The Blue Water Problem

About the Book

Fluffy blue residue inside copper plumbing from active copper-tolerant bacteria. Note how most of this residue attaches itself to the island of dark copper oxide adhering to the insides of copper surfaces. The top photo shows a more exten-sive coating of blue material that, it shaken loose by a rapid flow of water, would have produced a blue color to both water and ice cubes. Front Cover: A glass of blue water from a kitchen tap acquired in 1991. This liq-uid has remained on my shelf in my laboratory since then and no material has ever settled out. Photo by Wentling Studio, Concord, California.

About the Author

Jerry Fritzke was born in 1930 and raised in Tonawanda New York, a town of 13,000 situated between Buffalo and Niagara Falls. Jerry Graduated from Tona-wanda High School in 1948 and then went on to Purdue University where he earned a BS in Metallurgical Engineering in 1954. He married Irene in 1952 and, after graduation, they moved to Cincinnati Ohio, Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, and then finally to Walnut Creek California in 1959 where they still live. After leaving his job at the Stanford Linear Accelerator in 1973, Jerry has worked for himself as a full-time consulting engineer in Metallurgy and Corrosion since 1973. He taught evening classes in Metallurgy for several years at Laney Junior College in Oakland and was a docent in Natural Sciences at the Oakland Museum for seven years. He often has been called upon to testify on legal cases in deposi-tions and in court. Over the years he has enjoyed presenting talks about his trav-els and adventures he experienced during these travels. For several years, he and Irene have led trips for the Sierra Club and walks in Walnut Creek’s Open Space regions to point out the hundred or so different species of wild flowers blooming there. He is an avid reader with special emphasis on astronomy, biog-raphy, and history. His hobbies include astronomy, classical music, sports, writ-ing, geology, travel, photography, and opera.