Boys Town

Boys Town is the true-ish story of a real man, Father Edward Flanagan (Spencer Tracy), a penniless Catholic priest who -- through an incredibly shrewd combination of bargaining and guilt-tripping -- scrounges money, furniture, food, and just about everything else in order to start a progressive orphanage called Boys Town, prompted from a death row inmate's final words about his youth.

It's a far cry from the grim institutions of the day. Boys Town is built on the idea that young people are people first, and they just need a little guidance and help. Everyone is free to leave whenever they want. They even elect a mayor from their midst, and they have a working penal system, too. Into this mix comes Whitey Marsh (Mickey Rooney), a gangster wannabe who throws the biggest wrench into Boys Town yet. Flanagan has a difficult time reaching Whitey, but eventually he'll come around... or will he?

Boys Town is a very warm movie full of emotion and -- plain and simple -- good advice for anyone dealing with a problem child. Tracy is the father figure -- and the father -- that everyone will wish they'd had. He's also just a great actor who turns in a perfect performance here; in fact, he won the Oscar for the role, his second (and final) win, despite a career that would span another 30 years.

How is Stand and Deliver an important movie?

Stand and Deliver is an important movie because a dedicated teacher inspires his dropout prone students to learn calculus to build up their self-esteem. He believes and them and teaches them dedication and to believe in themselves. And in the end they all succeed.

Earth Science

Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects (such as stars, planets, comets, nebulae, star clusters and galaxies) and phenomena that originate outside the Earth's atmosphere (such as the cosmic background radiation). It is concerned with the evolution, physics, chemistry, meteorology, and motion of celestial objects, as well as the formation and development of the universe.

Northridge Earthquake

The Northridge earthquake occurred at 4:30 a.m. local time on January 17, 1994. Northridge is located about 30 km northwest of Los Angeles. This earthquake had a 6.9 moment magnitude. The hypocentral depth was 19 km. The duration was about 10 seconds to 20 seconds. The earthquake occurred along a "blind" thrust fault, close to the San Andreas fault. Note that a blind fault is a fault which does not extend to the surface. In other words, it is buried.

The Northridge earthquake was the worst earthquake in the Los Angeles basin since the San Fernando earthquake in 1971, which had a 6.7 magnitude.

EARTHQUAKE, TSUNAMI AND NUCLEAR CRISIS

On March 11, 2011, an earthquake struck off the coast of Japan, churning up a devastating tsunami that swept over cities and farmland in the northern part of the country and set off warnings as far away the west coast of the United States and South America. Recorded as 9.0 on the Richter scale, it was the most powerful quake ever to hit the country. As the nation struggled with a rescue effort, it also faced the worst nuclear emergency since Chernobyl; explosions and leaks of radioactive gas took place in three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station that suffered partial meltdowns, while spent fuel rods at another reactor overheated and caught fire, releasing radioactive material directly into the atmosphere. Japanese officials turned to increasingly desperate measures, while their American counterparts gave a far more dire appraisal of the dangers.
As of March 24, the official death toll had been raised to more than 9,500, and more than 16,000 people are listed as missing, although there may be some overlap between the two groups. The final toll is expected to reach nearly 20,000.

Earthquake hazards in california

The first strong earthquake listed in earthquake annals for California occurred in the Los Angeles region in 1769, probably near the San Andreas Fault. Four violent shocks were recorded by the Gaspar de Portola Expedition, in camp about 30 miles southeast of Los Angeles center. Most authorities speculate, even though the record is very incomplete, that this was a major earthquake.
Forty persons attending church at San Juan Capistrano on December 8, 1812, were killed by a strong earthquake that destroyed the church. Many mission buildings were severely damaged there and at San Gabriel. The shock probably centered on a submarine fault offshore.

Seismic Waves

Seismic waves are waves of energy that travel through the earth, for example as a result of an earthquake, explosion, or some other process that imparts low-frequency acoustic energy. Many other natural and anthropogenic sources create low amplitude waves commonly referred to as ambient vibrations. Seismic waves are studied by seismologists and geophysicists. Seismic wavefields are measured by a seismograph, geophone, hydrophone (in water), or accelerometer.