Research | Penn Today

The role of history in how efficient color names evolve

In a new study, biology and psychology researchers show how existing color vocabularies constrain future options for efficient color vocabularies.

Hannah Win takes soil samples at a solar site.

The soils beneath the solar fields

How do solar farms impact soil health? It’s a question that master’s student Hannah Winn is exploring at the central Pennsylvania site where solar energy production is helping Penn progress toward carbon neutrality.

Finding solutions for burnout among nurses of color

The Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research at the School of Nursing brought together nurses and researchers for the Solutions to Health Inequities & Nurses’ Emotional Exhaustion Invitational.

Why Amazon and Uber investors might wish those stocks weren’t joining Dow indexes

A study by Jeremy Siegel and Jeremy Schwartz of the Wharton School found that stocks deleted from the S&P 500 outperformed their replacements on average.

Can your personal medical devices be recycled?

A lab at the School of Engineering and Applied Science led the development of a COVID test made from bacterial cellulose, an organic compound.

Early humans had ADHD, scientists say after making people play game online

A collaborative study by researchers from Penn suggests that the impulsive component of ADHD may provide a competitive advantage to learn from rivals and “catch” new methods of achievement.

Ranked ‘avoid’: Ranked choice voting increases ballot errors

A study from Penn found that votes in ranked-choice races are nearly 10 times more likely to be rejected due to an improper mark than votes in non-ranked choice races.

Illustration of a couple walking in a city in the snow.

Romance and race

Sociology Ph.D. candidate Olivia Hu is studying how people choose romantic partners across race lines, and how those relationships affect their understandings of social difference.

New chip opens door to AI computing at light speed

A new silicon-photonic (SiPh) chip design from the lab of Nader Engheta, alongside Firooz Aflatouni, uses light waves, the fastest possible means of communication, rather than electricity, to perform mathematical computations.

ADHD may have evolved more than 12,000 years ago as an advantage for foragers, study claims

A study led by David Barack of the Perelman School of Medicine suggests that ADHD may have played a major role in foraging and survival for ancient hunter-gatherers.

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