[1] Sokolowski is a scientist whose work is widely considered to be groundbreaking, foundational for a variety of fields, and instrumental in refutations of genetic determinism, and has, according to the Royal Society of Canada, "permanently changed the way we frame questions about individual differences in behaviour".
[2] Sokolowski's comprehensive study of the fruit fly and other animal systems, including humans, has shaped fundamental concepts in behavioural evolution, plasticity, and genetic pleiotropy.
[4] Marla Sokolowski was born in Toronto in 1955 to Ruth and Ernest Berger- the latter of which was a Holocaust survivor who immigrated to Canada where he worked as a shoe salesman.
Sokolowski's early research into evolutionary biology was influenced by Richard Lewontin and Douglas Wahlsten.
[14] Sokolowski has applied her work to early childhood development,[15][16] demonstrating how children who are at risk can benefit from nutritional, financial, educational and emotional interventions.