As most people must notice by now while grocery shopping, some supermarkets have been pushing a very strong "green" initiative with the selling of recycling made grocery bags for customers to buy, that way they can reuse the same bags while grocery shopping, in turn creating a slightly more healthy environment. This is a great endeavor; one that is slowly beginning to take hold on society, and hopefully, by the next generation or two, will be at a productive amount. I don't mean that the amount of people reusing bags aren't productive, just that if 90% of everyone reused grocery handbags, that would be much less plastic or paper bags to be thrown out. Well that's all in good thinking with a lot of positivity towards the future. Yet sometimes even though a thing is positive or good, it can become hindered or backwashed, so sometimes it's good to have a backup plan. While stumbling online I can across the news article in another blog: http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2008/05/27/its-in-the-bag-teenager-wins-science-fair-solves-massive-environmental-problem/ This teenager from Canada figured out make the decomposition process of plastic bags to go from 1000 years (the natural decomposition rate), to only 3 months! He did this by using microbacteria that decompose the bags, and he did so by increasing the microbacteria and their ideal living conditions. This is a fantastic endeavor, one that if actually utilized, could bring about some more changes on how humanity will deal with it's consumer lifestyle. The real significance behind all of this besides the "green", eco friendly nature is this: Science is continuing to advance. Science is beginning to move from it's birth era, of fledgling discoveries, as seen in the past 500+ years, into something much more advanced. Organic structures, such as plants, animals, or bacteria, are a main focus of science, because their relation with their environments and how they do so is becoming a centerfold of how things will change in the near future. Special traits from species such as Bio luminescence (self creating light), defense mechanisms (like a clams shell), are being observed, and once observed, are having their attributes applied to things humans are creating with science. By observing the natural occurances of life in nature, scientists are in turn being able to replicate the processes for their own needs, such as better computers, or warmer clothing. Just thought I'd do this blog as a kind of heads up to some people interested in Biology or Environmentalism, maybe some future students to UNE, or any colleges around the globe. There are so many possibilities in every field of work, in every major, that the greatest weakness in choosing your major or career in life is attributed to: lack of knowledge to help make decisions, and the lack of following your own path/dreams. |