UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Penn State Eberly College of Science is introducing a new series of outreach events — titled Science Matters: Spotlight Sessions — to provide a unique opportunity for the community to engage directly with the brilliant minds working on the front lines of discovery to create positive, real-world impact.
Alumni as well as members of the local community and Eberly College community are invited to join the college’s top scientists in candid, down-to-earth conversations that answer today’s most pressing questions — how science is shaping our lives, our society and our future.
Sept. 5: “Celebrating Penn State's Milestones in Physics”
The Penn State Department of Physics is a world leader in a wide range of fields and among the first to hit milestones in areas like astrophysics, gravity, and cosmology (and ranked no. 9 in the US), particle physics, and atomic, molecular, and optical physics.
Join department head Mauricio Terrones to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Erwin Müller’s first “seeing” of the atom, the 10th anniversary of the Penn State LIGO team’s discovery of gravitational waves, and Jainendra Jain’s pioneering Wolf Prize recognition — the first at Penn State.
These Penn State science strengths and longtime investment in discovery have major implications today for impactful research in the cosmos, quantum physics, and semiconductors (the fundamental building blocks for electronics in your cell phones), as well as appliances, computers, vehicles and much more.
Learn more and register to attend the University Park campus event or to join the webinar.
Oct. 1: “Risky Business: Neural Navigation of Decision-Making”
Nikki Crowley, Huck Early Career Chair in Neurobiology and Neural Engineering, associate professor of biology and of biomedical engineering, and director of the Penn State Neuroscience Institute at University Park, will discuss how the brain assesses risk, the factors that influence our choices to take risks, why risk-taking can be both adaptive and necessary, and how this process changes during development and aging.
Following Crowley’s presentation, hear from Eberly College alumna Jayatri Das (Class of 1999), now chief bioscientist at the Franklin Institute. As the lead developer of Your Brain — a national award-winning exhibit about the neuroscience and psychology of the human brain — she will share information with you to allow for a self-guided tour through the space.
Finally, join Eberly College dean Tracy Langkilde, Crowley, and Das for a reception to answer questions and continue the conversation.
Learn more and register to attend in Philadelphia.
Other public outreach events
Science matters. As part of Pennsylvania’s sole land-grant university, the Eberly College of Science is committed to furthering outreach programs that advance the public’s general knowledge of the everyday impact of science and the importance of funding for both basic and translational research. To view a list of community outreach events, see the Eberly College’s public events calendar.
At Penn State, researchers are solving real problems that impact the health, safety and quality of life of people across the commonwealth, the nation and around the world.
For decades, federal support for research has fueled innovation that makes our country safer, our industries more competitive and our economy stronger. Recent federal funding cuts threaten this progress.
Learn more about the implications of federal funding cuts to our future at Research or Regress.