College of Arts & Sciences College of Business & Management

Daniel L. Goodwin College of Education College of Graduate Studies and Research

Presents

NORTHEASTERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY SEVENTH ANNUAL

FACULTY RESEARCH & CREATIVE ACTIVITIES SYMPOSIUM

November 18, 2016

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Participants

College of Arts & Sciences College of Business & Management

College of Education College of Graduate Studies & Research

Symposium Steering Committee Members

John Albazi, College of Arts & Sciences Saba Ayman-Nolley for the College of Graduate Studies & Research

Alberto Lopez, Daniel L. Goodwin College of Education Cynthia Moran for the Creative Activities

Mary Thill, Ronald Williams Library Angela Vidal-Rodriguez, McNair Scholars Program

Chunnwei Xian, College of Business & Management

SYMPOSIUM PROGRAM

8:00 – 8:30 AM Registration/Coffee Student Union, First Floor

8:30 – 8:50 AM Program Commencement Alumni Hall

Welcome and Introduction Dr. John Albazi, Symposium Coordinator

Greetings Dr. Richard J. Helldobler, Interim President

Northeastern Illinois University

This year’s Symposium is sponsored by the Office of Academic Affairs.

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Track 1 Session A

Student Union (Recital Hall) Presiding: Cynthia Moran (Department of Communication, Media, and Theatre)

9:40 AM FUSING COUNTRY SONGS AND GHAZALS: A CULTURAL EXCHANGE

EXPERIMENT (page 10), David Mathews, Department of English

10:20 AM SELECTIONS FROM THE COMEDIC ARIAS AND SONGS OF GAETANO

DONIZETTI (page 10), Robert Heitzinger* and Kay Kim, Department of Music and

Dance

11:00 AM Coffee Break

11:20 AM DISRUPTING THE BODY… JUST GETTING IN THE AIR IN A DIFFERENT KINDA WAY (page 11), Olivia Cronk* and Christine Simokaitis, Department of English

12:00 PM THE LARAMIE PROJECT: THEATRE OF TESTIMONY (page 11), Ann B Hartdegen, Department of Communication, Media and Theatre

12:40 PM Lunch Break

Track 2 Session A

Student Union (Golden Eagles Room SU 103) Presiding: Saba Ayman-Nolley (Department of Psychology)

9:40 AM HOW CAN STEROTYPES INFLUENCE SELF IDENTITY? (page 12), Stacey

Goguen, Department of Philosophy

10:20 AM TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY AND SCHIZOPHRENIA: EXAMINING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY AND THE ONSET OF SCHIZOPHRENIA-LIKE SYMPTOMS: A CASE CONTROL STUDY (page 13), Denise Romanow, Department of Psychology

11:00 AM Coffee Break

11:20 AM EFFECT OF LEADER-SUBORDINATE DYAD ETHNIC COMPOSITION AND RELATIONSHIP LENGTH ON LEADER'S TRUSTWORTHINESS PERCEPTION (page 13), Yelena Polyashuk*, Roya Ayman (Illinois Institute of Technology) and Jennifer L. Roberts (Illinois Institute of Technology), Department of Psychology

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12:00 PM THE ROLE OF THE CODA IN ENGLISH FLAPPING (page 14), Lewis Gebhardt, Department of Linguistics

12:40 PM Lunch Break

Track 2 Session B

Student Union (Golden Eagles SU 103) Presiding: Saba Ayman-Nolley (Department of Psychology)

1:20 PM TRAVEL PHRASEBOOKS' PRESENTATION OF LANGUAGES OTHER THAN

ENGLISH (LOTE) (page 15), Richard W. Hallett, Department of Linguistics

2:00 PM PARENTING IN INFANCY AND SELF-REGULATION IN PRESCHOOL: AN INVESTIGATION OF THE ROLE OF ATTACHMENT HISTORY (page 16), Rachel Birmingham, Department of Justice Studies

Track 3 Session A

Student Union (SU 214) Presiding: Pamela Geddes (Department of Biology and Environmental Science Program)

9:00 AM USING GENETIC DISEASE MUTANTS TO INVESTIGATE THE LINK BETWEEN

OXIDATIVE STRESS AND AGING IN DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER (page

16), Bolterstein E1*, Salomon R2, McVey M3, Garcia J1, Rokita B1, Cassidy D1,

Zhou L1, and Salameh, C1. 1Department of Biology, Northeastern Illinois University, 2Department of Pathology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA; 3Department of Biology, Tufts University, Medford, MA.

9:40 AM ARSENOPLATINS – POTENT DUAL TARGETING ANTICANCER AGENTS

(page 17), Denana Miodragovic*1,2, Antonello Merlino3, Sara Abuhadba1, Luigi

Messori4, and Thomas O’Halloran2 1Chemistry Department, Northeastern Illinois University 2Chemistry of Life Processes Institute, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan

Road, Evanston, IL 60208 3University of Naples Federico II, Complesso Universitario di Monte Sant’Angelo

Viacintia, I-80126 Napoli, Italy 4Department of Chemistry 'Ugo Schiff', Road Lastruccia, 3-13, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy

10:20 AM LIGHT-INDUCED STRUCTURAL CHANGES OF S. AURANTIACA BACTERIOPHYTOCHROMESB AS REVEALED BY ATOMIC FROCE MICROSCOPY (page 18), Rima Rebiai,1 Emina A. Stojković,2 Stefan Tsonchev,1

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and Kenneth T. Nicholson1* 1Department of Chemistry, 2Department of Biology

11:00 AM Coffee Break

11:20 AM

SETTING THE SCENE FOR WONDER: AN EXPLORATION OF FACTORS THAT MAY PREDICT EXCEPTIONAL EXPERIENCES IN NATURE, Melinda Storie (page 19), Department of Geography and Environmental Studies

12:00 PM PEER-LED TEAM LEARNING: AN ACTIVE LEARNING METHOD FOR THE

21ST CENTURY (page 20), Ana. Fraiman1*, Brenna Dooley1, Emily Fioramonti1,

Paras Mehta1, Alexandra Gokee1, J. E. Becvar 2, AE Dreyfuss 3

1 Chemistry Department, Northeastern Illinois University 2 Chemistry Department, University of Texan at El Paso 3 Educational Consultant, New York

12:40 PM Lunch Break

Track 3 Session B

Student Union (SU 214) Presiding: Pamela Geddes (Department of Biology and Environmental Science Program)

1:20 PM DEVELOPMENT OF NEW PEPTIDE DRUGS FOR TREATING TYPE I

DIABETES (page 21), Jing Su*1, Sue Mungre2, Andrew Apals1, Rich Xue1, Irvin

Garcia1and Paras Mehta2

1Department of Chemistry, 2Department of Biology

2:00 PM Fabrication of Li-Ion Battery Cathode Materials (page 21), Chandana Meegoda*,

Mark Mau, and Elisabeth Somchith, Department of Chemistry

Track 4 Session A

Student Union (SU 215) Presiding: Chunwei Xian (Department of Accounting, Business Law, and Finance)

9:00 AM ACQUISITIVE CRIMES, TIME OF DAY, AND MULTIUNIT HOUSING IN THE

CITY OF MILWAUKEE (page 22), Scott W. Hegerty, Department of Economics

9:40 AM TIME VARIATION IN THE MONETARY POLICY TRADE-OFFS AND THE MACRO-FINANACIAL FORCES (page 23), Hardik A. Marfatia, Department of Economics

10:20 AM EXPLORING THE CHICAGO HEALTH EQUITY COLLABORATIVE (CHICAGO-

CHEC): THE 2016 INCUBATOR & CATALYST GRANT PROGRAM AT NEIU

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(page 24), Christina Ciecierski, Department of Economics

11:00 AM Coffee Break

11:20 AM APPLICATION OF TIME SERIES ANALYSES IN ACCOUNTING AND AUDITING (page 24), Sara Aliabadi* and Alireza Dorestani, Department of Accounting, Business, law and Financing

12:00 AM PROCESS FACTORIZATION ALGORITHM FOR RETRIEVING MATCHING INTUITIONS FOR EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT REAL-TIME DECISION MAKING (page 25), Hong Chen, Department of Accounting, Business, law and Financing

12:40 PM Lunch Break

Track 4 Session B

Student Union (SU 215) Presiding: Chunwei Xian (Department of Accounting, Business Law, and Finance)

1:20 PM NUANCED ROLE OF RELEVANT PRIOR EXPERIENCE: SALES TAKEOFF OF

DISRUPTIVE PRODUCTS AND PRODUCTS INNOVATION WITH DISRUPTED TECHNOLOGY (page 26), Raja Roy* and Mazhar Islam (Tulane University), Department of Management and Marketing

Track 5 Session A

Student Union (SU 216) Presiding: Angela Vidal-Rodriguez (McNair Scholars Program)

9:00 AM DOG RACING & AL CAPONE, 1927-32 (page 26), Steven A. Riess, Emeritus

Professor of History

9:40 AM ISLAM, IRAN, AND WOMEN IN WAR (page 27), Mateo M Farzaneh, Department of History

10:20 AM THE MYTH OF AN ILLITERATE AFRICA: CONTEXTUALIZING ISLAMIC LITERACY IN WEST AFRICA (page 28), Emelda Lawson Bekkal, Department of African and American Studies

11:00 AM Coffee Break

11:20 AM THE SCHOOL SOCIAL WORK PROFESSIONAL LEARNING COMMUNITY PROJECT: EARLY LESSONS AND NEW DIRECTIONS (page 29), Andrew Brake, Department of Social Work

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12:00 PM FROM KATRINA TO FLINT: SYCOPHANCY AND NEGLECT IN U.S. POLITICAL CULTURE (page 30), Charles Nissim-Sabat, Emeritus Professor of Physics and Retired Attorney-at-Law

12:40 PM Lunch Break

Track 5 Session B

Student Union (SU 216) Presiding: Angela Vidal-Rodriguez (McNair Scholars Program)

1:20 PM LOMAX’S MATRIX: DISABILITY, SOLIDARITY, AND THE BLACK POWER OF

504: A CRITIQUE (page 31), Josef Ben Levi, Department of Sociology

2:00 PM THE BABY TALK HOME VISITING RANDOMIZED CONTROL TRIAL: EXAMINING THE EFFECTS OF THE HOME VISITING ON REFUGEE FAMILIES (page 31), Aimee Hilado, Department of Social Work

Track 6 Session A

Student Union (SU 217) Presiding: Lidia Filus (Department of Mathematics)

9:00 AM A SYNERGY BETWEEN NUMERICAL ANALYSIS AND DIFFERENTIAL

TOPOLOGY(page 32), Zhonggang (Zeke) Zeng, Department of Mathematics

9:40 AM ISOMETRIC IMMERSIONS OF PSEUDO – SPHERICAL SURFACES VIA

DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS (page 33), Nabil Kahouadji, Department of Mathematics

10:20 AM KNOT THEORY AND EMBEDDING SURFACES IN 4 - DIMENSIONAL SPACE (page 33), Matthew Graham, Department of Mathematics

11:00 AM Coffee Break

11:20 AM IMPROVING EFFICIENCY IN STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELS BY AN EASY EMPIRICAL LIKELIHOOD APPROACH (page 34), Shan Wang, Department of Mathematics

12:00 PM THE MATH SESSION OF THE EMERGE SUMMER PROGRAM: SUPPORTING INCOMING FRESHMEN IN SUCCEEDING IN MATH DEVELOPMENT COURSEWORK (page 34), Sarah Oppland-Cordell*, Katherine Bird, and Joseph Hibdon, Department of Mathematics

12:40 PM Lunch Break

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Track 6 Session B

Student Union (SU 217) Presiding: Lidia Filus (Department of Mathematics)

1:20 PM ON THE DYNAMICS OF MOVING BODIES (page 35), Charles Nissim-Sabat,

Emeritus Professor of Physics and Retired Attorney-at-Law

Track 7 Session A

Student Union (SU 218) Presiding: Mary Thill (Ronald Williams Library)

9:40 AM WHY WE CHOP THE MEAT: READING POPULAR TELEVISION

REPRESENTATIONS OF WORK AND INTIMACY INCHOPPED and DEXTER (page 35), Tim Libretti, English Department

10:20 AM BLACK LIVES MATTER: THE POLITICS OF STORYTELLING IN LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA’S HAMILTON (page 36), Ryan Poll, English Department

11:00 AM Coffee Break

11:20 AM NATION, NARRATION, AND RACE: WILLIAM FAULKNER’S SOUTHERN FABLE, Kristen Over (page 37), Department of English

12:00 PM INSTITUTIONAL REPOSITORIES AND OPEN ACCESS: INCREASING THE

IMPACT OF YOUR RESEARCH (page 37), Alyssa Vincent, Library Department

12:40 PM Lunch Break

Track 8 Session A

Student Union (SU 219) Presiding: Kim Sanborn (Department of Non-Traditional Programs)

9:00 AM MINDSET, SELF-MANAGEMENT AND THE FUTURE OF HUMAN LIFE (page 38),

Stephen R. Grove, Department of Management and Marketing

9:40 AM PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVE GENERATOR: AN ONLINE TOOL TO HELP EDUCATORS WRITE EFFECTIVE PERFORMANCE (LEARNING) OBJECTIVES USING THE ABCD MODEL (page 39), Shirley J. Caruso, Department of Literacy, Leadership, and Development

10:20 AM CREATING SPACES TO COMMUNICATE IN MODERN SOCIETY: TOWARD A THEORY OF COMMUNAL APPRECIATION (page 40), Wilfredo Alvarez, Department of Communication, Media and Theatre

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ABSTRACTS OF PRESENTATIONS

NEIU SEVENTH ANNUAL FACULTY RESEARCH & CREATIVE ACTIVITIES SYMPOSIUM

NOVEMBER 18, 2016

Abstracts are reproduced by permission of the authors, and are not to be construed as publications. Permission to reproduce, quote, or cite any data contained herein may be granted only by application to the individual authors.

Northeastern Illinois University Chicago, Illinois 60625

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FUSING COUNTRY SONGS AND GHAZALS: A CULTURAL EXCHANGE EXPERIMENT

David Mathews English Department

D-Mathews@neiu.edu

This presentation was inspired by Pakistani novelist Kamila Shamise’s essay “The Storytellers

of Empire” (https://www.guernicamag.com/features/shamsie_02_01_2012).

Shamise wrote:

“…I knew there was something deeply damaging in the idea that writers couldn’t take on stories

about the Other… I understand the concerns of people who feel that for too long stories have

been told about them rather than by them. But it should be clear that the response to this is for

writers to write differently, to write better…”

As a poet I decided to write differently. By comparing and contrasting ghazals with American

country songs, I have discovered similarities between both and have explored fusing the two

together—like hipster chefs fusing cultures (e.g. Kimchi tacos). Recent discussions on cultural

appropriation have focused less on how to utilize cultural exchange as a solution—the main

goal of this presentation is to provide one. Secondary goals of this presentation include

allowing a new perspective on the artistry of country music and to promote a poetry form

increasing in popularity among American poets. This presentation will provide a glimpse of my

studies, thought process, and my end result—country song ghazels.

SELECTIONS FROM THE COMEDIC ARIAS AND SONGS OF GAETANO DONIZETTI

Robert Heitzinger

Department of Music and Dance r-heitzinger@neiu.edu

Gaetano Donizetti was one of the most prolific operatic composers of the bel canto style, leaving over 80 works in his catalog. He wrote successfully in both comic and dramatic styles; examples include Anna Bolena, Lucia di Lammermoor, L’elisir d’amore and Don Pasquale. Rossini heavily influenced his early works, but he was able to move out from Rossini’s shadow to establish his own vocal style. His international career was very successful and hectic, frequently taking him between Paris, Naples, Vienna and Milan in short periods of time. While he wrote about 250 songs, they are not considered an important part of his vocal output. Many use operatic forms, while others are very simple and straightforward. The arias presented are several of his most well known works for the baritone voice: Bella siccome un angelo from Don Pasquale (1843) and Come paride vezzoso from L’Elisir d’amore (1832). Discussion will center on his use of vocal ornamentation to establish characterization within the bel canto style. The two songs presented were specifically written for bass voice, an unusual occurrence. Il

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trovatore in caricatura is found in a collection of songs called Un hiver à Paris, which is interesting in that none of the songs are about Paris. The song contains many vocal characterizations and effects. There is also a lot of word play. We find extremes in dynamics, vocal range and dramatic situations in this “quasi-aria” about a singer who seeks someone to sing for, but finds no one. He winds up asking himself how good a singer he must be if he can’t find anyone to sing for. Viva il matrimonio is even more aria-like in nature, with Donizetti calling it a cavatina buffa. Regardless of the designation, this song uses many of the comic vocal effects that Rossini and Donizetti employed in their comic operas. The idea behind the song is that no matter how many jokes or complaints are made about marriage, if you have a children and a happy union, it is the best life of all.

“DISRUPTING THE BODY… JUST GETTING IN THE AIR IN A DIFFERENT KINDA WAY”

Olivia Cronk*, Michael Davros*, Larry Dean*, Chielozona Eze*, Amanda Goldblatt*, David Mathews*, Christine Simokaitis*

Department of English o-cronk@neiu.edu

This presentation of creative work from the English Department takes on as its title, its frame, its praxis a notion from an interview with poet, scholar, editor Fred Moten (http://lithub.com/an-interview-with-fred-moten-pt-i/). Moten seeks a kind of collaborative process wherein writers work through and within one another. So like I’m sitting in my room writing something and I’m in conversation with Donne and Shakespeare and Baraka and Mama and my grandfather and . . . Louis Armstrong and Charlie Patton. And all these people, they’re in my head and they’re in my body . . . they’re sort of animating my flesh, disrupting the body I guess I thought was mine, but there’s another kind of sociality that’s given in the close quarters of the living, I guess you could say, that I would like to try, that I would like to do . . . And it might not even manifest itself, ultimately, in any kind of published text; maybe a bunch of writing held in practice, a writing that is and that also documents the practice but that might very well disappear, be deleted where deletion just means a different kind of dispersion or disbursal, just getting in the air in a different kinda way, a memory of talking and studying together, that gets told or retold or untold . . . The English Department just began its Creative Writing Minor, and now many faculty members co-exist in this shared pedagogical project. Though the department has had a creative writing culture all along, that culture is embodied now in/by our shared teaching endeavor. This presentation is an ear on what everyone is doing: Michael Davros, Larry Dean, Chielozona Eze, Amanda Goldblatt, Bradley Greenburg, David Mathews, and Christine Simokaitis will all read small excerpts of work, and the air will be disrupted.

THE LARAMIE PROJECT: THEATRE OF TESTIMONY

Ann B Hartdegen Department of Communication, Media and Theatre

A-Hartdegen@neiu.edu

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For more than 25 years The Children's Theatre Workshop of the Communication, Media and Theatre Department of NEIU has produced two plays every year for young audiences. The Fall 2016 production of THE LARAMIE PROJECT is a departure from tradition in that it is intended for high school and adult audiences. In 1998, Matthew Shepard, a twenty-one-year-old gay student at the University of Wyoming, was tied to a cattle fence, beaten about the head, robbed, and left to die on a bitterly cold night in October. He never regained consciousness and died in a hospital several days later. Two local young men were charged with and subsequently convicted of the crime. Author Moisés Kaufman and The Tectonic Theater Company traveled to Wyoming a few weeks after the event and, over the next 18 months, conducted more than 200 interviews with the people of Laramie, Wyoming. The play they created, THE LARAMIE PROJECT, is based on these interviews as well as journals and news reports. Internationally successful, the play captures the emotions, reflections, and reactions of the people who were most closely related to the crime. Was this a hate crime? Or was it a random, senseless assault and robbery? The play explores issues of class, economics, religion, education, and non-traditional lifestyles through the residents' raw responses to the incident. Two aspects of the play that especially interest us are: the relationship between violent language and violent action; how we, as a community, are harmed by violence in our midst, and the importance of civic engagement and responsibility. Although this play is about an LGBTQ individual, the production makes a clear connection to violence - or hate speech or other forms of bullying - toward any group or individual marginalized by religion, race, gender, etc. By the date of the Faculty Symposium we will be about half way through our 12 performance run. Ann Hartdegen (director), David Mitchell (dramaturg), John Portenlanger, (assistant director), and members of the cast and crew will discuss the themes and concerns of the play with an emphasis on: new Hate Crimes legislation; the relationship between language and bullying; the many forms of bigotry flourishing in the current political climate; civic engagement and responsibility. In the presentation we will analyze the structure of the play, deconstruct how Theatre of Testimony is created, discuss the technical challenges of realizing the staging of multiple locations and 30+ characters, review the material created to prepare audiences to see the play, and discuss the reactions and feedback from audiences. The presentation will be accompanied

HOW CAN STEROTYPES INFLUENCE SELF IDENTITY?

Stacey Goguen Department of Philosophy

S-goguen@neiu.edu You might think that, if a negative stereotype influences someone’s self-identity, it is because that individual believes the stereotype to be true, and so they come to believe that it is true of themselves. However, most of us know that stereotypes are gross over-generalizations, so we don’t need to worry about negative stereotypes influencing our self-identity.

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Some work in social psychology questions this line of thinking, suggesting that stereotypes might be able to influence our self-identity even if we don’t believe the stereotype is true. Specifically, stereotypes can, under certain circumstances, influence us to dis-identify with a stereotyped group or a stereotyped domain (such as math, philosophy, college, etc.) This can happen even if the individual does not outright believe the stereotype to be true. Instead, the possibility that others in their social environment might believe the stereotype can be enough for people to distance themselves from these risky or stigmatized identities (Steele, Spencer, and Aronson 2002). Recent work in social epistemology suggests some there are some significant implications of stereotypes’ ability to influence our self-identity in this way. For instance, some have pointed out that this sort of impact may be a factor in why certain academic disciplines have an under-representation of women and other traditionally-marginalized groups (McKinnon 2014; Beebee and Saul 2011). Other work has argued that being denied the identity of a knower in a way that others are not denied that identity can compound social inequality, especially in educational settings (Haslanger 2014). My own work connects these two threads of research, to argue that our self-identities may be more complex, more fragile, and more bound up with our social lives, than we may realize. We do not develop our sense of self in a vacuum. So by better understanding the social forces that can influence our sense of self, we are better positioned to push back against pernicious forces, and to help ourselves and others develop a robust autonomy and well-being.

TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY AND SCHIZOPHRENIA: EXAMINING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY AND THE ONSET OF SCHIZOPHRENIA-LIKE

SYMPTOMS: A CASE CONTROL STUDY

Denise Romanow Department of Psychology

D-romanow@neiu.edu A review of the literature suggests that Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) can lead to the manifestation of various mental health symptoms and mental disorders. A case study was undertaken that examined the neurocognitive functioning of a patient who had no history of psychosis, sustained an open head injury, and subsequently developed schizophrenia-like symptoms. The patient underwent a battery of neuropsychological measures in an attempt to provide a comprehensive neurocognitive profile of this unique phenomenon. The results provide a preliminary understanding that may lead to further research.

EFFECT OF LEADER-SUBORDINATE DYAD ETHNIC COMPOSITION AND RELATIONSHIP LENGTH ON LEADER'S TRUSTWORTHINESS PERCEPTION

Yelena Polyashuk

1*, Roya Ayman

2 and Jennifer L. Roberts

2

1Northeastern Illinois University,

2Illinois Institute of Technology

Department of Psychology Y-polyashuk@neiu.edu

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As the United States become more diverse, attention should be payed to issues of ethnic demography in the workplace. Ethnic similarity/dissimilarity has an impact on leader-subordinate relationships, which are often considered the most important organizational factor. Based on relational trust in the leader, subordinates will feel motivated and empowered, or be disengaged and dejected. Past research usually defines the leader-subordinate dyad as ethnically “similar” or “different”. Unfortunately, this dichotomy ignores the specific ethnic composition of the leader-subordinate dyad. Objectives: This study is one of very few studies investigating the impact of the ethnic makeup of the leader-subordinate dyad and length of their relationship on perceived trustworthiness of the leader. This allows us to disentangle similarity and difference in dyads by specifying the index of diversity and by examining the effect that different combinations of dyad demographics have on valued organizational outcomes. This “fine-grained” approach to diversity research recognizes the leftover heritage of attributing different social status to Whites and Blacks in our society. Individuals exhibit different attitudes and interactions depending on their own and their leader’s ethnicity, as influenced by socially constructed stereotypes and implicit biases. Methods: An archival dataset of survey results from 182 employees in a large telecommunications company was analyzed. Dyad ethnicity composition was specifically coded as White Leader, White Subordinate; White Leader, Black Subordinate; Black Leader, Black Subordinate; Black Leader, White Subordinate. Length of relationship was tested as a moderator between dyad ethnicity composition and perception of ability, benevolence and integrity of the leader. Results: Leader-subordinate dyad ethnicity composition and relationship length had a statistically significant interaction effect on the perception of the leader’s ability and benevolence. Black leaders with Black subordinates showed that the longer the working relationship, the higher the perceptions of the leader’s ability and benevolence. However, for other ethnic dyad compositions, there was an inverted U-shaped dynamic between relationship length and ability and benevolence. The greatest differences in perceptions of the leader occurred at the longest relationship length. Most notably, for both benevolence and ability evaluations of the leader at more than 5 years relationship length, the Black Leader-Black Subordinate dyad surpassed all other dyads and was significantly higher than most. Conclusions: The maintenance of working relationships over time is of utmost importance, since the greatest differences among dyads occurred when the relationship was longest. Also, the different pattern of perceptions underscores the importance of differentiating between various ethnic combinations in a dyad. Black dyads showed a pattern of improvement over time, which can be attributed to a common bond and experiences. White dyads did not benefit from their demographic similarity, which can be attributed to the often-overlooked diversity of cultural norms among Whites.

THE ROLE OF THE CODA IN ENGLISH FLAPPING

Lewis Gebhardt Department of Linguistics

L-gebhardt@neiu.edu In English flapping, intervocalic /t/ and /d/ surface as [ɾ], resulting in the homonymy of words like latter and ladder. A common proposal is that flapping occurs for ambisyllabic /t/ and /d/, i.e.

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when they belong both to the preceding and the following syllables. Many have questioned ambisyllabicity as a fact generally and as an explanation of English flapping specifically (e.g. Picard 1984, Selkirk 1982). And even if ambisyllabicity does correctly describe the flapping environment, it offers no phonetic motivation for flapping. I propose that flapping occurs when the stop, in violation of the Maximum Onset Principle, is realized as a coda, and hence checked, losing aspiration if it had it. The checked stop, followed by a vowel-initial syllable, is articulated faster than an ordinary stop, hence resulting in the flap. Assuming English stops /th/ and /t/ rather than /t/ and /d/ (Iverson and Salmons 1995) simplifies the derivation. Flapping is thus described as a series of phonetic gestures within the context of a theory of syllables.

TRAVEL PHRASEBOOKS' PRESENTATION OF LANGUAGES OTHER THAN ENGLISH (LOTE)

Richard W. Hallett

Department of Linguistics R-hallett@neiu.edu

That linguists and non-linguists often (and unconsciously) have strong opinions about other languages and, arguably, their speakers in sociolinguistic studies is a given. From Bloomfield’s (1944) secondary and tertiary responses to language to Atkinson and Kelly-Holmes’s (2016) research on attitudes towards Irish language revitalization, most work on the topic of people’s language attitudes has focused on dialects/varieties and non-‘standard’ forms (See Edwards 2009; Giles and Edwards 2010; inter alia). As ‘transcultural texts’ (Gilbert 1999), travel phrasebooks reify and reinforce attitudes toward languages other than English (LOTE). In so doing, they bolster the hegemonic positioning of the English language in opposition to other languages and their speakers through fractal recursivity (Irvine and Gal 2000). This presentation addresses language attitudes towards LOTE, mostly non-Western languages, in the phrasebooks published by Lonely Planet for English-speaking travelers to multilingual regions of the Global South. Specifically, this presentation examines attitudes toward the languages exemplified in Lonely Planet’s second edition of Africa: Phrasebook and Dictionary (2013), second edition of India: Phrasebook and Dictionary (2014), fourth edition of Pidgin: Phrasebook (2015), third edition of Hill Tribes (2008), second edition of South Pacific Phrasebook (2008), and third edition of Southeast Asia: Phrasebook and Dictionary (2013). This research argues that these phrasebooks describe these languages and their speakers as exotic, monolithic, simplistic, and deterministic; and construct the traveler’s efforts to use these languages as acts of benevolence that will be unquestionably well-received by the natives. (1) Madagascar’s language is just as colorful and fascinating as its wildlife, landscapes and people (2) It’s as though every Shona speaker is a poet (3) Any efforts to speak to locals in Yoruba will be greatly appreciated (4) Try your hand (or rather tongue) at Assamese – this will surely endear you to its proud owners! Consumers of these phrasebooks are assured that they will encounter other English speakers in their travels, that the languages are ‘easy’ and relatable, and that the speakers, while exotic, embody favorable characteristics. The uniqueness of the present research stems from its examination of explicit and implicit value judgments about the languages and the speakers of

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the languages presented in these phrasebooks; and, crucially, examination of the role of the interloping traveler among these speakers. PARENTING IN INFANCY AND SELF-REGULATION IN PRESCHOOL: AN INVESTIGATION

OF THE ROLE OF ATTACHMENT HISTORY

Rachel Birmingham Department of Justice Studies

r-birmingham@neiu.edu Self-regulation (SR), broadly defined to include skills such as attention focusing, planning, persistence, delay of gratification, and impulse control (Blair, Denham, Kochanoff & Whipple, 2004; Raver, et al., 2009), is considered critically important for understanding development during early childhood (Posner & Rothbart, 2000). Research suggests that positive caregiving in the early years, as well as a secure attachment history, supports the growth of SR skills (e.g., Hustedt & Raver, 2002). However, relatively few studies have moved beyond general indexes of parenting quality to examine pathways from different aspects of infant caregiving, including maternal sensitivity and home quality, to SR at 54 months (e.g., Lan, Legare, Pointz, Li, & Morrison, 2011). Further, the nature of the relationship between sensitivity, home quality, attachment history and SR is not well explored. Some studies suggest that attachment security may moderate effects of early parenting (e.g. Fearon & Belsky, 2004), with parenting quality associated with different developmental outcomes for securely versus insecurely attached children. Others find that attachment mediates the effects of parenting on later outcomes (e.g., Toth, Rogosch, Sturge-Apple & Cicchetti, 2009). To our knowledge, no single study has examined whether attachment security is best conceptualized as a mediator or a moderator of the association between parenting and self-regulation in preschool age children. Using a sample of 938 children from The NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development, a series of structural equation models were fit to determine whether sensitivity and home quality concurrently predicted SR at 54 months, and whether attachment mediated or moderated these pathways. Results suggest that both sensitivity and home quality uniquely predict SR. Further, these early parenting variables were each indirectly associated with SR through children’s attachment history. That is, higher levels of sensitivity and home quality predicted secure attachment history, which, along with parenting, predicted more advanced SR skills at 54 months. No moderated pathways emerged, suggesting attachment history may be best conceptualized as a partial mediator. Understanding attachment as a mechanism through which early parenting influences later SR helps us to understand the central role that attachment (e.g., secure base and exploratory behaviors), plays in the emergence of self-regulation. USING GENETIC DISEASE MUTANTS TO INVESTIGATE THE LINK BETWEEN OXIDATIVE

STRESS AND AGING IN DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER

Bolterstein E1*

, Salomon R2, McVey M

3, Garcia J

1, Rokita B

1, Cassidy D

1, Zhou L

1, and

Salameh, C1.

1Department of Biology, Northeastern Illinois University,

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2Department of Pathology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA;

3Department of

Biology, Tufts University, Medford, MA.

E-Bolterstein@neiu.edu Aging is one of the most important factors in the development of cancer. As cells age, they accumulate DNA damage in the form of mutations, lesions, and breaks in the DNA molecule. Double strand DNA breaks are highly damaging to the cell and must be repaired by to prevent changes in the DNA sequence caused by mutations. Proteins such as WRN and BLM maintain integrity of the genome by repairing double strand breaks in DNA and responding to stress during DNA replications. Mutations in the WRN and BLM genes cause Werner syndrome and Bloom syndrome, respectively, which are diseases characterized by patients’ increased risk of cancer, early onset of aging, and shortened lifespans. Drosophila (fruit flies) contain homologous, or highly similar, genes for both WRN and BLM, making them a robust model to study aging diseases. We have found that flies lacking BLM and/or WRNexo (the Drosophila homolog of WRN) accumulate more DNA damage and have difficulties managing stress associated with DNA replication. Similar to Bloom and Werner syndrome patients, Blm and WRNexo mutants have shorter life spans and a greater incidence of germ cell generated tumors. In addition, WRNexo mutants also exhibit other physiological signs of aging such as degeneration of the flight muscles and decreased locomotor activity. A possible explanation for the aging phenotypes is the accumulation of free radicals, unstable molecules that when generated in excess can cause damage to biological molecules such as DNA, proteins, and lipid membranes. The damaging activity of free radicals can be blocked by antioxidants, which are proteins and small molecules that stabilize free radicals by scavenging their extra electrons. Our preliminary evidence shows that WRNexo and BLM mutants accumulate more free radicals, as shown by greater antioxidant activity and higher toxicity to reagents that cause oxidative stress. The ability of these mutants to manage oxidative stress decreases with age, suggesting that there is greater accumulation of free radicals in older flies, which is exacerbated by DNA repair deficiencies. Together, these data can help us to better understand the link between aging, DNA repair, and the onset of cancer.

ARSENOPLATINS – POTENT DUAL TARGETING ANTICANCER AGENTS

Denana Miodragovic*1,2

, Antonello Merlino3, Sara Abuhadba

1, Luigi Messori

4, and Thomas

O’Halloran2

1Chemistry Department, Northeastern Illinois University

2Chemistry of Life Processes Institute, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road,

Evanston, IL 60208 3University of Naples Federico II, Complesso Universitario di Monte Sant’Angelo Viacintia, I-

80126 Napoli, Italy 4Department of Chemistry 'Ugo Schiff', Road Lastruccia, 3-13, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy

d-miodragovic@neiu.edu The serendipitous discovery of anticancer activity of cisplatin occurred 50 years ago and even today cisplatin and its analogs are used to treat 40-80% of all cancer patients. The main obstacle in treating these patients with cis-Pt(II) drugs are intrinsic and acquired resistance. Cancer cells developed various mechanisms to handle the stress induced by chemotherapeutic

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agents, and new types of platinum compounds were designed to combat the resistance. Cis-Pt(II) compounds (Cisplatin, Carboplatin, and Oxaliplatin) and As2O3 are the only inorganic drugs approved by the FDA to treat cancer. These inorganic drugs can initiate programmed cell death - apoptosis. In the case of platinum compounds, apoptosis is initiated by platinum binding to nuclear DNA, and in the case of As2O3 by arsenic binding to the zinc finger and other cysteine rich proteins. In an effort to combat the resistance through the design of compounds which would combine Pt and As moieties of these drugs, a new class of anti-cancer agents, arsenoplatins, have been synthesized and characterized in our previous paper. These peculiar complexes contain a very short Pt-As(OH)2 bond with the expected square planar PtII, but with an unusual five coordinate AsIII geometry. The preliminary in vitro cytotoxicity evaluation in several cancer cell lines revealed that arsenoplatins may have a distinct mode of action in comparison to cisplatin and arsenic trioxide, while also having the ability to overcome the resistance mechanism. This work expands upon the preliminary in vitro evaluation by evaluating the toxicity of a single, 10 μM dose of Arsenoplatin-1 (AP-1), Arsenic Trioxide, and Cisplatin in the NCI 60 tumor cell panel. The average cell growth percentage was the lowest for Arsenoplatin-1 18.02 %, followed by Cisplatin 22.41 %, and the weakest growth inhibition had Arsenic Trioxide with an average cell growth percentage of 36.72 %. AP-1 was very potent in 5 out of 9 cancers tested: breast, ovarian, CNS, renal and leukemia. To shed light onto possible cellular targets of this unique class of platinum compounds, we have conducted studies of interactions of Arsenoplatin-1 with different molecular targets – proteins and DNA. Small model proteins, hen egg white lysozyme (HEWL) and bovine pancreatic ribonuclease (RNase A) have been chosen to study interactions of AP-1 with proteins. Crystal structures of both protein-AP-1 adducts are solved. The avidity of arsenoplatins toward nuclear DNA was tested in ovarian cisplatin resistant SKOV-3 and triple negative breast MDA-MB-231 cancer cell line. Based on the results obtained in this study, Arsenoplatin-1 appears to directly damage DNA and retains the protein binding capacity of arsenic trioxide, which combine together to produce a pharmacophore with a unique mechanism of cytotoxicity.

LIGHT-INDUCED STRUCTURAL CHANGES OF S. AURANTIACA BACTERIOPHYTOCHROMESB AS REVEALED BY ATOMIC FROCE MICROSCOPY

Rima Rebiai,

1 Emina A. Stojković,

2 Stefan Tsonchev,

1 and Kenneth T. Nicholson

1*

1Department of Chemistry,

2Department of Biology

k-nicholson@neiu.edu

Bacteriophytochromes (BphPs) are red-light photoreceptors found in photosynthetic and non-photosynthetic bacteria. BphPs are composed of a photosensory core module (PCM) that consists of three domains PAS, GAF, and PHY along with an effector domain, usually a histidine kinase (HK). BphPs utilize a covalently attached biliverdin (BV), a chromophore, to photoconvert between red (Pr) and far-red (Pfr) light-absorbing states. Upon this photoconversion, global structural changes are expected; however, the signaling response mechanisms of these BphPs are still unknown. Since structure seems to play a critical role in the BphPs’ ability to absorb and emit light, gaining new insight the structural changes appears to be an important step in elucidating the mechanistic behavior. Due to the lack of crystal structures of intact BphPs in their respective Pr and Pfr states, we have utilized Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) to characterize the structure of intact BphPs in biologically relevant media. Specifically, we have focused on the AFM analysis of BphPs from myxobacterium Stigmatella aurantiaca, SaBphP1 and SaBphP2, that share 41% sequence identity, both bind BV and have

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different Pr/Pfr photoconversion. Unlike classical BphPs, wild-type SaBphP1 lacks a highly conserved His that stabilizes BV and undergoes limited Pr/Pfr photoconversion that can be restored by a single Thr (Thr289) to His mutation in the PCM. Individual dimers of intact SaBphP2 have been observed on a mica surface in solution and compared to truncated PAS GAF variants. Quaternary structural changes in length and width of intact BphPs with respect to Pr and Pfr states have been revealed by AFM and compared to published electron microscopy (EM) data. The proteins appear larger by AFM than EM due to the hydration of the protein and the tip convolution. The ratio of length to width of these BphPs determined by AFM agrees within 10% with the EM data for related BphP from Deinococcus radiodurans in its Pfr state. Furthermore, the volume, orientation, and structure of these BphPs are in agreement with respective protein models generated using PyMOL software and X-ray crystallographic structures of similar BphPs. In summary, AFM is a new approach to elucidating the structural response of BphPs to light that can complement X-ray crystallographic and EM experiments.

SETTING THE SCENE FOR WONDER: AN EXPLORATION OF FACTORS THAT MAY PREDICT EXCEPTIONAL EXPERIENCES IN NATURE

Melinda Storie

Department of Geography and Environmental Studies ms-storie@neiu.edu

Experiences of awe and wonder in natural settings have been anecdotally reported for many years, yet there are few empirical and legitimate examinations of how and why people have transformative experiences in nature. In addition, the few published results related to ineffable experiences in nature originate from studies that do not necessarily aim to uncover such experiences and are often presented in the form of tangential or additional findings. In this study, I explore the link between exceptional experiences in nature and key factors related to the onset of such experiences by analyzing the relevant portions of two sets of interview data in which participants detail their “environmental epiphany” experiences. Participant groups include the general (mostly Midwestern) public as well as student populations from two Midwestern universities and were collected in two iterations up to nine years apart. In the context of a larger data set, the key factors explored in this particular analysis were types of activities preceding the experience, the presence of important concerns or problems in participants’ lives, whether participants were attempting to have such an experience, how the experience began, and characteristics of the surrounding environment (place). Using qualitative content analysis guided by a grounded theory approach, I examined and compared these antecedent characteristics with a previously-established typology of environmental epiphanies and analyzed the common characteristics and trends across environmental epiphany types (aesthetic, intellectual, realization, awareness, connectedness). Thematic analysis indicated commonalities by epiphany type, common types of activities that preceded exceptional experiences in nature, and the presence of specific types of life events leading up to epiphanies in nature. In addition, certain aspects of place were found to be possibly significant in these experiences. I will discuss these findings in the context of providing insights into the further study of exceptional experiences in nature, providing specific recommendations for environmental educators and land managers, and designing restorative, nature-based environments for the public. Ultimately, the study of exceptional experiences can inform basic theory regarding conservation psychology, environmental education, and human-nature interactions, but I argue that the integration of opportunities for such experiences within

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everyday urban environments, outdoor recreation, and established nature programs can be used as a tool to implement positive and persistent environmental attitudes and behavioral change. PEER-LED TEAM LEARNING: AN ACTIVE LEARNING METHOD FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

Ana. Fraiman

1*, Brenna Dooley

1, Emily Fioramonti

1, Paras Mehta

1, Alexandra Gokee

1, J. E.

Becvar 2, AE Dreyfuss

3

1 Chemistry Department, Northeastern Illinois University

2 Chemistry Department, University of Texan at El Paso

3 Educational Consultant, New York

a-fraiman@neiu.edu

Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL) is an outstanding strategy to further education reform and improvement. PLTL increases retention in courses in the sciences, mathematics, and engineering, as well as in other disciplines; improves the learning process and prepares students to work in teams, and creates outstanding student leaders. PLTL engages an experienced and trained student as the overseer of a small group of learners in the capacity of Vygotsky’s “more capable peer.” PLTL has been recognized as a strategy to help students emulate the peer leaders as role models, to reduce student anxiety and build confidence in the learners. PLTL builds strong study skills, develops such critical workplace skills as working in teams, listening, critical thinking, leadership development, and fosters communities of learners who approach learning as a way of life. The peer leaders, generally undergraduate students who are trained for this role, understand the challenges that students have with the material; in a new initiative peer leaders are creating and developing workshop material in conjunction with faculty, augmenting their metacognition. A new initiative, jointly implemented by the University of Texas El Paso and Northeastern Illinois University, seeks to develop a financially sustainable model for PLTL nation-wide that simultaneously eases the implementation of PLTL. Specifically, the initiative has empowered current peer leaders to develop a workbook that complements the course materials that can be sold nationally and all profits returned to support the peer leaders at the institutions where it is implemented. Workbooks required for workshop serve as a source of content/explanations, quizzes, practice problems, and in-depth explorations of chemistry. While the initiative was designed to further financial sustainability, it has yielded several additional important benefits. First, the peer leaders excitedly welcomed the opportunity to create these workbooks and were able to include their own best practices into their development. They included things that worked especially well, as well as things they wished they had when they were students in the courses. Second, the process of updating these workbooks is quite laborious, but empowering the peer leaders, who are using them currently, creates a lot of motivation and a community of students who feel they are creating a better experience for their peers.

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DEVELOPMENT OF NEW PEPTIDE DRUGS FOR TREATING TYPE I DIABETES

Jing Su*1, Sue Mungre

2, Andrew Apals

1, Rich Xue

1, Irvin Garcia

1and Paras Mehta

2

1Department of Chemistry,

2Department of Biology

j-su@neiu.edu

Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disease characterized by a high blood sugar level (hyperglycemia). In healthy humans, blood sugar level is regulated by the hormone insulin released from β cells in pancreatic islets. However, in type 1 diabetes, the body’s immune system misguidedly attacks and destroys β cells resulting in a deficiency of insulin, which then leads to the development of diabetes. Therapeutic strategies involving replacement or regeneration of β cells are expected to reverse the progression of diabetes. Recent research has identified chemical compounds that can stimulate the human body’s native capability of regenerating pancreatic islet β-cells.[1] In particular the islet-neogenesis associated protein (INGAP) and a 15 amino acid peptide segment (IGLHDPSHGTLPNGS) of the protein are among the most promising agents with β-cell promoting potential. Administration of INGAP and the peptide (INGAP-P) to diabetic animal models resulted in increased β-cell mass and reversal of hyperglycemia.[2] Our research aims to further improve the efficacy of INGAP-P as anti-diabetic drugs by enhancing its affinity for INGAP receptors as well as its stability. We designed several cyclized peptides containing the essential amino acid sequence of INGAP-P. They are expected to adopt more active confirmation necessary for binding to target receptors of β-cells. In addition these cyclized peptides are predicted to be more resistant to degradation by proteases, which would result in extended duration of action than the original, linear INGAP-P. We have used standard solid phase peptide synthesis to prepare the linear INGAP-P and cyclized analogues at NEIU. The linear INGAP-P and one of the cyclized peptides were tested for their effects on viability/proliferation of cultured RINm5F islet β cells. Preliminary MTT cell proliferation assay data showed these synthetic peptides were able to increase β cell growth at peptide concentrations ranging from 1nM to 100nM. Under these conditions, the cyclized peptide showed higher ability to stimulate cell proliferation. At higher concentrations, the linear INGAP-P continued to increase cell proliferation while the cyclized peptide became cytotoxic. In addition to more thorough investigation of the peptide effects on β cell viability, we will look at how the cyclic peptides will influence the insulin-release function of the cultured cells as compared to the linear INGAP-P. Our study will help to reveal the mechanism of interaction between INGAP-P and β-cell receptors, and guide further development of β-cell regenerating agents that hopefully serve as alternatives to implantation therapy to treat type I diabetes in the nearer future.

FABRICATION OF LI-ION BATTERY CATHODE MATERIALS

Chandana Meegoda*, Mark Mau, and Elisabeth Somchith, Department of Chemistry M-meegoda@neiu.edu

Lithium Ion batteries are an integral part of modern life; they power everything from vehicles to toys, laptops, tablets and smartphones. Applications of lithium ion batteries are rapidly

22

increasing due to its high energy density, low rate of self-discharge and excellent charge/discharge life cycles. However, the performance characteristics of these batteries are connected to the intrinsic properties of cathode materials and their stability. Safety issues associated with lithium-ion batteries have prompted many researchers to investigate alternative cathode materials for these batteries. Among the lithium intercalation compounds that have been used as cathode materials, lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) has shown an impressive energy density of 250–676 W·h/L. Early portable computers used nickel-cadmium batteries with an energy density of 50-150 W·h/L, which did not provide a great deal of life to the device. Fabrication of thin films is important to further improve the quality of cathode materials and also to have a better understanding of the electro chemical process in Li-ion batteries. The synthesis of sol gel and powder versions of several LiMPO4 (M= Cr, Fe, Co, Ni and Cu) cathode materials was explored as candidates for thin films deposition. Following the synthesis of sol gel materials, thin films of cathode materials were deposited on mica substrates using a dip-costing technique. Dip-coating device was made from a 12V/10cm micro linear actuator and oscillating timer switch. Dip coating rate was controlled to produce thin films of various thicknesses. As grown thin films were characterized using techniques such as Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Energy Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). FTIR spectra shows a dominant band for the stretching and bending modes of the PO43- polyanion and it was used to identify different cathode materials produced. As-grown thin films were annealed at different temperatures to improve crystalline properties and obtain the optimal temperature conditions for producing thin films with minimal impurities. FTIR, EDX and SEM results of the thin films produced, confirm the presence of various cathode materials. Further experiments are needed for careful control of the film thickness and the improvement of the quality of the thin films.

ACQUISITIVE CRIMES, TIME OF DAY, AND MULTIUNIT HOUSING IN THE CITY OF MILWAUKEE

Scott W. Hegerty

Department of Economics S-Hegerty@neiu.edu

According to the “Social Disorganization” theory, put forth by Sampson (1985) and others, criminal activity increases if the societal institutions that might be responsible for maintaining order are weakened. The absence of necessary social networks impedes social control, which can result in an increase in deviant behavior. These networks might be exceptionally weak in areas where neighbors have little, if any, direct contact with one another, even if they live in close proximity. Do large apartment buildings, with fairly transient populations and low levels of community involvement, have disproportionately high rates of crime? Do these rates differ during the daytime or nighttime, depending when residents are present—or away from their property? This study examines four types of “acquisitive” crime in the city of Milwaukee during the year 2014, using a combination of geographic, statistical, and economic methods. Mapping Milwaukee Police Department address data for these crimes, and separating out 6-hour overnight periods from the rest of the day, we find that only Robberies have a disproportionate share of nighttime crime reports. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are then used to combine these crime data with U.S. census demographic data and the City of Milwaukee property database, selecting parcels with more than 24 units (or groups of more than 10 each). Many of these units are located within two miles of downtown, but others are concentrated in

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less-dense areas seven and 11 miles out. While about 44 percent of the city’s land area lies within a quarter-mile of one of these properties, nearly two-thirds of crimes occur within this distance. Statistical analysis is then applied to detect patterns and assess the underlying effect of proximity to multiunit housing. Overall, nighttime crimes are shown to be more dispersed than daytime crimes, and nighttime crimes are more highly correlated with Census block groups’ percentages of White residents. Mapping crime “hot spots” shows similar dispersions, particularly for Robberies and Motor Vehicle Thefts. Burglaries are concentrated on the renter-heavy Northwest Side, while Thefts from Motor Vehicles are likely to take place downtown—and particularly close to multiunit housing at night. A spatial regression model that controls for population density, economic deprivation, the percentage of renters, and the percentage white finds that the density of multiunit housing, measured as the number of this type of building within a quarter-mile of the center of each block group, is positively related to all types of crime except Burglaries, but not for all types of day. Nighttime thefts from motor vehicles, as well as daytime auto thefts and robberies, increase as the density of multiunit housing increases.

TIME VARIATION IN THE MONETARY POLICY TRADE-OFFS AND THE MACRO-FINANACIAL FORCES

Hardik A. Marfatia

Department of Economics h-marfatia@neiu.edu

The two most important objectives of any central bank, like the Federal Reserve Bank, is to achieve maximum employment while keeping prices stable. One of the key challenges the monetary policymakers face is that these two objective cannot be achieved at the same time, at least in the short-run. This trade-off between job creation and inflation is often modeled within the New Keynesian Phillips Curve (NKPC) framework. The basic premise of NKPC is that the current inflation is driven by demand-side pressures, past inflation, and the expectations of the agents for the future inflation rate. The objective of the current research is to explore the changing nature of the trade-off that the Federal Reserve faces within this framework and study the driving macro-financial forces behind these changes. One of the limitations in the existing literature on the subject is that even while there is a general consensus among macroeconomist that the U.S. economy has witnessed significant structural shifts in the past four decades, this has not been accounted while modeling NKPC. In the present study, we address this issue by modeling the NKPC within the time-varying parameter framework. This would unveil far richer dynamics in the employment-inflation trade-offs that the Federal Reserve faces. The idea is further extended by studying the role of macro-financial forces in driving the changing nature of trade-off that the Federal Reserve faces. The evidence suggests that there has been a significant change in the relationship between inflation and output over time. The trade-off between job growth and inflation as significantly higher in the later 1980s and 1990s. However, this is not the case in the more recent times. Evidence also suggests that the role of future expectations in driving current inflation has also changed significantly in the past three decades. The next step is to study the driving forces behind the time-varying relationship between employment creation and inflation. Economic

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rationale suggests that in a business cycle downturn when the financial markets are more volatile the ability of the Federal Reserve to affect job growth is greatly affected. Consequently, the financial market volatility should drive the changing nature of trade-off between job creation and inflation. Furthermore, as the global market integration increases, the international dynamics also affects the extent to which the Federal Reserve is able to create more jobs at the cost of higher inflation. EXPLORING THE CHICAGO HEALTH EQUITY COLLABORATIVE (CHICAGO-CHEC): THE

2016 INCUBATOR & CATALYST GRANT PROGRAM AT NEIU

Christina Ciecierski Department of Economics

c-ciecierski@neiu.edu Despite five major academic research-intensive medical centers, two NCI-designated comprehensive cancer centers and millions of dollars in cancer research funding, Chicago consistently ranks in the upper decile amongst the nation’s worst cancer disparities. One approach for addressing cancer disparities and advancing cancer health equity is the forging of strong bridges among institutions that serve underrepresented populations with research intensive, NCI-designated cancer centers. The Chicago Cancer Health Equity Collaborative (ChicagoCHEC) aims to create a cross-institutional infrastructure and the cohesive network needed in order to catalyze the complementary strengths of the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU), Northwestern University (NU), and community organizations toward cancer health equity. ChicagoCHEC is committed to funding collaborative projects that aim to advance cancer health equity while providing cancer research, education, and community engagement opportunities for minority and underrepresented students, fellows, scientists, and community members. On September 29

th, 2016, ChicagoCHEC launched its

third cycle of Request for Proposals (RFP). This session focuses on the ChicagoCHEC grant application process and will deliver a mini-workshop on the ChicagoCHEC grant application process including: (1) Award levels of the 2016 RFP; (2) Key application dates and deadlines; (3) Eligibility (for applicants and activities); (4) Scheduling a pre-proposal consultation meeting with ChicagoCHEC;

(5) Proposal submission information (including but not limited to writing: a NIH Biosketch, Budget, Budget Justification, Career Development and Mentoring Plan as well as IRB requirements and approval);

(6) Review Criteria for all submitted research proposals. We invite anyone seeking to apply or wishing to become involved in ChicagoCHEC at NEIU to attend. For initial questions about this RFP, please visit our FAQ page. Grantees from earlier funding cycles can be found on the ChicagoCHEC website (http://tinyurl.com/hxgoaau).

APPLICATION OF TIME SERIES ANALYSES IN ACCOUNTING AND AUDITING

Sara Aliabadi* and Alireza Dorestani, Department of Accounting, Business, law and Financing s-aliabadi@neiu.edu

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We examine the relevance and use of time series analyses for accounting and auditing by presenting time series models and providing three examples of how time series models can be efficiently and effectively applied in accounting and auditing. The accounting literature addresses the application of time series analyses in accounting in an isolated fashion as reviewed in Section II. A time series is a sequence of points, generally, over a period of equal time intervals (e.g., daily, weekly, monthly, and annually). Examples of time series are the daily closing value of the Dow Jones Industrial average, daily foreign exchange rates, and the number of student enrollment per semester (e.g., Ashuri and Lu, 2010; Moskowitz et al., 2012; Zakamulin, 2014; Baltas and Kosowski, 2015). The application of time series models to accounting and auditing is currently at a very early stage. The increasing business complexity, corporate governance, risk management, globalization, and the growing demand for high-quality financial and non-financial information necessitate the use of technology to modernize financial reporting and audit processes. Time series analyses have been extensively used in areas such as marketing and sociology but not in accounting and auditing. Information that was not previously publicly available is now available and can be used to provide new reporting devices that extend far beyond traditional financial reporting. Through the use of time series models, millions of transactions can be searched to spot patterns and detect abnormalities and irregularities. The main objective of this paper is to show how time series models can be used by accountants and auditors and their organizations in forecasting key information such as revenue, net income, and stock prices. We believe the use of time series analyses can also help organizations and their auditors to identify accounting anomalies and red flags with considerably less cost and time. We believe the application of time series analyses have not properly utilized in accounting and auditing. Accountants and auditors can use our suggested time series models to improve the quality of financial reporting for investors as well as creditors. Our models can be used in future research to advance empirical studies regarding accounting and auditing. Business schools and accounting departments can also integrate time series analyses in accounting curricula and better educate our future business leaders.

PROCESS FACTORIZATION ALGORITHM FOR RETRIEVING MATCHING INTUITIONS FOR EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT REAL-TIME DECISION MAKING

Hong Chen

Department of Accounting, Business, law and Financing H-chen@neiu.edu

Real time decision making depends on retrieving information from long-term memory, that is, from something that you have experienced or learned. Even we do not need to make decision in real time, many times decision makers need to take care and also take advantage of intuitions popping up to mind. In a way, we constantly use intuitions for real-time decision making. However, intuitions come and go. So, one of the biggest problems in using intuition is its whimsical nature of retrieving. That is, if one is lucky, one can retrieve from memory with a lived or learned experience matched exactly with issue on hand for decision making at that particular moment. But this kind of luck is rare. The other difficulty is to be able to reach to the level of granularity for decision making so that intuitions retrieved can be more useful. That is, because

26

the intuition retrieved is mostly in a high-level correspondence, this level of intuition assists decision makers very little for a good decision. What is needed is a algorithm that can factorize a process to a level that is focused for a good decision making. In another words, how can one quickly create a factorized process that corresponds to the solution process so that decision making in real time can be effective and efficient. When we equate a decision as choosing the best branch for a process to reach its intended final state, we have in essence a general, abstract, non-substantive process problem to be connected with intuitions. Since it is a process, we can thus factorize the whole process into meaningful and manageable sub-processes. We can develop further that, for each sub-process, there is a set of specific and proven methods for effectively and efficiently retrieving intuition to resolve its corresponding substantive processes. This presentation is to show such an algorithm that can rewrite a process into a factorized process to facilitate effective and efficient intuitions retrieving. Since a much smaller sub-process is involved, it is much easier to retrieve useful intuition from memory. When a better intuition is arisen, a decision maker is able to improve its decision making on a sub-process and thus on the entire process in a real-time basis continuously.

NUANCED ROLE OF RELEVANT PRIOR EXPERIENCE: SALES TAKEOFF OF DISRUPTIVE PRODUCTS AND PRODUCTS INNOVATION WITH DISRUPTED

TECHNOLOGY

Raja Roy* and Mazhar Islam (Tulane University) Department of Management and Marketing

rroy@neiu.edu

Building on prior literature on sales takeoffs, we investigate product innovation by a cohort of entrants who used the technology that is eventually disrupted and when the sales of products made with that technology failed to takeoff. We concentrate on two types of entrants—ones with, and without, relevant prior experience in the disrupted technology. Using robotics industry as the context, we find that prior to sales takeoff of the disruptive products, the two types of entrants did not differ in product innovation. However, subsequent to the sales takeoff, those firms with prior experience in the disrupted technology manufactured more innovative products using the disrupted technology. Our findings indicate that the role of prior experience is more nuanced than what literature suggests.

DOG RACING & AL CAPONE, 1927-32

Steven A. Riess Emeritus Professor of History

S-Riess@neiu.edu Chicago was one a leading sport center in the “Golden Age of Sports, especially gambling sports heavily involved with machine politics and organized crime. In the mid-1920s, after a 20 year hiatus, prize fighting and thoroughbred racing reemerged as legal operations and the center of the racing wire that serviced and illegal off-track gambling in the U.S. The city also

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became the national center of a new wagering sport, greyhound racing, which today only operates in five states. This paper will examine how the sport survived and briefly thrived from 1927 to 1932 when there were more tracks in Chicagoland than anywhere else. Working class men enjoyed dog racing that occurred at accessible locations in the evening, admission was cheap, and there was a lot of gambling. The eight metropolitan tracks were totally controlled by mobsters, including Al Capone, Jake Guzik, and Bugs Moran, in conjunction with Eddie O’Hare, president of the International Greyhound Racing Association, who owned the patent to the mechanical rabbit dogs chase around the oval. These were illegal enterprises in Chicago, unlike Great Britain where dog racing in the 1930s was the third biggest commercial entertainment after soccer and film. Capone’s track reportedly made $100,000 a year, and providing him easy opportunities to fix races, launder money, and provide jobs for his men. Contrary to G.A. Thayer’s Going to the Dogs: Greyhound Racing, Animal Activism, and American Popular Culture (2013), that denied the underworld’s involvement in the sport, I found data in daily newspapers, tax evasion cases, and in Capone’s own words, to substantiate the role of the mob in dog racing. The underworld failed to get laws passed to legalize the sport, but they did sustain racing by securing court injunctions from friendly (paid-off) judges to prevent the (paid-off) police from closing their operations, and fought off competition through violence and arson. O’Hare partnered with Capone in 1928 since Capone needed his patented mechanical rabbit, and O’Hare needed Al’s connections. When the Feds in 1930 went after Capone for income tax evasion, O’Hare volunteered to help them, to protect his own investments, including Sportsman Park Racetrack, built in 1932 on the site of Capone’s dog track, forestall his own audit, and ensure the future of his son. O’Hare informed the Treasury Department about Capone’s gambling and involvement with dog racing, and put them in touch with Capone’s bookkeepers. Then prior to the trial, O’Hare informed the chief investigator about the mob’s contract on his life, their efforts to murder witnesses, and their plans to bribe jurors. Capone was convicted of income tax evasion and served eight years in jail. Days before his release in 1939, O’Hare was murdered in retaliation for helping the Feds.

ISLAM, IRAN, AND WOMEN IN WAR

Mateo M Farzaneh Department of History M-farzaneh@neiu.edu

Hundreds of thousands of Iranian women participated in the Iran-Iraq War (1980-88) as volunteers and in official capacities. According to Iranian records, 6,420 women died in battle, 710 women were disabled, and 71 were taken as prisoners of war. Currently, there are 5,735 female veterans of the war, 3,075 of whom are disabled. The number of women that are missing or committed suicide after sexual assault by Iraqi forces is unknown. Even though women played a significant role, women volunteers were motivated by secular nationalism and/or religious conviction. Although the government passed laws that limited their social participation, women refused to be sidelined and participated in the war. Primary sources such as women’s memoirs, wills, and interviews reveal that they were inspired by the roles women had in the Battle of Karbala (Iraq, 680 C.E.), when the Prophet

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Muhammad’s grandson, Hussein, along with his family and companions, were murdered as he challenged the authority of a usurping power (the Umayyad) as the new leader of the Muslim empire in Damascus. This event led to the creation of the minority Shiite sect. Today, 90% of Iranians are Shiite. The story of women’s participation at Karbala resonates with modern Shiite women, and motivated them to actively participate in the war of 1980-88. In this presentation I will discuss Shiite ideology that was an impetus to energize the public to participate and volunteer in the war. This held true for women who joined government organizations and for those who acted alone as volunteers. The same ideology was the driving force for their dedication and spirit of volunteerism in the war. According to the above sources that are in Persian (Farsi), women served on the battlefield in official and voluntary roles in the western and southwestern border regions with Iraq (the war zone). They served as state media reporters/journalists, propagandists, paramedics, combatants, intelligence/counter intelligence officers, nurses, medical instructors, trainers against chemical attacks, and paramilitary trainers. Most of these duties were organized by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp/IRGC (Sephah-e Pasdaran), the Mobilization Force (Basij), Jihad Reconstruction Corp (Jahad-e Sazandegi), and the Society of Red Crescent of Iran (Anjoman-e Helal-e Ahmar). Behind the frontlines, women’s participation was more extensive. They transferred the injured to city hospitals, delivered food and supplies, prepared and buried the dead, guarded the freshly buried, performed surgeries, delivered babies, and protected and relocated orphan children and the mentally ill. Outside the war zone, women actively supported the war effort in numerous ways. They formed thousands of neighborhood support centers for women war volunteers in public squares, alleys, mosques, private residences, and factories. They shipped clothing, cash, food, and other necessities from across Iran to the war zone. They sewed new and repaired damaged tents, sleeping bags, uniforms, and boots. They organized collection drives, donating jewelry and valuable household items such as their silver candelabras and mirrors, which they had received as traditional wedding gifts. They also encouraged their male family members to join the war effort as soldiers. Meanwhile, there were a sizeable number of women that were dragged into the war involuntarily. These women lived in southwest border villages and cities of Shalamcheh, Susangerd, Khorramshahr, and Abadan. When men in these areas were killed or taken prisoner by the Iraqi army, many women were assaulted, killed, or both. In some instances, women whose homes the enemy occupied behaved as though they welcomed Iraqi soldiers and built a trusting relationship with Iraqi army squads. The women provided the soldiers with food and a place to rest with the intent of killing them. A woman from Susangerd fed Iraqi soldiers poisoned bread, killed a number of them while they slept, and escaped before being caught. In Khorramshahr, women made Molotov Cocktails and became combatants, defending the city against Iraqi incursions.

THE MYTH OF AN ILLITERATE AFRICA: CONTEXTUALIZING ISLAMIC LITERACY IN WEST AFRICA

Emelda Lawson Bekkal

Department of African and American Studies e-lawsonbekkal@neiu.edu

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Literacy in Africa has long been attributed to the influence of European colonialism and often characterized as “foreign” or “exogenous” to the region. Focusing on the Islamic scholarly tradition among scholarly families in Timbuktu, John Hunwick, Cheikh Anta Diop and Basil Davidson advance an indigenous context for literacy and literary culture in West Africa. Some scholars, namely Molefi Asante, Chancellor Williams and Wole Soyinke, have criticized Ali Mazrui, a proponent of this view, when he identified “Africa’s Triple Heritage” as traditional African, Arab/Islam, and Christian. Reading and writing in the Arabic language has been extant in West Africa for more than a millennium; that is from the time of the Ghana Empire until the present. Interregional and intercontinental relationships continue to shape intellectual discourse within scholarly circles. Private scholarly libraries, such as the Mamma Haïdara, Es Sayouti, Fondo Kati, Al Wangari, and Al Kounti library, continue the long held tradition of book collecting by transferring material cultural as well as intellectual and spiritual knowledge from one generation to the next. The collected texts, written in Arabic script, form one aspect of a multi-lingual, multi-ethnic, indigenous educational system. These books, manuscripts and documents, written in Arabic script, are a historically significant yet long neglected topic of study. Recent research on these texts provides a more comprehensive view of the West African indigenous knowledge structure and West African history. In this paper, I examine and contextualize West African book collecting as an indigenous phenomenon within a historically significant geographic space, i.e. the urban landscape of Gao, Djenne and Timbuktu. I use a cross-disciplinary approach to critically asses prevailing Western concepts of West African knowledge production and “African/Arab/Islamic” literacy, challenging “traditional” epistemological concepts of West African knowledge production, and placing the discussion within the framework of regional, ethnic, cosmological, and kinship interactions. Data from the Fihris Makhtutat Maktabat Mamma Haïdara (Catalogue of Manuscripts in the Mamma Haïdara Library), as well as recent research by Shamil Jeppie and Abdel Kader Haidara, reveal a vibrant, cosmopolitan literary tradition and academic excellence among indigenous scholars within the region as early as the 1300s.

THE SCHOOL SOCIAL WORK PROFESSIONAL LEARNING COMMUNITY PROJECT: EARLY LESSONS AND NEW DIRECTIONS

Andrew Brake

Department of Social Work A-brake@neiu.edu

Over the last decade, as schools and districts have increasingly moved toward multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) models to organize all levels of their academic and behavioral supports, school leaders have begun to develop more systematic, data-driven, and context-specific approaches when deciding how to meet the needs of the students they serve (Kelly, in Massat, Kelly & Constable, 2016). In turn, school social workers have increasingly sought, and been asked by their administrators, to be key decision-makers and leaders in assessing needs and developing and prioritizing interventions to enhance the academic, social-emotional, and behavioral success of their students. However, because school social workers may often be the only professionals with specialized mental health training in their school building, many must look beyond the walls of their school for guidance, training, and support in order to improve their decision-making and leadership skills.

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In light of this complex array of organizational and practice factors and challenges, it is critical to understand how school social workers make choices about the types, levels, and focus of various interventions they lead in schools, as well as to examine the unique barriers or opportunities that come with doing so. Understanding how they seek out opportunities to further their own expertise in these areas is a critical dimension of this process. In an effort to support the MTSS goals and efforts of school social workers, the School Social Work Professional Learning Community Project (The PLC Project) began in 2015. While the field of education has largely embraced Professional Learning Community (PLC) models as an effective means for enhancing the collaborative, pedagogical, leadership, and capacity building efforts of school teachers, PLCs have not been used with school social workers. The PLC Project provides monthly online professional development workshops within a collaborative, mentorship-driven design, to improve the leadership and capacity building efforts of its participants over a two-year intervention. Examining participants’ experiences with workplace burnout, evidence-based practice, and professional self-efficacy, analysis of the first year of qualitative interviews conducted with the PLC Project’s 12 participants will be presented. The structural constraints and opportunities they faced will be sketched as well as the early lessons learned for enhancing their leadership and capacity building efforts. FROM KATRINA TO FLINT: SYCOPHANCY AND NEGLECT IN U.S. POLITICAL CULTURE

Charles Nissim-Sabat

Emeritus Professor of Physics and Retired Attorney-at-Law Nissimsabatc@gmail.com

Many politicians are surrounded by obscure acolytes who tell them what they want to hear, applaud their policies, and implement these regardless of their impact. Of special interest are policies reducing expenditures benefiting the general public that culminate in acute crises. The disastrously inadequate response to Hurricane Katrina and the reckless contamination with Lead of Flint’s drinking water have many features in common: many of those affected were black; the crises were foreseen; incompetent individuals were put in charge; “experts” willfully disregarded established technology; relief measures were long delayed; federal, state, and municipal officials of both parties as well as career civil servants were responsible for the harm incurred; a ”Marshall Plan” infusion of federal funds intended to provide golden opportunities for investors while low-income blacks are forced out. Two thirds of the New Orleans Katrina fatalities were due to levee failures: The Army Corps of Engineers had built many levees with shorter steel pilings so as to save money. To save money, the Governor-appointed Emergency Manager decided to switch Flint’s water supply to the contaminated Flint River. This exposed the limitations of the regulatory legislation. A detailed time-table shows who knew what and when and what action s/he took: many justified their inaction by citing ambiguous language in the regulations, others blatantly disregarded them. There is no safe amount of Lead in drinking water and $80/day would have prevented any contamination but Governor Snyder’s manager vetoed the expense. Public pressure alone forced the recognition of the emergency but Flint’s inhabitants still have to go and fetch bottled water at distribution centers, more than one year after home delivery was promised. Congress has yet to act.

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LOMAX’S MATRIX: DISABILITY, SOLIDARITY, AND THE BLACK POWER OF 504: A CRITIQUE

Dr. Josef Ben Levi

Department of Sociology j-benlevi@neiu.edu

This is a critique of an article by Susan Schweik, a professor on the faculty of the University of California, Berkeley; she is writing to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of the sit-in by disabled rights advocates at the Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW) office, a division of government that has since been broken up into separate divisions, in San Francisco to enforce "section 504" of Title V of the first federal Rehabilitation Act in 1973. She is also attempts to address in the inadequate way that this history has been written, and its relationship to White disability studies and the confluence of disability activisms location within the Black Power movement. Specifically the history has omitted the role of the Black Panther Party in supporting and actively advocating for the passage of section 504 of the Americans with Disability Act (ADA). This article was also designed to situate the disability activism movement within the overarching development of mobilization for civil rights among those marginalized groups who viewed themselves as disenfranchised. She also takes a look at the way academia has failed to construct and present this event and the movements that galvanized within it as a social movement that served as an incubator for the story of the Black Power and section 504 of Title V of the first federal Rehabilitation Act. Unfortunately, she overlooks many key features and ideas from a historical perspective that would situate the Black Panther Party’s role in the advocacy for disability rights. Consequently, this projects is designed to provides a lens through which these events can be circularly situated in contrast to the limited linear perspective traditionally used to explain the significance of the Black Power movement, and the Black Panther Party in particular, in contrast to the usual civil rights storyline, as a major factor in the passage of section 504 of Title V of the first federal Rehabilitation Act.

THE BABY TALK HOME VISITING RANDOMIZED CONTROL TRIAL: EXAMINING THE EFFECTS OF THE HOME VISITING ON REFUGEE FAMILIES

Aimee Hilado

Department of Social Work a-hiladovillalpando3@neiu.edu

The purpose of this research study is to understand the value of home visiting services among newly arrived trauma-exposed refugees with very young children through use of the Baby TALK Model, a community-based early intervention model used in Illinois. This study will examine the Model’s ability to reduce adverse mental health symptoms for the parents, reduce parental stress thereby increasing parent competence, improve general quality of life perceptions of the parents, and increase/track developmental gains for the child in the area of language, cognitive, and social-emotional development during the critical early years.

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The study seeks to test the following hypothesis: Mothers with very young children receiving Baby TALK Home Visiting Services have a reduction in adverse trauma symptoms, lower levels of stress, higher sense of parental competence and children will show increases in cognitive and language development versus those mother-child pairs who do not receive the interventions. A total of 240 mothers and their child (0-3 years) will be identified and divided into treatment and control groups based on ethnic background with the intervention (home visiting) lasting 9 months. Using a stratified RCT design, we will be sampling refugees from the following nine ethnic groups: Congolese, Rohingya (Burmese), Karen (Burmese), Ethiopian, Eritrean, Burundian, Iraqi, Syrian, Sudanese covering seven different languages. Each parental outcome (i.e. stress and mental health functioning) and child outcomes (i.e., language and cognitive development) will be analyzed separately. Multiple regressions will be used to control for risk factors and prior exposure to Baby TALK (these would be obtained from the refugee arrival biographical data form provided by the U.S. Department of State). Changes in parental and child outcomes will be examined from one data collection point to the next. As a result, the study will examine the efficacy of the Baby TALK home visiting model when applied with new immigrant populations exposed to trauma and will inform on key home visiting factors necessary for identifying, engaging, and retaining refugee families in early intervention services. The study also examines the efficacy of current parent and child assessment tools that track mental health and child outcomes widely used in the early childhood field. Moreover, we hope to understand the impact of home visiting services on adult mental health and early childhood mental health needs among refugee arrivals and gain information on necessary mental health supports to primary caregivers that will support positive outcomes for the entire family.

A SYNERGY BETWEEN NUMERICAL ANALYSIS AND DIFFERENTIAL TOPOLOGY

Zhonggang (Zeke) Zeng Department of Mathematics

z-zeng@neiu.edu

Whenever a scientific problem is attempted, there are at least three problems lurking around: The given problem, the underlying problem and the problem that is actually solved. Those problems are not exactly the same but the differences are usually too small to be noticed until certain unexpected solutions emerge. A type of problems frequently arises in sciences and engineering where the solutions are extremely sensitive to data perturbations. These so-called ill-posed problems are abundant in scientific computing. Even some of the most basic algebraic problems are ill-posed such as matrix ranks and subspaces, polynomial greatest common divisors and factorizations, defective eigenvalues and Jordan Canonical Forms, etc. In this study, we elaborate a geometric analysis of ill-posed problems and computational strategies for their numerical solutions. We demonstrate that hypersensitive problems form complex analytic manifolds, and those manifolds entangle to form strata in which every manifold is embedded in the closure of some other manifolds of lower codimensions. As a result, the hypersensitivity of the problem is directional: The singularity of a problem can only be decreased and never increases by a tiny perturbation. The phenomenon that certain hypersensitive problems form a manifold, rather than merely an algebraic variety, is crucial in the analysis, regularization and

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numerical solution of those problems thanks to the existence of tubular neighborhood that is considered “one of the most useful notions in the theory of differentiable manifolds'' When the problem data are given as empirical and subject to small perturbations due to measurement and round-off, we are having a point near the complex analytic manifold in the problem space. Assuming the data are reasonably accurate so that the point remains in the tubular neighborhood of the manifold, the Tubular Neighborhood Theorem ensures the projection from the empirical data point to the manifold to be existent, unique and Lipschitz continuous, making the projection a well-posed least squares problem that is accurately solvable in numerical computation. Geometric theories and insights have been applied in numerical analysis effectively. However, the tremendous advantage of the tubular neighborhoods has apparently not been utilized in numerical analysis. Specifically aimed at the application of solving hypersensitive algebraic problems in this study, we establish a version of Tubular Neighborhood Theorem for complex analytic manifold in Euclidean spaces and provide an elementary proof with a dose of flavor in numerical analysis. The theorem and the prove fill a gap in the regularization theory of hypersensitive problems and complete the works of numerical factorization and numerical greatest common divisors of polynomials

ISOMETRIC IMMERSIONS OF PSEUDO – SPHERICAL SURFACES VIA DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS

Nabil Kahouadji

Department of Mathematics N-kahouadjI@neiu.edu

By definition pseudo-spherical surfaces are surfaces of constant negative Gaussian curvature. A way of realizing such a surface in 3d space as a surface of revolution is obtained by rotating the graph of a curve called tractrix around the z-axis (infinite funnel). There is a remarkable connection between the solutions of the sine-Gordon equation u_{xt}=sin u and pseudo-spherical surfaces, in the sense that every generic solution of this equation can be shown to give rise to a pseudo-spherical surface. Furthermore, the sine-Gordon equation has the property that the way in which the pseudo-spherical surfaces corresponding to its solutions are realized geometrically in 3d space is given in closed form through some remarkable explicit formulas. The sine-Gordon equation is but one member of a very large class of differential equations whose solutions likewise define pseudo-spherical surfaces. These were defined and classified by Chern, Tenenblat and others, and include the main known examples of "integrable" partial differential equations. This raises the question of whether the other equations enjoy the same remarkable property as the sine-Gordon equation when it comes to the realization of the corresponding surfaces in 3d space. We will see that the answer is no, and that the sine-Gordon equation is therefore quite unique in this regard amongst all integrable equations.

KNOT THEORY AND EMBEDDING SURFACES IN 4 - DIMENSIONAL SPACE

Matthew Graham Department of Mathematics

M-graham@neiu.edu

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The lively history of knot theory will be discussed. In the 20th century, knot theory was developed from many different viewpoints and is now a fundamental part of mathematical understanding of three and four dimensional spaces. To situate this subject for a general audience we discuss some previous invariants that have been constructed for knots, before discussing movies of surfaces and knot Floer homology. Movies are one way of depicting an embedding of a surface in a manifold. A movie of an embedding of a surface is a collection of stills, where each still is a knot diagram. The movie move theorem allows us to study the isotopy classes of surfaces embedded in 4-dimensional space. Movies have played an important role in determining whether knot Floer homology, a package of powerful knot invariants, is functorial over isotopy classes of surfaces. Recently, it has been shown that knot Floer homology is only well defined on knots with particular types of markings. We present one specific type of marking and outline the necessary details needed to prove a marked movie move theorem.

IMPROVING EFFICIENCY IN STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELS BY AN EASY EMPIRICAL LIKELIHOOD APPROACH

Shan Wang

Department of Mathematics S-wang3@neiu.edu

In this work, we construct improved estimates of linear func-tionals of a probability measure with side information using an easy empirical likelihood approach. We allow constraint functions which determine side information to grow with the sample size and the use of estimated constraint functions. This is the case in applications to the structural equation models. Structural Equation Modeling, or SEM, is a very general statistical modeling that is widely used in the behavioral science. From the perspective of Statistics, it provides a very general and convenient framework for statistical analysis that includes several traditional multivariate procedures such as factor analysis and regression analysis. SEM can introduce latent variables that cannot be numerically measured into the model and can give a better understanding of fact. The empirical likelihood approach can provide an estimation method to SEM with smaller variances. This is also a very essential indicator to decide an estimate is “good” or “bad”. EL estimation of SEM is more efficient in the sense of smaller variance compared to regular SEM estimation. The theoretical proof and a large simulation study can also be found. THE MATH SESSION OF THE EMERGE SUMMER PROGRAM: SUPPORTING INCOMING

FRESHMEN IN SUCCEEDING IN MATH DEVELOPMENT COURSEWORK

Sarah Oppland-Cordell*, Katherine Bird, and Joseph Hibdon Department of Mathematics

s-cordell@neiu.edu This presentation describes the development, results, learnings, and future directions of the mathematics component of the English & Math Enrichment, Readiness & Growth Experience (EMERGE) Summer Program at Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU), a Hispanic serving institution in Chicago, Illinois. The EMERGE Program offered a 3-week English session and a 3-week mathematics session for incoming freshmen. To participate in the mathematics session,

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students took NEIU’s mathematics placement exam and placed into mathematics development coursework. The mathematics session aimed to help students strengthen their mathematical foundation, gain confidence in their mathematics abilities, and gain the skills needed to successfully place into a higher-level mathematics course during the fall semester. EMERGE mathematics students attended mini-lectures, participated in structured group activities, and completed online mathematics modules. Presenters will discuss the results for the 2014, 2015, and 2016 EMERGE Program mathematics component. Presenters will also draw on their EMERGE coordination experiences to provide suggestions for how to better support future incoming freshmen in succeeding in collegiate level mathematics.

ON THE DYNAMIC OF MOVING BODIES Charles Nissim-Sabat

Emeritus Professor of Physics and Retired Attorney-at-Law Nissimsabatc@gmail.com

Many treatments of classical electromagnetism (“EM”) emphasize that the observed field

of a “source” charge S in uniform motion with respect to a “test” charge T at rest with respect to the observer is always directed along the line joining the positions of the charges when the observation is made, i.e. the force is aligned with the “present position.” This result is often described as “surprising” given that the field acting on T is emitted at an earlier time when S was at an earlier position. Simple reasoning demonstrates that in non-relativistic physics this result is necessary, not only for EM but for all time-independent long-range radial interactions. Also, given the presence of the magnetic force in EM (a velocity-dependent force when both S and T are in motion with respect to the observer), one must expect such an observer- and velocity-dependent “magnetic force” for all these interactions. Yet this inquiry unveils several contradictions and obscurities in how EM is usually presented.

Special Relativity (“SR”) predicts the “present position” alignment for EM and for these same interactions and, also, the observer- and velocity-dependent “magnetic” force in a totally self-consistent manner (gravitation is discussed in particular). Finally, it is shown that the “present position” alignment is independent of how clocks are synchronized and that it is consistent with SR’s notions of causality.

WHY WE CHOP THE MEAT: READING POPULAR TELEVISION REPRESENTATIONS OF

WORK AND INTIMACY IN CHOPPED and DEXTER

Tim Libretti

English Department T-Libretti@neiu.edu

Rarely as culture do we pause to reflect on the meaning of work in our lives, particularly on the role work plays in putting us in meaningful relationship with other people as we use our skills and talents in creative ways to meet the needs of others. Certainly, we also rarely think about the way we provide and care for others through our work as a form of intimacy. Yet, I will suggest, it absolutely is; and one assertion or conclusion of this presentation will be that the world would be a far better place if we fully recognized the way others care and provide for us

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and the way we care and provide for others through the work we do, mutually enabling our material lives. We tend to think of the work we do in very limited ways, as a career that provides self-fulfillment or a job that pays the bills—if we even think of or recognize work at all as a central creative and spiritual activity in our lives through which we relate most powerfully and meaningfully to others. We tend to think we are “working for the weekend,” that our work is not the stuff of life itself but simply the means to life. The objective of this paper is to foreground work as an analytical or interpretive category through which we comprehend texts, our world, and the human experience at large. To exemplify what it means to make work an interpretive category, I will provide analyses of two popular television shows, Chopped and Dexter, which are not typically understood to be shows whose main theme is work, in order to demonstrate how viewing texts and experience through the lens of work can potentially bring us to a deeper and more fundamental sense of “what makes us work,” what makes us tick, as human beings, such that we will have not only a more fundamental understanding of the human condition and what provides us fulfillment and happiness but also have a basis for re-imagining the way we organize and theorize work in our socio-economic system. Rationales for the ways we organize our socio-economic system and organize work in our system of production to meet human needs are often, really inevitably, rooted in theories of human nature and how we relate to work and our own creativity. Re-thinking human nature and what propels us to work provides us the basis, I argue, for imagining a world without exploitation and developing an economy designed to meet human need as its primary function, as opposed to producing profit first and meeting human need as a subsidiary objective. BLACK LIVES MATTER: THE POLITICS OF STORYTELLING IN LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA’S

HAMILTON

Ryan Poll English Department

r-poll@neiu.edu Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical Hamilton changes the story and it changes the conversation, in large part, because an all-black-and-brown cast has temporarily occupied Broadway, a space historically coded as white. The play’s embodied challenge to the racial dynamics of Broadway, I argue, is simultaneously a challenge to another space mythologized as white: the United States. In retelling the story of the U.S.’s “founding fathers” through a black-and-brown cast, Hamilton fundamentally remixes and creolizes “official,” state-sanctioned narratives that posit and perpetuate the myth of the United States as foundationally white, a myth enabled by actively erasing black and brown lives and narratives. Hamilton’s remix is accomplished both in its casting and in its aesthetics that blends the white sounds of Broadway through a genre largely foreign on this privileged stage of white culture: the black and brown sounds of hip-hop. Hamilton posits hip hop as the music of revolution—both for the late eighteenth century and for today. But what about the story itself? How does Miranda’s re-telling of Alexander Hamilton’s narrative help us frame contemporary conversations about race in America? This essay explores the politics of storytelling in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s play. In contrast to purists who fetishize the fiction of founding and original texts— like The Constitution of the

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United States--Hamilton highlights the impurity of all stories, offering a fresh, important race-conscious theory of storytelling. But for all the progressive energy of Hamilton, a central absence haunts and structures this talk: What does it mean that a play that practices race-conscious casting and uses hip hop throughout, does not actually represent any characters of color? Moreover, how do we make sense of the play's marginalization of slavery?

NATION, NARRATION, AND RACE: WILLIAM FAULKNER’S SOUTHERN FABLE

Kristen Over Department of English

k-over@neiu.edu During the mid- to late-1950s William Faulkner participated publicly as a Southern voice in the nation-wide debate over integration that followed in the wake of the 1954 Supreme Court decision Brown v. Board of Education. As Mississippi joined other Southern states in actively, often violently defying the court ruling, Faulkner made himself a prominent public voice against compulsory practices—against segregation compelled by the South, integration compelled by the North, and racial inequality compelled in general. And yet Faulkner’s writings on integration stubbornly evaded the matter and discourse of racism, promoting instead a political gradualism that ignored the consequences of racial inequality and forestalled any sense of an ethical responsibility to acknowledge or change practices of racialized terror. By erasing the terror landscape of his day to foreground a united but vulnerable South, embattled and threatened from the outside by Northern and federal incursion, Faulkner’s public writing on integration captured precisely the harmful ingenuity of discourse that evades the realities of race and racism. Faulkner’s approach to the Civil Rights movement was an “excessive fabulism” that disdained realism for a fable of the South and Southern identity. William Faulkner spent much of his career as a fiction writer delving into the human condition and the history of the South, but the profundity of his fictional world ought not erase the public stance expressed in his political writings of the early Civil Rights era. Faulkner’s historical moment as well as his contradictions point to the persistence and ingenuity of “white talk,” and his defense of “the Southern condition” sustained a cultural identity that is myth, fable. Faulkner’s public writings on integration show the process of such fable making. Perhaps more importantly, Faulkner’s Southern fable of the 1950s can also emphasize the longevity and persistence of such national narratives about race.

INSTITUTIONAL REPOSITORIES AND OPEN ACCESS: INCREASING THE IMPACT OF YOUR RESEARCH

Alyssa Vincent

Library Department avincent@neiu.edu

Open access journals have continued to proliferate and with the recent passage of the Open Access to Research Articles Act, researchers have more questions than ever about the process

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of publishing in open access journals. Librarians will provide both a philosophical overview of the open access movement as well as practical considerations for faculty wishing to identify open access publishing opportunities. Institutional repositories is one avenue available to faculty looking to increase access to their research. The Ronald Williams Library is currently building an institutional repository (NEIU Digital Commons) to better support open access to faculty research. We will discuss the process of depositing your work in Digital Commons, provide a live overview of the site’s different capabilities--including tracking downloads of your work--and answer any questions about this resource.

MINDSET, SELF-MANAGEMENT AND THE FUTURE OF HUMAN LIFE

Stephen R. Grove Department of Management of Marketing

s-grove@neiu.edu Human survival and prosperity is assured, but likely not in the way we are educated and coerced to believe by today’s institutions. Humankind lives at a cultural tipping point, poised to prosper on a previously unimaginable scale. Growing legions among core academic disciplines—biology, neurology, physics, psychology, philosophy, theology and economics—acting out of the integrative Science of Conscious Living will soon replace dying nation-state dictates as surely as the agricultural revolution overwhelmed nomadic culture. Richard Wright describes this cultural “step up” mathematically in his book, NonZero, subtitled The Logic of Human Destiny. There he rigorously uses the mathematics of game theory to prove the evolutionary superiority of individual communication and trust. Wright exhibits a biological integration and social integration (politics) subsumed in a single analytical framework. It’s what Einstein did for our physical sciences when he led Cartesian math and physics beyond space and time by his Theory of Relativity. But whereas Einstein’s theory led into new equations of quantum physics, Wright necessarily calls us back to the future. Dallas Willard reminds us of humanity’s fleshy, philosophical truth in The Divine Conspiracy. Writing 50 years ago, he concludes: “A time will come in human history when human beings will follow the Ten Commandments and so on as regularly as they now fall to the ground when they step off a roof. They will then be more astonished that someone would lie or steal or covet than they now are when someone will not. The law of God will then be written in their hearts, as the prophets foretold ….” That time is at hand. Research on religions and faith traditions firmly establishes that one or another expression of the Golden Rule, “do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” has existed in the laws and hearts of all humanity since recorded history. Only since the 15th century have many NOT believed in the primacy of spiritual truth over human politics and caring for our neighbor over calculated gain. As the Ten Commandments are known as God’s law for Golden Rule behavior in Western faith tradition, the 8-fold path and similar inward journeys of Eastern traditions no less teach the same learning, just differently reasoned by eternally developing, but conflicted human minds everywhere. Such conflict at today’s cultural level will soon end in one of two ways. We will embrace the

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chaos of human life with God’s law of love, learning to live with all our neighbors in an ever-more-abundant, accelerating universe. Or, we will double down on our demands for a humanity do-over. Independent of earthly achievements, each of us will get our wish. Rigorous scholarship proves it. Mindset by Carol Dweck is the Fall, 2016 one-book-per-semester in the College of Business and Management. Dweck describes two mindsets: one for growth, the other fixed. She emphasizes that it’s never a permanent condition; we toggle back and forth. But “fixed” never prospers us; as it is always limiting. A growth mindset is faith-driven. The future of human life proves to be God’s choice; only its pace of fulfillment in time-bound culture is our decision. Choose wisely.

PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVE GENERATOR: AN ONLINE TOOL TO HELP EDUCATORS WRITE EFFECTIVE PERFORMANCE (LEARNING) OBJECTIVES USING THE ABCD

MODEL

Shirley J. Caruso Department of Literacy, Leadership, and Development

s-caruso@neiu.edu In addition to increasing motivation and helping students develop self-regulation, assessment also provides students, employees, and their instructors, school leaders, and chief learning officers of organizations with information about learner achievement (McMillan, 2007). Validity is the degree to which an assessment actually measures what it is supposed to measure (Miller, Linn, & Gronlund, 2009). Assessments are valid if they are aligned with learning objectives. The ABCD method of writing performance objectives suggests that well-written objectives have four parts, referred to as the ABCD's of instructional objectives (Heinich, Molenda, Russell, & Smaldino, 2002). The “A” represents audience. The audience is the group of learners that the objective is written for. Objectives are not written for the teacher/instructor. This is often written "the learner" or "the student". The “B” represents behavior. The behavior is the verb or observable action/behavior that describes what the learner (audience) will be able to demonstrate, perform, or exhibit after the instruction. This is the heart of the objective and MUST be measurable, observable (visible or audible). The “C” represents conditions. Conditions are the circumstances (under commands, materials, directions, etc.) which the objective must be completed. All behavior relevant to intended student learning outcome can best be understood within a context of the conditions under which the behavior is to be performed or demonstrated. The location of the condition component in an objective may be at the beginning of the sentence or after the behavior component. The “D” represents degree. The degree describes the degree of measurement, the standard, or criteria that the learner must achieve to demonstrate an acceptable performance. It describes how well the behavior must be performed to satisfy the intent of the observable behavior. In other words, what degree of accuracy does the learner have to demonstrate in order that his/her performance will be judged as proficient or mastered the objective? The level of achievement indicating acceptable performance or mastery of the objective may include accuracy (90% for example); speed (within 30 minutes for example); and/or proportion (3 out of 5 or a minimum of 3, for example).

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Putting it all together, a performance objective that renders a valid assessment (criteria-referenced testing) can be written. This presentation will introduce and demonstrate the online performance objective generator, which enables users to enter information about the audience, behavior, [object of the behavior], condition, and degree. The result is a well-written performance objective that is observable and measurable and renders a valid assessment of learning. References Heinich, R., Molenda, M., Russell, J., & Smaldino, S. (2002). Instructional media and technologies for learning (7th ed.). New York: Merrell/Prentice-Hall. McMillan, J. (2007). Classroom assessment: Principles and practices for effective standards-based instruction (4th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Miller, M. D., Linn, R. L., & Gronlund, N. E. (2009). Measurement and assessment in teaching (10th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill/Pearson. CREATING SPACES TO COMMUNICATE IN MODERN SOCIETY: TOWARD A THEORY OF

COMMUNAL APPRECIATION

Wilfredo Alvarez Department of Communication, Media and Theatre

Canadian physician Gabor Mate eloquently and succinctly stated that one of the main ailments affecting human societies today is our lack of “spaces to communicate.” He made this observation in a recent talk where he discussed the relationship between cognition and emotion and those processes’ relationship to addiction. This seemingly mundane observation offers profound insights into the current state of human affairs regarding personal connection in advanced societies such as the United States. For instance, in a rapidly changing globalized world, the illusion of interconnectivity deprives people from truly connecting with each other. The result is that people have gained a false sense of connection at the expense of actual connection. As a central element of this fast evolving global society, technology is creating more communication problems than solutions. I argue that contemporary society (in)directly undermines humans’ ability to connect with each other, including in intergroup contexts. In this presentation, I advance that modern society needs to become more intentional and strategic in creating spaces to communicate where people have opportunities to connect with self and culturally different others. I present a communal appreciation conceptual framework to explicate how people can nurture self and other connections based on Hecht’s communication theory of identity.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The symposium Steering Committee would like to express its sincere thanks to Interim President Richard J. Helldobler, Interim provost Victoria Roman-Lagunas, Vice President for Institutional Advancement Liesl V. Downey, Vice President for Student Affairs Daniel Lopez Jr., Interim Dean Sandra D. Beyda, Goodwin College of Education, Dean Michael Bedell, College of Business and Management, Dean Wamucii Njogu, College of Arts and Sciences, Dean Carlos Melian, Ronald Williams Library, and Dean Michael Stern, College of Graduate Studies and Research for their enthusiastic support of the symposium.

The Symposium Steering Committee would like to express its gratitude to the Office of

Academic Affairs for sponsoring the event. .The Committee would also like to express its

sincere thanks to Angela Vidal-Rodriguez, McNair Scholars Program, and her staff, Karen

Segura, for their help and assistance. The Committee would also like to offer special thanks to

Toula Welbrook, Director of Communication at the Academic Affairs, for publicizing the event.