Mechanical Engineering

The next generation of tiny batteries

Assistant professor James Pikul speaks to the growth of interconnected devices and the robotics industry—leading to emerging designs and novel research unlocking the potential for smaller, more powerful batteries

Nathi Magubane

Music-making and the flow of aerosols

If simply breathing can spread the SARS-CoV-2 virus to others nearby, what about blowing into a tuba? Researchers from the School of Engineering the School of Arts & Sciences used fluid mechanics to study the movement of aerosols generated by musicians.

Katherine Unger Baillie



In the News


Philadelphia Inquirer

What’s so ‘magic’ about the secret South Jersey mud rubbed on baseballs? These Penn researchers think they know why

Doug Jerolmack of the School of Arts & Sciences, Paulo Arratia of the School of Engineering and Applied Science, and colleagues are researching the chemical properties of baseball’s “magic mud” for use in applications beyond sports.

FULL STORY →



ANI News (India)

University of Pennsylvania pledges to bolster relations with India at "Penn India Engagement Forum"

PIK Professor Ezekiel J. Emanuel, Dean Erika H. James of the Wharton School, and Dean Vijay Kumar of the School of Engineering and Applied Science are quoted on the forum to support India's exceptional growth and specific health care needs.

FULL STORY →



Associated Press

Tackling threat of mudslides in soaked California

Douglas Jerolmack of the School of Arts & Sciences says that debris basins can be costly, becoming overwhelmed by new landslides or mudslides that have been worsened by climate change.

FULL STORY →



Technical.ly Philly

Artists and Penn Ph.D.s collabed to explore the intersection of art and engineering. Check out their exhibit

In the culminating project of Penn’s Robotics Art Residency, three artists hosted at the Pennovation Center developed collaborative exhibits with Ph.D. students at the GRASP Lab of the School of Engineering and Applied Science and the Weitzman School of Design.

FULL STORY →



Physics World

Liquid crystals bring robotics to the microscale

In collaboration with the University of Ljubljana, Kathleen Stebe of the School of Engineering and Applied Science has built a swimming microrobot that paddles by rotating liquid crystal molecules.

FULL STORY →



New Scientist

Drone swarm that 3D prints cement structures could construct buildings

Robert Stuart-Smith of the Weitzman School of Design and colleagues demonstrate how 3D-printing drones can create large structures made of foam or cement, paving the way for future construction efforts.

FULL STORY →