Jamie Thompson

Aug 23, 2024 | nature.com | Jamie Thompson |Marilyn Vásquez-Cruz |Nicholas K. Priest |Tania Hernández-Hernández |Georgia Keeling

Our understanding of the complexity of forces at play in the rise of major angiosperm lineages remains incomplete. The diversity and heterogeneous distribution of most angiosperm lineages is so extraordinary that it confounds our ability to identify simple drivers of diversification. Using machine learning in combination with phylogenetic modelling, we show that five separate abiotic and biotic variables significantly contribute to the diversification of Cactaceae. We reconstruct a comprehensive phylogeny, build a dataset of 39 abiotic and biotic variables, and predict the variables of central importance, while accounting for potential interactions between those variables. We use state-dependent diversification models to confirm that five abiotic and biotic variables shape diversification in the cactus family. Of highest importance are diurnal air temperature range, soil sand content and plant size, with lesser importance identified in isothermality and geographic range size. Interestingly, each of the estimated optimal conditions for abiotic variables were intermediate, indicating that cactus diversification is promoted by moderate, not extreme, climates. Our results reveal the potential primary drivers of cactus diversification, and the need to account for the complexity underlying the evolution of angiosperm lineages. Here, the authors combine machine learning with phylogenetic modeling to assess the impact of 39 abiotic and biotic drivers on Cactaceae evolution. They suggest that cactus diversification was promoted by moderate, rather than extreme climates, as well as soil characteristics and plant size.

Jul 12, 2023 | pnas.org | Jamie Thompson |Katie Davis |Harry Dodd |Matthew Wills

Skip to main content Tens of thousands of years ago, small bands of foraging humans left few long-lasting impacts on their environment. Today, we carve huge and indelible marks on the landscape, including megacities, large-scale agriculture, and widespread deforestation. Humans have even changed the chemistry of Earth’s sediments with industrial pollution, radioactive fallout from nuclear tests, and rising levels of nitrogen from fertilizers.

Jul 12, 2023 | pnas.org | Jamie Thompson |Katie Davis |Harry Dodd |Matthew Wills

L. W. Beukeboom, N. Perrin, The Evolution of Sex Determination (Oxford University Press, 2014). J. Heitman, Evolution of sexual reproduction: A view from the Fungal Kingdom supports an evolutionary epoch with sex before sexes. Fungal Biol. Rev. 29, 108–117 (2015). J. Umen, S. Coelho, Algal sex determination and the evolution of anisogamy. Annu. Rev. Microbiol. 73, 267–291 (2019). S. M. Coelho, J. Gueno, A. P. Lipinska, J. M. Cock, J. G. Umen, UV chromosomes and haploid sexual systems. Trends Plant Sci. 23, 794–807 (2018).

Jul 11, 2023 | pnas.org | Jamie Thompson |Katie Davis |Harry Dodd |Matthew Wills

Skip to main content SignificanceDo humans cooperate when facing extremely low survival chances? Are preexisting social ties increasing one’s chances of survival in life-and-death situations? Testimonies of surviving prisoners of deadly internment camps imply a critical role of the ability to form small mutual-support groups, but survivor testimonies are fundamentally selective.

Jul 11, 2023 | pnas.org | Jamie Thompson |Katie Davis |Harry Dodd |Matthew Wills

D. A. Potoyan, P. G. Wolynes, On the dephasing of genetic oscillators. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 111, 2391–2396 (2014). C. A. Lugo, A. J. McKane, Quasicycles in a spatial predator–prey model. Phys. Rev. E 78, 051911 (2008). J. E. Rubin, D. J. Earn, P. E. Greenwood, T. L. Parsons, K. C. Abbott, Irregular population cycles driven by environmental stochasticity and saddle crawlbys. Oikos 2023, e09290 (2023). J. L. A. Dubbeldam, B. Krauskopf, D. Lenstra, Excitability and coherence resonance in lasers with saturable absorber. Phys.