Five Bullets 12.16.22
This week: Nuclear Fusion, Angelo Badalamenti, the B.Q.E & more
Hello and welcome back to Circles In Space for Five Bullet Friday, where each Friday I share some interesting stuff I collected during the week.
It’s another cold and rainy day today here in New York City and it feels like winter is on it’s way - pretty soon we will be getting lots of snow!
I will be pausing the newsletter over the holidays and will return in the New Year with some fresh topics on Friday January 6th. Thank you to all past, present and future readers, wherever you may be, for reading, commenting, submitting topics, and all of the support over the past year. I hope you learn as much from these blurbs as I do!
On to this week’s bullets:
On December 5th, researchers at the National Ignition Facility achieved a major breakthrough in nuclear fusion. 192 lasers were used to blast a small BB pellet-sized cylinder which contained hydrogen The blast from the lasers fused the hydrogen into helium, releasing, for the first time, more energy than it took to start the reaction. The facility was built in 1997 and operations began in 2009 with a $3.5 billion investment from the federal government. The Ignition Facility is primarily focused on conducting experiments which will help the United States maintain its nuclear arsenal. Perhaps one day, a few decades from now, clean energy without pollution, fossil fuels or nuclear waste will be possible.
Here’s 22 more amazing discoveries from the past year courtesy of National Geographic.
RIP composer Angelo Badalamenti who passed away on Sunday at the age of 85. Badalamenti composed music for David Lynch productions Twin Peaks, Blue Velvet, Mulholland Drive and more. Badalamenti, born in 1937 in Bensonhurst Brooklyn, was originally hired as a vocal coach for Blue Velvet and later became a close collaborator with director David Lynch. Check out how Badalamenti came up with the haunting yet beautiful Laura Palmer’s Theme for Twin Peaks.
Amsterdam (2022) is a wacky comedic thriller wrapped up in a murder mystery featuring a star-studded cast. The plot is difficult to follow at times and perhaps reaches too far but the film is worth a watch - it’s based on a bit of forgotten U.S. history known as the Business Plot, or Wall Street Putsch. In 1934, Major General Smedley Butler testified before Congress regarding a fascist coup planned by wealthy industrialists who wanted to overthrow FDR and install Butler as the new head of government. There’s debate on whether or not the coup would have actually occurred but based on Butler’s testimony, historians believe that a plan was definitely hatched and schemed.
A bit of NYC news: the B.Q.E. could be getting a makeover. For the cantilever section of the 18 mile long B.Q.E. which the city controls, called B.Q.E. Central, Mayor Adams plans to take advantage of federal infrastructure money and return the section to a six-lane highway. This time, though, the city will be working with local community organizations to, hopefully, right some wrongs which occurred when Robert Moses disrupted neighborhoods to build the B.Q.E in the 1940s.
Got something to share? Leave me a comment! I’m always on the lookout for something new to dive into.
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Happy Holidays, Happy New Year and see you in three weeks!
Until next time,
KW