Fishermen have been warned to look out for a"killer shrimp(虾)"，an invasive(侵人的) species that is spreading across the UK and is endangering native fish species.

The aggressive shrimp, which often kills its prey(猎物) and leaves it uneaten, is originally from eastern Europe, but it is now found in lakes and rivers across the UK. The shrimp attacks insects, baby fish and native shrimp, threatening fish species and damaging the food chain. The spread of the shrimp is blamed on fishing on open waters using floating tyres, as the baby shrimp attach themselves to the bottom of the tyres and are transported to new waters. .

The UK Environment Agency is so concerned about the spread of the invasive species that it launched a campaign to warn their equipment between fishing trips. United Utilities is the first water company to ban the use of floating tyres at all its recreational (娱乐的) waters across the northern coast of the UK. The staff at the company are working closely with the Environment Agency and fishing clubs that have licenses to fish on their protected waters.

"Despite the horrible name, the shrimp are not a threat to people, but the damage they could cause to the environment on the northern coast is very serious," said Bryan Homan, manager of the water company. "Because of what they eat and the rate that they eat, the shrimp can change the food chain and the ecosystem, threatening native fish species."

A spokesman from the Environment Agency added, "We are encouraging all fishermen who go fishing on open waters to help us prevent the spread of the shrimp by sluicing all fishing equipment before and after use."

United Utilities and the Environment Agency believe that it is in fishermen's interests to stop the spread of the shrimp.

Overspending can be defined as spending beyond one's means, and is not rarely seen nowadays. According to a recent report, more than one-fourth of adults surveyed in 2020 had one or more bills that they were unable to pay in full that month.

While every individual's spending habits are unique to their circumstances, a few common potential issues tend to be responsible for overspending.

Lifestyle creep, a financial trap, where you spend more money as you make more money, for example, often accounts for unrecognized overspending. Individuals that lack a decision-making process for making purchases can also find it difficult to control their spending.

Media and advertisements can also lead to overspending. Marketing strategies aim to create a feeling of scarcity (稀少) for consumers with phrases like "almost sold out" or "two tickets remaining" when they are making online purchases. Emails from favorite sellers can give consumers the impression that they are saving money by taking advantage of a sale, and roadside billboards can lead individuals to make impulsive (冲动的) purchases.

Social pressures to enjoy dinners out and vacations with family and friends may be a push for younger people, who see others enjoying these activities through social media platforms like Instagram. "People think spending makes you happy," Elizabeth Dunn, professor at the University of British Columbia and chief science officer at Happy Money, says. "But for many people, it's these values of being true to yourself that make you happy."

Dunn notes that, "Failures in self-control in the finance can cause dire consequences. Financial stress, for example, has been linked to physical health struggles, problems in close relationships, and stress in retirement."

"Dealing with overspending should start in bite - size pieces. Small and manageable changes over time are more likely to stick to in the long run. Instead of relying on willpower, setting specific goals and building a foundation with a budget is an effective way." adds Dunn.

The last decade saw the rise of the field of "plant neurobiology (植物神经生物学)". That debatable field is based on the idea that plants — which do not possess brains — handle information in ways similar to complicated animal nervous systems. This thinking implies that plants could feel happiness or sorrow or pain，make intentional decisions and even possess consciousness. But the chances of that are "effectively zero". "There's nothing in the plant comparable to the complexity of the animal brain," says Taiz, from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Some plants are capable of complicated behaviors. For example, wounded leaves can send warning signals to other parts of the plant. But plants perform these with equipment that's very different from the nervous systems of animals, no brain required, Taiz argues. He and his colleagues point out methodological faults in some of the studies that claim plants have brain-like command centers and animal-like nerve cells. But beyond the debate over how these studies are conducted, Taiz's team argues that plant consciousness doesn't even make sense from an evolutionary point of view.

"Complicated animal brains advanced in part to help a living being catch a meal and avoid becoming one," Taiz says. "But plants are rooted to the ground and rely on sunlight for energy, an inactive lifestyle that doesn't require quick thinking or outsmarting a predator (捕食者) or the energetically expensive nervous systems that enable those behaviors." "What use would consciousness be to a plant?" Taiz asks. "If a plant worried and suffered when faced with a threat, it would be wasting so much energy that it wouldn't have any left to do anything about that threat," Taiz says. "Furthermore, plants have plenty to do without having to be conscious, too. With sunlight, carbon dioxide and water, plants create the compounds that sustain much of the rest of life on Earth," Taiz points out. "Isn't that enough?"