Species sensitivity to forest fragmentation varies latitudinally, peaking in the tropics. A prominent explanation for this pattern is that historical landscape disturbance at higher latitudes has removed fragmentation-sensitive species or promoted the evolution of more resilient survivors. However, it is unclear whether this so-called extinction filter is the dominant driver of geographic variation in fragmentation sensitivity, particularly because climatic factors may also cause latitudinal gradients in dispersal ability, a key trait mediating sensitivity to habitat fragmentation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhotopolymer additive manufacturing has become the subject of widespread interest in recent years due to its capacity to enable fabrication of difficult geometries that are impossible to build with traditional manufacturing methods. The flammability of photopolymer resin materials and the lattice structures enabled by 3D printing is a barrier to widespread adoption that has not yet been adequately addressed. Here, a water-based nanobrick wall coating is deposited on 3D printed parts with simple (i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFListeriosis is a serious infection usually caused by eating food contaminated with the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes. An estimated 1,600 persons become ill with listeriosis each year, among whom approximately 260 die. Persons at higher risk for listeriosis include pregnant persons and their newborns, adults aged ≥65 years, and persons with weakened immune systems.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWhere is evolution fastest? The biotic interactions hypothesis proposes that greater species richness creates more ecological opportunity, driving faster evolution at low latitudes, whereas the 'empty niches' hypothesis proposes that ecological opportunity is greater where diversity is low, spurring faster evolution at high latitudes. We tested these contrasting predictions by analysing rates of beak evolution for a global dataset of 1141 avian sister species. Rates of beak size evolution are similar across latitudes, with some evidence that beak shape evolves faster in the temperate zone, consistent with the empty niches hypothesis.
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