Community Gardens

Community gardens are popping up around the country as a way of strengthening relationships within communities. Community gardens are essentially just what the name suggests. They are pieces of land that are gardened by a group of people on either private or public land. The gardens may produce fruit or vegetables. 

These gardens can take a variety of forms in order to meet the specific needs of the community. For example, an institution like Mercer can offer community gardens to strengthen relationships among Mercerians, as well as with Macon as a whole. Another form is a neighborhood community garden in which individual plots are rented by gardeners. These gardens can be great because they can encourage buying food locally. Buying local food improves both the health and economic status of a community. These community gardens will continue to spring up because they can offer numerous benefits to any community.

Urban Dog Parks

Urban dog parks are becoming more and more popular in large cities across America. In fact, from 2005 to 2010, the number of off-leash dog parks in the 100 largest cities in America grew by 34%. Meanwhile, parks overall only increased by 3%. So the question you ask yourself may be, "Why are these parks so popular?" 

The answer is that these parks offer great socializing opportunities which leads to a greater sense of community. Many people say they go to these parks to form friendships. Some people even claim that they have made job connections at these parks. Since the visitors to the dog parks are so passionate about the parks, they work to protect them in order to keep the community beautiful. This is beneficial in assuring that communities work together in the future to maintain the environments of their communities.

Macon Dog Park

Global Climate Change

Medieval Global Temperature Optimum
The Medieval Global Temperature Optimum occurred during the European Middle Ages from approximately 950-1250 AD. Basically, it was a period of warm climate that is believed to have been related to other climate events occurring around the world at that time. It primarily affected the North Atlantic Region. However, there were also documented climate events in China and California.

Little Ice Age
The Little Ice Age began after the Medieval Temperature Optimum from approximately 1350-1850. However, climatologists do not all agree on its specific start and end dates. Contrary to the period before it, the Little Ice Age was a period of global cooling. It certainly brought colder winters to Europe and America. Furthermore, there is evidence to suggest that it also affected most other parts of the world including New Zealand, Australia, Patagonia, and even Africa. This had severe implications for the way of life  in those areas. For example,  farmers could not manage their crops due to the temperature drop. This demonstrates the profound effects that climate change can have on our way of life.

Air Quality in Long Beach

Long Beach in Los Angeles, California is one of the biggest cities in the state, putting it at the forefront of modern industry. However, this has severe consequences for the air quality there. Long Beach received a score of 107 for its air quality rating. This score indicates that air quality is unhealthy, and with time everyone living there may begin to feel the effects of this. The poor air quality is presumably directly related to the thriving industries there. It is one of the maritime centers of the U.S. due to the fact that it holds the second largest port in the country. Furthermore, it has a large oil industry with both underground and offshore wells. Long Beach also has industries which produce aircrafts, car parts, and electronics. Finally, it has two natural-gas fired power plant, AES Alamitos LLC Gas Power Plant and Haynes Gas Power Plant.

Characteristics of Copper

Mineral Deposits: The ores cuprite, tenorite, malachite, chalcocite, covellite, and bornite are the primary providers of copper in this day in age.
How metal is transformed from minerals:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2hjv6FS67g
Distribution: Copper deposits are found in the United States, Chile, China, Zambia, Zaire, Peru, and Canada. Chile, as the country with the most copper reserves, produces about 1/3 of the world's copper.
Statistics on Mining: 
Domestic- In 2013, U.S. mine production of copper increased by 4% to about 1.22 million tons. It was valued at  $9 billion. Twenty-seven mines in the U.S. recovered copper, 18 of which accounted for about 99% of production. 
Worldwide- In 2010, world mine production of recoverable copper was 16,073,917 tons. The breakdown by country is shown in the chart below.

Uses: Copper is used very heavily in the electrical industry in the form of wire. It is also commonly used in coins, water pipes, and jewelry. Copper is also used in alloys because it is usually too soft unless it is strengthened by another metal. The two most common of these alloys are brass and bronze. Copper is also used in compounds, such as blue vitriol, which is commonly used as an agricultural poison and as a blue pigment for inks.

History of Materials and Events Occurring Simultaneously

The timeline below shows the history of materials on the left side; I added a column on the right to show events, discoveries, and periods in time that were happening simultaneously. Although the timeline spans for too much time to discuss all of it, there are certain trends that it shows. One trend that is obvious from the timeline is that growth on earth is occurring exponentially. Very little development occurred prior to 0 BC, but it greatly increased in the 1700s.  It is also clear that the development of materials is heavily affected by events happening around the world. For example, during periods of great innovation such as the Renaissance and the Industrial Revolution, many new materials were discovered. During difficult times, such as the Fall of the Western Roman Empire and the Crusades, very few materials were discovered.

 

 



Crisis in Cambodia

"In an age when man has forgotten his origins and is blind even to his most essential needs for survival, water along with other resources has become the victim of his indifference."-Rachel Carson

Over the last month, hundreds of thousands of people have poured buckets of ice water onto their heads and then shared their experience with friends via social media. While these videos may have been created with purely good intentions, Rachel Carson's words seem to be more applicable than ever. Most Westerners fail to consider the implications of a few buckets of wasted water. Unfortunately, people in lesser developed countries would watch these videos in disbelief of such blatant misuse of one of the world's most precious resources.

Cambodia, pictured below, is one country that faces constant strife due to its inability to provide sufficient drinking  water to all of its citizens. The issue does not come from a lack of water; the Mekong river flows through Cambodia. However, Cambodia does not have infrastructure in place to efficiently distribute this water. Furthermore, the water that people do have access to is not purified; it stagnates, and parasites invade the water. People drink from the same source of water in which they defecate. This leads to epidemics of diseases, such as malaria. Climate change has also made water a less reliable resource to come by. Water levels are constantly changing, and farmers are forced to move many times a year in order to preserve their crops. Water is valued because it is never guaranteed. In Cambodia, a bucket of ice water could make the difference between whether or not someone lives another day.

Want to help combat the water crisis in Cambodia? Learn more here.