Folding@home: How you, and your computer, can play scientist
Two heads are better than one. The ethos behind the scientific research project Folding@home is that same idea, multiplied: 50,000 computers are better than one.
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Two Penn faculty elected to the American Philosophical Society
Paul Offit and Dorothy Roberts have been recognized for extraordinary accomplishments in their fields.
Reconsidering world heritage for the modern era
Through recent research, archaeologist and Penn Integrates Knowledge Professor Lynn Meskell has continued to highlight how World Heritage Sites have become flashpoints for conflict and out of touch with local communities.
Instead of refuting misinformation head-on, try ‘bypassing’ it
A new study from PIK Professor Dolores Albarracín has found that redirecting an individual’s attention away from misinformation and toward other beliefs can be just as effective as debunking it.
Four from Penn elected to the National Academy of Sciences
The newly elected members, distinguished scholars recognized for their innovative contributions to original research, include faculty from the School of Arts & Sciences, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Perelman School of Medicine, Annenberg School for Communication, and Wharton School.
Gregory Bowman appointed Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor
The pioneer of biophysics and data science has joint appointments in the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics in the Perelman School of Medicine and the Department of Bioengineering in the School of Engineering and Applied Science.
Does more money correlate with greater happiness?
Reconciling previously contradictory results, researchers from Penn and Princeton find a steady association between larger incomes and greater happiness for most people but a rise and plateau for an unhappy minority.
What statistics are most likely to promote positive actions during a pandemic?
A new study from PIK Professor Dolores Albarracín and research associate Haesung Annie Jung finds that some COVID statistics are more effective than others at encouraging people to change their behavior.
A new role for NATO in conflict zones
One year after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, PIK Professor Lynn Meskell calls on the alliance to take a more expansive view of cultural property protection.
John L. Jackson Jr. named Penn’s next provost
The Walter H. Annenberg Dean of the Annenberg School for Communication and Richard Perry University Professor will begin his appointment on June 1, 2023.
René Vidal appointed Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor at Penn
Vidal, a global pioneer of data science, has joint appointments in radiology in the Perelman School of Medicine and electrical and systems engineering in the School of Engineering and Applied Science.
At Engaging Minds, three Penn Integrates Knowledge Professors take the stage
Alumni heard Lance Freeman examine racial equity in city planning, Dolores Albarracín talk about how conspiracy theories take hold, and Kevin Johnson discuss the importance of clear science communication.
A link between social environment and healthy brains in wild rhesus macaques
Research from Penn, Arizona State University, the National Institute of Mental Health, and elsewhere finds that on the island of Cayo Santiago, female monkeys with a higher social status had younger, more resilient molecular profiles.
Defining neural ‘representation’
Neuroscientists frequently say that neural activity ‘represents’ certain phenomena. PIK Professor Konrad Kording and postdoc Ben Baker led a study that took a philosophical approach to tease out what the term means.
TV news top driver of political echo chambers in U.S.
Duncan Watts and colleagues found that 17% of Americans consume television news from partisan left- or right-leaning sources compared to just 4% online. For TV news viewers, this audience segregation tends to last month over month.
Dorothy Roberts on the future of abortion advocacy
Legal scholar Dorothy Roberts discusses the Supreme Court’s ruling on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, and what it means for abortion access in the U.S.
Dorothy Roberts on ‘Black Families Matter’: Race and Regulation Podcast
In her book, ‘Torn Apart: How the Child Welfare System Destroys Black Families—and How Abolition Can Build a Safer World’, Roberts says the U.S. should replace its current family surveillance system with one that improves children’s welfare.
PIK Professor Kevin Johnson: Informatics evangelist
The Penn Integrates Knowledge Professor with appointments in Penn Engineering and the Perelman School of Medicine on forging his own path in the fields of health care and computer science.
In the pursuit of scientific truth, working with adversaries can pay off
The Adversarial Collaboration Project, run by Cory Clark and Philip Tetlock, helps scientists with competing perspectives design joint research that tests both arguments.
Desmond Patton appointed Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor
Patton will be Penn’s Brian and Randi Schwartz University Professor, with joint appointments in the School of Social Policy & Practice and the Annenberg School for Communication and a secondary appointment in the Perelman School of Medicine.
Genomic differences selected through evolution may offer clues as to why COVID-19 outcomes vary widely
A team from the University of Pennsylvania analyzed genomic data from global populations, including thousands of ethnically diverse Africans, to identify genetic variants that may be associated with clinical COVID-19 outcomes.
Dirk Trauner appointed Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor
Trauner, one of the world’s most innovative interdisciplinary chemists, will have joint appointments in the School of Arts & Sciences and in the Perelman School of Medicine.
Ben Franklin: A voice from the past that speaks to our time
At the 2022 Silfen Forum, Penn Interim President Wendell Pritchett chatted with filmmaker Ken Burns about his new two-part documentary on Benjamin Franklin.
Social connections influence brain structure of rhesus macaques
Researchers from Penn, Inserm, and elsewhere observed that the number of grooming partners an individual animal had predicted the size of brain areas associated with social decision-making and empathy.
Keepers of the cultural memory
In wartime, saving human lives is a top priority. But secondary considerations often include preserving the cultural heritage also under siege. Penn experts offer their thoughts as the situation in Ukraine continues to unfold.
New COVID-19 roadmap: Four takeaways
A report spearheaded by PIK Professor Ezekiel Emanuel, with input from other Penn experts, lays out a dozen priorities for the federal government to tackle in the next 12 months. The aim: to help guide the U.S. to the pandemic’s ‘next normal.’
Lance Freeman appointed Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor
Interim President Wendell Pritchett and Interim Provost Beth Winkelstein announce the appointment of Lance Freeman as the University of Pennsylvania’s 29th Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor.
Do success stories cause false beliefs about success?
Does explicitly acknowledging bias make us less likely to make biased decisions? A new study examining how people justify decisions based on biased data finds that this is not exactly the case.
Inspiring people, place, and purpose
Penn President Amy Gutmann’s record tenure of nearly 18 years is the University’s most transformative.
Studying the past through a modern-day lens
In a Q & A, archaeologist and PIK Professor Lynn Meskell discusses her background, the subjects that interest her—from espionage to World Heritage sites—and collaborations that have organically arisen at Penn despite the pandemic and a mostly remote first year.
Hard barriers and soft power: Study assesses outsider perceptions of border walls
Two researchers explore how border walls damage a country’s international image, with real soft power implications.
Ten from Penn elected 2021 AAAS Fellows
Faculty from the Perelman School of Medicine, School of Arts & Sciences, School of Engineering and Applied Science, Annenberg School for Communication, and Wharton School are among those honored.
Anti-racism and reproductive justice
Alexis McGill Johnson of Planned Parenthood joined PIK Professor Dorothy Roberts in the 21st annual Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Lecture in Social Justice.
Landmark gift endows Penn Integrates Knowledge Professorship in honor of Amy Gutmann
A $5 million commitment from James S. and Gail Petty Riepe will endow a new PIK Professorship in recognition of Dr. Gutmann’s distinguished tenure as Penn’s longest-serving President
Want to reduce political polarization? Start by looking beyond politics
New research from PIK University Professor Duncan Watts sheds light on how even hardliners can be swayed when coming in contact with opposing viewpoints.
A novel theory on how conspiracy theories take shape
In a new book, Dolores Albarracín, Kathleen Hall Jamieson, and colleagues show that two factors—the conservative media and societal fear and anxiety—have driven recent widespread conspiracies, from Pizzagate to those around COVID-19 vaccines.
PIK Professor Kevin Johnson named University Professor
Johnson, who has appointments in the Perelman School of Medicine and the School of Engineering and Applied Science, and a secondary appointment in the Annenberg School for Communication, will become the David L. Cohen University Professor.
New insights into T-cell exhaustion could improve cancer immunotherapies
A new Penn Medicine study finds that suppressing key exhaustion genes may allow CAR T cell treatments to be used much more effectively against pancreatic and other solid cancers.
University professorships for Konrad Kording, George Demiris
Kording, a data scientist who studies the brain, will become the Nathan Francis Mossell University Professor. Demiris, a gerontologist who studies IT to support older adults, will become the Mary Alice Bennett University Professor.
Putting community first, in a new social justice initiative
The Community Collaboratory for Co-Creation, led by Penn Nursing and Penn Engineering, will focus on research, education, and community engagement and outreach.
‘Black Families Matter’
In a lecture organized by the Penn Program on Regulation, PIK Professor Dorothy E. Roberts argued that the U.S. child welfare system is designed to police Black families, not to protect children, and must be abolished and replaced with a new vision of family support and child safety.
Mandates likely work to increase vaccine uptake
Rather than causing a backlash, vaccination requirements will succeed at getting more people inoculated, according to research from PIK Professor Dolores Albarracín and colleagues at Penn.
Penn concludes landmark fundraising and engagement campaign with extraordinary results
The Campaign exceeded its initial goal, making this fundraising and engagement effort the most successful in Penn’s history.
In rural America, religious attendance reduces compassion regarding opioids
A new study from the Annenberg School for Communication finds that religious individuals in Appalachian and Midwestern states were more likely to support punitive drug policies.
When trust in science fosters pseudoscience
A study co-authored by PIK Professor Dolores Albarracín finds that people who trust science are more likely to believe and disseminate false claims containing scientific references than people who do not trust science.
Dolores Albarracín appointed Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor
Albarracín will be the Alexandra Heyman Nash University Professor, with joint appointments in the Annenberg School for Communication and the Department of Family and Community Health in the School of Nursing.
Kevin Johnson appointed Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor
Johnson, the University’s 27th PIK Professor, will hold joint appointments in the Perelman School of Medicine and the School of Engineering and Applied Science, with a secondary appointment in the Annenberg School for Communication.
A modified game of ‘chicken’ reveals what happens in the brain during decision-making
Research from the Platt Labs found that in rhesus macaques, two regions of the brain mirror those of similar regions in humans, broadening the understanding of what unfolds, neurologically, when people interact and cooperate.
Lynn Meskell appointed Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor
The world-renowned archaeologist has joint appointments in the Department of Anthropology, the Graduate Program in Historic Preservation and the Department of City and Regional Planning, and the Penn Museum as a curator in both the Asian and Near East sections.
Roberto Gonzales appointed Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor
The world-renowned scholar of the lives of immigrants in the United States, will be the Richard Perry University Professor, with joint appointments in the Department of Sociology of the School of Arts & Sciences and in the Graduate School of Education.
In the News
In the News
Slate.com
America’s mothers are suckers. And I say that with love
In an Op-Ed featuring a quote from PIK Professor Dorothy Roberts, Tess Wilkinson-Ryan of Penn Carey Law writes that American capitalism has commodified motherhood, shifting it from a “social good” to a “personal choice” when women ask for support.
5/14/2023
Bloomberg
Antitrust shield for independent worker action gains momentum
PIK Professor Herbert Hovenkamp says that a dispute by a group of Puerto Rican jockeys was purely about compensation and labor issues, rather than separate economic activities that could raise antitrust issues.
5/9/2023
Yahoo! News
Child welfare system is overloaded with racial disparities that impact Black families, experts say
PIK Professor Dorothy Roberts says that Black families have been entangled in the child welfare system since the time of slavery, when they were routinely separated.
5/2/2023
CNN
A Texas family fought for weeks to regain custody of their newborn. Experts say the case shows how Black parents are criminalized
PIK Professor Dorothy Roberts says that decisions to report neglect and abuse to the child welfare system are largely shaped by racist stereotypes of Black families.
4/24/2023
Stat
The NIH has poured $1 billion into long COVID research—with little to show for it
PIK Professor Ezekiel Emanuel says that the National Institutes of Health have nothing to show for a billion dollars’ worth of research on long COVID.
4/20/2023
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
How investors can become better forecasters than a ‘dart-throwing chimpanzee’
PIK Professor Philip Tetlock found shockingly poor results when studying the accuracy of economic, social, and political predictions made by experts.
4/20/2023
Forbes
Money doesn’t really affect happiness, and you shouldn’t care
A study co-authored by Matthew Killingsworth of the Wharton School and PIK Professor Barbara Mellers finds that happiness increases when incomes rise above $75,000 for all but 20% of the population, the “least happy.”
4/16/2023
Ms. Magazine
The truth about the adoption option
PIK Professor Dorothy Roberts breaks down the adoption fallacy of the Supreme Court Dobbs decision.
4/5/2023
Technical.ly Philly
Penn’s SAFELab sits at the intersection of technology and social work
PIK Professor Desmond Upton Patton, founder and director of the SAFELab, discusses the initiative’s research on grief, gun violence, and social media as well as its new space at the Pennovation Center.
4/4/2023
Boston Globe
A young boy’s nightmare diagnosis, and the $3 million one-time treatment that will likely save his life
PIK Professor Ezekiel Emanuel decries the high cost of gene therapies.
4/1/2023
CNBC
More money means more happiness for most of us—here’s when earning over $100,000 doesn’t help
A study co-authored by Matthew Killingsworth of the Wharton School and PIK Professor Barbara Mellers finds that happiness only plateaus with higher earnings for people who were already unhappy.
3/28/2023
KYW Radio (Philadelphia)
Philly residents still wary about drinking tap water
PIK Professor Dolores Albarracín discusses Philadelphia’s plan for communicating with residents about the water crisis.
3/28/2023
The Hill
Republicans’ ‘Charlie Brown’ budget problem
PIK Professor Ezekiel Emanuel says that the Affordable Health Care Act is too woven into the system for Republicans to dismantle.
3/19/2023
The Guardian
Police stopped a Black couple in Tennessee—and took their children
In her book “Torn Apart,” PIK Professor Dorothy E. Roberts describes how the U.S. child welfare system historically punishes Black families for living through poverty.
3/18/2023
CBS MoneyWatch
One study said happiness peaked at $75,000 in income. Now, economists say it’s higher—by a lot
A study co-authored by Matthew Killingsworth of the Wharton School, PIK Professor Barbara Mellers, and a team from Princeton found that happiness improves with higher earnings, up to $500,000 a year, except for those who were “rich and miserable” for other reasons.
3/8/2023
KALW
Dorothy Roberts says it’s time to abolish the child welfare system
PIK Professor Dorothy Roberts appears on “Your Call” to discuss her new book, “Torn Apart,” which argues that the child welfare system should be abolished and replaced with a radically different way of supporting families.
3/2/2023
The Washington Post
Biden finds breaking up Big Tech is hard to do
PIK Professor Herbert Hovenkamp comments on how changes in the marketplace could dampen enthusiasm for breaking up tech giants.
2/26/2023
Philadelphia Inquirer
A national TikTok trend is sparking thefts of Kias and Hyundais in Philadelphia—and residents are feeling the impact
PIK Professor Desmond Upton Patton calls the Kia Boyz Challenge on TikTok a “perfect storm” for young people in cities where vehicle theft is common, since they know it could be a shortcut to notoriety.
2/22/2023
Philadelphia Inquirer
Ben Franklin: Four things that made him great
In an Op-Ed, PIK Professor Ezekiel Emanuel outlines the four qualities that characterized Ben Franklin’s wisdom and greatness.
2/17/2023
ANI News (India)
University of Pennsylvania pledges to bolster relations with India at "Penn India Engagement Forum"
PIK Professor Ezekiel J. Emanuel, Dean Erika H. James of the Wharton School, and Dean Vijay Kumar of the School of Engineering and Applied Science are quoted on the forum to support India's exceptional growth and specific health care needs.
1/27/2023