The capstone of a Scripps student’s academic career is her required senior thesis. It is a culminating opportunity to show she has developed the skills and abilities to make a significant, meaningful contribution to the body of knowledge in her chosen major.
Here is a recap of just a few of the theses explored this year by seniors, several of whom presented on Capstone Day:
Sarah Moos produced a studio art project and a research paper for her dual majors of studio art and environmental analysis. In her paper, she discusses humans’ intrinsic interconnection to the natural environment, how the current degraded state of the natural world harms such interconnection, and the importance of spaces and places in human lives. For her art project, she constructed a three-dimensional, outdoor sculptural installation in the form of an all-organic DNA double helix that communicates the interconnectedness of space, place, and human interaction with the natural environment.
To receive honors, Sarah expanded the project this spring to explore the concept of biomimicry — “the process of utilizing nature’s design for our own designs by combining living plants and solar technology in the form of a functional artwork to promote a sustainable, symbiotic relationship between humans and nature for a positive, regenerative future,” she explained.
“Through this project, I believe that I have demonstrated my passion to incorporate native plants and natural materials into the landscape of designed spaces, and, ultimately, to encourage environmental awareness and stewardship for respecting the natural environment and designing with nature,” she said. Sarah hopes to continue these concepts in her research in a graduate program for landscape architecture and urban planning.
Lauren Latto’s English thesis focuses on the works of Junot D