Arts And Science Research

Looking at prehistoric organisms allows Simon Darroch and his students to describe how, when and why complex life evolved on this planet. Their work is a piece of the puzzle in understanding how likely it is that we’ll find complex life beyond Earth. Read More

Lars Plate wins $55,000 from Scialog to further collaborative research on cell behavior. Read More

Stephen Taylor, assistant professor of physics and astronomy, has received a National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development Program award to further his efforts to probe ultra-low-frequency gravitational waves. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers examine how to rapidly characterize the biological impact of genetic editing on bacteria for energy production, drug discovery and more. Est. reading time: 2.5 mins. Read More

John McLean, Stevenson Professor of Chemistry and director of the Center for Innovative Technologies, has been elected a 2021 fellow of the National Academy of Inventors.  Read More

In a review of 100 years of research on the sensory systems in whales, Rachel Racicot, research assistant professor of biological sciences, describes advances in the field and key questions that remain. Read More

Darwin Baluran, a doctoral student in the Department of Sociology, sought to investigate the intermixture of ethnicities included under the “Asian” racial category—one of the nation’s fastest-growing groups—and the health of these groups in the United States. Read More

Distinguished psychology professor Jon Kaas has received the Ralph W. Gerard Prize in Neuroscience, the highest recognition from the Society for Neuroscience, for his pathbreaking work in illuminating the structure and function of the cerebral cortex and plasticity in the developing and adult brain. Read More

By reproducing conditions under which malaria occurs in nature, the Zwiebel Lab finds that the deadly pathogens responsible for human malaria provide a specific adaptive advantage to disease-transmitting mosquitoes, explaining the persistence of this ancient disease. Est. reading time: 2 mins. Read More

Keivan Stassun joins leading astronomers to write "Astro2020," a once-in-a-decade guide for astronomy research, prioritizing gargantuan telescopes on the ground and in orbit as well as increased diversity and inclusion. Read More

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 More

Vanderbilt researchers are reimagining Charles Darwin’s work by communicating how the origin of species might depend largely on the microbiome—the totality of bacteria, viruses, fungi and other organisms—living in or on a host body. Read More

Eating a larger, protein-filled breakfast is one of the best ways to maintain a healthy weight. A smaller but still significant change would be to avoid late-night snacking. Est. reading time: 3.5 mins. Read More

The Vanderbilt Microbiome Initiative has been renamed the Vanderbilt Microbiome Innovation Center. It will offer a hub of resources for education, outreach and research around the microbiome—the community of microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi and viruses that are crucial to sustaining life ecosystems. Read More

Carl Johnson, Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Biological Sciences and expert in biological clocks, identifies temporal component to COVID-19 viral shedding. Est. reading time: 2.5 mins. Read More

Karan Jani, research assistant professor of physics and astronomy, convened experts from around the world at the European Gravitational Observatory in Italy to further explore the possibility of detecting gravitational waves on the moon. Read More

Eight-week mindfulness programs improve brain health in people over 60. Read More

Steven Townsend, associate professor of chemistry, and Fang Yan, research professor of pediatrics and cell and development biology, have discovered how a sugar in human breast milk mitigates damage to the small intestines caused by chemotherapy-induced mucositis. Read More

Vanderbilt faculty Jonathan Gilligan and Janey Camp will work with researchers from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville and involved entities to propose a large-scale research network with the goal of improving interrelated electric, transportation and communications services in areas with infrastructure served by the Tennessee Valley Authority. Read More

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 More