Posted: Monday, 29 September 2008 7:16PM
State Authorizes $25 Million for Great Lakes Research Lab at Michigan Tech
Michigan Technological University has long been a leader in research related to the Great Lakes. Now that research is going to have a new home, on the campus waterfront.
Today, Lt. Gov. John Cherry, acting for Gov. Jennifer Granholm, signed a capital outlay bill authorizing Michigan Technological University to spend $25 million to build a Great Lakes research center along the Portage Canal on the University's campus.
Michigan Tech is one of six state universities with capital outlay projects funded by the bill. The others are Eastern Michigan University, Ferris State University, Oakland University, Saginaw Valley State University and Western Michigan University.
The project will include construction of a three-story research building and enhancement of Michigan Tech's waterfront, said W. Charles Kerfoot, professor of biological sciences and director of the Lake Superior Ecosystem Research Center.
A planning committee guiding the project includes Kerfoot; Professor Alex Mayer, director of the Center for Water and Society; and Joan Chadde, coordinator of educational programs for the Western Upper Peninsula Center for Science, Mathematics and Environmental Education.
The new building will be located on the canal side of the Dow Environmental Sciences and Engineering Building. It will house eight research labs with researchers from four departments: biological sciences, civil and environmental engineering, geological and mining engineering and sciences, and chemistry. Researchers from the Michigan Tech Research Institute will bring their remote sensing expertise to the new facility.
"Freshwater issues are among the most pressing problems facing the world," said Michigan Tech President Glenn D. Mroz. "Michigan Tech is ideally situated to become a leader in aquatic environmental science and technological remediation. The interdisciplinary work that Michigan Tech researchers will do in this new research center on all aspects of Great Lakes water has implications for freshwater management far beyond Michigan. What we learn there will be valuable worldwide."
The new center will focus on a number of pressing issues in upper Great Lakes coastal research, including research into the effects of global climate change, the impact of invasive plant and animal species, over-fishing and the reproductive failure of native fish, loss of coastal wetlands and habitats along tributaries that feed the Great Lakes, historical contamination from mining and the impact of toxic contaminants that persist, and the effects of population and pollution on coastal biodiversity.
A broad variety of research labs will draw faculty and students from disciplines across campus. They include a fisheries restoration lab, a sediment characterization and processing lab, a mass spectrometry lab where large samples can be screened quickly for different compounds, a coastal hydrology lab for controlled testing of sediment behavior under various river and coastal flow conditions; an exotic species lab; a model computation lab, a remote sensing and coastal instrumentation networking lab; and an air quality and meteorology lab.
As a hub for Great Lakes research and education, the waterfront facility will also house classrooms, teaching labs, conference rooms and facilities to expand educational outreach program for elementary and high school students and teachers. The building will include a boathouse and water-level access for the University's research vessels, the Agassiz and Polar. Access to such facilities will help motivate future generations to study and pursue careers in science, engineering and technology.
Future plans for the project envision a waterfront activities center, including boat launching ramps, storage for water craft of all kinds, decks and docks, a shoreline boardwalk, a walking trail, improvements to Prince's Point Beach, and mooring and staging facilities for large ships.
"Michigan Tech has a unique location on a coastal Great Lakes waterway," Kerfoot said. "Now it will have the waterfront presence it has lacked."
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Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy
I had the opportunity to meet Mr. Jeff Shook of the Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy recently while attending an informational open house being conducted for prospective owners of the two Muskegon Lights. The Conservancy has been involved in one other Lighthouse restoration and the builder/renovator with him has been involved in six projects.
The conservancy has a great website resource with a number of very informative links. The following is one page from the site. Please visit them at http://www.michiganlights.com
Lighthouse Design
Lighthouses can be identified by their basic design characteristic. Lighthouses were built using many different techniques to match the environments they needed to stand up to. Some lighthouses were built on cribs in the middle of the water, rocky out cropping's or on high sandy bluffs for example which required different construction techniques. They also varied in many cases due the to local contractors who constructed them.
Light towers themselves can be round, pryamidal, skeletal, conical or square/integral for example. These terms describe the towers you typically see in Michigan and other areas. Other types seen on the ocean coastal regions might include screw pile for example. These were lighthouses built in the middle of a bay on a rock and were anchored by screwing large steel screws into the rock or ocean floor to secure them down. Other types also exist but we will concentrate on the styles found in Michigan.
Round tower lighthouses are typically built of brick and may or may not be encased in a steel shell for protection. They may be large or small. A large example of a round brick one is South Manitou Island. A steel encased brick tower would be Big Sable Point and small steel tower would be Manistee Pierhead light. All are round in construction but use either brick or steel to finish them off. These towers are typically painted.
Pryamidal lighthouses are constructed of wood or steel and are in the shape of a pryramid. North Manitou Island Light which was washed away in a storm and Manistique Breakwater light are examples of this type of construction. This style was not used as much as others were. Canada used this style frequently. These could be separate towers from the keepers dwelling, connected or integrally built into the house. Some other examples are Munising an Ontanogon pierhead beacon lights.
Skeletal lighthouses are those who use a steel skeleton framework to support the light on top. Only a few were constructed of wood. Whitefish Point and South Fox Island are examples of steel skeletal framework lighthouses. These were designed to have little wind resistance and provide a solid framework.
Conical lighthouses can be classified similar to Round lighthouses. If the light tower gets narrower at the top then you can classify it as conical. An example would be Tawas Point or Point Iroquois lighthouses. Keepers typically passed through a small building or entrance room to the tower before climbing it. This entrance room could be connected to the dwelling or be separate form the dwelling all together..
Square/Intergral lighthouses are one with the tower built into the house and are square in design. Examples of this would be Round Island in Lake Huron, Big Bay Point on Lake Superior or Copper Harbor. Some were duplexes where two keepers families lived while others such as Round Island and Copper Harbor were single family dwellings.
Schoolhouse lighthouses were constructed similar to an old schoolhouse and thus the name. Examples would be Copper Harbor, Harbor Point and Grand Island North lighthouses. The house is typically all brick with an integrated tower built into the keepers dwelling. This was a common style. Others were designed with wood such as Old Mission Point. It was a simple design and was used frequently in the Great Lakes and was cost effective for harbor lights.
What makes up a lighthouse or light station complex? Soon to come....
Lighthouse Design
Lighthouses can be identified by their basic design characteristic. Lighthouses were built using many different techniques to match the environments they needed to stand up to. Some lighthouses were built on cribs in the middle of the water, rocky out cropping's or on high sandy bluffs for example which required different construction techniques. They also varied in many cases due the to local contractors who constructed them.
Light towers themselves can be round, pryamidal, skeletal, conical or square/integral for example. These terms describe the towers you typically see in Michigan and other areas. Other types seen on the ocean coastal regions might include screw pile for example. These were lighthouses built in the middle of a bay on a rock and were anchored by screwing large steel screws into the rock or ocean floor to secure them down. Other types also exist but we will concentrate on the styles found in Michigan.
Round tower lighthouses are typically built of brick and may or may not be encased in a steel shell for protection. They may be large or small. A large example of a round brick one is South Manitou Island. A steel encased brick tower would be Big Sable Point and small steel tower would be Manistee Pierhead light. All are round in construction but use either brick or steel to finish them off. These towers are typically painted.
Pryamidal lighthouses are constructed of wood or steel and are in the shape of a pryramid. North Manitou Island Light which was washed away in a storm and Manistique Breakwater light are examples of this type of construction. This style was not used as much as others were. Canada used this style frequently. These could be separate towers from the keepers dwelling, connected or integrally built into the house. Some other examples are Munising an Ontanogon pierhead beacon lights.
Skeletal lighthouses are those who use a steel skeleton framework to support the light on top. Only a few were constructed of wood. Whitefish Point and South Fox Island are examples of steel skeletal framework lighthouses. These were designed to have little wind resistance and provide a solid framework.
Conical lighthouses can be classified similar to Round lighthouses. If the light tower gets narrower at the top then you can classify it as conical. An example would be Tawas Point or Point Iroquois lighthouses. Keepers typically passed through a small building or entrance room to the tower before climbing it. This entrance room could be connected to the dwelling or be separate form the dwelling all together..
Square/Intergral lighthouses are one with the tower built into the house and are square in design. Examples of this would be Round Island in Lake Huron, Big Bay Point on Lake Superior or Copper Harbor. Some were duplexes where two keepers families lived while others such as Round Island and Copper Harbor were single family dwellings.
Schoolhouse lighthouses were constructed similar to an old schoolhouse and thus the name. Examples would be Copper Harbor, Harbor Point and Grand Island North lighthouses. The house is typically all brick with an integrated tower built into the keepers dwelling. This was a common style. Others were designed with wood such as Old Mission Point. It was a simple design and was used frequently in the Great Lakes and was cost effective for harbor lights.
What makes up a lighthouse or light station complex? Soon to come....
The conservancy has a great website resource with a number of very informative links. The following is one page from the site. Please visit them at http://www.michiganlights.com
Lighthouse Design
Lighthouses can be identified by their basic design characteristic. Lighthouses were built using many different techniques to match the environments they needed to stand up to. Some lighthouses were built on cribs in the middle of the water, rocky out cropping's or on high sandy bluffs for example which required different construction techniques. They also varied in many cases due the to local contractors who constructed them.
Light towers themselves can be round, pryamidal, skeletal, conical or square/integral for example. These terms describe the towers you typically see in Michigan and other areas. Other types seen on the ocean coastal regions might include screw pile for example. These were lighthouses built in the middle of a bay on a rock and were anchored by screwing large steel screws into the rock or ocean floor to secure them down. Other types also exist but we will concentrate on the styles found in Michigan.
Round tower lighthouses are typically built of brick and may or may not be encased in a steel shell for protection. They may be large or small. A large example of a round brick one is South Manitou Island. A steel encased brick tower would be Big Sable Point and small steel tower would be Manistee Pierhead light. All are round in construction but use either brick or steel to finish them off. These towers are typically painted.
Pryamidal lighthouses are constructed of wood or steel and are in the shape of a pryramid. North Manitou Island Light which was washed away in a storm and Manistique Breakwater light are examples of this type of construction. This style was not used as much as others were. Canada used this style frequently. These could be separate towers from the keepers dwelling, connected or integrally built into the house. Some other examples are Munising an Ontanogon pierhead beacon lights.
Skeletal lighthouses are those who use a steel skeleton framework to support the light on top. Only a few were constructed of wood. Whitefish Point and South Fox Island are examples of steel skeletal framework lighthouses. These were designed to have little wind resistance and provide a solid framework.
Conical lighthouses can be classified similar to Round lighthouses. If the light tower gets narrower at the top then you can classify it as conical. An example would be Tawas Point or Point Iroquois lighthouses. Keepers typically passed through a small building or entrance room to the tower before climbing it. This entrance room could be connected to the dwelling or be separate form the dwelling all together..
Square/Intergral lighthouses are one with the tower built into the house and are square in design. Examples of this would be Round Island in Lake Huron, Big Bay Point on Lake Superior or Copper Harbor. Some were duplexes where two keepers families lived while others such as Round Island and Copper Harbor were single family dwellings.
Schoolhouse lighthouses were constructed similar to an old schoolhouse and thus the name. Examples would be Copper Harbor, Harbor Point and Grand Island North lighthouses. The house is typically all brick with an integrated tower built into the keepers dwelling. This was a common style. Others were designed with wood such as Old Mission Point. It was a simple design and was used frequently in the Great Lakes and was cost effective for harbor lights.
What makes up a lighthouse or light station complex? Soon to come....
Lighthouse Design
Lighthouses can be identified by their basic design characteristic. Lighthouses were built using many different techniques to match the environments they needed to stand up to. Some lighthouses were built on cribs in the middle of the water, rocky out cropping's or on high sandy bluffs for example which required different construction techniques. They also varied in many cases due the to local contractors who constructed them.
Light towers themselves can be round, pryamidal, skeletal, conical or square/integral for example. These terms describe the towers you typically see in Michigan and other areas. Other types seen on the ocean coastal regions might include screw pile for example. These were lighthouses built in the middle of a bay on a rock and were anchored by screwing large steel screws into the rock or ocean floor to secure them down. Other types also exist but we will concentrate on the styles found in Michigan.
Round tower lighthouses are typically built of brick and may or may not be encased in a steel shell for protection. They may be large or small. A large example of a round brick one is South Manitou Island. A steel encased brick tower would be Big Sable Point and small steel tower would be Manistee Pierhead light. All are round in construction but use either brick or steel to finish them off. These towers are typically painted.
Pryamidal lighthouses are constructed of wood or steel and are in the shape of a pryramid. North Manitou Island Light which was washed away in a storm and Manistique Breakwater light are examples of this type of construction. This style was not used as much as others were. Canada used this style frequently. These could be separate towers from the keepers dwelling, connected or integrally built into the house. Some other examples are Munising an Ontanogon pierhead beacon lights.
Skeletal lighthouses are those who use a steel skeleton framework to support the light on top. Only a few were constructed of wood. Whitefish Point and South Fox Island are examples of steel skeletal framework lighthouses. These were designed to have little wind resistance and provide a solid framework.
Conical lighthouses can be classified similar to Round lighthouses. If the light tower gets narrower at the top then you can classify it as conical. An example would be Tawas Point or Point Iroquois lighthouses. Keepers typically passed through a small building or entrance room to the tower before climbing it. This entrance room could be connected to the dwelling or be separate form the dwelling all together..
Square/Intergral lighthouses are one with the tower built into the house and are square in design. Examples of this would be Round Island in Lake Huron, Big Bay Point on Lake Superior or Copper Harbor. Some were duplexes where two keepers families lived while others such as Round Island and Copper Harbor were single family dwellings.
Schoolhouse lighthouses were constructed similar to an old schoolhouse and thus the name. Examples would be Copper Harbor, Harbor Point and Grand Island North lighthouses. The house is typically all brick with an integrated tower built into the keepers dwelling. This was a common style. Others were designed with wood such as Old Mission Point. It was a simple design and was used frequently in the Great Lakes and was cost effective for harbor lights.
What makes up a lighthouse or light station complex? Soon to come....
Monday, September 8, 2008
Go Green!
| Posted: Sunday, 07 September 2008 2:33PM NY Times' Friedman To Focus On Green Revolution In Ypsi Speech |
| Three-time Pulitzer Prize winner and New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman will offer the keynote at a day-long event focused on making green power the next great global industry. The event, bringing together and recognizing Michigan's leading alternative energy companies, features remarks by University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman and Michigan State University President Lou Anna Simon in addition to Friedman. The program begins at 12:20 p.m.; registration starts at 10:30 a.m. Friedman's No. 1 bestseller "The World is Flat: A Brief History of the 21st Century," changed the national discussion on the opportunities and challenges of a global economy. His newest book, "Hot, Flat and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution -- and How it Can Renew America" is the topic of his address, as energy has become one of the top election year issues. The event is being organized by the Washtenaw Economic Club, the Michigan Business Review and Michigan's University Research Corridor. Friedman's talk is part of a day-long focus on Michigan-based innovations forming the seeds of a growing green energy industry, including Michigan Business Review Innovation, bringing together Michigan's most innovative companies utilizing and supplying alternative energy. The University Research Corridor will also make available a new report offering a break-out on Michigan's opportunities for developing green technologies. Friedman's new book contends America has been overwhelmed with articles about "easy ways to go green'' and notes "green'' was the single-most trademarked word in 2007 but he complains the over-abundance of such articles shows the makings of "a party -- not a revolution.'' The real changes, he contends, will be hard, not easy, and most are yet to come. Despite the increasing need for new green technologies, U.S. venture capital funds invested just $5 billion in green revolution investments last year compared to $100 billion invested in IT in 2000, the peak of the dot-com boom, Friedman notes. "Anyone who looks at the growth of middle classes around the world and their rising demands for natural resources, plus the dangers of climate change driven by our addiction to fossil fuels, can see that clean renewable energy -- wind, solar, nuclear and stuff we haven't yet invented -- is going to be the next great global industry,'' Friedman wrote in a recent column. "It has to be if we are going to grow in a stable way. Therefore, the country that most owns the clean power industry is going to most own the next great technology breakthrough -- the E.T. revolution, the energy technology revolution -- and create millions of jobs and thousands of new businesses, just like the IT revolution did." Friedman, the Times' foreign affairs columnist who has done his research in many countries around the world, argues that a population explosion, a "flattening world'' with China, India and their rising middle classes, as well as climate change have all converged. Calling it a hopeful book, he argues that "if America seizes the opportunity to solve these problems it will be a huge engine propelling our economy in the 21st century." The University Research Corridor, an alliance of Michigan State University, the University of Michigan and Wayne State University, was formed to transform, strengthen and diversify the state's economy. The universities are working together to leverage their collective assets and encourage collaboration with business, government and communities to help accelerate innovation and economic growth. A limited block of 1,000 free tickets for the speech only are available to MSU, U-M and WSU students, faculty and staff. They are available at the URC campuses: At U-M, call (734) 763-5554 or visit the Michigan Union Ticket Office. University ID required (limit two tickets per person). At MSU, call (517) 353-9000. At WSU, call (313) 577-5284. Tickets to the general public are $30. Premium business tickets (including lunch and premium seating) are $120. For more information, contact Ashley Robinson, (734) 302-1726 or Karen Koziel, (734) 302-1719 for table sponsorships. For more details visit: www.mlive.com/innovation or www.washtenaweconclub.com/tix.php |
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