A brief insight about water is posted on this web page about the time of each equinox and solstice during the year. The seasons themselves are determined by a combination of the Earth's tilt and orbit around the Sun; however, water is instrumental in facilitating the events that we associate with the changing seasons. Click on the year to read the insight of your choice (listed below) and click on the link (at the end of each insight) to access references for additional information.

The correlation between atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases (particularly carbon dioxide) and the recent trend of rising average temperatures on Earth's surface has been the focus of considerable scientific and political concern. What is often overlooked in this brouhaha is that water (in the form of clouds and atmospheric vapor) is one of the most important regulators of planetary temperatures. As a result of water's ability to store heat energy and to absorb much of the Earth's outgoing radiation (i.e., the source of greenhouse heat), water is the only planetary substance that can either exacerbate or ameliorate global warming on a short-term basis. Moreover, it is the oceans (not the continents) that control most of the flux of carbon dioxide between the atmosphere and the planet's surface. So, could global warming represent just another manifestation of our many water challenges? planetary water

Most people readily associate the torrential rains of thunderstorms with the familiar lightning bolts that electrically connect massive clouds with the planet's surface. Although liquid water is the stuff that most often falls to the ground, ice crystals located in the tops of the thunderhead clouds are primarily responsible for lightning and Earth's so-called "global electric circuit." Thousands of meters above the ground surface, water-coated ice crystals collide with one another to generate the static electricity that is discharged in the form of lightning. Meteorologists have recently discovered that, in addition to the familiar cloud-to-ground lightning, there is another type of lightning that shoots upward and connects the cloud tops to the atmosphere's uppermost reaches (where electrically-charged solar particles are stored). Ice serves as an important generator of the electricity that links our globe and, perhaps, that connects Sun and Earth. cloud ice

While most of us recognize the oceans as the largest ecosystem on Earth, fewer of us realize that this massive realm (containing 97% of the planetary water) is also full of sound. This sound is created by sources as diverse as underwater volcanoes, sliding tectonic plates, singing whales, and droning ship propellers. Moreover, the mix of sounds detected in the ocean differs as a function of location and depth, owing to the peculiar way that sound bounces around the oceanic depths (often confining itself to discrete channels). The physical properties of seawater (e.g., temperature, salinity), along with the seafloor topography, serve to fine-tune the oceanic symphony. So, who's listening? Well, most marine creatures rely more on sound or subtle vibration than they do on vision because seawater transmits pressure waves more efficiently than light waves. We landlubbers still have a lot to learn about this symphony. sea sounds

Perhaps the most enchanting and frequently recorded of all ocean sounds are the complex songs of the humpback whale. Despite decades of research, scientists are still puzzling over the purpose of and the message underlying the songs. In fact, we are not even sure how the whales, which lack any vocal cords, produce their sounds. Their tendency to sing near seamounts (a favorite hub for their winter breeding grounds) has prompted whale researcher Roger Payne to ask whether they may be broadcasting their message across vast expanses of ocean. Humpback songs evolve from year to year as their composers add and delete complex musical phrases. Their songs are often compared to human music, as well as to sounds made by other animals or the Earth. Recently, the sonic well-being of all marine creatures has been questioned with regard to extremely loud noises produced by controversial human activities. whale songs

Considering the recent interest in genetic engineering, it is worth noting that the structure and functioning of the DNA molecule is dependent on water. Millions of water molecules link themselves together into a network that envelops the DNA crystal, permitting it to fold and maintain a 3-D helical configuration that is absolutely essential to its storing and transmitting the codes for biological organisms. Besides this so-called hydrating water, there is another type of water that is situated within the tiny nooks and crannies of the DNA molecule itself. This integral water is characterized by physical properties that are quite different from those of water that we recognize as part of our everyday world. Moreover, this unusual type of water bridges or "glues together" the more familiar components of a DNA molecule (e.g., bases, strands). Some naturalists claim that water essentially mediates biology's genetic code. DNA water

The ice that forms on Earth is known as "hexagonal" ice, which creates predictable and familiar crystals. However, there is another type of ice that is formed exclusively in outer space and that has no definable crystalline structure. This unstructured form of solid water is known as "amorphous" ice, which is very strange because solids are, by definition, crystalline. So, what's the deal with this bizarre ice or so-called glassy water? It appears that amorphous ice is formed from water molecules present in outer space where temperatures dip below -260 degrees Celsius. Recently, two NASA scientists hypothesized that amorphous ice is able to flow (not unlike liquid water), permitting gases trapped in the ice to combine with one another and form simple organic molecules. The scientists surmise that these simple molecules, when transported to Earth by cosmic water, may represent the precursors to biological life. amorphous ice

Moving silently within the cold abyssal depths of the world's oceans is a massive "river" of water that is known (scientifically) as the thermohaline circulation, denoting that it is driven by temperature and salinity differences in seawater. This global conveyor belt is not truly a river, but instead consists of seawater and a series of large-scale vortices (i.e., gyres) that are contributed by all of the world's oceans. According to some oceanographers, this oceanic conveyor belt also transports temperature signals from polar to tropical regions, where the planet's climate regime is ultimately regulated. In addition to transporting signals that induce climate change, seawater is able to retain a planetary history or memory of climate change that spans hundreds of years. Interestingly, many ancient insights proclaim that water is able "to remember" as a result of its travels through Earth's body and even through the stars. oceanic transport

During summer, the amount of water vapor in air, as measured by the relative humidity, becomes very apparent to many of us. In addition to its myriad roles here on Earth, water vapor is believed by astrophysicists to play a critical role in our galaxy. As massive interstellar clouds of dust and gas are gravitationally compressed into newborn stars, it appears that water acts as a kind of midwife. As the interstellar cloud is compressed, it heats up as a result of shock waves that also act to create water molecules from the cloud's hydrogen and oxygen atoms. The newly created water vapor (along with hydrogen gas) then cools the heated cloud, permitting it to be compressed into a star. The amount of water in interstellar space increases dramatically during the star birthing process, and some of this water ends up on the newborn star's planetoids. Hence, much of the water on Earth may have been used to birth our Sun. star water

While most of us are familiar with the six-pointed geometry of snowflakes, the fact that liquid water also produces a variety of 3-D geometries is not widely known. These liquid water geometries exist only on the molecular scale, which is billions of times smaller than the scale of snowflakes. Scientists have used sophisticated X-ray technology to discover that liquid water molecules bond with, or connect to, their four nearest neighbors in order to create 3-sided pyramids known as a tetrahedra. Moreover, it appears as that water molecules are constantly "changing-out" their bonding partners, so that the water tetrahedra are re-created as many as a trillion times per second! Research suggests that water's frantically creating and destroying these molecular pyramids underlies its ability to behave as a liquid (albeit a strange one) and yet retain some of the molecular structure of a solid (ice). tetrahedral water

So, liquid water can create geometric (and necessarily ephemeral) structures using its component molecules. Besides the 3-sided pyramid (tetrahedron), water also creates a more spherical 12-faced geometry known as a dodecahedron. The dodecahedron, which closely resembles a soccer ball, is composed of twenty water molecules and is used to contain or envelop a wide variety of substances that are dissolved in water (e.g., oxygen). Recently, a British scientist proposed that liquid water also creates an icosahedron, which is a 20-faced rounded geometry that is composed of almost 300 molecules. While definitely a molecular-scale geometry (composed entirely of water molecules), this icosahedral "cluster" is enormous compared to the individual tetrahedra that comprise it. It is interesting to note that many ancient cultures associated an icosahedron with the elemental substance of water. icosahedral water

The discovery that liquid water is best described as a complex network of interconnected molecules is one that has completely changed the thinking about how it may function. Systems theorists have postulated that relatively simple dynamic networks can account for a wide range of complex behaviors due, in large part, to rules that govern the switching of connections between elements. In water's network, the elements are represented by water molecules and the connections by hydrogen bonds, which are a magnetic type of linkage. These bonds are switched so rapidly (up to a trillion times per second) that scientists cannot even begin to decipher the governing rules. Nonetheless, theorists maintain that these kinds of systems are able to self-organize and to interact with their environment without the need for "programming" in a conventional sense. What can complexity theory tell us about water's network? water's complexity

As more is understood, or at least inferred, about the molecular structure of water's network, an obvious question arises as to the effects (if any) of structural changes on biological organisms. Because water is so fundamental to both the building and functioning of human bodies, it is not surprising that the purposeful structuring of drinking water has become common. There are a plethora of structuring agents (e.g., gases, crystals, metals, powders, vortices, magnets, and even so-called pranic energies) that have been employed to produce "healthy" waters. Anecdotal accounts of the health benefits associated with drinking these waters are plentiful; however, scientific evaluations are rare. While these clustered waters may constitute a better aqueous elixir than do purified waters, all biological molecules and surfaces ultimately re-structure water according to their internal requirements. clustered water

Although it comprises 97% of the planetary water, seawater's molecular structure is less well understood than that of pure (non-saline) water. The salts, or ions, in seawater appear to affect water's network by forcing the molecules to surround the ions, thus minimizing electrical and structural "disruptions" to the network. The grouping of water molecules around salts is believed to create more static and predictable molecular geometries than those characterizing pure water----perhaps even creating a different type of network connectivity. Science maintains that seawater's major ions were introduced by the weathering of the planet's rocks and that the relative amounts of these ions have been constant for the last 600 million years. Exactly how the Earth has maintained seas of such constant salinity is not known; however, oceanographers have identified a number of common processes that both contribute and extract salts. seawater

The Sun is certainly not a location that one would expect to find water; nonetheless, water is definitely exists there and on other stars in our galaxy as well. Even water vapor cannot exist at temperatures approaching 6000 degrees (Celsius), which characterize the surface of the Sun; however, there are solar locations where the temperatures are a little less extreme. Astrophysicists have discovered that temperatures associated with so-called sunspots are cool enough to keep the water molecule from being torn apart into its component atomic and subatomic particles. So, what is water doing on the Sun? One answer is that water influences the electromagnetic (solar) radiation that escapes into interplanetary space, thus making the Sun and other stars appear more opaque than they would otherwise. There are many other suspected functions of this "fire water" that will likely be confirmed in the near future. solar water

Whereas modern science has recently discovered that water mediates the transfer of energy and information between various components of the biosphere, geosphere, atmosphere, and cosmos, ancient understandings of water have identified water as a kind of universal mediator. Many ancient cultures proclaimed that water mediates the appearance of matter (i.e., physical forms) from the unmanifested source. Water's mediation was often attributed to is flow forms (e.g., whirlpools, ripples) or its rhythms (e.g., tides, sounds). Some ancient peoples considered water and the mysterious ether (representing both the unseen world and the source of life force energies) to be intimately connected, such that the former symbolizes the latter. The universality of water's mediation was based on an ancient understanding that everything in the material world ultimately enters and exits through water. mediating water

Recent books authored by the Japanese photographer Maseru Emoto have captured the attention of readers and the media alike. His work includes microscopic photos of very different-looking ice crystals formed from waters that were reportedly exposed to various words and sounds. Emoto attributes his results to water's ability to reflect "Hado," which describes an energy that pervades all matter. The proposed relationship between life force or etheric energies and water has some very old roots. The ancient Hawaiians apparently used water to symbolize the pathways and transformations of "mana" (life force) that correspond to various aspects of humans. Similarly, many Christian traditions recognize so-called living water as the source of life provided by God. Finally, the Platonic solids that represent water (icosahedron) and aether (dodecahedron) are reciprocating and related to matter (cube) via the renowned golden ratio. water and aether

Is there a water crisis? The answer depends upon who is asked. Whereas many of the world's people struggle daily to collect enough clean water to sustain themselves, most of us postmodern Westerners simply turn on the tap and use however much we please. We tend to think of a water crisis as something that threatens other humans; however, this represents only one aspect of the so-called crisis. The very actions we take to secure "our" water have denied other (nonhuman) users of their access to water and contributed to global environmental change. Moreover, our view of water as a right to be demanded from political or financial institutions, rather than as a gift for which to thank Nature or the Earth (as do many indigenous cultures), has created the illusion that humans reign supreme over planetary water. Is the water crisis something that happened to us or is it something we created from our ignorance and arrogance? water crisis

One of the most puzzling discoveries in geophysics during the late twentieth century was that Earth continuously vibrates at a very low frequency----about 12 octaves below the hearing threshold of humans. While this planetary hum, which is considerably more complex than sounds produced by earthquakes or volcanoes, had been previously noted by scientists, it was considered to be "background noise." Interestingly, the hum owes is existence to water on more than one account. First, the source of the hum is believed to be the winds that continuously blow over the planet's surface and result from the solar heating and phase changes of water. Second, the vibration is transmitted from the planet's surface down to its interior via seawater, which is able to efficiently transmit mechanical waves. Hence, perhaps the most fundamental vibration of our planet is facilitated by the ubiquitous presence and unique properties of water. earthly hum

According to many ancient traditions, a primordial sea represented the infinite, undifferentiated, and formless "chaos" that was believed to have existed before the division of the cosmos into heaven and earth. In fact, some of the earliest written history (i.e., Sumerian) apparently refers to this primordial state or Absolute as the "waters of chaos." Why was water (particularly freshwater) such a popular ancient metaphor for the origin of the physical universe? While the answer is not known for certain, modern theories suggest that ancient understandings of water's formlessness and unmanifested possibilities, along with its mysterious ability to mediate between the seen and unseen worlds, are likely candidates. This purported mediation, which has been reiterated by some modern naturalists, currently lacks a scientific explanation. Did ancient people understand something about water that most modern people do not? waters of chaos

The dawn of the 21st century finds humanity in a precarious position with respect to this planet's water. From the quality and quantity of freshwater resources to the pollution and over-exploitation of seawater resources, it may be time that we perceive water as more than just a financial commodity. The postmodern Western view of water (as a commodity) is unique among human civilizations, which have historically treated water with respect, reverence, and awe. Our ancestors seem to have known or intuited something about water's role in the physical world (and particularly in creating its myriad forms) that we simply do not grasp. While it is unlikely that we will ever perceive water in the same way as did our ancestors, we may discover a true reverence for water within the context of a modern world. Such a change in perception could lead us to actions that will ultimately meet our challenges with water. perceiving water

It turns out that water's hydrogen-bonded molecular network is even more enigmatic and indescribable than scientists first imagined. Recall that the ultrafast dynamics of this massive and complex network permits water to exhibit its strange properties. Hydrogen bond dynamics owe their indescribability to a quantum phenomenon known as "zero-point vibrations," which are not related to the common laws of motion (known as kinetics), but rather to an energy that exists even after all conventional energy disappears at absolute zero. This energy is sometimes designated as belonging to the aether or A-field, denoting a realm that contains energy (and perhaps matter) but is not part of our observable world----although it affects our observable world. It is interesting to note that many ancient descriptions of water suggest that it acts as a mediator between the seen and unseen worlds. quantum water

While water and rock are often considered to be mutually exclusive, the former actually plays a pivotal role in the formation and properties of the latter. Most rocks composing the crust of the Earth are produced from extensive ridges lying at the bottom of the world's oceans. The presence of water in molten rock affects its temperature and, ultimately, the thickness of the rock layer we refer to as "solid earth." When Earth's crust is recycled (or subducted) back into in the molten core, water not only lubricates the subduction of one rock slab past another, it also travels with and influences the melting rock. Besides serving as a component of the hard rocks we commonly encounter on the planet's surface, water is also a component of the molten rock we observe only during the eruption of some volcanoes. It should be noted that water occurs as part of the hard rock's crystalline matrix and not as a separate liquid. watery rocks

In addition to affecting rock, water can also be affected by rock. Water's molecular structures and dynamics are obviously influenced by geologic-scale processes; however, tiny bits of rock suspended or dissolved in water (as either colloids or ions) can also transform water. Whereas ions are often detected by water's salty taste, suspended rock is usually indicated by water's cloudy appearance. The finely pulverized rock influences many of water's physical properties (i.e., surface tension), as well as the reported health of those who drink it. Some researchers have postulated that mineral colloids are able to create very small molecular clusters within water that serve to better hydrate biological cells and, thus, reduce the damage caused by aging and pollutants. Even more mysterious (and controversial) is the observation that water need not directly contact the rock to produce some of these effects. aqueous minerals

In addition to the suite of pesticides, herbicides, industrial chemicals, and fuel components that are routinely found in freshwater ecosystems, there is a relative newcomer to the list. As a result of the Western world's addiction to prescription drugs, trace levels of bioactive substances have shown up in the rivers, lakes, and groundwater aquifers of North America and Europe. It was originally posited that these drugs, which treat everything from depression and impotence to heart disease and high cholesterol, originated with pharmaceutical manufacturers that improperly disposed of their wastes. Now it appears that much of the "drug load" is contributed by consumers who throw out or excrete these substances, which do not degrade in wastewater treatment plants. Not only do these drugs adversely affect the organisms inhabiting aquatic ecosystems, they occasionally end up in our drinking water sources. drugs in water

Besides the familiar water cycle that includes the oceans, atmosphere, and soils, there is another global water cycle that lies deep beneath the planet's surface. Often referred to as the "deep water cycle," geologists describe the dynamics of hydrous (water-containing) silicates and of hydrogen and oxygen atoms in solid, semi-solid, and molten layers of Earth's interior. Some researchers posit that this deep water reservoir is greater than that of surface oceans and is, in fact, what keeps the seawater volume relatively constant. As previously described, water incorporated into the mineral matrix of rocks profoundly influences events such as earthquakes and volcanoes. Speaking of earthquakes, the 2004 megaquake responsible for the Indonesian tsunami left a huge scar in the Earth's crust and mantle that has apparently "healed" faster than anticipated due to water's lessening the stress within the affected rocks. deep water cycle.

Researchers have found that water's assembly algorithms, representing the rules by which it self-organizes at all hierarchical levels, are a result of fractal-like structures. Fractals represent patterns that remain exactly the same (i.e., possess identical proportions) on different scales (e.g., microcosm and macrocosm). Fractals produced by complex systems have been traced to so-called strange attractors that are associated with chaotic behaviors, a subset of which are applicable to water's hydrogen-bonded network. Moving from microcosm to macrocosm, both the complex motions of seawater within the oceans and the flow paths of surface or ground waters within watersheds can be described by chaos and fractal patterns. Water's patterns are even displayed as basic structural properties of the biosphere, such that common flow forms (e.g., spirals, ripples) are often mimicked in the morphology of aquatic animals and plants. chaos and fractals

Can we simply produce more water? The answer depends on what exactly is meant by "producing" more water. There is plenty of oxygen gas in the atmosphere to create more water; however, hydrogen gas is not readily available in our environment----at least not in the required concentrations and locations. Hence, we are left to produce more usable freshwater either from unusable freshwater (e.g., currently inaccessible or polluted) or from seawater, both of which require large amounts of energy. There are a number of techniques available for capturing currently inaccessible water. Condensation is a method of converting water vapor to liquid water by cooling humid air; however, it too is energy consumptive. By contrast, practices such as permaculture, graywater usage, and rainwater harvesting have a tremendous potential to maximize water efficiency and to return us to a more "hands-on" relationship with water. capturing water

Have many postmodern people lost or compromised their ethics regarding water? A perceived lack of water ethics was recognized at the First World Water Forum, where the Director-General of UNESCO called for a "new attitude" on water. Unfortunately, a United Nations committee cannot simply impose water ethics, which are instead derived from people's individual and collective perceptions of water. Forcing people into an ethical relationship with water using legislation, litigation, regulation, or any other well-meaning externality has proven futile. Only when we begin to perceive water differently will we treat it differently; and it seems that an effective means of perceiving water differently is directly experiencing it in a manner that transcends its intellectual labels. Issues of water quality, scarcity, privatization, and allocation are just consequences of our perceptions, which may require a shift before any lasting solutions appear. water ethics

Whether obtaining, refining, transporting, growing, or disposing of the fuels used to drive our present-day world, water is required to produce power and to clean-up the mess created by its production. Alternative energy sources like wind, solar (small-scale), and fuel cells pose the least water demands, whereas nuclear, fossil, and biomass fuels pose the greatest demands. Using bioethanol as a fuel source requires both a conversion of food to energy crops (diminishing the global food supply) and an expansion of the cultivated land under corporate agriculture (escalating the demand for and pollution of water). Interestingly, hydrogen can be produced in water by green algae, along with the combined efforts of two different types of bacteria, that collectively regenerate some of the precursors required for continued hydrogen production. This is an example of micro-scale sustainability in the production of a renewable fuel. water, energy, money

Regarding alternative energy sources that are less water-demanding, it is interesting to note that the greatest use of water for solar power (at least on a small-scale basis) is for manufacturing the hardware components for photovoltaics, solar panels, and batteries. Designers of the “water car” have demonstrated that converting automobiles to an onboard hydrogen-generating system is feasible, economical, and averts the problems associated with remotely producing, storing, and transporting large volumes of hydrogen gas. Essentially, the cars are equipped with an electrolysis cell that uses DC current to split water molecules into oxygen and hydrogen atoms, which then combine to form the gases that power the car. In switching from fossil fuels to alternative energy sources, we should keep in mind that the quantity, distribution, and quality of water available to support the switch may prove to be a limiting factor. energy from water

As humans look for a place to dispose of this century's most "inconvenient" contaminant (i.e., carbon dioxide) it should be no surprise that water tops the list. Perhaps the most popular of the carbon sequestration techniques includes pumping liquid CO2 into the deep ocean, where it is predicted to remain as a dense liquid waste. Even if it were possible to capture, cool, transport, and pump the carbon dioxide without utilizing the same fossil fuels that generate CO2, the act of disposing this liquid waste represents an enormous stress on the local deep sea environment, where many biological organisms will be killed and changes in the pH and redox chemistry of seawater will likely ensue. In our zeal to mitigate global climate change, we should recall the lessons of burying other kinds of wastes-----namely, there are no isolated compartments within the natural environment and the global carbon and water cycles are intimately linked. carbon sequestration

If not in the oceans, deep saline aquifers and depleted oil and gas reservoirs have been targeted as just the place to dispose of our excess carbon dioxide. While the subterranean burial of CO2 is attractive, it could result in the blowout of injection wells, the leakage of CO2 and other greenhouse gases (e.g., methane) to the atmosphere, the subsiding or uplifting of the ground surface, the initiation of shallow seismic activity, and the contamination of adjacent freshwater aquifers. A less grandiose technology listed under “carbon offsets” is the planting of trees in tropical and subtropical regions that have lost their biomass to logging or slash-and-burn agriculture. However, monoculture tree plantations often disrupt local hydrologic regimes (e.g., reducing surface water flows and increasing the salinity or acidity of soils), increase the susceptibility of trees to disease, and merely constitute a swap of carbon credits for water losses. carbon trading

Naturalists have long been fascinated with the geometry of natural spirals and the efficiency with which vortices are able to mix water, air, or any other fluid; however, this principle has not been universally applied because standard engineering designs are based on a different approach to fluid mechanics. A Bay Area researcher has designed a small (6x4 inch) stainless steel impeller that looks like the inside of a conch shell and is able to mix water in the large tanks that hold drinking water supplies for a majority of people in the industrialized world. The use of conventional pumps or aerators to mix drinking water (facilitating its treatment and disinfection) is energy intensive and creates secondary problems. By contrast, the tiny vortex mixer employs nature's inherent efficiency in entraining all of the water in the tank and mixing it with only a fraction of the energy required by the pumps or stirrers it replaces. whirlpools

An innovative conversion of seawater to power is illustrated by the so-called "salinity battery," which is driven by the osmotic gradient created between seawater and freshwater stored on either side of a synthetic membrane. As fresh water moves spontaneously through the membrane to dilute the dissolved salts on the other side, the seawater is pressurized and then piped through a turbine to generate electricity. Challenges to salinity power include developing an optimal membrane and building a facility that can operate in deltas, estuaries, or other locations where rivers and oceans meet. Anticipated environmental impacts include the disposal of a brackish water (although less salty than the brines produced by conventional desalination) and the presence of platforms or pylons in potentially sensitive aquatic habitats. Nevertheless, this salinity-powered battery is based on emulating a natural process. saltwater power

The widespread destruction of natural wetlands throughout the world has prompted the design and installation of artificial wetlands; however, the replacements can never fully mimic the original because nature's intricacies are too numerous and complex. Some of the most important design parameters include mimicking hydrodynamics (e.g., extent and duration of flooding, rates of infiltration and evaporation), which requires water inlets, outlets, weirs, and other engineering control structures. In addition, geotextiles for sediment cover, brush for shading and erosion prevention, and rocks for habitat improvement are required to achieve a balance among the mineral, aqueous, and organic phases of the soil. Even after a decade, the functioning of artificial wetlands is observed to be considerably different than that of natural wetlands, illustrating the challenge that scientists face when emulating nature's water dynamics. wetland mitigation

Scientists at Cornell University have developed a so-called synthetic tree composed of a special gel that is etched with 80 tiny channels running parallel to one another in a manner that simulates the tube-filled vascular system, or xylem, of a real tree trunk. Essentially, water wicks up in the nanometer-scale pores of a gel under the driving force of capillary action. This tree consists of a couple circles (one representing a root network and the other a leaf network) that could never be mistaken for a real tree; however, the mechanism for their transporting water is similar inasmuch as no added energy is required to pump water against the relentless force of gravity. The operating principle of the synthetic tree is one that employs design, rather than power, to achieve the desired goal and that integrates the behavior of water (hydromimicry), the biomechanics of trees (biomimicry), and the properties of gels (materials science) into a single solution. synthetic tree

The molecular mechanisms underlying many biochemical processes remain poorly understood (e.g., how enzymes cleave substrates, how nucleic acids are formed from their components). Water that is integral to all these processes is believed to exist in one of two states----either low density (expanded) or high density (collapsed) in which hydrogen bonds of different strengths hold the adjacent water molecules together. Organic and inorganic substances have different solubilities in the two types of water, which support distinct kinds of biochemical processes and switch back-and-forth depending on the water's microenvironment. Hence, no matter how water may be structured before it enters an organism, biomolecules constantly restructure it inside the organism. Moreover, the bonding dynamics between water and biomolecules permit an ultrafast exchange of energy, conformation, and perhaps even information between them. two waters

The need to move water quickly and efficiently in living organisms is paramount; however, the understanding of how water moves through cell membranes is relatively recent. Nobel Laureate Peter Agre discovered that, in addition to simple diffusion, there are proteins (aquaporins) embedded in the membranes that transport water in and out of cells. A human aquaporin channel can transport about three billion water molecules per second in single file order! The orientation of water molecules moving through the channels is very precise and is believed to correspond to electrical fields formed by atoms comprising the channel walls. In any case, the structuring of water outside the cell does not seem to be preserved inside the cell, and biological life's requirement for rapidly moving water across cellular membranes suggests that it may be essential in ways that remain a mystery. water channels

The use of human engineering to alter the hydrologic connectivity among landscapes, groundwater aquifers, and surface waters (e.g., streams, rivers) has permitted water to be rapidly transported through urban storm drains, agricultural ditches, and diversion canals. This alteration of water's natural flow paths has contributed to the rapid movement of pollutants as so-called contaminant "pulses." These pulses are frequently detected in both fresh and coastal waters as a result of the loss of headwaters, wetlands, and other natural features that slow the transport of sediments or pollutants (e.g., metals, nutrients, pesticides) and reduced their concentrations. Often, the pulses are too rapid to warn downstream receptors (either human or ecological) of their imminent exposure to pollutants---an occurrence that has become commonplace as climate variability has increased. Researchers are developing methods to better predict such events. pulses

The concept of a water footprint arose when researchers tried to quantify the per capita volume used for direct (e.g., drinking cooking, bathing) and indirect (e.g., products, services) purposes. Consumptive use is the most obvious component of the water footprint, but water is also lost to pollution, evaporation, and relocation to places where it cannot be reused. Perhaps not surprisingly, the water inherent in producing food and energy comprises a major portion of a person's water footprint. Americans have the highest water consumption, with an annual per capita use (~2600 cubic meters) that is about double the global average. Because of their population density, cities require as much as 600 times the area of their geographic boundaries to provide sufficient water. In addition, the energy required to pump (relocate) water from productive watersheds to cities can comprise a significant portion of their overall footprint. water footprints

Bioengineer Gerald Pollack found that water adjacent to common types of surfaces or exposed to sunlight creates so-called "exclusion zones," where dissolved substances (solutes) are excluded in favor of a more ordered, or less random, network. Applications of this unusual behavior within water's molecular network include removing salts, pollutants, and even microbes without expensive filters or the energy required to force water through them. He also discovered an electrical charge separation between ordered water and the more common forms of disordered water, thus creating a battery---albeit a tiny one. The electrical charge separation created by light may someday lead to the production of a usable electric current, which is based on a process that mimics photosynthesis in plants. Water treatment and energy production are among the highest priorities for researchers currently exploring hydromimicry. exclusion zone

In addition to manangement schemes and sustainable technologies, water can also serve as a design tool for architecture. The flow forms and rhythms of water in the natural world create an imagery and symbolism that architects use to create spatial relationships between different aspects of a building. Water connects and, in some respects, defines the relationship between physical and energetic aspects of the planet via complex cycles operating on its surface and within its interior. From the ancient architects of Europe's fountains and cathedrals to the modern designs of Frank Lloyd Wright to the famous Blur Building of Switzerland, both the substance and essence of water have been utilized to create a wide arrary of visual and sensory effects. Because water is an integral component (both visible and invisible) of everything around us, we respond to its presence in architectural designs. water architects

The topic of "natural gas fracking" has made front page news during the last several years----more for its role in contaminating groundwater aquifers than in extracting cheap energy. The purpose of hydraulically fracturing geologic formations is to permit trapped natural gas to flow efficiently from its source rocks to subsurface locations where it can be more easily extracted. An unfortunate consequence of such fractures is that they permit the gas (mostly methane) and the associated fracking fluids (used to enhance the process) to contaminate adjacent drinking water aquifers. Whereas the fossil fuel industry is focused on producing nontoxic fluids and, perhaps, stripping the flammable gas from domestic water supplies, potential water-related problems don't end there. Fractures that remain "open" following gas extraction act as conduits for any future pollutants that may be released to soils in the same area. fracking

Small organisms located miles beneath the ocean surface are unlikely to be affected by winds and other weather conditions at the surface---or are they? Marine scientists have discovered that the same sea surface events that affect our climate and the distribution of fresh water around the globe also generate oceanic currents that can extend as deep as the seafloor and transport otherwise stationary organisms across entire ocean basins. As a result, marine life originating on the seafloor in one part of the ocean can end up thousands of miles away. One might wonder whether changing ocean conditions (particularly the increased temperature and acidity) might affect organisms relocated so far from home. While some spcies are adversely affected by the more "hostile" conditions, many others have demonstrated a surprising tolerance to conditions associated with global climate change. seawater transport