Science & Tech

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UMBC’s Achuth Padmanabhan to pursue promising ovarian cancer research with $1.5 million in grants

Achuth Padmanabhan’s research group, which includes graduate, undergraduate, and high school students, is revealing new potential treatment options by expanding understanding of the basic biology of ovarian cancer. Overall, “our goal is to eliminate ovarian cancer mortality,” he says. Continue Reading UMBC’s Achuth Padmanabhan to pursue promising ovarian cancer research with $1.5 million in grants

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UMBC teams with the Navy and the University of Arizona to develop new capabilities for hypersonic flight

UMBC’s Ankit Goel has been investigating better ways to control aircraft flying at hypersonic speeds, by primarily focusing on the vehicle’s engine. He recently received more than $850,000 in funding from the Office of Naval Research to further the investigations. Over the next three years he will partner with Kyle Hanquist at the University of Arizona and researchers from the Naval Air Warfare Center (NAWC) to develop improved engine control strategies and assess their performance in ground experiments conducted at the NAWC facility at China Lake, California. Continue Reading UMBC teams with the Navy and the University of Arizona to develop new capabilities for hypersonic flight

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Michelle Starz-Gaiano brings leadership experience, relationships to new department chair role

Michelle Starz-Gaiano began as an assistant professor at UMBC in 2008. Since then, her research program has blossomed, she’s mentored half a dozen graduate students and more than 50 undergraduates, and she’s taken on numerous leadership roles. Now she’ll add department chair to that list. “I think we have amazing people working and studying here,” she says, “and I really want to make sure they can be successful.” Continue Reading Michelle Starz-Gaiano brings leadership experience, relationships to new department chair role

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UMBC awarded $1 million in grants from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation to support promising STEM students with financial need

UMBC has been awarded $1 million in grants from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation to support students with financial need who intend to pursue degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Continue Reading UMBC awarded $1 million in grants from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation to support promising STEM students with financial need

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X-ray emissions from black hole jets vary unexpectedly, challenging leading model of particle acceleration

“One of the reasons we’re excited about the variability is that there are two main models for how x-rays are produced in these jets, and they’re completely different,” Eileen Meyer explains. “And one of those models is completely incompatible with any kind of variability.” As such, the new findings appear to rule out one leading theory of how particle acceleration works in black hole jets. Continue Reading X-ray emissions from black hole jets vary unexpectedly, challenging leading model of particle acceleration

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UMBC leads research into light-based timing and navigation technologies for DOD-funded consortium

Every day, radio signals from GPS satellites help millions of people figure out what time it is and where they are. Yet the system is vulnerable to disruptions and attacks. Sometimes users are unable to access critical information. Other times, adversaries may try to fool users into thinking they are somewhere they aren’t.

For this reason, researchers at UMBC are working to develop alternative timing and navigation technologies. Continue Reading UMBC leads research into light-based timing and navigation technologies for DOD-funded consortium

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Creating “AI Scientists”: Tyler Josephson advances a new field of research through $650,000 NSF CAREER award

Tyler Josephson’s lab sits off a main corridor in the department of chemical, biochemical and environmental engineering at UMBC. Open the door, though, and you’ll see nary a beaker, chemical closet, or lab coat. Inside, a few computers sit on tables. You might see equations scrawled on the white board or a few students poring over lines of code. Using this modest setup, Josephson has launched an ambitious project to equip computers to make scientific discoveries—starting in the realm of chemistry. This March he won a prestigious NSF CAREER award to advance the project. Continue Reading Creating “AI Scientists”: Tyler Josephson advances a new field of research through $650,000 NSF CAREER award

Satellite image showing Africa on the right and a large sweep of tan atmospheric dust over the Atlantic Ocean along with white and gray clouds

UMBC researchers co-author new Science study on how atmospheric dust impacts ocean health

New findings reveal details of the complex relationship between atmospheric dust and vast populations of phytoplankton at the ocean’s surface. These tiny photosynthetic organisms form the foundation of the ocean food chain and play a key role in the global carbon cycle, so the new research will be especially useful as dust patterns shift with climate change. Continue Reading UMBC researchers co-author new Science study on how atmospheric dust impacts ocean health

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