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Since the Industrial Revolution began approximately 200 years ago, global atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration ([CO2]) has increased from 270 to 401 µL L−1, and average global temperatures have risen by 0.85°C, with the most pronounced effects occurring near the poles (IPCC, 2013). In addition, the last 30 years were the warmest decades in 1,400 years (PAGES 2k Consortium, 2013). By the end of this century, [CO2] is expected to reach at least 700 µL L−1, and global temperatures are projected to rise by 4°C or more based on greenhouse gas scenarios (IPCC, 2013). Precipitation regimes also are expected to shift on a regional scale as the hydrologic cycle intensifies, resulting in greater extremes in dry versus wet conditions (Medvigy and Beaulieu, 2012). Such changes already are having profound impacts on the physiological functioning of plants that scale up to influence interactions between plants and other organisms and ecosystems as a whole (Fig. 1). Shifts in climate also may alter selective pressures on plants and, therefore, have the potential to influence evolutionary processes. In some cases, evolutionary responses can occur as rapidly as only a few generations (Ward et al., 2000; Franks et al., 2007; Lau and Lennon, 2012), but there is still much to learn in this area, as pointed out by Franks et al. (2014). Such responses have the potential to alter ecological processes, including species interactions, via ecoevolutionary feedbacks (Shefferson and Salguero-Gómez, 2015). In this review, we discuss microevolutionary and macroevolutionary processes that can shape plant responses to climate change as well as direct physiological responses to climate change during the recent geologic past as recorded in the fossil record. We also present work that documents how plant physiological and evolutionary responses influence interactions with other organisms as an example of how climate change effects on plants can scale to influence higher order processes within ecosystems. Thus, this review combines findings in plant physiological ecology and evolutionary biology for a comprehensive view of plant responses to climate change, both past and present. 

Abstract Sustainably produced biomaterials can greatly improve the biocompatibility of wearable sensor technologies while reducing the energy and environmental impacts of materials fabrication and disposal. An electronic sensor device in which the sensing element is a thin (≈2 µm) film of electrically conductive protein nanowires harvested from the microbeGeobacter sulfurreducensis developed. The sensor rapidly responds to changes in humidity with high selectivity and sensitivity. The sensor is integrated on a flexible substrate as a wearable device, enabling real‐time monitoring of physiological conditions such as respiration and skin hydration. Noncontact body tracking is demonstrated with an array of sensors that detect a humidity gradient at distance from the skin with high sensitivity. Humidity gradients induce directional charge transport in the protein nanowires films, enabling the production of a current signal without applying an external voltage bias for powerless sensing. These results demonstrate the considerable promise for developing protein nanowire‐based wearable sensor devices.