New analysis of Texas’ constitutional amendment election shows significantly higher voter turnout than usual for an odd-year contest — and SMU political science professor Cal Jillson says national political dynamics likely played a major role. Nearly 3 million Texans cast ballots statewide, with Dallas County turnout reaching 16%, far exceeding expectations and adding more than […]
SMU Earth Sciences professor Stephen Arrowsmith and the University’s geophysics team have developed pocket-sized “Sapphire” microbarometers that can detect low-frequency atmospheric waves traveling thousands of miles—signals from distant earthquakes, ocean waves, volcanic activity, and more. By scaling production of these small, inexpensive sensors, SMU researchers are opening new possibilities for large-scale infrasound and seismic experiments. […]
A new study using fire-scarred trees in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) journal has documented extensive fire management practices by Western Apache people that significantly reduced the climate’s influence on fire activity across their homeland. The research, led by SMU fire scientist Christopher Roos, analyzed 649 fire-scarred trees from 34 sites in Western Apache […]
When COVID-19 closed physical laboratories, SMU doctoral student Juliana Rodriguez Antonio made a decision that would reshape her career. Unable to conduct hands-on experiments, she switched to computer modeling, a move that has led to research on how protein modifications could improve our understanding of enzyme design. Antonio’s most recent findings, published in a celebratory […]
This article originally appeared in the November/December 2025 Issue of Poets & Writers Magazine At a time when literary arts organizations across the United States are struggling for funding, a unique partnership between SMU’s Project Poëtica and Dallas-based literary organization and nonprofit publishing house Deep Vellum is helping fuel a hungry literary scene in Dallas. […]
Texas could soon lead the nation in dementia prevention and research. A new ballot measure–Proposition 14–would establish the Dementia Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (DPRIT), backed by $3 billion in state funding. The initiative is modeled after the state’s cancer research institute and aims to accelerate breakthroughs in Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other neurodegenerative diseases. […]
The Smithsonian’s Sea Monsters Unearthed exhibit—co-produced with the Institute for the Study of Earth and Man (ISEM) at SMU—is embarking on a national tour. The exhibit, originally developed at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C., was shaped by the groundbreaking research and expertise of SMU paleontologists Louis L. Jacobs and Michael […]
Grant part of America 250 initiative to immerse K-12 teachers in history of America’s founding DALLAS (SMU) Thursday, Oct. 16, 2025 – SMU Center for Presidential History (CPH) has been awarded approximately $1.5 million from the U.S. Department of Education’s American History and Civics National Activities Grant Program as part of the federal government’s America […]
Dr. Louis L. Jacobs, Emeritus Professor in the Roy M. Huffington Department of Earth Sciences at SMU, is a distinguished vertebrate paleontologist whose career spans research, teaching, and leadership on four continents. A past president of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology and the Institute for the Study of Earth and Man, he has received numerous […]
Heather DeShon, professor and department chair of the Roy M. Huffington Department of Earth Sciences, was recently interviewed by Bloomberg News for their documentary, “The Looming Disaster Under America’s Biggest Oil Fields.” Watch the video here: https://lnkd.in/gv4XxudN