Environmental and labor economist R. Jisung Park writes that thoughtfully designed markets and supportive public policy can play a vital role in helping communities approach climate adaptation efforts. https://bit.ly/3OPR56B

With the spring season on the horizon, Penn Today returns to a story that reveals how plants respond to seasonal flowering cues, protecting their offspring by shielding the stem cells at their growing tip. https://bit.ly/4qJ2HGr

If you’re seeing this at 2 a.m., congratulations 🎉, we just lost an hour. Daylight saving time means longer evenings ahead 🌅 Views from the 8th floor of the Wharton School's Huntsman Hall.

Daylight saving time shifts can take a toll on the body, affecting sleep, alertness, and overall health. “We function best when all of our clocks—biological, social, and solar—are aligned,” says Penn Medicine sleep doctor Indira Gurubhagavatula.

Katelyn Candido, a second-year medical student and aspiring neurosurgeon, shares takeaways from her research to help improve surgical precision and what drives her to advance equitable care for every patient. Read More: https://bit.ly/4s19Hzc

Penn Today spoke with David Meaney, vice provost for research, about the research initiatives at Penn, the institution's priorities, future growth plans, and how these efforts are improving lives. Read More: https://bit.ly/46JaFYa

Research led by Penn Dental Medicine’s Henry Daniell investigates the use of a lettuce-based, plant-encapsulated delivery platform as a new oral delivery of two GLP-1 drugs previously approved by the FDA in injectable form. Read More: https://bit.ly/4l64iUR

Historian, scholar, and best-selling author Michael Beschloss will deliver the address at the University’s 270th Commencement in May. Read More: https://bit.ly/4b2VcmW

Cindy Sako leads free classes through the Mobile CPR Project at Penn Medicine, building partnerships throughout Philadelphia to equip community members with CPR skills. Learn more about how Penn Matters: https://bit.ly/4mjndKI

How can people boost resilience? In a four-part series offered by Penn HR this spring, Karen Reivich of Penn’s Positive Psychology Center will guide staff, faculty, and postdocs toward building resilience.

Thank you to the crews who clear the way ❤️ 💙

Ethan Roberts, a fourth-year guard and the Quakers’ leading scorer, discusses how basketball is a microcosm for life, transferring to Penn, playing for Coach Fran McCaffery, and his pride in donning the Red & Blue. Read More: https://bit.ly/3OEdV0P

What if human evolution was shaped as much by attraction as survival? A new study proposes that mating preferences between male Neanderthals and female humans shaped which parts of the human genome endured and which disappeared. Read More: https://bit.ly/4kZsAzv

‘Chapters of Change’ highlights key moments of change in Penn’s history, adapting to shifts in society. In the 19th century, the University faced industrialization and more by creating some of its first professional schools. Read More: https://bit.ly/4l0o8kf

Built a few new classmates overnight ☃️

On Saturday at the Palestra, President J. Larry Jameson and Penn Women's Basketball coach Mike McLaughlin celebrated third-year guard Mataya Gayle’s 1,000-point milestone. Read More: https://bit.ly/4b9XOAI

Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Marcia Chatelain explores facets of Black history, from the impact of fast food to the Civil Rights Movement. Read More: https://bit.ly/4aO9uYC

A fresh coat of snow straight from your camera rolls 🌨️ Thank you to all who submitted photos!

Veterinarians trained at Penn's New Bolton Center are responsible for protecting the food supply, supporting the health of large animals, preventing the spread of zoonotic diseases from animals to humans, and ensuring a robust and healthy rural work force. https://www.upenn.edu/about/penn-matters

Dolores Albarracín, the Amy Gutmann Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor, has long studied how to curb disease and improve health.

Veterinarian Amanda Watkins drew from her clinical experience in large animal surgery for her research on new ways to fight biofilm infections, becoming the first graduate of the Veterinary Scientist Training program. Read More: https://bit.ly/4aK1kjV

Penn Medicine neuroscientists and collaborators found that certain hypothalamic neurons play a central role in converting physical activity into sustained stamina. The discovery opens the door to potential therapies that could one day mimic the effects of exercise. https://bit.ly/4cBOvL0

The effects of rising global temperatures are especially severe for communities where concrete and asphalt amplify heat. The Thermal Architecture Lab explores the intersection of humans, technology, and design to develop efficient cooling solutions. Read More: https://bit.ly/4bXOdOp

A specific pattern of frontal brain activity has been linked to compulsive behaviors like excessive hand washing, chronic hair-pulling, and skin-picking. Research suggests that briefly disrupting this signal could rapidly ease symptoms of severe OCD. https://bit.ly/40eCgN5

Annenberg faculty reflect on the 100-year history of television and the social, political, and technological changes its viewers experienced through the medium https://penntoday.upenn.edu/news/annenberg-100-years-television

The sixth Energy Week at Penn takes place Feb. 23-27, with nearly two dozen energy-focused events on sustainable computing and AI and approaches to energy storage, conversion, fuel production, and more. https://bit.ly/4aXdU0s

Despite the perception that modern nursing began with Florence Nightingale and Clara Barton, a new exhibit at the Barbara Bates Center for the Study of the History of Nursing traces the profession in America back to Revolutionary times. https://bit.ly/46W8xMy

Penn Engineering students are designing a solar-powered drip irrigation system for FAIR Farms Gambia. Four undergraduate students visited The Gambia in January to understand farmers’ needs. https://bit.ly/4ciqGIj

Insurance plans that base rates on driving behavior and offer tips and discounts for safe driving can reduce risky behaviors like speeding and hard braking, according to Penn Medicine researchers. https://bit.ly/4aZtAPV

Founded by Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Bond in 1751, Pennsylvania Hospital will mark its 275th anniversary with the launch of a new museum at its historic Pine Street building. https://bit.ly/4tLo7Vq

Wooder ice, Wawa, and cheesesteaks weren't the only familiar sights popping up on last night's Philly-centric episode of The Simpsons.

Penn Dental aims to serve underserved populations. Nurse practitioner Abigail Green trains students to treat patients with physical disabilities or neurodivergence who are unable to receive dental care elsewhere. Learn more about how Penn Matters: https://www.upenn.edu/about/penn-matters

Drawing on bioengineering, artificial intelligence, and language neuroscience, MD-Ph.D. candidate Shreya Parchure tested how a machine learning tool can help stroke survivors regain their ability to speak. https://bit.ly/4qAWcVn

Sending a Valentine’s Day shoutout to Penn couples whose stories are forever tied to campus. 💘 Pictured: ❤️ Jarcy Zee (MS’12, PhD’14) & Parag Mahajan 💙 Joanna (C’15) & Blake (W’14) ❤️ Ernest Owens (C’14) & Barry Johnson (C’17) 💙 Marisa Petticord (PhD Student, NGG) & Daniel Furst

Fourth-year Jonibek Muhsinov has been awarded a Gates Cambridge Scholarship to pursue a Ph.D. in psychiatry at the University of Cambridge in England. He is one of 26 Gates Cambridge Scholars chosen this year from the United States and one of 76 new Scholars worldwide. https://bit.ly/4kCuJB5

Becky Friedman’s course Shakespeare in Love examines how the Bard “presents love in all its complexity, showing how relationships can be ecstatic and devastating and full of twists and turns,” says Friedman. https://bit.ly/4avD5WK

Images with faces or face-like features cause young children to react in certain ways and may open the door to identifying antisocial behaviors, new research from psychologist Rebecca Waller’s lab has found. https://bit.ly/3ZAZAEB

The Sonura Beanie, designed by former Penn Engineering students is calming babies in the intensive care nursery at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania by blocking out high-frequency sounds and playing messages from their parents. https://bit.ly/46OW5ya

Built in 1946 and configured by a team of pioneering women who were among the world’s first programmers, the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer, or ENIAC, could be reprogrammed to solve a wide range of complex numerical problems. https://bit.ly/3Obxihr

X-rays were a revolution for medical diagnostics, with Penn playing a central role. Penn physicist Arthur Goodspeed teamed up with Penn Medicine surgeons to produce some of the first X-rays of patients. https://bit.ly/47w87NL

The Penn community recently celebrated the reopening of Stuart Weitzman Hall, a 40,000-square-foot space for design and the arts. The ribbon‑cutting featured an exhibition showcasing the building’s 134-year history. Read More: https://bit.ly/4aHEE4U

Shaping the future of healthcare policy: Allison Hoffman of Penn Carey Law and Penn Medicine studies Medicare and long-term care, helping policymakers see the real-world impact of health insurance regulations. Learn more about how Penn Matters: https://www.upenn.edu/about/penn-matters

Students travel across cultures and centuries in a seminar on the classic Arabic story collection known as “The Arabian Nights.” Read More: https://bit.ly/3ZsmVs1

The practice of “dynamic pricing,” or adjusting prices based on demand, can trigger consumer backlash, warns Z. John Zhang of the The Wharton School. Dynamic discounting, by contrast, could ease the pain. https://bit.ly/4mBwwqp

Frozen in Time ❄️ 🕰️

A typesetting workshop at Penn's Common Press invited participants to reinterpret lines from the Declaration of Independence as part of Penn’s America 250 programming. The reimagined Declaration will be displayed until mid-April. Read More: https://bit.ly/4a1mdbd

Prithvi Parthasarathy, a fourth-year neuroscience major, designed an AI triage tool to improve hospital efficiency and patient care. “I’m really interested in not only being a physician but also bringing the health care system to the patients,” he says. Read More: https://bit.ly/3O8txsZ

It shows up in all shapes and sizes. Have you ever spotted the “fish” at the top of the shield? It’s actually an 18th-century depiction of a dolphin 🐬

Penn has again been recognized as a Top Producing Institution by the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, one of the colleges and universities with the highest number of awardees for 2025-26. Last year, 19 Penn students and alumni were offered Fulbright grants to 16 countries. https://bit.ly/4rgXWUZ

In her role as Community Relations Officer for Penn's Division of Public Safety, Nickol Taylor builds bridges between public safety officers and the community to make sure everyone feels safe in their neighborhood. Learn more about how Penn Matters: https://bit.ly/4mjndKI