Volume 2, Issue 1 (2024) Issue 1

Letter From the Editors

Dear Reader,

I am deeply honored to present the first issue of Volume 2 of The Cardinal Edge (TCE), the University of Louisville’s pioneering undergraduate research journal. TCE provides a platform for undergraduate students to showcase their invaluable contributions to the vibrant research community at UofL and allows them to engage in meaningful academic discussions with peers and faculty in their field.

This year’s issue covers a wide range of topics, from an analysis of the role men have in contemporary feminism to fresh perspectives on the myth of Circe. The issue also includes three spotlight interviews addressing Louisville’s housing crisis, environmental justice, and groundbreaking work in UofL Health’s Pediatric Cardiology department. We proudly announce TCE’s Best Paper of 2023-24, Good Grief!: The Challenging of Middle-Class Life by Youth Culture in Mafalda and Peanuts, which examines the social and political undercurrents of these iconic cartoons. Additionally, we debut a special topics section focused on aging's biological processes.

During this publication cycle, TCE increased our staff by twelve first-year members and worked with countless graduate students and faculty reviewers, whose insight and expertise continue to serve as the foundation of our journal. Partnering with the Center for Engaged Learning, we have continued with the publication of the second supplemental issue to the journal, which will feature over 50 abstracts from university research symposiums.

We would like to express our gratitude to our faculty advisors, Drs. Mark Running and Shira Rabin, for their guidance and advice. We are also grateful to Dr. Paul DeMarco, Director of the Center for Engaged Learning, for his sponsorship and support. Along with Dr. Rafael Demarco for his organization of the special topics section. Thank you to ThinkIR, our researchers, reviewers, and most importantly, you—the reader—for supporting undergraduate research and innovation at UofL.

In my time as the Executive Editor-in-Chief of TCE, I have continued to be amazed by the commitment and dedication of our journal staff. I am immensely grateful to my fellow editor-in-chief, managing editors, and cohort team members for their diligence and efforts in pushing us through this first cycle post-graduation of our founding members. I eagerly anticipate TCE’s continued role in fostering a thriving undergraduate research community at UofL.

Happy reading,

Kamal Amirneni
Executive Editor-in-Chief

Yaara Aleissa
Associate Editor-in-Chief

Loghan Currin
Design Managing Editor

Abigal Stranger
Review Managing Editor

Amani Ikram
Spotlight Managing Editor

Annalise Hale
Outreach Managing Editor