2021.05.19
The “Worm Skyscraper” designed by yong ju lee architects is an environmental protection project that explores the solution of plastic pollution. Expanded polystyrene, also known as “styrofoam”, is not biodegradable. This means that single-use polystyrene cups may exist permanently, and therefore cause great harm to the environment.
However, what if this synthetic material can be decomposed by humble mealworms?
Mealworms are the larval form of beetles, the yellow mealworms. They are used as a high-protein food source for pets, such as reptiles and birds. In 2015, Stanford University researchers discovered that this little bug can safely eat and digest polystyrene!
According to this research, yong ju lee architects fed polystyrene foam boards to mealworms and used the remaining parts to create the building blocks of “worm skyscrapers”.
Incredibly, it seems that co-made materials can really return to nature through the intestines of this tiny creature.
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