The Midwest

The Red River Valley versus the Connecticut River Valley

    As the book progresses, it becomes harder and harder to talk about something that hasn’t already been covered.  This comparison seemed to have a lot of potential for comparison.  I apologize in advance if it’s a bit boring.  To entertain you, here is a YouTube video of the Bizarro roller coaster at Six Flag New England, which is right next to the widest part of the Connecticut River.  The video offers some good views of the river and the valley landscape, although probably not on purpose. If you really want to drive yourself crazy, play the Bizarro clip and then play the Queen "Bicycle Race" song below.  Good stuff!

A view of the Connecticut River from Bizarro, Six Flags New England

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28uv8rGxoak

     The Red River Valley is what is left after Lake Agassiz retreated at the end of the last ice age about 7,700 years ago.  It left behind a Lake Winnipeg, the Red River and flat and fertile land.  The Red River flows north and south.  Flooding is a major issue in this area when there is an over abundance of snowfall from north to south. 
     The Connecticut River Valley was formed because of continuous glacial movement and the drainage of glacial lakes.  Most of the current valley was created when glacial Lake Hitchcock drained about 11,000 years ago, which allowed the Connecticut River to flow continuously.  Like the Red River, the Connecticut River also flows north to south.  It travels from Quebec, Canada through five of the six New England states (not Rhode Island) and to Long Island Sound.  The deepest and widest parts of the river are both in Massachusetts.  The valley has a variety of landscapes because the multiple glacial periods of activity left behind igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rock as well as glacial deposits of sand, gravel, and clay.   There is plenty of fertile land but the area isn’t just agricultural.  It also has huge cities and large populations because of the beauty and value of the land. 
     The Connecticut River Valley has had flood problems in the past with the greatest flood happening in 1936.  There was a huge winter snowfall and also an early spring that year.  This caused a number of ice jams that caused the river water to crest over manmade dams and flood the area.  This led to the creation of the Connecticut River Flood Control Commission.   Research at M.I.T. is working on a system that would allow computer controls to simulate the natural effects of river flow to minimize the environmental damage done by dams. 

Bike Stations

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GugsCdLHm-Q

     One of the movements in Chicago is the concept of “bike stations”.  These are creations by nonprofit organizations and environmental groups that encourage the use of bicycle transportation.  The station has secure locations to store personal bikes while riders are at work or shopping in the city.  They even have shower facilities and minor repair shops. 
     Since universities tend to be more bike-oriented than other areas of a community, it is easy to see why Massachusetts, particularly Boston, is very pro-biking.  Boston is sometimes referred to as “The Athens of America” or “America’s College Town”.   I found twenty-two colleges/universities listed in the Boston metro area. 
     One of the latest biking developments in Boston is the Hubway, which is a “bike-sharing” system for metro Boston.  It was developed about two years ago.  There are over 100 bike stations and over 1,000 bikes in Boston, Cambridge, Brookline and Somerville.  You need to purchase membership or passes and this only works with bikes belonging to Hubway. 

http://www.bu.edu/bostonia/web/hubway/hubway.jpg



     In 2007, Mayor Menino created a program called Boston Bikes.  This has included expanding bike paths, allowing bikes on Metro busses, the “T” and ferries, as well as a system of shared, protected and exclusive bike lanes.   These ideas are meant to help Boston become a much greener, more environment friendly city.