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Guiding light towards smarter technology
Bo Zhen and He Li power a series of lasers atop a table.

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Guiding light towards smarter technology

Penn researchers developed a system that allows light to be guided through a tiny crystal, undeterred by bumps, bends, and back-reflections. Their findings pave the way for robust, controllable light-based chips, smarter routing for data links, and more stable lasers.

3 min. read

AI uncovers new antibiotics in ancient microbes
Cesar de la Fuente in his lab.

César de la Fuente (pictured) and his team used AI to study the proteins of hundreds of ancient microbes, searching for new antibiotic candidates.

(Image: Jianing Bai)

AI uncovers new antibiotics in ancient microbes

César de la Fuente uses AI to hunt for new antibiotic candidates in unlikely places, from the DNA of extinct organisms to the proteins of ancient microbes.

Ian Scheffler

2 min. read

A nature-inspired leap in water harvesting technology

A nature-inspired leap in water harvesting technology

Penn Engineering’s Shu Yang and postdoctoral fellow Yunchan Lee are working to develop a new material and device that imitate raspberries and sunflowers. Together, these bio-inspired forms make clean, sustainable water harvesting possible by using just the moisture in the air and the heat of the sun.

Curiosity, STEM, and a summer on campus
Two high school students woking with pipettes in a science classroom.

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Curiosity, STEM, and a summer on campus

The Penn Research Experience for High School Students gives Philadelphia 11th and 12th graders a rare opportunity to tackle college-level research.

From Omnia

2 min. read

Could exoplanets locked in eternal day and endless night support life?
Artist depiction of exoplanet LHS 3844 b.

Image: Courtesy of NASA

Could exoplanets locked in eternal day and endless night support life?

Ever so slightly bigger than Earth, the exoplanet LHS 3844b orbits its parent star, LHS 3884, a red dwarf 48.5 light-years away from our solar system, in such a way that the speed of its axial spin mirrors the speed of its orbit. The result? One side of LHS 3844b is perpetually bathed in scorching sunlight, locked into a never-ending, blistering hot day, while the other is forever shrouded in darkness so cold that particles are incapable of movement, a state known as absolute zero (zero Kelvin).

7 min. read

Understanding how young children recognize emotions in music
Young child with headphones on.

Image: Uma Shankar sharma via Getty Images

Understanding how young children recognize emotions in music

Research from psychologists in the School of Arts & Sciences shows that children ages 3 to 5 can identify emotions in music, but that kids who show fewer signs of empathy or guilt demonstrate poorer emotion recognition. “We’re excited to continue to use music as a paradigm both to understand underlying mechanisms and as a treatment target,” Rebecca Waller says.

2 min. read

Designing cleaner, greener concrete that absorbs carbon dioxide
Masoud Akbarzadeh holding up one of the fabricated materials.

The Polyhedral Structures Laboratory is housed at the Pennovation Center and brings together designers, engineers, and computer scientists to reimagine the built world. Using graphic statics, a method where forces are mapped as lines, they design forms that balance compression and tension. These result in structures that use far fewer materials while remaining strong and efficient.

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Designing cleaner, greener concrete that absorbs carbon dioxide

Penn engineers, materials scientists, and designers have developed a 3D-printed concrete solution based on diatomaceous earth that has enhanced carbon capture, is stronger, and uses fewer materials like cement.

6 min. read

Heat domes and flooding have nearly tripled since the ’50s
Everett Clayton looks at a digital thermometer on a nearby building that reads 116 degrees while walking to his apartment on June 27, 2021 in Vancouver, Washington.

Record-breaking temperatures lingered over the Northwest during a historic heatwave in June, 2021 in Vancouver, Washington.

(Image: Nathan Howard via AP Images)

Heat domes and flooding have nearly tripled since the ’50s

New research led by Michael E. Mann links a surge in stalled jet stream events to human-driven climate change, with major implications for future heatwaves, wildfires, and floods.

7 min. read

AI x Science Postdoctoral Fellows collaborate across disciplines
Sibe-by-side portraits of Brynn Sherman, on left, and Kieran Murphy, right.

Penn’s AI x Science Postdoctoral Fellows Program is breaking down traditional scientific boundaries by integrating artificial intelligence across diverse research fields. Less than a year in, the program is already paying dividends in the form of new collaborations and research publications for inaugural fellows like Brynn Sherman (left) of the School of Arts & Sciences and Kieran Murphy (right) of the School of Engineering and Applied Science.

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AI x Science Postdoctoral Fellows collaborate across disciplines

The new fellowship program, offered through the School of Arts & Sciences and the School of Engineering and Applied Science, offers mentorship and peer engagement opportunities.

5 min. read