Latest News

February 22, 2023

Post-9/11 veterans who actively participate in veteran centers and veteran-student organizations as they pursue education after military service are significantly more likely to do better in school than those who remain socially isolated, according to Penn State research.  

February 16, 2023

Managers of public forests in Pennsylvania have been using controlled burns to manage state-owned tracts to promote tree species such as oak, reduce the growth of invasive plant species and even reduce tick populations, for more than a decade. Now a study by Penn State researchers indicates that owners of private forest land in the state would like to use prescribed fire to manage their woods, too.

February 15, 2023

On Thursday, March 2, Penn State’s Microbiome Center will host a film screening of "The Invisible Extinction," followed by a live scientist question and answer session. Registration for this free event is open now at the State Theatre.

February 10, 2023

As Valentine’s Day approaches, the mind naturally turns to love — and chocolate. To learn more about chocolate and its effects on us, we spoke with Joshua Lambert, professor of food science at Penn State. Lambert’s research focuses on diet, specifically adopting dietary practices to prevent cancer, obesity and inflammation. He has worked extensively with cocoa, the key ingredient in chocolate.

February 9, 2023

Alex Hristov, Penn State distinguished professor of dairy nutrition, has received a $2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to conduct studies to determine whether supplementing the feed of lactating dairy cows with either 3-Nitrooxypropanol or a species of red seaweed reduces the amount of methane emitted by the animals in the long-term.

February 9, 2023

Fresh meats such as chicken and beef are staples of many Americans’ diets, but demand may take a hit after these products are recalled, according to new Penn State research.

January 30, 2023

Populations of various species of aquatic insects and other invertebrates respond to flooding and waterway drying due to drought in different ways that can be anticipated, according to a new Penn State-led study that employed a novel method to assess the stability of stream ecosystems.

January 30, 2023

In a study that likely is more notable for how it was conducted than for what it found, a Penn State-led research team discovered evidence that browsing by white-tailed deer had relatively little long-term impact on two tree species in a northern forest.  

January 30, 2023

Honey bee colony loss across the United States over the last five years is primarily related to the presence of parasitic mites, nearby pesticides, and extreme weather events as well as challenges with overwintering, according to a new study led by Penn State researchers.

January 26, 2023

A machine vision system capable of locating and identifying apple king flowers within clusters of blossoms on trees in orchards was devised by Penn State researchers — a critical early step in the development of a robotic pollination system — in a first-of-its-kind study.

January 23, 2023

Responding to a need revealed in their earlier studies, a team of Penn State researchers developed and pilot-tested a customized food safety training program for farmer’s market vendors.

January 5, 2023

Heparin has long been used as a blood thinner, or anticoagulant, for patients with blood clotting disorders or after surgery to prevent complications. However, the medication remains difficult to dose correctly, potentially leading to overdosing or underdosing. A team of Penn State researchers combined heparin with a protein fragment, peptide, to slow down the release of the drug and convey the medication directly to the site of a clot.

December 22, 2022

Many no-till growers are reluctant to implement any soil disturbance due to concerns about negative impacts on soil health. However, a new study by a team of Penn State researchers suggests that plowing fields once after five years in a crop rotation that includes coverage with cover crops and perennials can maintain soil health and provide other benefits.

December 14, 2022

Researchers in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences have created a cookbook with information about wild food plants, including their nutritional values and recipes for how to cook with them, as a way to address food insecurity.

December 14, 2022

A fungus that can colonize, or grow within, corn plants doesn’t just leave the plant unharmed — it also can help the plant stave off harmful bugs and other fungi, according to a new study by Penn State researchers.

December 13, 2022

A new grant from the American Institute of Architects will allow a Penn State-led research team to study whether fungal biomaterials can replace synthetic acoustic insulation, potentially reducing construction waste.

December 12, 2022

Short-term, heavy feeding by adult spotted lanternflies on young maple trees inhibits photosynthesis, potentially impairing the tree’s growth by up to 50%, according to a new study by Penn State scientists.

December 7, 2022

PlantVillage, a Penn State-sponsored project, received a $2 million grant from Google's AI for Social Good program to fund the team’s work to develop accurate maps of dryland landscapes across Africa. This work aims to help communities of African pastoralists in arid drylands to adapt to climate change and restore their lands, ultimately resulting in carbon drawdown for the planet.

December 7, 2022

Rarely in nature does less turn out to be more. But that’s the case when it comes to the roots of corn dealing with drought conditions, according to a Penn State-led international team of researchers who discovered evidence of the benefits of a “parsimonious” root phenotype in a new study.

December 5, 2022

Penn State alumnus Hunter Swisher, founder and CEO of Phospholutions, was named a 2023 Forbes 30 Under 30 in the social impact category. The category is described as those who are "leveraging business smarts to save the world."

November 30, 2022

While a beekeeper puffing clouds of carbon dioxide into a hive to calm the insects is a familiar image to many, less is known about its other effects on bees. A recent study revealed clues about how the chemical compound affects bee physiology, including reproduction.

November 22, 2022

The newest episode of "Life From All Angles," a YouTube series produced by the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, highlights the breakthroughs made by Penn State Plant Institute Director Sally Mackenzie in understanding epigenetics and manipulating plants to be more productive.

November 17, 2022

The Penn State Berks Center for the Agricultural Sciences and a Sustainable Environment is studying the role that telephone poles can play in monitoring and eradicating the invasive spotted lanternfly. The center continues to be one of the main research sites surveying effective procedures in the control of the invasive planthoppers through support from both the U.S. and Pennsylvania Departments of Agriculture, as well as other grant funding.

November 10, 2022

Penn State’s “Stories from the Field” conversation series is wrapping up its fall season with a session Nov. 17 featuring Darren Marshall, Southern Queensland Landscapes’ vertebrate pest and wildlife management lead. The session will be via Zoom and is free and open to anyone interested in attending, but registration is required.

November 8, 2022

Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences lauded outstanding accomplishments in research during the college’s inaugural Research Awards Ceremony, held Oct. 25 at the Hintz Family Alumni Center on the University Park campus.

November 8, 2022

Early spring enthusiasm for ramps — also known as wild leeks — may be causing lower plant yields and threatening communities of the forest herb, according to Penn State researchers.

November 7, 2022

The second annual Penn State Solar Law Symposium, co-sponsored by Penn State Extension and Penn State's Center for Energy Law and Policy, will be held via webinar from noon to 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 16.