The Keystone Pipeline is a pipeline that is projected to carry 830,000 barrels a day of crude oil. The pipeline will carry oil from Alberta, Canada to the Gulf of Mexico. To finish construction on the pipeline President Obama must approve of the idea. In 2012 the Keystone Pipeline was denied by President Obama. In a statement issued by the White House President Obama states, “It does not change my Administration’s commitment to American-made energy that creates jobs and reduces our dependence on oil.”

Sine the 2012 denial about 40% of the pipeline has already been built. So far the pipeline has been built in two segments; Steele City, Neb to Cushing, OK (298 miles) and Cushing and Nederland, TX (485). The last portion of the pipeline “Keystone Pipeline XL” is what has been in the news lately, whether or not it is logical to pass the construction.

Positive Effects of Pipeline:
~The State Department estimates that the construction of the extension of the Keystone Pipeline XL would create 42,000 jobs.
~The pipeline will generate about $3 billion toward the US GDP. The pipeline will benefit the towns that the pipeline travels through.
~Would create the third largest oil reserve in the world
~Most complex refining hub on the Gulf
~Pipeline workers are safer than working on an oil rig.
~Pipeline has 59 extra special safety guidelines that surpass federal regulations.
Negative Effects of Pipeline:
~The pipeline will only crete 42,000 jobs while under construction, it will cause a very small number of permeant jobs.
~Emits 17% more greenhouse gases than oil drilling
~State department thinks the pipeline will create a small impact but not enough to contribute and help the US.
2014 Vote
The Keystone Pipeline XL Vote took place November 18th and failed to receive approval from Senate. The pipeline fell just short of one vote to pass, the final results were 59-41. Senator Mary Landrieu (D) from Louisiana was the sponsor of the bill. In an ABC news article Landrieu stated, ““It’s been on my agenda and it’s staying on my agenda and I’m going to do everything I can to help America become energy independent,” Landrieu said after the bill was defeated. “This fight was worth having.”

http://keystone-xl.com/benefits-of-keystone-xl-oil-pipeline-us-jobs-economic-benefits-energy-security-environmental-responsibility-pipeline-safety-transcanada/

http://www.npr.org/2014/11/17/364727163/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-keystone-xl-oil-pipeline

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/01/18/statement-president-keystone-xl-pipeline

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/keystone-pipeline-fails-senate/story?id=27005358

Last week we were assigned our end of the year project which consists of a group of students to attend a high school in Boston and perform an experiment. I was selected to be the team captain for my group! My team consists of myself, Arianna, Mohamed, Jeremy, and Michael C. We split up our assignments for the project evenly so each member contributes. When we first started to brainstorm ideas about a possible experiment we knew it had to relate back to our class topic, energy and sustainability. Prof. Shatz provided the class with a few websites that contained possible experiment ideas. When looking at possible experiments we had to consider that we were presenting to high school students. Not a professor with a PhD in the topic. Mohamed came up with an experiment idea that he had previously done and we could possibly do. He basically told us we would use compressed air to turn on a light bulb in simplest terms. The next class Mohamed created a powerpoint which explained the concept of the experiment better. Our group liked Mohamed’s idea and decided that would be the experiment we would present! Next we looked on Amazon to order experiment materials.

The second class, the 12th, our materials haven’t come in from Amazon so we couldn’t start doing the experiment. Instead we started doing our outline and handout for the experiment. In the outline we were able to figure out goals and objectives for the experiment. Next class we will put together our experiment with the tools we were waiting for.

In the generator lab my lab partners and I will understand how to use the NXT and lab view to measure the voltage output of the generator. The goal of the lab is to correlate the number of shakes of the generator in 30 seconds with their appropriate voltages. Materials needed to conduct the experiment are excel, lab view, NXT and adaptor, 1 voltage probe, and 1 generator which is a magnet that moves back and forth inside a coil of wire. To understand the lab one must review Faraday’s Law. Faraday’s Law states states that changing magnetic fluxes through coiled wires generate electricity. This means that the greater change in magnetic flux results in greater voltages and currents.

To perform the experiment do the following (repeat ~3 times)
1. Shake the tube for 30 seconds (different shake rates each time)
2. Count the number of shakes within the 30 seconds
3. Using Excel calculate the sum of the squares of the voltages using the =sumsq formula
4. Repeat steps 1 to 3 three more times
5. Graph in excel the squares of the voltages with the corresponding number of shakes
6. Use a linear curve in graphs

During the lab my group did a total of four different shake times. We started with a baseline of zero shakes, then 77, 71, and 150. After coping the numbers into excel we were able to get the sum of the squares of the voltages using the =sumsq. We were unsure that we were doing the lab correctly because our numbers were so big. After we realized that the higher number of shakes means a high squares of the voltages. Therefore, 150 shakes had the highest number of 441.3.

In our experiment it was difficult to count the number of shakes in 30 seconds. Also it was hard to continuously shake for 30 seconds. This could’ve made our data skewed. When looking at the data the faster the shake the greater the generated voltage (Faraday’s Law).

Websites used
http://web.cas.suffolk.edu/faculty/lshatz/Sustainability_class/Generator_Lab.htm

Massachusetts Institute of Technology has a nuclear reactor laboratory on campus which is used for research, experiments, and educational purposed. Last week Prof. Shatz, a MIT alumni took our class to see the reactor in person. First we sat through a lecture about the history of the reactor to get a little background information before seeing it in person. Then we were able to go and see the reactor in person. To understand how the reactor works it is important to understand what fission is. Not to get confused with fusion, fission is when atoms are split into two parts. Fission uses uranium 235, doesn’t burn, and doesn’t release CO2 into the environment. Fission can happen to any element for example carbon and oxygen can undergo fission.

History
The MIT reactor was constructed in 1958 and was upgraded in 1975.The reactor is 2 ft tall and 1 ft in width. The system operates 24/7 with a 6MW terminal power. It is the second largest academic research reactor in the United States.

Reactor Contains
~Tank type – light water to cool and moderate
~Two loop cooling systems to moderate the cooling tower
~Uses very heavy water for neutron reflection
~Graphite outer reflector
~Rector is very small (2ft tall, 1ft width)

Reactor Capability
~Advanced material and fuel research
~Water chemistry, loop testing
~Capable of performing up to 3 in core experiments at the same time for the fights neuron fluxes
~Emits a blue light
~Contains more radiation than a airplane
~The basement has a nutron detector used for medical purposes
~Control room observes the room reactor is in

When we were on the tour the room the reactor was large but the place where the reaction takes place is very small. A lot of the space in the room was used for storage. Before we left the lobby we needed to keep a little stick that would measure how much radiation we would experience on the tour. People who have previously undergone radiation therapy are not advised to go on the tour. Cell phones, backpacks were not allowed on the tour. Before entering the room we had to go into an air tight chamber which would decrease the pressure to match the pressure in the reactors room. It was not noticeable but I felt like a was a little light headed on the tour. When leaving the tour we had to make sure we were at safe levels to leave and return back to the lobby. Before going on the tour I expected the reactor to be huge but it is not. Also I did not know how much radiation I would get going on the tour. I would recommend this tour to any person interested in sciences because it was exciting to see how a prestigious lab works.