Traveling to the ends of the earth in pursuit of biological quarry is not part of the job description for the average molecular biologist. But for anthropologist Don Melnick, going to work means trekking through the jungles of Southeast Asia for blood samples from the Javan silvery gibbon and other endangered animals. And the jobs of geneticist John Avise and biologist Brian Bowen entail long nights on tropical beaches waiting for nesting sea turtles. The following are the top ecology journal

WASHINGTON—David Challinor smiles as he explains how Smithsonian Institution scientists benefit from about a dozen National Science Foundation grants even though Congress has prohibited the organization from asking NSF for money. "It just takes some imagination. One way is to join a consortium. Another is to approach the NSF with a project it wants done. As any Washington bureaucrat knows, there's more than one way to skin a cat." In fact, the 66-year-old Challinor knows more than most bur