Luke 5:1-11

1 One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. 2 He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. 3 He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”

5 Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”

6 When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 7 So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

8 When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!”9 For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10 and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.

Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” 11 So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

Reflect:

While many Jews doubted Jesus, choosing to believe their own beliefs and biases over His message, there were some who believed and responded in faith. As we can see in today’s passage, how different is the response of Simon Peter compared to the unbelieving Jews! We can contrast his response to Jesus to what we read about in Day 1 (Luke 5:1-11).

The Jews who heard Jesus’ message in Luke 5:1-11 were unable to overcome their preconceived notions and biases about Jesus. They could not see past the absurdity of the neighborhood boy as the ‘bread of life.’ Ultimately, it can be said that they did not recognize who Jesus really was and their grumbling sums up their attitude and doubts.

Jesus also confronts Simon with something ‘absurd.’ In this story we see how Jesus, a carpenter, tells Simon, a professional fisherman, to put out his nets for fish. Simon certainly knew more fish would likely be caught after dark. Essentially, Jesus tells Simon to do something that in a fisherman’s opinion would be pointless. But in contrast to the unbelieving Jews, he was able to see past his own preconceived notions and beliefs. He followed Jesus’ direction, even though it went against what he knew best. Simon’s response showed that he had caught a glimpse of who Jesus really was. As the nets began to break, Simon’s instant reaction was to see himself in light of God’s holiness. His humble response is in stark contrast to the grumbling of the unbelieving Jews!

Respond:

Today, are there areas in our hearts that are grumbling and doubting Jesus’ call? Let’s let go of our doubts and biases. May we readily respond to Jesus’ call in faith and obedience. In the end, the unbelieving Jews missed not only Jesus’ message, but they missed his invitation to receive and experience true life. For Simon, his encounter with the Lord was the beginning of discipleship. It was the beginning of a new life of purpose and calling. As we pray today, let’s ask for the obedience and humility that Simon demonstrated, let’s pray for a new openness in our hearts to take Jesus at his word and to respond to the called life.

Work on projectwith Dr. Maggie Holland, Dept. of Geography and Environmental Systems (GES), evaluating conservation and development projects in Central America. 

Position description:

This undergraduate research assistant would become part of a project focused on evaluating the impact of trans-boundary conservation efforts related to the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor (MBC) in Central America.  I am conducting this research in collaboration with colleagues from Conservation International (CI) and the Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) of the World Bank.  In the fall semester, the student will assist in the dissemination of an on-line survey of Central American civil society groups.  Under my guidance, the research assistant will compile survey responses into a database format and assist in basic analysis of those responses.  The student would also communicate with universities and research centers within Central America to compile an inventory of academic research and programs that were developed as a result of the MBC.  During the spring semester, I will work closely with the research assistant to develop a geospatial analysis of conservation and development funding flows related to the MBC.  Each of these activities will contribute to a publication on the MBC, and I expect that this student will have the opportunity to contribute in a meaningful way to these final products.    

I am looking for an undergraduate student in her/his first four semesters at UMBC, with a strong interest in applied conservation, international research, and geospatial analysis.  She/he must have strong Spanish language skills (ability to read text and write short e-mail communications), and the ability to search on-line databases and compile data within simply spreadsheet programs.  Experience using GIS software is an added bonus.  This is a paid research assistantship, and would represent approximately 5-6 hours/week for the remainder of the fall semester, and 3-5 hours/week in the spring.

If interested, please send an e-mail to Dr. Maggie Holland, at: mholland@umbc.edu, no later than Thursday, October 27^th, 2011.  Please include in your e-mail a statement of your current status at UMBC (confirm that you are within your first four semesters), your interest in this project, and your experience/background.  I welcome GES majors to apply, but will also give consideration to non-GES majors who otherwise fulfill the required skillset.  

EE Graduate Seminar

Detection and Classification of Chemical, Biological, and Explosive
Materials: A Brief Overview of Several Cutting-Edge Problem Areas

Darren Emge
PI and Deputy Branch Chief
Laser Standoff Detection Branch
US Army Edgewood Chemical Biological Center

11:30am-12:45pm Friday, 21 October 11, ITE 231

The detection and classification of chemical, biological, and explosive (CBE) materials is an area of extremely active research. With the advent of new sensor technologies and sensing methods there is the rapidly growing need for timely robust detection and classification algorithms. Several factors associated with emerging sensors offer novel challenges for the signal processing community. As sensor platforms become more mobile the added complexities of "on the move" standoff detection requires the use of non-stationary and adaptive methods. Ever increasing overall sensitivity introduces variations in signal response and many methods currently lack adequate performance models or ground truth. Reduction in size, weight, and power, along with real time performance, further limit approaches that can be used in addressing these issues. This presentation will provide a brief overview of several of these cutting edge problem areas and offer a glimpse into this challenging problem space.

Mr. Darren Emge earned a BS in Physics from UMBC in 1992. He then went to work for the University of Maryland Medical System, Department of Neurology. During his time at University Medical System, he developed analysis algorithms for evoked response potentials (ERP), functional magnetic resonance (fMRI), or neuronal mapping. He also supported the cognitive psychology group in the development of a pupil motion tracking system in the study of dyslexia. Mr. Emge earned the MSEE from UMBC/CSEE Dept in 2000. In 2001 He joined the US Army ECBC passive detection team investigating advanced mathematical techniques for the detection of chemical vapors based on Fourier transform infrared (FTRI) imaging. In 2003 Mr. Emge was promoted to a Principal Investigator (PI) in the laser standoff detection branch, where he currently serves as PI and Deputy Branch Chief. His current work is in the areas of the detection of small signals, detection of non-stationary signals, and the application of non-linear signal processing methods for the detection of biological and trace chemical/explosive materials.

Seminar Host: Prof. Joel M. Morris

Chartwells, which operates dining services programs at over 200 colleges and universities nationwide, just named UMBC Dining Services “National Account of the Year.” The award is given annually to the university account that demonstrates excellence in several areas, including customer service, customer satisfaction, community service, diversity and growth.

In particular, dining services has worked hard to incorporate its employees into the larger UMBC culture, which pays off in both employee and customer satisfaction. Tom DeLuca, resident district manager for UMBC Dining Services, said the award “validates the efforts of our team and our commitment to being the best—having a quality food program backed up by the best service possible.”

Tweens, teens, and kids of all ages are “plugged in,” and parents are always looking for ways to make sure their time on the internet is safe and productive.

ABC reports that Joan Korenman, professor emerita of English, is helping parents achieve that goal: she created a page on UMBC’s web site that holds a host of links to “websites for girls.” 

Korenman is also the founding director of UMBC’s gender and women’s studies program and CWIT.  She moderates WMST-L, one of the longest running online academic discussion lists, and she started work on the “websites for girls” while directing CWIT. Her UMBC web page provides additional resources on gender issues and resources in women’s studies.

The story, “Looking for websites to encourage and challenge your tween or teen? Here are 5 places to start” appeared on the ABC website on October 12.