More than 28 years ago I interviewed Kenneth Levasseur, a professor at UMass-Lowell, about his innovative new project: A math class via email. In the resulting column I noted that the course, the school’s first official online class, would have students answer questions sent by Levasseur, use email to “pepper him with questions and comments” and put together a “software notebook to demonstrate their knowledge.” In 1995, it was news that a nearby university (I was working in Nashua at the time) offered a credit class via the Internet in any form since schools were just starting to tiptoe into ..read more

(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 April 21. *** Rod End With Locking Device for Struts ALBANY ENGINEERED COMPOSITES, INC., Rochester, New Hampshire has been assigned a patent (No. US 11959511 B2, initially filed April 8, 2021) developed by three inventors Ralph Funck, Kaiserslautern, Germany; Martin Welsch, Henschtal, Germany; and Alexander Wieland, Rodalben, Germany, for “Rod end with locking device for struts.” *** Midair Deployment of ..read more

A couple of anit-vaccine bills are making it through the GOP-controlled NH House. One would remove all vaccine requirements (including polio!) for children entering daycare or private kindergarten (HB 1213), leaving it in place only for public school, while another (HB1194) that tries to sidestep vaccine requirements by changing the definition of “noncommunicable disease”, removing “infectious” as part of the definition, leaving only “transmissible from person-to-person.” Obviously, either of these would be really stupid ..read more

If you’ve been forwarded this newsletter and want to subscribe, add your email at the Granite Geek blog: granitegeek.concordmonitor.com  Suggestions or comments? Drop me a line: dbrooks@cmonitor.com I’m on Mastodon these days, the newsie.social server ..read more

The state has rejected an interesting proposal to change the way the huge, 146,000-acre Connecticut Lakes Headwater Tract of forest in northern New Hampshire, saying that a plan t o emphasize getting paid for keeping trees upright to store carbon takes away too much of the forestry that is the traditional economic benefit of the Great North Woods. InDepthNH has the whole story here. Aurora Sustainable Forestry, which is in the carbon-credit business, needed approval from New Hampshire because the site is covered by a conservation easement. The rejection was based on arguments economic, not env ..read more

One of my favorite parts of hiking in New Hampshire is coming across a rushing brook or mountain stream. They are one of nature’s most beautiful creations. But we live in reality so I realize there are complications even when things are beautiful. For example, I don’t drink any water in the White Mountains untreated because of possible gut-disrupting microbes from wildlife. There’s also the fact that decades of acid rain from burning fossil fuels has altered the pH of the water, which is slightly depressing. Now there’s something else to think about: That stream is releasing a potent greenhous ..read more

From UNH News Service: Even though they are a major draw for tourists, and important for forest habitat, moose are shy and can be a challenge to track to help protect from adversities like certain forest and land management and environmental factors like the increase of winter ticks. Researchers at the University of New Hampshire have turned to publicly available online videos to help develop a method to assess wild moose sounds, in their natural environment, and identify the distinct differences by age and sex in an important first step in creating an acoustic network that could help track ..read more

(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 April 14. *** Assessing Printer Quality by Assigning Quality Scores to Images ELECTRONICS FOR IMAGING, INC., Londonderry, New Hampshire has been assigned a patent (No. US 11954849 B2, initially filed Oct. 7, 2022) developed by Hanan Yosefi, Ganei tikva, Israel, and Dani Barel, Herzlia, Israel, for “Assessing printer quality by assigning quality scores to images.” *** System Security Evaluation Model BAE ..read more

Have you ever wondered what really happens behind the scenes of a criminal investigation? Join us for a look into the world of forensic science! Our panel of experts from law enforcement and the State’s medical examiner’s office will share their insights and experiences using cutting-edge techniques to solve crimes. Forensic Science: Finding the Underlying Truth Wednesday, April 17, 2024, 6:30 – 8:00pm The Rambling House, Factory St, Nashua, NH Want to Attend? This is your chance to ask the experts you’re burning questions and go beyond the crime scene tape. Reservations are requested, but not ..read more

From ISO-New England: As expected, the April 8 solar eclipse led to a steep and significant decrease in solar energy production, but due to extensive planning by ISO New England operators, the event caused no disruptions to the power system. Portions of Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine were in the eclipse’s path of totality, while the rest of New England saw at least 80% of the sun blocked during the event’s peak. These conditions led regional solar production to drop by an estimated 4,000 megawatts (MW) over the course of two hours. “Our preparations paid dividends,” said Steven Gould, the ..read more