Interactive effects of nitrogen deposition and climate change on a globally rare forest geophyte.

Nitrogen (N) deposition and climate change are both known to threaten global biodiversity. However, we still have a limited understanding of how interactions between these global change drivers affect individuals and populations of specialist species, such as geophytes, within their natural habitat. We explored possible interactive effects of N, drought, and warming on population vitality (mean leaf length, leaf density, flowering probability) and morpho-physiological traits (e.

Estimation of minimal data sets sizes for machine learning predictions in digital mental health interventions.

Artificial intelligence promises to revolutionize mental health care, but small dataset sizes and lack of robust methods raise concerns about result generalizability. To provide insights on minimal necessary data set sizes, we explore domain-specific learning curves for digital intervention dropout predictions based on 3654 users from a single study (ISRCTN13716228, 26/02/2016). Prediction performance is analyzed based on dataset size (N = 100-3654), feature groups (F = 2-129), and algorithm choice (from Naive Bayes to Neural Networks).

Assistance systems for patient positioning in radiotherapy practice.

Effective radiotherapy for cancer treatment requires precise and reproducible positioning of patients at linear accelerators. Assistance systems in digitally networked radiotherapy can help involved specialists perform these tasks more efficiently and accurately. This paper analyses patient positioning systems and develops new knowledge by applying the Design Science Research methodology.

Diversity on a small scale - phylogeography of the locally endemic dwarf succulent genus Oophytum (Aizoaceae) in the Knersvlakte of South Africa.

Background And Aims: Oophytum (Aizoaceae) is a locally endemic genus of the extremely fast evolving subfamily Ruschioideae and consists of only two formally accepted species (O. nanum and O. oviforme).

Students' Beliefs About Trigger Warnings.

Trigger warnings aim to help people emotionally prepare for potentially disturbing material or avoid the material altogether. There has been a lively debate in society and academia whether the widespread use of trigger warnings helps, harms, or has no substantial impact. Recent meta-analytic evidence suggests trigger warnings have no effect on people's emotional reaction, avoidance, and comprehension.

Genome size influences plant growth and biodiversity responses to nutrient fertilization in diverse grassland communities.

Experiments comparing diploids with polyploids and in single grassland sites show that nitrogen and/or phosphorus availability influences plant growth and community composition dependent on genome size; specifically, plants with larger genomes grow faster under nutrient enrichments relative to those with smaller genomes. However, it is unknown if these effects are specific to particular site localities with speciifc plant assemblages, climates, and historical contingencies. To determine the generality of genome size-dependent growth responses to nitrogen and phosphorus fertilization, we combined genome size and species abundance data from 27 coordinated grassland nutrient addition experiments in the Nutrient Network that occur in the Northern Hemisphere across a range of climates and grassland communities.

Chronic effects of a static stretching intervention program on range of motion and tissue hardness in older adults.

Introduction: Clinically, knowing whether a static stretching (SS) intervention program conducted for several weeks can reduce passive muscle stiffness is important. Still, only a few previous studies have evaluated the chronic effects of an SS intervention program in older adults, and the potential relationship between ROM changes and muscle stiffness changes is still unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effects of a 10- week SS intervention partially supervised program on joint range of motion (ROM) and tissue hardness in older adults.

Old-growth beech forests in Germany as cool islands in a warming landscape.

The climate crisis seriously threatens Central European forests and their ecosystem functions. There are indications that old-growth forests are relatively resilient and efficient in micro-climatic regulation during extreme climatic conditions. This study evaluates five well-protected old beech forests in Germany, part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Effort-reward imbalance and burnout among German school leaders. Representative study findings and implications for an underserved occupational group.

This study examines the relationship between gratification crisis and burnout syndrome in German school leaders and explores how sociodemographic and school-level factors relate to burnout. Additionally, it investigates how these factors influence the likelihood of experiencing burnout and engagement based on sociodemographic and school characteristics. The research design focuses on the relationship between the effort-reward imbalance (ERI) model and latent profiles of the Maslach Burnout Inventory.

Assessing the aquatic biodegradation potential of polymeric excipients for pharmaceutical formulation.

Polymeric excipients (PEx) are essential in drug formulation but raise environmental concerns upon wastewater release post-administration due to their potential detrimental effects to life-histories of freshwater vertebrates and invertebrates. Ten pharmaceutical polymeric compounds were assessed in a stepwise environmental biodegradation assessment according to standard OECD 301 guidelines to thoroughly evaluate biodegradability of these compounds. Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polyethylene glycol (PEG), chitosan, maize starch, and sodium starch glycolate (SSG) were found to be 'readily biodegradable,' although PVA and PEG showed variation across employed test systems.

Psychometric properties of a COVID-19 health literacy scale in a sample of German school principals applying Rasch analysis.

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, health literacy was found to be an asset to manage health-related information. The HLS-COVID-Q22 has been developed to measure COVID-19 health literacy. External validation needs to be assessed in different populations to verify the questionnaire's functioning.

Exposure of Bromus hordeaceus to fossil- and plant-based micro- and nanoplastics: Impacts and plant-plastic interactions vary depending on polymer type and growth phase.

Plastic pollution, especially pollution by micro- and nanoplastics, is now considered a potential threat to all ecosystems, including terrestrial ecosystems such as grassland habitats. This study investigated the impacts of micro- and nano-sized plastics on Bromus hordeaceus, a common grass species in European grasslands. The micro and nanoparticles were fossil-based polyethylene (PE) or plant-based polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT), and these two plastics were used at two different concentrations.

Using cross-recurrence quantification analysis to compute similarity measures for time series of unequal length with applications to sleep stage analysis.

Comparing time series of unequal length requires data processing procedures that may introduce biases. This article describes, validates, and applies Cross-Recurrence Quantification Analysis (CRQA) to detect and quantify correlation and coupling among time series of unequal length without prior data processing. We illustrate and validate this application using continuous and discrete data from a model system (study 1).

Ecological features facilitating spread of alien plants along Mediterranean mountain roads.

Unlabelled: Invasive alien species represent a major threat to global biodiversity and the sustenance of ecosystems. Globally, mountain ecosystems have shown a degree of resistance to invasive species due to their distinctive ecological features. However, in recent times, the construction of linear infrastructure, such as roads, might weaken this resistance, especially in the Mediterranean basin region.

On the Utility of Indirect Methods for Detecting Faking.

Indirect indices for faking detection in questionnaires make use of a respondent's deviant or unlikely response pattern over the course of the questionnaire to identify them as a faker. Compared with established direct faking indices (i.e.

Random measurement and prediction errors limit the practical relevance of two velocity sensors to estimate the 1RM back squat.

Introduction: While maximum strength diagnostics are applied in several sports and rehabilitative settings, dynamic strength capacity has been determined via the one-repetition maximum (1RM) testing for decades. Because the literature concerned several limitations, such as injury risk and limited practical applicability in large populations (e.g.

The role of facial cues in signalling cooperativeness is limited and nuanced.

Humans display a remarkable tendency to cooperate with strangers; however, identifying prospective cooperation partners accurately before entering any new relationship is essential to mitigate the risk of being exploited. Visual appearance, as inferrable, for example, from facial images on job portals and dating sites, may serve as a potential signal of cooperativeness. This experimental study examines whether static images enable the correct detection of an individual's propensity to cooperate.