UCF in the News

Researchers from the University of Central Florida are puzzled about the tiny turtles nesting on Florida beaches. Katrina Philips, the lead author of a new study on the topic and a doctoral candidate in UCF’s Department of Biology, doesn’t know the cause for the size discrepancy.

Carmen Giurgescu, associate dean of research at the UCF College of Nursing, is studying how perceived social stressors, like racism, are factoring into the likelihood of preterm births as well as the deaths of mothers.

UCF Restores – a nonprofit organization that focuses on helping first responders affected by trauma – has been assisting Surfside first responders at the scene of the collapse. Deborah Beidel, a UCF professor of psychology and executive director of UCF Restores said they check on the men and women during their breaks and at the end of their shifts, providing psychological first aid.

Racial disparities in breast cancer survival have narrowed in recent years, according to a study that tracked breast cancer trends in Florida between 1990 and 2015. Overall, deaths from the disease declined among Black, Hispanic and White women alike, says lead researcher Robert Hines, an associate professor at the UCF College of Medicine.

University of Central Florida Lake Nona Medical Center is the first local hospital to provide incision-less brain surgery. Right now, the cutting edge procedure is being done for some patients with essential tremor, ceasing symptoms for some who undergo the surgery.

As part of field training at the UCF Police Department, all recruits are now required to visit the Wells’ Built Museum of African American History and Culture. The museum celebrates notable Black firsts and figures, including Ella Fitzgerald and Ray Charles. All 90 UCF police officers have already been to the museum, including Police Chief Carl Metzger.

Cyber Florida aims to make Florida the most “cyber-secure” state by working with universities to roll out sweeping initiatives in education, research and outreach. UCF and its nationally ranked hacking team is helping develop a national intercollegiate cybersecurity competition under a NSA grant.

Ray Villegas is the new program manager of UCF’s Mentorship and First Customer Program, which is part of UCF’s Innovation Districts that are small business support networks centered around UCF incubators in downtown Orlando, Lake Nona and Research Park. His first priority on the job is to get to know the clients and their products, and start reaching out to the right enterprises to make those connections.

Necati Catbas, structural engineering professor at UCF, is interviewed by Leila Fadel of NPR about the sudden collapse of the Champlain Towers South building near Miami Beach. He explains a “pancake failure,” which involves issues with the foundation and leads to the progressive failure of multiple stories on top of each other.