Nah, coal is plant matter too.
Comment on The circle of life
essell@lemmy.world 2 years agoI am under the impression that’s coal.
Oil is from sea life. Though I did read that in the 80s so entirely possible its nonsense.
grandkaiser@lemmy.world 2 years ago
Zorsith@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 years ago
Trees from before anything existed that could break down wood
essell@lemmy.world 2 years ago
Yeah, that’s what I said!
Piemanding@sh.itjust.works 2 years ago
I guess algae and bacteria are close to plants.
xx3rawr@sh.itjust.works 2 years ago
Not really, especially in this science sub
essell@lemmy.world 2 years ago
How close? Like cousins or Alabama cousins?
Piemanding@sh.itjust.works 2 years ago
Louisiana cousins I believe.
MentalEdge@sopuli.xyz 2 years ago
Yes and no. They’re both hydrocarbons.
Coal is organic matter from dry land, so typically plants.
Oil is from organic matter that fell to the ocean floor, so microbial life, algae and the like.
But both are from and end up as the same types of organic molecules. Carbon and hydrogen.
the_post_of_tom_joad@sh.itjust.works 2 years ago
Wow ok that’s cool… so then every* oil well is in a place that historically was underwater?
Cornelius_Wangenheim@lemmy.world 2 years ago
JasonDJ@lemmy.zip 2 years ago
Can Texas just go back to being a shallow sea?
MentalEdge@sopuli.xyz 2 years ago
Yes. A lot such places are still below the seabed, hence off-shore oil-rigs.