By Rebecca Longo

Top, l to r: Eli O’Neal, Chase Carleton, Melynda Price (director). Middle: Claire Hilbrecht, Josh Ehl, Carson Hardee. Front: Aileen Tierney, Hannah Thomas, Bria Northington, Daniela Gamez. Not pictured: Will Kueshner, Nicole Blackstone, Megan Yadav.

The University of Kentucky Gaines Center for the Humanities has selected 12 undergraduate students as new scholars for the Gaines Fellowship Program.

The Gaines Fellowship is presented in recognition of outstanding academic performance, demonstrated ability to conduct independent research, an interest in public issues and a desire to enhance understanding of the human condition through the humanities. Founded in 1984 by a generous gift

Psychology/Neuroscience Professors Mark Fillmore and Mark Prendergast received a 5-year,  $1.7 million grant from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism to train the next generation of scientists who study alcohol. These funds will support 5 outstanding graduate students conducting basic or applied alcohol research from across UK's campus. Each student will be supported for a period of 2 years. This funding, from an arm of the National Institutes of Health, is tax payer funded. At UK, we have the ability to study alcohol use, its risk factors and consequences at many levels of analysis and to integrate those findings in a collaborative manner to address our shared goals of better understanding risk factors for alcohol abuse, consequences of alcohol abuse and potential treatments of alcohol abuse.

https://www.

Major: Psychology

Senior Leadership Recruiter at Tesla *

I grew up in the Louisville area and went to Sacred Heart Academy. Go Valkyries!

I loved to play volleyball, tennis and swim. I’ve always loved interior design and art projects.

Growing up, we took a lot of trips in the conversion van, so I’ve actually been to 45 states! Today, my partner Anand and I try to travel as much as we can, but we usually choose a plane over the van :).

I was the kid wearing tie dye and reminding everyone to recycle, which is probably why I ended up at Tesla!

My dad went to UK and it was

The autism-related research of UK alum and neuroscientist Dr. Blair Braden was featured recently on social media outlets of the Society for Neuroscience. Blair worked in the lab of Dr. Mark Prendergast many years ago, and attended graduate school at Arizona State University, where she is now a professor.

"Telomere twist: Blair Braden, assistant professor at Arizona State University, and colleagues reported work showing that children with autism have shorter telomeres than their typical peers. The effect is particularly strong in girls with autism. The findings add an interesting twist to the literature on sex differences in autism. More importantly, if shortened telomeres are a risk factor

By Lindsey Piercy

There's something immensely intriguing about true crime stories. You've probably fallen victim to binge watching various docuseries that feature fascinating tales of tragedies. Your latest obsession may have you wondering — why would someone torment people, especially those they don't even know?

By definition, a sadist is, "A person who derives pleasure from inflicting pain or humiliation on others." Instinctively, when one thinks of sadists, they think of serial killers. However, we all know sadists. According to David Chester, they are everywhere to varying degrees. In fact, sadists are commonly considered bullies.

"Sadistic tendencies are impulses that people have to experience pleasure from inflicting harm on others," he said. "These impulses exist in many people, not just violent criminals."

A new 

By Lindsey Piercy

Christia Spears Brown's professional roles as a researcher, teacher and advocate for public policy issues are integrated around her interests in issues of diversity and equality. Pete Comparoni | UK Photo.

Martin Luther King Jr. once famously said, “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Nearly 60 years later, his words are still a source of inspiration for those who seek justice — including Christia Spears Brown. As a professor in the Department of Psychology in the College of Arts & Sciences at the University of Kentucky, she strives to help society understand we are all connected, and spreading that message starts with educating the younger generation.

"I'm passionate about ensuring that all children, regardless of the social

By Lindsey Piercy

'Tis the season to be merry and bright! But you may be feeling less than joyful during the "most wonderful time of the year." Do you experience stress, anxiety or even depression from November to January? If so, you're not alone.

"It's pretty common. In my clinical and personal experience, I would say most, but not all, people report increased stress around the holidays. However, only a subset of vulnerable people experiences clinical problems, such as depression and anxiety, around these times," Michelle Martel, associate professor in the Department of Psychology, said. 

From impeccable wreaths to the tree surrounded by a mountain of gifts — creating the "perfect" holiday can add to existing stressors. "Including financial strain (from

Neuroscientists from the Department of Psychology in the College of Arts and Sciences and the Department of Behavioral Science in the College of Medicine have received an award from the National Institutes of Health to study cocaine use disorder from a new perspective.

Cocaine use disorder (CUD) is marked by the repeated decision to pursue and use cocaine over other available activities and goods. However, lab-based studies to date have not systematically investigated the decision-making processes that underlie the choice to use cocaine. The present translational, multidisciplinary project melds modern mathematical modeling techniques with state-of-the-art neuroscience methods to investigate the neurobehavioral processes that underlie cocaine-associated decision-making in real time. This innovative approach enables the simultaneous quantitative characterization of cocaine-