Complete Conference Program - Wellesley College

1:30–2:40pm
Maladies sans Frontieres:
Global Health Problems
(short talks) Science Center 278
The Growing Burden of Breast
Cancer in the Global South: An
Interdisciplinary Approach
Brianna D. Krong ’15, Political Science and
Peace & Justice Studies
AdvisoR: Catia Confortini, Peace Studies
Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer
mortality among women. As life expectancy in
low-income countries increases, the global cancer
burden is shifting to populations in the Global
South, which experience disproportionate rates
of mortality. However, only a small fraction of
global cancer spending is allocated towards these
most vulnerable populations. Paying special
attention to breast cancer, I am compiling the
current literature on cancer in low-income
countries, drawing from the fields of global
public health, international political economy,
and medical anthropology and sociology. It is
my hope that this work will help facilitate an
understanding of how the factors contributing to
cancer’s increasing global burden relate to transnational
processes including resource allocation,
environmental regulations, and hazardous waste
disposal. (Research supported by the Sophomore
Early Research Program)
The Impact of Private Sector Pricing
Policy on Health Care: evidence from
Walmart’s $4 Prescription Program
You Wang ’13, Economics
AdvisoR: Robin McKnight, Economics
In 2006, Walmart launched a program that cut
prices of nearly 300 generic prescription drugs
to $4 per prescription for a month’s supply.
This is a nation-wide program and is available
to people with or without insurance. My thesis
research examines the impact of a private firm’s
pricing policy on health spending behavior,
health utilization and health outcomes.
Cancer in Africa: Brief Background,
Current Challenges, future fixes
Sylvia K. Ilahuka ’13, Environmental Studies
and Sociology
AdvisoR: Anastasia Karakasidou,
Anthropology
Over recent years, the incidences of and deaths
from cancer in Africa have been on the rise.
Where infectious disease has been the bane of
the continent for the longest time, cancer and
other chronic diseases are rapidly taking over
and are set to become the leading burden in
the not-too-distant future. While it is practically
impossible to comprehensively address
this topic in such a brief amount of time, this
presentation will draw upon literary research
to enlighten attendees on the place of cancer
among chronic diseases in African countries.
(Supported by the Barbara Peterson Ruhlman
'54 Fund)
Global Commerce in Flux: How
the World is Changing China and
China is Changing the World
(panel discussion) Founders Hall 126
Connie C. Shen ’14, Economics, Xue Wu ’13,
Economics, Shuang Yin ’16, Undeclared
AdvisoR: C. Pat Giersch, History
Over the last three decades China has
emerged as a global economic power with
unparalleled growth and development. As
foreign firms have set their sights on China,
Chinese corporations have set their sights on
the world. In this presentation, we examine
the domestic and international avenues of
China's economic development and success
from the perspective of the foreign firm in
China and the Chinese firm abroad. First, we
will investigate how foreign businesses have
entered, developed and begun to thrive in
China by assessing changes in government
policy and localization strategies. Second, we
will provide a deeper look at the performance
and infrastructure of China's national champion
firms in global markets by analyzing the
infrastructure and business strategies adopted
by these major enterprises. Through examining
China’s role in the global economy in the
past and present, we seek to provide a more
complete narrative of its potential future.
Perspectives on Social
Issues III: Research from the
Wellesley College Freedom
Project
(panel discussion) Pendleton Hall
West 212
Maria A. Brusco ’14, Philosophy and
Economics, Beba Cibralic ’16, Undeclared,
Amy N. Wickett ’16, Undeclared
AdvisoR: Thomas Cushman, Sociology
Are prescription-only drugs a violation of
an individual's freedom to choose? Does
making some drugs available by prescription
only unjustly limit a person's bodily agency?
Requiring prescriptions may protect people from
wrongly using drugsthey do not understand and
that could potentially harm them, but this prac-
tice also limits an individual's power over her
own body. People are legally able to take risks
with their bodies and treat them as they please
in many other aspects of life. Some philosophers
ask: why shouldn't people also be allowed to
take pharmaceuticalrisks with their bodies? In
this presentation, we will discuss philosophy
of the body with respect to prescription drugs,
recreational drugs, and performance-enhancing
drugs and whether regulation over their sale is
a threat to liberty. Drawing on the theories of
Jessica Flanigan, a leading philosopher in this
debate, we will discuss the issue of ownership
of the body, the role of government in an individual's
healthdecisions, and the consequences
for liberty and freedom.
Gender and Cultural Production
(panel discussion) Science Center 277
Women Do it Best: An Analysis on
Representation of Black female Bodies
in Rap music Videos
Asia Sims ’14, Women’s and Gender Studies
and Africana Studies
AdvisoRs: Irene Mata and Rosanna Hertz,
Women’s & Gender Studies
What does rap music look and sound like
once it has been queered? My research offers
answers to this question through an examination
of the representation of race, gender,
and sexuality of the Black female body in
popular rap music. The first half of my
research focuses on Sir Mix-A-Lot’s infamous
“Baby Got Back” music video and the
contemporary queered version of this music
video performed by African American artist,
Ayanah Moor. I argue Sir Mix-A-Lot’s version
represents Black female excess in a negative
way in contrast to Ayanah’s version that represents
the simplicity of black female beauty.
After identifying what I (literally) consider
the black and white areas of representation,
I delve into a further analysis of the gray area
located between the overt objectification and
covert celebration of the Black female body.
I turn to the work of a transgender rapper,
Big Freedia, and her “Sissy Bounce” music.
Tambien las mujeres Pueden:
Women in Narco-Corridos
Yesenia Trujillo ’14, Computer Science
AdvisoRs: Irene Mata and Rosanna Hertz,
Women’s & Gender Studies
Throughout history, poor and the marginalized
groups have found through folk songs ways to
recreate, represent, and celebrate the actions of
men and women that, while labeled as deviant
WELLESLEY COLLEGE RUHLMAN CONFERENCE 2013 39