Latest News

February 1, 2022

Dope Labs podcast creators and hosts Titi Shodiya and Zakiya Whatley will present Dope Labs Science Communication Week at Penn State, a four-day remote event that will introduce researchers to the broader science communication community and teach them to use social media, storytelling and a web presence to network with other scientists and engage with broad audiences. The event takes place Feb. 7-10.

January 27, 2022

Tom Richard, director of the Institutes of Energy and the Environment, will discuss how agriculture, food and forest systems can support a bioeconomy that reverses climate change during a talk at 4 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 31.

January 26, 2022

Since the 1990s, scientists have been predicting that North American tree species will disappear from portions of their ranges within the next 50 to 100 years because of projected changes in climate. A new study led by Penn State forest biologists found that when transplanted to warmer environments, ash trees can survive increased temperatures of 7 degrees Fahrenheit and sometimes even up to 18 degrees Fahrenheit, suggesting that these trees may be more resilient to climate warming than previously believed.

January 25, 2022

A recent Penn State study with a large sample of post-9/11 veteran fathers examined factors that were associated with positive parenting.

January 25, 2022

Although tropical forest ecosystems around the world have been modified and fragmented by agroforests planted to produce commodities such as coffee, rubber and areca palm, amphibian communities can survive in those transformed landscapes — if the agroforests are managed to support biodiversity.

January 21, 2022

Researchers in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences will use a newly awarded $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to work with 13 other land-grant universities in the eastern U.S. to create an education program that will help private forests owners adapt to and mitigate climate change.

January 20, 2022

A ground-nesting bee family — commonly known as miner bees — could play a heightened role in rebuilding black cherry populations in Pennsylvania and beyond, according to Penn State entomologists who investigated pollinators’ contributions to the valuable hardwood species.

January 20, 2022

An innovative partnership between Penn State and Saint Francis University is enabling Penn State entomology graduate students to gain valuable mentoring skills, while Saint Francis undergraduates get research experience at a major land-grant research university.

January 19, 2022

Kevin Hockett, assistant professor of microbial ecology in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, recently received a $682,500 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture to study bacterial control methods and their implications for disease prevention in plants.

January 17, 2022

A Penn State-led team of researchers will use a newly awarded $682,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture to examine how climate change may influence and interact with various stressors that affect the health of pollinators.

January 17, 2022

A team of researchers led by Penn State has developed a coupled water–power–economy model to capture how the impacts of climate-related water stress and temperature changes can cascade through energy systems.

January 7, 2022

Pennsylvania's labor economy showed resilience throughout the first two decades of the 21st century, with overall modest employment growth and relatively low joblessness by the end of 2019. But certain industry sectors and regions of the state continued along a trend line of job loss in the run-up to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to economists in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences.

January 6, 2022

While previous studies have shown little economic benefit associated with using foliar fungicides in soybean as a preventive measure, new research aided by a Penn State plant pathologist suggests otherwise, especially in southern regions.

January 5, 2022

The latest episode of the "Growing Impact" podcast features a seed grant project that investigates how biofiltration could reduce greenhouse gas emissions, specifically methane and carbon dioxide.

January 5, 2022

Dairy farmers in the Northeast — facing a warming climate that exacerbates nutrient pollution but lengthens the growing season — can reduce the environmental impact of their operations and maximize revenues by double cropping and injecting manure into the soil, rather than broadcasting it.

January 3, 2022

Neonicotinoids and other systemic insecticides can contaminate honeydew, which is an important food source for beneficial insects in agroecosystems, according to an international team of researchers who conducted a review of the scientific literature.  

December 15, 2021

The vast majority of Pennsylvanians responding to a recent survey conducted by Penn State researchers said they strongly support bird conservation and indicated they believe future efforts will be needed to protect avian species. But there is good and bad news in those responses to questionnaires that were part of a study to examine public attitudes toward bird conservation, government involvement in private lands issues, and private forest management.

December 14, 2021

A new meta-analysis, led by researchers at Penn State, examines the ability of cannabis plants to absorb heavy metals and discusses the resulting health impacts on consumers.

December 13, 2021

The spread of the blacklegged tick, the primary vector for the pathogen that causes Lyme disease, may be facilitated in Pennsylvania by animals that people rarely associate with it — black bears, according to researchers in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences.

December 2, 2021

A research team led by Benay Gürsoy, assistant professor of architecture, was awarded the American Institute of Architects Upjohn Research Initiative grant to advance the study of biodegradable building composites made from mycelium, which comes from the root of fungi.

December 2, 2021

Growing cover crops under grapevines in vineyards can reduce erosion, enhance soil health, reduce herbicide use and improve water quality, according to a team of Penn State researchers, who suggest that growers can promote improved sustainability in production as part of a marketing strategy that may result in consumers being willing to pay more for wine.

December 1, 2021

Faculty, staff and students joined University leaders, HOK architectural firm and Turner Construction Co. executives, donors, and guests on Dec. 1 for a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of the new Animal, Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences Building on Penn State's University Park campus.

December 1, 2021

Using a modified, lower temperature mashing procedure to retain enzyme activity, brewers can use malts from gluten-free grains to produce high-quality beers, according to Penn State researchers who conducted a new study.

November 16, 2021

A new economic tool can help physicians, farmers and other people whose activities may influence the evolution of biological organisms, such as pathogens and insects, decide when they should invest in evolution management strategies.

November 16, 2021

Research conducted in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences suggests that some Holstein dairy cattle, particularly those with white coat coloration, naturally fend off the horn fly, a parasitic insect known to cause stress and disease in grazing cattle.

November 12, 2021

Fat-free chocolate milk processed for the first time with high-pressure jet technology exhibits enhanced viscosity, stabilizing cocoa particles in the fluid and eliminating the need for adding a controversial emulsifier.

November 6, 2021

A new USAID Feed the Future Innovation Lab housed at Penn State will help smallholder farmers around the world cope with pests in a climate-changed world.

November 3, 2021

More than 80% of the white-tailed deer sampled in different parts of Iowa between December 2020 and January 2021 tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. The findings suggest that white-tailed deer may be a reservoir for the virus to continually circulate and raise concerns of emergence of new strains that may prove a threat to wildlife and, possibly, to humans.