Intrinsic Investigations: Exploring the Impact of Original Student Research

This episode's title refers to a psychological phenomenon where people overestimate how widespread a behavior is because the most visible members of their social circle are doing it. Liz surveys 76 students to examine whether teens are overestimating how common professional signaling behaviors like having a job, dressing for work, and building a LinkedIn profile actually are. The most memorable mo...

This episode's title refers to the themes Geffen uncovered in over 3,000 complaints filed with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Using a machine learning method called Latent Dirichlet Allocation, he analyzes what consumers are actually saying about Buy Now, Pay Later companies and finds that the complaints go beyond hidden fees and confusing payment structures to something newer: the ways...

This episode's title refers to the idea that word choice in news reporting shapes how audiences understand a conflict without ever stating a position. Joe analyzes five news outlets from the five countries contributing the most funding to the Russo-Ukrainian war and finds that each one has its own distinct form of bias, not just in what it says, but in what it chooses to focus on at all. Scrub to...

This episode's title refers to the funding and treatment gap between two chronic diseases that share surprising biological similarities. Chloe uses a thematic analysis of posts from disease-specific Reddit communities to compare how patients with sickle cell disease and cystic fibrosis describe their experiences with healthcare providers. What she finds is not just a difference in outcomes, but a...

This episode's title refers to Disney's ongoing project of remaking its animated classics into live action films, and the question of whether those remakes actually change how gender is portrayed. Sophia has been studying this since ninth grade, and this year she applies a quantitative coding framework to Snow White and Beauty and the Beast, comparing their animated and live action versions side b...

This episode's title refers to the distinction Malia draws between parasocial relationships, which occur between humans at a distance, and pseudosocial attachment, which forms between a person and a non-human entity like an AI. Malia conducts a content analysis of ChatGPT's responses to escalating prompts modeled on teen mental health struggles, examining how well the platform's guardrails actuall...

This episode's title borrows from Kevin's current undergraduate research paper, which recontextualizes the 2008 candlelight protests in South Korea through the lens of neoliberalism and globalization. Kevin was the first student ever interviewed for this podcast, and he returns to talk about where his research has taken him since graduating, what college-level independent research actually looks l...

This episode features two student projects examining discourse on X. Andrew analyzes how American fans perceive cultural appropriation in K-pop, while Jeffrey looks at how English-speaking audiences respond to Arabian Peninsula countries owning major European football clubs. Together, their findings raise a question neither X nor the research fully answers: once a problem is identified, what comes...

This episode's title refers to the way oversexualization shows up across very different cultural products, often carrying the same message to the same audience. Katie analyzes objectification in popular contemporary R&B/hip hop lyrics across gender lines, while Kailey compares the sexualization of women's and girls' Halloween costumes on Spirit Halloween's website. Together, their findings poi...

This episode's title refers to the recurring use of depression as a narrative device in modern horror filmmaking. Rebecca conducts a content analysis of three horror films, The Babadook , The Night House , and Lights Out , and examines how each one portrays depression through emotional, behavioral, and cinematic cues. She finds that horror's tendency to externalize mental illness as something dang...

This episode's title refers to the ongoing effort to incorporate artificial intelligence into breast cancer screening workflows. Polina uses an integrative review of 14 peer-reviewed studies to examine whether AI is ready to take on a meaningful role alongside radiologists, and finds that the answer is less about accuracy than it is about trust, regulation, and who takes the blame when something g...

This episode's title refers to the academic term for the outsized presence of thin body types in media and marketing. Erin uses a content analysis of Brandy Melville's Instagram to examine how the brand's one-size-fits-all marketing strategy reinforces a narrow standard of beauty, and what that means for the young women consuming it. To skip the introduction, scrub to 1:10

Selah dives into the impact of mental health portrayal on television by examining the Netflix drama Ginny and Georgia , a show that has quietly become a staple of teen viewership, and explores whether its portrayal of therapy and mental illness humanizes or stigmatizes its characters. Along the way, she reflects on how content that feels relatable and positive can still send complicated messages t...

The pun in this episode's title is a reference to the acne puns frequently used in the titles of episodes in teen sitcoms where pimples and zits become the stigmatizing focus of an episode. Morgan explores this phenomenon through shows from the early 2010s and shows how, when something is commonplace, it can still be a source of ridicule. (Scrub to 1:05 to skip the introduction)

Vazira examines how Russians are portrayed in the Cold War film Red Dawn , which depicts a Russian invasion of America, and compares it to their portrayal in the retro pastiche of Stranger Things . Scrub to 1:05 to skip the introduction.

Are political debates in the United States becoming more disrespectful over time? If so, how does that manifest at a state level? Tyler reviewed every New Jersey Gubernatorial debate from 1980 to the most recent race between Sherrill/Ciattarelli to see how candidate language changed (or didn't) and how that impacts voter engagement. Scrub to 1:10 to get started and skip the introduction.

Maria uses a meta-analysis to determine which variables influence the accuracy of eyewitness testimony. We discuss the flaws with human memory and how that can manifest in a courtroom. (Scrub to 1:05 to skip the introduction)

Episode 3 of the 2025-2026 school year starts off with a media studies project from Katelyn that examines the portrayal of Hispanic love interests on television shows. She explores how Hispanic characters inserted into love triangles find themselves exited the relationship or ultimately fulfilling their romantic intentions. Skip to 1:10 to start the podcast and avoid the introduction.

Addison gets the opportunity to exercise a passion for science and math and apply it to understanding the growing phenomenon of marine heat waves in the Southern Ocean. The discussion covers the importance of understanding the relationship between these heatwaves and their potential future impacts on krill and the broader trophic web. (Scrub to 1:05 to skip the introduction)

Meet Andrew, a student who enjoys creative writing and is curious and concerned about the creative writing abilities of generative AI. He examined how well AI can explore the Hero's Journey in terms of character development and compared that with the work of human writers. We close with a discussion of how we feel about AI being involved in the very human work of creativity. (Scrub to 1:05 to skip...

This year we had three students—Tanvi, Jamila, and Rachael—who all completed meta-analyses. The focus of their work varied widely from cancer research to lab mice pup mortality to parental well-being. What is a meta-analysis? You'll just have to listen to find out. (Scrub to 1:05 to skip the introduction)

Wesley examines how headlines regarding the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict are framed in the top three most visited U.S. online news sources. We discuss how we see ourselves and others engaging with news, the power of headlines, and the implications of language for public perception. (Scrub to 1:05 to skip the introduction)

Stephanie and Emily join the program to discuss their experiences with seeking approval for their work with human subjects. Yes, surveys are a form of human experimentation and require the approval of an institutional review board (IRB) before going out to potential respondents. This process is unfamiliar to most high school students, so Emily and Stephanie offer tips on how to navigate the requir...

Jacob sits down to discuss the misconceptions surrounding video games and violence. We acknowledge the ongoing debate around the topic and how research on causal relationships between gaming and violent behavior has yielded mixed results. Rather than seeking a causal link, Jacob analyzed YouTube engagement patterns in comments on popular videos discussing this controversial topic. We close by exam...

Chloe and Tessa discuss their content analysis projects focusing on very different aspects of the medical field. Chloe examines how medical student video content portrays burnout from a constant 'grindset.' Tessa looks at how educational and promotional content created by plastic surgeons presents the breast augmentation process on Instagram. We also discuss their future plans to take part in thei...