Volume I, Spring 2011

Detail: the Burgos Tapestry Image courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Volume I, Spring 2011 The Burgos Tapestry: Medieval Theatre and Visual Experience | Attitudes towards Immigration Reform in the United States: The Importance of Neighborhoods | The Spontaneous Formation of Selenium Nanoparticles on Gallic Acid Assemblies and their Antioxidant Properties | “A Pow- er Beyond the Reach of Any Magic”: Mythology in Harry Potter | A Canyon Apart: Immigration Politics and Hispanic Mobilization in Arizona FURJ | Volume 1 | Spring 2011 www.fordham.edu/fcrh/furj www.fordham.edu/fcrh/furj FURJ | Volume 1 | Spring 2011 The Fordham Undergraduate Research Journal will soon be accepting submissions for our second issue. Matteo Ricci Seminar Makes Great Strides in in this issue... Inaugural Year Margaret Palazzolo, FCRH ’13 FURJ welcomes original research articles, short research p. 5 Dr. Naison Enlists Help of Undergrads in communications, book reviews, and review essays for Recording Bronx African American History Aaron Dowdell, FCRH ’12 Mussolini, Romano. My Father, Il Duce: A Mem- consideration for publication. p. 9 oir by Mussolini’s Son. Carlsbad, CA: Kales Press (Distributed by W. W. Norton), 2006. Honors Program Fosters Community of Sarah Sullivan, FCRH ’12 Research at Rose Hill p. 17 Margaret Palazzolo, FCRH ’13 Visit www.fordham.edu/fcrh/furj for information and A Review of “An Ethical Market in Human Or- p. 11FEATURES gans,” by Charles A. Erin and John Harris, and submission guidelines. Please send questions to “Print, Publics, and Culture”: The Fall 2010 A Proposed Solution to the Current Organ Short- American Studies Thesis Presentations age [email protected]. Daniela Hess, FCRH ’11 Rachel Rattenni, FCRH ’14 p. 13 p. 20 Writing Women’s Mythology: The Poetry of Ea- van Boland and Louise Erdrich The Burgos Tapestry: Medieval Theatre and Visual Experience Colleen Taylor, FCRH ’12 p. 23 Nathalie Rochel, FCRH ’11 p. 29 REVIEWS Attitudes Towards Immigration Reform in the United States: The Importance of Neighborhoods Want to work for FURJ? RESEARCH Noelle Makhoul, FCRH ’12 p. 35 Energy of Electrons in a Nanowire Subject The Spontaneous Formation of Sele- to Spin-orbit Interaction FURJ is always looking for peer reviewers, staff writers, nium Nanoparticles on Gallic Acid Ryan Brennan, FCRH ’11 Assemblies and their Antioxidant Prop- p. 61 erties copy editors, and more! NMR Determination of Enantiomeric Com- Stacey Barnaby, FCRH ’11 position of Chiral Alcohols Using Cam- p. 41 phorsulfonate Esters “A Power Beyond the Reach of Any Steven Bondi, FCRH ’11 Visit www.fordham.edu/fcrh/furj for more information Magic”: Mythology in Harry Potter p. 64 Daniella Rizza, FCRH ’11 Mobile Sensor Data Mining p. 47 and to access the application. Please send questions to Jeff Lockhart, FCRH ’13 A Canyon Apart: Immigration Politics COMMUNICATIONSp. 67 [email protected]. and Ethnic Identity in Arizona Peter Morrissey, FCRH ’11 p. 53 Photo Credit: Bill Denison, Fordham University Office1 of Marketing and Communications 2 FURJ | Volume 1 | Spring 2011 www.fordham.edu/fcrh/furj Editorial Board The Fordham Undergraduate Research Journal Kevin Jordan, Co-Editor-in-Chief Alexandria DeCapua-Guarino, Co-Editor-in-Chief FCRH ’12: Biology FCRH ’12: Biology, Anthropology April 27, 2011 Andrew Steffan, Copy Editor To the Fordham Community, FCRH ’13: Political Science, Theology It is our pleasure to present to you the inaugural issue of FURJ – the Fordham Undergraduate Research Xavier Montecel, Reviews Co-Editor Kathleen Mroz, Reviews Co-Editor Journal. This journal marks a momentous stride for undergraduate research at Fordham; for the first FCRH ’12: Theology FCRH ’11: Theology, Political Science time, a diverse array of high caliber undergraduate research from the sciences, humanities, and social Stacey Barnaby, Peer Reviews Co-Editor Stephen Frayne, Peer Reviews Co-Editor sciences appears in a unified publication. The articles included in this issue range from an art history FCRH ’11: Chemistry FCRH ’12: Chemistry analysis of a medieval tapestry to material science research on the formation of selenium nanoparticles on gallic acid assemblies. The breadth of research on the proceeding pages only attests to the wide yet Tana Ferris, News Editor Stephen Moccia, Photographer focused interests of Fordham undergraduates. FCRH ’11: Communications, Latin American Studies FCRH ’12: Theology, Political Science Helena Guzik, Design Editor Sarah Sullivan, Public Relations Manager While FURJ strives to provide undergraduates with an outlet to display their research, we also hope to FCRH ’12: Art History, History FCRH ’12: History, Medieval Studies inspire our readers. What makes research so great is its promotion of a genuine interest in the pursuit of knowledge and understanding. As Father McShane said on the PBS program A Walk Through The Bronx, “We have a great desire to introduce excellence … we believe that students have to be invited Acknowledgments Faculty Advisory Board to wrestle with the great ethical issues of their time. We want them to be bothered by the realization The FURJ staff wishes to thank Dr. Ipsita Banerjee, Chemistry that they don't know everything and bothered by injustice.” We believe a zest for research captures this the following for their support as Dr. Michelle Bata, FCRH Dean’s Office anxiety, the notion that we don't know everything yet we strive to do so. So peruse the following pages we worked towards creating the and discover what questions students are grappling with, but then we invite you to put this journal first issue: Dr. Michael Baur, Philosophy down and go out into the world and formulate your own questions – these questions are the founda- Dr. Greta Gilbertson, Sociology tions of research. THURJ - the Harvard Under- Dr. Richard Gyug, History graduate Research Journal Lastly, we would like to thank everyone who has made FURJ a reality. One year ago, the idea of an un- executive board Dr. Susanne Hafner, Modern Languages dergraduate research journal was just a crazy idea we brought up in conversation, and now you hold Dr. Donna Heald, FCRH Dean’s Office a printed copy in your hands. This journal would be nowhere without the hard work of our dedicated Fordham University’s Office of staff who have worked tirelessly under extremely tight deadlines to produce this issue. Furthermore, Marketing and Communica- Dr. Michael Latham, FCRH Dean’s Office we would like to thank all of our peer and faculty reviewers who, for the sake of the double-blind peer tions Dr. Nicholas Tampio, Political Science review process, shall remain anonymous. We would also like to thank the faculty advisory board for Dr. John Wehr, Biological Sciences lending their time and expertise to us, for their input served as the foundation upon which the journal The faculty and students who was built. Similarly, we owe enormous thanks to Dr. Michelle Bata, Assistant Dean and Director of served as faculty and peer re- Undergraduate Research, who serves as the head of the faculty advisory board and primary advisor viewers Staff to FURJ. Without Dean Bata there would be no journal. Lastly we would like to thank Dr. Michael Fuad Bashjawish, FCRH ’12 Madeleine Metzler, FCRH ’11 Latham, Dean of Fordham College at Rose Hill, for his unbridled support and genuine interest in our The FURJ Faculty Advisory Kristine Beaudoin, FCRH ’11 Laura Notess, FCRH ’12 cause. Board Coty Brennan, FCLC ’12 Michele Paccagnini, FCRH ’12 This issue is a celebration of the collective efforts of Fordham undergraduates who conduct research The FCRH Dean’s Office and their dedication to the pursuit of knowledge, and it is our pleasure to share it with the Fordham Drenica Camaj, FCRH ’12 Margaret Palazzolo, FCRH ’13 community. Navena Chaitoo, FCRH ’13 Rose Puntel, FCRH ’13 Aaron Dowdell, FCRH ’12 Daniella Rizza, FCRH ’11 Sean Frey, FCRH ’13 Peter Sanneman, FCRH ’12 Sincerely, Christopher Gramuglia, FCRH ’11 Adrianna Savarese, FCRH ’12 Xavier Griffiths, FCRH ’14 Colleen Spain, FCRH ’11 Daniela Hess, FCRH ’11 Simon Sulit, GSB ’11 Ariana Jones, FCRH ’11 Stephanie Szempruch, FCRH ’11 Kevin Jordan Alexandria DeCapua-Guarino Jeffrey Lockhart, FCRH ’13 Megan Wiessner, FCRH ’11 Co-Editor-in-Chief Co-Editor-in-Chief U Photo Credit: Bill Denison, F RJ Fordham University Office of Marketing and Communications 13 FURJ | Volume 1 | Spring 2011 www.fordham.edu/fcrh/furj FURJ | Volume 1 | Spring 2011 Features lege at Rose Hill, is a critical pitfall. prowess made them promising candidates for eventual research pursuits and prestigious fel- “A lot of the essential preparation for these stu- lowship competitions, and then would prepare dents really has to take place well before the them for these undertakings through a care- time that they apply — certainly writing a com- fully crafted course of readings, discussions, Features petitive and compelling personal statement is lectures, and other activities. The co-directors important, and doing well in classes is impor- are themselves both accomplished research- tant, but there are other kinds of things that ers and educators: Dr. Combs has received a students need to be doing in terms of figuring Fordham University Award for Distinguished out what issues they really care about, hav- Teaching in the Social Sciences as well as mul- ing experiences outside the classroom,” says tiple Fordham Faculty Research Grants and Dean Latham. “These are the kinds of things Fellowships, while Dr. Hornbeck not only that allow students to figure out what they’re earned a Jack Kent Cooke Foundation schol- really good at … and then have some sort of arship as an undergraduate that supported his experience or accomplishment that really sets graduate studies at Oxford University, but he them apart.” An essential objective of the Mat- also gained relevant experience as coordinator teo Ricci seminar, then, says Dr. Hornbeck, is of a post-graduate discernment seminar within not only to equip students with the practical Fordham’s Curran Center for American Catho- Photo Credit: skills needed to face the demanding and re- lic Studies.

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