BIOLOGY: "Do Neural Crest Cells have the ability to inhibit the Lens-Forming Potential of Non-Lens Head Ectoderm?" Jennifer L. Reich [Professor Charles Sullivan]. The focus of our project was to determine the importance of neural crest cells in chicken embryos by testing the hypothesis that neural crest cells inhibit the lens forming potential in cells they contact. To begin testing this hypothesis, chicken embryos were removed from the egg and grown in culture. Then dyes were injected to label neural crest cells and the head ectoderm to trace where the labeled cells moved over time. The project culminated in a final paper.
BIOLOGY: "Mycorrhizal associations with bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) in prairie, savanna, and forest ecosystems in Iowa." Emily Lutgen and Rebecca White [Professor Kathy Jacobson]. This group project was a continuation of a class project started by Amy Lindahl '99 in the fall of 1998. The previous study suggested that bur oak, unlike other members of the white oak sub-family, exhibit two diverse types of mycorrhizal associations. In addition to fire and drought resistance, this mycorrhizal strategy may be a critical adaptation allowing bur oak to dominate in savannas and invade prairie habitats. The current project was an extensive examination of the distribution of these two diverse types of mycorrhizal associations with bur oak in forest, savanna and prairie habitats at CERA. We attempted to correlate mycorrhizal association with two critical variables: habitat (especially associated vegetation) and soil moisture content.
1. Biology Department Seminar, 29 February 2000: "Mycorrhizal associations of bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) in prairie, savanna and forest habitats in central Iowa". E. R. Lutgen and R.K. White.
2. Poster presentation at the Iowa Academy of Science 2000 Annual Meeting in Des Moines, 21 April 2000: "Mycorrhizal associations of bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) in prairie, savanna and forest habitats in central Iowa". E.R. Lutgen, R.K. White and K.M. Jacobson.
BIOLOGY: "Genetic diversity of Welwitschia mirabilis." Elizabeth Lester [Professor Kathy Jacobson]. This MAP focused on the genetic diversity of W. mirabilis, a unique endemic plant of the Namib Desert. We used randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers to obtain a first estimate of genetic variation within and between isolated populations of the plant. Because several small, geographically distinct populations in the southern part of the plant's range are believed to be reproductively isolated, genetic variation within these populations was expected to be low compared to larger northern populations. The findings of our work will help to direct appropriate conservation initiatives aimed at preserving Namibia's national plant.
BIOLOGY: "Genetic diversity within and between populations of morel mushrooms (Morchella esculenta)." Harmony King [Professor Kathy Jacobson] Morels are delicious edible mushrooms found in various forest types throughout Iowa. Earlier studies in Illinois and Wisconsin suggested that morel populations might be highly inbred. We tested the null hypothesis that M. esculenta populations in Iowa would exhibit low levels of genetic diversity using vegetative compatibility studies and randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. We examined genetic variation within and between three geographically distinct populations at Grinnell's field station, CERA, using cluster analysis and Analysis of Molecular Variation (AMOVA).
BIOLOGY: "Community-based conservation in the Kunene Region of Namibia." K. Anderson, A. Crowley-Koch, C. Efe, M. Johnson, H. King and E. Mize. [Professors Kathy Jacobson and Peter Jacobson]. This year-long group MAP, funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation focused on community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) initiatives in rural northwestern Namibia. Communal lands in this region are home to unique populations of desert megafauna, including elephant and black rhino. CBNRM policies recently enacted by the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism seek to link conservation of this unique biota with rural development. Our goal was to determine whether the underlying assumptions and practices derived from CBNRM programs in other African countries could be effectively transferred to this unique region. During the spring semester we prepared individual research proposals focussing on different aspects of the project. In Namibia over the summer, we explored these initiatives in three communities that were in various stages of implementing the policies. We interviewed 72 individuals involved in establishing CBNRM programs, including rural community members, government employees, and NGO and donor staff. During the fall semester we completed our individual research projects, gave a group presentation of our results to the Grinnell community and prepared a synopsis of our work for distribution in Namibia.
HISTORY: "Politics and Economics in Post-War Russia." Ben Tromly [Professor Dan Kaiser]. Historians have commented on the contradictions posed by the late Stalinist period of 1945-1953. WWII left Soviet industry, agriculture and infrastructure in shambles. Nonetheless, reconstruction proceeded at a rapid pace, and by 1945, the Soviet economy was more developed than ever before. The focus of this MAP was on a certain aspect of Soviet domestic affairs--the life and career of N.A. Voznesenskii. As chairman of Gosplan, the state, economic planning commission, he exercised vast authority in the fields of economic policy and Marxist economic theory. He had risen to the top of the Soviet political elite through the war years, evidently having won Stalin's faith. In March of 1949, however, he was removed from all his party and government positions. In late 1950, Voznesenskii was tried and executed for counterrevolutionary crimes in the top-secret "Leningrad Affair." My argument was that Voznesenskii's downfall marked the resolution of a war for control of economic policy within the Soviet elite. In many ways, the fall of Voznesenskii constitutes an important, yet relatively unexplored, episode in twentieth-century Russian history. This MAP culminated in a 40-page paper that utilized mostly Russian sources, especially publications of the State Planning Commission, microfilm copies of which were acquired with the help of MAP funding. After graduation, Ben continued research on this project in Russian archives.
PHILOSOPHY:
"Senior Essay." Gregg Whitworth [Professor Alan Schrift].
This project investigated the ways in which Nietzsche's notion
that the inward turn functions as a primary creative act, or "womb
of all ideal and imaginative phenomenon," informs Butler's
project in its investigation of the psychic life of Foucaultian
power. The connection between the abstract concept of the creative
act in the context of subject formation and the more mundane understanding
of the creative act in the context of "art" formation
was investigated. The proposal was that not only is the appearance
of a will towards "art" creation an indicator of a kind
of inward turn, but that its very process provides a framework
for understanding the psychic life of power with which Butler
is concerned. This project culminated in a senior essay, a shortened
version of which was presented at the Philosophy Department annual
honors symposium in April entitled "Artistry and Psychic
Life: Nietzschean Reflections on Power and Subjection."
PHYSICS: "Nonlinear Magnetic Mixing in an Iron Wire." Marty Zwikel [Professor Paul Tjossem]. This MAP stemmed from a problem once pursued experimentally by the late Professor Emeritus of Physics, Grant O. Gale, and theoretically by Professor William Case. A simple circuit, consisting of a coil of wire surrounding an alternating current-carrying iron wire, exhibits unusual electrical properties when immersed in a longitudinal magnetic field. We ascribed the effect to the non-linear mixing of the fields within the iron wire. By measuring the effect and comparing it with simulations performed with Mathematica, we found that a simple saturation model accounted for the characteristic electrical signature and frequency spectrum. The effect made for an intriguing lecture demonstration using only a steel paper clip for the wire, a low-voltage transformer for the current and the earth's magnetic field.
PSYCHOLOGY: "Phonological Recoding in Short-Term Memory of Two Languages." Yiner Ya [Professor Janet Gibson]. This project was an exploration of the difference of short-term memory for words and non-words in both Chinese and English languages and an investigation of how similar phonological characters in words can affect the short-term memory for each language. Data was collected from Chinese subjects in the summer of 1999; data from native-English speaking subjects was collected in the fall of 1999.
PSYCHOLOGY: Pediatric Psychology Research: "Children's Understanding of Coping Mechanisms." Elizabeth Chilcoat and Leah Hrachovec [Professor Ann Ellis]. The goal of this project was to elucidate how best to prepare 3 to 6-year-old children to cope with injury and invasive medical procedures. The proposal was to replicate, expand, and improve Peterson, Crowon, Saldana and Holdridges (1999) experiment regarding coping mechanisms of children. The experiment was designed to be a two by two within-subjects experiment. Children's coping strategies for spontaneous injuries and medical procedures (two) were studied as it relates to whether they themselves or a friend were the victim.