by Fitzwilliam Scott

One thing shared by all humans and animals is the natural requirement to use the privy, and yet our sensitivities and embarrassment stop us from having conversations about what really goes on in the smallest room (one notable exception, of course, must be the Japanese for whom the lavatory is not only a technical marvel but a luxury experience and source of great national pride!).

Toilets at sea have evolved from the original "heads," where sailors would perch precariously over the crashing waves with nothing but a plank of wood to hide their modesty, to the notorious hand-pumped devices still found on some private yachts, all the way up to what we have today, which apart from the complicated sewage treatment plants found in the engine room, are pretty similar to what you would find at home.

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