I have seen a huge growth in open source software in this community so far, and a lot by the way could be considered a part that serves scientific research if done right.
The journal of open source software could help you remodel some projects to serve more while giving more credibility for the author. Furthermore, the NASA TOPS program helps establish guidelines and principles for open science and open source software.
I would love to see some publications that utilize jMonkeyEngine to serve science and engineering, and of course, I will start with myself!