“We could not be happier to have earned an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament,” head coach Renee Luers-Gillispie said. “We felt like our résumé was strong and it is so great to see C-USA being recognized as a strong Division I conference by having four teams make the tournament.”

The host Gators (46-11) and Florida Gulf Coast (37-22) will also participate in the four-team regional which follows a double-elimination format. Florida and FGCU will square off at 6 p.m. on Friday.

The at-large selection to the tournament is the second for the Black and Gold in its 11-year history, while it will be the fourth time in four total appearances in the NCAA Tournament that the Knights will be playing at Katie Seashole Pressly Softball Stadium.

The last time UCF made an appearance was in 2010, when it earned the first at-large selection in school history. The Knights went 1-2 during the 2010 regional, defeating FIU in the opening game before losing to Florida and FIU on day two.

Overall when participating in the NCAA Tournament, the Black and Gold holds a 5-6 record and has faced Florida five times during the stretch.

Of the 64 teams that made the NCAA Tournament in 2012, the Knights faced 12 teams throughout the season, including No. 5 seed Florida, No. 12 seed UCLA, No. 16 seed Washington, Iona, Bethune-Cookman, Florida Gulf Coast, Florida State, San Diego State, Oregon State and C-USA foes Tulsa, Houston and UAB. When facing off with those teams, UCF posted 10 wins.

The regional winners will advance to super regional competition for a best-of-three series May 24-27 at eight campus sites.

Ticket information for the Gainesville Regional will be announced when they become available.

Hundreds of the nation’s most promising science students from all 50 states will be at UCF for the Science Olympiad National Tournament on May 18-19. The top winners of the competition will be offered scholarships to attend UCF and continue their scientific studies.

The competition, a culmination of a  yearlong contest involving hundreds of teams, is among the nation’s most prestigious science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) competitions. The national tournament brings together the winning middle school and high school teams, educators and their families.

“We are excited to have some of the brightest young minds in the country visiting UCF for the Science Olympiad National Tournament,” said Al Harms, vice president for Strategy, Marketing, Communications and Admissions at UCF. “These young students may one day change the world by curing diseases, creating alternative fuels or developing new technologies. That is why we are thrilled to offer ‘gold winners’ scholarships to UCF, where they will have the opportunity to turn their dreams into reality.”

Every high school team member who places Gold in the competition will be eligible for the scholarships. The four-year scholarships are worth $16,000 for in-state students and $30,000 for out-of-state students who meet all admission requirements and enroll.  That’s $4,000 for each of their four years for Florida students and $7,500 for those who are not state residents.

The community is welcome to see some of the teams compete Saturday, May 19. The event is free and gives people the opportunity to watch some of these young minds at work.

Teams will compete in challenges such as: Helicopters, a flight-endurance contest powered by rubber-band engines; Storm the Castle, a precision catapult exercise; Mission Possible, a Rube Goldberg device using energy transfers to complete a task; and Gravity Vehicle, a test of a car’s speed, estimation and accuracy.

The Army ROTC Aviation Adventure Semi and the Air Force Command Center Alpha will be in Parking Lot D2 during the tournament. These interactive exhibits showcase the science behind each branch of the military, complete with flight simulators, technology displays, digital downloads and an F-16 Air Force fighter jet. Check out the lineup of events at: http://www.scienceolympiad2012.com/tournament-info/daily-schedule/

Representing Florida Science Olympiad are Orlando Science Middle School, Archimedean Upper Conservatory in Miami, Archimedean Middle Conservatory in Miami, and Boca Raton Community High School in Boca Raton.

Aside from recognition, awards and scholarships, past champion teams have been invited to Washington, D.C., for President Obama’s White House Science Fair.

Science Olympiad is a Chicago-area-based national nonprofit organization founded in 1984. It is dedicated to improving the quality of K-12 STEM education, increasing student interest in science, creating a technologically literate workforce and providing recognition for outstanding achievement by both students and teachers. Nearly 200,000 students on 6,400 teams from all 50 states competed in 350 regional, state and national Science Olympiad tournaments last year.

The Knights claimed the title with 160 team points, besting C-USA Indoor Champion East Carolina by nearly 28 points.

Octavious Freeman was named the Freshman of the Meet, Aurieyall Scott won the High Point Scorer of the Meet for the second year in a row and head coach Caryl Smith Gilbert was awarded her third-consecutive Coach of the Year accolade.

Freeman set a meet record, school record, freshman record and personal best in the 100 meters with a blistering performance of 11.09 (+1.5) for first place. The time ranks second in the NCAA and 11th in the world this year. Scott finished in step behind her and also tied the previous meet record of 11.21 (+1.5), which ranks among the top 10 in the NCAA.

Senior Sheila Paul and sophomore Dominique Booker scored points in the 100 meters as well with fourth and fifth place finishes, respectively. Paul registered a season-best time of 11.40, which ranks among the NCAA’s top 25, and Booker clocked 11.59.

As a unit in the 4×100 relay, the group clinched UCF’s first gold medal of the day by churning out a time of 43.47, which fell just .05 shy of the squad’s Conference USA Championship meet record in 2011. The performance ranks among the top 15 in the NCAA this year.

The quartet also shined in the 200 meters as the Knights swept the podium. Scott reclaimed her gold medal in the event with a time of 23.13 (+0.8), which ranks among the top 15 in the NCAA. Paul and Freeman went neck and neck for silver and bronze as both clocked a time of 23.53. Rounding out the bunch, Booker scored points in seventh place with a time of 23.98.

Senior Tomika Story earned all-conference third team honors in the triple jump with a personal-best leap in all conditions of 12.74m/41-09.75 (+2.6). Competing in the event for the first time of her collegiate career, Scott also scored points in eighth place with a mark of 12.25m/40-02.25 (+2.0), which topped her heat.

Junior Sonnisha Williams recorded a personal-best 11.92m/39-01.25 (+1.7) to finish second in her heat behind Scott and 12th overall. Williams also hit a personal-record 1.73m/5-08 in the high jump to match her best showing in the event at the Outdoor Championships in fifth place.

A day removed from setting a personal best in the 800 meters, Ne’Ausha Logan led the finals from start to finish and again shaved nearly two seconds off her PR for the first gold medal of her career with a time of 2:07.25.

Two seniors medaled and recorded times among the NCAA’s top 25 in the 100 hurdles. Jackie Coward retained her title as the 100 hurdles champion by picking up her third gold medal of her career in the event with a time of 13.10 (+1.1), and Karessa Farley posted a season-best time of 13.34 (+1.1) for third place.

Coward also defended her gold medal in the 400 hurdles with a season-best time of 58.35, and fellow senior Aisha-Maree Frazier joined her on the podium with a third-place, season-best time of 59.46.

Satrina Oliveira set a personal best en route to winning her heat and finishing fourth in the discus with a mark of 46.80m/153-06. A day after earning all-conference honors in the shot put, Precious Ogunleye also scored points in the discus with a sixth-place finish of 45.10m/147-11.

Junior Erica Weiss tallied a point in the pole vault with a mark of 3.60m/11-09.75 for eighth place.

The 4×400 relay of Afia Charles, Christal Peterson, Erica Winston and Williams closed out the evening with a season-best time of 3:38.69 for fourth place. Earlier in the day, Charles scored points in the 400 meters with a fifth-place time of 54.03.

Complete coverage of the final day of competition will air on tape delay on Fox Sports Florida on Friday at 2 p.m. and on SportSouth on Sunday at 8 p.m. Up next, the Knights will travel to Jacksonville for the NCAA East Preliminary Round of the Outdoor Track and Field Championships on May 24-26.

Champion Event(s)

• Octavious Freeman 4×100 relay, 100 meters
• Dominique Booker 4×100 relay
• Aurieyall Scott 4×100 relay, 200 meters
• Sheila Paul 4×100 relay
• Ne’Ausha Logan 800 meters
• Jackie Coward 100 hurdles, 400 hurdles

Team Points

1. UCF 160
2. East Carolina 132.16
3. Southern Miss 81
4. Houston 74
5. Rice 60.50
6. SMU 60
7. UAB 58
8. Memphis 55
9. UTEP 54
10. Tulane 33.33
11. Marshall 28
12. Tulsa 23

Thor Renewable Energy Inc. has secured an exclusive license to the technology and plans to expand its commercial-scale biofuel production facilities to Florida’s Space Coast later this year.

Richard Blair, assistant professor of chemistry and forensic science at UCF, and a biofuels specialist, uses a milling process to convert raw materials to simple sugars and other useful compounds.  He was initially exposed to the general technique while working at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).  Blair’s process uses a rotating drum to grind raw materials and, in a twist, uses a natural and inexpensive catalyst to convert cellulose into simple sugars.  Most techniques used today rely on sulfuric acid to spark the conversion process, resulting in hazardous byproducts that must be reprocessed prior to disposal.

“The ball mill converts biomass immediately to a sellable product. It is inherently green and easily scalable: this is unique because many lab processes are not green or easily scalable,” Blair said.

Many biofuel production systems use sugars as the raw materials.  The availability of sugar is often limited by crop performance:  if crop yields are low, or if crops fail, then biofuels facilities – such as ethanol plants – do not have the sugar feedstock needed to create biofuel.

Blair thought that the ball mill had potential for biofuel production because it will convert any type of biomass – from yard waste to scrub brush – into sugar and it doesn’t leave behind problematic by-products.  For Thor this could eliminate the problem of having to compete with food supplies such as corn and soybeans, for raw materials or feedstock.

“UCF’s breakthrough cellulose-to-sugar technology provides a rational, practical, and efficient path that broadens feedstock possibilities for biofuels production.  This gives us more flexibility in site selection,” said Thor’s CEO Bill Cox.  “This also lessens our dependence upon specific crop cycles, and to inherent price swings that occur within all crop commodities.”

Cox learned of the UCF technology at the Space Coast Energy Symposium sponsored by the Florida Cleantech Acceleration Network in February.

Thor plans to scale-up and incorporate UCF’s technology as part of its future commercial-scale biofuels production facilities, including a likely expansion in Brevard County later this year. The company will use the technology to produce clean fuels that offer higher horsepower and lower emissions.  Thor’s commercial plants could create over 50 jobs, and is currently working with Brevard County’s Economic Development Commission, the State’s TRDA, and other State agencies as it considers possible expansion opportunities in Florida.  Headquartered in Singapore, Thor also has activities in Latin America and the Philippines.

The Knights (40-12, 15-5), who became the third team in the nation to reach 40 wins this year, broke out for four runs in the third, five in the fourth and a pair in the seventh and eighth to finish off the Thundering Herd (16-34, 4-17) and improve their road record to 15-3 overall and 10-2 in Conference USA.

UCF’s bats exploded for 15 hits, including a pair of home runs in the contest. Junior Chris Taladay smashed his first-career grand slam while Ronnie Richardson, D.J. Hicks and Jeramy Matos each had three-hit performances.

“(It was) a very determined group of guys today,” UCF head coach Terry Rooney said postgame. “Nobody was happy with the outcome yesterday. For these guys to bounce back the way they did today was without question a determined group. Anytime you can go on the road and win the series, it is a heck of a weekend.”

Before their winner-take-all C-USA series against Rice on Thursday-Saturday, the Knights will host in-state rival Stetson Tuesday night at 6:30 p.m. Fans can enjoy dollar hot dogs all game long.

Facing a 3-0 hole heading into the top of the third, UCF responded in a big way as Travis Shreve hit a single, Richardson reached on an error and Darnell Sweeney sent the ball into center field to load the bases. Taladay wasted no time in unloading them as he smashed a 1-0 pitch over the right field wall for UCF’s first grand slam in 364 days (Erik Hempe at UAB).

The long ball wasn’t done for the Knights as Matos led off the top of the fourth with a screaming shot over the left-field wall for his fourth homer of the year. UCF responded with four more runs in the frame, including Hicks’ 65th RBI on a double and Alex Friedrich’s 34th to bring home the first baseman.

Marshall answered UCF’s nine-run two-inning barrage with three runs of its own to get back within striking distance, but the Knights would put the game away for good.

After scoreless frames from lefty Chris Matulis and righty Roman Madrid, the Knights tacked on two more in the top of the seventh after a leadoff walk to Nick Carrillo and a single up the middle by Matos led to Richardson bringing home the duo with a single over the pitcher’s mound for his third hit of the game.

Matos’ career day at the plate continued with his seventh double of the year well over the left fielder’s head to score Taladay and Hicks in the eighth. In the bottom-half of the frame, Madrid finished off his longest outing of the year (3 IP, 3 Ks) with a 6-4-3 double play.

Fresh off of breaking the school’s all-time saves record, lefty Joe Rogers appeared in his 74th game as a Knight and retired the Herd in order with two flyouts and his 42nd strikeout of the year to preserve Bryan Brown’s third win of the year.

News & Notes:

-UCF celebrated Mother’s Day at the ballpark as many team mothers and grandmothers made the trip to Charleston, including Kimmy Trivett, who made her first baseball weekend road trip this year with her husband Lynn. The couple made the trek after Kimmy was cleared by her doctors after being recently diagnosed with breast cancer and undergoing radiation treatments. With a clean bill of health, the huge supporters enjoyed the trip which included the entire team signing a Mother’s Day card and posing for a team picture with Kimmy.

• With the two home runs in the contest, UCF has 38 as a team this year
• Friedrich notched his 20th double of the year. The all-time record for UCF is 27 by Dustin Brisson (2000)
• Madrid appeared in relief for the 27th time this year, tying him for fifth all-time in a season at UCF
• The 13 runs were the most scored since the Knights topped FAMU, 16-4, on April 10

On the May 18 episode, Dumas presents his business concept to the ‘sharks’ (the panel of investors) in hopes they bite big and award him investment cash to grow his business.

Dumas is president of Unikey Technologies, makers of a Smartphone application-based entry system for the home. The product allows a resident to simply touch their door to enter their home – no key is required – as long as they have their Smartphone with the Unikey application in their pocket or purse. The product experience is based on today’s keyless entry systems on automobiles, where one can access their car without using a key or pushing a button. As long as the key fob is on them, they simply touch the handle and the car unlocks.

Dumas, who holds a UCF bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, credits his college experience in CECS for the foundation and inspiration that led to his business idea.

“My senior design project at UCF was a system that opened a car door using a cell phone,” Dumas said. “You called your car, entered in your password and the doors unlocked.”

After college, Dumas worked for a small consumer biometrics company that specialized in fingerprint recognition technology. There he worked on a fingerprint door lock system, the SmartScan, which was the first biometric product to get into major home improvement stores.

After leaving the biometrics company, Dumas learned how to run a business while working in the private equity field. All the while, he said, he continued thinking of ways to revolutionize the access-control market.

“I’m an engineer at my core,” Dumas said. “I kept asking, ‘why does the mass market use such an antiquated access system for the home and most other access-control points?”

Using Smartphone and Bluetooth technology, Dumas developed the Unikey idea and launched Unikey Technologies, which joined UCF’s business incubator in 2010. Because of its rapid growth and success, the company ‘graduated’ from the incubator later that year.

The company is now working on the Unikey system with a major lock company but needs capital to make it happen.

Will the Shark Tank judges bite? Find out by watching the series, which airs Fridays, at 8 p.m. Eastern, on ABC. The air date of the episode featuring Unikey Technologies is May 18.

From Earth to the Solar Systems  is a collection of images that showcases the excitement of planetary exploration and the quest to understand the origin and evolution of the solar system. The traveling exhibit celebrates NASA’s Year of the Solar System.

UCF’s Planetary Sciences Group within the College of Sciences arranged to have the exhibit make a stop in Orlando to give community members a chance to see what inspires scientists very day to continue research into the formation of the solar system and the possibility of life beyond Earth. A total of 30 images will be on display through Memorial Day.

“We’re thrilled to have this exhibit of stunning images of the Earth’s immediate neighborhood in the cosmos,” said Joshua Colwell, an associate professor of physics. He also is the director of UCF’s Center for Microgravity Research and Education and interim assistant director of the Florida Space Institute at UCF.  “I think this exhibit will inspire wonder and the thrill of exploration, and it’s a gateway for people to learn more about UCF’s space research programs that span the entire solar system, from Mercury to the comets beyond Pluto.”

The images are artistic and informative, weaving together themes in astrobiology, planetary science, and astronomy. Including contributions from backyard astronomers, large telescopes in space, and even point-and-shoot cameras of field researchers, the collection represents the current state of exploration as seen through the eyes of the scientific community.

The free exhibit – on the third floor of the library –is open to the community from 7:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and from 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Fridays. The exhibit also is open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturdays and from noon to 11 p.m. Sundays. The library will be closed Saturday and Sunday, May 12-13, and Memorial Day. The last day to see the exhibit is May 29.

The exhibit has already made stops in Switzerland, China, Washington, D.C., and California among many others venues.

Among the many agencies collaborating on the project are: the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, the Chandra X-ray Center, NASA’s Astrobiology Institute, National Center for Earth and Space Science Education, and NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.

One of the nation’s most prestigious science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) competitions, Science Olympiad brings together 120 winning middle school and high school teams advancing from state-level competitions this spring. Rigorous hands-on and lab events led by experts from government agencies, top universities and Science Olympiad state chapters cover topics in physics, epidemiology, astronomy, chemistry, meteorology and engineering.

Each gold medal winner in a high school-level event will receive a scholarship to the University of Central Florida worth up to $30,000. Champion teams from the Science Olympiad National Tournaments in 2010 and 2011were invited to Washington, DC, for President Obama’s White House Science Fair. This year, Science Olympiad welcomes a Global Ambassador Team from Japan to the National Tournament. Since 2009, Science Olympiad has worked with the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) and the Ministry for Education (MEXT) to share best practices and science content. In 2012, JST hosted its first-ever Japan High School Science Competition (JHSSC), crowning eight winners from the Saitama Prefecture. The Grand Prize for the competition is a trip to visit the National Tournament, where Japanese students will meet their American peers and participate as guests in selected Science Olympiad events.

UCF facilities will be home to a full day of spectator events (free and open to the public) on Saturday, May 19.  Teams will compete in challenges such as Helicopters, a flight endurance contest powered by rubber-band engines; Storm the Castle, a precision catapult exercise; Mission Possible, a Rube Goldberg device using energy transfers to complete a task; and Gravity Vehicle, a test of a car’s speed, estimation and accuracy. On Friday and Saturday, the US Army ROTC Aviation Adventure Semi and the US Air Force Command Center Alpha will be in Parking Lot D2. These interactive exhibits showcase the science behind each branch of the military, complete with flight simulators, technology displays, digital downloads an actual F-16 Air Force fighter jet. Check out the lineup of events at: http://www.scienceolympiad2012.com/tournament-info/daily-schedule/

Representing Florida Science Olympiad are Orlando Science Middle School, Archimedean Upper Conservatory in Miami, Archimedean Middle Conservatory in Miami and Boca Raton Community High School in Boca Raton.

Local sponsors of the 2012 Science Olympiad National Tournament include the University of Central Florida, Progress Energy and Harris Corporation. Science Olympiad is supported nationally by US Army ROTC, Lockheed Martin, Texas Instruments, US Air Force, Centers for Disease Control (CDC), Discovery Education, DuPont, Google, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Science Kit & Boreal Laboratories, Academy of Model Aeronautics, MAKE Magazine, Society for Neuroscience, The Groundwater Foundation and VWR Education.

Science Olympiad is a Chicago-area-based national nonprofit organization founded in 1984. It is dedicated to improving the quality of K-12 STEM education, increasing student interest in science, creating a technologically literate workforce and providing recognition for outstanding achievement by both students and teachers. Nearly 200,000 students on 6,400 teams from all 50 states competed in 350 regional, state and national Science Olympiad tournaments last year.

That’s the reality 150,000 Americans experience each day because they have Huntington’s disease, referred to as “the monster” by those who have family members with the incurable disease.

Huntington’s is a hereditary disorder in which nerve cells in certain parts of the brain waste away causing physical, mental and emotional destruction. And it tends to hit people at their prime – their 30s and 40s. About 1 in 10,000 people are affected.

Samantha Ulmer, a medical student at the University of Central Florida in Orlando, knows she may be carrying the defective gene that causes the disease. Her grandmother had Huntington’s and died from it. Ulmer has decided not to get tested to find out if she has the gene.

“I’m young and living my life now,” Ulmer said. “At this point, I really don’t want to be focused on what may happen health-wise in 40 years. I want to live my life. I’ve seen the disease and how it affects people. I try very hard not to let the ‘what-ifs’ take over and take me to a dark place.”

Instead the New Jersey native is using her growing medical knowledge and social media skills to enhance the support network for patients in Central Florida.

She said she discovered that most people don’t know much about the disease, research has yet to produce good treatment options – let alone a cure, – and that there’s a support system in Central Florida for those who have the disease or for their caretakers, but few know about it.

Ulmer has worked with James Valvano, a St. Cloud resident and Huntington’s patient to help spread awareness about the needs and resources of people with Huntington’s disease. They used Facebook to survey local Huntington’s patients and their families to determine the services they need – and often are not getting. Part of the problem, advocates say, is that many doctors are unfamiliar with ways to treat the disease.

She’s now advocating for more research and more education, which is why she also is supporting Valvano’s first-of-its-kind project: WeHaveAFace.org. The website is a way to reach out to those with the disease. The website offers tips, resources and an opportunity for people to connect. WeHaveAFace.org is an independent, educational project comprised of a team of individuals within the Huntington’s disease and juvenile Huntington’s disease community.

Valvano also is now producing an international documentary called, “The Faces of Huntington’s disease: I am No Longer a Faceless Face.” The non-profit documentary, supported by Clarice Miller and Deon Leftenant of Deshalamar.org, is the first of its kind to be created solely by people affected by the disease. It’s trailer premiered this month on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/wehaveaface ).

When finished the documentary will tell the story of many people around the globe who have the disease. It addresses how isolating the disease can be, how important finding a cure is and why creating a strong support network is critical.

“Sam is an amazing advocate for Huntington’s disease, and can make a significant impact within our community,” Valvano said. “Her strength and will to bring about awareness is what this community needs.”

Ulmer says she wants to help make others understand how devastating the disease can be to those who have it, their families and friends. Someday she hopes Huntington’s is as recognized as Alzheimer’s, which hopefully will put the disease on the fast track for a viable treatment and cure.

Wendell Raulerson II will receive the distinction when he receives his Bachelor of Music during the 9 a.m. Thursday ceremony for students from the College of Arts & Humanities.

Raulerson, who began playing drums when he was 13 at his father’s Panama City church, is among the first to graduate in UCF’s Jazz Studies track. After his family moved to DeLand, he received his associate’s degree from Daytona State College and started classes at UCF in 2009.

He said he chose to attend UCF because he wanted to stay close to home, knew about the music department and wanted to study under jazz drum instructor Marty Morrell, who also plays in the UCF Jazz Professors band.

“I’ve learned so much, and I’ve had great opportunities to play with some well-known jazz musicians,” said Raulerson, who also plays piano, guitar and bass. “Plus, this is a great faculty. They don’t just sit in the classroom. They travel and are working professionals.”

While attending UCF, he has performed with the UCF Gospel and Cultural Choir, UCF Black Steel steel drum band and RBZ rap group. He has accompanied musicals at numerous theatres in Central Florida, and he’s also had the opportunity to perform with jazz vocalist Kevin Mahogany, trombonist Dave Steinmeyer, the Duke Ellington Orchestra and others.

Raulerson said he would like to model his drumming style after Chris Dave of the Robert Glasper Experiment, which Raulerson said plays a “wonderful fusion of hip-hop and jazz.”

After graduation, Raulerson said he plans to help out at a Salvation Army summer camp, spend some time performing on a cruise ship with a band made up of UCF friends, and then return to Central Florida to pursue a music ministry career.

He said there often is a resemblance between jazz and the music he plays in church because of “the many similarities of harmonies and progressions.”

Raulerson will be the 200,000^th alumnus, but with this week’s commencement ceremonies UCF is expected to reach its 231,278^th degree because some graduates have earned multiple degrees. Student Andrea Long received the 200,000^th degree in 2010.

***

For more information on commencement activities click here.

For more graduation profiles visit:

Against All Odds

Twin Nurses Pay It Forward

Steering Her Own Destiny