Nasa ecosphere?

southafrica1001

i saw these in a shop the other day and i was intrigued. its meant to be an enclosed marine enviroment, where nothing but light and heat can get in or out. bacteria, microorganisims and marine shrimp (tiny) live in there and they lead a natural lifecycle which can go on for 4 years!
im still indecisive about wether or not its cruel or natural (well as natural as putting some animals in a glass ball and letting them live) is.
what is everyones view?
here is a link to nasa website with the information :
http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/en/kids/earth/wordfind/

edit: another link with even more information :
http://www.ecospheresuk.com/howitworks/index.htm

Tyyrlym

I honestly don't see how its any more cruel than stuffing the same animals in a glass box. So long as it works as advertised and the shrimp are getting enough oxygen and food to sustain them I'd say its fine. It's a small enclosure but they're also tiny shrimp.

southafrica1001

yea i didnt mean to say it was cruel, just wanted to say that even though it says its natural, some members might argue that they are out of their natural habitat so its far from natural. i dont know if i want one or not, it is intresting its a natural ecosystem that is functions its self, i love that idea :D

okiemavis

I've heard mixed reports on the ecosphere, but generally I think it's cruel. The shrimp in there is Halocaridina rubra, a brackish shrimp which can tolerate a ridiculous amount of temperature variation AND both freshwater and fully marine water. They basically survive off their exoskeletons as their only food, and whatever algae the can scrounge up. Most people notice their shrimp shrinking instead of growing, a sure sign of lack of food. These shrimp are known to live for 20+ years given proper care, so the average of 2 years they live in an Ecosphere is pretty pitiful.

The EcoSphere certainly has a slower degradation time to your average aquarium, but in the end, you're not properly caring for the life inside.

southafrica1001

yea, that is a problem, it makes me want to buy one and put them into my 8 gallon haha. yea i just want people opinion so that i can make up my mind and see if i really want to buy one or not.

Flashygrrl

I would rather see my shrimp flitting around a nice big tank and generally being cute than stuck into some stupid little glass sphere with virtually no interaction. Personally I think it's just kind of a dumb waste of money meant for the dumb rich girls who don't know any better.

southafrica1001

yea, i am really starting to dislike them lol, i also dont like the idea that i cant acess the inside of the tank, and all of us now that after keeping tanks it helps to get inside the tank and clean off all unwanted algae etc.

iamntbatman

There's a lot of hate in this thread! I see where people are coming from from the fishkeeper's perspective, but I actually think these things are really cool. They were designed to see if a self-contained ecosystem is possible and I think the ecospheres are a step in the right direction. Someday we might rely on technology like this if we are ever to colonize other planets. Sure, the environments might not yet be ideal for the organisms inside them, but it's important to find out if such systems are even possible in order to know if we ourselves can survive in a similar artificial environment on, say, Mars.

southafrica1001

thats a good point :D now im really one the fence lol .

Flashygrrl

Except there's one big difference between this product and colonizing another world: We would be capable of receiving food shipments and extra people would hopefully be able to come in and give us the extra help we need if we need it (unless of course we're forced to evacuate completely and have to land somewhere completely obscure).