The project was given by author Stephen Emmott (who leads Microsoft’s Computational Science Laboratory in Cambridge), and was based on his book 10 Billion. We were required to create new and novel ways to engage people with the ideas found within the book, exploring alternative methods to communicate, visualise and articulate massive complex systems. 

As it was a piece of science communication, we were required to find the appropriate visual and/or physical means to translate hard science into compelling narrative, using the power and uniqueness of the internet. Because the book focused on many aspects of climate change, we chose to focus on one aspect: hidden water. Hidden water is the water we use to produce things. We chose to focus on food as it is an essential commodity that has an effect on all people and we come into contact with it every day. 

We looked into meals and the hidden water comparisons between the different items of foods or drinks. We used one item of food as a base for hidden water content and kept the scale of that item 1:1, then scaled down the other items of food according to the bases hidden food content. This resulted in a radical rescaling of foods that gave striking and memorable displays. The difference of water consumption become clear and easy to comprehend at a glance. We see that meats consume a lot more water that the more water efficient fruits and vegetables. The models were a way to display this information simply, universally and make the complex numbers of hidden water easily comprehendible.