Penn State Energy and Environment News

Daning Huang awarded Army grant to lead multi-institute project on drones

| news.engr.psu.edu

Unlike birds and insects, most unmanned air vehicles (UAS) cannot adapt their structure to optimally perform multi-stage mission needs such as collapsing, dashing and loitering. While some next-generation aerial systems can move with dexterity and morph to adapt to the mission at hand, such flexibility is limited by how the structures and skins impact integrity, stability, flight dynamics and control. To help address this challenge, the U.S.

This lizard species stress-eats to cope with noisy US Army aircraft

| cnn.com

Living in a neighborhood with lots of noise can make you jittery, especially if you're a lizard that's just a few inches long. This article quotes Tracy Langkilde, professor of biology and dean of the Eberly College of Science.

Best electric SUVs of 2023: Top 5 models most recommended by experts

| studyfinds.org

To help kickstart your decision-making process, StudyFinds searched the internet for expert reviews to find the best electric SUVs. This article mentions Penn State research. 

Landscape architecture professor recognized for interdisciplinary research

| psu.edu

Hong Wu, associate professor of landscape architecture in the Penn State College of Arts and Architecture’s Stuckeman School, has been awarded the 2023 Excellence in Research and/or Creative Work Award (Junior Level) by the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture.

Five engineers recognized with National Science Foundation early career awards

| psu.edu

Five faculty members in Penn State’s College of Engineering were recognized with National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development Awards. Each project ranges in duration from 3 1/2 to 5 years, funded by grants worth roughly $500,000.

Seniors deliver capstones at Penn State Hazleton Engineering Alumni Reunion

| psu.edu

Seniors in the Bachelor of Science in Engineering Alternative Energy and Power Generation track program presented their capstone projects in front of Penn State Hazleton engineering alums who returned to campus for the program's annual Engineering Alumni Reunion on March 24.

EarthTalks lecture to focus on habitability of planets beyond our solar system

| psu.edu

Bradford Foley, associate professor of geosciences at Penn State, will discuss habitability conditions of exoplanets at 4 p.m. Monday, April 3, in 112 Walker Building at University Park and on Zoom. Foley’s talk is part of the Earth and Environmental Systems Institute's spring 2023 EarthTalks speaker series, “Exploration of our Solar System.”

The Microbiome Center announces a free bioinformatics resource for Penn State

| psu.edu

The Penn State Microbiome Center, in coordination with the lab of David Koslicki, is offering free access to the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes to all Penn State faculty, staff and students.

Opportunity: USDA Climate Change Fellows Program

USDA is seeking qualified applicants for inclusion in the USDA Climate Change Fellows Program (CCFP). Climate change presents real threats to U.S. agricultural production, forest resources, and rural economies. Producers and land managers across the country are experiencing climate impacts on their operations through shifting weather patterns and increasingly frequent and severe storms, floods, drought, and wildfire.

Will a Brita filter remove the chemicals threatening Philly water? Not officially, but...

| billypenn.com

Home pitchers with carbon-activated filters aren’t designed to remove these materials — but that doesn’t mean they don’t. This article quotes Beth Yount, Penn State Extension Educator.

Penn State expanding weather network, offering data that could help areas prepare for floods

| stateimpact.npr.org

The solar powered stations have a battery power backup and collect data on air and soil temperature, humidity, solar radiation, air pressure, wind speed and direction, rainfall and soil moisture.

Eye tracking during building inspections provides insight on how experts think

| psu.edu

After a building failure due to natural disasters or poor structural design, safety inspectors must enter a structure to assess the damage before occupants can return. Researchers in the Penn State Department of Architectural Engineering studied how building inspectors make their safety assessments by analyzing their gaze patterns with eye-tracking software.