Faculty News
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Quantum Potential Podcast Episode 8: Rewiring the brain and rethinking pain with Craig Lindsley
In this episode of Quantum Potential, Craig Lindsley, William K. Warren, Jr. Professor of Medicine, University Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry, Chemistry and Pharmacology and executive director of the Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discove... Read MoreMay 28, 2025
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Faculty Accolades 2024-25
Throughout the past academic year, faculty in the College of Arts and Science have shown tremendous dedication to not only providing unparalleled instruction, but also toward advancing their scholarship and research. From powerful discoveries to creative expression across a wide range of disciplines, our faculty are making impactful contributions to… Read MoreMay 23, 2025
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Research roundup: 11 things we learned this year
Illustrations by Liz Chagnon Faculty in the College of Arts and Science are pursuing groundbreaking research and discovery across a wide range of fields. They advance scientific progress, artistic expression, and a deeper understanding of the world around us—its past, present, and future. Here are a few… Read MoreMay 23, 2025
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Scientists discover new evidence of intermediate-mass black holes
In the world of black holes, there are generally three size categories: stellar-mass black holes (about five to 50 times the mass of the sun), supermassive black holes (millions to billions of times the mass of the sun), and intermediate-mass black holes with masses somewhere in between. Assistant Professor of… Read MoreMay 23, 2025
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Larisa DeSantis: Looking back for the future
Our past has something to say. 2025 Guggenheim Fellow Larisa DeSantis is ready to translate. Read MoreMay 19, 2025
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How To Read a Poem: Expert Advice from Major Jackson, Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Professor of English
Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Professor of English Major Jackson sees poetry as an art best appreciated in communion with others and approached through the senses as much as the intellect. He believes deeply in the power of poetry to break down barriers ... Read MoreMay 15, 2025
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Quantum Potential Podcast Episode 7: Deconstructing the political polling process with Josh Clinton
Josh Clinton, Abby and Jon Winkelried Chair and professor of political science, and co-director of the Vanderbilt Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions, joins Provost C. Cybele Raver to discuss how transparency and increasing public literacy ... Read MoreMay 15, 2025
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Vanderbilt Brain Institute marks 25 years of discovery with 2025 Brain Blast celebration
Since its inception in 1999, the VBI has spearheaded interdisciplinary neuroscience research and education. Over the years, the VBI has grown into a vibrant, trans-institutional hub that spans the School of Medicine Basic Sciences, the College of Arts ... Read MoreMay 8, 2025
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11 Vanderbilt faculty members selected as 2025 Chancellor Faculty Fellows
Eleven outstanding faculty members from across the university have been selected for the 2025 cohort of Chancellor Faculty Fellows. Each fellow holds the title of Chancellor Faculty Fellow and receives $80,000 over a multi-year period to support their ... Read MoreMay 1, 2025
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History’s detective: Jane Landers and her team rescue enslaved Africans’ stories from oblivion
See how historian Jane Landers and her team are rescuing enslaved Africans’ stories from oblivion and honoring thousands of lives. Read MoreApril 17, 2025
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Castiglione Lab discover horses run faster by ignoring an ancient mutation that says ‘stop’
New work from the Castiglione lab and that of collaborator, Elia Duh (Johns Hopkins), is shaping the way is shaping the way we understand the evolutionary limits of energy production. He discovered that the horse, an oft-studied, physiological powerhou... Read MoreApril 8, 2025
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Every day needs a night: study examines impact of artificial light on life cycle of trees
Assistant Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences Lin Meng While taking a flight one evening, Assistant Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences Lin Meng observed that the landscape outside of her window was lit up entirely by artificial light. In that moment, a thought crossed her mind:… Read MoreApril 8, 2025
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Julia Velkovska: Solving the world’s minuscule mysteries
As Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Physics and chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy, Julia Velkovska studies the tiny particles that form our universe. She focuses on how nuclear matter behaves when confronted with extreme density and tem... Read MoreApril 7, 2025
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Inspired chemist uncovers a scientific superpower in women
Learn about the women who inspire Steven Townsend in his breakthrough research that puts a spotlight on women, their health and discoveries around the healing powers of breast milk. Read MoreApril 3, 2025
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Legislative gridlock did not stop lawmaking
Vanderbilt’s Alan Wiseman co-directs the Center for Effective Lawmaking with University of Virginia professor Craig Volden. Using a combination of 15 metrics, the center defines legislators that “exceed expectations” as those who outperform the center’... Read MoreMarch 27, 2025
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Art learning from science learning from art: worlds colliding in new Arctic exhibit
If you could write a letter to someone 1,000 years from now, what would you say? And what would they think of the world today when reading it? These are some of the questions posed to visitors walking through the Vanderbilt University Museum of Art’s newest exhibit,… Read MoreMarch 24, 2025
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Residential Colleges welcomes three new faculty for the 2025–26 academic year
The upper-division residential colleges will welcome Jesús Ruiz, who will lead Moore College, and The Martha Rivers Ingram Commons will welcome Gilbert Gonzales as faculty head of Crawford House and Justin Quarry as faculty head of East House. Read MoreMarch 20, 2025
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New research showcases unsung history of female architects
From left: Mary Anne Hunting, BA’80, and Kevin Murphy, Andrew W. Mellon Chair in the Humanities and professor of history of art and architecture. In the decades preceding World War II, professional architecture schools started enrolling increasing numbers of women. However, career success for these women did not come easily… Read MoreMarch 11, 2025
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Jackson Lab reveals relationship between transport proteins and brain disease
Most of us rely heavily on shipping services like FedEx or UPS to ensure we receive the correct packages. If that system was disrupted, parcels would end up lost or in the wrong place. Similarly, all human cells require large protein coat complexes, working at transport hubs called endosomes, to… Read MoreMarch 5, 2025
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Major Jackson awarded inaugural Patricia Cannon Willis Prize
Major Jackson, Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Chair in the Humanities, has been awarded the inaugural Patricia Cannon Willis Prize for American Poetry by Yale Library. Jackson was recognized for his acclaimed collection Razzle Dazzle: New and Selected Poe... Read MoreFebruary 20, 2025