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Welcome to the Berkeley Undergraduate Journal, an annual publication dedicated to publishing exemplary undergraduate research in the humanities and social sciences.
Volume 39, Issue 1, 2025
2025
Articles
- Exploring Current and Potential Solutions: The Rise of Deepfakes in Legislative, Legal, and Technological Arenas
The rapid rise of deepfake technology, driven by advancements in artificial intelligence (AI), presents significant challenges to intellectual property (IP) and trademark enforcement. Deepfakes, created using machine learning algorithms like Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs), generate hyper-realistic yet entirely fabricated digital content. These deepfakes have complicated the already intricate landscape of IP protection—particularly on social media platforms—where misinformation, fraud, and privacy violations are growing concerns. As these technologies evolve and become more accessible, distinguishing between genuine and manipulated media has become increasingly difficult. This paper examines the impact of deepfakes on IP and trademark enforcement, highlighting the shortcomings of current legal frameworks and enforcement mechanisms. It reviews federal and state legislative efforts and assesses the role of technology corporations in detecting and preventing deepfake content. Despite some progress, existing measures remain insufficient to address the rapidly advancing capabilities of deepfakes. To mitigate these challenges, the paper proposes a comprehensive approach that includes expanding legislative frameworks, enhancing judicial training, and investing in advanced detection technologies. It also emphasizes the importance of public awareness campaigns and the need for tech companies to enforce strict policies against deepfake misuse. By fostering collaboration among governments, legal systems, and the tech industry, a robust framework can be established to protect creators’ rights, uphold digital media integrity, and maintain public trust in the face of these evolving threats.
- Divided, We Stand in Agreement: The Obstructive Role of National Identity in Contemporary Taiwanese Society
In the international arena, “Taiwan” brings to mind the conflict between Chinese dominance and American hegemony. Discourse surrounding Taiwan itself centers on its independence or unification with China. In media and popular consciousness, Taiwan’s preference for independence or unification is attributed to a difference in national identities—“Chinese” or “Taiwanese.” This reductive view masks the unique ways in which individuals in Taiwan construct their national identities, particularly given the lack of agreed definitions for basic terminology such as “Taiwan” or “Taiwanese.” Yet, qualitative data shows that national identity has little practical relevance in society, as the general consensus is that peacekeeping via maintenance of the status quo is the only current logical course of action. Despite proof of the population’s pragmatic indifference towards national identity, Taiwan’s primary political parties, the Kuomintang (KMT) and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) persist in upholding the reductive symbolic national identity as the representative issue in Taiwanese politics, overshadowing even uncontroversial questions of economic reform. In contrast, the recently-formed Taiwan People’s Party and their leader, Ke Wen-zhe, claim to offer a way out of this dichotomy, actively criticizing the KMT and DPP’s political theater. Indeed, most acknowledge the unproductively divisive power of symbolic national identity, and perceive economic questions to be the most urgent to address. Then, the unprecedentedly high level of youth support for Ke Wen-zhe, a first-time third-party candidate, in the 2024 presidential elections may be one visible manifestation of societal frustration towards the roadblock of national identity to social, economic, and political progress.
- Movement or Moment?: Exploring the Modern Struggle for Democracy in Iran
In a time where democratic backsliding threatens the sanctity of our democratic strongholds, studies on the world’s would-be democracies have been placed on the back-burner. The Middle East has commonly been called a democracy desert: a region where the branches of democracy are incapable of taking root. Whether it be an inhospitable culture or the looming effects of colonial influence, the Middle East has existed in a democracy deficit since its inception following Sykes-Picot. Although semblances of democracy have taken place in various Middle Eastern countries, Iran has remained under authoritarian rule for centuries: from the Qajars to the Islamic regime. Despite wide-spread civil unrest, a lively civil society, and a diaspora who yearns for a democratic Iran, Iran has never democratized. Analyzing the two most modern pro-democracy movements in Iranian history, the 2009 Green Revolution and 2022 Women, Life, Freedom Movement, this paper seeks to explore why Iran has been unable to democratize.
- Moved by the Immobile: A Phenomenological Study of the Moving Presence of Works in Alberto Giacometti’s Mature Period (1945–1966)
The impetus of this thesis lies in the moving presence of the art of twentieth-century modern artist Alberto Giacometti (1901–1966), understood in the literal and figurative senses of the word “movement.” Its focus is on the way Giacometti’s inanimate works animate their viewers—stirring, moving, and inviting them to move through, around, and alongside his works. In this way, I liken the moving presence of Giacometti’s art to the presence of a human before us. Aided by the insights of twentieth-century philosopher Maurice Merleau-Ponty, readers will be moved to their own phenomenological experiences of Giacometti’s work. Formal studies will reveal the palpable relationships between stillness and movement as well as distance and proximity within Giacometti’s works’ texture, scale, and finally, his artistic process. Drawing upon both formal analysis and phenomenological aesthetic theory, I argue that Giacometti’s lifelong struggle to find an ending point to his works was his primary strength, in allowing his viewers to finish the works with their own eyes.
- The Harms of Withdrawal
In this paper, I will explain: 1) Scanlon’s paradigm case of “Exit-Style Blame” (ESB), 2) how Agnes Callard’s “co-valuing” framework makes sense of our relational obligations in relationships of attachment, 3) how communicating one’s Strawsonian reactive attitudes is necessary for emotional vulnerability and valuing others, and 4) why exit-style blame is wrong and fails to express our subjective experience and solidify relational expectations. Some may argue that reactive communication of blame will only incite unproductive counter-anger or that this argument wrongly prescribes behavior universally. Nevertheless, without communicating some degree of our reactive attitudes when we are subject to them, we fail to express what we find valuable or harmful in the actions of those closest to us. This exclusion of our emotional experience wrongs the recipient of ESB, as it fails two epistemic and one practical obligation we have in relationships of attachment. Epistemically, we are obliged to explain what actions elicited reactive attitudes and some degree of our subjective affective experience. And since those we are close to regularly rely on our support and valuing, we are practically obligated to grant an opportunity for the wrongdoer to apologize and make amends for their wrong.
- Paths toward Sustainable Development in the 21st Century: A Comparative Analysis of “Exceptionalist” Development Models in Costa Rica and Kerala, India
In working to overcome the greatest challenges of the century, populous societies and governments have not properly recognized how to improve social conditions within the limits of our biosphere. In search of paths toward sustainable development in the 21st century, I analyzed two case studies known for their remarkable development outcomes: Costa Rica and the Indian State of Kerala. Publicly available data was used to visualize their development and sustainability progress over time. My analysis reveals that Costa Rica serves as a model for sustainable development, although its egregious overuse of agrochemicals is generally overlooked and must be replaced with regenerative agriculture practices. Although the success of the Kerala model is evident in the data, Kerala should not be considered a model of sustainable development due to its rampant pollution, limited economic opportunities, and overreliance on remittances sourced from unsustainable economies. Instead, I call for a continued study of Kerala as the Indian state transitions from development to sustainable development. Based on my findings, the developmental state emerges as a viable path for states worldwide to engage in sustainable development.
- Characteristics and Effectiveness of Child Malnutrition Programs in the Philippines
Child malnutrition remains a persistent problem in the Philippines despite the steady implementation of government-sponsored nutrition programs and policies. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of child malnutrition programs in the Philippines. Six child malnutrition programs were examined in the Philippines through in-person interviews and literature reviews. A semi-structured interview guide was used to address four major topics about each program: background information; target population; implementation and challenges; and evaluation methods. This study presented each malnutrition program with its implementation approach and scope. The six programs were compared in their approaches toward health education, feeding, gardening, and medical treatment. Five of these programs teach nutrition education, two of which cover health topics beyond nutrition. In regard to feeding, two programs provide malnourished children with ready-to-use-therapeutic-food (RUTF). Of the six programs, three utilize gardening to tackle malnutrition. Two programs provide medical treatment to malnourished children. Additionally, each program’s funding, partnerships, and evaluation methods were gathered and analyzed. All programs are funded by the Philippine government, with two receiving additional funding from international organizations. Four programs possess methods to evaluate their effectiveness, but data collection and analysis vary widely. Malnutrition programs in the Philippines face challenges in terms of funding, partnerships, and evaluation methods. The findings highlight the critical role of international funding and partnerships in improving program effectiveness and sustainability. Moreover, this study highlights the need for a robust evaluation system involving key stakeholders to identify areas for improvement and to tailor interventions to meet specific community needs.
- From People's Park Annex to Ohlone Park: The Wandering Body and Accessible Park Space
This paper focuses on disability access in urban greenspace through the case study of Ohlone Park in Berkeley, California. Initially built as People’s Park Annex in the 1960s, Ohlone Park was used as an alternative space for political activism after the first closing of People’s Park. This paper argues that the development pattern of Ohlone Park as a controlled public space away from its radical past suggests an anticipation of an idealized type of user that occupies the park as a temporary recreational area, which perpetuates the exclusion of disabled and unhoused bodies in the park. This idealization extends to the questions of bodies and space as well as perpetuates the hypervisibility of crip movement. The combination of lawn and lane in the park suggests that the dichotomy of nature and culture in landscape design is inter-perpetual with the imagination of an able-bodied walker. This paper explores how the question of body underlies themes including elements of nature in the built environment, history of the Free Speech Movement, and different forms of moving through greenspaces. This paper ends with the proposal of wandering as a methodology that counters the walker’s imagination and recognizes the multiplicity of spatialities formed moving through the park.
- Forms of Social Solidarity in American Politics
On January 6, 2021, a mob of rioters attacked the U.S. Capitol and, in many ways, American democracy itself. QAnon, a conspiracy centered around the clandestine activities of the elite, was a key group in the attack. Since then, QAnon has featured in many headline-worthy national crimes, including multiple attempts to harm elected officials. While there is value in questioning how QAnon became so powerful, it is more instructive to consider why people are compelled to live, die, and kill for an ideology so outrageous. In this paper, I ask why pockets of mechanical solidarity exist within societies governed by organic solidarity. Following Émile Durkheim’s theory of social solidarity, I interrogate QAnon’s rise and conclude that QAnon exists within two large organic societies—the United States and the internet writ large. However, QAnon exists as a pocket of mechanical solidarity, and its rise is deeply connected to how people seek out and choose their communities. By comparing Durkheim’s theories to those of other scholars, I find that the supposedly anachronistic presence of mechanical solidarity distills a question of trust. I posit the idea that certain people have an affinity for supported trust, naturally occurring in mechanical solidarity. Simultaneously, the unique landscape of platform capitalism exaggerates feelings of rapid change while disseminating sensational and bias-confirming information. QAnon and similar communities provide an alluring respite.