Penn Researchers Find Fixing Up Abandoned Buildings Reduces Crime

In a study published in the journal PLOS ONE, Penn researchers reported that remediating abandoned buildings can significantly reduce crime and violence. The reduction, including a 39 percent decrease in gun assaults, occurred in the year after Philadelphia began enforcing an ordinance requiring owners of abandoned buildings to install working doors and windows. The research team included Professor of Criminology John MacDonald, as well as Charles Branas of the Perelman School of Medicine and Michelle Kondo, a former research fellow at Perelman.

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Arts & Sciences News

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Hanming Fang Named Inaugural Norman C. Grosman Professor of Economics

An applied microeconomist who integrates rigorous modeling with data analysis, Fang’s research within the field of public economics focuses on health insurance and healthcare markets.

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Xi Song Named Inaugural Schiffman Family Presidential Associate Professor of Sociology

Song’s research interests include social mobility, occupations, Asian Americans, population studies, and quantitative methodology.

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Julie Nelson Davis Named Paul F. Miller, Jr. and E. Warren Shafer Miller Professor of History of Art

Davis specializes in the arts and material cultures of 18th- and 19th-century Japan, with a focus on prints, paintings, and illustrated books.

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Justin Khoury Named Edmund J. and Louise W. Kahn Term Professor of Physics and Astronomy

Khoury’s research interests lie at the intersection of particle physics and cosmology.

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University of Pennsylvania, Neubauer Family Foundation, and Philadelphia Police Department Partner to Support Police Leadership Education

The first-of-its-kind graduate degree in the U.S. for police leaders launches this fall at the School of Arts & Sciences.

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Professor of Biology Philip Rea Wins Neal Award for Scientific Journalism

Rea won for the award for Best Technical/Scientific Content for his article “Gliflozins for Diabetes: From Bark to Bench to Bedside,” published in American Scientist.

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