11/15
Science & Technology
Penn Electric Racing’s latest race car
Designed and produced by the School of Engineering and Applied Science’s student-run club, REV9 will compete in the annual Formula Society of Automotive Engineers Michigan race in June.
Teaching doglike robots to walk on the moon’s dusty, icy surface
Researchers from Penn are part of a NASA-funded multidisciplinary collaborative effort that’s teaching robots to navigate the extraterrestrial craters, like the moon and Mars.
Sherry Gao pushes the boundaries of genetic engineering
The Presidential Penn Compact Associate Professor in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering aims to make gene editing tools like CRISPR more accurate, and encourage first generation students along the way.
Total solar eclipse
Gary Bernstein and Bhuvnesh Jain speak with Penn Today about the significance of the coming total eclipse.
The hidden geometry of learning: Neural networks think alike
New research by Penn engineers illuminates the inner workings of neural networks, opening the possibility of developing hyper-efficient algorithms that could classify images in a fraction of the time.
What the brain reveals in nature’s subtle game of give and take
Research led by Michael Platt uncovers the neural pathways for primate reciprocity, social support, and empathy.
Accelerating CAR T cell therapy: Lipid nanoparticles speed up manufacturing
Penn Engineers have developed a novel method for manufacturing CAR T cells using lipid nanoparticles as delivery vehicles.
‘Behind the Startup’ looks at venture capital and inequality
The new book by Benjamin Shestakofsky is based on 19 months of participant-observation research, rising from intern to middle manager in a tech startup.
Using theater and the arts to empower communities in the energy transition
The arts can be a valuable tool for facilitating dialogue around the energy transition and ensuring community perspectives are represented in policy arenas.
Interfacial phenomena: Samantha McBride’s untapped resource for water sustainability
At her lab, McBride is developing technology that can change the face of water security using a multidisciplinary range of scientific disciplines, including physics, chemistry, and materials science.
In the News
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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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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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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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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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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The science that makes baseball mud ‘magical’
A study by Douglas Jerolmack of the School of Arts & Sciences and School of Engineering and Applied Science and colleagues has uncovered the mechanical properties of the mud used to coat Major League baseballs, with additional remarks from postdoc Shravan Pradeep and Paulo Arratia.
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Special mud rubbed on all MLB baseballs has unique, ‘magical’ properties, study finds
A study by Douglas Jerolmack of the School of Arts & Sciences and School of Engineering and Applied Science and colleagues has uncovered the mechanical properties of the mud used to coat Major League baseballs.
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Textile energy grid charges wirelessly, can transform wearables, eradicate battery needs
A collaborative team including researchers from Penn has used nanomaterials to develop the next generation of textiles that support wireless charging technology.
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Corporations using ‘ineffectual’ carbon offsets are slowing path to ‘real zero’, more than 60 climate scientists say
Michael Mann of the School of Arts & Sciences signed a pledge asserting that corporate carbon offsets are ineffectual and hinder the energy transition.
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More companies ditch junk carbon offsets but new buyers loom
Danny Cullenward of the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the Weitzman School of Design says that there needs to be broader accountability for false statements in voluntary carbon markets.
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