Bipartite Intrinsically Knotted Graphs with 21 Edges

A graph is intrinsically knotted if there exists a knotted cycle in every spatial embedding of the graph. Using the restoring methods, Kim, Mattman, and Oh construct a complete listing of intrinsically knotted bipartite graphs with 22 edges. In this study, we adapt their strategy to show the Heawood graph is the only intrinsically knotted bipartite graph with 21 edges

Schenectady\u27s Voices: Stories from Four BIPOC Locals Changing Their Community

In this paper, I will reflect on my visual art thesis painting project, going more in depth about the process, my inspiration, and my subjects. For my project, I wanted to highlight individuals from the Schenectady area that have experienced adversities but have chosen to give back to the community despite them. As a result, I created 4 large scale portraits of people of color who live and work in Schenectady, New York. I met with and interviewed Sherain Rivera, Sookyung Lee, Will Rivas, and Jamaica Miles. The four of them serve and are very involved in their community in multiple ways. Talking with them gave me the opportunity to learn more about them and their stories of determination. The purpose of this project was to give them, and more broadly, the marginalized communities in the Capital Region more representation in a space where they have felt ignored and discriminated against. Throughout this paper, I explain my process of learning to paint with oil for the first time, the struggles I faced with making large scale portraits, and my inspiration for the project. I also discuss three professional artists that influenced my work along the way: Jordan Casteel, Amy Sherald, and Alice Neel. Lastly, I give a brief description of each of the personalities and stories of my models, and connect them to the larger purpose of my work, which is to invoke empathy within my viewers

Improving Human-Robot Interaction: Modifications of a Social Robot on Dimensions of Gender and Personality

Previous research in Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) has shown that social female robots typically evoke more cognitive and affective trust. Studies also show that extroverted robot personalities are associated with desirable social outcomes. In this experiment, I tested the extent to which a robot\u27s gender (male vs. female) and personality (introverted vs. extroverted) impact the success of a given human-robot interaction. Specifically, I evaluated if the gender of a robot has an effect on the human preference for extroverted personalities. Prior to interacting with a robot, participants completed a baseline Negative Attitudes Towards Robots Scale [9]. Then, during the interaction, the robot asked the participant a variety of questions in an interview-like manner. After this dialogue concluded, the robot requested the participant to execute a task, which was used as a behavioral measure. Once the participants were done with the task, they completed two self-report measures: a Robot Comfort Scale [9] and a Robot Reaction Scale [7]. Results showed that participants felt more comfortable interacting with the extroverted female robot compared to the introverted female robot. However, the opposite was true for the male robot: participants felt more comfortable interacting with the introverted male robot compared to the extroverted male robot. Furthermore, participants tended to have better general reactions to the extroverted female robot compared to the introverted male robot. This study demonstrates that the notion of extroverted robots yielding desirable social outcomes is not generalizable on dimensions of gender

The Effect of Religiosity, Partisanship, and Identity-Seeking Behavior on Political Engagement

Is politics increasingly substituting for religion as a source of identity? As organized religion is on the decline in the United States and the nones (those who are Atheist, Agnostic, or claim no religion) continue to be some of the most politically active people in the country, it seems that there is a shift away from religion and towards politics. The present study explored this idea by testing the relationships among religiosity, identity-seeking behavior, and political engagement. I hypothesized that people seeking an identity would become more politically engaged after a partisan threat, especially if they were lower in religiosity. I recruited 197 participants from the survey platform Prolific, who completed a series of scales relating to religiosity, partisanship, and identity-seeking. Participants also were randomly assigned to read a paragraph that either threatened the partisan identity of Democrats or Republicans, followed by questions about their future political engagement intentions. Linear regression analyses (though not statistically significant) revealed a trend in the data consistent with predictions: People low in religiosity, yet high in identity seeking, were more likely to say they wanted to engage politically in the future compared to people low in identity seeking. These findings have implications for the future navigation of our political and religious landscape as organized religion continues to decline and partisanship continues to become heightened

The Development and Testing of a Clean Cookstove Testbed

There are many people in developing nations who do not have access to modern cooking facilities (i.e., sinks, stoves, microwaves). In these nations, people often must cook over traditional cookstoves, which are essentially just open fires with stones added to support a pot or cooking vessel. The field of improved cookstoves has developed, which looks to design improved alternatives to traditional cookstoves. The goal of this project was to enable Union to participate in experimental ICS research, by developing a testbed in which ICS can be tested, and then determining the capabilities and limitations of the testbed itself. In doing this, we hope to learn about and hypothesize areas in which Union may be able to further develop improved cookstoves. After initial tests confirmed that the testbed could contain - and safely remove from the lab - all cookstove exhaust, we began running small fire tests in a commercially available rocket stove (a common type of ICS). These tests provided information on both the rate and total amount of fuel use. Temperature readings were also recorded at different locations on the testbed to ensure it did not become too hot during extended testing (i.e., did not exceed maximum temperature ratings for the materials). It was further observed (qualitatively) how much smoke was being released from the stove. Additionally, the flow was measured in the lab\u27s exhaust ducts using a flow grid and micromanometer. Through these tests and continuing tests in the future, it will be determined, with better certainty, what the capabilities and limitations of our cookstove testbed at Union College are, and therefore, how we will be able to research, test, and improve on ICS technology

The Effect of Payment Method on Consumer Behavior During Economic Crises

The aim of this thesis is to delve into the machinations of consumer payment choices during times of crisis. This thesis, additionally, examines the ways in which gender may play a role in varied payment method use, during crises. Consumer payment choices are characterized by the decisions individuals or households make, surrounding their utilization of various payment instruments in circulation. Common payment instruments include, but are not limited to, cash, checks, debit, and credit. Existing research and literature of payment choice split trends on the utilization of payment instruments into long-term, adoption observations, and more sporadic, use categories. Adoption and use of payment methods, individually, help to paint a clearer picture of the changes and continuities in how consumers interact with various payment methods, over time. Analyzing consumer payment choice, and how it may differ across genders, provides valuable insight on how the state of the economy impacts regular and long-term consumption and transaction patterns. Although the bottom line is that most crises cause inevitable shocks to consumption-related behaviors, the nature of the crisis in question plays an integral role in the extent and ways in which consumption is ultimately altered. Examining both the financial crisis that occurred from 2007 to 2009, and the 2019-2020 COVID health crisis in this thesis, provides two disparate natures of crises that result in devastation to economic conditions, and altered consumption patterns. A review of the literature reveals that employment, or the lack thereof, during times of economic downturn, plays a role in the net changes in consumer payment behaviors. Employment is what shapes income levels, which can either restrict or enable certain consumers from utilizing, or acquiring, certain payment methods. The financial crisis was revealed to have more impacts on male employment, while the COVID crisis impacted female employment more heavily. Analysis of gender provides a unique vantage point for looking at payment decisions, aside from observing general trends that exist for adoption and use of differing payment instruments. This analysis expands on literature on consumer payment behavior through the observation of cross-sectional survey data, reflecting measures of adoption and use of payment methods in years of, and after, the onset of both crises in question. Apart from observing the interactions that a range of explanatory variables have on either the adoption or use of commonly used payment methods, assessment characteristics of each payment method (i.e. convenience, or ease of use) will also be analyzed to better understand consumer perceptions of payment instruments being utilized. I intend to use these observations to find points of both similarity and differentiation in payment behaviors between financial and health crises, with additional consideration being placed on gender-based implications on payment instrument adoption and use. Data for this thesis will be extracted from Atlanta Fed\u27s Survey of Consumer Payment Choice (SCPC), which provides yearly data geared toward observing changes in payment preferences over time

Vouvant

Vouvant is a tragic love story that takes place in the West of France. The story follows two thieves, Antoine and Caroline, who wind up becoming literal and figurative partners in crime. Their ultimate goal is to rob the richest man in France, Jacques DuBois. One night, when they break into DuBois\u27 grand chateau in Vouvant, everything changes for the pair in ways they could have never foreseen. This story is based on and takes inspiration from Cowboy Bebop, Casablanca, Romeo and Juliet, and The Great Gatsby. In some ways, this story is a response to Cowboy Bebop. In others, it is an extension of what Cowboy Bebop has already set up. The backbone of Vouvant is about the relationship between Antoine and Caroline as well as the introduction of Jacques DuBois as he interrupts their budding romance. The subtopics explored within the story are wealth, status, crime, romanticism, tragedy, relationships, and, of course, the most important, love. All good things must come to an end, that in itself is a tragedy. However, because of this nature, happiness becomes a finite commodity which therefore grants it value. Within Vouvant, as much as the pair may try, one cannot just steal it. Vouvant appeals to this tragedy, the tragedy of love and how, eventually, it too must subside. So, while it does last, how will the shared love be appreciated before it inevitably fades away

How Much Did the Rise of Energy Prices Contribute to the EUR/USD Exchange Rate Reaching Parity in 2022?

In July 2022, the EUR/USD exchange rate hit parity for the first time in 20 years, meaning that 1 USD = 1 Euro. Prior to this, the Euro was stronger relative to the USD. During this time, Oil and Gas prices were also rising due to the Russia-Ukraine war as Russia is a main exporter of energy to the Euro Area. In my research, I want to analyze how much this increase in the energy prices, due to the geopolitical environment, pushed the EUR/USD to reach parity in 2022. I used monthly data from January 1999 to February 2023 for the EUR/USD exchange rate, Brent oil price, Henry Hub gas price, US interest rate, and Euro Area interest rate. For the analysis, I conducted a vector autoregression to conclude that an increase in the energy prices over an 8-month period led to the exchange rate to change by -0.0115 and the energy prices explain 26.42% of the decrease in the EUR/USD exchange rate. Therefore, as the Euro Area was reliant on Russian energy, it relatively depreciated and as the US is a net exporter of energy it relatively appreciated, helping bring the exchange rate to parity. Thus, the increase in energy prices did contribute to the EUR/USD exchange rate to reach parity to a certain extent, but there are other factors that impacted this exchange rate

Should Sex Education Be Taught in Schools? Sex Education Within the United States: Analyzing Social and Political Factors of Sex Education Within The United States

Sex education has been a prominent topic among society since the 1800s, coinciding with the prevention and relevance of current social issues. As years have passed, sex education has continued to evolve through the prevailing social situations. However, within the 21st century, sex education started to lack improvement and inclusion of social topics and issues that are prevalent in today\u27s society. This thesis analyzes the history behind sex education among the United States, and defines what it is that shapes sex education in today\u27s society. With society ever changing, and social and political concepts becoming a more central topic in today\u27s society, the issue of sex education has become more of an issue. This thesis addresses the development of sex education among schools within the United States, and emphasizes the difference between each district and state perspective on sex education. This thesis looks at sex education in not only a social light, but also a political standpoint. Sex education started as a solution to social circumstances, however, with legislation evolving and many social topics coming into play, there are many other factors that shape sex education. By researching eight different states with different political affiliations, this thesis was able to come to a conclusion as to what characteristics of a state or district shape that community\u27s sex education, but also how exactly a state\u27s political background influences and shapes their perspective on sex education. With sex education everchanging, and becoming more of a significant social issue in today\u27s society, it is important to understand why sex education is the way it is around the country, and how the structure of sex education impacts society and individuals as a whole. The result of the analysis and comparison of eight different states indicates how the political standpoint and authority of each state generalizes what type of stance that specific state has on sex education, and sex education within schools