Download - THEOWL, FSU's Undergraduate Research Journal
THE OWL
VOLUME I, ISSUE 1 SPRING 2011
THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH JOURNAL
Wescott at Night, by Bill Lax
THE OWL
Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire. W. B. Yeats (1865 - 1939)
Wescott at Night, by Bill Lax
CO-EDITORS-IN-CHIEF:EKATERINA RYBAKOVA • PATRICE C. WILLIAMS
ASSOCIATE EDITORS:WILLIAM PHILIP BOYCE • DAVID MARI
ASSISTANT EDITORS:NOWRIN ALAM • AVIRAM ASSIDON • SEAN ENNIS • VINCENT LABARBERA • CHRISTOPHER MATECHIK • CHELSEA MORGAN • TARREQ NOORI • STEPHEN PAPE • LAUREN TERPAK
COPY EDITOR:STEPHANIE M. ANDRE
GRAPHIC DESIGNERS:WILLIAM PHILIP BOYCE • PATRICE C. WILLIAMS
SCURC ADVISORS:DR. KRISTAL MOORE CLEMONS • DR. ALEC KERCHEVAL
PRINCIPAL SUPPORT:THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY STUDENT GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION
The Florida State University Undergraduate Research JournalCopyright © 2011 Student Government Association, The Florida State University
All rights reserved:FSURJ is a part of the Student Government Association (SGA) as an affiliated project and its views do not necessarily reflect the views of the university. FSURJ is published electroni-cally on the internet, with a print issue released during the spring semester. Primary author-ship of articles is restricted to students of Florida State University, while faculty, students, and other contributors may be listed as secondary authors. All works published in FSURJ are published under an attribution, non-commercial, and share-alike Creative Commons license. The author retains copyright. (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/1.0/)
Inquires should be addressed to:The Florida State UniversityOffice of Undergraduate ResearchStudent Council for Undergraduate Research & Creativity (SCURC)UCA3600 282 Champions WayTallahassee, FL. 32306-2360Phone: (850) 645-8118 Fax: (850) 644-2101
iii. | THE OWL
THE OWLTHE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY
UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH JOURNAL
Introductory
1. LETTER FROM THE COUNCIL
2. CONTRIBUTING AUTHORS
3. WHAT I THINK I’D LIKE TO SAYJESSE DAMIANI
4. ORGANIC SERIES: Untitled IDANIELLE DELPH
H u m a n i t i e s
5. RELIGION AND MODERNITY: “THE FIRE-SERMON”WILLIAM PHILIP BOYCE
22. THE FIRE SERMONMICHAEL SHEA
23. ORGANIC SERIES: Untitled IIDANIELLE DELPH
Natural Sc iences
24. APPLICATIONS OF ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORKS IN MUSH-ROOM EDIBILITY CLASSIFICATION
GUSTAVO MUNOZ
39. A SIMPLE METHOD FOR CHARACTERIZING IRIDESCENCEDOROTHY JACKSON
52. POEM BEGINNING WITH A QUOTE FROM WITTGENSTEINMICHAEL SHEA
53. ORGANIC SERIES: Untitled IIIDANIELLE DELPH
Social Sciences
54. INTERNATIONAL SECURITY IN SPACE PRESIDENTIAL LEADER-SHIP AND THE FUTURE OF OUTER SPACE
BRIAN DENNY
73. YEMEN: AL-QAEDA’S NEXT FORTRESSTERRY RYDZ
94. REGARDING THE WATCH YOU GAVE MEJESSE DAMIANI
Further Remarks
96. THE NAMING OF THE OWL
97. ARTIST STATEMENTDANIELLE DELPH
98. A CONCISE HISTORY OF SCURC
100. FOUNDING MEMBERS OF SCURC 2009 - 2010
101. EDITORIAL BOARD & SCURC MEMBERS 2010 - 2011
102. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
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LET TER FROM THE EDITORSDear Reader,
Welcome to the inaugural issue of The Owl, Florida State University’s only undergraduate research journal! We are honored to present this first edition to you and the entire community of Florida State Seminoles, whether student, faculty, or administration.
This we believe: The Owl highlights the finest quality of our beloved university by showcasing the pinnacle of academic research, intellectual curiosity, and artistic talent. Beyond the articles and original works of art themselves, we hope you are awakened to the powerful conversation occurring at Florida State University amongst emerging scholars at the undergraduate level. The students at our university possess brilliance no less than their peers at any other university, and this journal is proof-positive of that reality.
After two years of extensive development, The Owl is pleased to facilitate the interdisciplinary exchange of ideas happening presently and those that will transpire in the years to come. The Owl is so named after the original seal employed from 1851 to 1901 by West Florida Seminary. Anchored in the history and tradition of our institution, the journal is illuminated by the brightest minds of our student body today, with a sharp eye to the future.
We humbly believe The Owl captures the character and vitality of Florida State University. May the vigorous research and sophisticated works of art be first words in the long chorus of praise for this magnificent institution!
In Vires, Artes, Mores,
Ekaterina Rybakova William Philip BoycePatrice C. Williams David MariCo-Editors-in-Chief Associate Editors
William Boyce is completing an Honors in the Major thesis under Dr. David Kirby, he will graduate in the spring 2011 with a B.A. in History, English-Creative Writing, and Religious Studies. A Fulbright Full Grant Scholar to the U.K., he will continue his research at the University of Glasgow on the relationship between theology and the arts.
Danielle Delph is a Lexington, Kentucky native turned Seminole, and will be finishing a BFA in Graphic Design this April. She received the Anne Kirn Design Award in 2010. With a background in fine arts and an enthusiasm for advertising design, she hopes to pursue a career in art direction following graduation.
Brian Denny is a pre-law junior at Florida State University, studying political science and Asian studies. Prior to transferring to FSU in the spring of 2011, he attended Santa Fe College in Gainesville, FL. Denny is a member of the pre-law Phi Alpha Delta fraternity and of the Chinese Language and Culture Association.
Dorothy A. Jackson is a senior English major interested in the interplay between the humanities and the natural and physical sciences. Upon completion of her Bachelor’s of Arts in April 2011, Jackson plans to pursue a second Bachelor’s Degree in biology at The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa
Gustavo Munoz is an undergraduate student studying civil engineering at the FAMU–FSU College of Engineering. He is also a research assistant at the Laboratory for Intelligent Materials and Structures at the FAMU-FSU COE. His research interests are centered on Structural Control and Smart Structures.
Terry Rydz is currently an undergraduate at Florida State University, double majoring in International Affairs and Middle Eastern Studies. His hopes are to work for the U.S. government as a counter-terrorist expert. He plans on attending law school after graduation.
CONTRIBUTING AUTHORS
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Michael Shea will graduate in the
spring of 2011 with a B.A. in English and
Philosophy. Completing his Honors in the
Major project in English, his thesis is en-
titled, “Mexicans Lost in Mexico: Roberto
Bolano’s Dialectical Homelessness and the
Literary State of Exception.” His poems
have appeared in Rattle, Salt Hill, and The
Apalachee Review.
Jesse Damiani will graduate in the spring
of 2011 with a B.A. in Creative Writing
and a B.A. in Media Production. Un-
der the mentorship of Professor Barbara
Hamby, he completed an Honors in the
Major thesis project in English, consisting
of a book-length manuscript of poetry,
entitled Your Language Is My Language.
What I think I’d like to say
The skull claps open—a misplaced comma,a misplaced mattress.
To steal a coat—to wake up on a highway
barrier in Barcelona,or a beach in Barcelona,or a taxi in Barcelona,
or a hotel in Barcelona,or, just, forget Barcelona—to douse us all in chocolate& not nata—to drink more
than two glasses of winea day, or gin, or more than
four glasses a day—gin,snippy like we all are, sweet
with juice, sweetwith cucumber—
to embrace, but alwaysdevour—to regenerateold daydreams—what
novae do. In the silenceof a tent in the woods
after prom, her leg wrapsaround his into a question
mark, & I believe it.
Jesse Damiani
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Organic Series: Untitled I,by Danielle Delph
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RELIGION AND MODERNITY: “THE FIRE SERMON”1
WILLIAM PHILIP BOYCEFaculty Advisor: Amy Koehlinger
Department of Religion
The progression of the modern age, in the form of modernization and the modernist artistic movement,
presents a direct challenge to the historically rooted practices of man. Modernity, liberated from
tradition, seeks constant innovation and enlightenment unfettered by customs or limitations. Caught
in the crosshairs of this melee stands the institution of religion. This article explores the relationship
between modernity and religion through the works of Karl Marx and T.S. Eliot. In a world where
“all that is solid melts into air,” to quote Marx, does religion or the phenomenology of religion offer
meaning for man? Can it provide worth in its own right? Both thinkers say yes, but qualify their
assessments in remarkably differing ways.
Enter the age of modernity. Whirling in a frenetic foxtrot of the-
oria and praxis, the last two centuries have expanded and excoriated the
conditions for man in such a quickened society. Against the backdrop of the
cataclysmic Industrial Revolution; the transformation of scientific discov-
ery and technological achievements; the explosion of capitalism across the
globe; the mass migrations into urban and suburban localities; the ratchet-
ing up of socio-political power structures; the divestment of man from man’s
traditions and history; the growth of nationalistic imperialism and bureau-
cratic ossification; the demographic upheaval through innovative mass
communication systems; the ascendency of the world market; the dizzying
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specialization of intellectual curiosi-
ty and research; the lionization of art
and aesthetics; and the perpetuity of
spiritual longings, awakenings, vili-
fications, and reformations; against
these, modernity—as discussed in
this essay and understood in broader
academic contexts—commences to
bear meaning.
Grazing upon the long grass of
modernity, theorists, artists, and in-
tellectuals have operated as partici-
pants and as critics simultaneously
as they digest its triumphs and ca-
tastrophes. But how has modernity
grappled, principally through the
acclamations and denunciations of
social theorists and literary mod-
ernists, with religion? The answers
are as polyphonic as the individuals
inquiring thereof. This paper will ex-
plore that question first by defining
modernity, then by delineating the
perspectives of Karl Marx and T.S.
Eliot. The ambition of this paper is to
illuminate the aforementioned en-
treaty from the pronounced world-
view of these two individuals but
makes no pretense of ultimacy or of
expositing the subject in entirety.
Modernity Defined
Modernity is the loosely bound
variety of visions, values, and actions
augmented by the world-historical
processes mentioned above. The aim
of modernity is “to make men and
women the subjects as well as the
objects of modernization, to give
them the power to change the world
that is changing them.”2 As a vague
moniker for the fragile and fantastic
realities engendered within this cir-
cuitous period, modernity seeks to
unveil the systemic and particular
psychosis in all of man. To be mod-
ern, according to intellectual histo-
rian Marshall Berman, “is to find
ourselves in an environment that
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promises us adventure, power, joy,
growth, transformation of ourselves
and the world”; that same milieu,
concomitantly, “threatens to destroy
everything we have, everything we
know, everything we are.” This “par-
adoxical unity, a unity of disunity”
crashes in a constant “maelstrom of
perpetual disintegration and renew-
al, of struggle and contradiction, of
ambiguity and anguish.”3 No one, ac-
cording to Berman’s prognosis, can
circumambulate this universal man-
tle, not even those diametrically op-
posed to its inceptive prejudices and
resultants. In this sense of moder-
nity, the timbre of its effects echoes
across every ethnicity and ideology,
every religion and geography, every
class and nationality.
Modernity, thusly construed,
is the “totality of fragmentary, cen-
trifugal directions of existence”
whereby “the concentric principle,
the monumental element is [never-
theless] not attained.”4 Simply put,
modernity hinges on dialectical
humanism; man is the center of his
universe, but bears all the weight of
his centrality. He must, like Atlas,
shoulder his world—the aggregate
of internal and external stimuli—to
fashion meaning for himself. The
symphony of human events, innova-
tions, and musings couches the pan-
demonium within the soul of man.
This atmosphere “of agitation and
turbulence, psychic dizziness and
drunkenness, expansion of experi-
ential possibilities and destruction
of moral boundaries and personal
bonds, self-enlargement and self-
derangement,” reflects and affects
modern man’s sensibility.5 Per Ber-
man’s rendering of modernity, each
individual must resolve his own
“concentric principle” or “monu-
mental element” in reaction to the
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awareness that no indwelling or cos-
mogenic principle unifies mankind.
Navigating these dialogues, mo-
dernity can be dissected into two au-
tonomous and interrelated stations:
modernization, the socio-political
and economic branch of the tree, and
modernism, the artistic, cultural, and
literary branch. Each is intertwined
at various points. Modernism, fur-
ther defined, is “the literature that
acknowledged and attempted to re-
spond to a crisis of representation
beginning in the mid-nineteenth
century.” Modernism presented a
response to a pervasive impression
that “the ways of knowing and rep-
resenting the world developed in the
Renaissance…distorted the actual
experience of reality, of art, and of
literature.” Consequently, both “the
content and the form of represen-
tation” were cast in suspicious light
and subverted in the regenerative
apparatus of modernism, where new
tools were crafted and old instru-
ments were either ironically refur-
bished or repulsively dismissed.6
Under the expanding arch of
modernity, with one leg being mod-
ernization and the other modern-
ism, the relationship with religion
can be explicated. In no way should
it be suggested that modernity
eradicated religion or the impulse
of religion full-stop in the Western
Hemisphere, the anchor of moder-
nity. Even cursory observation to-
day reveals that religion still obtains.
On the other hand, modernity cer-
tainly complicates religion. For ex-
ample, this convolution resounds
within Christianity, if not theologi-
cally, then representationally in the
institutions of politics, economics,
art, philosophy, and the public do-
main. How religion is interwoven
in the tapestry of modernity, both
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perceived and instantiated, remains
a preoccupation of social theorists
and literary modernists. From the
death of God to the empty casket at
his funeral, the witness of religion in
this period is intricate, arresting, and
by no means settled law.
Marx
“The more man puts into God,
the less he retains in himself.”7 Karl
Marx’s philosophy of history, often
painted in too broad of strokes as it
relates to religion, confounds sim-
plistic narratives. Marx’s critique “is
more complex and more interesting
than the standard nineteenth-cen-
tury materialist assertion that God
does not exist.”8 Unlike Nietzsche,
who pinned modernity’s predica-
ment of moral illimitability and of
nihilist estrangement on its pro-
genitor—namely, the progressive
march of “science, rationalism, the
death of God”—Marx indicts the
bourgeoisie. The gilded accoutre-
ments of religion, over against the
religious impulse, accuse the “banal
everyday workings of the bourgeoi-
sie economic order—an order that
equates our human value with our
market price, no more, no less.”9 A
proper reading of Marx must spot-
light his appreciation for the spiri-
tual impulse and, reciprocally, his
acrimony for institutionalized reli-
gion. The source of Marx’s antipathy
can be recognized in his profound
mistrust prima facie of the institu-
tions that influence the modern
laborer. Religion, in one sense, is
undistinguished in the long list of
corrosive infrastructures; contra-
puntally, because religion attempts
to answer deeper soul-making ques-
tions and pervades Western culture,
its stakes are higher for Marx. Based
on that logic, it must be vanquished
at the outset in order to foster the
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apotheosis of the laborer.
The epitome of Marx’s disdain
for institutional religion is offered in
The Communist Manifesto. The reli-
gious impulse, or the phenomenol-
ogy of religion, was easily and gain-
fully seduced by the bourgeoisie out
of the gate, as Marx reads history. “In
the icy water of egotistical calcula-
tion” the bourgeoisie “drowned the
most heavenly ecstasies of religious
fervor, of chivalrous enthusiasm,
of philistine sentimentalism.”10 The
halo, which “splits life into sacred
and profane,” was quickly leveraged
by the bourgeoisie in Marx’s depic-
tion. Coalescing “an aura of holy
dread and radiance,” the bourgeoisie
substituted the innocence of reli-
gious fervor for the haloed positions
of the religious institution. With this
replacement, the bourgeoisie gener-
ated “cash payment” or the resolving
of “personal worth into exchange
value.” In this economic machina-
tion, the bourgeoisie, “veiled by
religious and political illusions,”
shamelessly and brutally exploited
the working class and the sincer-
ity of religious impulses along with
them. The economizing of the meta-
physical—or that “which asks what
is worthwhile, what is honorable,
even what is real”—is the root of the
problem of institutional religion, as
Marx sees it.11
Picked over, the “priest, the
poet, the man of science” are effectu-
ally “stripped of its halo” in a rigid
conversion to “paid wage-labour-
ers”; that is to say, the halo behaves
purely as a pecuniary symbol of the
bourgeoisie, rather than signaling
the religious impulse.12 While the
exchange under capitalism of sacred
stations like priest and poet in return
for dehumanizing monetization
policies is sour for Marx, it is not
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inopportune. The haloed position
and their corresponding institutions
of “law, morality, religion” erupt
with “so many bourgeois prejudices,
behind which lurk in ambush just as
many bourgeois interests,” that their
disintegration and demystification
is welcomed by Marx.13 The former
“aura of holiness” around priest and
poet becomes the missing compo-
nent in this equation of division,
though Marx is by no means empa-
thetic to this purging.14 The tearing
of veils, which leaves priest and poet
naked and with exposed wounds,
concurrently introduces “new op-
tions and hopes.”15 A new paradise
is gained, according to Marx’s narra-
tive, through and despite the process
of stripped haloes.
The “new options and hopes”
must be grounded in the appropri-
ately understood and demytholo-
gized religious life. In his doctorate,
Difference between the Democritean
and the Epicurean Philosophy of Na-
ture, Marx accredits philosophy with
diametrically opposing “all heavenly
and earthly Gods who do not ac-
knowledge human self-conscious-
ness as the highest divinity.”16 Thus,
the consummation of the religious
life, disconnected from the ruse con-
structed by the bourgeoisie, is part
and parcel with proletariat experi-
ence and philosophy. In the frenzied
modern world of reconfiguration
and malleability, “philosophy finds
its material weapons in the proletar-
iat,” Marx writes in a letter to a fellow
German philosopher, “so the prole-
tariat finds its spiritual weapons in
philosophy.”17
The bifurcation of modernity,
for Marx, encompasses the desire
for “clear and solid values to live by”
and the desire to “embrace the limit-
less possibilities of modern life and
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experience that obliterate all val-
ues.”18 Paradoxically, this requisite
period of history comports itself to
newer virtues in spiritual equality.
“[A]ll that is holy is profaned, and
man is at last compelled to face with
sober senses, his real conditions of
life, and his relations with his kind,”
unmediated by the dogmatism or
fanaticism of institutional religion.19
At the conclusive moment in history
man freely fashions “a world after
its own image,” alluding to God’s
creation of man in Genesis.20 New
morality and religion, not founded
on the principles of the bourgeoisie’s
self-interest and self-propagation,
espouse the unitive consciousness of
man, thereby allowing each man to
sculpt meaning for himself in him-
self; in so doing, he must never suc-
cumb to the pressure of satisfying
his religious fervor with someone or
something outside himself, such as
God, religion, or priest. As Berman
qualifies, “to unmask phony claims
of transcendence is to demand and
fight for real transcendence,” or that
of man’s inner transcendence.21
Marx appends this message by clari-
fying that if one balks at the notion of
such revolutionary change—i.e. de-
stroying the institution of religion—
a conservative appeal to “notions of
freedom, culture, law, &c” deceives
the position fundamentally. “Your
very ideas are but the outgrowth of
the conditions of your bourgeoi-
sie production.”22 The principles
of “religious liberty and freedom
of conscience, merely gave expres-
sion to the sway of free competition
within the domain of knowledge.”
As maintained by Marx, mere his-
torical fluctuations, such as Chris-
tianity overcoming the religions of
the ancient world in its last causal
transmutation, only prove that those
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movements are historical realities in
flux at particular moments in space
and time, nothing more. History is
not sacramental or imbued with the
divine, in any epoch, in any locality.
As Marx plainly expounds, it is
but a “selfish misconception that in-
duces you to transform into eternal
laws of nature” what are merely “the
social forms springing from your
present mode of production.”23 Even
under the auspices of a liberal pro-
gressive “social Gospel”24 or “Chris-
tian Socialism,” Marx refutes these
self-deceptions or the “holy water
with which the priest consecrates the
heart-burnings of the aristocrat.”25
Communism by revolution, as per
Marx, accelerates history, progresses
mankind, and inaugurates a new reli-
gious impulse. Communism, hence,
“abolishes eternal truths, it abolishes
all religion, and all morality, instead
of constituting them on a new basis;
it therefore acts in contradiction to
all past historical experience.” 26
A modernity where “[a]ll that
is solid melts into air”27 cautions the
proletariat of institutionalizing their
religious impulses or fervor. Man is
spiritual insofar as he is “linked to
nature,” which is to say, “linked to
itself, for man is a part of nature.”
The religious impulse is nourished
when man “makes his life-activity
itself the object of his will and of his
consciousness.” With his own life as
the object of his existence, man is
a “Conscious Being” when absent
of “estranged labour” that vocation
transfigures “his essential being” into
“a mere means to his existence.”28 The
religious impulse must be enveloped
in the truth that man is the highest
goal of this secularized and human-
ized spirituality, the highest divinity.
“Not the gods, not nature, but only
man himself can be this alien power
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over man.”29
Eliot
As a literary modernist, T.S. El-
iot necessarily approached the chal-
lenges, sentiments, and anxieties of
modernity from a wholly different
perspective than Marx. Not only
does Eliot distinguish himself from
Marx by encapsulating his interpre-
tation of the modern era through the
medium of poetry, but by being the
most modern, historically speaking;
thus, the breadth of his views are
nearer to contemporary society on
the unfurling timeline of maturity
within modernity. Born in St. Louis,
Missouri, Eliot emigrated to Eng-
land after his education at Harvard
in philosophy and comparative lit-
erature.
His first poetic masterpiece,
The Waste Land, would be com-
posed while Eliot recovered from a
neurotic breakdown after the First
World War. At the ominous age of
thirty-three, Eliot was revived dur-
ing his stay in a sanatorium in Lau-
sanne, Switzerland by his poetic vi-
sion in The Waste Land: “the relief
of a personal and wholly insignifi-
cant grouse against life…just a piece
of rhythmical grumbling.”30 Ezra
Pound, a fellow poet and close friend
of Eliot’s, was hardly as modest in his
praise: “Eliot’s Waste Land is I think
the justification of the ‘movement,’
of our modern experiment, since
1900.”31 To many of his contempo-
raries, it incarnated the transcendent
quality over personal situation and
embodied the general crisis of faith
and representation in Western civi-
lization. Its symbolic manifestation
culminated in reorienting the myth-
ological parallels that he employed
in the poem for modern life; it “of-
fered a way to transform the ‘stam-
merings’ of the individual artist into
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a broader sense of order, one that
could link contemporary culture
with the major concerns of the entire
literary and cultural tradition.”32
Eliot’s mystical revelation in
The Waste Land harangued modern
society from within it, but not from
the social angle that Marx attacked.
Barren and desperately groping
for significance, the world after the
Great War, for Eliot, was ontologi-
cally remodeled. The telos of history
offered no redemption and no end
to itself, in contravention to Marx’s
prophesy about the end of history,
which would fructify after the work-
ers of the world united. Religion, for
Eliot, could neither be reduced to
religious fervor, as Marx had whit-
tled it down, nor a mere catalyst of
individuation and differentiation.
Religion, like all the grand traditions
of man’s historical heritage, tenders
a glimpse of something entrenched
in the heart and soul of man; when
gathered together with all the asso-
ciative traditions, they bear a sem-
blance of corporealized meaning:
“A heap of broken images.”33 Yet,
not unlike the moral devolution ar-
ticulated by Marx, Eliot’s man of the
waste land, or the “Unreal City,”34
can only beseech “O Lord Thou
pluckest me out”35 and “each in his
prison/…Shantih shantih shantih,”
or a pathetic peroration of peace,
peace, peace.36
The furious and timeless motion
of the eternal present was ultimately
an unsatisfying condition for man in
Eliot’s mind. Fourteen years after the
publication of The Waste Land, Eliot
penned his final inimitable work,
Four Quartets. In the fourteen-year
intermission, he discovered a sa-
cred vocation. Through baptism
in the Church of England, Eliot
translated his longing for a timeless
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transcendence into a spiritual quest,
and yet retained most of his previous
skepticisms and provisos. As the via
media between dispassionate Uni-
tarianism (the religious heritage to
which Eliot’s parents had exposed
him) and obdurate Catholicism,
the Anglican tradition allowed Eliot
to navigate amongst his suspicions
and, simultaneously, direct his “in-
tenser human feelings” to the ulti-
mate “divine goal.”37 His conversion
bridged “the point of intersection
of the timeless [Divine Godhead] /
With time.”38
Eliot’s movement into the
Church and into Christian faith es-
sentialized this renaissance of uni-
tive contemplation. To suggest that
Eliot’s conversion rectified, in some
simplistic sense, the angst and be-
reavement he set about exploring in
The Waste Land would be to reduce
Eliot’s religious sincerity and artistic
sensibilities carelessly. Rather, Eliot’s
conversion “shifted the style of both
his life and his art” quite simply be-
cause it complicated his life and his
art.39 On the precipice of the Sec-
ond World War, Eliot excavated his
yearning for liberation from perva-
sive evils in correspondence with a
Christian apprehension of sin, pro-
pitiation, and regeneration in Four
Quartets.
The antidote to the modern
geist of alienation and estrangement
was, for Eliot, the humility to walk
forward in faith, moored by religion
and tradition. Eliot remarks in “Tra-
dition and the Individual Talent”
that “the historical sense involves a
perception, not only of the pastness
of the past, but of its presence….a
sense of the timeless as well as of
the temporal and of the timeless
and of the temporal together.”40 Per
Eliot, the liminality of the modern
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world—“caught in the form of limi-
tation/Between un-being and be-
ing”41—aches for the salvation of the
Word incarnate whether it is compre-
hensively aware of this need or not;
consonantly, Eliot could not have
portended his metaphysical conver-
sion when he first penned The Waste
Land. Like the liminal stasis of life
itself, art “never improves,” but rath-
er “the material of art is never quite
the same.”42 Altogether, the creative
process mirrors soteriology and the
denial of “human self-consciousness
as the highest divinity.”43 That is to
say, Eliot interlocks human experi-
ence and salvation: “what happens
is a continual surrender of himself
as he is at the moment of something
which is more valuable…a continual
extinction of personality.”44
The descent into the soul,
into the world that is not the world,
into a place destitute of property and
fancy and distractions, into a land
not twittering with movement, Eliot
exclaims, “This is the one way.”45 In a
world of chatter and transience, even
the external influences of words and
music decay and crack under the
tension, refusing to “stay still.” There
is but one word, “The Word in the
desert,” which can transverberate or
transfigure the soul.46 The incarnat-
ed Christ becomes the “light…/ At
the still point of the turning world.”47
Thus, Eliot’s man walks the via nega-
tiva: “In order to arrive at what you
are not / You must go through the
way in which you are not.”48 That
way is the divine Incarnation, cross,
and immanent Spirit of God.
After the plum-line is set, El-
iot purposefully complicates his gos-
pel by escorting his reader through
the realms of the soul; the way out
is inward. The salvation of the soul
is not the constituency of action
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or inaction. Rather, it is “whatever
sphere of being / The mind of man
may be intent / At the time of death,”
when one awakens to consider-
ing the time of death to be “every
moment.”49 Salvific humility at the
every-moment juncture, Eliot pos-
its, requires the abnegation of the
self: “I said to my soul, be still, and
let the dark come upon you.”50 The
soul need not “fare well / But fare
forward” along this journey, grasp-
ing faith “between the hither and
the farther shore.”51 Thus, the new
means become the end of the old
ends: “prayer, observance, discipline,
thought and action” point attribu-
tively to the “Incarnation. / Here the
impossible union.”52
Rich is the inheritance of
man, Eliot specifies, who declares
“A people without history / Is not
redeemed from time, for history is
a pattern / Of timeless moments.”
The Church is the vanguard against
a world “Distracted from distraction
by distraction” and the most beauti-
ful museum for the relics of tradition
and faith. If anything is manifest in
perpetuity for Eliot, it is “the draw-
ing of this Love and the voice of this
Calling” beckoning the soul of man
“Quick now, here, now, always.”53 Al-
though “human kind / Cannot bear
very much reality,”54 the “dripping
blood [and]… / The bloody flesh”55
of the crucified Christ paves an in-
effable “lifetime’s death in love”56
for wearied humanity; whensoever
and for whosoever this religious in-
tersection occurs, “Costing not less
than everything,” then the soul can
exclaim “all shall be well and / All
manner of thing shall be well.”57
Summary
Modernity, through modern-
ization and modernism, is the ma-
trix of contemporary life where the
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condition of man is paramount. The
ways in which religion complicates
this arithmetical formula, and in
turn, is complicated by it, enhance
and showcase the evolution and as-
cendency of modern thought. The
social theories of Karl Marx along-
side the counterdistinctive voice
of T.S. Eliot illumine the lightning
rod of religious and spiritual repre-
sentations in this period, though by
no means elude its circumscription.
Straining with the question of how
to expropriate religion, each mod-
ern author uniquely ventured “a raid
on the inarticulate / With shabby
equipment,” and wagered the very
cornerstone of their philosophy on
it.58 In so doing, they bequeathed a
legacy of historical and psychologi-
cal analysis, personal soul-search-
ing, and a touchstone from which
to better understand and contextu-
alize modernity in all its feats and
failures.
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1 T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land, ed. Michael North (New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2001), 11
2 Marshall Berman, All That Is Solid Melts into Air: the Experience of Modernity (London: Verso, 1999), 16.
3 Berman 15.4 David Frisby, Fragments of Modernity
(Cambridge: MIT Press, 1988), 39.5 Berman 18.6 Pericles Lewis, The Cambridge Introduction to
Modernism (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007), xviii.
7 Karl Marx, “Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844,” The Marx-Engels Reader, ed. Robert C. Tucker (New York: W.W. Norton, 1978), 31.
8 Berman 89.9 Berman 111.10 Marx and Engels 222.11 Berman 111.12 Marx and Engels 222.13 Marx and Engels 232.14 Berman 89.15 Berman 109.16 Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, The Communist
Manifesto (London: Penguin Books, 2002), 94.17 Marx and Engels 119.18 Berman 35.19 Marx and Engels 223.20 Marx and Engels 224.21 Berman 120.22 Marx and Engels 238.23 Marx and Engels 239.24 Marx and Engels 255.25 Marx and Engels 247.26 Marx and Engels 242.27 Marx and Engels 223.28 Marx 34.29 Marx 35.30 Lewis 129.31 Ibid. 32 Lewis 124.33 T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land, “The Burial of the
Dead,” ln. 22.34 T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land, “The Fire Sermon,” ln.
207.35 T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land, “The Fire Sermon,” ln.
309.36 T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land, “What the Thunder
Said,” ln. 413 & 433.37 Kenneth Paul Kramer, Redeeming Time: T.S.
Eliot’s Four Quartets (Cowley: 2007), 3-4.38 T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets, “The Dry Salvages,” V.39 Kramer 4.40 T.S. Eliot, “Tradition and the Individual Talent,”
38. 41 T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets, “Burnt Norton,” V.42 T.S. Eliot, “Tradition and the Individual Talent,”
39.43 See endnote 10
44 T.S. Eliot, “Tradition and the Individual Talent,” 40.
45 “Burnt Norton,” III.46 “Burnt Norton,” V.47 “Burnt Norton,” IV.48 T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets, “East Coker,” III.49 “The Dry Salvages,” V.50 “East Coker,” III.51 “The Dry Salvages,” III.52 “The Dry Salvages,” V.53 T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets, “Little Gidding,” V.54 “Burnt Norton,” I.55 “East Coker,” IV.56 “The Dry Salvages,” V.57 “Little Gidding,” V.58 “East Coker,” V.
The Fire Sermon
Now I am the red clay leaching your lungs in each breath of breaded flesh. One seeks for a moment of feeling in barbeque sauce
and cold beer foamed like dog’s breath, the pant and the pantees. Desire swims in glass
bottles watered and swallowed with pieces
of pecan pie, and if you’re a nut, you can’t not be a nut. Throttle down that throat, babe. One doesn’t explain greatness;
one lets it drip from one’s mouth.
Michael Shea
Organic Series: Untitled II,by Danielle Delph
Pictured: Students sitting on the steps of Wescott in 1952
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APPLICATIONS OF ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORKS IN MUSHROOM EDIBILITY
CLASSIFICATION
GUSTAVO J. MUNOZ, SUNGMOON JUNGFaculty Advisor: Sungmoon JungDepartment of Civil Engineering
We report the accuracy of a two-layer, back-propagation artificial neural network in identifying
edibility of a set of random mushrooms. Mushrooms edibility was synthesized using many different
characteristics. Tests were run using different combinations of number of hidden nodes, separation
of training, validation, and test data and number of iterations. Qualitative identification of an optimal
combination of network parameters will provide a basis toward applications of artificial neural
networks in future civil engineering endeavors.
Artificial intelligence has become a very important topic since
the mid twentieth century1. An artificial neural network is a computational
model used to mimic the processes of natural, biological neural networks,
such as the respiratory system and learning functions in the brain. The arti-
ficial neural network, or more colloquially known as the neural network, has
been used in many computational applications due to its pattern recognition
capabilities. Many studies, such as bridge degradation patterns (using Self-
Organizing Map, a type of unsupervised artificial neural network)2, crab sex
classification3 , and abnormality identification using CT scans have been
24 | THE OWL
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investigated using Artificial Neural
Networks4.
Neural Networks have a prop-
erty of learning, which allows for
many applications. The learning is
based on values given for a train-
ing set of data. Once the training is
finished, the network has “learned”
the given data sets, and, therefore, it
can be used as a prediction tool. The
usage of the network is often called
as testing. Depending on the ap-
plication, testing is conducted with
known target values so that an error
is calculated, proving the accuracy of
the network.
The question of edibility of
mushrooms has been a long-lived
query. There have not been any
particular “rules of thumb” to fol-
low in order to classify whether a
mushroom is poisonous or edible.
Because such a system (the mush-
room) contains so many variables
(i.e. shape of bell, color, smell, etc.)
a multi-variable computational ap-
proach, such as neural networking,
may alleviate the problem.
Preliminary Data Processing
The data used for classification
purposes contains target values, that
is, values to which the network is
trying to calculate to. In this classi-
fication, twenty-two characteristics
for 8,124 separate mushrooms are
given in the data set5. Each of these
mushrooms has already been de-
termined to be poisonous or edible
through investigation prior to this
one. The data labels are in character
form that cannot be read by Matlab
and so must be represented in a form
that can be processed [See Table 1].
Mushroom characteristics were
first in word form then converted
to character form (i.e. bell = b), but
none of these forms are read by Mat-
lab. These forms of representation
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were then converted to numerical
form to allow for usage in Matlab
[See Table 2]. Edible is represented
as -1 while poisonous is represent-
ed as +1.
It is important to note that in
representing each characteristic
by increasing numerical values,
a bias is introduced. This means
that some numbers that are larger
in value than others (7 vs. 1) may
create a bias and so skew the final
result. This limitation is strongly
considered when evaluating the
final results and is understood to
be the less-accurate way of repre-
senting non-numerical charac-
ters. Correct representation would
prove exhaustive in the time frame
given. Correct representation re-
quires converting each attribute to
multiple bits, so that the bias is not
introduced.
Artificial Neural Network
The neural network used in
pattern recognition of mushroom
edibility is a two-layer feed for-
ward network. That is, twenty-two
inputs, a hidden layer with an ar-
bitrary amount of nodes, and an
output (see Figure 1).
The initial tiny circles repre-
sent the input of 8,124 data points.
The two middle circles represent
the hidden layer with two nodes
and the final circle represents the
output; that is, the classification
as “edible” or “poisonous.” The
hidden layer contains neurons
(nodes) with hyperbolic activation
functions that compute a weighted
summation of the inputs to pass
through those functions.
The two-layer network was
written into Matlab using the Neu-
ral Network Toolbox. This enabled
us to use a few commands in order
to execute the task of training the
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network.
Various trials were used in or-
der to identify the optimal usage of
network parameters. Table 3 tabu-
lates all the different combinations
and parameters tested for mush-
room pattern recognition using the
two-layer feed-forward network.
Data are split in three groups: train-
ing data, which the network uses to
train; validation data set, which the
network uses as a preliminary test-
ing set; and test data, which finds
a value closest to the target value
based on the training done by the
training set. Each partition is fur-
ther separated by five hidden nodes
or twenty hidden nodes. Two groups
are observed, one being run at 1,000
iterations (epochs) and one being
run at 10,000 iterations (epochs).
After tests are run, a com-
parison is made in search of the
least error with regards to testing vs.
validation vs. training. A semi-qual-
itative analysis is made to find the
best option for network parameters
Results
Figure 4 shows the best vali-
dation performance is at 7.4448 x
10^-14. This plot shows that in this
particular case (1,000 iterations, 5
nodes), a separation of 20% train-
ing, 20% validation, and 60% testing
gives us minimum error. Only 37 it-
erations to reach the minimum gra-
dient were needed. The simplicity of
the problem may contribute to such
low error and such low iteration.
Figure 8 proved the best perfor-
mance in terms of the 1,000-itera-
tion, 20-node, category. An error of
8.204 x 10^-16 are noticed from this
plot. A minimum gradient is also
reached at 211 iterations. The mini-
mum gradient is found at a plot dif-
ferent than the previous example – 5
nodes.
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With 10,000 iterations, a very
high error, relative to the other tests,
is seen in Figure 11. An error of
0.024018 vs. 2.5332 x 10^-15 (Fig-
ure 10) is significantly different. The
minimum error was found using a
separation of 20% training, 20% val-
idation, and 60% testing.
Figure 12 shows the minimum
gradient of 1.1225 x 10^-27. This
corresponds to a separation of data
of 60% training, 20% validation and
20% testing. The other two plots il-
lustrate a similar amount of error as
other runs.
Conclusion
The two-layer feedforward ar-
tificial neural network has proven
very useful in classification of edibil-
ity of mushrooms. With the training
of the data and learning capacities,
the network has provided a test, us-
ing various network parameters, to
provide values very near the target
values. The errors were all on the
order of at least 10^-11 except for 1
plot (Figure 11).
Limitations due to incorrect
representation of data may have
caused a skewed error and possible
discrepancies in the plots. A more
thorough study of this would pro-
vide much better results in terms of
accuracy and best option. No clear
option was made based on the lim-
ited amount of tests run.
Tests should each be run sev-
eral times, due to the randomly gen-
erated order of values. With large
numbers of trials tested in the fu-
ture, data would be plotted to show
standard deviation. A quantitative
study would also have to be done to
understand the pattern of error of
each individual plot in order to ap-
ply it to a more generalized under-
standing of an optimal combination
of parameters.
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With the skills garnered through
the study of Artificial Neural Net-
works, future applications can be in-
vestigated with regard to structural
failure, degradation and surround-
ing factors. The application of neural
networks also seems to promise var-
ious fields of research in other sub-
disciplinary areas of engineering.
Endnotes
1 Bishop, C.M. Neural Networks for Pattern Recognition, Oxford University Press, 1995
2 Jung, S., Sobanjo, J., Munoz, G.J. Visualization and Assessment of the Aging Infrastructure Using Self-Organizing Map
3 Neural Network Toolbox 6.0.4, Crab Classification, The Mathworks Inc., 2010.
4 Sinha, M., Kennedy, C.S, Ramundo, M.L. Artificial neural network predicts CT scan abnormalities in pediatric patients with closed head injury, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2001.
5 Asuncion, A., Newman, D.J. UCI Machine Learning Repository, Irvine, CA
Bibliography
Asuncion, A., Newman, D.J. UCI Machine Learning Repository, Irvine, CA: University of California, School of Information and Computer Science, 2007.
Bishop, C.M. Neural Networks for Pattern Recognition, Oxford University Press, 1995.
Jung, S., Sobanjo, J., Munoz, G.J. Visualization and Assessment of the Aging Infrastructure Using Self-Organizing Map, 19 Computational Specialty Conference, 2010.
Neural Network Toolbox 6.0.4, Crab Classification, The Mathworks Inc., 2010.
Sinha, M., Kennedy, C.S, Ramundo, M.L. Artificial neural network predicts CT scan abnormalities in pediatric patients with closed head injury, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2001.
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APPENDIX
Table 1: Character Representation of Mushroom CharacteristicsMushroom Characteristics
Cap-Shape
Cap- Surface
Cap- Color Bruises Odor Gill
AttachmentGill
Spacing Gill Size Gill Color
bell fibrous brown yes almond attached close broad black
conical grooves buff no anise descending crowded narrow brown
convex scaly cinna-mon creosote free distant buff
flat smooth gray fishy notched choco-late
knbbed green foul gray
sunken pink musty green
purple none orange
red pungent pink
white spicy purple
yellow red
white
yellow
Mushroom Characteristics
Stalk Shape
Stalk Root
Stalk surface above ring
Stalk surface below ring
Stalk color above ring
Stalk color below ring
Veil type
Veil color
Ring number
enlarg-ing bulbous fibrous fibrous brown brown partial brown none
tapering club scaly scaly buff buff univer-sal
or-ange one
cup silky silky cinna-mon
cinna-mon white two
equal smooth smooth gray gray yellow
rhizo-morphs orange orange
rooted pink pink
missing red red
white white
yellow yellow
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Mushroom CharacteristicsRing type Spore print color Population Habitat
cobwebby black abundant grasses
evanescent brown clustered leaves
flaring buff numerous meadows
large chcolate scattered paths
none green several urban
pendant orange solitary waste
sheathing purple woods
zone white
yellow
Table 2: Numerical Representation of Mushroom Characteristics (*Simplification*)
Mushroom CharacteristicsCap-Shape
Cap-Surface
Cap-Color Bruises Odor Gill
AttachmentGill
spacing Gill size Gill color
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
3 3 3 3 3 3 3
4 4 4 4 4 4
5 5 5 5
6 6 6 6
7 7 7
8 8 8
9 9 9
10 10
11
12
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Mushroom Characteristics
Stalk Sahpe
Stalk Root
Stalk surface
above ring
Stalk surface
below ringStalk color above ring
Stalk color below ring
Veil type
Veil color
Ring number
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
3 3 3 3 3 3 3
4 4 4 4 4 4
5 5 5
6 6 6
7 7 7
8 8
9 9
Mushroom CharacteristicsRing type Spore print color Population Habitat
1 1 1 1
2 2 2 2
3 3 3 3
4 4 4 4
5 5 5 5
6 6 6 6
7 7 7
8 8
9
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Figure 1: Two-Layer Feed-forward Artificial Neural Network
Figure 2: Neural Network Toolbox Matlab Table 3: Different combinations used for Testing
60% Training
20% Training
20% Training
20% Validation
20% Validation
60% Validation
20% Testing
60% Testing
20% Testing
60% Training
20% Training
20% Training
20% Validation
20% Validation
60% Validation
20% Testing
60% Testing
20% Testing
60% Training
20% Training
20% Training
20% Validation
20% Validation
60% Validation
20% Testing
60% Testing
20% Testing
60% Training
20% Training
20% Training
20% Validation
20% Validation
60% Validation
20% Testing
60% Testing
20% Testing
1,000 iterations
5 Nodes
20 Nodes
5 Nodes
20 Nodes
10,000 iterations
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Figure 3: 1,000 iterations, 5 nodes, 60%R, 20%V, 20%T - stopped at 888 iterations
Figure 4: 1,000 iterations, 5 nodes, 20%R, 20%V, 60%T - min. gradient reached at 37 iterations
Figure 5: 1,000 iterations, 5 nodes, 20%R, 60%V, 20%T - max. epoch reached
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Figure 6: 1,000 iterations, 20 nodes, 60%R, 20%V, 20%T - max. epoch reached
Figure 7: 1,000 iterations, 20 nodes, 20%R, 20%V, 60%T - max. epoch reached
Figure 8: 1,000 iterations, 20 nodes, 20%R, 60%V, 20%T - min. gradient reached - 211 epochs
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Figure 9: 10,000 iterations, 5 nodes, 60%R, 20%V, 20%T - max. epoch reached
Figure 10: 10,000 iterations, 5 nodes, 20%R, 20%V, 60%T - min. gradient reached - 5,291
Figure 11: 10,000 iterations, 5 nodes, 20%R, 60%V, 20%T - min. gradient reached - 3,077 epochs
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Figure 12: 10,000 iterations, 20 nodes, 60%R, 20%V, 20%T - min. gradient reached - 1,342
Figure 13: 10,000 iterations, 20 nodes, 20%R, 20%V, 60%T - min. gradient reached - 3,530
Figure 14: 10,000 iterations, 20 nodes, 20%R, 60%V, 20%T - max. epoch reached
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A SIMPLE METHOD FOR CHARACTERIZING
IRIDESCENCE
DOROTHY JACKSON, STEVEN LENHERTFaculty Advisor: Steven Lenhert
Department of Biological Science & Integrative NanoScience Institute
Iridescence is the change in hue of a surface with varying angles of illumination and/or observation; it
is generated by optical diffraction resulting from subwavelength features on the specimen’s surface.1,
2 This form of structural coloration enhances various biological processes (e.g., mate selection,
species recognition, defense, and photosynthesis) for a wide variety of animal and plant species.1, 3, 4
The invention of the electron microscope is responsible for many of the major breakthroughs in the
ultrastructural characterization of iridescence, and electron microscopy is among the most commonly
cited methods used.2 The goal of this project is to present a simple method for characterizing
iridescence that overcomes cost and portability limitations associated with commonly used methods.
While iridescence is typically characterized using electron microscopy,1,
3, 5-11 such methods often involve the use of expensive equipment that may
be inaccessible to biologists in the field or to student researchers; keeping
this in mind, the procedure presented in this paper is designed to be eas-
ily performed by individuals interested in researching iridescence. Various
forms of microscopy, spectroscopy, and cytophotometry require the use of
expensive, typically non-portable equipment that is often unavailable to stu-
dents completing research or to biologists interested in characterizing iri-
descent phenotypes in the field. The methods and materials presented in this
Pictured: Scientist with petri dishes, ca. 1960s
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40 | THE OWL
paper are comparatively inexpen-
sive (<500 USD) and portable, and
the protocols are easily performed.
Further, this unique experimental
design generates qualitative results
comparable to published quantita-
tive results.
The presented project uses an-
gle dependent optical microscopy
to generate qualitative information
that characterizes iridescence, us-
ing the wing of a Morpho butterfly
as a standard biological specimen;
the presented methods and experi-
mental design can be applied to any
iridescent material in biology or in
other fields.
In the setup used here (Figure
1), a color digital camera and white
light source are arranged at control-
lable angles relative to the sample
surface, and data are recorded at var-
ious illumination angles. The results
observed are qualitatively consistent
with results generated from other
studies of iridescence in the Morpho
butterfly and, interestingly, in stud-
ies of the Selaginellawilldenowii, a
blue-green iridescent fern 3, 4. The
following summary of recently pub-
lished papers on iridescence and its
proposed biological functions con-
textualizes the data presented in this
paper.
Iridescence has been character-
ized in a variety of insects, amphibi-
ans, and birds, and plants.3 Scientists
from various disciplines are interest-
ed in iridescence, indicating the rel-
evance and potential applications of
improved understanding of this phe-
nomenon. Iridescence is produced
by optical diffraction resulting from
a combination both regular and ir-
regular micro and nano-sized struc-
tural features on the surfaces of vari-
ous animal and plant species.12While
some structural similarities exist
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between iridescent species in the
plant and animal kingdoms, its pro-
posed functions differ.13 The recently
published review by Doucet and
Meadows provides a concise outline
of the proposed functions of animal
iridescence. Among these functions
is the visual communication of in-
formation between animals (e.g., age
and sex).4, 14-18 Structural color in an-
imals is also thought to aid animals
in eluding predators, either by cam-
ouflage or by mimicry.19-22
Plant and floral iridescence,
though not as widely character-
ized as animal iridescence, has been
observed in various plant species.
Suggested functions of floral irides-
cence in pollinating flowers are re-
lated to the attraction of pollinating
animals.1 It is also hypothesized that
plants growing in low-light envi-
ronments evolve structural features
that enable them to capture light
within the micro-structures in their
leaves;these microstructures that are
believed to be responsible for the
iridescence of various plant species
(e.g., S. willdenowii).13, 19
An important next step in the
continued characterization of plant
iridescence is the investigation of
the various kinds of plant species
that exhibit this structural color
property. Characterization of floral
iridescence will have to extend be-
yond structures that are exclusively
iridescent in the visible light range,
as the optical properties of pollinat-
ing animals (e.g. bees) vary greatly
from those of humans, thereby en-
abling some animals to perceive UV-
iridescence exhibited in some floral
plant species. It was recently demon-
strated for the first time that the red
rose is UV-iridescent.22 Similar ob-
servations are likely to be found in
various species of flowering plants.22
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Plants also rely on structural
color for various purposes related to
display and defense. Plants, howev-
er, are interested in communicating
with pollinating animals rather than
with other plants. A likely function
of floral iridescence and iridescence
in various pollinating species is to
assist plants in communicating with
pollinators.4, 23 Plant iridescence is
also thought to defend plants from
animal predators and from poten-
tially harmful levels of light.4
While some forms of structural
coloration are chemically produced,
iridescence can only be derived from
physical properties.6, 24 Structural
colorin butterfly wings is derived
from periodically spaced sub-mi-
crometer structures. The formation
mechanisms of these biological
structures are extremely complex,
as each individual scale’s nano-
scopic properties contribute to this
physical color.2 Various attempts at
the biomimetic replication of these
nanostructures have been made.24
Computer technology has also been
integral in the characterization and
replication of these structures.2
Materials and Methods
Some previously reported
methods for characterizing irides-
cent structures in various animal
and floral species include various
forms of microscopy and spectros-
copy (i.e. transmission electron mi-
croscopy (TEM), scanning electron
(SEM), and atomic force micros-
copy (AFM)) and various forms of
spectroscopy, such as angle-resolved
spectroscopy.1, 3, 13, 22 This paper re-
ports an experiment using optical
and light microscopy, thereby pro-
viding researchers with a simple
method for qualitatively charac-
terizing biological iridescence.
In contrast to the methods used in
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previous experiments, the meth-
ods presented herein are simply
performed and the materials are
easily obtained and comparatively
inexpensive.
The wing from a blue iridescent
Morpho butterfly is the specimen
chosen for this project; iridescence in
Morpho butterflies is widely charac-
terized.2, 5, 7, 25 The specimen imaged
is supplied by JourdanJoly, Tallahas-
see, FL. Figure 1 shows the apparatus
used to image the butterfly wing and
Figure 2 shows the butterfly wing,
imaged at two different angles of in-
cidence. The images are split into the
three channels, red, green, and blue,
which are then analyzed to produce
the data in figures 3 and 4.
The sample is imaged using a
Dino Scope Pro (The Microscope
Store, L.L.C., at a magnification of
17x). The microscope is three inch-
es above the sample at a 90o angle
relative to the plane of the sample.
The white light source used is a 500-
watt Fiber-Lite, High-Intensity Il-
luminator Series 180 (Dolan-Jenner
Industries, Inc.). The lowest inten-
sity setting of the lamp is used to im-
age the sample.
An image of the setup (Figure
1) is taken using a standard digital
camera; the camera lens is paral-
lel to the plane of the sample and
perpendicular to the beam of light.
The angle between the beam of light
and the plane of the sample is mea-
sured using Screen Protractor soft-
ware (Iconico, Inc.), and the optimal
distance between the light source
and the sample is identified as three
inches. A ruler is used to measure
the distance from the light source to
the sample at each angle of illumina-
tion, and the distances from the light
source to the sample range from 3 to
3.5 inches.
NAT
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44 | THE OWL
The images photographed with
the Dino Scope are analyzed using
ImageJ (Research Services Branch,
National Institute of Mental Health).
The butterfly wing remains station-
ary while the light source is adjusted
according to the desired angle. The
data from the analysis of each image
in its entirety is reported in Figure
3. The same circular region of the
sample is isolated in the nine images
taken at varied angles of incidence.
These data are reported in Figure 4.
Results and Discussion
Each photograph taken is ana-
lyzed twice. Figure 3 data is from the
analysis of the circular portion of
the center of the image. This region
clearly demonstrates the change of
the wing’s coloration as the angle of
incidence changes. The data in Fig-
ure 4 are from the analysis of the en-
tire wing. These data are included as
the entire photograph of the winghas
some regions that are in shadow.
Rather than discarding these re-
gions as artifacts, the function of the
shadow in Morpho’s natural envi-
ronment is considered. As suggested
in previously published literature on
Morpho structural color, iridescence
in this butterfly might function as a
defense mechanism; the shadowy re-
gions of the wing as seen at various
angles of incidence might serve the
same function.4
The specimen is placed on the
stage underneath the microscope
and the angle of incidence between
the light source and the specimen is
varied. The specimen is imaged at
various angles of incidence, and the
corresponding angle is measured
and recorded. The intensity values of
red, green, and blue (reported in gray
scale values) are measured in each
image and compared as a function of
the angle of incidence. Though the
NATU
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distance of the light from the surface
of the specimen varies some as the
angle is adjusted, the light source is
consistently between 3-3.5 inches
from the sample. It can be seen that
the intensities of red, green, and blue
vary as the angle of incidence is ad-
justed (See Figure 2 and Supplemen-
tal Video 1).
A graph providing the Dino
Scope camera’s relative spectral re-
sponsesto the colors blue, green,
and red is available on microscope
manufacturer’s website; this graph
indicates that the maximum spec-
tral responses for these three wave-
lengths are 470, 540, and 615 nm, re-
spectively. The intensities observed
in the data reported in both Figures
3 and 4 indicate that blue is the most
intense color observed in the images
taken at an angle of incidence less
than 41o. This observation is consis-
tent with previous characterizations
of Morpho iridescence.2, 26The rela-
tive intensities of green and red are
different between the two figures.
In the analysis of the circular re-
gion of the image indicated in fig-
ure 2, as presented in Figure 3 data,
the intensity of green generally in-
creases as the angle of incidence is
increased. The intensity values mea-
sured at lower angles of incidence
are also consistent with its striking
blue color, which is easily observed
when looking at the Morphobutter-
fly’s wings.
In the analysis of the circular
portion of the wing, the peak in-
tensity value for red is observed
between 0-40 o, whereas the peak
intensities for blue and green are ob-
served at higher angles of illumina-
tion. In the analysis of both figures
3 and 4, it can be seen that blue and
green generallyhave similar intensity
measurements. Red intensity values
NAT
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46 | THE OWL
remain comparatively constant be-
tween the two figures.
As animal iridescence has been
suggested as a way for animals to
communicate with each other and
to defend themselves against preda-
tors, it is conceivable that Morpho
iridescence might be an evolved de-
fense or communication method;
Frederiksen and co-workers provide
an analysis of the Morpho’s optical
properties that might explain the
observed trends between the data
presented in Figures 3 and 4.27 The
co-development of the coloration
systems of predator and prey imply
their interconnected nature and in-
terdependence; the characterization
of iridescence further develops an
understanding of the fundamental
biological relationships and mecha-
nisms responsible for the construc-
tion of these evolved structural
details.
In bright light, the blue-green
iridescence of the Selaginellawillde-
nowii becomes reddish brown. This
observation is consistent with the
shift in coloration of the Morpho
data reported in this experiment.13
The lower angles shine light more
directly on the specimen than the
higher angles. The diversity of natu-
ral photonic structures in the anima
and plant kingdoms indicates the
degree to which light functions as
a significant selective pressure in
various species. Vukisic and Sambles
propose arm that the sensitivity to
shadow observed in the iridescent
ossicles in a light-sensitive species
of brittlestar (Ophiocomawendtii)
functions as a warning in the pres-
ence of predators.5 Perhaps the same
is true in the Morpho.
NATU
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IENC
ES
1 H. M. Whitney, M. Kolle, P. Andrew, L. Chittka, U. Steiner, B. J. Glover, Science 2009, 323, 130.
2 G. S. Smith, American Journal of Physics 2009, 77, 1010.
3 P. Vukusic, Ophthalmic and Physiological Optics 2010, 30, 435.
4 S. M. Doucet, M. G. Meadows, Journal of the Royal Society Interface 2009, 6, S115.
5 P. Vukusic, J. R. Sambles, Nature 2003, 424, 852.6 E. Bradshaw, P. J. Rudall, D. S. Devey, M. M.
Thomas, B. J. Glover, R. M. Bateman, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 2010, 162, 504.
7 R. O. Prum, T. Quinn, R. H. Torres, Journal of Experimental Biology 2006, 209, 748.
8 M. D. Shawkey, N. I. Morehouse, P. Vukusic, Journal of the Royal Society Interface 2009, 6, S221.
9 A. E. Seago, P. Brady, J. P. Vigneron, T. D. Schultz, Journal of the Royal Society Interface 2009, 6, S165.
10 B. D. Wilts, H. L. Leertouwer, D. G. Stavenga, Journal of the Royal Society Interface 2009, 6, S185.
11 L. Poladian, S. Wickham, K. Lee, M. C. J. Large, Journal of the Royal Society Interface 2009, 6, S233.
12 S. M. Lee, J. Üpping, A. Bielawny, M. Knez, Acs Applied Materials & Interfaces 2011, 3, 30.
13 K. R. Thomas, M. Kolle, H. M. Whitney, B. J. Glover, U. Steiner, Journal of the Royal Society Interface 2010, 7, 1699.
14 R. L. Rutowski, Journal of Comparative Physiology 1977, 115, 61.
15 R. L. Rutowski, Journal of Comparative Physiology 1977, 115, 75.
16 R. E. Silberglied, O. R. Taylor, Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 1978, 3, 203.
17 D. J. Kemp, Evolutionary Ecology Research 2006, 8, 515.
18 P. P. Bitton, R. D. Dawson, Journal of Avian Biology 2008, 39, 446.
19 B. J. Glover, H. M. Whitney, Annals of Botany 2010, 105, 505.
20 T. D. Schultz, G. D. Bernard, Nature 1989, 337, 72.
21 T. D. Schultz, Bulletin of the Entomological Society of America 1986, 32, 142.
22 L. Feng, Y. A. Zhang, M. Z. Li, Y. M. Zheng, W. Z. Shen, L. Jiang, Langmuir 2010, 26, 14885.
23 C. Hebánt, D. W. Lee, American Journal of Botany 1984, 71, 216.
24 Z. Shenmin, et al., Nanotechnology 2009, 20, 315303.
25 S. Kinoshita, S. Yoshioka, K. Kawagoe, Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B-Biological Sciences 2002, 269, 1417.
26 P. Vukusic, D. G. Stavenga, Journal of the Royal Society Interface 2009, 6, S133.
27 R. Frederiksen, E. J. Warrant, J ExpBiol 2008, 211, 844.
NAT
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48 | THE OWL
APPENDIX
Figure 1: Figure 1 shows how each angle of incidenceis defined and where the camera is
positioned relative to the sample. The arrow indicates the position of the camera, which is
not altered throughout the course of this experiment.The angle between the beam of light
and the surface of the wing is defined. In the following experiments, the “angle” is defined
as the point where the beam of light meets the plane of the surface of the wing. The wing is
held stationary by a microcentrifuge tube, which is resting on the edge of the specimen.The
microcentrifuge tube is 3.81 cm long.
(a) (b)
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(c) Blue 39.808 (d) Blue 82.38
(e) Green 39.618 (f) Green 87.926
(g) Red 83.279 (h) Red 20.702
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50 | THE OWL
Figure 2: Here, the wing can be seen imaged at two different angles of incidence; (a) 17.94o
is on the left, and (b) 57.62o is on the right. These two angles are chosen because they clearly
demonstrate the changes in color of the wing with the changing angles of incidence. The
images are split into blue, green, and red channels (Figure 2 c-h). The intensity corresponding
to each channel is provided below each image (reported in gray scale values). The difference
in the intensities of each color at different angles of incidence can be seen in this figure.
The circular region indicated in the first of these images corresponds to the region that is
analyzed in Figure 3 data. Supplemental video 1 shows all nine images analyzed arranged in
order of increasing angle of illumination.
Figure 3: These data demonstrate the changes in intensity of the colors red, green, and blue
observed as the angle of incidence is varied. The circular portion of the image of the wing
indicated in Figure 2 (a) is analyzed in this figure.
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Figure 4: These data demonstrate the changes in intensity of the colors red, green, and blue
observed as the angle of incidence is varied. The entire image of the specimen (Figure 2) is
analyzed in these data. Figures 3 and 4 are both included as they compare the analysis of
a small portion of the image with that of the entire image. The intensity values of blue and
green fluctuate more than those of red between the two figures.
52 | THE OWL
Poem Beginning with a Quote from Wittgenstein
In a certain sense we cannot make mistakesbut in many senses, we can. Shattered salad
bowls don’t happen on their own and someonehas to hammer the nails into the wood
to make it split and strip screws like cuticlesor flecks of flesh. Knees don’t scab themselves
and the logical expression of coffee grounds is coffee,or vice versa. Once upon a time and it was a very nice time—
haven’t we heard this before? Someone has to chop down the sycamore tree to make the chairs.
Michael Shea
Organic Series: Untitled III,by Danielle Delph
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54 | THE OWL
INTERNATIONAL SECURITY IN SPACE: PRESIDENTIAL
LEADERSHIP AND THE FUTURE OF OUTER SPACE
BRIAN DENNYFaculty Advisors: Jonathan Rogers & Vilma Fuentes§
2Florida State University, Department of Political Science, Tallahassee, FL
This work juxtaposes the history and current state of America’s involvement in militarizing outer
space against the peaceful ideals that frame the Outer Space Treaty of 1967, which was dramatically
shaped by the United States and the space race mentality of the Cold War. This work seeks to shed
light on the actual objectives and intentions of American outer space policies, past and present.
Attention is focused on the influence of the office of the president and the prevailing attitudes towards
the weaponization of space that seemingly contradict the peaceful ideals set forth in the Outer Space
Treaty of 1967. By analyzing the early years of American space exploration, a distinct pattern of
American exceptionalism can be seen. This pattern, when viewed in light of more recent American
space policies that have consistently chipped away at the international agreements concerning the
weaponization of outer space, clearly predicts the eventual withdrawal of the United States from the
Outer Space Treaty in favor of strategically unilateral defensive posturing.
The 1967 Treaty on the Principles Governing the Activities of
States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and
Other Celestial Bodies (Outer Space Treaty), was initiated by the United
States in order to prevent the Soviets’ early leading position in the space race
from evolving into a distinct military advantage. Regardless of the peaceful
ideals set forth in the Outer Space Treaty, the Cold War mindset that fostered
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its creation was the compelling force
behind the early space endeavors of
the United States and perpetuated
the notion of an arms race in outer
space. This same mindset may be
partly to blame for the “American
exemptionalism” that has been the
impetus for the slow, but steady,
devolution of the Outer Space Treaty
and the ideals that it espouses.
American exemptionalism has been
defined as the “ways in which the
United States actually exempts itself
from certain international law rules
and agreements, even ones that it
may have played a critical role in
framing.”1 Despite being the initiator
of the Outer Space Treaty, the United
States is now by far the world’s leading
power in space-based weapons
and defense systems. Analyses of
the international political climates
surrounding key U.S. benchmarks
in space exploration will show how
early attempts to garner national
pride have progressed to military
posturing. The United States’
comprehensive weaponization of
outer space and eventual withdrawal
from the Outer Space Treaty can be
predicted by examining more recent
events and U.S. military policies.
Although outer space may seem
like a unique arena for the conduct-
ing of international politics, it shares
its defining features and governing
principles with two earthly realms:
Antarctica and the high seas. As the
world’s lands were divided by the
sovereign states of the Westphalian
system, the high seas and the entirely
unsettled Antarctic region remained
outside of the territorial system that
had taken form. It wasn’t until dis-
putes over these areas began in the
20th century that the unique subset
of modern international laws was
established.2,3 The common aspect
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56 | THE OWL
shared by outer space, Antarctica
and the world’s oceans is a principle
in modern law called the Common
Heritage of Mankind.4 The main
purpose of this principle, which is
based on the five essential mandates
that follow, is to ensure that regions
shared by the world’s population re-
main perpetually untarnished. The
first element dictates that common
areas are to remain free from ap-
propriation. No entity, government,
corporation or peoples can lay claim
to ownership of these areas. Second-
ly, management of these areas is to
be shared by all people. This requires
that those making decisions in re-
gards to these regions act as repre-
sentatives of all mankind rather than
of their respective nations. Exploita-
tion of shared areas is not specifical-
ly forbidden, however; the third el-
ement requires that these resources
benefit all mankind and not solely
the exploiting nation. The fourth el-
ement, which figures prominently in
this paper, preserves these expanses
exclusively for peaceful purposes.
The installation of military bases and
the conducting of weapons testing
and other related activities are pro-
hibited. Scientific research, accord-
ing to the final element, is acceptable
but the local ecologies are to remain
undamaged. These five elements of
the Common Heritage of Mankind
principle ensure maximum benefit
for the current generations, while
preserving these benefits for all fu-
ture generations as well.5 Although
the Common Heritage of Mankind
principle is espoused in the Outer
Space Treaty, it seems that the intense
competition of the Cold War over-
shadowed the peaceful and diplo-
matic intentions articulated therein.
A closer look at the history of space
exploration reveals possible ulterior
SOC
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motives for establishing outer space
initiatives under such a regime and
also explains certain ambiguities
contained within its doctrines.
FOUNDING FATHERS OFOUTERSPACE EXPLORATION
The foundation of the United
States’ space program was put into
place under the leadership of Presi-
dent Dwight D. Eisenhower in the
1950s. Conventional wisdom of the
time awarded great notoriety and in-
fluence to the first country to enter
space.6 Eisenhower was determined
to prevent communist regimes from
gaining this advantage. He aimed
to accomplish this while simultane-
ously renouncing the very idea of
a “space race” between the U.S.S.R.
and the United States, so as to less-
en perceptions of aggression by the
American military.7 In order to ac-
complish this dual task, he relied on
the guise of civilian research projects
as cover stories for reconnaissance
and the testing of rockets and satel-
lites. Hiding his agenda’s true nature
would not only ease tensions, but it
would also allow the United States to
quietly set a precedent for “freedom
of space” without drawing world at-
tention to the accomplishment. The
establishment of this precedent was
one of the main initiatives set forth
by Eisenhower’s Technological Ca-
pabilities Panel (TCP), a group led
by the president of the Massachu-
setts Institute of Technology.8 The
TCP was put together to ascertain
America’s ability to counter Soviet
attacks using the latest technologies.
Determining the Soviets’ military
capabilities would require intel-
ligence reconnaissance, but flying
over the airspace of another country
without permission violated inter-
national laws and was likely to be
perceived as an act of aggression.9
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58 | THE OWL
However, up until that time, the
term “airspace” had remained unde-
fined, so Eisenhower’s team sought
to establish the upper bounds of the
Soviets’ airspace by launching a very
small satellite that would orbit at a
much higher altitude than any air-
craft that was available at the time.
This satellite was designed simply to
set the precedent for international
airspace that would allow a larger
intelligence satellite to fly over the
region in the future.10 Despite this
initiative, the American military
was not able to produce a satellite as
quickly as Eisenhower had hoped,
so an alternate plan was created. In
January 1956, hundreds of balloons
equipped with photographic equip-
ment were set to drift high over the
Soviet Union as part of a scientific
study of clouds. The balloons were
rigged to sink to a much lower alti-
tude at night so as not to provoke the
Soviets into rapidly devising a high-
altitude weapons system that could
interrupt future American recon-
naissance programs. Shortly after
the launch, however, the Soviets held
a press conference, displaying doz-
ens of American spy balloons that
had been shot down at night, and
lambasted the supposedly peace-
ful program as a violation of their
sovereignty.11
Despite this embarrassing set-
back, the plans for another reconnais-
sance mission were nearing comple-
tion. The U-2 spy plane, which was
being portrayed as yet another civil-
ian weather program, would fly over
the Soviet Union a few months later
at nearly 70,000 feet, taking pictures
of the landscape in search of military
installations. It was quickly detected
by the Soviets, but no objections
of airspace violation were raised.
Rather than reveal their inability to
SOC
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shoot down an object at that high an
altitude, the Soviets remained silent
and allowed the “civilian weather
program” to continue without ac-
knowledging the situation.12 This ac-
quiescence was a promising sign for
the future of Vanguard, America’s
first satellite program. Because the
U-2 civilian cover story was effec-
tive, despite the Soviets’ awareness of
the espionage, the National Security
Council declared that the Vanguard
program should also be framed as
a civilian project.13 This time it was
the International Geophysical Year
(IGY), modeled after two previous
periods of concerted international
research of the Earth’s polar regions,
dubbed Polar Years, that would serve
as the cover story for gathering in-
telligence using America’s first satel-
lite. 14 Despite the implied consent
that would be given to the passage
of international scientific satellites
during the IGY, a legal adviser to the
Department of State at the time stat-
ed, “The United States Government
has not recognized any top or upper
limit to its sovereignty.”15 In fact, he
continued, the United States “has
plainly asserted its complete and ex-
clusive sovereignty over the airspace
above its territory,” and did not for-
feit any portion of its sovereignty “in
the higher regions of space.”16 In ad-
dition, it was made clear to several
Congressional committees that for-
eign satellites flying above Ameri-
can territory would not constitute
precedence.17
A great shock came in October
1957 when Sputnik I, the first satel-
lite to enter space, was launched by
the Soviet Union. The Americans
had been beaten to outer space and,
according to many, the political val-
ue of this feat was immense. About
a month later, Sputnik 2, a much
SOC
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60 | THE OWL
larger satellite carrying a live dog,
launched and was viewed by many
as a sure sign of Soviet military su-
periority. In December of that year,
the American attempt to send up the
Vanguard satellite resulted in a tele-
vised failure as it exploded on the
launch pad.18 The space race was not
off to a promising start for America.
Immediately after the launch of the
first Soviet satellite, Senator Lyndon
B. Johnson, chairman of the Pre-
paredness Investigation Subcommit-
tee, organized an investigation to de-
termine the best way for the U.S. to
build a preeminent space program.19
Special committees had also been
formed by the House of Represen-
tatives, the Department of Defense,
Department of State, Bureau of the
Budget, and the Executive Branch.20
All of these committees agreed that
the creation of a new agency was
needed to spearhead America’s
efforts in space exploration.21 It was
also agreed that a civilian agency
would better secure prestige for the
United States, despite Eisenhower’s
contention that outer space remain
under the domain of the Depart-
ment of Defense.22,23,24 The National
Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958,
which effectively created the NASA
space program, declared that “it is
the policy of the United States that
activities in space should be devoted
to peaceful purposes for the benefit
of all mankind.”25 Just a few weeks
after the formation of NASA, John-
son proposed to the United Nations
the creation of an Ad hoc Commit-
tee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer
Space, saying:
[I]f nations proceed unilateral-
ly….we know that the advances into
space may only mean adding a new
dimension to warfare. If, however,
we proceed along the orderly course
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of full cooperation, we shall by the
very fact of cooperation make the
most substantial contribution yet
made toward perfecting peace.26
Several countries, most notably
the U.S.S.R., initially opposed the
committee, based on its call for ma-
jority voting; however, it was even-
tually agreed upon that decisions
would be made by consensus.27 This
new United Nations committee, cre-
ated at the behest of the United States
in 1958 and concerned with the pro-
tection of outer space from potential
conflict, would be the setting for the
eventual creation of the Outer Space
Treaty in 1967.28 In just a few years,
the realm of outer space had ad-
vanced from a propagandized goal
among the Cold War superpowers
to a supposedly peaceful realm sup-
ported by an international treaty. De-
spite the proclamation of outer space
as a peaceful environment, however,
Eisenhower’s silent merging of the
military establishment with the sci-
entific community would arguably
become his legacy.29 Indeed, his fare-
well speech in 1961 warned against
the very military-industrial complex
that he helped to create in response
to the Soviet threat of preeminence
in space:30
A vital element in keeping the
peace is our military establishment.
Our arms must be mighty, ready
for instant action, so that no po-
tential aggressor may be tempted to
risk his own destruction…We have
been compelled to create a perma-
nent armaments industry of vast
proportions…This conjunction of
an immense military establishment
and a large arms industry is new in
the American experience…We rec-
ognize the imperative need for this
development. Yet we must not fail to
comprehend its grave implications.
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62 | THE OWL
Our toil, resources and livelihood
are all involved; so is the very struc-
ture of our society. In the councils of
government, we must guard against
the acquisition of unwarranted influ-
ence, whether sought or unsought,
by the military-industrial complex.
The potential for the disastrous rise
of misplaced power exists and will
persist. We must never let the weight
of this combination endanger our
liberties or democratic processes.
We should take nothing for granted.
Only an alert and knowledgeable cit-
izenry can compel the proper mesh-
ing of the huge industrial and mili-
tary machinery of defense with our
peaceful methods and goals, so that
security and liberty may prosper to-
gether. Akin to, and largely respon-
sible for the sweeping changes in our
industrial-military posture, has been
the technological revolution during
recent decades.31
As John F. Kennedy took office,
he did not appear to be as knowl-
edgeable about or concerned with
American space policy, despite the
momentous happenings of the pre-
vious administration.32 The deci-
sions made during his presidency,
however, would have a tremendous
impact on the direction the U.S.
space program would take. Dur-
ing his campaign, Kennedy was a
staunch critic of the lead in the space
race Eisenhower had given to the So-
viets.33 This American disadvantage
was exacerbated when the U.S.S.R.
managed to send the first astronaut
to outer space just three months into
Kennedy’s presidential term. The
failure of the Bay of Pigs invasion
one week later did little to help im-
prove Kennedy’s perceived track re-
cord against the Soviet Union.34 The
president issued a memo to then-
Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson
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calling for a monumental space feat
that would not only serve as a politi-
cal diversion from the blows to his
early credibility but would also have
a unifying effect upon the general
public:
Do we have a chance of beating
the Soviets by putting a laboratory in
space, or by a trip around the moon,
or by a rocket to land on the moon,
or by a rocket to go to the moon and
back with a man? Is there any oth-
er space program which promises
dramatic results in which we could
win?35
The same day that this memo
was given to Johnson, Kennedy
was quoted by reporters as saying,
“If we can get to the moon before
the Russians, we should.”36 Kenne-
dy’s naming of Johnson as the new
chairman of the President’s Space
Council, along with Kennedy’s proc-
lamation of a newly revived space
race, firmly established America’s
aggressive course in space explora-
tion that would persist throughout
the 1960s.37 The official announce-
ment of the Apollo program in May
of 1961 meant that NASA would
have to revise the long-range goals
that were established during the
Eisenhower administration.38 These
orderly plans involved building a
reusable spacecraft that would help
make space operations more routine
and the construction of a perma-
nently inhabited space station. Only
after these goals were accomplished
did NASA intend on sending a man
to the moon.39 Although Kennedy’s
desire to demonstrate American su-
periority had little practical merit
outside of its propaganda value, the
Apollo missions would greatly in-
crease the size, scope, and budget of
NASA during the early 1960s.40 In
1965, the funding for NASA claimed
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5.3 percent of the overall federal
budget, a significant margin above
the typical one percent for all NASA
budgets since.41
DETERIORATION OF THE COMMON HERITAGE OF
MANKIND
President Ronald Reagan began
the process of undermining the phil-
osophical basis of the Common Her-
itage of Mankind principle when the
United States became the only major
power to vote against the U.N. Con-
vention on the Law of the Sea due
to the “deep seabed mining part of
the convention [that did] not meet
United States objectives.”42 Reagan’s
focus on economics and market
forces directly resulted in a depar-
ture from international cooperation
that had continued for decades and
promised to be the undoing of the
Outer Space Treaty. His reinterpre-
tation of the Anti-Ballistic Missile
(ABM) Treaty of 1972 also served to
fracture America’s record of interna-
tional cooperation.43 The ABM Trea-
ty was an essential U.S.-Soviet arms
control policy during the Cold War
that reinforced the model of mutual
deterrence by prohibiting the con-
struction by either country of defen-
sive shields.44 The Strategic Defense
Initiative, often referred to as the
“Star Wars” program, was an elabo-
rate and costly program that stood
in opposition to the ABM Treaty.
This program, the largest peacetime
defense project in U.S. history45, was
lauded by Reagan in the early 1980s
and called for the extensive use of
space weaponry.46 The administra-
tion’s argument for reinterpreta-
tion of the ABM Treaty hinged on
semantics and was denigrated by
the Senate Foreign Relations Com-
mittee as “the most flagrant abuse
of the Constitution’s treaty power
in 200 years of American history.”47
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The Strategic Defense Initiative was
eventually squelched by Congress
and never materialized during Rea-
gan’s Presidency.48
Another distinct shift in U.S.
policy came when President Bill
Clinton allowed the military testing
of a Mid Infrared Advanced Chemi-
cal Laser against an active Air Force
satellite.49 Although no treaties were
in place to prevent anti-satellite war-
fare, space-faring nations had been
reluctant to develop systems that
could jeopardize the sizeable global
network of intelligence and private
communication satellites.50 The test-
ing of this laser was met with intense
disapproval from Congress and Rus-
sian President Boris Yeltsin.51 Fur-
ther reinterpretation of the ABM
Treaty continued during the Clinton
administration and included actual
construction of defensive infrastruc-
ture, while the decision to utilize the
foundation was “deferred to the next
administration,” that of George W.
Bush.52
Bush’s Space Commission,
chaired by Donald Rumsfeld, issued
a report early in 2001 concluding
that preemption in defense of U.S.
space systems was necessary.53 The
decision to withdraw from the ABM
Treaty was made shortly after the
terrorist attacks on September 11,
2001.54 The American preoccupa-
tion with power, military strength,
and preemptive action that followed
these attacks led to a dramatic in-
crease in acts of American exemp-
tionalism. This is evidenced by the
considerable increase in funding
for space-based weapons systems
that contradict the principles of the
Outer Space Treaty.55 Based on this
recent spending increase, it is not
surprising that the United States re-
fused to discuss space security at the
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2002 U.N. Conference on Disarma-
ment. Eric Javits, the U.S. ambassa-
dor to the conference, explained that,
“there simply is no problem in outer
space for arms control to solve.”56
The United States, under Bush, also
voted against two U.N. resolutions:
the already-established resolution
on the Prevention of an Arms Race
in Outer Space and a new resolu-
tion put forth by Russia that would
create increased transparency in re-
gards to states’ space activities.57 The
administration’s aggressive approach
is most evident, however, in the U.S.
National Space Policy of 2006, which
was released late on a Friday after-
noon of a holiday weekend, an ap-
proach often used to suppress nega-
tive reactions.58 Although this new
policy begins with a reference to the
United States’ commitment to the
use of space for “peaceful purposes,”
it goes on to claim that defense and
intelligence activities “in pursuit of
national interests” are in harmony
with this principle.59 Yet the fact
that each state determines its own
national interests, combined with
broad wording such as this, seems to
convey an overreaching declaration
of authority. The policy goes on to
proclaim the United States’ right to
deny other countries from develop-
ing the means to compete in space.60
A separate publication from the Of-
fice of the Joint Chiefs of Staff asserts
that “the United States must be able
to protect its space assets and deny
the use of space assets by its adver-
saries.”61 The ambiguity of this state-
ment leaves open the possibility that
any space activity by any state may
be deemed by the president of the
United States as a threat to Ameri-
can interests.62 As a whole, the lan-
guage of the Bush administration’s
National Space Policy is vague at
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best. This is quite troubling as vague-
ness and matters of the law are not
particularly compatible.
No substantive policy chang-
es were made to the 2010 National
Space Policy by the Obama adminis-
tration. There was, however, a seem-
ingly deliberate shift made towards a
“less bellicose” tone by emphasizing
the importance of international co-
operation.63 This is an important first
step towards repairing America’s sta-
tus as a responsible leader in outer
space. However, despite this shift
in rhetoric, some, including Ben
Basely-Walker of the Secure World
Foundation, are convinced that an
“overarching space arms control ac-
cord” is unlikely for the foreseeable
future.64 Given this lack of actual le-
gal reform, it is likely that the Obama
administration’s space policy will, in
effect, result in a continuation of the
status quo.
RAMIFICATIONS OF AMERICAN EXEMPTIONALISM
As we learned during the first
decade of space exploration, unclear
laws, no matter how peaceable, can
be manipulated in order to further
aggressive agendas. Eisenhower cap-
italized on this in his attempts to de-
fine the U.S.S.R.’s territorial airspace
and the “freedom of space” princi-
ple. Many years later, Presidents Bill
Clinton and George W. Bush also
tested the boundaries of internation-
al law with their weakening of and
withdrawal from the ABM Treaty.
Given America’s state of heightened
tension following the September 11
terrorist attacks, eventual withdraw-
al from the Outer Space Treaty on
the grounds of national security and
protection of American assets seems
likely. This would likely be quick-
ened by a perceived act of aggression
towards the United States by any of
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the growing number of space-faring
countries.
Withdrawal from the treaty
would not be difficult. The Vienna
Convention on the Law of Trea-
ties details the circumstances under
which treaties are applicable and de-
clares that the relevant conditions
under which each treaty is ratified
are key to the consent of states to be
compelled by that particular treaty. If
these conditions drastically change,
the states’ obligations to adhere to
the treaty may also change.65 To this
end, there were no weapons in outer
space when the Outer Space Treaty
was put into effect in 1967. The sim-
ple fact that space weapons were not
in use at the time but have since been
developed could be viewed as a basis
on which to defect from the treaty.66
Use of this convenient escape clause
is not even necessary given the fact
that, in the case of conflicting laws,
some laws prevail over others.67
The inherent right to self-defense,
for example, is a peremptory norm
that simply cannot be violated un-
der international law and therefore
prevails over any treaty.68 The Bush
administration’s creative use of pre-
emptive self-defense put forth by
Rumsfeld’s Space Commission, an
approach that relies on “strategic
unilateralism and selective multilat-
eralism” 69 while avoiding conformity
to any international treaties that may
be deemed too constrictive, is char-
acteristic of American exemption-
alism.70 Eisenhower’s attempts to
establish precedence by flying satel-
lites over the U.S.S.R. while denying
the same precedence to the Soviets
during the IGY are earlier examples
of American self-exemption. These
dangerous double standards only
serve to weaken the system of inter-
national laws created in large part
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by the United States in order to safe-
guard American interests.71
By isolating itself from and ig-
noring the system of international
laws that it helped to create, Ameri-
can credibility is diminished and
the ability to guard American in-
terests is hampered. Only by heed-
ing the warning of Eisenhower’s
farewell address will the military-
industrial complex be prevented
from “endanger[ing] our liberties
or democratic processes.”72 Accord-
ing to one current theory, customary
international law is less restrictive
to states’ actions than it is derived
from the status quo.73 This implies
that the future of outer space lies in
the adherence by all space-faring na-
tions to the peaceful principles es-
tablished by the Common Heritage
of Mankind principle. In order for
this doctrine to become an accepted
part of international law, it needs to
be reexamined and placed within a
more concise legal framework.74 In
addition, a strengthened, authorita-
tive third-party mechanism respon-
sible for assuring compliance, rather
than the current self-enforcement
model, would be required.75 Only
through the stated revisions to the
language of the Outer Space Treaty
of 1967 and persistent, cooperative
presidential leadership will the Unit-
ed States be able to avoid the disaster
that would certainly result were it to
either continue introducing weap-
ons into outer space or withdraw
from the treaty altogether.
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§ Santa Fe College, Department of Political Science, Gainesville, FL
1 Harold Hongju Koh, “On American Exemptionalism,” Stanford Law Review 55, no. 5 (2003):1482.
2 Sumit Majumdar, “Institutions for International Co-operation: An Analysis of the United Nations Law of the Sea Conference and Convention,” Economic and Political Weekly 25, no 48/49 (1990) 2682-2683.
3 George S. Robinson and Harold M. White Jr, Envoys of Mankind: A Declaration of First Principles for the Governance of Space Societies (Washington D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, 1986), 196-197.
4 Christopher Joyner, “Legal Implications of the Concept of the Common Heritage of Mankind,” The International and Comparative Law Quarterly 35, no. 1 (1986): 190
5 Ibid, 191-1926 David Callahan and Fred I. Greenstein, “The
Reluctant Racer: Eisenhower and U.S. Space Policy,” Spaceflight and the Myth of Presidential Leadership, ed. Roger D. Launius and Howard E. McCurdy (Urbana: Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, 1997) 21.
7 Dwayne A. Day, “Cover Stories and Hidden Agendas: Early American Space and National Security Policy,” Reconsidering Sputnik: Forty Years Since the Soviet Satellite, ed. Roger D. Launius, John M. Logsdon, and Robert W. Smith (Washington DC: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 1997), 162
8 Ibid, 1639 Ibid, 162-16510 Ibid, 16711 Ibid, 171-17212 Ibid, 17313 Ibid, 17314 Eilene Galloway “Organizing the United States
Government for Outer Space, 1957-1958,” Reconsidering Sputnik: Forty Years Since the Soviet Satellite, ed. Roger D. Launius, John M. Logsdon, and Robert W. Smith (Washington DC: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 1997), 312-313
15 Testimony of Loftus E. Becker, Astronautics and Space Exploration, Hearings before the Select Committee on Astronautics and Space Exploration, House of Representatives, 85th Cong., 2nd Sess., on H.R. 11881, April 15-May 12, 1958, pp.1269 et seq.; National Aeronautics and Space Act, Hearings before the Special Committee on Space and Astronautics, U.S. Senate 85th Cong., 2nd Sess., on S. 3609, May 6-15, 1958, pp.315 et seq. (reprinted in part in 38
Department of State Bulletin 962 (June 9, 1958)); Relative to the Establishment of Plans for the Peaceful Exploration of Outer Space, Hearing before the Subcommittee on National Security and Scientific Developments Affecting Foreign Policy of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, House of Representatives, 85th Cong., 2nd Sess., on H. Con. Res. 326, May 20, 1958, pp. 23 et seq., quoted in O. J. Lissitzyn, “The American Position on Outer Space and Antarctica,” The American Journal of International Law 53, no. 1 (1959): 127
16 Ibid, 12717 Ibid, 126-12818 Day “Cover Stories and Hidden Agendas,” 18419 Galloway, “Organizing the United States
Government for Outer Space,” 30920 Galloway, “Organizing the United States
Government for Outer Space,” 31521 Ibid, 31522 Day, “Cover Stories and Hidden Agendas,” 18623 Galloway, “Organizing the United States
Government for Outer Space,” 31524 Callahan and Greenstein, “The Reluctant Racer,”
3725 Galloway, “Organizing the United States
Government for Outer Space,” 316-31726 Lyndon B. Johnson, Final Report of the Senate
Special Committee on Space and Astronautics, Pursuant to S. Res. 256 of the 85th Congress. 86th Congress, First Session, Senate Report No. 100. March 11, 1959 quoted in Galloway, “Organizing the United States Government for Outer Space,” 319
27 Ibid, 31928 Ibid, 32129 Day, “Cover Stories and Hidden Agendas,” 19030 Ibid, 19131 John C. McAdams, “Eisenhower’s Farewell
Address to the Nation,” http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/ike.htm
32 Roger D. Launius, “Kennedy’s Space Policy Reconsidered: A Post-Cold War Perspective,” Air Power History, (Winter 2003): 20
33 Michael R. Beschloss, “Kennedy and the Decision to Go to the Moon,” Spaceflight and the Myth of Presidential Leadership, ed. Roger D. Launius and Howard E. McCurdy (Urbana: Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, 1997), 56
34 Ibid, 5635 Kennedy, John F. Memorandum for
Vice President. http://www.c-span.org/PresidentialLibraries/Content/Kennedy/JFK_LBJ_Space.pdf
36 Ibid, 57
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37 Ibid, 5738 Launius, “Kennedy’s Space Policy Reconsidered,”
2139 Ibid, 2140 Ibid, 22-2341 Ibid, 23 42 President’s Statement on the Convention of the
Law of the Sea, 18 Weekly Comp. Pres. Doc. 887, 887 (July 9, 1982) quoted in Carlyle E. Maw, “The United States and the Law of the Sea after UNCLOS III,” Law and Contemporary Problems 46, no. 2 (1983): 56
43 Antonia Chayes, “How American Treaty Behavior Threatens National Security,” International Security 33, no. 1 (2008): 69
44 Ibid, 6945 James F. Lee. Star Wars: The Strategic Defense
Initiative. Ottawa: Library of Parliament, Research Branch. (1990): 1-6
46 James Clay Moltz, “The Past, Present, and Future of Space Security,” The Brown Journal of World Affairs 14, no. 1 (2007): 190
47 S. Rep. No. 164, 100th Cong., 1st sess. (1987); 133th Cong. Rec. S12,498 (daily ed. September 22, 1987); and 82 ICJ, p.151 quoted in Chayes, “How American Treaty Behavior Threatens National Security,” 70
48 Moltz, “The Past, Present, and Future of Space Security,” 190
49 Col. John E. Hyten, USAF, “A Sea of Peace or a Theater of War? Dealing with the Inevitable Conflict in Space,” Air & Space Power Journal, (Fall 2002): 81
50 Sami Fournier, “U.S. Test-Fires ‘MIRACLE’ at Satellite Reigniting ASAT Weapons Debate,” Arms Control Today 27, (October 1997)
51 Hyten, “A Sea of Peace or a Theater of War?” 8152 Eric Schmitt and Steven Lee Meyers, “Clinton
Lawyers Give a Go-Ahead to Missile Shield,” New York Times, June 15, 2000 quoted in Chayes, “How American Treaty Behavior Threatens National Security,” 70-71
53 Hyten, “A Sea of Peace or a Theater of War?” 7954 Moltz, “The Past, Present, and Future of Space
Security,” 19055 Ibid, 19156 Eric M. Javits, “A U.S. Perspective on Space,”
Future Security in Space: Commercial, Military and Arms Control Trade-Offs, ed. James Clay Moltz (Monterey, CA: Center for Nonproliferation Studies, 2002) 52, http://www.cns.miis.edu/pubs/opapers/op10/op10.pdg quoted in Moltz, “The Past, Present, and Future of Space Security,” 191
57 Ibid, 191
58 Joan Johnson-Freese, “The New U.S. Space Policy: A Turn Toward Militancy?” Issues in Science and Technology (Winter 2007): 33-34
59 Ibid, 33-3460 Ibid, 3461 Ibid, 33-3462 Ibid, 33-3463 Jeff Foust. “A Change in Tone in National
Space Policy.” The Space Review. Last modified July 6, 2010. http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1660/1.
64 Ibid.65 Michael Bourbonniére and Ricky J. Lee, ‘Legality
of the Deployment of Conventional Weapons in Earth Orbit: Balancing Space Law and the Law of Armed Conflict,” The European Journal of International Law 18, no. 5 (2007): 876
66 Ibid, 87667 Ibid, 87868 Ibid, 87869 Koh, “On American Exemptionalism,” 149970 Chayes, “How American Treaty Behavior
Threatens National Security,” 4771 Koh, “On American Exceptionalism,” 150172 McAdams, “Eisenhower’s Farewell Address to
the Nation”73 Jack L. Goldsmith and Eric A. Posner. The
Limits of International Law. New York: Oxford University Press. (2005): 1-13.
74 Joyner, “Legal Implications of the Concept of the Common Heritage of Mankind,” 198
75 Goldsmith and Posner. The Limits of International Law. 83-84.
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YEMEN: AL-QAEDA’S NEXT FORTRESS
TERRY RYDZFaculty Advisor: Peter Garretson1
Office of International Affairs & Department of History1
For many Americans, the United States’ war with Al-Qaeda began on September 11, 2001 and focuses
on the mountains of Afghanistan and Pakistan. However, in the eyes of Al-Qaeda, the war against
the U.S. started nine years earlier in Yemen. Al-Qaeda has never lost sight of its strong connection to
Yemen and the U.S. has slowly learned a valuable lesson from this: Al-Qaeda in Yemen possesses an
equal, if not greater, direct threat to the U.S. and its allies than Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan or Pakistan
currently does. This paper examines the rise and evolution of Al-Qaeda in Yemen. Specifically, it
investigates the crumbling socio-economic and political conditions in south Yemen that have allowed
for Al-Qaeda to flourish there, and presents potential counter-terrorism policies the U.S. can take to
undermine the group’s ability to function globally or within Yemen itself.
Yemen (Figure 1) is quickly joining the ranks of Afghanistan
and Pakistan and may soon even surpass them as the renowned forefront in
the war against Al-Qaeda. For Al-Qaeda, Yemen is both its geo-political and
socio-economic strong hold. It is a country riddled with poverty, dominated
by tradition, and infused with social clashes, all of which Al-Qaeda contin-
ues to take advantage of to advance its agenda in both the nation and re-
gionally. This paper examines the rise and evolution of Al-Qaeda in Yemen.
Specifically, it investigates the crumbling socio-economic and political con-
ditions in south Yemen that have allowed for Al-Qaeda to flourish there, and
Pictured: William Hudson Rogers lecturing in 1954
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presents potential counter-terrorism
policies the U.S. can take to under-
mine the group’s ability to function
globally or within Yemen itself.
Al-Qaeda’s ties to Yemen
In order to grasp the deep and
layered connection between Al-
Qaeda and Yemen, it is necessary
to first understand the role Yemen
plays to the foundations of Al-Qaeda
itself. Despite being born and raised
in Saudi Arabia, Osama Bin Laden’s
father and ancestry is Yemeni, from
the Hadramawt province in South
Yemen. It is a connection that Bin
Laden has never lost. In a 1998 in-
terview with Al-Jazeera, when asked
about Al-Qaeda’s links to Yemen,
Bin Laden replied, “In Yemen, we
have strong and old links, by the
grace of god Almighty, besides the
fact that my roots and my father’s
roots go back there” (Lawrence 88).
However, Al-Qaeda’s ties to
Yemen go beyond Bin Laden’s per-
sonal sentimental attachment. Ye-
men also plays an important strate-
gic role for Al-Qaeda. It is estimated
that Yemenis make up the third larg-
est contingent of all Al-Qaeda fight-
ers globally (186). Today, 40% of all
captured Al-Qaeda operatives who
are prisoners in Guantanamo Bay
are Yemeni (Boucek). This makes Ye-
men a natural resource of potential
new recruits to join the ranks of Al-
Qaeda. Furthermore, this indicates
that there is a substantial chunk of
Yemeni society that is sympathetic
to Al-Qaeda’s cause.
For an organization that takes
public pride in its victories, Yemen
has come to represent for Al-Qaeda
the place of some of the group’s earli-
est successes. In 1992, Al-Qaeda det-
onated a bomb meant to kill U.S. sol-
diers who had stopped in Aden on
their way to Somalia where the U.S.
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was leading a multinational U.N.
force. While no American soldiers
were hurt in the attack, Bin Laden
still viewed the attack as a success.
His reasoning behind this stems
from the U.S. reaction to the attack.
Within days of the bombs going off,
the U.S. presence in Yemen quickly
evaporated. Bin Laden took person-
nel pride in this and explained to
the newspaper The Daily Pakistan
that, “the United States wanted to
set up a military base for U.S. sol-
diers in Yemen so that it could send
fresh troops to Somalia…the United
States received our warning and gave
up the idea of setting up its military
bases in Yemen. This was the first
Al-Qaeda victory scored against the
Crusaders” (Anonymous 135). How-
ever, Al-Qaeda did not truly gain the
attention of the U.S. until 2000 with
its much larger, more sophisticated
successful attack on the U.S.S. Cole
(Figure 2), stationed in the Port of
Aden, which left 17 sailors dead. This
attack marked the first of a three-
stage war in Yemen between the U.S.
and Al-Qaeda (Gardner).
Stage One: A New Friend In Yemen
This first stage began in October
2000 with the attack on the Cole and
continued until 2003. According to
Greg Johnson, an expert on Al-Qae-
da in Yemen, these early years of the
U.S. war on terror are defined by a
high cooperation between the U.S.
and Yemen. Prior to this 2000 attack,
Al-Qaeda in Yemen operated large-
ly unchallenged and was primar-
ily a recruiting center for Al-Qaeda
(Boucek). Following the Cole attack,
the U.S. began to exert heavy pres-
sure on Yemeni President Saleh (Fig-
ure 3) to hunt down the perpetrators
of the attack. The Yemeni govern-
ment arrested five men, including
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Abu Jandal. Jandal was an Al-Qaeda
lieutenant and personal bodyguard
to Bin Laden (Heffelfinger 240). The
entire ordeal was a preview of what
was to come in the U.S.-Yemeni rela-
tions in dealing with Al-Qaeda.
Following the September 11th at-
tacks, Saleh visited Washington, D.C.
In a meeting with President George
W. Bush, Saleh assured Bush that the
U.S. had the full support of Yemen.
This was a shift in Saleh’s policies
that often turned a blind eye to Al-
Qaeda. Following the September 11
attacks, however, Saleh decided to
not make the same mistake he had in
the 1990 Gulf War. During the first
Gulf War, Saleh supported Saddam
Hussein. This led to the excommu-
nication of Yemeni migrant workers
across the Arabian Peninsula, spe-
cifically Saudi Arabia. This political
miscalculation was a heavy loss for
Yemen. Migrant workers had been
a lifeline in the Yemeni economy. It
is estimated that Saudi Arabia drove
out around 1 million Yemeni work-
ers (Kapiszewski). This situation de-
prived Yemen of some $3 billion in
foreign exchange. In addition, the
Saudis and several Gulf states ended
$2 billion in foreign aid to Yemen for
its support of Hussein who posed
a real and immediate threat to the
sovereignty of Saudi Arabia and the
Gulf States. As a result of these for-
eign aid cuts unemployment in Ye-
men reached 30% (Yemen Country).
Following Saleh’s Washing-
ton, D.C. visit, he began backing
his words with actions. He had any
and all known Al-Qaeda operatives
and affiliates in Yemen arrested. In
addition, Saleh worked closely with
U.S. intelligence officials by sharing
information acquired from captured
and interrogated operatives. This
U.S.-Yemeni attack on Al-Qaeda
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in Yemen pinnacled in 2002 with
the assassination of Al-Qaeda’s top
commander, Abu Ali al-Harithi, via
a U.S. drone attack (Boucek). His
replacement, Mohammed Hamdi
al-Ahdal, was also soon arrested.
With the elimination of Al-Qaeda’s
top two commanders in Yemen, and
increased intelligence reports that
showed that the majority of jihad-
ist in Yemen were leaving to fight in
Afghanistan and Iraq where tangible
American targets were located, the
U.S. and Yemeni officials came to be-
lieve that the war with Al-Qaeda in
Yemen was largely over (Boucek).
Stage Two: Reversal in Fortunes for Saleh
The second stage in the war on
Al-Qaeda in Yemen began in late
2003 with this view from U.S. gov-
ernment and Sanaa that Al-Qaeda
had been soundly defeated and had
collapsed under a lack of leadership;
this continued until 2005. During
this gap period, Yemen began to
reshift its focus and resources from
fighting Al-Qaeda to what Saleh
deemed the real threats to his gov-
ernment; a Houthi Rebellion in the
north (Boucek). (Houthis are a Shi-
ite minority found only in Yemen;
they are a minority in Yemen and
make continuous claims of govern-
ment oppression). Throughout this
gap year of quelling the rebellion,
however, Saleh suffered several ma-
jor setbacks.
In November 2005, Saleh visited
Washington, D.C. again. Saleh had
been expecting an increase in aid
from Bush in light of the successful
cooperation between U.S. and Ye-
men. Instead, during a meeting with
Bush, Saleh was informed that Ye-
men was to be completely removed
from the U.S. aid program. In addi-
tion, the following day, the World
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78 | THE OWL
Bank informed Saleh that it would
be cutting his aid by 66%. In two
days, Saleh lost $160 million in aid
(Boucek). Both Bush and the World
Bank accredited the cuts to rampant
corruption in Yemen. Adding to
Saleh’s problems was a continuing
decrease in oil revenue. Oil revenue
accounts for 25% of Yemen’s total
gross domestic product (GDP), ap-
proximately 70% of government rev-
enue, and more than 90% of foreign
exchange earnings. According to the
U.S. Energy Information Adminis-
tration’s Country Brief on Yemen, in
2001, oil production peaked at ap-
proximately 440,000 bbI/d (barrels
per day). According to Yemen’s Min-
istry of Oil and Minerals, oil produc-
tion in 2009 was projected at 290,000
bbI/d. (Country). This number is ex-
pected to continue decreasing every
year, and in 2017 oil production in
Yemen is expected to be no longer
economically feasible. Only adding
to these economic problems, it is ex-
pected that Yemen may soon be the
first nation in the world to run out of
clean drinking water (Boucek).
Saleh responded to this loss of
national income by implementing
governmental budget cuts. These
cuts have and continue to center on
the military and, more specifically,
South Yemen. The reason for this is
largely based on the fact that Saleh
himself is from North Yemen. Prior
to 1990, the nation of what is today
Yemen was two separate nations of
North and South Yemen. The deci-
sion for the two nations to unite
came almost solely from the discov-
ery of oil along the North South Bor-
der (Spencer 202-203). Saleh fired
many South Yemeni military officers
and has cut the pensions of those
who remain. Since taking office in
1990, Saleh has diverted the majority
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of profits away from the south and
towards the capitol in the North. In
an interview with the Christian Sci-
ence Monitor, a former colonel in
the Yemeni army told the reporter,
“Most of what we have is what the
British built when they were here.
We haven’t gained anything from
unification. I would rather have had
the British here for 400 years than be
ruled by Saleh” (Horton).
Stage Three: The Resurgence of Al-Qaeda
The third stage in the fight with
Al-Qaeda in Yemen began in 2006
with the prison break of twenty-
three high-ranking Al-Qaeda op-
eratives and continues to the pres-
ent. Of these original twenty-three,
only three remain at large. The rest
have either been captured or killed
since 2006. Astonishingly, the few
commanders that have survived
have been extremely successful at
revitalizing Al-Qaeda operations in
Yemen (Boucek). Many of the es-
capees had close ties to Bin Laden
himself and were experienced fight-
ers from Afghanistan. More impor-
tantly, however, this new group of
commanders has brought with it a
new ideology, pertaining to how Al-
Qaeda should be organized and con-
duct its operations.
The previous Al-Qaeda lead-
ers in Yemen had been organized
in a top-down, corporate-themed
hierarchy, similar to what existed in
Afghanistan. This new generation
of Al-Qaeda leaders in Yemen has
learned from past mistakes and re-
organized in Yemen. This reorgani-
zation focuses on the ability to have
increased mobility and flexibility in
case of leadership change were an
Al-Qaeda commander be killed or
captured (Boucek). This restructur-
ing has played a key role in making
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80 | THE OWL
Al-Qaeda in Yemen deadlier then
ever. It allows the group the unique
dual opportunity to plan strategic
operations requiring a high level of
coordination, or attack while on the
run.
In addition to this new lead-
ership structure, the political and
economic conditions in Yemen, spe-
cifically South Yemen, have changed
since 2003 when Al-Qaeda was last
organized. Since the early 1990s,
South Yemen has been an Al-Qa-
eda’s stronghold. However, recent
socio-economic developments in
South Yemen have left the south
deteriorating. These include as this
paper has shown, a continuing lack
of infrastructure development in
the south, disgruntled military of-
ficers, and increased job loss. These
factors are culminating in creating
an environment (specifically in the
Abyan, Lahij provinces and the city
of Aden) that views Al-Qaeda in an
ever more favorable light. Yemeni
dissatisfaction with the central gov-
ernment has erupted in mass street
protest. On January 27, 2011, 10,000
protestors took the streets in Sanaa,
Yemen’s capitol (Bakri). Saleh’s ini-
tial reaction to these rallies and calls
of secession has been to use gov-
ernment forces and police, firing a
mix of tear gas, rubber bullets, and
live ammunition into large crowds
(Police).
Al-Qaeda has taken full advan-
tage of this chaotic environment in
South Yemen. According to Greg
Johnson, Al-Qaeda has painted a
narrative amongst South Yemenis’,
in which the corrupt pro-west cen-
tral government under Saleh and
the U.S. cannot and will not cater
to the South’s needs. Al-Qaeda has
and is continuing to make a com-
pelling case where Islamic Law and
SOC
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Al-Qaeda are the answer to South
Yemen’s problem (Boucek).
Deadlier Than Ever: the New Al-Qaeda Demonstrates Their
Ambitions
With this new ideology, leader-
ship, and fresh recruits, Al-Qaeda
in Yemen has once again become a
potent force. Since the 2006 prison
break, there have been attacks on
oil and gas facilities in Yemen. In
2007, the chief criminal investiga-
tor in Yemen was assassinated and a
suicide bomber killed several Span-
ish tourists. A year later, Al-Qaeda
detonated two car bombs outside of
the American Embassy, killing ten
people (Knickmeyer).
In January 2009, Al-Qaeda
branches in Saudi Arabia and Ye-
men united to form a regional block
known as Al-Qaeda in the Arabian
Peninsula (AQAP) (Figure 5) (No-
vak). This region-wide branch had
been an Al-Qaeda goal since the
1990s when Bin Laden suggested
the creation of a “Gulf Battalion”
(Gunaratna 188). Yet this new re-
gional group seems to have minimal
influence coming from Bin Laden;
rather they are being spearheaded
by Sheikh Anwar al Awlaki (Figure
4). Awlaki is an American-born Ye-
meni who was recruited for Al-Qa-
eda in the early 1990s. In addition
to being the group’s spiritual leader,
Awlaki has utilized the Internet as a
means to take his preachings global.
What makes Awlaki stand out from
other jihadists who have also tried
to use the Internet to spread their
ideology is that Awlaki specifically
speaks in English. This allows him
to reach a wider audience in the
United States and England and help
foster the growth and development
of domestic terrorists. For this, Aw-
laki has been extremely successful.
Awlaki’s tapes and recordings were
SOC
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82 | THE OWL
found to have influenced Al-Qaeda
agents involved in the 7/7 London
Bombings, Toronto 18, Fort Dix
Plot, Virginia Jihad Network, and
Fort Hood shooting (Zimmerman).
It was AQAP and Awlaki that were
responsible for the notorious, failed
Christmas Day 2009 attack by Umar
Farouk Abdulmutallab (Figure 6)
(Bernstein). AQAP and Awlaki have
also been found responsible for the
October 2010 placing of bombs
aboard cargo planes destined for
Chicago (Temple-Raston). This
organization has also been excep-
tionally active in Yemen itself. In the
second half of 2010 alone, AQAP
took responsibility for 49 attacks
against Yemeni security forces and
foreign targets (AQAP).
The U.S. Response
The U.S. has not taken these
incidents lightly. Recently, the U.S.
increased the number of Special
Forces in Yemen to over 200 and has
become more aggressive in its use of
predator drones (Dreazen). The
U.S. has reversed its aid cuts to Ye-
men, and has recently been giving
Yemen $170 million in military aid
and may soon be giving $250 million
(Porges). It is also important to note
that President Barack Obama has
approved Awlaki’s name be put on a
CIA hit list (despite his status as an
American citizen), by which he is to
be targeted by missile attack from a
predator drone (Ross). The reason for
the specific attention on Awlaki ver-
sus other AQAP leaders is because as
Attorney General Eric Holder stated
in a press conference, “He [Awlaki]
would be on the same list with Bin
Laden, he’s up there. I don’t know
whether he’s one, two, three, four -- I
don’t know. But he’s certainly on the
list of the people who worry me the
most” (Sheridan).
SOC
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In response to this new and
dominant threat from AQAP, the
U.S, Yemeni, and Saudi governments
have acted thus far as a unified front.
In March 2010, Saudi forces made
sweeping arrests across the coun-
try, arresting 113 AQAP militants,
including two suicide bomb teams.
Some of the militants captured had
been planning attacks on energy and
security facilities within the King-
dom (Healy). The Yemeni govern-
ment has taken credit for several air
raids on AQAP. On March 14, it was
reported that a Yemen air raid killed
two top Al-Qaeda commanders in
South Yemen (Johnston).
Paulo Coelho once wrote, “Ev-
erything that happens once can
never happen again. But everything
that happens twice will surely hap-
pen a third time” (184). Al-Qaeda
has twice now emerged as a domi-
nant force within Yemen and will
most likely continue to assert itself
there. While the U.S. continues to
hunt down Al-Qaeda leadership
from the air and provide funding
and training to Yemen, the ques-
tion that still looms over American
and Yemeni leadership is, will it be
enough? There is a real and valid fear
that Yemen could become a mix be-
tween a failed state like Somalia and
an Al-Qaeda-controlled entity like
Afghanistan used to be. If Yemen
were to fall into a state of chaos, the
United States’ ability to intervene or
have an influence against Al-Qaeda
would be greatly limited. This would
represent an immediate threat to the
U.S. and many of its allies. Accord-
ing to John Brennan, assistant to the
president for homeland security and
counterterrorism, AQAP, in its pres-
ent state, already constitutes a “great-
er threat to Americans than Osama
bin Laden’s group based in Pakistan”
SOC
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84 | THE OWL
(Shaughnessy). It is for this reason
that AQAP cannot be allowed the
opportunity to exert greater influ-
ence and control in Yemen.
If the central Yemeni govern-
ment under Saleh were to fall, the
U.S. could not directly intervene
on the ground as it has in the past.
Such an action would only unite the
country, provide greater strength
to the narrative that Al-Qaeda has
been painting, and make a combus-
tible situation worse. For example, in
January 2010, a World summit com-
posed of 21 nations was held in Lon-
don to discuss all possibilities in how
to handle Al-Qaeda in Yemen (UK).
Initially, it was rumored that there
were talks about the possibility of
sending troops, either multinational
or U.N. peacekeeping, into South Ye-
men. However, days before the con-
ference, 150 of Yemen’s most influ-
ential clerics held their own summit
and were united in signing a state-
ment that read, “In the event of any
foreign party insisting on hostilities
against, an assault on, or military
or security intervention in Yemen,
then Islam requires all its followers
to pursue jihad” (Yemen ‘must resist
foreign forces’).
It is for this reason that the U.S.
must continue to enhance its efforts
of supporting the Central Yemeni
government under Saleh, and do
everything and anything to prevent
Al-Qaeda from flourishing in Ye-
men. Yet conventional counterter-
rorism policies may not be enough
to stop AQAP. Awlaki and AQAP
have been able to succeed in South
Yemen up to this point not because
they are smarter, better equipped, or
more influential than other terrorist
organizations or leaders. Rather the
foundations of their success lay in
their ability to harness the sympathy
SOC
IAL
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CES
and support of the local communi-
ties that harbor them. Support for
Al-Qaeda in Yemen has always ex-
isted and most likely will continue.
However, there is a fundamental
difference between Yemenites leav-
ing the country to join the ranks of
Al-Qaeda, and Al-Qaeda having its
headquarters in Yemen.
The Future of Yemen
It is important to note that hope
is not totally lost for Yemen. The
majority of the protest and anger by
South Yemenites against the central
government is not because of an al-
liance to Al-Qaeda, rather it is the
opposite. Their support of Al-Qaeda
has developed out of frustration with
a corrupt, inefficient, and authori-
tative central government under
Saleh that has left those in the south
looking for any alternative they can
find. Following the Tunisian upris-
ing that led to the toppling of the
government, Yemen, like Egypt and
Jordan, has seen massive street pro-
test. While these protests have been
calling for Saleh to step down from
power, the protest leaders have re-
cently began to take a different ap-
proach. The reasoning for this is
two-fold. First, Saleh has, as a means
of calming the protests, promised to
not run again in the next election
and to not have his son take power
after him. Second, according to pro-
test leaders like Hassan Zaid, who
is the general secretary of the Haq
opposition political party, there is a
real fear that Yemen could fall into a
state of turmoil and violence similar
to that in the failed state of Somali
(Cummins). There is also a deep
concern by many opposition leaders
like Khaled Alanesi, a high-ranking
member of the National Organiza-
tion for Defending Rights and Free-
dom, who was one of the organizers
SOC
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86 | THE OWL
of the protests, that “The opposition
is afraid of what would happen if the
regime falls. Afraid of the militant
groups, Al Qaeda, the tribes and all
the arms here” (Bakri). This men-
tality demonstrates that there is a
substantial and important chunk of
Yemeni society that, while opposed
to the government, is moderate and
trying to avoid violence and more
importantly a Yemen controlled by
Al-Qaeda. These leaders, above all
else, are demanding greater equality,
redistribution of wealth, and sweep-
ing political and economic reforms.
It is for this reason that the current
Yemeni central government policies
of continued budget cuts and use
of force to quell the popular anger
are flawed at their core. Rather, this
paper is arguing that the U.S., sur-
rounding Gulf States, and Saudi Ara-
bia should utilize the power of the
purse to encourage Saleh to institute
economic and political reforms as
well as engage with southern lead-
ers by directly bringing them into
government. This is a street fight for
the hearts and minds of the people
of Yemen and it cannot be won by a
drone in the sky.
Possible U.S. Counter-Terrorism Actions
For its part, the U.S. must con-
tinue to disrupt AQAP operations
as much as possible. Yet this cannot
be limited in scope to foiling attacks.
For as AQAP has shown that even
failed attempts, like the Christmas
bomb and the Cargo plane bombs,
are twisted and marketed as victo-
ries from which they expand their
support. The U.S. should expand its
counter-terrorist operations to fight
AQAP and, more specifically, Aw-
laki via the Web. As this paper has
shown, Awlaki has taken full advan-
tage of the Web to influence terrorist
SOC
IAL
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cells globally. The U.S. must not al-
low Awlaki to continue to utilize the
Internet in this fashion. It is the opin-
ion of this paper that, in light of the
failure of U.S. and coalition forces to
kill Bin Laden, capturing or killing
Awlaki will be just as difficult if not
harder since the U.S. has very limit-
ed forces on the ground in Yemen. It
is for this reason that the U.S. should
place more emphasis on hindering
Awlaki’s ability to reach Jihadists
around the world via the Web. While
the U.S. government has already be-
gun to work with YouTube to have
Awlaki’s videos removed, the results
have been mixed. There is an essen-
tial problem with this cyber coun-
ter-terrorism approach the U.S. is
taking. These videos usually first get
online via file sharing sites to Jihadi
Web forums; from there, the videos
are uploaded to YouTube for wider
consumption. What this amounts
to is that even in the event that the
videos are removed from YouTube,
they can easily be and usually are re-
uploaded by a different source back
on YouTube (Ungerleider). In addi-
tion, the U.S. government’s approach
in this cyber counter terrorism has
had too narrow a focus on YouTube.
According to a report from the 304th
Military intelligence Battalion, Al-
Qaeda has also become adept at us-
ing social networking sites, such as
Twitter, to plan and carry out attacks.
According to the report, Twitter is
being used by Al-Qaeda in three sce-
narios. First, one individual or group
of terrorists use Twitter to report re-
al-time information to comrades on
enemy troops movement, location,
and numbers, so an ambush can
be rapidly planned and executed.
Second, a two-man terrorist team
planning an attack with a remotely
controlled bomb uses Twitter via a
SOC
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88 | THE OWL
mobile device to send information
to a comrade holding the detonator
with real-time information of the
perfect time to detonate the bomb
for maximum casualties. Third, Al-
Qaeda operatives exploit Twitter
by following posts from enemy sol-
diers. This information would even-
tually be used for hacking, identity
theft, and even physical abduction
(Penenberg). For this reason, this
paper is arguing that more must by
done to disrupt and hinder Al-Qa-
eda via the Web. This should be ac-
complished via hacking into known
Al-Qaeda websites and forums, dis-
torting information presented, add-
ing false information, presenting
erratic ideology, and using social
networking sites to provide false in-
formation on U.S. troop movements
and operations. By interfering with
this cyber supply line from Awlaki,
the U.S. would be disrupting links
to his support groups, and decreas-
ing the appeal of Al-Qaeda to the
pool of potential terrorist recruits.
In addition, this strategy would help
prevent the ever-growing concern of
domestic terrorism.
Conclusion
Al-Qaeda in Yemen is an orga-
nization defined by ambition and
relentlessness, intelligence and ruth-
lessness, flexibility, and adaption.
Al-Qaeda has already shown it will
not abandon its position in Yemen
without a fight. It is a fight in which,
to this point, it has been exception-
ally successful. This is because in
the eyes of Al-Qaeda, Yemen, un-
like many other places, is a sym-
bolic home. However, despite all its
success, Al-Qaeda cannot yet claim
victory in Yemen. Nor will it as long
as the U.S. has the conviction to be
unyielding in its attack on Al-Qaeda.
Thus, while Al-Qaeda views Yemen
SOC
IAL
SC
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CES
as their next great fortress, for the
U.S., Yemen represents an opportu-
nity to make Yemen Al-Qaeda’s final
great fortress.
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APPENDIX
Figure 1. Yemen (CIA World Factbook)
Figure 2. U.S.S. Cole after Attack (Slater)
Figure 3. President Saleh of Yemen (Nagpal) Figure 4. Anwar al-Awlaki (Sacks)
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Figure 5. Founders of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (Soloman)
Figure 6. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab aka the Christmas Day Bomber (Maquand).
92 | THE OWL
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Regarding the Watch You Gave Me
The wrist wants what the wrist wants, & what the wrist wants is snap
& follow-through—some indication that there is intention behind scoliotic
rhythm, synchopated vein-strums, jazz. As if to be stretched over the drum
of a bass amp would be a better fate, as if a knife weren’t a knife & a vein
weren’t a vein—as if bleeding weren’tbleeding but singing, & together they
were operas, that, instead of sung werewhispered into the ear of a child, a boy
who constructs a watch out of oakbark. In plain Italian, he etches: there arethings you can never know & things thatdisappear in the snow, even when timegusts in with the first thaw of spring.
Jesse Damiani
As a symbol of wisdom, the owl is an animal surrounded by in-
trigue. The piercing eyes of the nocturnal owl enable it to search for prey
amidst the cover of darkness.
Given this quality of discernment, it is no surprise that the owl became
the principle emblem for the seal of the West Florida Seminary. Founded in
1851, as the precursor of Florida State University, West Florida Seminary
utilized the seal of the owl until 1901.
Florida State’s only undergraduate research journal, entitled The Owl,
unites the historical foundations and modern experiences of our university.
The sparks from this exciting fusion of tradition and innovation inspired
our selection for the name and image of The Owl.
THE NAMING OF THE OWL
Pictured: Robert Frost, poet, visits Florida State College of Women in 1941
As an artist, I find that I am very interested in relationships, but par-
ticularly the relationships between humans and nature. In today’s fast-paced
society, more often than not, humans seem to take on skewed perspectives
regarding their connectedness with the natural world.
Most humans claim a “natural” or “organic” ancestry, however, when
describing nature, tend to portray it as “untouched by humans.” I found this
contradiction to be especially interesting.
Another aspect of my work involves rediscovering medical and botani-
cal prints from antique books. I represent these lost images in a digital for-
mat, which reflects the striking relationship that our digital society has with
the physical text.
My goal is to take information, both of man and nature, and blur the
lines so that the first glance of an image might conform to our expectations
either of man or nature. Upon further inspection, I want the observer to dis-
cover that my works are hybrid images, combining elements of both. I hope
to provide a different perspective and show the viewer the connectedness
that we share with the natural world.
ARTIST STATEMENTDANIELLE DELPH
96 | THE OWL
ARTIST STATEMENTDANIELLE DELPH
The Florida State Undergraduate Research Journal (FSURJ) spotlights
the remarkable research and creative works being produced by passionate
undergraduate students at Florida State University. Devoted to exhibiting
the results of intellectual curiosity at the undergraduate level, The Owl ac-
centuates the capacity of Florida State students from all undergraduate dis-
ciplines to acquire the finest education in the country.
Launched under the vision and direction of Dr. D. Craig Filar and Dr.
Cathy Levenson in the academic year 2009-2010, the first Student Council
for Undergraduate Research and Creativity consisted of ten members: Jer-
emy Bary, Lindsey Davis, Travis Eales, Brian Jirout, Vincent “Vinnie” La-
Barbera, David Mari, Kyle Mauk, Marlee McCleary, Gustavo Munoz, and
Patrice Williams. Hoping to inspire and motivate fellow undergraduates to
pursue research, the first council laid the groundwork for an undergradu-
ate research journal. Crafting a vision for the organization and establishing
submission guidelines, the first council, then, selected new members in the
spring of 2010.
Both Dr. Filar and Dr. Levenson accepted new responsibilities at Flor-
ida State University, allowing Dr. Alec Kercheval and Dr. Kristal Moore
Clemons to fill the positions of director and associate director for the Office
of Undergraduate Research, respectively. The second council consisted of
twelve new and old members: Nowrin Alam, Aviram “Avi” Assidon, William
Philip Boyce, Sean Ennis, Vincent “Vinnie” LaBarbera, David Mari,
A CONCISE HISTORY OF SCURC
Christopher Matechik, Chelsea Morgan, Tarreq Noori, Stephen Pape, Ekat-
erina “Katie” Rybakova, Lauren Terpak, and Patrice C. Williams. Securing
sponsorship and financial backing from FSU’s Student Government Asso-
ciation, under the patronage of Dustin Daniels, the council initiated the pro-
cess of crafting Florida State’s only undergraduate research journal, ex nihilo.
In the fall of 2010, the Student Council for Undergraduate Research
and Creativity issued a call for manuscripts. From the considerable num-
ber of submissions, five undergraduate research papers were chosen for the
journal’s inaugural edition, along with several poems and works of art. The
Owl presents the Florida State University community with a cross-section
of compelling works from the Humanities, Social Sciences, and STEM (Sci-
ence, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) through a printed and
electronic journal.
Named The Owl, after the original seal employed from 1851 to 1901 by
West Florida Seminary, the journal is anchored in the history of our institu-
tion, but showcases our beloved university’s brightest minds of today, with
a sharp eye to the future. The Owl encompasses the research and creative
works of undergraduates from all disciplines.
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JEREMY BARYLINDSEY DAVISTRAVIS EALESBRIAN JIROUT
VINCENT LABARBERADAVID MARIKYLE MAUK
MARLEE McCLEARYGUSTAVO MUNOZ
PATRICE C. WILLIAMS
FOUNDING MEMBERS OF SCURC2009 - 2010
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Nowrin Alam
David Mari
Aviram Assidon
Tarreq Noori
Lauren Terpak
William Philip Boyce
Stephen Pape
Patrice C. Williams
Vincent Labarbera
Ekaterina Rybakova
EDITORIAL BOARD & SCURC MEMBERS 2010 - 2011
Members not pictured: Sean Ennis, Chelsea Morgan, and Shannen Winfield
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
FSU SPECIAL COLLECTIONSHERITAGE PROTOCOL
FSU PHOTO LABMALCOLM SHACKELFORD
GANDY PRINTERSSTEPHANIE M. ANDRE
OFFICE OF UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCHDR. ALEC KERCHEVAL
DR. KRISTAL MOORE CLEMONSDR. CATHY LEVENSON
DR. D. CRAIG FILAR
THIS IS A STUDENT GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION PUBLICATION
NOTES
Do I dare / Disturb the universe? T.S. Eliot (1888 - 1965)
NOTES
MEET THE COUNCIL
NOWRIN ALAM • AVIRAM ASSIDON
WILLIAM PHILIP BOYCE
SEAN ENNIS • VINCENT LABARBERA
DAVID MARI • CHRISTOPHER MATECHIK
C H E L S E A M O R G A N
TARREQ NOORI • STEPHEN PAPE
EKATERINA RYBAKOVA • LAUREN TAPEK
PATRICE C. WILLIAMS • SHANNEN WINFIELD