Agentic Vibe Coding from the Terminal

Prof. Tim Oates, UMBC

1-2:30pm ET, April 3, 2026, ITE 325b and online

LLMs have become surprisingly capable coding partners. Prof. Tim Oates will give a technical overview of why coding assistants work (internet-scale code + documentation pretraining, instruction tuning, and feedback loops), and where they predictably fail (ambiguous specs, hidden requirements, brittle dependencies, and "confidently wrong" outputs). Most of the session is live, terminal-based demos using Claude Code. He will start from plain-English requirements and iteratively produce working implementations: scaffolding a small project, generating tests, debugging failures, refactoring for clarity/performance, and adding documentation. Along the way, he will highlight practical workflows: "spec-first prompting", test-driven prompting, using the assistant to explain unfamiliar code, and using constraints to keep changes small and reviewable. The goal is for faculty and students to leave with repeatable patterns for using coding assistants effectively - without outsourcing understanding or sacrificing correctness.

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Recorded video

Slides

Claude script MD examples

UMBC mechanical engineering senior and Meyerhoff Scholar Caly Ferguson was selected for the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) "25 Under 25" award in March 2026 based on his research and service. The award specifically recognizes young professionals and students who demonstrate outstanding leadership, innovation, and community advancement.

Since his freshman year, Ferguson has been conducting research in CSEE Professor Ramana Vinjamuri's lab, where he is helping to develop a prosthetic forearm and hand that uses machine learning to interpret electrical nerve signals from the arm and translate them into specific movements. Caly served as the finance chair of the UMBC NSBE chapter and became its president at the beginning of the 2025-2026 academic year.

Read more here.

Anupam Joshi, UMBC's vice provost and chief AI officer, has been named a 2025 Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, one of the world's largest general scientific societies and the publisher of the Science family of journals. Joshi was one of 22 scientists, engineers, and innovators in the Information, Computing and Communication field who were selected as 2025 fellows for their scientifically and socially distinguished achievements throughout their careers. 

Dr. Joshi is a pioneer in using AI approaches for data management and security for mobile and ad-hoc networks. He has explored this intersection to improve cybersecurity, using distributed AI approaches for attack detection and resilience in the cyber-phyiscal systems and internet of things systems that undergird critical infrastructures.

Read more about his selection here.

Are you looking to build hands-on AI experience and connect with industry experts this summer? Applications are currently open for the Summer 2026 AI4ALL Ignite Program, a completely free, virtual AI career accelerator. Designed specifically for undergraduate U.S. college students pursuing computing, data, and technical majors, this program provides the opportunity to work on a 13-week technical AI portfolio project, receive direct mentorship from AI professionals, and participate in specialized career readiness training to help you land your first AI internship or early-career role. Get more information on AI4ALL and its programs on their FAQ page.

The final deadline to apply for the Summer 2026 cohort is April 13, 2026. The program is a great opportunity to build your network, upgrade your resume, and present your work at a virtual industry symposium in the fall. You can learn more about the specific technical prerequisites (including prior coursework in Probability & Statistics and Linear Algebra) and submit your application directly on the AI4ALL Ignite website.

CSEE Distinguished Speaker Series

Open Issues in Open World Learning

Walter J. Scheirer
Dennis O. Doughty Collegiate Professor of Engineering
University of Notre Dame

11:30-12:30 ET, Monday, March 30, 2026, UMBC ITE 459 and online

Meaningful progress has been made in open world learning (OWL), enhancing the ability of agents to detect, characterize, and incrementally learn novelty in dynamic environments. However, novelty remains a persistent challenge for agents relying on state-of-the-art learning algorithms. This talk considers the current state of OWL, drawing on insights from a recent DARPA research program on this topic. I identify open issues that impede further advancements spanning theory, design, and evaluation. In particular, I emphasize the challenges posed by dynamic scenarios that are crucial to understand for ensuring the viability of agents designed for real-world environments. The talk provides suggestions for setting a new research agenda that effectively addresses these open issues.

Dr. Scheirer's research interests within computer science include artificial intelligence, computer vision, machine learning, and digital humanities. His research has helped establish the areas of open set recognition & open world learning in computer vision.  He serves on the IEEE CS Board of Governors, CTO of the Computer Vision Foundation, and Chair Emeritus of IEEE PAMI-TC. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Colorado and his M.S. and B.A. degrees from Lehigh University. Prof. Scheirer is also a recognized cultural critic and historian, commenting on the social context of emerging technologies, such as his most recent book: A History of Fake Things on the Internet.

Encouraging Academic Integrity: Discussion of Cheating, Grading, and Course-Level Policies in the Era of AI, 4/1

Chapters from Teaching with AI, 2nd Ed., by Bowen & Watson

12-1 pm ET, Wednesday, April 1, 2026, online 

Join the UMBC Faculty Development Center for a discussion of three chapters from the newly revised book Teaching with AI: A Practical Guide to a New Era of Human Learning by José Antonio Bowen and C. Edward Watson. The previous discussion focused on Chapter 8 "Cheating and Detection" and part of Chapter 9 "Policies." This session will continue to discuss course-level policies and move on to Chapter 10 "Grading and (Re-)Defining Quality". A brief summary of the previous discussion will be provided at the beginning of this session. This session is open to faculty and staff only.

Inventing the Future: Astronauts, Robots, and Zebras

Dr. Corinna Lathan, AnthroTronix

12-1 pm Wednesday, March 25, University Center 310, UMBC

UMBC's Alex. Brown Center For Entrepreneurship and Innovation is hosting a talk by Dr. Corinna Lathan on Wednesday, March 25, in University Center 310 on "Inventing the Future: Astronauts, Robots, and Zebras". 

Robotics, Neurotechnology, Virtual Reality, and Artificial Intelligence aren't just evolving around us — they're reshaping our lives, our identities, and even our ethics. That can be a little terrifying. And thrilling! Here's the challenge: Will we let these technologies shape us blindly, or will we choose to shape them with purpose?

Agentic Vibe Coding from the Terminal

Prof. Tim Oates, UMBC

1-2:30pm ET, April 3, 2026, ITE 325b and online

Up for Science and Politics: Understanding Data Centers

8:30-10 am Tuesday, March 24, UMBC University Center 312

Data centers power everything from traffic predictions and fraud detection on credit cards. At UMBC, researchers are developing AI-powered treatments for stomach disorders and AI tools that help students learn and thrive, among other projects. Data centers also have implications for public health, the environment, and energy capacity. Yet even as Maryland is poised to be the next major data center hub, many residents don't know what they are, how they work, and what they power.

Join us for a conversation with Maryland policymakers and UMBC experts as they unpack the science behind data centers, key policy and ethical debates surrounding their construction, and how leaders can effectively communicate the costs and benefits of data centers to the public.

Moderator

Dr. Anupam Joshi, Vice Provost, Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer

Panelists

Jack Suess, Vice President and Chief Information Officer, UMBC
Del. Brian Crosby, District 29B
Del. Chao Wu, District 9A
Dr. Tim Finin, Research Prof., UMBC Dept. of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering
Dr. Ida Ngambeki, Assistant Professor,  UMBC Depart. of Information Systems
Dr. Karen Chen, Assistant Professor, UMBC Department of Information Systems
David Lapp, People's Counsel, Maryland Office of People's Counsel

More information

Register here