Today, Bike Share Philadelphia will give students one less reason to go to the gym. The organization is hosting a demonstration station of public-use bicycle models from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. in front of the Penn Bookstore. Whether you're a fitness buff, an environmentalist or just sick of sitting in traffic, public-use bicycles offer a viable alternative to driving, according to Russell Meddin of Bike Share Philadelphia.

The crimes have been counted and the verdict is in: Penn and its surroundings are getting safer. Both violent crime and overall crime decreased in the Penn Patrol Zone in 2008, according to the Division of Public Safety. Particularly striking is the drop in violent crime, which is down 38 percent since 2007.

This semester, the Graduate and Professional Students Assembly is setting up a number of events and proposals to improve life for graduate students, GAPSA Chairman and fourth year Ph.D. student Andrew Rennekamp said. Rennekamp listed improving housing conditions for graduate students as a major priority.

Goodbye, plastic bottles. Hello, water. In response to Penn's commitment toward increasing environmental sustainability, Dining Services collaborated with the Penn Environmental Group to replace bottled water in McClelland in Ware College House and Hill Express in Hill College House with "Quench machines": environmentally friendly water coolers.

Police are still looking for the man who sexually assaulted two Penn students in an armed home invasion Dec. 19. Philadelphia Police say that the incident, which occurred in an apartment on the 4400 block of Spruce Street, is similar to two others that occurred in Center City in October and believe the same person is responsible for all three attacks.

For Penn Dining, going green involves more than just removing trays. The next green initiative: local food marketing interns. This semester, Penn Dining is seeking students to continue the work of previous interns, with sustainability in mind. The job involves a variety of tasks, ranging from promoting special events to updating the Penn Dining Web site.

Family and friends of 22-year-old College senior Kambili Moukwa - or "Kam," as he was called - say they will remember his passion for politics and selfless personality. Born in Quebec, Moukwa lived in three other cities before his family settled in Chapel Hill, N.

A water shutdown will occur in parts of the Quadrangle for most of the day today.

Community members returning to campus are mourning the deaths of Engineering sophomore Ryan Smith, Penn trauma surgeon John Pryor and College senior Kambili Moukwa. Smith, a Digital Media Design major from Rose Valley, Penn. and a resident of Harrison College House, fell from the roof of the south side of Fisher Hassenfeld College House the morning of Dec.

At his funeral last month, Engineering sophomore Ryan Smith's father spoke of "the different Ryans" that Smith's family and friends knew. He was a passionate computer enthusiast, a trombone-player in the Strath Haven High School band, a diving coach at the Rose Valley Pool pool, a member of his high school swim team and a neighbor in a small town where "everyone so much enjoyed talking and spending time with [him] because of the enjoyable, funny, brilliant and happy guy he was.

The financial fraud of New York financier Bernie Madoff did not affect Penn's endowment, University spokeswoman Lori Doyle said - but that doesn't mean the University wasn't affected in other ways. Last month, the Picower Foundation of Florida - which funded two Penn research projects - announced that it would cease all grantmaking because the foundation lost its entire endowment with Madoff.

The armed home invasion and sexual assault involving two Penn graduate students over winter break has received close media attention. But in addition to this incident, which occurred at the victims' residence on the 4400 block of Spruce Street on Dec. 19, University City also saw a number of other violent crimes over break.

In response to intensified conflict in the Gaza Strip, the University announced last week that it will not permit students to study abroad in Israel and the West Bank through Penn-approved exchanges this semester. Ten Penn students planned to study in Israel or Palestine this semester.

Five years and nearly 35,000 lawsuits later, the Recording Industry Association of America is stopping its legal war against individuals for file-sharing activities. The announcement comes as a relief for many students who worried about facing fines; however, the University has not yet determined how it will affect its policies, if at all.

For many freshmen, today isn't just the beginning of a new semester - it's the start of their introduction to the Greek system on campus. Penn's fraternities and sororities are putting on their best show for prospective members, offering free food and a good time spread out over a wide variety of events.

For colleagues, family and patients alike, Penn trauma director John Pryor, a major in the Army Reserve Medical Corps who died Christmas morning on his second tour of duty in Iraq, was "nothing but a role model, both as a surgeon and as a human being." So said Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania Surgery and Interim Trauma professor Patrick Kim, who worked with Pryor for 10 years.

Gotham Book Mart was a literary landmark in New York City until it closed in 2007 - but now, its collection of about 200,000 books and manuscripts will be available to the public once again. The University announced last month that an anonymous donor bought the Gotham Book Mart's collection, which is worth several million dollars, and donat