Replicating the Unreplicable: 3D Printing and its Impact on Artifact Ownership

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

I examined the emergence of 3D printing within museum contexts to better understand how it impacts artifact ownership. My review and critique of the literature related museums’ usage of 3D printing technology showed that it is largely utilized as a tool for education as well as a method for preserving cultural materials. While educational benefits are central to 3D printing use, the replication of cultural materials promotes the concept of commercialization which may ultimately deemphasize ethical issues. Recognizing and acknowledging the gap in existing narratives will aid future endeavors and allow 3D printing to function as a relevant and respectful tool utilized by museums.

Resources for Domestic Violence and Sexual Violence Victims

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

The Take Back the Night Organization bridges the gap between students and their community to build a support network for survivors. However, this semester, normal operations have been altered due to COVID-19, social distancing, and shelter-in-place which challenged our group to adjust the scope of our project. Using Instagram as our platform, we worked together to address the societal issues of sexual violence and domestic. We built a manual to promote healthy relationship communication. We included information on online services, hotlines, and other local resources available for sexual and domestic abuse aimed towards helping our Humboldt community during the pandemic.

Rethinking Community in Westside Eureka: The Jefferson Project

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

From our time at the Jefferson Center we have been exposed to a new form of community. The Jefferson Project located on the Westside of Eureka is an inclusive space that allows for numerous activities, workshops, events, after school child care, and volunteering. This location has transformed from an abandoned elementary school to a “clean, safe neighborhood dedicated to combatting urban blight” and revitalizing the local environment by fostering a sense community. Our experience at the center has allowed us to expand our academic lenses to applicable social justice scenarios.

Reusables for Waste Prevention

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

Seeking to address zero waste and upstream waste reduction by increasing awareness, and providing access to reusable cloth produce bags made from donated and upcycled materials. By volunteering time to handcraft bags and distribute them at farmer's market, engaging shoppers and vendors to collect and disseminate information regarding our relationship to waste. With the support of the North Coast Grower's Association, I hope to reach a better understanding of what we can do as a community to reduce our dependence on single use plastics.

REUSE- REDUCE-REMOVE

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

Buying a new water bottle seems easier for some, but harder for our planet. The use of plastic is a global issue and should be concerning. We partnered up with Zero Waste Humboldt (ZWH), a nonprofit organization, to assist in their Refill-not-Landfill Network Project, which is a project that has saved over 100,000 water bottles from the landfill. We assisted in this project by updating their website with an updated map of the 10 water refilling stations that were donated by them through a federal grant. We are presenting at IdeaFest so community members can gain an awareness and interest in being conscious about waste production and mindful about single-use plastic bottles.

Revisiting the Five Finger Discount: Shoplifting as a Reproductive Strategy

Shairy Jimenez Delgado, Psychology Graduate Student

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

Using social media to conduct human ethological research, this study seeks to replicate previous findings that online shoplifting displays are motivated by reproductive strategies to increase mate value. It involves the analysis of 150 Tumblr posts showcasing stolen items, which together feature 1,744 identifiable items. Items with the intended use of improving attraction by enhancing physical appearance, scent, or sexual allure include: personal care items, makeup, cosmetic applicators, and jewelry were categorized as mating relevant. The results of this study replicate previous work by showing a significant difference between mating relevant and non-mating relevant items.

Rhetorical Genre Theory and Whiteness

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

Whiteness is the foundation on which academia is built. It shapes the institutions and methods of knowledge making that form what we call education. If we hope to make radical, meaningful change to our systems of learning and knowledge, a critical step will be decentering whiteness. This project uses the work of James Baldwin to conceptualize whiteness and examines rhetorical genre theory as an example of the ways academia's systems of knowledge making are based in the assumptions of whiteness.

Road to the Registry

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

My project describes the work put into nominating the Arcata Plaza to the National Register of Historic Places. This is a research based project which highlights the cultural importance of Plaza as it has hosted many large events over the course of its history.

Rural Food Insecurity in Humboldt County

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

A wide range of environmental, social, and economic factors contribute to the issue of food insecurity. Despite being overwhelmingly agriculturally based economies, rural communities are some of the areas most at risk for high levels of food insecurity. This work addresses why the unequal distribution of food within an area of relative food abundance cannot be understood through the same lens as urban food deserts, but must be analyzed from the bottom up: following the supply chain of food throughout the social, environmental, and economic structures of the rural community.

Sacred Drugs

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

This Ideafest presentation aims to argue that our society might be studying drugs wrong. I will explore this topic using a problem/solution model. The problem is that drugs are stigmatized, causing a reluctance to talk openly about their role within society. I suggest the validation of drugs through pragmatic discussions within all appropriate avenues of study. Gary Laderman and Michael Pollan prove ideal examples of this solution. Quotes from Laderman highlight the integration of drugs in religion courses and academia at large. Michael Pollan is another example, and exploring his work presents another case of the topic of drugs being discussed in academic and such public settings.