As holiday mascots go, Christmas has Santa Claus, Valentine's Day has Cupid and New Student Orientation has Troy Majnerick.

Chaka Fattah has officially put himself on next year's mayoral ballot, and he'll likely have more company there soon.

When asked about the snowflake lanterns that line the tops of trees on Locust Walk, College sophomore Jordan Cohen's face lights up.

Two members of the suspended Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity were convicted of harassment and simple assault yesterday.

Ivy League universities are about to get a whole lot larger. Physically, for one. Penn will acquire the postal lands, a 42-acre swath of land directly east of campus, next year; construction will span the next few decades.

College senior Aaron Weissman won't be on the Undergraduate Assembly any more.

For the second time in five days University officials have released a security warning to students, this time involving one crime adjacent to campus and three just east of campus. The second security warning, released earlier today, comes after a series of four incidents which may be connected.

Democrats looking to add another seat to their Election Day victory should brace themselves for disappointment - Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter is sticking with the GOP.

Travelers everywhere this Thanksgiving can anticipate fare hikes, heavy traffic, long lines and lots of red tape as a precursor to turkey and mashed potatoes.

W. E. B. Du Bois, a co-founder of the NAACP, once taught classes at Penn. But until now, the University never had a chapter of its own. Having elected a board and amassed more than the 25 dues-paying members required to form a chapter, Penn's branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, a civil-rights group, recently held its first public meeting.

Penn Presbyterian Medical Center has been honored as one of the nation's most prestigious hospitals for cardiovascular treatments.

Prosecutors' initially said they would retry Wharton undergraduate Irina Malinovskaya a third time for first-degree murder. But defense lawyers say they haven't heard anything else about a retrial. Meanwhile, Malinovskaya is still in jail in Delaware.

Chaka Fattah has officially declared his candidacy for Philadelphia mayor, barely two weeks after cruising to re-election to Congress. Fattah, who is the U.S. representative for Penn's district, announced his intentions Saturday outside the West Philadelphia High School of the Future before a crowd of over 500.

President Bush's frequent use of so-called signing statements is "unlawful" and "inappropriate," according to Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.).

Penn ranked second last year among universities for hosting international scholars, according to an Institute for International Education report released Nov. 13.

A runner competes in the 2006 Philadelphia Marathon before a crowd of onlookers. More than 7,000 people took part in the run, which wound around the city. Hosea Kimutai of Kenya won the race, coming within 22 seconds of matching the course record.

Members of some Christian sects have been known to utter a meaningless language of sounds that they say are divinely inspired. According to some Penn researchers, these people really do experience an altered consciousness.