Coming from a science background, my knowledge and experience with water is probably a lot different than most people. While most people just use water for personal use, I have taken classes that have in depth studied the science behind water. I feel like I have learned way more about water than is necessary. When I heard that there was a "science" chapter in this book about water, my ears immediately perked up. I actually sat down and read the whole first section in one sitting.
Being a numbers guy, I really enjoyed the first two chapters. Some of the data is mind-blowing in regards to the amount of water that we use. It is impossible to even wrap your head around how much water is used by a nation in a year. We just have nothing to compare it to. Once Chapter 2 started getting into the scientific details, I really became interested. A lot of the information about the physical and chemical was already familiar to me. The section about the "fourth state of water," however, came as a big surprise to me. I knew compounds could exist in anhydrous or hydrated forms, but I never really connected the dots. Humans have barely scratched the surface of the Earth. We have never drilled down more than a few miles into the crust. We do not fully understand what is going on in the mantle/core. Theories have been developed, but they can not be fully understood and accepted until we drill deeper. With this limited understanding of what is below us, it makes sense that we have all this water in a "fourth state." There are methods of extracting the water, but it is not economically feasible. Until we have a way to extract this water, we must be prudent in our conservation of water. Water never disappears, but if it is unobtainable, then it can not help us.
Going along with the science theme, conservation of water is an important theme that I feel is absent in scientific study. The book constantly refers to water as an "invisible problem." We do not see water being lost. We turn on our faucets; water comes out. People no longer have to go pump water from a well. Water bottles are sold almost everywhere. In the science community, water is obviously a very crucial substance. As Chapter 2 outlined, water is a universal solvent. It is used in countless applications. I currently work in a research lab, and water conservation is not discussed. We have a hood that we conduct many experiments in. Water must be run the entire time it is used to power the vacuum inside it. Sometimes, someone will work in the hood for hours at a time. That is gallons of water just being sent down the drain. Water is often used to clean glassware, but no care is taken in minimizing water usage. Often the sink is just left on, wasting gallons of water. The sad part is that this occurs in a single small lab at TCU. This practice is prevalent all over the world, and we are doing nothing to stop it.
Finally, I enjoyed the debate we had in class about Chapter 8 in particular. The chapter addressed the water issues going on in India. With the river Ganges being held as a sacred body, Hindus flock to the river to bathe and worship. Unfortunately, all waste eventually flows into the river. The dark brown water is in question. Should it be cleansed or left alone? Do the Hindu people have any responsibility in cleaning the water? Personally, I feel like they are free to do what they want with the water. As we discussed in class, water crises are regional problems. We can not reliably and financially ship water to areas with water shortages. It is too cost-intensive to pipe water to areas without clean water. If the Hindu followers want to worship in the Ganges and keep the water dirty, that is well within their rights. They must, however, be ready to accept the consequences of their actions.
Overall, the Big Thirst was a very eye-opening novel. I have always enjoyed non-fiction literature, so this was a pleasure to read. It definitely will affect some of the choices I make regarding water usage and conservation.
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