A ghost story; vehicle-to-home charging technology

Oct. 30, 2025

UC Irvine Digest header featuring 60 years badge

Anteater Time Machine: A make-up artist applies the finishing touches to a child’s face during a festival in the now Aldrich Park, circa 1984. (Photo courtesy of UC Irvine Libraries Archives)

UC IRVINE NEWS

A ghost story

It’s October, and odds are you’ll see someone dressed as a ghoul or goblin darting around campus. Another costume, though, deserves to join the growing Halloween parade at UC Irvine: the neutrino. Known as the “ghost particle,” the neutrino seldom interacts with other forms of matter. In fact, similar to phantoms, numerous neutrinos produced in locations such as the core of our Sun are streaming through you as you read this. Mu-Chun Chen, professor of physics and astronomy, is endeavoring to understand how this particle relates to the narrative of all the universe’s missing antimatter.

Vehicle-to-home charging technology

A KIA vehicle charging in front of a home

Six homes in Menifee, Calif., have been outfitted to tap energy from an electric vehicle for home use during both grid-tied and off-grid conditions. This marks the first demonstration of vehicle-to-home technology for the mass market. The demonstration is a result of a four-year collaboration among Kia America, Hyundai America Technical Center, Hyundai Motor Group and the UC Irvine Advanced Power and Energy Program. Benefits include lower electricity costs and reduced air pollution. “This initiative illustrates the importance of collaboration between academia and industry,” said Scott Samuelsen, APEP founding director and professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering.

Is it candy or medicine?

child holding a container with candy in it

From vitamins to prescription medications and marijuana edibles, U.S. children are at greater risk than ever for accidental overdoses. In fact, these events are the leading cause of emergency department visits in young kids. “Many medicines or supplements – especially those in gummy form – can look, smell and even taste like candy,” said Dr. Pei Lin Chang, UCI Health pediatrician. "So, it’s hard for kids, even when they’ve been taught not to touch medications, to resist or take something accidentally because they thought it was a sweet.”

First day of Open Enrollment

Open Enrollment for 2026 starts today and ends Nov. 21 at 5 p.m. It’s your annual opportunity to review current benefits and make decisions for 2026. With significant changes to plans and costs, it’s important to understand the available options . Learn more by visiting the UC Irvine HR Open Enrollment web page and the UC Open Enrollment web page. Enroll in benefits in UCPath.

UC NEWS

UC Spotlight: October

The monthly UC Spotlight for October celebrates the UC locations, teams and individual staff members who are helping to make UC a great place to work. This issue highlights seven UC Irvine achievements:

The UCI Health – Orange trauma center and Regional Burn Center teams were honored for their heroic efforts to coordinate care and treat those injured after a plane crash in Fullerton.
Melanie Joe, chief pharmacy officer at UCI Health, spoke with Becker’s Hospital Review about using real-time clinical and financial data to effectively track patient outcomes, manage population health and balance finances.
In Becker’s Hospital Review, Deepti Pandita, UCI Health’s chief medical information officer, explained the process for introducing new AI programming.
On Oct. 1, students, faculty and staff throughout UCI Health celebrated National Latino Physician Day.
UC Irvine curators Juli Carson, Kevin Appel and Sasha Usse conceived the innovative exhibit “The Inoperative Community: Exhibition X Practice, UCI 1965-2025” for the 60th anniversary of the Claire Trevor School of the Arts.
The UCI Health Risk and Regulatory Affairs team received a Spotlight Innovation Award for its Fire Safety Risk Assessment Project.
UCI Health was recognized in Vizient’s rankings of top performers in clinical quality.

SAVE THE DATE

Día de los Muertos

Nov. 3, 4 p.m. (sponsored by the School of Social Ecology)

Weaving the Land: A Family Art Workshop

Nov. 1, 11 a.m. (sponsored by Langson Orange County Museum of Art)

First-Gen Week

Nov. 3, 11 a.m., multiple subsequent dates (sponsored by Student Success Initiatives and UCI Transfer Center)

Nov. 5, 1 p.m. (sponsored by UC Irvine Libraries)

For more events, visit UC Irvine Today.

#UCIconnected

UCI Health risk and regulatory receive Spotlight Innovation Award

The risk and regulatory affairs team received the Spotlight Innovation Award from the UC Office of the President for its Fire Safety Risk Assessment Project, which has prevented procedural fires in ambulatory care settings.

The UCI Health risk and regulatory team has been recognized with a Spotlight Innovation Award from the UC Office of the President for its Fire Safety Risk Assessment Project, which has prevented procedural fires in ambulatory care settings. “This was a significant, labor-intensive project, but one that has led to meaningful improvements in patient and co-worker safety,” said Julie Ann Schneider, UCI Health director of risk management and regulatory affairs.

#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.