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Space Station Toilets Poop Out
otter42 writes "The International Space Station's toilet has gone kaput. It seems that the system for separating solid and liquid waste has developed a fault. 'Solids' go where they're supposed to, but 'liquids' don't. The astronauts have bypassed the '"the troublesome hardware" for urine collection with a "special receptacle."' Something tells me they're glad the failure wasn't the other way around." Update: 05/28 21:54 GMT by T : According to a post on Engadget, the toilet's now been repaired.
...but do astronauts really need a machine to separate solid wastes from liquid ones? Can't they just piss in one place and shit in another? Seriously now...they can get to the moon, fly a rocket, and conduct experiments in no gravity, but they can't freakin' shit in one place and piss in another? And they don't always have to shit in a toilet full of water, either...that would certainly help separate solids from liquids. I never cease to be amazed by the stupidity of smart people.