September 2006

Notes from the Field Editor

Liquid Gold
As prices soar to over $3 a gallon, it has become a hotly contested political issue. Wars and other international conicts have erupted over access to it, and pumping it out of the ground has become more and more expensive. If youre thinking that it refers to oil or gasoline, think again. It, in this case, is water. Americans routinely spend over $8 a gallon for half-liter containers of bottled water, even more for the pricier brands. From the American Southwest to the Middle East and China, water scarcity and the depletion of Earths water resources threaten to make water the new oil. That theres any liquid water at all is miraculous. Chemists tell us that the particular strength of the water molecules hydrogen bonds make it possible for water to exist in all three statessolid-liquid-gasat normal Earth temperatures. Planetary scientists note the importance of the distance of Earth from the Sun; a little closerperhaps as little as 1%and water could only be present as vapor; a little farther, as frozen solid. A slightly bigger or smaller Sun would certainly have a similar effect. And our geology friends will ask, What about the size of the Earth itself, providing just the right amount of gravity to retain an atmosphere rich in water vapor? The meteorologists chime in to advocate for the importance of the atmosphere. An atmosphere slightly different in composition would be unable to support liquid water. A slightly lower concentration of CO2, for example, could plunge Earths average temperature well below waters freezing point; a higher concentration could lead to a runaway greenhouse effect where only the vapor form could exist. From the strength of intermolecular forces operating at the nanometer scale to the macroscopic location of Earth in the solar system, this is truly a Goldilocks scenario. So many factors need to be just right; liquid water is a marvel. If you can appreciate this thought, perhaps while enjoying an aqueous solution of coffee or other beverage, you might give thanks to the water-based neurotransmitters that make thinking possible. Water has been in the news a lot lately. Hurricane Katrina and the Asian tsunami were dramatic examples. Here are some others:

chaeological and cultural sites, ooding over 1,000 villages and displacing more than a million people. Concerns about global warming create worries about the effect of warming ocean temperatures on dramatic weather events and climate change. Glaciers melt at an unprecedented pace. Near where I live, scientists at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute raise concerns about the increasing inux of fresh water from the melting Greenland ice sheet and its effect on the Gulf Stream, a major weather-moderating factor in New England and Western Europe. (For a classroom activity on the Gulf Stream, have a look at The Gulf Stream and Density of Fluids, on page 54 of this issue.) The negative impacts of polluted water on human health become more and more severe, with perhaps as many as one billion people around the world not having access to safe water and sanitation. Beach closings and pollution advisories are on the rise. Here in New England, we experienced one of the worst red tides in history in 2005, an event that closed shell shing areas for most of the summer and resulted in an estimated $15 million in economic losses in Massachusetts alone. (An interesting inquiry activity on harmful algal blooms can be found on page 48 in this issue.)

In China, structural work on the controversial Three Gorges Dam Project was completed last May, creating the largest hydroelectric dam in the world (more than ve times the size of the Hoover Dam). In addition to the dramatic environmental effects, damming the Yangtze River destroyed valuable arThe Science Teacher

Water determined where early civilizations began, where Earths great cities are located, how land is developed and wealth distributed. It covers almost three quarters of Earths surface and makes up about two-thirds of the human body. Water is so essential for life, at least as we know it, that exobiologists begin their search for extraterrestrial life with search for signs of water. It keeps our climate in balance, provides raw material for photosynthesis, and is the solvent for virtually all biochemical reactions. But this little molecule is under assault. Climate change, increasing human population, overshing, coastal development, and industrial pollution place virtually all Earths water systems at risk, from the smallest local ponds and streams to huge underground aquifers, vast oceanfront shorelines, and the deep ocean. In a Goldilocks world that is just right for water, small changes can have dramatic and unpredictable effects. Preserving Earths water resources may prove to be the major challenge of the new millennium. Steve Metz Field Editor smetz@nsta.org