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Featured Items

UMOP 42: Historical reflections in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of UMass Linguistics

UMOP 42: Papers in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of UMass Linguistics

Recent Submissions

Embargo
Stream Functioning Across an Endorheic Basin in the Dry Andes
(2025-09) King, Rachel
Water scarcity is a defining constraint for both ecosystem function and lithium resources development in the arid, high elevation region of the Puna Plateau in South America. Despite this, the processes that govern streamflow generation in the region remain poorly understood. This study aims to characterize streamflow dynamics in the Salar de Pastos Grandes watershed using an integrated approach drawing from physical, geochemical and remotely sensed hydrologic data. Weekly streamflow gauging served as the primary dataset which was supported by insights from environmental tracers, climate data and remotely sensed vegetation indices. Streamflow fluxes are modulated by topography, discrete precipitation events, temperature fluctuations and vegetation extents. Perennial streamflow is generated in catchments with significant area above 5000 meters above sea level. In contrast, ephemeral flows are responsive to precipitation and groundwater releases from bofedal wetlands. All basin waters were recharged >65 years ago and there is a gap in streamflow flux and modern precipitation inputs, indicating there is likely an additional source of relic water to streams. These findings inform a conceptual model for stream functioning in the dry Andes and these results have implications for freshwater availability studies and process-based groundwater models in this region.
Embargo
EXPLORING BLACK BEAN TEMPEH: A NOVEL ADDITION TO PLANT-BASED NUTRITION
(2025-09) Jaijaroensakundee, Chonnikarn
Tempeh fermentation, a traditional Indonesian food processing method, has been recognized for enhancing the nutritional, bioactive, and sensory properties of soybeans through fermentation with the fungus Rhizopus oligosporus. Although traditionally made from soybeans, this study explores using black beans as a novel ingredient for tempeh fermentation. Black beans, which are rich in protein and bioactive compounds like flavonoids and phenolics, have a unique nutritional profile that has potential for developing into functional, nutritious, plant-based food products. This study evaluates the effects of tempeh fermentation on black beans by comparing their nutritional composition, phenolic content, flavonoid content, antioxidant activity, and antinutrient levels using proximate analysis, colorimetric assays, and in vitro assays before and after 40 hours of fermentation. In addition, sensory analysis was also conducted to test the consumer acceptance of the black bean tempeh, by comparing it to the traditional and commercial soybean tempeh. The results show that tempeh fermentation significantly increased the water content, protein content, total carbohydrate, reducing sugar, free phenolics, flavonoids, bound phenolics, and antioxidant activity. On the other hand, it significantly reduced the fat content, trypsin inhibitors, and phytic acid levels of black beans. Sensory results showed that black bean tempeh achieved comparable hedonic liking scores to commercial soy tempeh in taste, flavor, and texture, though scored significantly lower than traditional soy tempeh, particularly in appearance. Bitterness, nutty flavor, and umami taste were also found to be the drivers of overall liking. These findings demonstrate that fermenting black beans into tempeh produced an affordable, nutritious, and functional plant-based protein with potential for consumer acceptability in the growing plant-based market.
Embargo
Estimating Carbon Budgets from Tracer Release Observations in Fen-adjacent Mountainous Headwaters
(2025-09) Garza, Rebekah
Rivers and streams process and transport significant quantities of terrestrial carbon into global oceans and earth’s atmosphere annually. Stream carbon budgets are a useful tool to understand and partition sources and sinks of carbon in catchment streams. Despite their utility, these budgets are often difficult to constrain due to complex biogeochemical interactions at the land-water interface. Here, we present estimates of three carbon budgets from mountainous headwaters across two different seasons, constrained by resazurin, chloride, and argon tracer release experiments. Carbon budgets are from two streams with contrasting fen extent, Rock Creek which has a lesser fen extent, and Gothic Creek, which has a greater fen extent, within the East River watershed near Gothic, CO. We performed three tracer release experiments, targeting comparisons between snowmelt and baseflow dynamics at one site as well as inter-site variability during baseflow, to characterize stream CO2 production and evasion. We also collected stream and hyporheic zone water samples which we analyzed for pCO2, δ13C-DIC, pH, DIC, and DOC. Using data from geochemical sampling and tracer release experiments, we modeled carbon budgets in June and August of 2022 for Rock Creek and in August of 2024 for Gothic Creek. CO2 emissions from streams were three times higher during spring snowmelt than during the late growing season baseflow. Stream corridor CO2 production was significantly higher during snowmelt than during baseflow, accounting for roughly 37% of emissions, the majority of which was supported by hyporheic zone respiration. During baseflow, Gothic Creek stream corridor respiration was predominantly derived from the water column, possibly supported by sustained inputs of DOC to the stream from the adjacent wetland later into the growing season. The findings of this study indicate that seasonally-driven changes in stream discharge are an important control on carbon sources and transport and that wetland connectivity to streams may sustain carbon export even during low flow conditions. In the context of climate change-driven variations in mountain catchment hydrology, our study addresses the crucial question of how high elevation fens control stream carbon sources.
Embargo
Development of a paper-based SERS substrate for rapid on-site analysis
(2025-09) Forbes, Adam
Portable detection of contamination in the food supply is highly desirable for the food industry and regulatory agencies, as current benchtop detection methods generally require samples to be transported to a dedicated analytical lab, which greatly increases the time needed to complete the analysis. Surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) has emerged as a promising analytical technology for food analysis, as it is rapid, economical, and generally requires simpler sample preparation compared to gold standard methods. However, portable SERS detection is challenging due to poor laser focus control and low spectral resolution. Herein, we developed a simple, low-cost SERS substrate and compatible sample holder to overcome these limitations. The substrate consists of filter paper embedded with densely packed silver nanoparticles, where the nanoparticles were dispersed in acetone and pressed into the paper matrix to a depth of 50–100 µm. This three-dimensional distribution provides both enhanced signal intensity and focal depth buffering, which is critical for consistent performance with handheld Raman devices. The entire substrate can be fabricated in 30 seconds at a material cost of less than $0.10. A custom-designed sample holder enables easy alignment with the spectrometer and allows for one-time use liquid sample application. Erythrosine (FD&C Red 3) is a synthetic colorant that was banned in food products by the Food and Drug Administration in January 2025 because it was shown to cause cancer in laboratory rats. Monitoring Red 3 in food products is significant for the FDA to ensure that the food industry complies with its regulations. Traditional detection methods such as high-performance liquid chromatography requires expensive benchtop instrumentation and time-consuming sample preparation. Using the paper-based substrate and a handheld Raman spectrometer, Red 3 was successfully detected at both 10% and 50% adulteration levels (5 mg/L and 25 mg/L) in solutions of Red 40, carmine, and red radish extract. Additionally, Red 3 was identified in sprinkles and peppermint candy containing both Red 40 and Red 3. The method enables specific, rapid detection within 5 minutes of sample preparation in a low resource setting, offering a significant improvement over existing techniques and supporting enforcement of recent FDA regulations.
Open Access
A Multi-dimensional Corpus-based Analysis of the Chinese Dummy Verb Jinxing: Usage Patterns and Learner Acquisition across L1 and L2 Corpora
(2025-09) You, Xin
This study conducts a multi-dimensional analysis of the Chinese dummy verb “jìnxíng” (进行, often rendered as “conduct”) to examine its native speaker usage patterns and the acquisition of L2. By integrating quantitative measures of register adaptability, syntactic dependency, and semantic domain across both native and learner corpora, this research investigates how these dimensions interact in shaping the use of jìnxíng. Findings reveal that jìnxíng exhibits pronounced register specificity, with 99.1% of its collocates confined to specific registers. Syntactically, its relationship with collocates constitutes a dependency continuum, with around 70% showing mid-level dependency, reflecting an ongoing grammaticalization process. Semantically, it collocates primarily with abstract, processual activities. In addition, prosodic errors are rare, suggesting that learners acquire prosodic awareness earlier than register and semantic constraints. Cluster analysis identifies three core native usage patterns—framework-anchored, semantic-filling, and free-combination—that collectively span a functional continuum. When mapped onto this native cluster space, learner usage shows systematic divergence: correct usage clusters in syntactically flexible, cross-register zones, while errors stem mainly from insufficient integration across dimensions. Register and semantic mismatches (32.6%) are most frequent, underscoring that acquisition difficulties arise primarily from gaps in register awareness and semantic abstraction. The study makes dual contributions: it theoretically refines the understanding of dummy verb grammaticalization as a synchronic continuum, and it introduces a novel methodological framework—a corpus-based three-dimensional interaction model with cluster mapping—that bridges native speaker norms and learner acquisition patterns. Pedagogically, it proposes a tiered teaching scheme structured around an empirically derived difficulty hierarchy, moving from register awareness to semantic adaptation and finally to syntactic refinement. offering a structured path from elementary to advanced stages of learning.

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