Arts And Science Faculty

Aging stars expand and eventually destroy planets in their inner systems. Or do they? A team of researchers that includes Keivan Stassun finds evidence of a planet that survived its star’s transformation, and that is reshaping our understanding of planetary and stellar evolution. Read More

Nicole Creanza and Yakov Pichkar explore whether subtle cultural differences within a language mirror genetic structure within a population. The answer: Even small cultural differences like dialect can influence the spread of people and genes. Read More

Led by Stephen Taylor, assistant professor of physics and astronomy, a collaborative effort across 88 institutions has identified evidence of slowly undulating gravitational waves passing through our galaxy. Read More

Vanderbilt astrophysicist Karan Jani helped prove Einstein's theory of relativity as it relates to black holes and gravitational waves. Learn how he's using his expertise to teach undergrads with diverse majors who are eager to learn about space. Read More

Vanderbilt biologists Nicole Creanza and Kerri-Ann Anderson have developed a new mathematical model, rooted in cultural evolution, that represents vaccine hesitancy as a belief that can influence, but not perfectly predict, whether parents will decide to vaccinate their children. Read More

Vanderbilt University has created the Future of Learning and Generative AI Initiative and appointed members of an advisory board. Both will center their efforts around scholarship and opportunities connected to the growing use of nascent artificial intelligence technologies.  Read More

The College of Arts and Science has recognized its most dedicated instructors representing faculty excellence in teaching effectiveness, innovative teaching practices and extraordinary contributions to undergraduate immersion experiences. Read More

Vanderbilt University, led by Professor Ralf Bennartz, will lead a NASA satellite mission investigating Earth's high-altitude ice clouds, backed by a robust grant of $37 million. This endeavor, leveraging the university's climate research expertise, will provide opportunities for student involvement and bolsters Vanderbilt's position in global climate research. Read More

A National Endowment for the Humanities grant awarded to Vanderbilt’s Angela Sutton, assistant dean for graduate education and strategic initiatives in the College of Arts and Science, will help fund the excavation of a historic Nashville neighborhood and a collection of the oral histories of the neighborhood’s descendants. Read More

Jefferson Cowie, a celebrated U.S. politics and culture historian, has won the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for his book that “radically shifts our understanding of what freedom means in America.” Read More

Vanderbilt and Bruker Daltonics are collaborating to establish a Mass Spectrometry Center of Excellence with four state-of-the-art mass spectrometers to advance biomedical research and discovery. Read More

Four Vanderbilt and VUMC faculty—María Magdalena Campos-Pons, Kimryn Rathmell, Keivan Stassun and Major Jackson—have been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a record number of elections from Vanderbilt in a single year. Read More

Legendary German ambassador, the first to serve in a united Germany since 1941 and the facilitator of President Ronald Reagan’s “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall” speech, has been named Vanderbilt University Distinguished Ambassador in Residence. Read More

Tennessee’s open COVID testing policy reduced actual COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths. Costs of expanded testing were so low that essentially any reduction in the number of deaths due to the policy would justify its cost. Read More

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 More

Scientists from Vanderbilt and UCAS made a breakthrough in single-atom vibrational spectroscopy in graphene, crucial to understanding materials’ thermal properties and nanophotonics. Read More

A significant faculty-led effort to redesign the College of Arts and Science undergraduate curriculum is nearing completion, aiming to provide a more integrated, inspiring and enduring program of study for all Arts and Science students. Read More

A Lab-to-Table Conversation on Monday, Feb. 27, will discuss some of the challenges that Black trainees and faculty face in their STEM fields of study and the strategies they've used to be successful in the face of these challenges.  Read More

Several Vanderbilt STEM departments have launched an innovative new peer educator program. Learning Assistants facilitate fellow students’ learning, increase their sense of belonging and provide them with inspirational role models in the STEM fields. Read More

Keivan Stassun, Stevenson Professor of Physics and Astronomy and director of the Frist Center for Autism and Innovation at Vanderbilt University, has been appointed to the National Science Board by President Joe Biden. Read More