Life, Earth and Space
To find giant black holes, start with Jupiter
Jun. 30, 2020—On a quest to find the Universe’s largest black holes, Vanderbilt researcher identifies the center of the solar system within 100 meters.
International collaboration draws new conclusions about ‘convergent evolution’ of saber-tooth cats
Jun. 26, 2020—International collaboration shows that marsupial saber-tooth cats were more closely related to possums than fearsome predators.
Vanderbilt astronomers among NASA’s TESS Mission team to discover a rare newly formed planet
Jun. 24, 2020—Stars mapped out by Vanderbilt astronomers for exploration by NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite mission and recently decommissioned Spitzer Space Telescope have led to the discovery of AU Mic b, a newly formed Neptune-like exoplanet located a relatively short 31.9 light-years away.
Unexpected mammal provides insight into the lives of ancient hominins
Jun. 11, 2020—Paleontologist and associate professor of biological sciences Larisa DeSantis finds answers about early hominin diets are with an unrelated group of mammals—tapirs.
New discovery shows infection of the lungs can be caused by hybrid fungi
Jun. 4, 2020—A team of scientists at Vanderbilt has discovered the first known instance of a hybrid fungal species causing aspergillosis, an ensemble of different types of lung infections that often impacts immune-compromised people.
Vanderbilt lab develops app for analyzing crowd-sourced songbird recordings
Apr. 20, 2020—With a new app from a team at Vanderbilt, birdsong researchers can better leverage crowdsourced fieldwork and audio recordings from amateur birders and citizen songbird scientists.
Biology researchers capture shape-shifting delivery structures in body’s cellular “FedEx system”
Mar. 9, 2020—A new cellular biology study reports the first visualization of a unique shape-shifting structure in the human body which plays an important role in the timely delivery of fats and proteins.
Fasting at night or in the morning? Listen to your biological clock, says new research
Feb. 27, 2020—According to a new study published by biological science researchers at Vanderbilt, the answer to eating (or fasting) windows lies in the circadian rhythms of the body’s biological clock.
Bordenstein honored by Genetics Society of America
Feb. 27, 2020—The Genetics Society of America has recognized Seth Bordenstein, an evolutionary geneticist and microbiologist at Vanderbilt, for an initiative that brings real-world scientific research into middle school, high school and college biology classes.
Bangladesh collaboration offers lessons for facing rapid environmental changes
Feb. 24, 2020—With a population of roughly 150 million people, the delta country of Bangladesh holds about half the population of the entire United States in an area the size of Louisiana, and exists under a near-constant risk of sea level rise and other dynamic climate changes. Now, as the world faces a future chock-full of increasing...
Where are the quokkas? New study explains what happened to the “happiest animal in the world”
Feb. 21, 2020—The quokka, a small marsupial native to Australia, is an example of a species vulnerable to extinction in the country’s harsh surroundings. In a new study, researchers at Vanderbilt University demonstrate evidence for the dramatic decline of quokkas over the past century.
Students have front-row seat for international climate change negotiations
Feb. 10, 2020—As part of its continuing commitment to understanding and combating climate change issues through education and action, Vanderbilt University is now an accredited, official observer of the United Nations Framework on Climate Change.