The Podium - Fall 2023 by Belmont Hill School

The

Podium

Belmont Hill’s History and Social Sciences Magazine

Volume VIII • Edition II • Fall 2023

An important note: All opinions and ideas expressed in The Podium are the personal opinions and convictions of featured student writers and are not necessarily the opinions of The Podium staff, the Belmont Hill History Department, or the Belmont Hill School itself.

The Staff of Volume VIII of The Podium Left to Right: Mr. Harvey, Jaiden Lee, Wesley Zhu, Cole Sparks, Ernest Lai, Max Glick, Brandon Li, Noah Farb, Mikey Furey

Cover photo from BH Archives Published by the Belmont Hill School 350 Prospect Street Belmont, MA 02478

Printed by Belmont Printing Co. Designed with Adobe InDesign and Adobe Photoshop

Letter from the Staff Capping off a year of Centennial celebrations on the hill, Volume VIII, Edition II marks the final edition of The Podium for the seniors on the staff as well as the first century of Belmont Hill. In one of our longest and most varied issues to date, Edition II features intriguing articles highlighting some of the most important events of today as well as key historical topics. As always, we remain committed to sharing as many student voices as possible and we are proud to share that Edition II contains essays from a record fifteen students. We begin with “History on the Hill,” where Jaiden Lee ‘26 takes us on a journey through the school’s past, focusing on defining moments in the story of Belmont Hill. Once again, our op-ed competition yielded an impressive student turnout with a total of fifty submissions. Winners wrote about several potent issues including the Israel-Hamas conflict, American politics and the EV market, among others. Edition II features three research papers as well. Max Glick ‘24 analyzed the role that Stanford University played in the creation and growth of Silicon Valley. In his Monaco Prize-winning essay, Mark Price ‘24 dives into several conservation policies in the United States and how they have affected American bird populations. Finally, Alexander Chen ‘27 examines the history of citizenship in the United States. As always, history teachers nominate many more papers than can fit and we have placed some of those titles in the nominations section. We sincerely appreciate the contributions of the History Department to making this publication a success. This edition’s data analysis focused on the 2024 presidential election. In their article, Ernest Lai ‘25 and Wesley Zhu ‘25 found out that the majority of students and faculty are unsatisfied with the prospect of another Biden vs. Trump general election and would like to see a new candidate. Finally, Brandon Li ‘26 explores the failures of Ron DeSantis’s campaign and Mikey Furey ‘25 lays out how Ukraine has changed modern warfare tactics. In our eyes, Volume VIII, Edition II is a landmark edition of The Podium. Filled with historical insight, political analysis and voices from around school, it marks a bold step in the path that The Podium hopes to take in the future. Overall, we are incredibly excited to share Edition II with you. Thank you for picking up a copy and enjoy! Max Glick ‘24 | Editor-In-Chief Cole Sparks ‘24, Noah Farb ‘24 | Executive Editors Ernest Lai ‘25, Wesley Zhu ‘25 | Associate Editors

The Podium | Letter from the Staff

Dear Reader,

Mikey Furey ‘25, Jaiden Lee ‘26, Brandon Li ‘26 | Staff Writers Mr. Harvey | Faculty Advisor

Content Volume VIII • Edition II

History on the Hill 6 Belmont Hill Turns 100

Jaiden Lee ‘26

Opinion Pieces 8 Hamas, not Israel, is Committing Genocide

Noah Farb ‘24

The Essential Role of Presidential Debates

Kevin Weldon ‘24

The Supreme Court’s Influence

Emerson Walker ‘25

Defender of Modern Democracy

Alex Laidlaw ‘25

Eli Norden ‘26

Gabe Umlas ‘25

The Cell Phone Dilemma Is the Car Market Turning Green?

Research Papers 16 Stanford and the Growth of Silicon Valley

Max Glick ‘24

Ornithological Conservation in the US

Mark Price ‘24

Alexander Chen ‘27

American Birthright Citizenship

Data Analysis 60 2024 Presidential Election

Ernest Lai ‘25, Wesley Zhu ‘25

Historical Film Review 64 Oppenheimer Review

Cole Sparks ‘24

Miscellaneous Essays 66 What Happened to “DeFuture?”

Brandon Li ‘26

How Ukraine has Changed Warfare

Mikey Furey ‘25

Nominations For Research Papers and Essays

Opinion Pieces Presidential Debates: Neccesary?

Roger Zhang ‘29

Let Us Keep Our Phones at School

Lucas Nurenberg ‘25

The Oligarchal Branch

Max Ramanathan ‘25

20th Century World History Media Biases in the Israel-Palestine Conflict

Ryan Hoffman ‘25

Swiss Neutrality During World War II

Will Umscheid ‘25

Middle East & China “Zero COVID” Policy in China

Samuel Flood ‘26

Thank you to the History Department for their assistance in identifying strong essays and papers. Their dedication to The Podium is vital to the success of the ﬁnal publication.

For past editions, exclusive articles and more information, visit us online! bhpodium.org | @bhpodium

Belmont Hill Centennial: A Look Back at 100 Years in 1927. In 1932, after nine years of service, Dr. Howe’s tenure from his post as Head of School was cut short by an untimely death due to a sudden heart failure that shocked the entire Belmont Hill School community. For the rest of the year of 1932, Mr. Thomas Morse stepped up as interim headmaster. Later, Mr. Morse would become the third headmaster of the school in an official role. In September of the next year, Mr. W. Harold Taylor became headmaster, coincidentally like Mr. Howe, Mr. Taylor had previous positions teaching at both Harvard and Middlesex. Mr. Taylor was a key figure in the founding of an arts, music, and theater program at Belmont Hill, and assisted in the formation of a student council at the school. After three years as Head of School, Mr. Taylor passed, resulting in the re-introduction of Mr. Morse as the Head of School in September 1935. Mr. Morse was extremely well-fitted to take the position after ten years of faculty experience at the school and having served as interim headmaster after the death of Dr. Howe. Under Mr. Morse, the grounds and sports facilities were largely improved and expanded, and the first yearbook (The Sundial) was published. 1939 marked the beginning of a troubled era as America was on the brink of World War II, and the school began to face financial struggles. In 1942, Mr. Charles F. Hamilton took charge as the fourth Head of School as the war took the world by storm, and was faced with the task of reinvigorating the school’s spirit and attendance. By 1945, after years of uncertainty, Mr. Hamilton managed to secure the

Jaiden Lee ‘26 In 1923, Belmont Hill School was founded by a group of incorporators looking for an non-boarding educational institution that would allow students to learn in more compact environments. Prior to the school’s official establishment, the land we know today was not yet existent as “the Hill,” and primarily belonged in the ownership of Belmont Hill Trust. In March 1923, 19 acres (77,000 m2) of rutted and uneven property was bought with the assistance of a member of Belmont Hill Trust, Mr. Robert Atkins. A few months later, an athletic field, dormitory, and an academic building (later labeled the Howe building) were installed. Belmont Hill first opened for 43 students in the fall of 1923 with four members. The first-ever headmaster of the school, Dr. Reginald Heber Howe Jr., arrived on campus with experience as a crew coach and staff member at Harvard, and as a teacher at The Middlesex School. As the first headmaster of the new school, Dr. Howe focused his efforts on supporting and building the Belmont Hill community while keeping the operations and daily tasks of the school running as smoothly as possible. The Glee Club was founded during the inauguration year of the school by Ms. Keyes, a faculty member who taught grades three through six. In July of 1926, the Eliot building was constructed to add more teaching space on campus. Notably, Mr. Munro Leaf, author of the children’s book The Story of Ferdinand, served on the faculty starting 1929. The school’s first graduation ceremony was held Volume VIII • Edition II

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School to teach at a school in Turkey, so Dr. Richard L. Melvoin stepped in as Belmont Hill’s 8th head of school. Dr. Melvoin was a known historian who came from Harvard Admissions and had held previous roles at Deerfield Academy. September 1998 was Belmont Hill’s 75th anniversary, which also consisted of the 75th Anniversary Campaign, raising $42.2 million for renovations, constructions, and improvements to the campus of the school. In the year 2000, the beginning of a new century marked the beginning of two winning sports dynasties at Belmont Hill: crew and wrestling. Both teams would win unprecedented numbers of ISL, New England, and even National titles in the next decades. The Prenatt Music Center was constructed in August of 2004 to hold music and arts classes at Belmont Hill, named for Harold Prenatt, a former faculty member and Music Director at Belmont Hill. Sadly, Mr. Cliff Goodband passed away in February 2010 after serving for 27 years as Director of the Upper School. In 2012, Jon M. Biotti ’87 became the President of the Board at Belmont Hill, after serving as a member of the Board since 2007. In September 2014, the Melvoin Academic Center was built in honor of the school’s 8th Head of School Dr. Rick Melvoin, hosting classrooms for history, classics, and math. In July 2018, Dr. Melvoin retired after 25 years of service to the school, and Mr. Gregory J. Schneider arrived on campus to take over as the 9th Ronald M. Druker ’62 Head of School. March 2020 marked Belmont Hill’s transition to remote learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic across the world, and students would not return to learn in-person until next fall. In 2023, Belmont Hill School celebrated its centennial year, with lots of school wide events to celebrate the event! Fall 2023

The Podium | History on the Hill

school’s future financially. December 1948 marked the school’s 25th anniversary, and faculty, students, and family alike celebrated a quarter century of Belmont Hill. Additionally, the Independent School League was formed during, with Belmont Hill being one of the schools at the forefront of its creation. Fast forward to 1971, and after Mr. Hamilton’s decades of service to the school as its headmaster, Mr. David A. Aloian took the helm as the fifth Head of School, focusing his efforts on expanding the curriculum of the school in areas of math, science, history, english, language, and more. May 1973 marked the 50th anniversary of the school, and once again the Belmont Hill community gathered to celebrate. An opening segment was delivered by Reverend Francis B. Sayre ’32. In 1978 students formed the B-Flats society for singing and the arts as a group. 1978 also marked the year when Mr. Roger. F. Duncan came into the position as Head of School in July, having been a Belmont Hill staff member for 33 years prior. Mr. Duncan retired from Belmont Hill in 1981 after 36 years at the school. Mr. Duncan was headmaster for one year before Mr. Christopher Wadsworth became headmaster; Mr. Wadsworth put his efforts toward improving communications at Belmont Hill and ensuring more financial aid was allocated to students in need. A new library and many building renovations were constructed during his 14-year tenure. In 1987 the William H. Byrnes Library and Lynch Center opened for use by the school community. 1990 was Belmont Hill’s first track and field Independent School League championship win as a team, where the school opened with a tie with the Thayer School and Milton Academy. In July of 1993, Mr. Christopher Wadsworth left his position as Head of

Hamas, not Israel, is Attempting Genocide The actions of the Israeli government, people, and the IDF in this current wave of conflict are solely out of an interest in defending the Israeli people from a neighbor who seeks to murder, rape, and pillage. Historical population data shows Israel has never attempted genocide of the Palestininan people. In 1948, there were less than 1.4 million Palestinians. Within Israel proper (pre-1967 borders), there are 1.6 million Palestinian-Israelis today, more than there were in 1948, and comprising over 20% of the Israeli population as a whole. Palestinian-Israelis can vote in elections and serve in the national legislature, the Knesset. These Palestinians descend from the 150,000 that stayed after the expulsion (and voluntary departure) of Palestinians from Israel in 1948. If the Israeli government was trying to commit genocide against the Palestinains, wouldn’t they start with thoseliving within Israel? If you are reading this, and believe what Israel is doing right now is genocidal, how would you explain this population increase of Palestinians within the borders of Israel? Outside of the internationally recognized borders of Israel, the Palestinian population also has skyrocketed, increasing tenfold since 1948. As of mid 2022, there were over 14 million Palestinians worldwide, 5.35 million of whom live in either the West Bank or Gaza, and seven million in diaspora. Within the area of Israel and the Palestinian Territories, the number of Palestinains has increased from barely 1.4 million to seven million, an increase of more than five times in just 75 years. To this day, the Israeli government holds significant power within the West Bank, and until 2005 fully occupied Gaza. One would assume if Israel was trying to commit genocide against the Palestinians, the government or the IDF would attempt to limit the births of Palestinians in these two regions Either they have failed in this goal or more likely, aren’t aiming to limit Palestinian births. 47% of Gaza

Noah Farb ‘24 Whether it’s ravenous chants of “Israel, Israel, you can’t hide, we charge you with genocide” at prominent college campuses like the Univeristy of Pennsylvania, a UN report warning a “risk of genocide,” or accusations against Israel from the governments of nations such as Norway, Spain, Brazil, Iran, and North Korea, a wide-ranging list of people, nations, and organizations are accusing Israel of genocide. Most ironic, is the claim of the terrorist organization Hamas, published in the New York Times and other mainstream media outlets, that Israel committed “crimes of genocide” in bombing the the al-Ahli Arab hospital in Gaza City; the explosion was later proven and independently verified to be a misfire into the parking lot of the hospital from a missile fired by the Gaza-based and Hamas aligned terrorist group, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Hamas, for context, publicly states in their founding charter about their goal to “obliterate it [Israel]” and their desire to systematically kill all Jews around the world until “the enemy is vanquished.” These calls for the destruction of Israel and the wiping out of Jews are quite literally calls for genocide. The recent roars around the world accusing Israel of genocide since the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) began their retaliatory attacks after the 10/7 massacre have never been stronger. The term “genocide” was first used as a term in 1944 to describe Nazi policies against Jews throughout the Holocaust. The U.S. Department of Justice defines it as “violent attacks with the specific intent to destroy, in whole or part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group.” Although Israel is undoubtedly carrying out violent attacks within Gaza, meant to root out Hamas and destroy the terrorist infrastructure inside, never since the founding of the State in 1948 has Israel ever tried to systematically kill Palestinians or destroy the Palestinian race. Volume VIII • Edition II

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main roads in an attempt to increase the loss of Palestinian life, which both helps to galvanize their base and gain international sympathy as the death toll climbs. The IDF is doing the best they can to limit civilian deaths, and if their goal was genocide, they would be indiscriminate with their targets causing the death total to skyrocket far higher than the current totals. There is lots of room for improvement in how the IDF is operating within Gaza, but in no way is the government or military pursuing the complete destruction of the Palestinian race. Since the ground invasion began, it appears that as combat is becoming more face-to-face rather than through aerial assault, the IDF is being more careful about operating in the proximity of civilians. Mistakes have been and will continue to be made by the Israeli military. These errors should not be taken lightly and are often unexcusable. But they are not genocidal, and anyone claiming so only works to rile up people on both sides of this conflict around the world, continuing the seemingly endless cycle of hate and violence. The IDF is doing what they can to ensure the safety of their country and to rescue the over 240 hostages still in the captivity of terrorist groups. Hamas in particular has said they plan for a “second, third, [and] fourth” version of 10/7. This is why calls for a ceasefire benefit Hamas immensely. They yearn for the opportunity to systematically murder Jews and Israelis again; on 10/6 there was a ceasefire, do you really think Hamas and other terrorist groups within Gaza will honor this ceasefire for long? How can Israel stay complacent with a murderous neighbor on their doorstep, waiting to pounce whenever they have the chance? The group that wants genocide, as they have proudly stated over and over for decades is Hamas, not Israel or the IDF, and that should not be forgotten. Fall 2023

The Podium | Opinion Pieces

residents and 42% of the West Bank Palestinians are younger than 18, compared to only 33% of Israelis. If Israel was trying to commit genocide against the Palestinian people, they are be failing miserably; more likely, they have no intention of destroying the Palestinian race. The claim that the IDF is attempting to commit genocide against Palestinians in its current military operation are unfounded. While the large death totals from Gaza regarding Israel’s bombing campaign and ground invasion are sickening, it is important to note that these numbers are being reported from the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, which does not differentiate Hamas operatives from civilians. In the aftermath of the al-Ahli hospital explosion, questions also have to be raised about the veracity of these reports. Even with issues in the counting, it is undeniable that thousands of civilians have died in Gaza since 10/7 as a result of the IDF military campaign. But this does not mean Israel is trying to destroy the Palestinian race. The Israeli attacks are not meant to cause harm to civilians, but often they have no choice than to accept some risk due to the tendencies of Hamas, the Islamic Jihad, and other terrorist cells within Gaza to place weapons, soldiers, and military strategic bases within hospitals, schools, and other civilian infrastructure. The placement of military centers from these terrorist groups, mainly Hamas, are purposeful; using humans as shields is strategically beneficial to them. One way Israel has tried to limit civilian deaths within Gaza has been relocating people from Northern Gaza. They have warned residents to evacuate by using online videos and by dropping tens of thousands of leaflets throughout Gaza City before beginning the ground invasion. Hamas, in response, has tried to keep Gazans from leaving the North by physically blocking exits and bombing

The Essential Role of Debates Kevin Weldon ‘24 The presidential debate has been a continuous part of each presidential election cycle since its inception during the 1960 race between John F. Kenneday and Richard Nixon. The roots of discourse among political candidates stretches back even further into American History. For the majority of American citizens, debates have been a defining characteristic of the election process for their entire lives. Furthermore, they play a key role in understanding the policies, personalities, and quick thinking abilities of the candidates to better inform American voters. Needless to say, the importance of the debate cannot be understated and the fact that it is a staple of the election is no surprise. In the 21st Century landscape, the presidential debate is more important than ever in combatting, and while no consequences can be constitutionally enforced, the importance of the debate and the message that avoiding it would send guarantees any candidate with real aspirations of becoming the US President will attend. In a political climate where slander, polarization, and misinformation is reaching an all-time high, the presidential debate is one of the most useful tools for both candidates and voters to combat these issues. The rise of social media has coincided with a rise of radicalism within the United States. Thus, social media has become a medium where tribalism, intentionally false reporting, and slander are rampant and dominate the political content consumed by Americans. Finding trustworthy, unbiased, and accurate news in this hyper-sensationalized world is growing increasingly more difficult than ever. Consequently, Americans are often politically influenced by the whim of someone who is potentially not a journalist, expert, or even a politically fluent individual. The presidential debate must take on an even more essential role in this environment. Whereas social media is a place where clicks reign supreme, the presidential debate Volume VIII • Edition II

provides – in addition to all the aforementioned benefits – a unique opportunity for American citizens to genuinely see candidates respond to questions fully without a warping lens. Candidates refusing to attend presidential debates will likely never be a major issue. Name recognition is perhaps the most powerful tool in presidential candidacy – if a candidate is not discussed, or known, by the majority, there is little chance they will be elected. Missing a debate would be massively detrimental to the candidacy of any would-be president, as it removes the opportunity for the candidate to speak – and, simply, be – in front of tens of millions of people. It would tremendously disadvantage and weaken any campaign, and furthermore, it is almost perceived as weak. Media or opposing candidates can easily twist a refusal to show up to the presidential debate as the candidate being unable to defend their platform, or think on their feet, or just simply being cowardly: an obviously unattractive trait for a leader. Last, the presidential debate has become so ingrained in the mind and way of the American people, that not attending one would seem almost undemocratic. It would break conventions, show massive disrespect to the traditions which have been in place for the majority of every American citizen’s life. The act would certainly not be conducive toward attracting swing voters, which is the goal of every campaign. Thus, the presidential debate plays an indispensable role in today’s world. It combats sensationalism, tribalism, and bias with the ability to truly watch the candidates live and unfiltered. Furthermore, it likely does not face real threat from lack of attendance. The platform it provides, and the undemocratic and negative connotations associated with not attending would cause, will likely prove too attractive and catastrophic, respectively, for candidates to seriously entertain the idea. The presidential debate is not an accessory, or an additive to a presidential campaign; it has become essential.

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US Supreme Court: Taking Too Much Power Another example of the Court’s outsized influence is its ability to interpret the Constitution. The Constitution is obviously important because the laws and rules that make up American society are based on the ideas from the Constitution. But nowadays who determines what the Founding Fathers really meant? Is there a certain interpretation of the Constitution? Based on many arguments and court cases, it is clear that there are multiple interpretations of the Constitution. And it seems as if the Supreme Court always is the one determining the “actual” meaning of what is stated in the Constitution. A prominent example is when the Supreme Court has gotten rid of laws passed by Congress because the Supreme Court interpreted the laws as unconstitutional. The interpretation of the Constitution gives the Supreme Court extremely large amounts of power, as they can pretty much make anything they want to happen if they can argue for its constitutionality. This also should change, as it is hard to place a check on this power without it seeming like an unconstitutional act. Ultimately, something should be done, because at the moment, the Supreme Court has a bit too much power and influence in American society with its ability to create its own doctrines, and interpret the Constitution in its own favor.

Emerson Walker ‘25 The Supreme Court plays a major role in American life, as the highest court, and its ability to overturn laws deemed unconstitutional. However, the Supreme Court has too big of an influence with its ability to interpret the Constitution in favor of judiciary power. Court rulings can also empower the Supreme Court, giving it an outsized influence. One example of the Supreme Court’s outsized influence is with the Major Questions Doctrine. Prior to this doctrine, government agencies interpreted rules that gave them regulatory authority. If these statutes were challenged, agencies could often claim the statutes were ambiguous, and retain their authority. However, the Supreme Court created the Major Questions Doctrine, which was used to reject various agencies’ claims of authority. The doctrine has been used successfully in many cases, notably with the authority of the Environmental Protection Agency. The fact that the Supreme Court can make up its own doctrines to achieve its goals is not a power that any branch of government should have. Checks and balances on judicial power should be implemented, so they can not just create anything without approval from other parts of the government. Volume VIII • Edition II

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Defender of Modern Democracy Alex Laidlaw ‘25 When George Washington made the challenging decision to step down from his position as President of the United States, he offered several key pieces ofadvice to the new nation. In his Farewell Address, Washington warned of three major issues: geographical sectionalism, political factions, and, most importantly, the danger of foreign interference. In his letter, he emphasized the danger of getting involved with foreign issues and urged America to remain neutral. 27 years later, in an address to Congress, James Monroe would echo a similar sentiment, establishing a policy of US foreign neutrality that would last for nearly a century. But things changed drastically in the 20th century. As advancements in technology brought the world closer together, these developments also made it harder for the US to stay out of foreign affairs. Although both President Wilson and President Roosevelt tried to avoid US involvement in each of the World Wars, the interconnectedness of the globe, combined with technological advancements that made America far less isolated, forced the US to join both conflicts. Having abandoned the Monroe Doctrine, the US would assume a new position in the world, becoming both a global power and a beacon of democracy. The United States quickly adopted a new policy of foreign intervention, joining NATO, and involving itself in conflicts around the globe, such as the Korean War and the Vietnam War. Today, it remains the United States’ duty to protect democracy and freedom across the globe, and the country should continue to fund Ukraine’s effort to counter Russia’s offensive. When Russia invaded Ukraine, its mission was clear: to reclaim the Soviet Union’s former territory. In the process, it invaded a sovereign nation, dedicated to democratic ideals. Moreover, it attacked a nation on the verge of joining NATO and eager to strengthen its ties with the US and the Western world. Considering Ukraine’s devotion to democracy, Volume VIII • Edition II

this war is far larger than a small land dispute in Eastern Europe. Instead, Russia’s invasion is an attack on democracy across the world and should be responded to as such. Being the flagship of democracy, the United States must ensure that Ukrainian democracy does not fall. However, military funding for nations like Ukraine should remain just that: funding. While the US should continue its devotion to protecting the democracies of the world, it ought not to forget that its most important duty is to protect its citizens. At the end of the day, it is the US government’s duty to protect the lives, liberty, and property of American citizens, and defending the citizens of foreign countries must remain secondary. Therefore, while it is the US’s duty as the defender of democracy to provide Ukraine with funds and equipment, it must ensure that American lives are not put in danger. Therefore, the United States must be careful with how it approaches aiding foreign nations, so as not to provoke a larger, head-on war. Being the pillar of modern democracy, it is the United States’ duty to protect the democracies of the world. Therefore, considering the direct threat Russia presents to Ukrainian democracy, the US should continue to provide aid to the Ukrainian people. The policy of defending nations from Russian encroachments is not unprecedented. At the onset of the Cold War, President Truman established a US foreign policy to defend democracies against “authoritarian threats,” known as the Truman Doctrine. For the following decades, the US maintained this principle and supported countries that fought back against Soviet expansion. The recent Russian invasion of Ukraine resembles much of the Soviet Union’s attempts to impose their way of governance on nearby nations. Moreover, considering that Russia decided to invade Ukraine with the idea of restoring its former glory, it is clear that the US must continue to uphold the Truman Doctrine and defend Ukraine from Russian encroachment. 12

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Ruining Our Livelihood: The Cell Phone Dilemma self-esteem. At school, students should not have to worry about outside pressures. If a student sees a ‘cool’ TikTok, they will be distracted and wish they were there, wherever there may be. Students should not be able to access online information that will make them feel less valued in school. Everything on a phone is also available on a computer. When a student pulls their phone out for even a mere second to switch a song or podcast, the same can be done on a laptop. If a student needs to text their parents about a game cancellation, he can use a computer. The notion that phones are necessary at any point during the school day is false. For urgent issues, too, phones are not necessary. For example, in the event of a security risk, the school can contact the police. The new phone policy should not be in place in those extreme cases. There are also always accessible phones in almost every room on campus. For necessary issues, one can see an administrative staff member to contact parents or guardians at home. Since phone usage in school distracts students from learning itself, I agree with Belmont Hill’s new phone policy. Students should focus on their schoolwork and not be glued to their screens; being attached to phone screens distracts students from valuable time to work and be social. Additionally, phones negatively affect the mental health of pre-teen and teenage students. At Belmont Hill, where we mold young men of character, we should be grateful to be at this institution and take advantage of every second we have at this special place before it is too late. Wasting time on our phones is about the least productive way one can spend their time and school is not the place to waste time. There is a time and a place for everything, even cell phone use. American producer Jonathan Estrin once said, “the way we spend our time defines who we are.” Let’s spend it better.

Eli Norden ‘26 In 2007, when Steve Jobs first unveiled the first iPhone, the world was dumbfounded. Around the globe, people waited seemingly forever to acquire this new awe-inspiring device. Yes, the iPhone, along with other smartphones do incredible things, but the human race has taken it too far. Phones distract students from their work and have significant mental health effects. Additionally, everything done on a phone can be done somewhere else. I concur with Belmont Hill’s new cellphone policy and its enforcement because phones distract students from the task at hand: education. We students, especially at Belmont Hill, are at school to learn. While at Belmont Hill, we should not be focused on our fantasy football team or looking at a TikTok portraying a painting of Napoleon depressed while in exile. Instead, we should focus on studying and getting work done. School is for learning, and we must uphold that. Cell phones distract students from school material and meaningful social interactions. When I have little work to get done and sit down in the Form III study hall, I often just talk with my friends about whatever is on our minds: fantasy football, the Celtics, or plans for the upcoming weekend. When even one person is not present and is on their phone, the conversation is spoiled; it is better to have naturally flowing social interactions than those hindered by faces buried in phones. When I do schoolwork and check my phone for a notification, I regularly end up aimlessly scrolling through some app or going down a rabbit hole, wasting my time. Phones have been scientifically proven to be a crucial factor in determining why today’s younger generation deals with disproportionate anxiety and depression rates; having phones at school diminishes students’ Volume VIII • Edition II

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The Electric Vehicle Takeover: Is The Car Market Turning Green? Gabe Umlas ‘25 As the leader of the famed Car Club at Belmont Hill, I feel it is my duty to answer any looming questions regarding the automotive market and cars themselves. Having heard countless queries regarding the controversial rise of electric cars and the seemingly inevitable movement towards a greener infrastructure, I write to hopefully ease the pandemonium regarding the fateful debate: will electric cars take over in the near future? You have probably seen the long-awaited, or long-hated, upsurge of the electric car field. First, it was Tesla taking over both the road and the parking lot, replacing those valuable storefront parking spaces with “EV Charging Only” spaces. The breakthrough has created a massive rift in society, and more specifically, amongst car enthusiasts. Many love the seemingly environment-friendly aspect of EVs, as well as the silent, high-tech ambiance offered by the vehicles. Others choose to buy into the happy medium of the market, purchasing a plug-in hybrid (PEV), or a hybrid car to feel as though they are making a “greener” impact. Yet, others, often the socalled “gear heads,” despise the high price tags, futuristic and plump exteriors, instant torque, modern gimmicks, and the noiseless lack of moving parts that the new “green” market Volume VIII • Edition II

offers. Every single facet of these modern machines has a two-sided debate surrounding it. Here is my opinion on the matter and what I believe will happen in the foreseeable years: As I stated before, there are countless redeeming qualities of EVs and PEVs. That is why the “niche” has captivated almost every car brand in some way. While Tesla’s S3XY lineup has held the number-one position in the competition, brands like Chevy with their Bolt EV and Volt PEV, and Nissan’s Leaf have shared an important role in the growth of alternative fuel. Over the past few years, familiar brands like Hyundai, Volvo, and Ford have entered their name into the hat, as well as some new startups like Rivian, Polestar (formerly part of Volvo), and Lucid, which my dad decided to buy from. In my opinion, the EV market has gained a loyal following, enough to keep it floating. However, there are many aspects of the current EV market that are unappetizing to many. For one thing, lots of people see EVs as ugly and personalityless. Their sometimes bloated or futuristic exteriors have created lots of debate. EVs also have fewer manual features and fewer parts to tinker with, causing a knee-jerk reaction amongst some gearheads and enthusiasts alike. Moreover, the market currently lacks the diversity that it so desperately needs. Currently, the majority of the market consists of four-door sedans, SUVs, and 14

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simple family cars. The market still lacks certain niches, like a large Chevy Suburban-esque SUV, a convertible, and a minivan (there are a few PEV options for most of these categories). Most important, however, is the pricing of these EVs. With all of the doohickies, gadgets, and technology that these vehicles offer, the price tag is not accessible to many. While there are a few EVs starting under $30,000, they can almost never be found for that price. If you are in the market for a pickup truck, good luck finding a new one, or used one, for under fifty thousand dollars. Considering the median income in America is just over $70,000, these cars are practically unattainable for a huge percentage of the population. Finally, the environment-friendly aspect of EVs is hotly contested. Power plants, which often run on fossil fuels, power these machines. The batteries contain Lithium, Cobalt, and other metals

EV around you, because it just does not make sense. The nearest charging station might be more than a charge away from you, meaning that you either purchase a flare gun or do not purchase an electric vehicle at all. Charging companies need to take the initiative, as you cannot expect a consumer to buy an EV with no chargers in driving distance. Also, in light of competition, many of these brands form contracts of charging platforms, meaning that your car might not be able to charge on certain brands of chargers. Therefore, road trips in the Lucid require some serious planning as to where to stay in order to be able to charge. Though my dad’s Lucid has over four hundred miles of range, some brands are not so impressive–your Mazda MX-30 that you bought for around $40,000 will transport you a shameful one hundred miles maximum. You might as well bike.

that are mined, almost definitely in a non-environment friendly manner by an underpaid worker in a third-world country. Many people buy an EV because it’s the lesser of two evils. That brings us to the final consideration logistics. Simply put, the electric infrastructure and market are not ready for a total takeover just yet. Suppose you live in middle-of-nowhere North Dakota. You might never have seen an

All in all, the electric car market is not ready for that controversial takeover. While they are amazing pieces of machinery that do not emit gas themselves, they currently are too expensive, not supported enough infrastructurally, and might not be as loved as expected by people who love the sound of an engine nor by those who see the negative environmental impact.

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Chipping In: How Stanford University, in Pursuit of Power, Prestige, and Federal Funds, Laid the Groundwork for the Growth of Silicon Valley Max Glick ‘24 A New Gold Rush On January 31, 1950, the National Security Council delivered its report on the growing threat of the Soviet Union to President Harry Truman.1 The report, labeled “NSC 68,” attempted to sum up Soviet military and economic growth since the end of World War II as well as the current and future threats that the Kremlin posed to the Free World.2 The National Security Council had written the report in response to Truman’s request to “undertake a reexamination of our [American] objectives in peace and war and of the effect of these objectives on our strategic plans, in the light of the probable fission bomb capability and possible thermonuclear bomb capability of the Soviet Union.”3 NSC 68 described how the “violent and non-violent” conflict between the Americans and Soviets, now known as the Cold War, had become “endemic.” Fears arose of “slavery under the grim oligarchy of the Kremlin” if the “Free World” did nothing to counter an ever-expanding and increasingly menacing Soviet Union.4 The Council advised Truman that the only feasible way to counter a growing Communist bloc was to deter future aggression via rearmament of the American military. NSC 68 specifically recommended a more robust military with “substantially increased general air, ground, and sea strength, atomic capabilities, and air and civilian defenses to deter war and to provide reasonable assurance, in the event of war, that it could survive the initial Volume VIII • Edition II

blow and go on to the eventual attainment of its objectives.”5 The report would go on to conclude that the “contingency” of a threat of war with the USSR “requires the intensification of our efforts in the fields of intelligence and research and development,” along with “an accelerated exploitation of [the nation’s] scientific potential.”6 In response to this recommendation, Truman began the largest-ever peacetime rearmament of the United States military.7 Truman mandated a quadrupling of the Department of Defense budget, raising spending from five percent of the GDP to over fourteen percent of the thriving postwar economy.8 A significant portion of Truman’s increased military spending was dedicated to researching and developing new technologies. As an arms race with the Soviet Union picked up, the Department of Defense intensified its efforts to build the most advanced weapons possible. A significant portion of this new defense investment was American universities. Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, commanding a meager $44 million endowment at the time, underwent a massive reorganization in the interest of being included in as many of the new defense spending programs as possible.9 Stanford’s pursuit of defense dollars and national recognition built the new technology sector that would forever transform the region then known as the Santa Clara Valley. Less than three decades after the end of World War II, the region would be known by a different name: Silicon Valley.10 Stanford University’s Cold War aca16

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Planting The Seeds of Innovation The rise of Stanford and, thus, Silicon Valley was rooted in federal spending in technology and education. In the lead-up to and during the Second World War, the United States would permanently transform its technological capability as the nation armed itself and allies for the bloodiest conflict in human history. For most of American history, there was little overlap between the government and the economy, but Volume VIII • Edition II

the necessities of war forever shifted this dynamic. While technology firms existed, they were few and far between, most lacking name recognition and never having fulfilled government contracts, never mind ones of the wartime scope. Emerging from the Second World War were large, centralized corporations that formed what President Dwight D. Eisenhower would later coin the “military-industrial complex.” Feeding off intense competition with the Soviet Union, this new generation of military contractors developed new tools of warfare that were more advanced than anything ever created. Just like its predecessor, World War II demanded mechanized warfare that saw an increased role played by machines. The government turned to private industry to realize the massive effort of creating the immense weaponry needed to fight a two-theater war. Prior to the American entry into the war, the United States had already built up its military resources to unprecedented levels. With the threat of large-scale conflict looming, President Franklin D. Roosevelt decided to arm his allies in Europe to prevent placing American boots on the ground. This armament would require a never-before-seen home front mobilization with consumer industries being turned into factories of war. FDR’s plan not only entailed mass production, also the development of advanced technologies and weapons systems. FDR had proven his willingness to increase government spending in the prior decade. His New Deal programs sought to end the Great Depression and were the costliest federal expenditures in US history. At the end of the decade, FDR’s priorities had shifted from the worldwide economic disaster to the looming war. By early 1940, the Nazi war machine had already begun to take its toll on Europe. As Germany began its invasion of France and the Low Countries, FDR implored Congress to Fall 2023

The Podium | Research Papers

demic reorganization and new programming had a transformative impact on the economic trajectory of Silicon Valley. In the build-up to and during World War II, the Department of Defense invested heavily in universities to research and design new weapons systems. This funding prompted the thensmall Stanford University to pivot its program to become an engineering-focused school and take a leading role in educating leaders in the fields of military and consumer technology and providing support for startups in the second half of the century. In the quest for federal dollars and prestige, Stanford, under the leadership of Provost Frederick Terman, conceived of new programs to attract startup companies in the burgeoning technology sector. With backing from the US military, small Bay Area startups were able to establish effective business practices and build new advanced military equipment. These early electronics companies, headquartered around Stanford’s Palo Alto campus, served as case studies for future startups to find success in the region’s growing technology industry. These same Silicon Valley firms helped establish a permanent supporting infrastructure that would later benefit future technology startups in the Bay Area. In short, Stanford University, under the guise of military spending and gaining national prestige, enabled the growth of Silicon Valley’s booming electronics industry.

increase military funding from a meager $24 million to nearly $700 million.11 Roosevelt understood the substantial threat that the Axis powers represented and wanted to ensure that both the United States and its allies had the tools they needed to fight back if necessary. While trying not to incite fears of an American intervention in the war, FDR started to build up military infrastructure in 1940. FDR began to assemble a group of prominent industrialists under the leadership of William Knudsen, President of General Motors, and an expert in mass production. Knudsen worked with other industry leaders to find solutions, allowing the nation to build up its arsenal quickly and at a massive scale. Additionally, Knudsen persuaded Congress to pass a series of business-friendly measures including tax incentives and advance payment that would let factories retool their systems to produce weaponry. The US military paid millions to convert America’s industrial might into factories of war, manufacturing everything from airplanes to bullets to uniforms. Knudsen’s work greatly expanded the sector and tightened connections between the government and the tech industry. In attempts to aid American allies, FDR pushed through the Cash and Carry and later Lend-Lease program, which allowed foreign nations to legally buy American weapons which would otherwise have violated the isolationist Neutrality Acts.12 Roosevelt firmly believed that the US had an obligation to send arms and money to America’s allies to fight the Nazis. Furthermore, with both British and Soviet industrial capacities relatively weak, America would become the “arsenal of democracy.”13 Roosevelt’s two signature aid programs allowed Knudsen’s growing technological sector to be tested for the first time. American innovation also flourished at an unseen level during the war. With funding from the national government, the nation’s factories churned out thousands of planes, tanks, and guns daily. As World War II demanded more advanced weapons than had been seen in any prior conflict, American engineers and technologists saw their numbers increase to meet the needs posed by defense contractors.14 Much of the new technology Volume VIII • Edition II

built for the war was designed and constructed on the East Coast. However, laboratories began to spring up throughout the country, most notably for the Manhattan Project in Los Alamos, New Mexico. While World War II saw unprecedented growth, it marked only the first large-scale expansion for the American technology industry in the twentieth century. As World War II wound down, the Allies held a series of talks to decide how to reorganize the postwar world. During the Yalta Conference in 1945, Roosevelt and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin agreed to hold elections in Eastern European countries occupied by the Soviet Union.15 However, after the war, Stalin went back on his word and implemented Communist regimes in Eastern Europe, forming what would later be coined by Winston Churchill as the “Iron Curtain.”16 Newly inaugurated President Harry Truman was a strong adversary of the emerging Eastern bloc and announced the new US foreign policy of “containment.” Truman’s containment policy, also known as the Truman Doctrine, called for the United States to limit the expansion of Communism with military and economic force.17 In a famed 1947 address to Congress, Truman remarked, “One of the primary objectives of the foreign policy of the United States is the creation of conditions in which we and other nations will be able to work out a way of life free from coercion.”18 Under the guise of containment, Truman began expanding the US military to its largest peacetime size ever, in large part due to the publication of NSC 68.19 After seeing how military spending was a key driving force in taking the US out of the Great Depression, Truman felt the need to maintain high expenditures as it contributed significantly to the national GDP, and contracted firms employed thousands of Americans. Truman demanded over $70 billion in military funding in 1951, leading to a massive investment in American technology companies and universities to research and develop new weapons and defensive systems.20 In addition to the direct threat that the Soviet bloc posed to the US and its allies, both nations were engaged in an arms race to see which nation could build the largest military arsenal, requiring extensive

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peacetime defense spending programs to develop new and advanced technologies.21 Even in a post-war era of relative peace, Truman’s army, while not as large in manpower as Roosevelt’s, was far more technologically advanced and continued to draw on America’s inventive minds and companies. While corporations provided much of the execution of Roosevelt’s wartime military production, universities were often the centers of innovation. Just like government and industry, American academia was centered on the Eastern seaboard. As they had been for most of US history, “colonial colleges” such as Harvard, Yale, and Princeton were considered the best in the nation.22 Throughout the

this. These schools had the resources to build cutting-edge facilities and hire the best professors in a given field. While countless other American schools existed and had academics comparable to Ivies, they began to miss out on the best students and later research opportunities. One such school hurt by this was Stanford.23 Stanford University was founded in 1885 by railroad tycoon Leland Stanford and his wife Jane in memory of their son Leland Jr. Leland Stanford had significant land holdings in the Bay Area, including much of the town of Palo Alto.24 Most of Stanford’s private land would be incorporated into the university and leased as farmland. The school was built on the

Campus of Stanford University Palo Alto, California nineteenth century, these schools had seen their fortunes and reputations grow. East Coast schools continued to attract the nation’s elite and most promising students who helped to maintain their statuses as the uppermost echelon of academics. These schools built up their relationships with each other in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century through various athletic leagues that would culminate in the official formation of the Ivy League in 1954. Ivy League schools included Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Penn, Dartmouth, Brown, Cornell, and Columbia. Even before the league’s founding, the “Ivies” were associated with prestige, and high culture and the establishment of the Ivy League only solidified Volume VIII • Edition II

site of Stanford’s personal farm, designed by renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmstead. The school physically resembled traditional Spanish California architecture, but its curriculum was based on established Eastern colleges, specifically Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. Leland Stanford states that his school would be the “Cornell of the West” and followed the New York school’s approach to accessibility, co-education, and non-sectarianism.25 As California grew significantly in population and influence in the early twentieth century, so did the fledgling Stanford University. The school expanded its physical footprint and added four new graduate schools by the Second World War. While Stanford could 19

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not attract the same talent as Eastern schools, they still had many notable faculty including several renowned geologists, doctors, and psychologists, and later Herbert Hoover, a mining millionaire, and future US President, would serve on the Board of Trustees. Though Stanford’s rise to prominence in the West was nothing short of meteoric, it was not able to wield the same amount of national attention as its East Coast counterparts.26 As Ivy League schools continued to hold onto power and influence in American academia, the federal government began awarding schools funds for research. The government hoped that the nation’s top students and academic minds could develop solutions to problems ranging from agriculture to national defense.27 These research funds almost always wound up in the Ivy League or already federally funded land-grant colleges. Very few federal dollars wound up at nationally unknown private schools.28 One exception to this trend was the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, MA. The school’s proximity and ties to Harvard allowed it to gain attention from the public and federal government. Early on, MIT captured big contracts to develop technologies for the government, especially during World War II.29 The government created several agencies to coordinate scientific research and development during the war. The first of these was the National Defense Research Committee (NDRC), which was founded in 1940 to strengthen ties between civilian scientists and the military.30 FDR wanted to supplement research already done in Army and Navy laboratories and effectively increase the military research base.31 The man tasked with running the NDRC was Vannevar Bush, a prominent scientist and former MIT engineering professor.32 Bush was an effective leader and successfully led the NDRC to create several influential projects, including MIT’s Radiation Laboratory and the Manhattan Project.33 After increasing hostilities in Europe in 1941, FDR created the Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD) to take over the responsibilities of the NDRC. The OSRD had all the same powers as the NDRC but with access to near-unlimited Volume VIII • Edition II

funds for research projects.34 It, too, was headed by Vannevar Bush, who reported to no one except President Roosevelt. OSRD research projects were widely varied and included more accurate handheld weaponry, missile and radar systems, and large-scale medical treatments, as well as continuing to oversee the development of the Atom Bomb.35 The OSRD contracted much of its research to laboratories set up on college campuses run by the nation’s premier scientists. During World War II, the federal government greatly expanded its research partnerships with American universities. Throughout the war, defense innovation was centered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, specifically at Harvard and MIT. The deceptively named Radiation Laboratory (Rad Lab) at MIT developed microwave and radar technologies for the NDRC and later OSRD.36 The federal government had aimed for the US to take the role of the leader in microwave technology, surpassing the UK.37 The laboratory was controlled by the NDRC and Vannevar Bush, giving it access to as much money as it required. In 1942, the Rad Lab’s subdivision focused on radar defense systems or electronic countermeasures (ECM) moved to Harvard, where it was renamed the Radio Research Laboratory (RRL). Harvard specialized in the growing field of radios and founded the RRL to research more into the science of radios and apply these findings to develop new defense-oriented technologies.38 The RRL employed many of the nation’s top scientists under the leadership of Frederick Terman, the later transformative provost of Stanford University. Harvard’s RRL developed highly secretive ECM systems to detect and tamper with enemy radar and communication.39 Like MIT’s Rad Lab, Harvard’s RRL was under the direct control of the OSRD and thus had the federal government footing the bill for almost all expenditures. These two East Coast laboratories proved highly influential during the Second World War and developed some of American military history’s most important and secret technology. While federal funds were in abundant supply at elite East Coast schools during World War II, the same could not be said about

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Stanford. At the dawn of the American entry into the war, Stanford had received just $12,000 worth of contracts, whereas MIT saw $900,000.40 Similar figures would remain consistent throughout the war as MIT received nearly $117 million from the government, and Harvard saw $31 million.41 Stanford instantly saw how federal funds were going to some of the nation’s most prestigious schools and desired to have the same influence and funds as its East Coast counterparts. Stanford placed Karl Compton in charge of attempting to secure federal funds to bring significant defense research to the campus. In a 1941 letter to the NDRC, Compton wrote, “Nearly a year has passed without any calls or communications from you... again we wish to offer our personnel and facilities.”42 Compton’s efforts yielded little success as no programs on the same scale as Harvard or MIT were active in Palo Alto. World War II taught Stanford many lessons, most notably the power of research. In the following years, Stanford learned from its missed opportunities and created a plan to turn itself into the prime school for defense investment. Realizing a Dream Stanford emerged from the war with a new mission to win as many defense contracts as possible. It had seen that wherever the federal government invested, innovation and opportunities for future growth sprung up. MIT and Harvard were only strengthened by their strong ties to the military during the war, as other universities, such as Berkeley and the University of Chicago, also saw significant government-funded research on their campuses. After witnessing the positive impact this had on their peer institutions, Stanford’s administration was adamant about obtaining as many federal contracts as possible and reaping the rewards. One of the school’s first steps in creating a stronger connection with the military was bringing back Frederick Terman from the Harvard RRL.43 Terman had successfully directed the RRL during World War II, earning him high marks from those at Harvard and the Department of War, now the Department of Defense.44 The Terman family had a long history at Stanford prior to the war; Volume VIII • Edition II

Fred’s father, Lewis Terman, was a leading psychologist and Stanford professor who was a pioneer in the field of intelligence testing and helped to develop the common IQ test.45 Fred Terman graduated from Stanford in 1922 with a degree in chemistry. He received an ScD in electrical engineering from MIT two years later, where future ORSD Director Vannevar Bush taught him. Terman returned to Stanford

Frederick Terman Provost of Stanford University in 1925 to join the faculty.46 He took charge of the school’s engineering department early in his career and focused the program on vacuum tubes, circuitry, and instrumentation. As a professor, Terman’s students included many who would go on to found major Silicon Valley companies, including Bill Hewlett and David Packard, the founders of Hewlett-Packard (HP), and brothers Russell and Sigurd Varian, the founders of Varian Associates.47 Terman rose to prominence nationally as he authored the 1932 book Radio Engineering, which proved to be a leading text in the field. Following his post-war return to Palo Alto, Terman was appointed Dean of Stanford’s engineering school and was made provost of the entire university in 1955.48 Terman’s philosophy was one of mutual collaboration between industry, academia, 21

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and government. When asked how to build the strongest technology sector on the West Coast, Terman replied, “if Western industry and Western industrialists are to serve their own enlightened long-range interests effectively, they must cooperate with Western universities wherever possible and strengthen them by financial and other assistance.”49 Terman stepped into his new role as the American economy shifted away from purely wartime industrial manufacturing to be more heavily focused on aerospace, communications, and electronics (ACE). Terman was determined to make Stanford a hotspot for the new ACE economy and focused on providing an education that would best prepare graduates to enter related fields. As he began his tenure, Terman believed that Stanford’s engineering program was at a crossroads, with it either settling as a mid-tier school or becoming “the most attractive and leading School of Engineering west of the Mississippi River.”50 A focus in Terman’s so-described “steeples of excellence” was designed to attract research funds to Palo Alto.51 Terman’s plans for Stanford were so monumental that they would have been impossible to implement at any other school. Leland and Jane Stanford intended their university to focus on applied learning and engineering from the beginning. They also provided little guidance on how the school should be organized.52 These guidelines would prove to be invaluable as Terman took charge of Stanford. Terman began a radical restructuring of the university in the post-war years in search of lucrative defense contracts.53 He quickly scaled up the “steeples of excellence,” including physics, materials science, and electrical engineering programs. This major series of academic reforms would not have been possible at an established East Coast university.54 Unlike Harvard, Stanford was barely 60 years old following World War II and thus had very few practices or traditions that may resist Terman’s proposed changes.55 Terman hoped to transform Stanford’s engineering department and make it into the program best suited to the demands of modern-day America. In a letter to Stanford president Donald Tresidder, Terman wrote Volume VIII • Edition II

that it “should be a privilege and an honor to be permitted to study engineering at Stanford.”56 Terman aimed was to create the ultimate laboratory for the ever-growing military-industrial complex. Immediately after implementing Terman’s proposals, Stanford captured substantial federal defense contracts. One of the first came from the Office of Naval Research (ONR) to research microwave technologies, Terman’s area of expertise. The almost instant involvement of the ONR at Stanford meant that the school did not have to bear the cost of the facilities or advanced machines used in much of its scientific research.57 During Terman’s time in office, the federal government would pay for particle accelerators, nuclear reactors, and computers to be built on Stanford’s campus without the university paying a penny. Terman’s collaboration with the government brought in so much money that in 1948, the government paid more of Stanford’s physics department bills than the university itself.58 Terman anticipated the growing role that research would play at Stanford. Contemplating how to increase the role of research on campus best, Terman revived a pre-war plan for a university-funded research institute modeled off private industrial research facilities. In 1920, Stanford professor Robert E. Swain proposed a major research center located on the West Coast. Before he was elected US President, Herbert Hoover, then a Stanford trustee, attempted to push Swain’s idea forward, but his efforts yielded little success. Terman’s revival of this was called the Stanford Research Institute (SRI), which would be a top-tier research facility fully integrated with the university. SRI would focus its research on areas that could bring defense contracts to Palo Alto.59 Under the leadership of chemist William Talbot, SRI was first approached by the military to test and develop chemical products that could be used to create new technologies.60 One early SRI project attempted to find sources of rubber from plants native to the United States so the nation would not have to rely on imports for such a crucial item. The Department of Defense utilized SRI for various projects in the late 1940s and early

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1950s, and government funds allowed for the program’s expansion. In the 1950s, civilian corporations began using SRI for engineering and consulting. Projects ranged from creating more secure banking technologies for Bank of America, drawing the first blueprints for Disneyland, and designing the ARPANET, the precursor to the internet.61 By 1955, SRI brought in over $10 million in contracts yearly and had nearly one thousand employees.62 SRI was an early case study for Terman that proved that collaboration between the university, the government, and public companies can be mutually beneficial. The successes of SRI allowed Terman to push on with more ambitious projects that would have even greater effects on the university and economy. Another of Terman’s initial new programs was the Microwave Lab. He persuaded Stanford President Donald Tresidder to give his project $25,000 while earning a sizable $225,000 grant from the Office of Naval Research (ONR).63 The Microwave Lab would be both a hotspot of innovation and a space for Stanford engineers to research and develop microwave technologies for the Department of Defense, securing significant grants for research on campus, which allowed the school to increase faculty and improve facilities. While performing contract work for the government, the lab, with its newfound recognition in the scientific community and increased funding, began to research other technologies. The first of these projects was a continuation of Stanford’s work on the klystron. The device, also known as the Varian klystron, was developed by Russell and Sigurd Varian before World War II while working at the university.64 The device was capable of amplifying energies and wavelengths and had a variety of applications across both military and consumer technologies. The Varian brothers, Russell and Sigurd, attended Stanford and studied under Fred Terman. With the aid of Terman and the then-limited university research budget, the Varians developed the klystron in 1937 in a university lab. The university received a royalty for every sale in exchange for the facilities and support.65 Stanford’s monetary connection with the klystron kept it hyper-focused on Volume VIII • Edition II

modernizing it and selling as many as possible, leading led Varian to become one of Silicon Valley’s earliest successes. Varian’s success is intrinsically connected to Stanford’s Microwave Lab program. Varian Associates was founded in 1948 by the Varian brothers and several other former Stanford employees who helped to develop the klystron in the previous decade.66 Following World War II, the Department of Defense became interested in klystron technology due to its critical role in modern radar systems. Journalist B. W. Glick described the Varian klystron’s “vital contribution to Great Britain’s air defense during World War II by making possible the development of high-power microwave radar.”67 As the Soviet Union increased its arsenal, the US military wanted to build stronger aircraft and missile defense systems, of which radar was a key component. Upon Terman informing the Varians about the Microwave Lab, their newly formed company quickly moved in and harness the university’s high-tech facilities and technological expertise. While at the Microwave Lab, the Varians were contacted by the DOD’s Diamond Ordinance Fuse Laboratory (DOFL) to develop a new variety of klystron for advanced Doppler-continuous-wave radar systems.68 With financial aid from both Stanford and DOFL, Varian Associates created the reflex klystron. DOFL placed a $500,000 order for the new reflex klystron, which allowed Varian to expand as a company and innovate without worrying about finances.69 As the company sold more reflex klystrons to different military laboratories and contractors, they could also expand their business into consumer technology. Utilizing Stanford’s Microwave Lab, the Varians built specialized klystrons that could be used in televisions, a quickly growing market.70 Varian, along with several smaller local competitors, grew at lightning speed. In 1965, Terman remarked “something like half of the high-power klystron tubes manufactured in the world today are built within 10 miles of Stanford.”71 As Varian Associates grew, they also strengthened their connection with Terman and Stanford, helping to pioneer a new era of university-industry

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partnerships in Palo Alto. As word spread of Varian’s success, the lab became the dominant force in microwave technologies at a national scale thanks to its fruitful alignments with innovators and its ability to connect the powerful forces of academia, industry, and government. Varian was cemented as an industry leader due to its close cooperation with Stanford’s revitalization under Fred Terman. The university’s trilateral partnerships proved priceless as all players began to profit. Under Terman’s tenure as Stanford provost, the university’s federal research funding increased more than ten-fold, from just $3 million in 1951 to over $50 million in 1964.72 The Santa Clara Valley would undergo an unrecognizable transformation as the school showed its ever-growing strength and influence in the 1950s. The success of Varian and other startups demonstrated the immense power of Terman’s Stanford and set off a new gold rush for San Francisco, only this time, pioneers ventured to California for technological expertise and seemingly limitless success. A Land of Innovation Centered around Stanford University, a growing number of school-funded labs and private startups began to operate in the region that, permanently altered the region’s economic trajectory. While small on-campus labs proved successful for Terman, his ambitions reached far beyond their limited scope. Utilizing Stanford’s vast real estate holdings in the Santa Clara Valley, Terman hoped to become the landlord to private technology corporations. Upon the school’s founding, Leland Stanford had bequeathed the school 8,800 acres in the Bay Area, which up until the 1950s had been primarily used for agriculture. 73 Stanford had forbidden the permanent sale of any of this land, which left Terman with one option.74 He would lease out land for corporate headquarters of companies that would push innovation in the region. Terman proposed an industrial park near the school’s campus to allow a mutual research relationship between the university and tenants.75 In a letter to the school’s board of trustees, Terman wrote, “if constructing [Stanford Industrial Park] will… Volume VIII • Edition II

give us a national position as we so desperately need, how can we afford not to do it.”76 Silicon Valley historian Margaret O’Mara describes Terman’s thought process in developing the industrial park. O’Mara notes that Terman defied “the advice of consultants who encouraged the university to take advantage” of post-war suburbanization and “cover its hillsides with ranch homes and cul-de-sacs.”77 Terman opted against the guaranteed moneymaker of residential development and took a risk that, if successful, would revolutionize Stanford and the surrounding area. Terman’s vision, the aptly named ‘Stanford Industrial Park’ broke ground in 1951. Just two years later, Varian Associates signed the park’s first lease and set up a laboratory space for its expanding R & D department. The park would continue to grow throughout the decade and prominent firms such as Hewlett-Packard, General Electric (GE), and Kodak moved in.78 They were attracted to the region not only for the top-notch office and lab space in Terman’s new development but also proximity to what was becoming one of the nation’s leading institutions in technology. In a 1962 article in The Times, Leif Erickson wrote that “Varian Associates occupies a 70acre site in the Stanford Industrial Park of 450 acres. Around the center are clustered some 150 San Francisco Peninsula electronics companies with an annual business of more than 700 million.”79 Success came quickly to these early inhabitants of the park, and as a result, many expanded their Palo Alto footprints. As Varian Associates opened their new factory in the industrial park in 1957, US Undersecretary of Commerce Robert Williams gave a speech to commemorate the occasion. In his remarks, Williams described Stanford Industrial Park as “one of the most important facilities supporting [the] national [defense] effort and was a strong factor in making the Stanford University area the Microwave Capital of America.”80 The scheme was an instant success, and in 1956, the Industrial & Housing Review, a San Francisco area realtors magazine, named the park a “Mecca for electronics industries.”81 Technology firms saw additional reasons to move operations near the school; besides

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proximity to a growing technology research institution, Terman hoped to entice firms further to move into Stanford Industrial Park with other benefits. A driving force behind Stanford Industrial Park’s impact on Silicon Valley was that it provided other benefits to tenants, including access to university facilities, professors, and students. The first of these projects was the Honors Cooperative Program, which helped attract new industrial park tenants by providing top talent to emerging Silicon Valley

brains.”84 A prime benefit for companies based in the Palo Alto industrial park was to receive insider access to Stanford professors. The school had been able to hire more ‘big-name’ professors after the war as it attracted more federal research dollars and thus national attention.85 The faculty at Stanford were the drivers of innovation, and their cutting-edge research inspired both their students and industry leaders. In an interview with The Times, Terman stated, “the university’s faculty has provided a panel of consulting ex-

Varian Associates Research and Development Facility at Stanford Industrial Park Palo Alto, California companies. This program allowed those leasing space in Stanford Industrial Park to have their employees jump the admissions line and attend Stanford. Students in the program could take classes and earn master’s degrees in advanced and cutting-edge science that was useful to their firms.82 The only catch was that companies would have to pay double Stanford’s tuition; however, this would not be a problem as most companies wanted the most educated workforce possible, no matter the cost.83 Terman’s luring of corporations to the Palo Alto area resulted in mass enrollment for the program, which helped fund the university and create a well-educated and economically stable workforce to live around Stanford. Terman’s industrial park programs stretched far beyond educating employees; he wanted both the school and tenants to learn from each other. Journalist Leif Erickson wrote in 1955 of Stanford’s unique selling pitch, “It’s a neighborhood of scientific Volume VIII • Edition II

perts available to help local industry with its specialized problems.”86 Though Stanford professors had risen to the top of their fields, especially in engineering and technology, they thought it was essential to maintain close ties to the real economy and where its needs were. Professors were granted one day a week to do consulting work for Palo Alto companies, which both gave them supplemental income and gave tenants access to top academic talent. Additionally, professors could learn about what skills technology companies were looking for in graduates.87 As a result of their time in the park, professors revised their curriculums and teaching methods to best prepare graduates. These partnerships propelled Stanford to the cusp of American academia. For example, Stanford was one of the first schools in the nation to have a computer science department.88 Leif Erickson later remarked in a 1962 article, “The engineering and physics faculties 25

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at Stanford are the real center not only for the industry park on Stanford land but also for a community of the electronics industry.”89 That same year, an industry study found the Bay Area to be the “second most important scientific complex in the United States;” a Redwood City Tribune article attempted to sum up the Stanford-industry connection, “There are many and complex ties between [San Francisco] Peninsula industry and the university… Contract arrangements can be made with faculty members for research and consultation services.”90 The school also saw the benefits of its professors partnering with local companies. At its 75th anniversary in 1967, journalist Hap Everett notes how Stanford’s programming with local companies has led its faculty to be “ranked number three behind only Cal [UC Berkeley] and Harvard” and number one nationally in “effectiveness of graduate programs.”91 As more Stanford professors worked with local tech companies, both parties benefitted as information and ideas flowed freely. With new corporate partnerships made possible by Stanford Industrial Park and other school-industry partnerships, Stanford students could quickly enter the technology sector upon graduation. Academic partnerships enabled close collaboration between a traditional school setting and the real world. Students could roam free around the park and work for the area’s growing electronics firms. Historian Malcolm Harris describes how “students circulated between the park and the school,” noting that “profit and nonprofit blend[ed] like a smoothie.”92 Unlike those at many American colleges, Stanford students were exceptionally knowledgeable about the current ACE economy due to their dayto-day interactions with it. A 1962 Redwood City Tribune article described how Stanford students “are handy for recruiting from graduating classes.”93 Companies would build ties with students through internships or other programs with the school and then hire them upon graduation. Dr. Joseph Petit, Terman’s successor as Dean of the Engineering School, described how “unlike most universities,” Stanford “see[s] no objection to students being paid” working with local companies “if the Volume VIII • Edition II

academic result is adequate.”94 Tech companies valued this close connection with the university as they saw Stanford as a hotspot for innovation. David Packard, co-founder of Silicon Valley giant Hewlett-Packard, noted that tech companies, including his own, “have come to Palo Alto for one reason and one reason only… they want to be close to Stanford University because [it] is a great source of ideas of the electronic industry and a source of welltrained engineers.”95 Packard’s sentiments were reflected by most early startup founders as Stanford was a reliable source of ideas and talented minds. Perhaps the greatest success of the Stanford Industrial Park came in 1956 as Lockheed, one of the nation’s largest defense contractors, moved its missile department to Palo Alto. Lockheed missiles were very popular with the US military and were bought in large quantities due to the arms race with the Soviet Union.96 High sales allowed Lockheed to expand its operations and hire more scientists for research and development. Thus, when they moved to Stanford’s backyard, they became, as historian Malcolm Harris put it, “the county’s defining employer.”97 In the company’s 1956 press release announcing the move, Lockheed hoped their new proximity to the university would “develop both close associations in education and research with Stanford scientists.”98 With heavy persuasion by Terman, Lockheed built a massive research center in the industrial park and, later a manufacturing complex. Lockheed’s facility was often filled with Stanford students and professors seeking to learn more about real-world industry while contributing valuable academic insights. As Lockheed expanded its Palo Alto operations, it further drew the eye of military contractors to the Bay Area.99 Stanford’s draw for emerging electronics companies was simple. The school would provide land, eager students, and funding to get things done. Companies simply had set up shop around campus and reap the rewards. There was an aura surrounding Stanford that every electronics entrepreneur had to be a part of. Burt McMurtry, a prominent Silicon Valley venture capitalist, described how, for

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startups, “Stanford was a candy store… there was this openness that was different. Academia usually thought of itself as on a higher plane than industry, but Terman had–by force of will–insisted that Stanford was going to be outward-looking.”100 In describing the shortterm effects of Stanford’s academic reforms, journalist Ed Salzman noted, “In a few short years, Stanford was one of the world’s foremost centers of electronics research. It provided a natural environment for small, new companies.” Salzman continued that larger firms also needed “to establish installations near such a fertile discovery ground.”101 Through shared facilities, knowledge, students, and professors, Stanford established effective practices that enabled the growth of a technology economy that would transform the region. A Base for the Future Stanford’s academic reforms and program enhancements had a resounding effect on the local economy, allowing for the growth of a burgeoning technology sector in the San Francisco Bay Area. Stanford programs, such as the industrial park enabled a strong connection between industry and university that was unrivaled across the United States.102 Close ties with the school allowed these firms to step into the field of military contracting easily. These partnerships brought more defense money to the private sector in the Bay Area. One such firm, Litton Industries, founded in 1953 by Charles Litton, another student of Terman at Stanford, was a Palo Alto manufacturer of magnetrons, which are a variety of microwave tubes and have a variety of applications in aircraft.103 During the Korean War, military spending reached new levels as the Department of Defense gave out massive contracts to manufacture crucial equipment, including the magnetron.104 Based out of Stanford Industrial Park, Litton had close connections with the school as many graduate students worked part-time in their offices.105 The firm experienced huge levels of growth with aid from Stanford in research and development. Litton was able to build a strong company with backing from both the Department of Defense and Stanford University. The Volume VIII • Edition II

firm grew incredibly quickly, surpassing all initial expectations. A 1954 loan from Lehman Brothers estimated that Litton would likely reach just under $8 million in lifetime sales in the next five years.106 However, Litton scaled up its programming with Stanford, utilizing its facilities, students, and staff. In large part due to ties with the university, Litton reached record-breaking sales of $120 million by 1959 and became the fastest-growing company on the New York Stock Exchange in 1961.107 Stanford’s connections with local companies allowed them to grow into national corporations. As the Santa Clara Valley technology industry grew during the Cold War, more companies either were founded in the region or moved their operations to it. The sector was still relatively new, as even the firms were under fifty years old. Seeing their rapid successes, startups looked to established players to find models of success.108 The clearest and most proven model was demonstrated early on by Varian Associates. In his history of the region Palo Alto, historian Malcolm Harris summarized, “the government-sponsored microwave research at Stanford; Stanford professors consulted for Varian; Varian hired Stanford students who were trained to make microwave tubes; Varian sold tubes to the government.”109 This cycle enabled guaranteed growth if a company produced a military product in demand. Stanford grew as the companies did and was thus able to offer more financial support as well as students and faculty to startups. As much of the technology industry surrounding Stanford revolved around military contracting during the early Cold War, this model applied to most firms.110 This created a virtuous cycle between industry, academia, and government. Varian’s tight integration with Stanford and the government gave it the resources to build a powerful company. Partnership with the military provided ample funding upfront for development that could lead to consumer products in the future. For Varian Associates, the klystron had applications in both radar and television, and other firms would look to follow in its footsteps. As Silicon Valley transitioned from micro-

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wave-based technologies to semiconductors in the late 1960s, the new generation of startups found where their products fit and how to sell them in both military and consumer markets. Just like the Varian klystron, semiconductors were initially built en masse for the Department of Defense, but applications would later be found as a critical component in computers. Firms such as Silicon Valley giants Shockley Semiconductor, Fairchild Semiconductor, and

edge among all industry players about how to best serve the needs of each player involved in the process.113 Microwave tube firms also attracted specialty chemical manufacturers from elsewhere in the nation and caused them to relocate to the Bay Area.114 The abundance of technicians and specialty shops allowed the rise of the next generation of Silicon Valley in the 1960s, one defined by the semiconductor. Lécuyer states that many semiconductor firms

“Silicon Valley in 1982” Mary Anne Hoburg Rheem would all try to emulate this proven business strategy and all yielded great success. As the Stanford-powered tech companies grew, they demanded more specialized equipment and other businesses to service their specific needs. Niche products such as vacuum and microwave tubes had an intensive manufacturing process, and companies that built them required special tools, processes, and highly trained employees. Christophe Lécuyer, a Silicon Valley historian, notes how the “rapidly expanding microwave tube business contributed to the building of a solid industrial infrastructure on the Peninsula.”111 According to Lécuyer, the vacuum tube industry “trained thousands of operators and technicians in glass blowing, vacuum processing, and chemical handling.”112 After a few years of working at the tube makers, many of these skilled employees would leave and start their own businesses catering to former firms’ highly specific needs. This, in turn, created deep connections in the supply chain and knowlVolume VIII • Edition II

“made use of the area’s precision machining facilities and its glass and ceramic shops.”115 Julius Blank, a founder of Fairchild Semiconductor, remarked how “there was an infrastructure that built heavy duty vacuum fitting and flanges… We used to buy these and build our equipment with them.”116 The future of Silicon Valley embraced the resources built by the previous generation to dominate the American electronics industry over the next 25 years. The foundation laid by early technology pioneers and supported by Stanford University would be built upon by future businesses, embracing the region’s past. Reaping the Rewards As Stanford University, under the leadership of Frederick Terman, set out to gain national prestige and federal research dollars, it created and supported a growing technology economy in the San Francisco Bay Area. With overall defense spending high due in part to the NSC 68 report and the arms race with the

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Soviet Union, the US military invested heavily in advanced technology manufacturers with military applications. Stanford’s embrace and support of this industry allowed for further growth resulting in a complete transformation of the region. Once dotted by ranch homes and sprawling orchards, the Santa Clara Valley had become covered with corporate headquarters and manufacturing plants. During the microwave era, the valley would see both a physical and intellectual transformation. In 1940, as the first electronics companies set up shop, Santa Clara County contained 101,666 acres of orchards, representing what was by far the largest industry. But as the technology sector grew in size and power, that number would drop to 25,511 in 1973, signaling a significant economic transformation.117 In the late 1800s, the Santa Clara Valley was well-known as being the “valley of heart’s delight” for its seemingly endless expanse of farmland. Yet, the region’s landscape had been utterly revolutionized by the proliferation of technology in the second half of the twentieth century.118 Historian Malcolm Harris wrote of this phenomenon as “Palo Alto went straight from rural to something like postindustrial.”119 Silicon Valley would continue to evolve throughout the second half of the twentieth century. In the 1960s, the new technology of silicon semiconductors would come to dominate the region. New companies such as Shockley and Fairchild Semiconductor would revolutionize the region with innovative products that improved the fields of computing. Both based out of Stanford Industrial Park, since renamed Stanford Research Park, these two firms would reign in a whole new era of Silicon Valley while commanding impressive valuations on the stock market.120 The 1970s saw the creation of chipmaker Intel and Apple Computer Co, two firms that improved upon technologies to build some of the first affordable personal computers, including Apple’s Macintosh. Innovations such as the joint SRI-Department of Defense ARPANET, the precursor to the internet, would once again revolutionize the valley and signal the region’s internet-based future.121 In the 1980s and 1990s, almost all technological innovation Volume VIII • Edition II

in the United States came from Silicon Valley, and during this same period, the region moved away from its military origins. In this new era, the internet had become the primary area for innovation and extreme wealth creation, shown in Mary Anne Hoburg’s Silicon Valley map.122 The 1990s “Dot-Com Bubble” brought significant attention to the region as many of the nation’s most valuable startup companies were clustered together in the Bay Area. At the turn of the century, Silicon Valley became intrinsically connected to extreme innovation and wealth as the world’s economy became ever dominated by tech firms. Silicon Valley giants Apple, Google, Facebook, and Tesla are among the world’s top ten most valuable companies in 2023. However, as the region grew, it stuck to its roots.123 Many founders of top Silicon Valley firms graduated from Stanford, and the university still maintains close connections with startup companies through Stanford Research Park. Throughout it all, Stanford University stood steadfast in its commitment to bridge the gap between academia and industry and aid startup companies while increasing its national image. The school saw its prestige grow, too. Originally a barely known Western school in the early twentieth century, Stanford had grown into one of the undisputed top universities in the United States. The undergraduate college, as well as most of its graduate schools, appear in the top three on the 2023-2024 US News and World Report college rankings in large part thanks to its unique connections with local industry.124 The school has seen its fortunes turn literally and figuratively as its endowment has risen from $44 million in 1950 to $14 billion in 2023, with over $1.03 billion in externally funded research.125 The story of Silicon Valley is one of transformation and fate. Thanks in large part to Stanford’s revised academics and new programming, Silicon Valley has become an international hub for high-tech firms and investment. It is today universally recognized as a highly influential economic region. What was farmland less than a century ago had been transformed into even more fertile soil. Now growing in it were the roots of innovation and American ingenuity.

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Endnotes 1) ”NSC-68, 1950,” Office of the Historian - US State Department, accessed March 8, 2023, https://history.state. gov/milestones/1945-1952/NSC68. 2) Ibid 3) National Security Council, NSC 68: United States Objectives and Programs for National Security, 2, January 31, 1950, accessed May 16, 2023, https://my-noodletools-com.libdb.belmont-hill.org/web2.0/bibliography. html. 4) Ibid, 4 5) Ibid, 42 6) Ibid, 39 7) ”NSC-68, 1950,” Office of the Historian - US State Department. 8) David M. Kennedy and Lizabeth Cohen, The American Pageant, student edition. ed. (Boston MA: Cengage, 2020), 833. 9) Jon Sandelin, “Co-Evolution of Stanford University & the Silicon Valley: 1950 to Today,” Stanford University, accessed May 22, 2023, https://www.wipo.int/edocs/ mdocs/arab/en/wipo_idb_ip_ryd_07/wipo_idb_ip_ ryd_07_1.pdf. 10) ”Silicon Valley, California,” National Museum of American History, accessed May 21, 2023, https://americanhistory.si.edu/visitor-guides/places-invention/silicon-valley-california. 11) ”Becoming the Arsenal of Democracy,” The National WWII Museum, accessed August 7, 2023, https://www. nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/becoming-arsenal-democracy. 12) ”Lend-Lease and Military Aid to the Allies in the Early Years of World War II,” Office of the Historian, United States Department of State, accessed September 3, 2023, https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/ lend-lease. 13) ”Becoming the Arsenal,” The National WWII Museum. 14) Kristen D. Burton, “The Scientific and Technological Advances of World War II,” The National World War II Museum, accessed May 21, 2023, https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/scientific-and-technological-advances-world-war-ii. 15) Kennedy and Cohen, The American, 822. 16) Ibid, 826 17) Ibid, 828 18) “The Truman Doctrine (1947),” The American Yawp Reader, accessed August 28, 2023, https://www. americanyawp.com/reader/25-the-cold-war/the-truman-doctrine-1947/. 19) Kennedy and Cohen, The American, 830. 20) “Truman’s Gigantic ‘Defense’ Budget,” CQ Almanac, last modified 1951, accessed September 2, 2023, https:// library.cqpress.com/cqalmanac/document.php?id=cqal50-1378727. 21) Sam Perlo-Freeman, “Arms Race,” in Encyclopedia Britannica, accessed May 21, 2023, https://www.britannica.com/topic/arms-race. 22) ”The Origins of the ‘Ivy League,’” Princeton Univer-

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sity Archives, accessed May 21, 2023, https://universityarchives.princeton.edu/2015/07/the-origins-of-theivy-league/. 23) Ibid 24) “Stanford University,” Encyclopaedia Britannica Online, last modified September 1, 2023, https://www. britannica.com/topic/Stanford-University. 25) Ibid 26) ”A History of Stanford,” Stanford University, accessed February 25, 2023, https://www.stanford.edu/ about/history/. 27) ”Research,” Harvard University Office of Federal Relations, accessed May 21, 2023, https://ofr.harvard.edu/ pages/research. 28) ”Frederick Emmons Terman Book Collection,” Stanford University Libraries, accessed February 26, 2023, https://library.stanford.edu/collections/frederick-emmons-terman-book-collection. 29) ”A History,” Stanford University. 30) ”The Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD) Collection,” Library of Congress, accessed February 25, 2023, https://www.loc.gov/rr/scitech/trs/trsosrd. html. 31) Ibid 32) “National Defense Research Committee,” The Manhattan Project: an interactive history, accessed May 21, 2023, https://www.osti.gov/opennet/manhattan-project-history/People/CivilianOrgs/ndrc.html. 33) Ibid 34) ”The Office,” Library of Congress. 35) Ibid 36) ”MIT Radiation Laboratory,” MIT Lincoln Laboratory, accessed May 21, 2023, https://www.ll.mit.edu/about/ history/mit-radiation-laboratory. 37) Ibid 38) Monroe S. Singer, “Harvard Radio Research Lab Developed Countermeasures Against Enemy Defenses,” The Harvard Crimson (Cambridge, MA), November 30, 1945, accessed May 21, 2023, https://www.thecrimson. com/article/1945/11/30/harvard-radio-research-lab-developed-countermeasures/. 39) Ibid 40) Rebecca S. Lowen, Creating the Cold War University : the Transformation of Stanford (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1997), 52, http://search.ebscohost.com. libdb.belmont-hill.org:2048/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=8674&site=ehost-live. 41) Ibid, 51 42) Ibid 43) ”Frederick Terman,” PBS Transistorized, accessed February 26, 2023, https://www.pbs.org/transistor/album1/addlbios/terman.html. 44) Ibid 45) Ibid 46) ”Frederick Emmons,” Stanford University Libraries. 47) ”Frederick Terman,” PBS Transistorized. 48) Stephen Mihm, “How the Department of Defense Bankrolled Silicon Valley,” Stanford Engineering Sys-

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temX Alliance, last modified July 9, 2019, accessed January 21, 2023, https://systemx.stanford.edu/ news/2019-07-09-000000/how-department-defense-bankrolled-silicon-valley. 49) Charles Wessner, ed., Best Practices in State and Regional Innovation Initiatives: Competing in the 21st Century: Competing in the 21st Century (Washington: National Academies Press, 2013), 222. 50) C. Stewart Gillmor, Fred Terman at Stanford: Building a Discipline, a University, and Silicon Valley (Stanford, Calif: Stanford University Press, 2004), 253. 51) Malcolm Harris, Palo Alto: A History of California, Capitalism, and the World (New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2023), 222. 52) Margaret O’Mara, The Code: Silicon Valley and the Remaking of America (New York: Penguin Books, 2020), 30. 53) ”Frederick Emmons,” Stanford University Libraries. 54) O’Mara, The Code, 30. 55) Lowen, Creating the Cold, 52. 56) Gillmor, Fred Terman, 253. 57) Harris, Palo Alto, 223. 58) Ibid 59) Donald L. Nielson, A Heritage of Innovation: SRI’s First Half Century (Menlo Park, Calif.: SRI International, 2006), 99. 60) Ibid 61) Harris, Palo Alto, 222. 62) Gillmor, Fred Terman, 289. 63) Harris, Palo Alto, 223. 64) Christophe Lécuyer, Making Silicon Valley: Innovation and the Growth of High Tech, 1930-1970 (Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2006), 55. 65) ”Varian Associates: An Early History,” CPI International, accessed April 13, 2023, https://www.cpii. com/docs/files/Varian%20Associates%20-%20An%20 Early%20History.pdf. 66) Lécuyer, Making Silicon, 56. 67) B. W. Glick, “Celebration at Varian’s,” Redwood City Tribune (Redwood City, CA), October 29, 1958. 68) Lécuyer, Making Silicon, 102. 69) Ibid, 103 70) Ibid 71) ”How Stanford Influenced the Growth of Industry Told,” Valley News (Van Nuys, CA), March 16, 1965. 72) Arun Rao, “1. The Partners: Bill, Dave, and Fred at HP (1930-80),” A History of Silicon Valley, accessed September 2, 2023, https://www.scaruffi.com/svhistory/arun1. html. 73) Harris, Palo Alto, 224. 74) “A History,” Stanford University. 75) Harris, Palo Alto, 224. 76) Gillmor, Fred Terman, 395. 77) O’Mara, The Code, 31. 78) Ibid 79) Leif Erickson, “A New ‘Gold Rush’ for Space, Defense Billions,” The Times (San Mateo, CA), December 27, 1962. 80) Lécuyer, Making Silicon, 91. 81) Gillmor, Fred Terman, 328. 82) Harris, Palo Alto, 224. 83) Ibid, 225

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84) Leif Erickson, “Stanford Developing ‘Industry Park’ on Land of Its Founder,” Statesman Journal (Salem, OR), October 25, 1955. 85) Harris, Palo Alto, 223. 86) “Boom Seen for Bay Electronics,” The Times (San Mateo, CA), May 27, 1963. 87) Jon Sandelin, The Story of the Stanford Industrial/Research Park, 3, 2004, accessed September 3, 2023, https:// web.stanford.edu/group/OTL/documents/JSstanfordpark.pdf. 88) Ibid 89) Erickson, “A New ‘Gold.” 90) “Area ‘laboratory of new age,’” Redwood City Tribune (Redwood City, CA), December 27, 1962. 91) Hap Everett, “Stanford University Marks 75th Anniversary,” Independent Star News (Pasadena, CA), February 19, 1967. 92) Harris, Palo Alto, 225. 93) ”Area ‘laboratory.” 94) Glenn Brown, “Stanford Brings New Industries to Area,” Redwood City Tribune (Redwood, CA), February 29, 1956. 95) O’Mara, The Code, 31. 96) Kennedy and Cohen, The American, 880. 97) Harris, Palo Alto, 225. 98) ”Lockheed Moving Missile Division,” The Bridgeport Telegram (Bridgeport, CT), February 1, 1956. 99) Ibid 100) O’Mara, The Code, 32. 101) Ed Salzman, “One Man Sparks Peninsula Electronics Boom,” Oakland Tribune (Oakland, CA), May 3, 1961. 102) Harris, Palo Alto, 238. 103) Lécuyer, Making Silicon, 14. 104) Ibid, 15 105) Ibid 106) Litton Industries Inc. History,” Funding Universe, accessed September 3, 2023, http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/litton-industries-inc-history/. 107) Ibid 108) Lécuyer, Making Silicon, 15. 109) Harris, Palo Alto, 225. 110) Lécuyer, Making Silicon, 128. 111) Ibid 112) Ibid 113) Ashlee Vance, “A Haven for Spare Parts Lives on in Silicon Valley,” The New York Times, February 4, 2009, accessed September 3, 2023, https://www.nytimes. com/2009/02/05/technology/personaltech/05basics. html. 114) Lécuyer, Making Silicon, 128. 115) Ibid 116) Ibid, 129 117) Harris, Palo Alto, 225. 118) Sam Shueh and Beth Wyman, Silicon Valley (Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2009), 8. 119) Harris, Palo Alto, 225. 120) Lécuyer, Making Silicon, 131. 121) Ibid, 156 122) The Founding of Apple Computer, Inc.,” Library

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of Congress, accessed May 21, 2023, https://guides.loc. gov/this-month-in-business-history/april/apple-computer-founded#:~:text=and%20Photographs%20Division.-,Apple%20Computer%2C%20Inc.,in%20their%20 homes%20or%20offices. 123) Ibid

124) “Silicon Valley History,” Silicon Valley Historical Association, accessed May 22, 2023, https://www.siliconvalleyhistorical.org/history-of-silicon-valley. 125) Sandelin, “Co-Evolution of Stanford,” Stanford University.

Bibliography “Becoming the Arsenal of Democracy.” The National Glick, B. W. “Celebration at Varian’s.” Redwood City Tri WWII Museum. Accessed August 7, 2023. bune (Redwood City, CA), October 29, 1958. https://www.nationalww2museum.org/ war/articles/becoming-arsenal-democracy. Harris, Malcolm. Palo Alto: A History of California, Capitalism, and the World. New York: The Bridgeport Telegram (Bridgeport, CT). “Lockheed Little, Brown and Company, 2023. Moving Missile Division.” February 1, 1956. “A History of Stanford.” Stanford University. Accessed Brown, Glenn. “Stanford Brings New Industries to February 25, 2023. https://www.stanford.edu/ Area.” Redwood City Tribune (Redwood, about/history/. CA), February 29, 1956. Kennedy, David M., and Lizabeth Cohen. The American Burton, Kristen D. “The Scientific and Technological Pageant. Student edition. ed. Boston MA: Cen Advances of World War II.” The National gage, 2020. World War II Museum. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.nationalww2museum. Lécuyer, Christophe. Making Silicon Valley: Innovation org/war/articles/scientific-and-techno and the Growth of High Tech, 1930-1970. logical-advances-world-war-ii. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2006. Erickson, Leif. “A New ‘Gold Rush’ for Space, Defense Billions.” The Times (San Mateo, CA), December 27, 1962. Erickson, Leif. “Stanford Developing ‘Industry Park’ on Land of Its Founder.” Statesman Journal (Sa lem, OR), October 25, 1955. Everett, Hap. “Stanford University Marks 75th Anniver sary.” Independent Star News (Pasadena, CA), February 19, 1967.

“Lend-Lease and Military Aid to the Allies in the Early Years of World War II.” Office of the Historian United States Department of State. Accessed September 3, 2023. https://his tory.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/lend-lease. “Litton Industries Inc. History.” Funding Universe. Acc essed September 3, 2023. http://www. fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/lit ton-industries-inc-history/.

Lowen, Rebecca S. Creating the Cold War University : the “The Founding of Apple Computer, Inc.” Library of Transformation of Stanford. Berkeley: University Congress. Accessed May 21, 2023. https:// of California Press, 1997. http://search. guides.loc.gov/this-month-in-business-history/ ebscohost.com.libdb.belmont-hill.org:2048/ april/apple-computer-founded#:~:tex login.aspx?direct=true&db=nleb t=an%20Photographs%20Division.-,Apple%20 k&AN=8674&site=ehost-live. Computer%2C%20Inc.,in%20their%20 homes%20or%20offices. Mihm, Stephen. “How the Department of Defense Bank rolled Silicon Valley.” Stanford Engineering “Frederick Emmons Terman Book Collection.” Stan SystemX Alliance. Last modified July 9, ford University Libraries. Accessed February 26, 2019. Accessed January 21, 2023. https://systemx. 2023. https://library.stanford.edu/collections/ stanford.edu/news/2019-07-09-000000/howfrederick-emmons-terman-book-collection. department-defense-bankrolled-silicon-valley. “Frederick Terman.” PBS Transistorized. Accessed Feb ruary 26, 2023. https://www.pbs.org/transistor/ album1/addlbios/terman.html.

“MIT Radiation Laboratory.” MIT Lincoln Laboratory. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.ll.mit.edu/ about/history/mit-radiation-laboratory.

Gillmor, C. Stewart. Fred Terman at Stanford: Building a Discipline, a University, and Silicon Valley. Stanford, Calif: Stanford University Press, 2004.

“National Defense Research Committee.” The Manhat tan Project: an interactive history. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.osti.gov/opennet/

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manhattan-project-history/People/Ci vilianOrgs/ndrc.html. National Security Council. NSC 68: United States Objec tives and Programs for National Security. Accessed May 16, 2023. https://www. citizensource.com/History/20thCen/NSC68. PDF. Nielson, Donald L. A Heritage of Innovation: SRI’s First Half Century. Menlo Park, Calif.: SRI Internation al, 2006. “NSC-68, 1950.” Office of the Historian - US State De partment. Accessed March 8, 2023. https://histo ry.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/NSC68. “The Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD) Collection.” Library of Congress. Accessed February 25, 2023. https://www.loc. gov/rr/scitech/trs/trsosrd.html. O’Mara, Margaret. The Code: Silicon Valley and the Re making of America. New York: Penguin Books, 2020. “The Origins of the ‘Ivy League.’” Princeton University Archives. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://univer sityarchives.princeton.edu/2015/07/the-originsof-the-ivy-league/. Perlo-Freeman, Sam. “Arms Race.” In Encyclopedia Bri tannica. Accessed May 21, 2023. https:// www.britannica.com/topic/arms-race. Rao, Arun. “1. The Partners: Bill, Dave, and Fred at HP (1930-80).” A History of Silicon Valley. Accessed September 2, 2023. https://www.scaruffi.com/ svhistory/arun1.html. Redwood City Tribune (Redwood City, CA). “Area ‘labora tory of new age.’” December 27, 1962. “Research.” Harvard University Office of Federal Rela tions. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://ofr.harvard. edu/pages/research. Salzman, Ed. “One Man Sparks Peninsula Electronics Boom.” Oakland Tribune (Oakland, CA), May 3, 1961.

2023. https://web.stanford.edu/group/ OTL/documents/JSstanfordpark.pdf.

Shueh, Sam, and Beth Wyman. Silicon Valley. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2009. “Silicon Valley, California.” National Museum of Americ an History. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://amer icanhistory.si.edu/visitor-guides/places-inven tion/silicon-valley-california. “Silicon Valley History.” Silicon Valley Historical Associ ation. Accessed May 22, 2023. https://www.sili convalleyhistorical.org/history-of-silicon-val ley. Singer, Monroe S. “Harvard Radio Research Lab Devel oped Countermeasures Against Ene my Defenes.” The Harvard Crimson (Cambridge, MA), November 30, 1945. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.thecrimson.com/arti cle/1945/11/30/harvard-radio-research-lab-de veloped-countermeasures/. “Stanford University.” Encyclopaedia Britannica Online. Last modified September 1, 2023. https://www. britannica.com/topic/Stanford-University. The Times (San Mateo, CA). “Boom Seen for Bay Elec tronics.” May 27, 1963. “The Truman Doctrine (1947).” The American Yawp Reader. Accessed August 28, 2023. https://www. americanyawp.com/reader/25-the-cold-war/ the-truman-doctrine-1947/. “Truman’s Gigantic ‘Defense’ Budget.” CQ Almanac. Last modified 1951. Accessed September 2, 2023. https://library.cqpress.com/cqalmanac/ document.php?id=cqal50-1378727. Valley News (Van Nuys, CA). “How Stanford Influenced the Growth of Industry Told.” March 16, 1965. Vance, Ashlee. “A Haven for Spare Parts Lives on in Silicon Valley.” The New York Times, February 4, 2009. Accessed September 3, 2023. https:// www.nytimes.com/2009/02/05/technology/ personaltech/05basics.html.

“Varian Associates: An Early History.” CPI Internation Sandelin, Jon. “Co-Evolution of Stanford University & al. Accessed April 13, 2023. https://www.cpii. the Silicon Valley: 1950 to Today.” Stan com/docs/files/Varian%20Associates%20-%20 ford University. Accessed May 22, 2023. An%20Early%20History.pdf. https://www.wipo.int/edocs/mdocs/arab/en/ wipo_idb_ip_ryd_07/wipo_idb_ Wessner, Charles, ed. Best Practices in State and Regional ip_ryd_07_1.pdf. Innovation Initiatives: Competing in the 21st Cen tury: Competing in the 21st Century. Washington: Sandelin, Jon. The Story of the Stanford Industrial/Re National Academies Press, 2013. search Park. 2004. Accessed September 3,

Volume VIII • Edition II

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The Avian Advantage: How a Variety of Ornithological Practices Have Contributed to Bird Conservation Winner of the 2023 Monaco American History Prize Mark Price ‘24 Introduction: The Millinery Trade and Early Conservation From the 1600-1700s in Europe, the Enlightenment and Scientific Revolution drove Europeans to seek out intellectual challenges and to answer questions about the world through reasoning. Curiosity about the natural world arose as a result of these movements as thinkers found nature to be a subject for learning. The Romantic movement brought about a multitude of artists and authors who criticized the effects of industrialization on nature. The increase of factories led to the release of harmful chemicals as a byproduct of factory production, polluting the air, land, and water and causing the destruction of natural areas. The Romantic Poet, Robert Burns, commented on man’s destructive relationship with animals as a result of agricultural mechanization in the poem, To a Mouse On turning her up in her nest with the plough, November, 1785: Wee, sleekit, cow’rin, tim’rous beastie, Oh, what a panic’s in thy breastie! Thou need na start awa sae hasty, I’m truly sorry man’s dominion Has broken nature’s social union, An’ justifies that ill opinion Which makes thee startle At me, thy poor earth-bom companion, An’ fellow-mortal.1 Burns apologized on behalf of mankind for tte destruction of the home of the mouse which represented all animals and nature as a whole. Concern for conservation in literature spread to America through the Scottish Poet, Alexander Wilson, who became the first true Volume VIII • Edition II

American ornithologist.2 More notably, the novel, The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper discussed conservation through the story of migrating passenger pigeons and the killing of the species. Cooper’s work was appreciated by many Americans in the 1820s, as bird hunting, egg collecting, and nest collecting were extremely popular hobbies at the time, as learning about nature was considered morally righteous from a religious standpoint as well as patriotic. In the 1840s and 50s, hunting clubs stressed the importance of preserving birds and mammals in order to continue the sport in the future. The Gun Powder Club, the first ever hunting club, lobbied for game legislation and bought and leased land and hunting rights. These land plots were protected by law from development and were later transformed into wildlife refuges and sanctuaries to provide green space for birds to inhabit. By the end of the Civil War, some non-game birds were even protected in a multitude of states, as bird extinction was a known phenomenon dating back to the dodo bird in the 1660s.3 However, with increasing industrialization in the United States after the Civil War and into the late 1800s, wealth and financial stability became more common in society. Thus, the availability of comfortable spending money brought in a demand for nonessential goods, and fashion began making its way to the forefront of society. So, clothing producers at the time looked for materials that would bring about the most demand in urban markets and that would model upper class and military fashion in the years prior. When such designers looked back on the feathered hats and helmets of military members that had ex-

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isted for years, the idea of feathered clothing for women, hats in particular, arose.4 The most valued feathers at the time were the aigrettes, or long breeding plumes of egrets and herons. So, the hunting of these birds paved the way for a new industry which would thrive through the early 1900s, leading to the mass destruction of bird populations across the world.5 One ornithologist, Frank Chapman, surveyed the city of Manhattan in 1886 in order to count and identify the number of hats with feathers and the corresponding species. Of over the 700 hats seen in two walks around Manhattan, ¾ of the hats contained feathers. Among these hats, the feathers of 39 species of birds were featured (Refer to Figure 1). As this

Fig. 1: Frank Chapman’s 1886 Feathered Hat Census6 millinery industry grew, 64 different species of birds native to the US were regularly hunted and traded for the production of hats. Great egrets, snowy egrets, and great blue herons were most highly valued for their long breeding display plumes, and their populations greatly suffered as a result. In one documentation of figures in 1902 from the auctions of the London Commercial Sales Rooms, 1,608 packages of heron plumes weighing over 48,000 ounces or 3,000 pounds were sold to buyers. For these packages to have been filled, almost 193,000 had to be killed at rookeries, resulting in the deaths of multiple times that Volume VIII • Edition II

number in eggs at the rookeries because of the two or three eggs laid per nest. By 1903, the price of plumes per ounce stood at $32, and the industry itself provided jobs for over 80,000 workers.7 Along with these waders, the harvesting of least terns on the east coast of the United States greatly contributed to profits in the millinery industry. One such case of the destruction of least tern populations occurred on Cobb’s Island in Virginia. During least tern breeding seasons on Cobb’s Island in the summers of the 1890s, millinery industry suppliers have suggested that around 1,200 individual terns were killed per day and up to 100,000 terns could be killed in a breeding season. These least tern feathers proved rather lucrative after a season’s worth of work. Mr. E. B. Cobb, a previous captain of a life saving station around Cobb’s Island, stated, “They, with another man, killed 2,800 birds in three days on and near Cobb’s Island…10 cents being paid for each one.” So, in a year in which 100,000 terns were killed, 10,000 dollars could be made in the Cobb’s Island area in just one breeding season.8 Despite the economic opportunities of the plume trade and its well-rooted standing in America, opposition to the practice grew over time. In 1910, Mr. Arthur T. Wayne remarked on the dwindling tern populations in North and South Carolina: “Hunters came from the north with regular outfits to wage war against these poor, defenseless creatures, and in one season alone all of these terns breeding on Bull’s Island were killed.”9 As an established, well-known scientist in the ornithological community, Wayne produced this statement in his written work, Birds of South Carolina, to be available to the public and to spread awareness of the conditions of terns on Bull’s Island. As feelings of resentment for the plume trade and the millinery industry spread throughout the United States like in the statement of Mr. Wayne, early groups of conservationists began to form and attempted to bring about change in a variety of ways including legislation along with more books, magazines, and written works. However, before movements could be effective, one problem remained which

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emerged as opposition to the millinery industry grew. Bird conservation specifically was associated with femininity, and this association discouraged many early conservationists from taking part in bird protection. Gender role issues in the late 1800s and early 1900s arose as people in America sought out groups to blame for the rapid destruction of bird populations. With the previously discussed industrialization of the period and the increased wealth of many Americans, women were largely blamed for the decline of birds because of the prominence of feathered hats created by the millinery industry, drawing birds and bird-related interests into the feminine sphere by association. So, hunters of birds for the millinery industry who were men would have been regarded as feminine and cowardly in the eyes of men who took part in the hunting of trophy mammals. At the same time, men in avian-specific conservation roles were also viewed by the masculine mammal hunters and masculine mammal conservationists as feminine by association. For example, conservationist, John Muir, “welcomed women’s support and was pictured instructing women of the Sierra Club, but was lampooned as dressed in a skirt and apron using a broom to sweep back the flood waters of the Hetch Hetchy Project.”10 Common criticism of masculinity such as in Muir’s case led other early conservationists to be more hesitant and less directly affiliated with bird conservation efforts: “In praising the Audubon Society, Theodore Roosevelt wrote glowingly of spring bird songs and the beauty of flowers, but was cautious about using florid language in public and cultivated a civic persona of sportsman and hunter.”11 The issue of gender divide and public persona as in Roosevelt’s case made it difficult for potentially powerful conservationists to take real action in bird conservation. So, in order to be able to successfully conserve bird populations in America, one early conservationist, George Bird Grinnell, found it important to close the gender divide in order to create a wider network of bird conservationists, male and female, to enact change. Grinnell was taught in school by John James Audubon’s wife, Lucy, which shaped Volume VIII • Edition II

his love for birds at an early age. In 1874 and 1875, Grinnell discovered his drive to conserve natural areas more broadly on a trip to the western frontier, leading him to create the journal, Forest & Stream, in which he promoted practices of conservation and sustainable hunting from the perspective of a sportsman. In 1887, Grinnell and Teddy Roosevelt founded the Boone and Crocket Club to again stress the importance of sustainable hunting and conservation. Through these early experiences of hunting, exploration, and learning from Lucy Audubon, Grinnell became comfortable in promoting conservation alongside both men and women. So, Grinnell founded the Audubon society in 1886 in an effort to counteract the damages of the plume trade on bird populations.12 Grinnell proposed three main goals of the society: “to prevent, so far as possible (1) the killing of any wild birds not used for food, (2) the destruction of nests or eggs of any wild bird, and (3) the wearing of feathers as ornaments or trimming for dress.”13 With respect to the third point, Grinnell stressed the importance of women in the Audubon Society and the need for these supporters to encourage others not to wear feathered hats provided by the millinery industry. Despite the progress of the movement and the 48,000 followers gained, the Audubon Society did not grow large enough by 1889 for Grinnell to continue publishing issues of magazines. However, Grinnell’s work with women in the conservation of birds led Harriet Lawrence Hemenway and Minna B. Hall to form the Massachusetts Audubon Society in 1896.14 With the formation of the Massachusetts Audubon Society, women in other states across America began forming their own societies, starting with Washington D.C. and Connecticut. Ultimately, these state societies led to the National Association of Audubon Societies in 1905. Success only continued during the presidency of Teddy Roosevelt, when the Florida Audubon Society reported to the president the attacks of plume traders on brown pelicans on Pelican Island. Roosevelt then used the 1891 Forest Reserve Creation Act to mark Pelican Island as a federal refuge on which plume traders would not be able to kill pelicans for

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their feathers. State Audubon societies across the United States requested the creations of protected areas, resulting in the establishments of 53 new refuges throughout Roosevelt’s presidency. Also, during the presidency of Woodrow Wilson, a 1913 Tariff Act banned the importation of bird feathers for the plume trade, marking another success of the early Audubon Society.15 Concurrently, the American Ornithologists Union led to a department in the government for avian conservation. The union was created in 1883 and formed a committee dedicated to bird protection. Through a petition to Congress, the committee caused the creation of the Division on Economic Ornithology in the United States Department of Agriculture. In 1906, the Division on Economic Ornithology became the Bureau of the Biological Survey which then became the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), an important group today in conservation. The committee for bird protection also provided a “Model Law” in 1886 which stated, “(1) The legal classification of birds as game and non-game; only game birds could be hunted under the Model Law…(2) Nests and eggs of all birds were protected.”17 These laws built on guidelines created prior to the Civil War, and they only grew stronger with the support of the Audubon Society. To add to the successes of these conservationists and ornithological groups, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act was officially presented as a law in the United States in 1918. This act finalized the decades-long efforts against the overhunting of birds for the millinery industry by making the hunting or capturing of protected species illegal.18 The act also introduced the first hunting seasons and limitations on the number of birds killed for permitted hunting, ensuring the protection of many species of birds.19 These concerns for birds and conservation over the millinery industry only mark the beginnings of a long history of issues and triumphs in the bird world. While a number of ornithological practices and innovations around birding have come about throughout the years and have contributed to conservation efforts in the United States, there are Volume VIII • Edition II

three major practices that have influenced America’s understanding of bird conservation and research. First, the practice of falconry contributed to scientists’ understanding of bird conservation by providing valuable information on raptor population trends through observations on breeding. Also, falconers paved the way for captive falcon breeding practices which have provided a solution for scientists in the event of human-caused disasters. Secondly, the practice of specimen collecting has provided valuable information about bird species for conservation, but, because the moral dilemma about the practice has caused division among ornithologists, improved methods for learning about birds have been utilized for the betterment of avian conservation. The primary adoption of bird banding has provided ornithologists with a more sustainable means of gaining information for conservation without ever killing any birds. Thirdly, the rise of birding as a hobby has led to the increased efficacy of citizen science and birding databases like eBird. The ability to report detailed sightings of birds with the touch of a button has provided valuable bird specific data on population trends and has aided in conservation efforts to prevent extinction. Through the growth of both birding, bird practices, and bird specific research, the conservation movement as a whole has continued to expand. Falconry The rise of falconry in the 1920s led to increased awareness of raptor population decline in the United States and incited conservation programs to counter human influence. In the United States, the first substantial amount of interest in the practice arose in the 1920s with the publishing of a National Geographic magazine containing articles on falconry.20 The author of the falconry sections, Louis Agassiz Fuertes, a renowned American ornithologist and avian artist, outlined the fundamentals of falconry in his work and gave descriptions of a variety of raptor species. On the peregrine falcon, Fuertes stated, “The peregrine, falcon of falcons…with a hardihood unknown to the ‘exotics,’ all the qualities that 37

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go to make a good hawk.”21 At a time of unfamiliarity around the hobby, Fuertes brought a sense of wonder and interest to raptors with his words. With the US and the world coming out of the horror of World War I, Fuertes sought to ease the minds of Americans by bringing back simple recreational activities, and, about these activities, Fuertes stated, “Falconry may undergo a real revival.”22 In the magazine’s following article, Fuertes continued his encouragement for interest in raptors with a plea for conservation efforts: The time is not far away when one of two things must happen: Either proper and adequate protection must be granted and enforced, covering all birds of prey…or we shall soon find it too late to avail ourselves their inestimable services and must find new costly, and far less efficient means of protecting our rural interests from the hordes of rapidly multiplying enemies that will continue…to wage war upon agriculture.23 Fuertes advocated for the deserved admiration for raptors and for their urgent protection because of their agricultural benefits. Raptors have provided the, “inestimable services,” of free agricultural pest control for centuries, drawing a deep economic connection between raptor conservation and human prosperity. These words undoubtedly piqued the interest of Americans, as from 1920-1930, the number of falconers in the United States rose to over 100, suggesting that people were interested in learning more about raptors through personal falconer to falcon relationships, strengthening the push for raptor conservation.24 Although this increase in active falconers slowed in the 1940s and 50s, literature and interest in falconry continued. One American ophthalmologist, Casey Wood, who was interested in the eyesight of raptors, translated the medieval work, The Art of Hunting with Birds, by Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick II. Wood’s 617-page English translation was brought to the public in 1943 for Americans to enjoy and received exceptional reviews, reinvigorating falconry’s expansion in AmerVolume VIII • Edition II

ica.25 By the 1960s, the number of falconers in the United States had risen to 1,500,26 and the North American Falconers Association (NAFA) was created in 1961.27 Legalization of falconry by law also contributed to the sport’s growth starting with a 1964 US Fish and Wildlife Service Act allowing the use of birds of prey in hunting for migratory game birds. One report from the time period revealed that 34 out of the 47 states at the time had legalized falconry.28 One newsletter from 1964 discussed the aims of NAFA with respect to falcon conservation: “One of the aims of the Falconry Association is to prevent wanton shooting and harming of these proud birds and to instruct people about the benefits they bring, such as keeping down the population of field mice, rats, snakes, and other farm pests.”29 So, with this newsletter having been published just before the DDT crisis, falconers and NAFA had made their support for falcon conservation perfectly clear. The drastic increase in the popularity and legalization of falconry aided in the conservation of raptor populations with the rise of the DDT crisis. Although the problems of DDT insecticides were recognized as early as the 1940s, proper consideration for the issue was not raised until the publishing of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring in 1962.30 Before World War II, thousands of pairs of peregrine falcons ranged across the United States, but, by the 1960s, only about 40 pairs remained.31 In this book, Carson discussed the destruction of bird populations as a result of pesticides: A Who’s Who of pesticides is therefore of concern to us all. If we are going to live so intimately with these chemicals eating and drinking them, taking them into the very marrow of our bones - we had better know something about their nature and their power.32 Coinciding with Carson’s Silent Spring, falconers across America were among the first to notice the effects of DDT on raptors. In an Environmental Assessment, peregrine falcons were listed as one of the six most used raptors in the sport of falconry at the time of the DDT crisis.33 Because of their close relationships to birds, falconers had recognized the decline 38

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in egg success rates of peregrine falcons over the years. These continuous failed nests came as a result of the mechanism of action of DDT and the broken-down form, DDE, which both affected the metabolism of calcium in raptors, resulting in egg thinning and reproductive struggles. Nesting birds affected by DDT often crushed their eggs during the incubation period.34 At first, many conservationists blamed falconers for the decline in peregrine falcons and other raptors because falconers were supposedly stealing birds from the wild. Because members of NAFA cared more about the conservation of their beloved raptors than the criticism, falconers began taking direct action to save peregrines from the evils of DDT. A New York Times article from 1980 described the efforts of these falconers: “But today, an intriguing combination of ornithological science and the 4,000-year-old art of the falconer, practiced at Cornell University’s Laboratory of Ornithology, has brought the American peregrine to another threshold.”35 Falconers had made their presence known in America with respect to raptor conservation. Thus, falconer Tom Cade, the head of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, formed a majorly influential group of falconer conservationists called The Peregrine Fund in 1970.36 These falconers in The Peregrine Fund created the first captive breeding program for falcons in the United States and brought increased awareness to the decline of the species. In 1972, the federal government added raptors to the Migratory Bird Treaty in order to hold federal authority over birds of prey as opposed to previous state jurisdiction. This measure facilitated NAFA’s ability to propose future conservation reform efforts, as the organization could appeal to the federal government alone instead of individual state legislatures.37 Federal facilitation of NAFA’s conservation efforts demonstrated the government’s support for peregrine falcon recovery. With The Peregrine Fund specifically, Tom Cade produced the Falcon Propagation manual for captive breeding, outlining everything from food to incubation with respect to the restoration of raptors.38 These methods for captive breeding were groundbreaking as an Volume VIII • Edition II

advancement in conservation, as there were now ways for humans to recover a species of bird. Cade’s breeding methods proved to be wildly successful and could be relied upon for future uses in the event of other crises, as, by 1997, The Peregrine Fund had released over 4,000 captively bred peregrine falcons,39 allowing the species to be removed from the endangered species list in 1999.40 Much like with the peregrine falcons of the DDT crisis, the California condor, a bird placed on the endangered species list in 1967, has been a major species of concern in America for years.41 By 1982, only 22 individual condors remained in the wild. So, the Peregrine Fund in partnership with the USFWS took up the California Condor Recovery Program in 1983 in hopes of restoring through captive breeding two different geographically distinct populations in the wild and one captive population. By 1987, all wild condors were captured for captive breeding.42 Building off of the peregrine falcon captive breeding restoration program, the coalition of The Peregrine Fund, the USFWS, the San Diego Zoo, and the Los Angeles Zoo created a condor specific program to maximize egg laying. Condors can only mate after six years of age, and typically only lay one egg every year or two; however, the recovery program discovered that removing eggs immediately after they have been laid will cause the condors to lay more eggs. In addition, young condors were fed with a condor puppet head in order to prevent familiarization with humans to keep the birds as wild as possible. By 1992, condors were already being released into the wild.43 The efforts of falconers beginning with The Peregrine Fund’s response to the DDT crisis has had long-lasting effects on bird conservation and captive breeding strategies, and what initially arose thousands of years ago as a simple hobby has made an irrefutable mark on the world of conservation. Specimen Collecting The practice of bird and egg specimen collection has been scientifically fruitful over the years, but division between ornithologists about the morality of collecting has led to the

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rise of bird banding. Bird banding as a practice has offered a more ethical alternative to specimen collecting while producing similar information on species morphology, additionally offering detailed information on population trends. Tim Birkhead, the author of Birds and Us, has asked collectors about the reasons for keeping bird eggs: “Looking at particular ‘sets’ of rare eggs in their collection allows them to

tions of scientists.45 While some past specimen collecting had positive scientific contributions, collection-caused extinctions ultimately caused the shift to bird banding. One argument for the benefits of specimen collecting used by pro-collection scientists has been the ability to determine speciation using specimen DNA. Ornithologist, James Remsen, summed up one of the major uses of

Vermillon Flycatcher Mark Price relive the finding of the nest and then getting to take the eggs, little different from a twitcher seeing a new bird for the first time… It was often risky and exciting.”44 From the perspective of sport hunters and collectors, egg collection brought sentimental value by reminding the collector of an exhilarating memory, as with any nostalgic object. Aside from ordinary sportsmen collecting for memories and pride, early scientists collected specimens of eggs and bird skins for the purpose of early documentation. For example, John James Audubon, the most famous ornithologist worldwide who was responsible for documenting around 500 species of birds in North America during his exploration, killed birds in order to study up close specimens to draw for future generaVolume VIII • Edition II

specimen collection: “More generally, because “species” is the taxonomic category characteristically used in determining conservation priorities, the analysis of modern specimens is crucial for evaluating species-level classifications.”46 Accurately determining species of birds and differentiating subtleties in subspecies at a phenotypic and DNA level has acted as one vastly important practical use for bird specimens. The collecting of geographically isolated thought-to-be subspecies of birds has had the potential to lead to species differentiation with thorough specimen testing. One specific example of a species which was separated into types from subspecies and could be separated into different species in the future was the red crossbill. In Remsen’s defense 40

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of specimen collection, he highlighted the research made available on red crossbills in North America through specimen collection: “Recent detailed analyses (Groth 1993) of flight calls, mated pairs, morphometrics, and genetics, which could not have been done without collecting new specimens, have revealed that North America has at least seven…species of red crossbills.”47 By using morphometrics of the bills of the various specimens, the research suggested that each individual type or potential species, “probably associated with a particular conifer species or suite of species.”48 So, the bills of each discovered type of crossbill have evolved to be most effective at eating from specific regional pine cones. Knowing that certain types of crossbills have adapted to survive off of pinecones in specific areas has allowed conservationists to protect more localized sections of forests in order to protect as many potential species of crossbill as possible. So, specimen collections have been used by conservation biologists in order to differentiate species of birds to maximize the impacts of conservation efforts. Another benefit of specimen collecting has been the ability to study plumage and, in turn, produce bird illustrations as an identification model and to spread the wonder of birds. In his paper, Remsen argued the value of bird identification books as a means of promoting tourism: “These books, especially field guides, also greatly encourage ecotourism, which might provide sufficient economic justification for preserving natural habitats.”49 Throughout the course of American history, seeking economically lucrative opportunities has been a theme for corporations and government actions. So, by drawing attention to birding through specimen-based illustrations, less frequently traveled destinations have proven economically profitable with the right natural or birdy attractions. For example, at Magee Marsh in Ohio, the May birding extravaganza, Ohio’s Biggest Week in American Birding, has injected an average of 40 million dollars each year into Ottawa County’s economy, entirely from birders who have rushed year to year to see Spring migration in full effect.50 More broadly, a 2006 USFWS survey Volume VIII • Edition II

of the economic impacts of birding suggested that birders spent around 12 billion dollars on birding trips and around 24 billion dollars on birding equipment. 57% of trip expenditures covered food and hotel expenses,51 circulating more than half of the travel money into the restaurant and hotel industries in the areas around the birding destination. These expenditures led to the output of 82 billion dollars in American industry and the creation of 671,000 jobs, bringing in a total of 28 billion dollars in worker incomes.52 So, by drawing attention to birding and bird conservation with specimen-based field guides, protected natural areas like the Magee Marsh have not only provided valuable migration tracks for many declining species of birds, but have also brought in shocking amounts of money from ecotourism to areas off the beaten path that otherwise would have been ripped apart for industrial purposes years ago. Despite these benefits of specimen collecting, some instances of collecting in the past have led to the extinctions of multiple species of birds which has shifted scientific methodologies in favor of non-violent bird banding. One American ornithologist, Rollo Beck, single-handedly contributed to the extinction of the Guadalupe Caracara while collecting specimens of the species. About the incident, Beck stated, “Although I had no idea of it at the time it seems probable to me that I secured the last of the Guadalupe Caracaras… Of the 11 birds that flew toward me 9 were secured…I assumed at the time that they must be abundant.”53 The lack of cautious consideration from past ornithologists in the practice of specimen killing and collecting undoubtedly contributed to the ultimate decline of some select species of birds. However, specimen collecting has not been the only issue to blame for bird extinctions. In the case of the ivory-billed woodpecker, the last existing members of this species were killed and collected, but the woodpecker’s major cause for decline was the industrialization of the United States after the Civil War. Logging destroyed much of the habitat needed for these woodpeckers to survive as a species, so blaming the last collectors would be directly avoiding the roots of

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the problem.54 Nevertheless, active specimen killing and collecting has become more of a thing of the past, with some instances of active collecting for especially rare birds or scarcely researched birds and with most specimen collecting coming from previously dead birds as a result of issues like window strikes.55 As a reaction to the immoral aspects of specimen killing and collecting, the more humane practice of bird banding arose in the United States as a conservation tool in 1902 to ethically collect information on birds, when the American ornithologist, Paul Bartsch, began banding black-crowned night herons around Washington, D.C. with the first numbered banding codes. One of the night herons that Bartsch banded was seen in the following year in Leesburg, Virginia, and the sighting was reported back to Bartsch. The process of banding and receiving observations of banded birds continued throughout the early 1900s, only bringing scientists a limited understanding of bird movements. By 1909, the first banding organization, the American Bird Banding Association, was formed by the ornithologist, Leon Cole until the predecessor to the USFWS, the Bureau of Biological Survey, took over all banding operations in 1920.56 The Bureau of Biological Survey was situated in the US Department of Agriculture, a government division, reflecting the government’s interests in avian conservation and science with respect to banding. With government control over banding operations, banding methods became more scientifically fruitful with respect to conservation. The Bureau of Biological Survey hired an ornithologist in Colorado, Frederick C. Lincoln, to head the government’s banding operations. Through 1946, Lincoln worked to solve the inconsistencies of Bartsch’s early banding methods by standardizing band codes, record keeping, and banding practices.57 During his time with the Bureau of Biological Survey, Lincoln also produced a number of written works based on his findings which informed early conservation laws. For example, in January of 1935, Lincoln produced his written work, The Waterfowl Flyways of North America, in which he discussed through banding data the Volume VIII • Edition II

dependency of waterfowl on four main flyways to return to their breeding grounds. Lincoln found using banding data from Oakland, California that over 550 ducks had returned through the station, and 97% of these captured ducks had come through the Pacific Flyway.58 Lincoln considered the importance of understanding these waterfowl movements when establishing regional waterfowl hunting regulations: “The administrative problems raised by such a complex system of flyways…makes it necessary to take into consideration the status of the birds not only on the flyway of any one State but on the several other flyways.”59 Lincoln’s observations led the USFWS to recognize the four major flyways in 1947, and by 1951, the International Association of Game, Fish, and Conservation Commissioners created official flyway management guidelines for sustaining healthy populations of waterfowl based on Lincoln’s banding data.60 Due to increased innovations over time, bird banding in the present has become comparably fruitful in scientific yield when compared to specimen collections. Mist nets were brought to the banding scene in 1947 by O.L. Austin. These nets allowed banders to capture small passerine species which could not be banded effectively using previous methods.61 Mist nets have been used extensively in modern banding to get more information from smaller in hand birds. Bird banders have been able to determine species, age, sex, and physical condition of birds in addition to placing the actual band. In hand measurements and observations of details like feather length have also provided information similar to the morphologically specific benefits of specimen collecting. These more specific observations and details have provided data for ornithologists on the year-to-year health of certain populations, and trends like the number of young birds present at a station have informed banders about the breeding successes of specific species. Also, the record keeping standards of Lincoln have made it so that captured birds that have been previously banded have already been entered into databases with details from the initial capture, so the recapturers of birds have the ability to input more informa-

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tion on the individual such as an updated age or location.62 As of the 2000s, the use of satellite tags has also been implemented to some degree by bird banders, offering even more specific information for population trends and bird conservation. The public has had access to 31 GPS satellites which, with the implementation of tracking devices, have been used to track individual birds. In comparison to regular banding, scientists have been able to directly view the live movements of birds. These trackers have been designed so that researchers do not need to recapture the devices, and the much more precise locations of birds have been used to inform ornithologists about the exact movement patterns of certain species on their annual migration tracks.63 Knowledge of the exact migratory tracks and times of migration for certain species has provided a greater understanding of their wider populations as well as the effects of the climate on bird movements. All of these bird banding methodologies have kept birds away from the danger of collection-driven extinction, while contributing a similar, if not greater, magnitude of information necessary for avian conservation. Citizen Science With the rise of birding as a hobby, citizen science’s effectiveness as a conservation tool has grown drastically over time. The first known example of any citizen science in the United States was the first ever Christmas Bird Count (CBC) in 1900, led by the National Audubon Society.64 The aforementioned Frank Chapman first proposed the Christmas Bird Census as a means of taking attention away from hunting birds by simply marking down all of the birds seen in certain areas.65 So, on December 25, 1900, 27 birders in 25 counting zones, ranging from Belmont, Massachusetts to California, observed a total of 89 species and 18,500 individual birds collectively (Refer to Figure 2).66 As the popularity of birding grew throughout the 1900s, by 1951, one count amassed a total of 5,151 observers in 433 individual counts. However, concern arose over the value of this data in terms of real scientific Volume VIII • Edition II

use. Ornithologist, L. S. Putnam, remarked on the challenges of the Christmas Bird Count at the time: “The great number of variables inherent in the data derived through Christmas counts render them practically useless in the furtherance of scientific knowledge.”67 In response to the efforts of ornithologists, Hicks and Chapman, at analyzing the first 32 years of CBCs in Ohio, ornithologist, Paul Stewart, believed that variations in the coverage of certain locations and habitats in different years could not produce any reliable or scientifically applicable data on the frequencies of certain species. In addition, counts at the time did not include necessary information on weather , and the skill levels of certain birders involved

Fig. 2: 1900 Christmas Bird Count in the counts widely varied by year and location, leading to less accuracy and consistency in scientific data.68 Also, peer review or quality control of lists was absent from counts, thus, misidentifications, stringing, and fluffing, led to inaccuracies in the data. Stewart recalled one instance of such source of discrepancy: “I have been told of a case where an accipitrine hawk was seen but not identified. Since the list contained Cooper’s Hawk, this unidentified 43

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bird was counted as a Sharp-shinned Hawk.”69 However, with the rise of the 21st century, the online database, eBird, has led to drastic improvements in citizen science which has increased the efficacy of citizen science projects like the CBC. eBird was created in 2002 as a way for any birder, advanced or beginner, to submit lists of sightings. In 2021, the eBird database reached one billion bird observations from 77,466,000 checklists and 684,300 users of the website worldwide.70 The website itself has continued to grow, with users of eBird

birds. eBird has also been programmed to flag rare reports and high counts of certain species in order for the user to provide further documentation, such as a picture, or greater detail on the observation, like a description of the bird, to ensure the accuracy of the report. On top of these measures, eBird has collected a group of reputable birders within specific regions who voluntarily review checklists and rare sightings from their respective regions. These reviewers have effectively solved the problems of common misidentifications or

Yellow Billed Cuckoo Mark Price increasing by a projected 20% each year. Also, eBird has focused much of its attention on the quality of data recovered through lists, much of which attention has addressed the issues presented by Stewart in the CBCs of the first half of the 1900s. When submitting a checklist to eBird, the creation of lists on the websites has been formatted to require the date, location, time, distance, and effort or method of all observations. In addition, within a selected location, the birds of that location have been curated based on their frequencies and likelihood, with a symbol system for common birds, infrequent birds, unreported birds, and rare Volume VIII • Edition II

checklist errors for the preservation of authentic data and have prevented the issues of stringing which brought concern to Stewart in the 1950s CBCs. With respect to weather conditions, eBird has created a checklist comment section and has encouraged the noting of weather conditions for more valuable historical data that can be used for avian conservation.71 With the rise of eBird and its quality control innovations, modern day CBCs have become a valuable source of scientific data for conservation efforts. In 2022, there were 76,880 people actively participating in the CBC 44

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with their observations, with a distinction between active birders in the field (64,882) and feeder watchers (11,998) to account for the differences in data presented by both styles of counts. The 2022 CBC consisted of a total of 2,621 individual counts.72 Similar to the CBC, another citizen science project, the North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) has contributed to avian conservation over the years. The American ornithologist, Chandler Robbins, was responsible for creating the BBS in 1966.73 From 1966 on, during each breeding season in May, over 2,500 experienced volunteer birders have gone on specific 24.5-mile road surveys with 50 stops every half of a mile. Every year, the number of birds observed within a quarter mile have been recorded for a period of three minutes at each stop.74 Unlike with CBC surveys, the methods used during the BBS have provided more standardized data on population trends, as the program has been designed to reduce variation. Data from these recent CBCs and BBSs has been used for a number of trend models and attempts at predicting the future status of certain bird species. In 2007, scientists in affiliation with the Audubon society used CBC data from the past 40 years in connection with BBS data to produce the Common Birds in Decline Report. This report found that the populations of common birds had dropped by 68% on average from 1967 to 2007, with some individual species decreasing by up to 80%. The report allowed scientists to pinpoint the special areas for concern with respect to species in specialist habitats. For example, scientists found that meadowlarks and grassland specialists have declined drastically as a result of the destruction of grassland habitat from suburban housing expansion, increased industrialization, and increased farming. Scientists found that declines in tundra-breeding birds like the greater scaup have suffered as a result of the melting permafrost which has pushed southern predators north, and these predators have presented themselves as a new threat for those breeders. The report also showed that boreal birds like the boreal chickadee have declined significantly because of deforestation Volume VIII • Edition II

from both direct human practices, logging and mining, and indirect effects of human caused climate change such as insect outbreaks,75 a problem which would not be present under historically normal climate and food web conditions. Another use of CBC and BBS data came in the State of the Birds report of 2009 which addressed a number of issues present with bird populations with respect to specific ecological niches. The report divided certain birds into obligate species, and populations of these species acted as indicators for the status of their respective habitats. For example, the State of the Birds considered the challenges and solutions of forest bird decline. 22% of the 310 forest-breeding birds have been listed as species of conservation concern with 11 species under the list of endangered or threatened species. Ornithologists used the data from the past years of CBCs and BBSs to understand the decline of these forest-breeding birds with respect to geographic location. In the eastern half of the United States, data from 25 forest-breeding species made up the east’s forest habitat indicator and suggested that populations of these birds had decreased by 25% from 1968. Western forests and boreal forests exhibited similar signs of decline, with some birds presenting special concern as a result of historical range limitations.76 With these trends, scientists have been able to tie decline to major trends of deforestation. Such deforestation has been linked to the increase of urbanization from 1945-2002 from 15 million acres to 60 million acres. With these trends from the CBCs and BBSs, the report also has created direct solutions for the future conservation of birds. For example, in 2008, of the 193 million total acres of national forest overseen by the United States, 13% in the Western US, 6% in the east, and 26% in Alaska was sectioned off as protected reserve land.77 So, these citizen science projects have led to direct action to preserve sensitive habitats and declining bird populations, which, in turn, has indirectly led to the preservation of regional flora and fauna. Outside of specialized projects like the CBC and BBS, eBird data of everyday sightings 45

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has been greatly improved to the point where it has been used to inform policy. In 2018, eBird released the Status and Trends function of the website which allowed scientists and birders alike to view the overall abundance at certain times of year, breeding trends, 10-year population trends, typical range, and habitat preferences for 107 individual North American species.78 In 2022, the number of species featured with maps has risen to over 500. In addition, eBird curators have increased the quality and precision of population maps, giving the option to view bird populations in a region as small as 16.7 by 16.7 miles.79 With these improvements to eBird technology and data, the USFWS, in 2009, used eBird abundance data and typical eBird observation data to determine guidelines for incidental take permits in the United States for windmill companies. Guidelines around take permits were used to limit the number of bald eagles that could legally be incidentally killed by windmill strikes based on the populations of bald eagles in certain areas. A study on the USFWS’s use of data around bald eagles considered the effectiveness of eBird abundance and observations at capturing areas with high bald eagle use in high windmill collision areas with respect to a 20th, 50th, and 80th quantile. The study found that eBird data in the 20th and 50th quantiles met the desired 90% accuracy threshold, with the 80th quantile containing some data with 80% accuracy. With this eBird data, the USFWS determined that the 50th quantile data from the study should be used to set incidental take limitations for windmill companies in order to protect areas with higher density bald eagle populations from windmill construction.80 With respect to the efficacy of general eBird data for this decision, the national raptor coordinator for the USFWS, Brian Millsap, stated, The ‘wall-to-wall’ coverage provided by eBird was critically important. The other data or surveys we evaluated generally cover a specific ‘season’—for ex ample, winter or breeding, but then you don’t have any information of what eagle abundance in that area is the rest of the year.81 Volume VIII • Edition II

eBird abundance data and ordinary observations provided the necessary time periods and locations for determining the populations of bald eagles, allowing for conservations efforts by the USFWS to prevent the decline of these beloved eagles. In addition to the influence of pure eBird observations on bird conservation, eBird has impacted bird conservation and ornithology with the consolidation of all posted bird recordings, photographs, and videos in the Macauly Library, with the first ever recording of a bird taken in 1929. As of 2021, 20,000 different eBirders have posted over one million recordings to the Macauly Library, with these recordings consisting of more than 7,500 species of birds.82 Recordings of birds and, more specifically, variations in songs of the same species have offered scientists valuable information about the impacts of certain environmental pressures on localized populations. For example, one study on white-crowned sparrow recordings from 1970, 1990, and 1998 was conducted to understand the effects of increased urbanization on the songs of certain populations of white-crowned sparrows. The song frequencies and dialects of sparrows sampled from three locations around San Francisco were examined, and researchers David Luther and Luis Baptista found that one of the dialects was erased by 1998 and that the frequencies of all singing birds increased in order for songs to be heard by other birds amongst the city noises.83 Birds have evolved to sing to attract mates and to deter competitive suitors from marked territory, so song alterations over time came in order for the sparrows to effectively attract a mate or to fend off competition from nesting sites. Understanding the effects of human-caused stressors such as urbanization has been an important issue addressed by recordings, as the inability to relay songs efficiently through the air would pose a major threat to certain populations of birds in areas with heavy urbanization and increasing human traffic over time. Conclusion: The Wider Advantages of Birding and Avian Conservation In conclusion, the sport of falconry, the 46

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Snowy Plover Mark Price practice of bird specimen collection, and the rise of improved avian citizen science have greatly contributed to an increase in avian conservation. The rise of bird conservation across the world has been proven to be important for a number of reasons. From the beginnings of avian life, birds have acted as pollinators and seed spreaders. Studies have shown that in any given forest, 70% of the trees and bushes have been dispersed through birds at some point.84 Yet, due to declining bird populations across the world, plants dependent on avian seed dispersal have become 60% less successful at adapting to changes in climate.85 Trees have provided humans with oxygen through their photosynthetic processes and have taken in harmful greenhouse gases so that all life can be sustained. Tropical forests throughout the planet have carried close to 250 gigatons of carbon, so a loss of these forests alone would lead to the release of over seven times the annual amount of carbon emitted as a result of human activities. Trees and plants have also been key members of the water cycle since life existed on Earth, regulating the amount of fresh water on land which we as humans have taken for granted. The roots of trees specifically have protected Earth from soil erosion as well. Without the strength of trees holding the ground together, nutrient rich topsoil would have been washed away years ago and would have prevented the ability to cultivate food effectively through agriculture.86 Without trees and avian seed disVolume VIII • Edition II

persal, human life on this planet would have been a pipe dream. Studies have also shown that birds have eaten an average of 400-500 million tons of insects every year,87 and these insects would have posed as a major hindrance to agricultural production if unmanaged by our winged companions. Birds have played a paramount role in maintaining a healthy global environment and have positively affected human life since the dawn of mankind. Many successes have been made with respect to bird conservation. For example, the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection of 1940 led to prohibitions on destructive practices like hunting, and this support led to the recovery of our beloved national symbol.88 In addition to the environmental benefits of birds, understanding the direct impacts of birds on humans has led to a deeper appreciation of birds and nature for many people across the world. One study of about 1,300 people has shown that seeing or hearing birds can lead to an eight-hour period of increased mental ease, even for people with diagnosed depression.89 So, observing the wonderous aspects of birds and bird behaviors has been proven to directly benefit the health of people. Birds have long been valuable members of our planet and have even acted as our economic partners. So, despite the many human-caused disasters and the inevitable decline of birds worldwide, the time has never been better to pick up a pair of binoculars to contribute to avian conservation.

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Endnotes 1) J. Kent Minichiello. “The Audubon Movement: Its Origins, Its Conservation Context, And Its Initial Accomplishments.” Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences 90, no. 2 (Summer 2004). https://www.jstor.org/ stable/24531344, 35. 2) Ibid, 36. 3) Ibid, 37. 4) Jon Friedman. “Feathers Part 2 - The Plume Trade.” Wild Birds Online. Last modified October 13, 2016. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://wildbirdsonline.com/blogs/ news/feathers-part-2-the-plume-trade. 5) Paul R. Ehrlich, David S. Dobkin, and Darryl Wheye. “Plume Trade.” Stanford University. Last modified 1988. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://web.stanford.edu/group/ stanfordbirds/text/essays/Plume_Trade.html. 6) Frank Chapman. Frank Chapman’s 1886 Feathered Hat Census. Table. New York City, NY, 1886. 7) Ehrlich, Dobkin, and Wheye. “Plume Trade.” 8) Sam Crowe. “Least Tern.” BirdZilla. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://www.birdzilla.com/birds/least-tern/#:~:text=The%20least%20terns%20disappeared%20entirely,and%20found%20them%20entirely%20gone. 9) Arthur T. Wayne. Birds of South Caroline. Charleston, SC, 1910, 7. 10) Carolyn Merchant. “George Bird Grinnell’s Audubon Society: Bridging the Gender Divide in Conservation.” Environmental History 15, no. 1 (January 2010). https:// www.jstor.org/stable/20749641, 6. 11) Ibid. 12) Ibid, 7. 13) Ibid, 11. 14) Ibid, 17. 15) Ibid, 18. 16) Minichiello. “Audubon Movement,” 32. 17) Ibid, 33. 18) US Fish and Wildlife Service. “Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918.” US Fish and Wildlife Service. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://www.fws.gov/law/migratory-bird-treaty-act-1918. 19) Paul Schmidt. “The Migratory Bird Treaty Centennial.” Ducks Unlimited. Last modified June 23, 2018. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://www.ducks.org/newsroom/ the-migratory-bird-treaty-centennial?gad=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwmZejBhC_ARIsAGhCqncjw_VikW9SnavdIB4G9Z4YhB11tZjMUi_3fOX-_DKoNK2P2d_LRmMaAnyJEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds. 20) “A Brief History of Falconry in North America.” North American Falconers Association. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.n-a-f-a.com/page/History. 21) Louis Agassiz Fuertes. “Falconry, the Sport of Kings.” The National Geographic Magazine, December 1920. https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=coo1.ark:/13960/ t40s0bc3b&view=1up&seq, 439. 22) Ibid, 460. 23) Louis Agassiz Fuertes. “American Birds of Prey - A Review of their Value.” The National Geographic Magazine, December 1920. https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/

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pt?id=coo1.ark:/13960/t40s0bc3b&view=1up&seq=5, 467. 24) Clait E. Braun, James H. Enderson, Charles J. Henny, et al. “Falconry: Effects on Raptor Populations and Management in North America.” The Wilson Bulletin 89, no. 2 (June 1977). https://www.jstor.org/stable/4160935, 360. 25) Tim Birkhead. Birds and Us. London, UK: Penguin Books, 2022, 81. 26) Braun, Enderson, and Henny. “Falconry,” 360. 27) ”A Brief History of Falconry.” 28) Braun, Enderson, and Henny. “Falconry,” 360 29) “Falconry Sport Allowed.” Science Newsletter, August 8, 1964. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3948039, 95. 30) Environmental Protection Agency. “DDT Regulatory History: A Brief Survey.” Environmenta Protection Agency. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.epa.gov/archive/epa/aboutepa/ddt-regulatory-history-brief-survey-1975.html#:~:text=Although%20warnings%20 against%20such%20hazards,over%20use%20of%20 the%20chemical. 31) PBS. “When Is a Peregrine like a Phoenix?” PBS. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.pbs.org/falconer/ man/ddt.htm. 32) Rachel Carson. Silent Spring. N.p.: Houghton Mifflin, 1962, 17. 33) Braun, Enderson, and Henny. “Falconry: Effects,” 361. 34) Ehrlich, Paul R., David S. Dobkin, and Darryl Wheye. “DDT and Birds.” Stanford. Last modified 1988. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://web.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/DDT_and_Birds.html. 35) The New York Times. “Day of the Falcon.” June 22, 1980. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1980/06/22/issue.html. 36) “A Brief History of Falconry in North America.” 37) “A Brief History of Falconry.” 38) Tom J.Cade, and James D. Weaver. Falcon Propagation. Boise, ID, 1985. https://assets.peregrinefund.org/docs/research-library/manual-propagation-2017-02-28_163913.pdf. 39) “A Conservation Success Story: DDT, Peregrine Falcons and Our Quest to Save Them.” Peregrine Fund. Accessed May 22, 2023. https://peregrinefund.org/history-peregrine-falcon#:~:text=Recovery%20Efforts%20 Begin&text=The%20organization%20pioneered%20 many%20techniques,falcons%20from%201974%20 to%201997. 40) National Park Service. “Peregrine Falcon Recovery.” National Park Service. Accessed May 22, 2023. https:// www.nps.gov/yuch/learn/nature/peregrine-falcons-recovery.htm#:~:text=In%20August%201999%2C%20 the%20U.S.,of%20the%20Endangered%20Species%20 Act. 41) National Park Service. “Condor Reintroduction and Recovery Program.” National Park Service. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.nps.gov/articles/california-condor-recovery.htm. 42) USFWS. “California Condor Recovery Program.” US Fish and Wildlife Service. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://

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www.fws.gov/program/california-condor-recovery. 43) National Park Service. “Condor Reintroduction.” 44) Birkhead. “Birds and Us,” 235. 45) Richard Rhodes. “John James Audubon: America’s Rare Bird.” Smithsonian Magazine. Last modified December 2004. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www. smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/john-james-audubon-americas-rare-bird-97819781/#:~:text=Throughout%20his%20travels%2C%20he%20identified,science%2C%20The%20Birds%20of. 46) James V. Remsen, Jr. “The importance of continued collecting of bird specimens to ornithology and bird conservation.” Bird Conservation International, 1995, 151. 47) Ibid 48) Ibid 49) Ibid, 153. 50) Jonathan Monk. “The Biggest Week in American Birding returns through May 15.” WTOL11. Last modified May 5, 2022. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www. wtol.com/article/news/community/go-419/biggestweek-in-american-birding-returns-2022/512-f67701b750f6-4ebb-a2fd-bc1081e61e15#:~:text=The%20popular%20birding%20event%20brings,into%20the%20 northwest%20Ohio%20economy.&text=OTTAWA%20 COUNTY%2C%20Ohio%20%E2%80%94%20The%20 largest,off%20from%20in%2Dperson%20festivities. 51) USFWS. Birding in the United States: A Demographic and Economic Analysis Addendum to the 2006 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation. N.p., 2006, 12. 52) Ibid, 13. 53) Birkhead. “Birds and Us,” 237. 54) Ibid, 238 55) Sarah Toner. “Preserving Past and Present in a Drawer: Specimen Preparation.” Preserving Past and Present in a Drawer: Specimen Preparation, November 19, 2015. https://ebird.org/news/preserving-past-and-present-in-a-drawer-specimen-preparation#:~:text=Modern%20specimens%20frequently%20come%20from,intentionally%20taken%20for%20a%20collection. 56) “The History of Bird Banding, Part II.” North Carolina Audubon. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://nc.audubon. org/news/history-bird-banding-part-ii. 57) Ibid 58) Frederick C. Lincoln. “The Waterfowl Flyways of North America.” January 1935. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/130083#page/11/mode/1up, 10. 59) Ibid, 9. 60) Dale D. Humburg. “UNDERSTANDING WATERFOWL: THE FLYWAYS.” Ducks Unlimited. Accessed May 22, 2023. https://www.ducks.org/conservation/ waterfowl-research-science/understanding-waterfowl-the-flyways. 61) United States Department of Agriculture. Constant-Effort Mist Nets and Banding. https://www.fs.usda. gov/psw/publications/documents/gtr-144/04-constant. html#:~:text=O.L.,all%20pioneers%20in%20their%20 use. 62) “Bird Banding.” Mass Audubon. Accessed May 22, 2023. https://www.massaudubon.org/our-conserva-

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tion-work/wildlife-research-conservation/bird-conservation-monitoring/bird-banding#:~:text=During%20 the%20banding%20procedure%2C%20staff,%2C%20 and%20other%20important%20factors). 63) “What is Satellite Telemetry?” Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. Accessed May 22, 2023. https://nationalzoo.si.edu/migratory-birds/ what-satellite-telemetry. 64) “Defining Citizen Science.” Illinois Library. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://guides.library.illinois.edu/c. php?g=348340&p=2347193#:~:text=The%20oldest%20 citizen%20science%20project,for%20people%20to%20 contribute%20data. 65) “History of the Christmas Bird Count.” Audubon. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.audubon.org/conservation/science/christmas-bird-count/history-christmas-bird-count#:~:text=Beginning%20on%20Christmas%20Day%201900,holidays%20rather%20than%20 hunt%20them.&text=This%20opens%20in%20a%20new,began%20the%20Christmas%20Bird%20Count. 66) Frank Chapman. The First Christmas Bird Count: December 25, 1900. Table. National Audubon Society, 2010. Accessed May 21, 2023. http://nas-national-prod. s3.amazonaws.com/documents/First_Christmas_Bird_ Count_birdsplaces.pdf. 67) Paul A. Stewart. “The Value of the Christmas Bird Counts.” The Wilson Bulletin 66, no. 3 (September 1954). https://www.jstor.org/stable/4158325, 184. 68) Ibid, 185. 69) Ibid, 187. 70) Team eBird. “eBird Passes 1 Billion Bird Observations.” eBird Passes 1 Billion Bird Observations, May 12, 2021. https://ebird.org/news/ebird-passes-1-billion-bird-observations#:~:text=eBird%20began%20 in%202002%20with,science%2C%20conservation%2C%20and%20education. 71) Team eBird. “About eBird.” About eBird. https://ebird. org/about#:~:text=eBird%20is%20among%20the%20 world’s,approximately%2020%25%20year%20over%20 year. 72) Geoff LeBaron. “The 122nd Christmas Bird Count Summary.” Audubon. Last modified December 14, 2021. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.audubon.org/news/ the-122nd-christmas-bird-count-summary#:~:text=The%20total%20number%20of%20observers,participation%20in%20a%20CBC%20season. 73) Philip C. Stouffer. “Celebrating the North American Breeding Bird Survey.” Special Collection on the Breeding Bird Survey, 2017. https://academic.oup.com/aosjournals/pages/breeding_bird_survey. 74) eBird Northwest Team. “North American Breeding Bird Survey.” North American Breeding Bird Survey – Skilled Birders Needed!, May 10, 2018. https://ebird.org/ pnw/news/north-american-breeding-bird-surveyskilled-birders-needed. 75) Nancy Severance. “Alarming Declines Among Many Common Birds.” Audubon. Last modified June 15, 2011. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.audubon.org/news/ alarming-declines-among-many-common-birds. 76) Cornell Lab of Ornithology. The State of the Birds

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2009. N.p., 2009, 12. 77) Ibid, 13. 78) Team eBird. “A New Era of eBird Science: Status and Trends.” A New Era of eBird Science: Status and Trends, December 3, 2018. https://ebird.org/news/a-new-eraof-ebird-science-status-and-trends?tagId=129. 79) Team eBird. Trends Maps. N.p., 2022. https://science. ebird.org/en/status-and-trends/trends-maps. 80) Viviana Ruiz-Gutierrez, Emily R. Bjerre, Mark C. Otto, et al. “A Pathway for Citizen Science Data to Inform Policy.” Journal of Applied Ecology, March 14, 2021. 81) Team eBird. “Sightings Submitted by eBirders Can Help Inform Policy to Safeguard Birds.” Sightings Submitted by eBirders Can Help Inform Policy to Safeguard Birds, April 16, 2021. https://ebird.org/news/ebirderscan-help-inform-policy-to-safeguard-birds?tagId=129. 82) Team eBird. “eBird Passes 1 Billion Bird Observations.” 83) Olivia Box. “A Noisy City Affects Birdsong.” JSTOR Daily. Last modified June 27, 2022. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://daily.jstor.org/a-noisy-city-affects-birdsong/. 84) Elliot Nelson. “Watching birds is fun, good for your health - and Michigan’s economy, too.” Michigan State University. Last modified March 28, 2021. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/watchingbirds-is-fun-good-for-your-health-and-michigan-s-

economy-too-msg21-nelson21. 85) Gustave Axelson. “Bird Losses Hinder Plants’ Adaptation to Climate Change.” All About Birds. Last modified April 4, 2022. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www. allaboutbirds.org/news/bird-losses-hinder-plants-adaptation-to-climate-change/#. 86) “Deforestation and Degredation.” World Wildlife Fund. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/deforestation-and-forest-degradation#:~:text=Without%20trees%20to%20anchor%20 fertile,can%20actually%20exacerbate%20soil%20erosion. 87) News Staff. “Insect-Eating Birds Consume 400-500 Million Metric Tons of Prey Annually.” Sci News, July 10, 2018. https://www.sci.news/biology/insect-eating-birds-06181.html#:~:text=World’s%20insectivorous%20birds%20eat%20400,%2F%20CC%20BY%2DSA%204.0. 88) USFWS. “Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.” US Fish and Wildlife Service. Accessed May 22, 2023. https://www.fws.gov/law/bald-and-golden-eagle-protection-act#:~:text=The%20Bald%20and%20Golden%20Eagle,)%2C%20nests%2C%20or%20eggs. 89) Angela Haupt. “Birdwatching Has Big Mental-Health Benefits. Here’s How to Start.” Time. Last modified November 14, 2022. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://time. com/6231886/birdwatching-mental-health/.

Bibliography “A Brief History of Falconry in North America.” North American Falconers Association. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.n-a-f-a.com/page/History.

Birkhead, Tim. Birds and Us. London, UK: Penguin Books, 2022.

Box, Olivia. “A Noisy City Affects Birdsong.” JSTOR Daily. “A Conservation Success Story: DDT, Peregrine Falcons Last modified June 27, 2022. and Our Quest to Save Them.” Peregrine Fund. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://daily.jstor.org/aAccessed May 22, 2023. https://peregrinefund. noisy-city-affects-birdsong/. org/history-peregrine-falcon#:~:text=Re covery%20Efforts%20Begin&text=The%20or Braun, Clait E., James H. Enderson, Charles J. Henny, et ganization%20pioneered%20many%20 al. “Falconry: Effects on Raptor Populations and techniques,falcons%20from%201974%20to%20 Management in North America.” The Wilson 1997. Bulletin 89, no. 2 (June 1977). https://www.jstor. org/stable/4160935, 360-369. Cade, Tom J., and Axelson, Gustave. “Bird Losses Hinder Plants’ Adapta James D. Weaver. Falcon Propagation. Boise, ID, tion to Climate Change.” All About Birds. 1985. https://assets.peregrinefund.org/docs/re Last modified April 4, 2022. Accessed May 21, search-library/manual-propagation-2017-02-28_ 2023. https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/bird163913.pdf losses-hinder-plants-adaptation-to-climate -change/#. Cade, Tom J., and James D. Weaver. Falcon Propagation. Boise, ID, 1985. https://assets.peregrine “Bird Banding.” Mass Audubon. Accessed May 22, 2023. fund.org/docs/research-library/manual-propa https://www.massaudubon.org/our-conserva gation-2017-02-28_163913.pdf tion-work/wildlife-research-conserva Chapman, Frank. Frank Chapman’s 1886 Feathered Hat tion/bird-conservation-monitoring/ Census. Table. New York City, NY, 1886. bird-banding#:~:text=During%20the%20 banding%20procedure%2C%20staff,%2C%20 and%20other%20important%20factors).

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Chapman, Frank. The First Christmas Bird Count: Friedman, Jon. “Feathers Part 2 - The Plume Trade.” December 25, 1900. Table. National Audubon Wild Birds Online. Last modified October Society, 2010. Accessed May 21, 2023. http:// 13, 2016. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://wild nas-national-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/ birdsonline.com/blogs/news/feathers-part-2- documents/First_Christmas_Bird_Count_birds the-plume-trade. places.pdf. Fuertes, Louis Agassiz. “American Birds of Prey - A Re Cornell Lab of Ornithology. The State of the Birds 2009. view of their Value.” The National Geographic N.p., 2009. Magazine, December 1920. https://babel.hathi trust.org/cgi/pt?id=coo1.ark:/13960/t40s0bc Crowe, Sam. “Least Tern.” BirdZilla. Accessed May 20, 3b&view=1up&seq=5. 2023. https://www.birdzilla.com/birds/ least-tern/#:~:text=The%20least%20terns% Fuertes, Louis Agassiz. “Falconry, the Sport of Kings.” 20disappeared%20entirely,and%20found%20 The National Geographic Magazine, December them%20entirely%20gone. 1920. https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=c oo1.ark:/13960/t40s0bc3b&view=1up&seq. “Defining Citizen Science.” Illinois Library. Accessed May 21, 2023.https://guides.library.illinois.edu/c. Haupt, Angela. “Birdwatching Has Big Mental-Health php?g=348340&p=2347193#:~:text=The%20old Benefits. Here’s How to Start.” Time. Last est%20citizen%20science%20project,for%20 modified November 14, 2022. Accessed May 21, people%20to%20contribute%20data. 2023. https://time.com/6231886/birdwatch ing-mental-health/. “Deforestation and Degredation.” World Wildlife Fund. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.worldwild “History of the Christmas Bird Count.” Audubon. Ac life.org/threats/deforestation-and-forestcessed May 21, 2023. https://www.audubon. degradation#:~:text=Without%20trees%20 org/conservation/science/christmas-bird-c to%20anchor%20fertile,can%20actually%20ex ount/history-christmas-bird-count#:~:tex acerbate%20soil%20erosion. t=Beginning%20on%20Christmas%20Day%20 1900,holidays%20rather%20than%20hunt%20 eBird Northwest Team. “North American Breeding Bird them.&text=This%20opens%20in%20a%20 Survey.” North American Breeding Bird Survey – new,began%20the%20Christmas%20Bird%20 Skilled Birders Needed!, May 10, 2018. Count. https://ebird.org/pnw/news/north-american- breeding-bird-survey-skilled-birders-needed. Humburg, Dale D. “UNDERSTANDING WATERFOWL: THE FLYWAYS.” Ducks Unlimited. Accessed Ehrlich, Paul R., David S. Dobkin, and Darryl Wheye. May 22, 2023. https://www.ducks.org/conserva “DDT and Birds.” Stanford. Last modified 1988. tion/waterfowl-research-science/un Accessed May 21, 2023. https://web.stanford. derstanding-waterfowl-the-flyways. edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/DDT_ and_Birds.html. Latif, Quresh. “Beetles and Birds.” Bird Conservancy of the Rockies. Last modified July 31, 202 Ehrlich, Paul R., David S. Dobkin, and Darryl Wheye. 0. https://www.birdconservancy.org/beetles- “Plume Trade.” Stanford University. Last and-birds/.) modified 1988. Accessed May 20, 2023. https:// web.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/ LeBaron, Geoff. “The 122nd Christmas Bird Count Sum essays/Plume_Trade.html. mary.” Audubon. Last modified December 14, 2021. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.audu Environmental Protection Agency. “DDT Regulatory bon.org/news/the-122nd-christ History: A Brief Survey.” Environmental mas-bird-count-summary#:~:text=The%20 Protection Agency. Accessed May 21, 2023. total%20number%20of%20observers,participa https://www.epa.gov/archive/epa/aboutepa/ tion%20in%20a%20CBC%20season. ddt-regulatory-history-brief-survey-1975. html#:~:text=Although%20warnings%20 Lincoln, Frederick C. “The Waterfowl Flyways of North against%20such%20hazards,over%20use%20 America.” January 1935. https://www.biodiversi of%20the%20chemical. tylibrary.org/item/130083#page/11/mode/1up, 1-12. “Falconry Sport Allowed.” Science Newsletter, August 8, 1964. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3948039, 95.

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Merchant, Carolyn. “George Bird Grinnell’s Audubon Society: Bridging the Gender Divide in Conservation.” Environmental History 15, no. 1 (January 2010). https://www.jstor.org/sta ble/20749641, 3-30. Minichiello, J. Kent. “The Audubon Movement: Its Ori gins, Its Conservation Context, And Its Initial Accomplishments.” Journal of the Wash ington Academy of Sciences 90, no. 2 (Summer 2004). https://www.jstor.org/stable/24531344, 30-44.

Remsen, Jr., James V. “The importance of continued col lecting of bird specimens to ornithology and bird conservation.” Bird Conservation Interna tional, 1995, 145-180. Rhodes, Richard. “John James Audubon: America’s Rare Bird.” Smithsonian Magazine. Last modified December 2004. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science -nature/john-james-audubon-americas-ra re-bird-97819781/#:~:text=Throughout%20 his%20travels%2C%20he%20identified,science %2C%20The%20Birds%20of.

Monk, Jonathan. “The Biggest Week in American Bird ing returns through May 15.” WTOL11. Last mod Ruiz-Gutierrez, Viviana, Emily R. Bjerre, Mark C. Otto, ified May 5, 2022. Accessed May 21, 2023. https:// et al. “A Pathway for Citizen Science Data to In www.wtol.com/article/news/community/go-419 form Policy.” Journal of Applied Ecology, March /biggest-week-in-american-birding-returns- 14, 2021. 2022/512-f67701b7-50f6-4ebb-a2fd-bc1081e61e 15#:~:text=The%20popular%20birding%20 Schmidt, Paul. “The Migratory Bird Treaty Centennial.” event%20brings,into%20the%20north Ducks Unlimited. Last modified June 23, 2018. west%20Ohio%20economy.&text=OTTAWA%20 Accessed May 20, 2023. https://www.ducks.org/ COUNTY%2C%20Ohio%20%E2%80%94%20 newsroom/the-migratory-bird-treaty-centen The%20largest,off%20from%20in%2Dperson nial?gad=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwmZejBhC_ARIs %20festivities. AGhCqncjw_VikW9SnavdIB4G9Z4YhB11tZjMUi_ 3fOX-_DKoNK2P2d_LRmMaAnyJEALw_wcB&g National Park Service. “Condor Reintroduction and clsrc=aw.ds. Recovery Program.” National Park Service. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.nps.gov/ar Severance, Nancy. “Alarming Declines Among Many ticles/california-condor-recovery.htm. Common Birds.” Audubon. Last modified June 15, 2011. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.audu National Park Service. “Peregrine Falcon Recovery.” bon.org/news/alarming-declines-among-manyNational Park Service. Accessed May 22, 2 common-birds. 023. https://www.nps.gov/yuch/learn/nature/ peregrine-falcons-recovery.htm#:~:text=In%20 Smith, Olivia. “Promoting Beneficial Raptors: Identifica August%201999%2C%20the%20U.S.,of%20 tion, Pest Control Services, and Management.” the%20Endangered%20Species%20Act. eOrganic. Last modified October 16, 2020. Ac cessed May 20, 2023. https://eorganic.org/node/ Nelson, Elliot. “Watching birds is fun, good for your 34052#:~:text=Red%2Dtailed%20hawks%20 health - and Michigan’s economy, too.” Mic are%20opportunistic,rats%2C%20gophers higan State University. Last modified March 28, %2C%20and%20voles 2021. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.canr. msu.edu/news/watching-birds-is-fun-good-for- Stewart, Paul A. “The Value of the Christmas Bird your-health-and-michigan-s-economy-too- Counts.” The Wilson Bulletin 66, no. 3 (Septe msg21-nelson21. mber 1954). https://www.jstor.org/sta ble/4158325, 184-195. News Staff. “Insect-Eating Birds Consume 400-500 Mil lion Metric Tons of Prey Annually.” Sci Stouffer, Philip C. “Celebrating the North American News, July 10, 2018. https://www.sci.news/bio Breeding Bird Survey.” Special Collection on the logy/insect-eating-birds-06181.html#:~: Breeding Bird Survey, 2017. https://academic. text=World’s%20insectivorous%20birds%20 oup.com/aosjournals/pages/breeding_bird_sur eat%20400,%2F%20CC%20BY%2DSA%204.0. vey. PBS. “When Is a Peregrine like a Phoenix?” PBS. Accesse d May 21, 2023. https://www.pbs.org/faconer/ man/ddt.htm.

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Team eBird. “About eBird.” About eBird. https://ebird. org/about#:~:text=eBird%20is%20among%20 the%20world’s,approximately%2020%25%20 year%20over%20year.

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Team eBird. “A New Era of eBird Science: Status and Trends.” A New Era of eBird Science: Stat us and Trends, December 3, 2018. https://ebird. org/news/a-new-era-of-ebird-science-statusand-trends?tagId=129.

United States Department of Agriculture. Constant-Ef fort Mist Nets and Banding. https://www.fs.us da.gov/psw/publications/documents/gtr- 144/04-constant.html#:~:text=O.L.,all%20pio neers%20in%20their%20use

Team eBird. “eBird Passes 1 Billion Bird Observations.” eBird Passes 1 Billion Bird Observations, May 12, 2021. https://ebird.org/news/ebird-pass es-1-billion-bird-observations#:~:text=eBird% 20began%20in%202002%20with,science%2 C%20conservation%2C%20and%20education.

US Fish and Wildlife Service. “Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918.” US Fish and Wildlife Service. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://www.fws.gov/law/migra tory-bird-treaty-act-1918.

Team eBird. “Sightings Submitted by eBirders Can Help Inform Policy to Safeguard Birds.” Sightings Submitted by eBirders Can Help Inform Policy to Safeguard Birds, April 16, 2021. https://ebird. org/news/ebirders-can-help-inform-policy-tosafeguard-birds?tagId=129.

USFWS. “Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.” US Fish and Wildlife Service. Accessed May 22, 2023. https://www.fws.gov/law/bald-and-golden-ea gle-protection-act#:~:text=The%20Bald%20 and%20Golden%20Eagle,)%2C%20nests%2C %20or%20eggs.

Team eBird. Trends Maps. N.p., 2022. https://science. ebird.org/en/status-and-trends/trends-maps.

USFWS. Birding in the United States: A Demographic and Economic Analysis Addendum to the 2006 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation. N.p., 2006, 2-16.

“The History of Bird Banding, Part II.” North Carolina Audubon. Accessed May 21, 2023. https:// nc.audubon.org/news/history-bird-banding- part-ii.

USFWS. “California Condor Recovery Program.” US Fish and Wildlife Service. Accessed May 21, 2023. https://www.fws.gov/program/california-con dor-recovery.

The New York Times. “Day of the Falcon.” June 22, 1980. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesma chine/1980/06/22/issue.html.

Wayne, Arthur T. Birds of South Caroline. Charleston, SC, 1910.

Toner, Sarah. “Preserving Past and Present in a Drawer: Specimen Preparation.” Preserving Past and Present in a Drawer: Specimen Preparation, November 19, 2015. https://ebird.org/news/ preserving-past-and-present-in-a-drawer-spec imen-preparation#:~:text=Modern%20speci mens%20frequently%20come%20from,inten tionally%20taken%20for%20a%20collection.

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“What is Satellite Telemetry?” Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. Accessed May 22, 2023. https://nationalzoo.si.ed u/migratory-birds/what-satellite-telemetry

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The Battle for American Birthright Citizenship Alexander Chen ‘27 Birthright citizenship is a fundamental right of Americans that has developed greatly over the last 250 years. Today, US Citizens gain their citizenship from birth in two ways, known by the Latin terms jus soli and jus sanguinis. Jus soli, meaning the law of the soil, refers to when an individual is born on United States soil and obtains citizenship by means of that. Jus sanguinis, meaning the law of the bloodline, refers to when an individual’s parents are both United States citizens. As such, their citizenship is carried on to their child. These two ways are the only ways individuals can obtain United States citizenship from birth.1 However, obtaining birthright citizenship was not always so simple. With racial history, immigrants, territories and technicalities to deal with, Americans have conflicted over the right for nearly all of the country’s history. While the question of who is and isn’t a citizen seems like such a simple question, there were no answers even in the US Constitution. American citizenship was in fact not fully defined until after the Civil War. By the time the Citizenship Clause was added to the Constitution, outlining jus soli, the controversy over citizenship had exploded. With certain groups being excluded from the definition of citizenship and no foundation on which to build off of, Americans were left to fight for their own citizenship rights. Through one major case that forever defined who could and couldn’t be a citizen, the right of birthright citizenship was established. In modern America, the right of birthright citizenship is something that can be seen with a positive or negative view. To truly understand the history of Americans’ citizenship rights, four factors must be looked at. These are the foundations of the rights, the Supreme Court’s many varied interpretations and precedents set, Congress’s role in changing and setting precedents and what birthVolume VIII • Edition II

right citizenship means in the modern era. The original Constitution from 1787 did nothing to try to answer who was and wasn’t a citizen. The closest the Constitution came to discussing citizenship was in the Naturalization Clause of Article 1. The clause states that Congress has the power, “To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States.”2 Essentially this clause outlined that citizenship of the United States existed but did not provide any explanation of who was defined as a citizen. Article III included several references to citizenship of states when defining who had jurisdiction over interstate conflicts. This is only significant to citizenship because it acknowledged that state citizenship existed when discussing intrastate affairs.3 Article II also includes references to natural born citizens such as when it outlines the requirements for the American president.4 Other than the references from these Articles, the Constitution is silent on citizenship. This led to much controversy during the time between 1787 and 1868, when the 14th Amendment was ratified. One product of the controversy was the case Lynch v. Clarke, the first to touch on birthright citizenship. While the case did not reach the Supreme Court, it paved the way for birthright citizenship. In the case, a New York court ruled that Julia Lynch, who was born in the United States but returned to Ireland after she was born with her Irish parents, was in fact a United States citizen. This is the first time the idea of jus soli was touched upon in America.5 In 1868, The Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment was enacted, which cleared up much of the controversy that had emerged as the Supreme Court worked to define what citizenship was. However, the Citizenship Clause also started a new controversy. The text of the Citizenship Clause states that, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction 54

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thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”6 This clause formally created jus soli citizenship. After the amendment was ratified, the question of what the phrases “All persons” and “subject to the jurisdiction thereof” meant arose. The main question was what was “subject to the jurisdiction” and what was not. For example, many questioned whether the US territories were included in the definition of the Citizenship Clause. Today, citizens of Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands enjoy birthright citizenship as they are considered under US jurisdiction. However, the territory of American Samoa is not considered under US jurisdiction and as such its citizens are considered United States nationals instead of citizens. Outside of the territories, there have been other controversies over jurisdiction. For instance, US territorial waters and airspace are considered jurisdiction. This means you can be born on a plane flying above the US and become a US citizen without ever actually touching national soil. Interestingly, US military bases abroad are not considered US jurisdiction, but illegal immigrant detention centers along the border are even if the child’s parents have not been admitted into the US.7 From all of these examples it is clear that the Citizenship Clause still left much to be resolved. Even today, when law critics attack birthright citizenship, they point to the ambiguity of the jurisdiction phrase that defines jus soli citizenship. Jus sanguinis citizenship is a more modern invention. In 2000, the Child Citizenship Act (CCA) was passed. The act amended the Immigration and Naturalization Act of 1965 to allow individuals to acquire citizenship from birth if both their parents are citizens and at least one parent has lived in a US state or territory prior to their birth. This includes individuals who are not born on US soil so long as they meet the requirements outlined in the CCA. The CCA has been the most recent amendment to birthright citizenship in the US. With it enacted, birthright citizenship has been extended to certain individuals who did not qualify for jus soli citizenship. The CCA is significant as it clears up some of the controVolume VIII • Edition II

versies of the jurisdiction phrase in the Citizenship Clause. Because of this act, groups of people, such as those born to families serving overseas who would not be eligible for jus soli citizenship, can achieve citizenship from birth by other means. Thus, the CCA was seen as a very positive and long overdue amendment to the Citizenship Clause.8 But Congress is not the only political entity that sculpted birthright citizenship as Americans know it today. The Supreme Court also played a great, if not greater, role in shaping what we know as citizenship today. The first time the Supreme Court got involved was in the 1857 case Dred Scott v. Sandford. The case began from a private lawsuit in the St. Louis Circuit Court in Missouri in which Dred Scott and his wife sued for their freedom. Although they were slaves, they had lived for an extended period of time in Illinois and the Territory of Wisconsin, in modern day Minnesota. At the time, both Illinois and Wisconsin Territory were both legally free and the couple argued that since they had lived with their enslaver in these free territories before returning to Missouri, a slave state, they themselves were free. This private dispute did not end easily however. After Dred Scott lost his case in the city circuit court, he took it to the Missouri state courts and eventually to the Supreme Court after they too ruled against him. At this point, eleven years had passed between when the case was first filed and when it reached America’s highest court. The Supreme Court also ruled against Dred Scott, this time with a 7-2 majority. The court held that, “‘a negro, whose ancestors were imported into [the U.S.], and sold as slaves,’ whether enslaved or free, could not be an American citizen and therefore did not have standing to sue in federal court.”9 This set the precedent that no Black American was a United States citizen.10 The dissenting opinion, authored by Justices Benjamin Robbins Curtis and John McLean, argued that Black men could be citizens since they already had voting rights in five states.11 They also challenged Justice Roger Taney’s argument that the Founders supported slavery laws. Their efforts were in vain however, and the precedent set in Dred Scott would

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remain the Supreme Court’s interpretation of American citizenship until the Civil Rights Act of 1866 was passed 11 years later. After the advent of the Citizenship Clause, which overturned the ruling of Dred Scott for a second time, it seemed the debate over citizenship was finally over. In 1884 though, the case Elk v. Wilkins arose, making it clear that the debate was far from over. John Elk, a Native American man, applied for and was denied the right to vote after he left his reservation and began living outside of it. The case was elevated to the Supreme Court, who in another 7-2 ruling ruled that even though Elk was born in the territorial jurisdiction of the US, he was born on an Indian reservation, making him ineligible for birthright citizenship without the consent of the national government.12 Justices Harlan and Woods wrote in their dissent that they believed Elk was a citizen under the Citizenship Clause. They also pointed out that, “More than a year, however, prior to his application to be registered as a voter in the city of Omaha, he had severed all relations with his tribe, and, as he alleges, fully and completely surrendered himself to the jurisdiction of the United States.”13 Nevertheless, the Supreme Court’s ruling set another exclusive precedent, this time that the Citizenship Clause did not make Native Americans birthright citizens. The ruling in Elk v. Wilkins showed that the 14th Amendment had not completely defined the right of birthright citizenship. It was clear that the Citizenship Clause still needed to be interpreted further. Then came the case that forever changed the way the government, the Supreme Court and the citizens viewed citizenship and jus soli. This case was United States v. Wong Kim Ark. The case was first filed in San Francisco, where Wong Kim Ark was born in 1873. The controversy started when Wong Kim Ark, who was of Chinese descent but was an American citizen by jus soli, visited his Chinese parents who had recently moved back to China. When he attempted to reenter the US, he was refused entry by immigration authorities claiming he was not a citizen. Authorities argued that Wong Kim Ark’s parents were not and could never become citizens under the Volume VIII • Edition II

Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, which prohibited Chinese immigrants from naturalizing. Thus, they were considered subjects of the emperor of China, making Wong Kim Ark also a subject of the emperor.14 Wong Kim Ark challenged the authorities’ standpoint in a case that worked its way through the federal district courts all the way to the Supreme Court. At the Supreme Court, the justices ruled 6-2 that the Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment made Wong Kim Ark a citizen. The court pointed out that, “the American citizenship which Wong Kim Ark acquired by birth within the United States has not been lost or taken away by anything happening since his birth.” As such, there was nothing that permitted the government to revoke his birthright citizenship. The dissenting opinion, read by Justices Harlan and Fuller, argued that while the majority opinion that upheld the 14th Amendment was correct, “children of aliens, whose parents have not only not renounced their allegiance to their native country, but are forbid den by its system of government, as well as by its positive laws, from doing so, and are not permitted to acquire another citizenship by the laws of the country into which they come, must necesarily remain themselves subject to the same sovereignty as their parents, and cannot, in the nature of things, be, any more than their parents, completely subject to the jurisdiction of such other country.”15 In other words, they believed birthright citizenship should only apply to those who satisfied both jus soli and jus sanguinis. Nevertheless, the Supreme Court upheld that under the Citizenship Clause everyone born in the United States is a citizen regardless of their parents’ status, setting the most important precedent of all for American citizenship. Interestingly, even though this precedent directly overruled the previous precedent set in Elk v. Wilkins, Native Americans were not officially granted the rights given to all citizens by Wong Kim Ark until the American Indian Citizenship Act was passed in 1924. This made Native Americans the last group to be granted full jus 56

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soli rights.16 Post Wong Kim Ark, the biggest decision on birthright citizenship in America has been on whether it applies to the territories or not. In 1901, in one of the first cases of what would come to be known as the Insular Cases, the Supreme Court created two statuses for territories to be designated under. “Incorporated” meant the territory was on the path for statehood. “Unincorporated” meant the territory was not on the path for statehood and was to stay as a territory.17 In 1904, in another one of the Insular Cases, the Supreme Court heard the case Gonzales v. Williams. Isabel González, known as Isabella Gonzales in the case, was a 20 year old Puerto Rican woman who attempted to immigrate to the United States through Ellis Island. She was denied entry for being an illegal immigrant when she reached New York however, even though Puerto Rico, her birthplace, was a US territory at the time. The Court ruled that González could not be barred from entering the US, stating that citizens of Puerto Rico are not “aliens” because their “permanent allegiance is due to the United States.”18 However, in the decision, the Supreme Court dodged the question of whether or not those born in US territories were subject to jus soli, only going as far to say all citizens of unincorporated US territories, such as Puerto Rico, could be considered “nationals.”19 This was the closest the Supreme Court ever came to extending citizenship to the territories. In 1917, Congress intervened, giving Puerto Ricans the full right to jus soli citizenship, making the territory the first to acquire citizenship rights.20 The Virgin Islands was the next to gain citizenship rights, in 1927 through another act.21 23 years later in 1950, Guam gained citizenship rights.22 The last territory to acquire citizenship rights was Volume VIII • Edition II

the Northern Mariana Islands when it became a Commonwealth in 1978.23 Today, American Samoa remains the only inhabited US territory whose citizens are not granted citizenship and still only considered nationals. American Samoa’s rights were challenged recently in 2022 in the case Fitisemanu v. United States. John Fitisemanu, an American Samoan man now living in Utah, continues to be denied the right to vote as he is considered a “non-citizen national” due to American Samoans’ lack of jus soli rights. In his case, he argued he and all American Samoans should be considered full citizens of the United States, since American Samoa is a territory of the United States and all of the other territories have been accepted as being included in the jurisdiction of the United States. It was also argued in the case that American Samoans are treated like second class citizens, having virtually none of the rights citizens of the 50 states do. However, the Supreme Court held firm with the precedent, denying the case from even being heard. The Supreme Court also denied another similar case back in 2016.24 The stance the Supreme Court takes with American Samoa shows the mark the Insular Cases have left even in America today. As the country has evolved, the Court has gradually changed the precedent to include groups previously excluded either by an earlier decision or simply by the ambiguity of the official terms. Although the Supreme Court has finally seemed to come to a conclusion about who jus soli does and does not apply to, it seems the fight for citizenship from groups not yet included in the precedent will continue for decades to come. Looking back over two centuries though, the Supreme Court has arguably done a pretty terrible job of setting the precedent 57

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for birthright citizenship. Throughout American history, with the exception of Wong Kim Ark, the Supreme Court has only made decisions that further excluded individuals from acquiring jus soli rights. The pattern of the Supreme Court making exclusive decisions that Congress later reverses has been going on for centuries. When the Supreme Court ruled Black men could not be citizens, in what is today called one of the worst Supreme Court decisions ever, Congress reversed it with the Civil Rights Act of 1866. When the Supreme Court excluded the territories through the Insular Cases, widely considered some of the most racist cases of the 20th century, one by one Congress granted them the right to citizenship. Even when the Supreme Court directly overturned their precedent set in Dred Scott after the ruling in Wong Kim Ark, the court itself did nothing to point that out. Instead, Congress was the entity to point it out in 1924 with the American Indian Citizenship Act. In reality, Congress is more the reason the restrictions around jus soli are the loosest they have been in history than the Supreme Court. If citizenship rights had been left solely to the Supreme Court, who knows who would be excluded today. In early times, the Court exploited the ambiguities of the Constitution to exclude African Americans and Native Americans. Later, the Court once again used the ambiguities, this time of the Citizenship Clause, to exclude the majority minority populations in the territories from becoming citizens. In short, it is clear that the Court has tended to interpret the ambiguities over birthright citizenship with a more exclusive perspective, leaving Congress to determine if there was really a basis for outlawing certain groups, often minorities.

In modern America, citizenship cannot be something withheld from people on the basis of race, and the fact that the American Samoa case was rejected shows the Supreme Court has not changed much from centuries ago. American birthright citizenship has had a complex, discriminatory and confusing history over 250 years. The path birthright citizenship took over the course of these two and a half centuries reflects American immigration and racial history at its highs and lows. From having nothing in the Constitution explicitly defining citizenship to being one of the most coveted citizenships in the world, the US has come a long way. In the future though, the debate over birthright citizenship will change drastically. Jus soli rights have never been so intertwined with the political battle over the Mexican border as they are today. Jus soli rights have led to the creation of illegal birth tourism operations and hotels, many of them housing women from Asia waiting to take advantage of the policy for their unborn children.25 And the debate over jus soli will only be reignited as the political divide and the migrant crisis in America deepen. While it is clear today that excluding groups of people from the definition of citizenship was not beneficial to the country, not much can really be pointed to in America’s history that was not at least a little influenced by the underlying tones of racism and white supremacy that have been around for centuries. So, it is important that if, and when, jus soli and jus sanguinis rights need to be amended, restricted or changed again, Americans remember that it is each person’s right to be a citizen that has made our country the powerful and diverse society that it is today.

Endnotes 1) Niang, Rokhaya. “An Exploration of Birthright Citizenship.” Review. Immigration and Human Rights Law Review. Last modified December 20, 2021. 2) U.S. Const. art. I § 8, cl. 4 (amended 1787). 3) “Interpretation: The Citizenship Clause | Constitution Center,” National Constitution Center – constitutioncenter.org, n.d., https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/amendments/amendment-xiv/clauses/700. 4) Ibid 5) Birthright Citizenship.” In Gale Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 2021. Gale

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In Context: Opposing Viewpoints (accessed May 15, 2023) 6) U.S. Const. amend. XIV § 1, cl. 1 (amended 1868). 7) Niang, “An Exploration,” review, Immigration and Human Rights Law Review. 8) “Chapter 4 - Automatic Acquisition of Citizenship after Birth (INA 320).” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Accessed May 20, 2023. 9) “Dred Scott v. Sandford.” Oyez. 10) “Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857).” National Archives. Accessed May 18, 2023. 11) “Dred Scott v. Sandford.” Oyez.

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12) “Elk v. Wilkins.” Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute 13) Elk v. Wilkins, 112 U.S. 94 (1884) 14) Niang, “An Exploration,” review, Immigration and Human Rights Law Review. 15) United States v. Wong Kim Ark, 169 U.S. 649 (1898) 16) “Indian Citizenship Act of 1924.” Immigration History. 17) Manta, Irina, and Cassandra Burke Robertson. “Constitutional Citizens in the U.S. Territories.” Lawfare (blog). Entry posted July 27, 2022. 18) Gonzales v. Williams, 192 U.S. 1 (1904) 19) Manta and Robertson, “Constitutional Citizens,” Lawfare (blog).

20) Venator-Santiago, C. R. (2018, May 6). The law that made Puerto Ricans U.S. citizens, yet not fully American: Essay. Zócalo Public Square. 21) “U.S. Virgin Islands”. U.S. Department of the Interior. Accessed May 20, 2023. 22) “Guam”. U.S Department of the Interior. Accessed May 20, 2023. 23) “Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands”. U.S Department of the Interior. Accessed May 20, 2023. 24) de Vogue, Ariane. “Supreme Court declines to take up effort to secure birthright citizenship for American Samoans.” CNN, October 17, 2022. 25) Niang, “An Exploration,” review, Immigration and Human Rights Law Review.

Bibliography Birthright Citizenship.” In Gale Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale 2021. Gale In Context: Opposing Viwpoints (accessed May 15, 2023) https://go-gale-com. libdb.belmont-hill.org/ps/i.do?p=OVIC&u= mlin_m_belhill&v=2.1&i t=r&id=GALE%7CCX 3662200028&retrievalId=53507368-f478-40 4f-9e48-d9ca04de0e a1&inPS=true&link Source=interlink&sid=bookmark-OVIC “Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands”. U.S. Department of the Interior. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://www.doi.gov/oia/islands/cnmi “Chapter 4 - Automatic Acquisition of Citizenship after Birth (INA 320).” U.S. Citizenship and Immigra tion Services. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://www.uscis.gov/policy-manual/volume12-part-h-chapter-4 de Vogue, Ariane. “Supreme Court declines to take up effort to secure birthright citizenship for Amer ican Samoans.” CNN, October 17, 2022. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/17/ politics/american-samoans-birthright-case-su preme-cou rt/index.html “Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857).” National Archives. Accessed May 18, 2023. https://www.archives. gov/milestone-documents/dred-scott-v -sandford. “Dred Scott v. Sandford.” Oyez. https://www.oyez.org/ cases/1850-1900/60us393 “Elk v. Wilkins.” Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute. https://www.law.cornell.edu/supreme court/text/112/94 Elk v. Wilkins, 112 U.S. 94 (1884) Gonzales v. Williams, 192 U.S. 1 (1904)

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“Guam”. U.S. Department of the Interior. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://www.doi.gov/oia/islands/guam “Indian Citizenship Act of 1924.” Immigration History. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://immigrationhis tory.org/item/1924-indian-citizenship-act/ “Interpretation: The Citizenship Clause | Constitution Center,” National Constitution Center – consti tutioncenter.org, n.d., https://constitutioncen ter.org/the-constitution/amendments/amend ment-xiv/clauses/700. Manta, Irina, and Cassandra Burke Robertson. “Consti tutional Citizens in the U.S. Territories.” Lawfare (blog). Entry posted July 27, 2022. https://www.lawfareblog.com/constitution al-citizenship-us-territories Niang, Rokhaya. “An Exploration of Birthright Citi zenship.” Review. Immigration and Human Rights Law Review. Last modified December 20, 2021. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://lawblogs.uc.edu/ihrlr/2021/12/20/ an-exploration-of-birthright-citizenship/ U.S. Const. amend. XIV § 1, cl. 1 (amended 1868). U.S. Const. art. I § 8, cl. 4 (amended 1787). “U.S. Virgin Islands”. U.S. Department of the Interior. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://www.doi.gov/ oia/islands/virgin-islands United States v. Wong Kim Ark, 169 U.S. 649 (1898) Venator-Santiago, C. R. (2018, May 6). The law that made Puerto Ricans U.S. citizens, yet not fully American: Essay. Zócalo Public Square. Accessed May 20, 2023. https://www.zocalopublicsquare.org/2018 /03/06/law-made-puerto-ricans-u-s-citizensyet not-fully-american/ideas/essay/

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2024 Presidential Election Ernest Lai ‘25, Wesley Zhu ‘25 An Important Note: This poll was conducted in early October, prior to the Israel-Hamas conflict and several other major world and domestic events that undoubtedly have altered views on the election. Additionally, several candidates have dropped out or changed parties. As President Biden’s first term comes to an end, the 2024 Presidential Election is looming, with more than twelve candidates from various parties competing for the presidency. The upcoming primary sees a host of new and old Republican candidates seeking to win nomination such as former president Donald Trump and former vice president Mike Pence. Incumbent President Joe Biden is also running for reelection representing the Democratic party. Many recurrent issues such as healthcare, education, and crime are again at the forefront of American politics and will likely drive this year’s election, while other relatively novel concerns such as LGBTQ+ rights and gun laws are also important topics. For this edition of The Podium, we decided to ask Belmont Hill about their stance on the various candidates running for presidency in the 2024 election. Students from all forms as well as faculty were polled in this analysis. The first two questions evaluated people’s political leanings. In the first question, which asked about political ideology, 29% of respondents identified as moderate, while a total of 41% leaned towards the left with 5% being far left, and 31% in total identified as right with 6% being far right. These results suggest a somewhat even distribution of political affiliations concerning left-wing or right-wing politics, and many respondents had a more moderate stance with more than 60% in the middle three categories (left of center, moderate, right of center) and only 10% identifying in the extremes as far left or far right. Assuming a sizable portion of the moderate categories can be considered “independents”, Belmont Hill’s distribution of Volume VIII • Edition II

Question 1: What is your political ideology? political leaning is similar to that of the American population in recent national elections, in which the left was also marginally larger than the right. The second question examined support for political parties, mainly the Democratic and Republican parties. For this section, 40% supported the Democrats, while only 20% supported the Republicans. Most of the remaining 40% supported neither major party, with a few supporting an independent or libertarian party. Though there were more left-leaning people according to the first question, there was a significantly smaller percentage of Republican-affiliated subjects compared to the amount of right-leaning subjects. This could suggest that a portion of the more moderate respondents who chose the right of center or conservative for the first

Question 2: Which political party, if any, do you support? Fall 2023

as important issues, while 50.5% of respondents indicated healthcare and guns to be relevant concerns. Some of these issues, such as the economy, inflation, and education, are recurring points in American political discourse,

The third question gathered information about what issues the school thought were important in light of the upcoming election. By far the most important issue was the economy, with 66.4% of respondents selecting this as an important issue. One respondent voiced their support for one of Biden’s economic policies, saying, “his economic policies - particularly his landmark infrastructure bill - have led to huge benefits in communities across the country.” However, in a broader scope, Biden’s economic decisions could contribute to the scrutiny on the topic currently. A CNN poll reveals that despite a growing American economy, 58% of Americans disapprove of Biden’s economic policy, which was a 50% increase compared similar polls a year ago. Voters are citing housing, gas prices, and inflation as points of concern in the aftermath of disasters such as Covid and the Ukraine crisis as evidence of Biden’s failures. 57% of respondents selected both inflation and education

while issues such as healthcare and gun control have surged in concern over the last two decades, partly due to COVID-19 and the numerous mass shootings across America greatly concerning citizens. Next, the poll surveyed the school’s backing of each party’s presidential candidates. With nine nominees, the support for Republican candidates was quite varied. Nikki Haley, former governor of South Carolina and sole female Republican nominee, was backed by 22.2% of respondents, the highest of all candidates. Contrary to Belmont Hill’s results, Haley is far behind the leading Republican candidates, though she has distinguished herself as a specialist in foreign policy. As a former United Nations ambassador, she has complex ideas about foreign relations such as Ukraine, and despite running for the Republican candidacy, some of her central beliefs clash with popular right-wing opinion. Former president Donald Trump received 19.3% of the

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The Podium | Data Analysis

question stated that they supported no party other than the Republicans in the second question. The left-leaning and democratic supporters from the two questions were even, both with roughly 40%.

Trump DeSantis Ramaswamy Haley Pence Scott Christie Burgum Hutchinson

around 30% support from Republicans. In this poll, DeSantis only received around 10% of votes. However, no Republican candidate received any significant majority in the polling.

Biden Williamson Kennedy

Question 4: Regardless of your political affiliation, which of the candidates do you support for the Republican nomination? votes, the second highest; however, as the election comes ever nearer, recent criminal charges will likely affect his perception and voting. Vivek Ramaswamy, running for the first time and the youngest candidate at 38, was third with 13.3% of respondents. The founder and former CEO of Roviant Sciences, a biotech company, Ramaswamy is relatively new to the political scene. He openly supports Trump and casts himself in a very similar light in terms of policies. These results differed from the general population, where Trump and Ron DeSantis held the majority, both with

Question 5: Regardless of your political affiliation, which of the candidates do you support for the Democratic nomination? In contrast, the Democratic party only has three nominees, and most of the school’s support was split between two candidates. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who was a Democratic nominee at the time of the conducting of this survey and has since switched to an independent campaign, received 45.9% of votes. Kennedy Jr. actively advocates for anti-vaccination and promotes public health conspiracy

Candidates at the Third Republican Primary Debate NBC News Volume VIII • Edition II

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President Joe Biden at a Campaign Event theories. Votes for Kennedy Jr. just edged out current president Joe Biden, who garnered 44.9% of votes. Biden’s recent approval ratings reflect his inability to gain majority support, as his ratings have continuously dipped lower than 40%. This puts into question whether or not Biden will be able to win reelection for a second term. Marianne Williamson, also the sole female candidate of her party, fell much farther behind; only 9.2% of respondents voiced support for her.

Trump-Biden election, they would support Biden, while the remaining 35% stated they would be in favor of Trump. This suggests that overall, the school has been unhappy with the last two presidents and are looking for a change of scenery. However, in the event of a Trump-Biden election, it makes sense that more people would support Biden as there were more left-leaning respondents. Overall, the support and divide between Democrat and Republican candidates is largely spread within the Belmont Hill community. As expected, the community favored the left slightly more than the right, but there are enough students and faculty on each side to provide healthy debate. With the 2024 election fast approaching, it will be interesting to see who will lead this country for the next four years.

Question 6: Would you be satisfied with a Trump vs. Biden general election? Finally, the last two questions gauged opinions about another Trump-Biden election in 2024, which many experts are predicting. Firstly, respondents were asked if they would be satisfied with a Trump-Biden general election: 74.3% responded no, and 25.7% responded yes. In the next question, 65% of respondents answered that in the case of a Volume VIII • Edition II

Question 7: In a Trump vs. Biden election, who would you vote for? 63

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How Realistic was Oppenheimer, the Historical Blockbuster? Cole Sparks ‘24 The film opens in 1954 at the start of a security hearing for renowned physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, stemming from his alleged ties to communism. Admiral Lewis Strauss leads the hunt because of a personal grudge stemming from when the two met back in 1947. The film jumps between times, including his early years as a physics student at Cambridge under Patrick Blackett. Oppenheimer then continues studying at the University of Gottingen, where he meets Isidor Rabi and works toward his PhD. There, he meets theoretical physicist Werner Heisenberg, whom Oppenheimer reveres as an influential figure in his work. He later begins teaching at Berkeley back in the United States. Oppenheimer later attends a Communist Party gathering with his younger brother Frank and his girlfriend Lawrence. Frank and his girlfriend have officially joined the Communist Party, which Oppenheimer discourages, despite his own left-leaning political views. Oppenheimer sees one of his students reacting frantically because news has broken that the Germans have split the uranium nucleus by bombarding neutrons through nuclear fission. Oppenheimer is met by General Leslie Groves and Lt. Colonel Volume VIII • Edition II

Kenneth Nichols to recruit him to be the director of the Manhattan Project. Oppenheimer begins to recruit other scientists and sets up shop in Los Alamos where they construct a fake town near the testing site. The Trinity Test, the first detonation of the atomic bomb, was successful, and President Truman orders bombs to be dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Oppenheimer begins to feel a sense of guilt over the casualties in the bombings, and he becomes an advocate against further nuclear weapons developments, after his colleague Edward Teller has found a way to develop a hydrogen bomb more powerful than the atomic bomb. Oppenheimer is later involved in a security hearing due to his ties to communist circles, which included his wife Kitty as a former member. His security clearance ends up being revoked and he loses political influence, and the film ends with him fearing that his work in nuclear weapons may have doomed the world. Oppenheimer, a three-hour-long film directed by Christopher Nolan, has grossed over one billion dollars. But how historically accurate is this biopic blockbuster? Overall, Oppenheimer does a great job of portraying the moral quandaries and the tensions surrounding the creation of the bomb. This film was an

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visual effects supervisor Andrew Jackson to see how the scene could play out. Van Hoytema says, “We created science experiments. We built aquariums with power in it. We dropped silver particles in it. We had molded metallic balloons which were lit up from the inside. We had things slamming and smashing into one another such as ping-pong balls, or just had objects spinning. We had long shutter speeds, short shutter speeds, wide negative color, negative overexposure, underexposure. It was like a giant playground for all of us.” In the end, how they ended up doing it remains a mystery, and the ten-minute scene leading up to the detonation culminates in a breathtaking cinematic masterpiece. In the film, Oppenheimer consults with Albert Einstein for advice on the Los Alamos team’s calculations so that the Trinity test would be safe and not blow up the world. However, in reality, Oppenheimer consulted not Einstein on this, but rather Arthur Holly Compton, Director of The University of Chicago’s Manhattan Project team. This small change doesn’t distract from the overall brilliance of the film, which serves as a stark reminder of the ethical dilemmas of becoming, as J. Robert Oppenheimer and the Bhagavad-Gita said, “Now I am become death, the destroyer of worlds.”’ The film did a very good job sticking to the real history, earning it a 5/5 for accuracy and entertainment.

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The Podium | Historical Film Review

adaptation of American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, written by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin. Large portions of the book are used verbatim in the film, although Nolan puts his own creative spin, including moving through events non-chronologically. In the case of the 1954 and 1959 court scenes, much of the dialogue is taken directly from transcripts of the hearings in question. Nolan is able to differentiate between fact and opinion through his usage of color, or rather his lack thereof. As he told Total Film, “The film is objective and subjective. The colour scenes are subjective; the black-and-white scenes are objective. I wrote the colour scenes from the first person. So for an actor reading that, in some ways, I think it’d be quite daunting.” Nolan’s creative license was seen in every scene, making the historically accurate transcripts striking, which helped show how the trial regarding his security clearance was a witch hunt rather than a renewal. Nolan’s creativity was also seen in his lack of CGI. Nolan wanted to capture the first successful atomic bomb detonation in all of its glory, and he wanted to make it genuine. He obviously couldn’t recreate the detonation, so he needed to find a way to create the explosion on a much smaller scale. He enlisted cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema, as well as special effects supervisor Scott Fisher and

What Happened to “DeFuture?” Just five years ago, Ron DeSantis was a nobody. During his 2018 gubernatorial campaign for the state of Florida, the former congressman had to rely on an endorsement from President Trump even to make it past the Republican primaries, then had to struggle in the general election to beat out his opponent by just 0.4 percentage points. However, his handling of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic soon catapulted him into the national spotlight. In defiance of conventional public health wisdom at the time, DeSantis adopted a relatively relaxed pandemic policy, which opened

to give him favorable coverage, major Republican donors flocked to provide him with funding, and the stage was set for DeSantis to make a serious bid for the presidency in 2024. Throughout 2021 and 2022, DeSantis was silent about any possible presidential bid he might make. Instead, he opted to build up his record as a staunch warrior for conservatism in the state of Florida, most likely as preparation for a potential faceoff against Trump in the 2024 Republican primaries. DeSantis accomplished this through the passing of various pieces of conservative legislation, as well as some coordinated political stunts that allowed him to keep his name in the newspa-

non-essential businesses early and continued in-person learning for students in the fall. The Florida governor drew intense scrutiny for his perceived lack of empathy; however, when the pandemic subsided, not only had Florida not experienced the widespread devastation that many had predicted, but DeSantis’s management of the pandemic also helped reduce damage to the economy and learning loss in schools. His success in defiance of “liberal” pandemic policy guidelines made him a superstar among the Republican establishment. Mainstream Republican media outlets began

pers. To name a few, he restricted the teaching of gender identity concepts and historical narratives of race in schools, took on Disney’s corporate leadership for aligning themselves too much with liberal causes, and sent a group of undocumented immigrants to Martha’s Vineyard in an attempt to demonstrate liberal hypocrisy. These actions allowed DeSantis to keep his name in the newspapers and to solidify his image as a provocative “defender of conservatism.” At the same time, Trump was facing decreasing support due to the many legal challenges he was facing and his poor

Brandon Li ‘26

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decided to echo Trump’s soft stance on the Russo-Ukrainian War, labeling it a “territorial dispute” and claiming that it was irrelevant to the national security interests of the United States. This was a missed opportunity: DeSantis could have appealed to the Republican bloc dissatisfied with Trump’s lack of support for Ukraine by taking a comparatively harder stance on the war and promising continued US involvement and aid. However, by choosing to adopt Trump’s nationalist position on the war, he was ultimately only accused of unoriginality of thought and lacking foreign policy expertise. Relying on Trump’s style of politics has been a major crutch for the Florida governor’s campaign from the very beginning. One of the key components of DeSantis’s pitch to become president has always been personifying “Trumpism without Trump.” However, simply being the best alternative copycat to Trump is no longer good enough, especially when the Republican establishment seems to have once again embraced the former president and forgotten about his controversial past. Going forward, DeSantis’s campaign may have to think about how it can deliver unique political messaging that appeals to voters who feel alienated by the current selection of candidates. Overall, DeSantis has a lot to consider as he stabilizes at 40 percentage points below Trump in polling for the Republican primaries. Although surveys suggest that DeSantis would be on similar footing with Biden in a hypothetical general election matchup, he must first beat Trump in the Republican primaries before he can get to that point. In order to accomplish this, DeSantis must quickly develop a strategy to distinguish himself to Republicans as not simply being “the best Trump alternative,” but rather a unique candidate that has his own agenda to offer. Otherwise, this ambitious governor of Florida may just have to wait another four years. Fall 2023

The Podium | Miscellaneous Essays

endorsements during the 2022 midterm elections. Many Republicans were beginning to believe that Trump’s provocative and impulsive style of governing did not align with the best interests of the GOP. Between these two factors, Republican support for a DeSantis presidency was rapidly growing. However, despite all of DeSantis’s momentum heading into 2023, his campaign seems to have fallen flat. The polling gap is now more than 40 points wide, DeSantis’s campaign is facing financial uncertainty, and Republicans once again seem to have decided that Trump is the future of the Republican party. What happened to “DeFuture?” The simplest explanation is that DeSantis announced his campaign too late. He hesitated to capitalize on the wave of support for him near the end of 2022 and waited until late May to formally announce his candidacy. Some speculate that he was waiting for specific pieces of hyper-conservative legislation to pass in Florida before officially starting his campaign so that he could tout them as part of his accomplishments on the campaign trail. However, according to Reuters, these pieces of legislation only turned away major donors for DeSantis’s campaign, who worried that they would “turn off moderate voters and make DeSantis unelectable.” This was a major miscalculation from DeSantis’s campaign. Trump was given the time to rebound as a strong candidate following his indictment in March, which prompted Republicans to rally behind him in protest of perceived political persecution. Meanwhile, DeSantis was left looking indecisive and weak as he stalled for time. DeSantis’s campaign has also struggled to develop original political messaging that could resonate with voters, often resorting to mirroring Trump’s political views and style of delivery to gain votes among Republicans as a result. For instance, DeSantis

How Warfare has Changed: A Look at the Russia-Ukraine War the Ukrainian military to benefit from their use. By repurposing commercial drones and On February 24, 2022, Russia invaded deploying massive amounts of them, the Ukraine. The widespread belief from most Ukrainian army has been able to gather inmedia outlets and people following around telligence on their enemy and ship materials the world was that the Russian military would such as munitions to their soldiers at unpreceovertake Ukraine in a matter of days. Since the dented levels using devices many own as toys initial Russian invasion, Ukraine has achieved or passion projects. To put Ukraine’s drone usfar more success than expected. Ukraine’s age into perspective, the Royal United Services Kharkiv counter-offensive alone has resulted think tank estimates the Ukrainian military in the retaking of over three thousand square loses approximately 10,000 drones a month. kilometers from Russian forces. To date, in the Another vital tool in this conflict for the Russo-Ukrainian war, Ukraine has achieved Ukranians has been the weaponizing of the great successes at the expense of the Russian internet and social media. For the Ukrainian army. This leads to some questions. Why has military, the internet offers a significant adUkraine done so vantage on the well? How has battlefield, providRussia failed abysing information mally? How has at lightning-fast this war shown speeds. Combat the evolution of videos and pictures warfare? How provide tactical can the rest of the information on world learn from Russian movethis conflict? The ments and convoys Russo-Ukrainian and have allowed War illustrates the Ukrainians to what is required in coordinate ammodern conflict, bushes, resulting including the need in heavy Russian for new technollosses. The interogy on the battlenet has also been field and upgrading of older equipment along utilized by the Ukranians as an effective tool with the importance of technology in modern for spreading propaganda and garnering supconventional warfare. port internationally. They commonly produce Quantity over quality in warfare has human interest stories and videos that focus largely been proven obsolete in this conflict on their front-line soldiers’ determination to through the widespread use of new techexpel the invading Russians from Ukraine in nologies, including drones and the internet. order to protect their homeland. These careThe extensive use of drones has been pivotal fully crafted stories are meant to rally allies to throughout this war. In past conflicts, the use their side and help to solicit donations of both of drones was limited due to their scarcity infrastructure and military support from the and large size. The advent of smaller drones international community. The war in Ukraine that are commercially available has allowed shows how the use of innovations, like drones

Mikey Furey ‘25

Volume VIII • Edition II

Fall 2023

and social media, can make important tactical differences in contemporary warfare. The Russo-Ukrainian conflict has exposed the flaws of relying on older equipment in war. Out-of-date Russian tanks and aircraft, usually the backbone of any military force, are examples of equipment that has proven their impuissance throughout the fighting. The Russians have relied heavily on tanks to defend and advance their positions, a strategy that has not served them well. Russia has lost approximately 2,429 tanks since its invasion of Ukraine began. Advancements in anti-tank

table anti-air launchers called MANPADS. Significant Russian losses can be attributed to the outdated technology on their aircraft, not allowing them to suppress enemy air defense. Installing anti-radiation systems, like the AGM-88 HARM missiles carried by U.S. fighter jets, would allow Russian aircraft to destroy Ukrainian air defense and surface-to-air missiles they encounter. Russia’s inability to incorporate technologically advanced systems into its aging military equipment has created a disadvantage for its land and air forces, further proving the importance of updated mili-

guided missiles and drones, such as the Lancet, have exposed vulnerabilities in the kinds of tanks Russia has been deploying. Russian tanks need to be upgraded with an Active Protection System to be relevant and effective in modern warfare. The Active Protection System is designed to counter drones and missiles by detecting incoming threats and eliminating them by shooting counter munitions. Another example of technology vulnerabilities is the need to upgrade combat airplanes with necessary equipment. In the early stages of the war, Russia failed to gain air supremacy. They failed to destroy air defense systems, radar installations, and the Ukrainian air force, and for these failures, Russian forces paid a heavy price. So far, Russia has lost 539 aircrafts throughout the war. These losses were caused by various anti-air weapons, including Ukrainian air defense systems and man-por-

tary technology in modern warfare. The Russians invaded Ukraine expecting a quick and decisive victory. A year and a half later, the Ukrainians are forcing a Russian retreat. The Russian military failed because their aging military equipment lacked the technological upgrades to keep them relevant. Ukraine, on the other hand, has embraced the use of technology to wage war against Russia. Their widespread use of drones and the internet allows them to successfully track and target their enemies. Further, their campaigns on social media have proven useful in obtaining worldwide sympathy, which has translated into help and support from the international community. The Russo-Ukrainian war has shown that the evolution of combat is becoming more technologically dependent and automated, and a failure to adapt will likely ensure massive losses on the battlefield.

Volume VIII • Edition II

Fall 2023

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