School of Arts & Sciences

A multi-disciplinary team from the University of Pennsylvania has published in Nature Methods a first-of-its-kind way to isolate RNA from live cells in their natural tissue microenvironment without damaging nearby cells. This allows the researchers to analyze how cell-to-cell chemical connections influence individual cell function and overall protein production.  

Wearing a police uniform, Thomas J. Nestel III cuts a commanding presence when he walks across campus at the University of Pennsylvania. But he’s not on patrol; he’s a student and a teacher.

One of the primary social motivations for scientific research is the ability to make better decisions based on the results.

Increasingly, biologists have come to realize that RNA is not merely a transitional state between DNA and proteins but plays a major role in determining whether and how genes are turned into a protein product. Gaining a deeper understanding of RNA regulation can help scientists shed light on diseases that arise when this function goes awry.

The University of Pennsylvania will host three celebrated writers as Kelly Writers House Fellows during the 2014 spring semester.Journalist and essayist Buzz Bissenger will visit Penn Feb. 17-18, followed by fiction writer T.C. Boyle March 31-April 1 and poet Rae Armantrout April 28-29.

So much for sugar and spice. For the nearly 30 undergraduate student-athletes who are members of the Women’s Rugby Club at the University of Pennsylvania, playing nice is not part of the approach. Rugby, a blend of football, soccer and wrestling, requires bold athleticism and a military-like strategy. In this tough-as-nails sport, there’s no room for niceties.“Rugby is the toughest sport out there; no doubt about it,” says Lucy Dawson, the co-president of the club and a junior majoring in cognitive neuroscience in the College.

Leah Davidson, a sophomore at the University of Pennsylvania, plans to pursue a career in business. But she wants to do so in an environmentally conscientious manner. So when, as a high school senior, she learned of an opportunity to visit one of the most untouched habitats on Earth, she jumped at the chance.

Playing soccer brought Alec Neumann to the University of Pennsylvania, and, since arriving on campus in the fall, the freshman has relished in the game and in the ability to pursue additional interests as well.

A team of material scientists, chemical engineers and physicists from the University of Pennsylvania has made another advance in their effort to use liquid crystals as a medium for assembling structures.

During the past five years, the number of international students at the University of Pennsylvania has seen record growth at the undergraduate and the graduate level. Penn is among the top destinations for international students from around the world seeking to study in the United States. Currently, the University hosts 5,751 international students from 137 different countries, including China, Japan, Thailand, Canada, Taiwan and Singapore.