Today's selection of science news. Links are normally to press releases on EurekAlert (at the bottom end I may also add a couple of newspaper stories). I include quotes from the summary (using quotation marks) in cases where the title alone doesn't reveal what the story is about. My own thoughts appear without quotation marks, if I have any.
astrobiology
New evidence of deep groundwater on Mars
ecology
In ancient oceans that resembled our own, oxygen loss triggered mass extinction
430 million years ago
Fungus has decimated the populations of 501 amphibian species worldwide
Harnessing plant hormones for food security in Africa
"Striga is a parasitic plant that threatens the food supply of 300 million people in sub-Saharan Africa. Scientists have found that they can take advantage of Striga's Achilles' Heel: if it can't find a host plant, it dies. The scientists have developed a technique that has potential to reduce the impact of Striga by more than half, helping to safeguard food supplies and farmers' livelihoods."
Sea anemones are ingesting plastic microfibers
Fluorescent plastic microfibers that have been ingested by a bleached sea anemone, Aiptasia pallida.
Credit: Manoela Romanó de Orte
climate change
1 billion people will be newly exposed to diseases like dengue fever as world temperatures rise
bio-inspired
Shrimp claw inspires new method of underwater plasma generation
See also last year's feature on fusion also inspired by the pistol shrimp.
humans
Caffeine on the mind? Just seeing reminders of coffee can stimulate our brain
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