CATS Safety platform to regulate use of biohazardous materials in research
Nov 10, 2020
In early in 2021, Penn State will implement a new platform to manage the submission, review, and approval of the use of regulated and biohazardous materials in research and instruction (as defined in Penn State Policy RP11). The new web-based system, CATS Safety, will provide investigators, staff,…News Topics: biohazardous materialsResearch
Penn State's research expenditures top $1 billion mark
Sep 20, 2020
Penn State’s research expenditures exceeded the $1 billion mark in fiscal year 2019-20. The total figure, $1.01 billion, places Penn State among a select group of research universities nationally, and reflects the interdisciplinary strength built over three decades. It represents a $40 million…News Topics: Research
Impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on scientific field work
Jul 1, 2020
Penn State researcher Jon Nese provides informed commentary on the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on postponing or delaying scientific field campaigns, some involving Penn State meteorology and atmospheric science faculty members. In some cases, projects have been cancelled because NASA…
Post Doctoral Scholar Position
Jun 8, 2020
JOB DESCRIPTION AND POSITION REQUIREMENTS: The Population Research Institute (PRI) at The Pennsylvania State University (University Park) anticipates an 1-2 openings for a postdoctoral fellow in the NICHD-supported Social Environments and Population Health training program, starting on or about…
Two sessions added to 'Enabling Remote Research' seminar series
May 20, 2020
Penn State University Libraries has added two new sessions to its Enabling Remote Research online seminar series, presented in collaboration with Penn State Information Technology, the Institute for Computational and Data Sciences (ICDS) and the Office of the Associate CIO for Research. Enabling…News Topics: Penn State ResearchResearch
New guide curates COVID-19 related resources for researchers
Apr 15, 2020
Penn State University Libraries has developed a curated guide to COVID-19 related resources for researchers, including ongoing research at Penn State. A collaboration between the Libraries’ STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) experts at University Park and the Harrell Health…
Penn State stands out as 'exception' for team research collaboration
Mar 5, 2020
The faculty at Penn State may view their extensive interdisciplinary research collaborations as normal, but it turns out that Penn State’s successful culture of innovation through interdisciplinary collaborations is anything but normal. It is an exception. In December 2019, a research team led by…
Huck Institutes' HITS fund will support scientific risk-takers
Feb 24, 2020
Penn State’s Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences has relaunched a program to encourage more risk-taking across Penn State’s scientific community. Dubbed the Huck Innovative and Transformational Seed Fund— or HITS — the initiative will provide financial support for bold ideas that promise a high-…
COSSA Hot Topic: Foreign Interference in the U.S. Research Enterprise & Policy Responses
Jan 17, 2020
In recent years, United States federal research agencies have faced growing concerns of reports of U.S. research and intellectual property being stolen, illegally transferred, or tampered with by foreign governments, notably the Chinese government. These agencies have employed a variety of methods…News Topics: ResearchOpen Access Research
Seed funding available for social and behavioral sciences
Oct 2, 2019
Penn State’s Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) is announcing the availability of Level 1 and Level 2 funding to support faculty members in the social and behavioral sciences at Penn State. “We are interested in supporting new research programs that address critical human and social problems…
Penn State and University of Auckland collaboration seed grant opportunity
Jun 20, 2019
Penn State’s Global Engagement Network (GEN) recently agreed to build a strategic partnership with the University of Auckland, New Zealand. To make this collaboration successful, a community of Penn State faculty members interested in working with the University of Auckland is being sought. The…
Why Social Science? - Because It Can Improve the Lives of Those Who Serve Our Country
Jun 20, 2019
By Leanne K. Knobloch, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Communication, University of Illinois & Steven R. Wilson, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Communication, University of South Florida Throughout our nation’s history, members of the U.S. military have served our country with honor, courage,…
Summer 2019 Scholarly Communications Workshops offered by University Libraries
Jun 5, 2019
This summer, students, faculty and staff can participate in communications workshops that cover topics such as open access, copyright and fair-use policies. The workshops, which take place through Aug. 13, are coordinated by Ana Enriquez, scholarly communications outreach librarian, and will take…
Why communicate social sciences?
May 16, 2019
Bringing attention to and communicating the social sciences effectively is just as important as the research and findings scientists work so diligently to uncover. This is the message Alan Leshner, CEO Emeritus of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), relayed to the…
Report: Fentanyl scares some opioid users, but others seek it
Apr 30, 2019
Rich LordPittsburgh Post-Gazette Along the wide spectrum of opioid users, there are those who fear fentanyl and those who are its fans, according to a recently published study led by Penn State University researchers. Understanding the mindsets of both kinds of users may be a key to reducing the…
Accomplishments of the Behavioral and Social Sciences
Apr 24, 2019
For a number of years, OBSSR has made available a fact sheet that lists some key accomplishments of health-related behavioral and social sciences research. That fact sheet, developed in 2013, is becoming dated and is a short list of only a few key accomplishments resulting from behavioral and…
Why Social Science? - Because It Helps to Address Graduate Unemployment in Sub-Saharan Africa
Apr 23, 2019
By Joseph K. Assan, PhD, Assistant Professor of International Political Economy of Sustainable Development, Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University Social scientists are actively involved in working with government officials, academics, the private sector, NGOs and…
Scientists discover hundreds more genes with potential link to addictions
Apr 3, 2019
Many human diseases, such as tobacco and alcohol addictions, are heritable. Until now, little has been known about what genetic factors contribute to these addictions, and if they put people at risk of inheriting other medical conditions. A recent study, published in Nature Genetics, reveals that…
SSRI RV available to researchers
Mar 22, 2019
The SSRI RV is a resource available for researchers to facilitate future projects aimed at external funding. Currently, the RV is currently being used by Janet van Hell, professor of psychology and linguistics, in school locations to conduct neurocognitive research. In the past, the RV has also…News Topics: Research
New website will help researchers navigate cyberinfrastructure resources
Feb 27, 2019
The Office of the Vice President for Research has launched cyberinfrastructure.psu.eduto help faculty and staff find data, cyber, programming and IT resources available to researchers at Penn State. The site covers broad categories that include, but are not limited to, data storage, cloud computing…News Topics: Institute for CyberScienceResearch
Some personal beliefs and morals may stem from genetics
Feb 27, 2019
A new baby is often welcomed with speculation about whether they got their eyes and nose from mom or dad, but researchers say it may be possible for children to inherit their parents’ moral characteristics, as well. The researchers found that while parents can help encourage their children to…
Why Social Science? - Because It Requires Confronting the Assumptions We Have About Others
Feb 27, 2019
By Lee Hoffer, PhD, Associate Professor of Medical Anthropology, Case Western Reserve University Social science comes in many varieties, is comprehensive in scope, and applied to an infinite number of real-world challenges, questions, and problems society faces. At its core, it concerns the human…
Sharkey shares impact of Penn State research across University and beyond
Feb 24, 2019
Since the University’s founding when Penn State’s first president Evan Pugh set forth the college’s research vision in 1859, innovation and knowledge creation have been a foundational element of the land-grant mission, according to Neil Sharkey, vice president for research. Describing research as…
Funding agency investigations emphasize need for researcher disclosures
Feb 19, 2019
As international research collaboration continues to grow at Penn State and universities across the U.S., investigators are urged to carefully review the disclosure of their international affiliations. While the vast majority of international collaborations are acceptable — and encouraged — it is…
Disclosure of foreign affiliations
Feb 18, 2019
Investigators submitting proposals and Research Performance Progress Reports (RPPRs) to NIH should know it is critically important that they accurately identify any foreign collaborations associated with their research. Question 6.a. on the “RESEARCH & RELATED Other Project Information” form…