The first annual Discovery-U will bring faculty, students and the community together in group discussions and presentations on Penn State faculty research.
“Zombie Ants and Famine Fields,” “Boogie or Die: How Native Lizards Have Adapted to the Novel Threat Imposed by Predatory Ants” and “Unzipping the Genes of Fruitfly Chromosomes” are just a few of the research projects that will be presented by Penn State faculty at Discovery-U.
Discovery-U is an event hosted by the Graduate Women in Science student group and the Eberly College of Science office of Outreach and Science Engagement will be taking place on Nov. 9.
The first annual Discovery-U will feature student nominated faculty presenting their research in three breakout sessions. The goal of this event is to bring awareness of the research happening at Penn State especially in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math.
The event is meant to show many people –– including the student population –– the inspirational and exciting research the Penn State faculty has done, Director of Science U programs at Penn State Mike Zeman said.
“There are a variety of topics put together in very short versed lectures, that hopefully leave the student, staff, and community, some ideas to ponder and then maybe some next steps on how to take their own interests and pursue and investigate their own questions,” said Zeman.
Discovery-U is co-sponsored by the Graduate Women in Science student group, which was established in 1936, and is one of the oldest clubs on campus, Deepti Jain, graduate student and President of the Graduate Women in Science student group, said. There are 16 chapters across the country and Penn State’s chapter is the most active chapter, she said.
“We do a lot of outreach in the community and encourage women in science, math and technology. We thought that Discovery-U would be a great opportunity for outreach and science involvement,” Jain said.
Tracy Langkilde, assistant professor of biology at Penn State, said Discovery-U is a great chance to talk about her research to a broad audience, which she is excited to do.
Langkilde was one of the faculty members nominated by the students to speak at the event and will be discussing her research on how native lizards deal with invasive ants.
Discovery-U is free and open to the public. The first 25 students at the door for each session receive a Discovery-U T-shirt. The event will also be filmed and broadcast on You-Tube along with other sites.
