Interesting facts about water
Eco-reps~
Please look up an interesting fact about water, ranging from its chemical structure/properties to why its so important? Or what role it plays in the future?
Record where you found the information (book, internet site, youtube, etc.).
Happy hydration!
Ky
posted by UVM Eco-Reps Program Coordinator @ 10:53 AM
36 Comments:
"Nearly one billion people lack access to safe water."
-Source: http://water.org/learn-about-the-water-crisis/facts/
-Livy
I've found that high levels of the herbicide atrazine, an endocrine disrupter, has been found in drinking water. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwCqWrGVT20
The hardness of water is determined by the amount of dissolved calcium and magnesium in the water. This is based on contact with rocks and minerals in the environment, so different areas of the U.S. have different levels of water hardness.
If an area has hard water, industries have to spend money to soften it, because it can damage equipment and minerals can buildup on the inside of pipes. There is a whole industry based on a host of water softening methods. Conventional methods can result in large amounts of salt getting released into the surrounding environment, so the waste often has to be sent to an approved site.
USGS site: http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/characteristics.html#Hardness
also: http://www.chem1.com/CQ/hardwater.html
The need for water could double in 50 years according at a U.N. study. Over 2 billion people live in water deficient regions already. Access to clean water is a struggle for many across the globe. A deepening water crisis could fuel violent conflicts, dry up rivers, and increase groundwater pollution. It would force even more deforestation and grassland clearing in order to grow food and leave many facing hunger problems. In light of this problem, we will have to change our water use habits. For example, learning to grow as much or more food with less water will be imperative. Unless we rapidly change these habits, water will be scarce for many in only 50 years.
-Nancy
Water is the only element that becomes less dense as it approaches a solid state, which is why ice floats.
Without this chemical property, life as we know it would be much different. Bodies of water would become completely frozen over in colder temperatures. The layer of ice that coats bodies of water in the winter makes a great insulation layer for life below. If warming trends continue, water temperatures will continue to increase, and ice will keep melting. Not good. Go figure!
Source:
http://www.ehow.com/about_6310459_living-organisms-need-water.html
Every organism on earth requires water to survive, and almost all of them are made up of at least 50% water. Some are as high as 95% water. Water in essential as a solvent to transport materials to and from the cells that make up these organisms.
Also, water is liquid at most of Earth's surface temperatures, allowing it to act as a solvent to nourish organisms on Earth. Furthermore, that it expands when it freezes is unique and essential, because when ice forms, it floats and insulates the liquid water beneath. You know all of that ice on the poles of the Earth? All if it has tons and tons of water not too deep under the ice's surface. If water became more dense instead of expanding at cold temperatures, it would sink, the entire surface of the Earth would freeze, and life would be impossible.
http://www.kidsgeo.com/geography-for-kids/0132-water-is-important-to-lifer.php
THIS IS CRAZY.
NASA blasted a whole into a crater on the moon and discovered watah! the LCROSS program was aimed at finding water on the moon for the interest of astronaut outposts in the future. the water was in the form of ice and vapor - 41 gallons were collected and an estimated 1 billion gallons may remain.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_sci_shoot_the_moon
on another note...
water is particularly interesting as a compound because it acts in very unusual ways. almost all substances condense when frozen and expand when heated, but water expands when heated AND frozen. water also has very high thermal conductivity but poor insulation, so it easily absorbs heat (say from your skin), but disperses quickly into the surrounding waters.
the main reasons water is so essential to life is because of the thermal capacity of the oceans that helps regulate earth's temperature because it is so hard to warm or cool the massive bodies of water. another reason water is necessary for like is the ability of it to pass through membranes, acting like a transport mechanism for elements and compounds.
sources: my cranium (years of edumacation)
My Fact: About 74% of home water usage is in the bathroom, about 21% is for laundry and cleaning, and about 5% is in the kitchen.
Source: http://www.mamashealth.com/water/waterfacts.asp
I think this is an interesting statistic that puts water consumption into perspective. We claim to not have a lot of control over the water we use in the bathroom because we say it is a necessity... but the truth is it is EASY to reduce this percentage by shortening your shower and flushing pee every 3 uses (makes the concentration not too toxic for dilution needs. There are ways to wash your dishes and take showers that will significantly reduce usage.
Fact: Two thirds of the water used in a home is used in the bathroom.
I found this fact on http://www.lenntech.com/water-trivia-facts.htm. Lenntech is a company in the Netherlands that develops water treament and purification technologies.
Some interesting facts about water are: that 70% of an adults body is made up of water. The recommended amount of water for people is 8 cups of water a day. About 70 -75% of the surface of the earth is covered with water. Pure water has a PH of about 7 which is neither acidic or basic. And the United States uses about 346,000 million gallons of fresh water every day. Water is an important resource and we need to work hard to conserve it, not only for ourselves but the animals and plants that depend on it to live.
“The UN estimates that by 2025, forty-eight nations, with combined population of 2.8 billion, will face freshwater “stress” or “scarcity”.” From water.org
This is a shocking and sad future that not enough people realize is probably going to come quickly. 2.8 billion people is currently about 40% of the planet’s population, which is almost at 7 billion people. A portion of these people already live without clean water, so I can only assume that this fact is talking about 2.8 billion people out of the ones who have water to begin with. People shouldn’t just conserve water when there is a scarcity or if their country is “stressed”. People should do their best to save as much water as they can at all times because water is a not an unlimited resource and one day it will become a commodity. I think the fact that this statement from water.org puts actual numbers on the fact that clean water is decreasing makes it more eye-opening. 2025 is well within our lifetimes and I think it is a shame that people use water as frivolously as ever.
"Every known form of life on earth, from the largest mammals to the smallest microbes, relies on water. Why? Because water is an extraordinarily versatile molecule - it's the perfect liquid medium in which to dissolve nutrients for ingestion or wastes for excretion, to transport important chemicals or even be used as one. Water has two particular physical properties that are unique among natural molecules: it remains liquid over an extremely broad range of temperatures, and it decreases in density when converted to solid phase (frozen). While this may seem a relatively minor point, its consequences (that ice floats) are critical to the evolution of life. If ice were more dense than water and the earth cooled slightly, ice formed on the oceans would sink and push the already cold water from the bottom to the surface, where it too would freeze and sink, repeating the cycle until all water on the planet was frozen. Not all scientists believe that the presence of water is "concrete" evidence of life, but liquid water certainly improves the likelihood of life taking hold and finding a hospitable environment. This should not be confused with ice, however, which we know is present in many planets and moons in the solar system. Remember that ice may not be only frozen water, but perhaps vapor from other gases - in either case not as conducive to life."
-http://astrobiology.nasa.gov/ask-an-astrobiologist/question/?id=178
This is an interesting excerpt from NASA's astrobiology section of their website. I knew a lot about water and its importance for life, but the interesting importance of the fact that water floats when frozen was neat to read. I have never even thought about it that way. And also, let us not forget that the search for water continues in space today, as that is what scientists feel is a good sign of life. These facts, however, are only a minor part of the role water plays. In fact, I would go so far as to say not only is life on Earth carbon-based, but it is water-based as well.
The average person needs 2 quarts of water a day.
{http://www.rivers.gov/waterfacts.html}
This is very important because we all need water thus we, aka all earth residents, need to be conscious of our water use. Being mindful of frivolous water consumption as well as taking note of pollutants that can contaminate our water supply.
Water covers about 70% of Earth's surface, while 96.5% of that water is part of oceans. Making the amount of water available to us as humans only 3.5% of the entire water supply on the Earth. Water supplies are dwindling for humans and it will certainly be an issue in the years to come.
http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/earthhowmuch.html
Over the summer I was an internship for New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission (NEIWPCC). Throughout my summer there I assisted the water quality department in several areas all relating to the Clean Water Act and how it needed to be better enforced. I find, due to my experiences with NEIWPCC, I am a useful resource for the Eco Reps in the subject matter of water.
On that note, during the all-staff annual meeting, "Tapped" a documentary was shown to educate the employees on how they can make a difference as far as water goes by their consumer decisions. "Tapped" was eye-opening for me and I recommend it to be shown to residents around campus. It goes into detail about the health and environmental impacts of bottled water. Basically, there is no place on planet earth unpolluted by plastic due to the way it breaks down in the environment. In addition, the cheap plastic used in bottled water has carcinogens that leach into the water contaminating not only humans, but the environment we rely on. To add to the horror of this, bottled water is hardly regulated by FDA unless it is sold nation wide. In addition, that water's quality is monitored sporadically, while tap water is regulated on a more strict basis and monitored three times daily. This movie is extremely persuasive and could play a huge role in changing behavior on campus in terms of consumer decisions to, or not to buy bottled water.
Water in economic terms, from water.org:
"Over 50 percent of all water projects fail and less than five percent of projects are visited, and far less than one percent have any longer-term monitoring (Rajesh Shah of Blue Planet Run Foundation)."
"Investment in safe drinking water and sanitation contributes to economic growth. For each $1 invested, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates returns of $3 – $34, depending on the region and technology (United Nations World Water Development Report, “Water in a Changing World”)."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HW5eBfZhE4M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_R_vpNQ0fJc&feature=channel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOLf2RbxmzE&NR=1
All of these links highlight some of the most common issues today with normal and drinking water. One fact that I found to be quite interesting was that if you pour all the earths water into a bucket only a spoon-full with be drinkable water. Although I already knew that fresh water was scarce the fact they they put it into a visual like that makes it much more understandable. I feel like all three of these clips present some really important aspects that have to do with water issues, and all of them are issues that are relevant to most everyday people.
"It takes 2000 to 5000 litres of water to produce one person’s daily food"
which equals approximately 67628 to 169070 ounces
Found on http://www.eco-h2o.co.za/ which is a site for the Water Rhapsody Conservation Systems group
Sarah Lundy
On TreeHugger.com I found a blog post about peak water. The article mentioned "Half of the world's population will be living in areas of 'acute water shortage' by 2030." But on a happier note, people are working to turn this around. The blog article was posted over a year ago but it talks about how 120 nations met in Istanbul for a World Water Forum. This forum was geared toward not only addressing the growing crisis of peak water but also to prevent wars breaking out over the precious resource.
As little as a 2% decrease in our body's water supply can trigger signs of dehydration: trouble with short-term memory and focus. Mild dehydration is one of the most common causes of daytime fatigue. An estimated seventy-five percent of Americans have mild, chronic dehydration.
http://www.freedrinkingwater.com/water-education/water-health.htm
Humans can only use about 3/10 of the water on earth (from aquifers, rivers, and freshwater lakes). Also, the same water that existed on earth millions of years ago is still here today.
http://www.allaboutwater.org/water-facts.html
http://www.lenntech.com/water-trivia-facts.htm states that when a faucet is left to drip for one day, it wastes as much as seventy-five litres of water. That's a rather significant quantity of water for a small, avoidable action.
-Martine
"Drinking too much water too quickly can lead to water intoxication. Water intoxication occurs when water dilutes the sodium level in the bloodstream and causes an imbalance of water in the brain."
Source: http://www.allaboutwater.org/water-facts.html
Alexia-
Most of the water we recieve from our local utilites comes from ground water, streams, river, lakes, etc. The EPA has ten regional offices that are responsible for a certain area. These regional offices are mainly concerned about contamination and providing enough water for all the people within that area. In 1996 the Safe Drinking Water Act was established to provide standards and regulations on tap water. As more and more people populate the planet water is becoming more of a shortage. There are many things people can do in thier local community to help protect thier water including citizen involvment, local protection, contacting your regional offices. Water is very important to health. Our body is 60-70% water and our body needs water to regulate body temperature and provide means for nutrients to travel to all our organs. To keep hydrated you must drink 6-8 cups of water a day.
sources: EPA, and about.com
"The average person in the United States uses anywhere from 80-100 gallons of water per day. Flushing the toilet actually takes up the largest amount of this water."
http://www.allaboutwater.org/water-facts.html
I watched The Story of Bottled water and learned that in many ways bottled water is less regulated than tap.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Se12y9hSOM0
"If all the world's water were fit into a gallon jug, the fresh water available for us to use would equal only about one tablespoon."
-http://www.rivers.gov/waterfacts.html
Water is unique in term of it size, structure and composition and it is also a substance that we as humans waste and pollute. Also pure water is poor conducted of electricity because it has no charge and because it is a covalent compound and they are always non-electrical.
http://witcombe.sbc.edu/water/chemistry.html
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071103060110AAom8pp
"Other names for water are: dihydrogen monoxide, oxidane, hydroxylic acid, and hydrogen hydroxide"
-Bradley
"Other names for water are: dihydrogen monoxide, oxidane, hydroxylic acid, and hydrogen hydroxide"
http://chemistry.about.com/od/waterchemistry/a/water-chemistry.htm
-Bradley
"Raising animals for food uses more than half of all the water consumed in the U.S." - PETA
peta2.com/meatsnotgreen
Fresh water (drinking water) only makes up 3% of all water on the Earth.
http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/watercyclefreshstorage.html
The most surprising statistic that I came across while researching for this post, is that the ancient Romans had better water quality than half the people alive now. It is hard to believe that mankind has improved technology in almost every other sector besides the most basic and necessary. This statistic makes me question how we got to this point and what solutions are needed to fix it.
Statistic from Water.org
The price of bottled water is up to 10,000 times the cost of tap water. Annually, Americans consume 8.6 billion gallons of bottled water, 53 billion gallons globally, which generates 61 billion dollars. Additionally 17 billion barrels of oil are used in the production of these bottles.
source:
http://webecoist.com/2010/03/08/13-fantastically-frightening-fun-eco-infographics/
The EPA claims that, "in the summer, the amount of water used outdoors [on lawns] by a household can exceed the amount used for all other purposes in the entire year." This one really hits home for me. What's up with this obsession with lawns?
The average woman in Africa walks four miles a day to retrieve water.
Greenanswers.com
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