December 6, 2021

A Vanderbilt engineering professor is leading part of an international initiative to create advanced artificial intelligence programs that will enable machines to learn progressively over a lifetime and share those experiences with each other. Researchers hope the technology will allow machines to reuse information, adapt quickly to new conditions and collaborate by sharing information. Soheil Kolouri, assistant professor of computer science . . . will lead a research team focusing on continual machine learning mechanisms. The prototype project, “Information Distillation for Embodied and Articulate Lifelong Learners,” or IDEALL, has received a $1M award from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency as part of the agency’s Shared-Experience Lifelong Learning (ShELL) initiative. DARPA wants to develop AI agents that share their experiences with each other and is seeking innovative basic or applied research concepts in lifelong learning. The funding is part of DARPA’s Artificial Intelligence Exploration (AIE) program, a streamlined research and development opportunity aimed at encouraging quick innovations in rapidly acceleration technology. MORE

Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Biological Sciences Laurence J. Zwiebel is part of a team of researchers at Vanderbilt and the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute who are working to understand how Plasmodium falciparum—the pathogen that causes malaria in humans—affects the mosquitoes that spread the disease. Through comparative analysis of mRNA between uninfected and infected mosquitoes old enough to transmit malaria, the researchers concluded that infected mosquitoes’ sense of smell was significantly enhanced, thus improving their ability to find hosts, Zwiebel said. This suggests that infection with the parasite provides the mosquito an advantage that promotes reproduction and disease transmission. Through taking the time and effort to replicate natural conditions to get these results, the researchers aim to demonstrate the feasibility and underscore the need to conduct malaria infection studies within natural parameters. [This work was supported in part by the National Institutes of Health.] MORE

A paper by Vanderbilt engineers that explores the scope of efforts to scale up the sizes of atomically thin membranes and their potential use in applications relating to energy, microscopy, and electronics . . . . [The authors] reviewed advances in using atomically thin two-dimensional materials such as graphene or hexagonal boron nitride for the separation of subatomic species, including electrons, hydrogen isotopes, and gases. [They] said these membranes present potential to separate subatomic species and are used on a range of scales from benchtop experiments to practical energy and microscopy applications. Funding sources include NSF CAREER and ECS Toyota Young Investigator awards. MORE

A study led by researchers from Vanderbilt University’s Center for Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology reveals a breakthrough tool to assess the effect of exoskeletons on injury risk. The tool, called Exo-LiFFT, is an interactive calculator that will help companies looking for ways to overcome workforces struggling with musculoskeletal injuries, missed work, and accelerated retirement amongst skilled laborers. The study’s lead author, Karl Zelik, associate professor of mechanical engineering [and Chief Science Officer at Nashville-based workforce wearable company, HeroWear], said this is a major leap forward to help bring relief to overburdened workers. The study . . . projected that exoskeletons have the potential to reduce workplace back injuries in material handling by 20% to 60%. This is a critical advancement because work-related injuries to overburdened workers are a major factor contributing to the current dynamics in the labor market. MORE

Kristopher Burkewitz, assistant professor of cell and developmental biology, has been awarded  $100,000 from the American Federation for Aging Research and the Glenn Foundation for Medical Research to research the biological aging process. Burkewitz was one of 10 recipients nationally of this early-career award. Burkewitz’s project will work to understand the sequence of events in which cells lose their youthful inner architectures. Prevalence of diseases such as cancer, heart disease, arthritis, cataracts, osteoporosis, diabetes, hypertension and neurodegenerative diseases greatly increases with age. Approximately two-thirds of deaths globally and 90 percent of deaths in industrialized nations are due to age-related causes. Understanding how aging impacts the formation of disease at a cellular level is of the utmost importance to creating preventive and therapeutic interventions. Using some of the newest concepts in cell biology to investigate aging, Burkewitz’s research investigates the very mechanisms that cause loss of function in cells. MORE

Many studies on health and health disparities lump people of Asian descent into one category, making it hard to identify inequities in areas such as life expectancy when studying these populations. Darwin Baluran, a doctoral student in the Vanderbilt 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. As the first study to examine different Asian ethnic groups’ life expectancy by geographic region, the study challenges how researchers look at the Asian American population.  Through the data they were able to access, [the team] found that people of Chinese descent had the longest life expectancy at birth among the six largest Asian groups: Chinese, Asian Indians, Filipinos, Vietnamese, Koreans and Japanese. People of Vietnamese descent had the shortest. MORE

TEDxVanderbiltUniversity will host a virtual event on Friday, Dec. 10, featuring C. Cybele Raver, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs; Candice Lee, vice chancellor for athletics and university affairs and athletic director; and Kathleen Seabolt, executive director of the Vanderbilt Child and Family Center. The event will be from 1 to 3 p.m. CT. Register here. The Dec. 10 Vanderbilt event is part of the TEDWomen2021 conference featuring women leaders discussing the theme “What Now?” The past two years have upended so much for many and forced global reckonings with systems, processes and policies that too often let us down. Women have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, so … what now? TEDWomen2021 will feature speakers who are imagining new possibilities and exploring new ideas for how we might live and work better together in the years to come. MORE

In today’s polarized U.S. Congress, the lack of bipartisanship often prevents opportunities to enact meaningful legislation. What can lawmakers do differently to work more effectively across the aisle? And how can voters play an active role to ensure that their voices are heard by their congressional members? A panel of experts led by former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist will tackle these issues and more in a virtual discussion, “The Keys to Effective Lawmaking in Turbulent Times,” on Tuesday, Dec. 7, at 12:30 p.m. CT. The virtual discussion hosted by the Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy is free and open to the public. Registration is required. MORE

Reid Hoffman, an accomplished entrepreneur, executive, investor and philanthropist who has played an integral role in building many of today’s leading consumer technology businesses, will receive Vanderbilt University’s prestigious Nichols-Chancellor’s Medal when he delivers the Graduates Day address to the Class of 2022 on May 12. The Nichols-Chancellor’s Medal is one of the university’s highest honors and is awarded to individuals who define the 21st century and exemplify the best qualities of the human spirit. It was created and endowed by Vanderbilt Law School graduate Ed Nichols and his wife, Janice, in honor of Edward Carmack and Lucile Hamby Nichols. In 2003, Hoffman co-founded LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional network that today has more than 700 million members. He also served as executive vice president and founding board member at PayPal, and he is currently a partner at Greylock, a leading venture capital firm. MORE