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What's to say that (a) the mosquitos won't develop a resistance to the surfactants, as they do to conventional insecticides, and (b) the surfactants won't be as
by toomim 3y ago
What's to say that (a) the mosquitos won't develop a resistance to the surfactants, as they do to conventional insecticides, and (b) the surfactants won't be as damaging to the environment as other insecticides?
If these surfactants cause harm to other insects, it would be safe to classify them as insecticides themselves. Then you've just got a new type of insecticide, and need to demonstrate (a) precision, (b) recall, and (c) cost-effectiveness vs. all the other existing insecticides.
- wnevets 3y agoFWIW alot of surfactants used on the consumer market today are derived from petroleum and may even be harmful to the environment . Calling it just soap is sort of funny.
- likpok 3y agoThere’s lots of chemicals that are extremely lethal to pests with apparently limited ability to develop resistance. There’re no bleach resistant bacteria, for example, and no fire-resistant moths. Surfactants attack the waxy layer that insects use to breathe, they’ve been very effective at killing them for a long time. The classic fruit fly trap of soap in vinegar uses this effect. There’s a lot of soaps with a long history of being used in the environment, but like they do have a mechanical effect. Probably not great to douse plants with them. The biggest challenge I see is they’re not really persistent like permethrin — you need to spray the mosquitoes with the surfactant. That limits application as people will complain about like a fogger truck that makes them a little soapy.
- hackernewds 3y agoBut bleach is not safe for humans either. Other examples such as bleach: heavy weights, bullets, fire, acid
- copperx 3y agoI think there are bacteria that can withstand acid.
- Ekaros 3y agoExtremophiles is a fascinating classification of organisms. Basically think almost any environment where you wouldn't survive and there is something living there... Ofc, in reasonable limits like not plasma, but at extremes for sure.
- hinkley 3y agoSurfactants can drown bugs as well, sink any bug that walks on water, and remove the protective mucus from fish scales, which is often a problem with tank fish.
- dundermuffl1n 3y agoBleach is not a surfactant.
- nsajko 3y agoNote that "surfactant" is basically just a more general term for "detergent".
- jxf 3y ago> What's to say that (a) the mosquitos won't develop a resistance to the surfactants, as they do to conventional insecticides You can't really "develop a resistance" to something that is fundamental to your genetic identity. That's like saying "what if humans developed a resistance to being dunked in vats of acid?"
- codersfocus 3y agoI mean I’m sure we get manufacture plastic suits to withstand acid dunking if we wanted to. Could even become an extreme sport.
- anigbrowl 3y agoa) because the action is mechanical rather than biological, it's like asking what if humans develop genetic resistance to slipping on ball bearings b) it's just soapy water, we understand soap quite well. Stop thinking like an administrator and think back to your high school science class.