From staff to students, there are many poets who call UMBC home. Tim Seibles, a professor at Old Dominion University, joined the UMBC poetry community. In addition to his professorship at Old Dominion, Seibles is a National Book Award Finalist and winner of the Theodore Roethke Prize and is also the Poet Laureate of the state of Virginia and it is no wonder why. To celebrate his visit to the campus, the English department hosted a poetry reading for Seibles in The Gallery of the Albin O. Kuhn library.

His poetry is funny, accessible and raw. Seibles uses images from The Road Runner cartoon, his family life growing up, his love life and even ants, among many other aspects of his life to drive home the message of his poems.

In the second stanza of his poem, “Ode To Your Father,” Sables remarked, “When he yelled at you,/you probably heard/his father yelling at him,/though you couldn’t/recognize the flat “don’t/talk back” settled beneath/his voice like a big bass/at the bottom of a lake.”

The image of Seibles’ father stands as a symbol of everyone’s father. It is Seibles’ use of images, like this one, which makes his poetry so relatable and poignant.

As he read his poetry, Seibles’ smooth voice carried throughout the library gallery, embracing an audience compromised of students and professors alike with many lines in his poetry elicited laughs from the audience.

Beyond his captivating poetry, Seibles himself is a warm being. After the reading, he had personal conversations, signed books and even hugged some especially enthusiastic audience members.

April is National Poetry Month and the perfect excuse to grab a new poetry book (if you really need an excuse to read poetry). You can find “Ode To Your Father” and many other remarkable pieces in Seibles’ latest poetry collection, “One Turn Around The Sun.”

The post Tim Seibles performs poetry reading at A.O. K. library appeared first on The Retriever.

Shared room is available at Westland Gardens townhouses (4773 Chapel Square, Arbutus) - Dates are flexible

-Vacancy: 1

Amenities :-
- It is a 2 bedroom, 1.5 bath townhouse
- Spacious rooms, basement, Full-furnished
- Well equipped kitchen
- Close to UMBC (1 miles); 15 mins to Downtown (5.5 miles)
- UMBC transit bus stop close to the townhouse
- Quiet and safe

If anyone is interested, please drop me an email at vishalr1@umbc.edu.

Dynamically Correcting a CNOT Gate for any Systematic Logical Error

Phys. Rev. Lett. 118, 150502 – Published 10 April 2017

Maryland Humanities, a nonprofit organization based in Baltimore that serves the state with free public humanities programs, seeks a Program Assistant. The Program Assistant provides assistance to the Program Officer responsible for a set of programs in order to provide program support and general administrative support.

In light of issues students have been having with parking permits, Deputy Chief of Police Paul Dillon and Parking Services Director Charles Boddy have stated there are plans for a license plate recognition system to be implemented in Fall 2018 where paper permits will be replaced with “virtual” permits.

License Plate Recognition is essentially when one captures photographic video or images of license plates, which are then processed by a series of algorithms that then convert the images to a text entry. A series of six algorithms have to be used in order for it to work: localization, orientation, normalization, segmentation, recognition and analysis. This requires thousands of lines of code and specialized hardware from cameras, illuminators and the specific algorithms. The cost is dependent on the type of system installed. According to a LPR Report, the cost can range from $10,000 to $20,000 apiece. The price is dependent on the number of cameras an agency needs and the location of it.

This technology will be employed where the individual’s license plate will be connected to the permit. As individuals drive, cameras will scan the license plate. They will associate the plate with a permit for that particular lot. Dillion stated, “This system will be designed to assist parking services; however, the software can be tied into databases that would identify stolen cars or owners who have open warrants. This would certainly aid police.”

According to Dillion, License Plate Recognition will “scan” plates much more quickly to see if they are in the system or not. According to Boddy, “In the industry, especially the university, it appears some of the issues we’re having such as “I didn’t have my permit; I drove my mom’s car” could be brought down by LPR.  It could help bring down the citations. Based off the issues, it can help.” There also can be multiple permits attached to a license plate as well.

There still has to be a lot of work done to implement this new camera system as cameras, software, computers, wiring and installation have to be employed. Cameras have to be attached to the SUVs where said cameras would take pictures of the license plates of individuals. Cost, as mentioned above, also has to be considered before implementing the potential system.

Even if there will be new stationary technology implemented to scan license plates, there will still be personnel walking around ticketing.

In regards to the legality of the use of License Plate Recognition technology on campus, Dillon assured that it was well within legal bounds. He explained, “A license plate on a vehicle is designed to help identify the owner of a vehicle. That is its main purpose.”

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In UMBC’s most recent Studio3 production, “Suddenly Last Summer,” the characters face critical decisions about one thing that could simultaneously help or hurt them: the truth.

In the original screenplay by Tennessee Williams and UMBC’s production directed by Hannah Kennedy, the mystery of Sebastian’s death makes its way into every aspect of his family’s lives. His mother, Mrs. Venable, played by Kathrin Bizzarro, is a very eccentric, very set-in-stone personality. His cousin Catherine, played by Leah White, a third year BFA in acting, was the only present character at the time of Sebastian’s death. Even then, she walked up to his body after the fact, introducing understandable doubt, confusion and denial from the other characters at her recollection.

Mrs. Venable hires a doctor, played by senior Ramon Burris, to evaluate her late-husband’s niece and to hopefully place her in a stricter mental hospital. After Catherine again explains in great detail what she experienced, Mrs. Venable still doesn’t believe a word she says — or at least, refuses to.

We were able to talk to Leah White and Ramon Burris to hear their version of the truth about “Suddenly Last Summer” and their acting experiences at UMBC.

The characters in the play are very intense. How do you prepare to go onstage and become someone completely different?

LW: Tennessee Williams is a remarkable writer and writes extremely rich and complex roles for women that I believe need a variety of rehearsal techniques to unlock. In my training at UMBC, we go through intensive courses that study Stanislavki’s method, Fitzmaurice Voice Work and Alexander Technique for Movement. During a show process, it is the actors’ responsibility to apply these techniques and rehearse with them. I do a lot of research on my characters and the world that they live in whenever I am cast, but I believe it is important to always seek their ‘human’ elements. I always ask myself ‘what makes them fragile?’, ‘What makes them strong?’, and ‘What do they want?’

RB: The preparation comes from the training we get. My main focus is making sure I’m very familiar with the script and familiar with the world of play. After that, I go about filling in my acting work with the information I’ve come across. I make sure that I know who I am in the world of the play, what I want, and what I have to win and lose, and from there – things such as intensity or happiness or sadness – those things happen organically.

What interested you in pursuing theater and, more specifically, this play/role?

LW: I think what drew me to this play in particular is the discussion and desperate drive for truth in the world. I think even in our modern world it is hard to know who to believe and it is interesting to discover what people are willing to believe. The show itself is abrupt, chilling, at some points comical, but has this beautifully fragile element. That is what I am always attracted to in theatre, the fragility of the world of the piece.

RB: My interest in theatre grew from my interest in film and finding out that many of my favorite film actors started out in the theatre. Most actors that have made a strong and diversified career out of acting have come from a theatre background and it’s because they have the tools to do so. In our program we don’t pursue specific roles. We audition and we play as cast but, it’s a good thing I did get cast in this play because it has been a blessing for my growth as an actor.

Did this play and these characters teach you anything that you hope to take into future performances?

LW: I have learned so much through this production about how to handle a role like Catherine. Most of all, I have learned how to prepare for inspiration. I have learned how to put in as much work as I can and then to let that work inspire me through a performance. I want to take that aspect with me into future productions.

RB: I had to put a focus on my listening, which is a skill an actor must have to do strong work. Going into future performances, I’ll remember how important it is to hear everything the other person is saying and doing in order to propel me forward in the action of the play.

Editor’s note: Ramon Burris is a former Retriever staff member

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“One thing I always try to follow is, life is too short [you should] help someone else.”

“....It’s like a little world in an office”