Tofu Maker - November 3, 2009 E-WASTE RECYCLER Mike heads to Roseville, California, to spend a day working at an electronic waste recycling facility. Mike starts out the day dismantling televisions and monitors, removing any recyclable parts from them and placing those parts into their respective bins. Then Mike takes apart a computer hard drive and finds that the process is rather simple for the complex technology that is housed inside. Next, Mike moves on to help maintain the Super Granulator, a machine that grinds all of the recyclable metal and plastic that has been collected into very small bits. He crawls inside of the large machine to inspect the vibe screen for any visible damage and discovers that the safety equipment needed for the job at hand can sometimes make a job more difficult than it should be. Then he helps clean and change out the blades of the machine, which grind large pieces of metal and plastic into very small bits. Finally, he starts up the machine and gets it back to grinding old electronics to shreds.
TOFU MAKER Mike travels to Honolulu, Hawaii to try his hand at making tofu. He begins the first step of making tofu by loading bags full of soybeans into a blower to begin the process of hydrating the dried soybeans. The blower sends all of the soybeans into a large holding tank and water is added to hydrate them. Mike moves along in the process and learns how tofu is made from soymilk. This process is done by taking a large container of the milk and adding calcium sulfate and nigari. The mixture sits sit for a while, allowing the milk to form curds, which is used to make the tofu. Mike pours the curds into forms one scoop at a time. These forms shape the curds into large blocks and allow the tofu to begin to take shape. The large block of tofu is then cooled. Once the tofu has cooled, he cuts the large block into 36 smaller blocks to prepare it for packaging. At the end of the day, Mike gains a better understanding of what it takes to make a high protein food that is considered a staple in many places around the world.
Glass Maker - November 10, 2009 DUNG BEETLE RESEARCHER Mike heads to Arkansas State University to do dung beetle research. Mike starts the day by heading out to the pasture to check out the beetles and the dung that they inhabit. Then he helps drive a herd of cattle into a cement paddock where the cattle deposit some dung. Once he has his collection, Mike uses it to make bait for pitfall traps to attract the beetles. Next, he collects the beetles and takes them back to the lab to look at them under the microscope and then identifies and documents them. Finally, Mike preserves the dung beetles and places them in the University Insect Museum.
GLASS MAKER Mike Heads to Fenton Art Glass Co. in Williamstown, West Virginia, to try his hand at making glass art. He starts his day making miniature 't-shirt' shaped paperweights. To do this, Mike takes on the job of being a gatherer. He collects molten glass on the end of a punty and then drops the molten glass off of the punty and into a mold that will form the glass into the desired shape. Then Mike gets to try out the job of being a presser where he will learn what it takes to make a vase by using a mold press. Before Mike gets too comfortable, he moves on to attempt to make a vase from blown glass. He learns that making a vase from blown glass is a coordinated effort and that making glass art by hand may not always work out according to plan. Then he continues onward and joins forces with the maintenance crew. Mike finds out how tough it can be to ladle glass out of a pot and just how hot it can get when a pot needs to be removed from the furnace to make room for a new one.
Rocky Reach Dam - November 17, 2009 HYDRO DAM MECHANIC Mike travels to Rocky Reach Dam in Wenatchee, Washington where he learns that big dams equal very tight spaces. He starts his day by going through a safety meeting to learn what not to do while on the job. With the safety briefing complete, he descends into the dam and twists himself up like a pretzel in order to squeeze into the cramped innards of a hydroelectric dam turbine. Mike struggles with the tools and the confines of the turbine as he works to change the packing material. After a few hours in the turbine, Mike heads to the turbine blades where he builds a hanging scaffold while trying not to fall into the water below. Then he shimmies down a ladder and slides under the turbine blades where he removes the cap to change the oil. Finally, he ends his time in the dam by getting pulled out from under the turbine.
FISH BYPASS WORKER Mike heads to Rocky Reach Dam to find out how to safely manage the fish that swim through the Columbia River using a fish bypass system. Mike diverts the fish to a special tank where he removes them and makes them sleepy. He then takes the sleeping fish and measures them, checks them for tags and records all the information. After taking the untagged fish to the tagging center, Mike performs surgery to tag the fish. He thinks his day is over but quickly finds out that it's time to head to Turtle Rock where there is more work to be done. At Turtle Rock, he wades through a pool of fish poop with a magnet to find any fish tags that have fallen out. Then ends his time at the Rocky Reach Dam pulling the tags from out of the poop.
Saftey Third - November 24, 2009 In a thoughtful look back at his most challenging and hazardous apprenticeships, Mike makes a practical case for safety and reaffirms the critical role of individual responsibility in a dangerous world.
DCFM
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