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UCF Gains Chemistry through Skype-Casting
On Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016, Romain Gaume, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Optics and Phototonics at UCF, gave a lecture on the science and art of glass that was presented in person to UCF chemistry students and simultaneously Skype-cast to over 40 of their peers at Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida. The following Saturday students […]
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Statistics Brings the Big Data
Big Data is the estimated 2.5 quintillion bytes of data that we create per day from conducting our daily lives; posting on social media, using rewards cards at stores, making insurance claims, surfing the internet, etc. On March 28, the UCF Statistics Department hosted its sixth annual Big Data Analytics Symposium. During the symposium, professionals […]
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Big Data Win for UCF Math Lecturer
UCF Mathematics lecturer, Aaron Smith, Ph.D., was awarded first place in the 2016 EverBank Cup Contest at the Big Data Analytics Symposium on March 28, 2016. The 4th annual EverBank Cup Contest recognizes outstanding achievement in data mining and analytics made by Florida higher education students. Dr. Smith, a SAS Data Mining Certificate student at […]
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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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A Savage World for Frogs
UCF biologist Anna Savage, Ph.D., is obsessed with frogs and figuring out why they are dying at an unprecedented rate around the world. Her latest research, published today in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, suggests that natural selection as well as other evolutionary forces have shaped the evolution of immune genes in […]
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Caring for the Caregivers
Dementia is the most common reason that older adults need support for basic day-to-day tasks. Parkinson’s disease and strokes can also cause a loss of independence. Currently, there is no cure for many of these diseases, but there are many ways to express love and support for aging family members. The UCF Orlando Later-Life Development (OLDeR) Lab in […]
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UCF Brings the Evidence
On March 11, Michael Sigman, Ph.D., Candice Bridge, Ph.D., and Erika Remley, M.S., presented at the Conference on the Modern Interpretation of Forensic Evidence at Florida A&M University, College of Law in downtown Orlando. The conference, a Continued Legal Education (CLE) training event, was aimed towards criminal law practitioners to help them understand advanced scientific practices that will […]
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COS Women Making History
Since March of 1981, Americans everywhere have helped pay tribute to women whose commitment to humanity and to our planet have proved to be invaluable for society. Each year during March – Women’s History Month, the UCF Center for Success of Women Faculty honors and shares the stories of 31 outstanding UCF women that have been […]
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Service Learning with Nanoscience
A new minor in the rapidly advancing field of nanoscience is now available for University of Central Florida undergraduates. Nanoscience is the study of materials on the nanometer scale. That’s exceedingly small – a sheet of paper is about 75,000 nanometers thick. At the nanoscale, materials can exhibit unusual properties that scientists have put to […]
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Anthropology Alumna Digs UCF
Dr. Amanda Groff, ’03, ’05, ’07, was honored as the 2016 Outstanding Anthropology AlumKnight at the 2016 UCF College of Sciences Outstanding AlumKnights awards reception. The second annual awards ceremony honored 10 of the college’s outstanding alumni and was held on March 3 in the UCF FAIRWINDS Alumni Center. Dr. Groff graduated from UCF with a […]
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The Last Man on the Moon
On Thursday, March 17th, please join us for a special preview screening of The Last Man on the Moon. The Last Man on the Moon is a film about Captain Eugene A. Cernan and how he holds the distinction of being the last man to leave his footprints on the moon. Forty years later, Captain Cernan is now […]
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Big Data in Psychology: Tweets, Work and Stress
Assistant Professor of Industrial/Organizational Psychology, Wei Wang, Ph.D., was the lead big data researcher on a recently published paper entitled “Twitter Analysis: Studying U.S. Weekly Trends in Work Stress and Emotion.” According to Center for Disease Control and Prevention and previous research, in the United States, more than 70% of workers report that their jobs are stressful, […]
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Success at Sociology Career Day
On Wednesday, March 2, the Sociology Department, along with the College of Sciences and Career Services, hosted the third annual Sociology Career Day. The Key West Ballroom in the UCF Student Union was filled with the buzz of sociology students, eager to network with representatives from local and national organizations. Nearly 200 students and alumni visited this year’s […]
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Florida Declared a Global Biodiversity Hotspot
The North American Coastal Plain – the low-lying land stretching from Texas to Florida to New England – was recently named the 36th biodiversity hotspot in the world, highlighting the importance of this region, but signaling concerns over threats to the plant and animal life there. UCF Biology professor, Reed Noss, Ph.D., was the lead […]
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Faculty Cluster Pursues Coastal Sustainability
Coastal systems research will soon evolve beyond its typical limits by integrating an interdisciplinary focus in a new collective opportunity. To no surprise, coastal systems research is vital to the state of Florida, given that its well-being maintains the economy and environment. The University of Central Florida’s faculty has recognized these stresses and has taken […]
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UCF Speech Team Shines in Tournament
Story by UCF Nicholson School of Communication February 18, 2016 The two-day speech competition event dubbed “The Knight-Nole Swing,” hosted jointly this year by the speech teams of the University of Central Florida (UCF) and Florida State University, brought together contenders from nine schools and resulted in a “fantastic success” for UCF, according to Instructor […]
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UCF Sociology Ranks with the Best
UCF’s online B.A Sociology degree is one of the best in the nation according to thebestschools.org, with a current ranking at No. 6. According to the website, the top 25 online Sociology degree programs in the nation were ranked based on quality of program, types and range of courses offered, and faculty strength, as well as school awards, rankings, […]
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Wright Editing Earns a Win
Sociology Pegasus Professor, James Wright, Ph.D., contributed his editing skills to Elsevier’s “International Encyclopedia of the Social and Behavioral Sciences”, helping them win the Award for Excellence in Reference Works at the 2016 PROSE Awards. Dr. Wright was the editor-in-chief of the “International Encyclopedia of the Social and Behavioral Sciences”, 2nd edition. Elsevier is an academic publishing company […]
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Faculty Spotlight: Dr. Joshua King
Growing up in a rural community in New England, Joshua King, Ph.D., entomologist and associate professor in the Department of Biology, began his exploration in the life sciences as many children do: outdoors. With a voracious curiosity, King developed a hobby of observing and collecting insects. Inspired by the support and encouragement of his high […]
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Rachel Carson’s Legacy for Florida
On Feb. 17, join Robert Musil, Ph.D., M.P.H., president and CEO of the Rachel Carson Council (RCC), as he shares Rachel Carson’s environmental legacy for Florida. Dr Musil will be speaking about how Rachel Carson and her work was and still is relevant to the state of Florida. The presentation will be followed by a workshop on environmentalism and book […]
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UCF Recognized as ‘Center of Excellence’
UCF researcher Swadeshmukul Santra, Ph.D., associate professor with the NanoScience Technology Center and the chemistry department at UCF, has been awarded a $1.9 million grant to develop a method for protecting the troubled citrus industry from the disease HLB, also known as citrus greening, U.S. Senator Bill Nelson announced Tuesday. In awarding the funding, the U.S. Department of […]
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New COS Associate Dean
The College of Sciences is pleased to announce that Florian Jentsch, Ph.D., has accepted the offer to become Associate Dean, the position that he has been holding on an interim basis. He will be responsible for overseeing research, facilities, and faculty development. Dr. Jentsch is a Professor of Psychology with a joint appointment in the Department […]
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Satellites Show Florida Beaches Becoming Darker, and That’s Good for Sea Turtles
Newly published research that started as a high school science project confirms that the density of sea turtle nests on Florida beaches is reduced where artificial lights along the coast deter nesting females. But the data also show that the network of sea turtle-friendly lighting ordinances along Florida’s coast seems to be working. “It’s a […]
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Painting a New Path
In the 1950s, a group of African-American artists broke the conventional mold by selling paintings during a time marked with extreme discrimination and financial hardships. Amanda Anthony, Ph.D., assistant professor of sociology, had the opportunity to study, research, and learn about these self-taught entrepreneurs. Dubbed The Florida Highwaymen, these artists navigated the Jim Crow south, often finding alternatives to […]
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NSC Announces New Director
Story by UCF Nicholson School of Communication. January 28, 2016 Robert S. Littlefield, Ph.D. has accepted the offer of UCF College of Sciences’ Dean Michael Johnson to become Director of the Nicholson School of Communication (NSC) beginning in August. Dr. Littlefield is currently Professor of Communication at North Dakota State University, (NDSU) where he has also served as […]
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Faculty Spotlight: Lisa Malone
If you’ve watched a space shuttle launch in the past 30 years, you’ve probably heard the voice of Lisa Malone, the former director of Public Affairs for NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC), counting down the seconds until liftoff. Now you can expect to hear – and see – Malone at the Nicholson School of Communication […]
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Author Interview for Book: The Politics of Morality
Recently, Joanna Mishtal, Ph.D., was interviewed by writer Vince Darcangelo for Transgress Magazine’s ‘Ensuing Chapters’ blog and www.GoodReads.com about her new book, “The Politics of Morality: The Church, the State and Reproductive Rights in Postsocialist Poland” (Ohio University Press, 2015). “The Politics of Morality” is a full-length, single author ethnography based on 21 months of primary data collection in […]
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UCF RESTORES at Otronicon
For the last 11 years Otronicon, or the (O)rlando Elec(tron)ic (I)nteractive Entertainment (Con)vention, has explored the science, art, technology, careers and fun behind simulation, robotics, videogames, virtual reality and digital media. Each year, various industry partners join the Orlando Science Center to promote STEM careers and celebrate how digital media technologies impact the way we live, […]
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Faculty Spotlight: Dr. Ida Cook
A member of the Board of Trustees, chair of the Board’s Educational Programs Committee, co-developer of the Masters in Applied Sociology program, associate professor and previous Graduate Coordinator, Faculty Senate Chair, Ida Cook, Ph.D., has done it all at UCF. Dr. Cook dedicated 39 years of excellent service to the students, the University and the […]
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Business, Engineering and Sciences Alumni Networking Knight
Nearly 70 UCF alumni gathered in downtown Orlando on Thursday, Jan. 21. for an evening of professional networking. The alumni chapter board of volunteers from the Barry S. Miller College of Business, College of Engineering and Computer Science, and College of Sciences jointly hosted the event held at GrayRobinson. Guests enjoyed drinks and appetizers while […]
