Research and Publishing Roundup

Fall 2024 was a busy semester in research and publishing! Here are some of the accomplishments of our researchers:

The Center for Portuguese Studies and Culture announced three new publications from Tagus Press: The Undiscovered Island by Darrell Kastin, Migration, Mill Work, and Portuguese Communities in New England edited by Cristiana Bastos, Bela Feldman-Bianco, and Miguel Moniz, and Leaving Pico by Frank X. Gaspar.

Dean of the School for Marine Science & Technology Kevin Stokesbury co-authored an article titled “Anticipating the winds of change: A baseline assessment of Northeastern US continental shelf surficial substrates (2024-07-26)”. This study provides insights regarding substrates in offshore wind farms compared with other locations and how those environments are affected.

Professor Avijit Gangopadhyay (Estuarine & Ocean Sciences) co-authored an article, “Enhanced coastal upwelling indices for Moroccan Atlantic Coast, their force–response variability and sensitivity to extreme events between 1993 and 2021″. This study links seasonal to interannual variability of Moroccan upwelling.

Associate Professor Nikolay Anguelov (Public Policy) co-published an article “Keeping the academy queer: Lessons from the queer community for the future of public affairs education.” The article uses heteronormativities, creative class, and queer geographies better to understand the current state of the LGBTQIA+ community and explore the heteronormative and cisnormative assumptions about the community.

Assistant Research Professor Lauran Brewster (Fisheries Oceanography), Professor Steve Cadrin (Fisheries Oceanography), and Fiona Edwards (Fisheries Oceanography MS Candidate) co-published an article titled “Multispecies Portfolios of U.S. Marine Fisheries: Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management Reduces Economic Risk.” This article suggests using a portfolio optimization approach to manage fisheries, considering species interactions and economic factors.

Assistant Professor Geoffrey McDonald (Law) was featured in an article discussing the effects of a provision of the state’s housing bond bill. The article discusses a provision in the state’s housing bond bill that seals eviction records for tenants who faced no-fault evictions, won cases or had cases dismissed in housing court

Joshua Carberry (Engineering and Applied Science Doctoral Candidate) recently published a paper titled “Real-Time Rejuvenation Scheduling for Cloud Systems with Virtualized Software Spares” in the Journal of Systems & Software. The paper proposes a hybrid approach to combat Mandelbugs in cloud systems.

Commonwealth Professor Dan Braha (Decision & Information Sciences) wrote an article about the measurable patterns of civil unrest within society by applying Physics concepts to social phenomena.

Assistant Teaching Professor Donna Demanarig (Psychology) recently co-published “Mending Fragile Alliances to Fight Racism: A Developing Framework for Cross-Racial/Ethnic Solidarity” in American Psychologist. The article posits a framework to provide a foundation for research, training, clinical, and community work toward an interdisciplinary approach to cross-racial/ethnic solidarity accompliceship.

Ian Gifford (Physics MS Candidate) and Professor Avijit Gangopadhyay (Estuarine & Ocean Sciences) recently co-published “Synchronicity of the Gulf Stream path downstream of Cape Hatteras and the region of maximum wind stress curl” in Scientific Reports. The article, based on Gifford’s Master’s Thesis, discusses wind patterns and their impacts on Cape Hatteras.

Emeritus Professor Fahri Karakaya (Management & Marketing) was interviewed in an article about bank bonuses and customer habits regarding switching banks.

Associate Professor Jennifer R. Mammen (Adult Nursing), Assistant Professor Mirinda Tyo (Adult Nursing), and Clinical Assistant Professor Joyce Cadorette co-published “Understanding what aspects of Parkinson’s disease matter most to patients and families” in Scientific Reports. The article examines what is important to people with Parkinson’s disease vs. family over time through a qualitative content-analysis online survey.

Assistant Teaching Professor Basil H. Aboul-Enein (Health & Society) co-published “Humor and Laughter in Health Promotion Interventions and the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Disciplinary Narrative Review” in Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine. The article explores perspectives and research findings of studies on the role of humor and laughter in health promotion and direct care interventions throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ancil Alexander (’28, Arts & Sciences Undergrad) was featured in a piece about his journey as a football player after only playing the sport for one year at Taunton High School.

Professor Doug Roscoe (Political Science), Dean of the Honors College Amy Shapiro, and Associate Professor Brian Ayotte (Psychology) co-published “Domains of baseless belief and the characteristics of believers” in Social Science Quarterly. The article looks to determine if there are discrete domains of baseless beliefs and to identify the psychological and cognitive factors most closely associated with each type.

Professor Tim Walker (History) was featured in an article for his project on historical weather data from antique whaling ship logbooks. The project uses historical data to create more accurate climate models and better understand how climate continues to change.

Professor Anupama Arora (English & Communication, Women’s & Gender Studies) co-published “Pathaan, precarity and the Muslim question in neoliberal India” in New Cinemas: Journal of Contemporary Film. Arora also co-edited the journal. The article focuses on the 2023 blockbuster action spy-thriller Indian film Pathaan and what it says about stars, fandom, masculinity, neoliberalism, and precarity in Bollywood.

Professor Brian Glynn Williams (History) discussed the recent missile attacks between Iran and Israel in an article by WCVB. “I just think this is a historically dangerous moment,” said Williams.

Professor Stacy Latt Savage’s (Art & Design) “Sculpture Monster” project was featured in FiberNow magazine. “Sculpture Monster” was created with over 30,000 plastic “nips” bottles. Partnering with “Be the Solution for Pollution,” Latt Savage, fellow artist Rebecca McGee Tuck, and UMassD students showcased the sculpture at New Bedford’s Earth Day parade to raise awareness about plastic pollution.

Assistant Teaching Professor Basil H. Aboul-Enein (Health & Society) co-published “Effectiveness of nutrition interventions targeting university-level student populations across the League of Arab States: a systematic scoping review” in Global Health Promotion. The article examines and appraises the effectiveness of nutrition interventions in university student populations across the League of Arab States.

Executive Director of Economic Development and Community Partnerships Michael Goodman was featured in an article about the workforce trends related to home healthcare and the influx of migrant workers from Haiti.

Associate Professor Jennifer Mammen (Nursing), Assistant Professor Miranda Tyo (Nursing), and Joyce Cadorette (Adult Nursing Doctoral Candidate) were featured in an article for their study titled “Understanding what aspects of Parkinson’s disease matter most to patients and families.” This study seeks to determine important differences between family and patient perspectives of what matters and changes over time with Parkinson’s disease.  

Associate Professor Stephen Witzig (Education), Rachel Stronach (STEM Education Doctoral Candidate), Usman Ijaz (STEM Education Doctoral Candidate), and Shah Syed Wazir (STEM Education Doctoral Candidate) were featured in a Chronicle segment for their engagement in a climate science learning project at the Lloyd Center for the Environment.

Professor Mark Paige (Public Policy) discussed the issues surrounding school districts’ use of nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) to protect student privacy while maintaining transparency and employees’ rights to speak out.

Professor Doug Roscoe (Political Science) discussed the common phenomena in Massachusetts of unopposed incumbents, particularly in New Bedford’s state Legislature races, which can lead to a lack of competition.

Professor Brian Glyn Williams (History) was interviewed on the recent killing of a top leader of Hamas and the potential impacts on the region.

Akira Harper (STEM Education Doctoral Candidate) was featured in an article for participating in the University of Buffalo’s Visiting Future Faculty program. This initiative aims to showcase the impact that scholars from traditionally underrepresented populations in North America have on higher education.

Associate Professor Nikolay Anguelov (Public Policy) co-published “Recycling waste macadamia nut shells as a low hydrothermally engineered activated carbon for the efficient removal of a RIT navy blue textile dye from aqueous solutions” in Materials Research Express . The paper provides an overview of commercial textile dyeing technologies, the carcinogenic pollution their use causes, and the extant filtration technologies for textile dye wastewater, which are largely inefficient and expensive.

Assistant Teaching Professor Basil Aboul Enein (Health & Society) recently co-published an article titled “Effectiveness of Cartoons Comics and Animation-Based Sexual Health Promotion and Education Interventions: A Scoping Review” in the International Journal of Sexual Health. The article examines the effectiveness of interventions involving cartoons, comics, and animations on sexual health education and wellness.

Do you need help accessing any of these publications? The librarians have you covered. Contact our reference staff with your request: https://lib.umassd.edu/about/staff-directory/contact-rils/

 

Research and Publishing Roundup

Kudos to the following members of the UMass Dartmouth community on their research and publishing accomplishments:

Associate Dean of the College of Engineering Iren Valova participated in a panel on artificial intelligence at the Associated Industries of Massachusetts’ Commonwealth Conversation series. Valova joined Dell Technologies and TD Bank officials to discuss how artificial intelligence is changing the business landscape across industries and sectors of the economy.

Professor Avijit Gangopadhyay (Estuarine & Ocean Sciences) co-authored “On the evidence of helico‑spiralling recirculation within coherent cores of eddies using Lagrangian approach” in Nature’s Scientific Reports. The article aims to advance comprehension of coherent eddies’ structural characteristics and their internal dynamics.

Professor Geoff McDonald (Law) was interviewed for an article about post-foreclosure evictions. Based on his research, McDonald focuses on technical bankruptcy questions and the moral basis of bankruptcy, including the interrelated issues of debt, justice, and forgiveness.

Professor Brian Williams (History) authored an article in The Conversation on Ukraine’s defeat of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet due to their superior weapons and naval tactics.

Professor Chad McGuire (Public Policy) published “Using the Legal Concept of Fault Attribution to Analyze the Effectiveness of Coastal Climate Change Adaptation in the United States” in The Palgrave Handbook of Environmental Policy and Law. The article introduces the legal concept of fault attribution as a framework for assessing the effectiveness of current national coastal climate change policies.

Professor Kenneth Manning (Political Science) discussed the intricacies and “luck” involved in the recent Supreme Court ruling regarding presidential immunity and the impact on former President Trump.

Executive Director of Economic Development and Community Partnerships Michael Goodman was featured in the Summer 2024 issue of MassBenchmarks with his highlight titled “State of the State Economy.” The chapter discusses the Massachusetts economy’s slowing in the face of continued inflation, high interest rates, and slight downtrends in job growth.

Ethan Moyer (’25) was featured in an article for his artistic contribution to the Envision Resilience Mural Project in New Bedford. Moyer’s graphic will be turned into a mural that serves as a visual reminder of the impact of climate change

Do you need help accessing any of these publications? The librarians have you covered. Contact our reference staff with your request: https://lib.umassd.edu/about/staff-directory/contact-rils/

Roll Out the Red Carpet for OER

By Emma Wood

MASSPIRG’s UMass Dartmouth Chapter hosted UMD’s first ever Oscars-themed awards ceremony to recognize faculty members who use free or low-cost teaching materials in their classes. MASSPIRG sought nominations from students throughout the year at tabling events, and they honored the nominees at their inaugural event one April evening with refreshments and statuettes for the winners of each category. MASSPIRG students Lily Pendergast, Topanga Pottier, and other volunteers, dedicated their time and ingenuity to planning this event to shine a spotlight on the OER work of faculty. Oscars were awarded by discipline. For example, Dr. Olubanwo took the STEM category. He uses an Openstax textbook which is available digitally at no cost to students. He recently completed the OER Adoption cohort that I lead as part of UMD’s OER initiatives. The student choice award went to Dr. Walker Downey who teaches Art Education, Art History & Media Studies.

Photo shows golden statuettes
The OER Oscars statuettes

Similar events have been held by UMass Lowell and UMass Amherst with the shared goal of recognizing professors who incorporate free and low-cost materials into their syllabi. It can take added effort for professors to locate and adopt openly licensed materials and structure their courses around them, and some faculty go even further to author their own textbooks. The benefits are well-established and worth the time. OER has shown to increase student success indicators, provide equitable access to materials, and of course, save students a financial burden. Open Educational resources are a positive option for faculty who appreciate the flexibility and potential for tailoring of content that comes with some Creative Commons licenses. The classroom experience is improved for both students and educators when course materials are easy to access and navigate from day one of class.

Photo shows group of people smiling
Faculty attendees of the OER Oscars

MASSPIRG pulled in over 80 faculty nominations for their OER Oscars event so even though only some walked away with a shiny gold statuette, it’s clear that students appreciate the OER work that faculty undertake. Some faculty resources may not fit the definition of Open Educational Materials, but still, students notice when they are paying less for their books. This might come in the form of library subscriptions or using portions of traditionally copyrighted works under Fair Use, but the impact of removing high cost from the equation is still significant. Congratulations to all the nominee on their well-deserved recognition

There was a red carpet, of course, for photo opportunities.
Consistent with the Oscars theme, there was a red carpet photo opp available.

Learn more about Open Educational Resources here: https://guides.lib.umassd.edu/oer

Research and Publishing Roundup

Here is the latest news in UMD faculty, staff, and community publishing and research:

Professor Chad McGuire (Public Policy) was featured in an article that detailed the impact of rising seas on the SouthCoast and mitigation strategies already in place. McGuire was also featured in an article about the changes in policy impacting coastal decision-making due to climate-induced sea level rise.Assistant Professor Peeranuch LeSeure (Nursing) was featured in the International Family Association’s newsletter, highlighting her research on improving self-care management for diabetic patients among the Portuguese population in Massachusetts. LeSeure is developing a mobile app tailored to this population’s cultural needs and values to support self-care management.Associate Professor Nikolay Anguelov (Public Policy) was featured in a Newsweek article about his research on the number of missing indigenous women in the U.S. and how it relates to the story told in the recently released film Killers of the Flower Moon.Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Kimberly Scott and Assistant Vice Chancellor for Career & Civic Engagement Matt Roy were interviewed on the Chamber of Commerce’s Education Spotlight. The episode focused on UMass Dartmouth’s commitment to students and community.

Professor Brian Glyn Williams (History) was featured in an article that analyzed the many conflicts currently occurring across the globe and the implications of varying levels of U.S. support.

Do you need help accessing any of these publications? The librarians have you covered. Contact our reference staff: https://lib.umassd.edu/about/staff-directory/contact-rils/

Virtual Panel to Showcase the OER Work of UMassD Faculty

Open Education Week is March 4th – 8th, and one excellent way to celebrate is by attending this virtual panel. This is an opportunity for faculty to learn about OER Commons, a repository for Open Educational Materials (OER) and 3 exciting textbook projects at UMass Dartmouth. Open Educational Materials are teaching and learning tools such as textbooks, tests/quizzes, and classroom activities that are available free of charge. At UMass Dartmouth we have an OER Creators program through which 3 open textbooks were created in 2023. The textbook projects are E-Commerce and E-Business by Shouhong Wang, A Guide to Analyzing Arguments in an Academic Setting by Jackie O’Dell, Joshua Botvin, and Yuan Zhang, and Women’s & Gender Studies by Catherine Gardner. Each author will give an overview of the book they created. This panel will also include a demo of OER Commons by Repository Coordinator Rachel Oleaga. We welcome faculty who are curious about OER, open publishing, digital texbooks, open repositories, or who are just interested in the topics covered by these free textbooks. Register here: https://schedule.lib.umassd.edu/event/12057953?hs=a

Research and Publishing Roundup

Here is the latest news in UMD faculty, staff, and community publishing and research:

The Women’s and Gender Studies Department and the University of Rhode Island co-published the fall 2023 issue of the Journal of Feminist Scholarship titled “Translating Transnational Feminisms.” The issue, co-edited by Associate Professor Erin Krafft (Crime & Justice Studies) and Caroline De Souza (’22), argues for the integral position of feminist translation practices and the theories of Feminist Translation Studies as tools for both local and transnational feminist solidarities.Professor Avijit Gangopadhyay (Estuarine & Ocean Sciences) co-published “Recent changes in the upper oceanic water masses over the Indian Ocean using Argo data” in Scientific Reports. The article quantifies different contributions of pure warming and pure freshening processes on the long-term thermohaline changes observed in the Argo era (2003-2019).Professor Brian Williams (History) wrote an article in The Conversation discussing the differences and similarities between ISIS and Hamas by comparing each group’s beliefs and tactics.Assistant Professor Jonathan Kush’s (Management & Marketing) paper “Communication networks and team performance: selecting members to network positions” was adapted into a radio program as part of NSF’s The Discovery Files. The paper examined how individuals come to occupy communication network positions and the effect of selection processes on group performance.Emeritus Professor Fahri Karakaya (Management & Marketing) co-published “Cross Cultural Analysis of Facebook on Global Purchase” in the Journal of Marketing Development and Competitiveness. The article examines the impact of brand influencers, brand generated content, and brand engagement on culture.Senior Advisor to the Chancellor for Economic Development and Strategic Initiatives Michael Goodman co-published a report that analyzed offshore wind companies’ impact on the SouthCoast economy and workforce. The first two years of construction on wind turbines employed nearly 2,000 Massachusetts residents.Associate Professor Robert Darst (Political Science), Associate Professor Gavin Fay (Fisheries Oceanography), and Associate Dean of the College of Engineering Iren Valova co-published “Climate Resilience in Coastal Massachusetts: A Survey of Municipal Challenges, Plans, and Needs” in MassBenchmarks Journal . The piece details the efforts of the Northeast Center for Coastal Resilience, a collaboration across the UMass system, which conducted a survey on coastal resilience in Massachusetts municipalities and produced a comprehensive report on climate-change hazards, resilience strategies, and barriers.Emeritus Professor Fahri Karakaya (Marketing) co-published a chapter titled “Demographics on the use and Importance of nutrition Labels” in Advances in Health Sciences. The chapter examines the research literature on the impact of governmental programs and other food label initiatives.

Do you need help accessing any of these publications? The librarians have you covered. Contact our reference staff: https://lib.umassd.edu/about/staff-directory/contact-rils/