UCF in the News

David Nussbaum started Proto and developed what’s now the company’s flagship device, the Proto Epic. It’s a nearly 90-foot-tall metal box capable of fitting a human over six feet tall inside. The box is also equipped with front-facing 4K video cameras and speakers, so the box can transmit audience feedback and let the user respond in real-time (watch Ellen Degeneres do so here). Bari Hoffman, associate dean for clinical affairs and internal medicine professor at the University of Central Florida, said she’s been using the Proto Epic device since 2021.

Increasing worker pay is just part of the solution, along with increasing time off and other employee well-being benefits, said University of Central Florida hospitality professor Michael “Doc” Terry. But by responding to workers’ concerns, companies like Andretti show they value employees’ feedback and that goes a long way toward resolving staffing issues in a job market where workers are seeking balance. “Are you going to bite the bullet and pay the extra money and provide the right experience for the employee that’s coming in so they stay and feel good about the culture and being there?” Terry asked.

Three years into the pandemic, a select group of people have achieved something some once thought impossible: They have never tested positive for Covid. Scientists around the world are searching for the genetic reasons these people have dodged Covid — despite repeated exposure to the virus. Were they born with a form of super immunity? What's behind their Houdini-like success at escaping infection? Brian Peach worked as a nurse in the Covid intensive care unit at Orlando Regional Medical Center in Florida early in the pandemic, before Covid vaccines were widely available.

March is women's history month, and as we continue to honor the achievements of women both past and present. One in particular made a stop in St. Pete this weekend to play a vital role at the Firestone Grand Prix. As the races marked the dawn of a new IndyCAR series season it also marked Dr. Julia Vaizer's inaugural season as the racing league's first female medical chief. Dr. Vaizer graduated from the University of Florida in 2011 and earned her medical degree from the University of Central Florida in 2016.

An epileptologist is a type of neurologist that has special interest and training in the diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy, a neurological disorder that causes repeated seizures. Most epileptologists receive an additional 1-2 years of subspecialty training in the treatment of epilepsy and interpretation of electroencephalograms (EEGs). The author, Dr. Ahmed Sadek is the Director of Orlando Epilepsy Center. He is an Assistant Professor of Neurology at the University of Central Florida College of Medicine and a Clinical Assistant Professor of Neurology at the University of Florida Shands, Gainesville.

Asteroids constantly zoom around our solar system and sometimes smash into planets, including Earth. As such, in the name of planetary defense NASA conducted a test, dubbed DART (Double Asteroid Redirection Test), to deflect a space rock like the one that wiped out the dinosaurs (or the one Bruce Willis blew up at the end of the movie Armageddon). Not all asteroids are planet killers, however. While some are monster-size, others are quite tiny. Meanwhile, the smallest asteroid is a matter of some debate. "There's not an official cutoff," said Yan Fernandez, an astronomer at the University of Central Florida, "so different people have different ideas about what counts as an asteroid."

Candle lights flickered in silence for several minutes Friday night at a vigil service for Dylan Lyons, the Spectrum News 13 reporter whose life was tragically lost to gun violence, along with the lives of Nathacha Augustin and 9-year-old T’Yonna Major.

There is a serious and critical shortage of school psychologists to support the needs of school-age children. Plus, there's a severe shortage of special education teachers. But how do we get them? The U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education has invested in a program at UCF to help fill in the gaps.