Open-source instructions for focused ultrasound provide cancer research boost
Jun. 30, 2016—Focused ultrasound is FDA-approved to treat three medical conditions and under investigation to treat dozens more. Just this week, popular TV journalist and surgeon Dr. Sanjay Gupta explored the topic of focused ultrasound (FUS) as an experimental treatment for Parkinson’s disease. But the needed equipment costs hundreds of thousands of dollars and is tough to find,...
13 cross-college collaborative projects win TIPs funding
Jun. 2, 2016—(Vanderbilt University) Thirteen interdisciplinary projects, ranging from cellular processes and smart cities to global health care issues, have been selected as the 2016 awardees of the Trans-Institutional Program (TIPs) initiative. These projects, which involve more than 100 faculty from all of Vanderbilt’s 10 colleges and schools, advance discovery and learning, with many of them providing...
‘Young Scientist’ showcases high schoolers’ research at Vanderbilt
Jun. 2, 2016—As it has for the past six years, Vanderbilt University has provided the opportunity for high school students, including 11 from Metropolitan Nashville public schools, to have the research they conducted at Vanderbilt published in a journal. Young Scientist is the brainchild of Jens Meiler, associate professor of chemistry, and Chris Vanags, associate director of the...
Congressional caucus briefed on health disparities among boys and men
May. 26, 2016—Speakers at “Eliminating Health Disparities Among Men and Boys: forum May 24, 2016, in Washington, D.C. (left to right): Roland Thorpe, Wizdom Powell, Arthur Blume, Derek Griffith Masculinity is important but it is not the reason boys and men of color or sexual minority males live shorter, sicker lives than their peers, said Vanderbilt professor...
Using virtual reality to help teenagers with autism learn how to drive
May. 23, 2016—Astronauts and pilots use them. So do truck drivers and Formula One race car drivers. Now there is a virtual reality simulator specifically designed to help teenagers with autism spectrum disorder, or ASD, learn how to drive. According to current estimates, one in every 68 children in the United States has ASD. It is considered...
School of Medicine graduates urged to make positive impact
May. 19, 2016—School of Medicine graduating students and faculty members gather for a photo following Commencement. (photo by Anne Rayner) From the minute students accept entrance into Vanderbilt University School of Medicine (VUSM) they have made many life-changing choices. As they navigate medical school and make decisions about the kind of doctors they want to be, the...
Williams to lead physician-scientist training program
May. 19, 2016—Christopher Williams, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of Medicine and Cancer Biology, was recently named associate dean for Vanderbilt University School of Medicine’s Physician-Scientist Education and Training Program (PSTP) and director of the Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP). Christopher Williams, M.D., Ph.D. Williams succeeds Terence Dermody, M.D., MSTP director since 2003, who is leaving Vanderbilt to...
The Chronicle of Higher Education: Building a Better ‘Bridge’ to the Ph.D.
May. 19, 2016—Below is an excerpt of a feature story by Vimal Patel that appeared in The Chronicle of Higher Education May 19, 2016: Feelings of academic inadequacy are common in graduate school, but diversity advocates say they hit black, Hispanic, and American Indian students harder because those groups are sharply underrepresented in academe, especially in science and...
Free symposium on autism, neuroscience and perceptual thinking
May. 18, 2016—Instead of focusing exclusively on the impairments experienced by individuals with autism spectrum disorder, some researchers in neuroscience, psychology and artificial intelligence are concentrating on the cognitive diversity and strengths of individuals with ASD. They argue that this approach will not only improve our understanding of the condition but will also promote better social engagement...