A GFP-tagged nematode, and also a metaphor of sorts. Photo by Andy Peters.

Over at The Molecular Ecologist, I’m doing some musing about how scientific progress is shaped by what attracts the attention of scientists.

The probable selective impact of Joshua tree’s pollinators is obvious—it easily catches in the sieve of our attention and our desire to work with interesting critters. But I think it’s also fair to ask how much an interaction as specialized as the Joshua tree pollination mutualism actually tells us about the evolution of much more common, much less finely co-adapted relationships.

Do you ever worry that your study system limits what you can, well, study? Go read the whole thing, and tell us in the comments there.◼