I Wouldn't Piss Off That Wall If I Were You ...

One of the problems in major cities (and in a lot of smaller ones, too) is that of people (usually men) who have overindulged in alcoholic beverages and then feel the need to relieve themselves. Unfortunately, all too many of those men are unable or unwilling to go to the nearest toilet, and so opt to relieve themselves against the nearest available wall. This, of course, leads to unsanitary conditions and all sorts of undesirable associated odors.

What to do? Well, as it turns out, science has an answer!

Scientists have developed a specialized hydrophobic paint that actually repels liquids from a painted surface. In fact that paint, properly mixed, will not just cause the painted surface to simply shed liquids such as rain or, well, urine, but to actually repel them with great force. This means that the wall will actually pee back, causing a mess on the offending urinator's shoes and pants, as in this before (vorher) and after (nachher) depiction from Germany*, where the paint is being used** in the St Pauli red-light district of Hamburg ...

This is a marvelous invention, and reflects a practical application of the ability of some substances to actively repel unwanted pollutants. Such substances are found frequently in nature, as in the brains of single-issue fanatics who are impervious to reason and argument. They are the chemical equivalent of Faraday cages, about which I have written before (go here to read the post).

So gentlemen, if you've had a bit too much to drink, you might want to think twice before you pee on that wall. It might just pee back.

Better living through chemistry, as the old slogan says.

Have a good day. More thoughts tomorrow.

Bilbo

* Considering the amount of beer consumed in Germany on any given day, one can see the value of such a paint!

** Be sure to watch the video ... it's in German, but has English subtitles.