Social Sciences | Penn Today

Performer, biomedical engineer, and soon-to-be graduate

A performer and dancer, fourth-year Jordyn Harris has been a work-study student for the Platt House and managed tech for myriad student shows, while also advising engineering first-years and working as a researcher at a hospital.

5 min. read

What behavioral strategies motivate environmental action?

A collaborative study from researchers affiliated with the Annenberg School for Communication, Annenberg Public Policy Center, and School of Arts & Sciences tested 17 strategies in an “intervention tournament.”

4 min. read

For dual architecture degree candidate Kelvin Vu, design begins with the body

Master of architecture and master of landscape architecture candidate Kelvin Vu, who was a professional dancer before coming to Weitzman, says “dance and landscape design are about change, flux, and dynamism.”

2 min. read

Melissa Teixeira stands in front of a conference room speaking to students.

Exploring inflation and economics through the lens of history

In Inflationary Times, a history course from Melissa Teixeira, students grappled with big-picture concepts of debt, money, and currency across the globe and through time.

4 min. read

Generative AI can help doctors diagnose patients—but is it biased?

A new study by Annnenberg School for Communication professor Damon Centola tests if AI tools could help improve medical care without increasing bias. The findings suggest that “AI can meaningfully augment physician decision-making without introducing inequities in clinical decisions,” Centola says.

Collaborating with southern Black grandmothers to reimagine scholarship

For an Annenberg School for Communication dissertation, Staci L. Jones and four grandmother co-authors introduce the Kitchen Scholar Framework. Their work embraces knowledge that goes beyond academia.

3 min. read

William Reason sitting on a bench outside.

Philosopher in residence

William Reason, who earned his bachelor’s degree in philosophy in December and will complete his master’s in May, teaches ethics to Philadelphia public high school students via an ethics curriculum he designed as a Philosopher in Residence

5 min. read

Ericka Weathers selected for the William T. Grant Scholars Class of 2030

Weathers, an assistant professor in Penn GSE’s Policy, Organizations, and Leadership division, is one of five early-career researchers who have been selected for the new class of William T. Grant Scholars. Weathers studies the causes and consequences of inequality in K–12 education as well as the effects of K–12 policies on student and school outcomes.

Benjamin Nathans wins 2025 Pulitzer Prize in General Nonfiction

Nathans, the Alan Charles Kors Endowed Term Professor of History in the School of Arts & Sciences, has taught at Penn since 1998.