CSI notwithstanding, forensics experts cannot always retrieve fingerprints from objects, but a conformal coating process developed by Penn State professors can reveal hard-to-develop fingerprints on nonporous surfaces without altering the chemistry of the print. "As prints dry or age, the common techniques used to develop latent fingerprints, such as dusting or cyanoacrylate -- SuperGlue -- fuming often fail," said Robert Shaler, professor of biochemistry and molecular biology and director of Penn State's forensic sciences program.
Looking for back issues of the Penn State New Kensington newswire? Then visit Penn State Live, the news organization of Penn State that provides daily news about the University. Under the auspices of the Public Information Office, the news service is a clearinghouse for all 23campus newswires. With a subscription base of more than 170,000 alumni and friends, the campus newswires are distributed at various times--daily, weekly, biweekly, monthly and reach almost a million e-mail boxes each month. Penn State New Kensington's newswire subscription base is close to 800 students, faculty, staff, parents, alumni, and friends and its four monthly issues reach more than 30,000 e-mail boxes each month.
The Office of Continuing Education at Penn State New Kensington is sponsoring a series of 36 non-credit courses, titled Public Offerings, this spring. Non-credit courses include professional development seminars and workshops, conferences, certificate programs, and short courses. The courses do not carry college credit and are often part of a certificate program or are designed to meet the needs of specific skill development. The cost of each course varies. For more information, call Pat Hollinger at 724-334-6053 or Nancy Miller at 724-334-6014.
An artist reception for Bud Gibbons, assistant professor of art at Penn State New Kensington, will be held in the art gallery on April 11, at 7 p.m. Gibbons' exhibit, "Borrowing from the Past," is on display throughout the month of April. Gibbons, a faculty member since 1974, annually exhibits his work for the PSNK and the local communities. A graduate of Penn State and the Maryland Institute for the Arts, Gibbons has painted landscapes in the United States, China, and Peru. A multi-media piece by Gibbons was on display at the Andy Warhol Museum last September.