Elaine Qian

1. The Big Thirst describes a whole range of qualities of waterfrom the way it feels to us, and
the impact it has on us emotionally, to the unusual and surprising ways companies and farmers
use it, to the work and complexity necessary to get our water to us. What did you learn about
water, or about how human beings use water, that surprised you most?
Water is a magical thing that people do not fully understand. How it came to be and how
it does not follow the rules of most-other elements is so mysterious. There are so many
fascinating things that I have learned from The Big Thirst. There is no way to narrow my
fascination about water down to one to two things because everything about water is so
enchanting. Water brings human forward in technological advances, and it is the reason humans
exists, and it runs our country.
In the first page it explained, NASA...the launch control computers would trigger the
release of water from a 290 foot high water tank it was a sound suppressant.(p1). I had never
known that the reason for the gushing water that I see whenever I watch the rockets launch into
the sky on television is actually to muffle the sound of a rocket blasting into the air. Without
water, the sound itself would have destroyed everything around it. Water is such an important
aspect of our lives and earth, itself. Water is so important that it can not be denied, but it is also
so much part of our lives that we do not even notice its existence. Everything human beings do
is, quite literally, a function of water, because every cell in our bodies is pumped full of it
when we gaze at the starry night sky, the cells in our eyes execute all their seeing functions in
water.(p3). The stanzas explains everything; humans are a function of water and without water
humans can not function. Not only can humans not function, the world cannot function without
water. The power that humans create to generate the computers and smartphones that people can
not live without anymore are also possible because of water. Plenty of water are needed to get a
power point working, nation's power plants use 201 billion gallons of water in the course of

Elaine Qian

generating electricity.(p5). In the developed country, we use more fresh water to produce
electricity than some developing countries have to drink.
Water is great and many people take it for granted and think that it will always be there
for people to use. If people do not stop polluting the water then, it will soon be unusable and
become something of a luxury. The water will never stop amazing me, and the book will forever
change my view on water. The things that humans can accomplish with water are an infinite.

3. Many places in the U.S. and the developed world facing water scarcity could solve their water
problems by building either a seawater-desalination plant or a plant to clean and sanitize wastewater and
return it to the drinking-water supply. Imagine that you are an elected official having to choose between
these two solutions. Which would you choose? How would you go about researching and making the
choice? Would you put aside your own research and decision if your constituents strongly objected to one
source of water or the other? Do you think you would be able to persuade skeptical citizens that reuse
water is safe? Why do Americans somehow think that drinking cleaned- up seawater is more palatable
than drinking cleaned-up city wastewater?

As an official who will be the representer for the people and also protector of the
environment, the best choice would be to recycle the waste-water.There will be through research
done on the quality of water in the city, and the choices will be made based on the thoughts of
citizens. Americans have been traumatized about wastewater, but I am confident in persuading
them.
Many people do not understand how sacred water is because of how cheap people in the
developed country can receive water. Humans keep using up the limited amount of fresh water
that is on this planet when there is an alternative that would be more beneficial to the
environment, recycled water. Why is that people are willing to reuse plastic and cardboard, but
they are not willing to reuse water? The reason is that reusing water has not been as widely
promoted as other reusable resources. What most people do not understand is that the water is
even more precious than any other resource, because, unlike plastic, water is irreplaceable,

Elaine Qian

...running out of water is like slipping off the edge of a cliff- its hard to be saved.(p147). This
line from The Big Thirst should explain just how important water is. Without water, there is no
way for humans to exist. Even though, it seems that there are plenty of water on earth but only
0.3 percent are freshwater.
I understand that people still have the right to question what they are putting in their
body and whether wastewater is safe or not. I will assure the citizens that the water will be
recycled crystal clear. If the water shows any form of harm to people, it will be stopped from
being spread to the city right away. Americans also assumes that cleaned- up seawater is better
than cleaned- up city wastewater but technology has changed and it is possible to have
wastewater just as clean as seawater. As well as the fact that recycling wastewater and seawater
do not make much difference because a lot of city wastes get dumped into the ocean. I am
confident in recycled wastewater but if constituents strongly object to my opinion and thinks that
wastewater is not safe, I will make up an compromise with the citizens that they can accept, and
that is still able to meet part of my goal to become more eco-friendly. Most importantly is
wording, when persuading skeptical citizens in trusting officials. The major of Australia had a
horrible way of wording it, she said, ...Youre all going to drink from the sewer!(p150). Now,
no one is going to be appealed by that way of wording. If she had said it in a more pleasing way,
I am positive that she would have had the full support of her citizens.
Waste water was once clean fresh-water as well so why can we not make it fresh and
clean once again, it is possible. Scientists all over the world are doing research on recycling
water, and it has gone a long way since the past. With the trusts of the citizens, the country can
move a step forward in technological advancement and a cleaner earth. The officials will, of
course, listen to the peoples opinions and make the best choice for the citizens.

Elaine Qian
8. Plenty of places in the U.S., and around the world, have ample water resources. Is there any value in
conserving water, or creating water awareness, in communities that have abundant water? How would
you make the case for smart water use to citizens in a community where the water supply itself isnt under
any pressure? Are there other issues besides simple availability that ordinary people should be paying
attention to?

Places that have a bountiful amount of water are more unlikely to see how precious water
is. People find it unnecessary to care about such things, but they are wrong. No matter where the
city or town is, water is always precious. Smart use of water need to be better advertised, and the
quality of water also needs to be looked at with care.
People presume that the water will never run out and will always be there for them to
waste. That was what people in Australia the little town of Toowoomba had thought. They
believed that the water would never become a problem for them since they had regular rainfall
every year. To everyones surprise, the little town of Toowoomba has stopped raining for five
years straight. The people are worried out of their minds, but there is no one who can save them
because, how you shower or water your lawn has no impact on the water availability of people
an ocean away, and may not even impact on people a single-time zone away it means we must
take responsibility for our water issues(p302). A cruel fact; no one will be able to help if the
citys water is down it is up to the city to solve it. Unlike food, there is no way to transport a
large amount of water that can quench the thirst of the whole city. There might be enough fresh
water for this generation but what about the next generation and the next.
Another huge issue is the quality of water; there may be chemical impacts on freshwater
that are unable to be identified by mere looks, but huge damage to the water could already be in
the process. We dont understand the impact of the micro pollutants- the traces of medicine, the
residue from chemicals and plastic in our everyday lives- on either human beings or the natural
system(p304). Cities poor hundreds and thousands of pounds of wastewater into lakes and

Elaine Qian

major streams. Do we really know what we are dumping in these precious fresh waters? The
answer is no, even though it seem as though there has not been any major impact of our daily
actions, but what about in the future? Will our grandchild's become mutant? Will the earth be
contaminated so bad there will be no return? No one knows the answer, but it is certain that
protecting the water will not do any harm but only good. In the past few decades there has also
been an increasing trend in bottled water. But do we really know if they are safe or not? Bottled
water isnt regulated with anything like the scrutiny and care that tap water is.(p 299). The fact
that bottled water is not as clean as people expect would come as a shock to many bottled water
consumer. The reason people are switching to bottled water is because they believe tap water is
not safe, but it is the other way around.
Water is so interacted with peoples everyday lives they do not realize how precious it is
until they lose it. That is how humans are; until people lose something precious they can not
understand the importance of it. Preserving water will only benefits people, and more studies in
the quality of water is also crucial.

Elaine Qian