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Undergraduate Research Prize winners

The Poynter Center selected six undergraduates this year from a record number of applicants for the Undergraduate Research Prizes. Students are selected in the fall and present findings from their research to Poynter Center faculty and staff during the spring semester. Each student receives a $200 prize after the presentation.

Fred I. Diego, junior, cognitive science, "Illegal or Undocumented? Why Labels Matter." Diego looked at how the media often portrays immigrants, both legal and illegal. He noted the use over a century of words like "flood" and "invasion" to describe whichever immigrant group was disliked at the time. He gave examples of the pejorative words people use to describe immigrants, noting that people often conflate legal and illegal immigrants.

Kylie Yoder, senior, sociology, "Prenatal Care Across Social Classes." Yoder studied women from various social classes and the health care they received. She learned that in Bloomington, low-income women can receive care at Bloomington Area Birth Services. She concluded that the women who used BABS had experiences comparable to that of middle-class women because of the education, support and prenatal care offered by the program.

Kathryn Grossman,senior, English, "Malice and Morality: How Shakespeare Redefines Evil." Grossman studied "Macbeth," "Othello" and "Hamlet" in her research about how Shakespeare defined evil in his plays, relating those views to modern life.

Leah Kirts, senior, English, "Queer Veganism: The Intersection Between Gay and Animal Rights in 20th and 21st Century American Culture." Kirts noted the importance of eating around the table and the difficulties people sometimes face when they don't fit the traditional pattern of heterosexual meat-eating society. She analyzed a number of ads that promote meat-eating as a fundamental expression of heterosexual masculinity in American society.

Stefan Sokolowski, senior, political science, "Moderation and Polarization in Modern Political Rhetoric." Sokolowski examined rhetoric and the polarization of public discourse. He looked at speeches in the past eight years in three major areas: social and individual rights, economics, and justice. He noted the use of words to conflate a major complicated program, such as the many components of the Affordable Care Act being called Obamacare.

Allison Vollmer, senior, psychological and brain sciences, "Perceived Humor Should Depend on Moral Sensitivity." Vollmer researched a person's reaction to jokes, with the goal of determining what types of jokes and humor would be appropriate in the workplace and between clients and businesses.