October 19-25th is National Chemistry Week (NCW). The theme for this year is “The Sweet Side of Chemistry: Candy.”

In conjunction with this week-long celebration of chemistry, each day the National Science Foundation has been highlighting a different “sweet molecule” in a stop-motion video post. These posts also give mention to the lead scientist(s) working on any relevant NSF research projects.

The video post about glucose mentions CSEE professor and NSF-funded engineer Gymama Slaughter, who has created a new type of sensor that is entirely powered by glucose. This wireless, implantable sensor can be used to monitor the blood sugar level in medical patients. A short video about the glucose sugar molecule can be found below.

You can find out more about National Chemistry Week here.

With much discussion in Women’s Center staff meetings about actively applying our work in the Center as student staff members to other areas of our lives, I have recently been thinking a lot about how my experiences and education in social justice and activism coincide with the various roles and responsibilities I hold outside of the Center. Currently in the process of working towards receiving teacher certification in elementary education, one of my most valued roles this academic year is my internship as a student teacher in a fourth grade classroom. Watching my students embrace new concepts and grow as individuals each week has not only brought an immense amount of pleasure and fulfillment into my life, but it has also caused me to think rather critically about how learning in the classroom translates outside to the “real world”. I’m not talking about how that math equation we learned last week can help us to calculate a tip on a restaurant bill, or how that new vocabulary word can be used to impress our relatives, but instead about how simple classroom dynamics can set a pretty important example for those of us who are long removed from our own elementary school classrooms.

Although we live in a society that preaches equality and fairness, perhaps one of the most important concepts I have learned in the classroom thus far is that equality and fairness are far from interchangeable terms. Imagine a classroom where students are instructed to independently read a chapter out of a textbook and take notes on what they are reading. Several students are reading quietly to themselves and taking notes on a sheet of paper, while another student is listening to an audiobook through headphones, and yet another student is talking to a classroom volunteer who is writing notes down for the student. If this were an equal environment, all students would be required to complete the assignment in the exact same way. But is equality in this situation really fair? Without certain accommodations, students with learning disabilities or special needs may be unable to complete the assignment on their own. The truth is, equality is only fair when everyone is the exact same to begin with. This is an extremely unlikely situation not only in the classroom, but in life in general. Instead of promoting fairness amongst individuals within a community, in actuality equality erases differences that exist within a group of individuals and only supports those with the most privilege. Equality is a “colorblind” approach to fairness and it can be especially harmful when it prevents students from lower income families and those who struggle with disabilities from obtaining the resources they need to succeed.

Because not all students (or people, for that matter) are born with the same abilities and some experience challenges that inhibit that their success, some individuals need more resources in order to just catch up to their peers. Therefore instead of talking about equality, we need to focus on another approach: equity. While equality simply seeks to level the playing field for everyone, equity seeks to provide more resources to those who need them. Take for example the large population of English Language Learners (ELLs) attending schools today. These students are often significantly behind their native-English speaking peers- not because they are unintelligent, but because they lack an upbringing that enables them to understand the language in which they are being taught. Therefore, these ELL students need more resources (perhaps in the form of ESOL classes or classroom accommodations) simply just to survive in the school system. Equity forces us to examine various privileges that exist within a community or a society and prompts us to make certain accommodations that will assist those with a lack of privilege. Instead of seeing just one route to success, equity forces us to pave multiple roads for multiple people. It isn’t an easy process by any means, but the extra work we put into through society through creating equitable situations brings us closer to fairness than equality ever will.

CSEE Professor Chintan Patel and computer engineering student Gurashish Singh recently demonstrated a prototype system that can detect distracted driving behavior at the ATPA expo, the largest gathering of industries involved with transportation. Their novel wearable proximity sensor-based system alerts drivers who show signs of falling asleep, being distracted or driving dangerously.

The project is a collaboration between Professors Ryan Robucci, Chintan Patel and Nilanjan Banerjee. The system was built by graduate students Gurashish Singh and Tsu An Chen. This short video shows some of the dangerous behaviors being detected.

Name: Gretchen Quiteles

Internship, Co-op or Research Site: Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL)

Major(s)/Minor(s): Health Administration and Policy

Expected Graduation Year: December 2014

Briefly describe your internship, co-op, research, or service-learning opportunity, including your day-to-day tasks, responsibilities, and assignments.

When I come in I assist Hilary Strahota, the Senior Specialist of Communications. Since I've started I have transcribed an audio interview she had with one of the Emergency and Preparedness personnel from the CDC (Center for Disease Control). I have also been helping her keep track of the publications for the upcoming fiscal year. A big project I will be working on throughout my internship is sorting through all the photos the association has had since the beginning and determining which ones will be used for future publications. Responsibilities I have is to assist with the APHL twitter account, help proofread and edit publications, research images for articles and create weekly e-newsletter updates when needed.

Describe the process of obtaining your internship, research, or co-op opportunity.

This past summer I was on many job search engines and learned about Indeed. I didn't think I would be able to find an internship to my liking but when I found the internship position I applied immediately. When they sent me an e-mail about a phone screening for the position I prepped myself. I did the same prep for the team interviews that followed. I usually prep by reading through my resumes, reviewing my LinkedIn profile and thinking about my past leadership skills in organizations. After I prep I think of possibly interview questions and create answers that would strengthen my application. But before the phone screening and interviews, I always sat myself down and took a deep breath so I could relax. That's how I knew I wanted the position the most and it definitely helps.

Which of the following resources did you use to find your current experience?

Indeed.com

What have you enjoyed the most about your position or organization/company?

I really enjoyed learning how influential this association is to public health. I never knew that this association is the reason why the CDC receives funding and how they retrieve the data needed to send out the public. Every time I come into the office I feel as if I learn something new about current public health issues and I love it!

What have you gained from your experience that you could not have gained from another opportunity?

Everyone in the workplace has their own work ethic and personality that creates a team. With each personality it can really strengthen a team. Diversity is what is needed the most to achieve a lot.

What advice would you give to another student who is seeking an internship or similar experience?

Always listen to your gut. Never give up applying to places. I was rejected by many internships that I thought would be perfect for me and when I got the offer for APHL I was happy the other places rejected me.

Please provide a short quote about what you liked most about your position / earning internship credit / the internship placement process.

Working with an open mind can take you further than you can imagine.

UMBC CYBR MPS students Zack Rich and Jeff Scheier (pictured) are interns at the NIST National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE) in Rockville, MD.

On October 15, 2014, they presented NCCoE use case projects to leading cybersecurity experts from both the private and public domains at the NCCoE’s fall Open House on education and workforce development.

Zack’s project aims to simplify the risk analysis and standards mapping for the health IT sector to create a bridge between security technologies and government standards recommendations. Jeff’s project focuses on providing a foundation for e-commerce businesses to implement easy and low cost network security systems.

Both students are enrolled in UMBC’s graduate cybersecurity program at the Universities at Shady Grove campus. CSEE lecturer and Assistant CYBR GPD Ben Shariati (also pictured) is the academic advisor for students in the NCCoE internship program.

One of the best summer research opportunities out there-- in nearby Gaithersburg, MD.  For students in physics, material science, chemistry, applied mathematics, computer science, or engineering.  Paid accommodations. 

UPCOMING FALL SURF WORKSHOPS

Wednesday, December 3rd

12-1 p.m.

Sherman Hall, Rm.150

Monday, December 8th

4-5:30 p.m.

Sherman Hall, Rm.114

To be placed on a list to receive occasional updates, email Devon Fick at dfick1@umbc.edu