From CH5TV
Researchers find Belizean fungus that eats
CD
In technology news, scientists have discovered a
fungus that eats supposedly indestructible compact
discs. The interesting thing is the place the fungus
was first detected is Belize. A report in Britain's
"Telegraph" newspaper says that a leading scientist
from Spain's top research institution made the
discovery two years ago while visiting friends in
Belize. The friends complained that one of their CD's
had stopped working and had developed a strange
discoloration, which left parts of the disc virtually
transparent. The scientist, Dr. Victor Cardenas, took
the CD back to Spain where he and colleagues
discovered that a microscopic fungus was eating its
way through the plastic, aluminium and even
data-storing polycarbonate resin. Biologists at
Madrid's Superior Council for Scientific Research said
that they'd never seen this particular fungus before,
but concluded that it belonged to a common genus
called geotrichum. Philips, the Dutch electronics
corporation that invented the compact disc, told "The
Telegraph" that the episode in Belize was a freak
occurrence, likely caused by extremely humid weather
conditions.