4/16
Science & Technology
A superstrong, reversible adhesive that works like snail slime
When wet, the material conforms to the grooves on a surface, and when dry, the material hardens and fastens itself securely to the surface.
Better prognosticating for dogs with mammary tumors
For dogs with mammary tumors, a course of treatment can depend on a variety of factors, some of which may seem to contradict one another. A new system developed by Penn Vet’s Karin Sorenmo and colleagues can make determining a prognosis and making treatment decisions an easier task.
Revealing ‘hidden’ phases of matter through the power of light
New research shows how materials can be imbued with new chemical properties using a solid phase transition method that relies on extremely fast pulses of light.
Calling all techies: Penn’s your next stop
Throughout the years, jobs in technology have flourished at the University. Here’s why it’s such a good place to work in tech.
A conversation with Vijay Balasubramanian
In the latest episode of Penn Today's ‘Office Hours’ podcast series, a casual chat with Professor of Physics Vijay Balasubramanian.
Chip Diagnostics receives the JPOD @ Philadelphia QuickFire Challenge Award
The Penn-founded startup will receive $30,000 in grant funding for research on microfluidic diagnostic devices.
Mathematicians help train the next generation of positive thinkers
A trio of researchers paves the way for future progress in an up-and-coming field that unites geometry and number theory in powerful new ways.
Through a marriage of bioengineering breakthroughs, ‘the best of both worlds’
Dan Huh, Sunghee Estelle Park, and Andrei Georgescu on the promise of combining two cutting-edge organ engineering techniques to create new breakthroughs in understanding the human body.
Community outreach inspires interest in STEM for kids
Graduate students and postdocs led an afternoon of hands-on science activities and fun for students grades 3-8 in the hallways and labs of Penn Chemistry.
Keeping rain out of the drain
From cisterns beneath Shoemaker Green to the green roof on New College House, special features of campus buildings and landscapes are helping manage stormwater to keep rain from the sewer lines, and scholars are using the infrastructure as a research opportunity.
In the News
Here’s why experts don’t think cloud seeding played a role in Dubai’s downpour
Michael Mann of the School of Arts & Sciences says that many people blaming cloud seeding for Dubai storms are climate change deniers trying to divert attention from what’s really happening.
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Can we stop AI hallucinations? And do we even want to?
Chris Callison-Burch of the School of Engineering and Applied Science says that auto-regressive generation can make it difficult for language learning models to perform fact-based or symbolic reasoning.
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“Record-shattering” heat wave in Antarctica — yep, climate change is the culprit
Michael Mann of the School of Arts & Sciences says that persistent summer weather extremes like heat waves are becoming more common as people continue to warm the planet with carbon pollution.
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How the solar eclipse will affect solar panels and the grid
Benjamin Lee of the School of Engineering and Applied Science says that the electrical grid will have to figure out how to match supply and demand during brief windows where the energy source goes away.
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Scientists struggle to explain ‘really weird’ spike in world temperatures
Michael Mann of the School of Arts & Sciences says that tendencies to exaggerate climate science in favor of “doomist” narratives helps no one except the fossil fuel industry.
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Spring is here very early. That’s not good
Michael Mann of the School of Arts & Sciences says that plant-flowering, tree-leafing, and egg-hatching are all markers associated with spring that are happening sooner.
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Can your personal medical devices be recycled?
A lab at the School of Engineering and Applied Science led the development of a COVID test made from bacterial cellulose, an organic compound.
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Could Florida electric bills go up because of a fuel made from manure?
Danny Cullenward of the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the Weitzman School of Design says that federal and California state subsidies have led to a gold rush of companies trying to get into the business of renewable natural gas around the country.
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Students can soon major in AI at this Ivy League university—it’ll prepare them for ‘jobs that don’t yet exist’
The Raj and Neera Singh Program in Artificial Intelligence at Penn will be the first AI undergraduate engineering major at an Ivy League school, led by George Pappas of the School of Engineering and Applied Science.
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Pa. environmental, religious and other groups criticize Shapiro plan for ignoring climate change
A study by the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the Weitzman School of Design found that Pennsylvania would benefit overall from joining the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.
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