2016

December
- The Way You Move: Tumor Cells Move Differently Than Normal Ones
  
  December 20, 2016
  A new study by a Drexel biology professor determined that tumor cells can’t move the same way that normal cells do to get through tight squeezes in the body, opening up the potential for future, targeted therapies.
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- Dates and Topics for the 125th Anniversary Public Lecture Series Announced for Winter Term
  
  December 19, 2016
  After the completion of a successful series of public lectures during the fall term, a new round of discussions has been finalized for winter term.
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- Climate-Change-Conference
  
  December 15, 2016
  A group of 10 students and professors went to Morocco in November for the annual gathering of government delegates and climate researchers. They came back refocused and reinvigorated.
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- Top Drexel Stories of 2016
  
  December 05, 2016
  Relive the moments and exciting headlines that sparked the most conversation and interest during 2016 through this annual review of the year’s top Drexel stories.
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- Drexel Faculty Experts Explain How to Survive and Thrive During the Holidays
  
  December 01, 2016
  It’s that time of year again. The physical, emotional, financial and gastrointestinal strains posed by the holiday season can make it feel like more of a slog than a restorative hiatus. So, as an early gift from the Drexel media relations team, we’ve sifted through the University’s stable of experts to find those best suited to provide some advice on how to make this season a joyous one.
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November
- Urban Climate Change Research Hub Opens at Drexel
  
  November 29, 2016
  In the battle to adapt to and mitigate climate change caused by humans, most environmental engineers and climate scientists agree that cities are the front line. Due to the sheer density of their population, and the quantity of resources they consume, cities have the potential to most quickly and significantly affect—and be affected by—climate risks. They also have the ability to integrate climate resiliency into their plans for the future, according to environmental engineering professor Franco Montalto, PhD, who will direct a network of North American climate change researchers concerting their efforts via a new hub at Drexel University.
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- Q&A With Graduate College Dean and Executive Vice Provost James Herbert
  
  November 03, 2016
  You might call the one-year anniversary of Drexel’s Graduate College “the great rollout.” For the past year, with inaugural Dean and Executive Vice Provost James Herbert, PhD, leading the way, the college has moved into its new home and set in place a long list of initiatives. Now it’s time to mobilize.
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October
- Drexel Professor Writes the Incredible True Story of the Life of a Sudanese Refugee
  
  October 24, 2016
  Drexel professor Harriet Levin Millan wrote about the incredible journey of a Sudanese refugee in a book that was made possible through a chance encounter in her creative writing class seven years ago.
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- A New ‘King’ — New, Gigantic, Ancient Armored Fish Discovered
  
  October 11, 2016
  In the Arctic, a team that included scientists from the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University found fossils of a giant new species of extinct armored fish that they named Bothriolepis rex — the new king of Bothriolepis.
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September
- Drexel’s Writers Room Kicks Off ‘NEA Big Read’ With Drummers, Dance and a Poetry Slam
  
  September 19, 2016
  Having received an “NEA Big Read” grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, Drexel’s Writers Room will honor novelist Zora Neale Hurston.
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- Public Lecture Series Launched to Celebrate Drexel’s 125 Years
  
  September 07, 2016
  This fall, Drexel will hold a series of free lectures dedicated to telling certain chapters of Drexel’s history.
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- ‘Nursery’ Discovered in Belgium Provides Insight into Prehistoric Fish Life
  
  September 02, 2016
  The discovery of a group of young, prehistoric fish fossils provides some insights into the extinct creatures’ lives — and how fish today might be similar to them.
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August
- Q&A: Scott Knowles on Why He Created Two History Courses to Engage All Students in Current Events
  
  August 22, 2016
  Scott Knowles, PhD, associate professor and head of the History Department, will teach two courses this fall about important current events on campus and across the country.
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- Q&A With Senior Vice Provost for Research Aleister Saunders
  
  August 11, 2016
  University research typically is a fairly insular endeavor, played out at the department level with little cross-pollination among the various disciplines. Senior Vice Provost for Research Aleister Saunders is trying to widen that view. He has been advocating a university-wide approach to research, looking for those areas where Drexel can support and encourage investigations that cut across departments and disciplines.
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- Making a Solar Energy Breakthrough With Help From a Ferroelectrics Pioneer
  
  August 08, 2016
  Designers of solar cells may soon be setting their sights higher, as a discovery by a team of researchers has revealed a class of materials that could be better at converting sunlight into energy than those currently being used in solar arrays. Their research shows how a material can be used to extract power from a small portion of the sunlight spectrum with a conversion efficiency that is above its theoretical maximum — a value called the Shockley-Queisser limit. This finding, which could lead to more power-efficient solar cells, was seeded in a near-half-century old discovery by Russian physicist Vladimir M. Fridkin, PhD, a visiting professor of physics at Drexel University, who is also known as one of the innovators behind the photocopier.
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- Drexel Sends First Dragon to Kazakhstan
  
  August 03, 2016
  Caitlin Walczyk will be the first Drexel student to receive a scholarship or fellowship to study in Kazakhstan when she spends a year studying Russian in the country as a Boren Awards honoree.
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July
- Making the Most of Drexel Connections and Swedish Culture
  
  July 20, 2016
  Psychology student Alli Spiller recently returned from a research co-op in Sweden that she created using Drexel connections and financial support.
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- Drexel Dragon Helps Bring Democratic Delegates to Philadelphia
  
  July 18, 2016
  Political science and international area studies double major Greta Jusyte lent a hand in putting on the Democratic National Convention through an internship with the Philadelphia Host Committee.
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- Drexel Experts Available to Comment on Democratic National Convention
  
  July 11, 2016
  As Philadelphia prepares to host what is likely to be one of the largest and most historically significant Democratic National Conventions, Drexel experts are available to comment on issues ranging from the logistics of putting together the massive gathering and its historical significance, as well as addressing the biggest political issues that will face presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton.
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June
- Weight Loss Technologies Train the Brain to Resist Temptation
  
  June 30, 2016
  Psychologists have designed a computer game aimed at improving users’ inhibitory control and a mobile app that combats unhealthy urges before they strike.
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- Mountaineering Ants Use Body Heat to Warm Nests
  
  June 29, 2016
  Underground army ants can keep their nests — called bivouacs — warm with their body heat; this social warming may enable fragile offspring to survive in chilly mountain forests , according to Drexel University researchers.
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- Ladykiller: Artificial Sweetener Proves Deadly for Female Flies
  
  June 27, 2016
  In testing multiple artificial sweeteners, a Drexel University research team found that one was particularly deadly for female fruit flies — and left males relatively untouched.
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- Tiny Algae Ideal for Sniffing Out Nutrient Pollution in Water
  
  June 24, 2016
  Tiny algae, called diatoms, living in water could be key to providing a definitive and clear measure of whether streams, rivers and lakes have damaging levels of nutrients in them.
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- Origin of a Myth: The Second Trauma Cure for Amnesia
  
  June 13, 2016
  A Drexel professor explains how scientists’ limited and faulty understanding of the brain hundreds of years ago gave birth to the erroneous idea that amnesia induced by a blow to the head can be cured by a second “conk.”
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- A Legacy of Paying It Forward
  
  June 08, 2016
  Eighty-one years ago, Marjorie Barker Gallagher graduated from Drexel thanks to the generosity of her uncle. His only request was that she promise to send someone else to college instead of paying him back. That legacy continues this year, when Marjorie’s granddaughter Elizabeth became the family’s second Drexel graduate.
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- After Centuries of Confusion, Unique Bones Help Scientists Place Catfish
  
  June 08, 2016
  The Hypophthalmus catfish has long stumped scientists trying to explore its origins, but a pair of researchers from the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University finally believes their analysis of the fish’s backbone and unique swim bladder has solved the puzzle.
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- Pandas Don’t Like It Hot: Temperature, Not Food is Biggest Concern for Conservation
  
  June 06, 2016
  China’s bamboo supply is more than enough to support giant pandas after it was discovered that they have bigger appetites than originally believed, but climate change could destroy their plentiful food source anyway.
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- Writers Room Celebrates its Second Year With a Special Reading, Anthology Release and Art Show
  
  June 03, 2016
  Writers Room has created many opportunities for members of the Drexel and West Philadelphia communities to create works of art and literature since its launch last year.
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- Graduate Student Day Honors Research, Dissertations and Promise
  
  June 01, 2016
  Master’s and doctoral students were recognized at Graduate Student Day for their accomplishments throughout the year.
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May
- Drexel’s Postpartum Depression Clinic Is First of Its Kind in the Region
  
  May 24, 2016
  Mother-Baby Connections is an intensive outpatient clinic based at Drexel that provides various therapies for mothers experiencing stress and postpartum depression.
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- Words to Live By: Drexel’s Writers Room Hosting Festival in Celebration of ‘Their Eyes Were Watching God’
  
  May 11, 2016
  With a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts’ Big Read program, Drexel’s Writers Room will host seven weeks of programming to bring local communities together to explore themes from the acclaimed novel and its author’s life.
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- Employee Spotlight: The Kaczmarczik Family
  
  May 11, 2016
  Since the 1940s, a member of the Kaczmarczik family has studied, taught or worked on campus. Three generations of Kaczmarcziks have accumulated over 80 years of combined educational and professional experience at Drexel.
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- Celebrating the Best of Drexel’s Historic Co-op Program in 2016
  
  May 06, 2016
  Drexel’s annual Cooperative Education Awards honored outstanding co-op students and employers alike.
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April
- Celebrating All Drexel Authors
  
  April 27, 2016
  For the fourth year, the Office of the Provost and Drexel Libraries highlighted the work of Drexel’s authors and editors. This year, for the first time, published students were honored along with faculty and staff.
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- Gun Hunting Could Lead to Extinction of Threatened Primates on African Island
  
  April 18, 2016
  A study conducted by a team led by Drexel University scientists found that gun hunting on Bioko Island correlates significantly with lower numbers of the majority of the island’s primate species.
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- Celebrate the Great Outdoors with the Drexel Naturalists’ Association
  
  April 11, 2016
  Now that spring has sprung, students can better appreciate nature in and outside of the city with the Drexel Naturalists’ Association.
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March
- Double Duty: Proteins Associated with Schizophrenia Hang Around Longer Than Previously Thought
  
  March 31, 2016
  While most scientists believe that TCF4 proteins degraded and disappeared after they assigned jobs to cells in the nervous system, a Drexel University research team discovered that the proteins were hanging around afterward and telling the cells how to do those jobs.
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- Un-Muddying Waters: Drexel Researchers Studying Climate Change in Mongolian, U.S. Rivers
  
  March 29, 2016
  As a part of a National Science Foundation macroecology study spanning two continents, a team of researchers from the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University will compare river systems in grassland areas of Asia and North America to see how they function and how human activity, including the effects of climate change alters that.
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- WKDU Greets Local Nonprofits With 'Good Morning, Neighbors'
  
  March 23, 2016
  Student-run radio station WKDU, center for the support of nonprofit communications Drexel Edits and the Lindy Center for Civic Engagement come together to welcome local nonprofit organizations with “Good Morning, Neighbors,” a series of biweekly radio interviews.
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- Surface-Going Cave Crickets Actually More Isolated Than Cave-Dwelling Cousins
  
  March 16, 2016
  Although other studies on cave-dwelling creatures have found that animals that spend all of their lives in the dark of caves are more likely to be genetically isolated, a recent study on two groups of crickets found the opposite.
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- Know Where Your Mind is During Brain Awareness Week
  
  March 14, 2016
  The Drexel Department of Psychology is hosting multiple student- and community-oriented events during Brain Awareness Week, March 14-18, with the goal to educate community members about current trends in scientific research as it relates to brain health across the lifespan and, more generally, to raise awareness about healthy brain habits.
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- Seeing the Light: Army Ants Evolve to Regain Sight and More in Return to Surface’s Complex Environment
  
  March 09, 2016
  A study of army ants revealed that some species increased their brain size, including visual brain regions, after evolving above-ground behavior. Their ancestors had lived mainly underground for nearly 60 million years. Such increases in brain capacity are a rarely-studied evolutionary phenomenon.
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- They Needed Women More Than They Thought: Drexel Veterans Speak on the Role of Women in the Military
  
  March 09, 2016
  Five Drexel vets gathered on March 2 to discuss the hardships and successes of serving as women in the American and Israeli military.
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- Trust Your Aha! Moments, Experiments Show They’re Probably Right
  
  March 07, 2016
  A series of experiments showed that sudden insight may yield more correct solutions than using gradual, methodical thinking.
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February
- The Science of Eating Disorders
  
  February 25, 2016
  For National Eating Disorders Awareness Week, professors Adrienne Juarascio and Jessica Barson separate fact from fiction and weigh in on the psychological and physiological causes of eating disorders.
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- Drexel and Sixers Youth Foundation Team Up to Promote Healthy Behaviors for Middle School Students
  
  February 25, 2016
  Middle school students in West Philadelphia will learn strategies to achieve better physical and emotional health through a new collaboration between Drexel University and the Sixers Youth Foundation, a charitable initiative of the Philadelphia 76ers.
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- Building Toward Discovery: Drexel Professor’s Role in Finding Gravitational Waves
  
  February 22, 2016
  Sometimes, science is about chipping away at the big questions. One Drexel physics professor recently got credit for his role in developing a big answer.
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- Celebrating 20 Years of Bringing Nobel Prize Winners to Campus
  
  February 15, 2016
  Since its inception in 1995, the Kaczmarczik Lecture series honoring a former Drexel physics professor has brought many high school students and Nobel Prize winners to campus in the name of science.
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- Taser Shock Disrupts Brain Function, Has Implications for Police Interrogations
  
  February 04, 2016
  New research from a first-of-its-kind human study by Drexel University and Arizona State University reveals that the burst of electricity from a stun gun can impair a person’s ability to remember and process information. In a randomized control trial, participants were subjected to Taser shocks and tested for cognitive impairment. Some showed short-term declines in cognitive functioning comparable to dementia, raising serious questions about the ability of police suspects to understand their rights at the point of arrest.
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- Employee Spotlight: Scott Knowles and Richardson Dilworth
  
  February 04, 2016
  Professors Scott Knowles and Richardson Dilworth are reliving Drexel’s entire 125 years of existence in a new book and online oral history that will be unveiled later this year, to coincide with the anniversary of Drexel’s founding in 1891.
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- Drexel Criminology Professor to Evaluate SEPTA Body Camera Initiative
  
  February 02, 2016
  The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) recently announced that its transit police officers have been equipped with body cameras. The initiative, which is intended to strengthen relationships with the public and provide valuable evidence for investigations, will be evaluated by Jordan Hyatt, JD, PhD, an assistant professor in Drexel University’s Department of Criminology and Justice Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences.
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January
- African Biodiversity Researchers to Speak at Drexel Before National Symposium
  
  January 29, 2016
  A group of biodiversity researchers from Drexel-managed programs in Central Africa will speak at the University to discuss the challenges of their work and preparing for the future before they attend the Association for the Advancement of Science symposium.
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- Former Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey Joins Drexel as Distinguished Visiting Fellow
  
  January 14, 2016
  Former Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey will join Drexel University as the inaugural Distinguished Visiting Fellow of the Lindy Institute for Urban Innovation, a new cross-university strategic initiative that aligns Drexel’s academic work with the real-world need for urban revitalization. He also will be affiliated with the Department of Criminology and Justice Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences.
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