cause for concern. \nKeywords: COVID-19, college students, stress, anxiety, gender,Honors Thesis Advisor : Dr. Michael Baranski, PhD.

The rise of social media influencers as a vehicle to reach consumers is a developing addition to the marketing mix. The purpose of this honors thesis is to determine if boutique hotel brands can benefit from the use of micro-influencer marketing to reach more potential guests than through their own social media accounts. The research methodology to test the hypothesis is participant observation and content analysis within Instagram as the research environment. Three boutique hotels within Nashville, Tennessee were chosen to compare influencer effectiveness rates against to determine the validity of the hypothesis. The importance of this research is to understand the level of effectiveness associated with investing in social media influencer marketing for boutique hotels. \nKeywords: Boutique Hotels, e-Word of Mouth, Influencer Marketing, Micro-Influencers, Brand,Honors Thesis Advisor : Dr. Susan Ryan, PhD.

The Donora smog is an infamous event caused by Donora Zinc Works, which operated for thirty-three long years prior to the disaster which resulted in a foggy haze mixed with atmospheric pollutants to smother the proximal areas. The Donora smog occurred over the Donora and Webster areas on October 29th, 1948. Soil samples were collected, in triplicate, from the location where the plant used to stand, as well as from surrounding areas not impacted by industrialization. The soil samples were analyzed for pH, moisture content, organic matter content, and zinc concentrations. Bacteria isolated from the soil were tested for their ability to grow in high zinc concentrations and DNA was extracted from isolates exhibiting zinc resistance. The extracted DNA underwent shotgun sequencing to generate genome assemblies of the isolates. Some of the genomes identified were Serratia liquefacines, Alcaligenes faecalis, and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia which have previously shown zinc resistance. The soil samples collected from Donora displayed high concentrations of zinc and the microbes isolated from the samples displayed the ability to grow in high zinc concentrations. The results from this study provide evidence to support that there are long-lasting effects of industrialization on the bacterial communities within the soil.,Honors Thesis Advisor : Dr. Michelle Valkanas, PhD.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has become increasingly popular over these past few years. At this point these heroes are shown doing more than just fighting villains and catching bad guys, you are able to see them as normal humans with everyday problems. Wanda Maximoff (Scarlet Witch), who I will be analyzing, has a lot of grief and trauma from losing her parents, brother, partner, and her kids. All those things influence how she performs as a hero and how people view her. These superheroes have power, whether that be their superpowers, mental strength, or their status alongside their teammates. I have found research papers discussing the different forms of power and used them to analyze Wanda. Through all of the movies and tv shows that she has been a part of I gathered evidence on how she uses these powers and how it shapes her character. \nKeywords: MCU, Wanda Maximoff, power: social, mental, and physical, loss, grief, trauma, social hierarchy, relationships,Honors Thesis Advisor : Dr. Mark G. Aune, PhD.

Alzheimer's disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects the cognition of an individual. There is currently no cure, but potential treatments, preventions, and risk factors have been identified regarding both genetic and environmental factors. The main objective of the thesis was to identify if a lifetime of mental stimulation affects the onsets of Alzheimer's disease later in life. Various scientific articles were read regarding Alzheimer's disease, neurodegeneration, and research about mental stimulation. Mental stimulation was concretely defined in terms of what this thesis was focused upon. Statistical analyses were also completed to look at any correlations between environmental factors, such as amount of education achieved during an individual's lifetime, and Alzheimer's disease. This work has the potential to identify ways to lessen the chance of developing Alzheimer's disease later in life.,Honors Thesis Advisor : Dr. Brian Paulson, PhD.

The growing concerns regarding the overpopulation of feral felines in local communities and the need for more involvement to control the situation was the reason for writing this research paper. Arguments to members of the community were given as to why more people should get involved, a few reasons being it will improve the welfare and health of felines and humans, one can obtain a strong sense of accomplishment and camaraderie with neighbors, and there are many consequences to the whole ecosystem with one species being overpopulated. Suggestions for ways to control the feral feline population were also provided. In conjunction with this research-based argument essay, an event was hosted to raise more awareness for a local cat rescue with all members of the community being invited to support the rescue and provide funds for them to continue their work of trapping local strays and getting them vetted, sterilized, and adopted. Many attended to show their support and we received a vast variety of donations for the gift basket raffle. The bingo fundraiser event brought in $1405 for the California, PA based cat rescue named Cali Cats.,Honors Thesis Advisor : Dr. Jessica Swords, DVM