Take a look outside your window. How many species do you see?

This question of how geography influences biodiversity has bedeviled biologists for centuries. But according to a new study led by Marcell Peters from the University of Wurzburg, the number of distinct species you’re seeing – or, more accurately, the number you would see in the nearest natural environment – depends most strongly on temperature.

Several hypotheses have percolated through the scientific literature over the yea