Child characters in romantic comedies are not mere "helping characters" but really divine figures essential in moving the story forward. Young, innocent, and with no one paying any attention to them, children make good helping characters. Looking more closely at the films, The Shop Around the Corner, The Philadelphia Story and Sleepless in Seattle, however, we see that children's characters actually--and mysteriously--seem to more know about love and romantic chemistry than the adult protagonists, and use that knowledge to bring the (...) protagonist couple to their happy ending. (shrink)

Moments of “nominalist” euphoria in the philosophy of science--e.g., Quine's "Two Dogmas of Empiricism"--often give way to massive hangovers, as once-giddy “nominalists” realize that they may have abandoned, in their euphoria, the very idea of nature. No wonder, then, that, in Quine's wake, Kripke and Putnam reasserted that physical natural kinds--e.g., gold or chlorine--are, in some sense, necessary entities. But what of biological kinds like species? Doesn't Darwinism require “nominalism” about species? Following the example of Sober, in this presentation I (...) will argue that, far from requiring “nominalism," Darwinism actually requires the rejection of full-fledged “nominalism” about biological kinds. (shrink)

The filmographies of Black directors Oscar Micheaux and Spike Lee center, among other things, on racial tension, segregation and violence in the black and white communities. Producing films in two different time periods, their cinematography not only differs in technique and intended audience, but also overlaps in content and perspective pertaining to race. How does each director manipulate the audience's sympathies? This presentation will explore two films – Do the Right Thing and Within Our Gates – to compare and contrast (...) the directors’ perspectives upon race in America. (shrink)

The European Union is not a nation, and it would thus be a mistake to expect the EU's path to democratic legitimacy to resemble a nation's path toward such a goal. But what sort of democratic identity does the EU possess, exactly? In this presentation, I will offer a tentative theory of the nature of European identity after the Treaty of Lisbon. Additionally, I will suggest a few ways in which this peculiar post-Lisbon European identity may serve to enhance and (...) augment the democratic legitimacy of its member states, without impairing their cherished individual national identities. (shrink)

Two new legal philosophies took shape in the twentieth century, legal realism and legal interpretivism. Legal realists are skeptical of law and the legal reasoning done in courts. Ronald Dworkin’s philosophy, legal interpretivism, views legal reasoning as part of the coherent narrative that justifies the role of law in society. The realist movement is often traced to the philosophy of Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., whose thinking bears similarities to that of Friedrich Nietzsche. Taking Jerome Frank’s philosophy as the epitome of (...) legal realism, I argue that Holmes and Nietzsche would prefer Dworkin’s legal interpretivism rather than Frank’s legal realism. This project illuminates the differences between Dworkin and Frank, as well as showing a realist lineage in Dworkin. This ultimately makes interpretivism a more palatable philosophy to Holmes and Nietzsche, who, when given a sympathetic exegesis, have more subtle, nuanced views of law. (shrink)

With pieces of music at 6 hours in length, Morton Feldman’s late music explores duration, memory, and remembrance. His music presents the listener with a musical landscape to contemplate along with an extreme duration to challenge the listener’s ability to listen to music itself. Feldman’s late music also decontextualizes or sections off time, similar to the Husserlian epoché, by way of its Minimalist tendencies. I take Heidegger’s terms, Dasein and Gestell and apply them to durational music in order to shed (...) light on how durational music affects memory. I explore how the dedicatory titling of his late pieces gives way to thinking of them as pieces of absence, memory, and mourning. (shrink)

Two new legal philosophies took shape in the 20th century, legal realism and legal interpretivism. Legal realists are skeptical of law and the legal reasoning done in courts. Ronald Dworkin’s philosophy, legal interpretivism, views legal reasoning as part of the coherent narrative that justifies the role of law in society. The realist movement is often traced to the philosophy of Oliver Wendel Holmes, Jr., whose thinking bears similarities to that of Friedrich Nietzsche. Taking Jerome Frank’s philosophy as the epitome of (...) legal realism, I consider whether Holmes or Nietzsche would accept the matured realist movement, or rather prefer legal interpretivism. (shrink)

If you discovered your neighbor broke her four-year-old daughter’s foot for the sake of beauty, would you intervene? Now, imagine you witness this scene as a visitor in Eighteenth-Century China, where footbinding was not only an accepted practice, but a sign of high culture. Would your status as an outsider change your decision? I will investigate one’s responsibility to step in when children who cannot consent undergo practices that seem cruel to an outsider but are accepted in their culture. I (...) will keep in mind how my unique American identity has shaped my view as I address this ethical dilemma. (shrink)

This thesis explores the shifting nature of the Juvenile Justice System from its foundational principles and values to its contemporary structure. Specifically, this paper investigates how and why the contemporary Juvenile Justice System is shaped by a rhetorical discourse created by public opinion, state and federal legislation, and Supreme Court case law. Moreover, this paper examines how the public, legislatures, and Supreme Court justices define juvenile jurisdiction, and how they decide on the appropriate punishment for juvenile offenders.

Is helping those whose subsistence needs are not meet a matter of charity or an obligation? What role should ordinary citizens of developed nations play? In a globalized world, the causes, connections, and responsibilities become complicated. Agriculture subsidies that keep food prices low for many in relatively rich countries may, for example, negatively impact poor farmers in developing countries. Students in Ethics/Philosophy 352 report on their project examining whether, and to what extent, a true obligation to aid exists.

After two years of research on Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, I have compiled evidence showing that Thucydides treated courage as a civic virtue. In first part of my presentation, I consider theories of courage by Plato, Tim O’Brien, and Barack Obama to show the complexities of courage. In the second part of my presentation, I describe Thucydidean’ courage and its practical uses.

The Society of Physics Students demonstrates the power of electricity, magnetism, Newtonian mechanics, and exotic states of matter. Watch the power of magnets launch projectiles. Cover your ears as we launch a ping pong ball from a vacuum cannon at nearly the speed of sound. See giant smoke rings and dancing liquids. Sing along to your favorite video game theme song! Explanations of the physics beneath the surface of these demonstrations and more await you inside J100.

After opening a new box of cereal, you see half the cereal is missing. Despite your surprise, the box is actually full. During shipping, the contents settled—resulting in the appearance of a half full box. This effect can be attributed to granular compaction. Our approach to studying compaction includes a well-controlled system containing many spherical masses, which are constrained to move in a long tube. Starting with masses in a loose configuration, the tube is shaken vertically and the masses settle (...) into a compact alignment. To refine the experimental approach, different system loosening techniques and density measuring methods are explored. (shrink)