WTC Left Sedimentary Fingerprint

Quixotic1 writes "The NSF announced scientists had found a "distinct fingerprint on the sedimentary record in New York Harbor" due to the destruction of the World Trade Center. The findings were extrapolated from the presence of high concentrations of several elements that make up gypsum, a material used in drywall, and silica, likely from fiberglass."

Re:Wow

[Simon Field]

The point of the article was that we have an event made at a particular time, that left a signature in the sediments. This allows us to track those sediments over time to find out how they are transported in that harbor.

This may become important if, say, a dirty bomb were set off in that city, and we wanted to assess the cost of cleaning up the harbor. It could also be used to study the effects of human water pollution on the sea-floor life in the area.

I wonder about other studies...

[Simon Field]

I wonder if anyone did similar studies after such events as Chernoble, the oil fires in Iraq, or after some volcanic eruptions.

Interesting about the radioactive iodine though. This may be an easier way to study urban water pollution patterns than looking for antibiotics or hormones in the water.

News Flashes!!!

[0x69]

News flash one: Scientists conduct study and discover that dust and ash from a huge building that burned & collapsed can be found spread over a wide area. News flash two: High-salary scientists are RIF'ed and replaced with ordinary, sensible housewives - who wouldn't need any fancy study to know such a simple thing.

Re:News Flashes!!!

[Madcapjack]

From my understanding of the article, the scientists were not simply looking for a WTC sedimentary layer to simply confirm that it was there. The scientists involved seem more interested in studying how small particles in air and water spread in that region. And that is interesting and potentially useful.

Dust to Dust

[Madcapjack]

I thought that this was an interesting article, and I think that it doesn't deserve the (mostly) silly comments so far posted. But the article just doesn't offer to much to talk about.

I think that the situation was fortuitious for scientists who want to study how particles spread, especially in the New York region. It is an interesting study for that reason. But it isn't surprising that there is such a signature showing in the bay.

Other Sedimentary Deposits

[Bonker]

1998 - Bill Clinton's DNA found in Patomic River
1999 - Little bits of Silicone from Pamela Anderson found in the sand at all the various 'Baywatch' sets.
2000 - Florida's 'hanging chads' and its dignity found off Miami Beach.
2001 - Dot.Com shrapnel covers most of California and a significant portion of the East Coast.
2002 - The tatters and shreds of American freedom found in the dust in the bottom of Senate and House a few months after the Patriot Act was passed.
2003 - I'm not sure *what* particles those are all over the Pacific Ocean, but the Mass Spectrometer says 'CowboyNeal'.

Alarmist myth

[Farang]

One of the goofy things reported shortly after the collapse: that the WTC contained huge quantities of asbestos. The deadly dust would cause thousands of cases of cancer in years to come, according to this urban myth. No mention of asbestos in the article, CMIIAW. Anyone else hear this asbestos rumor? I think I need to be a little more selective in my news sources....

WTC did contain asbestos

[mookoz]

http://cryptome.org/wtc-junksci.htm [cryptome.org]

It's a true fact that asbestos insulation was used in the construction of the WTC (up to the 64th floor, when NYC banned asbestos use in 1971).

The real "myth" is if exposure to asbestos fibers causes cancer in the long term. So far the only cases observed have been in extreme exposure cases (like miners), and long-term smokers that were exposed to fibers. The Cryptome article describes the "junk-science" that started the asbestos hysteria in the 1970s (and continues to this day)

The amount of friable asbestos fibers in the WTC collapse certainly exposed many people but the long-term results, if any, won't been seen for decades.

The author also argues that if not for the asbestos hysteria, perhaps the steel columns on the floors above 64 would have been saved from the fire and the towers would have held long enough to get more people out. Interesting stuff.

Re:WTC did contain asbestos

[Farang]

Thanks for the information on my asbestos post. Off topic (so sue me): my father worked in a shipyard, and told me that he was often in the engine rooms of ships undergoing refitting--the asbestos dust was, as he described it, like a "heavy fog." No protective clothing; maybe masks, I don't know. Later I heard that my dad might well have poisoned his family when he exposed us to his clothing. No one in my family has ever had any asbestos-related health problems. Our first exposure was over a half century ago and continued for 20 plus years.