MavWire 2015 Archive » MavWire — Thursday, December 10, 2015

Dr. Jeff Lei

New federal grant could build techniques that free big data analysis systems of bugs

Jeff Lei, professor of computer science and engineering, is making it easier for software developers to more efficiently test big data analysis systems.

Dr. Lei was awarded a three-year, $375,000 grant from the National Institute of Standards and Technology to develop new testing techniques that will ensure that software used to analyze big data is free of bugs.

"Our goal is to develop techniques and tools that software engineers can use to detect mistakes made during implementation and thus ensure that the software they develop will actually work," he says.

Read more about the big data bug finder.

Know the rules about political activities

As another election year begins, please remember public employees are prohibited from engaging in political activity during work hours or using any UTA resources—including office email, equipment, or their position at UTA—for the purposes of supporting a candidate or issue.

See the UT System's memo on employee political activity.

Proposals wanted for Strategic Research Appointments for Faculty program

The Office of the President and the Office of the Vice President for Research have created the Strategic Research Appointments for Faculty program to enable faculty members to conduct research at other institutions and develop research collaborations.

The appointments will be awarded on a competitive basis and provide support for one semester at full salary. Awards will be limited to full-time, tenured faculty members who have been at UTA for at least two consecutive academic years. Funds will be provided to cover instructional needs during the appointment period.

Information sessions are 3 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 17, in Room 228 of the Engineering Research Building and 3 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 14, in Room 210 of the Life Science Building.

Read more about Strategic Research Appointments for Faculty.

NetIDplus enrollment required when using VPN starting today

Starting today, Thursday, Dec. 10, faculty and staff using VPN to access UTA resources from off-campus must enroll in NetIDplus.

Faculty and staff will be required to use NetIDplus and the .Employees VPN option when accessing UTA resources from off-campus.

Users accustomed to using the .Default VPN group will need to click the group drop down and select .Employees for a successful login. All future logins from that computer should automatically choose .Employees from then on. How will users know they’ve selected the correct group? There will be three blank fields instead of the usual two.

NetIDplus, UTA’s two-factor authentication, is the best defense against password compromise via phishing schemes or malicious software. Use of two-factor authentication is mandated by UT System policy.

Self-enroll at any time using the NetIDplus enrollment site. The enrollment process requires the use of a computer and an authentication device, such as a cell phone, landline, or tablet.

Later, NetIDplus will be expanded to UTShare and additional UTA applications.

For more information, visit the NetIDplus website and two-factor authentication site or contact Help Desk for assistance at helpdesk@uta.edu and 2-2208.

In for the win Top, young fans cheer on coach Scott Cross, upper left, and junior guard Drew Charles at Tuesday's game against Bradley, which the Mavericks won 97-61. Bottom, Jalen Jones (10) looks to Jorge Bilbao (45) for backup during the game at College Park Center. The men's team faces Sul Ross at 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 21, at College Park Center. Basketball double headers during the winter break are vs. Georgia State, Wednesday, Dec. 30; vs. Georgia Southern, Saturday, Jan. 2; . The women play at 5 p.m. and the men at 7:15 p.m.

Celebrate the season at annual holiday reception for faculty, staff

Ring in the holiday season with the annual Faculty and Staff Holiday Reception 3-5 p.m. Monday, Dec. 14, in the Bluebonnet Ballroom of the E.H. Hereford University Center.

President Vistasp Karbhari is the host and will make remarks. Enjoy the festive sounds of the UT Arlington Jazz Orchestra, conducted by Tim Ishii, associate professor of music.

Holiday refreshments will be served. The reception is sponsored in part by UT Arlington Dining Services.

In the spirit of the season, bring canned goods and non-perishable food items to be donated to Mission Arlington.

Proposals due Friday for annual advising conference

The UTA Advising Association is looking for interactive, innovative, and engaging presentations for its 19th annual advising conference. "Professional Growth in Advising: Dig it!" is set for Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016.

Abstracts of approved proposals will be included in the conference program and on the conference website. Submissions are due by Friday, Dec. 11.

Police Department compliance comment session set for Dec. 16

The public and the University community can comment on the UT Arlington Police Department's compliance with professional standards at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 16, in Room 200 at the Wetsel Service Center or by telephone at 2-8860.

The session is part of an on-site assessment by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA). The commission requires agencies to comply with state-of-the-art standards in four basic areas: policy and procedures, administration, operations, and support services.

The assessment team also will accept comments by telephone 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Dec. 16 at 2-5604.

Appearances at the public information session and telephone comments are limited to 10 minutes and must address the agency's ability to comply with CALEA's standards. A copy of the standards is available at the police department office, 700 S. Davis Drive. Local contacts are Chief of Police Kim Lemaux, 2-3389; Assistant Chief Glenn Cole, 2-1744; and Accreditation Manager Melissa Mais, 2-2847.

Submit written comments about the Police Department’s compliance with the standards for accreditation to CALEA, 13575 Heathcote Blvd., Suite 320, Gainesville, Va., 20155.

Use correct address for FedEx, UPS deliveries

The Office of Property Management is working with FedEx and UPS to ensure proper delivery of packages to campus buildings and departments. Please use one of the following formats to ensure the proper delivery of packages from any carrier to campus addresses.

Deliveries should include this information when sent to:

A deliverable address is an address that is complete. It must include a block number, street name, suite number if applicable, city, state, and ZIP code. Undeliverable addresses are those that are missing any element of the full address, as described above.

Packages with an undeliverable address will be delivered to Central Receiving. Property Management staff will deliver those packages to the appropriate department.

For questions about UTA package delivery, email property_management@uta.edu or call 2-2191.

Renew your locker at MAC

Renew your locker at the Maverick Activities Center by Friday, Jan. 7, to save the space for the spring semester. If you choose not to renew, please clean out the locker by that date.

Available lockers will be ready to rent on Tuesday, Jan. 19.

For details, email Blair Schuyler or call 2-0207. Visit the Campus Recreation website for MAC programs and services.

Use Maverick discounts to save money

Watch your budget this holiday season by taking advantage of the Maverick Discount Program.

Faculty, staff, students, and parents can utilize the discounts by simply showing their Maverick ID to local business participants or by using a unique UT Arlington discount code to shop online. Participating businesses provide a minimum 10 percent discount.

Book buy-back planned by UTA Bookstore

The UTA Bookstore will buy back textbooks Monday-Friday, Dec. 14-19. 

The bookstore will be open 7:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday, Dec. 14-17; 7:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 18; and 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 19.

December graduates compete for UTA swag with mortarboard bling

Graduating students can share photos of their decorated graduation caps using ‪#‎MavGrad2015 for a chance to win a UTA alumni prize pack. Prizes include UTA swag, Planetarium at UTA tickets, UTA Bookstore gift cards, and much more.

All photos must be submitted by 10 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 16, on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter using #MavGrad2015. One winner from each social channel will be announced by 10 a.m. Friday, Dec. 18.

Students can claim commencement tickets

Graduation candidates can claim guest tickets for the fall 2015 commencement ceremonies at utatickets.com. Detailed instructions have been sent to their UTA email account. All guests over age 2 must have a printed commencement ticket to enter College Park Center. All candidates must have a printed ticket to participate in commencement, Thursday-Saturday, Dec. 17-19.

Students prepare for finals with breakfast, coffee, furry friends

Remind students to take a break from studying for final exams with some relaxation, a good breakfast, and study help

Late Night Breakfast provides students with a study break 9:30-11 p.m. Monday-Tuesday, Dec. 14-15. A full breakfast menu is offered at the Connection Café for only $3. Cash, credit, MavMoney, Dining Dollars, or the meal plan are accepted.

Those positive pooches of Paws for Finals are ready to ease stress noon-2 p.m. Thursday-Friday, Dec. 10-11, and Monday-Wednesday, Dec. 14-16, on the second floor of the Central Library.

The Central Library will stay open 24 hours through 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 18. The Architecture and Fine Arts Library and the Science and Engineering Library will be open until 11 p.m. Friday-Sunday, Dec. 11-13.

The P.O.D. Express on the second floor of the Central Library will be open 24 hours a day Monday, Dec. 14, until 1 p.m. Friday, Dec. 18.

Free coffee is available 6-11 p.m. through Wednesday, Dec. 16, at the Architecture and Fine Arts Library and Sunday-Wednesday, Dec. 13-16, at the Science and Engineering Library.

The E.H. Hereford University Center will stay open from 7 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 13, through 11 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 16.

T-shirts for sale at Parent-Family Center

The Parent and Family Center has Maverick mom and dad T-shirts in most sizes for $15 each, or $10 members of the Parent and Family Association. The “Maverick Grandparent” T-shirts (small and 3XL only) are $5 for everyone.

The center provides free Scantrons and bluebooks to students whose families are association members. Stop by the center 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday in Suite B150C of the E.H. Hereford University Center.

Beware of holiday season cyber criminals

The Information Security Office (ISO) encourages you to be aware of holiday seasonal scams, phishing, and malicious software distribution campaigns.

Cyber criminals send personal messages that appear to be legitimate websites that look real with logos, email, or web templates.

These phishing and malware campaigns include fake shipping/courier notifications; electronic greeting cards or links to holiday screensavers; requests for charitable contributions that appear to be from the real organization; and credit card or gift card applications or enticing discounts that lead to unfamiliar websites.

Look for signs that an email or website is not legitimate:

• Sender’s address or website address does not match the organization listed in the content of the message.

• Grammar in the message or website is poor.

• Format of the email or website is poor or inconsistent with what you’ve seen from the organization.

• Hovering your mouse over the links reveals web addresses inconsistent with the content of the message.

Never click on links or open attachments in emails that you’re not expecting, nor provide personal information in an email or on a website unless you are confident of the source.

If you do receive suspicious email messages, contact the Information Security Office at security@uta.edu.

Read about more online security tips during the holiday buying season on the ISO website.

Friday, Dec. 11

Professional Telephone Techniques Register online. 10 a.m.-noon, Room 200, Wetsel Service Center. Human Resources.

Peer Observation of Teaching Training Learn about this powerful tool for professional growth, documenting great teaching, and sharing new ideas. Register online. 9 a.m.-noon, Room 415, Central Library. Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence, Faculty Affairs.

Tuesday, Dec 15

Requisitions Register online. 8:30-11 a.m., Room E200C, Enterprise Development Building. Business Affairs.

Effective Delegation Register online. 9-11 a.m., Room 200, Wetsel Service Center. Human Resources.

Wednesday, Dec 16

Payment Vouchers Register online. 1:30-3:30 p.m., Room E200C, Enterprise Development Building. Business Affairs.

Thursday, Dec. 17

Motivating Your Employees Register online. 9-11 a.m., Room 200, Wetsel Service Center. Human Resources.

Friday, Dec 18

Travel and Expenses Register online. 8:30-11 a.m., Room E200C, Enterprise Development Building. Business Affairs.

(For an expanded list of events, see the UTA calendar.)

Cole weather: See junior guard Kamy Cole's quick moves on the court when the Lady Mavs play Western Kentucky on Sunday afternoon at College Park Center.

Holiday treats at Lady Mavs game Sunday, men's game Dec. 21

Be among the first 200 fans to nab a UTA stocking for Santa to fill with goodies when the Lady Mavs face Western Kentucky on Sunday, Dec. 13, and Maverick men take on Sul Ross on Monday, Dec. 21. Both games include a Maverick basketball T-shirt toss.

Tip-off time is 2 p.m. for the women's game and 7 p.m. for the men's.

Single game tickets are $7-20 for the general public and $3 for students. Take advantage of the Faculty/Staff All-Sports Pass for $99 and catch all home athletic competitions. For these and other ticket options, go to utatickets.com.

The women's team is 3-4 after falling to Kansas State 61-41 last week. The Maverick men are 8-2 following a 97-61 win over Bradley Tuesday.

Intramural deadline for college football bowl pick 'em

Upcoming intramural sports deadlines are college football bowl pick 'em, Sunday, Dec. 13; badminton, Sunday, Dec. 20; billiards, Wednesday, Jan. 6; racquetball, Tuesday, Jan. 12; and table tennis, Thursday, Jan. 14.

See the intramural sports schedule. Pick up entry forms at the Services and Information Desk of the Maverick Activities Center. For questions, call 2-3277 or email imsports@uta.edu.

(For more sports news, go to utamavs.com, uta.edu/movinmavs, or uta.edu/campusrec.)

Friday, Dec. 11

Maverick Dance Company: Via Dance A collection of progressive dance works by faculty, guest, and student choreographers. Tickets $7 students, faculty, staff, seniors; $10 general public. 8 p.m., Mainstage Theatre, Fine Arts Building. Also, Saturday, Dec. 12. Theatre Arts.

Sunday, Dec. 13

Women's Basketball Mavericks vs. Western Kentucky. Holiday Hoops. Tickets $7-20. 2 p.m., College Park Center. Also, vs. Georgia State, 5 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 30; vs. Georgia Southern, 5 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 2. Athletics.

Thursday-Saturday, Dec. 17-19

Commencement Ceremonies College Park Center. Commencement.

Coming Up

Basketball Double Headers Maverick women's game followed by men's competition. Tickets $7-20 general public, $3 students. Mavs vs. Georgia State, Wednesday, Dec. 30; vs. Georgia Southern, Saturday, Jan. 2; vs. Arkansas State, Thursday, Jan. 21; vs. Arkansas-Little Rock, Saturday, Jan. 23. Women's 5 p.m., men's 7:15 p.m., College Park Center. Athletics.

Maverick Speakers Series Ron Paul, Feb. 2; Donna Brazile, Feb. 25; and Jane Goodall, March 31. Free general admission, but tickets required. Premium, season, and VIP ticket packages include reserved seats, parking, and more. Tickets available at utatickets.com. 7:30 p.m., College Park Center. Maverick Speakers Series.

Ongoing

Bachelor of Fine Arts Exhibition The exhibit showcases showcases recent work by graduating seniors in painting, sculpture, printmaking, ceramics, glass, film, and photography. Opening reception is 5 p.m., Friday, Dec. 11, The Gallery at UTA. Through Dec. 19. The Gallery at UTA.

University Center Gallery: Digital Photography Student Exhibit 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Mondays-Fridays. University Center Gallery, E.H. Hereford University Center. Through Dec. 12. EXCEL Campus Activities.

Special Collections: Ringside: Memories of WCC Wrestling 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Mondays, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays, sixth floor, Central Library. Through Jan. 16. UTA Libraries Special Collections.

Planetarium Holiday season  includes four programs using a full-color, 360-degree laser projector: Laser Country, Laser Holidays, Laser Pink Floyd, and Laser Zeppelin. Also, Holiday Music Magic and Season of Light as well as One World/One Sky, Cosmic Colors, Spacepark 360: Infinity, and Secret of the Cardboard Rocket. See the schedule. Closed Fridays, Dec. 24 and 30. Planetarium at UTA.

(For an expanded list of events, see the UTA calendar.)