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Fall 2021聽触听By Robert Stephens | Illustrations by Patrick Fennessy聽

The world came to a screeching halt on Aug. 14, 2003 麻豆精品 S� or聽at least it did for 50 million people across the northeastern聽United States and into Canada. On that day a tree branch聽brushed against a power line in Ohio, starting a series of聽failures that became the most widespread blackout in聽North American history. Traffic lights from Boston to聽Toronto went black. Subways in New York sat still. Roller聽coasters in Ohio stopped mid-climb. Communication聽systems went silent, leaving people to wonder, 麻豆精品 S淲hat 麻豆精品 S檚聽going on? 麻豆精品 S�

The massive outage, less than two years after the聽terrorist attacks of 9/11, reminded Americans of the need聽to have the world 麻豆精品 S檚 smartest people on our side, furthering聽research to improve our security and way of life. UCF聽researchers are leading the way in many areas. They see聽the future, anticipate covert threats, and envision real聽ways to protect everything and everyone by fortifying our聽infrastructure, advancing our technology, and training the聽next generation who will carry on their charge.

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STRENGTHENING OUR聽POWER GRID

Wei Sun, Associate Professor, Electrical Engineering聽and Computer Science
Project headquarters: UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 Siemens Digital Grid Lab
Partners: U.S. Department of Energy, Open Energy聽Solutions, Duke Energy, Consumers Energy, Virginia Tech

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Nearly 7,000 miles from the epicenter of the Northeast聽blackout of 2003, Associate Professor Wei Sun, then a聽student at Tianjin University in China, sat, coincidentally,聽in a class about power systems. A different question came聽to his mind: How could that possibly happen in the聽United States?

麻豆精品 S淭hat 麻豆精品 S檚 part of the reason I 麻豆精品 S檓 doing this, 麻豆精品 S� says Sun. In聽front of him is a monitor displaying a simulated digitized聽grid of substations, transmission lines and homes. In the聽simulation, a red dot occasionally appears. 麻豆精品 S淭hat 麻豆精品 S檚 a gap聽where a serious breakdown could occur. 麻豆精品 S�

Sun conducted his doctoral research on the 2003聽blackout and recovery when blackouts typically traced back聽to fallen branches, failed transformers or overloaded systems.聽But America 麻豆精品 S檚 energy structure has grown exponentially聽more complex, which is why Sun came to UCF and is leading聽energy resiliency efforts.

Here, he 麻豆精品 S檚 collaborating with faculty, students, corporate聽partners and the Department of Energy to explore聽methods to prevent the newest version of a devastating聽power loss: cyberattacks.

麻豆精品 S淥ur power grid evolves daily, 麻豆精品 S� says Sun. 麻豆精品 S淲e constantly add to it with solar, wind and batteries. But every time a聽component is added, it opens a potentially vulnerable gap聽for someone else with bad intentions. 麻豆精品 S�

As Americans continue to invest in solar and wind聽power, hackers discover more opportunities to wreak聽havoc by targeting whole systems.

麻豆精品 S淸Hackers are] more likely to think bigger and shut聽down transportation, communication and financial聽systems, 麻豆精品 S� says Sun.

And they do it with far less drama than a lightning strike.

Just before Christmas in 2015, hackers disrupted聽power to 230,000 people in Ukraine. It 麻豆精品 S檚 believed to have聽started with a phishing email. In late 2019, cyberattackers聽snuck malware into Texas-based SolarWinds 麻豆精品 S� system and聽eventually spied on clients for nine months before the bug聽was discovered and removed.

麻豆精品 S淚t 麻豆精品 S檚 hard to get into the mind of a cyberattacker, 麻豆精品 S� says聽Sun, 麻豆精品 S渂ut that 麻豆精品 S檚 what our team is trying to do. 麻豆精品 S�

Sun 麻豆精品 S檚 team uses mathematical equation simulation and聽hardware test beds to develop graphical power grids聽like the one on his screen. Within each grid, algorithms聽monitor and update behaviors. The red dot shows up the聽moment something misbehaves, and a warning is shared聽systemwide, triggering proactive defense and initiating聽adaptive self-healing actions. It 麻豆精品 S檚 similar to the software聽that credit card companies use to immediately notify聽customers of suspicious purchases.

麻豆精品 S淸Hackers are] more likely to聽think bigger and shut down聽transportation, communication聽and financial systems. 麻豆精品 S澛�

Wei Sun, associate professor of electrical engineering and computer science

The Department of Energy thinks so highly of the聽technology that it awarded Sun 麻豆精品 S檚 group a $3.2 million聽grant in August to keep the momentum going. A team of聽corporate partners and universities are contributing to a聽$1.55 million cost-share for additional research.

The goal is to eventually implement the program into聽a utility test bed with Duke Energy in the Southeast and聽Consumers Energy in the Midwest.

麻豆精品 S淓very day attackers are trying to break into the grid,听补nd we can only imagine what they want to do, 麻豆精品 S� says Sun.聽 麻豆精品 S淲ith this, we can be stealthier than they are, and stay a聽step ahead. 麻豆精品 S�

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STRENGTHENING OUR聽DEFENSE

Konstantin Vodopyanov, 21st Century Chair,聽Professor, Optics and Photonics, and Physics
Project headquarters:
Partners: NASA, Air Force, Navy, U.S. Department聽of Defense

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In an indiscreet space on the east side of UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 campus,聽Professor Konstantin Vodopyanov looks around. 麻豆精品 S淚t聽happened right here, in this room, 麻豆精品 S� he says. Three years聽ago, he saw what no one else could see.

麻豆精品 S淲e all know certain molecules and isotopes are in the聽air we breathe, 麻豆精品 S� Vodopyanov says, 麻豆精品 S渂ut to see 10 of them聽defined with certainty 麻豆精品 S� that was a big step for us. 麻豆精品 S�

It had taken more than a decade for Vodopyanov to聽develop the special table-mounted laser in his CREOL聽lab. With it, he could identify water droplets and聽carbon dioxide 麻豆精品 S� not surprising. But he also saw carbon聽monoxide, methane and nitrogen dioxide, which occur聽naturally but can also be toxic in heavy concentrations.

How could he be 100% sure of what he saw with the laser?

麻豆精品 S淚 read the 麻豆精品 S榖ar codes, 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S� says Vodopyanov.

If you could see into the infrared spectrum, you聽might see that each molecule is encoded with a series聽of resonances, or lines. Vodopyanov 麻豆精品 S檚 laser can see all of聽them. It sends a beam across a room or between buildings,聽combing the bar codes on those microscopic molecules the聽way a scanner at Lowe 麻豆精品 S檚 reads the bar codes on paint cans.

麻豆精品 S淭he code never changes, whether the molecule is on聽the moon or in front of your face, 麻豆精品 S� says Vodopyanov.

Vodopyanov 麻豆精品 S檚 laser technology could be used in聽healthcare to diagnose myriad illnesses and diseases by聽identifying molecules in a patient 麻豆精品 S檚 breath. It could also聽be a tool to alert the Department of Homeland Security if聽biohazardous chemicals were to be released into the air.

麻豆精品 S淲e are just beginning to recognize the benefits of聽this technology, 麻豆精品 S� says Vodopyanov, whose research聽has attracted more than $5 million in funding since he聽came to UCF in 2013. The university offers more than聽opportunities for building corporate partnerships. 麻豆精品 S淸UCF]聽has the right environment. 麻豆精品 S�

Vodopyanov grew up in a family of physicists, including聽a grandmother whom he 麻豆精品 S檇 visit in Siberia. In her lab he聽would observe how she gathered scientists around to聽share ideas. 麻豆精品 S淭hat 麻豆精品 S檚 what it is like here. We learn from each聽other. 麻豆精品 S�

His friendly demeanor helps too. In a California pub聽he sat down next to 2005 Nobel Prize winner John Hall聽just to ask some questions about laser frequency combs.聽A few years later, he saw another Nobel Prize-winning聽scientist, Theodor H盲nsch, riding a train in Munich, so he聽asked H盲nsch what he thought about using the broadband聽frequency comb (laser) to identify molecules in the air.

麻豆精品 S淸H盲nsch] said it was a great idea, 麻豆精品 S� says Vodopyanov.聽 麻豆精品 S淢oments like that inspire me to keep moving forward. 麻豆精品 S�

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STRENGTHENING OUR聽ECONOMY

Paul Gazzillo, Assistant Professor,聽Computer Science
Project headquarters:聽L3Harris Engineering Center
Partner: U.S. Department of Defense

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The words 麻豆精品 S�2 trillion dollars 麻豆精品 S� roll right off the tongue. The聽mind, however, cannot comprehend the enormity. Spend聽a billion dollars per year and it would take 2,000 years to聽exhaust $2 trillion.

Even for a computer scientist, it 麻豆精品 S檚 just too much.

麻豆精品 S淚t can be very complicated, 麻豆精品 S� says Assistant Professor聽Paul Gazzillo. He heads a project with the lofty goal聽of tracking the movement of illicit corporate money聽worldwide, which totals an estimated $2 trillion every聽year. The number is raw because it 麻豆精品 S檚 a blend of tax evasion,聽money laundering, healthcare fraud, credit card breaches,聽drug trafficking and any scheme intended to remain聽undetected. For investigators, it can take years to track聽one case.

With the help of a former FBI agent and two other聽computer science researchers, Gazzillo is on a mission聽to simplify the process. When Gazzillo says they might聽be onto something soon, it should matter to everyone.聽Because every dollar in a stack of $2 trillion could be tied聽to an unfathomable story:

• In 2018 the Department of Justice seized more than $140 million聽from an online company that profited from ads related to聽prostitution, including child prostitution and human trafficking.聽Banks and major credit cards had stopped providing service, so聽the online company turned to digital聽currency and shell companies. The FBI聽said if they had had readily available聽ownership information about the聽company, the abuse of victims 麻豆精品 S渃ould聽have been halted years earlier than聽it was. 麻豆精品 S�
• Investigators in 2015 uncovered the聽unusual buying and selling of racehorses聽between shell companies. It turns out,聽the transactions were a cover for a聽Mexican drug cartel, whose alleged boss聽claimed to have killed 385 Americans.
• When the federal government urgently聽issued checks to small businesses so聽they could pay employees during COVID聽lockdowns (the Paycheck Protection聽Program), it 麻豆精品 S檚 estimated that fraudulent聽applications accounted for $76 billion聽that could have otherwise gone to聽legitimate businesses in real need.

Gazzillo is using a technique聽called 麻豆精品 S渁utomated reasoning, 麻豆精品 S� where聽computing systems apply logic聽to data. It could eventually help聽investigators sift through complex聽networks of corporate relationships聽and create a complete picture of聽each company.

麻豆精品 S淚t will help investigators do their聽jobs a lot faster, 麻豆精品 S� says Gazzillo.

In August, Gazzillo received a聽nearly $1 million Defense Advanced聽Research Projects Agency (DARPA)聽Young Faculty award to lead a聽research team at UCF that will聽investigate complex corporate聽relationships.

麻豆精品 S淚t 麻豆精品 S檚 exciting because look at聽what DARPA has done, 麻豆精品 S� Gazzillo聽says. 麻豆精品 S淭hey were at the forefront聽of the internet and GPS. With their聽support, and a good team of people,聽I really believe we can produce a聽major benefit to society. 麻豆精品 S�

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STRENGTHENING OUR聽FRONTLINES

Greg Welch, AdventHealth Endowed Chair in聽Healthcare Simulation,
Project headquarters:
Partners: Office of Naval Research, Army, U.S. National聽Science Foundation, SoarTech

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There 麻豆精品 S檚 a body in Professor Greg Welch 麻豆精品 S檚 lab lying prone聽on a bed. It 麻豆精品 S檚 a boy named Joe, maybe 9 years old. He isn 麻豆精品 S檛聽alive, but he isn 麻豆精品 S檛 completely lifeless either. He 麻豆精品 S檚 a hybrid聽on a number of levels.

麻豆精品 S淚 don 麻豆精品 S檛 feel well, 麻豆精品 S� Joe says, coughing. He sounds miserable.

麻豆精品 S淲hat 麻豆精品 S檚 wrong, Joe? 麻豆精品 S� a nurse in training asks.

麻豆精品 S淢y throat is scratchy, 麻豆精品 S� he says. 麻豆精品 S淚 feel a little hot.聽Where 麻豆精品 S檚 my mom? 麻豆精品 S�

Joe is what Welch calls a 麻豆精品 S減hysical virtual patient. 麻豆精品 S�

Physically, you can reach out and touch him. Virtually, a聽computer generates his voice and his visible symptoms,聽which are projected from beneath the plastic body.

The nurse in training pulls back a blanket and sees a聽rash all over Joe 麻豆精品 S檚 torso. 麻豆精品 S淧lease help, 麻豆精品 S� Joe says.

麻豆精品 S淥ne advantage of this technology over a virtual human is that you don 麻豆精品 S檛 need virtual reality goggles 麻豆精品 S� you can see and touch the body as if it 麻豆精品 S檚 really there, because it is, 麻豆精品 S� says Welch. 麻豆精品 S淭he advantage over a manikin is that our patient isn 麻豆精品 S檛 static. There 麻豆精品 S檚 a dynamic richness to it 麻豆精品 S� we can change the symptoms, the behaviors and [other factors]. 麻豆精品 S�

Tomorrow Joe might be unconscious. Or the patient聽might change to a woman showing stroke symptoms, like聽one side of the face drooping. Or it could be a soldier on聽a gurney, screaming. Under the blanket there might be a聽gaping wound.

麻豆精品 S淭he goal is to make it as experiential as possible, 麻豆精品 S� says聽Welch. 麻豆精品 S淣obody wants nurses and medics learning how to聽deal with the anxiety of a traumatic injury on the job while聽things turn chaotic, and a life or limb might be lost. So,聽we 麻豆精品 S檝e developed this patient to more realistically simulate聽what cannot safely be duplicated. 麻豆精品 S�

For Welch, this is more than a research project 麻豆精品 S� he 麻豆精品 S檚聽helping the people who have dedicated their lives to聽protecting us. His work has led to dozens of U.S.-related聽patents, with others in process. Yet he knows the work, and聽the successes, are not about him.

麻豆精品 S淎 command group from the Naval Air Warfare Center聽Training Systems Division [NAWCTSD] came into the lab聽a few days ago. Their mission is significant: to enhance the capabilities of our nation 麻豆精品 S檚 Navy and Marine Corps via聽training, 麻豆精品 S� Welch says.

From his office at the Institute for Simulation聽and Training, Welch can see straight over a fence to聽NAWCTSD. It inspires him.

麻豆精品 S淚 have great respect for people on our frontlines 麻豆精品 S� in聽healthcare, the military and law enforcement, 麻豆精品 S� Welch聽says. 麻豆精品 S淭hey 麻豆精品 S檝e chosen professions that are taxing, risky聽and often thankless. They do it for us, not for themselves.聽Maybe this is one way I can, in my own humble way, begin聽to repay them. 麻豆精品 S�