History

A medieval confluence

Three newly-hired Penn assistant professors, all transplants to Philadelphia, found each other soon after they arrived and discovered that, although they were in different areas of study, they all focused on the Middle Ages, specifically 13th-century France. 

Louisa Shepard , Louisa Shepard

Undergraduate seminar takes students to India

Nearly 8,000 miles from the University of Pennsylvania’s campus in Philadelphia, eight students immersed themselves in “The Performing Arts of Modern South India” through a year-long course that included a 12-day visit to India and continues through the spring.

Jill DiSanto

Staff Q&A with Lynn Ransom

The Schoenberg Database of Manuscripts, housed in the Penn Libraries’ Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies, is the world’s largest freely available repository of data on manuscripts produced before 1600.

Heather A. Davis



In the News


New Republic

The bad politics of bad posture

In her book “Slouch,” Beth Linker of the School of Arts & Sciences outlines how societal pressures have driven huge swaths of people to embrace falsehoods about posture.

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MSNBC

Time will tell if Kamala Harris made the right choice by picking Tim Walz

In an opinion essay, Brian Rosenwald of the School of Arts & Sciences outlines the thought process behind past picks for vice-presidential running mates.

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Philadelphia Inquirer

This should be our response to Donald Trump’s comments that ‘you won’t have to vote anymore’

In an opinion article, Jonathan Zimmerman of the Graduate School of Education argues that voting should be mandatory.

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University World News

The local democratic mission of HE: Lessons from the U.S.

A paper edited by Ira Harkavy and Rita A. Hodges of the Netter Center for Community Partnerships examines how urban universities can further democracy and inclusion by working with their local communities.

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The New York Times

Mythical sword’s disappearance brings mystery to French village

Ada Maria Kuskowski of the School of Arts & Sciences comments on “The Song of Roland,” a poem that has been referenced by nationalist groups for its message that Muslims are an enemy and Muslim immigrants are overtaking France.

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The Atlantic

What the Civil Rights Act really meant

William Sturkey of the School of Arts & Sciences writes that in a healthier democracy and in a freer and more open country, we would pass more laws like the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

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