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Matthew P White,1 Nicola L Yeo,1 Peeter Vassiljev,2 Rikard Lundstedt,3 Mattias Wallergård,3 Maria Albin,4–6 Mare Lõhmus4–6 1The European Centre for Environment & Human Health, University of Exeter Medical School, Knowledge Spa, Royal Cornwall Hospital Treliske, Truro, Cornwall TR1 3HD, UK; 2Institute of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Estonian University of Life Sciences, 51014 Tartu, Estonia; 3Department of Design Science, Division of Ergonomics and Aerosol Technology, Lund University, 22100 Lund, Sweden; 4Faculty of Medicine, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, 22363 Lund, Sweden; 5Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institute, 17177 Stockholm, Sweden; 6Centre for Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Stockholm County Council, 11365 Stockholm, Sweden Abstract: Many studies suggest that increased exposure to urban greenness is associated with better population health. Accessing nature can in some circumstances, however, be difficult, especially for individuals with mobility constraints. Therefore, a growing body of work is investigating the ways to replace the in vivo experience with forms of “virtual” contact, in order to provide these individuals with at least some benefits of the natural environment. The aim of this paper is to provide a review of previous use of virtual reality (VR) nature in health and care settings and contemplate the potential use of this technology in future. Our central question is whether engaging with virtual nature can contribute to enhanced physical and emotional well-being in housebound or mobility-constrained individuals. We conclude that while contact with real-world nature is preferred, VR use can be an alternative in cases when in vivo contact with nature is not possible. There are many possibilities for the use of VR technology in psychiatric and medical care; however, the risks, benefits, and cost efficiency of these attempts should be carefully assessed and the outcomes should be measured in a scientifically valid manner. The current review has nonetheless demonstrated that VR nature could play a role in each of the proposed mediating mechanisms linking natural environments and health. Keywords: virtual reality, green space, blue space, clinical use of VR, elderly care, mobility-constrained individuals, life quality, pain relief, life quality

Field experiments investigating biodiversity and ecosystem functioning require the observation of abiotic parameters, especially when carried out in the intertidal zone. An experiment for biodiversity–ecosystem functioning was set up in the intertidal zone of the back-barrier salt marsh of Spiekeroog Island in the German Bight. Here, we report the accompanying instrumentation, maintenance, data acquisition, data handling and data quality control as well as monitoring results observed over a continuous period from September 2014 to April 2017. Time series of abiotic conditions were measured at several sites in the vicinity of newly built experimental salt-marsh islands on the tidal flat. Meteorological measurements were conducted from a weather station (WS, https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.870988), oceanographic conditions were sampled through a bottom-mounted recording current meter (RCM, https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.877265) and a bottom-mounted tide and wave recorder (TWR, https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.877258). Tide data are essential in calculating flooding duration and flooding frequency with respect to different salt-marsh elevation zones. Data loggers (DL) for measuring the water level (DL-W, https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.877267), temperature (DL-T, https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.877257), light intensity (DL-L, https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.877256) and conductivity (DL-C, https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.877266) were deployed at different elevational zones on the experimental islands and the investigated salt-marsh plots. A data availability of 80 % for 17 out of 23 sensors was achieved. Results showed the influence of seasonal and tidal dynamics on the experimental islands. Nearby salt-marsh plots exhibited some differences, e.g., in temperature dynamics. Thus, a consistent, multi-parameter, long-term dataset is available as a basis for further biodiversity and ecosystem functioning studies.

Abstract Background Livestock grazing and ‘overabundance’ of large wild herbivores in forested areas have long been perceived as conflicting with the aims of both silviculture and forest conservation; however, certain kinds of herbivory can help to maintain habitat values in forest ecosystems. Management of mammalian herbivory in protected forests can, therefore, be a critical tool for biodiversity conservation. The primary aim of this systematic review was to examine how forest vegetation and invertebrates are affected by manipulation of the grazing/browsing pressure by livestock or wild ungulates. The ultimate purpose was to investigate whether such manipulation is useful for conserving or restoring biodiversity in forest set-asides. Methods We considered studies of manipulated ungulate herbivory in forests anywhere within the boreal and temperate zones, not only in protected areas but also in production forest. Non-intervention or alternative levels of intervention were used as comparators. Relevant outcomes included abundance, diversity and composition of plants and invertebrates, tree regeneration, and performance of focal/target species. Studies were mainly selected from a recent systematic map of the evidence on biodiversity effects of forest management relevant to protected areas. Additional studies were identified through updated searches online and in bibliographies of existing reviews. Relevant studies were critically appraised, and studies with low or unclear validity were excluded from the review. Quantitative outcomes were extracted from 103 articles, and summary effect sizes were derived by meta-analysis. Results Most of the 144 studies included in the review had been conducted in North America, Europe or Australia/New Zealand. The intervention most commonly studied was experimental exclusion (or enclosure) of wild and/or domestic ungulates by fencing. Other studies examined culling of wild ungulates or compared forests long grazed by livestock to ungrazed forests. Effects on vegetation and invertebrates were reported in 135 and 23 of the studies, respectively. We found negative responses to herbivory in the abundance of understorey vegetation as a whole, woody understorey and bryophytes, and also in the species richness of woody understorey vegetation, whereas the richness of forbs and bryophytes responded positively. Several effects depended on ungulate origins: Understorey abundance responded negatively to livestock and to ungulates introduced into the wild, but not to native ones. In contrast, understorey species richness responded positively to livestock but not to wild ungulates. The duration and intensity of herbivory had few significant effects on vegetation—exceptions included woody understorey abundance and richness, which decreased with increasing duration and intensity, respectively. Among invertebrates we found negative responses to herbivory in the abundance of lepidopterans and spiders, but no significant effects on species richness. Conclusions Our review revealed a large body of high-validity experimental studies on impacts of ungulate herbivory in forests. This evidence confirmed that manipulation of such herbivory is often highly influential on tree regeneration and on the abundance, diversity and composition of understorey vegetation. Nevertheless, we also identified important knowledge gaps—we found few studies of boreal areas, long-term herbivory effects, impacts on bryophytes, lichens and invertebrates, and effects of manipulation less radical than total exclusion of ungulates.

In a global field survey across a wide range of organic soils, the authors find that N2O flux can be predicted by models incorporating soil nitrate concentration (NO3 –), water content and temperature. N2O emission increases with NO3 – and temperature and follows a bell-shaped distribution with water content.

Adhesion forces between functionalized gold colloidal nanoparticles (Au NPs) and scanning probe microscope silicon tips were experimentally investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM) equipped with PeakForce QNM (Quantitative Nanoscale Mechanics) module. Au NPs were synthesized by a seed-mediated process and then functionalized with thiols containing different functional groups: amino, hydroxy, methoxy, carboxy, methyl, and thiol. Adhesion measurements showed strong differences between NPs and silicon tip depending on the nature of the tail functional group. The dependence of the adhesion on ligand density for different thiols with identical functional tail-group was also demonstrated. The calculated contribution of the van der Waals (vdW) forces between particles was in good agreement with experimentally measured adhesive values. In addition, the adhesion forces were evaluated between flat Au films functionalized with the same molecular components and silicon tips to exclude the effect of particle shape on the adhesion values. Although adhesion values on flat substrates were higher than on their nanoparticle counterparts, the dependance on functional groups remained the same.

Finding standard cost-effective methods for monitoring biodiversity is challenging due to trade-offs between survey costs (including expertise), specificity, and range of applicability. These trade-offs cause a lack of comparability among datasets collected by ecologists and conservationists, which is most regrettable in taxonomically demanding work on megadiverse inconspicuous taxon groups. We have developed a site-scale survey method for diverse sessile land organisms, which can be analyzed over multiple scales and linked with ecological insights and management. The core idea is that field experts can effectively allocate observation effort when the time, area, and priority sequence of tasks are fixed. We present the protocol, explain its specifications (taxon group; expert qualification; plot size; effort) and applications based on >800 original surveys of four taxon groups; and we analyze its effectiveness using data on polypores in hemiboreal and tropical forests. We demonstrate consistent effort-species richness curves and among-survey variation in contrasting ecosystems, and high effectiveness compared with casual observations both at local and regional scales. Bias related to observer experience appeared negligible compared with typical assemblage variation. Being flexible in terms of sampling design, the method has enabled us to compile data from various projects to assess conservation status and habitat requirements of most species (specifically rarities and including discovery of new species); also, when linked with site descriptions, to complete environmental assessments and select indicator species for management. We conclude that simple rules can significantly improve expert-based biodiversity surveys. Ideally, define (i) a common plot size that addresses multiple taxon groups and management goals; (ii) taxon groups based on field expertise and feasible number of species; (iii) sufficient and practical search time; (iv) a procedure for recording within-plot heterogeneity. Such a framework, combined with freedom to allocate effort on-site, helps utilizing full expertise of observers without losing technical rigor.

Märksõna koostöö on kõrghariduse võlu- ja võtmesõna, mis aitab toime tulla piiratud ressursside ning kasvava konkurentsiga. Ühise õpetamise vorme on kõrgkoolides kasutusel palju, alates loengute jagamisest eri õppejõudude vahel kuni õpetamiseni võrdselt vastutavate ja panustavate partneritena dialoogi pidades. Artiklis kirjeldatakse ja analüüsitakse Eleri Lõhmuse ja Henry Naritsa koosõpetamise kogemust audiovisuaalse produktsiooni praktilisel kursusel Tartu Ülikooli ühiskonnateaduste instituudis 2018. aasta sügissemestril. Artikkel põhineb autoetnograafiliselt dokumenteeritud materjalil, mida Lõhmus ja Narits kogusid ühistöö käigus. Artikli kolmas autor tegi intervjuud üliõpilastega, et lisada autoetnograafilistele tähelepanekutele õppija vaatepunkt. Kogutud empiirilise materjali analüüs osutab, et koosõpetamine kõrgkoolis on efektiivne ja arendav kõigile osalistele, aga õppetöö õnnestumine sõltub planeerimis- ja refleksioonioskustest ning vajab praegusest rohkem formaalset tuge. Summary

The globally distributed genus Trichaptum is one of the most species-rich among polypores in terms of hosting other fungi. Among Trichaptum-associates, there is a group of mazaediate lichenized fungi (Coniocybomycetes, Ascomycota) that previously had an uncertain phylogenetic position. DNA sequences - mitochondrial small subunit (mtSSU), nuclear large subunit rDNA (nuLSU), and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) - were obtained from 29 specimens collected from Europe and North America. Maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference analyses of these three gene loci were used to infer phylogenetic position and relationships among lineages. Statistical tests were used to find which phenotypical characteristics distinguish species. The molecular sequence data provide evidence that the fungicolous specimens form a distinct lineage within Coniocybomycetes sister to the combined clade of Chaenotheca s. lat. and Sclerophora. Considering its phylogenetic placement and strict specialization, we describe a new genus - Chaenotricha. This fungicolous lineage contains three species based on molecular characteristics. Morphological characters mostly overlap except for spore size and stalk length of apothecia. We provide a new combination, Chaenotricha obscura, for the only previously described species for which we designate an epitype, and introduce a new species - Chaenotricha cilians. The third lineage remains undescribed because of a small sample size, which did not allow us to clearly delineate species boundaries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ecology aims to comprehend species distribution and its interaction with environmental factors, from global to local scales. While global environmental changes affect marine biodiversity, understanding the drivers at smaller scales remains crucial. Tidal flats can be found on most of the world's coastlines and are particularly vulnerable to anthropogenic disturbances. They are important transient ecosystems between terrestrial and marine ecosystems, and their biodiversity provides important ecosystem services. Owing to this unique, terrestrial–marine transition, strong environmental gradients of elevation, sediment composition and food availability prevail. Here, we investigated which regional and local environmental factors drive the spatio‐temporal dynamics of macrozoobenthos communities on back‐barrier tidal flats in the East Frisian Wadden Sea. On the regional level, we found that species composition changed significantly from west to east on the East Frisian islands and that total abundance and species richness decreased from west to east. On the local abiotic level, we found that macrozoobenthos biomass decreased with higher elevation towards the salt marsh and that the total abundance of organisms in the sediment significantly increased with increasing mud content, while biodiversity and biomass were not changing significantly. In contrast to expectations, increasing Chl a availability as a measure of primary productivity did not result in changes in abundance, biomass or biodiversity, but extremely high total organic carbon (TOC) content was associated with a decrease in biomass and biodiversity. In conclusion, we found regional and local relationships that are similar to those observed in previous studies on macrozoobenthos in the Wadden Sea. Macrozoobenthos biomass, abundance and biodiversity are interrelated in a complex way with the physical, abiotic and biotic processes in and above the sediment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]