Sci/tech tidbits in and around New Hampshire
No New England winter power shortages unless all hell breaks loose, in weather or supply chains
The winter outlook for New England’s electricity grid is mostly the same as it has been for several years: We have more than enough power as long as the weather doesn’t get really bad for really long. But the 2021-22 winter outlook from ISO-New England, which operates...
Plymouth State to try some vehicle-to-grid power
From Plymouth State University: Environmental sustainability, financial flexibility, and enhanced student services will be coming together in the form of two leased Nissan Leaf "vehicle to grid" (V2G) capable electric cars. Plymouth State plans to have the first V2G...
N.H. patents through Dec. 5
By Targeted News Service The following patents were assigned in New Hampshire from Nov. 28 to Dec. 5 Parallel Wireless Assigned Patent for Dynamic Multi-Access Wireless Network Virtualization Parallel Wireless, Nashua, New Hampshire, has been assigned a patent (No....
In Vermont, 31 towns jointly run a fiber network
Fiber-optic cables are the present and future of the information superhighway (I've always loved that phrase and darned if I'm going to give it up) and they're finally starting to spread outside through northern New England, sidestepping copper DSL and cable TV...
Evolution is great except when it’s not
Evolution is an amazing process but when it comes to COVID-19, I wish it would slow down a bit. The imminent arrival of the Omicron variant while the Delta variant is still rampaging through New Hampshire is not really a surprise. Thanks to evolution people have been...
Midday solar power cuts region’s carbon emissions by 1/4
Sunshine on photovoltaic panels from Connecticut to Maine can reduce the carbon intensity of the New England power grid - the measured amount of "CO2 equivalent" emitted by power plants per kilowatt-hour - by at least one quarter, according to an interesting new...
UNH free online series tries to dispel COVID-19 myths
University of New Hampshire faculty members in the fields of microbiology, immunology and public health have developed a free online training to help participants gain an understanding of the COVID-19 pandemic and become better consumers of health...
Who knows what lurks beneath the gasholder?
Fans of Concord’s gasholder builder want to save the historic structure because of how it looks above the ground, but there’s an underground reason to keep it intact, as well. That issue came up in a recent webinar for environmental firms held by the New Hampshire...
State cybersecurity coordinator helps even little folks ward off online bad guys
Let’s say you live in Canterbury and get an email from “townhall@canterburynh.org” warning that your car registration is about to be revoked for nonpayment, and letting you know the town’s convenient online payment system is available. Just click through and use your...
As Cannon’s aerial tram enters old age, N.H. considers alternatives
Amid all the talk about how to upgrade New Hampshire’s transportation infrastructure, don’t forget the state’s best-known unit of public transit. The Cannon Mountain aerial tram is getting long in the tooth. It was installed in 1980, replacing another tram that also...
Return to the Concord Monitor
Science Cafe NHAbout Granite Geek
Dave Brooks has written a science/tech column since 1991 – yes, that long – and has written this blog since 2006, keeping an eye on topics of geekish interest in and around New Hampshire, from software to sea level rise, population dynamics to printing (3-D, of course). He moderates monthly Science Cafe NH discussions, beer in hand, and discusses the geek world regularly on WGIR-AM radio..
Brooks earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics but got lost on the way to the Ivory Tower and ended up in a newsroom. He has reported for newspapers from Tennessee to New England. Rummage through his bag of awards you’ll find oddities like three Best Blog prizes from the New Hampshire Press Association and a Writer of the Year award from the N.H. Farm and Forest Bureau, of all places. He joined the Concord Monitor in 2015.