4 ms·

Surely any surface with this feature would get covered in a layer of grime and become ineffective within days.

by oniony 3y ago

simbolit 3y ago
"Grime" is only a thing in our medium-scale world. In the micro-world, there is no grime. Most (tiny tiny) things people consider to be grime are far too big to even come into consideration here.
- vladvasiliu 3y ago
  Sure, but wouldn't those larger particles cover the spikes, by laying on top of them? So if the whole surface is covered in grime, wouldn't the grime become the outer layer, so negating the benefits of whatever happens to be under them? Sure, whatever bacteria gets to reach the spikes would be dead, but I'd expect "enough" bacteria to be able to stay on top of the grime.
  - simbolit 3y ago
    I am really not an expert in the micro-world, but from the times I have worked with microscopy, i know a lot of materials (and surely such a heterogenous material as "grime") have more holes than swiss cheese. So, yes, of course, some particles can cover some spikes, but "covered in a layer of grime" (which implies, well, coverage) doesn't seem likely to me.
    - vladvasiliu 3y ago
      I seem to remember some "science" program on TV a while ago talking about how the lotus leaf had some specific texture on which liquids wouldn't adhere. Would you think this is similar, in that whatever "grime" would fall on the spiked surface wouldn't adhere and just fall off?
      - simbolit 3y ago
        Is possible, but is not what I mean. I mean anything large (on this scale, for us it's still tiny) will only ever cover a few of these spikes. bad analogy: Take a beach ball, and put it on a chess board. It will only cover very few squares, because "covering" (in the sense we use it here) needs surface contact. Again, I am not an expert on the micro-level, this is just extrapolation from the little bits I do know.
- Fomite 3y ago
  In the micro-world, there are biofilms, which most certainly fall under the subset of grime.
Fomite 3y ago
For the hospitals that use various antimicrobial surface treatments, keeping them "clean" is indeed essential. But this is already true for most disinfecting agents as well, so addressing it is in the realm of policies already in place.

Surely any surface with this feature would get covered in a layer of grime and become ineffective within days.

by oniony 3y ago

Surely any surface with this feature would get covered in a layer of grime and become ineffective within days.

"Grime" is only a thing in our medium-scale world. In the micro-world, there is no grime. Most (tiny tiny) things people consider to be grime are far too big to even come into consideration here.

vladvasiliu 3y ago
Sure, but wouldn't those larger particles cover the spikes, by laying on top of them? So if the whole surface is covered in grime, wouldn't the grime become the outer layer, so negating the benefits of whatever happens to be under them? Sure, whatever bacteria gets to reach the spikes would be dead, but I'd expect "enough" bacteria to be able to stay on top of the grime.
- simbolit 3y ago
  I am really not an expert in the micro-world, but from the times I have worked with microscopy, i know a lot of materials (and surely such a heterogenous material as "grime") have more holes than swiss cheese. So, yes, of course, some particles can cover some spikes, but "covered in a layer of grime" (which implies, well, coverage) doesn't seem likely to me.
  - vladvasiliu 3y ago
    I seem to remember some "science" program on TV a while ago talking about how the lotus leaf had some specific texture on which liquids wouldn't adhere. Would you think this is similar, in that whatever "grime" would fall on the spiked surface wouldn't adhere and just fall off?
    - simbolit 3y ago
      Is possible, but is not what I mean. I mean anything large (on this scale, for us it's still tiny) will only ever cover a few of these spikes. bad analogy: Take a beach ball, and put it on a chess board. It will only cover very few squares, because "covering" (in the sense we use it here) needs surface contact. Again, I am not an expert on the micro-level, this is just extrapolation from the little bits I do know.
Fomite 3y ago
In the micro-world, there are biofilms, which most certainly fall under the subset of grime.

Fomite 3y ago

For the hospitals that use various antimicrobial surface treatments, keeping them "clean" is indeed essential. But this is already true for most disinfecting agents as well, so addressing it is in the realm of policies already in place.