For most, a conversation with Penn President Amy Gutmann or Republican presidential candidate John McCain doesn't happen very often. But posting your own ideas next to theirs can be done online with a Web site launched last week. BigThink.com is a multimedia site that features interviews with prominent public leaders, including authors, politicians, educators and businessmen.

The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania is currently facing two major medical malpractice cases - but if statistics are any indication, HUP might not have much to worry about. In 2006, almost 85 percent of medical malpractice cases in Pennsylvania that reached a jury trial were settled in favor of the defense, Judicial Branch records show.

Celebrate the long weekend by acknowledging why we have one in the first place: Martin Luther King, Jr. Head to the Franklin Institute Science Museum to honor the life and legacy of Dr. King on the anniversary of his 79th birthday. The museum's three-day celebration kicks off Saturday at 5 p.

For the 40 percent of Penn students currently receiving financial aid, recent improvements to the program may have cracked open a few more doors.

Wharton junior Felix Qu was arrested in connection to a domestic assault over winter break, but remains a student at the University. The arrest occurred after Qu, 20, got violent during an argument with his girlfriend about what courses to take for spring semester, Lt.

Think Wharton grads can only talk the stock market? Think again: at least 19 of them also know how to sing. They call themselves the "Whartones," the co-ed a capella group for MBA students and their partners. And when it comes to a capella, this singing group means business.

Savor your club meetings now, because as a graduate student those days might be over. Graduate students simply aren't as involved on campus as most undergraduates, according to recent studies conducted by the Indiana University Center for Postsecondary Research.

As Grey's Anatomy draws more prospective doctors every year, Law and Order fans seem to be turning to other fields. In a survey of 190 law schools conducted by Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions, half of the schools reported a decline in applications during the past two years, with a 17.

It's going to be a busy year for newly inaugurated Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, and with his recent staff appointments, the same will be true for several Penn faculty and graduates. Nutter, a Penn graduate himself, vowed this fall to include university minds in shaping his policy and tackling the major problems in Philadelphia.

As food prices increase nationwide, students and West Philadelpia residents are feeling the strain on their purse strings. The price of many food staples, including milk, eggs and bread, rose drastically in 2007, resulting in higher prices at grocery stores and restaurants.

After Harvard and Princeton eliminated their early-application programs last year, many students scrambled to apply early to another institution. Penn's numbers of early-decision applicants and admitted students, however, remained steady and were seemingly not affected.

The University announced earlier today that Eric Furda, the vice president for alumni relations at Columbia University, will take over as the new dean of admissions at Penn on July 1, 2008. Furda served as the executive director of undergraduate admissions at Columbia from 1995 to 2004.

On Jan. 5, millions of students logged on to their social lifeline: Facebook. But there was something different that day, as students found themselves looking at an advertisement for the ABC News/Facebook New Hampshire Debates airing that night. When every vote counts, campaigns are now turning to sites like Facebook and YouTube to get their messages to young voters.

Overall crime in the Penn patrol zone increased by 10 percent over the past year, but the biggest jump was seen in thefts, rather than violent offenses.

Even in the dead of winter, campus is getting greener. Beginning in February, highly sophisticated sensors installed in 12 Harnwell rooms will monitor occupants' energy usage as part of the Harnwell Energy Monitoring Project, designed to promote awareness of conservation around campus.

In contrast to the homicide and four major robberies that occurred over last year's winter break, University City experienced relatively few major crimes this vacation. Over the past month, three assaults and three robberies were reported in the Penn patrol zone.

When most astronauts go into space, they bring something special from home. Garrett Reisman, a 1991 Wharton and Engineering alumnus, is bringing an M&T; emblem and a piece of ENIAC, the very first computer, which was developed at Penn. Reisman will travel to the International Space Station for two months this March.