And you thought you needed a new parka: Manure may help pandas tolerate cold

[Ethan A.]

And you thought you needed a new parka…Sustainable and organic:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/07/science/pandas-horse-poop.html

Perhaps we’ll see a new brand offering a version of this at OR one day…

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

Manure is only steaming hot for a short while.

[Opogobalus]

Diane, depends what happens afterwards. We use a composting toilet and when we make a new compost with the “product” it can get over 100c by the end of the day. Of course we don’t actually want it that hot, and it indicates too high of a nitrogen:carbon ratio – better compost is produced slower at cooler temps.

[Jim C]

It sounds like it’s not the heat of the poop, but a chemical in the poop (sesquiterpenes) that lessens the sensation of cold. So it may not even make the pandas any warmer, they just feel the cold less.

Whatever the case is, I don’t plan on rolling around in horse manure, no matter how cold it gets. I’d also rather not share a trail, let alone a tent, with anyone who did!

[Author]

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