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1. In Defense of Merit in Science

   https://doi.org/10.35995/jci03010001  

   Abbot, D.; Bikfalvi, A.; Bleske-Rechek, A.L.; Bodmer, W.; Boghossian, P.; Carvalho, C.M.; Ciccolini, J.; Coyne, J.A.; Gauss, J.; Gill, P.M.W.; et al (April 2023, Journal of Controversial Ideas)

   Merit is a central pillar of liberal epistemology, humanism, and democracy. The scientific enterprise, built on merit, has proven effective in generating scientific and technological advances, reducing suffering, narrowing social gaps, and improving the quality of life globally. This perspective documents the ongoing attempts to undermine the core principles of liberal epistemology and to replace merit with non-scientific, politically motivated criteria. We explain the philosophical origins of this conflict, document the intrusion of ideology into our scientific institutions, discuss the perils of abandoning merit, and offer an alternative, human-centered approach to address existing social inequalities. 

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2. The importance of selection in the evolution of blindness in cavefish

   https://doi.org/10.1186/s12862-017-0876-4  

   Cartwright, Reed A.; Schwartz, Rachel S.; Merry, Alexandra L.; Howell, Megan M. (December 2017, BMC Evolutionary Biology)
3. Projections of physical conditions in the Gulf of Maine in 2050

   https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.2020.20.00055  

   Brickman, David; Alexander, Michael A.; Pershing, Andrew; Scott, James D. (January 2021, Elementa)
4. Rates of Evolution of Developmental Changes in Gene Expression in Sordariomycetes

   https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msaf131  

   Wang, Yen-Wen; Wang, Fen; Meng, Guoliang; Lopez-Giraldez, Francesc; Dong, Caihong; Wang, Zheng; Townsend, Jeffrey_P; Josephs, ed., Emily (June 2025, Molecular Biology and Evolution)

   Abstract The phenotype of an organism is shaped by gene expression within developing tissues. This shaping relates the evolution of gene expression to phenotypic evolution, through divergence in gene expression and consequent phenotype. Rates of phenotypic evolution receive extensive attention. However, the degree to which divergence in the phenotype of gene expression is subject to heterogeneous rates of evolution across developmental stages has not previously been assessed. Here, we analyzed the evolution of the expression of single-copy orthologs within 9 species of Sordariomycetes Fungi, across 9 developmental stages within asexual spore germination and sexual reproduction. Rates of gene expression evolution exhibited high variation both within and among developmental stages. Furthermore, rates of gene expression evolution were correlated with nonsynonymous to synonymous substitution rates (dN/dS), suggesting that gene sequence evolution and expression evolution are indirectly or directly driven by common evolutionary forces. Functional pathway analyses demonstrate that rates of gene expression evolution are higher in labile pathways such as carbon metabolism, and lower in conserved pathways such as those involved in cell cycle and molecular signaling. Lastly, the expression of genes in the meiosis pathway evolved at a slower rate only across the stages where meiosis took place, suggesting that stage-specific low rates of expression evolution implicate high relevance of the genes to developmental operations occurring between those stages. 

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5. Role of International Research Experiences in the Development of Women of Color in Chemistry

   https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.1c00518  

   Davis, Raeshan D.; Winfield, Leyte; Spivak, David; Wilson-Kennedy, Zakiya S. (September 2021, Journal of Chemical Education)