Sci/tech tidbits in and around New Hampshire
My Covid kludge (or kluge – you choose) is a hand bandana
Since I'm in the high-risk group for being felled by the Covid-19 virus (male, over 60) I think I should be adult enough to take some precautions. Here's my kludge (or possibly kluge with varying pronunciaition): I carry one of the bandanas I've accumulated in my life...
Does cloud seeding really work and if so, how much?
Cloud seeding is one of those ideas that seems useful and obvious. Just sprinkle particles from a plane flying through storm clouds, and moisture will condense around the particles and fall onto the ground as rain or snow. Voila: Drought is ended or ski season is...
A little data exercise: How many women are frustrated getting Real IDs
The Monitor has been getting contacted for months by married women who had trouble getting REAL ID licenses because their marriage certificates don’t reflect that they took their husband’s name. Since REAL IDs will be required to board an airplane as of...
West Virginia gave us wild turkeys 50 years ago because we gave them fishers
This is the 50th anniversary of wild turkeys being reintroduced to New Hampshire after hunting and deforestation had wiped them out. New Hampshire Fish and Game's magazine "Wildlife Journal" reprinted an article from 1969 that carried hopeful headline "Turkeys Again?...
Super Tuesday could have really used ranked-choice voting
If a fan of ranked-choice voting sat up all night to devise a scenario that would bolster their argument, they could hardly do better than the Super Tuesday Democratic primary in Maine and other states. It’s not just that ranked-choice voting is best when there are a...
Berry growers are psyched about UNH research
Growing Procuce, an industry news site for "specialty crop growers"*, is very excited about research at UNH that uses tunnels and different varieties to greatly extend the berry-growing season in the Northeast. They more than doubled the annual yield of strawberries...
Maine voters soundly reject anti-vax law
An attempt to expand parental vaccine exemptions for kids was soundly defeated in Maine on Tuesday, with 74% rejecting the ballot initiative. From the Portland Press-Herald (story here): The “no” vote was widespread throughout Maine, winning big in the cities, small...
Hand sanitizer is just alcohol, so make your own (no, not with a still)
Supplies of commercial hand sanitizer are selling out in the face of the COVID virus. Fortunately, it’s pretty easy to make your own because they’re just alcohol, which kills viruses and bacteria, in a medium that lets you spread it on your hands. Here’s a recipe from...
Remote sensors and vacuum pumps battle climate change on maple syrup farms
Maple sugaring is as traditional an activity as you can find, but for commercial operations, tradition is increasingly being replaced by technological improvements in a battle against modern climate obstacles. “If you just wait until town meeting day, like they...
As antibiotic resistance builds, Dartmouth research seeks an alternative
The scariest thing happening in the world these days is climate change, but there’s a close second: Antibiotic resistance. The global impact of the COVID-19coronavirus shows how bad things can get when a contagious disease that we can’t treat enters our interconnected...
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