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Meet UCF’s 4 Pegasus Professors for 2023
Four UCF professors have been named this year’s Pegasus Professors, UCF’s highest faculty designation. Pegasus Professors are selected by the president and provost and are recognized for excellence in the teaching, research and service. This year’s honorees include innovative researchers who have not only made a difference at UCF, but nationally and internationally. Stephen Fiore’s […]
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UCF Reach for the Stars 2023 Honorees Are Unleashing the Potential of People, Ideas
This year’s Reach for the Stars honorees are united by their passion to help people and positively change the world. By promoting positive healthcare and helping improve how we respond to survivors of violence to enriching the human experience through space exploration, advanced computing and cultural understanding, the honorees are helping unleash the potential of […]
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UCF’s Robinson Observatory Gets a Futuristic Facelift
Recent updates to one of UCF’s most groundbreaking research and education facilities brings the Robinson Observatory into the 21st century, including robotics for remote viewing and a state-of-the-art weather protection system. The new telescope inside UCF’s Robinson Observatory The refurbishment returns the observatory to full functionality after six years. Supply shortages and the large scope […]
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UCF Uses 6-Foot ‘Test Tubes’ to Study Red Tide
A potential treatment for Florida’s devastating red tides took another step toward widespread deployment after successful testing in Sarasota Bay. Additional detailed data analysis is required to confirm results, but UCF Assistant Professor of Biology Kristy Lewis is encouraged by the large-scale test of a red tide mitigation technology called clay flocculation that was performed […]
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UCF Research in 60 Seconds: Studying Culture Through Food
Whether it’s solving the world’s biggest problems or investigating the potential of novel discoveries, researchers at UCF are on the edge scientific breakthroughs that aim to make an impact. Through the Research in 60 Seconds series, student and faculty researchers condense their complex studies into bite-sized summaries so you can know how and why Knights […]
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Honoring the Life of Former Associate Dean Haven Sweet
Friends, Colleagues Remember Former Associate Dean as Warm, Caring A former College of Sciences associate dean and longtime biology professor who won hearts for his warm nature and passion for serving students died at the end of 2022 after a long illness. He was 80 years old. Professor Haven Sweet, Ph.D., joined then Florida Technological […]
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Overcoming Obstacles to Make an Impact: Camille Coffie
Roadblocks and obstacles inspire Camille Coffie. It’s how she reached her position today pursuing a doctorate in physics, and what inspires her to help other young black women access the sciences. Coffie made a big step in that direction recently when she was named co-principal investigator on a project titled “Journey to a PhD through […]
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UCF Researchers Work to Reduce the Amount of Precious Metals in Catalytic Converters
The precious metals, such as platinum, palladium and rhodium, in catalytic converters make the vehicle devices attractive to thieves, but University of Central Florida researchers are working to reduce the amount of precious metals needed in them — down to single atoms — while still maximizing their effectiveness. Catalytic converters, which were widely introduced in […]
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UCF Awarded American Physical Society Innovation Fund Grant
Giving Black women a stronger voice in the field of physics is the focus of a new American Physical Society (APS) award to the University of Central Florida. The two-year $198,100 APS grant funds a project titled “Journey to a PhD through the Lens of Black Women in Physics.” Its intention is identifying then removing […]
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2022 College of Sciences Year in Review
A glimpse at another year of exploration, innovation and scholarship in the College of Sciences. Over the course of the year, College of Sciences faculty, staff, and students worked hard to accomplish great things. At the heart of their accomplishments is a desire to create a greater tomorrow and a stronger community. Follow along to […]
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UCF Professor Moonlights as Serial Marathoner
UCF Associate Professor of Chemistry Seth Elsheimer’s journey to running more than 300 marathons starts with “just a little farther.” Elsheimer was an occasional runner when he encouraged two students in his organic chemistry class at UCF to join him on a run, then sign up for a 5K race. The former football players were […]
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UCF Knights Are Part of NASA’s Artemis Program to Return to the Moon
As the nation looks on this week to see the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft blast into space on its test flight, UCF faculty, students and alumni will only momentarily pause to watch the historic milestone before returning to what they do best — scientific discovery and developing the next generation of technology […]
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Robots, AI Not as Welcomed in Nations Where Income Inequity is High
Robots are becoming more ubiquitous in the workplace but that doesn’t mean people are accepting them. In a new study by researchers with the University of Central Florida, workers in countries with greater amounts of income and social inequality were found to be more likely to perceive robots and artificial intelligence as job threats. This […]
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Annual Belize Trip Trains Students, Assists International Community
Traveling to Hopkins Village, Belize, feels like a homecoming for Citizen Science GIS after six years of research and community work. Each summer brings a surprise, though. A new degree of urgency was injected into this year’s projects when Associate Professor Timothy Hawthorne, Ph.D., and the student team saw just how badly the beach had […]
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Mentoring Work Gains National Recognition for Pegasus Professor
A UCF Trustee Chair Professor and Pegasus Professor in physics was recognized with the American Vacuum Society (AVS) Recognition for Excellence in Mentoring Award for guiding the next generation of scientists and engineers. Talat Rahman, Ph.D. was selected to receive the AVS award to honor her work in mentoring. Rahman was recognized for helping underrepresented […]
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Artificial Intelligence Holds Promise to Revolutionize Pottery Reconstruction
The time-consuming process of piecing together broken pottery vessels found during archaeological excavations is getting a boost from artificial intelligence. Pottery provides key insights into how ancient people lived, but most archaeological sites uncover pottery in broken sherds. To use this evidence to its full potential requires piecing them back together like a jigsaw puzzle […]
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UCF’s Planetary Science Rock Stars Guests at MegaCon 2022
If you’re a space expert you know your science but explaining it in a way that excites the public is not always easy. Several of UCF’s faculty are rock stars in both areas, which is why they are back at Megacon this year. Megacon is the Southeast’s largest science fiction and pop culture convention attracting […]
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Sociology Associate Professor Named National Geographic Explorer
Explorers still exist, even in a world where every has corner has a name. Count Associate Professor Timothy Hawthorne, Ph.D., among their number. Hawthorne was recently named a 2022 National Geographic Explorer by the prestigious organization. The National Geographic Society describes its Explorers as “infinitely curious people who are passionate about our planet and making it […]
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Spring ’22 Doctorate Graduates Honored At Special Reception
Thirteen doctorate graduates were given a warm congratulations and sendoff Friday in a continuation of a longstanding College of Sciences’ tradition. The final toast was led by College of Sciences Dean Maggy Tomova, Ph.D. Click here to see the full gallery of photos. Below is the full list of Ph.D. graduates for Spring 2022. Big […]
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National Engineering Association Honors UCF’s Space Dirt Expert
UCF Pegasus Professor of Physics Dan Britt became the second UCF space researcher in university history to earn one of the American Society of Civil Engineers most prestigious awards for work that makes a difference in space exploration. Florida Space Institute planetary scientists Phil Metzger earned the recognition in 2018. Britt accepted the honor during […]
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UCF Professor Awarded NSF Grant to Fund Groundbreaking Friction Research
Masahiro Ishigami, associate professor of physics, recently received a two-year, $332,552 grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation in recognition of his work’s potential to bridge a knowledge gap in tribology — the study of friction, lubrication and wear. According to a 2017 U.S. Department of Energy report, up to 1.6% of the United States’ […]
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Research in 60 Seconds: Quantum Physics for the Future of Tech
Whether it’s solving the world’s biggest problems or investigating the potential of novel discoveries, researchers at UCF are on the edge scientific breakthroughs that aim to make an impact. Through the Research in 60 Seconds series, student and faculty researchers condense their complex studies into bite-sized summaries so you can know how and why Knights […]
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UCF Research Seeks to Give Families Closure by Developing Tools to Help Identify Individuals in Mass Graves
New research out of the University of Central Florida has the potential to give war crime investigators a new tool and the victims’ families closure. The National Institute of Justice has awarded UCF Associate Professor Matthieu Baudelet at the National Center for Forensic Science a grant to advance a technique that may help identify individual […]
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Recipients of the 2022 Seed Funding Program Announced
Thirty-two teams representing colleges across the university and several centers were selected for 2022 Seed Funding awards, the third year the program has been available to faculty. The program, a result of a collaboration between the Office of Research and the Office of the Provost, is aimed at facilitating research, which is likely to attract […]
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Faculty Honored at UCF’s 3rd Authors Celebration
David “Jamie” Poissant kicked off UCF’s third Authors Celebration with a story about how he hated reading as a child and eventually became an associate professor of English and published author. Poissant was one of 47 honorees at the celebration Tuesday, March 1, at the Live Oak Room on main campus. The celebration, held every […]
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Movie Maker Finds True Calling in Teaching Next Generation of Film Students
Associate Professor Robert Jones has more than 50 productions to his name as a filmmaker —and he’s not content to keep all that experience to himself. Jones moved to Los Angeles in 1991 like so many before him with big dreams to become a famous director. And, like so many others, Jones found himself looking […]
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Commitment to Affordable Curriculum Earns Chemistry Faculty Member Inaugural Award
A chemistry faculty member’s passion toward offering affordable course materials recently earned her the inaugural AIM High Student Nomination award. Lecturer Julie Donnelly, Ph.D., was nominated by a student for the AIM Knight’s Choice Award, which recognizes UCF faculty members that help reduce curriculum costs. “Students shouldn’t face barriers to getting the information they need […]
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UCF Researcher to Collaborate with MIT on DARPA Night-vision Project
The four-year project is a collaboration between the laboratory of Michael Leuenberger at UCF and the laboratory of Dirk R. Englund ˙at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). It’s funded by a $1.1 million-dollar grant from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). “The goggles that currently exist in the field are too heavy and bulky,” […]
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Florida Sea Turtles Get a Boost with Gift of New Boat
Thanks to a trio of donors with a passion for supporting the state’s marine life , the new boat debuting this spring replaces a 1976 craft reaching the end of its lifespan. “I always joke our bimonthly team building exercise is fixing something on the boats,” says Kate Mansfield, an associate professor and director of […]
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UCF Selected for New NSF Student Research Program in Conservation, Restoration, Communication
Beginning this summer 10 undergraduate students from across the nation will have the opportunity to get hands-on experience working with UCF biologists to see how they conserve, restore, and communicate what they do and why it matters. The U.S. National Science Foundation has recently awarded UCF $369,000 over three years to run the new program. […]
