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The Future of Technology Is Hiding on the Ocean Floor
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The Future of Technology Is Hiding on the Ocean Floor

Maddie Stone
Gizmodo, 2016
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8

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  • Innovative

Recommendation

Deep in the ocean, lying on the seabed, you’ll find vast fields of manganese nodules filled with rare earth metals – the materials that make smartphones, laptops and certain life-saving medications possible. Journalist Maddie Stone highlights the manifold uses of these metals, and, recognizing them as a finite resource, details the growing demand for them that could lead to deep-sea mining. getAbstract recommends this article to businesses interested in investing in deep-ocean research, as well as to scientists and environmentalists concerned about the negative impact that such activities could have on entire ocean ecosystems.

Take-Aways

  • A booming technology sector has created high demand for elements known as rare earth metals, which make smartphones, cancer treatment drugs and clean energy technology possible.
  • Recent discoveries indicate that rare earth metals appear in greater abundance at the bottom of the ocean than on land, with an estimated 15 million tons of rare earth oxides in the Clarion Clipperton Zone of the Pacific Ocean alone.
  • The economic viability of extracting these metals is unknown, but research into deep-sea mining is underway.

About the Author

Maddie Stone is a staff writer at Gizmodo, a design and technology blog that features articles on the latest science and technology applications.

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