The wise men of Miletus thus declared
The first of things is water.
Pythagoras.

Thales of Miletus. known as the Father of Greek Philosophy, founded his school of thought over 2,500 years ago on the premise that “All things are water.” On the other side of the globe, Taoists like Lao-tzu and his disciple Chuang-tzu were teaching that water is the model for human behavior, the tangible expression of the flowing, organic pattern of nature. “Man is water,” Chuang-tzu said. “It congeals to form man, and his nine openings and five viscera appear. . . . What is it, then, that has complete faculties? It is water. There is not one of the various things that is not produced through it. It is only he who knows how to rely on its principles who can act correctly. . . .”

Water moves through all things. A jellyfish is 99% water, and our own bodies are literally pumped into shape by water. Like the Earth, we are more than 70% water. Water is the common fabric that unites us with the Earth and all its creatures. Read more

Astronaut and chemist Dr. Don Pettit does physics demos that are out of this world. Currently on board the International Space Station, Dr. Pettit presents fantastic physics that can only be demonstrated in micro-gravity.

Episode 13: Astro Puffs

Challenge Question: How does volume affect how the spheres react to the waves? Read more

The development of a simple point-of-use water filtration technology by researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM) is said to be effective for producing drinking water at a low-cost, using nanomaterials to filter and clean the water.

The new device, which is not yet under production, uses a two stage process to purify the water, first removing biological contaminants such as bacteria and viruses, and then using silver nanoparticles to remove chemical and heavy metal pollutants.

The filtration system is claimed to be able to remove lead, arsenic, and other hazards from water, at a cost of just $2.50 (USD) per year per family.

The critical problem in achieving this is the synthesis of stable materials that can release silver ions continuously in the presence of complex species usually present in drinking water that deposit and cause scaling on nanomaterial surfaces. Read more

Everyday millions of gallons of expensively treated potable water is flushed down the toilet in the UK. Ideally we would all use rainwater to flush our toilets however this is not considered a practical option for most people. An alternative is to reduce the amount of water used in each flush.

Modern toilet cisterns use around 7-8 litres of water per flush, with pre-1993 models typically getting through 9-12 litres. This is far more than is actually necessary to flush a toilet fully and so one of the following products can be used to reduce the amount of water used per flush by 1-3 litres. Read more

Most of us know the importance of saving energy, and many know the importance of saving water. But few of us connect that by saving one, we also save the other.

A large amount of energy is required to treat water and pump it to your home, just as a vast amount of water is needed to cool the power plants that generate electricity.

It takes around 15,000 litres of water to produce enough electricity to power a 60 watt light globe for 12 hours per day over a year.

In the home, heating water for showers, shaving, cooking and cleaning also uses a considerable amount of energy. Read more