Ozone layer breakdown of ozone in the stratosphere results in reduced absorption of ultraviolet radiation. Consequently, unabsorbed and dangerous ultraviolet radiation is able to reach the Earth’s surface at a higher intensity. Ozone levels have dropped by a worldwide average of about 4 percent since the late 1970s. For approximately 5 percent of the Earth's surface, around the north and south poles, much larger seasonal declines have been seen, and are described as "ozone holes". The discovery of the annual depletion of ozone above the Antarctic was first announced by Joe Farman, Brian Gardiner and Jonathan Shanklin, in a paper which appeared
Slime layer sterilization with chlorine, iodine, and other chemicals, leaving autoclaving or flushing with boiling water as the only certain methods of decontaminating. A bacterial capsule is similar, but is an organized structure that does not wash off as easily as slime layers. Slime layer A slime layer in bacteria is an easily removable (e.g. by centrifugation), unorganized layer of extracellular material that surrounds bacteria cells. Specifically, this consists mostly of exopolysaccharides, glycoproteins, and glycolipids. The slime layer is not to be confused with the S-layer, a separate and highly organised glycoprotein layer surrounding many bacterial cells. The function of the slime