Bugs that eat waste and crap crude oil

[GrnEyedDvl]

No its not a joke, its genetically altered bacteria:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/new...cle4133668.ece

He means bugs. To be more precise: the genetic alteration of bugs – very, very small ones – so that when they feed on agricultural waste such as woodchips or wheat straw, they do something extraordinary. They excrete crude oil.

Its not very efficient yet, but who knows..

[Hounf of Culan]

Hahaha sweet! Now they just need to change them one step one more and make them eat mosquitoes and then crap crude oil!!! Damn mosquitoes ruining my vacations to Wisconsin

[christof139]

There are natural bacteria i do believe that eat toluene etc. They are not common and cost $ to grow and they take some time to eat the nasty petro-chems but have been used for many years in some enviro. clean-up situations.

Other choice is to let Mikey eat it.

Chris

[chris_uk_83]

Why would you vacation to Wisconsin? There's nothing there but cows (and my friends Johnny and Nay).

[GrnEyedDvl]

Maybe because there is nothing there? Sometimes its good to get away from the "civilized" world.

[Hounf of Culan]

Yah I like being in the woods there, its very relaxing to be there.

[LSJ]

Hah, this is like the reverse of some methanotrophs...
Although while removing some waste you are forming more waste which will be burned and then pollute the air and water. More efficient or advanced electric engines are a better thing to research.
Something that doesn't just maintain the current situation.

[GrnEyedDvl]

Hah, this is like the reverse of some methanotrophs...
Although while removing some waste you are forming more waste which will be burned and then pollute the air and water. More efficient or advanced electric engines are a better thing to research.
Something that doesn't just maintain the current situation.

Long term you are right. But lets face it the infrastructure of the modern world is oil based and its going to take quite a bit of time for that to change. This would only be a short term solution to the current cost of oil, nobody ever claimed it was any kind of environmental solution.

[zznɟ ǝɥʇ]

Northern Wisconsin is great, Apostle Islands anyone?

OT: cool.

[christof139]

Northern Wisconsin is great, Apostle Islands anyone?

OT: cool.

Northern Michigan and the UP and Minnesota Canada are also beautiful. Cherry wine from Michigan is very unique and good.

Pinconning, Michigan cheese is as good and better than Wisconsin cheese.

Chris the Cheese

[hellheaven1987]

Lets just pray those bacterias will not love the idea of "mutation".

Unfortunately bacteria love mutation.

[Kiljan Arslan]

Northern Michigan and the UP and Minnesota Canada are also beautiful. Cherry wine from Michigan is very unique and good.

Pinconning, Michigan cheese is as good and better than Wisconsin cheese.

Chris the Cheese

Here HERE!

[gambit]

Northern Michigan and the UP and Minnesota Canada are also beautiful. Cherry wine from Michigan is very unique and good.

Pinconning, Michigan cheese is as good and better than Wisconsin cheese.

Chris the Cheese

Michigan 1 : Wisconsin 0

[Hounf of Culan]

Cool looking lake, the area i go to is around Minoqua(spelling) like 45 mins away, called Crab Lake

[Kanaric]

Why don't they just get off these gimmicks and release mass production hydrogen cars already...

Seriously there is no reason to use fossil fuels anymore, its obsolete technology so why bother trying to extend it? Even sports cars that use electric engines are/will be faster and more fun to drive than gas driven cars due to the better acceleration. There is no reason to even bother with this old technology anymore except to maintain old cars. Which after about 10-20 years of having electric and hydrogen cars in mass production will just be luxuries anyways.

Why bother extending an inferior technology.

[Caelius]

Hah, this is like the reverse of some methanotrophs...
Although while removing some waste you are forming more waste which will be burned and then pollute the air and water. More efficient or advanced electric engines are a better thing to research.
Something that doesn't just maintain the current situation.

I don't think yo read the part where they said the process was carbon negative.

[Hunter Makoy]

Why don't they just get off these gimmicks and release mass production hydrogen cars already...

Seriously there is no reason to use fossil fuels anymore, its obsolete technology so why bother trying to extend it? Even sports cars that use electric engines are/will be faster and more fun to drive than gas driven cars due to the better acceleration. There is no reason to even bother with this old technology anymore except to maintain old cars. Which after about 10-20 years of having electric and hydrogen cars in mass production will just be luxuries anyways.

Why bother extending an inferior technology.

because u can not travel very far with hydrogen cars. also u have to deal with a tank holding a bunch of pressure. same reason y everyone isn't driving methane powered cars, or air powered cars. in places where u might have to travel far, u have to fill up alot more often. plus i think it takes a while to do that.

oh, also because the infrastructure isn't there.

[vizi]

Why don't they just get off these gimmicks and release mass production hydrogen cars already...

Seriously there is no reason to use fossil fuels anymore, its obsolete technology so why bother trying to extend it? Even sports cars that use electric engines are/will be faster and more fun to drive than gas driven cars due to the better acceleration. There is no reason to even bother with this old technology anymore except to maintain old cars. Which after about 10-20 years of having electric and hydrogen cars in mass production will just be luxuries anyways.

Why bother extending an inferior technology.

It costs GM $100,000 for their Hydrogen powered car and about the same for Honda...that might be why. Unless you have tons of money to fork over.

[rory o'kane]

also, because of the fact that these bugs are merely synthesizing the hydrocarbons needed to make fuel, it's also cleaner than normal fuel in that there are less impurities (like sulphur, which is present in minute quantities in crude oil, and when it is burnt it becomes sulphur dioxide, which travels up into the atmosphere, reacts with water to form sulphuric acid, which is then results in acidic rain, which is bad news for plants and animals - especially fish), which means less environmental damage all round.

[Richard]

Bugs to me implies insects, not bacteria. I was a bit disappointed to be honest, I imagined people harvesting it from beetle anuses or something when I read the thread title.