What to do with old swimming caps

Since the start of the 2013/2014 ocean swimming season, around 20,000 swimming caps have been handed out to competitors at the various ocean swims in NSW. If you are a regular ocean swimmer, it doesn’t take too long before you have more caps than you know what to do with. Some may be used again in the pool, and some given to friends and family, but the vast majority of these caps will end up in land-fill having spent most of the season at the bottom of your swimming bag.

This year at the 2014 Coogee Island Challenge, we are running a swimming cap “amnesty”. Bring down your old caps that you no longer use, or donate after your swim, and we will save your caps from an ignominious end in land-fill or as rubbish scattered on the beach. There are no companies that recycle swimming caps, mostly made of latex or silicone, so the collected caps will be donated to the following organisations for re-use (which is better than recycling anyway):

• The Frugal Forest is a One Off Makery project, supported by Midwaste, the Australia Council for the Arts and Glasshouse Port Macquarie. Drawing in artists, musicians, scientists, community, business and industry, we aim to build an intricately detailed forest entirely from salvage. Why? Because nothing is wasted in the forest, and we could really learn from that.
• Reverse Garbage is Australia’s largest creative reuse centre, committed to diverting resources from landfill – approximately 35,000 cubic metres or 100 football fields’ worth per year. Almost 40 years from its founding, Reverse Garbage is now an internationally recognised, award-winning environmental co-operative committed to promoting sustainability through the reuse of resources, as well as providing support to other community, creative and educational organisations. 
• Various Council Pools to be used by those needing a cap on the day.

Where: Coogee Island Challenge Ocean Swim, Coogee Beach
Where, specifically: The oceanswims.com marquee.
When: 13 April 8.30-11.30am

There seems to be a gap in the market here for an entrepreneurial organic chemist. Swimming caps are usually made from latex or silicone (rubbery materials) which are polymers. Are there any options at all for recycling such materials? From what I read, it's just not economical, but I wonder will that change as the raw starting materials for such products (that is, petroleum) become rarer and so more expensive.

Cocoa Condoms

Not too long ago we sort to find out whether or not you can recycle condoms, and didn't reach a conclusion. However, there has been one recent development in this area, with the condom manufacturer Condomi releasing condoms that are slightly higher up the ethical stakes.

Condoms are made from latex, which comes from the tropical rubber tree Hevea brasiliensis. Liquid latex, a dispersion of rubber particles (30%) in water (70%), lies between the bark and wood and is collected by slashing through the bark and allowing the latex to flow out. Ammonia is added to counter the acid production of waste products from the bacteria that naturally feed on the latex and cause it to curdle.

The liquid latex is centrifuged to concentrate the rubber particles so that it is 60% solid rubber. Other chemicals including an antioxidant, a sulfur-based vulcanizing agent, and a vulcanizing accelerator, are added to increase both the rate and extent of cross-linking in the latex compound during vulcanization - a process in which polymer molecules are cross-linked by sulfur atoms or carbon-carbon bonds under high heat. This makes the latex harder and more durable.

This is where there is some ethical debate. The manufacture of condoms usually involves casein, a phosphoprotein that occurs in milk and cheese and so is from cows and not vegan friendly. Casein is added at this stage to toughen up the latex. Condomi have replaced casein with cocoa powder. It is thought that these condoms might be a tiny bit weaker.

I'm not sure which option is the best for the planet as the latex produced is still largely not biodegradable, but it's good to see that the best brains on the planet have made life a bit easier for a couple of vegans. I always figured there was some connection between sex and chocolate...

The 118118 Challenge

118118 is a directory enquiries phone number in the UK that has recently expanded to "answer any question you put to us, no matter how big or small."

So we thought we might test them out with some of the unsolved questions from our show, and then some maths.

Listen here, with the voice of 118118 played by the AT&T Text-to-Speech synthesiser.



Marc: Can you recycle condoms?
118118: In general, condoms are made of latex and are not recyclable. It is probably better to dispose of your used condoms in the rubbish. Thank you!
Verdict: Pretty much what we came up with too. To read more about recycling condoms, see the Mr Science article Recycling Condoms.

Marc: How many colours to do you need to colour a political map of the world such that no two bordering countries are the same colour?
118118: Four colour theorem: any plan separated into regions, the regions may be coloured using 4 colours in such a way that no 2 adjacent regions receive the same.
Verdict: Pretty good. The four colour theorem is correct, although it is just a theorem and so no one has conclusively proven that you only need 4 colours to colour the map. See the Plus article The origins of proof IV: The philosophy of proof.

Marc: Is there a formula for solving quintic equations, like there is for quadratic equations?
118118: There is no formula for general quintic equations over the rationals in terms of radicals. Some can be solved by factorising into radicals. Thank you!
Verdict: Correct. For more on the quintic, see the Plus article The equation that couldn't be solved.

Marc: Is the Mandelbrot set locally connected?
118118: The Mandelbrot set is a set of points in the complex plane. It is a compact set, contained in the closed disk of radius 2 around the origin. Thanks!
Verdict: Well, that's correct but not an answer. That the Mandelbrot set is locally connected is an outstanding conjecture. To read more about the Mandelbrot set, see the Plus article Unveiling the Mandelbrot set.

Then I got my Plus co-editor Marianne involved, and she was less forgiving...

Marianne: Can any even number bigger than two be written as the sum of two primes?
118118: Every even number bigger than 2 can be written as a sum of two
primes. Thank you.
Marianne: But that's wrong!
118118: 2 is the only even prime.
Marianne: But that's got nothing to do with the question.
118118: Every even number bigger than 2 can be written as a sum of two primes.
Marianne: Still wrong.
118118: No charge. Please direct any questions to our customer service
department.
Verdict: It was a bit harsh asking 118118 an unproven conjecture. The Goldbach conjecture postulates that all even number greater than 4 can be written as the sum of two odd primes. To read more about the Goldbach conjecture, see the Plus article Mathematical mysteries: the Goldbach conjecture.

Finally, a couple of big questions.

Marc: Can science disprove God?
118118: It's a personal decision for you to make. Everything was "created", therefore decide if you believe it was by someone, some being or a metaphysical force.
Verdict: Nice answer!

And an even bigger one...

Should you have sex the night before a big sporting event? (see map)

Yes - Good for your performance:
(32%)
No - Bad for your performance:
(25%)
I'll take it when I can get it:
(24%)
Only if you're married:
(5%)
Makes absolutely no difference to your performance:
(15%)

Total Votes: 199
Powered by Blog Flux Polls

Marc: Should you have sex before sport?
118118: Various studies have been carried out to examine the possibility that intercourse before a sporting event drains an athlete of their physical ability.
Verdict: Well, not an answer. So let us turn to readers of this site, and as you can see, 32% of voters say sex before sport is good for your performance and 24% will take it when they can get it, whilst 25% think it is bad for performance and 15% think it makes no difference. Only 5% thought you should be married. So from our poll, you definitely should have sex before sport, even just to get it when you can.

Listen here:

Plastic paper protects Morrisons Mushrooms

Recycling can be a difficult business, and big grocery stores don't make it easy. Whilst I can just about understand the Health and Safety reasons for wrapping up every vegetable in the fearful UK, there are some things that are just plain confounding. For instance, the following information given on my mushroom bag:

This packaging can not be recycled. But because we care about the environment we are working on it.

Clearly, Morrisons has not quite caught onto that not-so-modern concept of paper packaging. The ancient Egyptians used it, many other stores use it, but not Morrisons. For some unfathomable reason, they put a thin sliver of plastic in the bag, presumably so you can keep an eye on your mushrooms, just to make sure they are safe.

This really is one of the strangest things I have seen, but at least "they are working on it". Who knows what this involves. Perhaps a collaboration with the high-end scientists who came up with The Seven Signs of Aging.

Recycling Condoms

Recently, a Mr Science Show reader, let's call him Scott, asked a question regarding the recycling of condoms. How does one do this?

This is a very good question, and one I need to tackle during this recycling challenge. In general, condoms are made of latex and are not recyclable. It is probably better to dispose of your used condoms in the rubbish - where they will eventually end up as land-fill - than flushing them down the toilet - which not only wastes water but puts them out into the sewerage, where they eventually wind up in an anerobic digester and reduced to sludge.

It may be constructive to look at the steps we should take when being environmentally friendly - reduce, reuse, recycle:

• Reduction - so how should red-blooded males go about reducing their condom use, without reducing their sexual activity? The answer may lie in alternative methods of contraception - although, there is nothing out there as good at preventing STDs as condoms. So unless you are in a loving STD-free relationship, keep using them! Let's have a look at a few contraceptive alternatives:

1. The Pill: The Pill, a combination of estrogen and a progestin, is one of the most popular methods of contraception. It is a female contraceptive that limits fertility by preventing the ovaries from releasing eggs. But is it environmentally friendly? As opposed to condoms, there are no waste products that need to be thrown out (bar the packaging, which can be recycled). But the process of making The Pill I do not imagine is particularly environmentally friendly. Some of the contents of The Pill are synthetic organic compounds and others are isolated from natural sources (or at least made using biological processes). They all come together in an organic lab, and organic solvents and other chemicals are used in its making. These chemicals require specialist disposal and are more often than not incinerated. Any leaks into the ecosystem can be deadly and catalytic metals need to be mined out of the ground. This does not paint a positive picture, but as a chemistry graduate (albeit it in Physical / Theoretical Chemistry - see paper and patent), I am all for the advancement of science and human knowledge, even if it comes at a small cost. Such advancement may one day solve the problem of plastic in our oceans, so whilst this may not be environmentally friendly, I am all for organic labs.
2. The Catholic Method: "Withdrawal", "getting off one stop before Central station"; it has many names and simply doesn't work. Not to mention the fact that you are vulnerable to STDs (as you are with The Pill), and it is sexually ungratifying. It only takes one scare to let you know that it does not work as pre-ejaculate fluid means there is never a good time to pull out.
3. Abstinence: The biggest environmental threat on the planet is us. There are too many humans on Earth. Housing and transport deplete our natural resources and pollute the environment, especially given the exponential population growth in developing countries that are hardly environmentally friendly. My personal viewpoint however is this: If you are intelligent, don't use condoms and breed. This will bring more intelligent people into the world who may eventually solve our problems. If you are dumb, use condoms and create plastic waste - hopefully the intelligent offspring of others will remedy your condom use.
   

• Reuse - this is definitely not going to happen, but it's not unheard of. The following video comes from a Filipino documentary on how prostitutes recycle condoms - go down this road if you dare....

• Which brings us back to Recycle. In southern China, condoms are being recycled into hair-bands. And in Singapore, a man has taken to collecting them and drying them out on his windowsill (picture above). When it rains, it causes them to drip.....
  

Listen to this show here.

The Recyling Challenge - Early Days

I was recently quite upset to read about a Plastic Soup twice the size of the US floating in the Pacific Ocean. This vast expanse of debris is held in place by swirling underwater currents and stretches from 500 nautical miles off the Californian coast, across the northern Pacific, past Hawaii and almost too Japan. It is believed that there is about 100 million tons of trash in the region.

However, I was inspired by one British woman who is now saying no to plastic packaging. So I've decided to copy her. I am going to see how long I can go without buying anything packaged in a non-recyclable or non-biodegradable container.

This promises to be more difficult that you might think. I am astounded by the amount of packaging UK shops use. Lettuces and cucumbers come in their own plastic bags, as do bananas (even they do have their own thick skin to protect them...). The British lifestyle is surprisingly fast-food. Most items are sold in bite-size chunks, all wrapped up in ubiquitous non-recyclable plastic packaging. It is almost impossible to get a freshly made sandwich - but it's very easy to find one made that morning and all wrapped up.

And whilst it should be relatively easy to not use plastic bags (or to re-use them again and again), and whilst the green grocers down the road will supply non-wrapped fruit and veg, some things will prove difficult. Pasta for instance. Where can you buy pasta not wrapped in plastic? Rice also. Even cereal has a plastic liner inside the box. Looking out for products that are not coated in plastic will, I think, cost a lot as there will be no more shopping at discount supermarkets. Today's challenge was finding cheese without plastic - I failed in finding cheddar, so I ate some very fatty feta that came in a jar.

The actual act of recycling will also be hard. My local council amazingly does not provide a recycling pick-up service, and the local recycling bins only cater for clear and green glass. The recycling plant is a decent walk down the road but has become part of my weekly routine - although the local talk is that it is soon going to be replaced, ironically, by a plastic packaging-loving Sainsburys. My apartment block provides no recycling service either, and the amount of recyclable material that is thrown out by my supposedly young/funky/forward-thinking apartment block is utterly astounding (see picture).

So far, it has been smooth enough sailing, but that wont last long. Difficulties I foresee are days when I grab a drink or something to eat on the train before a night out. Where am I going to put my rubbish? It's hard enough to find a bin near most London tube stops, let alone a recycling bin, and I don't fancy carrying my rubbish around all night till I get home. I've already had to carry around some aluminium Mars-Bar wrapping for a day, but that's a minor problem. Thankfully, the Cambridge Maths Department have just introduced more recycling bins, easing the issue, although I can't eat most of the things they have an offer as they're wrapped up in plastic.

I'm sure the late night kebab will also prove something of an issue, but we'll see how we go. I am quite converted to the Fried Chicken shops in the area anyway, and they have cardboard boxes... Another exception will be when I eat out. I can't do anything about where restaurants get their products, although I'm sure we can make some ethical choices.

The UK situation is different to the Australian one. The ACT was the first government in the world to set a goal of achieving NO WASTE going to landfill. Canberra is lucky enough to have vast open areas for composting - something London certainly doesn't - but its pro-activity is fantastic and hopefully by 2010 it will achieve this goal.

Recycle-more.co.uk state that recycling just one plastic bottle saves enough energy to power a 60W lightbulb for six hours. And as the UK has ridiculously decided to invest in new coal factories, instead of a renewable source such as wind (we are having the "storm of the decade" at the moment), every little bit counts.

Listen to this show here