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It COLD What Makes 14 Glaciers Tick? VOLUME 37 | NUMBER 2 | FALL 2017 Some Like It COLD What makes 14 glaciers tick? ALSO IN THIS ISSUE Mega Data Fixing Ribs Patients on the Move Life Under Enemy Rule Research Penn State Research/Penn State digital edition: research.psu.edu/ovpr/magazine More research news: news.psu.edu/topic/research The Power of Research facebook.com/pennstateresearch All around me and every day, I’m excited to see Penn State faculty and twitter.com/psuresearch students harnessing the power of research. This issue of Research/Penn State magazine is filled with recent examples. Research/Penn State is published by the Office of the Vice President for Research at The Pennsylvania State University. The magazine samples the diversity and At our College of Medicine, a team of doctors and engineers have found drama of Penn State’s $863-million-a-year research program as a public service to inform, entertain, and a simpler, less invasive way to mend a broken rib, a painful and all-too- inspire the University community. Opinions expressed common injury. Meanwhile, biologists Nita Bharti and Matt Ferrari are do not reflect the official views of the University. Use of trade names implies no endorsement by Penn State. using satellite imagery and cell-phone data to improve vaccination rates ©2017 The Pennsylvania State University. For permission and minimize measles outbreaks in sub-Saharan Africa. In both cases, an to reprint text from Research/Penn State (U.Ed. RES 17-122) contact the Editor: phone 814-863-4750; innovative approach brings a creative solution to alleviate human suffering. e-mail [email protected]. Publisher: NEIL SHARKEY Vice President for Research Our ice and climate group, led by Richard Alley, is one of the world’s Director of Research Communications: best. Its hardy members go literally to the ends of the Earth to under- DAVID PACCHIOLI stand how glaciers grow, flow, shrink, and retreat, and how their current Editor: CHERIE WINNER and future melting will impact sea level rise. The complementary efforts Production Manager: KERRY NEWMAN of its observers and modelers demonstrate the power of teamwork to Designer: KEVIN CARLINI advance scientific understanding. Photographers: PATRICK MANSELL, MICHELLE BIXBY Contributors: KRISTA WEIDNER, LIAM JACKSON, JOHN TIBBETTS Research entails looking beyond the obvious to see what lies beneath. This publication is available in alternate media on request. ™ The University is committed to equal access to programs, facilities, admission, At the Center for Supply Chain Research , that means recognizing that and employment for all persons. It is the policy of the University to maintain an entire ecosystem underlies the simplest product in a consumer an environment free of harassment and free of discrimination against any person because of age, race, color, ancestry, national origin, religion, creed, economy. With the same goal, historian Sophie De Shaepdrijver digs service in the uniformed services (as defined in state and federal law), veteran status, sex, sexual orientation, marital or family status, pregnancy, pregnancy- deep in historical archives; her reward is the human stories that show related conditions, physical or mental disability, gender, perceived gender, gender identity, genetic information, or political ideas. Discriminatory conduct war’s lasting effects beyond the battlefield. and harassment, as well as sexual misconduct and relationship violence, violates the dignity of individuals, impedes the realization of the University’s educational mission, and will not be tolerated. Direct all inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policy to Dr. Kenneth Lehrman III, Vice Provost for Af- firmative Action, Affirmative Action Office, The Pennsylvania State University, Finally, Penn State’s new state-of-the-art data center exemplifies the 328 Boucke Building, University Park, PA 16802-5901; Email: [email protected]; high-performance computer power that is critical to solving complex Tel 814-863-0471. problems in the era of big data. VOLUME 37 | NUMBER 2 | FALL 2017 ON THE COVER: Rivers of ice: Two huge Antarctic glaciers meet as they flow toward the sea. Recent warming speeds These and other stories are unfolding all the time. Right outside my the loss of ice and adds window and around the globe, Penn State faculty and students are to sea-level rise. See story, page 14. harnessing the power of research to make the world a better place. Some Like It COLD Photo by Don Voigt. What makes 14 glaciers tick? ALSO IN THIS ISSUE Mega Data Fixing Ribs Patients on the Move Life Under Enemy Rule Research Penn State NEIL A. S H A RKEY Vice President for Research Member, University Research Penn State Fall 2017 State Fall Penn | Magazine Association Research More research news: news.psu.edu/topic/research Research Penn | State| VOLUME 37 NUMBER 2 FALL 2017 2 10 34 36 In Brief At Large Off the Shelf In Touch With Black holes, atomic In Mongolia, horses Rock & roll, war poems, Supply-chain expert stencils, and other news provide a special harvest. climate change, and more, Steve Tracey on how highlights from Penn in recent books by faculty things get made. State researchers. authors. 12 20 Nuts & Bolts: Power Up! Moving Targets New data center crunches Bringing vaccinations to big numbers, solves big people on the move. problems. 24 30 14 Some Like It Cold Dancing With a Bully Fixing Ribs Going to the ends of the When war isn’t just at Penn State doctors invent Earth to find out what the front: life under a better way to help broken makes glaciers tick. enemy rule. ribs heal. Photos Ethan Welty/Aurora Research › in Brief Women Rule iscovering who was a leader, or carried out in the 1890s at Pueblo ship,” says even if leaders existed, from the Bonito, archaeologists found a burial Kennett. ruins of archaeological sites is dif- crypt within the 650-room pueblo that D According to collabo- ficult, but now a team of researchers contained 14 burials. rater Steve Plog of the Thinkstock using a powerful combination of radio- “It has been clear for some time that University of Virginia, carbon dating and ancient DNA have these were venerated individuals,” “This is the best evidence of a social shown that a matrilineal dynasty likely says Adam Watson, a postdoctoral hierarchy in the ancient Southwest.” ruled Pueblo Bonito, in Chaco Canyon, fellow at the American Museum of New Mexico, for more than 300 years. —A’NDREA ELYSE MESSER Natural History. “We are not saying that this was a state- Radiocarbon dating showed that the level society,” says Douglas J. Kennett, indoor burials occurred over a 300- head and professor of anthropology. year period. The researchers then NEW MEXICO “But we don’t think it was egalitarian found that all the individuals shared either.” the same mitochondrial genome se- Typically, the only things found in pre- quence, indicating that not only were historic archaeological ruins to indi- they all from the same family, but the cate elevated status are burial artifacts. inheritance was matrilineal — through Throughout the Southwest it is unusual the mother. Next, “Using DNA to find formal burials within sequences from the nuclear genome structures, but in combined with the radiocarbon dates, excavations we identified a mother-daughter pair and a grandmother-grandson relation- Ruins of a large room at Pueblo Bonito Penn State Fall 2017 State Fall Penn | Research 2 Our brains process foreign-accented speech better if we recognize the IStock Photo/Ociacia accent we’re hearing. - JANET VAN HELL Psychology and Linguistics How Would You Like Your Robot? In a study of robot use in a retirement home, senior citizens reacted differently to robots with dif- ferent personalities depending on how they perceived the robot’s role in their lives. “Ciao!” “We were actually surprised to find out that they wanted ‘companion’ robots to be serious and ‘assistant’ robots to be playful,” says S. Shyam Sundar, Distinguished Professor of Communica- tions, Penn State. “But it’s pretty clear from our data that a serious demeanor adds credibility to a companion robot, whereas a playful demeanor softens the tension when interacting with an assistant robot.” Dangerous ozone levels Assistant robots are designed to help people with everyday tasks, such as dispensing medications, can now be predicted whereas companion robots are designed to support people emotionally, serving as friends or pets. 48 hours in advance. Knowing how people might react to a robot’s demeanor and role could help designers make - NIKOLAY BALASHOV robots that people are more likely to accept and use, says Sundar. Both companion and assistant Meteorology robots will likely find roles in hospitals and retirement homes to assist senior citizens with the physical, mental, and emotional challenges of growing old. “In the future, we might see robots working in the healthcare system to provide senior citizens with physical assistance and emotional support in the comfort of their own homes,” says Sundar. “Therefore, it’s becoming more important to understand how we can promote healthy communi- cations between senior citizens and robots.” —MATT SWAYNE MIND THE GAPS hole-exome DNA sequencing—a uneven in whole-exome sequencing, our new technology that saves time and methods are the first to really quantify this,” W money by sequencing only protein- says Santhosh Girirajan, assistant professor of coding regions and not the entire genome— biochemistry and molecular biology and of may routinely miss detecting some genetic anthropology. variations associated with disease, according The researchers have developed two different to Penn State researchers who have developed methods to identify low-coverage regions, and new ways to identify such omissions. packaged both methods into an open-source Whole-exome sequencing has been used software for other researchers to use. in many studies to identify genes associated “One solution to this problem is for research- with disease, and by clinical labs to diagnose ers to use whole-genome sequencing, which patients with genetic disorders.
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