Special Exhibit, RAC Track, 1st Floor- all day

Missionary Position: Power and Cultural Mediation Through the Lens of 16th Century Missionaries and Postwar Sex Workers

Isabel Kendall

Mentor: Julie Oakes, Honors College, History, Asian Studies

What does it mean to be a cultural and linguistic mediator between two nations? How does a colonial power imbalance impact this relationship? This multi-disciplinary creative project seeks to start a conversation about these questions. In this project, I explore how language is shaped by asymmetrical power dynamics and how cultural contact zones create opportunities for linguistic creativity amid significant power imbalances. I analyze two extremely different historical moments to explore how dominated groups have enacted agency throughout history, despite differences in culture or profession. The two case studies are as follows: 16th-century missionary Fray Bernardino de Sahagún’s creation of the Florentine Codex with Nahua scribes, and panpan women, a postwar phenomenon in American-occupied Japan, and their sex-work transactions with U.S. servicemen. This visual project plunges the viewer into the perspective of an intercultural communicator, informed by my research into these two case studies. The intention is for the audience to leave the exhibit with more questions to ask than answers. Further, one should leave with a greater understanding of the crucial and often misunderstood role of the linguistic interlocutor as well as its ubiquity in our past and present.

This work was funded, in part, through an Undergraduate Research Award (URA) from the UMBC Division of Undergraduate Academic Affairs.

URCAD is Wednesday, April 22 in the RAC:

URCAD.umbc.edu

Investigating the Effects of Electronic Cigarette Vapor Exposure on the Olfactory System and Neuroinflammation in Mice

Silvi Shah

Mentors: Weihong Lin, Biological Sciences; Tatsuya Ogura, Department of Biological Sciences

RAC 050 | 2:55 – 3:10 p.m.

Electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) usage is a public health concern due to exposure to nicotine and other harmful substances, despite being marketed as attractive, flavored alternatives to traditional cigarettes. During vaping exposure, nicotine, flavorant metabolites, and heavy metals can interact with the olfactory system, impairing the sense of smell and disrupting brain signaling. Previous research in mice shows that e-cigarette vapor exposure disrupts olfactory bulb function, though the effects of nicotine, flavorants, and heavy metals remain unknown. This study investigates how vaping disrupts the rodent olfactory system by altering the morphology of the glomerular layer and its neuroinflammatory responses in the olfactory bulb. We hypothesize that increasing chemical components in e-cigarette vapor exacerbates neuroinflammation and olfactory disruption. Each group, containing nine to ten mice, was exposed to e-cigarette compounds (propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin, e-liquid containing flavorants and nicotine, with or without heavy metals) or air for eight weeks. Post-exposure, olfactory bulb tissue was analyzed via immunohistochemistry using antibodies against VGluT2, TH, OMP, and GFAP, to determine morphological changes to olfactory glomeruli and inflammation in the olfactory bulb. We are collecting data to explore how exposure to these components, particularly flavorants and heavy metals, may contribute to neuroinflammatory and olfactory dysfunction.

Support for this research was provided by the National Institute of Health grants (T32GM066706) and (T32GM158458). Silvi Shah was supported in part by a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) grant (52008090) to the UMBC Meyerhoff Scholars Program.

URCAD is Wednesday, April 22 in the RAC:

URCAD.umbc.edu

RAC Arena, 2 – 3 p.m., Poster #62

“Hypocrisy in Faculty Use”: Student-Driven Recommendations for AI Policy in a Design Classroom

Kaoru Seki, Manisha Vijay
Mentor: Yasmine Kotturi, Human-Centered Computing

Generative AI is reshaping education, yet most classroom policies are written without students and focus on penalizing misuse. This top-down approach sidelines those most affected—students—who have little say in governing their everyday learning, resulting in confusion and fear about acceptable use. We examine how participatory, student-led AI policy design can address this disconnect. We position students as lead users—early adopters of generative AI—and report on a three-part participatory workshop series in HCC629 (Fundamentals of Human-Centered Computing) at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Two student co-researchers, without faculty present, facilitated workshops where eight participants surfaced candid AI uses and co-developed ten policy recommendations, later visualized in a zine. Two additional students who declined workshops due to AI skepticism contributed via follow-up interviews. Findings highlight the need for safe spaces to discuss unfiltered AI practices and suggest that student-authored policies can clarify expectations and support more purposeful AI use.

URCAD is Wednesday, April 22 in the RAC:

URCAD.umbc.edu

🚨BINGO IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW 🚨

🗓️ Tonight
⏰ 5–8 PM
📍 UC Ballroom

We’re not talking about small prizes either… we’re giving away BIG wins like:
☕ Espresso machine
📺 TV
🎮 PS5… yes, a PS5 WHATTTT

If you’re not there, you’re honestly missing out.

Graduate Student Appreciation Week is coming to a close, and this is your moment to take it all in. The late nights, the stress, the wins, the growth — it all led here.

Get a ticket to Grad Prom & Awards and come celebrate yourself and the people who made this journey what it was. Whether that’s your friends, classmates, or the ones who kept you going behind the scenes — this night is for all of you. 🎓

No pressure, no expectations — just good music, good food, and a space to actually enjoy the moment together.

🗓️ Friday, April 10
⏰ 5–8 PM
📍 UC Ballroom

You made it this far. Take the night to celebrate that

🚨 LAST CALL — IT’S TONIGHT 🚨

Take a break from the midweek grind and pull up to Bingo Night 🎉

We’re not talking about small prizes either… we’re giving away BIG wins like:
☕ Espresso machine
📺 TV
🎮 PS5… yes, a PS5 WHATTTT

If you’re not there, you’re honestly missing out.

🗓️ Tonight
⏰ 5–8 PM
📍 UC Ballroom

Grab your ticket, bring your friends, and come win something worth showing off. Don’t overthink it — just show up.

11:30am-12:00pm LIVE in the RAC!

Come for the performance and stay for the keynote. Lunch will be served.

The Dana Idnay Band is an Alternative Rock band playing selections from Sparrow, their recent EP. Featuring Dana Idnay (Biology Pre-Pharmacy), Gabriel Schauf, (Music Technology) Nik Redcay (Music Technology), Logan Williams (Music Technology)

Mentor: Felipe Garibaldi, UMBC Affiliate Artist

URCAD is Wednesday, April 22 in the RAC:

URCAD.umbc.edu

Title:The Effects of 9/11 on US Immigration: How the US Halted Immigration Reform and Created an Anti-Immigrant Police State

Jessica Busch's oral presentation is from 2:35-2:50pm in RAC 106.

Mentor: Meredith Oyen, History

The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 marked a turning point in the way Americans viewed immigration, and those views impacted immigration policy in ways we are still experiencing nearly 25 years later. This research explores the impact of 9/11 on U.S. immigration policy in three parts: the public and political stance on immigration during the 2000 Presidential Election and the first seven months of the Bush Administration; the immediate public and policy response to 9/11 and the increased power given to the Executive Branch through the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT) Act of 2001 and Homeland Security Act of 2002; and the ways that the Trump Administration has weaponized the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and Customs and Border Patrol against immigrants and U.S. citizens. This research demonstrates that post-9/11 policies, while intended to protect Americans and promote national security, have had unintended consequences that are evident in the actions of the Trump Administration.

URCAD is Wednesday, April 22 in the RAC!

URCAD.umbc.edu

Hello Everyone!

For this week only (April 6th - 10th), Retriever Essentials and Parking Services is having a mini food for fines!

Food For Fines is a donation program where donating any 5 non-perishable food items and/or five toiletry items to parking services, and they will reduce one citation (up to a $50 violation) to a warning. The citation must be from the current semester, and one citation per student.
Items include:

• Healthy Snacks
• Protein Drinks & Bars
• Instant Noodles
• Pre-Packaged Rice Bags
• Boxes of Cereal
• Peanut Butter & Jelly
• Shelf-Safe Microwaveable Meals (Macaroni & Cheese, Rice, Etc.)
• Menstrual Pads/Tampons*Diapers/Wipes
• Household Essentials Like Toothpaste, Toothbrushes, Dental Floss, Deodorant, Etc.

Please note, we cannot accept Toilet paper and Paper Towels

All items should be donated to Parking Services (900 Walker Avenue, Suite 107). Donations must be new and unopened. Donations will be accepted from 8 AM to 4PM, Monday to Friday, and must be donated in their offices to receive the citation reduction. They are closed for lunch from 12:30 PM to 1:30 PM.

If you have any questions, please contact Parking Services at parking@umbc.edu

Join us in conversation with author of A Room in Bombay: A Memoir, Manil Suri, and English/MCS Alumnus, Aditya Desai. The event will be held on Thursday, April 16th, starting at 4:30PM in the Library Gallery!

Food will be provided.

About the Author: Manil Suri is the author of the forthcoming memoir, A Room in Bombay, three internationally acclaimed novels, The Death of Vishnu, The Age of Shiva and The City of Devi, and a book on popular mathematics, The Big Bang of Numbers.

He has served as a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times and is a distinguished university professor of mathematics at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. He is a passionate promoter of both mathematics and the humanities, and has motivated audiences worldwide to embrace both, rather than just one or the other.

Aditya Desai, who will be in discussion with Manil Suri during the event, is a writer, editor, teacher, and activist living in Baltimore, Maryland. He also works with several arts & racial justice organizations in Baltimore including the CityLit Project, Baltimore Youth Arts, and the Asian Pasifika Arts Collective.

More about the book: Indian American author Manil Suri grew up in a large crumbling apartment in Bombay (now Mumbai) which his parents, who were Hindu, shared with three Muslim families. Their single room, at times a refuge from the religious and territorial tensions pervading the apartment, was also a prison that held them captive―his parents stuck in an unhappy marriage, the author unable to explore the dawning realization he might be gay. At age 20, Suri managed to break free and come to the US, where he finally found the freedom to embrace his sexuality and find a life partner. But the room, which still held his parents hostage, kept wrenching him back to Bombay.

By now real estate prices had risen so much that neighbors had begun conspiring to take over the room, causing Suri’s parents to dig in even more. Eventually it was only his mother, Prem, left, who had staked all her happiness on her son but was unable to escape the room’s hold on her. When a rash of mysterious incidents seemed to beset the room, Suri realized how little time he had left to convince Prem that a happier life might await beyond the four walls that both enthralled and imprisoned her.

This remarkable, gripping memoir explores how an abode can shape destiny, while delving into the difficult question of how much to prioritize our parents’ happiness over our own. Inspired by over 2,700 letters the author wrote home over three decades, it is ultimately a testament to the abiding, unbreakable bond tying a son to his mother.

This event has been organized by Asian Studies with support from the Global Asias Initiative.

This event is open for full participation by all individuals regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or any other protected category under applicable federal law, state law, and the University's nondiscrimination policy.

See the original post here.