Month: September 2015

Fracking

Fracking, also known as hydraulic fracturing, is the process of drilling a mix of water and chemicals into the earth in a high pressure which basically cracks a rock layer releasing gas out of the head of the well. From my research, I read that fracking is considered a “profitable extraction”. BBC.com describes fracking as “a technique designed to recover gas and oil from shale rock.” There are many mixed feelings when it comes to fracking, some view it as an economic savior while others believe that it is destroying health. With that being said there are a couple of pros and cons to fracking.

fracking

 

*picture from BBC.com*

Pros: 

  • Has significantly boosted domestic oil production and driven down gas prices in the US
  • Allows drilling firms to access difficult-to-reach resources of oil and gas.

Cons:

  • Can be considered unhealthy and toxic
  • Can cause small earth tremors
  • Releases Uranium
  • Fracking chemicals are dangerous

Resources:

https://www.earthworksaction.org/issues/detail/hydraulic_fracturing_101#.VgS_X7SKzww

http://marmapoints.org/fracking-the-basics

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-14432401

http://www.rodalewellness.com/health/fracking-1

Robots Activity

Last week we had our first real activity with the robots. The objective was to run there different trials where we would switch around the numbers of the power and time and measure how far our robots would go and the rotations it would make and then compare it to the distance the computer system gave us.

My Personal Experience:

I must admit, this activity was not as easy as I thought it would be. I went in to it thinking; “change the numbers, see how fast the robots go”. It wasn’t that easy. For starters, my partner and I had issues getting our robots to move, putting us a little behind on time. When we finally got it to move we then got stuck with the computer system which we both have never used. Once we started getting the hang of it, things ran a bit more smoother.

Trials:

Screen Shot 2015-09-24 at 9.37.48 PM Screen Shot 2015-09-24 at 9.38.14 PM

 

This is the data that we came up with in our trials. Note that on trial 2 under time I have inserted a question mark (?), this is because I must of not taken down a number during class and being that my partner is out of town with a school club, I couldn’t get the actual number. The first chart, top, is the data that I chose and calculated and the second chart, bottom, is the computed calculations. The circumference of our wheel was 0.09.

With our data we realized that both power and time are very important. In the first trial we kept the power and time as the computer had it set, just to see how it would run and it was pretty smooth. I observed that in 3 seconds with the power at 75 the robot went pretty far. In the second and third trial we changed the power and time. When we lowered the power to 20 on trial 2 we saw how little the car actually moved, even down to the sound it made when it moved. It was very interesting to see.

The Nation’s Energy Grid

Before this assignment, I can honestly say I had very little to no knowledge on this topic. Due to this blog post I found some very interesting things that I never knew before. I believe that for me, this blog will be more of me discovering new things and I think it will be very interesting.

natl_power_gridThe U.S Energy Grid:

With the research I did on the energy grid I learned that it is an electrical system that provides energy to producers and consumers. The grid has grown into three big systems that provide  electricity around the country. This system really grew after WWII when demands for electricity grew, they then decided to interconnect their systems. this interconnection was very useful and helped in many ways, including reducing the extra capacity that each utility had to hold.

The Smart Grid:

The smart grid is basically an electric grid that moves electricity from the power plants and into our homes, businesses, facilities, etc. Now, what makes this grid a “smart” grid is the digital technology that permit the two-way communication between where the power comes from and where it goes. The smart grid has grown so much since it first started in the 1890’s. This grid now stands for and supply for our economic and environmental health.

Pros:

  • More efficient transmission of electricity
  • Quicker restoration of electricity after power disturbances
  • Reduced peak demand, which will also help lower electricity rates
  • Improved security

Cons:

  • Cost
  • Privacy

Recourses:

http://www.eia.gov/energy_in_brief/article/power_grid.cfm

https://www.smartgrid.gov/the_smart_grid/smart_grid.html

http://www.eesi.org/briefings/view/smart-grid-how-does-it-work-and-why-do-we-need-it