Issue: 605

................................................... AG AND LIFE SCIENCES ONLINE ................................................... The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Newsletter Iowa State University June 7, 2010 No. 605 ................................................... COLLEGE NEWS ................................................... YOUNG ALUMS FLY HIGH ON CURTISS HALL BANNERS Emma Flemmig and Charles Stewart are featured in two banners hanging on the front of Curtiss Hall. Flemmig is the current world president of International Association of Students in Agricultural and Related Sciences and graduates in August. Stewart is a 2000 graduate who works for the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in San Diego, Calf. The banners are being used to showcase the college by sharing alum stories. Each banner has a URL that links to a web site. WEB PROFILE: THREE SIBLINGS SHARE MAJORS IN THE CALS Holly, Bart and Hannah Howard, three siblings from Muscatine, Iowa, spent the last year together attending Iowa State University "“ all had majors in the College. Holly is a May graduate in animal ecology, environmental studies and biology. She will be working in Alaska as an Interpretative National Park ranger in the Western Arctic National Parklands. Bart is a senior in agricultural business. He's spending his summer working in timber sales preparation with the U.S. Forest Service in Saratoga, Wyoming. Hannah is a sophomore in forestry. This summer she'll be teaching swimming lessons in Ames and studying abroad in Valencia, Spain. To view student profiles, go to http://www.ag.iastate.edu and refresh the page to see different stories. If you know students you think should be featured, contact Barb McBreen at barbmc@istate.edu, 4-0707. SCIENTIST CHASES STORMS VIRTUALLY Daryl Herzmann, agronomy, coordinates the Mesonet project, which shares Iowa weather data collected by public and private groups. It offers an inexpensive way to pull temperatures, wind speeds, precipitation counts and all kinds of weather data into a single collection. The project is administered by the agronomy department in partnership with the Iowa Department of Transportation, KCCI-TV8, Des Moines and the National Weather Service. HORTICULTURE FACULTY MEMBER TO RECEIVE TEACHING AWARD Cindy Haynes, horticulture, will receive this year's Teacher Fellow Award from the North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture. Haynes will be recognized at the 56th Annual NACTA/Science and Education Resource Development conference on June 22-25. GULF OIL SPILL MAY HARM U.S. GRAIN EXPORTS With the latest failed efforts to stop the flow of oil from an uncapped well into the Gulf of Mexico, projects are that the spill may not be contained until late summer. That could affect grain prices for the U.S. and overseas markets, according to Chad Hart, economics and ISU Extension grain markets specialist. More: http://www.news.iastate.edu/news/2010/jun/hartoil CALS STUDENT LIVING HIS DREAM THIS SUMMER AT NIH Ben Janson is on his dream summer internship. The ISU junior from Mason City is happily tucked away in a research laboratory at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md. Janson, who majors in microbiology and genetics, is on a 10-week paid research internship in NIH's Cell Biology and Metabolism Program. More: http://www.news.iastate.edu/news/2010/jun/JansonIntern SOME IOWA CICADAS MAKE UNEXPECTED APPEARANCE The 17-year cicadas found in central and southeast Iowa aren't supposed to come out until 2014, but a small percentage are emerging now, four years ahead of schedule. Donald Lewis, entomology, has been collecting informal reports from people in Polk, Madison, Warren, Monroe, Des Moines and Decatur counties who are hearing the insect this year. More: http://www.news.iastate.edu/news/2010/jun/lewis JUNE NOTES FROM THE LEOPOLD CENTER The June 2010 issue of "Notes from the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture" is available online IOWA LEARNING FARM FIELD DAY, JUNE 17 The Iowa Learning Farm and the Delaware Soil and Water Conservation District will con-sponsor a field day at the Tom Vaske farm, rural Masonville, June 17 from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. The field day includes a complimentary supper and features discussion of no-till management practices. WEED SCIENCE FIELD DAY, JUNE 24 The annual ISU Weed Science Field Day will be held June 24 at 8:30 a.m. at the Curtiss Farm on South State Street. Registration for the field day is $20 and includes coffee, beverages, snacks and a field book. More: Mike Owen, mdowen@iastate.edu, 4-5936. NEW DISPLAYS FOR DAIRY FARM OPEN HOUSE, JUNE 25 In celebration of Dairy Month, there will be an open house at the Dairy Farm on June 25 with Ag Discovery displays. The educational displays describe the layout of the farm, the farm's mission statement and a brief overview of the research being conducted at the farm. The foyer, which is open to the public, has a viewing window through to the parlor where the cows are milked twice daily. The event takes place in the morning; more details to come. ................................................... EXTERNAL FUNDING ................................................... FUNDING INFORMATION, OPPORTUNITIES AND DEADLINE REMINDERS Dates listed are application deadlines. Contact: Roxanne Clemens, rclemens@iastate.edu (No due date) NSF Rapid Response Research Grants for Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Research; $200,000, one-year duration. More: http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2010/nsf10060/nsf10060.jsp?WT.mc_id=USNSF_25&WT… June 22 (letter of intent): Development of Methodologies for Determining Preferred Landscape Designs for Sustainable Bioenergy Feedstock Production Systems at a Watershed Scale; one to five awards, $500,000 to $5 million per award for up to five years. June 28 (letter of intent): NCRR Science Education Partnership Award (R25); 10 new awards, $250,000 direct costs annually for five years, $3 million total anticipated funding. More: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-10-206.html July 6: Expert Integrated Pest Management Decision Support System; one award, $145,200 total anticipated funding. July 7: Living Stock Collections for Biological Research; two to four awards, one to five years, $1 million total anticipated funding for new and renewal awards. More: http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=9189&WT.mc_id=USNSF_39 July 12: Refugee Agricultural Partnership Program; 12 awards, three years, $50,000 to $100,000 per award. Sept. 1 and Sept. 3 (preproposal): Materials Research Centers and Teams; 16 to 22 awards, $36 million total anticipated funding. More: http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=5295 October 5: Biology of Manual Therapies (R01); size and duration of awards will vary. More: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-10-209.html See R21 announcement at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-10-210.html October 15 (letter of intent): The Role of Microbial Metabolites in Cancer Prevention and Etiology (U01); size and duration of awards will vary. More: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-10-208.html ................................................... COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK ................................................... NUMERALS "“ SENTENCE START Spell out a numeral at the beginning of a sentence. If necessary, recast the sentence. There is one exception "“ a numeral that identifies a calendar year. Wrong: 993 freshmen entered the college last year. Right: Last year 993 freshmen entered the college. Right: 1976 was a very good year. (The Associated Press Stylebook, 39th ed., 2004) ................................................... INFOGRAZING ................................................... EMPLOYMENT OUTLOOK FOR AG, FOOD AND NATURAL RESOURCES GRADS The agricultural, food and renewable natural resources sectors of the U.S. economy will generate an estimated 54,400 annual openings for individuals with baccalaureate or higher degrees in food, renewable energy and environmental specialties between 2010 and 2015, according to a report released by the USDA Food and Agricultural Education Information System. IOWA FRUIT AND VEGETABLE GROWERS ASSOCIATION FIELD DAY, JUNE 29 The Iowa Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association summer field day is scheduled for June 29. Participants will learn about production and marketing techniques, as well as the results of cultivar trials of several fruits and vegetables. Special attention will be focused on the ISU Muscatine Island Research Farm, which is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. More: Dal Grooms, dal.grooms@gmail.com, (515) 669-7177. ISU RESEARCH TO PREVENT ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE Swine and turkey producers need to worry about two related pathogens in the animals, especially when these pathogens find ways to resist antibiotics intended to maintain the animals' health. Qijing Zhang, ISU veterinary microbiology and preventive medicine, explained that there is a mechanism in the bacteria called the efflux pump that pushes out toxic substances from bacterial cells, but it also pushes out antibiotics. Zhang is working on a project supported by the Food Safety Consortium aimed at stopping the efflux pumps' effectiveness. IOWA TURKEY PROCESSORS APPOINTED TO NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE Representatives from Iowa turkey processors have been added to the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack appointed Wafa Birbari, Sara Lee Corp., and Lee Johnson, West Liberty Foods. The committee provides scientific advice on public health issues related to the safety and wholesomeness of the U.S. food supply. ABSTRACT SUBMISSIONS DUE JULY 7 The Midwest Rural Agricultural Safety and Health Forum will be held Nov. 17-18 in Iowa City. The conference will provide an opportunity for researchers, practitioners and agricultural producers to communicate on rural and agricultural needs, rural health care and agricultural safety and health. The deadline for abstract submission is July 7. ................................................... INTERNAL VOICES ................................................... JANSON'S INTERNSHIP IS DREAM COME TRUE "Everyday I learn so much more than I did the day before. This certainly is a dream summer internship for me. I can't wait to go each day and try to understand something new!" Ben Janson, a CALS junior in microbiology and genetics, on a 10-week paid research internship in NIH's Cell biology and Metabolism Program. More: http://www.news.iastate.edu/news/2010/jun/JansonIntern ................................................... EXTERNAL VOICES ................................................... ISU HELPS TROOPS PREPARE TO AID AFGHAN FARMERS The Iowa Air National Guard's 734th Agri-Business Development Team, a special force that aims to combat insurgency in Afghanistan by helping Afghan farmers become more productive, receiving training at ISU's Field Extension Education Laboratory near Boone last week. Capt. Peter Shinn said the best way to fight counter-insurgency is to secure the population. "How better to secure the population than ensuring that they can feed their families and have some left over to sell and improve their standard of living? Most Afghans live on less than a dollar a day, so it doesn't take much to improve." The Tribune, June 2 ........................................................ AG AND LIFE SCIENCES ONLINE ........................................................ EDITOR Julie Stewart, jstewart@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 jstewart@iastate.edu. To unsubscribe, send "Ag and Life Sciences Online unsubscribe." Iowa State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, marital status, disability, or status as a U.S. veteran. Inquiries can be directed to the Director of Equal Opportunity and Diversity, 3210 Beardshear Hall, (515) 294-7612.