Importance Of Water

Water is our lifeline that bathes us and
feeds us. In ancient cultures water
represented the very essence of life. The
Romans were the first to pipe water into
their growing cities, especially with their
aqueducts. They also realized that sewage
water could cause damage to their people,
and needed to be removed from large areas
of people.
Water has played a role not only in the
history of countries, but in religion,
mythology, and art. Water in many religions
cleanses the soul through holy water. For
example, the water at Lourdes, France is
thought by many religions to be sacred
water with healing powers. In Egyptian
mythology, the Nu was the beginning of
everything and represented water. It
brought life to their people, but in drought,
produced chaos.
Water has always been perceived as a gift
from the gods as it rained from the
heavens.
The water or hydrologic cycle explains
interactions between the atmosphere,
hydrosphere, and lithosphere. The water or
hydrologic cycle is a major driving force on
our planet. Water is in constant motion,
evaporating into the atmosphere from
oceans, lakes, rivers and streams. When the
atmosphere can no longer support the
moisture within the clouds, we experience
rain, snow, hail, or sleet. Some water is
locked in the form of ice at the polar caps
and in glaciers. Water melts in the spring,
producing runoff, that percolates through
the Earth as groundwater (subsurface) or
makes its way back to the sea (surface). The
oceans contain most of the water, but it is
salt water which is unusable by most
organisms. Only pure H2O (water) can
interact with organisms.
The movement of the oceans also has a
direct effect on the atmosphere. The
atmosphere is that envelope of gas that
keeps organisms living on this planet.
Oceans and atmosphere interact to give us
weather.
Water provides the Earth with the capacity
of supporting life. An organism doesn ’t
have to be told how important water is to
their existence. An amphibian knows to lay
their eggs in water or else there will be no
new born. Even flies know to lay their eggs
in fresh water.
The only organism that doesn’t understand
the importance of water is humans,
especially in industrialized countries.
Children in those societies turn on the water
in a sink and never think about the trouble
someone has gone for that "miracle" to
occur.
In the United States it is mandated by law
that its citizens should be given clean and
abundant water. Dams, reservoirs, filtering
plants, and pipes all bring clean water when
the facet is turned on. Sewage water is only
mixed with recycled water supplies after
the water goes through rigorous cleaning
methods. Water borne diseases do not
effect the U.S. population like in other
countries that do not treat their water
supply.
Schistosomiasis worms, parasite in water.
Water borne diseases are any illnesses
caused by drinking contaminated water.
Diseases can include infection from bacteria
(Salmonella), viruses, or by small parasites
(Cryptosporida, Giardia, and Toxoplasma).
These organisms and viruses cause
diseases like cholera, typhoid fever, malaria,
botulism, polio, dysentery, giardia, and
hepatitis A. One of the first symptoms of
these diseases is diarrhea, which cause
about three million deaths throughout the
world, mainly in India, Africa, and South
America.
Sewage is sometimes discharged into rivers,
where children downstream might be
taking a bath or using the water to drink.
The simplest treatment method is boiling.
Just bring the water to a boil for at least one
minute, then allow it to cool. But this is not
always effective in heavily chemical
polluted water supplies.
Without water, organisms could not exist.
Water is a resource that should not be taken
for granted. It needs to be conserved, just
as we save other valuable resources.
Water is one of the weirdest compounds
known to humans. The difference between
the boiling point and freezing point of
water is one of the largest ranges of any
compound. It is this span of temperature
that mirrors the range of where life can
exist, from bacteria to humans. Water also
has a very high specific heat, which means
that it can absorb or lose much heat before
its temperature changes. This is important
in maintaining body heat in mammals. It
also takes a lot of energy before
vaporization can occur. For this reason,
water evaporates slowly from ponds and
lakes, where many life forms are dependent
on a stable, warm environment.
Water is less dense in its solid state than in
its liquid state, so that ice floats instead of
sinking. This property permits life to
develop in polar and subpolar regions
where ice floats and allows life to continue
living below the surface. If ice were heavier
than water, it would sink, and more ice
would form on top of it. As a result, all life in
the waters would be trapped in the ice in
the many areas of the world where it gets
cold enough to freeze water.
Water is a remarkable solvent, where most
elements and compounds can dissolve in its
powerful molecular structure. Gases such as
oxygen and carbon dioxide, can also
dissolve, making it readily available for
photosynthetic and nonphotosynthetic
organisms to use.
Resistance of water to a disturbance.
Water also exhibits viscosity. One can
observe the effects of viscosity alongside a
stream or river with uniform banks. The
water along the banks is nearly still, while
the current in the center may be swift. This
resistance between the layers is called
viscosity. This property allows smaller fish
to live near the shore, while larger fish are
able to swim efficiently in strong currents.
Viscosity is also responsible for the
formation of eddies, creating turbulence
that leads to good mixing of air in the water
and more uniform distribution of
microscopic organisms.