Scientific activities take place within the structured sets of ideas and assumptions that define
a field and its practices. The conceptual framework of evolutionary biology emerged with the …

It is increasingly important to improve our understanding of the genetic basis of local
adaptation because of its relevance to climate change, crop and animal production, and …

Marine stickleback fish have colonized and adapted to thousands of streams and lakes
formed since the last ice age, providing an exceptional opportunity to characterize genomic …

The origin of biological diversity, via the formation of new species, can be inextricably linked
to adaptation to the ecological environment. Specifically, ecological processes are central to …

Repetitive elements in the human genome, once considered 'junk DNA', are now known to
adopt more than a dozen alternative (that is, non-B) DNA structures, such as self-annealed …

In recent years, scientists have realized that evolution can occur on timescales much shorter
than the" long lapse of ages" emphasized by Darwin—in fact, evolutionary change is …

Cis-regulatory sequences, such as enhancers and promoters, control development and
physiology by regulating gene expression. Mutations that affect the function of these …

With the completion of the human genome sequence, attention turned to identifying and
annotating its functional DNA elements. As a complement to genetic and comparative …

The evolution of phenotypic similarities between species, known as convergence, illustrates
that populations can respond predictably to ecological challenges. Convergence often …

Speciation, the evolution of reproductive isolation among populations, is continuous,
complex, and involves multiple, interacting barriers. Until it is complete, the effects of this …