August and the Primary Season is in full swing...

We are in the middle of a heat wave here in Pinardville, NH, including the heating up of the primary season.

August started with the first Republican Forum at St. Anselm College, Dana Center. It was moved from the political science center due to the number of candidates and number of people who signed up to attend.
We did not apply for tickets or such, but went down to see the hoopla outside the event area.

Here are some photos from the entrance to the college roads, it was pretty warm and looking like rain while Toots and I spoke with some of the folks here and took our photos.

NH Primary - A year of campaigns.... July ... so far 15 Republicans - can you name them all?

I could not pass up on this one, it was in the Union Leader today, July 14, 2015, and has to be the funniest and best thing so far from the news media on the candidates.


http://www.unionleader.com/images/ul/2015/FITNMugs/candidates1.pdf

With still over six months to go before the NH Primary, you would think that the Republicans would get together, hold a conclave and pick one or two of the most potential candidates to run for election. This many candidates is just crazy.

NH - A Year of Primary preparations - June edition a little late... but here it is..

June has come and seems far colder than May was, so far. School got out today and we have the whole summer to go for long walks, take photos and recharge for the start of the new school year in the Fall.

Toots and I took our walk through the college last weekend and got a few photos and a video of the college area. There were a few events going on, one looked like a homecoming weekend or a class reunion. The tag that we found on St. Benedict said; 'class of 1990'. Near the Dana Center there were many parents and little girls all dressed up, we asked someone and they said it was a dance recital.

The video that we took is not the best quality, but gives a pretty good summer view of the main buildings.

Below is one of the photos that we took. The statue is of St. Anselm, this time we got a good shot of his staff with the owl. Apparently he had a quote that was famous to him about the owl and Mrs. Cronin who teaches English at the College shared it with us. 

"Just as an owl is glad when she is in her hole with her chicks and (in her own fashion) all is well with her; and just as she is attacked and torn to pieces when she is among crows and rooks and other birds, and everything then is far from well with her; so it is with me. For when I am with you, all is well with me, and this is the joy and consolation of my life. But when I am separated from you, and my ways lie among men who are in the world, then I am torn this way and that by the onrush of disputes of many kinds and I am harassed by secular business which I hate. Then indeed I am in an ill state, and I tremble with horror at the great danger to my soul which may ensue."

8th grade Rube Goldberg Project - Student thoughts

Nate

This project was a great deal of work and it was challenging and many a time I got frustrated and stopped working. When this happened I either took a break or Nick would encourage me to keep trying. One of times we were working on it we couldn't figure out how to make the pin put enough pressure on the balloon. We had tried like ten different ways to make the pin press tightly against the balloon when it gets pressed upward. Eventually I was sitting looking around for something we could use while i was playing with a rubber band and I thought of a way for the rubber band to hold the balloon in place. I learned that sometimes taking a break can really help.

Devin

I started this project thinking it would be a breeze, and we’d go beyond what we had to, and we would get everything to work out first try. Boy, was I wrong. It took HOURS of work to get this project to run smoothly. We had to change things so many times, AND we had to completely trash two ideas that I really like. Blaine and I spent a long time trying to find a way to trigger the crossbow, but we eventually had to say, “We can’t have it.” Was I disappointed? Yes. Did I get over it and end up with a better project? Absolutely!

John

What I learned about myself is that even though I may think it impossible, like when we are very restricted in our materials, I manage to get through the pain that is whatever it is and finish the project. I also learned that I work best while working with music. When I was at my partner's home and we didn't work with it I found myself more and more frustrated with this project.

Blaine

This project opened my eyes to the many uses of the machines, and how many times we use them every day. We use a wheel and axel in our car to get to and from school. We use a wedge to keep the door open at school. We use a pulley to open the window blinds. We have an inclined plane in our showers to drain the water. We use a lever to turn on the lights. Screws hold our houses together.

The creation of this project gave me an understanding of how recycled materials and simple machines affect our daily lives. Every day, we use all of these simple machines and recycled materials. There is so much potential in all of us, and simple items.

Seamus

In this project I learned that I was capable of making machines that I did not know I was capable of creating. The project taught me to use my imagination to create machines quite similar to those of Rube Goldberg. I also learned that I should use all the resources I have around me. By resources I mean recycled materials and things people may consider to be trash.

Did dinosaur-killing asteroid trigger largest lava flows on Earth? -- ScienceDaily

Did dinosaur-killing asteroid trigger largest lava flows on Earth? -- ScienceDaily





Volcanoes and asteroids, an interesting combination.

Global decline of large herbivores may lead to an 'empty landscape' -- ScienceDaily

Global decline of large herbivores may lead to an 'empty landscape' -- ScienceDaily





Interesting article, worth the read.

April edition of the NH Primary - A year of change - a bit late but ...

Toots and I have been walking through the college woods from the road next to our house. Currently the weather has been good and the ticks have not emerged up out of the grass.. yet.

During the first week of April, snow was still on the ground and we got this video and these photos in and around the college area.  Students were moving around at the time that we were there and got into many of the photos. We even got to watch a baseball game for a while, until Toots got bored and we moved on.

No major event in this area at the time that we were visiting. Several candidates and potential candidates have spoken at the Political Science Center, down the road from the main campus, and not on our walking route at this time.

Below is a video of the main campus and field, along with some shots of different parking areas that most likely will fill up with news media equipment as the year progresses.

This weeks solar eclipse over Europe

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-31965456

Article from the BBC on the distruction of artifacts in Iraq

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-31941827

NH Primary - A Year of Change - March 2015

Toots and I have not been to the college in March as of yet. The main reason is that it has been so cold earlier in this month and the fact that the college uses a huge amount of salt on the sidewalks, which Toots does not appreciate walking through.

So we will combine our March and early April update very soon.

Primary wise, we have had several candidates for the Republican nomination in the state almost constantly over the past weeks and Hilary Clinton has set up her offices in the state for her eventual announcement of running, if she actually decides to do so.

Personally, I have not considered any of the folks visiting the state as a potential person to vote for as of yet.  But there is always hope...

Solar Storm story

Okay so Volcanoes and Solar Storms, trump the primaries information any day!!

http://m.wmur.com/weather/severe-solar-storm-hits-earth-may-pull-northern-lights-south/31848114

Primary 2016 - March 2015 update

No photos yet this month, Toots and I still need to get to the college, we have been waiting a bit due to excessive salt on the roads from all of the ice and snow.

Meanwhile several candidates have been in NH. Jeb Bush was here in Dover today 3-13-15 doing some exploratory campaigning and Hilary Clinton is forming up a NH team but has not announced yet if she is running.

Large number of Republicans so far and only one or two Democrats. Will be interesting to watch how the Clinton email issue pans out in the election as well as the Bengazi controversy.

Responses to the DVD For All Mankind (grade 8)

I asked my students to respond to the final statement in the DVD For All Mankind, where an Apollo astronaut states, 'this is real, not abstract, the stars are our home" (At the conclusion of the moon missions and the achievements of the Apollo astronauts and scientists back on Earth)


The stars are our home because the Earth is like a room in a massive mansion that is space. Ethan

They (the astronauts who went to the moon) have seen the moon and it was not a dream for them, it was reality. Amelia 

Mankind has sent real people to the moon and back, seeing this it all becomes real for it is and not just something we hear about. Macaela 

The universe can't be abstract because we interact is part of the universe, this experience is very real. Aidan 

The Earth is like a flower in a meadow with countless other flowers. We are millions of atoms that make up that flower. Julia 

That white ball up there is not just some random floating thing but a celestial body that humans have visited and at some point in time, could on a regular basis. Maggie

Stunning Nighttime Pictures of Chilean Volcano Erupting

Stunning Nighttime Pictures of Chilean Volcano Erupting



I can't help myself, there is a hidden volcanologist in me!

Interesting article from the BBC, Where whales go to die.

http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20150225-do-dying-whales-go-to-graveyards

In NH, Biden focuses on economy, middle class | New Hampshire

In NH, Biden focuses on economy, middle class | New Hampshire

Hand Prosthesis Projects 2015 #makerspace

This week was a major building week with the 7th grade at SJRS. We are studying bones and muscles  as part of our Human Body curriculum.

For this assignment, students were asked to create and build a prosthesis that simulated the grasp and release of the human hand, using a pull and release of one string.

The project was a challenge for most of the kids, and all had some measure of success. In the end I had the kids make a personal learning statement about what they learned about themselves in this process. All were able to say that they learned something about their ability to try something different, work with a partner, or work independently. Several mentioned that they did all of the work, while their partner watched or contributed very little, to which the partner agreed.

This project not only allows for students to understand the complexity of how bones, muscles, tendons and nerves work together to allow the human hand to grasp and release, it also provides students with experience in building something from nothing and succeeding.

2016 Primary News from around the world

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-31523210


http://www.wmur.com/politics/scott-walker-hires-staff-in-new-hampshire-as-he-eyes-white-house/31336896?absolute=true

http://www.wmur.com/politics/clinton-consults-warren-before-likely-16-run/31317620?absolute=true

http://www.wmur.com/politics/us-sen-marco-rubio-outlines-upcoming-nh-visit/31375902

http://www.wmur.com/politics/vice-president-joe-biden-to-visit-new-hampshire-next-week/31360418

NH Primary, if you impress here, you have a chance.

http://www.unionleader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/articleAID=/20150211/NEWS0605/150219714/0/UL#sthash.PdzPkSjT

With one year to go before centennial of Primary, analysts say the race is about to heat up | New Hampshire

With one year to go before centennial of Primary, analysts say the race is about to heat up | New Hampshire


Newspaper articles will be added in here as the Primary season progresses.

The NH Primary - A Year of Change - February 2015, part 2

Toots and I took a trip to the college yesterday. Boy has it changed from the last time that we visited on New Year's Day. The biggest change is the huge amount of snow that has piled up over the past two weeks with almost continual snow storms here in NH.

Primary wise, one of events that the college was hosting had to be canceled last Monday due to a snow storm that contributed at least 10 inches of snow to the local piles. This Monday has the same forecast, so probably not much going on for now.

Several candidates have plans to visit New Hampshire in the not to distant future, it will be interesting to see who Toots and I spot first.

The photos below are close to the same spots that we photographed in January, within a few feet or so  due to the snow banks or the falling ice off of the administration building. We added the photo of the statue of St. Benedict because it looked interesting with the pile of snow on top of his book.

The NH Primary - A Year of Change - February 2015

Today is February first, and we have not yet gone out for our photos at the college, mostly due to the cold and excess snow drifts from yesterday's wind storm. Boy was it cold in the wind yesterday, with windchill well below zero.

Presidential primary wise, a few things have happened this week. Mitt Romney (known as Mittens, in hour house) has said he is not throwing his hat into the ring for the 2016 Presidential election. Bowing out early, and throwing some jabs at other Republicans on his way out the door.

The NH Union Leader and NH Sunday News, has stated that several Republicans have plans to be in NH soon to begin courting the public in hopes of gaining support. Not much has been heard from the Democrats as of yet, but then again the NH statewide newspaper has been know to take sides in politics.

Toots and I should be out taking photos pretty soon, if not today, possibly after the snow storms due tomorrow and later this coming week.

The NH Primary - A year of change - January 2015

Since I live close to St. Anselm's College where a large number of news media stations and reporters set up for the events related to the NH Primaries, I decided that it would be interesting to study the changes that occur on the college campus over the course of the year.

No candidate has of yet stated that they are seriously running for President in 2016, many have made 'exploratory' tours of New Hampshire and other states to see if a run is in the cards for them.

On January 1st 2015,  I took my dog Toots for a walk through St. Anselm's College to take a series of photos. It is our goal to return to the same spots monthly as the year progresses, and to go back on days when events are taking place for more photos.

The college is one of our favorite walking spots, so this should not be too difficult, nor a chore.

Below are our first series of photos along with a video that we took from the quad in front of the administration building. We will take a similar video from the same spot each month.

Toots looking up from the parking lot toward the Dana Center.

The lower quad outside of the Dana Center

Left side of the quad in front of the administration building.

Over the shoulder of the saint, looking towards Manchester.

Right side of the administration building, including the round church behind the flag poles.

Facing the gym, and Manchester.

Side view of the gym walkway.

Facing to the right on the quad in front of the administration building.

Facing left of the gym.