Chemistry Alumna Paula Hietpas Talks Career Development

During a Q&A style interview, Penn State chemistry alumna Paula Hietpas discussed her graduate school experiences and how her background in chemistry impacted her wide-ranging career from bench work to corporate industry. Hietpas recently visited Penn State University Park to speak with chemistry students in the Eberly College of Science as part of the Harold Kohn Endowed Distinguished Chemistry Alumni Series. Read the full interview and watch a clip of her talk on Instagram.​​​

Two Eberly undergraduates earn national Goldwater Scholarship

Penn State sophomores Yuki Yoshida and Kueyoung Kim have earned the 2023 Goldwater Scholarship. The prestigious Goldwater scholarship recognizes undergraduates who show exceptional potential as leaders. 

Yuki Yoshida, of State College, is a Schreyer Scholar majoring in biochemistry and molecular biology. After committing to Penn State, Yoshida immediately joined the Booker Lab under the direction of John N. Alumasa, associate research professor, who encouraged her to independently think through biochemical concepts to design her own assays, she explained. 

Kueyoung Kim, also of State College, is a Schreyer Scholar majoring in chemistry. Upon joining the Penn State community and becoming involved in the Zarzar Group under mentorship of Professor Lauren Zarzar, Kim immediately felt like he had a group of people that shared interests and could help guide him through his undergraduate career, he explained. Read the full article here.

In the News: Over 100 Years Later, Astronomers Finally Have a Clear View of Einstein's Wildest Theory

An article written for the Conversation by Chad Hanna, professor of physics and of astronomy and astrophysics, has been republished in several outlets, including Inverse. According to Hanna, “after a three-year hiatus, scientists in the U.S. have just turned on detectors capable of measuring gravitational waves — tiny ripples in space itself that travel through the universe… By measuring gravitational waves, astrophysicists like me can peek directly into the heart of some of these most spectacular phenomena in the universe.” Read the full article.

Alumna Maura McLauglin Receives the 2023 Shaw Prize in Astronomy

The 2023 Shaw Prize in Astronomy has been awarded to a team of three researchers that includes Eberly alumni Maura McLaughlin, Eberly Family Distinguished Professor of Physics and Astronomy at West Virginia University, for the discovery of fast radio bursts (FRBs). In a seminal research paper in 2007, the researchers described these incredibly energetic bursts of radio emissions as well as how they could be used as comic probes. Read the full article.

Masatoshi Nei, Kyoto Prize-winning evolutionary geneticist, dies at 92

Masatoshi Nei, Evan Pugh University Professor Emeritus at Penn State, a pioneering evolutionary geneticist and a laureate of the prestigious Kyoto Prize, has died at age 92. His extraordinary life was marked by transformative contributions to evolutionary genetics and biology. Read the full article.

Two Eberly faculty elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Two faculty members from the Penn State Eberly College of Science who have made distinguished contributions to the fields of physics and mathematics have been elected members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences: Zoltan Fodor, professor of physics, and Yakov Pesin, distinguished professor of mathematics. Read the full article.

You Belong in the Alumni Association: June Membership Campaign

The Alumni Association’s June membership campaign begins June 1. Its theme, You Belong in the Alumni Association, positions the Alumni Association as a community with a place for every Penn Stater, and casts membership in the Association as an expression of pride and belonging. The campaign includes a sweepstakes to win:

• 2 tickets and parking to all Nittany Lions home games in 2023
• 2 tickets and parking to 4 home games in 2023
• 2 tickets and parking to 3 home games in 2023

Read more information here.