From: gdpusch@NO.xnet.SPAM.com   
      
   "Eps"  writes:   
      
   > if we can genectically modify crops to resist the cold then what   
   > is stopping us from creating a plant that could survive on the   
   > surafce of mars ?...   
      
   There is a difference between modifying a plant so that it is capable of   
   resisting relatively mild frost damage, and modifying a plant to resist   
   temperatures far colder than the coldest spot on Earth, and pressures   
   so low that ice evaporates before it gets warm enough to melt.   
      
      
   > maybe we could modify it to be more effeicient at turning co2 into o2 as   
   > well.   
      
   Plants are already pretty good at that. And converting 6 millibars of CO2   
   into 4.4 millibars of O2 doesn't solve the main problem that there isn't   
   nearly enough air to begin with --- plus it decreases the greenhouse effect,   
   which is a Bad Idea on a planet that is already far too cold for Earth-type   
   life.   
      
      
   -- Gordon D. Pusch   
      
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