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Where Has All The Rubber Gone?
Makarand writes "We all recognize vehicle tailpipe emissions to be a source of pollution.
But what happens to the castoff rubber from your tires that have lost tread?
No one knew where this rubbber was going
until recently. Allison Draper, a professor of environmental chemistry
at Bucknell University, is conducting research to end all guess work on
this topic and with the hope of finding ways to make tires less polluting.
She found for every kilometer a car travels, about 90 milligrams of tread wears off in particles ranging in size 10-75 microns.Toxins in the larger suspended particles leach out when exposed to water and the run off harms plant and animal life.
These toxins are still being identified."
Prof. Draper recommends we start using wooden tires as in bullock carts.
I propose genetically engineered rodents whose lung tissue bonds with rubber particles, which in turn are eaten by stray cats that are attracted by extra-potent rodent pheromones. The cats are then collected and forced to vomit. Then the vomit is taken to the Springfield Perpetually Burning Tire Fire and set ablaze! Woah nellie, talk about a flash of insight into the mind of Rube Goldberg!
No one knew where this rubbber was going until recently.
Isn't it obbvious? They're making keybboards out of it now!
Well, I for one am married, so I only use that resource once a month at most. ;-)
On second thought this is slashdot, you don't know.
Thinking this over again what a sad loser i am...
cut yr rubber pollution in half (or prob even more) by changing over to a motorcycle
:
added benefits
experience the joy of sweeping through curves on two wheels as opposed to whaling through them on four
riding a motorcycle is so dangerous you will be forced into a state of active meditation everytime you get out on the road
I thought all the rubbers got flushed actually, I used to work at a sewerage works, we had millions of retreads to choose from.