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Outstanding Physics AlumKnight
UCF Physics alumnus Howard Bender, Ph.D., ’98, has stayed connected to his alma mater in more ways than one. Most recently he was recognized as a 2016 College of Sciences Outstanding AlumKnight as well as founded an endowed scholarship in the UCF College of Nursing. Dr. Bender graduated from UCF in 1998 with a doctorate […]
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Physics Faculty Lead Conference
UCF Physics professor Daniel Britt, Ph.D., who was recently selected to take part in the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) New Horizons extended mission, continues to make waves in the world of physics. Most recently, he assisted in organizing the International Conference on the Exploration of Phobos and Deimos hosted by NASA […]
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A Summer of STEM
This summer, UCF hosted its STEM Summer Institute (SI) camps for Central Florida middle and high school students. The STEM Summer Institute (SI) offers a mix of activities designed to maximize learning through hands-on, individualized instruction in an effort to provide science, technology, and math related summer opportunities to students. The SI currently offers camps in […]
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Dirt in Space
Story by Zenaida Gonzalez Kotala, UCF Today As NASA and private space companies look to explore other planets, they are turning to one of the world’s best dirt experts – UCF’s Phil Metzger. Metzger, who works at UCF’s Florida Space Institute, knows his dirt. He has wall to ceiling spice rack shelves in his office that […]
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UCF in CLASS of Its Own Studying Space
Story by Zenaida Gonzalez Kotala, UCF Today UCF has diligently and methodically been making a name for itself in the world of planetary exploration, and it’s beginning to pay off in big ways. Not only are two UCF professors part of the upcoming NASA OSIRIS-REx mission to collect asteroid samples – a first for the United […]
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UCF and the Next Space Frontier: Making the Case for Mars
Story by UCF Today Many feared the United States’ role in space exploration was over after an accident took the lives of a second space shuttle crew in 2003. After another long grounding of the shuttle fleet, flights restarted briefly but by 2011 the program was retired and no manned missions were on the horizon. […]
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Knights in Space
In the latest issue of UCF’s magazine, Pegasus, there are many stories focusing on UCF’s involvement with space. Many of these stories feature researchers from the UCF Physics Department. In the page One Small Step for Man, One Giant Leap for UCF, a timeline traces UCF’s history with space. From Citronaut, UCF’s first mascot in […]
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Physics Student Makes Noise this Summer
UCF Physics senior, Michael Antia, has been one of the latest undergraduate selected for a research experience with California Institute of Technology this summer. Caltech’s LIGO Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships (SURF) program provides graduate and undergraduate students the opportunity to participate in the research and development program of Laser Interferometer Gravitational- Wave Observatory (LIGO). A broad […]
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Students Building Chess Dynasty at UCF
Story by UCF Today Lavine Von’s grandfather taught her how to play chess when she was 5. “It’s a popular game in the Philippines and so he taught me,” said the UCF computer engineering major. “Hmm. I forgot that. Maybe that’s why it feels so good to play. We were close. He’s been gone for […]
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Physics Research Nationally Recognized
UCF Physics graduate student, Takat Rawal, was recently selected as one of eight finalists for a top-level 2016 AVS National Student Awards. The AVS awards were established to recognize and encourage excellence among graduate students in the sciences and technologies of interest to AVS. They include five top-level National Student Awards: Russell and Sigurd Varian, Nellie Yeoh […]
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Physics Hosts Teaching & Data Workshops
In an effort to transform classroom learning, the UCF Physics Department hosted a PhysTEC and Project CODER workshop from June 13-17 at UCF. The first two days of the workshop was hosted by UCF’s PhysTEC program (Physics Teacher Preparation Program); a partnership between the American Physical Society (APS) and the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) created to help […]
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Prestigious Award Aids Physics Researcher
Story by UCF Today// Two UCF researchers were awarded prestigious 2016 Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Awards. The Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) group awarded Michael Chini, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the UCF Physics Department, and Sean Pang, Ph.D., an assistant professor in CREOL (College of Optics and Photonics), seed money for their work […]
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Love Conquers Hate at UCF Vigil for Pulse Victims
Story by UCF Today Rain and lightning delayed but could not stop a vigil Tuesday night where the UCF community honored the victims of the Pulse shooting, vowing to conquer hate with love. Gathered in the University of Central Florida Student Union, attendees listened as leaders from the university, the student body, the LGBTQ+ community […]
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UCF to Remember Pulse Victims at Candlelight Vigil
Story by UCF Today The University of Central Florida community will join together Tuesday, June 14, to honor the lives taken during the act of terror at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando. A candlelight vigil will begin at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Reflecting Pond. The event is being organized by members of UCF’s LGBTQ+ […]
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UCF Hosting Several Blood Drives This Week
UCF encourages the campus community and the public to donate blood at several on-campus drives this week. Big Red Buses from One Blood will be open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, June 13, in front of the Student Union and also at Bright House Networks Stadium. President John C. Hitt, Student Body President […]
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UCF Community Copes with Orlando Tragedy
Our entire Knight family is mourning the victims of the Orlando terror attack. Our thoughts and prayers are with their families and friends. To assist our students, faculty and staff during the difficult days and months ahead, the Division of Student Development and Enrollment Services will host a series of campus conversations and therapy support […]
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President Hitt: UCF Stands with Orlando Against Terror
Story by UCF Today The following message is from President John C. Hitt: Orlando was attacked today. How painful, frightening, and infuriating it is to write that sentence. As President Obama said, this was “an attack on all of us, and on the fundamental values of equality and dignity that define us as a country.” […]
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Physics Welcomes New Chair
Eduardo Mucciolo, Ph.D., is the new chair of the UCF Department of Physics. Dr. Mucciolo officially began serving in his new appointment on May 20, 2016. Dr. Mucciolo has been at UCF since 2003 when he was hired as a tenure-track associate professor, teaching all levels from freshman physics to graduate courses. In 2006 he […]
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New Trustee Chairs
Pegasus Professor of Psychology at UCF, Deborah Beidel, Ph.D., and Pegasus and Distinguished Professor of Physics and Optics, Zenghu Chang, Ph.D., are two of three new Trustee Chairs honored at the UCF Board of Trustees meeting on May 31. Director of Jazz Studies at UCF, Jeff Rupert, Ph.D., joins the five previously named Trustee Chairs for a total […]
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COS Celebrates its New Alumni
The UCF College of Sciences continued the tradition of honoring its graduates with a post-ceremony reception jointly hosted by the college and its academic departments. The reception was held in the UCF Psychology building immediately following the college’s spring commencement ceremony on Friday, May 6, 2016. More than 1,200 College of Sciences’ graduates walked at […]
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COS Faculty Receive Incentive Awards
The College of Sciences is proud to announce the 2015-2016 winners for the Teaching Incentive Program and Research Incentive Award. Each year, UCF’s Academic Affairs’ Office of Faculty Excellence gives incentive awards to outstanding faculty for their dedication to teaching, research and scholarship. Every award winner, whether holding a nine or 12 month contract, is given […]
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COS Celebrates Faculty Promotions
Promotion is a mark of accomplishment and a gratifying recognition from one’s peers. Because of their hard work and dedication, the following College of Sciences faculty and staff members have been promoted or have earned tenure this year. Promotion to Professor Emeritus/Emerita Ida Cook, Ph.D. – Sociology Robert Dipboye, Ph.D. – Psychology Promotion […]
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COS Excellence in Academics
The UCF College of Graduate Studies recognized graduate students and faculty for excellence in research, teaching and mentoring at an awards ceremony during the 13th Annual Graduate Research Forum on April 5, 2016. Each year the Graduate Council Program Review and Awards Committee reviews college nominations and recognizes graduate students for the University Graduate Awards […]
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COS Shines at Student Research Week
Student Research Week celebrates the research and creative projects of UCF undergraduate and graduate students. From April 4 through April 7, graduate and undergraduate students attended workshops, presented research, developed research skills, and met with researchers. On April 5 and April 7, students from all disciplines, shared their research with the UCF community at the annual Graduate […]
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The 5+ Club
The University of Central Florida is proud to be one of the new 2016 inductees into The 5+ Club. The 5+ Club is a special initiative program run by the Physics Teacher Education Coalition (PhysTEC). It is a group of institutions that has graduated five or more highly qualified physics teachers in the last academic year. This program is just one of the many […]
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UCF Physics Professor Named to NASA Mission, And Grant for Space Mining
UCF physics professor Dan Britt has been named to the New Horizons mission team as the spacecraft heads to the Kuiper Belt. He’s also just landed a grant to help create fake asteroid material, which will help NASA and private companies prepare the technology needed to mine asteroids and eventually other planets. “It’s been a […]
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STEM Day at UCF
On Friday, April 8, more than one thousand students from the Central Florida area spilled on to UCF campus for STEM day. STEM day is a bi-annual outreach event for K-12 students interested in learning more about the study of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The day featured a wide variety of activities focused on STEM […]
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Blue Origin’s Spacecraft: UCF Experiment Makes History
ORLANDO, April 2, 2016 — Yes! Followed by a high five. That was UCF Physics Professor Dr. Joshua Colwell’s reaction as he watched the successful launch into suborbital space of his experiment aboard Blue Origin’s (https://www.blueorigin.com/) New Shepard space vehicle on Saturday, April 2. “We have been waiting for this day for a long time,” […]
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UCF Virtually Educates with TeachLivE
This research is published in Physical Review Physics Education Research. –Michael Schirber Just as pilots train in flight simulators, physics teachers can hone their skills in classroom simulators. Of course, explaining Newton’s laws to teenagers is a little less challenging than landing a 747. Still, a new study shows that undergraduate teaching assistants can gain […]
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UCF NASA Experiment Takes Flight
Five experiments testing everything from how fire reacts in space, to the effectiveness of a lizard-inspired adhesive are headed to the International Space Station on Tuesday, March 22. NASA’s commercial partner Orbital ATK Inc. is scheduled to launch the Cygnus spacecraft atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. […]