| 1. |
- Jansen, Marcel A. K., et al.
(author)
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Environmental plastics in the context of UV radiation, climate change, and the Montreal Protocol
- 2024
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In: Global Change Biology. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 1354-1013 .- 1365-2486. ; 30:4
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- There are close links between solar UV radiation, climate change, and plastic pollution. UV-driven weathering is a key process leading to the degradation of plastics in the environment but also the formation of potentially harmful plastic fragments such as micro- and nanoplastic particles. Estimates of the environmental persistence of plastic pollution, and the formation of fragments, will need to take in account plastic dispersal around the globe, as well as projected UV radiation levels and climate change factors.image
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| 2. |
- Jansen, Marcel A. K., et al.
(author)
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Plastics in the environment in the context of UV radiation, climate change and the Montreal Protocol : UNEP Environmental Effects Assessment Panel, Update 2023
- 2024
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In: Photochemical and Photobiological Sciences. - : Springer Nature. - 1474-905X .- 1474-9092. ; 23, s. 629-650
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This Assessment Update by the Environmental Effects Assessment Panel (EEAP) of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) considers the interactive effects of solar UV radiation, global warming, and other weathering factors on plastics. The Assessment illustrates the significance of solar UV radiation in decreasing the durability of plastic materials, degradation of plastic debris, formation of micro- and nanoplastic particles and accompanying leaching of potential toxic compounds. Micro- and nanoplastics have been found in all ecosystems, the atmosphere, and in humans. While the potential biological risks are not yet well-established, the widespread and increasing occurrence of plastic pollution is reason for continuing research and monitoring. Plastic debris persists after its intended life in soils, water bodies and the atmosphere as well as in living organisms. To counteract accumulation of plastics in the environment, the lifetime of novel plastics or plastic alternatives should better match the functional life of products, with eventual breakdown releasing harmless substances to the environment.
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| 3. |
- Kattge, Jens, et al.
(author)
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TRY plant trait database - enhanced coverage and open access
- 2020
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In: Global Change Biology. - : Wiley-Blackwell. - 1354-1013 .- 1365-2486. ; 26:1, s. 119-188
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Plant traits-the morphological, anatomical, physiological, biochemical and phenological characteristics of plants-determine how plants respond to environmental factors, affect other trophic levels, and influence ecosystem properties and their benefits and detriments to people. Plant trait data thus represent the basis for a vast area of research spanning from evolutionary biology, community and functional ecology, to biodiversity conservation, ecosystem and landscape management, restoration, biogeography and earth system modelling. Since its foundation in 2007, the TRY database of plant traits has grown continuously. It now provides unprecedented data coverage under an open access data policy and is the main plant trait database used by the research community worldwide. Increasingly, the TRY database also supports new frontiers of trait-based plant research, including the identification of data gaps and the subsequent mobilization or measurement of new data. To support this development, in this article we evaluate the extent of the trait data compiled in TRY and analyse emerging patterns of data coverage and representativeness. Best species coverage is achieved for categorical traits-almost complete coverage for 'plant growth form'. However, most traits relevant for ecology and vegetation modelling are characterized by continuous intraspecific variation and trait-environmental relationships. These traits have to be measured on individual plants in their respective environment. Despite unprecedented data coverage, we observe a humbling lack of completeness and representativeness of these continuous traits in many aspects. We, therefore, conclude that reducing data gaps and biases in the TRY database remains a key challenge and requires a coordinated approach to data mobilization and trait measurements. This can only be achieved in collaboration with other initiatives.
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| 4. |
- Li, Yuling, et al.
(author)
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Distributed Neural-Network-Based Cooperation Control for Teleoperation of Multiple Mobile Manipulators Under Round-Robin Protocol
- 2021
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In: IEEE Transactions on Neural Networks and Learning Systems. - 2162-237X.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This article addresses the distributed cooperative control design for a class of sampled-data teleoperation systems with multiple slave mobile manipulators grasping an object in the presence of communication bandwidth limitation and time delays. Discrete-time information transmission with time-varying delays is assumed, and the Round-Robin (RR) scheduling protocol is used to regulate the data transmission from the multiple slaves to the master. The control task is to guarantee the task-space position synchronization between the master and the grasped object with the mobile bases in a fixed formation. A fully distributed control strategy including neural-network-based task-space synchronization controllers and neural-network-based null-space formation controllers is proposed, where the radial basis function (RBF) neural networks with adaptive estimation of approximation errors are used to compensate the dynamical uncertainties. The stability and the synchronization/formation features of the single-master-multiple-slaves (SMMS) teleoperation system are analyzed, and the relationship among the control parameters, the upper bound of the time delays, and the maximum allowable sampling interval is established. Experiments are implemented to validate the effectiveness of the proposed control algorithm.
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| 5. |
- Wei, Liping, et al.
(author)
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Impact of patch age and size on forest soil characteristics in European agricultural landscapes
- 2023
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In: Science of the Total Environment. - 0048-9697 .- 1879-1026. ; 898
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Many landscapes worldwide are characterized by the presence of a mosaic of forest patches with contrasting age and size embedded in a matrix of agricultural land. However, our understanding of the effects of these key forest patch features on the soil nutrient status (in terms of nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorus) and soil pH is still limited due to a lack of large-scale data. To address this research gap, we analyzed 830 soil samples from nearly 200 forest patches varying in age (recent versus ancient forests) and size (small versus larger patches) along a 2500-km latitudinal gradient across Europe. We also considered environmental covariates at multiple scales to increase the generality of our research, including variation in macroclimate, nitrogen deposition rates, forest cover in a buffer zone, basal area and soil type. Multiple linear mixed-effects models were performed to test the combined effects of patch features and environmental covariates on soil nutrients and pH. Recent patches had higher total soil phosphorus concentrations and stocks in the mineral soil layer, along with a lower nitrogen to phosphorus ratio within that layer. Small patches generally had a higher mineral soil pH. Mineral soil nitrogen stocks were lower in forest patches with older age and larger size, as a result of a significant interactive effect. Additionally, environmental covariates had significant effects on soil nutrients, including carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and their stoichiometry, depending on the specific covariates. In some cases, the effect of patch age on mineral soil phosphorus stocks was greater than that of environmental covariates. Our findings underpin the important roles of forest patch age and size for the forest soil nutrient status. Long-term studies assessing edge effects and soil development in post-agricultural forests are needed, especially in a context of changing land use and climate.
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| 6. |
- Wei, Liping, et al.
(author)
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Using warming tolerances to predict understory plant responses to climate change
- 2024
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In: Global Change Biology. - 1354-1013 .- 1365-2486. ; 30:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Climate change is pushing species towards and potentially beyond their critical thermal limits. The extent to which species can cope with temperatures exceeding their critical thermal limits is still uncertain. To better assess species' responses to warming, we compute the warming tolerance (ΔTniche) as a thermal vulnerability index, using species' upper thermal limits (the temperature at the warm limit of their distribution range) minus the local habitat temperature actually experienced at a given location. This metric is useful to predict how much more warming species can tolerate before negative impacts are expected to occur. Here we set up a cross-continental transplant experiment involving five regions distributed along a latitudinal gradient across Europe (43° N–61° N). Transplant sites were located in dense and open forests stands, and at forest edges and in interiors. We estimated the warming tolerance for 12 understory plant species common in European temperate forests. During 3 years, we examined the effects of the warming tolerance of each species across all transplanted locations on local plant performance, in terms of survival, height, ground cover, flowering probabilities and flower number. We found that the warming tolerance (ΔTniche) of the 12 studied understory species was significantly different across Europe and varied by up to 8°C. In general, ΔTniche were smaller (less positive) towards the forest edge and in open stands. Plant performance (growth and reproduction) increased with increasing ΔTniche across all 12 species. Our study demonstrated that ΔTniche of understory plant species varied with macroclimatic differences among regions across Europe, as well as in response to forest microclimates, albeit to a lesser extent. Our findings support the hypothesis that plant performance across species decreases in terms of growth and reproduction as local temperature conditions reach or exceed the warm limit of the focal species.
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