All posts tagged: UCLA

UCLA engineers build a ‘lying mirror’ that displays a fake reflected image

UCLA engineers build a ‘lying mirror’ that displays a fake reflected image

Published by Jenni Sidey

UCLA engineers built a “lying mirror” that can replace many different reflected images with the same misleading picture using light alone. A deep-learning-designed surface redirects incoming light so unseen objects, shifted images, noise, and several visible wavelengths can still produce a chosen decoy. The technology remains a laboratory proof of concept, but researchers say it could support future security, defense, anti-surveillance, and entertainment uses. Mirrors are supposed to return whatever stands before them. A new optical device does something far stranger: it can take many different objects and make their reflected light appear as the same unrelated image. Engineers at the University of California, Los Angeles have developed what they call a “lying mirror,” an optical system that conceals visual information instead of simply reflecting or distorting it. Unlike a digital display, the device does not need a computer to alter each incoming image. Deep learning is used during the design process to determine how the structured surface should manipulate light. Once that surface has been created, the transformation occurs optically through diffraction. “Instead of …

Bidding for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar UCLA jersey passes million

Bidding for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar UCLA jersey passes $1 million

Published by Sam Flores

A UCLA jersey worn by Lew Alcindor in the 1968 NCAA national championship game and the 1969 Final Four is set to garner more than $1 million at auction. The man who has owned it for the past half century — a former Los Angeles resident who was a huge fan of the player now known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar — didn’t have to pay nearly as much for the historic piece. In fact, he paid no money at all. Instead, he traded for it after a Lakers game in the Forum parking lot back sometime in the mid- to late-1970s, giving up one of his prized possessions as a teenager living in South Gate: His transistor radio. “I used to listen to Dodger games on it under my pillow,” said the auction’s consignor, a man named David who asked to have his last name withheld because of privacy concerns. Back then, David and some friends would often take the bus to the Forum, where they would try to convince fans to give them their extra …

Bob Chesney is going to do the impossible at UCLA — win

Bob Chesney is going to do the impossible at UCLA — win

Published by Sam Flores

Walking down a hallway at UCLA’s Wasserman Football Center earlier this week, I became a believer. Bouncing hurriedly in my direction was a bright-eyed kid with a huge smile. I didn’t know him. He didn’t know me. Yet as he passed, he suddenly stuck out his hand for a fist bump, which I was too stunned to ignore, and so I pounded back while wondering. What just happened? Then it hit me. Bob Chesney just happened. New UCLA football coach Bob Chesney has won over cynics with his unflinching optimism and attention to detail. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times) The new football coach has infused the completely rebuilt program into a place so energetic, his players run around sharing their inspiration to complete strangers. “Yeah, we’re gonna win here,” Chesney says. This shared spirit starts every morning in this building, in the team meeting room, where Chesney orders his players to stand and sing the school fight song as if they are standing on the field after a victory. The words to the song are …

California Man Sentenced in Theft of Rare Chinese Manuscripts from UCLA

California Man Sentenced in Theft of Rare Chinese Manuscripts from UCLA

Published by Jenni Sidey

A California resident was sentenced last week for his theft of a rare 17th-century Chinese manuscript from the library of the University of California, Los Angeles.  Jeffrey Ying, 39, had pleaded guilty to a single count of art theft last October. He was sentenced to “time served, accounting for around one month in jail, in addition to one year of home confinement and three years of supervised release,” the South China Morning Post reports.   The string of thefts attributed to Ying began in 2020, when he checked out two Chinese manuscripts from UCLA under the alias Alan Fujimori, according to the New York Times. Then, in 2024, he checked out six more under the name Jason Wang, and in 2025, he borrowed eight additional ones. Related Articles Some of the manuscripts were never returned, while others were replaced with fakes. The UCLA’s library opened an investigation and found that the same man had checked out the missing manuscripts when reviewing surveillance footage, per the BBC. It is unclear if the stolen manuscripts have been …

UCLA lands highly touted Serbian small forward Nikola Kusturica

UCLA lands highly touted Serbian small forward Nikola Kusturica

Published by Sam Flores

UCLA coach Mick Cronin won a spirited recruiting battle for one of the top European prospects, landing wing player Nikola Kusturica on Thursday. Kentucky, Michigan and Gonzaga had courted Kusturica, a 6-foot-9 Serbian who is among the top 17-year-old players in Europe. Recruiting websites listed Kusturica as a five-star prospect, and college basketball analysts at Field of 64 and other outlets project Kusturica could be a top-five 2028 NBA draft pick. UCLA announced it received a signed grant-in-aid agreement from Kusturica, who will join the Bruins for the upcoming season. He adds to a freshman class that already included three-star center Javonte Floyd from Cedar Grove High in Atlanta and four-star forward Joe Philon III from Montverde Academy in Tampa, Fla. — both of whom signed in April and enrolled in summer classes — and Gunars Grinvalds of Latvia, a former Real Madrid forward who committed to the Bruins on June 5. 𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐖𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐰𝐨𝐨𝐝! The Bruins have signed incoming freshmen Gunārs Grīnvalds and Nikola Kusturica – from Latvia and Serbia, respectively. The duo will …

Inside UCLA football coach Bob Chesney’s recruiting revival

Inside UCLA football coach Bob Chesney’s recruiting revival

Published by Sam Flores

The carpet rolls out. Stars pose with their parents. Cameras flash, capturing VIP guests emerging from luxury cars. It has all of the makings of a Hollywood premiere. Only the carpet that lines the entrance is royal blue instead of scarlet red. The “stars” are teenage football players on recruiting visits. The luxury car is parked on the turf of Spaulding Field. And the Hollywood show is in Westwood. Despite the parallels, the feeling remains the same — something is brewing within the UCLA football program and it may yield awards. The Bruins still are riding the high of their hire of coach Bob Chesney on Dec. 9. And no group has felt the smoke of the Chesney Train more than the 2027 recruiting class. The Bruins boast the No. 12 recruiting class in the nation and fourth best in the Big Ten, improvements of 50 and 11 spots, respectively, from the previous year, according to 247Sports’ composite rankings. UCLA had not produced a top-15 class since 2016. Chesney’s inaugural group features 22 commits, including …

Ron Howard and Brian Grazer on ‘Grinch’ Sequel, YouTube Filmmakers

Ron Howard and Brian Grazer on ‘Grinch’ Sequel, YouTube Filmmakers

Published by Daniella Wilson

Fresh off the news that Ron Howard and Brian Grazer are developing a sequel to their 2000 hit How the Grinch Stole Christmas, the pair sat down for a wide-ranging conversation at the UCLA Entertainment Symposium, where they gave a little tease of the new film. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter editor-in-chief Maer Roshan on Thursday, Howard — who is returning to direct Jim Carrey in his role as the classic Dr. Seuss character the Grinch — said the sequel is “something we’ve thought about for a long time, and you know what, it’s an idea that got all five or six of the brain trust excited. So it’s worth a try.” Carrey is looking to return despite famously struggling through the production, as Grazer and Howard — who have been partners in production company Imagine Entertainment for 40 years — recounted how two weeks into filming the star told them he could no longer endure the extensive makeup and contacts needed to become the Grinch and would return his $20 million salary, with interest. Grazer …

Keke Palmer and UCLA Create New Artist-in-Residence Collaboration

Keke Palmer and UCLA Create New Artist-in-Residence Collaboration

Published by Daniella Wilson

Starting this fall, UCLA students will have the opportunity to learn a thing or two from Professor Palmer. Actress and entrepreneur Keke Palmer is teaming with the university’s School of Theater Film and Television on a new 5-year artist-in-residence collaboration — one that will see the I Love Boosters star leading quarterly workshops on campus. Significant to the partnership is Palmer’s digital media platform, KeyTV. The enterprise, which she launched in 2022, has already produced 29 original projects from an exclusively BIPOC pool of creators.  “UCLA TFT is a place where artists learn to be in practice, to experience trial and error, to take projects off the page,” said Palmer. “That is also the mission of KeyTV. We know that education is key to democratizing opportunities and I am eager to both learn from and support UCLA TFT students. It is no small feat to pursue higher education, especially at a prestigious institution. I look forward to listening, encouraging and offering them more than one chance to succeed.” The initiative, “From Blocking to Broadcast,” aims …

Comic taking Stephen Colbert’s slot says he’s ‘not trying to replace’ him

Comic taking Stephen Colbert’s slot says he’s ‘not trying to replace’ him

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Byron Allen says he’s “not trying to replace” Stephen Colbert as his comedy show takes over The Late Show slot on CBS. Allen, the comedian and media executive who founded Allen Media Group, told NPR that his Comics Unleashed show would avoid the political satire that became central to Colbert’s, particularly during Donald Trump’s presidencies. “At the end of the day, I’m not trying to replace Colbert,” Allen, 65, told the public broadcaster ahead of his show’s debut on Friday. “I am not trying to hold on to his audience because Comics Unleashed has been around 20 years and has its own audience. And we’re speaking to people who have been ignored. And good luck finding another show that’s had on more comedians of every shape and size and colour.” Comics Unleashed, launched in 2006, features Allen alongside a rotating panel …

UCLA Medical School Accused Of Racial Discrimination In Defiance Of Supreme Court

UCLA Medical School Accused Of Racial Discrimination In Defiance Of Supreme Court

Published by Jenni Sidey

Authored by Jonathan Turley, We previously discussed a disturbing account of how medical students at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) were subjected to a bizarre class where one of the university’s “activists-in-residence” showered them with anti-Semitic postings and racist rhetoric. Now, the Justice Department has found that the university engaged in systemic racial discrimination in the admission of medical students. Given the university’s history, it is hardly surprising, but it remains unclear how the university will respond to the findings. The DOJ’s Civil Rights Division announced that the medical school violated Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act by giving preferential treatment to black and Hispanic applicants. The investigation followed the Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, which barred race-based admissions. In the DOJ’s “Findings” letter, black and Hispanic admits in some years averaged MCAT scores in the 66th to 72nd percentile, while Asian and white students averaged scores in the mid-to-high 80th percentiles. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon indicated that the Justice Department found that UCLA medical school leadership …