Sci/tech tidbits in and around New Hampshire
Why doesn’t my toilet alert me if it has a leak?
You’ve probably heard the saying popular in home-insulation circles that the cheapest energy is the energy you don’t use. The same goes for water. Leaky toilets and dripping faucets can waste an awful lot of water over the course of days and weeks. Concord wants...
N.H. testing new ballot-counting devices
The towns of Ashland, Winchester, Londonderry and Milford will test new ballot-counting devices at this year's elections - which should happen Tuesday, March 14, although many towns are delaying voting because of the Nor'Easter. The Ballot Law Commission has...
N.H. patents through March 12
(Links to each patent can be found here, using the patent number.) By Targeted News Service WASHINGTON – The following federal patents were assigned in New Hampshire through March 12. *** Sporting Implement BAUER HOCKEY, LLC, Exeter, New Hampshire has been assigned a...
NH town may remove solar tax breaks
Boscawen could become the first town in New Hampshire to remove a long-standing ordinance that makes rooftop solar exempt from property taxes if voters agree at town meeting. Town meeting was postponed by Tuesday's storm. it will be held Saturday, March 25. At least...
The winter that wasn’t, at least not much
The winter of 22-23 was the 4th warmest (as in average temperature over the three months) on record in Concord, says the Northeast Climate Center at Cornell University. Worcester, Mass,. had its warmest winter ever. Surprisingly, the snowfall at Concord (the official...
Solar, wind, storage & demand reduction were 1/6 of winners in regional power auction
The annual capacity auction is a method used by ISO-New England, the folks who run the six-state power grid, to ensure that we will have enough electricity even when circumstances are dire. Power plants tell them how much electricity they can guarantee to produce on...
Amazingly, NH contemplates making some industries pay for their own waste
I can't believe it will accomplish anywhere, since New Hampshire doesn't like doing anything that inconveniences businesses, but there's a bill that would look seriously at charging industries for the waste they create, reports NH Business Review story (here)....
Dartmouth Cancer Center develops process for quicker gene analysis
From Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center: Precision medicine is a rapidly advancing field that is unlocking potential therapies for a variety of diseases and conditions—particularly cancer—by looking for mutations in a patient’s genetic code. Identifying those...
17 (I think) places will consider community power at town meeting
I've written two stores recently about New Hampshire towns that will decide at town meetings this month whether to contract for community power. It should have been one story but I missed some and had to make up for it - here's a mash-up of the stories: The potential...
Our forests need us to figure out new stuff to do with them
When it comes to making money from a downed tree there aren’t many options: you can slice it into boards, burn it for heat, or mash it into paper. That’s about it. Or so I thought, and you probably did too. “That’s really the tip of the proverbial iceberg,” said Joe...
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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 WGIR-AM radio..
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.