Sci/tech tidbits in and around New Hampshire
The ice runway is almost open!
There's a good chance that the state's most unusual piece of transportation infrastructure will be in operation this month, luring pilots from hundreds of miles away who want to say they've landed on an ice runway. It will also lure at least one fan from Concord....
Tired: Golf. Wired: 30 MW solar farm.
A solar developer has paid nearly $25 million to buy a public golf course that spans Bellingham and Franklin in Massachusetts, with a plan to close the course and install a 30-megawatt solar array. Full story is here.
Long-term forecasts of electricity need are getting very hard to do
Energy Central reports on ISO-New England's request to change the way it predicts what capacity will be needed in the future: "The grid operator asked FERC to approve prompt auctions starting in 2028, effectively admitting that the volatility of AI data centers and EV...
NH patents through Jan. 4
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 in the week through Jan. 4. Shock and Thermal Protection for Smart Munitions BAE...
Vermont farm is holding a summer camp for ‘collapse-aware humans’
A farm in Vermont says it is holding a "collapse camp" this summer, "where collapse-aware humans can find each other, fellowship, and peace." Sort of like agri-tourism except for people who binge-watched "Walking Dead" rather than "Biggest Little Farm" This is either...
The question of what stores should do as pennies disappear is more complicated than it sounds
A few weeks ago I wrote about my experience living in a place where US purchases were made without pennies (here it is, if you missed it). Prices were rounded up or down to the nearest nickel, which is why I called it "Americans are going to have to learn to calculate...
I’ve had a change of heart: In an A.I. slop-filled world, writing with cursive is a shield
Two and a half years ago, I presented a carefully thought-out argument for not requiring schools to teach cursive, calling it the equivalent of teaching about slide rules. I expected praise for my insight, but instead was berated as a dunderhead by more readers than I...
Science on Tap: Dinosaurs! Digging them up and drawing them
The SEE Science Center continues its 13th season of Science on Tap on January 13th. Science on Tap events are informal discussions with local scientists and experts on a particular topic presented by the SEE Science Center. On Tuesday January 13th our topic...
Proposed NH laws: No doxxing, no facial recognition, no hidden knotweed – and no chasing pigs for fun!
I had an abbreviated version of this post on the blog recently but expanded it for the Monitor. Here's that version: in this news-free time of year, I'm not shy about recycling material! As Christmas approached, the 400 members of the House and 24 senators have...
NH had a mixed bag of energy news this year
The biggest national news in 2025 often involved energy — how to make it, who gets to use it, who is going to need it. New Hampshire has sidestepped most of those questions so far but still saw plenty of energy news. Goodbye, coal The closing of the Merrimack Station...
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