Gates Foundation spent $200M funding toilet research

Post by scarejunba » Wed, Nov 07, 2018, 12:18 PM UTC

torgian wrote: post #98

gnarbarian wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Really all you'd need to do to drastically improve things is get them to simply dig a hole for an outhouse instead of the rampant open defecation seen in India and some parts of Africa. We can solve the more complex and exponentially expensive problems of water treatment later. Digging a deep hole gets rid of rampant cholera and incidental exposure. Basically you've got to learn to crawl before you can run a 10k. edi…

Doesn’t really work for China though. Plenty of public toilets around, and people (mostly children) will still take a shit in the street. Hell, I was in Chongqing a couple months ago and saw a teenager literally unzip, in full view of everyone, and pea on (on, not into) a recycling bin. Next to a god damn public toilet. In the middle of a shopping center. Near a police officer. A lot of people just don’t care.

Post by scarejunba » Wed, Nov 07, 2018, 12:26 PM UTC

pbhjpbhj wrote: post #143

teddyh wrote: post #125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I've always wondered why we never really saw toilets in Star Trek. When the original series was made, you couldn’t show a toilet on TV – it simply wasn’t allowed. But, beginning in 1989 with the release of the feature film Star Trek V: The Final Frontier , you do get the occasional glimpse of an actual toilet here and there. http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Toilet

Allowed as in illegal? Which country, what regulations?

Post by smileysteve » Wed, Nov 07, 2018, 12:43 PM UTC

nradov wrote: post #49

docbrown wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One thing I always thought fascinating about Gates was his candid relationship with feces. mindfuplay’s comment reminded me of the famous glass of shit water Gates drank from his Omniprocessor project [0]. But within that 2015 article, Gates mentions a long term plan for seweage and shit[1]: >If we can develop safe, affordable ways to get rid of human waste, we can prevent many of those deaths and help more children…

Western toilets seem to work reasonably well with septic tanks in rural areas. Those don't involve sewer lines or treatment plants.

Post by mmsimanga » Wed, Nov 07, 2018, 12:52 PM UTC

sonnyblarney wrote: post #109

I admire Gates a lot, but for him and way too many technophiles the answer is somehow always tech. Africa does not have a toilet problem. Or a tech problem. Or even a resources problem. They have a lack of intelligent social organization problem; i.e. dysfunctional or non-existent institutions, laws and organizational structures, as well as myriad forms of corruption from top to bottom that make it impossible to crea…

Post by harlanji » Wed, Nov 07, 2018, 12:59 PM UTC