Life that doesn't follow the standard for life

[W3NCH]

Maybe now they'll consider more things when looking at other planets for evidence of life... Perhaps things don't require the same stuff we do. Duh! :heart:
http://extremetech.com/latest/221698-biologists-discover-electric-bacteria-that-eat-pure-electrons-rather-than-sugar-redefining-the-tenacity-of-life

[WØTKX]

http://youtu.be/3j_gJ2teK5E


http://youtu.be/3j_gJ2teK5E

[NA4BH]

Maybe now they'll consider more things when looking at other planets for evidence of life... Perhaps things don't require the same stuff we do. Duh! :heart:
http://extremetech.com/latest/221698-biologists-discover-electric-bacteria-that-eat-pure-electrons-rather-than-sugar-redefining-the-tenacity-of-life

They must have beer, the essence of all life.

[KG4CGC]

A few weeks ago I was watching a show that discussed methane based life forms on one of Jupiter's moons.

[N2CHX]

That's freakin' cool.

[XE1/N5AL]

Very interesting. Just when one thinks we know everything, something completely new pops-up out of left field.

I have always felt that the model of life was more of a closed cycle: 1) I eat food from the fridge, 2) the fridge in-turn eats electricity from the power company, and 3) the power company takes a bite out of my ass with the monthly statement.

[K7SGJ]

Very interesting. Just when one thinks we know everything, something completely new pops-up out of left field.

I have always felt that the model of life was more of a closed cycle: 1) I eat food from the fridge, 2) the fridge in-turn eats electricity from the power company, and 3) the power company takes a bite out of my ass with the monthly statement.

That's the "full circle".

Out of curiosity, how does the cost of electricity in Mexico compare with the US?

[KG4CGC]

That's the "full circle".

Out of curiosity, how does the cost of electricity in Mexico compare with the US?

Pesos on the dollar.

[K7SGJ]

Si, sigh.

[W3NCH]

It just always bugged me to hear the scientific community fixate on carbon based life forms that required water and oxygen and blah blah blah... As if they didn't seem to be capable of entertaining the idea that life could exist in any environment, just not the type of life form that we are used to. So this gets me all excited because now they might finally expand their thinking a wee bit. Yaaaaaaay!

[NQ6U]

What happens to these things if you ground the B+?

[XE1/N5AL]

That's the "full circle".

Out of curiosity, how does the cost of electricity in Mexico compare with the US?

Sorry for the long answer.

Electricity here is a government monopoly. Pricing varies in the different regions around the country. The pricing structure is tiered, based on household power consumption -- the lowest tiers being highly government subsidized. There is a big penalty applied for households that use excessive electricity.

==============
Note: All prices are converted from Mexican pesos to U.S. dollars, and include the 16% national sales tax.

Here in Guadalajara, the kilo-Watt hour pricing for each tier is:

Basic: The first 150 kWh of consumption is 6 cents per kWh.

Intermediate: The next 130 kWh of consumption is 7.5 cents per kWh.

Excessive: Finally, for any remaining consumption above the 280 kWh sum of "Basic" + "Intermediate", it's 22 cents per kWh.

High Consumption: If your average monthly power consumption, calculated over a sliding 12-month window, is above 280 kWh, you are classified as a "high consumption household", and penalized. In this case, all the tiered pricing shown above is thrown out and you are hit with a fixed charge of $6.14 per month, plus 29.5 cents FOR EVERY SINGLE kWh. To escape the "high consumption" penalty box, your consumption has to drop enough that your 12-month sliding average drops below 280 kWh.

==============

The house where we live, in Guadalajara, has neither heating, nor air conditioning (which is typical). They aren't really needed, since it usually isn't that hot or cold here. Likewise, the clothes dryer, hot water heater and stove/oven are gas-fueled; which is the norm. So, our electric consumption comes from the refrigerator, ceiling fans, lighting, clothes washer/dryer, microwave, television/radio and small kitchen appliances. We don't really try to conserve and our typical monthly electric bill is from $10 to $12. When my wife is away, the monthly electric bill drops to $5; due to less usage of the clothes washer, less TV/lights and no electric fans running all night long.

Our house in Puerto Vallarta is a different story. It gets really hot and humid there in the summertime. The local saying goes: "Puerto Vallarta is not as hot as Hell, but the Devil does own a vacation condo there". So, the house is air-conditioned. My wife can't bear the heat and she loves to sleep in a cold room. There is also the swimming pool pump and an electric pump to increase the house water pressure. When the wife and I are there, the monthly electric bill can be in the $150 to $200 range. The price could go even higher if we had guests, because each room has its own A/C. The house is supplied with three-phase commercial service and has the capacity to run everything at once. The sharp cost increase, over the Guadalajara house, is because excessive energy usage pushes us into the aforementioned "penalty box" -- so every single kilowatt-hour costs dearly.

[XE1/N5AL]

What happens to these things if you ground the B+?

Got a schematic we can look at?

[K7SGJ]

Thanks for the info on the electric.

[N8YX]

A few weeks ago I was watching a show that discussed methane based life forms on one of Jupiter's moons.
Oh, great...an alien invasion disguised as cow farts. THANKS.

[KK4AMI]

Really, humans are not compatible with Methane based friends.

I can't invite my methane buddy to my daughters wedding...that would go over like a fart in church!
It's too dangerous to offer my methane buddy a beer... everybody knows CH4 + CO2 gives him either methanol or possibly ammonia gas when you include nitrogen
My methane buddy's very existence would contribute to global warming.
A romantic interlude by candlelight, that would be a definite no-no and a way to blow up the house.
If I had to give CPR to my methane buddy it wouldn't be mouth to mouth, it would be ... Oh Gawd a brain bleach moment!

On a good note however, having him/her around would be a good way of getting one by the wife! :lol:

[K7SGJ]

they eat and excrete pure electrons

I don't get it. Short of a recharge, I wonder what they get out of it, especially if nothing changes during the "digestion" process? Of course, that would be the "nutritional" process as we know it.

[WØTKX]

Energy exchange is the point of digestion and photosynthesis... Biochemical methods are not the only way, eh?

[NQ6U]

I think what Eddie is saying is that if they consume an electron, then excrete the same electron later on, where does the energy exchange come in? It's a interesting question.

[KG4CGC]

I think what Eddie is saying is that if they consume an electron, then excrete the same electron later on, where does the energy exchange come in? It's a interesting question.

There's an atomic bond change that energy is derived from. A more efficient form of digestion if you will. When the waste is excreted (if you want to call it waste) the change in the atomic bond reverts when it is exposed to the surrounding environment. Thus the cycle continues.

[W3NCH]

Ooh I hadn't thought about that aspect of the electron eating critters...

[n2ize]

It just always bugged me to hear the scientific community fixate on carbon based life forms that required water and oxygen and blah blah blah... As if they didn't seem to be capable of entertaining the idea that life could exist in any environment, just not the type of life form that we are used to. So this gets me all excited because now they might finally expand their thinking a wee bit. Yaaaaaaay!

nothing new really. Science has always been expanding it's horizons. A lot of it has to to with how we define "life". Scientists were always open to the idea that something can be considered "life" even thought it was not carbon based. However, it remained an idea as long as no evidence was found that would indicate there was something that could be classified as "life" or being alive in some manner other than the traditional concept of life.How we define life can vary depending on whether we are talking about traditional life as we know it and as it relates to common organisms that we are familiar with or something else that is entirely different that we can consider being "life". Sometimes I will even refer to machines as having "life" in the sense that they consume energy and perform work as long as they continue to function.

[N2NH]

This explains why my batteries are always going dead (flat).

[KC2UGV]

It just always bugged me to hear the scientific community fixate on carbon based life forms that required water and oxygen and blah blah blah... As if they didn't seem to be capable of entertaining the idea that life could exist in any environment, just not the type of life form that we are used to. So this gets me all excited because now they might finally expand their thinking a wee bit. Yaaaaaaay!

Well, the main reason carbon is focused on, is because it's more versatile (Chemically), and much more abundant than any of the runners-up.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypothetical_types_of_biochemistry#Non-carbon-based_biochemistries

[n2ize]

Okay, I am not a biologist so I might be missing something here. This is a bacteria. Apparently it's aerobic because it seeks oxygen. It also seeks "food". It can transfer electrons between one another. Now exactly what is the bacteria composed of ? Obviously it has a cellular structure as do most bacteria. What is that structure composed of. It seems to me that this bacteria is still what we would traditionally recognize as a "life form" just as we have recognized bacteria as living organisms for quite a long time now. I might have to delve deeper to fully understand this but it appears to me that this bacteria meets the traditional criteria for how we characterize a "life form". It's principle difference is in it's ability to transfer electrons. Otherwise it seems to exhibit most of the standard criteria for how we categorize life.