Thirst

According to a man named George H. Smith from the United States Navy, sea water could be drunk in crucial positions. Smith was stranded in the ocean questioned himself why birds could drink the seawater and he could not so he decided to investigate. He cut the bird open and followed the trace of the water and found that around the intestines of the bird there was a handful of fat. He used the fat and spread it around his mouth and drank a pint of seawater each day for five days until he was picked up which he was in fairly good condition. Scientist mention that the reason he was not affected by the seawater was because he was not dehydrated before he began to drink the water and that on the fifth day it rained and he was given all the fresh water he wanted. Dr. Alain Bombard proved that a man could survive for six days on drinking sea water but he must drink it in very small quantities (one tenth of a pint.

The article is an example of hypothesis based science. The reason it is hypothesis-based is because the French Navy soldier Dr. Alain Bombard did an experiment where he actually drank sea water for five days to come to a conclusion. This article or research is an importance for humans because for centuries there have been reports of men dying of drinking sea water and there is finally an article explaining a way to be able to drink sea water.

Author: William H. Allen
Title of Article: Thirst
Journal: Natural History Magazine
Date: December, 1956
Pages: 1