The field unites principles in biology, engineering and earth sciences to develop scalable solutions to urgent environmental, social and economic challenges.

A single water sample can reveal DNA from animals, plants, fungi and even human waste, offering a rapid snapshot of ecosystem health.

Scientists have uncovered more than 1,700 new proteins that could have implications for human diseases, including cancer. Mostly very small, these proteins were found in what’s called the ‘dark proteome’, which covers gene products from previously overlooked sections of DNA. These proteins have unusual properties, motivating scientists to coin a new concept, peptideins, to help understand their potentially unique biology. Their findings are being shared with scientists worldwide in an open-source format to stimulate further research.