Achievements in Engineering #3, Period 2 Monday

[mike-cannon.livejournal.com]

There had been a handwavey notice sent out ahead of time that today's class would be held in the Danger Shop. When the students arrived, they would have found Mike waiting with a big empty barrel and a lot of sandbags.

"From the beginning of time, securing safe and convenient access to water has been necessary for human life," said Mike, moving right into his lecture. "It's very simple. Without drinking water, you die. Without clean water, you also die. Water is also essential for the survival of crops and livestock so you can eat. Therefore, civilization tended to stay close to areas with access to fresh water. As populations got bigger, it meant that everyone was piled up on top of each other because you couldn't move away and still have access to water. I'll pass around this hand-out about the history of water supply and distribution, but we also have some exercises to demonstrate the challenges that face engineers when it came to water."

[Please wait for the OCD is up! Also, please see this note about Mike and detentions.]