5/19
Science & Technology
Making chemical separation more eco-friendly with nanotechnology
Making chemical separation more eco-friendly with nanotechnology
Chemical separation processes are essential to manufacturing, but also consume high levels of energy. Penn Engineers are developing new membranes for energy-efficient membrane-based separations on a nanoscale level.
With plants as a model, studying the ‘complexity and reproducibility’ of developmental biology
With plants as a model, studying the ‘complexity and reproducibility’ of developmental biology
In his first year at Penn, biologist Aman Husbands is busy working on projects aimed at illuminating the molecular mechanisms that govern plant development.
Six from Penn elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2022
Six from Penn elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2022
Faculty from the Perelman School of Medicine, School of Arts & Sciences, Graduate School of Education, and Law School join more 260 honorees recognized for contributions to academia, the arts, industry, public policy, and research.
In the Galápagos, training community scientists to monitor water quality
In the Galápagos, training community scientists to monitor water quality
Both dense human populations and a plethora of wildlife can pose a challenge to marine and public health in the Galápagos Islands. With portable, user-friendly PCR technology, Penn faculty and students are training local scientists and school children to perform water quality research.
How one inflammatory disorder exacerbates another
How one inflammatory disorder exacerbates another
Researchers from the School of Dental Medicine and colleagues from Dresden, Germany demonstrate that an association between conditions such as severe gum disease and arthritis is traceable to the bone marrow.
Islands on the climate front line
Islands on the climate front line
Perry World House’s Global Shifts Colloquium looked at how islands can protect their people, build resilient communities, and safeguard their environment in the climate crisis.
Regulating the regulators of the immune system
Regulating the regulators of the immune system
Research led by School of Veterinary Medicine scientists reveals a new layer of complexity with which the immune system finds a balance between controlling pathogens and protecting healthy tissue.
Revising the lifecycle of an important human parasite
Revising the lifecycle of an important human parasite
Researchers from Boris Striepen’s lab in the School of Veterinary Medicine tracked Cryptosporidium in real time, creating a new paradigm for how the widespread parasite reproduces in a host.
Social connections influence brain structure of rhesus macaques
Social connections influence brain structure of rhesus macaques
Researchers from Penn, Inserm, and elsewhere observed that the number of grooming partners an individual animal had predicted the size of brain areas associated with social decision-making and empathy.
Lead toxicity risk factors in Philadelphia
Lead toxicity risk factors in Philadelphia
Two studies identify factors that correlate with high blood-lead levels in children, pointing to ongoing environmental justice issues that disproportionately fall on children of color and poorer communities in the city.
In the News
NBC News
Triceratops tussle: ‘Big John’ skull shows signs of battle, scientists say
Julie Engiles of the School of Veterinary Medicine commented on new research regarding triceratops anatomy, calling the team’s methodology “elegant and thorough.”
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Scientific American
Where rising seas threaten drinking water, scientists look for affordable solutions
Research led by Allison Lassiter of the Stuart Weitzman School of Design aims to identify water systems along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts that are vulnerable to saltwater intrusion. “Besides being unpleasant to drink, salinized water can harm vulnerable populations, including people with hypertension and pregnant women,” she said.
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The New York Times
Ty Haney is doing things differently this time
Kevin Werbach of the Wharton School said “web3,” a block-chain-centered iteration of the internet, won’t be as democratized or utopian as some believe. “There’s a web3 that’s out there which is wonderful and trying to make the world a better place, but just by labeling something web3, it doesn’t mean power dynamics will magically reverse,” Werbach said.
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WHYY (Philadelphia)
Got an idea to address the impacts of climate change along the Delaware? You could win money to make it happen
The Penn Program in Environmental Humanities’ Ecotopian Toolkit competition is soliciting proposals for tools to help the greater Philadelphia region address impacts of climate change. “One of the things that the project is really keen to develop is helping Philadelphians, and people really across the whole watershed, understand the ways that the water really connects to them and to their lives,” said Bethany Wiggin.
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Scientific American
Why some fluids flow slower when pushed harder
Paulo Arratia of the School of Engineering and Applied Science commented on a study that explored how fluids flow under different pressures. “Visualizing flow inside a 3-D porous media literally gives a window into something that was impossible to see,” he said. “If you could actually see the molecules stretching and recoiling, that would be wonderful [to] connect the molecular point of view to the microscopic.”
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Popular Science
Even dinosaurs couldn’t escape the sniffles
Ali Nabavizadeh of the School of Veterinary Medicine commented on research that found evidence of respiratory infections in dinosaurs. “This paper provides yet another piece of evidence to show just how modern dinosaurs—the birds—are biologically so similar to their extinct non-avian dinosaurian relatives, even to the point of showing similar diseases,” he said.
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ABC News
Why the global chip shortage threatens the economy, national security and Americans’ ‘status quo’
Morris Cohen of the Wharton School spoke about the semiconductor shortage. "Most consumers didn't know and didn't care where their chips came from: 'You turn the car on, it should go, I don't really care who made the chip and what country it was built in,'" he said. "But now, all of a sudden, these issues become really important, and so I think we become more sensitized to how dependent we are, how interdependent we are, how things can be disrupted."
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BuzzFeed.com
Congress is trying to figure out what to do about crypto’s colossal carbon footprint
Zane Griffin Talley Cooper, a doctoral candidate in the Annenberg School for Communication, said “proof of work” algorithms used to mine and trade cryptocurrencies need to be “intensely regulated.”
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The Guardian
The inner lives of cats: what our feline friends really think about hugs, happiness and humans
Carlo Siracusa of the School of Veterinary Medicine said cats are capable of bonding with people, contrary to claims that they’re merely using their owners for food and shelter. “Humans hug and kiss. Dogs become very excited and jump around. Cats don’t do anything like that. They are much more elegant,” he said. “They approach us. They bump their heads. Then they have some contact with us and walk away.”
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Wired
Can a digital reality be jacked directly into your brain?
Researchers led by Daniel Yoshor of the Perelman School of Medicine are developing better electrode arrays, which are used to induce neural activity. Current arrays approved for human use are bulky and contain around 1,000 electrodes, whereas the arrays Yoshor and colleagues are working on would have 64,000 electrodes, and eventually 1,000,000 electrodes.
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