“What is our current understanding of foreignness and otherness? What is the threshold at which something becomes ‘other’ or ‘foreign’?” These remarks by IMDA MFA candidate Victor Torres, recently appeared in a review of his project, “Highlandtown Pop-Up” by The Baltimore Guide. IMDA MFA candidate, Kata Frederick, also appeared in a performance at the event.

“Highlandtown Pop-Up” was made possible through a partnership between Highlandtown Main Street, a program of the Southeast Community Development Corp., the Highlandtown Arts District, and the Community Outreach Program of UMBC’s Center for Art, Design and Visual Culture (CADVC).

As member of the Highlandtown Arts District, Sandra Abbott, curator of collections and outreach, CADVC, appreciates the chance to create community partnerships, in which UMBC graduate students have the opportunity to showcase their work in Baltimore City.

• Thwarting Obfuscated Malware via Differential Fault Analysis 
  Guillermo Suarez-Tangil, Juan E. Tapiador, Flavio Lombardi, and Roberto Di Pietro describe how detecting malware in mobile applications is increasingly complex as malware developers are better able to hide or obfuscate malicious components. Alterdroid is a dynamic-analysis tool that compares behavioral differences between an original app and numerous automatically generated versions of it containing carefully injected modifications.
  
• RootGuard: Protecting Rooted Android Phones
  Though popular for achieving full operation functionality, rooting Android phones opens these devices to significant security threats. Yuru Shao, Xiapu Luo, and Chenxiong Qian describe how RootGuard offers protection from malware with root privileges while providing user flexibility and control.
  
• Smart AppStore: Expanding the Frontiers of Smartphone Ecosystems
  According to Félix Gómez Mármol, Gregor Rozinaj, Sebastian Schumann, Ondrej Lábaj, and Juraj Kačur, Smart AppStore offers five important features for today's smartphone users: biometric authentication, multilevel authorization, gesture recognition and navigation, user-tailored reputation scores, and identity management.
  
• Securing the "Bring Your Own Device" Paradigm
  The current mobile application distribution model cannot cope with the complex security requirements of the emerging "bring your own device" (BYOD) paradigm. Alessandro Armando, Gabriele Costa, Luca Verderame, and Alessio Merlo explain how a secure metamarket architecture supports the definition and enforcement of BYOD policies and offers a promising prototype implementation tested under realistic conditions. 
  
• Security in the Firefox OS and Tizen Mobile Platforms
  Olga Gadyatskaya, Fabio Massacci, and Yury Zhauniarovich explore how emerging mobile platforms Firefox OS and Tizen are learning from Android's security successes and trying to avoid its limitations. Although these platforms offer largely novel solutions, they can still learn from one another.
  

June 2014

Innovative Maryland Businesses Honored at 14th Annual Incubator Company of the Year Awards

COLUMBIA, Md. (June 11, 2014) – The Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO), Lonza Group LTD, Saul Ewing LLP, Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development (DBED), McGladrey LLP, M&T Bank, BioMaryland Center and the Maryland Business Incubation Association (MBIA) announced the winners of the 14^th annual Incubator Company of the Year Awards on Tuesday evening at the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore, Md. The awards, chosen by a selection committee of regional industry leaders and early-stage investors, recognized the achievements of current and graduate companies within Maryland’s incubators.

“The Maryland Incubator Company of the Year Awards recognizes ultimate achievement within our State’s business incubator network,” said DBED Secretary Dominick Murray. “In the fourteenth year of this awards program, companies are continuing to develop groundbreaking technologies, services and products that are not only changing the way we think in Maryland, but the world. We congratulate this year’s winners and look forward to watching them grow in the mainstream marketplace.”

Winning companies were selected based on their goals and success in achieving their objectives. Judges considered factors such as technology or product development, intellectual property, increase in employee numbers, growth in revenue or earnings, engagement of significant customers and strategic partners, receipt of awards or grants, attraction of outside investors, innovation, self-sufficiency, impact on the region and usage of the incubator’s services.

In addition to the Incubator Company of the Year awards, Frank Bonsal, Jr., special partner at New Markets Venture Partners, was recognized at the awards ceremony with the Robert A. Spar Hall of Fame Award for his contributions to entrepreneurship and the success of Maryland incubators. Mr. Bonsal has more than 30 years of exemplary venture capital experience, including co-founding New Enterprise Associates (NEA), a venture capital firm, and is an advisor to multiple organizations.

“The 2014 Incubator Company of the Year winners represent some of the most innovative startups in the State,” said Rob Rosenbaum, president and executive director of TEDCO. “TEDCO provided early-stage funding and grants to several of these honorees and we are proud of their success. We congratulate these talented companies and look forward to watching them thrive.”

“The Maryland Business Incubation Association is delighted to be a partner with ICOY, the premiere annual event highlighting the great accomplishments of Maryland’s incubator companies and incubator graduate companies,” said Robert Snyder, president of MBIA and Incubator Manager of Bethesda Green. “We congratulate all of the 2014 ICOY winners for gaining this competitively won recognition.”

“These celebrated companies highlight our State’s expansive incubator system,” said Gianna Arnold, partner at Saul Ewing. “Incubators provide entrepreneurs with resources and support they need to thrive, as well as inspire these companies to develop technology and consumer driven solutions to grow Maryland’s economy. We are proud to recognize these honorees on their accomplishments and look forward to their future growth.”

The categories and winners are:

Best Consumer Tech & Technology Services Company
Ntensify (ETC) partners with brands to create a branded in-app store and offers end-to-end design, production and logistics capabilities.

Best Education Technology Company
Citelighter Inc. (Betamore) is a research and writing platform that helps students organize materials for writing papers and lets teachers track their students’ progress.

Best Environment/Energy Company
SOL VISTA (SSIC) offers simple and innovative solutions that increase energy and water efficiency in commercial buildings while significantly increasing owner profits.

Best Graduate Company
Keffa Coffee (TGBI) imports and offers Ethiopian Specialty-Grade coffees to Maryland residents.

Best Life Sciences Company
Rehabtics (ETC) develops a software system for physical rehabilitation using motion-controlled video games for use both in institutions and at home.

Best New Incubator Company
Allovue (ETC) streamlines school financial management processes into one data visualization application that helps school leaders navigate the budget process, manage multiple funding streams, track expenses, allocate spending money to teachers, identify trends over time, and plan for future capital investments.

Best Security Company
Light Point Security (UMBC) is a cybersecurity company dedicated to stopping malware infections delivered through web browsers.

Incubator Key: Betamore, Baltimore; Emerging Technology Center (ETC), Baltimore; Silver Spring Innovation Center (SSIC), Silver Spring , TowsonGlobal Business Incubator (TGBI), Towson and bwtech@UMBC at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC).

Application finalists and category winners are chosen by a group of regional industry leaders and early-stage investors. The selection committee this year includes Henry Ahn, TEDCO; Jacqueline Allen, Esquire, Saul Ewing LLP; Meg Anderson, Oracle Capital Strategies, LLC; Gianna Arnold, Esquire, Saul Ewing LLP; Donna Balinkie, Firedrive Marketing Group; Philip Bogart, Esquire, Saul Ewing LLP; Mary Brightman, Saul Ewing LLP; John Cammack, Cammack Associates LLC; Rebecca Carland, Goldman Sachs & Co.; Brian Castleberry, DBED; Joey Tsu-Yi Chen, Saul Ewing LLP; Martha Connolly, University of Maryland; Brian Darmody, University of Maryland, College Park; Robb Doub, New Markets Venture Partners; E.J. Edelman, McGladrey LLP; Alex Euler; Donald Fallon, Valens Therapeutics, Inc.; Yair Flicker, SmartLogic Solutions; John Fortin, Lonza America Inc.; David J. Freschman, CPA, MBA, Innovation Capital Advisors; Yali Friedman, Ph.D., thinkBiotech LLC; Fulya Gursel, TEDCO; Rosel Halle, Johns Hopkins University; Kathryn Hickey, Saul Ewing LLP; Terrence A. Hogan, Willis; Jack Hollerbach, Hollerbach & Associates LLC; David Hurwitz, TriSun Financial; Konstantina Katcheves, Esquire, Lonza America, Inc.; Richard A. Kohr, Jr., CPA, Evergreen Advisors LLC; Mark Luterman, Primax Ventures, LLC; Alastair Mackay, Ph.D., Maryland Venture Fund; Dan Mallon, Emergent BioSolutions; Brian Merritt, CPA, McGladrey LLP; Andrew Michael, M&T Bank; Misrach Mitiku, MD Venture Fund; Eric Nass, Chesapeake Corporate Advisories, LLC;  Eric Orlinsky, Esquire, Saul Ewing LLP; Sam Polakoff, Startup Maryland; Heather Pruger, Saul Ewing LLP; Jay Reilly, Saul Ewing LLP; Michael L. Salgaller, Ph.D., The Conafay Group; Douglas Schmidt, Chessicap Securities, Inc.; Paul Silber, Silber Associates; Jae Sly, Ph.D., Strategic BioPharm Consulting, Inc.; C. Wyatt Somogyi, Epidarex Capital; and Niall Sweeney.

The Conquer site provides resources for undergraduate students interested in research, graduate school, and research careers in computing-related fields. It also provides resources for faculty mentors, looking to engage and advise undergraduates in research and prepare them for graduate school in computing fields. The site is maintained by the Computing Research Association, an organization (of which our department is a member!) with the mission to enhance innovation by joining with industry, government and academia to strengthen research and advanced education in computing.

Specific topics of interest to undergraduate students that are covered are:

• What is computing research
• Finding research opportunities
• Undergraduate research awards
• Why go to graduate school?
• The graduate school application process

Denise Meringolo, associate professor of history and director of the public history program at UMBC, recently sat down for an interview about her collaborative methods for training the next generation of public historians.