The ARWU is often used when it comes to, frankly, showing off. Plenty of schools use it as their legitimate ranking in speaking with media or simply letting future students know how great their school is. Let's face it, saying you go to one of the top 50 schools on the planet sounds pretty awesome.
For the past thirteen years, the Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics has educated Arts Fest attendees about the wonders and the mysteries of the universe. AstroFest 2012 aims to provide the lay community with a basic understanding of nature.
In a magnanimous display of generosity, Penn State is providing not one, but two, world-renowned physicists to speak this year. On Thursday, theoretical physicist, author and futurist Michio Kaku will speak about “Future Science: Physics and Daily Life in the Year 2100.” (Spoiler: Still no jet packs.)
Earlier this week the Science, Technology, and Society program was informed that the a strategic review council had recommended its closure. The decision is not final at this point, as it must first pass through Faculty Senate and the Board of Trustees, but with a stated intention of closing the program by June 2012, the university does not seem to think that it will be a problem.
Tenured faculty will be transferred to other units and Penn State will make an effort to treat other faculty fairly, but effectively speaking much of STS found out this week that they would probably be laid off in the near future.
Students who are currently enrolled in the STS minor will be able to graduate with it. I know this because I am one of them.
You know how trippy it is when you GoogleEarth your house and you can see your car in the driveway? Or how your GPS knows exactly where and when to turn? Well, you have geospatial technology to thank for these wonders. Penn State Public Broadcasting's recently debuted Geospatial Revolution Project gives you the opportunity to learn more about this field of science than you probably already do.