Anthropology
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Attention to disease naming and framing can shape public health attitudes, perceptions
Research from Associate Professor of Medical and Linguistic Anthropology T.S. Harvey demonstrates how a disease’s name can have a significant impact on the public’s perception, attitude and behavior toward the disease. Harvey argues that disease names should be selected with careful consideration of their potential impacts on public health from the framing of risk perceptions through the circulation of harmful misinformation. Read MoreApr 11, 2023
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Vanderbilt professors to host panel on gun violence and Asian Americans Feb. 1
Vanderbilt professors Ben Tran and Johnathan Metzl will host a panel discussion on gun violence and Asian Americans on Wednesday, Feb. 1, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in Sarratt 189. The event is open to the Vanderbilt University community. Read MoreJan 30, 2023
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Q&A with Ted Fischer: What defines quality in coffee, and who gets to decide?
At the coffee shop, we are asked to pay more, sometimes a lot more, for “quality.” But how do we determine the quality of a sensory experience? Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Anthropology Ted Fischer’s research examines the quest for quality among always-changing tastes. He discusses it in this Q&A—just in time for International Coffee Day on Oct. 1. Read MoreSep 23, 2022
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NSF grants support Vanderbilt in high-tech archaeology information revolution
Vanderbilt archaeologist and historical anthropologist Steve Wernke and postdoctoral fellow Giles Morrow are exploring the remains of a 16th-century church high in the Andes Mountains of Peru, all while giving Vanderbilt students a front-row seat to the research using virtual reality, artificial intelligence and geospatial technologies. Read MoreNov 12, 2021
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Scientists write children’s books to share career paths and promote STEM education
A team of Vanderbilt and Vanderbilt University Medical Center faculty are working together to produce a series of children’s science books aimed at fourth grade–level readers. Read MoreOct 18, 2021
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‘Hostile Terrain 94’ creator Jason De León to give Vanderbilt lecture Sept. 29
Jason De León, creator of the "Hostile Terrain 94" exhibit and founder of the Undocumented Migration Project, will give a free lecture on Wednesday, Sept. 29, at 6 p.m. in Sarratt Cinema. A public reception will precede his talk beginning at 5:15 p.m. in Sarratt Gallery. Read MoreSep 23, 2021
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‘Hostile Terrain 94’ participatory art installation invites public to engage with humanitarian issues at U.S.-Mexico border
Vanderbilt University’s Center for Latin American, Caribbean and Latinx Studies will host a participatory art installation that aims to raise community awareness about the human side of undocumented migration at the U.S.-Mexico border. Read MoreSep 8, 2021
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New study finds community activists in Brazil’s favelas play a critical role in combatting COVID-19
A Vanderbilt co-authored study of Brazilian responses to COVID-19 offers insight on the merits of social medicine while challenging widely held assumptions about traditional public health models. Read MoreJun 11, 2021
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Vanderbilt faculty collaborate to develop tools for teaching personal geography and spatial awareness
A team of Vanderbilt and Georgia State University researchers has developed publicly available resources for teaching personal geography and critical spatial inquiry. They recently launched a public website offering teaching frameworks and curricular tools for educators. Read MoreJun 7, 2021
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Online collaborative platforms lead to advances in archaeological survey of the Andes
Advances in big data technology and digital analytics are transforming the field of archaeology. One such study led by Vanderbilt anthropology professor Steven Wernke has brought a fresh perspective to the forced resettlement of more than a million Indigenous Andeans by Spanish colonizers in the 1570s. Read MoreJan 11, 2021
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Analysis of ancient teeth reveal clues about how sociopolitical systems grow
Isotope analysis of ancient Peruvian teeth gives anthropologists a clearer image of how cooperating societies function. Read MoreDec 15, 2020
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Vanderbilt University screening tool assesses COVID-19 risk
A virtual self-screening tool developed by Vanderbilt global health experts will help individuals assess their risk of COVID-19 and provide anonymized data to public health researchers and officials studying the spread of the disease. Read MoreJun 1, 2020
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‘Virtual archaeology’ gives scholars a bigger perspective on the past
A pair of international, collaborative online platforms developed by Steven Werkne and colleagues are helping archaeologists get a big-picture view of the Inka Empire and the Spanish invasion of the Andean region of South America. Read MoreApr 15, 2020
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Vanderbilt geospatial researchers fill unmet need for real-time maps of COVID-19 spread in Tennessee, Peru
Sometimes the best way to understand the impact of an epidemic is to see it with your own eyes. Vanderbilt geospatial researchers have stepped up to apply their mapping skills to the COVID-19 crisis. Read MoreApr 7, 2020
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Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, World Health Organization bring global project to improve health care through social science to Vanderbilt
A $600,000 grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation will fund a three-year project with the World Health Organization, led by anthropology professor Ted Fischer, to develop a new model for health care that incorporates the consideration of cultural attitudes and practices that affect health in the United States. Read MoreFeb 7, 2020
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Janusek, Andean anthropologist noted for innovative teaching and discovery, dies
John W. Janusek, an Andean anthropologist whose interests ranged from the development of complex societies in South America to the history of beer and brewing, died Oct. 22. Read MoreOct 30, 2019
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Food fight: How a community in Mexico used food to resist the Aztec empire
Inspired by an ancient people’s use of food to resist defeat, anthropologist Keitlyn Alcantara now uses food to resist cultural loss among Latin American middle schoolers in Nashville. Read MoreOct 1, 2019
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Kudos: Read about faculty and student awards, appointments and achievements
Read about recent faculty and student awards, appointments and achievements. Read MoreApr 18, 2019
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Digging up bones thanks to a competitive grant from National Geographic
Maya Krause, a Ph.D. student specializing in bioarchaeology, will spend her summer high in the mountains of Peru searching for ancient human remains after earning National Geographic’s Early Career Grant. Read MoreMar 8, 2019
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Gianna Mosser selected to lead Vanderbilt University Press
Gianna Mosser has been named director of Vanderbilt University Press, where she will work with key partners to develop a new strategic vision for the university's publishing arm. Read MoreFeb 22, 2019