Sci/tech tidbits in and around New Hampshire
One NH town, a million bucks in losses to scams
A sobering, but not surprising, story in Seacoast Online: In the mere 13 months since last January, Hampton residents lost nearly a million dollars through phone, email, text, and social media scams, many involving cryptocurrency. “And that’s just the ones reported to...
Electrify everything is a great idea but who pays?
The push to electrify everything as a way to boost the economy without broiling the planet focuses on ways to switch over vehicles, factories and other big fuel users. But what about smaller things like, say, a trash compactor? “We have to make serious inroads on...
When people fled to NH during pandemic, they brought lots of money
It’s common knowledge that lots of people moved to New Hampshire during the pandemic to escape city life and lockdowns. A new analysis shows that they brought a lot of money with them. “Households migrating to New Hampshire during the pandemic earned an average of...
Why ‘ice-in’ matters for Lake Winnipesaukee
We're finally having a real New Hampshire winter in terms of temperature, if not snowfall, as shown by the Jan. 14 unofficial but well-respected declaration of "ice-in" on Lake Winnipesaukee (meaning the five main ports of the lake are all iced in). Aside from what...
Museum of White Mountains looks at our disappearing winters
The Museum of the White Mountains at Plymouth State University will debut Silent Shifts: Evolving Winters in the White Mountains, a new exhibition that traces how our experience of winter in the region has changed over the last 150 years and how it will continue to...
NH patents through Jan. 19
(Links to each patent can be found here, using the patent number or inventor’s name.) By Targeted News Service WASHINGTON – The following federal patents were assigned in New Hampshire through Jan. 19. *** Applicator for a Pessary Device REIA, LLC, Lyme, New Hampshire...
Why is it OK to fiddle with the thermostat on a furnace but not on a heat pump?
The belated arrival of cold weather to New Hampshire has brought back the eternal home-heating question: Do you save energy by turning down the thermostat at night? You may recall that question being answered in this column three years ago. But that was before heat...
A different pattern for NH arrivals, via U-Haul
For years, New Hampshire’s population growth has depended on people moving here. But recently they’re doing less of it in a U-Haul, which may reflect a change in who is arriving. Every year the move-yourself company ranks all states based on how many one-way U-Haul...
Winter isn’t coming, it’s here: Ice-in has been declared on Winnipesaukee
In the sort-of-official sign that real winter has arrived in New Hampshire, “ice-in” has been declared on Lake Winnipesaukee. The Jan. 13 declaration was the earliest this event has happened since 2018 and follows two warm winters that almost didn’t have ice-in...
Long COVID contributes to a tight job market
I wrote this two weeks ago but forgot to post it in the blog, so if it sounds like old news, it kind of is. The lingering effects of COVID-19 have driven an estimated 4,000 people out of New Hampshire’s workforce and led around 5,300 more to reduce their hours,...
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