11/15
Graduate Students
The inner workings of chronic pain
Jessica Wojick, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Biology in the School of Arts & Sciences, examines the biological experiences of pain and how to mitigate suffering.
Building community, one meal and conversation at a time
The Conversations for Community and Dinners Across Differences programs, launched last fall, foster spaces conducive for difficult conversations while recognizing shared humanity.
Move-In primer 2024
Penn Today offers a practical guide to undergraduates moving into College Houses and participating in orientation Aug. 19-26
Racing to the future
Rahul Mangharam’s scaled-down, self-driving race cars are revamping engineering education at Penn.
The anthropology of plastics in India
Doctoral candidate Adwaita Banerjee uses ethnographic research to document the ecological transition of the Deonar dumping ground, where thousands of Dalits and Muslim migrants mine the area for plastic that can be resold and recycled.
Exploring the limits of robotic systems
Bruce Lee, a doctoral student in Penn Engineering’s Department of Electrical and Systems Engineering, offers insights into the fundamental limits of machine learning.
Hurricane changed ‘rules of the game’ in monkey society
PIK Professor Michael Platt and collaborators from the University of Exeter find Hurricane Maria transformed a monkey society by changing the pros and cons of their interpersonal relations.
New dissertation grants expand global research support
The newly established Penn Global Dissertation Grants program provides as much as $8,000 in funding to each of 11 Ph.D. candidates to enhance global components in their research.
Who, What, Why: Nursing student and Peace Corps alum Eva Farrell
Serving in the Peace Corps as a math and science teacher in Kenya from 2012 to 2014 inspired MSN student Eva Farrell to go into nursing.
The English major’s cheerleader and champion
Bestselling author Jennifer Egan taught an undergraduate literature course in the spring as an English Department artist in residence in the School of Arts & Sciences. A 1985 Penn graduate, she is a passionate advocate for the English major, the humanities, and a liberal arts education.
In the News
Rising student absenteeism may be hurting teacher job satisfaction
A study by Michael Gottfried and Ph.D. student Colby Woods of the Graduate School of Education finds that student absences are linked to lower teacher job satisfaction, which could exacerbate growing teacher shortages.
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CAR-T cell therapies show promise for autoimmune diseases
Daniel Baker, a Ph.D. student in Carl June’s lab at the Perelman School of Medicine, discusses the results of a study on donor CAR-T cell therapy.
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Many wealthy members of Congress are descendants of rich slaveholders — new study demonstrates the enduring legacy of slavery
A co-authored study by Ph.D. student Neil Sehgal of the School of Engineering and Applied Science found that legislators who are descendants of slaveholders are significantly wealthier than members of Congress without slaveholder ancestry.
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Penn analysis supports state commission’s recommendation for boost in Pa. education funding
An analysis by A. Brooks Bowden and doctoral candidates David Loeb and Katie Pullom of the Graduate School of Education outlines the measurable benefits of a $5.1 billion increase in Pennsylvania K-12 spending over seven years.
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A new idea for Market East: A ‘Welcoming District’ for immigrants who are driving population growth
Graduate students at the Weitzman School of Design are submitting speculative proposals for a Welcoming District near Philadelphia’s Fashion District that could replace or supplement the Sixers arena.
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Few options available to Western leaders weighing response to Vladimir Putin critic Alexei Navalny’s death
Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon of the School of Arts & Sciences says that Western countries have little practical leverage to push Russia off its authoritarian path after Alexei Navalny’s death, given the economic and diplomatic sanctions already levied against Vladimir Putin.
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