{"id":101751,"date":"2016-05-10T07:35:42","date_gmt":"2016-05-10T07:35:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2016\/05\/10\/justgot1-astolat-badscienceshenanigans\/"},"modified":"2018-09-02T07:26:22","modified_gmt":"2018-09-02T07:26:22","slug":"justgot1-astolat-badscienceshenanigans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2016\/05\/10\/justgot1-astolat-badscienceshenanigans\/","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-101751 gallery-columns-3 gallery-size-thumbnail'><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon portrait'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2016\/05\/10\/justgot1-astolat-badscienceshenanigans\/attachment\/101752\/'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/tumblr_o3y8d46lMN1rjxhlko1_540-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/tumblr_o3y8d46lMN1rjxhlko1_540-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/tumblr_o3y8d46lMN1rjxhlko1_540-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon portrait'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2016\/05\/10\/justgot1-astolat-badscienceshenanigans\/attachment\/101753\/'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/tumblr_o3y8d46lMN1rjxhlko2_500-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/tumblr_o3y8d46lMN1rjxhlko2_500-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/tumblr_o3y8d46lMN1rjxhlko2_500-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon portrait'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2016\/05\/10\/justgot1-astolat-badscienceshenanigans\/attachment\/101754\/'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/tumblr_o3y8d46lMN1rjxhlko3_540-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/tumblr_o3y8d46lMN1rjxhlko3_540-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/tumblr_o3y8d46lMN1rjxhlko3_540-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/justgot1.tumblr.com\/post\/144075308194\" target=\"_blank\">justgot1<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/astolat.tumblr.com\/post\/144069870158\" target=\"_blank\">astolat<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/badscienceshenanigans.tumblr.com\/post\/144029180467\" target=\"_blank\">badscienceshenanigans<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/0hcicero.tumblr.com\/post\/143975857596\" target=\"_blank\">0hcicero<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/beautifulchaos-anumcara.tumblr.com\/post\/143973895109\" target=\"_blank\">beautifulchaos-anumcara<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/buzzfeed.tumblr.com\/post\/143873767244\" target=\"_blank\">buzzfeed<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/adulthoodisokay.tumblr.com\/post\/143859336364\" target=\"_blank\">adulthoodisokay<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/adulthoodisokay.tumblr.com\/post\/143857243439\" target=\"_blank\">adulthoodisokay<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/aimee-b-loved.tumblr.com\/post\/143853979187\" target=\"_blank\">aimee-b-loved<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/bijoux-et-mineraux.tumblr.com\/post\/142485525356\" target=\"_blank\">bijoux-et-mineraux<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/reclusiveandelusive.tumblr.com\/post\/142434327605\" target=\"_blank\">reclusiveandelusive<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/tsreckoah.tumblr.com\/post\/141924322545\" target=\"_blank\">tsreckoah<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/naughtylittledragon.tumblr.com\/post\/141924002518\" target=\"_blank\">naughtylittledragon<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/nassadii.tumblr.com\/post\/141917218252\" target=\"_blank\">nassadii<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/tsreckoah.tumblr.com\/post\/141915331090\" target=\"_blank\">tsreckoah<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/thepioden.tumblr.com\/post\/141910236539\" target=\"_blank\">thepioden<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/vulcanology-geology.tumblr.com\/post\/141905753905\" target=\"_blank\">vulcanology-geology<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/mollisaurus.tumblr.com\/post\/141883371094\" target=\"_blank\">mollisaurus<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/lizaleigh.tumblr.com\/post\/141873724809\" target=\"_blank\">lizaleigh<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/zdravomilla.tumblr.com\/post\/141872922969\" target=\"_blank\">zdravomilla<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/brambledboneyards.tumblr.com\/post\/141766806699\" target=\"_blank\">brambledboneyards<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/xekstrin.tumblr.com\/post\/141759207883\" target=\"_blank\">xekstrin<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/bijoux-et-mineraux.tumblr.com\/post\/141740677688\" target=\"_blank\">bijoux-et-mineraux<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Polished Malachite Stalactite &#8211; Copper Crescent, Congo<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>*looks around*<\/p>\n<p>Is<\/p>\n<p>Is anyone gonna say it<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>malachite is a poisonous mineral.  please do not fuck the malachite stalactite<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/tmblr.co\/mpGGNs9PoaFbGLPxQEeMwEw\" target=\"_blank\">@lizaleigh<\/a>\u00a0do you know any rock people that can confirm\/deny because I am very curious and really don\u2019t feel like getting into a conversation with my geophysicist brother that MAY somehow get back to the fact I saw a malachite that looked like a weird dildo.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u2026sadly, I am not on good enough terms with any of our partner geologists to just attach this to an email with the subject line: \u201cEXPLAIN.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Although I think <a href=\"https:\/\/tmblr.co\/ml9ZAxpOCycw_XxbzoxGsXg\" target=\"_blank\">@mollisaurus<\/a> is a mineral person.  Thoughts?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>oh geeze, i\u2019m kinda rusty on minerals but malachite is just copper carbonate and is really common in both antique and modern jewelry so i think like if you were really gun-ho about it you could go ahead and put it wherever you want?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>It\u2019s really only a problem if you\u2019re polishing or cutting it. The particles would be bad to breathe. It\u2019s rather porous too, so I would worry about bacteria growing. Well, being literal anyway\u2026 Better to leave the poor thing alone. ._.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>I mean it kinda depends on where you stick it because malachite does not like acidic environments very much and the malachite will degrade and also might dye your bits blue-green as the copper dissolves out.<\/p>\n<p>So use a condom when fucking rocks is the takeaway here.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Oh my god guys it\u2019s poisonous<\/p>\n<p>It is super poisonous<\/p>\n<p>There is a reason we do not use it in make up any more<\/p>\n<p>Not even with a condom, do not fuck the rock<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><figure class=\"tmblr-full\"><img src=\"https:\/\/78.media.tumblr.com\/4cd9a9b023ea8d4b012da0ae05d1b772\/tumblr_inline_o4tk8fTkCa1sjkvce_500.gif\" class=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n<p>Try this one instead.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>malachite literally explodes in water does it not?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>I\u2026 no\u2026 I think you\u2019re thinking of pure sodium?<\/p>\n<p>Malachite is however water soluble, which really just means it will poison you quicker<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>This is both hilarious and cool as fuck because you\u2019re getting all this information on minerals and rocks. You\u2019re also watching people argue over wether or not you can fuck this rock<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>I go on hiatus for a week and come back to find tumblr molesting my post, but hey, at least we all learned something so yay tumblr, you just keep on\u00a0 being you. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>I\u2019m still not sure if I can fuck this rock.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>I\u2019m looking into it.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"tmblr-full\"><img src=\"https:\/\/78.media.tumblr.com\/ce5f8d56035e450ad0a3b6ee2713b1be\/tumblr_inline_o6o6qq7y7b1r8scai_540.png\" class=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>UPDATE:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"tmblr-full\"><img src=\"https:\/\/78.media.tumblr.com\/c07d6186a512d906f367391b300bd34d\/tumblr_inline_o6o8uiQbgJ1r8scai_540.png\" class=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"tmblr-full\"><img src=\"https:\/\/78.media.tumblr.com\/e23f91f7f1a62d9088e73abc9f6ec5ba\/tumblr_inline_o6o9k57J9r1r8scai_540.png\" class=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Today in \u201cI\u2019m so sorry, coworkers, it\u2019s for Tumblr,\u201d I brought this post to the attention the science reporters at BuzzFeed. <a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.buzzfeed.com%2Fdanvergano&amp;t=MTViNDViNjA4ZjhhNjk0ZDZlNDM3NDQ0MTZhNjk2OWE3NDJjYjIwNixCWXY5elNJTA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">Dan Vergano<\/a> did a some research and weighed in on the question\u00a0\u201cCan you use malachite as a dildo or is it toxic?\u201d <\/p>\n<p>The answer is \u201cIt\u2019s probably fine, just wash it first and maybe use a bunch of lube.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Oh man this got so much better than the last time I saw this post<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>This is my favourite. Science side of tumblr: asking the REAL questions<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>*biologist crashes through the underbrush*<\/p>\n<p>Ok so here\u2019s the thing though<\/p>\n<p>Malachite is not poisonous to YOU. BUT fucking this stalactite will probably wreck your vaginal flora and leave you with a gruesome infection within a couple days.<\/p>\n<p>Want details? SO GLAD YOU ASKED, \u2018CAUSE HERE THEY ARE.<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Malachite is not copper oxide. It\u2019s\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FCopper&amp;t=N2YzNGUxODAwYzcyZjllZTI4M2IxZjc2ZGRlNDlkODEyYTJhNmExZixCWXY5elNJTA%3D%3D\" title=\"Copper\" target=\"_blank\">Cu<\/a><sub>2<\/sub><a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FCarbonate&amp;t=MjZiODJmMTEzMGM5ZmE1MDdhMDhjMDFkMzgzMmFkMmRmYmRlMWI1OSxCWXY5elNJTA%3D%3D\" title=\"Carbonate\" target=\"_blank\">CO<sub>3<\/sub><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FHydroxide&amp;t=ZTUzODZmODJhNjdiMmQ4MDdkYTA3NzQ3ODE5NTQyNWM0MDU5YzFjOSxCWXY5elNJTA%3D%3D\" title=\"Hydroxide\" target=\"_blank\">(OH)<\/a><sub>2<\/sub>. Like most carbonates it\u2019s water soluble\u2013 that\u2019s how it became a stalactite in the first place! And technically any given chunk of\u00a0\u201cmalachite\u201d isn\u2019t just malachite\u2013 it\u2019s a mix of various copper carbonates &amp; oxides. This will become important later.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 When malachite dissolves it makes a bunch of copper (Cu++) ions. Cu++ is GREAT at killing bacteria and fungi\u2013 so good at it that sprays with Cu++ get used a lot as a spray in agriculture to stop plant disease. It takes such a large dose to harm larger organisms\u00a0that copper sprays are used a lot in organic agriculture (like Bordeaux mixture).\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>So bottom line, yes malachite is technically nontoxic to humans. But it kills bacteria when it dissolves and releases Cu++.<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Malachite dissolves somewhat slowly in water\u2013 but vaginal secretions aren\u2019t just any water. A healthy human vagina has a pH of 3.8-4.5 and a salinity of about 0.9%. It\u2019s also warmer than your average underground cave at 37\u00b0C (or 98.5\u00b0F in <a href=\"http:\/\/badscienceshenanigans.tumblr.com\/post\/91409472047\/kbdownie-thegingermullet-did-they-ever\" class=\"tumblr_blog\" target=\"_blank\">American meat units<\/a>). As luck would have it, acidity, salinity, and warmth all make malachite dissolve faster.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 In other words, <b>the human vagina<i>\u00a0dissolves malachite.<\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 I have no deeper explanation for why human females can dissolve rocks with our genitals. It simply <i>is<\/i>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Gonna to take a quick moment to point out that sex toys that dissolve when you use them are maybe not the best investment.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Anyway the key question now is\u00a0\u201c<i>how fast<\/i> does the human vagina dissolve malachite?\u201d Are we talking geological timescale, a Nazis-in-Indiana-Jones situation, or something in between? If the reaction kinetics of dissolution are very slow, then there\u2019s nothing to worry about. An encounter with a stalactite would have to last years for enough Cu++ to leach out to cause problems. If it\u2019s quick then we\u2019re in trouble.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Unfortunately it looks like nobody really knows. One of the best sources on how malachite dissolves &amp; precipitates in water\u2013 <a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=http%3A%2F%2Fnepis.epa.gov%2FExe%2FZyNET.exe%2F30003CGQ.TXT%3FZyActionD%3DZyDocument%26Client%3DEPA%26Index%3D1995+Thru+1999%26Docs%3D%26Query%3D%26Time%3D%26EndTime%3D%26SearchMethod%3D1%26TocRestrict%3Dn%26Toc%3D%26TocEntry%3D%26QField%3D%26QFieldYear%3D%26QFieldMonth%3D%26QFieldDay%3D%26IntQFieldOp%3D0%26ExtQFieldOp%3D0%26XmlQuery%3D%26File%3DD%253A%255Czyfiles%255CIndex+Data%255C95thru99%255CTxt%255C00000003%255C30003CGQ.txt%26User%3DANONYMOUS%26Password%3Danonymous%26SortMethod%3Dh%257C-%26MaximumDocuments%3D1%26FuzzyDegree%3D0%26ImageQuality%3Dr75g8%2Fr75g8%2Fx150y150g16%2Fi425%26Display%3Dp%257Cf%26DefSeekPage%3Dx%26SearchBack%3DZyActionL%26Back%3DZyActionS%26BackDesc%3DResults+page%26MaximumPages%3D1%26ZyEntry%3D1%26SeekPage%3Dx%26ZyPURL&amp;t=NjU4NDg4NTczN2VlN2QxYWYwN2JmNjMxMDJhZWQ2YTk4ODUyMzYyNyxCWXY5elNJTA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">an EPA document on how to avoid too much Cu++ in municipal drinking water systems<\/a>\u2013 helpfully says\u00a0\u201cThe kinetic constraints on the formation of these solids in water systems are largely unexplored\u201d (p. 42) because end equilibrium points is all you need to run a city water system safely. In other words, the experiments that would tell us <i>how fast<\/i> malachite dissolves in various types of water just don\u2019t exist because nobody\u2019s ever needed to know before. So we\u2019d better assume it\u2019s going to happen reasonably quickly, #for safety.<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 So in best scientific fashion, we\u2019re just going to bullshit our way ahead using what facts we DO have on hand: endpoint equlibria.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Is there any info out there telling us what equilibrium concentration of Cu++ we get in salty acidic water at body temperature? Almost! One <a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nrcresearchpress.com%2Fdoi%2Fpdf%2F10.1139%2Fv57-177&amp;t=ZjMzOWFhY2UyNGFkZThmNzgzMDExZGViMDU1Y2RjNDFhNTk2ZmUzMyxCWXY5elNJTA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">J.F. Scaife published some great data on this back in 1957<\/a>. TAKE IT AWAY, SCAIFE.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"tmblr-full\"><img src=\"https:\/\/78.media.tumblr.com\/9051d58e008e65965416b798ae7509cb\/tumblr_inline_o6ucfzSqQc1saegrf_540.png\" class=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n<p>That orange box is how many moles of dissolved Cu++ Scaife got from sticking malachite in some water that had 0.171 moles NaCl\/L (body salinity is about 0.154 moles NaCl\/L so this is slightly less salty than people) at 30\u00b0C. He\u2019s got no acidity in there, and again the salinity and temperature are slightly lower than people. But this is probably the closest we\u2019re going to get to data on how malachite behaves in vaginas anytime soon, folks. From this we can take away that if you leave malachite alone in a vagina you\u2019ll get AT LEAST 9.12 x 10^-4 moles\/L, or 5.8 ppm, of Cu++ at equilibrium.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Recall from above that most\u00a0\u201cmalachite\u201d isn\u2019t actually pure malachite, it\u2019s a mix of various copper carbonates &amp; oxides. The EPA document elaborates:\u00a0\u201c[T]raditional \u2018eyeball\u2019 identification of malachite by its blue-green color is extremely<br \/>\nunreliable, because almost all cupric hydroxysulfates, hydroxycarbonates, hydroxychlorides,<br \/>\nand even fresh cupric hydroxide can be some shade of blue-green. \u2026\u00a0Thus, the uncertainty in the computed copper<br \/>\nconcentration in equilibrium with malachite is at least about a factor of 2 \u2026 until further experimental data focusing on this problem is generated.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>In other words,\u00a0\u201cdo your math and then double how much Cu++ you think is going to be in the water, just in case.\u201d So that gives us 11.6ppm Cu++, at equilibrium, with malachite in a (til now!) healthy vagina.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Next step: do we have any idea what happens to bacteria in acid conditions with copper? OH MY GOD WE TOTALLY DO. <a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.hindawi.com%2Fjournals%2Fjpath%2F2011%2F650968%2F&amp;t=ZjExYWMyNGNiYTQwY2EwM2E5MDQ3YmUyZTY5YWFkMzI2OWI0NWJkMCxCWXY5elNJTA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">Gyawali et al 2011<\/a> checked this out in the context of\u00a0\u201cso what if we rinsed tomatoes with a solution of lactic acid and copper, because that would be a safe &amp; organic way to get rid of E. coli?\u201d <strike>So now this post has officially ruined stalactites, vaginas, <i>and<\/i> tomatoes.<\/strike><\/p>\n<figure class=\"tmblr-full\"><img src=\"https:\/\/78.media.tumblr.com\/0db0c0005029efa9cb11361452d335b9\/tumblr_inline_o6udfcU7u51saegrf_540.png\" class=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n<p>^This would happen. These are the counts of 4 E. coli strains exposed to various levels of lactic acid &amp; Cu++ for 8 hours. This table only shows the end counts but it represents the death of 99.7% of bacteria*. <\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Losing 99.7% of your vaginal flora is seriously bad news. You\u2019re looking at really good odds of a yeast infection, bacterial vaginosis, and\/or other infection issues. And that\u2019s if you\u2019re lucky enough to not be in the <a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=http%3A%2F%2Fonlinelibrary.wiley.com%2Fdoi%2F10.1111%2Fcod.12273%2Fabstract&amp;t=M2I2OWUwYjc1ZmUzYTE0OGZlMmYzNzVhZGNiNDQ4ODRhYjVhOTU5YyxCWXY5elNJTA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">4% of the population or so that\u2019s sensitive to skin contact with copper<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 The good news? <i>Biochemically<\/i> speaking, you\u2019re probably ok to put it in your butt. It\u2019s not as acidic or salty in there, plus there\u2019s a huuuuuge stockpile of gut microbes right upstream that can quickly repopulate the colon after spelunking is complete. However this stalactite is not flared at the base so it is the wrong shape for putting in your butt. Do not put this stalactite in your butt.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 This all looks like fun and games, but I think it\u2019s really interesting that <b>the internet\u2019s mistake in concluding that this stalactite is fuckable is very similar to the mistake made by the Flint water management system.<\/b> Hear me out.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Central to the Flint lead poisoning crisis is that authorities only looked at &amp; tested Flint\u2019s water in its central treatment plant before it went out through the pipes. Not <i>after<\/i> it went through the pipes. They did not consider what would happen biochemically as it went through the pipes and metals started dissolving.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Similarly, in concluding that the stalactite is fuckable, the internet only considered the stalactite itself. Not the biochemical processes that would happen to it as it, welp, went through the pipes.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Media frequently reports that the Flint River\u2019s water is\u00a0\u201ccorrosive,\u201d leading many to believe the river is full of industrial waste. This ain\u2019t the case. You\u2019d need industry to fill a river with industrial waste, and industry left decades ago. <i>That\u2019s why Flint\u2019s so poor<\/i>. So what IS in the water? <a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.scientificamerican.com%2Farticle%2Fq-a-what-really-happened-to-the-water-in-flint-michigan%2F&amp;t=ODMzNzk1Zjc2OGUzZDg0OGZjZmY4M2MxMmUwYTE0YmUwNGQ3NjdhNyxCWXY5elNJTA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">Road salt<\/a>. Plain old stupid road salt. The old Detroit-based source didn\u2019t have salt because it came from Lake Huron which has a large, mostly rural watershed. Meanwhile the Flint River runs through a lot of towns, making it slightly salty as everything melts down in spring. And as we recall from the stalactite experience, a little salt is all it takes to get metals to dissolve.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022\u00a0Information on this engineering problem was not coming through clearly from the engineering or chemistry sides. It took a biologist, pediatrician <a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.democracynow.org%2F2016%2F1%2F15%2Fflint_doctor_mona_hanna_attisha_on&amp;t=ZmJlOTk2MTZlYjBhYTM0ZjE3NjNhMTFhYWM3MjNjZDQyNjVmM2M2ZixCWXY5elNJTA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">Mona Hanna-Attisha<\/a>, to document the real-time results and provide the data to kick-start a high-level investigation.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Morals of the story: when dealing with a biological system pls consider asking a biologist, your vagina and\/or city could depend on this<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Pls use a condom when fucking any water-soluble material<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 Still don\u2019t put the stalactite in your butt -3\/10 do not recommend<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>OK, I haven\u2019t reblogged this before now but the final post takes it to a whole new level and I can no longer resist.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>This is the most Tumblrish Tumblr post I have ever encountered. It went from dildos to the Flint water crisis through the medium of science. This is fucking MAGICAL and shit like this is one reason why I can\u2019t seem to leave this otherwise godforsaken website.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>justgot1: astolat: badscienceshenanigans: 0hcicero: beautifulchaos-anumcara: buzzfeed: adulthoodisokay: adulthoodisokay: aimee-b-loved: bijoux-et-mineraux: reclusiveandelusive: tsreckoah: naughtylittledragon: nassadii: tsreckoah: thepioden: vulcanology-geology: mollisaurus: lizaleigh: zdravomilla: brambledboneyards: xekstrin: bijoux-et-mineraux: Polished Malachite Stalactite &#8211; Copper Crescent, Congo *looks around* Is Is anyone gonna say it malachite is a poisonous mineral. please do not fuck the malachite stalactite @lizaleigh\u00a0do you know any rock &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2016\/05\/10\/justgot1-astolat-badscienceshenanigans\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[12637,235,43,185,11314,654,4],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101751"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101751"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101751\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":101755,"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101751\/revisions\/101755"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101751"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=101751"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=101751"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}