Have a look at 'The Moon is a Harsh Mistress', by Robert A. Heinlein. Practically a manual on how to make a living world out of Luna. And a hell of a good story, as well!
Interesting how the producers went from an irritating, loud laugh-track in the first episode to more subdued audience tittering in later weeks. The stories by Max Shulman were warmer and more intelligent than the program, I thought.
And don't forget, the water doesn't just disappear - it returns as rain, which makes its way back to the ocean. And it can do amazing damage while returning, not mention supporting crops and, well, life in general.
I was one of a team of programmers, at a computers-for-hire company in Ontario in 1999. We blitzed through about a thousand programs, everything from financial to inventory-control. Took about eight months, and all because one of my smart friends mused about what would happen when... And at the end, when we sat with bated breath, everything worked out just fine. And after the end, the whole exercise was razzed as a hoax! No hoax, just a hell of a lot of good work!
Most amazing I've ever seen - and he acts like it's happening to him, rather than he's doing it! I'd suspect camera work, but this competition is real-life. We'll see more of this man.
I've always wondered why the long-handled war-axe wouldn't be the selected tool for disabling the horse - easy to chop off a leg at longer-than-sword distance. Of course, in all the Hollywood movies, they never hurt the horse, because of social disapproval.
And at the end, when we sat with bated breath, everything worked out just fine. And after the end, the whole exercise was razzed as a hoax! No hoax, just a hell of a lot of good work!
I'd suspect camera work, but this competition is real-life. We'll see more of this man.