by neufer » Mon Aug 31, 2009 12:43 pm
DavidLeodis wrote:Perhaps the D. rad is slowing evolving in that petri dish until it has evolved to eat its way out!
Well it has been engineered to deal with mercury so a bit of plastic should be no problem!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodegradable_plastic wrote:
<<It is possible that bacteria will eventually develop the ability to degrade plastics. This has already happened with nylon: two types of nylon eating bacteria, Flavobacteria and Pseudomonas, were found in 1975 to possess enzymes (nylonase) capable of breaking down nylon. While not a solution to the disposal problem, it is likely that bacteria will evolve the ability to use other synthetic plastics as well.
In 2008, a 16-year-old boy reportedly isolated two plastic-consuming bacteria.
The latter possibility was in fact the subject of a cautionary novel by Kit Pedler and Gerry Davis (screenwriter), the creators of the Cybermen, re-using the plot of the first episode of their Doomwatch series. The novel,
Mutant 59: The Plastic Eater, written in 1971, is the story of what could happen if a bacterium were to evolve—or be artificially cultured—to eat plastics, and be let loose in a major city.>>
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/04/berkeley-farmers-market-.php wrote:
<<The Berkeley Farmers’ Markets are just saying no to all plastic bags and packaging from their three weekly markets. Polyethylene (plastic) bags can take from 400 to 1,000 years to break down, and their chemicals remain for years after that. Plastic bags are made from crude oil, natural gas and other petrochemical derivatives. It takes 12 million barrels of oil to make the 100 billion plastic bags Americans use annually. Plastic bags often end up blowing down the street, getting caught in gutters, and just generally creating a pollution nuisance. In 2007, neighboring San Francisco became the first major U.S. city to ban plastic grocery bags.>>
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/p/kit-pedler/mutant-59.htm wrote:
- Mutant 59: The Plastic Eater
<<In the shaft leading to the [ventilation] grille a mindless, groping mass of malodorous corruption was thrusting its way silently towards the surface. Buoyed up by bubbling foam it steadily rose. Single units in an obscene abrogation of normal order divided and made two. Two became four and four, eight. Endlessly supplied with food, each unit absorbed nutrient and in a soft, ancient certainty fulfilled its only purpose - to multiply, to extend and to multiply...
In the Coburg Street control room of the London Underground system, there was a full emergency... In a dozen tunnels, trains ground down to a halt. Hordes of terrified commuters made their way anxiously along dark, musty tunnels to the lights and safety of the next station. There were minor explosions, fires, and the failure of a million wires and cables. As the dissolution of plastic proceeded and accelerated in rate, the elegant order of the system gradually turned into complete chaos.
On the surface, in the freezing December air, the smell of the rotting plastic began to hang permanently in the air. A cloying, wet, rotting smell similar to the smell of long-dead flesh. It filled streets and homes, basements and factories. Traffic lights failed, causing irresolvable jams.... The breakdown of plastic spread into Broadcasting House.... A gas main with polypropylene seals on its pressure regulators erupted into flame.... Plastic cold-water pipes softened, ballooned, and burst, flooding into shops, homes, and restaurants.
Slowly and inexorably, the rate of dissolution increased; failures occurred in increasing succession until, within forty-eight hours, the centre of London had become a freezing chaos without light, heat, or communication.">>
[quote="DavidLeodis"]Perhaps the D. rad is slowing evolving in that petri dish until it has evolved to eat its way out!
Well it has been engineered to deal with mercury so a bit of plastic should be no problem! :)[/quote]
[quote=" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodegradable_plastic"]
<<It is possible that bacteria will eventually develop the ability to degrade plastics. This has already happened with nylon: two types of nylon eating bacteria, Flavobacteria and Pseudomonas, were found in 1975 to possess enzymes (nylonase) capable of breaking down nylon. While not a solution to the disposal problem, it is likely that bacteria will evolve the ability to use other synthetic plastics as well.
[b]In 2008, a 16-year-old boy reportedly isolated two plastic-consuming bacteria.[/b]
The latter possibility was in fact the subject of a cautionary novel by Kit Pedler and Gerry Davis (screenwriter), the creators of the Cybermen, re-using the plot of the first episode of their Doomwatch series. The novel, [color=#FF4000][b]Mutant 59: The Plastic Eater[/b][/color], written in 1971, is the story of what could happen if a bacterium were to evolve—or be artificially cultured—to eat plastics, and be let loose in a major city.>>[/quote]
[quote=" http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap081018.html"]
Explanation: Powering the nebular glow are the young, hot stars of a newly formed cluster, [color=#FF4000][b]Berkeley 59[/b][/color].[/quote]
[quote=" http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/04/berkeley-farmers-market-.php"]
<<The Berkeley Farmers’ Markets are just saying no to all plastic bags and packaging from their three weekly markets. Polyethylene (plastic) bags can take from 400 to 1,000 years to break down, and their chemicals remain for years after that. Plastic bags are made from crude oil, natural gas and other petrochemical derivatives. It takes 12 million barrels of oil to make the 100 billion plastic bags Americans use annually. Plastic bags often end up blowing down the street, getting caught in gutters, and just generally creating a pollution nuisance. In 2007, neighboring San Francisco became the first major U.S. city to ban plastic grocery bags.>>[/quote]
[quote=" http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/p/kit-pedler/mutant-59.htm"]
[list][list][color=#FF4000][b]Mutant 59: The Plastic Eater[/b][/color][/list]
<<In the shaft leading to the [ventilation] grille a mindless, groping mass of malodorous corruption was thrusting its way silently towards the surface. Buoyed up by bubbling foam it steadily rose. Single units in an obscene abrogation of normal order divided and made two. Two became four and four, eight. Endlessly supplied with food, each unit absorbed nutrient and in a soft, ancient certainty fulfilled its only purpose - to multiply, to extend and to multiply...
In the Coburg Street control room of the London Underground system, there was a full emergency... In a dozen tunnels, trains ground down to a halt. Hordes of terrified commuters made their way anxiously along dark, musty tunnels to the lights and safety of the next station. There were minor explosions, fires, and the failure of a million wires and cables. As the dissolution of plastic proceeded and accelerated in rate, the elegant order of the system gradually turned into complete chaos.
On the surface, in the freezing December air, the smell of the rotting plastic began to hang permanently in the air. A cloying, wet, rotting smell similar to the smell of long-dead flesh. It filled streets and homes, basements and factories. Traffic lights failed, causing irresolvable jams.... The breakdown of plastic spread into Broadcasting House.... A gas main with polypropylene seals on its pressure regulators erupted into flame.... Plastic cold-water pipes softened, ballooned, and burst, flooding into shops, homes, and restaurants.
Slowly and inexorably, the rate of dissolution increased; failures occurred in increasing succession until, within forty-eight hours, the centre of London had become a freezing chaos without light, heat, or communication.">>[/list][/quote]