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College of Sciences Doctoral Student Combines Archaeology, Geospatial Science, and Artificial Intelligence at Harvard University’s Spatial Data Lab
Bryce Peacher incorporates the use of AI into recreating history through fellowship. By Emily Dougherty | April 15, 2025 Bryce Peacher, second-year doctoral student studying Integrative Anthropological Sciences, is currently in a fellowship with Harvard University’s Spatial Data Lab. His unique research engages Geospatial Artificial Intelligence to look at ancient landscapes. Peacher’s advisor, Associate Professor […]
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Celebrating College of Sciences 2025 Founders’ Day Awardees
UCF’s annual event celebrates outstanding accomplishments and contributions of employees, faculty, and students By: Emily Dougherty | March 31, 2025 Student Awards Order of Pegasus UCF’s highest student honor, which recognizes new inductees into the Order of Pegasus. Additional awards include graduate honors for exceptional master’s theses and dissertations, undergraduate awards for outstanding honors theses, […]
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College of Sciences Connects with Central Florida Community at Spark STEM Fest
Faculty and Students come together to bring unique STEM demos to children at the Orlando Science Center By: Emily Dougherty | February 28, 2025 The College of Sciences showcased its commitment to community outreach, innovation, and STEM education at the Spark STEM Fest, hosted at the Orlando Science Center in collaboration with UCF’s Office of […]
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UCF Students Awarded at American Statistical Association Florida Chapter Meeting
Five Knights receive distinction at statewide meeting hosted by UCF By Emily Dougherty | February 26th, 2025 For a group of UCF students, the American Statistical Association (ASA) Florida Chapter Meeting 2025 was more than just an academic conference—it was a moment of recognition, collaboration, and celebration. Five College of Sciences statistics and data science […]
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Physics Doctoral Student Advances Research to Improve Effectiveness for Scientific Instruments on the Moon’s Surface
College of Sciences Ph.D. Candidate makes strides with research on lunar space exploration with NASA fellowship By: Emily Dougherty | January 28, 2025 Jared Long-Fox, a doctoral student in the Planetary Science Track in the Department of Physics within the College of Sciences, is advancing research supported by the NASA Space Technology Graduate Research Opportunities […]
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UCF Doctoral Student Awarded National Nuclear Security Administration Program Award for Technical and Higher-Education
PhD chemistry student, Zachary Murphy, has been recognized for his research at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. By: Emily Dougherty | December 12, 2024 Zachary Murphy, a doctoral chemistry student in the College of Sciences, has been awarded the National Nuclear Security Administration Program Award for Technical and Higher-Education (PATH) for his research focusing on […]
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UCF Doctoral Student Wins Russell and Singurd Varian Award
Kaige Shi has been recognized by the American Vacuum Society for his research to provide solutions for converting renewable electricity into chemical energy By: Emily Dougherty | November 8, 2024 Kaige Shi, a doctoral physics student, has been awarded the Russell and Singurd Varian Award from the American Vacuum Society (AVS) for his research about the […]
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Doctoral Chemistry Student Selected for the Department of Energy, Office of Science Graduate Student Research Program
Alec DeCecco, a graduate student in the Department of Chemistry, is investigating the impacts of Criegee intermediates on climate change By: Emily Dougherty | October 29, 2024 Since the beginning of his undergraduate studies at UCF, Alec DeCecco, now a Ph.D. student in the Department of Chemistry, has spent his time in a research lab […]
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PhD. Student’s Research on Snakes is Helping Protect Florida’s Ecosystem
Jenna Palmisano was awarded multiple research grants to expand her research on parasites affecting pygmy rattlesnakes and Florida ecosystems By: Emily Dougherty | October 28, 2024 Florida has diverse ecosystems that are made up of an array of species, all of which play an important role in the beauty of Florida. Jenna Palmisano, a doctoral […]
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UCF Researchers Develop Nano-treatment to Help Save Florida Mangroves from Deadly Disease
Mangroves and palm trees are hallmarks of the Sunshine State not just for their beauty but for their immense importance to Florida’s coastlines. Mangroves are crucial because they naturally protect coastal shores from storm damage and serve as vital wildlife habitats around the world. Scientists at the University of Central Florida are working to preserve […]
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Trio of Graduating UCF Doctoral Students Showcase Excellence in Physics
Many of the 4,460 Knights who graduate from UCF this summer represent a growing diversity of students in both background and course of study. A small, stand-out group of these Knights are completing doctoral degrees in physics, signifying efforts to combat the larger national trend of underrepresented graduate degree-holders in the field. Currently, only 7% […]
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UCF Biology Student Luciana Banquero Wins Statewide Aylesworth Scholarship
Luciana Banquero, a graduate student studying marine science in UCF’s Biology department in the College of Sciences, has won the notable Aylesworth Scholarship from Florida Sea Grant.
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11 Knights Earn NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Recognitions for 2024
Five Knights have earned the most prestigious STEM research fellowship in the United States. Another six have earned honorable mentions for the award. Five UCF alums have received U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowships (GRF), which supports outstanding graduate students in STEM disciplines who are pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees at accredited […]
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UCF Student’s Primitive Asteroids Work Provides Context for Further Research, Future NASA Missions
The primitive asteroids that UCF physics doctoral student Brittany Harvison studies carry with them traces of their origins and billions of years of our solar system’s history. Harvison recently pored through a library of infrared telescope data to analyze the spectral composition of 25 members of the Erigone family of primitive asteroids and help fill […]
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Pegasus Student Awardee Propelled by Love for Discovery and Adventure
Department of Physics Ph.D. student Eric Switzer earned the esteemed Order of the Pegasus award last year for his outstanding academic achievements. Keep reading to learn more about his Knight journey and the advice he has for Physics undergraduate students. Why did you choose to study Physics at UCF? What first caught my eye on […]
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Four College of Sciences Doctoral Students Selected for Graduate Dean’s Dissertation Completion Fellowship
College of Sciences graduate students contribute important scholarship and research that is crucial to the future of their various disciplines, from the natural sciences to communication studies. This year, four outstanding COS doctoral students, representing three disciplines, were selected for the prestigious Graduate Dean’s Dissertation Completion Fellowship. “The Dissertation Completion Fellowship provides a unique opportunity […]
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Wage Disparity Awareness Highlighted by UCF American Physical Society Chapter
The American Physical Society (APS) chapter at UCF champions the development of Physics graduate students and early career scientists. The group’s recent work raised awareness for the wage disparity in graduate school. Vice-Chair Stephanie Lough shared more about their inspiring work. Please share more about your work in raising awareness for the wage disparity in […]
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Chemistry Ph.D. Student Researches Nuclear Waste at Internship
Chemistry Ph.D. student Zach Murphy studied nuclear waste storage during an internship with Lawrence Livermore National Lab (LLNL). His faculty advisor Assistant Professor Vasileios Anagnostopoulos, Ph.D. sees the immense value in internships for UCF Chemistry students. “Internships are a great opportunity for students to get hands-on experience with cutting-edge technology that is not available in […]
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Congratulations Fall 2023 Doctoral Graduates!
This fall, 26 College of Sciences Ph.D. graduates will walk across the stage into futures making an impact in academia and industry. They have dedicated themselves to countless hours of research that have made an impact on both them and those around them. These graduates are now ready for the next step in their careers. […]
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Biology Ph.D. Students Awarded at the Entomological Society of America Annual Meeting
Integrative and Conservation Biology Ph.D. candidates Davide Dal Pos and Alessandra Pandolfi were honored with awards at the Entomological Society of America Annual Meeting in Maryland. Dal Pos earned the first place award in the Systematics, Evolution and Biodiversity (SysEB): Morphology 2 section for his presentation titled, “A revised terminology for male genitalia in Hymenoptera […]
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Physics Ph.D. Student Pushes the Frontiers of Attosecond Physics
A physics Ph.D. student will travel to California next year to conduct research in attosecond physics through a U.S. Department of Energy program. The program allows Chris Lantigua to continue his research into ultrashort pulses of light, which he currently pursues in the laboratory of Associate Professor Michael Chini, Ph.D. Through the DOE’s Science Graduate […]
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Statistics and Data Science Team Wins Third Consecutive First Place in Competition
Outbreaks of violence and instability in global hotspots like the Middle East can seem unpredictable, but data science proves otherwise. That was the premise behind a statistics and deep learning hybrid model that earned Associate Professor Hsin-Hsiung “Bill” Huang, Ph.D., and a team of students from the Department of Statistics and Data Science their third […]
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Political Science Alumna Makes Her Mark on National Security at Lockheed Martin
Alanna Reynolds ‘16 ‘19MA shows just what it means to work hard, persevere through challenges and keep pressing on to pursue her goals. She earned her MA in Political Science and Government in 2019 and is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Security Studies at the School of Politics, Security, and International Affairs. Reynolds is the […]
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UCF Coastal and Estuarine Ecology Lab Receives Disney Grant, Continues Restoration Research
UCF’s Coastal & Estuarine Ecology Laboratory (CEELAB) continues to grow and expand its influence with an investment from Disney and a research project attracting top science talent from across the U.S. The achievement came in the form of $100,000 to Pegasus Professor of Biology Linda Walters and integrative coastal biology doctoral student Katherine Harris ’18 […]
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Ask Questions, Remember Your ‘Why’ Anthropology Professor Tells Grad Students
Associate Professor Shana Harris, Ph.D., is a cultural and medical anthropologist with research interests in drug use, addiction, and health politics and practice in Latin America and the United States. She was the sole recipient of the 2023 University of Central Florida’s College of Sciences Excellence in Graduate Teaching Award, which recognizes outstanding graduate-level teaching. She […]
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Cranberries and Chemistry Came Together with Ocean Spray Internship
A chemistry doctoral student gained valuable research experience this summer with Ocean Spray Cranberries. Edwin Davidson Barahona was tapped by the farmer cooperative to work in research and development by supporting production improvements and quality measurements for cranberry products. “The idea of working for a vibrant company with a reputable background, and an […]
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Security Studies Ph.D. Students Chosen For Prestigious Fellowship
Two graduate students with a deep interest in global conflict recently received a financial endorsement for their work toward a dissertation. The 2023 Peace Scholar Fellowship Program supports the work of Salah Ben Hammou and Erika Ricci, both of whom are pursuing a Ph.D. from the School of Politics, Security, and International Affairs. The Peace […]
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UCF Alumni Announces 2023 Shining Knights Award Recipients
Ten community members will be recognized as Shining Knights, UCF Alumni’s highest honor, at a special ceremony during this year’s Homecoming events on Thursday, Oct. 26, in the Pegasus Grand Ballroom of the Student Union 6-9 p.m. The UCF Alumni Shining Knights Alumni Awards program began in 2017 when the late UCF President John C. […]
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Congratulations Summer ‘23 Doctoral Graduates!
This summer, 26 College of Sciences Ph.D. graduates walked across the stage into futures making an impact in academia and industry. They were celebrated by faculty, staff, supporters and the dean at the COS Pre-Commencement Ph.D. Celebration on Thursday, Aug. 3, 2023. Dean Maggy Tomova, Ph.D., honored their accomplishments with remarks and a toast. She […]
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Spring ‘23 Doctoral Graduates Honored by Dean
Spring 2023 College of Sciences doctoral graduates were celebrated at the COS Pre-Commencement Celebration on Thursday, May 4, 2023. Dean Maggy Tomova, Ph.D., honored their accomplishments with remarks and a toast. She said, “These credentials establish you among your contemporaries as someone who is willing to make sacrifices and embrace challenges in their pursuit of knowledge. There […]