[stncls]

Tap water. I can't stop marveling at the fact that we have (mostly) unlimited, clean, drinkable water on demand and virtually for free.

But also many other things, many of which others have mentioned here (cars, mass housing, garbage collection, electronics).

So much so that I feel frustration at the fact that in my job, I do not participate in human society making any of these fascinating things possible; and I have decided that my next career move will have to make me part of the supply chain of one such thing, even if I am just the tiniest of links.

[pixl97]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_L._Leal

Chlorinated water is a pretty recent invention at about 115 years now. Most interestingly it was first done without permission and the only reason Leal wasn't jailed for it was the immediate positive impact on health.

[davis]

Wow, that's absolutely fascinating. Thanks for sharing that history

[mrmuagi]

Sewage is interesting too! Having to pump against elevation, making the water usable for other purposes, etc.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpHOkHxpTvQ

[voiper1]

+1 for "Practical Engineering". He has an amazing series on making a new pump station called Practical Construction:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdcXkmvXXwU&list=PLTZM4MrZKf...

[ksec]

>Tap water. I can't stop marveling at the fact that we have (mostly) unlimited, clean, drinkable water on demand and virtually for free.

Somewhat unfortunately a lot of Tab Water in even developed countries today aren't drinkable without going through a very decent filter.

[NoMoreNicksLeft]

"Isn't palatable" isn't the same as "isn't drinkable".

[Solvency]

CLEAN? LOL.

[wouldbecouldbe]

Tap water is actually a re-invention.

You're supposed to just be able to drink out of the river, but due to our own pollution and the lack of build up to diseases in the water we can't drink it directly anymore.

[perihelions]

I prefer "disease-free water" to "water containing unpleasant pathogens that probably won't kill me, because I've already gotten sick from them many times and maintain natural immunity".

Also, immunocompromised people deserve life too. Physically weak humans wouldn't survive in the natural-selection world that preceded civilization—the purpose of human civilization is escaping, nullifying, the brutal morality of the natural world and substituting our own.

Clean water is a gift of life.

[adverbly]

> due to our own pollution and the lack of build up to diseases in the water

I'm not sure this is exactly correct. Modern people still need to boil water to safely drink it even if the water comes from a remote area which does not have any pollution or disease.

You are right that it is a reinvention though because we used to do this regularly because we had antibodies and other things which could handle whatever was in the water in small quantities. Everything we have now is so pure that our immune and digestive systems can't handle anything that isn't pure anymore.

[asia92]

You'll get parasites and random organisms if you consume water like that

[wouldbecouldbe]

Note, for those thinking I'm foolish. This an example of the last decades. Amazon Tribes are forced to now use rainwater tanks with "taps"; since the Oil companies came decades ago the water in stream & rivers are not drinkable anymore.

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/feb/28/a...

So that's what I mean with a re-invention, tap-water is mostly needed due to human caused pollution.

Now were there pathogen in the rivers, for sure, did they get sick sometimes, most likely. Did it cause higher child mortality, I haven't been able to find data for or against that. But overall they were fine & it's up for debate whether those being exposed to small amounts of pathogens were a win or lose in the long run (some theories suggest our lack of pathogens are connected to auto-immune diseases & allergies)

Also our cities of course bring a lot of sewage issues causing another issue with water streams.

[AlecSchueler]

Going to the stream with a bucket is still a lot more effort than turning a tap. And don't forget the hot water that can also come out!

[knowaveragejoe]

"You're supposed to just be able to drink out of the river" seems incorrect at best

[zild3d]

Pretty much since we stopped being nomadic / developed more sedentary agricultural societies