A Space of Their Own

When PennScience publishes its issue on the topic of regeneration later this month, it will mark nearly 25 years as a research publication for Penn undergraduates by Penn undergraduates—an operation this year co-led by Joyce Lee, C’26, and Arti Singh, C’26.

The journal, funded by the University’s Student Activities Council and advised by a board of faculty members, grew out of a desire for undergraduates to have a place to share their work on projects as diverse as the molecular dynamics of glass systems, or how memory affects addiction. Once a year, the team publishes a print and digital version of the magazine that includes peer-reviewed research submissions from fellow undergraduates alongside review articles on outside research from undergraduate committees.

“Penn really emphasizes getting students involved in research in a deep way, and as soon as they are ready,” says Lee, who joined the magazine’s staff three years ago as a way to bridge a passion for laboratory science with an appreciation for journalism sparked by her high school newspaper. “However, it’s difficult for undergraduates to get their research published.” PennScience, she adds, offers a printed and digital spaces for students to share their work, “which is often deeply interesting and driven by creative and independent investigator kind of thinking.”

It’s also an opportunity for undergrads who aren’t conducting their own formal research to offer their perspectives on subjects they find interesting, says Singh, who was introduced to PennScience at a fall recruitment event her first year and began as a designer shortly thereafter. “We provide as many avenues as possible for undergrads to have a voice in the research space,” she says. “Our committees publish what would be reminiscent of review articles, analyzing what’s out there and giving their own unique perspectives.”

Each PennScience issue is organized around a theme that is decided upon collaboratively. The most recent, in 2024, delved into research on disruptive technologies in fields ranging from advanced biomedical engineering to communication. The PennScience staff even used artificial intelligence (AI) to design the cover. The 2025 issue, about to publish, will focus on “regeneration” and more heavily feature original student research than in the past.

“Technically, we are looking at regeneration as the ability to restore function or the ability to physically recreate something that has been injured,” says Lee, a double-major in biology and health & societies, “but we are also looking at the topic through a more philosophical and ethical lens. For this issue, our writers took the theme in a lot of different directions, including writing about reusing waste and cosmological regeneration in terms of the universe being reborn.”

Specifically, the upcoming issue will include: five research review articles on regeneration topics; a faculty interview with César de la Fuente, Presidential Associate Professor, regarding his work on computational biology; three undergraduate research studies on the role of a protein called Neurexin1α in brain activity for people with ADHD and autism; the effects of nicotine vapor exposure on how the brain processes taste; and how varying strut numbers—the structural segments that form a stent’s scaffold—affect blood flow.

“The chosen manuscripts are diverse in discipline, but each explores a form of renewal, regulation, or repair, providing insights into neurological development, biomedical design to enhance vascular healing, or sensory adaptation and neural plasticity,” says Lee. Like in a traditional academic journal, each paper includes an abstract, introduction, methods, results, discussion, and figures. Editorial board members review all submissions and vote on those they feel are strongest for inclusion.

We provide as many avenues as possible for undergrads to have a voice in the research space. Our committees publish what would be reminiscent of review articles, analyzing what’s out there and giving their own unique perspectives.

Lee and Singh, both pre-med, are also both student researchers in the lab of H. Isaac Chen, an assistant professor in Penn Medicine’s Department of Neurosurgery working on motor cortex research. Though the research they’re doing in the lab would appropriately fit within the regeneration theme of the next issue, Singh and Lee’s project will not be featured—and that’s by design.

As co-editors-in-chief, they take their leadership roles seriously and consider it a conflict of interest to publish their own work in the journal. Additionally, PennScience does not generally publish the work of collaborative labs, says Singh, a double-major in neuroscience and economics. “We are primarily focused on undergraduate work that is independent from labs and offers outstanding examples of undergraduate research papers from seminars, senior thesis programs, or independent studies. These are the types of things that may not get published but are often deserving of being read by others.”

In addition to getting their science out there, undergrads who publish with PennScience have the added benefit of improving their science communication skills, Lee says. “Whether you’re doing research or trying to get your ideas out to a broader public, the magazine is a great way to practice that. You also get to think about how you want to present ideas in ways that are valid and hold up academically, which is widely applicable to wherever you go in the future.”

PennScience recently launched PSHSJ, a new peer-reviewed journal to evaluate original research done by high school students. Much like with the original publication, which started in 2001, the goal with this one is to increase high schoolers’ accessibility to publication opportunities and expand awareness of high school research in social sciences, natural sciences, and engineering. The inaugural issue, set to release this spring, will be published online only. “It’s difficult to get into publications as an undergraduate who has the backing of a college or university, never mind as a high schooler,” Singh says. “We’re excited to expand in this way.”

As PennScience marks a quarter of a century highlighting the work of young scientists and creating a community of undergraduate scholars, Lee and Singh say they hope it’s only the beginning. They’ll both return next year to jointly run the publication, enthusiastic to promote the work of many more young researchers.