Scholar Recognition Day Seminars February 11

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High Impact Experiences in Biology (Biology)

• Tour biology research labs and visit with current biology students and faculty to find out about some of the high impact learning experiences that students are engaged in with Biology faculty.

Exploring Human Anatomy (Biology)

• This seminar is a tour and hands-on experience with human cadavers. Current students will discuss their experience and show students the dissection laboratory. Students will have the opportunity to spend time in the laboratory and identify human structures.

Getting Up Close and Personal with Your Own Blood Cells (Biology)

• Have you ever wanted to know your blood type or to see your own white blood cells?  During this lab seminar, you will get to do just that!  You will test drops of your blood using the agglutination technique, and stain a drop of your blood to view under the microscope.  We will also talk about how analysis of blood components is used in a clinical setting for diagnosis and treatment of patients. 

Documentary Storytelling (Communication Studies) 

• Get a feel for all that goes into researching, scripting, planning, producing, and editing short subject documentary films. 

Curiosity May Have “Killed the Cat,” but Is It Good for Students? (Education)

• The proverbial expression about curiosity is generally used as a warning against “prying behavior” that might get one into trouble; however, research has found that curiosity is vital to learning. Children enter this world exploring, asking questions, and discovering answers. Research shows that this intellectual curiosity is what separates “good” students from “excellent” ones. With this in mind, how can educators inspire or in some cases, “reignite” this innate natural need to know? Using hands-on activities, this seminar will invite students to engage in problem solving activities to inspire curious minds as elementary teachers in the K-8 classroom. 

Building a Beast: Writing a Mythical Creature (English)

• Medusa, the Minotaur, Pegasus – these aren’t just mythical figures but potential characters. In this fun exercise, we’ll work together from a guided prompt to bring one such figure to life on the page in your own ongoing or brand-new creative project. Bring pen and paper! 

Luther’s Path to Carbon Neutrality (Environmental Science)

• The numbers are in, and this year Luther College celebrates a 72% reduction in campus greenhouse gas emissions since in 2004. We achieved this accomplishment through a combination of energy efficiency improvements and renewable electricity generation and purchase. Much of the college’s remaining carbon footprint comes from burning natural gas to heat our buildings. What are the options for next steps as Luther continues to make progress toward complete carbon neutrality? Seminar participants will learn about the rapidly changing landscape in the clean energy transition both nationally and on campus as we discuss pathways to carbon neutrality.

Excavating an ancient Roman seaport at Caesarea Maritima in Israel (History)

• What’s it like to excavate an ancient Roman harbor city located on the sandswept beaches of Israel’s Mediterranean coast? From the earliest years of the Roman Empire through the fall of the Crusader Kingdom in the Holy Land, Caesarea Maritima was a thriving hub of power and innovation. One of the largest ports of the eastern Mediterranean, Caesarea was a booming harbor that received frequent traffic from throughout the world. Seminar participants will learn how this shining creation of Herod the Great was built and how it served as the capital of the province of Judaea, a hotspot for Jewish resistance to Roman rule, a destination for St. Peter’s mission, a center for early Christian scholarship, a major marketplace under the Islamic caliphates, and a formidable fortress for western knights. Luther students are learning how to turn artifacts into history, and in the process are helping to unlock Caesarea’s long-held secrets.

 Law and Quest for Justice (Law and Values)

• What is the relationship between law and justice?  How is our legal system being used to address the many challenges we face as a society?  Can law and the courts help to achieve racial justice and “planetary justice”?  Climate change and race relations are pushing justice to new frontiers that extend well beyond individual humans currently alive.  Is addressing these challenges and achieving justice possible within the individualistic framework of our legal system?  Seminar participants will learn about Luther’s newest major, Law and Values, while discussing recent legal cases and the justice questions they raise.

You Are Good Enough (Music) 

• Achievement is often conflated with the concept of self-worth. Particularly for creative types, you may feel like this in many spaces, but is this association real or is it a fallacy? Does success in the moment of performing a task, either musical or academic, actually equate with our worthiness? It often feels this way. This seminar would explore the moments of “peak performance” in all fields using music as an example. Along with working on detangling self-worth from achievement, we will explore how one might diffuse the ever-critical voice with the deeper and wiser voice who can be heard quietly whispering “You are Good Enough”. 

“Leave the Door Open” for Blue Magic: Bruno Mars and Anderson Paak’s Homage to TSOP (Music)

• This seminar will trace the lineage of Bruno Mars and Anderson. Paak’s hit 2021 song, “Leave the Door Open,” to Blue Magic’s 1970s hit “Sideshow,” with special attention paid to harmony and orchestration. 

K-Pop: Context and Criticism (Music)

• K-pop today is a multibillion industry with a massive global reach. But where did it come from? Why does it matter? We’ll look at some of the factors that set the stage for the global phenomenon, and we will also consider several aspects of K-pop under a critical lens: Western perceptions, fan culture, and more.

Practical Practicing; Optimizing Your Time for Optimum Efficiency (Music)

• This discussion will include considerations and methods to improve the efficiency and productivity of student practice time. Measurable progress can be organized and intentional. Casual productivity is the result of a casual approach to practicing. This discussion will offer strategies for improving focus, structure, and effectiveness of practice time in both the  short and long term perspectives. 

Using Nursing Simulations to Save Nursing Lives (Nursing) 

• This seminar is a wonderful opportunity to learn more about Luther College’s Nursing Program and tour the nursing labs and simulation center.  Students will have the opportunity to practice nursing assessments and skills as well as observe a nursing simulation with a manikin.  Current students will discuss their experiences and help throughout the seminar.

Using Comets to Study our Windy Sun (Physics) 

• The sun is a windy star, and this wind can affect us here on earth.  This wind is not the movement of air molecules as on earth.  This wind is composed of charged particles emitted from the sun. We call this stream of particles the solar wind. Sometimes large amounts of these particles are ejected and head toward the earth where they can damage communication satellites, disrupt power grids and cause power outages. In this seminar, we will hear the story of how some Luther students are helping scientists develop a surprising discovery about comets into a tool to study and monitor the solar wind. 

Finding Happiness and Learning to Flourish (Psychology)

• Finding happiness remains an elusive goal for many. Modern-day positive psychology offers considerable wisdom on how to find happiness and flourish in your daily life. Psychological science has shown that several virtues including gratitude, forgiveness, and humility can provide key avenues through which you can live a fuller and more meaningful life. Come learn more about how we can all lead a better and more fulfilling life.

Can Religion Still Have Meaning in an Age of Science? (Religion)

• Religion and science are often portrayed as being in great conflict with one another, some going so far as to say that our scientific understanding of the world has rendered religion meaningless. Is this the case? In this seminar we will explore the religion/science relationship historically and in the contemporary world to show that the relationship between religion and science is far more complex than many believe. Science has not, and perhaps cannot, render religion meaningless. Yet, religion and religions must honestly grapple with modern advances in scientific knowledge.

Study Abroad Opportunities in Spanish–en Español (Spanish)

• Hear ¡en español! about short-term and long-term study abroad opportunities in Spanish-speaking countries. Spanish majors and minors at Luther spend time abroad immersing themselves in language and culture. Faculty and current students will show you where our students go and what they do while studying abroad. You will also have a chance to share your own travel and study abroad experiences while practicing your language skills.

The Story of West Side Story (Theatre)

• A brief introduction to the creation of the musical “West Side Story.”