DeSantis DREAM Lab

Hi! I'm a paleontologist at Vanderbilt (@DeSantisLab) and @EvolutionVU. I study the ecology and evolution of ancient mammals, including humans (DeSantisLab.com). I have had the great fortune to be inspired by and work with amazing women! #WomenScienceDay #WomenInSTEM

We're really excited for this week's Earth Day events with Sharon Strauss visiting on Wednesday at 3:30pm in Buttrick 101 and a booth at #earthdaynash2024 on Saturday! Here are some photos from Nashville Earth Day 2022

We are celebrating Darwin Day a little early with our @EvolutionVU @VanderbiltU Darwin Day speaker @NeilShubin TODAY at 3:30pm. Can't wait!

Thanks for visiting @EvolutionVU, @DeSantisLab, and a special thanks to all the Vandy students who helped with the tour! We love studying ancient predators (@PredsNHL) @VanderbiltU and in Smashville (Nashville).

Embark on a fossil-filled expedition with the team behind the @Netflix series “Life on Our Planet” as they uncover the mysteries of the #TarPits!

Fun story about coyotes as adaptable survivors and it includes some of our published research... and we (@SaberCatWoman @AislingLaBrea @DrPardi @paleojosh @ReganDunn5 and many others) are currently working on learning even more about these coyotes! Stay tuned!

We discovered three new species of marsupial. Unfortunately, they're already extinct theconversation.com/we-discovered-… via @ConversationEDU

Happy Octobear! 🐻

Getting ready for The Grants to visit next week! This Friday's journal club features our trainees, Brynn and Samir talking about some of the Grants' work.

What a strange hybrid beast! Cross-species hybridization is well known among the Canis (dogs/wolves/coyotes/jackals) but I've never heard of CROSS-GENUS hybridization Here's a Dog X Pampas fox hybrid from the wild, two genera separated by 6.7 million yrs mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/1…

Another PhD opportunity! We are currently looking for a #PhD candidate to join our research team in the examination of cave sediments in #Australia using ancient and environmental #DNA (aDNA) techniques. griffith.edu.au/research-study…

🌡️New research on rising temps during the Ice Age on @undrstnd_evo (with discussion questions for your classroom! #STEM) #paleontology #pleistocene !

Join @lizard_barnacle on Friday! Learn about a groundbreaking framework bridging gaps in understanding b/n secular instructors and religious biology students to foster acceptance of evolution. #ScienceTalk #Inclusivity #EvolutionEd vanderbilt.edu/evolution/upco…

A new opinion piece in @sciam on the value of #paleontology by the @PaleoSoc ad hoc committee on employment, including one of our members! scientificamerican.com/article/paleon…

Please join us during the virtual meeting for the Future Vertebrate Paleontology discussion panel! Moderator Dr. Laura Wilson will be chatting with a fantastic group of innovative researchers on their work, their outlooks, plus taking audience questions. vertpaleo.org/2023-virtual-m…

What's wildlife disease risk analysis and why should we be implementing them? 🤔 Tune in this Friday to find out! 🐨🐀🧑‍⚕️

📢JOB ALERT PLEASE RT📢 I am hiring a lab tech! Main responsibility will be segmenting and landmarking 🦎CT data as part of an NSF-funded project. I'll start reviewing applications on September 1, until the position is filled! to apply: bit.ly/3OJqynA

It's amazing to see this in print! Thanks @NSF for funding this major endeavor between six institutions including @labreatarpits @LoyolaMarymount @UCIrvine @marshallu @DesMoinesUniv and @VanderbiltU, plus so many more collaborators, staff, and volunteers!

Shown here are the youngest dated specimens of Harlan’s ground sloth, western camel, western horse, dire wolf, antique bison, and saber-toothed tiger. These fossils are the last known surviving members of their species. Learn more this week in Science: scim.ag/3LR

We made a short video! Check it out! Featuring @DeSantisLab, @KyleTheDavid, @kelly__tingle, @sciencewithtina, @KateTSnyder, and others!

Excited for the @EvolutionVU #EarthDay talk TODAY at 3:10pm.