Neuroscience & Behavior student, Tyler Stetson ’21, follows HB220 establishing medical freedom in immunizations. Tyler interviewsDr. Peter Degnan M.D., Medical Director of Health and Wellness at UNH’s Durham campus, in order to get a perspective of how this bill could impact life on campus.

The bill

http://gencourt.state.nh.us/bill_status/billText.aspx?sy=2021&id=202&txtFormat=pdf&v=current

CDC resource on how COVID vaccines work

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/different-vaccines/how-they-work.html

Information on UNH’s COVID testing lab:

https://youtu.be/dlIt-4ko_5Q

Neuroscience & Behavior student, Tyler Stetson ’21, follows HB220 establishing medical freedom in immunizations. Tyler interviews experts working for UNH’s Research Integrity Services, Julie Simpson, Melissa McGee and Susan Jalbert. We discuss the Institutional Review Board (IRB), risk assessment in human subject research, and ask these experts in risk assessment how they feel about the speed at which COVID-19 vaccines were developed.

The bill

http://gencourt.state.nh.us/bill_status/billText.aspx?sy=2021&id=202&txtFormat=pdf&v=current

CDC information on how vaccines work:

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/different-vaccines/how-they-work.html

Information on the Institutional Review Board at UNH:

https://www.unh.edu/research/institutional-review-board-protection-human-subjects-research-irb

Nature article on COVID vaccine development:

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-020-2798-3

UNH Biology student Ella Caughran ’22, follows HB 199: an act including soil health and soil conservation in the state soil conservation plan. She interviews UNH’s Dr. Serita Frey, Professor of Natural Resources & the Environment, about the connection between soil health and climate change.

Resources

· HB 199 an act including soil health and soil conservation in the state soil conservation plan. http://gencourt.state.nh.us/bill_status/billText.aspx?sy=2021&id=374&txtFormat=pdf&v=current

· NHPR Outside/In episode about biodiversity inside the Lee Traffic Circle: http://outsideinradio.org/shows/e23

· The Frey Lab website: http://unh.edu/freylab/

· UN video on soil biodiversity: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbdsHOnd_gw

· And another one for the Soil Science Society of America: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qas9tPQKd8w

· TED Talk on soils: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzZ6ACiXtlE

NASA video on A Year in the Life of Earth’s CO2: https://youtu.be/x1SgmFa0r04

UNH Biology student Marissa Gast ’21, follows HB 345: establishing a license for mushroom harvesters. The group discusses food safety more broadly with UNH Extension’s Mary Saucier Choate (Food Safety Specialist) and Heather Bryant (Fruit & Veg Production Specialist). We discuss the potential dangers we face when eating fresh foods, be they wild harvested foods, farmed or processed foods. We also dip into the risks and benefits of consuming raw milk.

Resources

· HB 345 establishing a license for mushroom harvesters http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/bill_status/legacy/bs2016/billText.aspx?sy=2021&id=149&txtFormat=html

· HB 226 relative to the repeal of laws on produce safety: http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/bill_status/legacy/bs2016/billText.aspx?sy=2021&id=295&txtFormat=html

UNH Environmental Sustainability & Conservation student, Emily Thompson ’21, follows HB 172 establishing greenhouse gas emission reduction goals for the state and establishing a climate action plan. Emily interviews Clay Mitchell (UNH Department of Natural Resources & the Environment) Chris Skoglund (NH’s Department of Environmental Services) to gain some perspective on the feasibility of reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions in New Hampshire by 2050.

Resources

• HB 172: http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/bill_status/billinfo.aspx?id=128&inflect=2
• SB 721: http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/bill_status/results.aspx?adv=2&txtbillno=sb71
• Energy consumption in New Hampshire: https://www.eia.gov/state/?sid=NH#tabs-1
• Information on understanding energy grids: https://www.energy.gov/articles/infographic-understanding-grid
• Information on how solar panels work: https://solect.com/the-science-of-solar-how-solar-panels-work/
• NHPR podcast on Offshore Wind: https://www.nhpr.org/environment/2021-07-17/windfall-the-transition-to-a-renewable-economy

UNH biology student (and solid waste management enthusiast), Patrick Kaplan ’20, covers the basics of composting. Patrick also shares his conversation with UNH’s Department of Natural Resources & the Environment, Dr. John Aber, who is not only a leader in sustainable agriculture but an expert in making the most of compost.

Resources:

· HB 1704 (2020): http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/bill_status/billText.aspx?sy=2020&id=2245&txtFormat=html

· Composting at the UNH Organic Dairy Research Farm: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNTX5vqN2Fs

· BioCycle Article on Heat Recovery from Aerated Static Pile Compost at UNH: https://www.biocycle.net/heat-recovery-from-compost/

· UNH resource on making compost: https://extension.unh.edu/resource/composting-home-gardener-fact-sheet

· UNH resource on buying compost: https://extension.unh.edu/resource/purchasing-compost-tip-sheet

Read essays on weather, climate and climate change at: https://lessheatmorelight.substack.com/

After attending public hearings held by the NH House Committee on Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs and the House Committee on Resources, Recreation & Development, UNH Nutrition student, Max LaPointe ’21, leads a conversation on how dental health influences our overall health.

Max interviews Dr. Maggie Dylewski Begis, Clinical Professor in UNH’s Agriculture, Nutrition and Food Systems and Director of the Didactic Program in Dietetics. They discuss how to evaluate health information we read on the internet and try to figure out …what the deal is with fluoride?

Resources:

· HB 103 establishing a dental benefit under the state Medicaid program: http://gencourt.state.nh.us/bill_status/Results.aspx?q=1&txtbillnumber=HB103&txtsessionyear=2021

· HB 611 abolishing fluoridation in water: http://gencourt.state.nh.us/bill_status/Results.aspx?q=1&txtbillnumber=HB611&txtsessionyear=2021

· Recommended tutorial for learning how to evaluate internet health information: https://medlineplus.gov/webeval/webeval.html

· Tool to see which water systems add fluoride: https://nccd.cdc.gov/DOH_MWF/Default/Default.aspx

· Alaska community water fluoridation study: https://bmcoralhealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12903-018-0684-2

· CA adult Medicaid dental study: https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/hlthaff.2014.1358

After attending public hearings held by the NH House Committee on Executive Departments and Administration, UNH Sustainable Agriculture student, Allie Pisano, ’22, leads a conversation on how a potential change in time zone might affect day to day life in the northeast.

The group is joined by chronobiologist, Dr. Joanna Chiu, University of California, Davis, to discuss the dangers of daylight savings time and gives us some tips on improving our light health.

Resources:

HB 85 relative to using Atlantic Standard Time in New Hampshire

The Society for Research on Biological Rhythms

Joanna Chiu’s Lab Website