Arts, Humanities, & Social Sciences

Assessing the balance of TV news from the Arab world

From the moment fruit vendor Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire in Tunisia, marking the beginning of the current Arab uprisings, the Al Jazeera television network has dominated news coverage of the region, reporting on the revolts from all angles, with correspondents in different locations and news crews in all the hot spots.

Greg Johnson

James Martin to Deliver Penn’s 2011 Baccalaureate Address

PHILADELPHIA — The Rev. James Martin, a Jesuit priest, author and culture editor of America, a national Catholic magazine, will speak at the University of Pennsylvania’s 2011 Baccalaureate ceremonies on Sunday, May 15, in Irvine Auditorium, 3401 Spruce St.

Jill DiSanto-Haines

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jared Diamond speaks for Year of Water on April 6

As parts of Africa suffer continued drought and Japan tries to recover from one of the worst earthquakes and tsunamis in recorded history, scholar-author Jared Diamond will give the Penn community insight into water’s impact on society at a public talk on Wednesday, April 6, at 7 p.m. in Irvine Auditorium.

Julie McWilliams

Creating Canopy: Penn, Philadelphia Partner to Distribute Free Trees to University Homeowners

PHILADELPHIA – As the first institution to take part in Philadelphia’s Creating Canopy program, the University of Pennsylvania is partnering with the city’s Parks and Recreation Department to distribute to faculty and staff homeowners in the city 300 free trees to plant on their property.             

Julie McWilliams, Patrick Morgan

Can science predict criminal behavior?

A century-and-a-half ago, a tape measure was an even more useful tool than it is now: You could use it to predict who was going to commit a crime.

Evan Lerner

Student Spotlight with Yali Derman

CARRY ON: Yali Derman, 20, is a sophomore in Penn’s School of Nursing and a handbag designer. She’s also a two-time cancer survivor, beating leukemia at ages 5 and 9 and receiving a bone marrow transplant from her brother, Benji, at age 9.

Heather A. Davis



In the News


Philadelphia Inquirer

Comcast’s Sports Complex plan for South Philly would make our city less livable

In an Op-Ed, Vukan R. Vuchic of the School of Engineering and Applied Science says that Philadelphia should make transit more accessible rather than striving to accommodate more cars.

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The New York Times

We don’t see what climate change is doing to us

In an Op-Ed, R. Jisung Park of the School of Social Policy & Practice says that public discourse around climate change overlooks the buildup of slow, subtle costs and their impact on human systems.

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Associated Press

Far fewer young Americans now want to study in China. Both countries are trying to fix that

Amy Gadsden of Penn Global says that American interest in studying in China is declining due to foreign businesses closing their offices there and Beijing’s draconian governing style.

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The Wall Street Journal

‘Slouch’ review: The panic over posture

In her new book, “Slouch: Posture Panic in Modern America,” Beth Linker of the School of Arts & Sciences traces society’s posture obsession to Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution.

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Associated Press

In death, three decades after his trial verdict, O.J. Simpson still reflects America’s racial divides

Camille Charles of the School of Arts & Sciences says that Black Americans have grown less likely to believe in a famous defendant’s innocence as a show of race solidarity.

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