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Mechanical power limitations emerge from the physical trade-off between force and velocity. Many biological systems incorporate power-enhancing mechanisms enabling extraordinary accelerations at small sizes. We establish how power enhancement emerges through the dynamic coupling of motors, springs, and latches and reveal how each displays its own force-velocity behavior. We mathematically demonstrate a tunable performance space for spring-actuated movement that is applicable to biological and synthetic systems. Incorporating nonideal spring behavior and parameterizing latch dynamics allows the identification of critical transitions in mass and trade-offs in spring scaling, both of which offer explanations for long-observed scaling patterns in biological systems. This analysis defines the cascading challenges of power enhancement, explores their emergent effects in biological and engineered systems, and charts a pathway for higher-level analysis and synthesis of power-amplified systems.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.aao1082 | DOI Listing |
Clin Anat
September 2025
Division in Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Department of Oral Biology, Human Identification Research Institute, BK21 FOUR Project, Yonsei University College of Dentistry, Seoul, South Korea.
Plantar melanomas present unique diagnostic and surgical challenges owing to substantial regional variations in skin thickness. Although the Breslow thickness remains the primary criterion for staging and surgical excision, its application on plantar melanoma is complicated by the inherent thickness of the glabrous plantar epidermis, which may lead to tumor depth overestimation. Accurate assessment of plantar skin thickness is essential for optimizing staging accuracy and refining surgical margins.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMol Ecol
September 2025
State Key Laboratory of Soil and Water Conservation and Desertification Control, College of Soil and Water Conservation Science and Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Shaanxi, People's Republic of China.
Increasing evidence indicates that the loss of soil microbial α-diversity triggered by environmental stress negatively impacts microbial functions; however, the effects of microbial α-diversity on community functions under environmental stress are poorly understood. Here, we investigated the changes in bacterial and fungal α- diversity along gradients of five natural stressors (temperature, precipitation, plant diversity, soil organic C and pH) across 45 grasslands in China and evaluated their connection with microbial functional traits. By quantifying the five environmental stresses into an integrated stress index, we found that the bacterial and fungal α-diversity declined under high environmental stress across three soil layers (0-20 cm, 20-40 cm and 40-60 cm).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHum Brain Mapp
September 2025
Tri-Institutional Center for Translational Research in Neuroimaging and Data Science (TReNDS), Georgia State University, Georgia Institute of Technology, and Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Investigating neuroimaging data to identify brain-based markers of mental illnesses has gained significant attention. Nevertheless, these endeavors encounter challenges arising from a reliance on symptoms and self-report assessments in making an initial diagnosis. The absence of biological data to delineate nosological categories hinders the provision of additional neurobiological insights into these disorders.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGlob Chang Biol
September 2025
Chair of Silviculture, Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources, Institute of Forest Sciences, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.
Mixed-species forests are proposed to enhance tree resistance and resilience to drought. However, growing evidence shows that tree species richness does not consistently improve tree growth responses to drought. The underlying mechanisms remain uncertain, especially under unprecedented multiyear droughts.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNeurotrauma Rep
August 2025
Department of Radiology, Weill Cornell Medicine; New York, New York, USA.
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) impairs attention and executive function, often through disrupted coordination between cognitive and autonomic systems. While electroencephalography (EEG) and pupillometry are widely used to assess neural and autonomic responses independently, little is known about how these systems interact in TBI. Understanding their coordination is essential to identify compensatory mechanisms that may support attention under conditions of neural inefficiency.
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