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Arts, Humanities, & Social Sciences
Study finds surprising source of social influence
Study finds surprising source of social influence
A new study co-authored by ASC’s Damon Centola finds that as prominent and revered as social influencers seem to be, they are unlikely to change a person’s behavior by example, and might actually be detrimental to the cause.
‘Dreaming of Jerusalem’
‘Dreaming of Jerusalem’
Penn’s Peter Decherney and Sosena Solomon make a documentary film about a Jewish community in Ethiopia waiting to emigrate to Israel.
The world at our feet: Reflections on Earth and its prospects
The world at our feet: Reflections on Earth and its prospects
It’s our tiny oasis in a vast universe, and it’s feeling fragile. Five faculty from Penn Arts & Sciences who study the Earth’s geological past, its surface activity, and its soils and life forms discuss how Earth and its inhabitants can get along better.
The Panoptic Sort: Surveillance Q&A with Oscar Gandy
The Panoptic Sort: Surveillance Q&A with Oscar Gandy
With the second edition of his classic 1993 book “The Panoptic Sort” recently published, Gandy discusses the past, present, and future of surveillance.
A new metric for designing safer streets
A new metric for designing safer streets
Penn researchers demonstrate how biometric data can help city planners more proactively design and evaluate the safety of urban infrastructure for bicyclists and pedestrians.
High-ranking hyena mothers pass their social networks to their cubs
High-ranking hyena mothers pass their social networks to their cubs
Using 27 years of detailed data on hyena social interactions, a team led by Penn biologists nailed down a pattern of social network inheritance and its implications for social structure, rank, and survival.
In Zoë Ryan, a collaborative new leader for the ICA
In Zoë Ryan, a collaborative new leader for the ICA
Zoë Ryan began her role as director of the Institute of Contemporary Art in November. Here, a look at Ryan’s time at the ICA so far and what’s ahead for the institution.
Biologist Daniel Janzen illustrates how a cicada is like an oak tree
Biologist Daniel Janzen illustrates how a cicada is like an oak tree
Janzen, the DiMaura Professor in Biology, on why cicadas (and wildebeests, salmon, and oak trees) act the way they do.
Digging into the government report on UFOs
Digging into the government report on UFOs
In a Q&A, historian of science Kate Dorsch illuminates the history behind reporting and investigating UFO sightings and contextualizes the new government report on such phenomena.
Filmmaker Claire Sliney heads to Paris with a Nat Geo Storytelling Fulbright
Filmmaker Claire Sliney heads to Paris with a Nat Geo Storytelling Fulbright
May graduate Claire Sliney is the first Penn undergrad to receive an Academy Award, and to receive a Fulbright-National Geographic Storytelling Fellowship. She heads to Paris to shoot a documentary about how female immigrants in France are portrayed in film.
In the News
Philadelphia Inquirer
A collector donated 75,000 comic books to Penn Libraries, valued at more than $500,000
Alumnus Gary Prebula and his wife, Dawn, have donated a $500,000 collection of more than 75,000 comic books and graphic novels to Penn Libraries, featuring remarks from Sean Quimly of the Kislak Center and Jean-Christophe Cloutier of the School of Arts & Sciences.
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Newsweek
There is one major element missing from the debate on kids and social media
In an opinion essay, PIK Professor Desmond Upton Patton says that gun violence needs to be part of the conversation about how smartphones and social media impact young people.
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BBC
Presidential candidates on trial
Kathleen Hall Jamieson of the Annenberg Public Policy Center discusses the impact Donald Trump’s conviction or imprisonment could have on his presidential campaign.
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Philadelphia Inquirer
Cherelle Parker promised 30,000 units of ‘affordable housing’ as a candidate. She’s watered down that goal as mayor
Vincent Reina of the Weitzman School of Design says that 30,000 new units of affordable housing is a realistic goal that the city of Philadelphia could meet.
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KQED Radio (San Francisco)
Violence escalates in Sudan as civil war enters second year
Ali Ali-Dinar of the School of Arts & Sciences discusses the forces driving the civil war in Sudan and how the global community is responding.
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