Upcoming events here at UCF: Research Week, Ultrafast Molecules, and Optics Day

Friday, April 4th
1:00-4:00pm
Optics Day 2014 CREOL
One of the world's leading institutions for research and education in optics and photonics is right here at UCF – CREOL. On Friday, April 4th, CREOL (The College of Optics and Photonics) is opening its doors for a fun-filled day of lab tours, optic demos, exciting talks, and prizes. Ever seen a real-life hologram? Or the individual LCD pixels on your iPhone? Optics Day is guaranteed to be a fascinating, interactive, and educational experience! There will be tours every hour of the world's best laboratories, engaging talks every hour explaining unique phenomenon, and optics demos spread all over the CREOL lobby to stun your senses. Don't miss out, RSVP at asincore@knights.ucf.edu to reserve your spot!
Visit http://caos.creol.ucf.edu/News.aspx to learn more!



4:30-6:00pm
Ultrafast Molecular Sciences PHYSICAL SCIENCES (PS) 161
Prof. Albert Stolow - University of Ottawa, Canada

The quantum-molecular view of nature led, over the past century, to revolutionary developments in science and engineering, including spectroscopy, lasers, and molecular biology/genetics. A cornerstone of this has been the development of microscopic structure-function relationships. Nature, however, is seldom static. Therefore, in the 21st century, there is a need to develop a microscopic but dynamic, rather than static, quantum-molecular view of Nature and its processes. Unfortunately, we do not yet have “dynamics-function” relationships. Nevertheless, this quantum dynamical view will be required for many emerging areas of molecular science and technology including chemical reaction dynamics, attosecond science, photoactive materials, quantum control, molecular machines, biomedical imaging etc. In the general case, molecular dynamics involves the ultrafast rearrangements of both electronic charge and vibrational energy, termed non-adiabatic dynamics. For example, Chemistry, the breaking and making of chemical bonds, necessarily involves the coupled ‘dance’ of valence electronic charge and atomic motions. Ultrafast laser science has led to significant progress in molecular dynamics studies, particularly for the difficult but most general case of non-adiabatic dynamics. We employ photoelectron spectroscopy because it is a uniquely powerful probe technique which combines elements of both scattering theory and spectroscopy. Furthermore, new methods in non-perturbative laser quantum control have emerged as important tools for enhancing molecular dynamics studies, permitting direct measurements within the Molecular Frame which avoid the usual loss of information due to lab frame orientational averaging. As laser fields get stronger, a sub-cycle (attosecond) physics emerges, leading to new probes of driven multi-electron dynamics in polyatomic molecules. Ultrafast laser science in condensed phases also offers new opportunities in biophysics. We ‘trigger’ the unzipping of double helix DNA, potentially leading to ‘light-induced genomics’, and simplified approaches to label-free microscopy of live cells and tissues, leading to the first commercially available CARS microscope. We anticipate that the dynamical view will lead to important advances in molecular sciences and its manifold of applications.

http://www.olympusamerica.com/seg_section/product.asp?product=1068&p=349&sub=17&c=8

Chemical GIF Collection

FamiLAB Open House Recap

A few of us went to FamiLAB, the hackerspace in Longwood and our main collaborators for pretty much everything, but mainly opening a biospace come summer!

They have an open house on the first Tuesday of every month, so we went earlier this week - there were a lot of people of all ages and backgrounds, some DJs trying their hand at some surprisingly good mixes, and a grillmaster outside with burgers.

Grab a name tag made of painter's tape, high-five some people, and start talking about who you are, what you want to do, and marvel at the fact that UCF students can become members for only $20 a month. This means you too can have a "space" where you can use tools and receive instruction on anything you want to build and access it any time of day.

Our group is planning to host a class to teach the community to transform green fluorescent protein (GFP) into bacteria and / or yeast as our first project. If you have any cool ideas for biohacking classes, let us know!

Check out FamiLAB's open house!

Passing the word along about UCF Research Computing Day

You are invited to attend a half-day seminar focused on research computing to be held Tuesday, February 11, from 8:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., in room 233 of the Partnership III Building in the Central Florida Research Park.  The event will encompass multiple aspects of advanced computing systems and high-performance networks and how they are changing the face of research, at UCF and around the world.

A leading innovator in cloud computing and former colleague of mine, Dr. Daniel A. Reed, Vice President for Research and Economic Development and University Chair in Computational Science and Bioinformatics and Professor of Computer Science,  Electrical and Computer engineering and Medicine at the University of Iowa, has accepted my invitation to present at this event.  Dr. Reed has served as Microsoft's Corporate Vice President for Technology Policy and Extreme Computing, where he helped shape Microsoft's long-term vision for technology innovations in cloud computing and the company's associated policy engagement with governments and institutions around the world.  We worked together at UNC Chapel Hill, where he was Director of the Renaissance Computing Institute and the Chancellor's Senior Advisor for Strategy and Innovation.

The seminar will also feature UCF professors Dr. Scott Hagen from Civil Engineering and Dr. Florencio Eloy Hernandez from Chemistry as well as Dr. Erik Deumens, Director for Research Computing in Information Technology at the University of Florida, David Pokorney, Chief Technical Officer of Florida LambdaRail, Dr. Penny Beile, Associate Director of Information Services and Scholarly Communications at the UCF Library, and Craig Finch, Post-Doctoral Research Associate at UCF's Institute for Simulation and Training.

Attendees will be given an overview of research computing at UCF, including a tour of the STOKES High Performance Computer Data Center and updates on Florida LambdaRail (FLR) and the Sunshine State Education and Research Computing Alliance (SSERCA).  This event should be of high interest to our research faculty and students. For an agenda and more information visit http://www.ist.ucf.edu/researchcomputingday.html .  There is no charge to attend however, you are asked to RSVP to Marybeth Thompson at Thompson@ist.ucf.edu, as space is limited.

Upcoming Events: Mathematical Models of Disease, Career Talks, and Neuroscience

Epidemic Treatment Models with Drug Resistance

Abstract: Antiviral drug treatment is one method of trying to control an outbreak of a disease transmitted by a virus. However, this treatment may lead to the establishment of a drug-resistant strain of the disease. We describe and analyze a simple model for this, and show that there are situations in which an increase of the treatment rate may cause an increase in the number of disease cases.

Time: 12PM on Wednesday October 23rd
Room: MSB 318

Drug Resistance in Disease Treatment Models Abstract: We consider a disease treatment model in which tratment may cause the emergence of a drug- resistant strain of the disease. We study the possible equilibria, their stability, and the effects of changing the treatment rate. The possibilities are determined mainly by the reproduction numbers of the two disease strains.
Time: 11AM on Thursday October 24th
Room: MSB 318

Dr. Fred Brauer, Honourary Professor at the University of British Columbia (UBC) Prof. Fred Brauer received his Ph.D. from MIT in 1956 under the supervision of Norman Levinson. In 1960 he joined the Department of Mathematics at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and had been there for 39 years before moved to Vancouver where he has an honourary appointment in the Mathematics department at UBC. Prof. Brauer has published several books on differential equations and mathematical biology, including the classic textbooks "Qualitative Theory of Ordinary Differential Equations (1969)" with John Nohel and "Mathematical Models in Population Biology and Epidemiology (2001)" with Carlos Castillo-Chavez.

Thursday, October 24
4:30-5:45pm
HPA1 125
The Scientist and the Entrepreneur
Dr. Philip Arlen
President and CEO
Pandora Genomics, LLC

Friday, October 25
11:30am-12:30pm
Lake Nona BBS 103 live
Main campus HPAII 345 video
LRRK2 Phosphorylates Novel Tau Epitopes and Promotes Tauopathy
Jada Lewis, PhD
Professor of Neuroscience
College of Medicine
University of Florida

Monday, November 4
11:45am-12:45pm
Lake Nona BBS 103 live
Main Campus HPA II 345 video
Career Talk
Gregory Roth
Director, Medicinal Chemistry of Sanford-Burnham Lake Nona
Associate Professor Diabetes and Obesity Research Center
Refreshments will be provided

Upcoming Events: Brain Computer Interfaces, UCF Arboretum, Graduate Defenses

Saturday, October 19
8-10pm
Brain-Computer Interfaces
FamiLAB, Longwood, FL
https://www.facebook.com/events/589847807746651/?ref=3

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Tuesday, October 22
1-2pm
Healthy nature, healthy people: Contact with nature as an upstream health promotion intervention for populations
Arboretum Pavilion

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Announcing the Final Examination of Ms. Alejandra Petrilli Guinart for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Biomedical Sciences
Date: Monday, October 28, 2013
Time: 9:30AM
Location Lake Nona BBS, Rm 103 (Live) HPA 2, 345 Conf Room (Simulcast)

Dissertation Title: " TARGET VALIDATION FOR NEUROFIBROMATOSIS TYPE 2 THERAPEUTICS "

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Announcing the Final Examination of Ms. Vanathy Paramanandam for the Degree of Masters of Science in Biotechnology
Date: Tuesday, October 29, 2013
Time: 10:00AM
Location HPA II, 345 Conf Room (Live) / Lake Nona BBS, Rm 103 (Simulcast)

Dissertation Title: role of Host immune response and bacterial autolysin atl in human nasal colonization by staphylococcus aureus

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Announcing the Final Examination of Mr. Micah Halpern for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Biomedical Sciences
Date: Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Time: 3:00PM
Location Lake Nona BBS, Rm 103 (Live) / HPA II, 345 Conf Room (Simulcast)

Dissertation Title: " IMMUNO-PCR DETECTION OF LYME BORRELIOSIS "

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Announcing the Final Examination of Mr. Tianshu Li for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Biomedical Sciences
Date: Thursday, October 31, 2013
Time: 1:30PM
Location Lake Nona BBS, Rm 103 (Live) BMS 136A Conf Room (Simulcast)

Dissertation Title: " Identification of epithelial stromal interaction 1 and epidermal growth factor receptor as novel krüpple-like factor 8 targets in promoting breast cancer progression "

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Friday, Nov.8

1:30pm
Medicinal Plant Workshop
Arboretum Pavilion

Orlando Mini Maker Faire Recap!

Sorry this is so late, but we're still basking in the success and excitement of the Faire :)

We had never heard of the Maker Faire movement until a few months ago and now look at us, presenting our first team project at the one right here in Orlando!

We were extremely pleasantly surprised to have so many people of all ages and backgrounds come by and check us out!

Our project was a two-fold demonstration:

• Using household supplies to extract DNA from strawberries
• Demonstrating a very simplified DIY version of a common lab protocol called gel electrophoresis used to separate and analyze DNA

Great big thank yous go out to:

• Our treasurer, Daniel Del Favero, for putting in so much time and effort into building the gel box
• Dave Casey from FamiLAB for giving us the idea and encouraging us with enthusiasm

Upcoming Events

UCF Biophysics Group is resuming its seminar series (see biophysics.cos.ucf.edu

for past seminars and other details).

Professor Aristide Dogariu of CREOL, UCF, will present:

Harnessing Light for Sensing and Guiding at Mesoscales

Wednesday, September 18, 2:00-3:00 pm

Physical Sciences room 445

Overview:

Mesoscale photonics involves the interaction of light with material structures of intermediate scales - structures that are too small to be described by traditional continuum methods, and too large to be regarded as simple dipoles. Mesoscale phenomena occur in different circumstances, e.g., biological systems, soft materials, and fabricated mechanical nanostructures. We will review applications where controlling the coherence and polarization properties of electromagnetic fields offers unique capabilities for sensing material properties at mesoscales.

Electromagnetic fields may also induce scale-specific modifications of material structures. We will show that harnessing light at scales comparable with the wavelength offers exclusive possibilities for controlling the mechanical action of light.

On September 20th Another event!

Upcoming Events: FamiLAB, Nerd Nite, Nanotechnology, and more!

Sunday, August 4, 2013
11:30am-1:30pm SparkTruck: Science-based workshops and programs for children of all ages

UCF Teaching Academy (on campus)

SparkTruck is coming to Orlando and the UCF College of Education and Human Performance.

SparkTruck offers a variety of science-based workshop and programs, including sketching and building robots, making rubber stamps with the use of a laser cutter, a boat making competition, and a chocolate bar making workshop that employs the use of laser and vinyl cutters. Children will be able to learn about science in an interactive, hands-on way that also allows them to be introduced to 21st-century science tools and principles.

4:00pm Synthetic Biology Meeting - Everyone interested is welcome!

FamiLAB
1355 Bennett Dr #129
Longwood, FL 32750

Please RSVP via Meetup. http://www.meetup.com/DiyBio-in-Central-Florida/events/131760742/

Let's meet to discuss our current work and future plans for collective experiments in DIY Biology, including, but not limited to: Growing bioluminescent plants, algae, fungi, bacteria, and what-have-you. (Growing non-glowing varieties of those things is also okay, but potentially less exciting.) What we need to do in order to participate in iGEM. DNA origami. Self quantification, including monitoring EEG, ECG, EMG, ETC. Building open hardware/wetware that makes all of the above feasible/more accessible. Let's also discuss other things that we might want to add to this list!

Gordon Hollingworth, Director of Engineering for the Raspberry Pi Foundation, will be in town for a meet-and-greet, show-and-tell Open Make at FamiLAB, and will be present at our meeting!

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

7:00-8:30 pm Cafe Scientifique presents More on Nanotechnology

Taste Restaurant
717 W. Smith Street
Orlando, FL 32804

This is a continuation of the April talk, which served as an introduction to nanotechnology. This extra time will let Prof Rahman talk about her favorite parts of the subject. Only a few years ago, the science and engineering of manipulating matter at the atomic and molecular level seemed to be a promise of enormous changes to come in a few decades. Instead, the results of nanoscience quietly sneaked into our everyday lives yesterday. Prof Rahman will talk about nanoscience, its brief history, and its current state.

Dr. Talat Rahman is the UCF= Physics Chair and a UCF Provost Distinguished Research Professor. Her research interests are first principles calculations of nanoscale phenomena (chemical reactions, molecular diffusion, vibrational dynamics and thermodynamics of nanomaterials); multiscale-modeling offunctional material; structural stability and characteristics of nanoalloys; atomistic studies of diffusion at solid surfaces; thin film growth processes and surface morphological evolution of nanostructures.

Website: http://cafesciorl.com/2013-08-nanotech
Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/611574745520241/

Thursday, August 8, 2013

5:30-7:00pm General meeting

7:00-9:00pm Nerd Nite #6 - Our very own President Max Jackson is presenting!

Stardust Video and Coffee
1842 E. Winter Park Rd.
Winter Park, FL 32803

Nerd Nite Orlando #6 is our Back To School Special! We will learn how two monks changed the world, be enlightened about the ethics of brain experimentation, and answer the infamous Yahoo! Answers question, “How is Babby Formed?” !

Nerd Nite Orlando is an evening of entertaining yet thought-provoking talks across many disciplines – all while the audience drinks along in a casual bar atmosphere. 3 speakers will present for 20-25 minutes each on a fascinating subject of their choice, often in an uncanny and unconventional way.

It's like the Discovery Channel - with beer! Come meet up, drink, and learn something new!

PRESENTATIONS:

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“Cryptic Cyrillic: How Two Monks Changed the World” by Edward Petersen

Have you ever wondered what all those familiar-yet-strange letters were in “The Hunt for Red October” or other films set in Russia? They’re Cyrillic, a unique alphabet developed centuries ago for Slavic people who had no written language. While this writing system has helped Eastern Europe grow by leaps and bounds, it has not been without controversy. In modern times, it has more often served to divide than to unite. Come learn the history of this fascinating system now used by a quarter-billion people throughout the world.

Ed Petersen currently works for the Planning Division in the City of Orlando. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from the University of Central Florida. He is an avid traveler, having visited 49 US states and 20 countries, including Russia in 1999. Ed has had a lifelong interest in patterns, language, and alphabets, and can speak a smattering of Spanish, French, Latin, and Russian (though he’ll likely need plenty of help).

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“Brain on a Chip: The Ethics of Brain Experimentation” by Max Jackson

Is it possible to study the brain without incurring the wrath of PETA or hoping for willing human subjects? It is now! Max Jackson is a researcher who grows brain networks in the lab, on demand. The ethical and economic advantages of these techniques are vast. Join us for a discussion about the ethics of brain experimentation as well as the exciting developments in this field.

Max Jackson is a masters student in BioTechnology at the University of Central Florida where he focuses his research on neural-machine interfacing. He is President of the UCF Synthetic Biology Club, and the Graduate President of the Central Florida Society for Neuroscience. Prior to graduate school, Max worked for a mobile-learning application development company. He enjoys reading the classics and philosophy literature in his free time.

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“Fornication Education: All These F**king Questions!” by Daniel Pellito

Young people are exploratory about sex due to their intrinsic curiosity. As a science teacher and sex educator at a lower income public school, Dan Pellito has been asked a myriad of questions by his students, from the naively adorable to the outright strange. Dan asserts that if students don’t learn the basics from trusted adults, they’ll find other means, such as MTV’s “Teen Mom.” Let’s demystify the notion of sex and encourage open conversations with the younger generation.

Daniel Pellito is a science teacher for a low-income school in Orange County, Florida. He studied music and biology at the University of Central Florida. He’s been in the classroom since 2006 and currently teaches biology as well as engineering to 6th - 8th graders. Daniel is an advocate of the "flipped classroom" model and is developing an agriculture/aquaculture program through a school/community garden.It's like the Discovery Channel - with beer! Come meet up, drink, and learn something new!

Website: http://orlando.nerdnite.com/
Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/280043155470557/?ref=3

Project Update: Humans vs. Strawberries accepted!, FamiLAB meeting open to the public

Intellectual synergy and playful science banter was abound when we got together this past weekend to write up our proposal as per Mr. Dave Casey's suggestion. Here's our short summary: We will build a DNA gel electrophoresis chamber from common materials and demonstrate the visualization of DNA and the differences in human and strawberry genetics.

We have carefully reviewed all of the proposals for Orlando Mini Maker Faire 2013 and have selected Genetic Analysis in a Box to appear as an exhibit!

In the coming weeks you'll start receiving information on:
- Maker Agreements
- How to make a Maker Faire booth
- Fee payment information for those selling products at the event

Other news includes having a meeting at FamiLAB to discuss our group, our mission, and the idea of starting a biohackerspace around UCF. This will be open to current FamiLAB members who are interested in the bio side of hacking, UCF students who want to get in on the hackerspace movement, and anyone in the general public who want to know what all of this is about and get involved!

Everyone is welcome!
What: Meeting to discuss biohacking in Central Florida
When: Sunday, August 4th, 4pm
Where: FamiLAB
1355 Bennett Drive
Longwood, FL 32750
Unit 129

Bonus! Gordon Hollingworth, the Director of Engineering for the Raspberry Pi Foundation, will be in town for a meet-and-greet, show-and-tell Open Make at FamiLAB, and will be present at our meeting.