Sept. 17, 2026

Anteater Time Machine: The sounds of mariachi music fill the room at a Chicano/Latino Commencement dinner, circa 1984. (Photo courtesy of UC Irvine Libraries Archives)

UC IRVINE NEWS

The car in your garage can power your house

(Menifee, California, homeowner Roberta Howell plugs her Kia EV9 SUV into a wall unit in her garage to ready the car for vehicle-to-home charging.)

When there’s a power outage in your neighborhood, the usual response is to fumble around to find a flashlight or matches to light candles. What if you could keep the lights on and power your home merely by connecting your electric vehicle to a wall box in the garage? For the past several years, UC Irvine researchers have been working with external partners to make vehicle-to-home charging a commonplace reality. Vehicle-to-home charging lets people power their homes when needed with energy stored in batteries in their V2H-enabled, plug-in electric vehicles. Residents in a sustainable energy community in Menifee, California, are part of a program to regularize the use of V2H and provide data and feedback to engineers. “We are using this information to gain a better understanding of the role of the electric vehicle in the home of the future,” said Scott Samuelsen, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering. “We’re determined to find out if V2H will provide added value to people going forward.”

Social media: Reading between the lines

As extreme heat becomes more frequent in California, knowing which communities are struggling and what kind of help they need is increasingly important for protecting public health. In a new study, UC Irvine researchers analyzed nearly 25,000 heat-related social media posts to examine what factors predict people talking about coping with extreme heat or its effects on daily life. The findings suggest that social media could complement traditional public health data and help officials develop more targeted heat warnings, outreach and prevention strategies for vulnerable communities. “Social media gives us another window into how people are experiencing heat in their daily lives,” said Suellen Hopfer, associate professor of health, society and behavior. “Understanding those experiences can help us think more strategically about who heat-safety messages are reaching, where gaps remain and how communication can better support communities that are especially vulnerable.”

If you name it, you can tame it

In this episode of The UC Irvine Podcast, Golnaz Tabibnia, assistant research psychologist, shares why it’s so hard for people to quit smoking, what cue labeling is and how it can help.

Constitution Day

Today is Constitution Day! It’s a time for Americans to pause and commemorate the drafting of our Constitution. The University of California invites all members of the UC community to renew your acquaintance with this extraordinary document and reflect on its historical and contemporary significance.

UC NEWS

Free Microsoft Copilot trainings for UC employees

The UCOP Digital Information and Technology team has partnered with Microsoft to offer free Copilot training for UC employees. Join Microsoft instructors for live trainings designed to help you sharpen skills and discover how Copilot can enhance productivity and creativity across daily workflows.

SAVE THE DATE

Join Bridget R. Cooks, professor of African American studies and art history and Chancellor’s Fellow, for a talk to complement the exhibition.

Bridget R. Cooks: “Raymond Saunders: Painting as Visual Archive”

Sept. 19, 2 p.m. (Sponsored by UC Irvine Langson Orange County Museum of Art)

Move-in Weekend

Sept. 19-20, all day (Sponsored by Student Housing)

Anteater Involvement Fair

Sept. 22, 11 a.m. (Sponsored by Office of Campus Organizations)

Welcome Week

Sept. 22-25, all day (Sponsored by UC Irvine)

UC Irvine Esports Fall Kickoff VIP Reception

Sept. 25, 3 p.m. (sponsored by UC Irvine Esports)

La Bienvenida

Sept. 25, 5 p.m. (sponsored by Latinx Resource Center)

For more events, visit UC Irvine Today.

#IamUCI

Roy Fox receives NSF CAREER Award

Roy Fox, assistant professor of computer science, has received the National Science Foundation CAREER Award. The award supports early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization.

#UCIconnected spotlights interesting updates from the UC Irvine community. #IamUCI spotlights profiles of students, faculty, staff and alumni. Send submissions via email or post on social media with the #UCIconnected or #IamUCI hashtags.

UC IRVINE NEWSMAKERS

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