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School toilet water cleaner than in drinking fountain
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by Actual NewsGuy | June 11, 2007 at 02:06 pm
2939 views | 17 Recommendations | 3 comments
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A high school student was so annoyed with an edict from his school that prohibited kids from bringing water bottles to school he used what he had been taught to teach his teachers a lesson.
He used science techniques to prove that the water in the drinking fountains was filthy - and presented his findings to the adults in a slick Powerpoint presentation.
The project was simple: Armed with a Q-tip and a petri dish, Katherman swabbed the spigots of four drinking fountains and one toilet, dunking the cotton in the bowl's center and then dragging it around the rim so he'd get a complete sample.Then he took the results back to the lab and shone a light on the dish to speed up the bacteria's growth, via photosynthesis.
Each of the drinking fountain samples resulted in petri dishes swimming with bacteria. The toilet sample, by comparison, turned out mouth-wateringly clean, likely because it's doused with cleansing chemicals daily. Before revealing where each sample came from, he asked his classmates which water they'd prefer to drink.
They chose the toilet.
This story from the Eugene Register Guard (hey - I went to university for awhile at the U of O) - is written brilliantly. The reporter, Winston Ross, has a great sense of timing and dished this little gem out near the end:
Katherman's teacher, Barb Becker, said other students also are bringing about changes - even before they write essays. Administrators noticed them taking pictures of broken lockers, for example, and fixed them.
"The kids got to see that, yes, they can make a difference, if they do it right," Becker said.
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at 09:59 on June 12th, 2007
Thank you Actual News Guy Thats the way to do it. Good stuff.
at 11:12 on June 12th, 2007
Eewwww! Thanks, Actual News Guy! I'm sure given the toilet or fountain option, I'd rather be thirsty! Too bad some of the bottled water wasn't tested. I've heard a few unhygenic horror stories about that as well! I would say it is citizen journalism and it seems to be motivating actions to prevent future journalistic exposes!
at 18:40 on September 24th, 2008
Yeah, I did this in a college biology class. My teacher was a germaphobe, and it really upset her that I proved the faucets that touch the water she washes her hands with had more bacteria than the seat of the toilet. You'd probably actually catch less if you DIDN'T wash your hands in a school bathroom than if you were a good little follower, and did.