Sci/tech tidbits in and around New Hampshire
Puffins are canaries in a coalmine for the warming Gulf of Maine
The Portland Press-Herald is in the midst of an excellent, in-depth series about changes happening in the Gulf of Maine due to acidification, invasive species, and other stresses - mostly a rise in sea temperatures: "Since 2004 the Gulf of Maine has warmed faster than...
Birds of a feather are released together, if they’re pheasants
Sometimes being a reporter is a lot of fun - like this morning, when I covered a pheasant release by N.H. Fish & Game. I took the above picture with my phone while holding a light pole for Geoff Forester - it provided a 1/10,000th-second flash so he could capture...
Check out the pump house at a small ski area – wow
There's not a lot of geekery in my Monitor story today about efforts to reopen long-closed Tenney Mountain Ski Area - but check out Geoff Forester's photo of the pump-house. Four huge diesel engines, consuming 5,000 gallons of fuel a day, are needed to move enough...
First Car Guys, now Mythbusters – good shows are ending
I guess 14 years of blowing stuff up in interesting ways was enough: Mythbusters will wind up in 2016 after 248 episodes and 2,950 experiments. But "Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman have secretly known the end was coming all year and have been crafting an explosive final...
Who in NH is going to be hurt by climate change first? The coast, of course
There's a big and interesting-looking summit coming to Hampton this weekend, called Rising Tides, to discuss ways that coastal communities can cope with rising sea levels and more violent, if not necessary more frequent, storms. It's invitation only and already...
Uber driver charged in N.H. is a grandmother and Uber thanks its lucky stars
In a move that must make Uber officials weep with joy at their good luck, the first police citation given for being an Uber drier in Portsmouth, maybe in the state, went to a 63-year-old grandmother who goes to church in town and has already been registered to drive a...
Carbon nanotubes found in children’s lungs – how much of a problem is that?
Carbon nanotubes - rolled-up tubes made of carbon atoms at the billionth-of-a-meter scale - are the poster child of nanotech, since they are very strong, very light, and they conduct electricity, making them a very interesting material to work with. Concord's Nanocomp...
Statewide “ranked choice voting” (instant runoff) considered in Maine
By PATRICK WHITTLE, Associated Press: Maine could become the first state in the country to use ranked choice voting for state and federal elections if voters approve of a proposed ballot question about the idea that went before state officials Monday. A group of...
And now I’ll eat a little leaf-peeping crow
A couple of weeks ago I wrote a column and blog lamenting how climate change / global warming was likely to make our leaves less eye-poppingly gorgeous in years to come. As part of it I talked about how the warm September was delaying leaf change this year, which...
That drone you want for Christmas? You might have to register it
Some time in the near future, drones will have to be registered with the U.S Department of Transportation. The news was announced Monday morning but plenty of details need to be worked out such as how and when and exactly what's involved. Will you have to get a sort...
Return to the Concord Monitor