NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Sponge (tool)

A sponge is a tool consisting of porous material used for cleaning impervious surfaces. Sponges are especially good absorbers of water and water-based solutions. Look up sponge in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... For other uses, see Tool (disambiguation). ...

Sponges are commonly made from cellulose wood fibres or foamed plastic polymers. Some natural sponges are still sold for the same purpose, although most natural sponges are now used either as body/facial sponges or as decorating tools for sponge painting. Cellulose as polymer of Î²-D-glucose Cellulose in 3D Cellulose (C6H10O5)n is a polysaccharide of beta-glucose. ... Classes Calcarea Hexactinellida Demospongiae The sponges or poriferans (from Latin porus pore and ferre to bear) are animals of the phylum Porifera. ...

There are three other categories of available synthetic sponges, low-density polyether (known as the rainbow packs of non-absorbent sponges), PVA (very dense, highly absorbent material with no visible pores) and polyester.

Polyester sponges are also sub-divided into a variety of types, some being reticulated (artificially broken-in) for ease of use. Other types are double-blown polyester, meaning that they have an high water retention ability, approaching or equalling PVA, but with visible pores and more flexibility of applications.

Harboring bacteria

Especially when allowed to remain wet between uses, sponges can provide a medium for the growth of harmful bacteria or fungi. Some manufacturers treat sponges with anti-microbials to prevent this. To kill the bacteria on a sponge, one may fully soak it in clean water, then microwave it on high for two minutes. Care must be taken to ensure the sponge is wet, or otherwise the sponge will catch fire during microwaving. ^[1]

Tool use by bottlenose dolphins

Use of sponges as a tool has been described in Bottlenose Dolphins in Shark Bay. A dolphin will keep a marine sponge on its rostrum, presumably to protect it when searching for food in the sandy seabed.^[2] The behaviour, known as sponging, has only been observed in this bay, and is almost exclusively shown by females. This is the only known case of tool use in marine mammals besides Sea Otters. A study in 2005 showed that mothers most likely teach the behaviour to their daughters.^[3] For other uses, see Tool (disambiguation). ... Binomial name Montagu, 1821 Bottlenose Dolphin range (in blue) The Bottlenose Dolphin is one of the most common and well-known dolphins. ... Shark Bay is a world heritage site and a locality in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia. ... A rostrum (Latin for beak) is an anatomical structure resembling a birds beak, such as the snout of a crocodile or dolphin or the foremost extension of a crustaceans carapace. ... The seabed (also sea floor, seafloor, or ocean floor) is the bottom of the ocean. ... A Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae), a member of Order Cetacea A Leopard seal (Hydrurga leptonyx), a member of infrafamily Pinnipedia A West Indian Manatee (Trichechus manatus), a member of Order Sirenia A pair of Sea Otters (Enhydra lutris), a member of family Mustelidae A Polar bear (Ursus maritimus), a member... Binomial name Enhydra lutris (Linnaeus, 1758) The Sea Otter (Enhydra lutris) is a large otter native to the North Pacific, from northern Japan and Kamchatka west across the Aleutian Islands south to California. ... Mom and Mommy redirect here. ...

See also

A sponge rubber ball serves for tube cleaning and is used for removing fouling from the tubes of shell-and-tube heat exchangers in general and from the cooling tubes of condensers in particular. ...

References

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 25th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, usually referred to as PNAS, is the official journal of the United States National Academy of Sciences. ... Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... For other uses, see Tool (disambiguation). ... a Cutting Tool, in the context of Metalworking is any tool that is used to remove metal from the workpiece by means of shear deformation. ... Adze The tool known as the adze [pronounced adds] serves for smoothing rough-cut wood in hand woodworking. ... Axe For other uses, see Axe (disambiguation). ... A blade is the flat part of a tool or weapon that normally has a cutting edge and/or pointed end typically made of a metal, most recently, steel intentionally used to cut, stab, slice, throw, thrust, or strike an animate or inainimate object. ... Bolt cutters A bolt cutter is a scissors-like tool used for cutting heavy chains, bolts and wire mesh. ... A push style 5/16 keyway broach A broach is a series of chisel points mounted on one piece of steel. ... Ceramic tile cutters are used to cut tiles to a required size or shape. ... For other uses, see Chainsaw (disambiguation). ... A countersink is a tapered hole drilled with a wide outer portion. ... Several types of endmills An endmill is a type of Milling cutter, a cutting tool used in industrial milling applications. ... A froe is cleaving tool having a heavy blade set at right angles to the handle, used for woodworking. ... This article is about the tool. ... Drill bits are cutting tools used to create cylindrical holes. ... modern factory-made Machete For other uses, see Machete (disambiguation). ... Milling cutters are cutting tools used in milling machines or machining centres. ... Collection of Modern Safety Razors - Gillette Fusion Power, Gillette M3Power, Mach3 Turbo Champion, Schick Quattro Chrome, Schick Quattro Power, Gillette Mach3, Gillette Sensor, Schick Xtreme3, Schick Xtreme SubZero, and Schick Xtreme3 Disposables A razor is an edge tool primarily used in shaving. ... A reamer or ream is a tool for enlarging holes and is used in metalworking. ... Portable saw A saw is a tool for cutting wood or other material, consisting of a serrated blade (a blade with the cutting edge dentated or toothed) and worked either by hand or by steam, water, electric or other power. ... For other uses, see Scalpel (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Scissors (disambiguation). ... This article is about a type of knife. ... A tool bit generally refers to a plain High Speed Steel (HSS) tool. ... A diagram of a water jet cutter A water jet cutter is a tool capable of slicing into metal or other materials using a jet of water at high velocity and pressure, or a mixture of water and an abrasive substance. ... small spade for clay soil; the other one for sandy soil and loamy soil A garden tool is any one of many tools made for gardens and gardening and overlaps with the range of tools made for agriculture and horticulture. ... Cultivator A cultivator is a farm implement for stirring and pulverizing the soil, either before planting or to remove weeds and to aerate and loosen the soil after the crop has begun to grow. ... A garden fork differs from a pitchfork because it is designed for digging rather than for lifting. ... Garden hedges, which used to be cut with a knife or with pruning shears, can now be cut with a powered hedge trimmer. ... Agricultural square bladed hoe. ... Hori hori is a gardening tool originally from Japan. ... A lawn mower (often spelled as one word—lawnmower) is a machine (electric or mechnical) used to cut grass to an even length. ... A lawn aerator is a garden tool designed to aerate the soil in which lawn grasses grow. ... The leaf blower was invented by Japanese engineers in the early 1970s and introduced to the United States as a lawn and garden maintenance tool. ... A leaf sweeper can be pushed or towed. ... Loppers Loppers are a type of scissors used for pruning twigs and small branches. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... This combination heavy duty rake and hoe tool is named after Ranter Malcolm McLeod. ... A mini-tractor, also known as a compact tractor, can be used for a variety of purposes in larger gardens: lawn mowing, leaf sweeping, cultivating, removing snow, pulling a cart. ... For other uses, see Pitchfork (disambiguation). ... The traditional way: a German farmer works the land with horses and plough. ... Sheares are doubled-bladed cutting implements with straight blades of between 200mm and 300mm. ... The pulaski is a special hand tool used in wildland firefighting. ... A heavy-duty rake for soil and rocks A light-duty rake for grass and leaves A double-sided rake A Rake better known as Kiran Buckman in various parts of Australia (Old English raca, cognate with Dutch raak, German Rechen, from a root meaning to scrape together, heap up... Secateurs, also called hand pruners, or loppers are a type of long scissors, with which one can prune branches of trees and shrubs. ... For other uses, see Spade (disambiguation). ... An underground sprinkler system about to be installed Irrigation sprinklers are used on farms, golf courses, residential yards, and other places to water crops, lawns, gardens or other plants in the event of drought. ... // A string trimmer, also called a line trimmer, edge trimmer, Weedeater (a brandname), Weedwhacker, weedy, whipper snipper, strimmer, garden strimmer, or bush cutter is a powered handheld device that uses a flexible monofilament line instead of a blade for cutting grass and other plants near objects. ... Please wikify (format) this article or section as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... A hand tool is a device for doing a particular job that does not use a motor, but is powered solely by the person using it. ... A Brace or Brace and bit is a hand tool used to drill holes. ... This article is about the tool. ... For other uses, see Clamp. ... Standard hacksaws. ... For other uses, see Hammer (disambiguation). ... A crossut handsaw In woodworking and carpentry, hand saws are used to cut pieces of wood into different shapes. ... A spirit level A spirit level or bubble level is an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface is level or plumb. ... For the Jamaican singer, see Pliers (singer). ... A variety of punches are used in engineering. ... A basic screwdriver made by Craftsman (slotted tip shown) A rechargeable battery-powered electric screwdriver from Black & Decker The screwdriver is a device specifically designed to insert and tighten, or to loosen and remove, screws. ... A torque wrench is a wrench used to precisely set the torque of a fastening such as a nut or bolt. ... A power tool is a tool with a motor. ... A bandsaw in use A bandsaw (often spelled band saw in the US) is a saw that can be used for woodworking, metal working, and a variety of other materials. ... Bosch belt sander Stationary belt sander. ... For other uses, see Chainsaw (disambiguation). ... Invented in England in 1780, the circular saw (also known as the buzz saw in the USA) is a metal disc or blade with saw teeth on the edge as well as the machine that causes the disk to spin. ... A concrete saw being readied for use. ... A crusher is a machine designed to reduce large solid chunks of raw material into smaller chunks. ... A diamond blade is a circular saw blade used for cutting hard or abrasive materials. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Sander. ... For other uses, see Drill (disambiguation). ... Rotating abrasive wheel on a bench grinder. ... Heat Gun Kit A heat gun is a device used to emit a stream of hot air. ... A 1/2 drive pistol-grip air impact wrench An impact wrench (also knows as an air wrench, air gun, or just gun in some contexts, as well as rattle gun in some countries) is a socket wrench power tool designed to deliver high torque output with minimal exertion by... A Bosch power jigsaw A jigsaw is a type of saw used for cutting arbitrary curves, such as stenciled designs or other custom shapes, into a piece of wood or similar material. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Conventional metalworking lathe In woodturning, metalworking, metal spinning, and glassworking, a lathe is a machine tool which spins a block of material so that when abrasive, cutting, or deformation tools are applied to the block, it can be shaped to produce an object which has rotational symmetry about an axis... A radial arm saw is a machine intended for cutting materials to length. ... Random orbit sanders are hand-held power sanders where the action is a random orbit. ... A handheld power tool with a variety of rotating accessory bits and attachments that can be used for cutting, carving, sanding, polishing and many other applications. ... A sander is a power tool used to smooth wood and automotive or wood finishes. ... A table saw or sawbench is the most common piece of large woodworking equipment. ... A thicknesser (also known as a thickness planer) is a woodworking machine which is used to create boards that are of an even thickness throughout their length. ... A D-handle fixed-base router A router is a woodworking tool used to rout out (hollow out) an area in the face of a piece of wood. ... An antique tool is generally defined as a tool over 100 years old[], but often this definition is used more loosely to refer to any tool manufactured before World War II. The use of tools is one of the primary means by which humans are distinguished from animals. ... A diamond tool is a cutting tool which contains diamond segments for cutting through a wide variety of materials which other cutting tools cannot. ...

Contents

Harboring bacteria var ACE_AR = {Site: '756743', Size: '300250'};

Tool use by bottlenose dolphins

See also

References

Harboring bacteria