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What’s It Like To be

What’s It Like To Be | Precious Metal Refiner

Please tell our readers a little bit about yourself, including your name and your profession. My name is Sharon Bachmann, and I am a sales manager for Metallix Refining located in Shrewsbury, New Jersey. I also assist with our marketing department to create web pages, brochures, articles, etc., to help our customers learn more about Metallix Refining and the state-of-the-art technologies and equipment we use. What kind of work happens at a refinery? Our company processes and recycles scrap material that contains precious metals like gold, silver, platinum, palladium and rhodium. We work with companies that use precious metals to make a wide variety of product, from chips that go in your smartphone to pacemakers that help people’s hearts beat with a regular rhythm, to catalytic converters that clean the emissions that come from your car’s engine. We process this scrap by either melting, burning, dissolving or pulverizing the material. Why is this kind of work important? Mining for precious metals is much more than putting a pan in a river, letting the water flow through a sieve and taking out the grains of gold or using dynamite to blow some rocks from a mine shaft and using a pickaxe to collect the metal. It actually is a long process that can be very destructive to the environment and the earth. By recycling the precious metals from manufacturing scrap and waste, we are part of an important recycling chain. We process our clients’ scrap, pay them for the value of the precious metals and then have the metal further refined where it can go back into the precious metal marketplace where those same companies can buy the metal again to use to make their products. It is true recycling. What is the coolest thing about your job? I think the coolest part of my job is being a part of the global effort to take care of our planet by helping our customers to refine and recycle precious metal. It is vital to the health our environment, and I think each one of us should be focused on doing what we can to help. From collecting and recycling your glass and plastic bottles to throwing your trash in the proper receptacles to turning off lights and appliances when not in use, even the little things we can do every day add up to being good stewards. I also enjoy learning about the different ways precious metals are used in a wide variety of products. Do you have any fun/interesting facts about refining that you can share with our readers? When most people think of gold and silver, they think of jewelry, but precious metals have many cool uses. Did you know that there is a silver coating in certain types of glass and mirrors? Or that platinum and palladium catalysts are used to help make many helpful medicines? Gold and platinum are used in many medical devices like defibrillators, guidewires, stents, catheters, hearing aids and neuromodulation (nerves and brain) implants. And new uses and technology are being developed everyday that use precious metals; it is ever-evolving and amazing.

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Parentown KidSmart

How To Recognize and Prevent CO Poisoning

Many people are aware of the threat posed by carbon monoxide, or CO. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, at least 430 people die from accidental CO poisoning in the United States each year, while the Canada Safety Council notes that carbon monoxide is the leading cause of fatal poisonings throughout North America. The CDC points out that instances of CO poisoning are entirely preventable, which might surprise many of the estimated tens of thousands of people in the United States who visit emergency rooms to be treated for CO poisoning each year. Learning to recognize signs of CO poisoning and how to prevent it can help people avoid its harmful effects and potentially save lives. Recognizing CO poisoning. The National Center for Environmental Health says that breathing CO can cause a variety of symptoms, including headache, dizziness, vomiting or nausea. Infants, the elderly and people with chronic heart disease, anemia or breathing problems are more likely to get sick from CO exposure than children, adults and people without the aforementioned conditions. How can I prevent CO poisoning? Even those people who do not lose their lives to moderate or severe CO poisoning can suffer long-term health consequences, including an increased risk of heart disease, as a result of their exposure. So it behooves everyone to take steps to prevent CO poisoning from occurring. Do not run a motor vehicle, generator, pressure washer or any gasoline-powered engine within 20 feet of an open window, door or vent. The exhaust from such items can vent into enclosed areas, increasing the risk of CO exposure. Do not leave motor vehicles running in enclosed or partially enclosed spaces, such as a garage. Do not run generators, pressure washers or gasoline-powered engines inside basements, garages or other enclosed structures, even if windows are open. Do not operate charcoal grills, hibachis, lanterns or portable camping stoves indoors or insides tents or campers. CO poisoning can cause very serious consequences, including death. Fortunately, all instances of CO poisoning can be prevented.

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Around The World

Golden Knowledge

While the gold found in North America was usually in the form of dust or very fine grains, it was commonplace in Australia to find nuggets of gigantic size and value. The largest of these, the “Holtermann Nugget,” weighed more than 600 pounds (290 kg)! In America, a common form of gold mining was called panning. Gold panning involves separating the heavy gold from the lighter sand in a river with a metal pan. This method doesn’t require a lot of equipment to get started, but miners mostly collect small flakes. Shaft mining and open pit mines usually produce the most gold, but they require expensive equipment, are more dangerous and destroy the environment. The largest specimen of gold ever found is called the Holtermann Nugget.Bernhardt Holtermann found it in 1872 in Australia. The specimen is 59 inches long and 630 pounds. It yielded 15,488 ounces of gold, and it made Holtermann very wealthy. Gold is heavy, but it is also soft. It is easy to shape – this is called being malleable. It is considered a precious metal. Gold is so valuable because it is used for many things like jewelry, computers and batteries. 12 tons of gold are used to fill cavities in teeth every year in the U.S. Gold is measured in karats. If something is 100 percent gold, it is 24 karats. easyscienceforkids.com historychannel.com.au sciencewithkids.com britannica.com

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Space Place

Hurricanes and Space

The United States had a rough hurricane season this year. Scientists collect information before and during hurricanes to understand the storms and help people stay safe. However, collecting information during a violent storm is very difficult. Hurricanes are constantly changing. This means that we need a lot of really precise data about the storm. It’s pretty hard to learn about hurricanes while inside the storm, and instruments on the ground can be broken by high winds and flooding. One solution is to study hurricanes from above. NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrationcan use satellites to keep an eye on storms that are difficult to study on the ground. In Puerto Rico, Hurricane Maria was so strong that it knocked out radar before it even hit land. Radar can be used to predict a storm’s path and intensity – and without radar, it is difficult to tell how intense a storm will be. Luckily, scientists were able to use information from a weather satellite called GOES-16, short for Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-16. The “G” in GOES-16 stands for geostationary. This means that the satellite is always above the same place on Earth, so during Hurricane Maria, it never lost sight of the storm. GOES-16’s job as a weather satellite hasn’t officially started yet, but it was collecting information and was able to help. From 22,000 miles above Earth, GOES-16 watched Hurricane Maria, and kept scientists on the ground up to date. Knowing where a storm is – and what it’s doing – can help keep people safe and get help to the people that need it. Hurricanes can also have a huge impact on the environment – even after they’re gone. To learn about how Hurricane Irma affected the Florida coast, scientists used images from an environmental satellite called Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership, or Suomi-NPP. One of the instruments on this satellite, called VIIRS (Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite), took pictures of Florida before and after the hurricane. Hurricane Irma was so big and powerful that it moved massive amounts of dirt, water and pollution. The information captured by VIIRS can tell scientists how and where these particles are moving in the water. This can help with recovery efforts and help us design better ways to prepare for hurricanes in the future. By using satellites like GOES-16 and Suomi-NPP to observe severe storms, researchers and experts stay up to date in a safe and fast way. The more we know about hurricanes, the more effectively we can protect people and the environment from them in the future. To learn more about hurricanes, check out NASA Space Place: spaceplace.nasa.gov

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Kids

Citizen Science

Are you interested in actually participating in the science? Well, citizen science may just be for you! Citizen science is a form of open collaboration in which anyone can take part in the scientific process to address real-world problems. You can help by taking real-time weather observations, alerting officials about severe or winter weather occurring where you are and contributing to NOAA research using an app on your phone. Citizen science involves everyday people and plays a vital role in protecting lives and property. A citizen science project, such as the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network (CoCoRaHS), can involve hundreds or even millions of people collaborating towards a common goal. One of the largest citizen science projects relating to weather, CoCoRaHS, (www.cocorahs.org/) is a nationwide community-based network of volunteers who measure and help map precipitation like rain, hail and snow. There are over currently over 12,000 volunteers nationwide, and their precipitation reports are used by many organizations interested in weather and climate conditions. NOAA’s National Severe Storms Laboratory has a similar program, the Meteorological Phenomena Identification Near the Ground (mPING), (https://mping.nssl.noaa.gov/), where you can report the type of precipitation you are experiencing at any given time or location. mPING volunteers can spend a little or a lot of time making and recording ground truth observations using the mPING project website or mobile phone app. Another way you could become a citizen scientist is through the National Weather Service Cooperative Observer Program (www.nws.noaa.gov/om/coop/). This program consists of over 8,700 volunteers who take observations where they live, work and play. The NWS depends on these volunteers who are committed to taking observations at the same location for a long period of time. Some of these volunteers have been taking observations for over 50 years. NWS provides the training, equipment and maintenance; you provide daily data. Data from the program supports warnings and forecasts and helps build a long-term weather history for an area. This program has existed since 1890 and is one of the few programs that measures snowfall and its water equivalent. All these citizen science efforts are already advancing our understanding of weather and climate while providing fun and educational opportunities for everyone to participate in the process of scientific discovery. We invite you to check out these and other opportunities and try your hand at citizen science noaa.gov

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Cultural Connections

Cultural Connections | January 2018

Charles Christian Nahl Charles Christian Nahl was born in Germany in 1818. He studied as an artist in Germany, but when his family moved to New York, they got caught up in the gold rush. In 1851, they sold many of their belongings and joined the thousands of people who moved to California to try and make their fortunes as prospectors. Nahl and his family settled in a small prospecting town called Rough and Ready. Unfortunately, the land they bought did not have any gold, and they failed as miners. Nahl moved to Sacramento and started working as an artist. He became famous for his work capturing and defining the Gold Rush. Nahl’s most famous work is “Sunday Morning in the Mines,” which was commissioned in 1872. One of his paintings is believed to be the inspiration for the bear on the California state flag. Early in his career, Nahl painted miners near his home. In addition to painting, he made engravings and lithographs for newspapers, books and magazines. His work often focused on miners, native animals and western landscapes. He died of typhoid fever in 1878. A large fire in Sacramento destroyed his first studio and much of his work, so he moved to San Francisco. Nahl’s brother, Hugo, was also an artist. He designed the California state seal. The Nahls were also very interested in sports. They founded the Olympic Club together in San Francisco. Charles Nahl became more famous than his brother, but they shared a business and often exhibited in the same shows. Sometimes the wrong brother would receive credit for paintings. One reason that Charles Nahl’s work is so important is because he was able to capture a very important part of American history. The California Gold Rush was one of the largest migrations of people in human history, and it changed California forever. He captured the emotions and daily lives of the people living through this time in a way that writing couldn’t. He was an amazing artist at the center of an amazing time in American history. His work lets us experience a little of what life during that period must have felt like. crockerart.org californiapioneers.org theunion.com

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Come Out and Play

Come Out & Play | Quoits

Some sources suggest that Quoits is a variation of the ancient game of discus throwing that the Greeks and Romans enjoyed. It was played at the first Olympiad and was considered a martial sport because it could be used as a weapon. The game as it is currently played can be traced back to medieval Britain, which was occupied by the Romans from the first to the fifth century. The game was organized around the 15th century in England, where it was often played around pubs and taverns. It was officially organized with the first set of official rules in 1881. The British brought the game, which is very similar to horseshoe pitching, to the United States. The basic game is that people throw metal discs at a metal pole, and the closest disc wins. For many years, the game was closely related to mining towns because the miners would use poor quality metal left over from their work to make the Quoits equipment. There are two versions of Quoits. In England they play the “northern game.” The hobs, stakes the iron quoits are thrown at, are 11 yards apart. Quoits weigh 5.5 pounds and are shaped like an iron disc with a hole in the middle. Players take turns throwing their quoits at the hobs. Each player has two quoits for a round. The closest player gets a point, however if more than one quoit lands on the hob, only the top quoit scores. Any quoit that encircles the hob is worth two points. A quoit that lands on its back is disqualified. In Scotland and Wales, they play a version called the “long game” or “the old game.” The quoits weigh 11 pounds. Hobs are 18 yards apart. A player gets a point for every quoit that is closer than his opponent’s, landing on the hob is not an important part of the game. The first player to reach 21 points wins. britannica.com tradgames.org.uk mastersofgames.com

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Where in the World

Where In The World | January 2018

California and Colorado California California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. The first Europeans in California were the Spanish explorers who arrived in the 16th century. In 1821, Mexico gained its independence from Spain and had control of California. Many cities in California still have Spanish names. In fact, the name California comes from a Spanish novel written in the 16th century that used the name to describe a mythical paradise. The area became a U.S. territory in 1848 after the Mexican-American War. It became a state in 1850. It is nicknamed “The Golden State.” The nickname comes from the gold rush and the state flower: golden poppies. The western border is the Pacific Ocean. The state has many diverse ecosystems. California has 1,100 miles of coastline made of beaches and cliffs. The Mojave Desert is in California and is 25,000 square miles. In the eastern part of the state is the Sierra Nevada mountain range, which contains Mount Whitney, the tallest peak in 48 states. California is also famous for forests of some of the tallest trees in the world, the redwoods, which can grow to be 380 feet tall. history.com Colorado Colorado also has a history with Spanish explorers. They were the first European explorers, and they arrived in 1858. Americans came to the area in response to a gold rush. The name Colorado comes from the Spanish explorers as well. Colorado means, “colored red.” The name was inspired by the muddy red river that flows through the state. However, there were many native people who lived in the area before the Europeans settled there, including the Ute, Arapaho and Cheyenne tribes. Colorado is famous for amazing Native American ruins preserved in the Mesa Verde National Park. Colorado is nicknamed the “Centennial State.” The nickname is because it became a state the year the U.S. turned 100, 1876. Colorado is a landlocked state in the Midwest. The western part of the state is covered in the Rocky Mountains. The tallest peak is Mount Elbert, which is 14,440 feet above sea level. The eastern part of the state is covered in grasslands. ducksters.com

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Wildville

Wildville | Elk

Elk are a species of deer common in the United States and Canada. They are the second-largest species of deer in the world; the largest is the moose. Male elk are called bulls, and females are called cows. The bulls are usually larger than the cows. The average cow weighs 500 pounds, and the average bull weighs 650 pounds. On average, they stand 5 feet tall and are 8 feet long. Some of the Roosevelt Elk found in Alaska can weigh 1,300 pounds. Although these animals can get extremely large, they are herbivores. Their diet is mainly the grass, shrubs and leaves that grow naturally in their habitat. Elk are adaptable and can be found in all kinds of ecosystems like forests, grasslands, semi-deserts and tundra. A group of elk is called a gang. Only the bulls grow antlers, which they use to fight other males during mating season. The mating season is in the summer. A baby elk is called a calf. A calf can stand 20 minutes after it is born. Older bulls have larger antlers. The Native American name for elk is “Wapiti.” Elk originated in Eurasia, but migrated to North America during the Pleistocene ice age. They crossed over the Bering Land Bridge. There were six subspecies of elk in North America and five in Asia. There are four remaining subspecies of elk in North America; two went extinct. Elk populations can be found in the northern areas in North America and Asia. Elk are relatively common in many parts of America now, but that was not always the case. Originally, there were large populations all across America, but in the 19th century, elk became extinct in many parts of the nation. In 1870 there were fewer than 10 elk in California. Farming and industries like gold digging destroyed much of the habitat that the elk needed to survive. Additionally, elk were commonly hunted for game and food. The elk population has improved due to national efforts to protect and reintroduce the elk into its old habitat. nationalgeographic.com newworldencyclopedia.org nps.gov

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Kids

Kidsville Connections | Gold Rush

It’s sparkly and shiny – and valuable. Gold played a vital role in America’s growth as a nation. In fact, it changed the course of our history. Have you ever heard of the gold rush? There were actually two of them. The first one started in California in 1848. A large gold nugget was found in Sacramento Valley, and gold flakes were found in the American River. News and rumors about the discovery traveled all over the world. There were stories of miners and farmers stumbling across large chunks of gold worth thousands of dollars. People rushed to California to test their luck and try to find their fortune. Some people did find large amounts of gold, but most miners worked long hours and only found a few flakes. However, it is estimated that $2 billion worth of precious metal was extracted from the earth during that time. Maybe even more importantly, 100,000 people came to California and built towns all over the state. This drastic increase in population led to California becoming a state in 1850. The other gold rush – the one in Colorado – started in 1858. Gold was first discovered in the area in 1849, but everyone was focused on the California gold rush at the time. The largest gold deposit in Colorado was found at Pikes Peak, and so it was called the Pikes Peak Gold Rush. Just as in California, thousands of people rushed to try and make their fortunes. They moved to Colorado and founded towns around the miners. Some of the towns still exist like Denver, which is now the capital. So many people moving to Colorado made the area eligible to become a territory of the United States and then a state. While a lot of positive things came from the gold rushes in California and Colorado, there were also some negative impacts. The widespread mining destroyed a lot of the environment. Forests were cut down, and rivers were heavily polluted, which was terrible for animals and people that lived in the area. Another problem is that many native people were forced to leave their lands so the gold could be removed and sold. History.com Coloradoencyclopedia.org Goldrushnuggets.com

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