Class of 2024 showcases research prowess through capstone projects

This year, the submission date for Yale-NUS capstone projects fell on 8 April. Through this year-long research project, Yale-NUS students get a chance to dive deep into their topics of interest while receiving expert guidance from their chosen faculty advisor. In this story, we spotlight diverse projects across various disciplines.

Josh Choo (Class of 2024) completed an Environmental Sciences project investigating the presence of endangered species in consumer eel products sold in Singapore. Advised by Yale-NUS Assistant Professor of Science (Marine Biology) Benjamin Wainwright and Professor of Science (Environmental Studies) Stephen Pointing, Josh performed DNA barcoding of more than 300 samples of eel meat that were commercially available in the island’s supermarkets, restaurants, and wholesalers. Josh’s findings confirmed that there were three pieces of illegal European eel present on the market, and that 217 of the 257 unagi products he tested were the endangered, but not internationally regulated, American eel.

Samples of eel DNA extracted by Josh and Golam Rabbani. Image provided by Josh Choo.

Josh found his capstone project to be a rewarding experience: besides learning more about anguillid eels (freshwater eels) and the illegal European eel trade, the volume of which reaches 3 billion euros in revenue per year, he was invited to participate in the 2024 International Eel Science Symposium in the United Kingdom. Josh shared his hopes about the overall significance of his project: “I hope that it spurs more interest in eel conservation in the region, like fine-grain standardised and transparent reporting, more attention on the trade of the endangered American eel Anguilla rostrata, and encourages people, businesses, and governments to rethink their supply chains!”

Ashley Chin (Class of 2024) completed an Anthropology project with the help of Assistant Professor of Social Sciences (Anthropology) Neena Mahadev. Throughout their senior year, Ashley studied how the Pentecostal and Charismatic Christians, a huge Protestant denomination in Singapore, work on themselves and on the world. She also discussed the unique local challenges evangelical Christians are faced with, and how they negotiate between the demands of evangelicalism and Singapore’s religious pluralism. Through this project, Ashley hoped to complement the sociological body of research with the anthropological perspective of looking at the intimate and the personal.

Ashley shared that her capstone project draws on several different facets throughout her time at Yale-NUS. It was a combination of an anthropology of technology class taken during semester abroad and a family friend’s knowledge of tongues that helped Ashley narrow their capstone focus. In addition, she shared that the various Yale-NUS classes she had taken over the years, such as Modern Social Thought, Psychological Anthropology, and Religion and the Media Turn, shaped her capstone project. Ashley reflected on the rewarding nature of capstone projects, sharing: “Outside of conversations with my interlocutors, this project initiated so many robust conversations with friends from different religious backgrounds, including ex-Christians, other Protestant denominations, Catholics, non-Christians altogether, and with such a range of attitudes from skepticism to empathy.”

Damion Horn (Class of 2024) completed a Philosophy, Politics and Economics capstone project, supervised by Assistant Professor of Social Sciences (Anthropology) Stuart Strange. Damion studied the internal cooperation of the Huay-i-Khang village in northern Thailand, exploring how this cooperation is rooted in both community ethics as well as Thai state narratives. Damion’s project built on his experience during his freshman year: he visited the Huay-i-Khang village during his Yale-NUS Week 7 in 2019. There, he met his mentor Suwitra and host Yatee; years later, he visited the community again to complete his research fieldwork, which he calls an “incredibly rewarding, full-circle experience.”

Damion with his mentor Suwitra (left), host Yatee (right), and community elders. Image provided by Damion Horn.

One of the challenges that Damion faced in completing his international fieldwork was living in the community without a translator. He spoke of his time in the village as “a learning experience, due to language barriers and other standard fieldwork struggles, like getting used to the pace of life and the forms of communication.” After returning to Yale-NUS, Damion also struggled with putting words on paper: “It felt, and still feels, like words are insufficient to communicate my time in Huay-i-Khang and the things that I have learned in this process.” Nevertheless, this capstone project helped him deepen his relationship with the people of the village and learn more about communication, resistance, and community.

Ahlem Dorgham (Class of 2024) completed a Life Sciences project under the guidance of Duke-NUS Associate Professor Joshua Gooley. Ahlem’s project, which was sponsored by Singapore Airlines (SIA), aims to pioneer innovative airline products and services, enhancing the company’s competitive edge in cabin services and elevating passengers’ inflight experience. Ahlem and her team recreated the Singapore Airlines business class cabin environment and invited participants to partake in a simulated 7-hour flight experience. They concluded that a 2-hour nap opportunity notably enhanced participants’ response times, mood, and reduced perceived fatigue levels.

Ahlem spoke of how her Yale-NUS experience helped shape this capstone project. She shared that she first met her capstone supervisor during her first Yale-NUS elective, Foundations of Neuroscience, where Professor Gooley delivered a captivating lecture on sleep. Intrigued, Ahlem joined her first sleep lab, the Sleep and Cognition Laboratory at the National University of Singapore (NUS). Later, she worked in three different sleep labs concurrently, including the Chronobiology and Sleep Laboratory at Duke-NUS led by Professor Gooley. Ahlem shared that she is most appreciative of the collaborative nature of her capstone project: “Our lab’s emphasis on understanding sleep and alertness during flights complements the efforts of other teams within the SIA-NUS Corporate Aviation Laboratory, which are dedicated to enhancing seat comfort and design. This collaboration creates a dynamic synergy that enriches our study and promises comprehensive insights into optimising the in-flight experience.”

*N. B. In our upcoming piece, we will expand on the diverse capstone topics of the Yale-NUS Class of 2024. Stay tuned as we interview more students and delve deeper into the unique learning opportunities at the College.