Excellent Science

About

Browse

The Excellent Science pillar aims to increase the EU’s global scientific competitiveness. It supports frontier research projects defined and driven by top researchers themselves through the European Research Council, funds fellowships for experienced researchers, doctoral training networks and exchanges for researchers through Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, and invests in world-class research infrastructures

Essay
Revised
Peer review process completed

Us and artificial intelligence: Questioning agency and the need for critical and humanist perspectives

Authors: Marco Guglielmo, Petra Ahrweiler, Oscar Barberà, Simon Dario Brockschmidt, Nathan Critch, Ana Luisa de Moraes Azenha, Alejandro Fernández Del Río, Crystal A. Ennis, Pedro García Guijarro, Eva Gomís Jaen, Darcy Luke, Blanca Luque Capellas, Michal Malý, Masoumeh Iran Mansouri, Andrea Medrado, Ben O'Loughlin, D'arcy Ritchie, Mar Sánchez Montell, Giulia Sandri, Carla Sentí Navarro, Saori Shibata, Henry Snowball, Andreu Teruel, Bradley Ward

Funders: Excellent Science, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA), Horizon Europe

Peer reviewers: David Bailey, Rebecca Scheffauer, Rosalie Waelen

Published: August 21, 2026
Systematic Review
Revised
Peer review process completed

Rebound effects in circular business models: A review of cases and mitigation strategies

Authors: Ankita Das, Daniel Guzzo, Daniela C. A. Pigosso, Nancy Bocken

Funders: European Research Council (ERC), Excellent Science, Horizon 2020

Peer reviewers: Changhee Kim, Christian Koldewey, Joël Ntsondé, Koen Dittrich, Konstantin Remke, Mariantonietta Ferrante, Teresa Paiva, Vivian Tunn

Published: May 7, 2026
Research Article

Peer review process completed

From True Believers to Institutional Skeptics: Classifying conspiracy theory supporters and their media consumption

Authors: Malgorzata Kurjanska

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)

Peer reviewers: Dan Romer, Lotte Pummerer, M Dentith

Published: September 2, 2025
Method Article
Revised
Peer review process completed

Assessing universities' practices on student diversity and inclusion in higher education: The INSTADINE rubric

Authors: Hemendra Mistry, Maria Cruz Sancehz Gomez

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)

Peer reviewers: Beatriz María Morgado Camacho, Martin Skutil

Published: January 12, 2026
Essay
Revised
Peer review process completed

The rise and flaws of the mission machine: A historical critique of research success metrics since the 1960s

Authors: Gabi Lombardo, Jonathan Deer, Poul Holm

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020

Peer reviewers: Carter Bloch, Maria del Mar RUBIO VARAS, Mario Coccia, Merle Jacob

Published: August 4, 2026
Research Article
Revised
Peer review process completed

Development of a systematic coarse-grained model for poly(ε-caprolactone) in melt

Authors: Petra Bačová, Gonzalo González Huarte, Vagelis Harmandaris, Sergio I. Molina

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA), Spreading Excellence and Widening Participation, Horizon Europe

Peer reviewers: Dimitrios Tsalikis, Paola Carbone, Sara Ranjbareslamloo, Tejas Shah

Published: December 24, 2025
Open Letter

Peer review process completed

Sustainable open data ecosystems through data quality, governance, and infrastructure: Unlocking social, political and economic value

Authors: Ramya Chandrasekhar, Melanie Dulong de Rosnay

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)

Peer reviewers: Arwid Lund, Enric Senabre Hidalgo, Sophie Weerts

Published: September 23, 2025
Research Article
Revised
Peer review process completed

A systematic exploration of current limitations of cognate-based phylogenetic inference

Authors: Luise Häuser, Gerhard Jäger, Alexandros Stamatakis

Funders: European Research Council (ERC), Excellent Science, Horizon 2020, Horizon Europe, Widening Participation and Strengthening the European Research Area

Peer reviewers: Angie Hinrichs, Osama Ali Salman

Published: January 28, 2026
Case Study

Peer review process completed

A roadmap for managing an ageing workforce in the manufacturing sector: An Italian case study

Authors: Niloofar Katiraee, Giulia Caprari, Ajay Das, Daria Battini

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)

Peer reviewers: Anna Corinna Cagliano, Antonella Petrillo, Lisa Meehan

Published: August 26, 2025
Research Article

Peer review process completed

Study of thickness distribution on a robotic rotational moulding system by experiment and simulation

Authors: Hangtian Zhou, Jarne Vanherck, Peter Martin, Elke Deckers

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)

Peer reviewers: António GASPAR-CUNHA, Jian Wang, Marek Szostak

Published: October 15, 2025
Research Article

Peer review process completed

Early prediction of potential hepatotoxic metabolites to aid lead selection in drug discovery

Authors: Linda Chiappalupi, Domingo Gargallo-Viola, Antoni Torrens

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)

Peer reviewers: VIVEK GOHEL

Published: October 7, 2025
Research Article
Revised
Peer review process completed

A Translator at Work: Samuel ben Judah of Marseilles’s Translation Notes on Alexander’s De Anima

Authors: Hanna Paulmann

Funders: European Research Council (ERC), Excellent Science, Horizon 2020

Peer reviewers: Daria Vasyutinsky Shapira, Jacobus Naudé, Michael Engel, Richard Pleijel, Yehuda Halper

Published: March 9, 2026
Research Article
Revised
Peer review process completed

Crizotinib and Darovasertib Significantly Reduce Metastatic Uveal Melanoma Cell Proliferation, Alone and In Combination

Authors: Ellie Swords, Eve O'Reilly, Toni Oladimeji, Michelle Carey, Valentina Tonelotto, Breandán N. Kennedy

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)

Peer reviewers: Daniel Delgado Bellido

Published: June 23, 2026
Systematic Review

Peer review process completed

Digital transformation of healthcare: Exploring paradoxes and the approaches to alternate between opposing demands.

Authors: Alejandra Rojas

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)

Peer reviewers: Brian Kee Mun Wong

Published: September 16, 2025
Research Article
Revised
Peer review process completed

Awareness and Acceptability of Prenatal Diagnosis of Sickle Cell Disease among Mothers of Affected Children in a Northern Nigerian Teaching Hospital

Authors: Aliyu RM, Sada SI, Adebiyi NM, Randawa AJ, Abdulkadir I, Ahmad HR

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)

Peer reviewers: Aisha Galadanci Akilu, Lori Jordan, Miguel Brito, Ravindra Kumar, Vincenzo Voi

Published: January 22, 2026
Research Article

Peer review process completed

Functional mapping of auditory responses to complex sounds under light anesthesia in rhesus macaques

Authors: Régis Trapeau, Luc Renaud, Melina Cordeau, Yoan Esposito, Pascal Belin

Funders: European Research Council (ERC), Excellent Science, Horizon 2020

Peer reviewers: Kirill Nourski, Mathilda Froesel, alix trouillet

Published: September 5, 2025
Research Article

Peer review process completed

Analyses of historical documents reveal past trends of exploitation of manatees ( Trichechus inunguis) in the Amazon Basin (16th-19th centuries)

Authors: Cristina Brito, Ana Catarina Garcia, John Nicholls, Jaime Silva, Nina Vieira

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020

Peer reviewers: Felipe Vander Velden, Yann Henaut

Published: August 18, 2025
Research Article

Peer review process completed

AI-generated stories favour stability over change: homogeneity and cultural stereotyping in narratives generated by gpt-4o-mini

Authors: Jill Walker Rettberg, Hermann Wigers

Funders: European Research Council (ERC), Excellent Science, Horizon Europe

Peer reviewers: Christopher Conti, Edward B. Kang

Published: July 29, 2025
Research Article

Peer review process completed

A revised radiocarbon chronology for the mammoth bone structures and associated features at Mezhyrich, Ukraine

Authors: Wei Chu, Pavlo Shydlovskyi, Andreas Maier

Funders: European Research Council (ERC), Excellent Science, Horizon 2020

Peer reviewers: Andrzej Wiśniewski, Natasha Reynolds, Timothy Heaton, William Murphree

Published: July 25, 2025
Software Tool Article
Revised
Peer review process completed

The Network of National COVID-19 Data Portals: public health equity through collaboration

Authors: Marianna Ventouratou, Liane Hughes, Katarina Öjefors Stark, Johan Rung, Natalia Koralewska, Marzena Ciechomska, Krzysztof Kurowski, Cezary Mazurek, Eva Alloza, Alberto Hornos-Vidal, Salvador Capella-Gutierrez, Robin Navest, Erik Hjerde, Aitana Neves, Colman O'Cathail, Alfonso Valencia, Henning Hermjakob, Matt Pearce, Manish Kumar, Nadim Rahman, Carla Cummins, Guy Cochrane

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020, Societal Challenges, Horizon Europe

Peer reviewers: Chizaram Onyeaghala, David Horsfall, Flavia Bernardini, Gopi Battineni, Muskan Kapoor

Published: August 10, 2026
Research Article

Peer review process completed

Magnetic mineralogy of the Baringo core (HSPDP-BTB13-1A, Kenya) shows astronomical forcing with implications for retrieving meaningful paleointensity

Authors: Mark J. SIER, Bianca R. Spiering, Mark J. Dekkers, Frits J. Hilgen

Funders: Excellent Science, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA), Horizon Europe

Peer reviewers: Julie Carlut, Tesfaye Kidane Birke, Tilo von Dobeneck

Published: July 4, 2025
Research Article

Peer review process completed

Using feature vectors for automated phonological reconstruction and reflex prediction

Authors: Tim Wientzek

Funders: European Research Council (ERC), Excellent Science, Horizon 2020

Peer reviewers: James Hutson, Johann-Mattis List

Published: June 30, 2025
Review

Peer review process completed

Label-free processing of microalgal biomass for high-throughput bioprocess development using external fields and microfluidics

Authors: Ruoxi Zhang, Jacques R.N. Kieffer, Vittorio Saggiomo, Antoinette Kazbar, Giuseppe Olivieri, Judit Hunyadkurti, Maria Barbosa, Michel H. Eppink, Rene H. Wijffels, Iulian Z. Boboescu

Funders: Excellent Science, Horizon 2020, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)

Peer reviewers: Jialan Cao, sakina Bensalem

Published: June 30, 2025
Study Protocol

Peer review process completed

A personalized mHealth intervention for the universal prevention of perinatal mental disorders in routine maternal care (e-Perinatal): A protocol study for a hybrid feasibility pilot trial

Authors: Francisco J. Nieto-Casado, Irene Gómez-Gómez, Ignacio Aznar-Lou, Carlos Barquero-Jiménez, Isabel Cáceres, Stephanie Carretero, Rosalba Company-Córdoba, Paula De-Juan-Iglesias, Sara Domínguez-Salas, José J. Gil-Cosano, Lennert Goossens, Carmen Rodríguez-Domínguez, Emma Motrico

Funders: European Research Council (ERC), Excellent Science, Horizon 2020

Peer reviewers: Isabel Almeida, Ritika Behl, Vivek Nemane

Published: June 27, 2025
Research Article

Peer review process completed

Reconstructing Italy’s rural landscape before the Great Acceleration: A geospatial baseline from the Catasto Agrario (1929)

Authors: Filippo Brandolini

Funders: Excellent Science, Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA), Horizon Europe

Peer reviewers: Ebrahim Jahanshiri, Giuseppe Cillis, Vassilis Detsis, ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΧΑΛΚΙΑΣ

Published: June 27, 2025