Need some bathroom reading? Well, how about something topical? Everybody Poops 10 Million Pounds ($10) is chock-full of all kinds of faecal trivia you had no idea you wanted to know. Here are eight of our new favourite party facts.
We May Go Back to Squatting
Science has proven that squatting is easier and healthier than modern sitting, so future toilets might look quite different than current ones.
Flush Toilets Are Ancient
The Bronze Age Indus Valley civilisation had flush toilets 5,000 years ago. They used terracotta pipes and manually poured jugs of water.
Gong Farming May Have Been The Worst Job in History
“Gong farming” just means people who had to shovel poop out of cesspits for a living. These Tudor England era workers were only allowed to work at night and had to live on the outskirts of town.
The Etymology of Canal Street
New York’s Canal Street was once literally a canal, although it quickly became an open sewer. It was first covered by a roof to help dampen the terrible smell.
The 6-Foot Rule
Why are outhouse pits dug six feet deep? Because hookworms, which are horrible, poop-born parasites, can only manage to crawl about four feet. Deeper pits for poop solved a serious health problem.
Elephant Poop Coffee?
Coffee aficionados in South East Asia have figured out a way to make what they call “the world’s best brew”. They feed coffee beans to elephants, the elephants digest and crap out the beans, workers sift through the crap for partially digested beans, and said beans are cleaned, roasted, and brewed, at $50 a cup.
Fertiliser: The Future of Poop
Cities like New York and Milwaukee have experimented with turning treated waste into a fertiliser called biosolids. The very first wheat crops grown with biosolids broke records.
Poop Power?
The other future of poop may be in power generation. The very first biomethane-powered bus is already in service in West England. Just five days worth of poop can power a bus for a whole mile!
