Perspectives in 2021

The reasons for concern framework are an effective visualisation of climate change related risks. Here, the authors propose a new framework by which different levels of uncertainty can be included into this aggregated assessment in order to ensure a transparent communication of risks.

Cooperation is vulnerable to cheating, and both cooperation and cheating may be especially common in viruses. Here, Leeks et al. place diverse examples of viral cooperation and cheating within an evolutionary framework, highlighting opportunities emerging from greater synthesis of virology and evolutionary theory.

The number of publicly available proteomics datasets is growing rapidly, but a standardized approach for describing the associated metadata is lacking. Here, the authors propose a format and a software pipeline to present and validate metadata, and integrate them into ProteomeXchange repositories.

The microbiome is becoming recognized as a key determinant of host phenotype. Here, Henry et al. present a framework for building our understanding of how the microbiome also influences host evolution, review empirical examples and research approaches, and highlight emerging questions.

Vast, ancient impact basins scattered mantle materials across the lunar surface. We review lunar evolution models to identify candidate mantle lithologies, then assess orbital observations to evalutae the current distribution of these materials and implications for fundamental planetary processes.

A key feature of living cells is the cell cycle. In this Perspective, the authors explore attempts to recreate this process and what is still required for an integrated synthetic cell cycle.

Many different methods have been developed to forecast climate phenomena like the El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) which makes a fair comparison of their capabilities crucial. In this perspective, the authors discuss how choices in the evaluation method can lead to an overestimated perceived skill of ENSO forecasts.

Racism thrives in geoscience. We present an antiracism plan to support the recruitment, retention and success of Black, Indigenous, and other people of color in geoscience. Our action plan can be adapted by any organization to remove barriers to participation for all marginalized geoscientists.

The ocean supports many livelihoods, but this is currently not sustainable with pressures on the climate and ecosystems. Here, in this perspective, the authors outline the barriers and solutions for financing a sustainable ocean economy.

Effective biological engineering requires the acknowledgement of evolution and its consideration during the design process. In this perspective, the authors present the concept of the evotype to reason about and shape the evolutionary potential of natural and engineered biosystems.

Transcranial electrical stimulation techniques may enable exploration of the role of neural oscillations in the brain. Here, the authors provide a perspective on its potential across systems, species, theoretical and experimental scales.

Negative emission technologies are central to avoiding catastrophic climate change. Deploying engineered solutions such as direct air capture requires a policy sequencing strategy that focuses on “incentives + mandates” in early adopters, while creating positive spillovers that incentivize follower countries to take policy action.

Endocrine therapy has been the mainstay for hormone responsive breast cancer treatment. Here, Garcia-Martinez and colleagues discuss epigenetic mechanisms regulating ER + breast cancer and endocrine therapy resistance, and highlight approaches to rewire the cancer epigenome to improve targeted therapies for this cancer.

Current developments in synthetic biology are not immediately applicable outside of the controlled laboratory environment. In this Perspective, the authors outline the advances and challenges the field faces in operating in resource limited and off-the-grid scenarios.

Pain management is an extremely important topic both medically and socio-economically. Here the authors offer an overview of the use of degrading polymeric materials for delivery of pharmaceutical agents for pain management and offer a perspective of the future directions of the field.

Enantioselective functionalization of ubiquitous C(sp³)–H bonds via radical species has witnessed a renaissance in the past years. Here, the authors summarize the main achievements in the field by identifying two main reaction pathways determining the stereochemistry and give an outlook on future challenges and opportunities.

Synthetic biology engineering principles enable two-way communication between living and inanimate substrates. Here the authors consider the development of this bio-informational exchange and propose cyber-physical architectures and applications.