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In this episode, Dean Trodden talks with Maria Cuellar, Associate Professor of Criminology, about how artificial intelligence is transforming forensic science, law enforcement, and the criminal justice system. They also discuss the changing nature of research in the field and what AI models excel at—and where they fall short. Horizons is a podcast series from Penn Arts & Sciences featuring Trodden in conversation with faculty experts about the big issues shaping our world and higher education—including their work exploring new ideas, inspiring students, and driving meaningful change. This season, we explore the intellectual, ethical, and societal implications of artificial intelligence through a range of disciplinary perspectives. ***Produced by Alex Schein and Kristina Linnea GarcíaEdited by Alex Schein Theme music: "Fragile Tomorrow" by Vindu Illustration by Tsjisse Talsma

In September, OpenAI announced that its autonomous artificial intelligence agents had solved the decades-old Navier–Stokes problem—a mathematical model focused on how fluids behave and one of the seven Millennium Prize Problems, with each correct solution garnering a $1 million prize. In the third episode of Beyond the Machine: AI in the World, Dean Mark Trodden talks with mathematician Philip Gressman about what it means that an AI system solved this problem, whether it actually did, and how such questions and their answers might reshape mathematical discovery, research, and education. The Horizons podcast, a production of Penn Arts & Sciences, presents Trodden in conversation with faculty experts about the big issues shaping our world and higher education. It’s part of the Omnia Podcast family, available on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. To learn more about Horizons, a vision that will help the School of Arts & Sciences navigate a changing world, visit https://web.sas.upenn.edu/horizons. ***Produced by Alex Schein and Kristina Linnea GarcíaEdited by Alex Schein Theme music: "Fragile Tomorrow" by Vindu Illustration by Tsjisse Talsma

In this episode, Dean Mark Trodden sits down with Michael Horowitz, Richard Perry Professor of Political Science and Director of Penn’s Perry World House. They discuss Horowitz’s experience working at the Pentagon, the new partnerships developing between the government and frontier AI labs like Anthropic, and the impact of autonomous weapons—both on the battlefield and U.S. defense strategy. In this season of Horizons: Beyond the Machine: AI in the World, we explore the intellectual, ethical, and societal implications of artificial intelligence through a range of disciplinary perspectives. The Omnia Podcast is a production of Penn Arts & Sciences. Be sure to subscribe to the Omnia Podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts to listen to new episodes. Learn more about Horizons, a vision that will help the School of Arts & Sciences navigate a changing world: web.sas.upenn.edu/horizons ***Produced by Alex Schein and Kristina Linnea GarcíaEdited by Alex Schein Theme music: "Fragile Tomorrow" by Vindu Illustration by Tsjisse Talsma

Season 2 of our Horizons podcast series, Beyond the Machine: AI in the World, explores the intellectual, ethical, and societal implications of artificial intelligence through a range of disciplinary perspectives. In this first episode, Mark Trodden, Dean of Penn Arts & Sciences and Thomas S. Gates, Jr. Professor of Physics & Astronomy, sits down with Charles Yang, Professor and Chair of Linguistics. They discuss the history of large language models and explore how humans and machines learn and use language. The Horizons podcast, a production of Penn Arts & Sciences, presents Trodden in conversation with faculty experts about the big issues shaping our world and higher education. Learn more about Horizons, a vision that will help the School of Arts & Sciences navigate a changing world, visit web.sas.upenn.edu/horizons. ***Produced by Alex Schein and Kristina Linnea GarcíaEdited by Alex Schein Theme music: "Fragile Tomorrow" by Vindu Illustration by Tsjisse Talsma

In this fourth episode, Dean Mark Trodden sits down with Ramanan Raghavendran, ENG’89, W’89, LPS’15, Chair of the University of Pennsylvania’s Board of Trustees, and Former Chair of the School of Arts and Sciences Board of Advisors. The two discuss Raghavendran’s Penn journey and how Horizons, the School’s new strategic vision, positions its students and faculty to lead in an AI-driven and globally connected world. Horizons is a new podcast series from Penn Arts & Sciences featuring Dean Mark Trodden speaking with faculty experts about the big issues shaping our world and higher education—including their work exploring new ideas, inspiring students, and driving meaningful change. Learn more about Horizons, a vision that will help the School of Arts & Sciences navigate a changing world: https://web.sas.upenn.edu/horizons

In the third episode of the new podcast series Horizons, Dean Mark Trodden and Heather Andrea Williams, Geraldine R. Segal Professor in American Social Thought and Professor of Africana Studies, discuss Williams' journey from law into history, the importance of studying the humanities, and the value of cultivating empathy and ethics in the classroom. Horizons is a new podcast series from Penn Arts & Sciences featuring Dean Mark Trodden speaking with faculty experts about the big issues shaping our world and higher education—including their work exploring new ideas, inspiring students, and driving meaningful change. Learn more about Horizons, a vision that will help the School of Arts & Sciences navigate a changing world: https://web.sas.upenn.edu/horizons

In our second episode of Horizons, Dean Mark Trodden chats with Michael Mann, Presidential Distinguished Professor of Earth and Environmental Science and Director of the Penn Center for Science, Sustainability, and the Media. The two discuss Mann’s groundbreaking research as a leading climate scientist, his collaborative work at Penn, and why science communication is essential to meeting the urgent challenges posed by a warming planet. Horizons is a new podcast series from Penn Arts & Sciences, featuring Dean Mark Trodden speaking with faculty experts about the big issues shaping our world and higher education—including their work exploring new ideas, inspiring students, and driving meaningful change.

Horizons is a new podcast series from Penn Arts & Sciences featuring Dean Mark Trodden talking with faculty experts about the big issues shaping our world and higher education—including their work exploring new ideas, inspiring students, and driving meaningful change. In our first episode, Dean Trodden talks with Guy Grossman, David M. Knott Professor of Global Politics and International Relations and Co-Director of the Penn Development Research Initiative (also known as the PDRI-DevLab). The two discuss Grossman’s research and projects with Penn’s DevLab and why global collaborations and perspectives are important for the School of Arts & Sciences and its students. Learn more about Horizons, a vision that will help the School of Arts & Sciences navigate a changing world: https://web.sas.upenn.edu/horizons

In the fifth episode our special edition of the Ampersand Podcast, Mark Trodden, Dean of Penn Arts & Sciences and Thomas S. Gates, Jr. Professor of Physics & Astronomy, speaks with Bhuvnesh Jain, Walter H. and Leonore C. Annenberg Professor in the Natural Sciences and the Co-Director of the Penn Data Driven Discovery Initiative and the Penn Center for Particle Cosmology. The two discuss how advances in data science and artificial intelligence are transforming cosmology, teaching, and interdisciplinary research at Penn.

What do street lights, tree cover, and public art all have to do with criminology? According to the data, these small initiatives can move the needle on the prevalence of neighborhood crime.  In the fourth special edition of the Ampersand Podcast, Mark Trodden, Dean of Penn Arts & Sciences and Thomas S. Gates, Jr. Professor of Physics & Astronomy, talks with John MacDonald, Professor of Criminology and Sociology, and Director of the Master of Science in Criminology, about crime prevention through design, big data and technology, and how the Cambridge inspired a new program at Penn.

We all have intuitions about why we are the way we are, says Associate Professor of Psychology Rebecca Waller. The connection between self and subject matter in psychology is especially close, she says. “That’s exciting because you have the potential to think about things you learned and apply them in your own life.” In the third special edition of the Ampersand Podcast, Mark Trodden, Dean of Penn Arts & Sciences and Thomas S. Gates, Jr. Professor of Physics & Astronomy, speaks with Waller about her research on child development, antisocial behavior, and the ways in which scientific tools are transforming psychology and reshaping how we understand parenting, well-being, and education. *** Produced and edited by Alex Schein  Theme music by Nicholas Escobar, C'18 Illustration and logo Andrew Nealis  The Arts & Sciences Annual Fund is the most fundamental way to support the School of Arts & Sciences at Penn. Donations mean immediate, unrestricted dollars for the School to use on its top priorities, including the path-breaking faculty and research featured in this podcast. Show your support today: www.sas.upenn.edu/annual-fund

What role does higher education play in a democracy? In the second episode of a special edition of the Ampersand Podcast, Dean Mark Trodden and historian Sophia Rosenfeld discuss the importance the humanities play in preserving culture, how the history of choice can help students think critically about the hidden assumptions that shape their worlds, and how democracies work best when they operate on shared commonalities that define perceptions of truth, law, and solidarity. *** Produced and edited by Alex Schein  Theme music by Nicholas Escobar, C'18 Illustration and logo Andrew Nealis  The Arts & Sciences Annual Fund is the most fundamental way to support the School of Arts & Sciences at Penn. Donations mean immediate, unrestricted dollars for the School to use on its top priorities, including the path-breaking faculty and research featured in this podcast. Show your support today: www.sas.upenn.edu/annual-fund

Join us for the launch of a special edition of the Ampersand podcast, featuring Mark Trodden, Dean of the School of Arts & Sciences and Thomas S. Gates, Jr. Professor of Physics & Astronomy in conversation with select faculty members across the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. In this conversation, Trodden speaks with Peter Struck, Stephen A. Levin Family Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and Vartan Gregorian Professor of the Humanities, about the Roman roots of the liberal arts, how AI is changing the college experience, and charting curriculum for the 21st century. *** Produced and edited by Alex Schein  Theme music by Nicholas Escobar, C'18 Illustration and logo Andrew Nealis  The Arts & Sciences Annual Fund is the most fundamental way to support the School of Arts & Sciences at Penn. Donations mean immediate, unrestricted dollars for the School to use on its top priorities, including the path-breaking faculty and research featured in this podcast. Show your support today: www.sas.upenn.edu/annual-fund

Our new podcast series, Ampersand, features faculty from different disciplines discussing a topic they have in common. In our first episode, Sophia Rosenfeld, Walter H. Annenberg Professor of History, and Sudeep Bhatia, Associate Professor of Psychology, explore the ramifications of choice in everyday life and society as a whole. *** Produced and edited by Alex Schein  Theme music by Nicholas Escobar, C'18 Illustration and logo Andrew Nealis  The Arts & Sciences Annual Fund is the most fundamental way to support the School of Arts & Sciences at Penn. Donations mean immediate, unrestricted dollars for the School to use on its top priorities, including the path-breaking faculty and research featured in this podcast. Show your support today: www.sas.upenn.edu/annual-fund

Our final episode of this Omnia podcast season offers a conversation between Stephanie Perry, Executive Director of the Penn Program on Opinion Research and Election Studies, and Rogers M. Smith, Christopher H. Browne Distinguished Emeritus Professor of Political Science. They discuss the implications of Trump’s second term as president, as well as what the future of democracy may look like in the United States and so much more. *** Produced by Alex Schein and Michele Berger  Hosted by Stephanie Perry  Edited by Alex Schein  Theme music by Nicholas Escobar, C'18 Illustration and logo by Nick Matej Democracy and Decision 2024 is a production of Penn Arts & Sciences in collaboration with the Penn Program on Opinion Research and Election Studies (PORES). Visit our website to listen to every episode of the Omnia Podcast: https://omnia.sas.upenn.edu/podcast The Arts & Sciences Annual Fund is the most fundamental way to support the School of Arts & Sciences at Penn. Donations mean immediate, unrestricted dollars for the School to use on its top priorities, including the path-breaking faculty and research featured in this podcast. Show your support today: www.sas.upenn.edu/annual-fund