Michael Pritchard :談濾水裝置將污水變為飲用水

============
講者：Michael Pritchard
2009年7月演講，2009年8月在TED上線
MyOOPS開放式課程
翻譯：劉契良
編輯：洪曉慧
簡繁轉換：陳盈
字幕影片後製：謝旻均
------------------------------

Michael Pritchard：救命濾水瓶
早安，各位。今天我要和大家分享一些事。第一件是關於「水」。現場大家都享受著潔淨的飲水，這是會場幾天來所提供的貼心安排。而我敢說你覺得水源很安全
但若事非如此呢？如果來源是像這樣呢？根據統計數據，在場半數的人將出現腹瀉的症狀。過去我談了很多關於統計及提供所有人安全飲水的話題。但似乎效果不彰。而我想我已找到答案。那是因為用現時的思維，問題的規模太大，令人望之生怯。於是人們就放棄了，無論是一般人、政府或是救援單位。今天，我將向您展示，透過不同的思維模式，問題可以輕易解決。附帶一提，自從演講開始，全球又有另外13,000人身受腹瀉之苦。4個幼童剛過世。
我發明Lifesaver水瓶是因為我感到氣憤。2004聖誕節的隔天，我和各位一樣坐在椅子上，收看電視上播出的毀滅性新聞，亞洲海潚肆虐災情畫面不斷更新。接下來的數天、數週，人們不斷地逃往山坡上，且被迫在飲用污染水源，或面臨死亡間做決擇。我的心很痛。然後，再過了幾個月，卡崔娜颶風掃入美國南面。我心想，好吧，看看這個第一世界國家如何因應。第一天：沒動靜。第二天：沒動靜。到了第五天，飲水才送到Superdome安置所。人民在街上對彼此開槍，搶奪電視與飲水。這是促使我站出來的主因。
接下來的數週、數月裡，我待在車庫裡開始研發。當然還有廚房，這可嚇壞了我太太。但是，經過幾個失敗的原型之後，我終於研發出這個─Lifesaver水瓶。
現在來看看科學層面。在Lifesaver問世之前，最優的手動過濾器只能過濾到約200奈米的等級。而最小的細菌就約為200奈米。所以一隻200奈米的細菌可以輕易穿過一個200奈米大小的濾孔。可是最小的病毒只有約25奈米！無庸置疑地，它絕對可以穿過那些200奈米的濾孔。Lifesaver的濾孔只有15奈米，所以什麼都別想穿過。
示範時間到了。各位想看一下嗎？我花了不少時間裝設，所以我想我應該要示範一下。我們身處乾淨的牛津城。喔，有人用過了。乾淨的牛津城，我現在要做的是從Cherwell河取一些水，還有泰晤士河。這是流經此地的河水。但是，我不禁要想到，如果我們身處易氾濫地區，像是孟加拉，河水不會像這個樣子。所以我另外添加了一些其他成分，這個來自我家池塘。
(嗅) (咳) 試聞一下吧，攝影機先生
(笑) 就是這樣。我們現在就把它倒進去。
聽眾：喔！
Michael Pritchard：還有一些好料。是來自污水處理場。我們也把它加進去。(笑聲)。都加進去！(笑聲)。還有一些，都放進來。另外，我朋友的兔子也貢獻了一些禮物。我們全都加到水中來。(笑聲)。成了！
Lifesaver水瓶的運作原理很簡單。先舀些髒水。今天我用水罐來舀，好讓大家看得清楚。加入一些便便也不錯。這不夠髒，讓我先攪拌一下。現在我將取出這十分髒臭的污水，然後倒入瓶中。您想喝了嗎？(笑聲)。好了。蓋上瓶蓋。壓幾下。就只需要做這些而已。之後，只要我一彈開瓶嘴，消毒過的飲水就做好了。我的動作要快一點。準備好了嗎？出來了。小心電擊。安全又無菌的飲水。(掌聲)。乾杯。(掌聲)。喝一口吧，Chris。(掌聲)。味道怎樣？
Chris Anderson：可口極了！
Michael Pritchard：好。接著可以看看Chris下面的節目表現如何了。(笑聲)。
Lifesaver水瓶已經全世界數以千計的人使用過。單件能過濾6,000公升的水。使用期限屆滿，安全裝置技術即切入，系統就停工，保障使用者的衛生安全。將濾心彈出，插入新品。即能再過濾6,000公升的水。

我們再來看看應用的方面。傳統上，我們在危機時的作法是，我們先運送飲水。幾週後，開始設立安置營地。民眾被迫進入營地，因為他們需要安全的飲水。將20,000人擠在營地的後果為何？疾病擴散，資源短缺。問題不斷衍生。但如果能有不同的思維，改運送這個水瓶，災民可以繼續大步邁前。他們可以自己製作無菌的飲水，並開始重建家園與生活

其實，不需要天災證明這水瓶有用。依著舊思維，國家級的基礎建設與管路配置太貴。如果按計算機，那些數字根本就跑出螢幕了。所以，這完全是稍微不同的思維。
不用運送飲水及使用人為的處理方式，而改讓大自然之母出面。她擁有一套驚人的系統。她從海水取水上來，免費淨化後，運到這邊來，再將水降在山巔、河川與小溪流。人類住哪兒？水邊。我們需要做的僅是將水變成無菌

我們可以使用Lifesaver水瓶。或是使用與這個一樣的技術，五加侖大扁罐。這能處理25,000公升的水。

足夠一家4口三年所需。成本呢？每天約需0.5分錢。謝謝。

(掌聲)

透過不同思維及以使用的觀點處理用水，母親與小孩們將不再需要每天走4小時的路汲水。他們可以就近解決問題。如果我們拿出八十億來，就能達成一項千禧年目標，減少一半無潔水可飲的人口。套到實例來說即是，英國政府每年編列120億英磅用作海外援助經費。但為何不做的更好？只要有200億，每個人就能獲得安全的飲水。結果是每年35億個飲污水受苦的生命，及二百萬殞命的孩童，將能存活下來。謝謝。

(掌聲)。

==================================

以下為系統擷取之英文原文

About This Talk

Too much of the world lacks access to clean drinking water. Engineer Michael Pritchard did something about it -- inventing the portable Lifesaver filter, which can make the most revolting water drinkable in seconds. An amazing demo from TEDGlobal 2009.

About Michael Pritchard

With cutting-edge nanotech, Michael Pritchard's Lifesaver water-purification bottle could revolutionize water-delivery systems in disaster-stricken areas around the globe. Full bio and more links

Transcript

Good morning everybody. I'd like to talk about a couple of things today. The first thing is water. Now I see you've all been enjoying the water that's been provided for you here at the conference, over the past couple of days. And I'm sure you'll feel that it's from a safe source.

But what if it wasn't? What if it was from a source like this? Then statistics would actually say that half of you would now be suffering with diarrhea. I talked a lot in the past about statistics, and the provision of safe drinking water for all. But they just don't seem to get through. And I think I've worked out why. It's because, using current thinking, the scale of the problem just seems too huge to contemplate solving. So we just switch off. Us, governments, and aid agencies. Well, today, I'd like to show you that through thinking differently, the problem has been solved. By the way, since I've been speaking, another 13,000 people around the world are suffering now with diarrhea. And four children have just died.

I invented Lifesaver bottle because I got angry. I, like most of you, was sitting down, the day after Christmas in 2004, when I was watching the devastating news of the Asian tsunami as it rolled in, playing out on TV. The days and weeks that followed, people fleeing to the hills, being forced to drink contaminated water, or face death. That really stuck with me. Then, a few months later, Hurricane Katrina slammed into the side of America. "Okay," I thought, "here's a First World country, let's see what they can do." Day one: nothing. Day two: nothing. Do you know it took five days to get water to the Superdome? People were shooting each other on the streets, for TV sets and water. That's when I decided I had to do something.

Now I spent a lot of time in my garage, over the next weeks and months. And also in my kitchen, much to the dismay of my wife. However, after a few failed prototypes, I finally came up with this, the Lifesaver bottle.

Okay, now for the science bit. Before Lifesaver, the best hand filters were only capable of filtering down to about 200 nanometers. The smallest bacteria is about 200 nanometers. So a 200-nanometer bacteria is going to get through a 200-nanometer hole. The smallest virus, on the other hand, is about 25 nanometers. So that's definitely going to get through those 200 nanometer holes. Lifesaver pores are 15 nanometers. So nothing is getting through.

Okay, I'm going to give you a bit of a demonstration. Would you like to see that? I spent all the time setting this up. So I guess I should. We're in the fine city of Oxford. So -- someone's done that up. Fine city of Oxford, so what I've done is I've gone and got some water from the River Cherwell, and the River Thames, that flow through here. And this is the water. But I got to thinking, you know, if we were in the middle of a flood zone in Bangladesh, the water wouldn't look like this. So I've gone and got some stuff to add into it. And this is from my pond.

(Sniffs) (Coughs) Have a smell of that, mister cameraman.

Okay. (Laughs) Right. We're just going to pour that in there.

Audience: Ugh!

Michael Pritchard: Okay. We've got some runoff from a sewage plant farm. So I'm just going to put that in there. (Laughter) Put that in there. There we go. (Laughter) And some other bits and pieces, chuck that in there. And I've got a gift here from a friend of mine's rabbit. So we're just going to put that in there as well. (Laughter) Okay. (Laughter) Now.

The Lifesaver bottle works really simply. You just scoop the water up. Today I'm going to use a jug just to show you all. Let's get a bit of that poo in there. That's not dirty enough. Let's just stir that up a little bit. Okay, so I'm going to take this really filthy water, And put it in here. Do you want a drink yet? (Laughter) Okay. There we go. Replace the top. Give it a few pumps. Okay? That's all that's necessary. Now as soon as I pop the teat, sterile drinking water is going to come out. I've got to be quick. Okay, ready? There we go. Mind the electrics. That is safe, sterile drinking water. (Applause) Cheers. (Applause) There you go Chris. (Applause) What's it taste of?

Chris Anderson: Delicious.

Michael Pritchard: Okay. Let's see Chris's program throughout the rest of the show. Okay? (Laughter)

Okay. Lifesaver bottle is used by thousands of people around the world. It'll last for 6,000 liters. And when it's expired, using failsafe technology, the system will shut off, protecting the user. Pop the cartridge out. Pop a new one in. It's good for another 6,000 liters.

So let's look at the applications. Traditionally, in a crisis, what do we do? We ship water. Then, after a few weeks, we set up camps. And people are forced to come into the camps to get their safe drinking water. What happens when 20,000 people congregate in a camp? Diseases spread. More resources are required. The problem just becomes self-perpetuating. But by thinking differently, and shipping these, people can stay put. They can make their own sterile drinking water, and start to get on with rebuilding their homes and their lives.

Now, it doesn't require a natural disaster for this to work. Using the old thinking, of national infrastructure, and pipe work, is too expensive. When you run the numbers on a calculator, you run out of notes. So here is the "thinking different" bit.

Instead of shipping water, and using man-made processes to do it, let's use Mother Nature. She's got a fantastic system. She picks the water up from there, desalinates it, for free, transports it over there, and dumps it onto the mountains, rivers, and streams. And where do people live? Near water. All we've go to do is make it sterile.

Well, we could use the Lifesaver bottle. Or we could use one of these. The same technology, in a jerrycan. This will process 25,000 liters of water. That's good enough for a family of four, for three years. And how much does it cost? About half a cent a day to run. Thank you.

(Applause)

So, by thinking differently, and processing water at the point of use, mothers and children no longer have to walk four hours a day to collect their water. They can get it from a source nearby. So with just eight billion dollars, we can hit the millennium goal's target of halving the number of people without access to safe drinking water. To put that into context, The U.K. government spends about 12 billion pounds a year on foreign aid. But why stop there? With 20 billion dollars, everyone can have access to safe drinking water. So the three-and-a-half billion people that suffer every year, as a result, and the two million kids that die every year, will live. Thank you.

(Applause)


===================