Team:Dundee Schools/HP/Gold
Dundee Schools
Human Practices - Gold
LifeStraw:
When thinking about how we could package our E. coli, we came across LifeStraw UK. They make a plastic straw, designed with a filter inside that stops bacteria from getting through when you use it to drink water. We thought - by using this structure - we’d have a good way of storing our bacteria, as they could be placed in a casing within the pre-existing filter; it would allow the spiRNA to pass through due to their small size, but not the E. coli. This filter could be placed in any container of water.
Army:
In order to gain more of an insight into the difficulties of accessing clean water and keeping up good sanitation in less developed countries, we got in touch with our local army medical squadron (‘225 Medical Regiment’). They were able to tell us about what measures have to be taken in order to prevent any spread of illness when out on duty, including with cases of cholera and shigellosis. This really helped us understand how our idea could fit into becoming a prevention in the real world. After talking to them some more we found out the army like to transport goods from charities to where it’s needed such as mosquito nets, and we thought perhaps this could be one solution to our distribution problem. However, there was a problem that we hadn't though of; a high percentage of the goods given away are either sold at markets or just left unused. So we had to come up with a way of stopping this from potentially happening to our prevention - what could we make that would be unimposing, ethical, and of little resale value?
We discussed this further, and the people we were speaking to suggested a water bottle would be a great way of solving this, as they are needed by many in order to store and carry water – they’re even fought over. So, if we were to put our filter design and the water bottle idea together, we would create a product the people in developing countries would use: a water bottle with a removable filter that could be placed onto any other bottle. Whilst the original bottle may potentially be resold, they would be highly likely to retain the filter for future use, due to it having almost negligible resale value.
