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You may be thinking to yourself,
"Okay, it's a bathroom. So what?" So what, indeed!
The bathroom is
a perfect example of how we try and bring the roll of a science
vessel into nearly every portion of our daily lives. One of
the main goals of the Chateau Nouveau project is to seamlessly
integrate a more or less ordinary lifestyle with the constant
possibility of scientific discovery. In many, many ways, the
ship itself is an experiment. We monitor everything
from the effectiveness of certain areas of the ship to our own
physical and emotional states on a daily basis.
It is very important,
therefore, to stay relaxed and alert! That entire wall is a
saltwater tank, which is automatically filled and given the
proper salt concentration from our freshwater tank upstairs, which I
will show you later in the tour.
Both the saltwater and
freshwater tanks are filtered quickly and thoroughly as soon as any
tap on the ship is turned on, and it is the water from these large
tanks that supplies the water for the bathtub, shower,
toilet, and washer/dryer. Used water is broken down and
then uh, jettisoned out a nozzle in the front of the ship. The
bathroom and kitchen sinks supply water from a smaller tank in the
cargo bay that undergoes an even more thorough filtering process to
make it suitable for drinking. There is a hot water tank down
there, as well.
Obviously, not ALL
possible outlets receive salt water. The washer and dryer, for
example, always receive fresh water. The bathtub and shower
can receive either one or the other, depending on the user's
preference. Personally, I enjoy a nice saltwater soak from
time to time. It's therapeutic!
Maximizing window space
is important on a ship like this, so we removed part of this wall to
make it a window, instead. When possible, we leave the
door to the bathroom open so that additional light can filter into
the rest of the ship.
Now, let's head out of
the bathroom and go upstairs!
These are the stairs.
Uhh, just in case you were wondering.
And this is the
landing! This part of the ship doesn't see a lot of use during the day while
we're performing experiments, but it houses our bedrooms and
entertainment center, as well as our laundry facilities.
From here, you can get
a nice view of the lab!
Over here is our
entertainment center. Hey, it looks like Geartown
Chronicles is on... that's one of my favorite shows! This
coffee table was actually one of my very first woodworking
projects. I'd give you the year, but that might make me sound
old. This couch doesn't really match the rest of the ship too
well, but it's extremely comfortable. Fresia insisted we bring
it with us, and personally I'm glad we did!
The bookshelf is
a little barren right now, but it will fill right up with books in
the near future. We have an entire digital library that can be
accessed from the TV or the ship's onboard computer, so the
necessity for books isn't quite what it used to be. I have to
say though, I'm a bit of a sucker for hard copies.
This is the ship's
freshwater tank and aquarium, and it's a big part of our research
here. Precipitation from outside drains into this tank while
we are stationary or moving slowly, and water from here is filtered
and used throughout the rest of the ship, as I explained while we
were examining the saltwater tank in the bathroom. The fish in
here are hybrid species sent to me from CGN Labs, and they are
incredibly resistant to the altitude changes the Helios undergoes
while traveling. They are also extremely resilient to the
effects of pollution and radiation. The lab often sends me new
species or hybrids to investigate, and I monitor their behavior and
wellness twice a day, when I can manage. There is no need for
any special aeration equipment, since the natural movements of the
ship churn the water enough on their own. As you can imagine,
a tank this size is incredibly heavy. We have specialized
helium chambers in the sides of the tank to make up for some of this
weight.
Here is our laundry
room! It's nothing fancy, but it gets the job done. I
tidied up this area just before the tour... there are usually clean
heaps of frilly shirts and panties strewn about. Fresia's, of
course, not mine.
Well, that's about all
there is to see up here.
Next:
Something
catches your eye as Ted starts to wander back downstairs... >
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