Moundville museum to reopen Saturday
Tuscaloosa News – May 13
Moundville Archaeological Park will celebrate the reopening of the Jones Archaeological Museum from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. The reopening will mark the completion of the University of Alabama Museums’ 10-year, $5 million renovation, featuring interactive displays with more than 200 Native American artifacts…
BP Releases Oil Gusher Video
ABC World News (national) – May 12
Good Morning America – May 13
Dr. Philip Johnson, UA petroleum engineer, comments on efforts to contain the massive Gulf oil spill.
BP options to stop spill: None quick or easy
Houston Chronicle – May 13
…None of the options presents an easy or immediate fix, said Philip Johnson, a petroleum engineering professor at the University of Alabama. “There are a bunch of really smart people working desperately to fix this, and a lot of Americans are second-guessing them, but I don’t think we’re going to think of a lot that they haven’t thought of,” Johnson said. While Johnson favors the junk shot proposal, he said there is no guarantee any of the possible fixes will work. The depth of the leak and the fact that the rig platform and riser pipe now lie on the ocean floor create unique circumstances most engineers have never had to address, he said. “Not many people have experience piercing a hole in a pipe with high-pressure oil flowing through it,” Johnson. “There’s still only a chance that you could get cement in there to stop the flow, but it’s a chance well worth trying.” The containment box, too, was a good idea in theory, he said. “It’s terribly disappointing to all of us that they had a hydrate problem with that dome,” he said. “We all hoped that that would be successful.” The problem, he said, is that because the leak is not contained, there is no way for engineers to get an accurate sample of the gases present at its source. The best engineers can do is use trial and error. “In this case, they may be flying by the seat of their pants,” Johnson said…
Reed: Skipping Alabama Democratic Conference convention could cost Davis
Montgomery Advertiser – May 13
…David Lanoue, chairman of the University of Alabama Department of Political Science, said how much impact an ADC endorsement, or a lack of one in Davis’ case, matters remains to be seen. It didn’t carry much weight in the election of then-candidate Barack Obama in the state Democratic primary two years ago. Black voters in the state overwhelmingly voted for Obama in that election. “Davis is likely hoping that black voters will recognize the historic opportunity they have now, the same way they recognized it two years ago, and be reluctant to abandon the first serious African-American contender for governor since Reconstruction,” he said. Lanoue said Davis is focused on November. “This has all been about threading the needle, and staying viable in the primary so that he can remain viable in the general election,” he said…