NOTE: Faculty, if you are interviewed and quoted by news media, or if your work has been cited, and you have an online link to the article or video, please let us know. Contact us at news@csusb.edu.  

Palestinian student creates virtual reality project that allows people to explore Gaza before and after Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack
Colorado Public Radio
Dec. 3, 2024

A feature on “The Phoenix of Gaza,” the virtual reality project of Naim Aburaddi, a graduate of CSUSB who is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Colorado Boulder, included an interview with Ahlam Muhtaseb, CSUSB media studies professor, with whom Aburaddi worked as a master’s student.

“Student fellows work with faculty fellows as mentors,” Muhtaseb said. “And this is when we started working on the project – at that time, I was using immersive technologies like [a] 360-degree camera. And Naim wanted to do a similar project, but to focus on Gaza. But the perspective was very different because he wanted to bring Gaza to people in the United States who can't visit Gaza,” she said, adding that the technology includes Mozilla hubs and Unreal Engine, a multi-material gaming platform. 

“The Phoenix of Gaza,” which is being presented at various universities, turns videos from Gaza into a visit to the area now cut off from the rest of the world, as seen in both VR and in 360 degrees – but not without a high emotional cost.

Making Sense of the Metaverse: A Cultural and Educational Perspective
Goethe Institut (Germany)

Mihaela Popescu (communication studies) was interviewed for a white paper that examined the changing educational strategies brought about by the metaverse, which is also enabling new forms of artistic creation. She was among the 41 qualitative in-depth interviews with experts from the creative and cultural sectors and higher education. The white paper sheds light on how technological advances are perceived and implemented in art, culture and education.

Christie’s has brought the dinosaur auction show to London
Financial Times
Dec. 10, 2024

Stuart Sumida, CSUSB professor of biology and president of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, commented on London auction house Christie’s putting three dinosaur fossils up for bid. Academic paleontologists such as Sumida say such auctions mean that museums and institutions are no longer able to add to collections. “We cannot stop it, but we think that it is really, really bad for science. When you sell a dinosaur for millions, scientists are priced out,” he said.

Yucaipa council interviewing 3 candidates, including CSUSB adjunct instructor, to fill seat after recall election
The Press-Enterprise/The Sun/Redlands Daily Facts
Dec. 9, 2024

Bob Miller, a retired police chief and an adjunct public administration professor at Cal State San Bernardino, is one of three people the Yucaipa City Council is interviewing to fill a seat left open by the Nov. 5 recall of a city council member.

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These news clips and others may be viewed at “In the Headlines.”