Xref: utzoo rec.gardens:4772 sci.bio:3465 Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!cs.utexas.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!pt.cs.cmu.edu!o.gp.cs.cmu.edu!andrew.cmu.edu!lv08+ From: lv08+@andrew.cmu.edu (Lili Velez) Newsgroups: rec.gardens,sci.bio Subject: Re: Amazing new insecticide discovered! :-) Message-ID: Date: 18 Aug 90 18:38:52 GMT Organization: English, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA Lines: 29 I had read once that detergents in water kill insects by removing their waterproofing....that is, the detergent breaks down a coating on the out side of the insect, and the water gets into the areas meant for respiration.. ...the result is that the insects drown. But I don't know if this is the exact reason, nor do I know why the effect is so rapid. As for why detergents and water are not used instead of chemical compounds like chlorinated hydrcarbons.... the detergent and water mix has to be sprayed directly on the insects, and obviously won't work once the water has evaporated. So it's good for getting the bugs that you can see, and in- effective on insects which arrive when you're not around. A passing biology student suggests that perhaps the insects don't so much drown exactly; the water gets into the respiration areas and damages the oxygen-carbon dioxide transfer membranes, such that they wouldn't be able to breathe even if they did make it out of the water quickly. In any event, they die. Lili Fox Velez lv08@andrew.cmu.edu Dept. of English/Dept. of Biology Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA 15213 "History is an angel being blown backward into the future." --- Laurie Anderson