Malaysia is a multiracial/ multiethnic country that is rich with many traditional performing arts such as Wayang Kulit and Main Puteri. However, the number of artists practising these traditions is in decline and they are at risk of extinction according to several Malaysian news outlets. This project is dedicated to understanding the challenges faced by these artists and the strategies they use to overcome obstacles to preserve their art form. Tintoy Chuo, a puppeteer of Malay traditional shadow puppet theatre Wayang Kulit, has become my case study in examining Malaysian artists. Through interviews and analyzing Chuo’s online presence, I found some of his challenges include: (1) federal and state funding structures that favour STEM more than the arts; (2) the Malaysian state’s view on arts as tourism; and (3) state government bans on this art form because it is deemed unIslamic. Some of the strategies that Chuo uses to counter these issues are: (1) blending the traditional element with popular culture references, for example, Star Wars; and (2) seeking international recognition of his work through interviews that are published in magazines and aired on news networks. I compare Chuo’s methodology to the transformation Zapin, a Malay traditional dance, underwent in the 1960s when it was blended with Western ballroom dances as documented by Mohd Anis Md Nor. I reveal similarities between the two processes, including: funding, audience, recognition, methodology, inspiration and community. I argue that the concept of “preservation” used in the context of art-making is problematic, and discuss how framing this methodology in terms of “sustainability” can be a model for other artists hoping to see their art form survive into the next generation.

Benefits of nature on children’s health and development are becoming increasingly recognized across the globe. Norway is revered for putting this research into practice, centering nature in early childhood education and setting precedents for ways in which preschools and kindergartens can get their children moving beyond the traditional classroom and up into the trees, down into the mud, and everything in between. Norway has taken a progressive stance on multicultural learning as well. The Norwegian Framework Plan for the Content and Tasks of Kindergartens defines education as an inclusive cultural arena to promote respect for the diversities of all children. I explored this intersection as a landscape architecture student. How might nature itself be important to children’s development and expression of cultural values? In what ways was learning facilitated differently outdoors vs indoors, and what implications might that have for the design of outdoor learning environments? Over the course of three weeks in Trondheim, Norway, I visited three barnehage (preschools) and conducted interviews on the connections between the landscape and the Framework Plan’s goal of inclusion. I found that outdoor environments could be less culturally coded than indoor classrooms, creating an unfamiliarity conducive to curiosity. This curiosity, coupled with undefined materials found in nature or man made objects placed outside of typical contexts, encouraged children to use play to design, communicate, and participate in imaginary worlds together, rather than having to rely on language or common frames of reference. Consequently, some Norwegian educators saw nature as a critical component of promoting children’s inclusion, tolerance, respect, and understanding of the diversities among one another, a revelation frequently overlooked in the U.S. More broadly, my findings point to that missed opportunity, where educational goals for children are similar but neglect serious consideration of the landscape as part of the approach.

Neural tube defects (NTDs) impact 3000 pregnancies a year in the US and are caused by both genetic and environmental factors. NTDs arise from errors in neural progenitor signaling, migration, proliferation, and differentiation during embryonic development. Spina bifida (SB), a prevalent NTD, can reduce the functioning of neural pathways responsible for pain and motor function in the lower body. A recent study discovered a novel variant of the receptor GPR161 present in screened infants with SB, but absent in all screened infants without. GPR161 is a G protein-coupled receptor localized in the primary cilia known to participate in the regulation of the pathways of key stem cell differentiation ligands, sonic hedgehog (Shh) and Wnt. Our study seeks to investigate the molecular mechanisms which connect the novel GPR161 variant p.Trp202Gly to neural tube defects using an in vitro model of neural stem cell differentiation. GPR161 variant and knock-out (K/O) lines are generated using CRISPR Cas9 technology in induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). iPSCs are then guided through neural differentiation and harvested for analysis at multiple key stages of neural progenitor development. Markers of neural differentiation, SB, and downstream GPR161 factors are analyzed using western blot, RT-qPCR, immunostaining, and RNAseq. We expect to see a change in Shh activity in the variant line compared to the WT.

The Indian education system, like many countries, focuses strongly on annual national exams. This results in an emphasis on rote learning, discourages student participation and engagement in lessons, and yields a lack of motivation to learn. Prioritization of rote learning is ubiquitous across India, but is especially detrimental for students from adverse backgrounds and resource-poor settings. Parikrma Humanity Foundation is a non-profit school in Bangalore India that serves students from “the poorest of poor” backgrounds. The school integrates a “360-degree” model that prioritizes student happiness, while emphasizing student and family health as central to learning. Despite these well-established values, students at Parikrma are not exempt from national exam requirements and are also subject to the implications of the heightened importance of exam results. We sought to understand whether key stakeholders perceived that exclusive focus on rote learning hinders development of social-emotional life skills. We conducted over 70 interviews with students, teachers, school faculty, and alumni and analyzed these qualitative results through a method of conceptualization. From this we developed a scale to determine the degree to which the absence of explicit instruction of psychosocial skills impacts overall well-being. Respondents overwhelmingly reported that the lack of material to develop psychosocial skills such as teamwork and active listening results in students with less established life skills and limits access to future opportunities. We aim to develop a curriculum that promotes psychosocial skills key to professional success and overall happiness to be integrated within the context of Parikrma by establishing a cross-aged peer mentorship program that encourages students accountability to each other and themselves. We seek to engage teachers and students through the administration of comprehensive surveys that empowers individuals to self- report the impact of the program in order to assess results.
 

Creative assignments like zines are accessible forms of knowledge that challenge traditional barriers to information, narratives, and histories of marginalized people. In my work, I helped craft a class that gave undergraduate students the opportunity to produce research on women from the Pacific Northwest whose stories deserved to be heard. Combining multiple disciplines like art, poetry, and videography, students were able to connect their work to their own personal narratives in meaningful and lasting ways. Based on their reflections, employing non-traditional forms of knowledge production like that of zines strengthens connection to course material and empowers students to see themselves as both a researcher and subject.

The viability of Greek communities and their place on college campuses has been a subject of intense debate in recent years. Researchers and critics of traditional Greek communities on U.S. college campuses have argued that rigid gender segregation and rules that give fraternities control over the party scene creates a gendered imbalance which favors men which, in turn, perpetuates the incidence of sexual assault and other harmful behaviors. But do the students that participate in Greek life agree? Do sorority and fraternity men also draw a connection between harmful behaviors and the formal rules and regulations that govern Greek life? Would structural changes to the Greek community alleviate its social risks like sexual assault, alcohol abuse, and hazing, or do they persist in the absence of gender segregation? This study explores how gender-segregated household regulations perpetuate these norms and further perpetuate social risks such as sexual assault, hazing, or alcohol abuse. Within Greek Communities, access to parties, drugs, and sex are the effective social currency that is exchanged within the Greek microsociety. Formal, gender-segregated household regulations give control of the party scene. Research has established widespread knowledge of how this control creates gender-based power dynamics and courtship patterns that contribute to a social culture with higher rates of sexual assault perpetration and victimization within its population. However, the University of Washington Panhellenic and Inter-Fraternity councils allow sorority women to live with fraternity men in their chapter houses during the summer. By interviewing a mix of 20 sorority women and fraternity men who from the University of Washington, Seattle Campus we can better understand if these gendered power dynamics are alleviated when men and women are regulated equally within their household.

Systematic underrepresentation and the predominance of cisgender male voices in STEM fields put women and queer students at disproportionate risk and in need of support. Addressing these communities and redesigning access to resources is vital to their continued growth and development. This project aims to address the mental health of undergraduate students and the resources available at the UW’s Human-Centered Design and Engineering (HCDE) department. The project utilizes a mixed-method survey and interview protocol to understand students’ experience with their mental health in HCDE and their awareness of available resources. With this data, I will analyze trends amongst students to identify disparities and key issues for students and then create a speculative design for how the HCDE department can better support their students. Speculative design is a framework for redesigning thought patterns and systems. I am currently in the data-collection phase and have released the survey. Based on first-hand observations and literature review, I expect to see disproportionately poor mental health outcomes in queer and women students. I also expect that a majority of participants are unaware of the existence/extent of many of UW’s current resources. Diversity is vital to a department’s success, especially because HCDE prides itself on its inclusivity. This research will illuminate how certain groups of students are supported more than others. These voices are often not recorded and demographic details not asked for beyond age and sex, meaning researchers cannot directly address specific populations that are historically underrepresented and create a working framework to better support them.

Mental health and wellbeing of undergraduates in STEM is an important and pressing issue in college that needs to be addressed both culturally and institutionally. The UW College of Engineering (COE) is a high-stress environment, facilitated in part by the college’s competitive admission process, making it an interesting case study to look at this question. The purpose of this research project is to understand the characteristics of mental health of undergraduates in the COE and determine if there is a noticeable difference between mental health before and after studying engineering. I hypothesize that is an overall poor quality in mental health outcomes across all groups. The study utilizes a mixed-method design, incorporating a survey and qualitative data. Survey results recorded numerical data and free response questions to assess mental health. The data was analyzed and broken down for further analysis by gender, race, etc. Preliminary results suggest disparities between groups based on social characteristics. This research is important because it will help inform the further study of mental health in engineering environments and provide direction for the COE to address these issues.