blog #15

I read an article titled "Drive train parts examined after death of 6-year-old boy in grandstands at Wash. state show", Associated Press. It was a sad and confusing Monster Jam show in Tacoma, Wash. friday night. A boy, Sebastian Hizey (6), was struck in the head by a Frisbee-sized chunk of metal that tore off a truck while doing doughnuts during the show. Police gathered loose parts of the drive train and drive loop to investigate. They said they have never seen the loop or drive shaft parts come off like this. The boys father, said that the truck had first failed to start and was hauled away by a forklift but it returned to the show and the metal ring flew from under the truck as it was spinning in circles in the mud. Sadly, his son passed away. Another spectator was struck by debris and was taken to the hospital, but no further descriptions of him are listed. The Monster Jam show continued through the two Saturday shows, but with a moment of silence before each one. Hopefully these problems will be solved for no more future freak accidents.

blog #14

I read an article called Key to fighting colds: Bond with your pillow, no author listed. This article was about how sleep effects one getting a cold. Sheldon Cohen said, "The longer you sleep, the better off you are, the less susceptible you are to colds". So the more hours of sleep you get, the lower the chance of catching a cold. Researchers paid healthy adults $800 to have cold viruses sprayed up their noses and wait in a hotel for five days to see if they got sick. The eight hour sleepers were much less likely to get sick than those who slept for less that seven hours. Also, people who slept less than seven hours a night in the weeks before they became exposed to the virus, were three time likely to catch a cold that the ones who slept longer. Overall, one should get sleep to avoid becoming sick.

blog #13

I read an article titled Misbehaving teens may be at risk for major adulthood problems by Elizabeth Landau. The article talked about that people who displayed behavioral problems as teens are likely to develop mental problems in adulthood. A study looked at 3500+ people from teen years to the age of 40 and studied their behaviors. People from the age of 13-15 behavior issues included disobedience, lying, lack of punctuality, restlessness, truancy, daydreaming in class and poor response to discipline. These issues are said to may cause more serious problems dealing with social relationships, the ability to maintain good mental health, stable employment and a happy family life. It also said some teens who had moderate problems were likely to leave school early because of teenage pregnancy and later in life have an increased likelihood of divorce, alcohol abuse and life adversity. But all of these results do not mean that teenage behavioral issues with cause complications in later life. There is just a possible chance it might. 

blog #13

Title: Take a Bow, Mr. Plow

Author: Debbie Musser

Would you ever think of entering a Snowplow Rodeo? Sounds a little crazy. Mike Schmidt is a street maintenance worker for the city of Eden Prairie. Everyday at 3a.m., he gets up and gets in his 30,000-pound truck and starts plowing. He is most comfortable behind the wheel of his snowplow he said though. He has been in the Snowplow Rodeo many times. It is a statewide competition held in St. Cloud and tests the skills of 110 drivers from around Minnesota. The drivers go through many obstacles and don't know the snowplow they will use until right before they perform. This makes things difficult for the drivers. But luckily, Schmidt has placed twice in first place, and once in second, fourth and eighth. When plowing the roads, the weather conditions can determine how long they plow. If it is an all day snow, they could snow till 5p.m., stopping to let residents get home to rest. Traffic also contributes to the plowing times. Some drivers get very anxious to pass plowers. But mainly, from Schmidt's point of view, snow plowers enjoy their job and make the best of it. If it wasn't for them, there would be many more car accidents happening throughout the world.

blog #12

I read an article titled "2 Minnesota snowmobilers, lost on Colorado trail, rescued" bye Mary Jane Smetanka. Two men, John Rocky(49) and his son TJ(20) were snowmobiling in the area of the Never Summer Wilderness Area which is off limits to snowmobilers. They simply got lost. They were stranded for 15 hours waiting for rescuers to come find them. The 2 men sent a text message to family members which was forwarded to a command post 10 miles away which plotted their location. Rescuers searched from midnight-4am for them and suspended there search to daytime. Then stranded men were found the next day around 1pm Minnesota time with only a few bruises. They were exhausted and hungry but in good spirits. Snowmobile emergencies are common said McCutcheon (Ranger from Mtn National Park). Hopefully people can learn lessons from these incidents and be careful when snowmobiling.

blog #11

The article I read was titled 'Marley' on top for second straight week by Nicole Sperling. The moive Marley and Me was a big draw to the new year. It came in with the number one slot adding $24.1 million to the box. The movie's total take stands with $106.5 million. The box office was strong with an estimated 7 percent comparing to the 2008 New Years weekend. There were movies for everyone at the theaters. Marley and Me for families, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button for drama, Valkyrie for suspense, and finally Bedtime Stories for a kid flick. Critics disliked the movie Bedtime Stories but viewers seemed the opposite. Also Jim Carey's comedy, Yes Man, rounded the top 5 adding $13.9 milion to the Warner Brothers film's earnings. Overall, the movies have been very successful lately and it has been a great start to the new year.