News | The Huck Institutes (en-US)

The research team for "Assessing Climate Futures through Environmental Data Analytics," led by Professor Erica Smithwick (middle). Credit: Erica Smithwick. All Rights Reserved.

May 14, 2025

Second round of Penn State-Auckland seed grant recipients complete projects

The 18-month term for the 2023-24 seed grant-funded projects recently concluded, with the teams submitting their final reports.

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Troy Ott, dean of Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, will share his story of growing up in a kinship family and reflect on how those experiences shaped his life. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

May 13, 2025

Learn about kinship care through Dean Troy Ott’s personal journey

An upcoming session will offer insight into kinship care through the lived experience of someone raised in a kinship family: Troy Ott, dean of Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences.

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May 13, 2025

Penn State submits declaration in response to proposed NSF funding cuts

Penn State has submitted a declaration in support of a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts to seek to halt the NSF's proposed 15% indirect cost rate.

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This fossil leaf of a Kapur Paya tree (Dryobalanops rappa) from Brunei is the first fossil record of an endangered tropical tree species. Credit: Wang/Wilf. All Rights Reserved.

May 08, 2025

First fossil evidence of endangered tropical tree discovered

The finding offers new insights into Asia’s rainforest history, researchers say.

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A printed prototype using the current version of the custom extrusion system for in-place 3D concrete printing. This iteration demonstrates the successful integration of continuous reinforcement with concrete deposition, marking a key step in the ongoing development toward structural-scale applications. Credit: Ali Baghi. All Rights Reserved.

May 08, 2025

Manufacturing PA Innovation Program funds two Stuckeman-led research projects

Two projects led by Stuckeman School architecture researchers have garnered grants through the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development’s Manufacturing PA Innovation Program

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The results of this study strongly suggest that Native Americans did, indeed, extensively use fire to manage their environment and both directly and indirectly promoted fire-adapted trees such as oak and beech. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

May 08, 2025

Cultural burning by Indigenous peoples increased oak in forests near settlements

New study shows fire-tolerant trees were more abundant around historic Native American villages in southern New England

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The findings may have implications for policymakers hoping to make these conservation programs more impactful, according to the researchers. Credit: Jon Flobrant/Unsplash. All Rights Reserved.

May 07, 2025

Some water conservation programs may get more value by targeting rural farms

Conservation programs aimed at boosting environmentally friendly practices by incentivizing farmers may get more bang for their buck by targeting rural farms rather than more urban ones, according to a study led by researchers at Penn State.

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Réka Albert, Evan Pugh University Professor and professor of physics and biology at Penn State, has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences. She pioneered network science, a method that involves studying systems as networks, where individual components — like people, proteins or genes — are represented as "nodes," and their interactions are depicted as "edges." This approach led to new ways to visualize and analyze the intricate web of connections in various systems. Credit: Michelle Bixby / Penn State. Creative Commons

May 07, 2025

Biological physicist Réka Albert elected to National Academy of Sciences

Réka Albert, Evan Pugh University Professor and professor of physics and biology at Penn State, has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences.

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By extending egg production in broiler breeder hens, farmers may be able to reduce flock turnover, improve animal welfare and increase efficiency, according to researchers at Penn State. Credit: Hispanolistic/Getty Images. All Rights Reserved.

May 07, 2025

Common diabetes drug helps chickens lay more eggs

Metformin, a drug commonly prescribed to humans, could be a game-changer for farms and food production, researchers said.

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The lightweight and flexible electrode, which looks like a strand of hair, attaches directly to the scalp and delivers stable, high-quality recordings of the brain’s signals. Credit: Courtesy of the Zhou Lab / Penn State. Creative Commons

May 02, 2025

The future of brain activity monitoring may look like a strand of hair

A new hairlike electrode makes long-term, high-quality EEG monitoring less cumbersome and inconspicuous.

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