So in looking over various Pokemon, a question occurred to me that I would like to pose to you all. Is the Hippopotas line a form of inorganic life?
Okay, on the surface it might not look like it, but here's what lead me to wonder. Hippopotas is terribly hydrophobic, to the point that it releases sand instead of sweat.
When it comes to inorganic (non-carbon based) life, the most popular element in sci-fi to base such life on is silicon. It's in the same column as carbon on the periodic table, and thus has similar properties. For example, it has the same number of electrons it can use to bond to other elements.
But if you were to take all the chemical processes in the human body and switch carbon for silicon, you run into a problem. We breathe in oxygen and release carbon dioxide because we need oxygen to convert glucose to energy. But while carbon dioxide is a gas at room temperature, silicon dioxide is a solid.
Silicon dioxide is one of the main components of sand, and a creature that was based in silicon and used oxygen would essentially need to release sand from it's body regularly. Given that Hippopotas releases sand to "sweat", that's why I wonder if it could be inorganic.
What do you all think?
Okay, on the surface it might not look like it, but here's what lead me to wonder. Hippopotas is terribly hydrophobic, to the point that it releases sand instead of sweat.
When it comes to inorganic (non-carbon based) life, the most popular element in sci-fi to base such life on is silicon. It's in the same column as carbon on the periodic table, and thus has similar properties. For example, it has the same number of electrons it can use to bond to other elements.
But if you were to take all the chemical processes in the human body and switch carbon for silicon, you run into a problem. We breathe in oxygen and release carbon dioxide because we need oxygen to convert glucose to energy. But while carbon dioxide is a gas at room temperature, silicon dioxide is a solid.
Silicon dioxide is one of the main components of sand, and a creature that was based in silicon and used oxygen would essentially need to release sand from it's body regularly. Given that Hippopotas releases sand to "sweat", that's why I wonder if it could be inorganic.
What do you all think?