Hospitals are in the business of curing what ails their patients, but in 2006 about 19 out of every 1,000 patients developed an infection while being treated at Pennsylvania hospitals. This data, released last Thursday by the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council, is the group's second state-wide report on hospital-acquired infections.

Twice a year, Penn safety personnel who act on behalf of students, faculty and staff with outstanding bravery and dedication are publicly recognized by colleagues and student organizations, illustrating a campus-wide appreciation. Leading the way, University President Amy Gutmann welcomed the nearly 100 uniformed officers and student heroes to receive awards at the Division of Public Safety Commendations ceremony and the Penn Police Department Oath of Office ceremony last night.

The substance of last night's presidential debate at the National Constitution Center appears unlikely to change the tone or dynamic of the race, with five days before Pennsylvania's primary. After the debate, campaign officials were busy responding to questions about mistakes their candidates have made in recent weeks - which were featured prominently in the debate.

Art History professor Michael Leja and Annenberg visiting scholar Don Mitchell were recently awarded fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation. This year, more than 2,600 applicants applied for the fellowship, which provides grant money to scholars, artists and writers conducting research in over 75 diverse fields of study.

From supposed sniper fire in Bosnia to comments about "bitter" Americans, Sens. Hillary Clinton and. Barack Obama have dealt with several campaign mishaps in recent weeks. In this primary season's 21st debate at the National Constitution Center last night, ABC moderators Charles Gibson and George Stephanopoulos wouldn't let them forget that fact.

Last April's shooting at Virginia Tech prompted a push for universities to revamp their emergency-notification systems. Now, there's a push from Congress to continue emergency alerts - but faster. A bill proposed in the U.S. House of Representatives would require colleges to implement their emergency-notification systems within 30 minutes of confirming that alert was necessary.

Psychology has traditionally targeted mental illness, but Psychology professor Martin Seligman is trying to turn this focus to "mental wellness." Seligman, who is considered the father of positive psychology and serves as the director of Penn Positive Psychology Center, continues to draw international attention to his theory of positive psychology.

Amid the morning bustle of Penn's campus yesterday, students stopped to remember the terrible events on another college campus one year ago. To commemorate the one-year anniversary of the shootings at Virginia Tech, the Undergraduate Assembly organized a campus-wide moment of silence at 11 a.

Is the meaning of life simply to reproduce? Daniel Dennett says no. Dennett, a Tufts University philosophy professor, spoke to a packed Meyerson auditorium yesterday evening as this year's lecture at the Philomathian Society's Annual Oration. The event, sponsored by the Provost's office and various academic departments, was entitled "From Animal to Person: The Role of Cultural Evolution.

What happens when you place two Jews, a Christian, a Hindu and a Muslim in one room? A panel consisting of such diverse students spoke last night after a lecture in Logan Hall by Professor John DiIulio on Religion in the Public Sphere. Professor DiIulio's lecture was sponsored by Penn's Programs in Religion, Interfaith and Spirituality Matters, a student group that works to promote religious activities as part of student life at Penn.

University City has a bright future. Those managing it just need to ensure that the future is visible past lines of cars and swarms of people in rush-hour traffic. The face of the district will soon undergo a decades-long makeover with planned development projects from Penn, Drexel and Brandywine Realty, the firm developing the Cira Centre South at 30th and Walnut Streets.

Harriet Joseph, who currently serves as interim director of the Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships, was appointed director of the center, administrators announced Tuesday. Provost Ron Daniels said that Joseph was chosen after a "comprehensive national search" led by Associate Provost Andrew Binns.

Students, faculty and three distinguished speakers met at the Engineering school's Kanade Symposium yesterday to discuss the state of robotics and computer science and to honor the winner of one of the Franklin Institute's highest awards. The symposium, co-sponsored by Penn's General Robotics, Automation, Sensing and Perception Laboratory and the Franklin Institute, featured speeches and culminated with an open house at which GRASP showed off its Levine Hall laboratory.

With graduation in less than a month's time, seniors are looking to enter an economy that might be headed for a recession. But the future might not be so dark for graduates, Penn career counselors say. Despite economic troubles, Penn students will be largely unaffected.

Penn is not alone in the campaign to stop unattended thefts. "That is my number one crime" said Jose Rosado, the director for public safety at Columbia University. From January to March 2008, there were 71 reports of larceny there, 55 of which were unattended.

U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) announced yesterday that he has been diagnosed with a recurrence of Hodgkin's disease, a cancer of the lymphatic system. Specter, whose term ends in 2010, expects to remain in office and continue re-election efforts, he said in a statement.

Security officials restricted entrance into Harnwell College House last night at about midnight as authorities investigated a suspicious material that was found on the building's 14th floor. After on-site testing, and analysis, the substance was found not to be hazardous.