Overture: Journal of International Affairs

Full issue of Overture: Journal of International Affairs vol. 5. Editor-in-Chief: Sydney Pascal \u2726. Sponsored by the Goldfarb Center for Public Affairs

Odiar es proteger: La respuesta inevitable al origen de una pandemia

Esta tesis analiza la causa del odio hacia los asiáticos durante la pandemia de COVID-19, enfocándose específicamente en los casos que tuvieron lugar en España. La prevalencia de discriminación dirigida al origen de una pandemia identificado por la narrativa del brote es cultivada por la persistencia de estereotipos. En el caso de COVID-19, la xenofobia hacia los asiáticos fue el resultado de una construcción histórica que ha estigmatizado su identidad persistentemente, la repetición de la cual es definida en esta tesis como racismo pandémico. La imagen de los asiáticos enfermos fue establecida injustificadamente por la medicina occidental en el siglo XIX para construir su otredad. Esta estigmatización es capaz de provocar emociones de odio y miedo en las comunidades donde los asiáticos son considerados como extranjeros. Los incidentes resultantes de violencia, física y social, fueron exacerbados por el crecimiento del transporte fácil y el uso de las redes sociales, que han enfatizado la presencia de la otredad asiática globalmente. Considerando que la identificación del origen de una pandemia es integral para el sistema médico, es necesario eliminar la estigmatización de las comunidades asociadas con la pandemia, además de su contexto histórico, como se presenta en esta tesis

The Colby Echo (February 29, 2024)

Published by the students of Colby College since 1877, The Colby Echo is the weekly, editorially independent student-run newspaper of Colby College in Waterville, Maine. Published monthly, 1877-1886; semi-monthly, 1886-1897; and weekly during the academic year, 1898-present

Modification of Marine Snail Microhabitats by Canopy-Forming Algae

Brown algae, including the canopy-forming macroalgae Fucus distichus, are declining in abundance around the world due to stressors associated with climate change. Local extinction of Fucus impacts the intertidal community through cascading effects as the ecosystem loses a dominant primary producer at the base of the food web. However, Fucus is not only a resource species; it is also an ecosystem engineer. This thesis investigates the effect of Fucus extinction on the abundance of two herbivorous marine snails, L. saxatilis and L. obtusata, with a focus on the role of Fucus as a habitat- modifier. Specifically, I explored: 1) how the removal of Fucus impacts snail abundance, 2) how Fucus affects the temperature and humidity of snail microhabitats, and 3) how the temperature and humidity of snail microhabitats influence snail abundance. Using species count data from the Barner Lab and microhabitat temperature and humidity data that I collected on Colby’s Island Campus in the Gulf of Maine, I found that: 1) the removal of Fucus canopy decreases L. obstusata abundance but increases L. saxatilis abundance, 2) the presence of Fucus increases microhabitat air temperature, decreases substrate temperature, and increases humidity, and 3) the temperature and humidity of snail microhabitats have a weak effect on snail abundance compared to the presence of canopy itself. Overall, the biotic effects of Fucus are stronger drivers of snail abundance in this system than the abiotic effects of Fucus

SPRTN Metalloprotease as a Target to Sensitize Cancer Cells to Crosslinking Chemotherapy

Bifunctional alkylating agents have demonstrated high clinical utility as a chemotherapeutic strategy against cancer. These compounds have been well-characterized for their capacity to exert cytotoxicity via interstrand DNA crosslinking. However, the same electrophilic chemistry can also form DNA-protein crosslinks (DPCs) whose contributions to these drugs’ antitumor effects have been less well-defined. Recently, the metalloprotease SPRTN has been implicated as a predominant mediator of DPC repair in mammalian cells. Previous work has demonstrated that SPRTN deficiency increases the sensitivity of cancer cells to DPC-inducing agents such as formaldehyde and cisplatin, but these findings have yet to be translated more broadly across chemotherapies capable of inducing these lesions. Herein, we investigated the effects of impairing SPRTN repair on cancer cells’ sensitivity to bifunctional alkylating agents. First, we employed RNA interference to transiently knock down SPRTN expression in HeLa cells by over ten-fold relative to non-targeting controls. Using this SPRTN knockdown model, we then demonstrated a 2.4-fold decrease in the LD50 of mechlorethamine relative to control experiments. However, we observed no difference in DPC burden between SPRTN knockdown and control HeLa cells after treatment with a highly lethal dose of mechlorethamine and recovery over an extended period. Our preliminary data suggest a role for SPRTN in HeLa cells’ response to bifunctional alkylating agents, but more work is necessary to validate these propositions. Nonetheless, this study may support that inhibition of SPRTN in combination with crosslinking chemotherapies could warrant further investigation as a therapeutic strategy for the treatment of certain cancers

The Effect of Postpartum Depression on New Mothers\u27 Return to Work Decisions

Postpartum depression rates in the United States have doubled since 2010, with potentially significant economic consequences. In this study, I examine the relationship between postpartum depression and new mothers’ labor force participation using a national longitudinal dataset of 738 new mothers. I examine two labor force participation outcomes: whether or not a new mother returned to work postpartum, and the number of days it took for her to do so if she returned. I include a detailed set of demographic and social control factors. I find that conditional on these controls, having postpartum depression relates to a statistically insignificant 4.73 percentage point increase in the likelihood a new mother returns to work and a statistically significant 49.33 day increase in the number of days it takes for her to do so. Overall, this study demonstrates that while postpartum depression has a significant effect on the time it takes a new mother to return to work, it is likely demographic and social factors that determine whether a new mother returns to work. These findings indicate that reducing postpartum depression rates, whether through treatments, improved maternity leave policies, or other social interventions, may reduce the duration of time new mothers take off from work. However, such efforts are unlikely to significantly impact whether or not a new mother returns to work at all. These results can be a step in understanding the relationship between postpartum mental health and return to work decisions

The Impact of Signing Bonuses, Age, and Country on MLB Success: Evaluating Investment Returns in the MLB International Amateur Free Agent Market

MLB’s International Amateur Free Agent Market provides teenagers across the world opportunities to sign, develop, and potentially fulfill their dreams of playing in the MLB. It also allows teams to sign players at young ages, increasing the amount of time players can develop within a team’s minor league system. While signing bonus decision-making is backed up by a team’s scouts and data, the signing bonus a player receives is rarely a reflection of their future value. I argue that teams are not spending this money optimally. However, in an environment where players have low acquisition costs and volatile performance outcomes, is there such a thing as optimal spending? With minimal evidence, I conclude that teams shouldn’t change their spending habits when signing amateur hitters because of the existing equilibrium amongst teams. In addition, teams may be better off avoiding sixteen-year-old pitchers and instead waiting for them to show more maturity in their development

Empowering Diversity: Unveiling the Impact of Affirmative Action Policies on Intersectional Identities in Indian Village Councils

This study investigates the intersectional effects of affirmative action policies within the con- text of rural local councils in India. Utilizing the natural experiment provided by the randomized implementation of reservation policies in Uttar Pradesh’s gram panchayats, this research exam- ines how the intersectionality of marginalized identities—specifically gender and caste—affects policy outcomes. Employing data from the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guar- antee Act (MGNREGA) and gram panchayat elections from 2015 and 2021, the impact on job demand and public asset creation is evaluated. The findings reveal that while female leaders gen- erally improve job demand and public asset creation, female leaders from Scheduled Castes (SC) and Other Backward Classes (OBC) do not achieve similar outcomes. This research highlights a hierarchy in policy effectiveness, with intersectionally marginalized leaders (SC and OBC women) often at the bottom. These insights are crucial for informing future affirmative action policies, par- ticularly in the context of expanding women’s reservations in higher legislative bodies

Responding to Hurricane Maria: The Role of Mutual Aid Societies in Withstanding Federal Failures

Through a combination of research and interviews, this paper unpacks the policies that expose colonialist realities and how Puerto Rican mutual aid societies engaged with those policies in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. Policies and decisions such as cabotage law under the Jones Act; the quality of Puerto Rican bonds being triple-tax exempt; the inability to refinance or default on debt; the Insular Cases and other Supreme Court cases; and PROMESA, have established a colonial relationship with significant material and political consequences for Puerto Rico. These consequences were brought to light after Hurricane Maria, where the U.S.’s inadequate response resulted in an unprecedented loss of lives. Following the hurricane, Puerto Rico experienced a surge of mutual aid societies and non-profit organizations that were crucial in providing disaster relief as they supplemented many gaps left by federal disaster relief. By interviewing some mutual aid societies, I excavate their perspective on the sharp growth of the third sector and analyze their short-term work providing disaster relief as well as long-term efforts towards the recovery, rebuilding, and resiliency planning of the island. These mutual aid societies underscore Puerto Rico’s new agency, providing unique insights into the ways colonial policies restrict the island’s self-determination while simultaneously providing a model for decolonizing at the root. I hope this project helps delineate the colonial policies that informed or exacerbated the federal response but also recognizes the growth of mutual aid networks as a source of material gain and hope

Monetary Policy Across the Urban Rural Divide

This paper measures the effect of monetary policy on the consumption of Urban versus Rural Households. I utilize the Consumer Expenditures Survey, conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and St. Louis Federal Reserve Economic Data for information on important macroeconomic variables. My empirical strategy examines how total consumption, housing consumption, health, food, and transportation consumption are impacted by the federal funds rate for urban relative to rural households. My research provides evidence that when the Federal Reserve increases rates, the consumption of rural households falls more relative to urban households. This result is statistically significant when examining consumption related to housing, which may be motivated by differences in homeownership rates across these groups. Additionally, I find that being an urban household is associated with higher consumption relative to rural households; this is significant for total, housing, health, and food consumption These findings are consistent using alternative measures of monetary policy and inflation