Category: In the Headlines

Imagine a digital watermark that could remove the guesswork and actually flag AI-generated text whenever someone submits their writing. A University of Florida engineering professor is developing this technology right now.

Two online engineering graduate programs at the University of Florida cracked the Top 15 – one hitting No. 10 – on U.S. News & World Report’s list of the 2025 Best Online Programs.

The University of Florida will lead one of seven regional hubs of a new, $285 million nationwide institute dedicated to advancing America’s semiconductor industry through next-generation simulations known as digital twins. 

UF cybersecurity professor Kevin Butler developed the framework, which spells out guidance for countries to prevent fraud and abuse on mobile cash apps. Cash apps are the prominent form of banking in Africa, South America and Southeast Asia and can leave people vulnerable to losing their life savings.

NIH New Innovator Award recipients and engineering professors Adam Khalifa and Xiao Fan are advancing medical research in groundbreaking ways. Khalifa is working with microscopic, injectable devices, while Fan is exploring DNA functionality using language models.

Khrysten Sears Spencer (B.A. ’09), one of the first Bernie Machen Opportunity Scholars, is watching her daughter Allannah Dean become a member of the class of 2028. Allanah plans to pursue an engineering degree.

MAE professor John Conklin’s research is being harnessed by UF’s Astraeus Space Institute to give scientists unprecedented insights into universe-shaping events.

In Polk County, University of Florida researchers have designed a wetlands-filtration system to solve the problem of leachate – the liquid that filters to the bottom of the landfill at tens of thousands of gallons per day.

UF scientists are asking the question: Why do people experience pain differently? The answer may be found in a surprising place: valuable human tissue that would otherwise be thrown away after surgery.

Cocaine sharks have been in the news of late, and scientist and triple Gator Tracy Fanara’s name surfaces in many of those reports. Outlets from NPR to Forbes have reported on sharks consuming cocaine dumped in the waters off Brazil, quoting Fanara as an environmental scientist.