Sci/tech tidbits in and around New Hampshire
Science Cafe asks a very meta question: Why should we follow science?
Science Cafe New Hampshire has taken advantage of going virtual to really expand their list of panelists. (No need to limit yourself any more to people who will drive to Concord or Nashua on a snowy night for free) The session tomorrow (Wed., Jan. 19) will ponder why...
Winter ticks kill moose; fungi may control winter ticks
Good story in Northern Woodlands about a promising control of the ticks killing moose. The article is here. Details: Cheryl Sullivan, an entomologist with the Entomology Research Laboratory at University of Vermont, is spearheading a project investigating...
Do I really save energy by turning the thermostat down at night?
Far too often, a detailed analysis of any question produces the highly unsatisfying answer of “it depends.” So I’m delighted to say that today’s column comes down 100% on one side of this question: Do you really save energy by turning the thermostat down at night in...
N.H. patents through Jan. 16
By Targeted News Service The following patents were assigned in New Hampshire from Jan. 9 to Jan. 16. DEKA Products Assigned Patent for Apparatus for Electronic Cooling on Autonomous Device DEKA Products, Manchester, New Hampshire, has been assigned a patent (No....
“As electric rates rise, gas-fired power emerges as both scapegoat and savior”
As well as having an awesome byline, Portland Press-Herald's Tux Turkel has more experience covering energy in northern New England than any reporter around - and it shows in this excellent article about the complexities of natural gas in our electrical system. I...
First deliberate burn at Bartlett Experimental Forest
From US Dept. Agriculture: To break new ground in research on management of New England’s northern hardwood forests, an experimental forest on the White Mountain National Forest had to start by burning new ground. Following the first-ever use of prescribed fire on the...
Internet speeds have gotten much better this year, says firm
A company that makes an Internet speed-testing tool says net speeds have increased in every state but one (take a bow, West Virginia) during the pandemic. New Hampshire's was up by one-quarter, Massachusetts by one-third, Maine's by more than half. Not sure what's...
Keep your automated infrared algorithmic ice-spotted eyes on the road
Of all the forces that we learned about in high school physics, “friction” is the one that grips our attention in winter. Especially when it doesn’t grip anything else. A very low coefficient of friction is bad enough when you’re on foot but can be fatal in cars....
Ugh – southern pine beetle has shown up here
From UNH News Service: Researchers at the University of New Hampshire have discovered the southern pine beetle, one of the most damaging tree-dwelling insects in the Southeast, in forests in Maine and New Hampshire. The southern pine beetle has never been seen this...
Lots of recycled arguments when the legislature ponders open source software
It’s been three decades since Linux launched the modern world of free, open-source software but you’d hardly have known that at a state legislative hearing Tuesday. The hearing, concerning two bills that aim to have New Hampshire government use more non-proprietary...
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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.