2013–2014 UNIVERSITY CATALOG - Florida Institute of Technology

National Center of Academic Excellence in Information
Assurance-Research (CAE-R)
Richard A. Ford, Ph.D., Harris Professor for Computer Science in
Assured Information, Director. Florida Tech has been designated a
National Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance-
Research (CAE-R) by the National Security Agency and the U.S.
Department of Homeland Security. Designed to recognize schools
that integrate research activities into the curriculum and classroom,
and maintain a high quality of information assurance research, Florida
Tech is one of only two universities in Florida designated as a CAE-R.
The Scott Center for Autism Treatment
Michael E. Kelley, Ph.D., BCBA-D, Executive Director; Ivy Chong,
Ph.D., BCBA-D, Director, Autism Services and Training; Barbara
Paulillo, Psy.D., Director, Psychological Services. The Scott Center
for Autism Treatment was established to provide state-of-the art service,
training and applied research for children with autism spectrum
disorders (ASD) and their families. It is an integral service/research/
training component of Florida Tech’s School of Psychology. Services
are provided by faculty and graduate students from psychology graduate
programs in applied behavior analysis and clinical psychology and will
expand to include other allied health professionals in speech pathology,
occupational therapy and medicine. The 21,000-sq.-ft. building opened
in September 2009 in close proximity to the School of Psychology. The
services provided include: (1) diagnostic and testing services; (2) early
intervention services for young children (i.e., 2 - 9 years of age) with
autism, and their families; (3) behavior assessment and intervention
services for children, adolescents and adults with autism and/or related
disabilities who exhibit challenging behavior (e.g., self-injury, aggression,
property destruction, stereotypy); (4) feeding disorder assessment
and treatment services for children ages 2–10; (5) social skills’ training
for children and adolescents who have autism, asperger’s disorder and
related disabilities; (6) counseling and psychological services; (7) training
workshops and seminars for parents and teachers who work with
children with autism and related disabilities; (8) courses for individuals
interested in obtaining certification as a Board Certified Assistant
Behavior Analyst ® and/or a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. ® The Scott
Center for Autism Treatment has an ongoing program of research directed
at improving clinical and behavioral outcomes for children with ASD.
Wireless Center of Excellence (WICE)
Ivica Kostanic, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Electrical and Computer
Engineering, Technical Director. WICE is devoted to creating a new
generation of wireless engineering professionals through education and
research. Driven by its academic program, WICE considers wireless
to be any system or device that relies on electromagnetic-wave propagation
to perform one or more of its functions. This context includes
such diverse applications as radar, global positioning, location and
sensing, as well as the broader class of communications systems such
as satellites, point-to-point/multi-point, WLAN and wireless WAN.
In partnership with industry, WICE offers the opportunity for faculty,
and undergraduate and graduate students to engage in research
and to study wireless concepts in a variety of courses. Research areas
include propagation modeling, wireless systems engineering, personal
communications systems, wireless sensors and multimedia communications,
while also supporting simulation, fabrication and measurement
of wireless communications and other systems and components.
Laboratory test equipment includes Grayson’s Spectrum Tracker, and
spectrum and vector network analyzers, oscilloscopes, microwave
amplifiers, oscillators and mixers, signal generators and associated
active and passive RF devices. The laboratory performs experimental
investigation using the anechoic chamber and screen room facilities.
WICE is supported by significant laboratory facilities as described
under “Electrical Engineering” in the Degree Programs section.
Major Research Laboratories
Aerospace Systems and Propulsion Laboratory (ASAP)
Daniel R. Kirk, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace
Engineering, and Hector Gutierrez, Ph.D., P.E., Associate Professor,
Mechanical Engineering, Co-Directors. The ASAP Laboratory’s mission
is to support activities related to the development, integration
and operation of advanced aerospace systems and propulsion technologies.
The laboratory supports research related to a wide variety of
aerospace projects including advanced propulsion systems, thermal
management of spacecraft, fluid mechanics in microgravity environments,
modeling and experimental validation of propellant physical
properties, advanced instrumentation and control for flexible aerospace
structures, combustion modeling and the integration of thermal-fluid
systems with computer-aided instrumentation and real-time control.
Behavioral Neuroscience Laboratory (BNL)
Michael Grace, Ph.D., Associate Dean, College of Science and
Professor, Biological Sciences, Director. The BNL is dedicated to
the neural mechanisms of behavior in vertebrate and invertebrate
animals. Much of the laboratory’s work focuses on vision and other
sensory systems, from the molecules of initial sensation through all
levels of organization including cellular function, cell-to-cell communication
in the nervous system and observable behavior. Molecular
biology, biochemistry, high resolution microscopy and analysis of
behavior including operant conditioning are used to investigate a variety
of sensory issues that include infrared imaging systems in snakes,
development of vision in marine fish and endangered sea turtles,
pheromonal communication in marine invertebrates and brain organization
and function in one of the smallest vertebrate animals on
Earth. BNL personnel provide expertise in designing and conducting
experiments in both the laboratory and field, and at almost any level
of biological organization. The mission of the BNL is to define the
neural mechanisms that underlie complex behavior in living organisms
and to promote evolved biological solutions to complicated problems
as platforms for biomimetic technology development for biomedical,
defense and industrial applications. The laboratory actively engages
in community outreach from local interaction through international
popular broadcasts.
Cognition Applied Research Lab (CARL)
Gisela Susanne Bahr, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Experimental
Psychology and Human Cognition, Director. The Florida Tech CARL
is a human–computer interaction (HCI) laboratory focused on perception
afforded cognition and cognitive tools. The mission is to enhance
the quality of life, learning and work by thinking smarter. Current and
future research projects include (1) attention and body language during
human–computer interaction, (2) security decisions and attention popups,
(3) complex knowledge visualizations, (4) map shock, (5) aging and
HCI, (6) underwater problem solving, and (7) graying divers.
Dynamic Systems and Controls Laboratory (DSCL)
Hector Gutierrez, Ph.D., P.E., Associate Professor, Mechanical
Engineering and Y.I. Sharaf-Eldeen, Ph.D., P.E., Associate Professor,
Mechanical Engineering, Co-Directors. DSCL supports a variety of
research activities in dynamic systems for mechanical and aerospace
applications: (1) real-time monitoring and control of the flexible
dynamics in launch vehicles including design, characterization and
system integration of distributed actuators such as cold gas thrusters;
(2) use of Fiber Bragg grating arrays to monitor and control in realtime
multi-modal vibrations in aerospace structures; (3) in electrical
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