A Journey to Discovery in the Amazon’s Sky Islands
A Journey to Discovery in the Amazon’s Sky Islands
This post is a heartfelt shout-out to our incredible collaborators in Brazil, including the lab where I earned my Ph.D. They recently embarked on a groundbreaking expedition to an unexplored region of the Amazon, uncovering its untapped biodiversity. This effort to explore, discover, catalog, and share the unknown is often labeled as “basic” or “fundamental” research, as opposed to “applied” work. Yet, this foundational research is essential—not just for advancing human knowledge, but for the survival of humanity and the health of our planet itself. As such, other research may be as important as this but not more important.
In November 2022, a team of 14 researchers from the University of São Paulo embarked on an extraordinary expedition to the “roof of Brazil” with a bold mission: to uncover new species of plants, mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians.
Reaching this pivotal moment in Brazilian science required nearly a year of intricate logistics, made possible through coordination with the Brazilian Army. These scientists ventured into truly uncharted territory—places where no researcher had ever set foot before and where even the native population does not venture.
For 12 challenging days—facing mud, cold, rain, mist, and unstable terrain—the team forged new paths in the pursuit of species that will illuminate the evolutionary story of the Amazon’s lesser-known regions.
This expedition is a testament to the power of science, curiosity, and resilience, advancing our understanding of the world’s most biodiverse biome.
This December 14, 2024, we attended the commencement ceremony of three of our past Master’s students, Prudvi Raj Ragi, Tulasi Arla, and Shivam Patel. The Phyloinformatics Lab congratulates them for their academic achievements and wishes them a well-deserved bright future.
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