Faculty Research Presentations

Vassar’s faculty members will be presenting informal talks on their current research. Experience the breadth of a liberal arts education and explore subjects you have not studied before.

Three 45-minute sessions start at 9:00, 10:00, and 11:00, each with a diverse range of presentations.

Group 1: 9:00–9:45 a.m.

• Insect Biodiversity on the Vassar Preserve
  Timothy Lampasona (Biology), Rockefeller Hall 200
• You Are Who You Know: Social Networks and Personality at Vassar 
  Allan Clifton (Psychological Science), New England 206
• The Feldenkrais Method 
  Drew Minter (Music), Thekla Hall (Room 400 in Skinner Hall)
• The Banana Republic’s Capital: Boston, the United Fruit Company, and the Landscape of Empire 
  Joseph Nevins (Geography), Ely Hall 200
• Using Economics in Litigation 
  Andrew Lemon (Economics), Taylor Hall 203
• The Babysitters Club: Young Women and Work 
  Light Carruyo (Sociology, Latin American and Latinx Studies), Rockefeller Hall 203
• Online Ghosts, UFO Videos, and other Supernatural Media
  Christopher White (Religion), Blodgett Hall 105
• Evolving Biorobotic Models of Goal-Directed Cognitive Agents 
  John Long (Cognitive Science, Biology), Olmstead Hall 266
• Critique as a Form of Solidarity: Lessons from Muslim Paris 
  Kirsten Wesselhoeft (Religion, Migration and Displacement Studies, Africana Studies, WFQS), Blodgett Hall 201
• Engaged Pluralism: Tools for Dialogue Across Differences at Vassar and Beyond 
  Kimberly Williams Brown (Educations, Engaged Pluralism), Old Observatory 211

Group 2: 10:00–10:45 a.m.

• Vassar’s Institute for the Liberal Arts 
  Robert Brigham (Institute for the Liberal Arts, History), Institute for the Liberal Arts
• Algerian Muslims, Jews, and the Question of Palestine, 1929–1934 
  Joshue Schreier (History, Jewish Studies), Rockefeller Hall 200
• A Viral Illusion, Electroencephalography, and Our Scientific Future 
  Josh de Leeuw (Cognitive Science, Neuroscience and Behavior), Olmstead Hall 266
• Salt in the Water, Strain on the Workers: How Climate Change Affects Health and Productivity 
  Nusrat Abedin Jimi (Economics), Rockefeller Hall 310
• A Late Roman Law about Prostitutes; or, How to do History with Ancient Legal Evidence 
  Carl Rice (Greek and Roman Studies), Rockefeller Hall 210
• Welcoming the (Medieval) Other: Jews & Muslims in Boccaccio’s Decameron 
  Alberto Gelmi (Italian), Rockefeller Hall 307
• From Grid to Network: Digital Surveillance in West Germany and Beyond 
  Anna Mayer (German Studies, Media Studies), Chicago Hall LL 103
• The Origins of Prejudice in Early Childhood 
  Rebecca Peretz-Lange (Psychological Science), Rockefeller Hall 312
• Returns to Different Types of Higher Education 
  Zhengren Zhu (Economics), Rockefeller Hall 203
• Vampires, Monks, and Holy Fools: The Mystical in Russia and Eastern Europe 
  Charles Arndt III (Russian Studies), Rockefeller Hall 201

Group 3: 11:00–11:45 a.m.

• The Art of Disruption: How Jews Resist and Rethink 
  Marc Michael Epstein (Religion, Jewish Studies), Taylor Hall 203
• Examining Neutral Mechanisms of Social Behavior 
  Bojana Zupan (Psychological Science, Neuroscience and Behavior), Olmstead Hall 266
• What Can We Learn from Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle? 
  Bryan W. Van Norden (Philosophy), Rockefeller Hall 307
• The Cognitive Science of Religion 
  Ken Livingston (Cognitive Science), Rockefeller Hall 200
• From Philosophy to Environmental Studies: A Journey 
  Jeff Seidman (Philosophy, Environmental Studies), Rockefeller Hall 210
• Can You Hear Me Now? Identifying The Effect of Chinese Monetary Policy Announcements 
  Harrison Shieh (Economics), Rockefeller Hall 310
• Doing Justice to the Classics: Greco-Roman Antiquity and White Nationalism 
  Curtiz Dozier (Greek and Roman Studies), Rockefeller Hall 203
• Italian Americana in the Media 
  Sole Anatrone (Italian, Media Studies), Rockefeller Hall 312
• WiChoose: Practical Network Selection for the Wi-Fi Vehicle-to-Infrastructure Communication 
  Rui Meireles (Computer Science), New England 206
• The History of “Having It All”: Women and Work-Life Balance in the 20th Century 
  Amanda Brennan (History), Swift Hall 101
• Death By Music: The History of Music Pathologization 
  Táhirih Motazedian (Music), Rockefeller Hall 201