I probably shouldn't admit it here, but I've been too distracted by New Orleans to think much about Dryden. I was only there twice - once for the empty 1984 World Fair and once in 1991 for a conference on volunteerism. It's hard to imagine that city ruined, and I'm in shock about what seems like a painfully weak response on the ground.
Locally, I'm glad to see Cornell reaching out to Tulane students. I wonder what they're doing for other New Orleans and Gulf Coast universities, or maybe Tulane is just the one most affected
While Dryden still looks pretty much the same as it did a couple of days ago, gas prices have climbed. I took a picture of my nearest gas station yesterday, but by the time the Journal got there the price had increased again from $2.97 to $3.29.
In a story that suggests people are thinking about the long-term effect of gasoline prices on the area, Jennie Daley reports on the greenhouse across from NYSEG, now run by Challenge Industries. I wondered why it was there, given New York's high electricity costs, but there's an excellent answer:
It was long-distance distribution and the ever increasing cost of fuel that first prompted Cornell University researchers, about 15 years ago, to look into a system that could grow produce year round, even in the northeast's harsh climes. Thursday's gas price hikes, where, locally, a gallon of unleaded went at least as high as $3.29, illustrated precisely the situation these hydroponics were intended to offset.
"The idea was to substitute electricity for diesel fuel because electricity comes from many sources," said Louis Albright, a Newfield native and Cornell professor.
In county news, a forum on Drug Courts examined the ways these can change lives while still saving taxpayer money, and the County Adminstrator has prepared a budget with a 0% tax levy increase, though that budget lacks some things, like more sheriffs' deputies, that many people want.
Posted by simon at September 2, 2005 12:09 PM in Ithaca Journal