11/15
Science & Technology
The soils beneath the solar fields
The soils beneath the solar fields
How do solar farms impact soil health? It’s a question that master’s student Hannah Winn is exploring at the central Pennsylvania site where solar energy production is helping Penn progress toward carbon neutrality.
New chip opens door to AI computing at light speed
New chip opens door to AI computing at light speed
A new silicon-photonic (SiPh) chip design from the lab of Nader Engheta, alongside Firooz Aflatouni, uses light waves, the fastest possible means of communication, rather than electricity, to perform mathematical computations.
‘Switchable’ bispecific antibodies pave way for safer cancer treatment
‘Switchable’ bispecific antibodies pave way for safer cancer treatment
Immunotherapy utilizing an FDA-approved drug has enabled Penn researchers to develop a novel switchable bispecific T cell engager that mitigates negative outcomes of immunotherapy.
Illuminating the invisible: Bringing the smallest protein clusters into focus
Illuminating the invisible: Bringing the smallest protein clusters into focus
Penn engineers are opening new avenues for detecting the proteins implicated in diseases like Alzheimer’s and testing new treatments.
‘Natural’ deaths likely COVID-19 related
‘Natural’ deaths likely COVID-19 related
New study led by Penn and Boston University provides the most compelling data yet to suggest excess mortality rates from chronic illnesses and other natural causes were driven by COVID-19 infections.
Penn Engineering announces new degree in artificial intelligence
Penn Engineering announces new degree in artificial intelligence
Engineering's new degree in AI will push the limits on its potential and prepare students to lead the use of this world-changing technology.
Noor Momin harnesses the immune system to treat heart disease
Noor Momin harnesses the immune system to treat heart disease
The Stephenson Foundation Term Assistant Professor of Innovation and her lab members work to engineer nanoparticles as medicinal vehicles to fit directly into a single cell.
Once a spy satellite, now a telescope with an eye on the cosmos
Once a spy satellite, now a telescope with an eye on the cosmos
Researchers from Penn’s School of Arts & Sciences are part of a collaboration to develop Hubble’s wide-eyed cousin, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope.
Researchers breathe new life into lung repair
Researchers breathe new life into lung repair
A collaborative effort from teams across Penn culminates in new techniques to repair lung tissue after damage from flu and COVID-19.
Breaching the blood-brain barrier
Breaching the blood-brain barrier
A team of researchers in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences has devised a method to deliver mRNA into the brain using lipid nanoparticles, potentially advancing treatments for Alzheimer’s disease and seizures.
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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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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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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