TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction iv Beacon 2012 Sponsors v Conference Program vi Outstanding Papers by Panel 1 SESSION I POLITICAL SCIENCE 2 Alison Conrad “Negative Political Advertising and the American Electorate” Mentor: Prof. Elaine Torda Orange County Community College EDUCATION 10 Michele Granitz “Non-Traditional Women of a Local Community College” Mentor: Dr. Bahar Diken Reading Area Community College INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES 18 Brogan Murphy “The Missing Link in the Puzzling Autism Epidemic: The Effect of the Internet on the Social Impact Equation” Mentor: Prof. Shweta Sen Montgomery College HISTORY 31 Megan G. Willmes “The People’s History vs. Company Profit: Mine Wars in West Virginia, the Battle of Blair Mountain, and the Ongoing Fight for Historical Preservation” Mentor: Dr. Joyce Brotton Northern Virginia Community College COMMUNICATIONS I: POPULAR CULTURE 37 Cristiana Lombardo “Parent-Child Relationships in the Wicked Child Sub-Genre of Horror Movies” Mentor: Dr. Mira Sakrajda Westchester Community College ALLIED HEALTH AND NURSING 46 Ana Sicilia “Alpha 1 Anti-Trypsin Deficiency Lung Disease Awareness and Latest Treatments” Mentor: Dr. Amy Ceconi Bergen Community College i TABLE OF CONTENTS (CONTINUED) SESSION II PSYCHOLOGY 50 Stacy Beaty “The Effect of Education and Stress Reduction Programs on Feelings of Control and Positive Lifestyle Changes in Cancer Patients and Survivors” Mentor: Dr. Gina Turner and Dr. Sharon Lee-Bond Northampton Community College THE ARTS 60 Angelica Klein “The Art of Remembering: War Memorials Past and Present” Mentor: Prof. Robert Bunkin Borough of Manhattan Community College NATURAL AND PHYSICAL SCIENCES 76 Fiorella Villar “Characterization of the Tissue Distribution of the Three Splicing Variants of LAMP-2” Mentor: Prof. Robert Applebaum and Prof. Chad Thompson Westchester Community College AMERICAN LITERATURE 85 Karen Breslin “Sherman Alexie: What the Indian Saw” Mentor: Dr. David Lucander Rockland Community College NUTRITION STUDIES/FITNESS/PUBLIC HEALTH 92 Melissa Puskar “The High Cost of Cheap Food” Mentor: Prof. Beth Wheeler Northampton Community College SOCIAL JUSTICE 100 Mariame Sylla “Reproductive Tourism: Ethical Implications of a New Form of Global Consumerism” Mentor: Prof. Shweta Sen Montgomery College INTERNATIONAL STUDIES AND GLOBALIZATION 109 Viktoria Ivanova “The Myth of Homogenization” Mentor: Dr. Aram Hessami Montgomery College ii TABLE OF CONTENTS (CONTINUED) SESSION III PHILOSOPHY AND RELIGIOUS STUDIES 118 Nicolette St. Lawrence “I am Not a Nike Sneaker: A Personal View on Existentialism” Mentor: Dr. Frank Madden Westchester Community College BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS 127 Silvia Argueta “Globalization and Americanization: The Cause and Potential Future of Dollarization” Mentor: Dr. Aram Hessami Montgomery College ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES 136 Yasuyo Tatebe “Demand of Green Public Space in Urban Design” Mentor: Dr. Beth Cunin” Rockland Community College COMMUNICATIONS II: MEDIA STUDIES/SPEECH 146 Sairam Nagulapalli “No ‘Techno Logic’: Why Reducing Information Barriers Is Not Helping the Poorest of the Poor” Mentor: Dr. Aram Hassami Montgomery College WORLD LITERATURE 155 Robert Harris “The Women of Boewulf: Power and Duty in Anglo Saxon Society” Mentor: Prof. Paul Lux Montgomery College GENDER AND GLBT STUDIES 162 Leah Sweeney “Examining Homosexuality in Three Cultures” Mentor: Dr. Cory Harris and Prof. Elaine Torda Orange County Community College SOCIAL SCIENCES 171 Alexis G. Martinez “Japanese Citizenship and the Zainichi” Mentor: Prof. Jennifer P. Haydel Montgomery College iii INTRODUCTION: THE BEACON CONFERENCE The Beacon Conference for student scholars at two-year colleges is an annual event that began in 1993 as a grant-funded AACC/Kellogg Beacon project and is now sponsored by a coalition of junior and community colleges in the mid-Atlantic region. The primary objective of the conference is to showcase academic achievements of students on two-year college campuses. Students are invited to submit scholarly work in 18–20 subject area categories that encompass all areas of study at two-year schools, from the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, to technical fields and special areas, such as computer applications and multicultural studies. Three community college faculty with expertise in a particular field read and rank the papers in each category. The authors of the top three essays in each discipline are invited to present their papers at the Beacon Conference hosted by one of the sponsoring colleges on the first Friday of June. Out of three finalists in each subject area, one winner is selected by a judge from a four-year university. Panel winners are chosen on the basis of the quality and originality of research, written work, and oral presentation. Prizes of $100 are awarded to both authors of the winning papers and their faculty mentors. In addition, the fourth-ranked students in each category are invited to present the highlights of their submissions during the Poster Session which precedes the Award Ceremony held at the conclusion of the conference day. The Beacon Conference is a great opportunity for students and faculty of two-year colleges to receive recognition for their outstanding work. The project also fosters a climate of community through (1) the collegiality that develops among colleagues working on a joint project; (2) the intense relationship that grows between students and their faculty mentors; (3) the interactions among students submitting to, presenting at, and attending the conference; (4) the connections between the two-year colleges and neighboring four-year institutions which supplied panel judges; and finally (5) the communal spirit at the conference itself. Usually, 120–170 students submit papers for the competition. The level of the papers submitted each year, the quality of the papers presented and, especially, the superiority of the winning papers illustrate that community colleges are the place for high caliber academic accomplishments. Additional information is available at http://www.beaconconference.org. iv BEACON 2012 SPONSORS Westchester Community College Dr. Joseph N. Hankin, President of Westchester Community College Westchester Community College Foundation Endowed Chair Holders Westchester Community College 60th Anniversary Committee Westchester Community College Faculty Senate Westchester Community College Federation of Teachers Westchester Community College Bookstore Westchester Community College Student Government Association The Philosophia Society– Westchester Community College Honors Program Kathryn W. Davis Global Community Scholars Program Publishing Companies Pearson McGraw-Hill Coalition of Two-Year Colleges in the Mid-Atlantic Region Bergen Community College, NJ Northampton Community College, PA Borough of Manhattan Community College, NY Northern Virginia Community College, VA Brookdale Community College, NJ Orange County Community College, NY Dutchess Community College, NY Reading Area Community College, PA Erie Community College, NY Rockland Community College, NY LaGuardia Community College, NY Sullivan County Community College, NY Lehigh Carbon Community College, PA Ulster County Community College, NY Montgomery College, MD Westchester Community College, NY Beacon Conference Transfer Fair Colleges Berkeley College New York University –The Steinhardt Columbia University – School of School of Culture, Education, General Studies and Human Development Drew University Pace University Iona College St. Thomas Aquinas University Manhattan College University of New Haven Manhattanville College SUNY Maritime College Mercy College SUNY Purchase College Monroe College Adelphi University New York Institute of Technology Clarkson University v CONFERENCE PROGRAM SESSION I: POLITICAL SCIENCE 9:00 – 10:30 AM Gateway Center – Room 133 Readers: Prof. Paul Basinski Orange County Community College Dr. Bojana Blagojevic LaGuardia Community College Prof. William Whyte Northampton Community College Moderator: Dr. Anne D’Orazio Westchester Community College Judge: Dr. John Howard SUNY – Purchase College Presenters: Carney Burns III “Nuclear America’s Role in Preventing Global Proliferation” Mentor: Dr. Mira Sakrajda Westchester Community College Alison Conrad “Negative Political Advertising and the American Electorate” Mentor: Prof. Elaine Torda Orange County Community College Craig E. Holzschuh “Enforcement is Not an Alien Concept” Mentor: Prof. Krista Jefferies Bergen Community College Panel Sponsors: Westchester Community College Faculty Senate and Prof. Ava Drutman and Prof. Timothy Magee Holders of Joseph and Sophia Abeles Endowed Chair for Faculty Development vi SESSION I: EDUCATION 9:00 – 10:30 AM Gateway Center – Room 135 Readers: Prof. Mark Altschuler, Bergen Community College Prof. Debra Condon Lehigh Carbon Community College Prof. Ann Marie Laskiewicz-Ross Northampton Community College Moderator: Dr. Scott Zaluda Westchester Community College Judge: Dr. JoAnne Ferrara Manhattanville College Presenters: Lisa Michelle Brandler “The Benefits of Unschooling Within the Public School System” Mentor: Dr. Katherine Lynch Rockland Community College Michele Granitz “Non-Traditional Women of a Local Community College” Mentor: Dr. Bahar Diken Reading Area Community College Chris Perez “Majoring in Unemployment” Mentor: Dr. Lucia Cherciu Dutchess Community College Panel Sponsors: Prof. Carol Klein and Dr. Frank Fato Holders of Sophia and Joseph Abeles Endowed Chair for Distance Learning vii SESSION I: INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES