Live data from Hacker News

The drinking fountain button

theverge.com

41–50 of 206 posts

Re: The drinking fountain button

#41
post #36
post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Second account to post this link: say what you will about the bots and — god forbid — someone saying something good about soviet union :-)

>someone saying something good about soviet union Has nothing to do with it. You simply lied. Would have called you out no matter the subject.

Lied about what? No one-time packaging and recycling of everything from paper to bottles? Thus being very green/eco by the modern retail standards.

Just google “макулатура” and “пункт приема бутылок”

Re: The drinking fountain button

#42
post #28
post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"The former Soviet Union was the world's second largest producer of harmful emissions." Some paradise. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0959378094...

Second account to post this link: say what you will about the bots and — god forbid — someone saying something good about soviet union :-)

Destroying the Aral Sea was hardly "green". The list of environmental disasters caused by the USSR is pretty impressive, in a sad way.

Re: The drinking fountain button

#43
post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And before someone says Lake Karachay is an extreme example because of the nuclear arms race and secrecy: Take the vanishing Aral Sea, the oil and gas leaks, or the "there is no thermostat, just a radiator on 100% and an open window" heating system.

> there is no thermostat, just a radiator on 100% and an open window Nothing wrong about it as water temperature in pipes is regulated based on the temperature outside if not at building-level (not uncommon) but at least at heat-station providing hot water to several buildings.

The problem with USSR-style heating infrastructure isn't the heating (apart from unfiltered coal-fired powerplants), but the insulation. Commieblocks were made with almost none, and to this day in most of Russia and former USSR they are bare. It was cheaper to waste coal/gas/oil than to pay for proper insulation and they were built as "temporary solution to housing problem" after all.

When Poland got independent in 1989 and energy prices got real - everybody started buying cheap styrofoam and in a few years we cut our energy usage for heating 3 times. It was CRAZY inefficient because of the pricing of energy vs materials in Warsaw pact.

This "mass styrofoamisation" still haven't happened in Russia to that degree BTW. It's still wasting crazy amounts of energy in all these old commieblocks without insulation.

Re: The drinking fountain button

#44
post #2

I wish Europe had any drinking fountains. Even extremely-high-traffic public areas such as airports and train stations have but a few or (usually) none.

In the UK they were initially created by the temperance movement, I ended up starting this wiki article years ago. Sadly many are no longer functioning https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_Drinking_Fountain...

Thames Water have been installing free water bottle refill stations around London for a few years now.

Also maybe less of an issue over here as you can generally just ask for a free glass of tap water in most places that serve drinks.

Re: The drinking fountain button

#46

Maybe it's just me, but it looks like every fountain turned off during during the pandemic will never to be turned back on?

Just you; in my comparatively sane state most were never turned off and those that were came back within a few months.

Re: The drinking fountain button

#47
post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You sure you checked all of Scandinavia?

Mostly Oslo and Stockholm.

Oslo airport has water fountains.

Thought to be fair I don’t think I’ve many in Oslo city.

I generally just ask a cafe to fill my water bottle if I need to. I’ve never had anyone refuse

Re: The drinking fountain button

#48
post #12
post #2

I wish Europe had any drinking fountains. Even extremely-high-traffic public areas such as airports and train stations have but a few or (usually) none.

Switzerland has a lot in my experience. At least the few cities that I visited. They are also very well mapped on openstreetmap, so it was easy to search for a nearby one with osmand whenever I was thirsty.

I presume you mean regular small to tiny fountains. Yes very frequent here, my small village has at least 5 of those. Unless there is an explicit sign that its not drinkable all have drinking water.

Good thing indeed, but then you go ie to France where you have sometimes such fountains too, and often reverse applies - don't drink unless its singed as drinkable.

Re: The drinking fountain button

#49
post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It amazes me that 1960s Moscow had drinking fountains with shared glasses: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F68bbzOOOdY&t=1850s What were they thinking?

These are not fountains but glorified watercoolers with sparkling water and, sometimes, lemonade. Most of the time they were not free although very cheap: 1 copeck. These survived up to the 1995, several years after the fall. And yes, most glasses have never been stolen. Shared glasses were quite safe because every machine had special button to clean the glass with pressurized technical water (several calibrated jets…

> Meat was wrapped in paper. Milk, butter and sour cream were poured into whatever container

This type of arguments are still as annoying as the first time I've heard it. Reusable containers just don't satisfy modern day safety standards.

If they could get away without paying for packaging they will happily do so. They can't because chances of poisoning followed by lawsuits becomes real at scale, causes including not just accidental contamination but also terrorism.

Re: The drinking fountain button

#50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the UK they were initially created by the temperance movement, I ended up starting this wiki article years ago. Sadly many are no longer functioning https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_Drinking_Fountain...

Thames Water have been installing free water bottle refill stations around London for a few years now. Also maybe less of an issue over here as you can generally just ask for a free glass of tap water in most places that serve drinks.

As a tourist I would never do that. It had for me to picture walking into a McDonald’s for a cup of water.
Post reply on HN