President’s Holiday Video
In a video, Penn President Liz Magill and the Penn community captured their wishes for the new year. The video was soundtracked by Off the Beat, a student a cappella group.
January 2023
At Engaging Minds, three Penn Integrates Knowledge Professors take the stage
At the 24th Engaging Minds event, held in-person for the first time since 2019, in New York City, three Penn Integrates Knowledge professors—Lance Freeman, Dolores Albarracín, and Kevin Johnson—discussed their research. In an introductory speech, Penn President Liz Magill spoke of the researchers’ work and expertise as furthering “twin principles of truth and opportunity.”
The University of Pennsylvania Libraries acquires archives of The Philadelphia Orchestra and the Academy of Music
By acquiring the archives of The Philadelphia Orchestra and the Academy of Music, Penn Libraries gains access to nearly 175 years of Philadelphia’s rich musical history, tracing back to the institutions’ founding years. “The Penn Libraries is eager to begin the work of accessioning, processing, preserving, and making this remarkable collection newly available for research and discovery,” said Constantia Constantinou, director of Penn Libraries.
Penn announces the largest one-time increase to minimum Ph.D. stipend
The University-wide minimum Ph.D. stipend will rise from $30,547 to $38,000 in the upcoming academic year, marking the largest one-time increase in Penn’s history. “Our doctoral students are at the heart of our mission of research and education across a wide range of academic areas,” says Interim Provost Beth A. Winkelstein. “This one-time increase recognizes the unique pressures they currently face, especially in the wake of delays to research and hiring that many experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic. It will also help to ensure that Penn remains competitive in recruiting exceptional scholars in our Graduate Groups.”
For ‘spirit of innovation,’ three from Penn named National Academy of Inventors Fellows
Vijay Kumar, dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science, as well as Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman of the Perelman School of Medicine, were named National Academy of Inventors Fellows. It is considered the highest professional distinction awarded to academic inventors; they are among 169 new members of the 2022 class.
Winter public safety tips from Captain Nicole McCoy
Nicole McCoy, captain of the Penn Police Department, offered tips for staying safe during winter break. “One is to stay in well-lighted and populated areas, especially when you are unfamiliar with your surroundings,” she says. “Always keep your personal items with you. Take Penn Transit to your destination, on or off campus, when possible. Walk with a friend or call for a free Walking Escort.”
Two Penn fourth-years and an alumna named 2023 Marshall Scholars
Fourth-year students Sarah Kane and Amy Krimm, along with 2021 graduate Carson Eckhard, were named 2023 Marshall Scholars. The scholarship funds as many as three years of study for a graduate degree in any field at an institution in the United Kingdom. They are among 40 Marshall Scholars for 2023 and represent 32 institutions in the United States.
Turning carbon emissions into rocks
Peter Psarras and colleagues of the Clean Energy Conversions Lab, affiliated with the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy in the Stuart Weitzman School of Design and the School of Engineering and Applied Science, are repurposing waste from industrial mines and storing carbon pulled from the atmosphere into newly formed rock. “Imagine excavating a mountain, then building basically an entire new mountain of just waste nearby,” Psarras says. “We’re trying to tap into the moved mountain that’s been relocated.”
Penn senior and four alumni have received Schwarzman Scholarships
A Penn senior and four alumni received Schwarzman Scholarships, which fund a one-year master’s degree in global affairs at Tsinghua University in Beijing. This year, 151 Schwarzman Scholars were selected from a pool of 3,000 applicants.
People and places at Penn: Research
As part of a series highlighting Penn researchers and their workspaces, Laia Mogas-Soldevila of DumoLab, Scott Poethig of Poethig Lab, Alice Kate Li of Underwater Weather, and Roderick B. Gagne of the Wildlife Futures Program share the spaces where their science takes place. Locations range from New Bolton Center to the Schuylkill River.
What secrets might 2-million-year-old DNA hold?
Four faculty members remarked on the discovery in Greenland of the oldest-ever DNA sequence, which revealed a robust ancient ecosystem of 135 species, ranging from hares to birch trees. “One of the neat things about this paper is it detected a huge fraction more species than showed up in ancient pollen or fossil records, giving us a much more complete record of all the players that might have existed in this 2-million-year-old community,” says Corlett Wood of the School of Arts & Sciences.
Penn awarded grant to promote inclusive excellence in STEM teaching and learning
With support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Penn will support a rigorous examination of inclusive STEM education at the undergraduate level over six years. “The goal is to identify historically underrepresented students interested in STEM careers early and to keep them on track for those careers by ensuring that they can thrive in our classrooms,” says Penn President Liz Magill.
Building a better world, one side gig at a time
The 10th piece for Penn Today’s “Side Gigs for Good” series showcases the Perelman School of Medicine’s Debra Mosley-McCray and the low-cost dance studio she founded, HR specialist Christina Blakely-Wise, who teaches highschoolers life skills, and the School of Arts & Sciences’ Al Filreis and Heather Kostick. He volunteers at his old summer camp, she fosters kittens.
Minimally invasive method tracks how the brain spends energy
In a paper published in Neurophotonics, a team led by Penn researchers reports a new, minimally invasive technique for monitoring the cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen consumption, which measures how much energy the brain uses at a given time. “This new approach is minimally invasive and allows for superior temporal resolution,” says Sergei Vinogradov, co-senior author of the paper and professor in the Perelman School of Medicine and School of Arts & Sciences. “It will create new opportunities for dynamically tracking and quantifying CMRO2, potentially even approaching the millisecond time-scale.”