Last night while the Blackhawks were fighting to win the Stanley Cup, I ventured down to see the John Hancock building. It is a 100 floor building overlooking downtown Chicago. When I got there, I was told I could not use my tripod, so I put my camera on top of my camera bag and anchored it with the stretchy cords on my bag.
John Hancock Center at 875 North Michigan Avenue in the Streeterville area of Chicago, Illinois, is a 100-story, 1,127-foot[3] (344 m) tall skyscraper, constructed under the supervision of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill,[3] with chief designer Bruce Graham and structural engineer Fazlur Khan.[4] When the building topped out on May 6, 1968,[1] it was the tallest building in the world outside New York City. It is currently the fourth-tallest building in Chicago and the sixth-tallest in the United States, after the Willis Tower, the Empire State Building, the Bank of America Tower, the Trump Tower Chicago, and the Aon Center. When measured to the top of its antenna masts, it stands at 1,506 feet (459 m).[5] The building is home to offices and restaurants, as well as about 700 condominiums and contains the third highest residence in the world, after the Trump Tower also in Chicago and the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. [6] This skyscraper was named for John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company, a developer and original tenant of the building.
The 95th floor has long been home to a restaurant, the latest tenant being "The Signature Room on the 95th Floor." While patrons dine, they can look out at Chicago and Lake Michigan. The Hancock Center's observation deck facilities (called the Hancock Observatory) compete with the Willis Tower's Skydeck across town. The Hancock Center is in a commercial district, while the Willis Tower is in the financial district. The Hancock Center 94th floor observation deck displays exhibits about the city of Chicago. Maps explain the view in each direction and a special meshed-in area allows the visitors to feel the winds 1,030 feet (314 m) above ground level. The observation deck also features an audio guide narrated by actor David Schwimmer. The 44th-floor sky lobby features America's highest indoor swimming pool.
View On Black
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Throughout Yellowstone, the ribbons of color and the thermal pools and springs are usually formed by thermophiles, "heat loving orgainisms." These organisms-algae, bacteria, and archaea--are primitive forms that have inhabited the earth for almost four billion years. Cyanobacteria, which are common in the Old Faithful area thrive in temperatures up to 167 degrees. Other thermophiles exist in even hotter water. Research on some of these life forms has sparked revolutions in an array of scientific fields. In 1966, Dr. Thomas Brock discovered a bacterium, "Thermus Aquaticus," in a Yellowstone hot spring. Scientists extracted an enzyme from this bacterium, which has contributed to developing DNA "finger-printing, a powerful tool widely used in criminal and medical research. Numerous other thermophiles have been found in Yellowstone, each producing unique enzymes potentially important to society. This points out the important point that even the smallest forms of life should be appreciated.
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