NESCent’s scientific mission is to advance research that
addresses fundamental questions in evolutionary science by
integrating methods, concepts, and data within and across
disciplines. For more on the context and a classification of
synthesis in evolutionary science please read Linking Big: The
Continuing Promise of Evolutionary Synthesis. Highlights from
NESCent Science activities include - Measuring evolutionary
change in modern human populations through analysis of a 60-year
study of human health known as the Framingham Heart Study -
Addressing the origins and evolution of chemoreception from
bacteria to mammals - Tracking major changes in body size
through the 3.5 billion years of life on Earth and tying them to
major climatic events and the evolution of complexity -
Exploring the consequences of removing or relaxing natural
selection and examining why certain traits persist - Revealing
how climatic variation controls the evolution of bird song and
how quickly plants can adapt to climate change - Docume