Correction: Exploring the impact of trait number and type on functional diversity metrics in real-world ecosystems.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.

The impact of trait number and correlation on functional diversity metrics in real-world ecosystems.

The use of trait-based approaches to understand ecological communities has increased in the past two decades because of their promise to preserve more information about community structure than taxonomic methods and their potential to connect community responses to subsequent effects of ecosystem functioning. Though trait-based approaches are a powerful tool for describing ecological communities, many important properties of commonly-used trait metrics remain unexamined. Previous work with simulated communities and trait distributions shows sensitivity of functional diversity measures to the number and correlation of traits used to calculate them, but these relationships have yet to be studied in actual plant communities with a realistic distribution of trait values, ecologically meaningful covariation of traits, and a realistic number of traits available for analysis.

Are lifestyle behaviors associated with excellent self-rated health among American adolescents? A cross-sectional study.

Excellent self-rated health has been associated with decreased mortality and positive health outcomes in adults. However, less is known about youth populations. The FLASHE study, conducted by the National Cancer Institute, is a cross-sectional survey with publicly available self-reported data.

Clarifying the effect of biodiversity on productivity in natural ecosystems with longitudinal data and methods for causal inference.

Causal effects of biodiversity on ecosystem functions can be estimated using experimental or observational designs - designs that pose a tradeoff between drawing credible causal inferences from correlations and drawing generalizable inferences. Here, we develop a design that reduces this tradeoff and revisits the question of how plant species diversity affects productivity. Our design leverages longitudinal data from 43 grasslands in 11 countries and approaches borrowed from fields outside of ecology to draw causal inferences from observational data.

Exploring the impact of trait number and type on functional diversity metrics in real-world ecosystems.

The use of trait-based approaches to understand ecological communities has increased in the past two decades because of their promise to preserve more information about community structure than taxonomic methods and their potential to connect community responses to subsequent effects of ecosystem functioning. Though trait-based approaches are a powerful tool for describing ecological communities, many important properties of commonly-used trait metrics remain unexamined. Previous work in studies that simulate communities and trait distributions show consistent sensitivity of functional richness and evenness measures to the number of traits used to calculate them, but these relationships have yet to be studied in actual plant communities with a realistic distribution of trait values, ecologically meaningful covariation of traits, and a realistic number of traits available for analysis.

Mechanisms of Peer Review and Their Potential Impact on Neurosurgeons: A Pilot Survey.

Background: Physician peer review is a universal practice in U.S. hospitals.

Impact of multiple small and persistent threats on extinction risk.

Many species may face multiple distinct and persistent drivers of extinction risk, yet theoretical and empirical studies tend to focus on the single largest driver. This means that existing approaches potentially underestimate and mischaracterize future risks to biodiversity. We synthesized existing knowledge on how multiple drivers of extinction can interact to influence a species' overall extinction probability in a probabilistic model of extinction risk that incorporated the impacts of multiple drivers of extinction risk, their interactions, and their accumulative effects through time.

Older Persons and the Right to Health in the Nordics during COVID-19.

We reflect on the extent to which Nordic countries have safeguarded the right to health of older persons during the pandemic in 2020. All Nordic states have ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and thereby committed to recognising the right to health. We use the AAAQ framework developed by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights to draw attention to aspects of the respective states' responses.

Causal assumptions and causal inference in ecological experiments.

Causal inferences from experimental data are often justified based on treatment randomization. However, inferring causality from data also requires complementary causal assumptions, which have been formalized by scholars of causality but not widely discussed in ecology. While ecologists have recognized challenges to inferring causal relationships in experiments and developed solutions, they lack a general framework to identify and address them.

Species loss due to nutrient addition increases with spatial scale in global grasslands.

The effects of altered nutrient supplies and herbivore density on species diversity vary with spatial scale, because coexistence mechanisms are scale dependent. This scale dependence may alter the shape of the species-area relationship (SAR), which can be described by changes in species richness (S) as a power function of the sample area (A): S = cA , where c and z are constants. We analysed the effects of experimental manipulations of nutrient supply and herbivore density on species richness across a range of scales (0.

Nutrition transition and double burden of malnutrition in Africa: A case study of four selected countries with different social economic development.

Background: Disease and lifestyle patterns have been changing rapidly especially in Africa due to transformation in economic development and urbanization. Research on the magnitude and consequences of these transformations in Africa is limited. This study investigates the shifts in nutritional status in children and adults in four selected low-, middle- and high-income countries in Africa, identifies factors associated with the shifts, and provides recommendations for future studies.

Diversity-dependent soil acidification under nitrogen enrichment constrains biomass productivity.

In most plant communities, the net effect of nitrogen enrichment is an increase in plant productivity. However, nitrogen enrichment also has been shown to decrease species richness and to acidify soils, each of which may diminish the long-term impact of nutrient enrichment on productivity. Here we use a long-term (20 year) grassland plant diversity by nitrogen enrichment experiment in Minnesota, United States (a subexperiment within the BioCON experiment) to quantify the net impacts of nitrogen enrichment on productivity, including its potential indirect effects on productivity via changes in species richness and soil pH over an experimental diversity gradient.

Salivary Cystatin SN Binds to Phytic Acid In Vitro and Is a Predictor of Nonheme Iron Bioavailability with Phytic Acid Supplementation in a Proof of Concept Pilot Study.

Background: Acute phytic acid intake has been found to decrease iron bioavailability; however, repeated phytic acid consumption leads to iron absorption adaptation. Salivary proline-rich proteins (PRPs) have been shown to inhibit iron chelation to tannins and may mediate similar iron absorption adaptation with phytic acid intake.

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to determine whether salivary proteins bind to phytic acid in vitro, and to explore a proof of concept in a pilot study that examined the impact of 4-wk, daily phytic acid supplementation on individuals' iron status, bioavailability, and salivary PRP concentrations.

Novel Formulated Fortified Blended Foods Result in Improved Protein Efficiency and Hepatic Iron Concentrations Compared with Corn-Soy Blend Plus in Broiler Chickens.

Background: Corn- and soybean-based fortified blended foods (FBFs) have been the primary food aid product provided by the United States. Sorghum and cowpea have been suggested as alternative FBF commodities because they are drought-tolerant, grown in food aid-receiving areas, and not genetically modified. Extrusion processing has also been suggested to improve the quality of these FBFs.

Long-Term Dose-Response Condensed Tannin Supplementation Does Not Affect Iron Status or Bioavailability.

Repeated phytic acid consumption leads to iron absorption adaptation but, to the best of our knowledge, the impact of repeated tannin consumption has not yet been established. Salivary proline-rich proteins (PRPs) may improve iron absorption by precipitating tannins. This study aimed to determine the effect of long-term, dose-response condensed tannin supplementation on iron bioavailability and status and to assess the effect of salivary proteins on iron bioavailability during prolonged condensed tannin consumption.

'Clemency on the way to the gallows': death, dreams and dissociation.

The survivor of a decade of childhood sexual trauma and violence, perpetrated by a monstrous father, produced a series of dreams in the final year of a ten-year analysis. They illuminated the 'death drive' beneath a lifelong preoccupation with dying and fantasies of submission to death, perpetuated by the promise of hoped-for freedom from pain and release from a life of suffering. The initial dream involved the collapse of a team of white horses drawing him in a pillory cart to his own hanging for a crime he did not commit.

Future threats to biodiversity and pathways to their prevention.

Tens of thousands of species are threatened with extinction as a result of human activities. Here we explore how the extinction risks of terrestrial mammals and birds might change in the next 50 years. Future population growth and economic development are forecasted to impose unprecedented levels of extinction risk on many more species worldwide, especially the large mammals of tropical Africa, Asia and South America.

Catalytic enantioselective protonation of nitronates utilizing an organocatalyst chiral only at sulfur.

The highly enantioselective protonation of nitronates formed upon the addition of α-substituted Meldrum's acids to terminally unsubstituted nitroalkenes is described. This work represents the first enantioselective catalytic addition of any type of nucleophile to this class of nitroalkenes. Moreover, for the successful implementation of this method, a new type of N-sulfinyl urea catalyst with chirality residing only at the sulfinyl group was developed, thereby enabling the incorporation of a diverse range of achiral diamine motifs.

A study of best practices for clinical documentation system implementation.

Nurses are key leaders and team members for the implementation of clinical documentation systems. This paper reviews key success factors during implementation of clinical documentation systems to overcome traditional barriers, ensure commitment to universal goals and facilitate the use of technology for patient safety and continuous quality improvement efforts. Top level management support, particularly from nursing executives, is vital.