...The Dust Bowl The Dust Bowl was seen as the storm that almost got rid of the Midwest. In the documentary people had felt that the Dust Bowl should be belonging on the list of the top ten environmental disasters. This storm torn thousands of Americans from their home and put on to the roads. The air itself could kill you, the dust storms made it hard for people to survive with the storm destroying everything in its path. As the Dust Bowl progressed it continue to destroy thousands of fields, animals as well taking a fair share toll out on the citizens. But before the Dust Bowl had even hit if you had asked them what they thought was going to be happening in the next year they would have never guessed the disastrous event that was ended up...
Words: 874 - Pages: 4
...Name Professor Course Date The Dust Bowl The Dust Bowl refers to the 1930 period when adverse storms resulted in socio-economic and ecological destruction to the Canadian and American economies. The disaster lasted for six years, from 1930 to 1936, but in some areas, it lasted till 1940. The extent of Dust Bowl’s impacts intensified in North America following the event’s concurrence with the Great American Depression. States affected by the weather adversities included the Canadian South, South Eastern region of Montana, South Western parts of North Dakota, and Texas, North Eastern regions of Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico, and major regions of South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, and Oklahoma. The causative factors for the development of the Dust Bowl were attributed to two main factors; drought and famine condition in existing in Central America and poor farming methods on the vast dry lands from the Canadian prairies in the South to the US, acreage of over 400,000 km2 (Langston-George, 2015). Based on Dust Bowl’s historical naure, it is imperative to understand the causes, characteristics, impact and draw future lessons to mitigate such occurrences in the human and physical environment. Characteristics of the Dust Bowl The Dust bowl region lies on the west side of the 100th meridian. The elevation of the plains was estimated to be 760m on the east side and 1800m to the west. The erosion and drought affected a geographical coverage of about 100,000,000acres. The climatic...
Words: 3039 - Pages: 13
...The Dust Bowl affected many families that lived in the Western Plains. Environmental problems were not only a problem in the 1930s, but continue to be a problem in today's society. The problems that occurred were the Dust Bowl, Lennie getting into trouble, and the wildfires. One of the biggest problems of the 1930's was the Dust Bowl. One example of this problem was that the Dust Bowl was a huge dust storm that harmed many people (White). The huge cloud of dust got trapped in people's homes; the intake of the dust caused people to get very sick. There were thick layers of dust on everything that was in their homes. Another example of this problem was, a period of drought, extreme weather, dust storms, and extreme temperatures (Waiser). The dust caused...
Words: 770 - Pages: 4
...A. Justify your choice of the two most significant environmental/geographic factors that contributed to the development or expansion of the United States. I am choosing the Gold Rush and the Dust Bowl as my two significant factors that have contributed to the development or expansion of the US. The Dust Bowl. In the middle of the 19th century many people were traveling across the US looking for land to farm and make homes on. When they reach the Midwest they thought they had found paradise. The grass was tall and rich all the way from Canada to Texas. Men started to clear the land and started planting crops of wheat. The most ideal was the Southern Plains. The only down side was once the trees and grass was removed the top soil had nothing to hold it into place. The water from the ground that would have gone to the roots of the trees and grass flowed into nearby water ways, such as creeks and rivers. The southern plains were the place to be in the 1930’s. They grew wheat which the government was paying top dollar for because of World War I. The wheat and corn was used to help feed the soldiers and other countries as well as many Americans. In the summer of 1931 a great drought hit the southern plains, turning the once fertile ground into dry brittle dirt. But the lack of water was not the only reason the ground was so dry. The farming practices at that time were depleting the soil of all the nutrients needed to help crops grow. The drought did not stop...
Words: 1427 - Pages: 6
...Great Depression The Great Depression was caused by the stock market crash in October of 1929 which sent Wall Street into panic and millions of people went into debt and caused them their lives. According to America in color 1930’s, in the year 1929 the United States bank lost 80 million dollars of the people’s money. By 1933 over 15 million people were unemployed and nearly half of the nation’s banks had failed. “The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.” - Franklin D. Roosevelt. The Great Depression is an immense tragedy that took millions of people in the United States from work. It marked the beginning of the most depressing time in the history of the States. After almost a decade of being in the dark,...
Words: 469 - Pages: 2
...significant increase in population could have only helped to insure California be included into the United States and allow the United States expand its borders. Gold was just one of many reasons for some people to migrate out west, fertile farmland was another. People are always looking for a chance to have a better life and this is no different from those farmers who migrated into the western plains. Farmers began to clear the land and the wheat that they had planted began to rise in value so much that even more land was cleared and more farming was done. That is until in 1931 when after the land had been overly farmed, a massive drought occurred (“The Dust Bowl,” n.d.). Because of the drought the crops began to wither and die and the soil began to erode. This loss in money from selling the crops, and from the loss in food, brought on a famine for the farmers and their families. Conditions in the Midwest declined with the continuation of the drought and the beginning of the dust storms of 1932 (Fanslow, 1998). Having lost all their crops, and their...
Words: 696 - Pages: 3
...stocks are traded. More and more people wanted to ‘play the market’ (Buy and sell stocks). [pic] The Wall Street stock market (located in New York City) was not regulated .Anybody could buy shares and they could be bought ‘on the margin’-This is when the stock broker and the stock holder merge their money to buy stocks, for example, people could buy $1000 worth of stocks for only $100 and borrowed the rest from stockbroker. Buying on the margin became a common practice. People waited for the share prices to go up again and then resold their shares for a profit. It was usually easy to pay back the loan and still make money. The day of the crash: By the summer of 1929 there were 20 million shareholders in America and prices continued to rise. But in October 1929, things began to change. Some people realized that share prices had risen too high and wanted to sell before they fell. THE CAUSES OF THE WALL STREET CRASH 1. OVERPRODUCUCTION- New mass-production methods and mechanization Meant that production of consumer goods had expanded enormously. In fact, there was overproduction (more being made than could be consumed).The market was becoming saturated. There were simply too many goods and not enough buyers. 2. POVERTY- The new found wealth of the 1920’s was not shared by everyone. Almost 50 per cent of American families had an income less than $2000 a year –a level which purchased only the bare necessities of life. The major groups who were living...
Words: 1348 - Pages: 6
...“The Great Depression (1929-39) was the deepest and longest-lasting economic downturn in the history of the Western industrialized world” (The Great Depression-History.com 2012). The great depression is said to have begun after the First World War, It was a time of hardship and uncertainty. Although the great depression began in the United States it spread throughout the globe and affected almost every country. It brought about drastic declines in output, severe unemployment, and serious deflation. Many countries such as Britain, Germany and France came out of the war with large debts to pay, this was due to the fact that they had been borrowing from The United States of America, after its entrance into financial crisis the rest of the countries depending on its financing would inevitably enter down turn and face similar crisis. World War 1 also left many industrialized countries weak and in large debts, they needed to finance the rebuilding of their economies and industries that were damaged during the war, this made it harder for them to recover. There are a number of explanations to as what brought about the great depression in 1929. These are structural and monetary weaknesses as well as a number of specific events that enhanced the effects from one country to another and eventually to all major industrialized countries. What Caused the great depression? The depression was also said to have partially started with the crash of the stock market in...
Words: 2819 - Pages: 12
...Climate Change and the IPCC o What is the IPCC? - Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change, created in 1988, first assessment report in 1990 launched global awareness of climate change issue. How the IPCC works - Thousands of scientists contribute to writing and reviewing reports. Does not carry out new research or monitor climate related data. There are 3 working groups and a special tasks force. Terminology – 99%-100% (Virtually Certain) 90%-100% (Very Likely) 66%-100 (Likely) 33%-60% (About as likely as not) 0%-33% (Unlikely) 0%-10% (Very Unlikely) 0%-1% (Exceptionally Unlikely) o Causes of climate change Relative forcing components – Long-live greenhouse gases (Global), Ozone (Continental to Global), Stratospheric water vapor from methane (Global), Surface albedo, Aerosol (Direct Affect, Cloud Albedo Affect, Surface to Continental), Linear Contrails (Continental) , Solar irradiance (Global) Earth’s energy budget & human use Quadrillion BTU 100% Incoming Solar Energy Wood 64% - Radiated to space Coal 51% - Absorbed by land and oceans Oil &Gas 23% - Carried to clouds Hydropower &Nuclear (1900-) 20% - Reflected by clouds 16% - Absorbed by atmosphere 15% - Radiation absorbed by atmosphere 7% - Conduction and rising air 6% - Reflected by atmosphere 6% - Radiated directly into space 4% - Reflected from Earth’s surface 3% - Absorbed by clouds Greenhouse gases (types and impact)...
Words: 2013 - Pages: 9
...Many were left unemployed and waiting for hours in lines for relief checks or a meal; even veterans were forced to sell apples or pencils on the street corners. This was the life of Americans now, within The Great Depression. In addition, the cities were not the only ones to feel the effects of the depression. Our agricultural section was also feeling its affects, their lands were losing its top soil and the wind was picking it up and creating fierce sand or dust storms with it. The crops failed, livestock died, prices fell, and farmers were losing hope in the same amount of sand that was being stripped from their land then used to attack them in the dust storms. These dust storms and the drought that caused them led the area to be deemed the “Dust Bowl,” which caused many families to move to California in search of a better life and lose their farms and land as well. Since these people mostly came from Oklahoma they were called “Okies,” and many still faced poverty and homelessness. As time progressed and prices continued to drop some farmers even took to destroying their own products such as milk or wheat to decrease the supply in an attempt to...
Words: 1329 - Pages: 6
...market did not start to go upward until the early 1930’s. During the beginning of 1930, the government and business spending have risen while the consumers cut back on their expenditures by 10%. The lack of spending from consumers caused many businesses to lower wages and lay off employees. Unemployment rate increased to 25% which is the highest it has been in US history. Automobile sales also declined to the lowest levels. In 1931, a deflationary spiral started due to the decrease in prices. Consequently by May 1930, the agriculture was destroyed by a severe drought. The great plains were affected by a drought and a dust storm which created the Dust Bowl. Overgrazing and the effects of the drought caused the grass to disappear, which left only the top soil so the high wind picked up the dirt and whirled it for miles. Since the dust storm destroyed everything, many farmers were left without their crop. All the farmers were affected but small farmers took a huge hit because they were already in debt from the invention of tractors; which cut the need for man power. The small farmers were borrowing money for seed and they had to pay it back when their...
Words: 1212 - Pages: 5
...The Grapes of Wrath a well-known classic by John Steinbeck was published in 1939, and before it was published, migrant workers were living in very harsh conditions in several parts of the United States. The Grapes of Wrath is about an Oklahoma Dust Bowl family, the Joads, who suffer various hardships while migrating to California. The Dust Bowl was a period of time in the 1930s where harsh droughts led to severe dust storms which ruined million acres of prairie land in America. This story tells us the plight of all those migrants during the Great Depression through the perspective of the Joad family. In The Grapes of Wrath, Steinbeck uses intercalary chapters to provide background for the various themes of the novel, as well as to set the tone. Steinbeck’s previous book had bought him much success and Steinbeck did not want his success to weaken his commitment to the intellectual goals of his writing. So later, he embarked upon a trip from Oklahoma to California with a group of migrant workers. He worked and lived alongside them in a work camp in California. His experience was the inspiration for this novel. The story begins just after Tom Joad is released on parole from McAlester prison for homicide. On his journey to his home in Oklahoma, he meets former preacher Jim Casy whom he remembers from his childhood and the two travel together. He finds out his family has been evacuated from their land and are leaving for California. Tom and Casy join them. Going west on Route 66...
Words: 1351 - Pages: 6
...Earthquakes I Earth’s composition Earth is a dense, stratified planet with many layers: core (inner and outer), mantle and crust Inner core: most dense material, solid iron and nickel Outer core: second most dense, liquid, iron and nickel Mantle: composed of oxygen, silicon, magnesium, aluminum Crust: composed of sodium and potassium rich silicate rocks Upper 100-350 km of upper mantle makes up asthenosphere: fluid layer due to heating from core Plate tectonics Earth’s uppermost layer, the lithosphere, broken up into 7 plates due to movement of asthenosphere underneath Plate tectonics- name for dynamic interactions of these plates Plate boundaries 3 types: divergent, covergent, and transform Divergent boundaries: tension from deep earth pulls two plates away from each other, allowing lava to upwell through the cracks and create new seafloor Covergent boundaries: two plates coming together as stress pushes plates toward each other- one plate forced under another in a subduction zone Transform boundaries: two plates slide past each other horizontally-frequent cause of destructive forces like earthquakes The nature of earthquakes Cause = abrupt movements on faults Fractures in earths lithosphere Normal fault- block above the fault has moved downward relative to the black below Reverse fault- upper block, above the fault plane, moves up and over the lower block (aka thrust fault) Right lateral strike slip fault- two blocks slide past one another Earths crustal...
Words: 11141 - Pages: 45
...effect where the atmosphere is thick with greenhouse emissions, this forces heat to stay underneath it. Some of the big effects under climate change are the weather and how it gets changed. The effects of it on the economy and social groups are pretty big. It is known to change changes the amount of food and water we get. It has affected us in the past. It can kill lives as well save lives with its good affects. Even though we have some good effects we will pay a bigger toll. This essay also talks about methods to prevent climate change. Weather effects: Global warming is known to increase temperatures which can cause more severe hurricanes throughout most places. It causes more floods due to more melting ice. As the sea water levels rise due to melting ice and increased rain, it can act harsher towards people who live near coastlines. Droughts can be also caused due to lack of precipitation and too much heat. Thus threatening the chances of being in a safe environment to call home. It is predicted for...
Words: 3358 - Pages: 14
...Newspaper Article Merlynna Harley HIS/120 January 23, 2012 Jordan Billings Buying on Credit in the 1920s Leads to the Great Depression in the 1930s The citizens of the United States started buying on credit in the 1920s all over the United States because there was a great economic boom. When the United States citizens started buying on credit they did not know that it was going to take a turn for the worst. In the 1920s the economy was booming with new industries and new methods of production. America was able to use a large supply of raw materials to produce chemicals, steel, glass, and machinery in which it became the structure of a massive boom in products. Stores started to sell lots of goods which made the value of stocks rise. Therefore many United States citizens started to invest in the stock market with borrowed money assuming that they would make a fast profit. Thinking they could pay the loans off when they sold the stock. There was more people invested into the stock market in the 1920s then there ever was before. They started buying cars, refrigerators, and other luxury items with money they did not have. The economy eventually quit booming and people could no longer buy things because they had spent all their money into paying off their credit. This left millions of people in debt and many people ended up losing their jobs. The stock market crashed and the economy started to collapse inflammation started and the United States entered the Great Depression...
Words: 1615 - Pages: 7
