Diverse symbionts of reef corals have endured since 'age of dinosaurs'
| psu.edu
Coral-algal partnerships have endured numerous climate change events in their long history, and at least some are likely to survive modern-day global warming as well, suggests an international team of scientists.
Sankey first online educator named Faculty Academy Fellow
| psu.edu
Haley Sankey has always enjoyed finding creative ways to reach out to her adult learners. Now she’s hoping to use that creativity to improve learning on campus and beyond. Sankey, an assistant teaching professor at the John A. Dutton e-Education Institute, recently became the first Penn State World Campus faculty member selected as a fellow in the Faculty Academy for Engaged Scholarship.
Buried Treasure
| psu.edu
Penn State coral reef biologists Mónica Medina and Roberto Iglesias Prieto are studying Varadero reef, off the coast of Colombia, to learn why it is thriving under unusual conditions. With reefs around the world dying off in response to rising ocean temperatures, resilience has become a key concept. What gives some coral species the strength to adapt and bounce back while others perish?
Three new co-funds join Institutes of Energy and the Environment
| psu.edu
Three faculty members recently joined the Institutes of Energy and the Environment (IEE) in three different areas of expertise. Two are in the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications, and the other is in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. This is the first time that IEE has had co-funded faculty in the Bellisario College.
An invisible world: Explore the life of 'Zombie Ants' at the Arts Festival
| psu.edu
“The Zombie Ant Experience,” which details the strange process by which a parasitic fungus infects and takes over the bodies of ants, will be on display Penn State’s “Art of Discovery” booth at the Arts Festival from 11 to 1 p.m on Friday, July 13. “We’re pulling back the curtain on an invisible world that’s happening around you all the time," said Daryl Branford in the Huck Institute of the Life Sciences.
Extension to hire phorid fly liaison for residents, researchers, mushroom farms
| psu.edu
In an effort to ease the predicament of southern Chester County neighborhoods besieged by mushroom phorid flies, Penn State Extension will hire an entomologist to serve as a liaison between residents, the researchers trying to solve the fly problems, and mushroom farmers.
Penn State researchers join international effort to study Antarctic ‘doomsday’ glacier
| alleghenyfront.org
The Thwaites Glacier on the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is about the size of Pennsylvania. Reasonable modeling suggests it could lead to three feet of global sea level rise in the next century so its threatening nickname may not be far off.
Integrative Studies Seed Grants awarded to faculty across University
| psu.edu
The Office for General Education has announced this year’s seed grants to support the development of Integrative Studies courses. The awarded proposals are representative of a wide range of academic disciplines, and include proposals from faculty at Penn State campuses across the Commonwealth.
$2.1 million enables creation of decision-support tools for pollinator health
| psu.edu
The Center for Pollinator Research at Penn State, in collaboration with researchers at the University of California, Davis; the University of Minnesota; and Dickinson College will receive more than $2 million from the Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research and the United States Department of Agriculture to translate basic research into online decision support tools to help beekeepers and land managers maintain and expand populations of managed and wild bees.
Penn State researchers tackling mushroom phorid fly infestations
| psu.edu
Working with mushroom growers and residents in southern Chester County, Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences is ramping up ongoing research efforts to alleviate mushroom phorid fly infestations in southeastern Pennsylvania.
Interdisciplinary projects awarded seed grants from IEE
| psu.edu
The 2017–18 Institutes of Energy and the Environment (IEE) seed grant recipients have recently been awarded to 16 groups of interdisciplinary researchers at Penn State. This year nearly $350,000 have been awarded to more than 40 researchers in five colleges at University Park as well as at four campuses.
Brandywine professor uses NSF grant to tell the stories behind earth science
| psu.edu
Laura Guertin, professor of earth science at Penn State Brandywine, is in the business of asking questions — and her most recent inquiry launched a new, creative project to help more people understand the natural world.
Once a frozen haven, climate-driven rising temperatures are rapidly thawing the Arctic permafrost, posing a major threat to communities and infrastructure. Researchers are investigating how these changes will transform rivers, with potential consequences for erosion, sediment transport, and the entire Arctic landscape. Additionally, their project incorporates art to communicate these critical findings in an engaging way. Listen to the podcast.
Join Our Mailing List
IEE publishes a weekly email newsletter and event guide during most of the year containing featured news stories, events, and other announcements.