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Glass-Eating Microbes

Posted by Hemos on from the don't-let-them-in-notre-dame dept.

JoeyPea writes "Researchers have found that volcanic glass (super-cooled lava) in the ocean's upper crust is eaten by microbes. The researchers found tiny tubular tunnels bored through the rock. The breakdown of volcanic rock was thought to be a chemical/physical process, but now it obviously has a biological component."

2 of 19 comments (clear)

  1. Uses in chip fab? by RadioheadKid · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I wonder if these microbes could be used in the silcon chip fabrication process...probably not precise enough or small enough, but there's got to be a good application somewhere.

    KidA

    --
    "Karma can only be portioned out by the cosmos." -Homer Simpson
  2. It doesn't hurt me. by L3WKW4RM · · Score: 3, Funny

    I can eat glass, it doesn't hurt me.

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