College News
Allen Miller Named American Phytopathological Society Fellow
The American Phytopathological Society (APS) named Allen Miller, plant pathology, a fellow in recognition of his contributions to plant pathology and the society. The announcement was made at the society's annual meeting that was held jointly with the Society of Nematologists in San Diego. Also at the meeting, APS presented student travel awards to plant pathology graduate students Zhihan Xu and Ana Paula Dias.
International Seminar Series Begins Aug. 30
Uganda - ISU Student Service Learning is the topic of the first seminar in a fall semester series titled Feeding the World: Are we making progress? Gail Nonnecke, horticulture, and Lee Burras, agronomy, will be facilitators of the seminar, which is will be held from noon to 1 p.m. Aug. 30 in the Ensminger Room, 1204 Kildee Hall. The series is sponsored by the M.E. Ensminger International Chair in Animal Agriculture, Raymond and Mary Baker Chair in Global Agriculture and the Center for Sustainable and Rural Livelihoods.
Science with Practice Orientation Wednesday
Orientation for new and interested students will take place at noon Wednesday, Aug. 22, in Room 8 Curtiss. Interested students or faculty not able to attend the orientation can contact the program at swpteam@iastate.edu or by calling Mike Retallick at 4-4810. More: https://www.ageds.iastate.edu/science-with-practice/
Late Summer Field Day Set for Thursday
A late summer field day will be held Thursday, Aug. 23, at the Bruner Research Farm west of Ames. Topics include a season review, biomass production and processing and long-term rotation research. The program begins at 10 a.m. and will conclude at 3 p.m. There is no pre-registration and no charge to attend.
Iowa State-Bred Horse Wins Stakes Race
Another Iowa State-bred horse is in the record books. Bravo Cyclone, a 2-year-old gelding owned by Sandra Rasmussen of River Ridge Ranch, won the Iowa Stallion Futurity Stakes Race Aug. 11 at Prairie Meadows setting a new record time. It was his first win, earning $54,943 of the overall purse worth $88,889. Earlier this summer, Cyclone Prince was the first race winner for an Iowa State-bred horse.
150 Points of Pride Celebrate College's 150th Anniversary
The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences has a proud and distinguished history. As part of Iowa State's sesquicentennial celebration, 150 points of pride related to the College -- accomplishments, discoveries, contributions, highlights, famous and interesting people -- will be posted online throughout the coming months. These postings coincide with 150 days of the 2007-2008 academic year, beginning today and ending May 2, 2008, with time off for the Thanksgiving, winter and spring breaks. Check back each Monday for five new items. This week's offerings outline the histories of the college, the experiment station and extension, plus two early leaders - Ralph Bliss and Seaman Knapp.
Agricultural Engineering Jumps to No. 2 in National Ranking
The undergraduate agricultural engineering program at Iowa State was ranked second in the 2008 America's Best Colleges edition of U.S. News and World Report. In engineering specialties, at schools whose highest degree is a doctorate, Iowa State's agricultural engineering program jumped four spots to No. 2 among the top programs in the United States. The ranking is based on surveys of deans and senior engineering faculty nationwide. Ramesh Kanwar, chair of the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, said the national ranking is "recognition of the efforts of our faculty and staff to offer a quality agricultural engineering program with national and international impacts." Learn more about Iowa State's rankings by the magazine.
School Begins Early for Agronomy Students on Field Trip
Agronomy faculty and staff Mary Wiedenhoeft, Bob Hartzler and Brad Miller, and teaching assistant Stefans Gailans last week took 24 new agronomy students on a two-day field trip. The trip was part of the Agronomy New Students Learning Community. Participating students were introduced to possible careers in agronomy, former and current students and given a chance to become acquainted with one another. The tour included visits to a Monsanto research farm, the Martin Marietta mine near Fort Dodge, MaxYield Coop, Algona and the ISU Agronomy farm. Department alumni served as tour guides at most of the stops.
Grape Harvest Begins at Research Farms
Harvest at ISU research farms has begun - at least in the vineyards. Warm weather has hastened the grape harvest, which is determined by the grapes' sugar content and acidity. ISU vineyards are located at the Horticulture Station, Ames; Armstrong Research Farm, Lewis; Northeast Research Farm, Nashua; and Southeast Research Farm, Crawfordsville.
Communications Kiosk
Exceptional and Exceptionable Describe Opposite Experiences
What is "exceptional" is uncommon, superior, rare or extraordinary, as in "an exceptional talent." What is "exceptionable" is objectionable or offensive, as in "an exceptionable slur." (The Chicago Manual of Style, 15th ed., 2003)
Infograzing
Grant Applications Sought for Female Post Docs
The L'Oréal USA Fellowships For Women in Science program seeks applications from exceptional female post doctoral students. The program provides grants of $40,000 to five female post docs in the life and physical/material sciences, technology (including computer science), engineering or mathematics.
Marginalia
Northern Farm Marks 4-H Symbol Centennial
David Rueber, superintendent at the Northern Research Farm, constructed a corn maze this spring at the farm south of Kanawha to honor the centennial celebration of the 4-H emblem. The famous four-leaf clover symbol was developed in Wright County in 1907. Corn maze tours can be scheduled by calling Rueber at 641-762-3247.
Ag and Life Sciences Online
Editor: Ed Adcock, edadcock@iastate.edu
Phone: (515) 294-5616
Web site: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/aginfo/
Subscribe: Ag and Life Sciences Online, the newsletter for faculty and staff in Iowa State University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, is e-mailed every Monday. To subscribe, send your name, e-mail address and the message "Ag and Life Sciences Online subscribe" to edadcock@iastate.edu. To unsubscribe, send "Ag and Life Sciences Online unsubscribe."
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