Nearly 100 rising high school juniors and seniors began their work at the Penn Summer Science Academy, a four-week exploration of topics in science, on Monday.
The program consists of laboratory work, guest lectures and discussion groups led by Penn faculty and graduate students.
The main goals of the PSSA, according to physics concentration coordinator William Berner, are to provide high school students with the opportunity to "come to a major university and expand their horizons."
John Krebs, assistant director of summer sessions, said that "these are programs that are really unique in terms of content."
According to Pathology and Laboratory Medicine research associate professor Irena Levitan-Kovalsky, there are no tests or grades, and students spend much of their time doing independent research in the library.
The program attracts "bright students with a lot of energy," Berner said. The high school students are not necessarily interested in a career in science or medicine, but many are.
"Every year I'm surprised and pleased by the quality of the students [in the program]," Berner said.
He added that two to five students from each summer usually end up attending Penn as full-time students.
Krebs said that the PSSA recruited a strong group of students from around the country and abroad this year.
There are three concentrations within the PSSA ? biomedical research, physics and forensic science.
"Every track is very independent," Levitan said, noting that there is little interaction between the concentrations. Levitan is the coordinator for the biomedical research track of the Academy.
The biomedical research program focuses on analyzing information and formulating hypotheses. The three major topics of the program are cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and cancer.
The physics concentration is an introduction to classical and modern physics. The program is based around the second semester of a standard college physics course.
Berner, who has been with the PSSA from the time of its conception nine years ago, said that the program is "not just about reading about [physics] and memorizing numbers," but about exploring the field of physics and following through with experimentation.
The forensic science concentration is new this year. Students enrolled in the program will learn how science and the law are integrated in the field of forensic science. Students analyze case studies and concentrate on crime scene investigation, the collection of evidence and the presentation of forensic evidence in a courtroom.
