Undergraduate research is thriving at Trent University Oshawa, as demonstrated by a student-led research symposium held on March 28. At the event, seven upper-year students from nearly all Trent Oshawa disciplines presented their findings at the intimate event.

Research topics varied from American Halloween: A Ritual of Rebellion, and Power and Resistance in the Contemporary Food System, to Surveillance and Privacy in the Canadian Context, and beyond.

The event gave Trent Oshawa students the opportunity to gain symposium experience and exposure, while honing their presentation, critical thinking and analytical skills. Though there was no formal peer evaluation component to the symposium, audience questions led to a fulsome dialogue after each presentation.

Coordinated by Rahaleh Haji Gholam Saryazdi, a Psychology major at Trent Oshawa, the Symposium was a shining example of the in-depth undergraduate research that is being conducted at the Thornton Road Campus.

The full list of papers presented at the Symposium included:

• American Halloween: A Ritual of Rebellion (Michael Mason—Anthropology)
• The Truth behind the Sword: Western Perceptions and Historical Realities of the Samurai (Abigail Wilson—English/History)
• Gratitude Journaling as an Intervention for Depression, Anxiety and Sleep Mentation for Substance-Related Disorders (Patrick Fox—Psychology)
• Searching for political power relationships through the investigation of the ritual use of the ball court at the Ancient Maya site Ka’Kabish (Amanda Sinclair—Anthropology)
• Power and Resistance in the Contemporary Food System (Stephanie Mayell—Anthropology)
• Surveillance and Privacy in the Canadian Context (Joshua Reyes—Sociology)
• Needle in the Haystack, finding your way in Guild Wars 2 (Meaghan Edwards—Anthropology)

Posted on Thursday, April 3, 2014.