Sci/tech tidbits in and around New Hampshire
Vaccines are great; free vaccines for kids are greater
New Hampshire residents have always been pretty sensible about getting ourselves vaccinated, certainly better than those scared-of-modernity goofballs in Vermont because we know a good deal when we see it. And you can’t get a much better deal than avoiding deadly...
Doctors write ‘solar prescriptions’ for poor patients using power from their rooftop panels
One of the arguments in favor of distributed energy (mostly behind-the-meter solar on rooftops) is that it allows us to do interesting things with electricity that can't be done with the old model of getting power only from a big plant far away. A terrific example is...
NH patents through Dec. 8
(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 Dec. 8. *** Method of Manufacturing a Dielectric Lens ASTRONICS AEROSAT...
This is the hottest year on record – but maybe the coldest year of the rest of your life
The EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service confirmed what many experts anticipated: 2024 will almost certainly beat 2023 to become the hottest year on record. It will also be the first with an average temperature exceeding the 1.5 degrees Celsius threshold – in fact...
Science (meaning us) thrives with the long-term view – who’s going to pay for it?
When it comes to science, there’s something to be said for longevity. Consider the Lamprey River. The Lamprey, which flows 212 miles from Northwood through Durham to Newmarket, isn’t exactly a huge river but it is the largest contributor of fresh water to the Great...
Science on Tap: The Air We Breathe
The SEE Science Center’s twelfth season of Science on Tap discussions continues on December 10th. Science on Tap events are free, informal discussions with local scientists and experts on a particular topic. On Tuesday December 10 the topic will be: The Hyper Local...
The scientifically dubious bills are trotting out in NH
It's the time of year when legislators file bills, although many of them aren't actually written yet so we've only got the titles. A couple hundred have been filed; I zipped through them and flagged these scientifically dubious ideas. There may well be others - you...
NH patents through Dec. 1
(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 Dec. 1. *** Pulsed High Power RF Protection Using Transient Voltage...
Mass. utility gets under the hood of running a ‘virtual power plant’
For people like me it seems obvious that utilities should embrace the "virtual power plant" concept of using connected devices like thermostats and water heaters, along with batteries, to balance out the grid's needs without building more power plants or transmission...
Can drones spot crop disease from on high?
From UNH News: Seeing the last leaves hanging on to trees in late Fall is a telling sign that New England dairy farmers have wrapped up the year’s field crop operations and are starting to think about what seeds to purchase and plant next spring. For many,...
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