N.H. is 2nd state to drop allowable arsenic levels in drinking water
From Dartmouth News Service: Research from the Toxic Metals Superfund Research Program at Dartmouth College formed the backbone of technical information used by the state of New Hampshire in its recent decision to reduce arsenic levels in public drinking water. For...
It’s true: Everybody speeds (within rounding error)
91.7% – that’s how many drivers went over the 30 mph speed limit on a section of road in Dunbarton in one week in June, according to data collected by one of those flashing speed-limit signs. That’s the most fun part of my story today (read it here)...Another NH wind farm rises, finally
Almost 10 years after it was first proposed, wind turbines are being built in the town of Antrim. (Story is here) It will be 28.8 megawatts with nine turbines, making it the fourth wind farm of any size in the state. People and organizations fighting the plan because...A simple road-longevity fix: Thicker asphalt
From UNH News Service: As the summer months heat up, so will the asphalt and other materials used to make roads, and climate change is just making it worse. Researchers at the University of New Hampshire say because of this one of the best ways to extend the life...
Without capacitors from Concord, there’s no moon landing
Lots and lots of companies provided equipment that helped put Neil and Buzz on the moon 50 years ago, and I have profiled a local example: Sprague Electric’s plant in Concord made Apollo’s capacitors, small electricity-storing-and-discharging units that...
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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 WKXL radio in Concord.
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.