UCF in the News

When researchers at the University of Central Florida filmed unmasked people speaking and coughing, they found that aerosols and droplets travelled about four feet. When those people wore surgical masks, aerosols went only a few inches. They couldn’t see any aerosols when people wore N95s. “What we found is that the propagation of aerosols and droplets in a cloth mask was on the order of like two feet for speech and 2.2 feet for a cough,” says Kareem Ahmed, senior author on the study, and an aerospace researcher at the University of Central Florida. “That’s still relatively large. If we’re speaking to each other, you’re most likely going to be within one to two feet.”

The University of Central Florida on Tuesday announced it is developing technology so readers can personalize digital materials to make them easier to read and comprehend. UCF, Google, Adobe and Readability Matters, a nonprofit group that focuses on accessibility through digital formatting, on Tuesday announced the “Readability Consortium,” a network of more than 50 researchers to further research on the link between personalized formatting and readability, as well as to create digital tools that can apply preferences across digital texts. Font and spacing can affect how quickly people read, to the extent that the right formatting can act as digital “reading glasses,” UCF assistant professor Ben Sawyer told EdScoop.

Being a good counselor requires compassion and discretion, but those aren't the only qualities that count. The ability to remain objective and calm during upsetting circumstances is vital, according to licensed counselors, as is the capacity to prevent someone else's bad mood from dampening your morale. Introspection and self-discipline are also essential. "You really have to understand what your own background is and how it is going to influence your ability to help others," explains W. Bryce Hagedorn, professor and program director of counseling education at the University of Central Florida. To provide useful guidance to people who are hurting, he says, it is imperative to understand the sources of pain in your own life.

With Valentine’s Day around the corner, WMFE’s Joe Byrnes, who covers aging, sat down to talk about romance with two University of Central Florida experts on counseling and relationships. John Super who teaches counseling and Sejal Barden, Executive Director of the Marriage and Family Research Institute, say there are plenty of tips young people can learn from senior citizens about enduring relationships. And whether you’re a senior in high school or a senior citizen, the key is finding ways to connect and to understand each other.

The world’s first optical oscilloscope – an ultrafast device for measuring the electric field of light – has been constructed by researchers at the University of Central Florida. The new instrument works by converting light oscillations into electrical signals and could help advance communication technologies.

It’s a tough time to be a teacher, and a tough time to be a college student, too. These circumstances are squeezing the university programs that train future teachers. The challenge of attracting students into and graduating them from education departments at colleges predates the pandemic, experts say, and yet the pressures of the past two years have worsened the situation at some institutions. At UCF’s undergrad program to train special-education teachers, there’s a special agreement with local school leaders that benefits both UCF students and K-12 schools. UCF students are helping fill the shortage of substitute teachers – giving them the real-world experience they need while earning their degrees and helping alleviate stress off local schools at the same time.

Michael Richardson, a Navy veteran and UCF senior, is helping his fellow veterans get access to school supplies. He launched the UCF Supply Vault for Veteran Success, where veteran students can get supplies for free such as noise-canceling headphones and keyboards. He has been spreading word of the vault at the Veterans Academic Resource Center, which is available to assist the 1,400 student veterans at UCF.

Noemi Pinilla Alonso, a planetary scientist at the Florida Space Institute based at UCF, is one of the few hundred scientists who will have the first opportunity to access the information provided by the James Webb Space Telescope. Scientists will use the telescope to find new galaxies, explore star formation and better understand the physical and chemical properties of stars and planetary systems, including our own.

Black women in America are three times more likely to die from a pregnancy related cause than white women, and maternal mortality is just one health disparity that researchers and doctors are working to understand. The pandemic highlighted health disparities, such as access to prevention and care, but it also showed how disparities could be mended. Joining Intersection are three people who are looking into the causes of health disparities and solutions, including Dr. Saleh Rahman, professor of medicine and co-director of the Focused Inquiry & Research Experience program at UCF’s College of Medicine. Rahman says it’s critical to give the next generation of medical students the training they need to help overcome health disparities. “I believe our future physicians can not only make a difference in their own practices, but become an advocate for change,” he says.