This paper explores the relationship between the cinema and the political concept of the spectacle. The spectacle characterizes a society of passivity, social and psychological alienation, reality's absorption into representation, and capitalist acceleration. In the spectacle's early development, the cinema, in its mainstreams, was the art form most commensurate to the spectacle's ends. Moviegoers gather to submit to moving images that in some ways portray a world more convincing than lived reality itself. But as the spectacle has evolved to fit into our pockets, as media has become more immersive, interactive, and socially isolating, how has its relationship to cinema changed? As the project guided by the myth of "total cinema" is taken up by video games and virtual reality experiences, how do spectators relate differently to cinematic images? This paper argues that today the cinema today is a place to slow down, not to speed up; it can facilitate a shared artistic experience distinct from the individuated ones of streaming television and social media. Perhaps it can even be a space where spectators antagonize the unconscious qualities of their spectatorship.

Commercial musicians in the United States have faced a long and storied history of exploitation and labor abuses by corporations like record labels and streaming platforms. Despite the active presence of music labor unions and similar organizations in American society, most singers/songwriters within the recording industry still need quality union representation to advocate for improving their labor conditions. Through thorough research and interviews with aspiring recording artists, this paper will analyze the barriers preventing recording artists from collectivizing within the music labor movement and how these issues can be circumvented.

This study examines the evolution of care and treatment for individuals with disabilities in New York State psychiatric institutions, focusing on the transformative impact of legal reforms and advocacy that have taken place over the last century. Exposs such as Geraldo Rivera's investigation of Willowbrook State School and Letchworth Village have exposed the horrific conditions faced by patients in these institutions. By investigating the historical mistreatment within these "specialized" institutions like Letchworth Village and Willowbrook State School, research shows a transition toward improved care conditions and rights for individuals with disabilities. Landmark cases like The Protection and Advocacy System in the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 1975, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of that same year, The Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act of 1980 and eventually the Americans with Disabilities Act brought into effect by President George W Bush in 1990, reveal the rise of care for disabled Americans has significantly increased but still needs federal mending. Making sure to emphasize the substantial changes that emerged from landmark cases and legislation, my project aims to describe the positive changes and developments in disability care and the ongoing challenges in ensuring equitable treatment and integration into society for these individuals whose care has been belittled and denied in the past.

This projects aim is to resolve challenges in second-language acquisition by creating a software application that integrates language learning with media, specifically those in image formats. Traditional methods lack the engagement that research suggests enhances learning outcomes and bolsters retention.Using the theories from Krashen, Pica, and others as a basis, the application attempts to leverage comprehensible input to enhance user’s sentence structure understanding, learning retention, and learning efficiency. Using technologies such as optical character recognition (OCR) and dictionary integration through apis, the software extracts language data from images, providing users with definitions from an input language to a target language. Initial development focused on Javascript, Python, and Tesseract OCR for text extraction, with plans for expansion into scalable frameworks like Django to support personalized learning tools. By using language learning research as a basis this project attempts to create a fun, effective, and efficient application to provide an avenue for language learners to enjoy foreign media whilst effectively achieving learning outcomes. LINK TO PROJECT: https://github.com/justrwill/Senior_project

Overload is a motion graphics piece that visualizes auditory over-stimulation. With this project, I aim to help others feel seen and understood and provide a vehicle for others to communicate what they are experiencing.

Dreams of a Visionary is a detailed thesis on what inspires me. My thought process when painting from my dreams. It gives a glimpse into my creative decisions, as well as how I see the world.

Always Moving Forward works as a brand and upstart music label. CEO, Ryan Polanco who goes by the stage name DALIII, is the sole owner of the company. Launched as an LLC in early 2024, DALIII has been releasing music through the label name since 2018. Throughout the thesis, the story of Ryan, and plan for a highly successful company will be highlighted and presented in a professional manner.

My work channels my formative childhood experiences of racism and bullying presented through the reclusiveness of my figures. The persistent need to control and craft my mediums in tedious ways is an extension of my perfectionism produced by a toxic parent-child dynamic. Threaded throughout my work is a relationship with religion and its thematic symbolism where the crucifix becomes a device for pleasure and spiritual presence is encompassed through pearlescent orbs. Monochromatic color allows form and style to take center stage within the pictorial space where sweeping lines guide the viewer's eyes through the compositions of contrasting values and juxtaposing distinct and obscure forms to establish a hierarchy of form. My drawings merge observed reality and abstraction to form a visual language of liberation empowered by my trauma to highlight my queerness which materializes through the raw sensuality of my body.

Automation and artificial intelligence (AI) are causing changes in the United States labor markets, raising concerns about technology-induced job displacement. This study analyzes how technological advancements affect general employment levels and large U.S. company market capitalizations. My panel data spans from 1995 to 2023 and is comprised of 1,257 observations from 48 companies. I use two random-effects Generalized Least Squares regression models to analyze the data I collected and, in my first model, I test to see if increased technological advancement is significantly associated with a change in employment. My second regression tests if technological advancements are associated an increase in company market capitalization. The results indicate that AI and automation do not cause a significant change in employment demand, these technologies may significantly enhance company values, and they may significantly heighten investor confidence. There is an abundance of academic literature expressing concerns over the future of job-displacement from AI-related technologies, which highlights the necessity for policy interventions to reduce adverse effects on the workforce.

Delving into the mass produced and fast formatted content of modern day children's media, 'How to Make a Circle' is an exhibit that will point a questionable finger at what is advertised as children's educational content. This project will highlight certified works aimed to benefit the development of youth, while clashing with the common horrors that every child on the internet is guaranteed to witness, and encouraged to seek out.