News
-
January 2, 2020
How Rituals Shape Our WorldFrom graduations to wedding ceremonies, baby showers to retirement parties, our lives are ordered by a series of rituals. But how do these rituals develop over time and what do they tell us about culture and society at large? At Penn home football games, fans throw toast onto the field after the third quarter. (Image: Chase Sutton) Undergraduate students in COMM 388: Ritual Communication—taught by Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies Litty Paxton—are taking a deep dive into the unique language of ritual to explore some of the answers to these questions.
-
January 2, 2020
Restoring Indigenous Knowledge Systems and LanguagesLanguage is an intrinsic part of culture and an essential way of sharing customs, knowledge, and belief systems. But in North America, Indigenous people historically were forced by the U.S. and Canadian governments to abandon their languages. Today, many Indigenous communities are engaging in a painstaking process of language recovery and rejuvenation. Penn’s Educational Partnerships with Indigenous Communities (EPIC) was created to support this effort.
-
January 2, 2020
‘May the Force Be with You’ and Other Fan Fiction FavoritesStarting with Star Wars, Penn researchers create a unique digital humanities tool to analyze the most popular phrases and character connections in fan fiction.
-
January 2, 2020
Diving Into Code to Illuminate the History of ComputingScience historian Stephanie Dick of the School of Arts and Sciences studies how computer scientists think by studying what they do.
-
January 2, 2020
The long history of David Rittenhouse LabPenn alums who return to campus often marvel at its transformation. Of the 26 buildings that house the people, programs and departments that make up Penn Arts & Sciences, nine are either less than 15 years old or have undergone major renovations in that time. One place that has remained the same in the midst of all this change is the 65-year-old David Rittenhouse Laboratory (DRL).