11/15
Science & Technology
A serendipitous finding lends new insight into how atopic dermatitis develops
A serendipitous finding lends new insight into how atopic dermatitis develops
Research from the School of Dental Medicine, the Perelman School of Medicine, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory reveals a mechanism behind the inflammation that is a feature of the common skin disease.
A new makerspace for materials passion projects
A new makerspace for materials passion projects
MatSci Makerspace is a space for students to work with the synthesis, processing, structure, properties and application of materials, with open hours for materials-centric passion projects.
Context-dependent behavior can make cooperation flourish
Context-dependent behavior can make cooperation flourish
Recent studies led by School of Arts & Sciences’ researchers show that changing social strategies between settings—for example, cooperating at home but not at work—can in fact lead to more cooperative behavior in a society.
Inspiring people, place, and purpose
Inspiring people, place, and purpose
Penn President Amy Gutmann’s record tenure of nearly 18 years is the University’s most transformative.
Incentivizing an underused, more environmentally friendly method for carbon capture
A study by three 2021 graduates describes how a method for sequestering carbon from natural gas can be made more cost-effective with increased tax credits.
Decade-long remission after CAR T cell therapy
Decade-long remission after CAR T cell therapy
Two patients represent longest-known CAR T cell response to date, providing insight into treatment effect and outcomes.
Ten from Penn elected 2021 AAAS Fellows
Ten from Penn elected 2021 AAAS Fellows
Ten scholars representing five schools across the University of Pennsylvania have been named to the 2021 class of American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellows, recognized for their “scientifically and socially distinguished achievements.”
Want to reduce political polarization? Start by looking beyond politics
Want to reduce political polarization? Start by looking beyond politics
New research from PIK University Professor Duncan Watts sheds light on how even hardliners can be swayed when coming in contact with opposing viewpoints.
Revealing the mysterious biology of a fundamental process: reproduction
Revealing the mysterious biology of a fundamental process: reproduction
New findings from the lab of P. Jeremy Wang in the School of Veterinary Medicine shed light on the cell division process that creates eggs and sperm, recurrent pregnancy loss, and the mechanism by which sperm move.
Protein controlled by both light and temperature can inform cell signal pathways
Protein controlled by both light and temperature can inform cell signal pathways
Penn Engineering researchers have described a new type of optogenetic protein that can be controlled not only by light, but also by temperature, allowing for a higher degree of control in the manipulation of cellular pathways.
In the News
Scientific American
Grumpy voters want better stories. Not statistics
In a Q&A, PIK Professor Duncan Watts says that U.S. voters ignored Democratic policy in favor of Republican storytelling.
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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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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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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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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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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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