|
FEDERALLY FUNDED RESEARCH
| |
National Science Foundation—Vanderbilt-led researchers show that generalist species are ‘jack of all trades and masters of all’
Life has two choices: survive or go extinct. And surviving isn’t easy. Scientists often debate why species become specialized or generalized in regard to their diet. Specialist species may be better able to procure food by hunting prey or selecting leaves. However, being a generalist allows animals to adapt to how much food is available. Both paths have tradeoffs. Generalists are essentially “jacks of all trades and masters of none,” while specialists are masters of their specific trade. What if species could be both specialists and generalists? Over the past decade, Larisa DeSantis, paleontologist and associate professor of biological sciences, has worked with a team of former Vanderbilt undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral scholars and experts from across the globe to show how species can be both generalized at the species level and specialized individually—a probable key to their success. The study . . . demonstrates a phenomenon that has long been overlooked—both generalist and specialist species are individually specialized. These findings have profound ecological, evolutionary and even conservational implications of critical relevance to understanding ancient, modern and future ecosystems. [This research was funded by the National Science Foundation.] MORE
| |
National Science Foundation—Vanderbilt students attend COP26 to observe climate diplomacy in action
Fourteen undergraduate students and two graduate students represented Vanderbilt University 3,923 miles away in Glasgow, Scotland, as official delegates to the United Nations international climate change negotiations—dubbed COP26. The extraordinary opportunity was facilitated by Leah Dundon, director of the Vanderbilt Climate Change Initiative, who secured for Vanderbilt official United Nations Observer status in 2019. The U.N. accreditation enabled Vanderbilt students to attend the conference for a second year, in part through an interdisciplinary A&S Honors Seminar on climate change taught by Dundon. Graduate students Madeline Allen and Charles Doktycz presented on their work with the NSF-supported Youth Environmental Alliance in Higher Education, a project that connects institutes around the world to provide integrated knowledge to students, equipping them to address complex global environmental problems. Dundon also presented on the YEAH network and announced Vanderbilt’s new status as an official signatory to the U.N.-backed Race to Zero campaign. MORE
| |
Vanderbilt astronomers discover exceedingly rare star
A team of astronomers have made the discovery of a lifetime that will help answer burning questions on the evolution of stars. The group is led by Evolutionary Studies Initiative member and Stevenson Professor of Physics and Astronomy, Keivan Stassun. Stassun’s team generated a new model that greatly improved the way stars are measured in 2017. It has been used to identify the characteristics of more than 100 stars found by the TESS space telescope and 1,000s of others. But nothing prepared the team for what this new binary star system—which is actually two stars orbiting each other—could tell them about our universe. Stassun explained how several key ingredients make this binary star system incredibly rare. Binary star systems are not uncommon among the cosmos, but one uncommon trait of this one is its orientation. One of the stars in this binary star system that Stassun’s team found exhibits a hybrid of [two rare types of stellar pulsating]. Next, this unique star has a strong magnetic field, which is decidedly uncommon for a hybrid pulsating star . . . . Finally, according to Stassun, “this is the first time that one of these rare magnetic hybrid pulsating stars has been found that is part of a star cluster and that is moreover a part of an eclipsing binary system.” MORE
| |
Vanderbilt wins renewal of Beckman Scholars Program in chemistry and biological sciences
Vanderbilt University is one of 14 institutions awarded the 2022 Beckman Scholars Program from the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation, receiving $146,000 to renew Vanderbilt’s program through 2025. The award will support a total of six Beckman Scholars over the next three years, with two scholars named each year. The 15-month program allows Beckman Scholars to conduct laboratory research for two summers and one academic year with faculty mentors in the Departments of Chemistry and Biological Sciences in the College of Arts and Science. The Vanderbilt University Beckman Scholars Program focuses on supporting young scholars in the development of high-quality research that is presented at conferences and published in peer-reviewed journals. Beckman Scholars work on proposed research projects in their chosen disciplines with faculty mentors providing scientific direction, including intellectual and experimental training. MORE
| |
Kelly Holley-Bockelmann receives Mentor Award from the American Association for the Advancement of Science for contributions to science and society
Kelly Holley-Bockelmann, Stevenson Professor of Physics, has received the 2022 Mentor Award from the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The award is for individuals who have mentored significant numbers of underrepresented students (e.g., women, minorities and persons with disabilities) who are working toward doctorates in STEM. Holley-Bockelmann is being recognized for her leadership of the Fisk-Vanderbilt Master’s-to-Ph.D. Bridge Program. Since its founding in September 2004, the mission of the program has been to increase the participation of underrepresented groups in astronomy, physics, materials science and biology. Students earn a master’s degree from Fisk University, a historically Black institution, while receiving full financial support, research opportunities and intensive mentoring. Students can then “bridge” to a Ph.D. program at Vanderbilt or another institution. During Holley-Bockelmann’s time as the Vanderbilt director, the Fisk-Vanderbilt Master’s-to-Ph.D. Bridge Program has established skill-building boot camps for entering students, expanded student support to include wellness coaching, created an emergency fund to cover unexpected expenses that federal grants do not cover and supported student efforts to create the Bridge Activism Committee to act on social justice issues. MORE
| |
Art, science, history converge in exhibit examining racial issues in STEM
The intersection of science and society is the foundation of a multi-institutional collaboration of students and faculty in a virtual and physical art exhibit at Vanderbilt University titled Nested Knowledge: Disentangling History, Truth, and Race in STEM Experiences. The Nested Knowledge exhibit can be experienced online and at the Wond’ry, Vanderbilt’s Innovation Center through February 2022 in honor of Black History Month. The exhibit is the culmination of a 10-week fellowship with STEM, humanities and social sciences faculty and students from Vanderbilt, Fisk University, Tennessee State University, Berea College and Tougaloo College. It was funded by Mellon Partners for the Humanities Education Collaboration Grant awarded by the Department of Arts and Science. Vanderbilt medicine, health and society major Janet Mariadoss was one of the student fellows. MORE
| |
Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy to host virtual discussion on new approaches to climate change
Issues of climate change and sustainability have often been associated with liberal causes and voices. But researchers agree that taking steps to alleviate damage to the environment will require bipartisan action—and partnerships with private enterprises that transcend politics. Professor Michael Vandenbergh, who holds the David Daniels Allen Distinguished Chair in Law at Vanderbilt Law School, will discuss these issues with environmental activist Benji Backer in a virtual event being hosted by the Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy. Vandenbergh leads Vanderbilt’s Climate Change Research Network and is co-author of the book Beyond Politics: The Private Governance Response to Climate Change. Backer is president of the American Conservation Coalition and was named to the 2020 Forbes 30 Under 30 list. The virtual event is free and open to the public and will be Thursday, Feb. 24, at 12:30 p.m. CT. Registration is required. When attendees register, there will be an opportunity to submit questions for the Q&A session. MORE
| |
|
Follow the Office of Federal Relations on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube!
| |
VUbrief summarizes Vanderbilt news items to inform our Congressional community of developments at the university. Visit our website for past issues of VUbrief. Vanderbilt University Office of Federal Relations (202) 216-4361
| |
|
|
|
|