[kach22i]

Originally Posted by RWebb

the asumption that DNA mutates at some given rate from time eternal is called the molecular clock hypothesis

I did not know this - cool.


Scientists discover thriving colonies of microbes in ocean 'plastisphere'
Jun 27, 2013
Scientists discover thriving colonies of microbes in ocean 'plastisphere'

(Phys.org) —Scientists have discovered a diverse multitude of microbes colonizing and thriving on flecks of plastic that have polluted the oceans—a vast new human-made flotilla of microbial communities that they have dubbed the "plastisphere."

........Using scanning electron microscopy and gene sequencing techniques, they found at least 1000 different types of bacterial cells on the plastic samples, including many individual species yet to be identified.

.........................On the other hand, the scientists also found evidence that microbes may play a role in degrading plastics. They saw microscopic cracks and pits in the plastic surfaces that they suspect were made by microbes embedded in them, as well as microbes possibly capable of degrading hydrocarbons.