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The poetry of ancient math
Medieval mathematical manuscript written in vernacular Malayalam script on palm-leaf

Medieval mathematical manuscript written in vernacular Malayalam script on palm-leaf at the Oriental Research Institute and Manuscripts Library, Thiruvananthapuram, India. Ph.D. student Priya Nambrath is using manuscripts like these to better understand “a deeply grounded and long-lasting mathematical tradition.”

(Image: Courtesy Priya Nambrath)

The poetry of ancient math

The methods and findings of pre-modern Indian mathematicians remain poorly understood. Priya Nambrath, a doctoral candidate in the School of Arts & Sciences’ Department of South Asia Studies, wants to change that.

From Omnia

2 min. read

Investigating barriers to menopause care for Medicaid patients
Eri Maeda standing outdoors against a brick wall and smiling, facing forward.

Eri Maeda, a rising third-year in the College of Arts & Sciences, spent her summer in the Penn Undergraduate Research Mentoring Program (PURM) studying the impact of insurance status on menopause care access in the U.S. A neuroscience major pursuing a pre-medicine path, Maeda has gained new insights and research skills throughout her PURM experience.

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Investigating barriers to menopause care for Medicaid patients

Rising third-year Eri Maeda dedicated her summer to a Penn Undergraduate Research Mentoring Program project exploring how insurance status may shape access to menopause care in the U.S.

4 min. read

Curiosity, STEM, and a summer on campus
Two high school students woking with pipettes in a science classroom.

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Curiosity, STEM, and a summer on campus

The Penn Research Experience for High School Students gives Philadelphia 11th and 12th graders a rare opportunity to tackle college-level research.

From Omnia

2 min. read

Penn’s Benjamin Nathans reflects on his work and Pulitzer Prize win
Benjamin Nathans sits at a table in his office.

Benjamin Nathans has been studying Soviet and Russian history for four decades.

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Penn’s Benjamin Nathans reflects on his work and Pulitzer Prize win

Historian Benjamin Nathans’ huge volume on the stories and lives of Soviet dissidents has gotten renewed attention after winning the 2025 Pulitzer Prize in General Nonfiction. Nathan’s research and insights span a four-decade-long career studying Russia and the USSR, modern Jewish history, and the history of human rights.

5 min. read

Three undergraduates map climate and health education opportunities across campus
Wendy Hernandez Higarede and Veronica Baladi look at glass case in Houston Hall.

Wendy Hernandez Higarede and Veronica Baladi made observations in Houston Hall as part of their fieldwork.

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Three undergraduates map climate and health education opportunities across campus

For a Penn Undergraduate Research Mentoring Program project, Wendy Hernandez Higarede, Veronica Baladi, and Faith Amolo Owino are engaging with Penn’s Climate and Health Education Working Group and learning ethnographic methods.

2 min. read

Hunting for relics of a universe past
a spherical halo created by dark matter.

Image courtesy of ESO/L. Calçada

Hunting for relics of a universe past

In the lab of associate professor of physics and astronomy Robyn Sanderson, Alexandra DiMauro and Mariam Tskitishvili search for hints about dark matter and analyze data that could inform what is known about how stars form.

Laura Dattaro

2 min. read

Could exoplanets locked in eternal day and endless night support life?
Artist depiction of exoplanet LHS 3844 b.

Image: Courtesy of NASA

Could exoplanets locked in eternal day and endless night support life?

Ever so slightly bigger than Earth, the exoplanet LHS 3844b orbits its parent star, LHS 3884, a red dwarf 48.5 light-years away from our solar system, in such a way that the speed of its axial spin mirrors the speed of its orbit. The result? One side of LHS 3844b is perpetually bathed in scorching sunlight, locked into a never-ending, blistering hot day, while the other is forever shrouded in darkness so cold that particles are incapable of movement, a state known as absolute zero (zero Kelvin).

7 min. read

Understanding how young children recognize emotions in music
Young child with headphones on.

Image: Uma Shankar sharma via Getty Images

Understanding how young children recognize emotions in music

Research from psychologists in the School of Arts & Sciences shows that children ages 3 to 5 can identify emotions in music, but that kids who show fewer signs of empathy or guilt demonstrate poorer emotion recognition. “We’re excited to continue to use music as a paradigm both to understand underlying mechanisms and as a treatment target,” Rebecca Waller says.

2 min. read