Research

Top News
Top news RSS feed
cybersecurity

New tool could reduce security analysts’ workloads by automating data triage

8/1/19

During a cyberattack, security analysts focus on answering four key questions: What happened to the network, what was the impact, why did it happen, and what should be done? And while analysts utilize advancements in software and hardware tools in their response, the tools are unable to answer these questions as well as humans can. Researchers at Penn State and the U.S. Army Research Office have developed a technique that could significantly improve the performance of security analysts.

upper left owl in flight, upper right split-gate transistors, bottom sound waves

Barn owls may hold key to navigation and location

8/1/19

The way barn owl brains use sound to locate prey may be a template for electronic directional navigation devices, according to a team of Penn State engineers who are recreating owl brain circuitry in electronics.

Opioid Deaths

Researchers estimate societal costs of the opioid epidemic

7/30/19

The devastating consequences of the opioid crisis are far-reaching in the United States, impacting public health as well as social and economic welfare. Penn State researchers recently collaborated to address the issue in a supplement of The American Journal of Managed Care.

Richard Vann, assistant professor of marketing, is one of the authors of “Big Picture, Bad Outcomes: When Visual Perspectives Harm Health Goal Pursuit,” a Journal of Consumer Psychology article now available online.

Need help with your diet? Beware the big picture

7/26/19

Richard Vann, assistant professor of marketing, is one of the authors of “Big Picture, Bad Outcomes: When Visual Perspectives Harm Health Goal Pursuit,” a Journal of Consumer Psychology article now available online. For the article, Vann conducted three experiments which outline how third-person perspectives actually can be discouraging when it comes to pursuing health goals.

red, purple and orange rocks in Wyoming

Clues on how soils may respond to climate change found

7/24/19

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Rock core samples from a period of warming millions of years ago indicate soils contributed to a rapid rise in atmospheric greenhouse gas and suggest modern climate models may overestimate Earth’s ability to mitigate future warming, according to an international team of scientists.

brown and white corals side by side

How to restore a coral reef

7/23/19

New guidelines drafted by a consortium of concerned experts could enable corals to adapt to changing environments and help restore declining coral populations in the Caribbean. The guidelines provide a definitive plan for collecting, raising and replanting corals that maximizes their potential for adaptation.

hot milk foam

Novel powdered milk method yields better frothing agent

7/23/19

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — A novel method of processing — using high-pressure jets to spray milk and then quickly drying the spray — yields skim milk powders with enhanced properties and functionality, according to Penn State researchers, who say the discovery may lead to "cleaner" labels on foods.

Privacy policy

Research aims to automatically answer user questions on online privacy policies

7/23/19

Internet users may soon have a way to have their questions about online privacy policies answered automatically, thanks to a new multi-institution research project that includes Penn State. The project aims to enable people to ask questions about the privacy issues that matter to them when reviewing privacy policies.

diagram of phase separation over temperature gradient

Maintaining shelf-stable drugs

7/22/19

A new mathematical model describes how highly concentrated antibody solutions separate into different phases, similar to an oil and water mixture, which can reduce the stability and shelf-life of some drugs.

Fall armyworm caterpillar on tobacco leaf

Plants defend against insects by inducing 'leaky gut syndrome'

7/22/19

Plants may induce "leaky gut syndrome" — permeability of the gut lining — in insects as part of a multipronged strategy for protecting themselves from being eaten, according to researchers at Penn State. By improving our understanding of plant defenses, the findings could contribute to the development of new pest control methods.

Pages