Research

José Ibarra , assistant professor of architecture in the Stuckeman School at Penn State’s College of Arts and Architecture, has received funding from the prestigious Graham Foundation to conduct fieldwork across the Andes mountains in South America.

Twelve research projects have been selected for the 2026 Penn State Commercialization GAP Fund. Awarded projects receive $75,000 in funding and other support to develop promising proof-of-concept research into commercial ready technology.

Penn State materials science and engineering student Matias Moreno earned two of the nation's most competitive undergraduate scholarships — the Astronaut Scholarship and the Udall Scholarship — recognizing both his excellence in STEM research and his commitment to sustainability.

Great Valley Chancellor Colin Neill discussed his experience working with artificial intelligence (AI) in the 1990s and how Great Valley is preparing students and organizations today for the far-reaching changes AI is sparking across industries. Neill also explained why AI often produces mediocre output and how to use it to get exceptional results.

Penn State University Libraries has announced the recipients of its 2026-27 research grants, which support scholars, students and independent researchers whose work draws on Special Collections’ distinctive collections.

Penn State’s AI and the Economy Initiative hosted nearly 350 researchers from academia and the public sector to examine the economic and societal impacts of artificial intelligence.

At Penn State Berks, students are conducting research that makes an impact, from emotional regulation in children to microbial life in the Blue Marsh Watershed. This past year, more than 100 Penn State Berks students conducted undergraduate research beyond the classroom, mentored by more than one quarter of the college’s faculty.

Lee Kump, dean of the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences at Penn State, will explore how research is making a strong impact on students and society in the next session of the Alumni Association's Virtual Speaker Series on June 23 from noon to 1:00 p.m. Registration is now open.

Matthew Hollingham, a third-year doctoral student in architectural engineering, has developed a carbon capture system that collects carbon dioxide (CO2) from flue gas — a byproduct of boilers that contains water vapor, CO2, and nitrogen — and converts it into materials that can be used to make concrete. The system is expected to start operating this fall at the Penn State Bakery, helping to pave …

For 90 years, the Penn State Flower Trials have helped growers answer a simple question: Which flowers are best worth planting? This summer, the trials are celebrating that legacy by pairing cutting-edge new varieties with “Oldies but Goodies,” classic flowers that have stood the test of time.

Penn State’s Social Science Research Institute has announced Mohanraj Krishnan as the recipient of the 2026 Lloyd Prize for Innovative Health Research made possible by an endowment created by Penn State Professor Emeritus Thomas Lloyd, who served on the College of Medicine faculty for 46 years.

Preschool students whose parents received coaching had fewer conduct problems and displayed stronger cognitive skills during middle school, according to a new study by Penn State researchers.

Andrew Mowen, professor of recreation, park, and tourism management, received the Cliff Jones Keystone Legacy Award from the Pennsylvania Parks and Forests Foundation for his work shaping the future of parks and recreation through influential research, statewide impact and mentorship of professionals.

The U.S. National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of General Medical Sciences has awarded a five-year, $2 million grant to Grayson Sipe, assistant professor of biology in the Penn State Eberly College of Science, to improve understanding of the changes in the brain and body during acclimation to stress.

The Applied Research Laboratory at Penn State has named Martin Irvine Jr. as deputy director and head of its Undersea Systems Office. In this role, Irvine will guide the laboratory’s long-term vision and research roadmap for undersea dominance, providing strategic, technical and operational leadership to a multidisciplinary team focused on addressing the nation’s most critical undersea challenges.

People who wore a cooling cap for 30 minutes experienced reduced depressive symptoms and altered types of brain waves, according to a new study by Penn State researchers.

Screen time is blamed for a lot of unhealthy outcomes, especially among children, but screen time can be used for a variety of things, from doom scrolling to learning and more. In this Q&A, Penn State researchers explain how people can consider what constitutes healthy or unhealthy screen use.

A team of researchers, co-led by an engineer at Penn State, are developing artificial vision technology that could help self-driving cars and robots see more clearly in changing light. Inspired by the way human eyes adjust from bright to dark settings, the new system is able to recognize visual patterns with high accuracy in mixed lighting in a test reminiscent of an eye doctor exam.

After a competitive submission process, three corporate communication students from Penn State Wilkes-Barre recently presented research projects at the Eastern Communication Association James C. McCroskey and Virginia P. Richmond Undergraduate Scholars Conference in Pittsburgh. Fourth-year student Maya Davison earned the Top Poster Award during the Undergraduate Scholars Poster Session.

The Smart Systems Integration Lab at Penn State York is preparing students to tackle real-world engineering challenges through research focused on transportation and smart city technologies.