In her office, Melissa Charenko has paintings by artist Jill Pelto that depict the kind of climate proxies Charenko writes about in her new book, such as sediment cores containing pollen grains.
Melissa Charenko’s new book shares the history of how 20th-century scientists used climate “proxies”—such as tree rings and fossil pollen—to understand past climates, which has implications for future climate action.
Candace Adams with Black Pearl, one of her foster cats.
(Image: Courtesy of Candace Adams)
Fostering cats and dogs in Philadelphia
Outside of her day job at Penn’s Institutional Review Board, Candace Adams works with different organizations in Philadelphia to give temporary shelter and care to cats and dogs.
Alan Charles Kors (left) and Philip E. Tetlock, elected members of the members of the American Academy of Sciences and Letters.
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New members of American Academy of Sciences and Letters
Alan Charles Kors and Philip E. Tetlock have been invested as members of the American Academy of Sciences and Letters, a nonprofit that promotes scholarship and honors achievement in the arts and sciences.
Malcolm Nelson, a new Provost’s Postdoctoral Fellow in Penn’s Department of Classical Studies, draws on his U.S. Army experience in his research on empathy in ancient Greece.
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U.S. Army veteran connects service to research on empathy in ancient Greece
Serving in the Army from 2009 to 2012 informed the research of Malcolm Nelson, Provost’s Postdoctoral Fellow in classical studies, on empathy norms in ancient Greek culture.
Meryl Krieger mentors high school students as part of her volunteering with the Philadelphia nonprofit Project 440.
(Image: Courtesy of Meryl Krieger)
Teaching creative Philadelphia youth career and entrepreneurship skills
As a volunteer with the nonprofit after-school program Project 440, Meryl Krieger, a senior learning designer for the College of Liberal & Professional Studies, helps artistically minded high school students with life skills.
Penn nurse manager brings health resources to her tribal community
Outside of her day job as a nurse manager for Penn Medicine at Home, Sherry “Strong Sun Spirit” Caputo has helped bring mental health education, COVID resources, and nutrition programming to her tribal community, the Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Tribal Nation in New Jersey.
But to Gary Purpura, the associate vice provost for education and academic planning in the Office of the Provost and a lecturer in the Department of Philosophy, is teaching Enhancing the Human Mind with Technology this semester.
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Philosophy, technology, and pushing beyond human limitations
Gary Purpura’s class Enhancing the Human Mind with Technology introduces students to philosophy through the lens of transhumanism, illustrating the possibilities of technology to enhance the human condition and expand the idea of what it means to be human.
As part of the year-long Politics of Well-Being series from the School of Social Policy & Practice and the Andrea Mitchell Center for the Study of Democracy, Tony Shaw moderated a conversation with Dennis Culhane, Isabel Algrant, Ken Miles, and Shana Kleiner.
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Harnessing technology in research to improve well-being
As part of the Politics of Well-Being speaker series, researchers in the School of Social Policy & Practice talked about their work helping governments address social issues and creating a joy-centered framework for AI development.
Helpline support eases stress for dementia caregivers
Penn Nursing researchers and collaborators found that caregivers for family members with dementia who receive one or two consultations saw improvements in their ability to manage stress, and that people requesting more than one call reported lower baseline confidence in their ability to manage their emotions than those requesting only one call.
How tobacco retail exposure impacts smoking behavior
Penn researchers have found that smokers report higher levels of craving and smoked more cigarettes on days when their exposure to tobacco retail is higher.
