Forgive me if someone has already brought this up, but something that has always bugged me since I read this book. It talks about people not having access to metals after the earth heals itself over several millenia. My question is why don't they just reuse the metals found in the cities as a great deal of metal is needed to build skyscrapers, cars, power lines, etc. Any thoughts on this?
Jesse
Posted by Dagonee (Member # 5818) on :
quote:My question is why don't they just reuse the metals found in the cities as a great deal of metal is needed to build skyscrapers, cars, power lines, etc. Any thoughts on this?
I had the same thought. The fossil fuels part of that same conversation made sense, the metal part not so much.
The only thing I could think of was a bootstrapping problem. To mine metal, you usually need metal tools of some kind. If the metal is in a composite form from the ruins of a city, they might not be able to use it until they found some easy metal.
Posted by DDDaysh (Member # 9499) on :
maybe it's too dangerous to go to those old sites to get it?
Posted by RunningBear (Member # 8477) on :
Oxidation would probably take out most of the metals, and once the main points are used up, it would be extremely diffficult to salvage what IS left, especially if it happened to be contaminated by some sort of bio/nuclear agent.
Oxidation really tears stuff apart, and you wouldnt believe how much of it seemingly just "disappears" even though it doesnt actually disappear
Posted by Dagonee (Member # 5818) on :
Yeah, but most mines produce oxidated ore as well, don't they? Somehow we figured out how to purify it into metal.
Posted by RunningBear (Member # 8477) on :
I agree, but if the buildings rusted and such, the metal would be distributed and would not be concentrated as in a mine, but you are right, they probably would find a way to regain the metals.