Eminent Domain - What is it?

According to dictionary.com, eminent domain is the power of the state to take private property for public use.

When the constitution was written, some of the founders were greatly influenced by feudalism.

Tomas Jefferson and James Madison struck a compromise that allowed the government to take land explicitly for public use. They did not use terms like "public interest" and "public purpose" for the reason that they didn't want it to be taken the wrong way.

In the case for the Blue Water Bridge plaza expansion, hundreds of people wer forced from their homes by the government.

In this map, all of the area in green is the area around the Blue Water Bridge eminent domain was enforced.

Now, the problem is that the plaza will not be using all of this land and the city has lost the tax base from all the people that once lived here.

Blue Water Bridge - Brief History

The Blue Water Bridge connect the United States and Canada, with the cities of Port Huron and Sarnia on respective sides of it.

The bridge is the second busiest mode of transportation between the US and Canada behind the Ambassador Bridge between Detroit and Windsor.

It it jointly owned by Canada and the US.

There are two spans of the bridge.

The first span was completed in 1938 and is called a cantilever truss bridge.

In 1992, the US and Canadian governments decided that the bridge had too much traffic and that a second span was necessary to help decrease the stress of high traffic.

In 1997, the second span of the Blue Water Bridge was opened, and the original span was closed immediately for renovations.

Since both spans have opened, thousands of people have used the bridge as a way to go on vacation and conduct business. You can see in this video how many people use it in a single night.

Photo taken by me.

Heavy Water vs. Light Water

The reactors at Bruce Power use light water, compared to the heavy water used in the United States. So what's the difference?

If water is heavy water, it means the water is enriched with the hydrogen isotope deuterium, which is a natural abundance in all the Earth's oceans.

It it useful in nuclear reactors because of the large reaction rate and high energy yield. The only downside is that it is needed in large quantities to be effective.

The photo here is of Bruce A, which has eight reactors.

Deuterium was used during WWII to produce plutonium and help develop the atomic bomb.

Light water is used in the United States and is a better reactor with enriched uranium.

There are only about 2,000 tonnes of enriched uranium in the world and most of that is concentrated on nuclear weapons and naval propulsion.

When used in nuclear reactors, enriched uranium can be used in much more concentrated quantities.

While a power plant in Canada might have eight reactors per unit, a plant in the U.S. would have two total reactors.

Photo courtesy Bruce Power.

Nuclear Generator Transportation - What are they?

One of Ontario's biggest power plants, Bruce Power, will be transporting 16 decommissioned nuclear generators to Sweden.

What kind of generators are they, and what were they used for? Bruce Power have released many more photos throughout the renovation process.

John Peevers, a spokesperson for Bruce Power, said they act as a giant kettle.

He said that heat, created by fission, creates steam, which turns the turbine.

The generators that are being recycled have been in use for the last 20 years.

The new generators are very similar to the old ones. They weigh about 100 tons, and are a little bit more efficient.

Photo courtesy of Bruce Power.

USA vs. Panama Review

It seems like it takes the United States three-quarters of the game to get warmed up.

The U.S. style is to come back at the very end of games to win, as was the case last summer in the World Cup.

In this case, they didn't have enough steam to make the comeback.

For the last quarter of the game, the U.S. was the far superior team with more than enough chances to score and enough close calls to make everybody rooting for the U.S. rip their hair out.

Landon Donovan said after the game that they just needed to start the game out better.

With the win, Panama qualifies for the next round.

The U.S. needs to beat Guadaloupe on Tuesday and have Panama defeat Canada.

Even though they were our friends tonight, they need to be our friends on Tuesday night.

USA vs. Panama Preview

The United States and Panama will face off in Tampa Bay at Raymond James Stadium.

There are no changes to the starting eleven for the U.S. from the game against Canada. Panama only made one change by adding a younger, faster forward.

One of the goal scorers from the first game, Jozy Altidore, said being consistant is a big thing the team needs to focus on in this game.

Panama's style of play is to sit back and play solid defense and wait for the chance to break away from the attacking Americans and sprint the other way.

Defender Carlos Bocanegra said Panama is a very athletic team an the U.S. needs to specifically watch out for that counterattack.

If the United States wants to win, goalkeeper Tim Howard must play like he has in the past.

The U.S. held practice on the pitch last night to get ready for the game.

Tournament Talk Begins...

The parity of college basketball this season is confusing.

On Saturday, then number one Ohio State was knocked off by Wisconsin. Just two days later, new number one Kansas was beat at home by arch rival Kansas State.

There is not a favorite to win the tournament. Every conference seems to have

one or two teams that can make a deep run.

Arguments are always ongoing as to which conference is the best. Some say it's the Big East and their possible 11 teams to get into the big dance. Still, others say the Big Ten is the best with Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Illinois.

I'm still not ready to give up hope on Michigan State. Tom Izzo seems to bring the best out of his guys in March. So if they make the tournament, watch out.

Yet, even the small conferences have a shot.

The Mountain West has BYU and super shooter Jimmer Fredette, who averages 27.5 ppg and could carry the Cougars deep into the tournament. San Diego State has an experienced team that has been trough a lot of tough games and could very well make a run in the big dance.

My pick to win it all right now? Pittsburgh. They are the best team in what I believe to be the toughest conference, and I'm a Big Ten guy.

Get your popcorn ready, because it's going to be a show.