Two Penn State faculty named fellows of the National Academy of Kinesiology
| psu.edu
Lacey Alexander, professor of kinesiology, and Danielle Symons Downs, professor of kinesiology and obstetrics and gynecology, were recently named fellows of the National Academy of Kinesiology during the organization’s annual meeting in September.
Four researchers named Institute of Energy and the Environment Fellows
Four Penn State researchers have been selected as 2025 fellows of the Institute of Energy and the Environment (IEE). The IEE Fellowship Program recognizes researchers whose work has significantly advanced energy and environmental research and provides support to further their efforts.
Penn State to host town hall on research enterprise, federal funding landscape
| psu.edu
Penn State will host a town hall on Monday, Nov. 3, at 1 p.m. to share updates on the University’s research enterprise and the evolving federal funding landscape. The event will take place in 603 Eric J. Barron Innovation Hub and will be livestreamed for the Penn State community. It will be hosted by Andrew Read, senior vice president for research; Fotis Sotiropoulos, executive vice president and provost; and Amanda Wintersteen, assistant vice president for federal relations.
Most users cannot identify AI bias, even in training data
| psu.edu
When recognizing faces and emotions, artificial intelligence (AI) can be biased, like classifying white people as happier than people from other racial backgrounds. This happens because the data used to train the AI contained a disproportionate number of happy white faces, leading it to correlate race with emotional expression. In a recent study, published in Media Psychology, researchers asked users to assess such skewed training data, but most users didn’t notice the bias — unless they were in the negatively portrayed group.
Climate Conversation Café on countering climate misinformation
The Penn State Climate Consortium will host a Climate Conversation Café featuring Janet Swim, professor of psychology and associate director of the consortium. The event will be held at 9 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 23, in 312 Earth and Engineering Sciences Building. Attendees may also register to participate virtually. Registration is required.
Penn State earns national 'Trailblazer' award for Sustainable Labs Program
| psu.edu
Penn State was recognized with the Academic Green Lab Trailblazer Award at the 2025 My Green Lab Summit, highlighting the University’s exceptional leadership and innovative efforts to advance sustainability in academic laboratories.
Decoding dangers of Arctic sea ice with seismic, radar method
| psu.edu
Drifting sea ice threatens Arctic communities. A new tool developed by researchers at Penn State identifies seismic activities linked to distinct types of shifting ice.
Old-school material could power quantum computing, cut data center energy use
| psu.edu
A new twist on a classic material could advance quantum computing and make modern data centers more energy efficient, according to a team led by researchers at Penn State.
Clive Randall elected as fellow of the European Academy of Sciences
| psu.edu
Clive Randall, Evan Pugh University Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, has been elected as a fellow of the European Academy of Sciences. The academy is an international scientific organization composed of the world’s leading scientists, scholars and engineers, dedicated to promoting excellence in science and technology.
Schreyer Honors College welcomes new faculty fellows
| psu.edu
The Penn State Schreyer Honors College has welcomed its third cohort of faculty fellows.
How smart buildings use AI to cut energy use and improve health
| by James Freihaut, Gregory Pavlak
AI-powered smart buildings improve comfort, cut energy use, and lower emissions—helping create healthier spaces and a cleaner, more resilient future.
Penn State to lead statewide climate resilience network
| onwardstate.com
Prepare PA will help communities adapt to the growing impacts of climate change. Penn State will lead Prepare PA, a new statewide climate network aimed at helping Pennsylvanians adapt to climate change through education, collaboration, and community resilience initiatives.