Scientists create “living concrete”

[Eldorado]

"Scientists at the University of Colorado, Boulder have created what The New York Times calls a “living concrete,” teeming with photosynthetic bacteria, that can grow itself and regenerate itself — much like a living organism.

"The concrete is a mixture of gelatin, sand, and cyanobacteria that cools similarly to Jell-O, the Times reports.

"The resulting structure was able to regenerate itself three times after researchers cut it apart, suggesting a potential breakthrough in the nascent field of self-assembling materials."

Full report at Futurism: https://futurism.com/the-byte/scientists-create-living-concrete-heal-itself

At the NY Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/15/science/construction-concrete-bacteria-photosynthesis.html

"Biomineralization and Successive Regeneration of Engineered Living Building Materials"

Paper at CELL: https://www.cell.com/matter/fulltext/S2590-2385(19)30391-1

[moonman]

What keeps it from growing out of control and loosing it's shape? Gravity? The times article is unreadable without signing up, not going to do that.

Edited January 16, 2020 by moonman

[Kittens Are Jerks]

27 minutes ago, moonman said:

What keeps it from growing out of control and loosing it's shape? Gravity? The times article is unreadable without signing up, not going to do that.

Its growth is finite. As long as the bacteria remain alive (which can be up to several weeks), they can be rejuvinated, resulting in further growth. 

Edited January 16, 2020 by Kittens Are Jerks
Corrected typo.

[moonman]

42 minutes ago, Kittens Are Jerks said:

Its growth is finite. As long as the bacteria remain alive (which can be up to several weeks), they can be rejuvinated, resulting in further growth. 

That doesn't explain how it is going to keep a certain shape. Say you mold it then cut out a chunk - how does it grow back exactly what is missing? There's no framework for it, it's a chunk of missing material.

And what good is it if it's only alive for a few weeks? It's obviously not for permanent installation.

Edited January 16, 2020 by moonman

[Kittens Are Jerks]

1 hour ago, moonman said:

That doesn't explain how it is going to keep a certain shape. Say you mold it then cut out a chunk - how does it grow back exactly what is missing? There's no framework for it, it's a chunk of missing material. And what good is it if it's only alive for a few weeks? It's obviously not for permanent installation.

Not sure that they would want the bacteria alive indefinitely as heat, humidity, and other factors would reactivate it and all hell would break loose. As for replacing broken bits, my best guess is that they would either mold the piece separately, or they could (assuming the bacteria was still viable) build a special mold to restrict growth to the desired shape and dimensions. It's very much a work in progress, and they are still experimenting with different materials, as well as searching for a cyanobacteria that doesn't require the addition of a gel. They still have a long way to go, but what they've done thus far is promising, and its potential is quite exciting.

From the NYT article:

Eventually, Dr. Srubar said, the tools of synthetic biology could dramatically expand the realm of possibilities: for instance, building materials that can detect and respond to toxic chemicals, or that light up to reveal structural damage. Living concrete might help in environments harsher than even the driest deserts: other planets, like Mars. “There’s no way we’re going to carry building materials to space,” Dr. Srubar said. “We’ll bring biology with us.”

[+Razman]

It could grow and take over the world!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!