In the capable hands of Paul Pitzer, the fight for Grand Coulee Dam and the story of its construction is a vital, animated saga of people striving for dazzling goals and then working to build something spectacular. These visionaries accomplished their objective against the backdrop of the worst economic depression in the nation's history. The dam and the extensive irrigation network it supports stand today as a monument to their dreams and labors.
The Mightiest of Them All: Memories of Grand Coulee Dam presents the experiences of L. Vaughn Downs from the time he started working on the dam when it was in the design stage, through the construction period and into many years of actual dam operation and maintenance. He provides glimpses into the personalities connected with the project and explains the many techniques and pieces of equipment that were developed or improved as the dam was built. Downs also devotes considerable attention to problems they encountered and the solutions developed in the hope that others will learn from these situations. This revised edition brings the story up to the current period with an examination of the upkeep and condition of the dam after 50 years, and its prospects for the future. Engineers, architects, and interested general readers will feel the thrill of this extraordinary dam, as the informative text and bounty of photographs illustrate various stages of construction and the dramatic rates of progress attained.
This heavily illustrated book contains descriptions and geologic interpretations of photographs (mostly aerial) illustrating the power and magnitude of repeated Ice Age flooding in the Pacific Northwest, as recently as 14,000 years ago. The scale of Ice Age floods was so huge that today it is often difficult to see and appreciate the power and magnitude of such megafloods from ground level. However, from the air, landforms created by the floods often come into clear focus. Aerial images, obtained via unmanned aerial vehicle (drone) as well as fixed-wing airplane, add a new perspective on evidence gathered by dozens of scientists since 1923.
This book was written by undergraduate students at The Ohio State University (OSU) who were enrolled in the class Introduction to Environmental Science. The chapters describe some of Earth's major environmental challenges and discuss ways that humans are using cutting-edge science and engineering to provide sustainable solutions to these problems. Topics are as diverse as the students, who represent virtually every department, school and college at OSU. The environmental issue that is described in each chapter is particularly important to the author, who hopes that their story will serve as inspiration to protect Earth for all life.
Details the destruction of the Columbia River in the Pacific Northwest by well-intentioned Americans who saw only the benefits of the dam-building, power plant and irrigation projects, not realizing the longterm effects of killing the river.
The inspiration for the Major Motion Picture Directed by George Clooney—exclusively in theaters December 25, 2023! The #1 New York Times bestselling true story about the American rowing triumph of the 1936 Olympics in Berlin—from the author of Facing the Mountain For readers of Unbroken, out of the depths of the Depression comes an irresistible story about beating the odds and finding hope in the most desperate of times—the improbable, intimate account of how nine working-class boys from the American West showed the world at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin what true grit really meant. It was an unlikely quest from the start. With a team composed of the sons of loggers, shipyard workers, and farmers, the University of Washington’s eight-oar crew team was never expected to defeat the elite teams of the East Coast and Great Britain, yet they did, going on to shock the world by defeating the German team rowing for Adolf Hitler. The emotional heart of the tale lies with Joe Rantz, a teenager without family or prospects, who rows not only to regain his shattered self-regard but also to find a real place for himself in the world. Drawing on the boys’ own journals and vivid memories of a once-in-a-lifetime shared dream, Brown has created an unforgettable portrait of an era, a celebration of a remarkable achievement, and a chronicle of one extraordinary young man’s personal quest.
An introductory chapter briefly reviews Washington's geology followed by a series of road guides with the local particulars. The authors tell you what the rocks are and what they mean. Useful graphics and charts supplement the text and help you to under