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UCF 25th Among Public Universities in the Nation and 60th in the World for Producing Patents
UCF ranked 25th among public universities in the nation for producing patents and 60th in the world, according to a new report released today. The National Academy of Inventors and the Intellectual Property Owners Association ranks institutions every year based on the number of patents received and filed through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. […]
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From Pet Store Employee to International Conservation Biology Research Pioneer
Roisin Stanbrook tried to ignore her love of bugs by studying computer coding her first year of college. It didn’t stick. She ended up dropping out of school and working at a pet store. But she couldn’t resist her interest in bugs, especially when she saw an ad about an opportunity to participate in a […]
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‘In Journalism You Have the Opportunity to Witness History’
UCF alumna Christal Hayes ’15, has already covered some of the most momentous events in modern American history – from the tragic mass shootings in Orlando and Las Vegas to two presidential impeachments in Washington. Hayes, who graduated from UCF with a bachelor’s degree in journalism, recently was promoted to national correspondent for USA Today, […]
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New Faculty Member Brings Human Origins Expertise To Classroom This Fall
One of the newest additions to the Department of Anthropology faculty will bring a specialized perspective on the evolution of humans to students this fall. Sarah Freidline, Ph.D, studies the origin and evolution of Homo sapiens using three-dimensional shape analysis, geometric morphometrics and bone histology techniques. These tools help her virtually reconstruct and quantify the […]
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Invitation To Watch Online Presentations By COS Dean Candidates
A message from Interim Provost Michael Johnson, Ph.D.: The campus community is invited to online presentations starting Monday (June 21) through June 29 by finalists for the next dean of the UCF College of Sciences. Each finalist will provide a presentation on student success and helping UCF advance as a major metropolitan research university. Questions […]
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NSCM Mentorship Program Offers Career Guidance, Insights
The freedom to explore different career paths in college can be a burden as much as a gift for students, including Abbigale Martin ’21 BA. Martin first chose English as her major based on a love of writing, then pursued Human Communication with a Business and Professionalism Track after transferring to UCF from Florida Gulf […]
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First-of-its-Kind Study Finds Lightning Impacts Edge of Space in Ways not Previously Observed
A team of researchers working with data collected by the Incoherent Scatter Radar (ISR) at the Arecibo Observatory, satellites, and lightning detectors in Puerto Rico have for the first time examined the simultaneous impacts of thunderstorms and solar flares on the ionospheric D-region (often referred to as the edge of space). In the first of […]
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Study Sheds Light on Pre-Columbian Life in Understudied Area of SW Amazon
A new study co-authored by University of Central Florida researchers shows that pre-Columbian people of a culturally diverse but not well-documented area of the Amazon in South America significantly altered their landscape thousands of years earlier than previously thought. The findings, published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, show evidence […]
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STRONG Program Shrinks University, Offers STEM Students Success
The University of Central Florida carries a reputation for its size, but Anael Ais didn’t fully realize how big the university truly is until he transferred from Valencia College. “It’s a big adjustment because UCF is such a big school and it’s hard to navigate that alone,” said Ais. The university began to shrink, however, […]
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19 UCF Students Living the Dream, Working at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center
For 19 UCF students, the dream of working for NASA came true this past semester as they completed internships at Kennedy Space Center through NASA’s Pathways Program. The program gives qualifying university students an opportunity to work at the space agency, where every semester UCF has students working in everything from engineering to accounting. The students […]
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Forensic Hair Research Wins Recognition for NCFS Graduate Student
A forensics graduate student has earned the Forensics Sciences Foundation’s Emerging Forensic Scientist Award for his research on hair and color texture analysis. The research provides a quantitative method to analyze texture and color in hair strands. Associate Professor of Chemistry and Forensic Science Candice Bridge, Ph.D., characterizes David Funes’ research as a “solid step […]
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UCF Student Receives Boren Scholarship to Study Swahili
Language has an incredible ability to make us feel connected. For Abigail Reynolds the first time she connected through a foreign language was during a first-year UCF study abroad trip to South Africa, where a local woman gave her a Zulu name. “I helped run a clothing drive and I had the greatest time working […]
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UCF Research Flies Three-for-Three on Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo Unity
University of Central Florida research has now flown on the first three flights of Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo, VSS Unity, with Saturday’s successful launch and landing at Spaceport America in New Mexico. “It was exhilarating and moving to share the experience with the large group of family and friends of Virgin Galactic employees on hand for […]
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Chemistry Professor Breaks Down Vaccine Mystery With Ingredient Explanation
Mistrust of the COVID-19 vaccine is rooted partly in its rapid introduction, the seemingly new technologies involved and the long list of ingredients with mysterious names like “N-ditetradecylacetamide.” But the purpose behind “monobasic potassium phosphate” in the vaccine can be understood with chemistry principles UCF students learn all the time, according to Professor of Chemistry […]
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New Virtual Reality Technology to Treat PTSD Enters Clinical Trials
The American Psychiatric Association estimates that one in 11 people will be diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in their lifetime, but new virtual reality (VR) technology is providing hope for the recovery of those living with it. UCF RESTORES, a nonprofit trauma research center and treatment clinic at UCF, has developed a state-of-the-art VR […]
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New York Schools Benefit From Sociology Alumna’s Safety Guidance
Locks, lights and out-of-sight. This is the protocol used by national mass shooting expert and UCF double graduate, Jaclyn Schildkraut, B.A.’09, M.S.’11, when teaching today’s youth how to react during school shootings. Schildkraut currently works with 30 schools in the Syracuse City School District on research-backed active-shooter and lockdown protocol. By combining a passion for […]
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Statistics Students, OUC Team Up To Tackle Power Problems
UCF students recently converted a drawback to an advantage when they tackled an overabundance of data generated by “smart” meters used by Orlando Utilities Commission (OUC). The smart meters offer multiple benefits to the business and its customers, from improved accuracy and streamlined meter reading to mapping strategies for long-time goals. But with over 400,000 […]
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UCF RESTORES Honored By Florida Blue Foundation For Partnership With First Responders
Ongoing work to offer free, research-backed education and treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other trauma-related concerns – especially among the first responder community – recently earned UCF RESTORES recognition from the Florida Blue Foundation. The award, announced May 4 at the Virtual Community Health Symposium and Sapphire Awards, includes $60,000 in […]
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7 UCF Student Graduating this Week Say Limbitless Solutions Changed Their Lives
Seven students graduating from the University of Central Florida this week say their college experience would not have been complete without the time spent at Limbitless Solutions. The students from the College of Engineering and Computer Science, College of Sciences, and the College of Arts and Humanities, all interned at Limbitless Solutions, a UCF-based engineering […]
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Legendary Sargasso Sea May be Sea Turtles’ Destination during Mysterious ‘Lost Years’
New research indicates that the legendary Sargasso Sea, which includes part of the Bermuda Triangle and has long featured in fiction as a place where ships go derelict, may actually be an important nursery habitat for young sea turtles. In a study led by a University of Central Florida researcher and published today in the […]
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UCF Scientist to Complete 100+ Hours of Research on James Webb Space Telescope
When the James Webb Space Telescope launches later this year, UCF researcher Noemi Pinilla Alonso will be among a select group of scientists worldwide who will have more than 100 hours of observation time awarded to conduct her work. The JWST telescope, which has been described as NASA’s next great space telescope, is a hot […]
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Ph.D. Grad Uses Grit and Determination to Forge Own Path to Medical Residency
Mahboob Ur-Rehman often heard “no” on the journey to his doctorate degree, but the physics student has a knack for opening closed doors. Ur-Rehman adds Ph.D. to his name at the end of this semester, a remarkable achievement for someone who left school during the 10th grade. A brief attempt at becoming an […]
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138 Faculty Promoted Across the University
After going through a rigorous evaluation process, 138 UCF faculty have been promoted and 45 have been awarded tenure for the 2020-2021 cycle. The process for promotion and tenure takes nearly an entire academic year as faculty are evaluated on three main areas: research, teaching and service. At UCF there are many types of faculty […]
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UCF Forensic Scientists Unlocking Unique Chemical Signatures In Tires
Skid marks left by cars are often analyzed for their impression patterns, but they often don’t provide enough information to identify a specific vehicle. UCF Chemistry Associate Professor Matthieu Baudelet and his forensics team at the National Center for Forensic Science, which was established at UCF in 1997, may have just unlocked a new way […]
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Stout, Hancock Elected as Fellows of National Academy of Kinesiology
Two UCF faculty were recently honored as fellows of the National Academy of Kinesiology, a privilege considered the pinnacle career achievement in the discipline of kinesiology. Pegasus Professor Jeffrey Stout from the College of Health Professions and Sciences joins the 2021 class alongside the College of Sciences’ Pegasus Professor Peter Hancock. Both are the first academy fellows […]
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Archaeology Student Finds Unique Training Opportunity In Ocala National Forest
A U.S. Navy veteran pursuing his master’s degree in archaeology will serve his country in a different way this Spring. Anthropology student Taylor Collore will participate in a stewardship with the U.S. Forest Services and work directly with government officials to protect the Ocala National Forest. “Serving my country and giving back is something I […]
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Reach for the Stars Honorees Pushing the Boundaries of Earth and Space
This year’s Reach for the Stars honorees really live up to the award name. They are tackling some huge problems and are conducting research that betters society and improves the possibilities of the human race. The five honorees are: making space travel safer to expand our species’ reach into the galaxy; figuring out how to […]
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2021 Founder’s Day Honorees
BY ALLISON HURTADO ’12 The Founders’ Day Awards celebrate the outstanding academic achievements of our faculty members and students. As we recognize these achievements, we remember the efforts of those women and men who made this university a reality, and we prepare for the accomplishments of the future. In an extraordinary time, our faculty and […]
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UCF Researchers Work with Public Agencies to Examine Pandemic Efforts, Effects
Some may say the past year has been one giant global experiment. While scientists and researchers didn’t create the coronavirus, the pandemic has spurred opportunities for investigations that run the gamut of public-service efforts and response. Here are just a few ways experts at UCF as using their insight to enhance what we’ve learned and […]
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UCF Biologist Awarded Grant to Unlock Plant Defenses, Improve Food Supplies
UCF Biologist Chase Mason today was awarded a $450,000 grant from the Foundation for Food & Agricultural Research to turn around “audacious” food and agricultural research, which may lead to more sustainable food supplies. Mason’s project focuses on determining the genetic control mechanisms that induce a plant’s natural chemical defenses against harmful pests and pathogens. […]