Arts And Science

By: Andy Flick, Evolutionary Studies senior program manager New work led by graduate student Audrey Arner of the Lea Lab looks at how best to communicate jargon-riddled scientific results with Indigenous communities, who often have limited access to formal education or previous exposure to academic research. Arner and her… Read More

By Andy Flick, Evolutionary Studies scientific coordinator Ask any biologist what causes DNA mutations, and oxygen will likely make the shortlist. It is reactive, super-abundant, and has been fingered as a major culprit in genetic damage for decades. So, here is a head-scratcher: if oxygen is such a DNA troublemaker,… Read More

By Andy Flick, Evolutionary Studies scientific coordinator In July 2025, the Evolutionary Studies Initiative at Vanderbilt University secured its first initiative-wide grant to train the next generation of biomedical scientists. The grant funded through the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of General Medical Sciences T32 Training Program,… Read More

By Andy Flick, Evolutionary Studies scientific coordinator Archaeotherium, better known by the irresistibly dramatic nickname “Hell Pigs,” belong to an extinct group of mammals from the Eocene and Oligocene. The animals were neither hellish nor pigs, but their odd mix of features has made them a favorite for researchers. Graduate… Read More

By Andy Flick, Evolutionary Studies scientific coordinator Giant ground sloth cast at the La Brea Tar Pits and Museum (DeSantis) Giant ground sloths were more than just Ice Age oddities. They were ecosystem engineers whose disappearance reshaped the landscapes they once roamed. A new study from Vanderbilt University’s DREAM… Read More

By Andy Flick, Evolutionary Studies scientific coordinator Lin Meng (left) and alum Tara Stanley City lights are rewriting the calendar. A new global study from Vanderbilt researchers Lin Meng and Huidong Li shows that artificial light at night is more powerful than temperature in extending urban growing seasons… Read More

Originally posted by UC-Berkeley team, edits by Andy Flick Evolutionary Studies scientific coordinator Scientists Discover Key Genetic Adaptations in Partnership with Turkana Pastoralists of Northern Kenya Groundbreaking study reveals how thousands of years of natural selection shaped remarkable adaptations to an extreme environment. Through a collaboration… Read More

By Andy Flick, Evolutionary Studies scientific coordinator Hatmaker posing with the Evolutionary Studies outreach casts. Annie Hatmaker, Ph.D., has spent the better part of a decade studying fungi and their secondary metabolites – small molecules they use to communicate, defend, and thrive. Her new publication, “Population structure in a… Read More

By Andy Flick, Evolutionary Studies scientific coordinator In football, defense keeps the opposing team in check. A similar strategy is at play inside our cells. Negative feedback loops (NFLs) help regulate how cells respond to signals, for example, dialing down activity when things get too intense. A new study from… Read More

DeSantis and Gnash with a saber-toothed cat! Nashville, TN – April 4, 2025 – A innovative study led by researchers from Vanderbilt University sheds new light on the dietary ecology of the iconic saber-toothed cat, Smilodon. The study, published in a special issue on sabertoothed organisms in The Anatomical Record,… Read More