Earthquake in Nepal

          On Sunday April 26, a very powerful earthquake struck Nepal. Seismologists rated the magnitude of this earthquake at 7.8. The potential death rate could rise to around 10,000 in Kathmandu. This was not a surprise though. Geophysicists have been monitoring the Earth's plates, and how fast they are moving. According to them India is being driven underneath Nepal and Tibet at 1.8 inches a year. This squeezing has been raising mountains and triggering many earthquakes. This earthquake covered an area about 1,000-2,000 square miles. It covered a zone from the cities of Kathmandu and Pokhara, and the entire Himalayan mountain range.
          It is always very sad to hear about a natural disaster that takes the life of many. The earths plates are constantly shifting so earthquakes are to be expected. But, it always a little more depressing to find out that such a devastating earthquake happened to such a poor country. Nepal is one of the poorest countries on Earth today. Not only is this country in poverty, it just came out of a civil war. Nepal's economy was getting better, but this will for sure slow them down. It is good that we can predict earthquakes. Sadly though, we cannot do much to stop them from happening. All we can do is clean up the aftermath and help the survivors of such a catastrophe. To learn more, go to http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/25/opinions/stark-nepal-earthquake-geology/index.html

Under Water Rover

          Many of us are familiar with Nissan.  The most updated model has a 360 degree camera around view monitor (AVM).  This makes parking a lot easier for people who drive a Nissan.  But as it turns out, is helpful tool is useful in a completely different way.  The 360 degree AVM is very helpful in exploring the ocean.  The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth and Science Technology group is working together with Nissan to explore the ocean as deep as 4 miles below sea level.  The AVM technology has four cameras around a machine to give a type of birds eye view while parking.  With this type of view it allows the people who control the machine to be able to avoid sea life and to be able to maneuver the machine around small obstacles.
          This joint operation between Nissan and the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth and Science Technology is a fantastic idea.  The AVM might be a little much for parking a car, but for exploring caverns and trenches in the ocean, it is perfect.  This camera view will allow the machine to get better images of aquatic life and to discover more areas of the ocean.  It also will allow better and more detailed maps of the ocean.  We will be able to learn so much more with this technology.  This operation also shows how two business companies can work together for a greater good.  Maybe, more companies can look to this business deal and see that working together is far more easier and productive than trying to work by themselves.  To learn more visit this website http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2015/04/16/nissan-gives-underwater-rover-birds-eye-view/?intcmp=features

http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2015/04/16/nissan-gives-underwater-rover-birds-eye-view/?intcmp=features

Kentucky Riots

          Most of the country spent these past few weeks watching college basketball. A lot of Americans made brackets to try to guess the outcome of the tournament. The Kentucky wildcats was highly favored to win the whole tournament.  But while they were in the final four they lost their game to Wisconsin.  This loss enraged fans of Kentucky as they took to the streets to cause chaos.  People were throwing bottles and setting things on fire.  Police had to resort to using pepper spray and arresting 31 people. This isn't the first time they have rioted. Last spring when Kentucky lost in the national championship their fans went on a riot.  They arrested dozens of people in the riot.
          I enjoy march madness a lot. I made a bracket, as well as most of my friends.  I had Kentucky winning the whole thing, as well as a lot of other people.  I was not very happy to watch Wisconsin beat them.  I can see how mad people of Kentucky could be.  But their team losing in basketball is no excuse to go out and start a riot. Riots are very dangerous and can hurt not only people, but other peoples property. They were throwing glass bottles and setting things on fire. It got so bad that police had to use pepper spray to get them to stop. This is just unacceptable.  I understand that people can get angry when their favorite teams lose, but that doesn't give people an excuse to destroy things and hurt other people.  They need to find a different way to relive their anger that doesn't involve hurting other people or other peoples things.  To learn more about these riots go to http://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/the-latest-kentucky-riot-is-part-of-a-long-destructive-sports-tradition/