Water – Earth – Fire – Air are, for the pre-Socratic philosophers, the four simplest elements or essential conditions for the existence of life. The first rudiments of the study of human personality, the first psychology that was in force practically until Freud, are based on these four elements.
As ancient as human civilization, the division of human personality into four temperaments has its origin in Egypt and Mesopotamia 5,000 years ago. Both the physical and the mental health were connected to these four elements: fire, water, earth and air. These in turn were connected to the four types of fluids in the human body.
Already during his time, Hippocrates (460-370 BC) argued that health depended on the balance of four bodily fluids: blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile. These fluids are linked to certain organs and illnesses represented in the four temperaments or humors.
Today we know that water is not a simple element because it is made up of a mixture of two gases – hydrogen and oxygen. We call simple elements those that are indivisible, that is, are composed of only one type of element. Therefore, there are three and not four of the simplest elements: earth, fire and air.
Atomic Composition of Water
Water is a molecule composed of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom; its chemical formula is H2O. It was Henry Cavendish (1731-1810), a British chemist born in France, who first demonstrated water’s atomic composition. To confirm that water is a substance composed of the elements hydrogen and oxygen, it is possible to break it down by means of a procedure called electrolysis, that is to say, to decompose a substance into its elements by the passage of an electric current.
Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe: 75% of visible matter in the universe is hydrogen. It is also the simplest element known, consisting of one electron orbiting a nucleus composed of a single proton.
Oxygen is no longer such a simple element; the nucleus of the oxygen atom is made up of 8 protons and 8 neutrons; this nucleus is orbited by 2 electrons in its inner shell and 6 electrons in its outer shell, making a total of 8 electrons. Moreover, the oxygen that we breathe, the oxygen that exists in nature, is not an atom but a molecule that is made up of two atoms of oxygen and is represented by the chemical formula O2. That is, two atoms of oxygen are needed to make one molecule of oxygen, one is not enough.
Water results from a chemical reaction between molecular hydrogen (H2) and molecular oxygen (O2): two molecules of hydrogen and one molecule of oxygen react to give two molecules of water releasing energy in the process. As we have seen in speaking of the structure of atom, combinations of atoms occur at the level of electrons, not nuclei; in the case of water, the nuclei of the two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom share their electrons resulting in two covalent bonds.
Fuel cell – It is not enough just to mix the two gases, hydrogen and oxygen, to obtain water. So, contradicting a little of what we have said, water is somewhat a simple element as there is no natural process that produces water just by mixing hydrogen and oxygen gases together. If we want to produce water from these two gases, we must simultaneously ignite the two thus producing energy and water.
This is the reaction that takes place in cars that use hydrogen as fuel. The hydrogen, stored in a reservoir, is mixed with the oxygen in the air to produce electrical energy that feeds the motor and drives the car. The only emission from the fuel cell as the result of this entire process is water vapor.
Electrolysis – This is the reverse reaction, that is, the decomposition of water by electric current to separate hydrogen from oxygen. This fact makes water not only a life source, but also a source of inexhaustible clean non-fossil energy. During the summer months, we can use photo-voltaic energy to produce hydrogen and oxygen from water through the electrolytic process which, stored in a tank, could be used during the winter months both to heat the house and run the car, using the fuel cell process.
Where did all the water come from?
It seems that the oceans, containing most of the water on the planet, are as old as the Earth itself, since they were formed very early when Earth was still a piece of cooling star. There are several theories that attempt to explain the emergence of water and its accumulation in the oceans:
- Water already existed on our planet in the form of vapour; with the cooling of the planet 3.8 billion years ago it has condensed, forming the basins of the oceans;
- Some of the water that formed our oceans was trapped in the rocks that formed the Earth billions of years ago;
- May have already been at the center of our planet, coming to the surface through volcanic eruptions over billions of years;
- Resulted from the bombardment and collision of comets and asteroids made of rocks and water in form of ice over millions of years.
The Water Cycle
All streams run to the sea, but the sea is not full; to the place where the streams flow, there they continue to flow. Ecclesiastes 1:7
Who calls for the waters of the sea, and pours them out upon the surface of the earth – the LORD is his name. Amos 9:6
For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there until they have watered the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it. Isaiah 55:10-11
No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man! Heraclitus of Ephesus
The Bible already knew the water cycle and how important it is for life. Isaiah compares the vital principle of life to the word of God which is as living and effective as water and that it does not return to where it comes from without causing, planting, and sustaining life, or without giving life.
Water cycle is the continuous process of transformation or metamorphosis of water from one state to another. Life would not be possible if water did not change state. Life results from the relationship among three factors – water, earth, and sunlight. Earth and sunlight are constant, invariable, and immovable factors, they always exist. The only variable that enables interaction is water; for this to happen, it has to repeatedly change state.
The heat radiated by the sun warms the main bodies of water which are the oceans; water evaporates to form clouds which are carried by the wind to the land; when the amount of water vapour becomes too much, water condenses and falls back to the earth in the form of rain or snow.
By infiltrating the earth, it waters the plants in the first few meters, sustaining their lives; the plants, by the process of transpiration, return part of the water back into the atmosphere. Continuing its downward path, water gains mineral salts and, continuing its infiltration, forms large subterranean lakes called groundwater which when it is filled, flow from the depths of the earth, forming lakes and rivers and returning eventually back to the sea.
The Solid State
Of the three states in which water is found naturally on Earth, the solid state seems to be the least important when compared to the liquid and the gaseous state. But the truth is that in the overall balance of life on our planet, the lack of seemingly insignificant things unbalances changes in the things of great importance.
Water in the solid state is found in the polar ice caps that among other things act like air conditioners for the planet, since they provide currents of cold air that refresh the torrid zones of the planet. Surfaces covered by ice and snow reflect the sun’s rays, helping the Earth not to overheat.
Furthermore, ice caps and glaciers are the storage of the Earth’s freshwater, holding more than 68% of our planet’s freshwater. If the polar ice caps were to melt due to global warming, Earth would not only lose its cooling system, but the sea level would rise about sixty meters, disastrously flooding heavily populated coastal areas.
The Gaseous State
Water in the solid state is accumulated water, it is a water storage. Water is most useful in its liquid state, and the gaseous state is an intermediate state, transporting water from the sea to the land by means of evaporation. This fact obeys the nature of matter in the three different states, that is, the degree of cohesion of molecules: highest in the solid state, so that it is expected that water in this state would not participate in reactions or interactions.
In the gaseous state, the dispersion of the molecules also makes water of little use, this state being the most suitable for transporting sea water to land. It is also a state of purification, where water loses all its dissolved mineral salts and is now in a pure state, so that on returning to the liquid state it gains different qualities depending on the composition of the soil where it falls.
Sea water is not usable because on one hand, it is found at a lower level than land so we would need a pump to bring it up to be used and on the other hand, it has such a high salinity that it would kill all plants and animals if used. Evaporation purifies water of all its salts so that in this lighter form, water is transported by the wind to the land where it can be used.
The humidity of the air is an atmospheric element that exerts influence on air temperature, weather, thermal sensation, and even our health. When the air is wetter we sweat more because the water from our body has more difficulty evaporating. The excessive humidity also makes breathing difficult, especially for people with asthma.
On the other hand, if the air is too dry we also encounter problems because respiration is less lubricated, which can even lead to nosebleed. Another effect is increased sweating, with greater loss of fluid from the body to the surrounding. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the ideal level of air humidity for the human body is between 40% and 70%.
Finally, we should not forget that water vapour was responsible for the creation of the first machine or automated engine that man invented, the steam engine. Until the invention of this machine, people harnessed the force of the wind, not to make energy because electricity has not yet been invented, but to move mills. Mills were operated by the driving force of water from a river, by the tides coming in and going out, and by the force of the wind. For agriculture and transport, animals were used in those days.
The steam engine came to revolutionize human culture by initiating the industrial revolution, and creating a massive form of transport, the train. For many years the railroad cars were pulled by a locomotive consisting of a boiler with boiling water resulting from the burning of coal, the steam of which was channeled to move the pistons, and subsequently the wheels. All this invention began with the observation of a pot of boiling water, where the lid was thrown off by the formed steam.
The Liquid State
“Water and air, the two essential fluids on which all life depends, have become global garbage cans. “ Jacques Yves Cousteau
Water is present in the liquid state at room temperature. It is colourless (has no color), odourless (has no smell), and tasteless (has no taste). It is in the liquid state that water has its greatest use for the sustenance of all forms of life on our planet.
Seventy-seven percent of the surface of our planet is covered with water. Almost ninety-seven percent of the world’s water is saltwater and therefore unfit for consumption. About two percent is locked inside the polar ice caps and glaciers. This leaves us with only one percent for all the needs of humanity: agriculture, industry, personal and community needs.
So important is water to man that it is used as the basis for the metric system of temperature measurement; the freezing temperature of water is set at zero degrees and its boiling temperature at 100 degrees. The only developed country that does not use this system of measurement is the United States which is still using an arbitrary and random system called Fahrenheit. Mr. Fahrenheit was a Pole who set his zero degree based on a particularly cold winter in his country.
Water was also used as the basis for the measurement of altitude and depth, with zero meter set as the average water level of the sea; for example, the Himalayas rise to 8,840 meters, the mudflats of Mindanao have a depth of 11,500 meters.
After the discovery of the electric current, water was the first and the only source of this energy: tens of thousands of dams were built along the course of most rivers to be used as the source of electric power and as sources of irrigation. Nowadays, much of the electricity is produced from coal and by the nuclear fission of uranium atom, but even in these cases water acts as a mediator, that is, the use of coal and uranium atom produces heat that boils water and this transforms the heat into mechanical energy that makes the energy producing generators work. Once again the principle of the steam engine is applied.
When we realize that our body is made up of seventy percent water, we need no further proof of its importance, not only for our life but for all life forms: both for animals that live in the oceans as for the ones that live on the surface of the Earth.
The Water in Our Body
• Regulates our body temperature
• Represents 81% of our blood
• Removes wastes and toxins
• It is 22% of our bones
• Lubricates joints
• Helps to transport nutrients to the cells
• Helps to convert food into energy
• Improves the oxygenation of respiration
• Protects vital organs
• Helps in the absorption of nutrients
• Makes up 75% of muscles
• Moisturizes oral and nasal linings
• Constitutes 75% of the brain
Salt fixes water in the organism – Water and salt go together; the sea is a large reservoir of both. Without the presence of salt in our body, we would soon be dehydrated; in fact, the sachets of rehydration salts were the first thing we gave to people in Africa who dehydrated easily from high fever brought on by malaria.
Just as water is the beginning of the physical life, the water of Baptism is the beginning of the Christian life; a Christian who is the salt of the earth remains faithful to the promises of baptism. In the ancient ritual of this sacrament, salt was in fact used; with baptism, we become part of the redeemed, of those who possess the water that flows to eternal life. Without the salt, this water escapes us.
Evaporation of water – metaphor of resurrection
Without ceasing to be the same substance, without ceasing to be what it is, water changes from the solid state to liquid and from liquid to gas. In the gaseous state, water is invisible, but it is still water: none of its essence is lost and it is enough to take a cold bottle from the refrigerator for the invisible water in the air to become visible.
In the resurrection of the body we will have a spiritual or glorious body like Christ had and has after his death and resurrection. This body exists, it is the image of our physical body. As human beings, we can exist in another dimension and in this dimension, we are neither visible nor tangible, like water in the gaseous state, and like water, not even because of this do we cease to be what we were and are.
Water distillation – metaphor of purgatory
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Matthew 5:8
In the process of evaporation, water loses all its salinity and impurities, it recycles itself. This is a metaphor of purgatory for us, this intermediate state, before we are with God. Since only the pure in heart will see God, purgatory has this function of purifying us so we can live, and be with God.
Threats to the Freshwater Resources
- The world population, around 7.5 billion in 2017, will continue to increase but the amount of water will remain the same.
- Competition between cities and agriculture will continue to grow.
- Desalination is a very expensive option, because it requires the use of a lot of energy; only the most advanced economies will be able to afford this luxury.
- Climate change causes increased frequencies of droughts and floods.
- Depletion of water basins caused by excess consumption as the result of population growth.
- Pollution and contamination through domestic sewage, agriculture and industrial discharge.
Water is so important that some think the next world war will be over the fact that the rich countries have plenty of water while the poor ones do not have even the bare minimum. The closed circuit of uninterrupted water recycling between the states of solid, liquid and gas, is what makes life possible. Since the water on our planet is always the same, recycling is not an option but a must.
Fr. Jorge Amaro, IMC
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