Removal of hexavalent chromium by hyporheic zone sediments in an urbanized estuary

More than 2 million tons of chromium ore processing residue (COPR) waste was disposed of in Hudson County of New Jersey, which was known as the center of the production of chromate in the 20th century. The Cr(VI) removal experiments were conducted with the hyporheic zone (HZ) sediments collected along the shore of an urbanized estuary located in and near Hudson County to investigate the natural remediation of Cr(VI). Fine-grained and organic-rich Passaic River sediments showed the highest removal capacity for Cr(VI), whereas the lowest removal of Cr(VI) occurred in coarse-grained and organic-poor sediments from Newark Bay. In general, Cr(VI) removal increased with higher amounts of sediment organic matter, sulfur, and silt and clay fractions, as well as lower pH conditions. The removal of hexavalent chromium in organic-rich sediments is attributed mainly to the reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III), resulting in less reversible immobilization of Cr(VI), while reversible adsorption could also remove Cr(VI). The results suggest that the organic-rich, fine-grained HZ sediments can act as a natural reactive barrier for the remediation of Cr(VI) transport from subsurface to surface water in the estuary. Further research is needed to understand the long-term mobility of Cr along the urban estuary.

Creating and Deploying USB Port Covers at Hudson County Community College

In 2016, Hudson County (NJ) Community College (HCCC) deployed several wireless keyboards and mice with its iMac computers. Shortly after deployment, library staff found that each device’s required USB receiver (a.k.a. dongle) would disappear frequently. As a result, HCCC library staff developed and deployed 3D printed port covers to enclose these dongles. This, for a time, proved very successful in preventing the issue. This article will discuss the development of these port covers, their deployment, and what worked and did not work about the project.

The Hudson County Court House and Hugh Roberts: A Building and Architect in Perspective

Hugh Roberts, the architect of the Hudson County Court House, has had his career identified in totality with this building that brought him fame for its artistic stature and shame for his envelopment in the graft scandal that followed its 1910 opening. History has been kinder to him than were his contemporaries. Accusations against him are now considered to have been unjustified, but the imbroglio derailed his practice. The court house and much of the Roberts oeuvre originated through the influence of and his relationships with the politically powerful. Examination of the court house project, Roberts’ other work and the law suit place both architect and building in sharper focus.

Hosting a Super Smash Bros. Tournament at the Hudson County Community College Library

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe how the Hudson County Community College Library hosted a Super Smash Bros. for Wii U Tournament as part of its Fall 2015 and Spring 2016 programming, and discuss what it learned from hosting the event. Design/methodology/approach This paper details how a community college library planned, hosted and learned from its experience running a Super Smash Bros. for the Wii U Tournament. It will also describe how the library continued to use this experience to plan additional video game-based programming. Findings The Super Smash Bros. for the Wii U Tournament was generally well received by student attendees. However, student feedback revealed a preference for less-competitive “friendly” events instead of tournaments. Students also requested the option of having several games available instead of one. Originality/value Thus far, there has been little research on academic or community college libraries organizing video game-based programming and activities event. There have also been few studies about whether gaming events work better in libraries as tournaments or “free play” activities.