• Ah yes, that cool, glistening refreshment that makes up roughly 70% of the human body 70-75% of the Earth. Unfortunately, only 1% of Earth’s water is suitable for drinking. Luckily (?), the inventor of the Segway is now focusing his efforts on developing a water purifier made out of cow dung.
• Don’t be afraid of your tap water – in fact, many places are trying to make it popular again. And though they may have air pollution problems, there’s nothing wrong with what comes out of the spigot – LA has once again won the award for tastiest tap water.
• Speaking of, you may be interested to know that Aquafina and Dasani are both tap waters (and they constitute 24% of bottled water sales). Additionally, there are no health benefits to oxygenated water. There may not be anything great about carbonated water either, but it does occur naturally (The word seltzer comes from the name of a German town, Nieder Selters, a district where mineral springs are located).
• So then … why does water have an expiration date?
• As mentioned, water is not always of the utmost quality: Because of the poor quality of water in the 17th century, the Mayflower travelers drank beer. And indeed, they landed in Plymouth because … they ran out.
• And for when times get tough …. NASA has discovered a way to turn astronaut’s urine into drinking water. Though there are other options, of course (The Apollo crew used fuel cells to create water).
• Salt water conversion is one big challenge to overcome, although evolution has figured out for some. For example, to get rid of excess salt from the water and food they ingest, Albatrosses have salt glands just behind their eye sockets. The glands excrete a highly concentrated salt solution that drains out through the tip of the beak.
• Lizards have also mastered water, though in a different way – they can walk on it.
• Water can be controlled in interesting ways, from making ice spikes to making it flow uphill.
• I hope you Flossers are getting your daily drink requirements. Do any of you have well water as your main source of aqua? And for those who are not aware, the title this week (that old familiar saying) is from “Rime of the Ancient Mariner.”
Hungry for more? Venture into the Dietribes archive.
‘Dietribes’ appears every other Wednesday. Food photos taken by Johanna Beyenbach. You might remember that name from our post about her colorful diet.
Comments (17)
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Water Water Everywhere, and not a drop to drink…
I agree with LA water being the tastiest! I grew up in Long Beach, and always drink tap water when I come home to visit. Worst tap water I’ve ever had? Georgia… soft water is terrible.
posted by Sarah on 10-21-2009 at 12:55 pm
If Dean Kamen can successfully create a water purifier that works for 5 years with no membranes, filters or itty-bitty parts breaking, I’m sure the bigger charitable organizations will flock to him for distribution. Something along the lines of “You can help create clean water for 100 people a day for as little as $20″ would help.
posted by Tamsyn on 10-21-2009 at 12:59 pm
Tap water is not always safe, and it is becoming increasingly toxic – depending upon where you live.
This interview is well worth a listen (or you can read the transcript):
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=113927993
Here is a scary snippet, “Now chlorination, as you know, is the process of cleaning water. So, adding chlorine to water is really a good thing. But because water is so dirty now when it comes in the plants, the chlorination process creates all of these new byproducts or chemicals that are carcinogens. So, probably about 2000 Americans a year get bladder cancer, because of chlorine byproducts that are in their water. This is the statistic from the federal government.”
Listen to the interview and then immediately install a good RO filter.
posted by n2y2 on 10-21-2009 at 1:00 pm
Wait, LA has the best tap water? Really? I’ve always heard that the reason the pizza in Cali is terrible is because the water tastes awful and one of the main reasons it’s so good in NYC is because the tap water there is so tasty. Weird.
posted by Mike James on 10-21-2009 at 1:15 pm
Beware of any dihydrogen monoxide or hydroxylic acid in your city’s public water supply!
posted by Joel on 10-21-2009 at 1:16 pm
LA water may be good, but when I lived in nearby Orange County you could get a glass of water from the tap and then watch a layer of white powder settle on the bottom of the glass. I believe it was calcium. It bonded rather well with aluminum cookware.
posted by PartiallyDeflected on 10-21-2009 at 1:26 pm
The water in the Phoenix Metro area is disgusting! I swear it smells like mud to me and just tastes horrible, though, I might be a little biased seeing as I’m from LA. ;)
posted by KillerQueen11 on 10-21-2009 at 1:38 pm
I grew up on a farm in Georgia that had the sweetest well water I’ve ever tasted. The horses were so partial to it we had trouble getting them to drink when we traveled.
posted by LT on 10-21-2009 at 1:57 pm
Haha, nice, Joel! My chemistry professor in college told us on the first day of class why we should not trust the internet. He had us google dihydrogen oxide as a homework assignment.
My high school biology teacher once made the essay question on an exam to explain that stanza of the poem and why the water was unfit to drink (ie what would it to do on a cellular and systemic level to a person who drank it). She was tough, but she sure did instill an appreciation for biology in me!
posted by BioloBri on 10-21-2009 at 3:24 pm
Joel, I love the dihydrogen monoxide warnings!
posted by K on 10-21-2009 at 3:33 pm
n2y2 – You’re right that tap water is not always safe. But for the most part it is. As they point out at the end of the interview you reference, “90 percent of the water in America is clean when you drink it.” While chlorination byproducts can be a problem, water systems which chlorinate their water are required to test for them.
I would suggest that anyone on a community water system look at the report the system is required to send you each year and ensure that there are not violations listed on it for exceeding the acceptable amount of any contaminant. If you are unsure how to read the results or do not have a copy of them, contact your local DEC office and they can interpret them for you or provide you with another copy. Your local DEC should also be able to provide you with the results of tests for any water system. Just as you look at the nutrition facts of food you eat, you should be aware of what’s in the water you drink. If you are concerned about the safety of your water, talk to the local DEC about your concerns and ask that they require the water system you’re on to do additional tests.
If you are on a private well, you should have the water tested once or twice a year for bacteria. It’s never a bad idea too to have a complete work up done on your water one time, then continue to monitor yourself for any contaminants that came back higher than they should be. Again, your local DEC can provide you with a list of labs in your area.
And yes, I do work at a water testing lab ;)
posted by Moth on 10-21-2009 at 4:21 pm
sorry no comments after the marliyn monroe compasrsion notes the comptuer went down the space bar is some times not working i just read the jonas brothers website rules at 11:15 am this morning
posted by kendra joy bethune on 10-21-2009 at 5:59 pm
sorry no comment
posted by kendra joy bethune on 10-21-2009 at 6:01 pm
mmmm well water. there is nothing like it. one of the few reasons i hated leaving home for college.
posted by chelsea on 10-21-2009 at 6:14 pm
I have well water at home and I’ve always found it very tasty.
Sarah,
you’ve obviously never been to St Augustine Florida, the water there has to be the worst in the country. Tastes like straight sulphur
posted by Karah! on 10-22-2009 at 2:28 pm
L.A. won in 2008. These are the results of the 2009 competition.
FINAL RESULTS
2009 Award Winners
Municipal Water
Best in the World — Clearbrook, Waterworks District, British Columbia.
Best in the United States — Hamilton, Ohio
2nd place — Village of Montrose, British Columbia, Canada
3rd — Town of Bath, WV
4th — Oak Creek, WI
5th — Eldorado Springs, Colorado
http://www.berkeleysprings.com/water/winners09.htm
You should check you dates before you post something. I’m just sayin’ is all.
posted by Jenna on 10-22-2009 at 5:29 pm
I thought that New York City was perennially one of the competitors for top prize. I know where their water comes from (ashokan, water gap, etc) and it is beautiful amd VERY well protected.
I have well water. I live on the east side of the largest city in the U.S. supplied (until recently) entirely by well water, Tucson, Arizona. Tasty, very hard (calcium). I grew up with private 1 family well (norm for the area) well on the outskirts of Poughkeepsie NY. Also very hard, Iron & Ca but also very good.
Toxic water from the Colorado river came to Tucson several years ago. They blended it with our fossil water because even after treatment it was so bad as to be undrinkable. It cost me $8000+ for a re-pipe on one of my older rentals on that side of town. Lots of other people also had to spend a bunch. Now CAP water is used only for agriculture or is pumped into the ground to re-charge the aquifer.
posted by Ken on 10-22-2009 at 8:45 pm