Still Life
Commencement across Penn State: Spring 2012
Spring commencement 2012 under way
Penn State, Moroccan students problem-solve together
Finals Week Spring Semester 2012
Children explore career options at University Park
Painting the Lines at Beaver Stadium
Did They Get It Right? - RedTails
Iconic Penn State elm taken down over spring break 2012
We ... are Penn State (December 19, 2011)
Disease stricken matching elm tree slated for removal
Penn State's creamery, from the cow to the cone
The Penn State Beaver community gathered at noon Feb. 6, to share in "A Taste of Africa." The event, which was held at noon in the Student Union Building Lodge, showcased the heritage, history, music and food of Africa to increase awareness and understanding of the continent's diversity.
Members of the Cultural Fiesta: A Taste of Africa Committee performed African music and dance, displayed posters highlighting the history of various African countries. Committee members hosted tables featuring popular African foods, and attendees were invited to sample them as well as take recipe cards for each item. (more)
Satellite images of nighttime lights, which normally are used to detect population centers, also can help keep tabs on diseases in developing nations, according to new research. An international research team that includes Matthew Ferrari, an assistant professor of biology at Penn State, found that the new technique accurately indicates fluctuations in population density -- and thus the corresponding risk of epidemic -- that can elude current methods of monitoring outbreaks. The research, reported in the current issue of the journal Science, is expected to help medical professionals to synchronize vaccination strategies with increases in population density. (more)
Jeannie Magill is the originator and co-producer of "Milking the Rhino," a documentary film that highlights the importance of maintaining biodiversity through community-based conservation. Magill talks about her interest in this topic and her work in Africa on the next episode of "Conversations from Penn State." The show will air on the Big Ten Network at noon Monday, May 24 and at 9 p.m. Tuesday, May 25. It also will air on WPSU-TV at 9 p.m. Thursday, May 20. (more)
Human genomes from Southern African Bushmen and a Bantu individual, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, have been sequenced by a team of scientists seeking a greater understanding of human genetic variation and its effect on human health. The team is led by Stephan Schuster at Penn State University in the United States and Vanessa Hayes at the University of New South Wales in Australia. Human genomics is a powerful and rapidly emerging medical resource. The scientists say they need to learn the full range of human genetic variation in order to learn how genes affect health, and that Southern Africa is the place to look. (more)
Penn State College of Education students are taking part in an international cause aimed at improving the literacy of students in the African nation of Swaziland. They are collecting used books in support of the African Book Project, a not-for-profit organization headquartered in New Orleans. The project provides much-needed reading materials to children around the world. (more)
When Jay Stauffer began studying fish in Africa's huge Lake Malawi back in the early 1980s, it was really all about the finned creatures. He didn't recognize the immense social and economic implications of his research until later. (more)
Earthquakes, volcanoes and the African superplume are only some of the phenomena under investigation through AfricaArray, a program that establishes geophysical observatories, trains African and American students and examines geophysical phenomena on the African continent. "In order to train masters and doctoral students there has to be a research effort," said Andrew Nyblade, professor of geosciences, Penn State and co-director of AfricaArray. "We started with geophysics but we think it is a good model to support all geoscience," he told attendees at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science Friday (Feb. 13) in Chicago. (more)
This summer will be Penn State senior Michael Dissen's second journey across the globe to the small village of Imbaseni, Tanzania. An elementary education major from Pittsburgh, Dissen's first trip to the eastern country in Africa was in 2007, with other Penn State students and professors in the women's studies department who were interested in outreach beyond conventional borders. (more)
