Sci/tech tidbits in and around New Hampshire
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,...
A last gasp from Biden: $15 million for EV chargers in NH (which needs all the help it can get)
New Hampshire has received a $15 million federal grant to build more public charging locations of electric vehicles. The money is earmarked to build 199 charging ports – the EV equivalent of a pump at a gas station – in “both urban and rural areas.” That would...
Vt. electric-plane-charging system is expanding
Beta Technologies of Burlington, Vermont, is trying to develop an electric-aviation ecosystem with both small planes and, importantly, charging infrastructure. It installed a charging station at Manchester airport last year (article here) and now says it has them at...
What’s the dollar value of a forest that you can’t cut down?
What is a living forest worth in money? That’s a simple-sounding question which has flummoxed New Hampshire for a long time. We know what forests are worth when they are no longer alive, after they’re cut down and sold, but putting a dollar figure on keeping them...
An NH bill pretends climate change doesn’t exist because it’s too scary to face
ADDENDUM: Republicans on the State-Federal Relations and Veterans Affairs committee recommended Feb. 7 that this silly bill be passed by the full house. 10-7 vote. Any parent knows how exhausting it is to have to cajole and drag along a toddler who doesn't want to do...
Science Cafe NH: “Science of Genealogy”
"The Science Behind Genealogy" will be the topic for this month's Science Cafe NH in Nashua on Tuesday, January 21, at 6:00 PM at Soel Sistas, 30 Temple Street. This free public event will feature a panel of experts discussing the latest advancements in genetic...
Inventor of social-media hashtag is a NH boy
The Union-Leader's Dave Pierce has a profile of a local boy (Manchester West grad who grew up Bedford) who developed the hashtag for social-media sites in 2007. The article is here. As an early technology user, Messina first tweeted the idea to his followers and then...
2024 was hottest year on record for Concord – a record that, unfortunately, won’t last
According to the National Weather Service in Gray, Maine, last year was the warmest year in Concord since record-keeping began in 1868. The year finished with an average temperature of 49.6 degrees, 0.2 degrees higher than 2023, the previous hottest year on record....
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