Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by mrpg on Thursday November 08 2018, @05:33AM   Printer-friendly
from the going-back-to-its-roots dept.

http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20181031-how-fungus-and-sweat-could-transform-martian-exploration

[...] This magic biomaterial is mycelium, the vegetative part of the fungus. If you imagine that mushrooms are the 'fruits' of the fungus, mycelium could be regarded as its roots or stems. It looks like a mass of white thread-like structures, each called hyphae, which crisscross soil and other material in which fungi grows. Collectively, these threads are called mycelium and are the largest part of the fungus.

Mycelium has amazing properties. It is a great recycler, as it feeds off a substrate (like sawdust or agricultural waste) to create more material, and has the potential of almost limitless growth in the right conditions. It can endure more pressure than conventional concrete without breaking, is a known insulator and fire-retardant and could even provide radiation protection on space missions.

On Earth it's currently used to create ceiling panels, leather, packaging materials and building materials, but in outer space it stands out for its architectural potential, says artist and engineer Maurizio Montalti, who has teamed up with Ciokajlo.


Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 2, Interesting) by Muad'Dave on Thursday November 08 2018, @12:13PM (4 children)

    by Muad'Dave (1413) on Thursday November 08 2018, @12:13PM (#759345)

    On Earth it's currently used to create ... leather...

    Create leather? Only if they mean feeding mushrooms to cows and other hide animals.

    Starting Score:    1  point
    Moderation   +1  
       Interesting=1, Total=1
    Extra 'Interesting' Modifier   0  

    Total Score:   2  
  • (Score: 2, Interesting) by Muad'Dave on Thursday November 08 2018, @12:16PM

    by Muad'Dave (1413) on Thursday November 08 2018, @12:16PM (#759346)

    PS - This isn't leather [mycoworks.com] - it's maybe a leather-like material.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 08 2018, @12:22PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 08 2018, @12:22PM (#759348)

    search:
    mushrooms into leather
    Seems this is a real thing, substitute/ersatz leather, made from fungi.

  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by TrentDavey on Thursday November 08 2018, @03:55PM

    by TrentDavey (1526) on Thursday November 08 2018, @03:55PM (#759403)

    It's not leather but it does have some eyebrow-raising uses: https://greenbuildingelements.com/2015/04/15/mushroom-based-building-materials-are-here/ [greenbuildingelements.com]

  • (Score: 3, Informative) by ElizabethGreene on Thursday November 08 2018, @06:57PM

    by ElizabethGreene (6748) Subscriber Badge on Thursday November 08 2018, @06:57PM (#759474) Journal

    If you make kombucha there is a mat of fungi and bacteria that grow on top called a "SCOBY". This material, when dried and "tanned" properly forms a leather-like material.

    It's an active area of R&D.