May 3, 2024 | Digital Showcase | Humboldt Library
All Presenters & Abstracts
Leaf Dispersal Trends Among Pyrophytic and Mesophytic Oak Tree Species
Presentation Year: 2019
We hypothesize that leaves from pyrophytic species (highly flammable species with historically frequent fire regimes) will disperse farther than leaves from mesophytic species (less flammable species with lower frequency fire regimes). To test this, we examined the leaf fall velocity and dispersal distance of four mesophytic and four pyrophytic oaks species from California by dropping ten leaves of each species from five different heights in the absence of wind. Preliminary results indicated that mesophytes dispersed farther than pyrophytes, and mean leaf fall velocity was slower in pyrophytes. Mesophytes could have traveled farther due to having lower surface area-to-mass ratio.
Leeroy Jenkins; Identity Formation, Investment, and Social Structure of a Guild in World of Warcraft
Presentation Year: 2019
World of Warcraft, an online fantasy game, connects more than 10 million players worldwide in a multiplayer story-based adventure. Each player builds a character and plays through game content individually or in groups called guilds. Through participant observation over the course of a year, this study of one guild found: social/hierarchical bonds/structure are reinforced in all group activities; and the correlation between individual time investment in guild play/communication and group cohesion. This research contributes to existing scholarship on online sociality by providing insight into the role online gaming plays in connecting people across time and space in new forms of community.
Mad River Fish Hatchery
Presentation Year: 2019
One issue facing fisheries management is communicating with the public in an informative way. Filmography has shown to be an excellent medium for educating the public. A major driving force of education consist of documentaries, giving access of new information to the most amount of people. In collaboration with the Mad River Fish Hatchery I have created an educational documentary that assists in further educating the the local community and students that visit this site. This project will reinforce the necessity of the Fish Hatcheries educational purposes and further continue their mission in fish management practices.
Makeup Design for Evil Dead the Musical by Amy Beltrán and Constance Hill
Presentation Year: 2019
National Award Winning Makeup Design for Evil Dead: The Musical by Amy Beltrán and Constance Hill.
Due to the theatre department not having a makeup class dedicated to teaching FX makeup, we had to teach ourselves the entire process of face casting, creating latex prosthetics, and designing realistic gore makeup. Our creativity ranged from using fake nails to create teeth on zombies, to using chocolate syrup to make fake blood.
Our collaborative design won us the national award for excellence in Allied Arts at the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival back in February, 2019, as well as an internship with the Stage Craft Institute of Las Vegas over the summer.
Makeup Design for Evil Dead the Musical by Amy Beltrán and Constance Hill
Presentation Year: 2019
National Award Winning Makeup Design for Evil Dead: The Musical by Amy Beltrán and Constance Hill.
Due to the theatre department not having a makeup class dedicated to teaching FX makeup, we had to teach ourselves the entire process of face casting, creating latex prosthetics, and designing realistic gore makeup. Our creativity ranged from using fake nails to create teeth on zombies, to using chocolate syrup to make fake blood.
Our collaborative design won us the national award for excellence in Allied Arts at the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival back in February, 2019, as well as an internship with the Stage Craft Institute of Las Vegas over the summer.
Making Connections Between Queer Students and Resources
Presentation Year: 2019
The Eric Rofes Multicultural Queer Resource Center (ERC) works hard every year to provide resources to the queer identified students on campus. This can be a difficult yet rewarding position to be in. The difficulty being, at times, queer students have other needs that go beyond what the ERC is able to assist with. This does not stop the ERC from trying to connect students with other resources both on and off campus. With their guidance a resource zine was created. Its intention is to bridge gaps and make connections from the students to the resources they may find useful.
Mapping Our Way to Zero Waste
Presentation Year: 2019
A Zero Waste perspective is supportive of reducing plastic consumption. Zero Waste Humboldt cooperated with six local governments and three schools with sponsorship from Coast Central Credit Union, Strong Foundation, and Mad River Rotary Club. They obtained a startup grant from the Footprint Foundation to implement the process of installing water bottle refilling stations to support the local communities and reduce the amount of single use plastic. They needed several maps in different mediums showing the locations where they have installed the water bottle refilling stations. I supported their efforts by making a web based map and a printed map for their public outreach.
Marijuana Cultivation on the Yurok Reservation
Presentation Year: 2019
This poster will look at the history of illegal cannabis cultivation within the Yurok Reservation boundaries. This poster will include the impacts to the tribal communities and their dependence on the water resources used in maintaining cannabis farming, the impact on natural and cultural resources and the current tribal stance on cannabis cultivation.
Mask Design for Fantastic Mr. Fox by Constance Hill
Presentation Year: 2019
My concept for the mask design is rooted in sustainability, using found materials to decorate the masks. The masks are made out of items that are found in nature - items that animals would use if they were able to make masks for themselves. Ranging from feathers, to redwood tree leaves and bark, to pine cones, and to dirt. Each material provides texture that is accurate and unique to that of the animal, or to the animal’s personality.
Mask Design for Fantastic Mr. Fox by Constance Hill
Presentation Year: 2019
My concept for the mask design is rooted in sustainability, using found materials to decorate the masks. The masks are made out of items that are found in nature - items that animals would use if they were able to make masks for themselves. Ranging from feathers, to redwood tree leaves and bark, to pine cones, and to dirt. Each material provides texture that is accurate and unique to that of the animal, or to the animal’s personality.
Mayan Ceramic Reconstruction
Presentation Year: 2019
This reconstruction project was essential in understanding the proper steps to put together ancient pottery. The methods used were based on the National Park Service use of acryloid B-72 for labeling, as well as the Xuenkal Archaeological Project, Yucatán’s way of properly conserving, washing, and gluing of ceramic. The acryloid glue allows items’ provenance to be written directly on the artifact without damage. The acryloid glue prevents the curling, flaking, and loss of numbers of the cellulose nitrate lacquers within the ceramics unlikes other glues. These methods have proven successful with the ink, not being absorbed by the ceramic causing damage and the glue proved longevity.
Mayan Ceramic Reconstruction
Presentation Year: 2019
This reconstruction project was essential in understanding the proper steps to put together ancient pottery. The methods used were based on the National Park Service use of acryloid B-72 for labeling, as well as the Xuenkal Archaeological Project, Yucatán’s way of properly conserving, washing, and gluing of ceramic. The acryloid glue allows items’ provenance to be written directly on the artifact without damage. The acryloid glue prevents the curling, flaking, and loss of numbers of the cellulose nitrate lacquers within the ceramics unlikes other glues. These methods have proven successful with the ink, not being absorbed by the ceramic causing damage and the glue proved longevity.
Media Coverage of the Opioid Epidemic in Humboldt County
Presentation Year: 2019
This study focuses on media coverage of the opioid epidemic. We analyzed local media coverage from 2013-2018 in the Times-Standard, North Coast Journal, and Lost Coast Outpost. The study is inspired by cultivation theory, which indicates that prolonged exposure to mediated messages influence how people perceive reality. Results indicate that the majority of articles containing the term “heroin” are focused on crime rather than a health, legislation, community engagement, or other key factors that could potentially affect the future outcome of this epidemic.
Media Coverage of the Opioid Epidemic in Humboldt County
Presentation Year: 2019
This study focuses on media coverage of the opioid epidemic. We analyzed local media coverage from 2013-2018 in the Times-Standard, North Coast Journal, and Lost Coast Outpost. The study is inspired by cultivation theory, which indicates that prolonged exposure to mediated messages influence how people perceive reality. Results indicate that the majority of articles containing the term “heroin” are focused on crime rather than a health, legislation, community engagement, or other key factors that could potentially affect the future outcome of this epidemic.
Mindfulness in Higher Education: How the Brain Booth is Fostering Academic Excellence
Presentation Year: 2019
The Brain Booth initiative is an innovative project promoting mindfulness and contemplative pedagogy as a means of introducing metacognition for academic success. The Brain Booth is an informal, experiential space to learn about the mind body connection, reduce stress, and optimize learning. It is open to all HSU students, staff, and faculty as well as community members. In the last academic year, 1,000+ students took a brain break in the Brain Booth, and
the Brain Booth was embedded across the colleges curricula in 5 departments and 8 courses.
Motion Sickness: An Evolutionary Analysis
Presentation Year: 2019
Motion sickness is a condition that has no apparent evolutionary advantage, yet it persists in many species. Research has revealed the mechanisms that cause motion sickness, but there is no consensus or agreement in the scientific literature regarding its evolutionary origins. Some research suggests that motion sickness is an evolutionary byproduct of our biological response against neurotoxins. Others propose that it functions as some kind of defense mechanism against unfavorable motion and promotes visual-spatial stability. Exploring the evolutionary origins of motion sickness will provide a better understanding of how modern environments can cause physiological miscues.
Mountaintop Removal at Hobet Coal Mine from 1976-2010
Presentation Year: 2019
The Hobet Coal Mine is located in West Virginia and was an active mining site for 41 years and was one of the largest surface coal mines in the United States. The impacts of this particular mine are especially pronounced because of the sheer scale of alteration to the landscape caused by mountaintop removal to retrieve the coal, and valley fill techniques to dispose of the mining debris. In order to reach the coal located in shallow seams below these Central Appalachian Mountain peaks, hundreds of vertical feet of earth were demolished. This mining has impacted nearly every aspect of the geography of the region, from the environment to the surrounding human communities.
My Protein Bars are Gendered
Presentation Year: 2019
Did you know that most protein bars are gendered? DeFrancisco, V. L., & Palczewski, C. H. wrote that “communication creates gender, gender does not create communication,” and this is especially evident when looking at the difference in protein bars. Protein bars like the Clif bar and Luna bar are socially constructed to appear feminine or masculine. This is done by playing to cultural feminine ideals, by the packaging of the product itself, and by the rhetoric associated with each product.
Mycoremediation and TEK Implemented into Ecological Restoration Practices
Presentation Year: 2019
Mycoremediation and traditional ecological knowledge or TEK implemented within Indigenous communities and blended with accepted ecological restoration methods in order to restore the health of damaged and contaminated ecosystems.
Mycoremediation and TEK Implemented into Ecological Restoration Practices
Presentation Year: 2019
Mycoremediation and traditional ecological knowledge or TEK implemented within Indigenous communities and blended with accepted ecological restoration methods in order to restore the health of damaged and contaminated ecosystems.



