Now, plastic’s durability looks less of a boon than it once did. In that decade, annual global plastic production reached 5m tonnes by 2014, it stood at 311m tonnes – shockingly, over 40% of it for single-use packing. And then, in 1950, that scourge of the sea arrived: the throwaway polythene bag. Soon, they were an inextricable part of everyday life.
Throughout the first half of the 20th century, innovations came thick (and thin) and fast – polystyrene, polyester, PVC, nylon. Bakelite was lightweight, affordable, malleable and safe, but perhaps the greatest thing about the plastic Baekeland created, and those that followed, was its durability. (Charles Mackintosh’s first “mac” – which used derivatives of tar and rubber – must have been pretty pungent in a downpour.) Baekeland, who had moved to the US, saw commercial potential in an entirely synthetic replacement for shellac that would be suitable for mass production. Until then, we had, at great cost and effort, been manipulating products out of natural materials such as shellac, derived from beetle shells. It was, he later admitted, something of an accident, but this welcome development ushered in a colourful new age of plastics. More than a century ago, in 1907, another Belgian, Leo Baekeland, a graduate of Ghent University, invented bakelite. Another question we might ask: how did we get here? The question is no longer: are we eating plastic in our seafood? What scientists are urgently trying to establish is just how bad for us that is. Contaminated fish and shellfish have been found everywhere from Europe, Canada and Brazil to the coast of mainland China – and plastic-eating fish are now showing up in supermarkets. Whether your national obsession is moules frites or fish and chips, this problem goes way beyond Britain and Belgium. Evidently, there’s nothing like serving plastic up on a dinner plate to focus the mind. We are finally paying attention to the pollution that has plagued our seas for years – the government is considering a refundable deposit on plastic bottles, and pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson recently switched from plastic to paper stems on its cotton buds. Now, UK supermarkets are being lobbied to create plastic-free aisles by the campaign group A Plastic Planet, as a feature-length documentary, A Plastic Ocean, is released in Britain this week. Britons should sympathise – last August, the results of a study by Plymouth University caused a stir when it was reported that plastic was found in a third of UK-caught fish, including cod, haddock, mackerel and shellfish. The findings affect all Europeans, but, as the most voracious consumers of mussels, the Belgians were deemed to be most exposed. We absorb fewer than 1%, but they will still accumulate in the body over time. Scientists at Ghent University in Belgium recently calculated that shellfish lovers are eating up to 11,000 plastic fragments in their seafood each year. 18 February 2021.I t’s enough to make you cry over your moules frites. Coming out is a lifelong journey, not something you do just once.If you live in an area where you don't feel you'd have a lot of support, look for online resources, support groups, and forums that could help you. That might be a friend, a teacher, a leader in your community, or mental health professional. If you're questioning your sexual identity, seek out people you know will be supportive.If you want people to know your sexual identity, go ahead and tell them. Don’t feel like you have to take things slow if you’re ready to come out.I hope you can understand and support me." Since I realized this, I’m feeling really happy and excited about falling in love. Say, "I love you, so I want to share something important with you. When you tell your parents, it might help to bring educational resources for parents who have queer children.Tell them, "Have you ever noticed that I always notice hot guys? That’s because I’m gay." For instance, you might start with your best friend.X Research source X Expert Source Marissa Floro, PhDĬounseling Psychologist Expert Interview. Then, slowly tell the other people who are important to you. When you’re ready, tell someone you trust about your sexual orientation, like a family member, friend, or teacher. At the same time, being out and proud may help you feel like you’re being true to yourself. Your sexual identity is personal, so you don’t owe anyone an explanation. There’s no right or wrong way to come out.