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Supernovae Distributions and their Relationships to Classes of Stars
Sydney Menne
Aims. Data from astronomical catalogs are plotted as spatial distributions of stars and supernovae throughout the Milky Way galaxy and the universe. I examined correlations seen between the luminosity classes of stars, types of supernovae, and selection effects observed in the data.
Methods. Data was gathered from three catalogs; the Gliese Catalog of Nearby Stars, the Tycho-2 Catalog, and the Open Supernova Catalog. Graphs and diagrams were created to visualize the distributions of the stellar luminosity classes and supernova types at different radial distances from the Sun. Trendlines were fit through the data to examine extrapolated predictions.
Results/Conclusions. Documenting stars within 25 pc, the Gliese Catalog categorizes 82% as luminosity class V. Upon classifying all 117,955 stars in the Tycho-2 Catalog reaching 100,000 pc, only 67% were main-sequence (luminosity class V), indicating a brightness selection effect due to the larger radial distance. Tycho-2 documents 7,050 pre-supernova stars (luminosity class I and II) within 24 kpc (the distance to the far edge of the Milky Way). 6,849 of those stars are within 10 kpc, the distance range considered for the DUNE Project to detect Type II supernova neutrinos. The Open Supernova catalog is used to plot distributions of Type II and Type Ia supernovae on a scale beyond our galaxy. The data show that the quantities of both types initially increase linearly with distance, then drop in number as distance continues to increase. This is due to a brightness selection effect as more distant supernovae become harder to accurately detect.
Big Picture. Improving the accuracy of predicting future supernovae by using stellar data and data from observed supernovae can help improve the detection of neutrinos produced in these supernovae. Better detection allows for more complete observations and a deeper understanding of neutrinos, which may unveil the mystery of the matter-antimatter asymmetry, a long unanswered question in physics involving the origin of the universe and why it is the way it is today.
Course: This research was not conducted as part of a course, but I did some of it through the North Dakota NASA Space Grant Consortium, and some through my research as a part of both the McNair program and the US MASTER program.
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From a Non-Consensual Incestuous Relationship to a Promotion to Priestess: The Way That a Father Controls Their Daughter Determines the Status Level That a Woman Can Hold in Apollonius of Tyre
Sarah Haggerty
Is a woman only considered a woman when she is owned by a man? How does the relationship between father and daughter shape the way a woman is seen or treated in medieval society? This project examines the Old English version of Apollonius of Tyre, a rare example of secular 11th century prose, as translated by Benjamin Thorpe. Apollonius of Tyre deals with three different familial relationships and the various ways that the fathers as both leaders of the house, and royal officials treat their daughters as property that they own. From one daughter having basic freedoms such as being allowed to speak in public, to another daughter being caught in a non-consensual incestuous relationship, it is possible to see how a father’s relationship to their daughter can influence the status level a woman can achieve in her life during this time. Women often had strict roles to play as part of the patriarchy during medieval times, and this text allows us to see that relationships between father and daughter that allowed more expression instead of control resulted in healthier relationships. These relationships then allowed women to interact with others where they were separated from the one who attempted to own their every move. Relationships where the father maintains ownership of the daughter end up influencing their status in life and keep them in lower status levels, as a way to keep women in lower standing than their male counterparts. Apollonius of Tyre shows how women can achieve more with their lives when they do not have every aspect of their lives controlled by their father.
Course: English 415 – Seminar in Literature
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Invisible Armies: French Colonial Soldiers During World War I and Their Absence from History
Molly Anderson
World War I is an incredibly significant event in world history and continues to loom large in French memory today. Unfortunately, memory is often unreliable and as a result, people, places, and events can easily be forgotten, as is the case with French colonial soldiers during World War I. Colonial soldiers, particularly those from French West Africa, suffered a great deal because of their forced involvement in the conflict. Despite the major disruption the war had on their lives, however, the ways French media at the time chose to depict these soldiers was based almost exclusively on stereotypes and mockery. The imagery used to portray colonial soldiers throughout the course of World War I would go on to influence the ways that French people thought about colonialism long after the war ended. Representations of colonial soldiers in World War I France play a key role in shaping how these soldiers are remembered in France today, particularly in spaces for education, like museums and classrooms.
Course: History 440/Honors 489 – Research Capstone/Senior Project: Honors Research
The Arts & Sciences UNDergraduate Showcase gives undergraduate students the opportunity to showcase their research via posters and oral presentations. The posters included in the collection have been recognized for their quality and preserved for future use. Students and faculty interested in participating in future showcases can find more information on the UNDergraduate Showcase website.
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