11/15
Science & Technology
Trading decisions are observable in the eyes of buyers and sellers
Trading decisions are observable in the eyes of buyers and sellers
In a new collaborative study, PIK Professor Michael Platt models how the decision-making process unfolds in the brains of buyers and sellers considering a deal. These decisions were observable in eye movements and pupil dilation.
A low-cost, eco-friendly COVID test
A low-cost, eco-friendly COVID test
César de la Fuente and a team of Penn engineers work on creative ways to create faster and cheaper testing for COVID-19. Their latest innovation incorporates speed and cost-effectiveness with eco-friendly materials.
The physics of fat droplets reveal DNA danger
The physics of fat droplets reveal DNA danger
Penn Engineers are the first to discover fat-filled lipid droplets’ surprising capability to indent and puncture the nucleus, the organelle which contains and regulates a cell’s DNA.
A hub for water innovation and leadership
A hub for water innovation and leadership
As the Water Center marks five years on campus, Penn Today takes a look at its achievements, ongoing projects, and plans for the future.
For a new generation of antibiotics, scientists are bringing extinct molecules back to life
For a new generation of antibiotics, scientists are bringing extinct molecules back to life
Marrying artificial intelligence with advanced experimental methods, Penn Engineering’s Machine Biology Group has mined the ancient past for future medical breakthroughs, bringing extinct molecules back to life.
SCALAR: A microchip designed to transform the production of mRNA therapeutics and vaccines
SCALAR: A microchip designed to transform the production of mRNA therapeutics and vaccines
Researchers have developed a platform that could rapidly accelerate the development of mRNA-based lipid nanoparticle vaccines and therapeutics at both the small and largescale, SCALAR.
Penn GEMS brings STEM to summer camp
Penn GEMS brings STEM to summer camp
Penn GEMS, an annual engineering, math, and science camp for middle school students, is a weeklong dive into various engineering disciplines, made possible with philanthropic support for community partnerships.
Penn Vet students helping animals and their owners in Thailand
Penn Vet students helping animals and their owners in Thailand
This summer, 14 students from the School of Veterinary Medicine traveled to Thailand to spay and neuter cats and dogs for owners who would otherwise be unable to afford the procedures.
Closing the carbon cycle with green propane production
Closing the carbon cycle with green propane production
Researchers from Penn have helped develop a new carbon-capture solution for a cleaner, more energy-dense fuel source.
Penn Engineering’s Michael Posa on robots in the real world
Penn Engineering’s Michael Posa on robots in the real world
With funding from the National Science Foundation’s CAREER Award, Posa is working on a new teaching method where robots interact with objects in the real world to build real-world intelligence via small data sets.
In the News
WHYY (Philadelphia)
Climate policy under a second Trump presidency
Michael Mann of the School of Arts & Sciences discusses how much a president can do or undo when it comes to environmental policy.
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Salon.com
Exxon CEO wants Trump to stay in Paris climate accord
Michael Mann of the School of Arts & Sciences voices his concern about the possibility that the U.S. could become a petrostate.
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Interesting Engineering
Superhuman vision lets robots see through walls, smoke with new LiDAR-like eyes
Mingmin Zhao of the School of Engineering and Applied Science and colleagues are using radio signals to allow robots to “see” beyond traditional sensor limits.
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Technical.ly Philly
A sneak peek inside Penn Engineering’s new $137.5M mass timber building
Amy Gutmann Hall aims to be Philadelphia’s next big hub for AI and innovation while setting a new standard for architectural sustainability.
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Associated Press
Amid Earth’s heat records, scientists report another bump upward in annual carbon emissions
Michael Mann of the School of Arts & Sciences says that total carbon emissions including fossil fuel pollution and land use changes such as deforestation are basically flat because land emissions are declining.
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The Wall Street Journal
How can we remove carbon from the air? Here are a few ideas
Jennifer Wilcox of the School of Engineering and Applied Science and Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the Weitzman School of Design says that the carbon-removal potential of forestation can’t always be reliably measured in terms of how much removal and for how long.
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Associated Press
California air regulators approve changes to climate program that could raise gas prices
Danny Cullenward of the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the Weitzman School of Design says that many things being credited in California’s new climate program don’t help the climate.
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Times of India
Self shocks turn crystal to glass at ultralow power density: Study
A collaborative study by researchers from the School of Engineering and Applied Science has shed new light on amorphization, the transition from a crystalline to a glassy state at the nanoscale.
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The Independent
Climate scientists fear Trump will destroy progress in his second term – and the outcome could be ‘grim’
Michael Mann of the School of Arts & Sciences says that a second Trump term and the implementation of Project 2025 represents the end of climate action in this decade.
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Interesting Engineering
U.S. achieves billion-fold power-saving semiconductor tech; could challenge China
A collaborative effort by Ritesh Agarwal of the School of Engineering and Applied Science and colleagues has made phase-change memory more energy efficient and could unlock a future revolution in data storage.
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