Myth or Fact? #17 – Cockroaches can survive a nuclear catastrophe

timsaid (74)in #science • 7 years ago (edited)

"Hello dear reader!
My name is Cockroachy, the coolest cockroach in town! I live next to a nuclear-weapon test zone and life is pretty tough here! However I am fine and a survival specialist. We don't understand why humans do destroy their own planet but that's not part of today letter to you."

...this is what my little brother wrote last week as they had to write a story of insects. Don't ask me how he came up with this story but as we all know, kids can be very creative!

Actually I am thankful he came up with this story since it remembered me of an myth I heard. It is said that cockroaches can survive anything, even a nuclear catastrophe. Sounds crazy. Sounds like a myth! Well today we will find out.

Deadly radiation

Before we investigate whether or not cockroaches would survive a nuclear catastrophe we need to understand what radiation is and why it is dangerous. We have different kinds of ionizing radiation.

(If you want to know more about the radio active decay I recommend to read my post radioactive-contaminated-waste-glows-green)

Alpha, beta and gamma decay

The alpha decay is the radiation of helium nuclei, made up of 2 protons and 2 neutrons. Because this particle has no atomic shell it has a positive charge. As we can see in the figure above alpha decay occurs at heavy, unstable nuclei. After the alpha left, the mother nucleus has 4 neutrons and two protons less.

Fig.1 Schematic illustration of the alpha decay. Credits

The beta decay occurs on heavy as well as on light unstable nuclei. Because of the neutron excess, a neutron decays into a proton and electron. The proton stays in the nucleus whereas the electron is emitted. Because the proton has a higher mass it only can decay into a proton and an electron. This ionizing radiation has a negative charge since electrons are emitted. (To be accurate the neutron decays into a proton, electron and electron-antineutrino). The above described decay is also called beta- radiation. There is also a beta+ radiation where positions are emitted (imagine an electron with a positive charge)

Fig.2 Schematic illustration of the beta decay. Credits

The gamma decay itself has no particle emission. In most cases a nucleus is left in an excited state after alpha or beta decay. When this nucleus gets back to a lower state it radiates penetrating, electromagnetic gamma rays. So mostly gamma radiation is observed together with alpha and beta decay.

Fig.3 Schematic illustration of the gamma radiation. Credits

There are ways to shield against the different types of ionizing radiations. Alpha, beta and gamma are named in the order of their ability to penetrate material. Alpha has the lowest range and gamma the highest. To protect against alpha radiation a simple sheet of paper helps. Thin foil of aluminum can be effective against beta radiation and to stop gamma rays plumb is used. Gamma rays are dangerous because they have a high range, however alpha and beta radiation are not to be underestimated since they can have lethal effects on organisms.

Fig.4 Alpha radiation can be blocked with paper, beta with thin aluminum foil and gamma radiation with plumb. Credits

Biological effects of ionizing radiation

The biological effects of ionizing radiation depends on many factors such as the exposed area, the rate of absorption, type of radiation etc.
As we saw above, ionizing radiation changes the physical and chemical properties of atoms. This has some serious consequences since our molecules are build of atoms, cells are build of molecules and our body is build of cells. Radiation can affect the whole organism!

The interactions with cell materials can cause direct damage to the DNA which can lead to mutations. Enzymes are affected and wont work properly, proteins might get denatured. Remember yesterdays post? Makes sense now! Generally spoken there are four things that can happen to a cell:

The cell dies.
The cell is damaged
The cell is damaged but is able to repair the damage
Nothing happens at all

In one of my articles I described how cell division works. The greater the rate of cell reproduction is the more sensitive the cell is to radiation damage. This is described by the law of Bergonié and Tribondeau.

Makes sense right? The faster our cells divide the more of the actual mutation will spread.

We distinguish between two different kinds of damage to organisms. Acute and latent damage. The following chart shows different acute symptoms in regards of the absorbed dose and time of onset as well as chronically damages.

Fig.5 Whole-body absorbed dose effects chart Source: Wikipedia

Will the cockroach survive?

Indeed! A cockroach can survive a nuclear catastrophe more likely than a human being. Two aspects are to be mentioned. First of all the thick insect carapace blocks a lot of the ionizing radiation which saves the inside organs. Secondly the reproduction rate of cells is much slower than of humans.

It is obvious that nothing would survive a direct blast but we are speaking of radiation here.
Luckily all nuclear states signed the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty in 1996 which made them stop testing nuclear weapons on our earth. Unfortunately there are few countries that still drop these bombs for testing.

Thanks for reading this episode of Myth or Fact! Hope you enjoyed it and until next time!
Tim

#chemistry #myth

7 years ago in #science by timsaid (74)

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javierayala (42) 7 years ago

11 Reasons way I love those bad boys:

A cockroach can live for a week without its head. Due to their open circulatory system, and the fact that they breathe through little holes in each of their body segments, they are not dependent on the mouth or head to breathe. The roach only dies because without a mouth, it can't drink water and dies of thirst.
A cockroach can hold its breath for 40 minutes, and can even survive being submerged under water for half an hour. They hold their breath often to help regulate their loss of water.
Cockroaches can run up to three miles in an hour, which means they can spread germs and bacteria throughout a home very quickly.
Newborn German cockroaches become adults in as little as 36 days. In fact, the German cockroach is the most common of the cockroaches and has been implicated in outbreaks of illness and allergic reactions in many people.
A one-day-old baby cockroach, which is about the size of a speck of dust, can run almost as fast as its parents.
The American cockroach has shown a marked attraction to alcoholic beverages, especially beer. They are most likely attracted by the alcohol mixed with hops and sugar.
The world's largest roach (which lives in South America) is six inches long with a one-foot wingspan. Average cockroaches can vary in size from ½"- 2" long.
Cockroaches are believed to have originated more than 280 million years ago, in the Carboniferous era.
There are more than 4,000 species of cockroaches worldwide, including the most common species, the German cockroach, in addition to other common species, the brownbanded cockroach and American cockroach.
Because they are cold-blooded insects, cockroaches can live without food for one month, but will only survive one week without water.
There is an actual fact about Cockroaches, if they they disappear from New York City 69 % of the buildings will collapse. Behind those walls they are keeping the city together. Believe me. :D