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Extension News: Extension publications Archives
Hot off the presses, They Sawed Up a Storm captures a fascinating moment in New Hampshire history that will engage anyone with an interest in meteorology and weather disasters, the New Hampshire's forest and its industries, or the dramatic shift in gender roles that took place during World War II.
The author, UNH Cooperative Extension's Forest Industry Specialist Sarah Smith, describes her book this way:
"They Sawed Up a Storm is about an extraordinary group of women who operated a sawmill during World War II at Turkey Pond in Concord. The sawmill, one of two on the pond, was built to saw up what remained of logs still floating in the water from the 1938 hurricane.
"The book begins with the hurricane and its path of destruction from Long Island to northern New England. As a result, The Northeast Timber Salvage Administration (a federal, Roosevelt-Era program) was established to recover the felled timber.
"Four years later, when the U.S. had entered WWII, the salvage program was still operating and struggled to find laborers. In 1942, copying other wartime industries that recruited women, the U.S. Forest Service built a sawmill and hired women to run it. The October 26, 1942, Concord Daily Monitor headline read, Women-Operated Sawmill, First Of Kind in Country, Will Start Work Soon At Turkey Pond. Interviews, family stories, and historic photographs bring the women of Turkey Pond to life."
It's here! The 2011 NH Outside Calendar offers a selection of excerpts from reflective essays written by UNH Cooperative Extension natural resources volunteers who share the humor, insight, and wonder they've found in the natural world outside their doorstep. Illustrated by original artwork, the calendar also offers daily tips and tidbits to expand your awareness of the natural world.
Order today! At only $9.00, these beautiful calendars make ideal gifts for anyone who loves and cares about New Hampshire's natural treasures.
Correction: We mistakenly credited the wrong author with the haiku that appears at the top of the July calendar page. The poem was written by Arlene Laurenitis. We apologize for the error.
Brochure & comprehensive training package available for parents, parent-educators, community groups
"Many years of research have shown that bullying in our schools and in our society is a much more damaging and dangerous experience for children than we ever suspected. Unfortunately, it's also much more widespread and is occurring at an earlier age than ever before," says Malcolm Smith, UNH Cooperative Extension family life and family policy specialist.
"We've also learned that bullying has many serious consequences for the children who are bullied, for the bullies themselves, and for the bystanders who witness it."
Debunking common myths about bullying
To debunk common myths about bullying and offer parents, schools, and communities concrete, practical advice about what to do, Smith has summarized the latest research findings in two publications (order online)
, a 16-page booklet for parents or for schools, agencies and community groups that would like to have a good discussion-starter for parent groups.
"We've included concrete steps parents of victims and parents of bullies can use if they learn their child is being bullied, or has bullied others. We've also included information about the increasing problem of cyberbullying, since today's kids spend so much time online and on cell phones."
Bullying a top priority for agencies and nonprofits
"Bullying is an important priority for several state and federal agencies," says Smith. "The issue is so important that the Children's Alliance of New Hampshire has made bullying its top educational priority for 2010."
House Bill 1523, currently wending its way through the legislative process, would update the state's current bullying law," Smith says.
"It defines both bullying and cyber-bullying and emphasizes that bullying isn't just peer conflict, but always involves an imbalance of power. It will require schools to have clear bullying policies and to use only evidenced-based information to educate teachers about bullying.
"The bill also requires schools to develop policies for reporting incidents of bullying, and procedures for notifying parents of both the victim and the bully." Smith says.
"Cooperative Extension will be offering a series of parent educational forums this spring--at least one in each county, as well as through our 4-H Youth Development program. We will also be offering train-the-trainer workshops for professionals who work with parents.
"These forums will cover evidence-based information on bullying and give them specific information about what to do if their child is bullied, is a bully, or becomes a bystander to acts of bullying."
Contact your county Extension office to learn when the forums and trainings will take place in your area, or email Malcolm Smith for more information.
Download
Understanding Bullying, a 16-page brochure that summarizes the latest research on bullying and provides parents and professionals who work with youth a variety of concrete tips on how to identify and help victims, bullies, and witnesses to acts of bullying.
Order online
Understanding Bullying A 16-page booklet for parents, or for schools, agencies and community groups that would like to have a good discussion-starter for parent groups.
Understanding Bullying: A comprehensive, research-grounded curriculum for professionals who work with youth, parents, and families. includes a CD with handouts and resources, a PowerPoint presentation with narrative, links to Web sites and recommended reading on bullying, as well as teaching recommendations and evaluation materials.
Our beautiful 2010 NH Outside calendar is now available. The calendar contains excerpts from published NH Outside columns, illustrated with original artwork by volunteer artists and spiced with daily tips and tidbits to help increase awareness of the natural world.
Our tagline, connecting you with the wisdom and wonder of the natural world, reflects the purpose of our collaborative writing project: to connect readers to nature in some concrete, meaningful way.
We recruit volunteer writers with a passion for the natural world and offer training, professional editing, and ongoing support in exchange for their written work. Most of their essays reflect on a private experience or encounter with the world just outside their doorways.
Every week we distribute a new essay to print media statewide and publish it to our NH Outside Web page.
The 2008 and 2009 calendars both won first-place awards from the Association for Communication Excellence (ACE), an international association of communicators and information technologists.
We think you'll find this year's edition every bit as gorgeous and useful as the first two. At $9.00 each, we expect the calendars to disappear quickly
As voters prepare to discuss town budget articles, UNH Cooperative Extension entomologist Dr. Alan Eaton has posted an updated 15-page paper on mosquito-borne diseases in New Hampshire, and the various options to manage the problem.
If your town is considering spending money on mosquito management, you'll find this publication especially helpful.
Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE)
EEE is the most common and severe of these diseases. In 2005, New Hampshire had the highest number of human EEE cases in the nation, prompting much attention to ways of reducing the risk.
Many towns and cities started discussing mosquito monitoring or spraying programs, particularly in Rockingham County, the part of the state with the highest risk for EEE. There are many ways to reduce EEE risk, including new insect-repellents options for individuals.
Personal protection: new publication on insect repellents
Eaton has also posted a companion publication titled Insect Repellents, which covers the DEET-based repellents on which we have relied for many years, as well as Picaridin, IR3535, oil of lemon eucalyptus and other active ingredients.
"Wetlands serve many important functions in our landscapes, including flood control, groundwater protection, and sediment trapping, but their role in providing habitat for ambhibians is often a main reason natural resource professionals and communities are interested in protecting wetlands," says Matt Tarr, UNH Cooperative Extension wildlife specialist.
"Wildlife biologists use amphibians as 'indicator' species, whose presence or absence serves as an important indication of overall environmental quality. Amphibian diversity is a good indication that we're providing habitat for a wide range of other wildlife species as well," Tarr says.
"New Hampshire has many different types of wetlands, including marshes, forested swamps, vernal pools, and ponds," he says. "But because not all amphibian species are found in every type of wetland, planners must protect a diversity of wetland types to maintain a diversity of wildlife species.
"Unfortunately, it's not always possible to avoid loss or alteration of individual wetlands during some development projects." Tarr says. "In these situations, natural resource professionals, town planners, and landowners have the difficult task of deciding which wetlands are most valuable to protect as wildlife habitat, and which ones the community can afford to lose or alter."
Guide helps planners make the tough decisions about which wetlands and wetland buffers to protect
To help these audiences make the tough decisions, Tarr teamed with UNH Widllife Ecology Professor Kim Babbitt to produce The Importance of Hydroperiod in Wetland Assessment: A guide for community officials, planners, and natural resource professionals.
The guide describes a biologically-based method for determining what species of amphibians will use any given wetland by assessing wetlands based on their hydroperiod, the length of time and portion of the year that a wetland holds water.
"Wetlands vary in their hydroperiod from less than a few weeks each year to to permanent lakes or ponds," says Tarr. "Between these extremes are wetlands that hold water for various lengths of time, including some wetlands that dry out only in years of low precipitation.
"Hydroperiod is a major factor in determining not only if a wetland will hold water long enough for a frog to complete its development from egg, to tadpole, to young frog, but it also determines what types of predators (e.g., fish and certain aquatic insects) might live in the wetland preying on young amphibians," Tarr says. "Assessing and understanding wetland hydroperiod is an important first step guiding management decisions aimed at minimizing or avoiding loss or degradation of wetlands that provide significant amphibian breeding habitat within an area."
Based on the most current amphibian research, including research Babbitt herself conducted in New Hampshire, the guide:
- Summarizes the current understanding of wetland hydroperiod and how it influences the distribution of amphibians in New Hampshire.
- Provides suggestions for identifying and assessing wetlands in New Hampshire based on their hydroperiod.
- Provides recommendations for guiding land management practices aimed at maintaining a diversity of wetlands and upland connections between wetland habitat, two important factors for maintaining viable amphibian populations throughout the state.
"Anyone with an interest in protecting and conserving amphibians will make better management decisions if they understand the important role wetland hydroperiod plays in determining habitat use and distribution of amphibians," says Tarr.
Purchase a high-resolution CD online ($10)
Contact Matt Tarr: 862-3594 or mtarr@ceunh.unh.edu