Breaking new ground and building understanding — through whale earwax

History is embedded in, of all places, whale earwax. Scientists have long examined the layers found in a whale’s earwax to determine its age (not unlike the rings found on a tree), but it wasn’t until two Baylor professors learned you could also learn more about their environment through earwax research that we realized just […]

Baylor Professor Named as One of “Fifty Minds that Matter” by Roman Catholic Periodical

WACO, Texas (Dec. 10, 2018) – John Haldane, Ph.D., The J. Newton Rayzor Sr. Distinguished Professor of Philosophy in Baylor University’s College of Arts & Sciences, was named to “Fifty Minds that Matter: artists, scientists, philosophers, theologians, musicians and architects who are shaping the modern world,” a list published by The Tablet. This follows his being named one of “The Fifty Most Influential Living Philosophers” by TheBestSchools in 2016.

Baylor Professor Named as One of “Fifty Minds that Matter” by Roman Catholic Periodical

Baylor Psychologist Sara Dolan, Ph.D., Recognized by the American Psychological Association

WACO, Texas (Dec. 10, 2018) – Sara Dolan, Ph.D., associate professor of psychology and neuroscience in Baylor University’s College of Arts & Sciences and director of the doctor of clinical psychology (Psy.D.) graduate program, has been recognized as one of 30 “Citizen Psychologists” by the president of the American Psychological Association.

Baylor Psychologist Sara Dolan, Ph.D., Recognized by the American Psychological Association

HealthDay: Sleep, Don't Cram, Before Finals for Better Grades

Dec. 10, 2018
It's a college tradition to pull "all-nighters" during final exams. But students may get better grades if they simply go to bed early, two new studies from Baylor University suggest. Researchers found that students who met an "8-hour sleep challenge" during finals week did better on their exams than those who slept less. The results prove that the college ritual of "cramming" is not necessary for success -- and may actually be counterproductive, said study authors Michael Scullin, Ph.D., director of Baylor’s Sleep Neuroscience and Cognition Laboratory, and Elise King, assistant professor of interior design in Baylor’s Robbins College of Health and Human Sciences. HealthDay is the largest syndicator of health news to consumer and health news websites.

In Park Magazine: Stephanie Young named new head of Hong Kong Disneyland Resort

Dec. 7, 2018
Stephanie Young, B.B.A. (Taxation) ’86, has been appointed managing director of Hong Kong Disneyland Resort (HKDL) by Disney Parks, Experiences and Consumer Products, effective Feb. 1, 2019. Young has a distinguished 26-year career with The Walt Disney Company, holding leadership positions across the areas of operations, business, finance and information technology.

KWBU-FM (Waco/NPR): David and Art – At the Art Show

Dec. 10, 2018
AUDIO: On the weekly radio feature “David and Art,” David Smith, Ph.D., senior lecturer of history in Baylor’s College of Arts & Sciences, discusses how buying an original work of art is a worthwhile endeavor. Smith hosts this weekly feature that focuses on how history illuminates the arts and the arts illuminate history.

KXXV-TV (Waco, Temple, Killeen/FOX: Baylor professors offer 'extra credit' for extra sleep

Dec. 7, 2018
VIDEO: Students who achieved extra points for averaging eight hours of sleep a night during final exams week – a challenge offered by two Baylor researchers – did better on their finals, and that was independent of the extra points. Interviewed are Elise King, assistant professor of interior design in Baylor’s Robbins College of Health and Human Sciences, and Michael Scullin, Ph.D., director of Baylor’s Sleep Neuroscience and Cognition Laboratory, who collaborated on the research. Katey Bourget, a junior interior design major who met the challenge, said that getting the recommended amount of sleep during the stressful week “proved to me, it’s possible you can do it and there’s plenty of time to set aside for sleep and still get everything done and you feel so much better doing it.”

Popular Science: How 5 Everyday Products Have Changed Through the Ages

Dec. 10, 2018
Lorynn Divita, Ph.D., associate professor of family and consumer sciences in Baylor’s Robbins College of Health and Human Sciences and author of the textbook “Fashion Forecasting,” is quoted in this article about the origin stories of five popular items, including blue jeans, and how they’ve grown into our go-to products through the years.

Siloam Springs (AR) Herald Leader: Dustin's Dream lives on

Dec. 9, 2018
Baylor University student Dustin Chamberlain was tragically killed while home in Arkansas on Christmas break in 2011, and as part of his family’s healing, they started a foundation – Dustin’s Dream – to honor his life and carry on his dream of serving others through medical missions. Since then, the organization has raised money to build and then expand the Heart of Love Clinic in Guatemala City, while supporting half of the clinic's operating costs in partnership with Life of Hope Ministry. The foundation also provides funding for medical mission trips and medical scholarships for students in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, and at Baylor.

The Dallas Morning News: The radical, revolutionary faith of Christmas spirituals

Dec. 6, 2018
The Dallas Morning News brings back a December 2016 column by Robert Darden, professor of journalism, public relations and new media in Baylor’s College of Arts & Sciences, about the “Eternal Now” of African-American Christmas spirituals. The songs. Darden writes, contain “a spectacular intimacy only rarely found in the Christmas hymns or carols of other traditions.” Darden is author of two dozen books, including “Nothing But Love in God's Water, Volume II: Black Sacred Music from Sit-Ins to Resurrection City,” and founder of Baylor’s Black Gospel Music Restoration Project to preserve and digitize recordings from the “Golden Age” of American black gospel music.

The Times (London): Top marks: scientists show sleep is key to exam success

Dec. 7, 2018
(Subscription required for full text) Pulling an all-nighter to cram for exams has long been a rite of passage for university students, but research from Baylor University suggests that those who prioritize sleep achieve better grades. Students who were given an incentive to sleep at least eight hours a night in the run-up to their final exams achieved better academic results than their peers.

Tulsa World: Financial: Derek Johnston, Morgan Stanley

Dec. 2, 2018
Derek Johnston, B.A. (Business Administration) ’95, has joined Morgan Stanley’s Wealth Management office in Tulsa as senior vice president, financial advisor. Johnston was named one of the top 40 advisors under 40 by “On Wall Street” in 2009.

Baptist Press: Charles Sullivan, former Indiana exec, dies at 88

Dec. 3, 2018
Charles W. Sullivan, B.A. (Religion) ’51, who became the Indiana Baptist convention's executive director after 42 years in the pastorate, died Nov. 27 at his home in Knoxville, Tenn., at age 88.

Bladen Journal (Elizabethtown, NC): Bladen Community College chooses new president

Dec. 6, 2018
Amanda Lee, Ph.D., B.A. (Telecommunication) ’88, M.A. (Journalism) ’90, has been named president of Bladen Community College. Lee was most recently chief of staff and vice president of academic affairs at Union College in Barbourville, Kentucky. Lee also has been the president of Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington, N.C.

Church Times (UK): Where next for contemporary worship music?

Dec. 7, 2018
Monique Ingalls, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Baylor School of Music, author of the new book, “Singing the Congregation: How Contemporary Worship Music Forms Evangelical Community,” is quoted throughout this article that explores the history of worship music and the challenges that it faces.

KWBU-FM (Waco/NPR): Baylor Connections – Randall Bradley, D.M.A., Ben H. Williams Professor of Music and Director of Church Music Program

Dec. 7, 2018
AUDIO: Baylor’s Center for Christian Music Studies trains students and develops professionals in all aspects of Christian music. On this week’s episode of Baylor Connections, host Derek Smith interviews Randall Bradley, D.M.A., The Ben H. Williams Professor of Music and director of the CCMS in the Baylor School of Music, who examines Christian music from a variety of angles and shares more about the program’s tradition of excellence in classrooms and houses of worship across the nation. Baylor Connections is a weekly radio program/podcast that introduces the people behind Baylor’s teaching, research and distinct role in higher education.

Los Angeles Review of Books: Christianity and Resistance: An Interview with Alan Jacobs

Oct. 1, 2018
Q&A with Alan Jacobs, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor of English in Honors Program of the Honors College, a noted C.S. Lewis biographer and author of the new book, “The Year of Our Lord 1943: Christian Humanism in an Age of Crisis.”

Medicalresearch.com: Want to Get Better Grades? Get More Sleep

Dec. 4, 2018
Q&A with Michael Scullin, Ph.D., director of Baylor’s Sleep Neuroscience and Cognition Laboratory, about studies in which he and fellow Baylor faculty member Elise King, assistant professor of interior design, found that students performed better on final exams if they took “The 8-hour Challenge” — averaging 8 hours of sleep a night during finals week. “Extra credit points are a powerful motivator: 90 percent of students will sleep more than 7 hours a night and 50 percent will sleep more than 8 hours/night, if incentivized to do so... We found that they did a few points better (prior to extra credit being added and when controlling for pre-final exam grades).”