Past Events: Penn State Energy and Environment Calendar Archive

With so much buzz around AI in the press, we should see big payoffs in science. Yet it doesn’t seem like major advancements with chatbots and image generators in recent years have also extended to scientific breakthroughs. In this talk, I will discuss the concept of representation learning: the way that AI algorithms understand data, and a major bottleneck in repurposing existing AI algorithms to solve new problems. I will specifically highlight challenges and opportunities in materials science applications including molecular simulation, characterization, and small molecule design.

Alarming rates of mental health challenges and social isolation among today's young people have called for unique and innovative approaches to supporting student well-being. I will provide an overview of current academic and research efforts at Penn State to support skills and mindsets related to student flourishing. We will explore what it means to flourish and why it's important to challenge the status quo of today's "college life". 

A growing majority of the world’s population lives in cities. Urban systems are complex, including interactions between tightly connected human and natural systems both within city boundaries and between cities and the surrounding rural environment. Understanding how cities function is critical to monitoring, managing and improving the urban environment and the environment of the entire globe. The urban environment is also highly heterogeneous, often including striking disparities in the living conditions of and environmental quality experienced by the urban population.

Building public consensus about the threat of climate change is critical for enacting meaningful action to address it. The Climate Change in the American Mind (CCAM) project has been conducting nationally representative surveys on public opinion about climate change biannually since 2008. An audience segmentation of CCAM respondents based on their climate change beliefs, risk perceptions, policy preferences, and behaviors identifies six distinct attitude groups, called Global Warming’s Six Americas, including the Alarmed, Concerned, Cautious, Disengaged, Doubtful, and Dismissive.

Meteorology & Atmospheric Science Colloquium: From Clouds to Harvest: Understanding Land-Atmosphere Interactions and Tailoring Climate Services for Farmers 114 Steidle 12:15 p.m. - 1:15 p.m. Candidate: Divyansh Chug Organizer: Meteorology and Atmospheric Science

Over the past two decades, it has become increasingly clear that symbiotic host–microbe interactions alter the way in which plants grow and respond to abiotic and biotic stress. Harnessing diversity within these plant–microbe associations in managed ecosystems, provides an opportunity to create sustainable, multipurpose bioeconomies whereby globally important plant feedstocks can be produced while simultaneously maximizing soil health and mitigating adverse impacts to climate.

Revisiting Past Lectures on the 30th Anniversary of the Ashtekar Frontiers of Science

Department of Geosciences Colloquium Series Spring 2024 Dalton Hardistry Michigan State University Host: Kim Lau

Iain Mathieson is a Associate Professor of Genetics at the University of Pennsylvania. Iain will be presenting a talk titled "Using ancient DNA to learn about human evolution and disease".

Since the release of the National Academies consensus report Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening Participation in February 2023, the overall landscape of ADEI in the United States has shifted within national and local contexts. The Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences will host a dissemination event on January 29-30, 2024 that will acknowledge new challenges to advancing ADEI in STEMM and provide space for focused discussions on the practical implementation of several key recommendations in the report.

The Penn State Sustainable Labs Program has been internationally recognized for its unique educational and experiential learning approach to incorporating sustainability practices into the research laboratory.

The Center for Pollinator Research integrates research, education, outreach and extension to improve management and conservation of pollinators.  Here, I will highlight our Beescape platform, which is a mapping tool that helps people evaluate the quality of their landscapes and habitats for bees, as well as our new NSF funded INSECT NET graduate training pro

 

Since the release of the National Academies consensus report Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening Participation in February 2023, the overall landscape of ADEI in the United States has shifted within national and local contexts. The Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences will host a dissemination event on January 29-30, 2024 that will acknowledge new challenges to advancing ADEI in STEMM and provide space for focused discussions on the practical implementation of several key recommendations in the report.

Revisiting Past Lectures on the 30th Anniversary of the Ashtekar Frontiers of Science

Rescheduled: Join EESI for lunch and enjoy a discussion with Erica Smithwick, Esther Obonyo, Brandi Robinson, Mark Ortiz, Vikrant Sopkota, and Zoe Baker. They will be leading a discussion about the COP28 Climate Meeting that they attended.

As part of a new initiative on climate change and health (CCH), the Population Research Institute (PRI) at Penn State will hold a workshop to bring the university's population and climate scientists together to discuss ongoing and future research in the field. Participants are encouraged to share brief (2-3 minute) presentations on their CCH research, engage in open discussions, and network over lunch.

The Water Cooler Series is a monthly event for the water student community planned to bring the community together and share interesting research/ideas/plans with peers from different disciplines and backgrounds. The informal setup for the “Water Cooler Series” will provide students a platform to discuss brewing ideas about water-related research and get help/support from the peer group. The presentation need not be research focused. If you have some interesting field anecdotes or stories to share, this is the forum for you! 

The first 2024 Energy Xchange Seminar Series at the EMS Energy Institute will be held on January 25 from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. This presentation will feature Joshua Robinson, associate dean for graduate education and research (acting), with his presentation titled, "Silicon Carbide: The Critical Semiconductor for the Energy Transition." This event is free. Parking is available at the Institute at 4 p.m.

Atmospheric deep moist convection has emerged as one of the most challenging topics for numerical weather prediction, due to its chaotic nature of the development with multi-scale physical interactions. Not only do individual convective storms cause tremendous damage to society, such as through severe thunderstorms, but convective systems also play a critical role in developing organized severe weather events such as the rapid intensification of tropical cyclones.