Faculty News
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Vanderbilt announces fall 2025 internal research funding award recipients
Vanderbilt University has announced its fall 2025 recipients of the Seeding Success, Scaling Success and Rapid-Advancement MicroGrant Program awards, providing internal funding to help faculty launch new research directions, strengthen proposals and co... Read MoreFeb. 9, 2026
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College of Arts and Science faculty recognized with 2025 teaching, advising awards
In the College of Arts and Science, teaching is a critical part of our mission, with our faculty at the heart of our school. Each year, we recognize our faculty for their dedication to not only teaching, but also for their mentorship and guidance. During the first faculty meeting of… Read MoreJan. 29, 2026
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Friend or foe? A&S faculty discuss benefits and concerns of AI
Illustration by Liz Chagnon Artificial intelligence has become increasingly present in our everyday lives—embedded in our cell phones, popping up on social media platforms, and incorporated into many business operations. With this rapid adoption comes many emotions ranging from excitement about having a technological aid that makes life more efficient… Read MoreJan. 29, 2026
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New study examines why some people can more easily detect AI imagery
Can you tell the difference between an artificial-intelligence-generated face and a real one? In an era of digital misinformation, where fabricated images can spread widely across news and social media, this skill is proving invaluable. A new study has found that a person’s object recognition ability, or the ability… Read MoreJan. 28, 2026
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Major Jackson: Devouring the Art of Language
Whether Major Jackson is teaching, writing or critiquing, at the center of his work is a voracious hunger for artful language—underpinned by a commitment to painting the quotidian in new and unexpected ways. Read MoreJan. 15, 2026
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Never forgotten: Tiffany Fracchia’s class helps identify missing American WWII soldier in France
There are more than 80,000 unaccounted-for American service personnel from past conflicts, according to the U.S. Department of Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA). More than 70,000 are missing from World War II alone, leaving their surviving families and descendants with questions, but no answers. Growing up, Associate Professor of the… Read MoreDec. 10, 2025
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Research and music sync with Immersion Vanderbilt
Meet two student-professor teams using AI and social media to take their musical Immersion research to a new level. Read MoreNov. 5, 2025
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Study reveals role giant ground sloths played in the environment, potentially aiding in ecological restoration today
Adapted from an article by Andy Flick Aditya Kurre When you think of a sloth, an image of a slow, cuddly, furry creature hanging out in trees may come to mind—the picture of tranquility. But millions of years ago, sloths were around 9 feet tall and weighed anywhere from 400-2,500… Read MoreOct. 28, 2025
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Transcending language and borders: How the NIRMA Project is expanding Nashville’s identity as Music City
On the evening of Nov. 6, the gallery rooms and halls of the Curb Center at Vanderbilt will resound with a global melody. There will be the pluck and ring of a setar and the charm of a santoor as the Nashville Immigrant and Refugee Music and Art Projec... Read MoreOct. 27, 2025
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PHOTOS: Vanderbilt joins Nashville community in celebrating authors and readers at 2025 Southern Festival of Books
Collaboration, community and love for the written word were celebrated at the 2025 Southern Festival of Books, presented by Vanderbilt University in partnership with Humanities Tennessee Oct. 18–19 in downtown Nashville. The free event, the 37th in fes... Read MoreOct. 23, 2025
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What would a small black hole do to the human body? Robert Scherrer aims to answer that
Some people may worry about being bitten by a snake or spider, but have you ever considered what would happen if a small black hole tried to pass through your body? An article by Professor of Physics Robert Scherrer in the International Journal of Modern Physics D… Read MoreOct. 21, 2025
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Quantum Potential Podcast SPECIAL EPISODE: AI, Propaganda and Democracy with Brett Goldstein and Brett Benson
Political propaganda and artificial intelligence–driven misinformation are infiltrating social media accounts, and Americans need to do something about it. That’s the warning revealed in research from two Vanderbilt professors and discussed on this spe... Read MoreOct. 20, 2025
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On the 10-year anniversary of the first gravitational wave detection, A&S astrophysicists lead the way in discoveries
On September 14, 2015, at 4:51 a.m. Central Time, scientists witnessed something no human had ever seen before: two black holes colliding. A computer simulation of two black holes colliding created by researchers from LIGO, the California Institute of Technology, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. These black holes, which… Read MoreOct. 16, 2025
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Robert Barsky highlights Atlanta’s history and arts culture while giving back to the community
Atlanta-based artist Susan Ker-Seymer and Robert Barsky For those experiencing writer’s block, or just looking for inspiration, journeying outside and spending time in nature may be the answer. The natural world has a cadence that helps us relax and refocus, allowing creativity to flow. This was the case for Professor… Read MoreOct. 8, 2025
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Nunnally, associate professor of biology, emeritus, has died
David A. Nunnally, associate professor of biology, emeritus, died on September 5, 2025, in Columbia, Tennessee, at the age of 90. Born in 1935 in Memphis, Tennessee, Nunnally was a dedicated scholar and educator. He received a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of the South in 1956. Later… Read MoreOct. 6, 2025
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Vanderbilt’s humanities strengths will be on display at 2025 Southern Festival of Books
The 2025 Southern Festival of Books, presented by Vanderbilt University in partnership with Humanities Tennessee, will connect faculty, students, alumni and others with university ties to a vast community that shares their love for creative expression.... Read MoreSep. 30, 2025
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Search begins for Vanderbilt’s new vice provost for research and innovation, committee named
A national search is underway for Vanderbilt’s next vice provost for research and innovation. Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs C. Cybele Raver has appointed a committee to identify candidates for the university’s new chief research offi... Read MoreSep. 29, 2025
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John Wikswo: Transforming small-scale science into planet-sized impact
When an “unsolvable” problem needs solving, put John Wikswo on the team. As director of the Vanderbilt Institute for Integrative Biosystems Research and Education and University Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Molecular Physiology an... Read MoreSep. 26, 2025
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Vanderbilt Unity Poll: Confidence in higher education rebounds, though affordability and political bias are still concerns
The Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy recently conducted a national poll to gauge Americans’ opinions on topics related to institutions of higher education, including their confidence in those institutions, their current relevance, fed... Read MoreSep. 24, 2025
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Expanding arts programming and opportunities through the A&S Arts Project
The College of Arts and Science has long been an innovator and leader in the arts—from theater to studio art to cinema to architecture. Faculty and students alike create, build, and explore in visionary ways that affect the way we interpret and live in the world around us. Leah Lowe,… Read MoreSep. 23, 2025