Sci/tech tidbits in and around New Hampshire
Mass. is trying a tiny test of vehicle-to-grid
As many people have been saying for years, big batteries in cars are a valuable resource that shouldn't sit there doing nothing for the 95% of the time that cars are parked. Turning that obvious idea into reality isn't easy, however. The technology doesn't seem too...
This is prime solar-power time in New England
Yesterday (Sunday, 3/23) the six-state New England electric grid set a record for largest production by utility - i.e., front-of-meter - solar (866 MW). Note that ISO-NE considers burning trash and burning wood for power as renewables, so it's not the same as...
This is a good month to become a precipitation watcher
Regular readers (hi, family!) know that I've long measured daily rain and snowfall for CoCoRaHS. With the Trump Team's incoherent slashing of NOAA to benefit private weather companies, this collection of citizen-science data will become even more important. So why...
Can bats over-winter in loose piles of rock? NH wants to find out
A friend pointed me to an interested Request for Proposal - RFP - from New Hampshire Fish and Game. (An RFP is the way a governments says "We want something done; if you want to do it submit a bid and we'll see whether we want to hire you,") "Soliciting proposals from...
You paid for useful data to be gathered, so why is it being hidden from you?
As you probably don’t know, since it’s not high on most people’s list of holidays, we are in the midst of Sunshine Week. This is an annual collaboration of journalists and various groups to shine a light (hence “sunshine”) on the importance of public records and open...
An NH lake struggles with cyanobacteria blooms even in winter
We all know about cyanobacteria blooms in summer, when slimy stuff appears on the surface of ponds and lakes, releasing toxins that can hurt people or pets. New Hampshire Bulletin has a story about Partridge Lake near Littleton which is seeing these blooms even in...
NH patents through March 16
(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 March 16. *** Double-Diffused Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor Transistor...
If people didn’t move to NH we’d be shrinking (population-wise, not geographically)
Stop me if you’ve heard this before: New Hampshire’s population grew slightly last year but only because of transplants moving into the state, since more state residents are dying than are born. That has been the story of state demographics for close to a decade, with...
Sorry if this is a bit thin – it’s town meeting season
This is town meeting season in New Hampshire which takes up most of the mental energy for a local newspaper, leaving less for Granite Geek. I should be back to semi-normal next week.
Blindly-following-GPS error of the day
A driver following their GPS drove onto a beginner slope at Cannon Mountain Ski Area, reports the Union-Leader. It happened before the ski area was open. The area is clearly marked, Jace Wirth, Cannon’s general manager, said, and mistaking the slopes for a roadway...