Penn State Energy and Environment News Feed

Small amounts of pharmaceuticals found in north central Pa. rural well water

| psu.edu

Drinking water from wells in rural north central Pennsylvania had low levels of pharmaceuticals, according to a study led by Penn State researchers.

Buried Treasure

| psu.edu

Penn State coral reef biologists Mónica Medina and Roberto Iglesias Prieto are studying Varadero reef, off the coast of Colombia, to learn why it is thriving under unusual conditions. With reefs around the world dying off in response to rising ocean temperatures, resilience has become a key concept. What gives some coral species the strength to adapt and bounce back while others perish?

Three new co-funds join Institutes of Energy and the Environment

| psu.edu

Three faculty members recently joined the Institutes of Energy and the Environment (IEE) in three different areas of expertise. Two are in the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications, and the other is in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. This is the first time that IEE has had co-funded faculty in the Bellisario College.

Detective Work: An interdisciplinary dive into the history of American art

| psu.edu

Maggie Davis doesn’t look like a detective. She doesn’t wear a trenchcoat, a fedora or carry a magnifying glass. But the art history major at Penn State is solving a mystery that dates back to the early years of the United States and the birth of the American artistic tradition.

Penn State promotions in academic rank, effective July 1, 2018

| psu.edu

The following is a list of academic promotions for tenured and tenure-line faculty members at Penn State, effective July 1.

Penn State researchers join international effort to study Antarctic ‘doomsday’ glacier

| alleghenyfront.org

The Thwaites Glacier on the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is about the size of Pennsylvania. Reasonable modeling suggests it could lead to three feet of global sea level rise in the next century so its threatening nickname may not be far off.

Gorski to use NSF CAREER award to expand access to clean water and electricity

| psu.edu

Christopher Gorski, assistant professor of environmental engineering at Penn State, will develop devices that use electricity to desalinate water and can also generate their own electricity, thanks to an esteemed National Science Foundation Early Career (CAREER) award.

Integrative Studies Seed Grants awarded to faculty across University

| psu.edu

The Office for General Education has announced this year’s seed grants to support the development of Integrative Studies courses. The awarded proposals are representative of a wide range of academic disciplines, and include proposals from faculty at Penn State campuses across the Commonwealth.

One-fifth of carbon entering coastal waters of eastern North America is buried

| psu.edu

Coastal waters play an important role in the carbon cycle by transferring carbon to the open ocean or burying it in wetland soils and ocean sediments, a new study shows.

Sanitizing hospital sewage

| psu.edu

Researchers at Penn State have developed a water filtration system that removes contaminants and reduces toxicity in hospital wastewater.

Interdisciplinary projects awarded seed grants from IEE

| psu.edu

The 2017–18 Institutes of Energy and the Environment (IEE) seed grant recipients have recently been awarded to 16 groups of interdisciplinary researchers at Penn State. This year nearly $350,000 have been awarded to more than 40 researchers in five colleges at University Park as well as at four campuses.

Presence, persistence of estrogens in vernal pools an emerging concern

| news.psu.edu

Estrogens in treated wastewater that find their way into temporary wetlands known as vernal pools persist for weeks or even months, according to researchers, who suggest that persistence may have implications for these critical aquatic habitats.