alternative fuels log 4/28/16

Write a blog post (2 paragraph minimum) and include links to the sources you've used so far. There should be at least 3 - and you should discuss your research process in a way that documents your use of those sources. Make sure you do not discuss your research process in a superficial way. Rather, consider that you have learned, found interesting or surprising, or been stumped by. What do you plan to do next?

So far my research has been successful.  When I started research I wanted to know if there were ways of keeping internal combustion engines for cars and trucks while reducing emissions and maintaining performance.  I have always wondered if cars could be run on pure ethanol considering that some can run on E85, which is 85% ethanol.  I came across this article about ethanol.  I found that emissions wise that ethanol can be far greater than gasoline.  Although ethanol looks very attractive as an alternative fuel, it makes older engines rust out and it destroys fuel lines.  

I was stumped by this.  This is because fuel lines and engines are expensive to replace.  But then I remembered that some people purchase methanol injection kits for performance and better fuel economy in performance engines.  And the engines with methanol injection kits don't have problems.  So I went to the National Hot Rod Association's website to see if they had any vehicles that were converted to run on methanol.  What I found was very interesting.  There were 2 classes that ran on methanol.  These classes were the Top Alcohol Dragsters and the Top Alcohol Funny Cars.  And from what I read, both classes can keep up fairly well with their similar gasoline classes.  Methanol has many benefits such as reduced emissions.  But there is one major drawback, it is corrosive to certain metals.  

After I found that both ethanol and methanol are corrosive I was frustrated.  So I started to research biodiesel.  I came across an article in Popular Mechanics that explained the one of many ways to make biodiesel at home. What I found was that biodiesel can be made from fry grease, sodium hydroxide, and a small amount of pure motor oil.  

I plan to continue research on all 3 of the fuels that I talked about.  I also plan to do some research on synthetic oil.   

climate unit

The section of our climate unit that interests me the most for researching is alternatives.  This area interests me because I am a huge fan of racing and cars in general.  Without gasoline, oil, and diesel there can no longer be racing or regular cars.  There are some electric vehicles that are offered world wide, but performance wise and energy efficiency wise they are worse off than gas or diesel burning vehicles.  For example, there was an American Top Gear episode that featured an all electric top fuel dragster.  It was not nearly as fast as the top fuel dragster and it had enough energy in the battery to power a small town.  I hope to find fuel alternatives that burn far cleaner and can be implemented within the next 50 years.  

5 words I have about climate

5 words that come to mind when I hear climate:

1. hot
2. cold
3. warm
4. chilly
5. mild

I picked these words because they describe the climate.

Question I have about climate:

How does the weather affect what people do on a day to day basis?

Reading about the 1930s

Read about the Great Depression (Links to an external site.). According to this article, what was wrong with President Hoover's response? Why did people blame themselves when things went wrong, and how valid or invalid was this response? 

President Hoover underestimated the situation.  He expected the crisis to be solved within a month or two.  Men in particular blamed themselves because they were expected to provide for their household.  It was looked down upon for the men to ask for help.

Read about Black Sunday (Links to an external site.). How would you have felt if you'd been there on that day? What kinds of fears, concerns, or questions would be going through your mind during, and after, the event described?

If I were there on Black Sunday I would get inside my house as soon as I saw the storm.  I would be praying for the storm to end.

Read about The Drought (Links to an external site.). What areas were affected by it? What caused it. The author ends this article with a pithy quote. Do you agree or disagree with this historian's perspective? Why or why not?

Areas that were affected by the drought were in the Great Plains.  The drought was caused by wheat crops, exhausted soil, overgrazing livestock.  I both agree and disagree with the historian.  I agree that the farmers pushed the limit of the land.  However that does not mean that they were willingly abusing their land.  They had a quota of crops to make and without a paycheck the farmers families would go hungry.  In a way this limit needed to be found so that the farmers knew their land's limits.

Read about Mass Exodus from the Plains (Links to an external site.). Were does the migration of people out of the Dust Bowl rank in terms of other migrations in US History? What made life hard for people once they arrived in California?

There were over 2 million people that moved out of the Great Plains.  Farmers had a difficult time because California was mainly corporate owned and they were not familiar with the local crops.  

ch24 speech reflection

How did the speeches go?
I think the speeches went well for everyone.

Was there anyone who stood out?
The people who stood out the most were Karen Ward and Liddy.

What is something I learned?
practice makes almost perfect.  I would definitely practice in front of people instead of just saying it out loud in my room.

1930's Radio Engineering

There were many inventions that led to modern radio before and during the 1930s.

In 1904 an inventor named John Ambrose Fleming invented the Fleming valve.  This device looked like a lightbulb and was used in radios for amplifying signals.  The Fleming tube was replaced in 1907 with the Audison reciever.  This was invented by an American named Lee De Forest.  The Audison reviever consisted of a vaccum tube to both detect and amplify signals.  Forest named his invention after his original design that utilized an audion tube.

Another invention in the early 1900s was the superheterodyne receiver.  This was invented by an American named Edwin Armstrong in 1908.  This receiver used frequency mixing to convert an incoming signal to a fixed intermediate frequency (IF).  The IF's could be processed easier than the older frequency.  Older spark gap transmitters made squeals and hums because of the short bursts of waves from morse code signals.  The superheterodyne receiver eliminated this.  Today most every modern radio uses the superheterodyne principle. In 1933 Armstrong discovered how to broadcast in FM.  FM provided a clearer signal.

I remember when we were cleaning my great grandmothers house my Freshman year of high school.  My grandfather came across his cigar box radios.  One used morse code to turn a lightbulb on and off for a school play and the other was just a regular radio.

Homemade superheterodyne receiver

Audion receiver

Early Commercial Fleming valve

Bibliography 

Development of the Radio

Superheterodyne Receiver

Audion Receiver 

Fleming Valve

Chapter 24 speech

                  The 1920s was a time of radical changes for American society.  There were many groups and individuals that challenged traditional American views.   Because of changes in social views such as the image of the woman, prohibition, and creation theories, fundamentalists began to feel threatened.  Because they felt this way, the KKK was formed and all of the major societal changes in the 1920s helped the spread of the Klan. 

Between 1900 and 1930 High school attendance rates more than doubled and college attendance rates increased 3 times.  This caused scientific creation theories to be exposed to more people in the United States than ever before.  Because more people were exposed to other creation theories than the Bible, Tennessee passed a law in 1925 that made it illegal “to teach any theory that denies the story of the divine creation of man as taught in the Bible.”  The most famous violation of this law is the Scopes Monkey Trial.  This trial happened in Dayton, Tennessee shortly after the creation law was passed.  This trial attracted media attention nationwide.  And the trial was devastating for fundamentalists when it was proved that the Bible could have more than one interpretation. 

                  Another challenge to fundamentalist’s views were the new views of womanhood that were emerging.  Many behaviorists such as John B. Watson began to challenge the idea that women had a natural capacity for motherhood.  There were many other women’s movements in the 1920s that challenged fundamentalists views.  These movements included birth control, led by Margaret Sanger, and the social image of the “flapper”.  A modern woman’s lifestyle changed to be full of things like dress, hairstyle, speech, and behavior.  In addition to all of these movements it was now becoming socially acceptable for women to smoke, drink, dance, wear provocative clothing, wear makeup, and attend parties. 

 The failure of Prohibition most likely upset many fundamentalists.  Prohibition caused problems with organized crime and illegal liquor that was far more poisonous than legal liquor.  By the end of the 1920s Prohibition was repealed.  It would be safe to assume that fundamentalists were outraged at the fact of Prohibition’s failure.

                  The most famous fundamentalist group is the KKK.  The KKK was formed in 1915 in Stone Mountain, Georgia near Atlanta.  After World War 1, membership skyrocketed because the Klan dedicated themselves to purging America of outside influences.  The Klan viewed themselves as patriots and defenders of morality.  They also promoted Bible reading in school.  And they were against irreligion, premarital sex, divorce, and drunkenness.  Based on the Klan’s beliefs they did not support any social change movements.  And all of the social movements that were against the Klan’s views made the Klan even more popular. 

Review of Forrest Webber's and Madi Smith's mini books

The Harlem Renaissance
This book is written in the first person by a character named Aaron Douglas.  Aaron is taking part in the Harlem Renaissance.  One night Aaron decides to go to the Cotton Club with hopes to see some famous Harlem musicians.  Aaron has a wonderful night at the club.  He gets to see some famous musicians and he gets to hear some good music.  Overall I really enjoyed reading Forrest's mini book.  It offers a good perspective of how and where music was played in the Harlem Renaissance.

Professional Women + the "Flapper" Image vs. Reality
This book is written about "flappers" in the 1920s.  This mini book offers a unique perspective of what a "flapper" actually does.  "Flappers" have more time to pursue their professional careers than mothers.  This book also covers the origins of modern birth control.

A Look Back at Prohibition by Phil Shifley

In US History I wrote a mini book about Prohibition.  I wrote it in the first person perspective from a man named Phil Shifley. And it has 12 slang words from the time period.