Acting out our dam future: science-based role-play simulations as mechanisms for learning and natural resource planning

Science often does not make its way into decisions, leading to a problematic gap between scientific and societal progress. To tackle this issue, our research tests a novel science-based negotiation simulation that integrates a role-play simulation (RPS) with a system dynamics model (SDM). In RPSs, stakeholders engage in a mock decision-making process (reflecting real-life institutional arrangements and scientific knowledge) for a set period. System dynamics models (SDMs) are visual tools used to simulate the interactions and feedback within a complex system. We test the integration of the two approaches with stakeholders in New England via a series of two consecutive workshops across two states. The workshops engage stakeholders from diverse groups to foster dialogue, learning, and creativity. Participants discuss a hypothetical (yet realistic) decision scenario to consider scientific information and explore dam management options that meet one another\u27s interests. In the first workshop, participants contributed to the design of the fictionalized dam decision scenario and the SDM. In the second workshop, participants assumed another representative\u27s role and discussed dam management options for the fictionalized scenario. This presentation will briefly report on the practical design of this science-based role-play, and particularly emphasize preliminary results of workshop outcomes, which were evaluated using debriefing sessions, surveys, concept mapping exercises, and interviews. Results will determine the extent to which this new knowledge production process leads to learning, use of science, and more collaborative decision-making about dams in New England and beyond

What Do We Know About What to Do With Dams? How Knowledge Shapes Public Opinion About Their Removal in New Hampshire

In this brief, authors Simone Chapman, Catherine Ashcraft, Lawrence Hamilton, and Kevin Gardner report the results of an October 2018 Granite State Poll that asked 607 New Hampshire residents how much they have heard, and their thoughts, concerning the question of whether older dams on New Hampshire rivers should be removed for ecological or safety reasons, or whether the dams should be kept. Most people admitted they have not heard or read about this issue, but at the same time they agreed that dams could be removed in at least some cases. The more people heard or read about the issue of dam removal, the more likely they were to support removal in some or most cases. These survey results highlight the need for communicating sound information to the public concerning the costs and benefits of possible dam management options— whether doing nothing, repairs and maintenance, or removal

I’ll be dammed! Public preferences regarding dam removal in New Hampshire (Pre-print)

Decisions about dams, like other environmental conflicts, involve complex tradeoffs between different water uses with varying human and ecological impacts, have significant impacts on public resources and involve many stakeholders with diverse and often conflicting interests. Given the many upcoming dam decisions in New England and across the United States of America, an improved understanding of public preferences about dam decisions is needed to steward resources in the public interest. This research asks (1) What does the public want to see happen with dams?, and (2) Do demographic factors influence public preferences for dam decisions? This paper analyzes data from three statewide public opinion polls conducted in New Hampshire over 2018 using univariate, bivariate and multivariate statistical analysis of public preferences for dam removal or maintaining dams for specific benefits, including property values, hydropower generation, industrial history and recreation, and evaluates the effect of age, level of formal education, gender and political party. Our findings indicate that a majority of New Hampshire residents prefer to keep dams when they are used to generate hydropower, whereas majorities prefer instead to remove dams rather than to keep them for industrial history, recreation, or property values. Respondent demographic characteristics and political outlooks influence these preferences, in patterns broadly resembling those for many other environment-related issues. Political party, gender, and age are the strongest predictors: liberal leaning, younger, and female respondents are more likely to support dam removal. Level of formal education has no significant effect on preferences for keeping or removing dams. The results provide the first insights into statewide public preferences about dam removal in New England, support the use of public opinion polling to complement input from public meetings and guide decisions, and contribute to existing scholarship about public environmental preferences and the influence of demographic factors

I’ll be dammed! Public preferences regarding dam removal in New Hampshire

Decisions about dams, like other environmental conflicts, involve complex trade-offs between different water uses with varying human and ecological impacts, have significant impacts on public resources, and involve many stakeholders with diverse and often conflicting interests. Given the many upcoming dam decisions in New England and across the United States, an improved understanding of public preferences about dam decisions is needed to steward resources in the public interest. This research asks (1) What does the public want to see happen with dams? and (2) How do public preferences regarding dam removal vary with demography and politics? We address these questions using data from three random sample statewide telephone polls conducted in New Hampshire over 2018 that asked people for their preferences concerning dam removal versus maintaining dams for specific benefits—property values, hydropower generation, industrial history, or recreation. Respondent age, education, gender, and political party were tested among the possible predictors. We find that majorities (52% or 54%) of respondents favor removing dams rather than keeping them for industrial history or property values, and a plurality (43%) favor removal over keeping them for recreation. A plurality (46%) prefer keeping dams, however, if they are used to generate hydropower. Respondent background characteristics and political identity affect these preferences in ways resembling those for many other environment-related issues: women, young or middle-aged individuals, and political liberals or moderates (Democrats or independents) more often support dam removal. Education, on the other hand, has no significant effects. The results quantify levels of general public support for dam removal in New England, illustrating the use of public opinion polling to complement input from public meetings and guide decisions. More broadly, they contribute a new topic to existing scholarship on the social bases of environmental concern. This presentation was given virtually by Natallia Leuchanka Diessner at the Maine Sustainability & Water Conference on March 31, 2021

Effects of alternative electricity rates and rate structures on electricity and water use on the Colorado High Plains

October 1984.Contract report for Colorado Commission on Higher Education.Bibliography: pages 60-62

Unusual signatures of the ferromagnetic transition in the heavy Fermion compound UMn2_2Al20_{20}

Magnetic susceptibility results for single crystals of the new cubic compounds UT$_2$Al$_{20}$ (T=Mn, V, and Mo) are reported. Magnetization, specific heat, resistivity, and neutron diffraction results for a single crystal and neutron diffraction and inelastic spectra for a powder sample are reported for UMn$_2$Al$_{20}$. For T = V and Mo, temperature independent Pauli paramagnetism is observed. For UMn$_2$Al$_{20}$, a ferromagnetic transition is observed in the magnetic susceptibility at $T_c$ = 20 K. The specific heat anomaly at $T_c$ is very weak while no anomaly in the resistivity is seen at $T_c$. We discuss two possible origins for this behavior of UMn$_2$Al$_{20}$: moderately small moment itinerant ferromagnetism, or induced local moment ferromagnetism.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, to be published in Phys. rev.

What to Do With Dams: An Assessment of Public Opinion to Inform the Debate in New Hampshire

Many of New Hampshire’s dams are reaching the end of their lifespan and require expensive maintenance or removal in order to meet safety standards. While engineers and public officials struggle with the scale of the challenge surrounding various dam management alternatives, including removal, what does the New Hampshire public think? In this brief, authors Natallia Leuchanka, Catherine Ashcraft, Kevin Gardner, and Lawrence Hamilton present results from statewide surveys in New Hampshire that explore public views about dam removal. They report that a majority of respondents in three Granite State Polls prefer to remove dams when the alternative is to keep them for maintenance of waterfront property values, preservation of industrial history, or maintenance of lake- and pond-based recreation. A majority of survey respondents prefer to keep dams when dams are for hydropower generation. Respondents’ age, gender, and party affiliation often predict their preference for dam removal. Levels of formal education do not make much difference. Younger respondents, women, and Democrats are more likely to support dam removal, although this varies somewhat depending on the tradeoffs

I’ll be dammed! Public preferences regarding dam removal in New Hampshire

Decisions about dams, like other environmental conflicts, involve complex trade-offs between different water uses with varying human and ecological impacts. Given the many upcoming dam decisions in New England, an improved understanding of public preferences is needed to steward resources. This research asks (1) What does the public want to see happen with dams? and (2) How do public preferences regarding dam removal vary with demography and politics? We address these questions using data from three random sample statewide telephone polls conducted in New Hampshire over 2018 that asked people for their preferences concerning dam removal versus maintaining dams for specific benefits—industrial history, property values, recreation, or hydropower generation. Respondent age, education, gender, and political party were tested among the possible predictors. We find that when considering industrial history or property values, the majority of respondents favor removing dams. Similarly, when faced with using dams for recreation, respondents favor removal, but to a lesser degree. A plurality prefer keeping dams, however, if they are used to generate hydropower. Respondent background characteristics and political identity affect these preferences in ways resembling those for many other environment-related issues: women, young or middle-aged individuals, and political liberals or moderates more often support removal. Education, on the other hand, has no significant effects. The results quantify levels of public support for dam removal, illustrating the use of public opinion polling to complement input from public meetings and guide decisions. More broadly, they contribute to existing scholarship on the social bases of environmental concern. This presentation was given virtually by Natallia Leuchanka Diessner at the American Association of Geographers Annual Meeting on April 8, 2021

The Arecibo Arp 220 Spectral Census I: Discovery of the Pre-Biotic Molecule Methanimine and New Cm-wavelength Transitions of Other Molecules

An on-going Arecibo line search between 1.1 and 10 GHz of the prototypical starburst/megamaser galaxy, Arp 220, has revealed a spectrum rich in molecular transitions. These include the ``pre-biotic'' molecules: methanimine (CH$_{2}$NH) in emission, three $v_{2}=1$ direct l-type absorption lines of HCN, and an absorption feature likely to be from either $^{18}$OH or formic acid (HCOOH). In addition, we report the detection of two, possibly three, transitions of $\lambda$4-cm excited OH not previously detected in Arp~220 which are seen in absorption, and a possible absorption feature from the 6.668-GHz line of methanol. This marks the first distant extragalactic detection of methanimine, a pre-biotic molecule. Also, if confirmed, the possible methanol absorption line presented here would represent the first extragalactic detection of methanol at a distance further than 10 Mpc. In addition, the strong, previously undetected, cm-wave HCN $v_{2}=1$ direct l-type lines will aid the study of dense molecular gas and active star-forming regions in this starburst galaxy.Comment: 25 pages, 10 figures. Accepted for publication in A