# Self Contained World within Our World

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-contained-world-within-our-world/5713>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [December 31, 1999, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-contained-world-within-our-world/5713 "1999-12-31T19:02:00Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\
**Post date:** [January 1, 2000, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-contained-world-within-our-world/5713/1 "2000-01-01T06:31:00Z")

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I have a question. Wasn’t there a grouop of people that shut themselves up in a self contained area and tried to live for a few years with just the plants, animals, trees etc.

I seem to recall this but can’t quite remember if it was true or a story.

Any help guys???

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**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\
**Post date:** [January 1, 2000, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-contained-world-within-our-world/5713/2 "2000-01-01T06:37:00Z")

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Yeah. It was called Biosphere (and later Biosphere II). Lots of publicity, but later it was found they were cheating (bringing in supplies, getting rid of excess carbon dioxide). It really wasn’t considered much of a test by scientists even before the scandal hit.

Eventually, it was used as the premise for a Pauly Shore movie, which shows just how scientific the entire enterprise was.

* * *

“East is east and west is west and if you take cranberries and stew them like applesauce they taste much more like prunes than rhubarb does.” – Marx

Read “Sundials” in the new issue of Aboriginal Science Fiction. [www.sff.net/people/rothman](http://www.sff.net/people/rothman)

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**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\
**Post date:** [December 31, 1999, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-contained-world-within-our-world/5713/3 "1999-12-31T19:02:00Z")

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Apparently Biosphere 2 has experienced a second coming under the aegis of Columbia University. Click [here](http://www.bio2.edu/fromsite/41798.htm) to read about it.

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**Author:** ![Gilligan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Gilligan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gilligan)\
**Post date:** [December 31, 1999, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-contained-world-within-our-world/5713/4 "1999-12-31T20:15:00Z")

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Somewhat related note: you can buy your own small biosphere (not for humans) here:  
[http://www.abundantearth.com/store/BioSphere2.html](http://www.abundantearth.com/store/BioSphere2.html)

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**Author:** ![Cooper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@Cooper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cooper)\
**Post date:** [December 31, 1999, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-contained-world-within-our-world/5713/5 "1999-12-31T20:38:00Z")

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Also, it was always called Biosphere 2. Biosphere 1 is earth.

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**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\
**Post date:** [January 1, 2000, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-contained-world-within-our-world/5713/6 "2000-01-01T17:15:00Z")

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Yeah, and I think that they figured out that the concrete in the original Biosphere was the incorrect type and it was allowing oxygen to escape through it. Because of this, they had to have oxygen artificially added into their habitat. I think they might have cheated on food also.