The curious effect of rainforest on...
Obvious effects of rainforest on objects are mould (e.g. shoe leather) and a grossly shortened lifespan for electronics. But the humidity and heat of the rainforest also has a curious effect on other things:
Rubber/plastic
Who would've expected that constant humidity and persistently above-room-temperature environment would lead to brittleness in plastic? Tupperware/plastic containers--a valuable item here to keep creepy crawlies out of food--take a beating, especially the lids which crack without warning after a certain interval of use.
Hair
I'm not a girly girl who spends a whole lot of time, money, or energy on my hair, but, slob that I am, even I noticed a difference in my hair here. Sure, I've always known a certain amount of humidity makes for happy hair, but I thought that mostly applied to curly-haired people. For one, I don't need to use conditioner. Two, static is unheard of.
Tinfoil
That an old roll of tinfoil would start to discolour after a while is not so surprising, but to lose its shine completely, turn a cloudy grey and iridescent purple & pink colour on the inside of the roll is most interesting; and to retain its proper appearance on a 1-inch stretch on the inside of the outer edge of the roll is quite remarkable.
Candy
Hard candies, of course, turn soft, but jelly candies, just to be contrary, turn hard!
Mould
It is to be expected that mould would grow heartily on the rainforest on, for example, 3 day-old bread left out despite its being encased in sealed Tupperware. That mould would grow on the magnetic tape of cassette tapes and on seldom-used CDs, however, is a considerable surprise.
Rubber/plastic
Who would've expected that constant humidity and persistently above-room-temperature environment would lead to brittleness in plastic? Tupperware/plastic containers--a valuable item here to keep creepy crawlies out of food--take a beating, especially the lids which crack without warning after a certain interval of use.
Hair
I'm not a girly girl who spends a whole lot of time, money, or energy on my hair, but, slob that I am, even I noticed a difference in my hair here. Sure, I've always known a certain amount of humidity makes for happy hair, but I thought that mostly applied to curly-haired people. For one, I don't need to use conditioner. Two, static is unheard of.
Tinfoil
That an old roll of tinfoil would start to discolour after a while is not so surprising, but to lose its shine completely, turn a cloudy grey and iridescent purple & pink colour on the inside of the roll is most interesting; and to retain its proper appearance on a 1-inch stretch on the inside of the outer edge of the roll is quite remarkable.
Candy
Hard candies, of course, turn soft, but jelly candies, just to be contrary, turn hard!
Mould
It is to be expected that mould would grow heartily on the rainforest on, for example, 3 day-old bread left out despite its being encased in sealed Tupperware. That mould would grow on the magnetic tape of cassette tapes and on seldom-used CDs, however, is a considerable surprise.
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