Alchemy in the Desert, Diesel Exhaust into H2O

Carl Bialik writes "The Wall Street Journal is reporting that 'Using technologies developed for the space program, the U.S. Army is conducting an experiment that could convert the exhaust pipes of military vehicles into water fountains.' The idea is meant to help alleviate the logistical challenges presented by two essential army liquids: water and diesel fuel. A soldier in the desert needs about 20 gallons of water a day, for all purposes; 'Water gets to the front in vulnerable, slow-moving truck convoys that require armed escorts, or it is pumped from local rivers, lakes or ponds and purified by heavy-duty filters.' And maybe, in the future, it will also be extracted from diesel exhaust. The president of a company that developed the test technology tells the WSJ: 'This is one of those things where, when you first hear about it, you think the scientists have gone out of their minds. But once you taste the water, you realize the potential.'"

Re:What about the nasties in the exhaust?

[DasBub]

I hear that reading the article is generally a good thing to do before posting.

Thanks for playing.

Re:Another preparation for war story

[GameMaster]

Whether you agree with the war or not, it's still natural to want to see the troops overseas get the best equipment we can give them. Unlike Vietnam, even the anti-war movement doesn't blame the individual troops and wish them dead (Honestly, I don't even know how prevalent that opinion was during Vietnam).

Besides, military technology has always been a popular topic of discussion. The U.S. military gets all the neat toys so tech guys want to see what is cutting edge and sometimes the stuff ends up filtering down into the private sector (GPS, HUMVEE, etc.).

The mood in the U.S., as far as I've seen, is no more violent than it has ever been (for better or for worse). The country is pretty evenly split in opinion on whether the war is right. Although, many people that don't think it's a good war still think we should finish the job right rather than walk away and leave Iraq a chaotic mess.

Anyway, two data points do not make a trend. :-P

-GameMaster