|
|
 |
|
|
|
Wonders of the Universe
Dick Boynton
Club member and Engineer
June 8, 2010
It's
4½ billion years old, has a circumference of 25,000 miles and
sustains nearly 7 billion people. So the Earth is a pretty big deal,
right? Well actually no, at least not when you consider its size
within the Universe. It is one of our solar system's smaller planets
and is dwarfed by our Sun. But that Sun is tiny, compared with many
giant suns within our galaxy, the Milky Way. And our galaxy is only
one of billions!
Speaking to 68 Y's Men
of Meriden at their final meeting of the season on June 8, Dick
Boynton, club member and engineer, provided narrative and projected
photos showing the vastness and beauty of the Universe. With its
probable origin as an enormously dense bit of matter, perhaps as
small as a grain of sand, the "Big Bang" theory explains how our
Universe is expanding, with galaxies at the outer edge of
space
moving away the fastest, consistent with a primordial blast of
incalculable force. Even "empty" areas of space, when scanned by the
Hubble Space Telescope, are found to contain additional millions of
galaxies
At the center of many
galaxies are "black holes" perhaps the size of our solar system, so
named because of their enormous gravitational pull which sucks in
billions of stars and prevents light from escaping. Other elements
of the Universe include quasars (powerful radio wave sources and the
brightest objects in the Universe), Cepheid variables (pulsating
stars), and dark matter (invisible matter that is inferred to exist
based on its gravitational pull on visible matter, and which may
actually form 80% of the Universe). Stunning images captured by the
Hubble telescope include the Whirlpool Galaxy, colliding galaxies,
the Eagle Nebula (with young stars forming at the tips of hydrogen
clouds) and the Horsehead Nebula.
Boynton discounted the
possibility of extraterrestrial life forms coming to Earth from
beyond the solar system, noting the enormous distances involved.
However, he did point out the possibility of other life within our
solar system, with the best bet being on Jupiter's moon Europa which
contains liquid water beneath its icy surface. |
|

Left - Earth and new moon from outer space
Right - Venus |

Left - Nebula NGC 604 - 3 million
light years away, 1500 light years across. Green is oxygen excited
by UV light
Right - Whirlpool Galaxy - Red dots in spirals are young
stars being formed |
|
 |
|
Advanced Propulsion Strategies for the 21st Century
Chris Colquitt
Driver Relationship Manager, GM Fuel Cell Program
June 1, 2010
Speaking
with 10 years' experience in fuel cell technology while at General
Motors, Chris Colquitt, Driver Relationship Manager for GM's Fuel
Cell Activities, spoke to 71 Y's Men of Meriden on June 1. And he
drove himself to the meeting in a hydrogen powered vehicle.
Noting that 96% of the
world's transportation energy needs are met by petroleum products,
he pointed out the high cost of that dependence: global warming, air
pollution, dependence on foreign oil, increasing demand from the
burgeoning automobile populations in China and India, and the
current Gulf of Mexico oil spillage disaster. While it may take
decades to phase out petroleum fueled automobiles, General Motors is
advancing on a number of fronts.
For
starters, improvements to the internal combustion engine include
variable valve timing, active fuel management (with which some of
the cylinders are shut off while cruising), direct fuel injection
and engine downsizing (such that a 1.4 liter 4-cylinder engine may
provide more power and less pollution than its bigger cousins). The
use of biofuels, especially ethanol, has not worked well to date
because expensive corn is the source; the future may lie in the use
of cellulosic ethanol, derived from discarded plastic, tires, and
municipal and industrial waste. Biofuels reduce auto emissions by
75% and reduce dependence on petroleum.
The next step up is the
use of hybrid propulsion, using a combination of electric and
gasoline-powered engines. Some vehicles have a second electric motor
that slows the vehicle when braking, recapturing some of the
electricity. These vehicles often provide a 50% improvement in city
driving mileage and a 30% overall improvement, but suffer from heavy
batteries which take up considerable space.
Colquitt stated that the
ultimate goal is to have all-electric vehicles, energized by
plugging into your home outlet or by using on-board fuel cells which
turn hydrogen into electricity. Fuel cell driven engines use no
petroleum, have zero greenhouse emissions and zero tailpipe
emissions. However, they currently are quite expensive, due in part
to the cost of platinum which is required to strip electrons from
the hydrogen. But watch for that price to drop in the next few
years. |
|
 |
|
Experiences in Iraq and Preparedness for the Drawdown
Lt. Col. Martin Piech
Deputy Commander, U.S. Defense Logistics Agency Support Team
May 25, 2010
After
34 years of service, Lt. Col. Martin Piech, Deputy Commander, U.S.
Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) Support Team, has a pretty good
handle on the massive job of supplying U.S. troops worldwide with
everything from meals to tank parts. Speaking to 69 Y's Men of
Meriden on May 25, Piech, a resident of South Meriden, detailed not
only the structure and complexity of the DLA but also the current
challenges during the drawdown in Iraq.
The
DLA mission is to act as the logistics support agency for the
Department of Defense (DOD), managing alliances with suppliers and
creating supply chains, forming logistics partnerships, and
administering a worldwide storage and management network along with
reutilization and disposal of materials. With a budget of $36
billion and using more than 25,000 staff operating in 28 countries,
the DLA provides 84% of the DOD repair parts and 100% of food, fuel,
clothing, medical supplies and construction supplies.
Citing both progress and remaining
challenges in Iraq, Piech described the formidable tasks ahead as
the Iraq withdrawal date (Dec. 31, 2011) approaches. In addition to
supplying the material needs of the U.S. Military, the DLA is
responsible for "reverse logistics capabilities" with which excess
military materials are sent for reuse elsewhere, or sold or donated
to the Government of Iraq. Hazardous materials must be removed,
precious metals recovered, and disposal of scrap accomplished
(currently 13 million lbs./month, often by sale to local vendors).
Piech also noted that the DLA has
another mission: disaster relief in the U.S. following non-military
disasters such as Katrina. He also showed several slides taken
during his six-month deployment to Iraq in 2009, including one of
the sandstorms which can shut down air traffic and confine troops to
bases. |
|
 |
|
Vietnam: Past and Present
Frank Donovan
Y's Men member
May 18, 2010
It
was with mixed emotions that 70 Y's Men of Meriden on May 18 viewed
a PowerPoint presentation by club member Frank Donovan, chronicling
a trip he took with his wife Phyllis to Vietnam in late 2007. Many
in the audience remembered the tragic stories of American casualties
during the Vietnam War in the 1960s and 1970s, including the loss of
58,000 American lives, but were also beguiled by the smiling and
welcoming faces of present day Vietnamese children as they excitedly
welcomed their American guests just several decades later.
The
visit to this land of 88 million people, with a median age of 27.4
years and more than one half of the population having been born
since the end of the war (there referred to as the "American War"),
began in Saigon, now renamed Ho Chi Minh City. Images of this
vibrant city included numerous buildings such as the Saigon Opera
House built in French architectural style during decades of French
occupation. Visiting the Cu Chi Tunnels, part of a 200-mile network
of narrow tunnels along the Ho Chi Minh Trail, revealed how they
could hold up to 6000 Viet Cong fighters as they infiltrated the
South.
The Mekong River Delta,
at the end of a 2600-mile-long river beginning in the Himalayas, is
home to a profusion of rice production, helping make this country
the world's third largest rice exporter. Then a stop at the coastal
city of Nha Trang, endowed with pristine beaches, provided images of
tiny fishing boats which venture at night onto the South China Sea,
using powerful lights to attract fish. Travelling north by ship, the
Donovans then visited Danang (previously home to a huge U.S. Air
Force Base), Huế
(featuring the dramatic Huế
Citadel, the Forbidden Purple City and numerous open air markets and
pagodas) and Halong Bay (with its striking karst limestone islands
and caves, pearl cultivation farms and floating villages).
The journey ended in
Hanoi, featuring pedicab tours of the old city section, modern
department stores and the renowned Water Puppet Theater. And then a
visit to the Hoa Lo Prison ("Hanoi Hilton"), home to about 250
downed American pilots including John McCain, with views of tiny
solitary confinement cells and text about the good treatment that
the American prisoners received.
|
 |
 |
|
 |
|
North to Alaska
Jack Brooks
Y's Men member
May. 11, 2010
"North
to Alaska" generally evokes memories of the 1960 movie featuring
John Wayne, Stewart Granger, Ernie Kovacs and Fabian, as well as the
familiar Johnny Horton hit song by the same name. But on May 11, it
was the title of a journey taken by 72 Y's Men of Meriden as they
went on a virtual trip with club member Jack Brooks from Vancouver
to Denali, a trip actually undertaken in August 2009 and captured in
the magic of a PowerPoint presentation.
Travelling by bus, boat,
train and plane, the group first left Vancouver for the Tracy Arm
fjord, an area studded with gorgeous waterfalls and glaciers. Next
stop was Juneau, the car-free (and care-free) capitol of Alaska and
a great jumping-off locale to see the famed 12-mile-long Mendenhall
glacier with its spectacular calving of icebergs.
After disembarkation in
Skagway, the entry point for gold rushes in 1898, travel in
glass-domed train cars provided exciting views of trestles, tunnels,
and scenic vistas of turquoise-colored lakes and rivers as Brooks
and his wife Barbara made their way to White Horse, the starting
point of the 1422-mile Alcan Highway. It was here that they viewed
the beautiful Yukon River and the world's longest fish ladder built
for migrating salmon. And here, as everywhere else along this trip,
colorful wildflowers grew in abundance, encouraged by the extra long
summer days.
Magical names like
Beaver Creek, Denali Depot and Fairbanks marked the next stops for
Brooks (and his accompanying Y's Men); in Fairbanks, they witnessed
a dramatic sled run powered by trained huskies, making everyone
realize that these sled dogs are trained for resilience, strength
and speed. And here, the land around these vast mountains, lakes and
rivers was studded with log cabins (some with sod growing on their
roofs).
After a successful
"panning for gold" experience that netted Brooks over $20 and a
visit to the Alaska Pipeline (supported by Teflon-coated sliders
that move with the frost heaves), the journey concluded at Denali
National Park which covers almost 10,000 square miles and features
Mt. McKinley, more than 20,000 feet in elevation and bearing
glaciers up to 4000 feet in thickness. A distant view of a family of
grizzlies provided the icing on this cake. |
|
 |
 |
|
 |
|
Special Olympics in Connecticut
Changing Attitudes...changing Lives
Rob
Gerowe
Regional Director, Northwest Office, CT Special Olympics
May 4, 2010
He
was a sickly kid beset by asthma, very unathletic and still using
training wheels on his bicycle well beyond the years when other
children were riding free. But by his senior college year in 1984,
he was competing on a national championship Division I track team
and in 2005 was riding in the Tour de France. "It's never too late.
This was the message
delivered to 63 Y's Men of Meriden on May 4 by Rob Gerowe, one of
three regional directors of Special Olympics Connecticut, as he
described the origins and remarkable growth of the Special Olympics
movement. Assisted by a DVD video, he noted its origin as a summer
day camp for children and adults with intellectual disabilities,
built by Eunice Kennedy Shriver at her home in Maryland. In
1968, the first International Special Olympics
Summer Games were held in Chicago, at which 1,000 individuals with
intellectual disabilities from 26 U.S. states and Canada competed in
track and field and swimming.
Since
then, the movement has spread to include all 50 states and many
countries. World Games are currently held every two years,
alternating between summer and winter sports, with Greece being the
host in 2011. Connecticut, which joined the movement in 1969 and
thus was one of the earliest states to participate, is currently
celebrating its 40th anniversary of participation and
hosted the 1995 World Games in New Haven. Athletic training and
competition occur year round, involving regional, state and national
events in this country. These 10-30 year old competitors participate
in 35 Olympic-style individual and team sports, including skiing,
track and field, and aquatics. In the 2007 World Games in Shanghai,
China, some 7291 athletes from 165 countries participated.
Gerowe recalled with
pleasure an autistic child named Kurt who couldn't focus on his
skills while skiing; with encouragement and training from Gerowe and
his family, he overcame distractions and proceeded to win the
downhill slalom race with a perfect run. Fund-raising is crucial,
with funds coming from sponsoring corporations and individuals. In
Connecticut, Gerowe helps organize "Penguin Plunges" each winter,
with 150-400 sponsored participants going into icy waters at each of
the 10-12 plunges held yearly around the state. |
|
|