Man in a suit stands onstage in a dark theatre, with a vertical banner that says "UMBC - GRIT-X" behind him.

Manil Suri’s new book, “The Big Bang of Numbers,” introduces readers to the wonder of math

Jan 6, 2023 / 4 minutes of reading

It’s rare to meet a mathematician who is also a bestselling novelist, but UMBC’s Manil Suri is happy to be unique. “The Big Bang of Numbers,” Suri’s first nonfiction book, is written to show people who aren’t necessarily fond of math that the discipline is foundational to our world—and can even be fun. Continue Reading Manil Suri’s new book, “The Big Bang of Numbers,” introduces readers to the wonder of math

A researcher stands smiling at camera. Large room-sized machines with wires and metal cylinders in background is for testing fusion concepts.

Star power: UMBC’s Carlos Romero-Talamás explains why fusion is grabbing headlines

Jan 6, 2023 / 5 minutes of reading

On a recent Tuesday in December, UMBC’s Carlos Romero-Talamás escorted a TV crew from Baltimore into one of his labs. The reporters were there to talk about a just announced fusion power milestone achieved at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, but they quickly became interested in Romero-Talamás’s own experiments too. He is questing after the same fusion milestone using equipment that’s much simpler and cheaper. Continue Reading Star power: UMBC’s Carlos Romero-Talamás explains why fusion is grabbing headlines

Person working on a machine with a bright light in a lab. They are wearing sunglasses.

UMBC’s CyMOT receives $1.2M to expand cyber training for manufacturing workers

Dec 9, 2022 / 4 minutes of reading

UMBC researchers designed the Cybersecurity for Manufacturing Operational Technology (CyMOT) program to help manufacturing professionals grow their cybersecurity skills, protecting the sector from cyber threats and increasing their career opportunities. Now, the program has received significant additional funding to expand its impact. Continue Reading UMBC’s CyMOT receives $1.2M to expand cyber training for manufacturing workers

UMBC and UMSOM work to more effectively reverse opioid overdose in real time through $500,000+ NIH award

Dec 9, 2022 / 5 minutes of reading

In response to the rising opioid epidemic, UMBC researchers have partnered with the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) to develop a device that could help prevent opioid overdose deaths: a non-invasive CO2 monitor to more effectively detect and reverse an opioid overdose in real time. It was recently awarded a one-year, $500,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health. Continue Reading UMBC and UMSOM work to more effectively reverse opioid overdose in real time through $500,000+ NIH award

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UMBC’s Zhibo Zhang to clarify atmospheric dust’s role in climate with NSF grant

Dec 1, 2022 / 5 minutes of reading

Natural dust particles and pollutants in the atmosphere affect Earth’s overall energy budget in nuanced ways. A new project will study how dust, pollutants, and water vapor in the atmosphere interact, to increase understanding of their overall effects on the global climate. Continue Reading UMBC’s Zhibo Zhang to clarify atmospheric dust’s role in climate with NSF grant

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Transforming the future of healthy aging: UMBC event highlights leading practices, research from Kanagawa and Maryland

Nov 30, 2022 / 7 minutes of reading

UMBC recently partnered with the government of Japan’s Kanagawa prefecture to host the seminar “New Frontiers in Healthcare Management,” examining innovative approaches to healthy aging in society, from a broad range of research and policy perspectives. Continue Reading Transforming the future of healthy aging: UMBC event highlights leading practices, research from Kanagawa and Maryland

Five smiling people in professional clothing pose for a portrait in a conference room with one holding an award certificate reading AIChE ChemE Jeopardy Competition First Place.

UMBC chemical engineering students win ChemE Jeopardy national championship

Nov 17, 2022 / 4 minutes of reading

UMBC is again a national champion, now in ChemE Jeopardy. A UMBC student team of chemical engineering majors emerged victorious last weekend at the national competition in Phoenix, Arizona, hosted by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), besting fellow finalists University of Iowa and University of Southern California.

UMBC is again a national champion, now in Chemical Engineering Jeopardy. A UMBC student team of chemical engineering majors emerged victorious last weekend at the national competition in Phoenix, Arizona, hosted by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE). “This was my first time attending the national competition,” says team member Catherine Wraback ’23, president of the UMBC chapter of AIChE. “Walking into the room…was an unparalleled feeling.” Continue Reading UMBC chemical engineering students win ChemE Jeopardy national championship

A cloud of grayish-purplish smoke -- like an explosion -- appears on a black background.

UMBC partners in NASA-funded TIGERISS mission to determine source of heavy elements on Earth

Nov 3, 2022 / 5 minutes of reading

“All of that heavier stuff we see here on Earth and throughout the cosmos, like gold, and platinum, and lead—where did it come from, and how did it get distributed?” asks Nicholas Cannady. He serves as operations lead on TIGERISS, a new mission recently funded for up to $20 million over five years, that aims to help answer that question. Continue Reading UMBC partners in NASA-funded TIGERISS mission to determine source of heavy elements on Earth

Microscope image. Black background; neon green, tightly packed cylindrical-looking cells at the top, with more sparse layers of red, blue, purple, and green cells below.

Vision beyond sight: UMBC’s Phyllis Robinson to advance study of critical eye protein with $2.5M NIH grant

Oct 28, 2022 / 4 minutes of reading

An eye protein called melanopsin can affect everything from our mood, to our sleeping and eating patterns, to our ability to adapt to time zone and seasonal changes. Robinson’s new work will focus on how certain modifications to melanopsin affect its function. “We’re looking at this cool molecule that affects our light-dependent behaviors in ways we’re not conscious of,” Robinson says. “It’s really exciting stuff within our field.” Continue Reading Vision beyond sight: UMBC’s Phyllis Robinson to advance study of critical eye protein with $2.5M NIH grant

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Ozone and thunderstorms: Two UMBC Ph.D. students receive prestigious NASA grants, mentor undergraduates

Oct 26, 2022 / 6 minutes of reading

Maurice Roots and Kylie Hoffman, UMBC Ph.D. students in atmospheric physics, have received competitive Future Investigators in NASA Earth and Space Science and Technology (FINESST) awards that will support the remainder of their graduate studies. Roots’s research project will focus on air pollution and Hoffman will target thunderstorms, both using remote sensing techniques. Continue Reading Ozone and thunderstorms: Two UMBC Ph.D. students receive prestigious NASA grants, mentor undergraduates

Three researchers stand around a table looking at the HARP cubesat on it (a mostly black rectangular solid on a simple stand)

UMBC researchers build next-gen satellite tech to examine Earth’s atmosphere

Oct 14, 2022 / 4 minutes of reading

The HARP cubesat, in orbit from November 2019 to April 22, was just the beginning of UMBC researchers’ efforts to increase understanding of how particles in the atmosphere affect climate and air quality. This month, HARP2 will be delivered to NASA for inclusion in a new mission. Continue Reading UMBC researchers build next-gen satellite tech to examine Earth’s atmosphere

Two circles, each with many round blobs ranging from blue through green, yellow, and red, based on elevation of the crater. Each circle has a black line traveling from the edge (the pole location 4.25B years ago) to the center (present-day pole).

UMBC’s Viswanathan uses the Moon’s craters to track its shifting poles over 4.25 billion years

Oct 5, 2022 / 5 minutes of reading

To trace the Moon’s poles over time, the research team examined the combined effects of more than 5,000 craters on the Moon’s surface. “All this cratering is like a record” of the Moon’s history, Vishnu Viswanathan says. The team found relatively stable poles over time, which would have created favorable conditions for accumulation of resources like water near the poles. Continue Reading UMBC’s Viswanathan uses the Moon’s craters to track its shifting poles over 4.25 billion years