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Postdocs
Perceptions shaped social behavior during the pandemic
Perceptions shaped social behavior during the pandemic
Research from Penn psychologists found that Americans who most feared losing their connections continued interacting with others, paradoxically acting in ways that risked prolonging disease-mitigating social restrictions.
Therapy dogs help students relax and relieve stress
Therapy dogs help students relax and relieve stress
The Wharton School’s Undergraduate Division invited students to take a break from studying and enjoy therapy dogs on campus.
From corals to humans, a shared trigger for sperm to get in motion
From corals to humans, a shared trigger for sperm to get in motion
Coral sperm require a specific pH to move, according to research from the School of Arts & Sciences, which identifies a signaling pathway that is shared by organisms including humans. The results inform how corals may fare with climate change.
In the brain’s cerebellum, a new target for suppressing hunger
In the brain’s cerebellum, a new target for suppressing hunger
A research team led by J. Nicholas Betley in the School of Arts & Sciences has identified an entirely new way the brain signals fullness after eating. The findings offer a novel target for therapies that could dramatically curb overeating.
A new model for how the brain perceives unique odors
A new model for how the brain perceives unique odors
Using statistical physics and insights from biology, this research can help inform new hypotheses and experiments towards understanding the olfactory system, a complex and crucial pathway of the brain.
A microscopic worm may shed light on how we perceive gravity
A microscopic worm may shed light on how we perceive gravity
C. elegans shares more than half of its genes with humans, allowing genetic studies to give insight into which genes are responsible for similar traits in humans, such as pinpointing molecular pathways responsible for gravitaxis, the ability to move in response to gravity.
Mapping words to color
Mapping words to color
Researchers led by postdoc Colin Twomey and professor Joshua Plotkin developed an algorithm that can infer the communicative needs different linguistic communities place on colors.
Reimagining scientific discovery through the lens of an artist
The latest exhibition by Rebecca Kamen, Penn artist-in-residence and visiting scholar, at the American University Katzen Art Center explores curiosity and the creative process across art and science.
New engineering approaches to address unmet oral health needs
New engineering approaches to address unmet oral health needs
With a new NIH training grant, awards, and new faculty and publications, the recently launched Center for Innovation & Precision Dentistry is leveraging technological advancements to improve oral health.
U.S. airstrikes in Iraq and Syria, explained
U.S. airstrikes in Iraq and Syria, explained
Sara Plana, a 2021-22 Postdoctoral Fellow at Perry World House, shares her thoughts on the airstrikes targeting Iranian-backed militias and the bigger picture of what’s happening in the region.
In the News
Philadelphia Inquirer
Is an Alzheimer’s blood test right for me?
Postdoc Claire Erickson and Emily Largent of the Perelman School of Medicine and the Leonard Davis Institute discuss which people should take an Alzheimer’s blood test.
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Live Science
The brain may interpret smells from each nostril differently
A study by postdoc Gulce Nazli Dikecligil in the Perelman School of Medicine suggests that the smells flowing through each nostril are processed as two separate signals in the part of the brain that receives smell inputs.
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The New York Times
One graceless tweet doesn’t warrant cancellation
Elle Lett, a postdoc in the Perelman School of Medicine, wrote about how the word “freak” has been used to dehumanize Black women. “There is a history that dates back to the antebellum South” of “fetishizing, hypersexualizing and otherizing Black women in freak shows and displays to media and even medical textbooks,” Lett wrote. “Black women are consistently dehumanized in America. By using ‘freak of nature,’ you separate Black women from the rest of human existence.”
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