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Where AI models fall short in mimicking the expressiveness of human speech
Ethan Yang, Jjianjing Kuang, Kevin Li, and Henry Huang.

Through the Penn Undergraduate Research Mentoring Program, students Ethan Yang, Kevin Li, and Henry Huang worked with linguistics professor Jianjing Kuang to study the ability of AI models to replicate the expressiveness of human speech.

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Where AI models fall short in mimicking the expressiveness of human speech

Undergraduates Kevin Li, Henry Huang, and Ethan Yang worked with linguistics professor Jianjing Kuang to compare speech production and perception by humans and AI—research that can help companies move closer to natural and expressive AI speech.

2 min. read

Melissa Lee wins APSA’s Mary Parker Follett prize for best scholarly article in politics and history

Melissa Lee wins APSA’s Mary Parker Follett prize for best scholarly article in politics and history

The Klein Family Presidential Associate Professor of Political Science’s article, “From Pluribus to Unum: The Civil War and Imagined Sovereignty in Nineteenth Century America,” will be the recipient of American Political Science Association’s Politics and History Section’s Mary Parker Follett prize, awarded annually for the best scholarly article in politics and history.

What is real about human-AI relationships?
A screenshot of a Replika chatbot screen.

Image: Courtesy of Annenberg School for Communication

What is real about human-AI relationships?

In a new paper, Annenberg School for Communication doctoral student Arelí Rocha explores how people discuss their relationships with AI chatbots.

Hailey Reissman

2 min. read

Penn’s School of Social Policy & Practice launches nation’s first practice doctorate in nonprofit administration

Penn’s School of Social Policy & Practice launches nation’s first practice doctorate in nonprofit administration

The new degree is the first practice-based doctoral program in the nation focused exclusively on leadership for nonprofit administrators. Applications for the inaugural doctorate in nonprofit administration cohort will open in September 2025, with the program beginning in fall 2026.

Which anti-vaping messages work for LGBTQ+ youth?

Which anti-vaping messages work for LGBTQ+ youth?

To understand how to reduce vaping among LGBTQ+ youth, researchers at Penn’s Annenberg School for Communication spoke to young Americans about anti-vaping messages on social media. They found that sexual and gender minority youth are more likely to vape, but there aren’t many anti-vaping campaigns designed specifically for them.

Kevin Volpp: Nudging populations toward better health
Kevin Volpp.

Kevin Volpp is the Mark V. Pauly President’s Distinguished Professor at the Perelman School of Medicine and Health Care Management at the Wharton School, and director at the Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics.

(Image: Courtesy of the Wharton School)

Kevin Volpp: Nudging populations toward better health

Kevin Volpp, Mark V. Pauly President’s Distinguished Professor at the Perelman School of Medicine and Health Care Management at the Wharton School, discusses how behavioral health interventions can improve public health outcomes.

From the Regulatory Review

2 min. read

How children learn a foreign language
A young elementary student at a blackboard.

Image: recep-bg via Getty Images

How children learn a foreign language

Yuko Goto Butler’s latest book gathers research on language development and pedagogy among children learning a foreign language and presents it in a manner that bridges research and practice.

From Penn GSE

2 min. read

Curiosity, STEM, and a summer on campus
Two high school students woking with pipettes in a science classroom.

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Curiosity, STEM, and a summer on campus

The Penn Research Experience for High School Students gives Philadelphia 11th and 12th graders a rare opportunity to tackle college-level research.

From Omnia

2 min. read