Can Cockroach Survive Nuclear Attack?
WouterA nuclear explosion does not only cause the release of high levels of radiation. It also generates enormous amounts of heat. This heat can be fatal to humans, but it is not fatal to a cockroach. A cockroach would be fine on the ground, but if it had wings, it could be in danger of flying away and being killed instantly.
Cockroaches have a relatively slow cell cycle. This means that they can withstand radiation more easily. The radiation is weakest when a cell is dividing. Therefore, they would likely survive a nuclear attack. However, they would not survive a nuclear explosion and would die in the explosion. In addition, the current nuclear warheads are much stronger than the ones used in 1945. Furthermore, a nuclear blast today would cause more tests to determine the effects of radiation on the environment.
A geneticist at the Johns Hopkins University, H. Bentley Glass, predicted that cockroaches would rule the world after a nuclear war. His findings were based on experiments with cockroaches exposed to radioactive materials. Cockroaches were shown to survive lower levels of radiation than other insects.
The fact that cockroaches can survive nuclear attack is further evidence of their adaptability to radiation. Humans may die within ten minutes of a nuclear blast, but cockroaches can endure thousands of rads. Insecticides are very powerful drugs and can have a long-term residual effect. Moreover, cockroaches can survive a nuclear explosion if it is not targeted directly.
