The instructions for building all of the body’s proteins are contained in a person’s DNA, a string of chemicals that, if unwound and strung end to end, would form a sentence 3 billion letters long.
For solar panels, wringing every drop of energy from as many photons as possible is imperative. This goal has sent chemistry, materials science and electronic engineering researchers on a quest to boost the energy-absorption efficiency of photovoltaic devices, but existing techniques are now running up against limits set by the laws of physics.
An interdisciplinary team of University of Pennsylvania researchers has already developed a technique for controlling liquid crystals by means of physical templates and elastic energy, rather than the electromagnetic fields that manipulate them in televisions and computer monitors. They envision using this technique to direct the assembly of other materials, such as nanoparticles.
Some people are deeply religious and others not at all. Evolutionary psychologists are interested in determining the functions of religiosity in social life that lead to this diversity.
Media Contact:Dana Weidig | email@example.com | 267-426-6092October 30, 2013
The Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council today released a comprehensive report on sports-related concussions in youth, detailing factors associated with increased rates of the brain injury, the effectiveness of protective devices and new screening, diagnosis, treatment and management techniques, as well as the long-term consequences of concussions.
Joshua Plotkin of the School of Arts and Sciences and the School of Engineering and Applied Science and Alexander Stewart, also of the School of Arts and Sciences are featured for their research on the Prisoner’s Dilemma.
Centuries of economic theory have been based on one simple premise: when given a choice between two items, people make the rational decision and select the one they value more. But as with many simple premises, this one has a flaw in that it is demonstrably untrue.
On Wednesday, Oct. 23, the University of Pennsylvania’s Nano/Bio Interface Center will host its annual NanoDay@Penn. This public education and outreach event will feature a series of talks, demonstrations and exhibits dealing with nanotechnology, a rapidly expanding scientific discipline that involves the manipulation of matter on the atomic and molecular scale.
The University of Pennsylvania is launching a new, interdisciplinary research effort to study and solve problems using the tools of the digital age: The Warren Center for Network & Data Sciences.