The West Virginia 1985 Flood Essay Example for Free

The West Virginia 1985 Flood Essay The floods of November 1985 devastated much of West Virginia. Authorities called the record-breaking floods that began November 4 the worst this century. More than 3,500 homes and 180 businesses were wiped out. 123 bridges were destroyed or damaged and hundreds of thousands of farm animals were killed. 47 West Virginians lost their lives, 28 of whom resided in Pendleton and Grant counties. 33 of West Virginias 55 counties were declared disaster areas. Its highest winds moved at 85Â  mph (140Â  km/h). Damage was estimated at $570 million. Hurricane Juan was blamed for the floods throughout central and eastern West Virginia, which hit the Gulf Coast on Halloween and moved north. As a step towards recovery The Forest Service scientists at the Northern Research Station’s Fernow Experimental Forest near Parsons, West Virginia along with the West Virginia Division of Forestry and Virginia Tech University have been evaluating the effects of forestry activities on flooding. Important conclusions from these research efforts are:-Most hydrologic models are not designed to handle extreme events, such as flooding; therefore such models must be used as predictive tools with caution; The amount and intensity of rainfall are the main determinants of the level of peak flows (the largest peak flows result in flooding), and during very large storms, harvesting activities did not significantly affect peak flows; and Timber harvesting does not contribute significantly to flooding. The Chessie System workers had one span of the new girder bridge in place less than a week after the flood waters had receded. Instead of constructing another double track bridge, Chessie System decided to just build a single-track one and construct a new interlocking farther west on Cheat River grade near Carrico Road Xing this solved the urgent communication problem that had resulted due to the collapse of the of the bridge. A culvert was put in place to channel the rest of the water over the side. In any natural disaster, a communitys self-sufficiency is its best hope for a speedy recovery. West Virginians were the model of resiliency in the aftermath of the 1985 flood. Not only did they help their neighbors by donating food, clothing and money, but also they banded together to rebuild their communities.

Akbar and Aurangzeb’s Policies Essay -- South Asia History, War

During the early modern period in South Asia, diverse communities interacted and clashed. This also meant that rulers and their policies also clashed one another. The two greatest leader of the Mughal Empire, Akbar and Aurangzeb’s policies went back and forth. Whereas Akbar had to take over the throne at an early age of thirteen, Aurangzeb had to fight and go against his own family members to gain the throne. Akbar began his leadership at a young age that he was never able to learn how to read or write and remained illiterate throughout life. Even though his grandfather and father were well educated, Akbar had great intellectual capacity that helped him rule the empire. During his first year of his reign, Akbar was faced with a challenge by a Hindu usurper, Hemu who almost succeeded in putting an end to the Mughal rules (Kulke, Rothermund 142). Despite being a Muslim, he did not force his religion on the people, they remained Hindus throughout his reign (Kulke, Rothermund 143). During Akbar’s reign, Islam was spreading throughout Southeast Asia. During this period, Akbar abolished the jizya, which was a poll tax which Islamic rulers imposed on all non-Islamic subjects. He conceived himself as giving laws rather than only following Islamic laws (Kulke, Rothermund 143). To keep the unity of his empire, Akbar had to adopt programs that won the loyalty of the non-Islamic population. By allowing his people to stay Hindu and trying not to convince them to Islam was a key point because it allowed him to give people their own freedom and it allowed him to gain his leadership. The Mughal Empire was an agrarian state, which depended on land revenue also known as land survey. It directly depended on the accurate assessment of the ... ...em against their Muslim colleagues (SarDesai, 177). Why would a ruler of his own people want to use a policy against his own people? Doesn’t that inform people that something is not right with the ruler of the empire? Akbar emerged as the leader of the rajputs whereas Aurangzeb kicked the rajputs out of nobility. Akbar was a great conquer who expanded his empire through diplomacy. By abolishing the jizya, it was easier for him to win the hearts of India. On this matter, people hated Aurangzeb and did not give him any respect for brining the jizya and other policies. Aurangzeb’s reign was marred by the destruction of temples and a general intolerance toward people of non- Muslim. He failed to realized the secular basis of Akbar’s polity was just not a matter of political tact. The secular basis was to form a peaceful and progressive polity in a plural society.

The True Definition of a Strong Team

The True Definition of a Strong Team What is a team one may ask? The formal definition of team is â€Å"a number of persons associated in some joint action† (Team). A group of athletes, a group of employees, or a group of friends can call themselves a team when united to complete a common goal. Truly any group of individuals can call themselves a team, but only when this group possesses the right characteristics is when they can be called a true, strong team. Being a strong team is much more than getting a group a group of people together and declaring it is a team. A strong team is constructed with more than speech; it deals with strong feelings, dedication, and hard work. Strong feelings provide great importance when construction a strong team. Whether people are part of a sport team or a work force, they all must possess the characteristic of having strong feelings for the situation they are placed in. If the person’s feelings are so strong, he/she will be more than willing to strive for that goal. If he/she did not care much for the situation they are placed into, they will most likely not strive and excel and unfortunately, the team will suffer by the goal not being reached. When each individual in a team has strong feelings toward the completion of or reaching that goal, a strong team is reached. Everyone, apart of the team, who has those strong feelings are on the same page allowing them to strive together with a great feeling of passion. When this passion is reached, every team member will know exactly how to complete their team goal with their inner feelings. When a team all has the same feelings toward a common goal it shows the strength of the team as a whole. A team may all have a strong feeling toward completing a goal, but each individual has to portray many other characteristics in order to become a strong team. With strong feelings, teams can reach many goals. But in order to complete and achieve more challenging goals, a strong team must posses’ dedication. Dedication is a very important characteristic that every great team out there acquires. Dedication requires individuals to do the best they can always. For example, always showing up for dance class, always being on time for dance class, always being at every rehearsal, and so fourth. When portraying the dedication attitude, others will envy that and respect the fact that this individual wants to be apart of something much greater than any individual. Dedication can also be portrayed through showing respect for the team. This can be done by putting others first. If every member of a team is willing to put others before themselves, a team will be able to accomplish goals the never thought they could before. Dedication is a characteristic every team must have in order to be called a strong team. A strong team that possesses dedication are the teams heard to be accomplishing phenomenal goals, not only because they are extraordinary at their sport, but because they have the passion and dedication of being apart of a team. Dedication is a possession that truly great teams have and with dedication comes hard work and if you are dedicated, you will work hard! Working hard is something each individual must provide their team. By working hard, a team will become stronger and will learn how to work together by working off each others’ strengths. Working hard means that people always put forth their best foot and try their hardest at all times. Through hard work, individuals will mold themselves to become better, along with helping others improve. When a team is able to work hard every day and put forth everything they have, that team will strive. In the end, what that team puts in is what they will receive out and each individual is going to get stronger through their teams improvement. Undergoing these strong feelings toward a goal will help the team succeed. Hard work will better the chances of completing this unique goal the team holds. Dedication is a key characteristic in all teams. Dedication most importantly makes the team not only stronger as individuals but as a team. Dedication builds the base for a strong team and hard work keeps that team functioning beautifully together. These characteristics will give that passion to excel towards a sport, job or any such life goals. When each of these characteristics are reached, I give the permission to call themsel

History of Baseball - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 7 Words: 1972 Downloads: 5 Date added: 2019/04/02 Category Sports Essay Level High school Topics: Baseball Essay Did you like this example? Being a game brought to the North Americans by immigrants, it was more than a bat and ball game. To the parents of that era, the term ballplayer was not a career that a kid would have pursued and a parent contends with such an idea. This is because baseball did not entirely have a broad cultural impact as it has had in the recent few years starting from the amount of money the players used to be awarded. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "History of Baseball" essay for you Create order Life as a typical ballplayer of the 20th century, however, was not as smooth and this was contributed to by the hardships that the players were going through right from the cheap contracts that were being passed along from team to team in exchange of vital players (Lawrence 51). The life of the players did not have much to do with social purposes as more of what they were seeking for was personal nature. In pursuit of personal nature, many would think that players as young as twenty years old had their minds tormented when deciding to move from a highly prestigious club to play with the boys. To them, it was more of the passion and the purpose they had for the success in their career. They were crazy about baseball (Lawrence 54). Their life was basically revolving around making undecided moves and shutting prestigious doors to seek for passion. Moreover, the life of a ballplayer at that as described in the book the glory of their times was way different than it later came to be. The players did not have a bunch of coaches each with a specialized lie of perfection in baseball but rather it was an old timer professional who had the overall knowledge about the game. It was up to the individuals will to get himself into condition. For Heinie Groh, while he was eighteen years old back in 1908 he almost joined University of Rochester if it was not for the fellow from Oshkosh (Lawrence S. R itter). To him, baseball was an extra option he could have pursued other than education. His scenario, on the other hand, is practically different as a typical baseball player for unlike other players who had the driving force and the platform to practice baseball as a career, he could have chosen to pursue it or pursue education. His parents, on the other hand, had no idea about the sport but later on contributed in to support him. Hank Greenberg, on the other hand, did not have a perfect start in life as a baseball player for the society had him view himself as a gawky kid who was not well coordinated (Lawrence 35). Typically, a ballplayer in the turn of the twentieth century had to work his way through many decisions already set by their parents including having a decent income source that would have rather been some official work but not a career in baseball (Lawrence 14). To rise in baseball meant that the individual had to pursue an uphill task of approaching baseball clubs of the higher league only to be disappointed. Rube Marquard, for instance, had to join the Indianapolis club against the will of his father which seemed to be a rough start for the renowned star who won 23 games with them among other games in the Canton club. Different from Rube Marquard, another ballplayer was Rube Bressler who practically had a significantly different start as other players did. being a seventeen-year-old kid at a railroad shop he had never pitched for any team in his life but later on became the starting pitcher at Connie Macks World Champion Philadelphia Athletics. His start, unlike Marquard, revolved around many pitchers. He entered the professional ranks through a pretty wise mechanism which started by connecting with people he already knew were players in the local teams. Though by the time he talked to Howard Wakefield he was yet to be eighteen, he had his hopes high that he would one day become a big leaguer himself. Having made his way from Cleveland to Waterloo, Marquard was highly determined for the chance which he later did not secure as he had to stay for the weekend for the manager to fully vet his capabilities and award him the contract. Going back home he worked as a casual worker at the ice cream company which he later quit joining the Indianapolis of the American Association. At the Indianapolis, he was optioned for Canton in the central league, won twenty-three games and the next year faced Cleveland team to only win 2-0 and wasnt killed either. The Cleveland team made efforts of signing in Marquard but he declined, a clear indication of how the eighteen-year-old had made progress in th e team. During the American National Leagues off-day, Marquard had the chance of a lifetime having impressed with no hits, no runs, and no errors. The Cleveland club went as high as $10,500 but the Giants went to $11,000 to whom he was sold to. Having reported to the New York Giants the eighteen-year-old had made it to professional ranks. Specs Toporcer, a New York baseball player on the other end had a humble start in life as a ballplayer and this was right from the time he was six years old. Surprisingly enough he started visiting the polo grounds to see the Giants play while he was ten years. This was quite a privilege considering the fact that he was born during the time McGraw was the manager of the team. With his resilience and determination, he did not give up his passion even after his attempt to be included in the school baseball team failed. Putting up with the environment in the training campus required some level of understanding the other persons boundaries. Old timers were rough on rookies (Lawrence 55), the players would get into a hassle with one another in situations that would only yield suspensions and overrated grudges. The kid got in a hassle with Tim which got him suspended for five days with 50 bucks fine. The treatment from the veterans did not only involve physical bullying and manipulation but also involved a lot of cussing. With reference to what happened to George, he was cleared out of the league just because he had an argument with an umpire called Ferguson who threw him out of the game. The ego or superiority in the veterans compromised the success of the rookies and their performance as it would practically be reflected out in the overall performance in the field. On the contrary, attributes displayed by Jimmy Austin (Lawrence 57) while connecting with Branch Rickey tremendously depicts the perfect image of the veteran-rookie relationship defined with common ground rules that promote and maintain respect within the club. Apparently, rookies owed the veterans a great deal despite the fact that they would not in any way make the life of a rookie be to get up to the plate in a batting practice. Among them, McGraw insisted that youngster rookies be subjected to running around the park as many times as possible. Before it would turn out be one big family the veterans didnt openly receive the newbies into the field but they would rather try to keep the plate away until the rookies would personally express their guts and to some extent drive them away instead (Lawrence 77). On the other hand, it was still the role of the same veterans to instill the skills and perfect the capabilities of the fresh minds at the pitch. Rube Bressler having played alongside Eddie Roush had the privilege to be taught the art of perfection in hitters, line drives, yelling for the ball, shifting on different hitters and to also running after a fly. Rube Bressler was mentored by Eddie as improvements right from the first ball he caught as an outfielder are evident from the achievements he made years later. Bob OFarrell was mentored by Mr.Bresnahan who was the very first person to wear shin guards. He taught him how to make a good catch despite the fact that other guys didnt want a rookie to tag himself along and replace one of their buddies. Life off the field for many of the players revolved around family and friends but to much deeper extents the players would link up with their seniors and talk about the good old times. Uncle Robbie, for instance, being a baseball sound minded person and an approachable manager would go for hunting and fishing. At the Dover Hall fishing and hunting place was a place he could talk about Baltimore Orioles and forget about ball game. Lefty ODoul points out that ballplayers dont entirely talk about baseball but would rather be involved in talks about stocks, commercials, bonds, real estate and personal projects that reflect further from the field of baseball. They would also meet at the drugstore and talk about the matches that had the record-breaking pitches and the players who had performed tremendously. This was a culture that was passed on to the generations that were forthcoming and they would be the basis of efficient baseball techniques applicable in the turn of the 20th century and the forthcoming centuries. Among other off-pitch activities were vacations. To Sam Crawford, baseball was a field he viewed full of real individualists whom unlike the sportsmen of the current era they can never be forgotten. He on the other hand preferred reading during the times he was off the pitch. This case was however not the normal routine after years of study due to the moral erosion experienced in the world of bombings and killings that not only compromise the living standards but also baseball has suffered negligence from the society. The sport that once ruled the human operations is played by young children. Life after the filed seemed somehow doomed to those who did not have their career ruined by unwise decisions of club business owners. Harry Hooper later found himself in the club that was owned by a person known as Harry Frazee. His career went south after the owner sold off all of the best men and ended up destroying the entire team. Having been peddled to Chicago for a three-year contract, he did not stay for long but got his contract revoked. He went into the real estate business, coached baseball at Princeton for years but later worked temporarily as a postmaster for 25 years. In 1923 individuals like Joe Wood on the other hand after being a ballplayer for quite some time was offered a job as a coach at Yale for 20 years. The life of ballplayers after the success of their career narrowed down them becoming coaches in schools. Many opted to pursue the fields they would have at first pursued if it was not for the success of their skills in baseball. Though some retired as baseball coaches, many of this veteran chose to remain as family guys in that upon retirement all that they could later do was wake up in the morning and read the papers after which the normal schedule out of the pitch would follow. Davy Jones, for instance, went ahead and started a drug store right before he was done with baseball. In 1915 when he finally decided to end his baseball career he decided to follow the path of pharmacy which he pursued during his free time but later decided to do it as a course that later granted him the chance to pursue drugs as a career until he retired thirty-five years later. For Hunk Greenberg, World War 2 came was the end of his baseball career that he had practiced for close to four years and a half. Hugh Mulcahy was the first baseball player to have joined the armed forces in 1941and did not get back to baseball until 1945 at the prisons annual game.