Bridging past with progress: My mission in the world of polymers.

Akorfa Dagadu is a winner of the fourth annual Rising Black Scientists Awards for a scholar in the physical, data, earth, and environmental sciences. We asked emerging Black scientists to tell us about their scientific vision and goals, experiences that sparked their interest in science, how they want to contribute to a more inclusive scientific community, and how these all fit together on their journey. This is her story.

Resilient wings, tangible impact: My journey from chrysalis to changemaker in STEM.

Jaye Antoinette Wilson is a winner of the fourth annual Rising Black Scientists Award for a scholar in the physical, data, earth, and environmental sciences. We asked emerging Black scientists to tell us about their scientific vision and goals, experiences that sparked their interest in science, how they want to contribute to a more inclusive scientific community, and how these all fit together on their journey. This is her story.

From the operating table to global science: How a near-death experience sparked my passion for life.

Kevin Christopher Brown Jr. is a winner of the fourth annual Rising Black Scientists Awards for a scholar in the life and health sciences. We asked emerging Black scientists to tell us about their scientific vision and goals, experiences that sparked their interest in science, how they want to contribute to a more inclusive scientific community, and how these all fit together on their journey. This is his story.

Enough with "the shakes": Fighting Parkinson's as a Black researcher and a community organizer.

Senegal Alfred Mabry is a winner of the fourth annual Rising Black Scientists Awards for a scholar in the life and health sciences. We asked emerging Black scientists to tell us about their scientific vision and goals, experiences that sparked their interest in science, how they want to contribute to a more inclusive scientific community, and how these all fit together on their journey. This is his story.

One less weary smile.

Camryn Carter is the winner of the third annual Rising Black Scientists Award for an undergraduate scholar in the physical, data, earth, and environmental sciences. For this award, we asked emerging Black scientists to tell us about their scientific vision and goals, experiences that sparked their interest in science, how they want to contribute to a more inclusive scientific community, and how these all fit together on their journey. This is her story.

My Christmas holidays.

Admirabilis Kalolella Jr. is the winner of the third annual Rising Black Scientists Award for an undergraduate scholar in the life and health sciences. For this award, we asked emerging Black scientists to tell us about their scientific vision and goals, experiences that sparked their interest in science, how they want to contribute to a more inclusive scientific community, and how these all fit together on their journey. This is his story.

Achieving diversity and equity through inclusion.

Elijah Malik Persad-Paisley is the winner of the third annual Rising Black Scientists Award for a graduate/postdoctoral scholar in the life and health sciences. For this award, we asked emerging Black scientists to tell us about their scientific vision and goals, experiences that sparked their interest in science, how they want to contribute to a more inclusive scientific community, and how these all fit together on their journey. This is his story.

The art and science of building castles in the sky and houses of cards that don't collapse.

The creative process in art and science involves two phases-generating and exploring new and wild ideas (building castles in the sky) and then narrowing down and focusing on the most tractable and useful ones (building houses of cards that don't topple over).

Celebrating scientific excellence and global health impact: The 2022 Canada Gairdner Awards.

From mRNA vaccines to community interventions in global child health, the 2022 Canada Gairdner awards demonstrate the importance of fundamental science and its translation into improved human health and well-being.

The common sense of the community.

Maternal and childhood mortality are health indicators that show very wide gaps between rich and poor, and between countries. The 2022 John Dirks Global Health Award recognizes Zulfiqar Bhutta "for the development and evaluation of evidenced-based interventions in child and maternal health for marginalized populations, focusing on outcomes for the 'first thousand days' of life." Cell editor Nicole Neuman caught up with Zulfiqar to discuss how he became passionate about maternal and child health, how mentors have shaped his career, and the lessons of his work for high-income countries. Excerpts of the conversation are presented below and have been edited for clarity and conciseness.

Underrepresentation of Asian awardees of United States biomedical research prizes.

The lack of racial diversity among the winners of United States biomedical research prizes reflects a chronic problem of the underappreciation of certain groups of biomedical scientists. Asians continue to be severely underrepresented as awardees of United States biomedical research prizes, a trend that shows no obvious recent improvement.

Before you call the midwife.

The 2022 Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award is presented to Yuk Ming Dennis Lo of the Chinese University of Hong Kong for the discovery of fetal DNA in maternal blood, leading to development of noninvasive prenatal testing for Down syndrome.

We like neurons.

Charleese Williams is the winner of the 2021 Rising Black Scientists Award for an undergraduate scholar. For this award, we asked emerging Black scientists to tell us about the experiences that sparked their interest in the life sciences, their vision and goals, and how they want to contribute to a more inclusive scientific community. This is her story.

Cancer stem cells: The adventurous journey from hematopoietic to leukemic stem cells.

This year's Gairdner Foundation Award for Biomedical Research is awarded to John Dick for the discovery of leukemic stem cells and the hierarchical organization of acute myeloid leukemias. His work laid the foundation for the cancer stem cell model with numerous clinical implications for hematopoietic malignancies and solid tumors.

Bringing research to the intensive care setting.

Dr. Deborah J. Cook's contributions in the field of critical care have not only impacted the intensive care unit (ICU) patients she treats and countless others worldwide but have also helped establish research programs and clinical trials as integral components of improving care and outcomes for the most seriously ill. Lara Szewczak spoke with Dr. Cook, recipient of the 2022 Canada Gairdner Wightman award, about critical care research, her reflections on the COVID-19 pandemic, and her views on mentorship. An edited version of this conversation is presented below.

Of mice and men: From hematopoiesis in mouse models to curative gene therapy for sickle cell disease.

Through studies in mice and in humans, Stuart Orkin showed that GATA-1 is a master transcriptional regulator of hematopoiesis. He has highlighted the role of BCL11A in the fetal-adult hemoglobin switch. The Gairdner Foundation Award recognizes Orkin's contribution to the development of gene therapy of sickle cell disease.

Science as a tool for justice.

Elle Lett is the winner of the 2021 Rising Black Scientists Award for a post-graduate scholar. For this award, we asked emerging Black scientists to tell us about the experiences that sparked their interest in the life sciences, their vision and goals, and how they want to contribute to a more inclusive scientific community. This is her story.

The gripping story of integrins.

The foundational research recognized by this year's Lasker Basic Science Research Award "for discoveries concerning the integrins-key mediators of cell-matrix and cell-cell adhesion in physiology and disease" reaches back to the 1970s.

The surprise element: A hallmark of creativity in scientists, artists, and comedians.

Truly creative works of science and art produce unexpected and surprising results-just like the punch line of a good joke that generates an unfamiliar twist on a familiar idea. Surprise stimulates curiosity, which triggers a search to reveal the mystery of things unknown.

Unexpected pairings.

Being able to precisely turn on or off particular neurons in the brain at will was a major challenge for the neuroscience field, and few could have anticipated that the solution would come from algae. The 2021 Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award recognizes the contributions of Peter Hegemann, Dieter Oesterhelt, and Karl Deisseroth for their discovery of light-sensitive microbial proteins that can activate or silence brain cells. Cell editor Nicole Neuman had a conversation with Peter Hegemann about his role in bridging the two fields of microbial phototaxis and neuroscience and his perspective on the nature and future of interdisciplinary science. Excerpts from this conversation are presented below, and the full conversation is available with the article online.