Top Stories from NCPR
1,050 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 3 years ago - ★★★★★ - 12 ratingsNCPR provides locally-produced news stories from around the Adirondack and North Country regions of New York State, as well as Western Vermont, and Ontario and Quebec in Canada. 010329
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Episodes
Glitches? Could be gremlins, could be cosmic rays
March 04, 2021 05:00 - 5 minutes - 4.84 MB(Mar 4, 2021) Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager discuss cosmic rays. While many people may think cosmic rays only affect astronauts or satellites - objects in space - computers and other electronic equipment on Earth can be affected, too.
Animals that make their living outside the box
February 11, 2021 05:00 - 5 minutes - 5.52 MB(Feb 11, 2021) In general, plants make food from sunlight, and animals fuel themselves by "burning" oxygen. But some animals think outside the box. Curt Stager and Martha Foley look at a photosynthetic slug that hijacks the genetic machinery of the algae in its diet, and at a jellyfish that needs no oxygen, burning the alternative fuels of hydrogen and sulfur.
North Country at Work: digging out trains during the great snowstorm of 1912
February 02, 2021 05:00 - 4 minutes - 6.67 MB(Feb 2, 2021) On February 21, 1912, disaster struck in the form of a train collision on the New York Central Railroad line between Utica and Ogdensburg. The story goes like this: the winter of 1912 - especially February - was a pretty rough month weather-wise for the Northeast. Record-setting low temperatures and frequent snowstorms were disrupting the railroad, and supplies were running low in small communities that relied on it.
NYS Offices for the Aging setting up vaccine appointments for the elderly
February 01, 2021 05:00 - 1 minute - 722 KB(Feb 1, 2021) The COVID-19 vaccine continues to be distributed to the 7 million New Yorkers in groups 1A and 1B. They include healthcare workers, teachers, and people over the age of 65. Getting the vaccine is a fairly simple procedure; signing up for it is proving to be a lot harder, especially for those uncomfortable with modern technology, like computers and smartphones. That’s where New York State’s Offices for the Aging are stepping in.
How you and me and flowers and bees get charged up (with static electricity)
January 28, 2021 05:00 - 5 minutes - 4.67 MB(Jan 28, 2021) It's the reason opposites attract and doorknobs shock, why lightning strikes, and the way bumblebees find the sweet spot in flowers. Whenever an object has more or fewer electrons than its neighbor, there is the potential for static discharge. Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager talk about the mysterious and hair-raising ways of static electricity.
Bonfires and social skis: Hanging with friends during the COVID-19 winter
January 26, 2021 05:00 - 4 minutes - 6.02 MB(Jan 26, 2021) The way we socialize and see friends during the COVID-19 pandemic has changed drastically. To prevent the spread of the coronavirus, keeping our social distance, wearing masks, and hanging out outdoors have become norms. Of course, balmy summer temperatures are a lot easier than January snowstorms.
What is a flame?
January 21, 2021 05:00 - 5 minutes - 4.85 MB(Jan 21, 2021) What is a flame? Why is it shaped like that? How does it keep going? Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager answer some burning questions about rapid oxidation.
Why is the sky blue?, take 2
January 14, 2021 05:00 - 5 minutes - 2.74 MB(Jan 14, 2021) Dr. Curt Stager tries once again to answer the classic child's question. It is a poser that was worthy of Einstein's time, who eventually came up with the best answer. But it's complicated. And when the sky isn't blue, why not? What's up with that? Martha Foley wants to know.
'We can't treat or vaccinate our way out of this': Health officials urge public to prevent spread
January 13, 2021 05:00 - 4 minutes - 1.98 MB(Jan 13, 2021) The spike in COVID-19 cases here in the North Country continues, with daily new cases of COVID-19 dwarfing peak days in the spring. David Clauss, Chief Medical Officer of the Elizabethtown Community Hospital, spoke during a video briefing on Friday, Jan. 8, which included county health directors and medical staff from regional hospitals. Clauss said we can’t treat our way out of the pandemic, and “we also are not going to be able to vaccinate our way out of this quickly en...
The science of snow
January 07, 2021 05:00 - 4 minutes - 2.27 MB(Jan 7, 2021) The differing qualities of snow can determine the safety of structures, the back strain of shovelers and the danger of avalanche. Scientists look at how fast it falls, how it forms in the air, and whether or not it clumps into fat flakes to determine what impact it will have on those of us below. Every snowflake is unique, and so is every snowfall.
Is any part of the body original equipment?
December 31, 2020 05:00 - 5 minutes - 2.36 MB(Dec 31, 2020) Since our bodies replace most cells over a period of a few years, it raises the question "Is any part of us original equipment?" According to Curt Stager and Martha Foley, the answer is "Yes." Parts of the eyes and teeth, as well as many nerve and (bad news for dieters) fat cells last a lifetime.
Flying squirrels glide through winter nights, hunting lichen
December 24, 2020 05:00 - 5 minutes - 2.36 MB(Dec 24, 2020) Rarely seen during the day, flying squirrels don't actually fly, but use flaps of skin that connect their fore and hind legs that enable them to glide up to a hundred feet, between trees and from tree to ground.
Homeschooling on the rise in the North Country and the US
December 17, 2020 05:00 - 5 minutes - 7.15 MB(Dec 17, 2020) Every family with kids has had to deal with the education question this fall - would they send their kid back to school? Keep them remote learning? And a third option: would they do it themselves? Fueled by COVID-19, homeschooling is on the rise in the North Country and across the nation.
Why so many snowy owls all of a sudden?
December 10, 2020 05:00 - 4 minutes - 2.03 MB(Dec 10, 2020) Snowy owls are normally a rare sight in North Country. Their usual range is in the Arctic north. But a few years ago, a large number were seen all across the region. Martha Foley asked Dr. Curt Stager why that has happened.
Ending 'period poverty' in the North Country
December 09, 2020 05:00 - 4 minutes - 1.94 MB(Dec 9, 2020) When Tanya Roy first heard of the international charity called #happyperiod, it really clicked for her. The charity’s mission is to ensure that, quote ‘every girl has menstrual dignity’, by collecting and making available free period products. So in January, she and two other local women started a branch serving Jefferson and Lewis counties. They call it #happyperiodnorthcountry. As the 2020 holidays approach, they've started collecting in earnest.
North Country at Work: Remembering Saranac Lake native Natalie Leduc
December 09, 2020 05:00 - 6 minutes - 2.91 MB(Dec 9, 2020) Saranac Lake native and Adirondack legend Natalie Leduc passed away on Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2020. She was 90 years old. Leduc was a fixture of community life in her hometown. She’s fondly remembered as many folks’ first ski instructor, and was deeply involved with Historic Saranac Lake. In 2018, she was recognized by the Norwegian government for the 37 years she spent tending the graves of Norwegian sailors in the Pine Ridge Cemetery. In 2016 Amy Feiereisel and Ellen Rocco int...
Natural Selections: How do turtles survive a winter underwater?
December 03, 2020 05:00 - 4 minutes - 2.26 MB(Dec 3, 2020) Unlike frogs, turtles don't hibernate through the winter. In fact, sometimes you can see snappers and other species moving around under the ice. While their metabolism runs at very low ebb in the cold, they remain alert to changes in light and temperature that signal the coming spring. How do they survive without oxygen? As Paul Smith's College biologist Curt Stager tells Martha Foley, they get energy from their body tissues, and their shells neutralize the resulting lactic ac...
Working families walk a thin line balancing remote learning and work
December 01, 2020 05:00 - 5 minutes - 2.64 MB(Dec 1, 2020) Schools have struggled to stay open for in-person learning since the fall. COVID-19 cases, understaffing, and quarantined teachers have all triggered a move to remote classes. Balancing work and life during the pandemic has been hard on everyone. But for working families with younger children, it’s been particularly excruciating, and littered with sacrifice.
Bacteria plus iron equals ochre, the prehistoric paint
November 26, 2020 05:00 - 4 minutes - 2.23 MB(Nov 26, 2020) Martha Foley and Curt Stager talk about ochre. It’s more than just a color in the Crayola box.
Boquet Valley Superintendent on keeping school open 'as long as we can'
November 25, 2020 05:00 - 4 minutes - 2.21 MB(Nov 25, 2020) Heading into the winter, a big question for families is what school will look like. New York City closed all in-person learning in its K-12 schools last week. Here in the North Country, school districts have been riddled with short and extended closures since the beginning of the school year. The Boquet Valley Central School District, which serves kids in Essex County, was one of the first - they went remote for the first five weeks of school. That was because of a COVID-19 ...
Nearing end of fall semester, SUNY Plattsburgh students on pandemic fatigue
November 19, 2020 05:00 - 5 minutes - 2.41 MB(Nov 19, 2020) Most college students in New York head home this weekend for Thanksgiving break, and many will stay there. Because of rising coronavirus cases, all SUNY schools are finishing the semester remotely. Many private schools are doing similarly shortened semesters. So what was college like during this bizarre pandemic semester? Emma Vallelunga, a senior at SUNY Plattsburgh who has been recording her experiences this semester for NCPR, spoke with friends and classmates about how the...
The beehive is more of a police state than a family
November 19, 2020 05:00 - 5 minutes - 2.69 MB(Nov 19, 2020) In the second in our series about the biological marketplace, Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager look into the beehive. Although some worker bees might try to "cheat" and introduce their own eggs into the genetic pool of the hive, other workers will detect and destroy them. The queen presides over a society that shares her DNA, but it is run more like a police state than a family.
Jefferson Co. GOP commissioner says elections are secure: 'certainty takes time'
November 13, 2020 05:00 - 4 minutes - 5.56 MB(Nov 13, 2020) Across the country, elections officials are saying last week’s vote was secure, safe, and successful. They include Jude Seymour, the Republican election commissioner in Jefferson County. Seymour says he and his colleagues worked furiously to prep for the 2020 general election. There were coronavirus rules to contend with, and early voting to organize (early voting began in New York in 2019).
Symbiotic relatonships drive survival in the "biological marketplace"
November 12, 2020 05:00 - 5 minutes - 2.39 MB(Nov 12, 2020) Symbiotes are species that must collaborate with another to survive. But some partners are more equal than others. Martha Foley and Curt Stager talk about how organisms monitor cheaters in symbiotic relationships. This is the first of two conversations about the biological marketplace.
North Country voters on 'mixed bag' election results
November 11, 2020 05:00 - 4 minutes - 2.23 MB(Nov 11, 2020) On Saturday, major news outlets projected the presidential race for Joseph Biden and Kamala Harris. It came after days of tense waiting. For some, it was devastating news. For others, it was joyous. Here in the North Country, republicans won big in almost all down-ballot races by significant margins. So here, conservative or liberal, the election results were a mixed bag.
What's the difference between antlers and horns?
November 05, 2020 05:00 - 5 minutes - 2.35 MB(Nov 5, 2020) Horns and antlers are more than different variations on animal head gear. Antlers are temporary and contain no actual bone. Horns are for keeps. Martha Foley and Curt Stager discuss pointy-headed creatures.
NCPR Voter Survey: What matters to North Country voters?
October 27, 2020 04:00 - 5 minutes - 2.57 MB(Oct 27, 2020) NCPR put out a voter survey a couple of weeks ago, and we got almost 200 responses from all over the region. It’s a small sample, but it reflects the varied political beliefs and values that exist across the North Country. Here's what you told us.
The eternal atomic remix of nature
October 22, 2020 04:00 - 5 minutes - 2.44 MB(Oct 22, 2020) In Song of Myself, Whitman says, "For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you."
What happens while we breathe in and breathe out
October 15, 2020 04:00 - 5 minutes - 2.4 MB(Oct 15, 2020) We all take thousands of breaths each day without thinking about it, yet it's one of the human body's most complex and interesting functions. Martha Foley and Curt Stager discuss what is actually happening when we breathe.
Manufacturers like Corning say child care is essential to North Country's economic recovery
October 09, 2020 04:00 - 5 minutes - 7.01 MB(Oct 9, 2020) Sylvie Nelson, the Executive Director of the North Country Workforce Development Board, says it's time to start thinking of affordable and accessible child care as essential to a strong economy. “Although a lot of times people think child care is a social issue, it’s actually more of an economic development issue." She and other North Country business leaders say the pandemic has brought the urgency of this issue "front and center", but that it existed long before COVID-19.
Child care centers in NY and North Country face closures with no stimulus aid in sight
October 08, 2020 04:00 - 4 minutes - 6.53 MB(Oct 8, 2020) State agencies and child care advocates are warning that the state’s child care system is on the verge of collapse, with centers financially stressed, and parents struggling to find or afford care. But the North Country, already a child care desert, has a lot to lose if even one center closes.
From Pyrex to Bioglass: Glass is all around you, even in you
October 08, 2020 04:00 - 4 minutes - 2.17 MB(Oct 8, 2020) A lot of different things are mixed with silicon dioxide to make different kinds of glass. Added lead makes crystal. Most ordinary glass is made with the addition of soda lime. Pyrex glass has boron to give it heat resistance. Fiberglass contains aluminum. Amorphous substances like porcelain and polycarbonate plastic can also count as glass, as can certain amorphous mixtures of metal. One of the most interesting new technologies is Bioglass, where calcium, phosphorus and othe...
Child care centers in NY and North Country face closures with no stimulus aid in sight
October 08, 2020 04:00 - 4 minutes - 6.53 MB(Oct 8, 2020) State agencies and child care advocates are warning that the state’s child care system is on the verge of collapse, with centers financially stressed, and parents struggling to find or afford care. But the North Country, already a child care desert, has a lot to lose if even one center closes.
Testing higher ed: how universities are using pool tests to keep on top of COVID-19
October 02, 2020 04:00 - 4 minutes - 6.12 MB(Oct 2, 2020) New York’s colleges and universities are adopting a cheaper and faster way to test students for COVID-19. Federal regulators have approved a new COVID-19 saliva swab pool test developed by SUNY Upstate Medical University. It allows up to 25 people to be screened at a time with faster results. The saliva test is currently being implemented at schools across the state college system. SUNY Plattsburgh was one of the first schools to use the saliva swabs; they started using them t...
How your glass of red could become a glass of lead
October 01, 2020 04:00 - 4 minutes - 2.2 MB(Oct 1, 2020) Glass is basic stuff - melted sand, pretty much. But your lovely crystal decanter or goblet gets its heft and clarity from a big dose of lead, up to one-fourth by weight.
"A lack of personal relationships": SUNY Potsdam students on campus life during COVID-19
September 25, 2020 04:00 - 2 minutes - 3.43 MB(Sep 25, 2020) North Country college campus life is vastly different due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Paul Smith's invests in biathlon range, future student-Olympians, and the Adirondacks as a winter sports mecca
September 24, 2020 04:00 - 5 minutes - 7.48 MB(Sep 24, 2020) Biathlon is one of the more niche Olympic Winter sports. It combines two very different sports, cross-country skiing and target rifle shooting, into a race unlike any other. The Adirondacks has quite the history with Biathlon and biathletes, and Paul Smith's College is entering their own chapter in 2020, with the completion of a biathlon course on their 14,000 acre campus. It's their way of doubling down on developing their sports programs and is a big moment for the biathlo...
Is that a plant, or what?
September 17, 2020 04:00 - 5 minutes - 2.53 MB(Sep 17, 2020) Mushrooms grow out of the soil like plants, but are fungi. Lichens may look leafy, but they are symbiotic colonies of fungi and algae. Seaweed looks like a plant, but is an algae colony. And Indian Pipe looks like a fungi, but is a plant. Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager discuss the ins and outs of botany.
Back to Campus: finding a late-night meal at SUNY Plattsburgh
September 16, 2020 04:00 - 2 minutes - 3.89 MB(Sep 16, 2020) Day-to-day life on a college campus right now, is really different - from not being allowed to visit friends in other dorms, to trying to socialize through a mask. Senior Emma Vallelunga, at SUNY Plattsburgh, says it’s like navigating a new world. She sent us this audio postcard about trying to find a late-night meal, when campus eateries have reduced hours and limited capacity due to social distancing rules.
Adirondack Hotel owner on the struggle of 2020 summer tourism
September 14, 2020 04:00 - 4 minutes - 5.99 MB(Sep 14, 2020) Tourism, an economic driver of many North Country communities, has taken a huge hit this summer. Everything- from restaurants, to recreational businesses, to lodging, has been impacted. The Adirondack Hotel has been an operating hotel since the mid-1800s, before the Civil War. It’s a historic hotel that normally sees visitors from all over the world. But this summer, things are really, really different, says owner Carol Ann Young.
Adirondack lakes recover from acid rain, but with an altered ecosystem
September 10, 2020 04:00 - 5 minutes - 2.36 MB(Sep 10, 2020) The success of the Clean Air Act in reducing acid deposition in Adirondack lakes is an under-reported good news story. Many lakes once devoid of life can now support healthy fish populations and other aquatic life. But as Curt Stager discusses with Martha Foley, the life that returns to recolonize the water is not the same as what was lost. Sediment cores show that the original algae and plankton varieties that form the base of the food chain and were unchanged for hundreds o...
What's behind the summer surge in real estate in the North Country?
September 10, 2020 04:00 - 4 minutes - 6.72 MB(Sep 10, 2020) Like almost everything else, real estate was largely paused this spring. When things started to re-open, there was a real surge in activity, which was expected. There was a backlog of two months to make up. But that activity has continued here in the North Country. Sales are up and realtors are busy, even with all the restrictions on showing properties.
Census workers doorknock to fill in gaps in North Country response
September 07, 2020 04:00 - 3 minutes - 3.64 MB(Sep 7, 2020)
Audiologist Karen Wolff on how the pandemic has impacted the hard of hearing
September 01, 2020 04:00 - 3 minutes - 4.7 MB(Sep 1, 2020) We’ve all had an experience like this during the pandemic: you’re out with a mask on, you try to say something, and other people don’t understand you. It’s frustrating, and it’s even harder for the hearing impaired.
A number of sticky situations explained
August 27, 2020 04:00 - 5 minutes - 2.39 MB(Aug 27, 2020) Cohesion, adhesion, magnetism: there are a lot of different ways that a lot of different things can stick together. Martha Foley and Curt Stager pry loose some of the secrets of stickiness.
Child care always made it hard for women's careers. Now COVID-19 makes it even harder
August 25, 2020 04:00 - 3 minutes - 5.21 MB(Aug 25, 2020) A growing number of experts say mothers who lack access to safe, affordable child care could face economic hardship and damage to their careers long after the coronavirus pandemic is over.
'Back to Campus' audiodiaries: SUNY Plattsburgh's Emma Vallelunga moves in
August 25, 2020 04:00 - 4 minutes - 2.05 MB(Aug 25, 2020) College students are heading back to campus this week in the North Country and awaiting them is a semester unlike any other, with hybrid and remote classes, take-out dining halls, and a lot of masks and social distancing. Starting today, we'll be following several students across the region through audio diaries as they go through their semester during the coronavirus pandemic.
Adirondack Water Week to focus on protecting water resources
August 24, 2020 04:00 - 5 minutes - 6.88 MB(Aug 24, 2020) Climate change, invasive species and road salt are all topics up for discussion this week during the inaugural Water Week event, sponsored by the Adirondack Watershed Institute at Paul Smith's College and Northwood School. Dan Kelting, executive director of the Adirondack Watershed Institute says this year's virtual event will focus on the Legacy of Adirondack Waters, and will feature a weeklong speaker series geared toward the general public. The programs will be conducted...