The University of Central Florida brings innovation and solutions to some of society’s most pressing problems through research and the discovery and dissemination of new knowledge and avenues for progress.
Thu Oct 27
A University of Central Florida researcher has received NASA funding to further develop a novel rocket engine system that could revolutionize space travel. The project focuses on rotating detonation rocket engines (RDREs), which are powered by continuous Mach 5 explosions that rotate around the inside of the engine and are sustained by hydrogen and oxygen…
Tue Oct 25
In the age of big data, companies track and analyze our buying habits, hobbies and social media accounts to make business decisions. But the impact of big data could have an even greater potential – improving human health. That was the focus of a recent Wellness Education, AI Lifestyle and Health (WEALTH) Symposium in Lake Nona,…
Tue Oct 18
Lori Walters and Joseph Kider make an interesting research team at UCF’s School of Modeling, Simulation and Training (SMST). Walters grew up under the blue skies of South Florida. Kider grew up in inner-city Philadelphia. Walters would watch I Dream of Jeannie after school. Kider played baseball with the guys. Walters teaches courses for UCF’s…
Thu Oct 13
For 18 years, UCF has been helping families stay together by teaching couples research-supported techniques focused on effective communication and listening. More than 7,000 couples have benefited from the Marriage and Family Research Institute (MFRI), led by Sejal Barden and Dalena Dillman Taylor, professor and associate professor of counselor education, respectively. According to Barden, 99% of…
Wed Oct 12
unrest continues to erupt across Iran following the death of a 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman, who died after being arrested and reportedly beaten by Iran’s morality police. The Iranian force took Mahsa (Zhina) Amini into detention on Sept. 16, 2022, for not wearing her hijab according to the rules. As of Oct. 10, at least 185…
Wed Oct 12
A team of scientists led by Arecibo Observatory and the University of Central Florida has measured a change in the rotation period of the potentially hazardous near-Earth asteroid 3200 Phaethon, a future spacecraft target. Phaethon is just the 11th asteroid with a measured change in its rotation period, and it is the largest of them.…
Wed Oct 12
University of Central Florida researchers are developing materials for stopping hydrogen leaks, like the ones that have halted the launch of Artemis 1. Their work just received a significant boost with a recently announced nearly $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. The award will fund the design, synthesis, manufacturing, testing and modeling…
Tue Sep 27
Dear UCF Faculty and Staff: As the State of Florida and UCF prepare for the potential impact of Hurricane Ian this week, please be reminded that it is the responsibility of each Department to take protective actions in their own laboratories to safeguard people, research, labs, and buildings. Please do your part in assisting UCF…
Thu Sep 22
A team of UCF researchers, which includes Dr. Griff Parks, College of Medicine virologist and director of the Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, and Dr. Sudipta Seal, chair of UCF’s Department of Materials Science and Engineering, have designed a long-lasting disinfectant, able to kill several serious viruses including SARS and Zika. The results of their…
Tue Sep 20
While coaches and fans closely follow their team’s wins and losses, longtime UCF Professor Richard Lapchick is monitoring another statistic, one that can’t be found in a box score. Known as the social conscience of sport, Lapchick has spent the past three decades monitoring gender and racial hiring trends in sports. As director for The…
Thu Sep 15
Exploring an area in the Moon that was never visited before? That’s one of the tasks that Department of Physics planetary scientist and Assistant Professor Kerri Donaldson Hanna, Ph.D., has assisted NASA with since 2013. Donaldson Hanna and her team play a vital role in studying samples collected by the Apollo astronauts and returned to…
Tue Sep 13
Through her research and contracts with the Florida Department of Health, Division of Children’s Medical Services, Jacqueline Towson is informing best practices around training teachers, speech-language pathologists, and other clinical service providers to best meet the language and literacy needs of young children with special needs. She is uniquely qualified to do this work thanks…
Tue Sep 13
The presidents of the University of Central Florida and Mitsubishi Power will meet Sept. 8 on UCF’s main campus in Orlando, alongside representatives from government, industry, and academia, to address the role of hydrogen in the nation’s push to achieve net-zero carbon emissions and elevate a longstanding partnership between the two organizations. In the forum, Hydrogen:…
Tue Sep 13
Anew study funded by an almost $2 million grant will explore whether a potentially harmful chemical compound can be effective against infectious diseases like tuberculosis. The five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health looks specifically at nitric oxide, which forms the foundation of smog and acid rain. The human body produces the molecule to…
Tue Sep 6
UCF is part of a local collaboration selected to receive a major national investment in semiconductor research, design and manufacturing in the Central Florida region. The funding, which was announced today, is from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration through its Build Back Better Regional Challenge. Osceola County — in partnership with UCF,…
Tue Sep 6
Cancer-fighting drugs may be a powerful weapon in the battle against malaria – a parasitic infection spread by mosquitoes that kills more than half-million people per year worldwide. Two UCF College of Medicine researchers are part of a multidisciplinary collaboration that was recently awarded a 5-year $3.8 million grant from the National Institutes of…
Tue Aug 30
“Never give up” was the message shared from a breast cancer survivor, cancer researcher and star UCF quarterback during a Cure Bowl kick-off event Friday. This year’s event is Dec. 16 at Exploria Stadium in Orlando and the Cure Bowl is the only college football bowl game dedicated to a cause – breast cancer research. …
Tue Aug 30
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…
Thu Aug 25
On August 29, the Kennedy Space Center will launch a test flight of Artemis I, the first capsule designed to take humans to the moon since the Apollo program in the 1960s. But much has changed since the Apollo program, which was motivated by a political interest to land on the moon before Soviet Russia. …
Thu Aug 25
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…