The stuff of life

The latest edition of E&T magazine from The Institution of Engineering & Technology is out and the lead article is by me on how technology is looking to deal with water shortages.
In researching the piece I went over to the University of Surrey's Centre for Environmental Health Engineering and talked to its affable deputy director Brian Clarke.
Fascinating place with access to their own satellite network and doing some good work in developing countries puttign place sustainable water systems.
Our focus at the moment is on the battle for energy security but water security is rapidly becoming as vital.
One of Surrey's scientists is Prof Adel Sharif whose Centre for Osmosis Research and Applications is currently testing som groundbreaking water treatment applications on Gibralter. Everyone jokes that Prof Sharif will be a water millionaire when his technology is perfected.
Prof Sharif grew up in rural Iraq. When Syria put a dam on the Euphrates his village's water supply was suddenly greatly reduced. Its inhabitants agricultural lifestyle was finished.
The young Adel moved to the city, trained to be an engineer and made water his focus. It would be nice if some good could come of that unrecorded skirmish in the long battle for water.