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How have new social norms emerged as COVID-19 has spread?
Person sitting cross-legged on an airport chair looking at a phone. A suitcase is in front of the image. A chair next to the person has a large, red X and read "Social Distancing."

How have new social norms emerged as COVID-19 has spread?

In a study of nine countries, researcher Cristina Bicchieri found that motivating people to modify behavior requires changing their expectations about the actions and thoughts of those who matter to them.

Michele W. Berger

Protests matter, and here’s why
Large crowd wearing masks protesting in the streets of D.C., person in foreground holds a sign reading BREONNA’S LIFE MATTERED.

Protests matter, and here’s why

As part of the Provost’s Lecture on Diversity, political science professor Daniel Gillion gave insight into how demonstrations affect elected officials, shape policy, increase engagement, and motivate voter turnout.

Lauren Hertzler

Pope Francis supports same-sex unions
Pope Francis waving outdoors

As an Argentine cardinal, Jorge Mario Bengolio endorsed civil unions. Now, he becomes the first to do so as pope.

Pope Francis supports same-sex unions

The Catholic Church has long stated that marriage is between a man and a woman, a position Pope Francis supports. Melissa Wilde and Anthea Butler discuss the Pope’s recent support of civil unions that ensure legal rights for same-sex couples.

Kristina Linnea García

Pew Center for Arts & Heritage awards 2020 grants to Penn projects
Two people, one sitting in the woods, and the other playing the drums.

The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage announced 41 grants totaling $10.5 million in support of the Philadelphia region’s artists and cultural programs, events, and artistic work. Receiving project grants were Penn's Institute for Contemporary Art and the Stuart Weitzman School of Design, as well as a project by Girard College that involves two Penn faculty, theater director Brooke O’Harra (left) and music composer Tyshawn Sorey, both of the School of Arts & Sciences.

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Pew Center for Arts & Heritage awards 2020 grants to Penn projects

The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage announced 41 grants totaling $10.5 million in support of the Institute for Contemporary Art and Stuart Weitzman School of Design, and a Girard College project involving theater director Brooke O’Harra and music composer Tyshawn Sorey.

Louisa Shepard

Is American democracy at a breaking point?
Statue of Liberty in shadow in New York Harbor as the sun sets behind

Can American democracy withstand the strains of the pandemic, the summer’s protests and the current election cycle?

  • Q&A

    • Is American democracy at a breaking point?

    Amidst a backdrop of protests, the pandemic, and presidential politics, historian Anne Berg shares her thoughts on whether American democracy is at risk, historical parallels to the current situation, and what ordinary people can do.

    Kristen de Groot

    Declines in shellfish species on rocky seashores match climate-driven changes
    snails and barnacles on a rock on the seashore

    Dogwhelks feed on barnacles on the shores of Swan’s Island. New research documents slow and steady declines in these and other intertidal species that make up an important part of the area’s food chain. Climate change is a suspected culprit. (Image: Jonathan A. D. Fisher)

    Declines in shellfish species on rocky seashores match climate-driven changes

    Mussels, barnacles, and snails are declining in the Gulf of Maine, according to a new paper by biologists Peter Petraitis of the School of Arts & Sciences and Steve Dudgeon of California State University, Northridge. Their 20-year dataset reveals that the populations’ steady dwindling matches up with the effects of climate change on the region.

    Katherine Unger Baillie

    Crowd-sourcing optogenetics data to tackle neurological diseases
    Two people in front of two computer monitors. The person moving the mouse is sitting. The other person stands watching.

    Sébastien Tremblay (front), a postdoctoral fellow in the Platt Labs, works in a specialized field of neuroscience called optogenetics, which shows clinical promise for treating conditions like epilepsy. To foster the open exchange of information, Tremblay spearheaded a crowd-sourced, free database that includes data from 45 labs in nine countries. (Pre-pandemic image: Kevin Monko)

    Crowd-sourcing optogenetics data to tackle neurological diseases

    The specialized field of neuroscience, optogenetics, shows clinical promise for conditions like epilepsy and Parkinson’s. But before human trials can get fully underway, the field must better understand a crucial intermediate step, aided by 45 labs in nine countries sharing information.

    Michele W. Berger

    Latin American Green New Deal
    Two workers labor in an industrial site

    Workers labor inside the lithium plant at Llipi, on the Uyuni Salt Flat in Bolivia. (Image: Tom Perreault, pre-pandemic.)

    Latin American Green New Deal

    Daniel Aldana Cohen, an assistant professor of sociology in the School of Arts & Sciences, organized and moderated an event on the Latin American Green New Deal, rethinking recession recovery and carbon emissions reduction.

    Kristina Linnea García