Wrinkled Brain Receives Sprout Fund Grant

The Wrinkled Brain Project, led by Dr. Brendan Mullan and Amanda Joy, has been awarded a grant by the Sprout Fund. The Sprout Fund seeks to support innovative change in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where The Wrinkled Brain Project is headquartered. This funding will enable Amanda to participate in the 3rd Annual STEM Conference “STEMcon” as they continue to distribute their learning content into new classrooms. Congratulations to Amanda and Brendan!

May 21, 2014

Pubs: Habitable Zones & Planetary Mass

A new paper led by Dr. Ravi Kopparapu explores the liquid water habitable zone for terrestrial planets and how these limits change with planetary mass. Astronomers are currently interested in identifying extrasolar planets that may be habitable, and calculations such as those led by Dr. Kopparapu help to understand the range of planetary parameters that could retain such conditions. The paper is titled “Habitable zones around main-sequence stars: Dependence on planetary mass” and is available as a pre-print on arXiv.org. […]

December 23, 2013

Pubs: Quantum Non-Barking Dogs

A new paper led by Dr. Sara Imari Walker explores some novel concepts in quantum mechanics using conceptual models for the decay of an excited atom and the tunneling of a particle through a barrier. The paper is titled “Quantum Non-Barking Dogs” and is available as a pre-print on arXiv.org. In a new episode of our podcast series “Pubs with BMSIS”, join Brendan Mullan in a conversation with Dr. Walker about quantum mechanics and the implications of her new ideas. […]

October 14, 2013

Pubs: Galactic Rays and Habitability

A new paper led by Dr. Dimitra Atri explores the effect of galactic cosmic rays on planetary habitability. The paper is titled “Galactic cosmic ray induced radiation dose on terrestrial exoplanets” and is currently in press in the journal Astrobiology. In a new episode of our podcast series “Pubs with BMSIS”, join Brendan Mullen in a conversation with Dimitra about the importance of cosmic rays in both astrobiology and daily life. [listen to the conversation]