2007-11-04 15:17:47 · 3 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Biology
They are like Caltrops to any small creature, with the small silica bits getting into every joint like you wallowing in broken glass.
Ants and roaches hate it as do snails and slugs as it is like broken glass to them as well.
But what is possible(and really neat) with the new DNA technology is to use diatoms to create silica machinery for nanotechnology. When they manage that, the changes will be stunning.
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/18
TED | Talks | Janine Benyus: 12 sustainable design ideas from nature (video)
2007-11-04 15:27:18 · answer #1 · answered by Freedem 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Diatoms skeletons form Diatomaceous earth. This is neat stuff that has lots of uses; it has lots of surface area, like activated charcoal, so it's great at absorbing spills, and filtering liquids. I've used it in those applications.
It's also can be used as an abrasive, but I have no experience with that. A search of diatomaceous earth will probably show a lot more uses.
Updated:
I remembered that this was being used as catle feed, so I did a little digging and found this site - it has some more info on the above, plus the feed applications:
http://www.whiteearth.ca/de.htm
2007-11-04 23:27:29 · answer #2 · answered by Thomas K 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
They can be sprinkled on the garden to deter slugs.
2007-11-04 23:22:05 · answer #3 · answered by Robert S 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋