Read about how basic science research changed the game, in the following five stories commissioned by the Science Philanthropy Alliance and featured in the January 5 edition of Nautil.us:

What Sea Slugs Taught Us About Our Brain — by Hillary Rosner

From the Bottom of the Sea to the Operating Table — by Emily Anthes

Why do Jellyfish Glow? — by Emily Willingham

From a Pink Squiggle to the Human Genome Project — by Maggie Koerth-Baker

The Man Who Kicked Off the Biotech Revolution — by Carl Zimmer