A TWRC Education Video – In Defense of Opossums

As a wildlife rehabilitation and education facility, we see and hear every day how the public is misinformed, or uninformed, with respect to the opossum. Designed for children and adults, this video has been created as an education tool to show the opossum as it truly is, present facts, and to dispel some of the myths about this wonderful creature. TWRC is an urban wildlife emergency and rehabilitative care facility serving the Greater Houston area. Established in 1979, TWRC focuses on conservation, public education, and wildlife rehabilitation, and is operated by part-time staff and volunteers who are permitted rehabilitators and animal lovers. TWRC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization which receives no federal or state funding. Because of this, we rely on individual, corporate, and foundation contributions to continue our efforts in preserving and caring for Texas wildlife.

Visit them at www.twrc-houston.org or call 713-468-8972 to learn how you can become a volunteer or donate to our organization.

Our Biggest Attraction is The Houston Space Center

The Houston Space Center is the top tourist attraction in Houston and it is very easy to see why more schools and private visitors come here than any other tourist attraction in this great city.

President Kennedy threw down the challenge for America to reach the moon by the end of the 1960′s and the story of mankind’s first steps on the moon and even further into the depths of space are preserved here at the Space Center.  From the very earliest days of man’s efforts to create a propulsion vehicle that could get itself off the ground to the most advanced and dangerous efforts to send man to other planets in the solar system, the Houston Space Center is the most comprehensive display of its kind in the world with many exhibits having actually been used in space and one of the very few places in the world where you can hold an actual moon rock

The Houston Space Center will take you on a journey through time and space as the equipment and technology that was developed since the days of Robert Goddard, the father of modern rocketry, are preserved for posterity and your enjoyment

It is not just the huge array of equipment that is on display here as there are numerous opportunities to see and become involved in the training programs that have been used to train and prepare astronauts for their trip into space. Now people from all walks of life and of all ages are able to experience for themselves what it takes to become an astronaut.

Becoming an astronaut is a dream many of us have had from childhood, however the reality is very different from what we imagine; training is stringent and before training can even begin there are minimum mandatory requirements in respect of education, physical fitness and mental aptitude.  Less than 5% of applicants are actually passed for astronaut training but you can gain firsthand knowledge of just what it takes.

At the Houston Space Center you can experience weightlessness and the sensation of lift off from the launch pad of Cape Kennedy while talking to a real life astronaut who has ventured into space. Try your hand at landing the Space Shuttle and experience what it feels like to walk in space wearing a space suit!  Get an inside look at how we are preparing for manned missions to Mars and elsewhere in the solar system too.  There is the Kids Space Place section where children can experience and interact with exhibits and explore the many different facets of space flight and exploration while living on the Space Station of commanding the Space Shuttle.

The Houston Space Center is open throughout the week with extended opening hours during the summer and some holidays so check the website at www.spacecenter.org for more information.  You will find the Houston Space Center at 1601 NASA Parkway, Houston TX 77058 which is about 25 miles south of the downtown area and provides a stunning and memorable day out for you and your family.

Texas Wildlife Rehabilitation Coalition

Texas Wildlife Rehabilitation Coalition is an urban wildlife emergency and rehabilitative care facility serving the Greater Houston area. Established in 1979, TWRC focuses on conservation, public education, and wildlife rehabilitation, and is operated by part-time staff and volunteers who are permitted rehabilitators and animal lovers. TWRC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization which receives no federal or state funding. We rely on individual, corporate, and foundation contributions to continue our efforts in preserving and caring for Texas wildlife.

Visit them at www.twrc-houston.org

A Video Review of Houston

When most people think of Houston, Texas they think of oil, banking and big business and while this is true, Houston is also a very hip, fun, cool town with lots of entertainment day and night.To top it off, people are very friendly. A special thanks to the Greater Houston Convention and Visitor’s Bureau. Check this and other great vacation features on the internet’s first travel network: www.hooligantv.com

Search for jobs in Houston at SnagAJob.com.

A Brief History of Houston

Houston is the fourth largest city in the United States and the largest city in Texas and is also credited as a global city.  It is a vibrant metropolis with a broad based economy and an enormous range of cultural activities and recreational opportunities.

Two brothers who had made their fortune in real estate in New York founded Houston in 1836 on the banks of the Buffalo Bayou; Augustus Chapman Allen and John Kirby Allen purchased approximately 6,500 acres with the intention of creating their own city and named the new settlement after General Sam Houston who had fought and won the decisive battle of San Jacinto close the site.

In 1837, Houston was incorporated and the infrastructure of a city started to form with the creation of a Chamber of Commerce and election of a mayor.  Shipping was the first business to be promoted however, by 1860 Houston had also become a railroad hub which transformed the city into a commercial center for the export of cotton to Europe.  After the Civil War, efforts were undertaken to expand the seaborne activities and especially by works to create a deep water port in sync with the nearby port of Galveston.

Galveston was hit by a terrible hurricane in 1900 which sped the works to create a deep water port out of Houston and growth was further stimulated by the discovery of oil in 1901 at the Spindletop oil field.  1902 saw President Roosevelt approving $1 million allocation for the Houston Ship Channel and this combination of private and government backed initiatives turned Houston into a major growth center with the population doubling between 1900 and 1910 to 78,800.

Finally in 1914, President Wilson opened Port of Houston as a deepwater port and by 1930, Houston was the most heavily populated city in America.

World War 2 saw a decline in the shipping sector as the ports on the East coast dominated trans-Atlantic shipping however, enormous growth in the petrochemical sector more than made up for this.  Enormous new military bases were also constructed including Ellington Field which was reconstructed in order to train bombardiers and navigators while medical facilities were also greatly expanded and research took off.  The end of the ware saw a reversion to deep water port activity as the bases were wound down and moth-balled and the physical area was doubled by the addition of surrounding land and the metropolis started its sprawling growth.

Post-war saw the establishment of the NASA Manned Spacecraft Center (now known as the Lyndon B Johnson Space Center) and with this the aerospace industry came to town.  The city is also home to the Astrodome which was the world’s first indoor domed sporting arena.  In the seventies, population again boomed as the oil industry boomed but by the 1980′s the boom abruptly ended with the aerospace industry also suffered as a consequence of the Challenger space shuttle disaster in 1986.

Today, Houston has fully recovered and now has one of the broadest economies of any city in the United States.  Only New York is home to more Fortune 500 companies while the city is now the largest international port of the United States.  The wealth created has led to Houston also becoming home to a wide range of cultural institutions which now has over 7 million visitors each year while Houston is one of a very few cities offering year round resident companies for all the major performing arts.