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Itay Malkin
SCH-4U
Ms. Farrow
May 31, 2011
Longer Chains for Longer Lives
A polymer is defined as “a molecule of large molar mass that consists of many
repeating subunits called monomers” (Nelson, 2003). Natural polymers, namely DNA
and proteins, play an irreplaceable role in the human body and are essential for survival.
Synthetic polymers, however, were first invented in the 20th century, and therefore this
plastic does not prove to be a necessity for survival. (Polymer Chemistry, May 25 2011).
However the advancement of synthetic polymers in the last century has tremendously
benefited the medical field and society in general. The unique applications of synthetic
polymers present irreplaceable methods of saving lives.
The work of many noteworthy scientists, starting as early as 1777 with Henri
Braconnot, contributed to the advancement of man-made polymers. This led to the first
natural-based man-made polymer, nitrocellulose, which was used as a wound dressing.
Later, in 1907, Leo Baekeland invented and applied the first synthetic polymer, called
Bakelite, as an insulator. (Polymer Chemistry, May 25 2011). Since then polymers grew
in popularity and interest due to their characteristics and capabilities and branched off to
many fields. WWII triggered the development of polymers in medicine, and “not only
have polymers replaced many old applications in medicine such as the shift from metal
catheters to those made of polyethylene, but also they have opened the door for new
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applications that no other material would permit”. (Jeremy Robinson, April 3 2001). Thus
polymers play a viral and inimitable role in the world today.
Plastic surgeries retain a general misassumption: their implementation occurs
merely for cosmetic purposes. Implants, used in plastic surgeries, are constructed from
polymers or polymer-based components and play a significant role in curing diseases that
could not be cured otherwise. Specialists, for example, use biodegradable polymers to
hold bones in place while they heal inside a body. (Jeremy Robinson, April 3 2001).
Furthermore, the use of plastic surgery to prevent future harmful situations must not be
overlooked. In many Middle Eastern countries, an expectation lays on women to preserve
their virginity until marriage, because losing their virginity before marriage means losing
their and their family‟s honour. To discover whether a woman has maintained her
honour, the husband seeks for the natural bleeding and pain a woman gets after her first
time. Unfortunately, up to 80% of women may not experience this, but this fact may be
overlooked and if a woman fails to show these symptoms the father or brother have
permission to kill her in order to regain their honour. To prevent this from happening,
women turn to hymenoplasty surgery, which either triggers the hymen or replaces it
altogether, so it would bleed and cause pain as „desired‟. (Hymenoplasty - Plastic Surgery
to Save Lives, September 17 2009). Whether a woman had or had not been involved with
sexual intercourse, her life is inevitably under threat and “hymenoplasty is a plastic
surgery that can save a life” by providing the possibility to „cure‟ the problem or prevent
a future disaster (Hymenoplasty - Plastic Surgery to Save Lives). Polymers will continue
to improve medicine…and will serve to save many lives and help to make procedures and
applications safer and more efficient.” (Jeremy Robinson, April 3 2001). Directly or
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indirectly, exclusive operations via plastic surgery, thus polymers in general, offer life-
saving possibilities. Polymers obtain the capability of saving lives via direct
implementation inside a human‟s body, but can also protect lives from the outside as
well.
Clothes seem to have the sole purposes of improving comfort and appearance,
however wearing the right clothes can mean the difference between life and death. Fire
fighters and police officers hold a very respectable position whose task is to protect
society regardless of the dangers faced. The trained life-saviours encounter life-
threatening situations including fires and gun shots, and without polymers their jobs
would involve much too high of a risk. Luckily, there is a type of nylon called Aramids,
which are used to make the fire-proof clothing and bullet-proof clothing. These polymers
are very crystalline, thus used in the form of very good fibres. The location of the groups
on these polymers enables a more straight structure, allowing more interlocking to form
strong fibres that are practically impossible to melt, thus making this material ideal for
protective clothing. (Nylon, 2006). Polymers act as double saviours here demonstrating
their full potential, since they protect ones who save others‟ lives. Not only do polymers
directly protect people from the interior of the human body to the exterior, but can
indirectly save lives by detecting and preventing life-threatening conditions from the
outside via technology.
Nanotechnology is defined as „The field that deals with the precise control of matter on
the nanoscale‟ (Papen-Botterhuis, n.d.). The favourable features of polymers, namely
flexibility, processability, low cost, and diverse functionalities, make them ideal materials
to be used in nanotechnology. They are used as resists or substrates in the process of
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bottom-up and top-down nanotechnologies, but are also used as conductors and materials
for synthetic fabrication of tissues based on nanotechnology results. (Papen-Botterhuis,
n.d.). In general, nanotechnology is used as a research mechanism with the potential to
discover new inventions that for one could benefit the medical world and society in
general. Thus, polymers are a fundamental material used in the discovery of future
medical solutions, demonstrating its unique ability of directly or indirectly saving lives.
Evidently, creations of humans have the capacity to benefit the present and future
states of society. Synthetic polymers prove to be uniquely beneficial and significant in the
medical world with various applications including implants and plastic surgery,
protective clothing, and in the creation and process of research and medical equipment.
The wonderful nature of polymers and their features allow them to be applied in a variety
of unique ways, presenting them as irreplaceable and demonstrating numerous methods
that obtain the potential to directly or indirectly save lives. The advancement of polymers
has a long, promising future and it will benefit not only the medical field but the
economy and the environment as well. When dealing with polymers, there isn‟t such a
thing as the weakest link, because every bond counts when saving lives.
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References
Early Synthetic Polymers. (n.d.). Polymer Science Learning Center. Retrieved May 25,
2011, from http://pslc.ws/macrog/kidsmac/early.htm
Hymenoplasty - Plastic Surgery to Save Lives. (2009, September 17). Surgery.com.
Retrieved May 25, 2011, from www.surgery.com/article/hymenoplasty
Kessel, H. (2003). Nelson chemistry 12 . Toronto: Thomson Nelson.
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http://plasticsurgeryauthority.net/plastic-surgery/plastic-surgeons-save-lives-in-
haiti/
Papen-Botterhuis, N. (n.d.). Polymers in Nanotechnology. Polymers in Nanotechnology.
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Buffalo University. Retrieved May 25, 2011, from
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When Plastic Surgery Saves Lives | BlogHer. (n.d.). BlogHer | Life Well Said. Retrieved
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