Working Waterfront

Mussels have a nose for good homes

For people looking to settle down, a location's odor can be a factor in whether they stay or go. Turns out the same is true for mussel larvae. Mussel larvae swim toward odors from adult mussels, and swim away from odors from predators, including green crabs and dog whelks, says Scott… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Tech center students build computers for medical research

SLIDESHOW BY LESLIE BOWMAN Among the students who travel to Calais for a variety of half-day vocational programs at the St. Croix Regional Technical Center, some are linking up with Stanford University for medical research. The first task students face in Jon Bragdon’s computer electronics class at the technical center… SEE MORE

North Haven students competed in the statewide one-act play contest.

Working Waterfront

Curtain call: Why we compete in play contest

March has a lot of signifiers. For some, it heralds the start of baseball season. For others, college basketball’s March Madness is the focus. March is “Music in Our Schools” month, and March is when town meetings convene. For me, March has always been about the Maine Principals’ Association One-Act… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Education was factor in Fukushima disaster

Japan has a complicated relationship with the atomic world. During a trip there in January, I asked many people to reflect on the Fukushima nuclear disaster—what the Japanese refer to as 3/11. The reaction to the event that surfaced most frequently was that, of all the failures associated with Fukushima,… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

State must invest in a digital future

Journalists are taught to give readers a human face to the public issues they write about in their news stories. Sometimes, the reporter has to work at finding a “real person” who benefits from the tax cut or the sewer line extension. Other times, that person practically steps onto the… SEE MORE

Students from the Swan's Island Elementary School examine some of the artifacts Abbe Museum educator George Neptune brought to his presentation.

Working Waterfront

Island community learns about ‘People of the Dawn’

What was the currency used by our native peoples? Wampum, right? Not so fast. George Neptune, an educator with the Abbe Museum in Bar Harbor, offered a different explanation for the seashells that were found in most native cultures. Neptune, a member of the Passamaquoddy tribe, spoke to school children… SEE MORE

Maine Maritime Academy vessels docked at the campus in Castine.

Working Waterfront

Winter training cruise imparts laptop lesson

People who are not accustomed to living on the water and on the high seas are often painfully aware of the slightest motion a boat or ship makes. Just look for the gray or green pallor on their faces and the expression that says, “Are we there yet?” And those… SEE MORE

Tarah Waters working with children in Eastport.

Working Waterfront

Eastport asks the question, ‘What’s your art?’

Editor's note: Reflections is a monthly column written by Island Fellows, recent college grads who do community service work on Maine islands and in remote coastal communities through the Island Institute, publisher of The Working Waterfront. Tarah Waters is working to support the growing arts community in Eastport. Being an… SEE MORE

Heather Leslie of the Darling Marine Center.

Working Waterfront

Coastal waters monitoring training offered at Darling Marine Center

The University of Maine Darling Marine Center in Walpole will host a coastal and estuarine monitoring workshop on Sunday, April 10 from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Aquaculturists, fishermen, researchers, teachers, citizen scientists, coastal residents, community groups and other interested individuals are encouraged to attend. No previous training is required. The… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Maine Seacoast Mission stays modern, reaches eastern coast

Think of it as a floating community center. Hot coffee and a hearty breakfast are still served aboard Sunbeam V, the Maine Seacoast Mission's 75-foot long vessel which provides hospitality and fellowship to those living on Maine's Midcoast and Downeast islands. That part of the mission's story has been told… SEE MORE