Featured Articles

Hand holding a blood vial that reads "complement (C3 + C4)"

Decoding ancient immunity networks

A collaborative team from Penn Medicine and Penn Engineering have  unraveled the mathematics of a 500-million-year-old protein network that ‘decides’ which foreign materials are friend or foe.

6/17/2025
A diagram of areas where marigolds are native plants.

Native plants from afar

In a course led by 2024-25 McHarg Fellow Leah Kahler, students explored the movement of plants across cultures and climates, as well as the relationships between recreational and productive landscapes.

6/13/2025
Leafcutter ants moving around a bright green leaf.

What can ants and naked-mole rats teach about societal roles?

PIK Professor Shelley Berger and colleagues explored the genetic basis of labor distribution in communal-dwelling species and discovered that pathways dating back hundreds of millions of years are conserved across animal kingdoms. Their findings offer fundamental insights into complex social behaviors.

6/13/2025
Person sitting on couch watching news.

How cable news has diverged from broadcast news

A team of researchers from the Computational Social Science Lab at the University of Pennsylvania find that cable news has increasingly diverged from broadcast news in the topics covered and language used.

6/10/2025
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.

5/7/2025
(From left) Zachary Ives, Zixuan Yi, and Ryan Marcus.

Improving AI and machine learning

Zixuan Yi, a doctoral student in computer and information science, bridges the gap between learning methods and real-world system constraints utilizing artificial intelligence and machine learning.

4/24/2025
Dental student outside of university building

A nontraditional journey to dental school

Kendra Domotor may have ‘zigzagged’ her way to dentistry, but her journey helped her find her center in dentistry, helping her blend her love of science, teaching, and service.

4/21/2025
college hall facade

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