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New Katz Center fellowship amplifies study of antisemitism through classes, events, and community
Mendel Kranz leaning against bookshelves in a library setting

Mendel Kranz is the inaugural recipient of the Ross-Silk-Lowenstein Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Study of Contemporary Antisemitism

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New Katz Center fellowship amplifies study of antisemitism through classes, events, and community

Mendel Kranz, the inaugural recipient of the Ross-Silk-Lowenstein Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Study of Contemporary Antisemitism, elevates awareness and critical inquiry into antisemitism through research projects, classroom dialogue, and educational events.

4 min. read

A road map to reduce firearm harms by 2040
Six people stand on a set of parallel, converging arrows, illustrating the concept of collaboration or moving forward together.

Image: mathisworks/DigitalVision Vectors via Getty Images

A road map to reduce firearm harms by 2040

Three Penn faculty members are among more than 40 experts to author a report addressing the persistent challenge of gun violence and proposing solutions stemming from a JAMA Summit convened last spring.

2 min. read

How has talking about politics changed in the last quarter-century?
Two people speaking in a government building.

Americans are having more political conversations than they were 24 years ago, and are more likely to be talking with people they agree with politically, Penn researcher Diana C. Mutz finds.

(Image: Hill Street Studios via Getty Images)

How has talking about politics changed in the last quarter-century?

Penn researcher Diana Mutz finds that we’re having more political conversations now with like-minded people, and that political intolerance has increased as a result.

2 min. read

Philosophy, technology, and pushing beyond human limitations
Gary Purpura teaches class.

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.

3 min. read

Understanding today through Soviet history  

Understanding today through Soviet history  

Benjamin Nathans examines dissent in the Soviet Union in the 1960s and 1970s to understand how our world was shaped by history.

Why rental support works
Vincent Reina and Sara Jaffee.

“You’re seeing a dramatic improvement in housing stability outcomes,” says Vincent Reina, pictured with Sara Jaffee.

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Why rental support works

Cash assistance drastically reduces tenants’ likelihood of eviction and homelessness, according to an ongoing study of the PHLHousing+ program from Weitzman’s Vincent Reina and Arts & Sciences’ Sara Jaffee.

From the Weitzman School of Design

2 min. read

Through Penn First Plus, students unlock potential and purpose
Marc Lo (left) and Enmanuel Martínez (center) speaking with Mayokun Omitogun (right)

Marc Lo (left) and Enmanuel Martínez (center) speaking with Mayokun Omitogun (right)

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Through Penn First Plus, students unlock potential and purpose

Providing first-generation and limited-income students with a comprehensive array of support, Penn First Plus equips undergraduates for success during and after their time at Penn.

5 min. read

Can tiny ocean organisms offer the key to better climate modeling?
Researcher Xin Sun injects substance into glass vials.

Xin Sun prepares samples collected from the Eastern Tropical North Pacific aboard a research vessel. By adding stable isotope tracers to these vials, Sun and her team can track how different microbial groups convert nitrogen compounds into nitrous oxide, revealing how subtle shifts in oxygen and organic matter change the ocean’s chemistry.

 
 

(Image: Courtesy of Xin Sun)

Can tiny ocean organisms offer the key to better climate modeling?

In the shadowy layers of the Pacific, microbes decide how much nitrous oxide—a potent greenhouse gas—rises skyward. New research from Penn’s Xin Sun offers an improved understanding of microbial ecology and geochemistry—key to forecasting global emissions in response to natural and man-made climate change.

3 min. read

Street lighting and public safety
People dining on a well-lit Philly sidewalk at night.

Image: benedek via Getty Images

Street lighting and public safety

Criminology researchers Aaron Chalfin and John MacDonald, and data scientist Brian Wade of Penn’s Crime and Justice Policy Lab, evaluate the effect of improved street lighting on crime rates.

Blake Cole

2 min. read

History professor Marcy Norton awarded

History professor Marcy Norton awarded

Marcy Norton, professor of history in Penn’s School of Arts & Sciences, has received three awards for her new book, “The Tame and the Wild”: the Friedrich Katz Prize from the American Historical Association, the Elinor Melville Prize (biennial) from the Conference on Latin American History, and the María Elena Martínez Prize from the Conference on Latin American History.