A new chemical process could turn discarded lobster shells into biodegradable plastic. Researchers at McGill University in Montreal say they have found a way to easily turn material from the shells of crustaceans and insects into plastics. “It is completely nontoxic and generated from waste material,” said Audrey Moores, an assistant professor of chemistry at […]
research
Posted inSports
UMF scholar trying to line up optimal batting order
FARMINGTON — Sean Cabaniss spends his days doing what rabid fans of America’s pastime dream of: boiling down pro baseball lineups into mathematical formulas. The University of Maine at Farmington fifth-year student and Wilson Scholarship recipient is on a quest to discover an optimal Major League Baseball lineup through a research project. “I wouldn’t be […]
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Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Bates researchers study climate through clams
LEWISTON (AP) — The National Science Foundation has awarded $337,228 to a Bates College oceanographer and a geologist to continue climate research based on the shells of clams. Biology professor William Ambrose and geology professor Michael Retelle said they’ll analyze the natural record archived in clamshells over a millennium to plot changes in sea temperature. […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
UMaine gets $700K for particleboard research
ORONO — Researchers at the University of Maine are receiving $700,000 in grants to develop environmentally friendly particleboard panels. The money is from P3Nano, a public-private partnership started by the federal Endowment for Forestry and Communities and the U.S. Forest Service. One $350,000 grant will help UMaine scientists to make strong, recyclable particleboard panels for […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences turns 40
EAST BOOTHBAY — Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences is celebrating its 40th anniversary in East Boothbay. The marine science institute will welcome Sen. Angus King and other speakers to its campus for the Friday anniversary event. King will provide the keynote speech. Laboratory tours and a reception will follow. Other speakers will include Henry Bryant […]
Posted inRiver Valley, sj-web
Biologists re-capture ‘Big John,’ a black bear featured in 2010 BDN story
TOWNSHIP 36 MD — When Randy Cross last saw “Big John,” the 7-year-old 364-pound black bear was snoozing beside a tree in remote Washington County, shaking off the effects of the sedative that was administered an hour earlier. That was four years ago, when Cross, a wildlife biologist with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Biologists re-capture ‘Big John,’ a black bear featured in 2010 BDN story
TOWNSHIP 36 MD — When Randy Cross last saw “Big John,” the 7-year-old 364-pound black bear was snoozing beside a tree in remote Washington County, shaking off the effects of the sedative that was administered an hour earlier. That was four years ago, when Cross, a wildlife biologist with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries […]
Posted inNew England, sj-web
UNH researches getting grant money to assist in white-nose syndrome bat research
DURHAM, N.H. — The University of New Hampshire is getting some grant money to do research on white-nose syndrome, a fungal infection that has killed hibernating bats in eastern North America. Jeffrey Foster and Kevin Drees at the University of New Hampshire are part of a team studying bat fungus. Joining them are researchers from […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Bees in blueberry production focus of 5-year research project
Renting commercial beehives is, on average, the single most expensive production cost for Maine’s blueberry growers, according to Frank Drummond, an entomology specialist and professor of insect ecology at the University of Maine. “On the other hand, it’s also one of the most important,” he was quick to add. “If you don’t manage all your […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
University of Maine researchers get federal money for fishing industry projects
PORTLAND — Three University of Maine research scientists will receive grants from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for projects related to the fishing industry. Aquaculture professor Heather Hamlin will receive $249,516 for a project that seeks to determine if rising ocean temperature is a cause of the lobster population decline in southern New England. […]