Adirondack Mountains

Charles Stratton P. T. Barnum discovered Charles Stratton in 1842 at the age of four. Soon after, Barnum transformed Stratton into General Tom Thumb, one of the most significant freak show performers of all time. At an early age Stratton was trained to sing, dance, and imitate famous celebrities worldwide. As discussed in the lecture, under the guidance of Barnum, Tom Thumb performed around the world as well as at the American Museum, becoming the most famous dwarf of all time. P. T. Barnum was…

The Tale of the Magic Drumstick Once there was a Chippewa Elder named Francis and he loved music. Music was everything to him. He even made traditional Native American musical instruments. The sound of a drumstick hitting against a hand drum would remind him of his own heart beating. Not to mention how music brings people together. So one night while Francis was sleeping. The creator sent Francis a dream of choke cherry bushes swaying in the wind and elks running through the forest. In the…

Containment is a documentary directed by Peter Galison and Robb Moss. The film looks at how countries like the US and China they deal with nuclear waste from Nuclear Power Plants. What we learn is that nuclear waste is some of the deadliest, most long-lasting substances ever produce by man that ruins everything that it comes into contact with. While Nuclear Power Plants are very safe with most having multiple failsafe in case of a meltdown there are cases where these failsafe’s fail. Such as…

Approximately twenty percent of the electric power in America is generated through a nuclear reaction, and as a result of the production, high-level nuclear waste is created. Imperatively, the nation must find a way on how to store its nuclear waste. Yucca Mountain in the state of Nevada was identified by the Department of Energy and subsequently approved by both the Congressional and the Executive branches of government as a repository site for nuclear waste. However, Nevada State Politicians,…

The two sides are debating the support or fear of nuclear power plants. After the events at Fukushima, the earthquake and tsunami, the power plant sickened a lot of people due to its radiation. Professor George Monbiot and Melissa Block discuss the opinion to support nuclear power plants. He states that if so many people can die or become injured due to mining, then how is that any different than people dying or becoming sick from nuclear waste radiation? He said that coal was a bigger issue…

“I am become death, destroyer of worlds.” These famous words were uttered by the J. Robert Oppenheimer - creator of the atomic bomb - at its first test in 1945. A few months later, two bombs were dropped onto Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the world was changed forever. Now, over 70 years later, we are using this same destructive power, but we are using it for supposedly peaceful and harmless purposes, such as creating electricity by splitting the atom. We seem to have forgotten what this power was…

Most of the nuclear waste that was disposed of in and around Armstrong County was produced from manufacturing fuel for commercial nuclear power plants and the Navy’s nuclear submarines. Two of the multiple sites are found near my home. One is right in town by the Kiski River, and the other is found about 5 minutes out of Leechburg which is also close to my home. The Apollo one is totally cleaned up. Though, it was said to have a lot more waste than they thought. It took about 3 to 4 years to…

Top Spots for Fall Foliage in Middle Tennessee Leaf turning time in Middle Tennessee triggers holiday-like festivities. The panoramic beauty of fall foliage fascinates both locals and out-of-towners. The most spectacular colors this side of heaven are on display for leaf peepers pleasure. From flaming-red maples and crimson sumacs to red sweet gums and golden hickories, incredible colors blanket Tennessee hills, highways and byways. While you may prefer driving to view the lovely leaves,…

Nuclear Energy - Environment’s rejuvenation or a hazard!! In the early 1930s and 1940s, research was at its pinnacle yet very ‘small’, small in size, not in size of work but in size of the subject- atoms, neutrons, protons and nuclei. The works of Rutherford, Bohr, Einstein, Chadwick, Curie, Frederic, Fermi, Hahn, Strassmann all eventually led to the discovery of Nuclear Power or Energy, which is believed to be the panacea of energy crises that currently exist. It is a boon to the modern…

In Erdrich’s Tracks, the novel tells a story of a Chippewa tribe that is forced to adapt to colonizers in the post-colonization state of America. Through the eyes of two distinct narrators, Nanapush and Pauline, the reader gets an inside view of the perspective of a Native-American tribe in post-colonial America. At the very beginning of the novel, Nanapush describes Native Americans dying from the spotted fever (or yellow fever) due to the colonizers bringing disease as they intermingle with…