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You have literally no idea if this is true. Literally used in the literal sense because until such microbes exist you can't predict their behavior.
by hdfbdtbcdg 7y ago
You have literally no idea if this is true. Literally used in the literal sense because until such microbes exist you can't predict their behavior.
- Retric 7y agoI literally know it’s true from chemistry. Polyethylene for example is a long string of hydrogen and carbon. (CH2-) Microbiology requires more than that for replication. It’s the same reason dry sugar does not get consumed by microbes.
- strainer 7y agoIt was too broad an assurance to base on quick chemical assessment. We have different kinds of plastics situated in many different environments. Regarding the sugar example and microbes primary need for water, from the article - "In 2016, researchers in Japan tested sludge from a recycling plant and uncovered a microbe that could completely break down films of PET to CO2 and H2O" And any opening or crack which rainwater or groundwater or seawater or dust can occasionally access will carry nutrients required for microbial life.
- hdfbdtbcdg 7y agoOn the table in front of me I have several food items that have not spoilt only because of refrigeration. Should I also start to keep my laptop in the fridge to prevent it rotting? Or maybe I should preserve it in vinegar etc. The problem of preservation of food only seems trivial because so many people have worked so hard solving it.
- adrianN 7y agoThe table in front of me would rot really quickly if I put it in a composter.
- hdfbdtbcdg 7y agoHow do you know which situation will apply to plastics if we manage to engineer bacteria that metabolise them? You literally can't. History shows us that introducing new species with novel abilities to an ecosystem has far reaching, unforeseen, often devastating and usually irreversible consequences. Why would we risk this? Plastic digesting bacteria would be utterly novel and completely outside our control. Edit: oh and the table is almost certainly treated with some chemical agent that helps preserve it. Be that paint or varnish...
- adrianN 7y agoThere are very few bacteria that strive in dry conditions.
- Retric 7y ago> How do you know which situation will apply to plastics if we manage to engineer bacteria that metabolise them? Life needs to obey physics and thus chemistry. Many plastics are already consumed by various bacteria in specific environments yet function perfectly well as TV remotes etc. Further, plastics have a rather wide range of chemistry. Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) for example includes a lot of chlorine making it much harder for organic chemistry to deal with. Thus making it suitable for wet environments. PS: Indoor wooden tables are coated in varnish largely to aid in cleaning and protection from ware. Kitchen cutting boards last for years demonstrating the difference between intermittently damp vs long term wet conditions.
- thatcat 7y agoIt's not behavior it's metabolism.
- hdfbdtbcdg 7y agoDownvotes won't change nature. You literally can't know what the consequences of plastic metabolism would be. History shows us that introducing new species with novel abilities to an ecosystem has far reaching, unforeseen, often devastating and usually irreversible consequences. Why would we risk this? Plastic digesting bacteria would be utterly novel and completely outside our control. To make confident predictions about species that don't even exist yet is just hubris.
- Retric 7y ago> To make confident predictions about species that don't even exist yet is just hubris. I am willing to wager rather large sums of money they are not going to violate the conservation of energy. Unknown, does not necessarily mean unknowable. That said, I said nothing about their impact on ecosystems just the majority of plastics in use by humans.