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Subject:
Decay
Category: Science Asked by: seb968-ga List Price: $2.00 |
Posted:
01 Oct 2005 15:43 PDT
Expires: 31 Oct 2005 14:43 PST Question ID: 575136 |
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There is no answer at this time. |
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Subject:
Re: Decay
From: ministermike-ga on 01 Oct 2005 23:51 PDT |
it really depends on how far it was sticking out when you zipped it. :) |
Subject:
Re: Decay
From: frde-ga on 02 Oct 2005 02:13 PDT |
Plants tend to self seed pretty quickly, especially things like yew and sycamore. Trees growing in cracks are pretty effective at tearing down buildings Car bodies also decay pretty rapidly, especially when things grow over them. I would expect them to turn into green hillocks. Heavy duty structures like concrete multi-storey car parks would probably still be recognizable, but smaller buildings would both fall apart and get covered by trees. Looking at ruins is not necessarily an accurate indicator, as they tend to get pillaged for stone. Also much depends on the local climate, aircraft parked in the desert would probably be pretty much intact, while anything in wetter climates would be covered in vegetation. |
Subject:
Re: Decay
From: seb968-ga on 02 Oct 2005 03:58 PDT |
Thanks for that, I am very carefull when it comes to zipping, I have a low pain theshhold! |
Subject:
Re: Decay
From: seb968-ga on 02 Oct 2005 04:10 PDT |
Thanks frde The description you give is certainly food for thoght, how quikly do you think the plant life would start to make a serious inpact on stuctures? A few years or perhaps less time? I don't think many of the UK's structures would fair very as it is wet for much of the year & perhaps the possibilty of the Thames flooding. |
Subject:
Re: Decay
From: myoarin-ga on 02 Oct 2005 04:21 PDT |
Well, at Ankor Wat, unrestored edifeces have stood up pretty well to the centuries, and the tropical vegitation is more agressive than that in Europe and N. America. |
Subject:
Re: Decay
From: seb968-ga on 02 Oct 2005 05:24 PDT |
Angor Wat does seem to have held up remarkably well but according to the web site the temperature in Cambodia shifts only by 10 degrees C. Perhaps this could be a factor in it's preservation. |
Subject:
Re: Decay
From: frde-ga on 02 Oct 2005 06:26 PDT |
Ah - so you are in the UK - so am I - that pins things down a bit Do you remember the 1987 storms in the UK - they overturned most conventional wisdom about trees - for a start the roots were demonstrably smaller than expected - also in areas where they did not clear the debris, the wood decayed amazingly quickly providing a sort of compost for new things to grow. MyOarin is quite right, in so far as large solid structures like a Wat or a multi storey car park will tend to survive as water naturally runs off them and wind dehydrates them - they also get a blast of sunlight - more dehydration. However, in the UK less substantial buildings will get trees growing through them and things like windows and roofs would fall in as both dry and wet rot attacks the structure - once things start moving they collapse. To give you an idea, I once had a heap of rubbish at the end of the garden, it took several large skips to shift, underneath one bit was the remains of a corrugated iron shed - the metal was almost gone, under another was, astonishingly the remains of a small car. I reckon that both were 20 to 30 years old, but there was little left. Also I conduct annual warfare against ivy and self seeded trees, both of which are excellent at tearing down a structure. You've probably noticed how Buddleia takes over dormant sites, within a few years the place is smothered with it - even through concrete, also a lot of our taller constructions are made of reinforced concrete - and once you get cracks in it the steel rusts and the concrete cannot handle the stresses. My guess is that in 100 years things would be predominantly green and subject to things like sheep and deer, mostly covered with trees (but not dense forest). Ironically the older stuff would last longest. |
Subject:
Re: Decay
From: seb968-ga on 02 Oct 2005 16:22 PDT |
Hi frde Thanks again for a lot of good info. I had an idea for a story, hence asking the question. You comments have been very helpfull. If you can think of anything ellse I would be very greatfull. |
Subject:
Re: Decay
From: seb968-ga on 02 Oct 2005 16:25 PDT |
Do apologise for dropping letters, I think this keyboard needs replacing! |
Subject:
Re: Decay
From: frde-ga on 03 Oct 2005 00:15 PDT |
I wondered whether you were writing a story. Thinking about the scenario strongly reminded me of the description of decay after about 10 years in John Wyndhams's Day of the Triffids. Also of the cars in the show rooms in Famagusta, and they are in a dryer climate. |
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