ScholarWorks@UMassAmherst

Recent Submissions

  • Publication
    CIE 40th Reunion - 1970s Cohort
    (Center for International Education, UMass Amherst, 2007-10-26) Crispin, Jon - Photo
    In October 2007, 150 CIE members of all generations gathered in Amherst at Amherst College to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the founding of CIE. Because it was raining, pictures were taken inside. There is one of the whole group and then smaller groups by decade. This one is the 1970s cohort.
  • Publication
    CIE Retreat - 1995
    (Center for International Education, UMass Amherst, 1995-10)
  • Publication
    CIE Retreat - 1994
    (Center for International Education, UMass Amherst, 1994-10)
  • Publication
    Anisotropic hydrogel microelectrodes for intraspinal neural recordings in vivo
    (2025) Crosby, Alfred; Huang, Sizhe; Xiao, Ruobai; Lin, Shaoting; Wu, Zuer; Lin, Chen; Jang, Geunho; Hong, Enuji; Gupta, Shovit; Lu, Fake; Chen, Bo; Liu, Xinyue; Sahasrabudhe, Atharva; Zhang, Zicong; Sumaria, Kaushal; Liu, Tingyi; Wang, Qianbin; Rao, Siyuan
    Creating durable, motion-compliant neural interfaces is crucial for accessing dynamic tissues under in vivo conditions and linking neural activity with behaviors. Utilizing the self-alignment of nano-fillers in a polymeric matrix under repetitive tension, here, we introduce conductive carbon nanotubes with high aspect ratios into semi-crystalline polyvinyl alcohol hydrogels, and create electrically anisotropic percolation pathways through cyclic stretching. The resulting anisotropic hydrogel fibers (diameter of 187 ± 13 µm) exhibit fatigue resistance (up to 20,000 cycles at 20% strain) with a stretchability of 64.5 ± 7.9% and low electrochemical impedance (33.20 ± 9.27 kΩ @ 1 kHz in 1 cm length). We observe the reconstructed nanofillers’ axial alignment and a corresponding anisotropic impedance decrease along the direction of cyclic stretching. We fabricate fiber-shaped hydrogels into bioelectronic devices and implant them into wild-type and transgenic Thy1::ChR2-EYFP mice to record electromyographic signals from muscles in anesthetized and freely moving conditions. These hydrogel fibers effectively enable the simultaneous recording of electrical signals from ventral spinal cord neurons and the tibialis anterior muscles during optogenetic stimulation. Importantly, the devices maintain functionality in intraspinal electrophysiology recordings over eight months after implantation, demonstrating their durability and potential for long-term monitoring in neurophysiological studies.
  • Publication
    Cognitive Reflection and Religious Belief: A Test of Two Models
    (2025) Seker, Firat; Acem, Acem; Bayrak, Faith; Dogruyol, Burak; Isler, Ozan; Bahcekapili, Hasan G; Oncurcan, Yimaz
    Existing research suggests a negative correlation between reflective thinking and religious belief. The dual process model (DPM) posits that reflection diminishes religious belief by limiting intuitive decisions. In contrast, the expressive rationality model (ERM) argues that reflection serves an identity-protective function by bolstering rather than modifying preexisting beliefs. Although the current literature tends to favor the DPM, many studies suffer from unbalanced samples. To avoid this limitation, we recruited comparably large number of participants for both religious believers (n = 580) and non-believers (n = 594) and observed the relationship between reflection and two measures of religious belief: belief in God and disbelief in evolution. Our findings corroborate the negative associations found between higher levels of reflection and both types of belief, independent of religious affiliation. Our results align with the broader literature, supporting the DPM but not the ERM.

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