“A Chinese peasant has made a solar water heater — using only beers bottles and hoses. The beer bottles lie on a board in rows, all connected by hoses which allow cold water to flow through them and be heated by the sun. ‘I invented this for my mother. I wanted her to shower at any time more comfortably,’ says Ma Yanjun, a carpenter, of Qiqiao village, Shaanxi Province. ‘A real solar water heater is too expensive to me, so I came up with the idea of making one on my own. I hope this invention can be promoted nationwide, and allow mothers in undeveloped rural areas to have a hot shower.’ Ma has now helped more than 20 families in the village to make and install their own beer bottle solar water-heaters.” (05/12/08)