Events

Cornell Researchers Aim to Advance NY Winter-Storm Emergency Response

Published

4 years ago

March 2, 2021

ITHACA, N.Y. – Partnering with community organizations, Cornell University researchers are developing and planning a hyperlocal weather forecasting system designed to improve winter-storm emergency response and enhance natural disaster coordination for New York state’s rural communities.

Max Zhang, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, will lead the federally funded effort this spring.

The work is part of the new Civic Innovation Challenge, an $11 million effort led by the National Science Foundation (NSF) in partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The four-month challenge seeks to empower communities to achieve necessary local weather and disaster solutions, so that one day such plans may be scaled up regionally or nationally.

“In case of a winter storm or other kind of natural disaster, there is a suite of actions that must be prioritized,” Zhang said. “As upstate towns usually have a limited budget, we’re tying together technology and actions plans.”

For example: “Information is critical for the highway departments to decide where to send the plows and salt trucks first, and decide the correct priority of actions,” he said. “We aim to develop a transferrable priority-action model for all of New York and then perhaps to the rest of the U.S. through the national cooperative extension network.”

Zhang said his group will be partnering with civic and community partners across New York, attempting several innovations integrating computer vision, numerical weather forecasting and Internet of Things-based sensing packages.

Events

The Rockland Report Would Like To Thank All Who Have Served This Great Country

Published

1 week ago

November 11, 2024

Rockland Report Admin

In 1921, an unknown World War I American soldier was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. This site, on a hillside overlooking the Potomac River and the city of Washington, D.C., became the focal point of reverence for America’s veterans. Similar ceremonies occurred earlier in England and France, where an unknown soldier was buried in each nation’s highest place of honor (in England, Westminster Abbey; in France, the Arc de Triomphe). These memorial gestures all took place on November 11, giving universal recognition to the celebrated ending of World War I fighting at 11 a.m., November 11, 1918 (the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month). The day became known as “Armistice Day.” Armistice Day officially received its name in America in 1926 through a Congressional resolution. It became a national holiday 12 years later by similar Congressional action. If the idealistic hope had been realized that World War I was “the War to end all wars,” November 11 might still be called Armistice Day. But only a few years after the holiday was proclaimed, war broke out in Europe. Sixteen and one-half million Americans took part. Four hundred seven thousand of them died in service, more than 292,000 in battle. Armistice Day Changed To Honor All Veterans The first celebration using the term Veterans Day occurred in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1947. Raymond Weeks, a World War II veteran, organized “National Veterans Day,” which included a parade and other festivities, to honor all veterans. The event was held on November 11.

Events

Happy Halloween Rockland County From The Rockland Report Be safe Have Fun

Published

3 weeks ago

October 31, 2024

Rockland Report Admin

Halloween originated from the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, which was a celebration of changing seasons from summer to winter. The Celts believed that on the night of October 31, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred, and the spirits of the dead would return to earth. To ward off evil spirits, the Celts would: light bonfires, wear costumes, and tell fortunes.

Over time, the traditions of Samhain blended with other cultures and religions:

Christian influence

In the eighth century, Pope Gregory III designated November 1 as All Saints’ Day, a day to honor Christian saints and martyrs. All Saints’ Day later became known as All Hallows’ Day, and the night before, October 31, became known as All Hallows’ Eve, and eventually Halloween.
Irish folklore

The Irish and Scottish brought their folklore about a trickster named Jack to America, where they found pumpkins, which were easier to carve than turnips. The story of Jack-o’-lantern is said to have inspired the Irish to carve faces into pumpkins to ward off evil spirits.