"But mom, when am I going to use all this math stuff anyway?" For parents, it's a frequent refrain from kids of all ages, and sometimes in the age of spreadsheets and computer desktop calculators, it's a question that's as tough to answer as sample problems from the math section of the SAT. But don't say that to Kimball Martin '99, who has turned his inquisitive nature and love of challenges into a robust career as an assistant professor of mathematics specializing in number theory. Posted July 2008.

In many ways, Kelly Kwedar '98, VPA (photography), leads a double life. A clinical practice supervisor at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan by day, she manages astaff of forty doctors and twenty other hospital workers who take patients through the cancer treatment process. By night, she is known to her friends in the Gotham Girls Roller Derby as "Lil Red Terror," goddess fo jamming, blocking, and dishing out pain in the rink. Posted May 2008.

During John Goedeke's first year on the UMBC basketball team, the players lost all but five games. The year was 1975, and all of the players were freshmen and sophomores. By the end of his college career, however, the team made an amazing turn, advancing to the fina eith in NCAA Division II, the university's first NCAA appearance. Posted April 2008.

When many people have extra time to spare, they might think about collecting coins, painting model airplanes or even trying to write the great American novel. When Loren Siebert '93, computer science, took up a hobby, though, he decided to learn one of the hardest languages around -- Arabic. Posted March 2008.

When Mabrooka Chaudhry immigrated to the United States from Pakistan in 1982 at the age of nine, she didn't speak a word of English. Twenty-five years later, she exemplifies the American dream. A U.S. history teacher, she recently was honored as a recipient of the Milken Family Foundation National Educators Award. Posted February 2008.

Former UMBC track team members Adam Driscoll '04, information systems, and Patrick Blair  '03, computer science, are using their favorite hobby to make a difference around the world. Posted December 2007.