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Is it? Don't all viruses die after a more or less fixed timespan? Do they decay like radioactive elements?
by foepys 7y ago
Is it? Don't all viruses die after a more or less fixed timespan? Do they decay like radioactive elements?
- sagebird 7y agoIf viruses died at a fixed timespan, I think that would point to there being a stateful element that keeps track of elapsed time, like a molecular sand timer. If viruses die because of spontaneous reactions, eg interaction with surfaces, interactions with photons, or a spontaneous chemical reaction like oxidation, then I would expect half-life decay similar to radioactive elements. I don't know how viruses die. I wonder if they can be preserved near indefinitely in a non reactive gas or vacuum in the dark.