Issue: 688

................................................... AG AND LIFE SCIENCES ONLINE ................................................... The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Newsletter Iowa State University Feb. 20, 2012 No. 688 ................................................... COLLEGE NEWS ................................................... CALS PRESENTS AWARDS TO FACULTY, STAFF CALS presented annual awards to faculty and staff at its spring semester convocation on Feb. 16. A news release of the winners is available online. INFORMATION FLOW CAN HELP FARMERS COPE WITH CLIMATE CHANGE Steven Fales, agronomy, and Gene Takle, agronomy and geological and atmospheric sciences, organized a symposium to explore using instant communications technology to help farmers cope with climate change. The symposium took place during the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science Feb. 16-20 in Vancouver, British Columbia. More: http://www.news.iastate.edu/news/2012/feb/foodclimate eCARLY: LEARNING HOW TO ADVOCATE FOR AGRICULTURE Carly Martin, a student intern in the CALS Communications Service, talks about the agricultural communications program at ISU and the Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow Club. Forty students are enrolled in the program, which started in 1999. LeBARON HILTON ENDOWED CHAIR ON CAMPUS THIS WEEK Michael Hamm, the C.S. Mott Professor of Sustainable Agriculture at Michigan State University and head of its C.S. Mott Group for Sustainable Food Systems, is visiting the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition Feb. 20-24 as the 2011-2012 Dean Helen LeBaron Hilton Endowed Chair in the College of Human Sciences. He will deliver the Hilton Chair lecture on Thursday, Feb. 23 at 8 p.m. in the Memorial Union Great Hall. Throughout the week Hamm will guest lecture in classes, meet with students and record lectures for the Current Issues in Nutrition Series. Also open to the public is his presentation as part of the FSHN Department Spring Seminar Series on Wednesday, Feb. 22 at 4:10 p.m. in 2432 Food Sciences Building. More: http://www.news.iastate.edu/news/2012/feb/Hamm MARCH LUNCH AND LEARN: THINKSPACE The Brenton Center's next Lunch and Learn, scheduled for March 6 at noon in 8 Curtiss Hall, will provide an overview of ThinkSpace, a new online case study tool that helps students develop valuable problem-solving skills. Ann Marie VanDerZanden, horticulture and director of the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching, will present. Pizza and refreshments will be provided. To attend, contact Amy Pilcher, apilcher@iastate.edu, 4-1862. VIRTUAL REALITY WELDING HELPS FUTURE AG-ED TEACHERS A virtual reality welding trainer is part of a new, in-depth ag-mechanics course that faculty members in the agricultural education program developed to provide students with training and development they need to be prepared for various skilled trades seen within the agricultural field. Ryan Anderson, assistant professor and director of undergraduate studies for the program, says the virtual reality welding program allows students to immerse themselves in a realistic welding environment. More: http://www.lincolnelectric.com/en-us/support/application-stories/pages/… MOST FARMERS PREFERRED TO BE CALLED FARMERS Of the many terms used to refer to people who farm, J. Gordon Arbuckle Jr., sociology, wanted to know how the people who farm describe themselves? According to the 2011 Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll, 60 percent of the participants selected "farmer," 18 percent chose "producer" and another 18 percent selected "farm operator." NEW DISPLAY HIGHLIGHTS DEPARTMENT'S NOBEL AWARDEES A new display in the Department of Economics pays tribute to three former department members, T. W. Schultz (1930-1943), George Stigler (1936-1938) and Leonid Hurwicz (1946-1950), who were awarded the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences. The display, located on the second floor of Heady Hall, includes images, biographical information and selected personal quotes from each awardee. DEADLINES AND REMINDERS March 5: Gamma Sigma Delta award nominations due ................................................... FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES ................................................... CALL FOR PREPROPOSALS FOR NSF S-STEM PROGRAM The NSF Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics program makes grants to support scholarships for academically talented students demonstrating financial need, enabling them to enter the STEM workforce or STEM graduate school following completion of an associate, baccalaureate or graduate-level degree in STEM disciplines. The maximum request is $600,000 in total direct costs. Under this limited submission opportunity, one preproposal per college can be submitted to NSF. CALS faculty interested in submitting a proposal to NSF should submit a preproposal electronically to Joe Colletti (jcolletti@iastate.edu) by March 20 at 5 p.m. More: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/research/fundingResources/ TRAVEL SUPPORT FOR 2012 NIH REGIONAL SEMINAR ON FUNDING AND GRANTS ADMINISTRATION CALS will provide travel support of up to $800 each for up to five CALS faculty members to attend an NIH regional seminar on grant funding and administration. Participants will have the opportunity to make direct contact with 35 NIH and HHS staff and to network with fellow attendees. This year, NIH is offering one-on-one meetings and sessions on niche programs such as the Academic Research Enhancement Award (AREA/R15). Interested faculty should contact Joe Colletti (colletti@iastate.edu) via email by noon on Feb. 24. More: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/research/fundingResources/ FUNDING INFORMATION, OPPORTUNITIES AND DEADLINE REMINDERS Dates listed are application deadlines. Contact: Roxanne Clemens, rclemens@iastate.edu Additional information is posted at CALS Funding Resources, http://www.ag.iastate.edu/research/fundingResources/ March 9: Transforming STEM Learning. More: http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=503571&WT.mc_ev=click March 13: USDA NRCS and NFWF Conservation Partners Program; $50,000 to $250,000. More: http://foundationcenter.org/pnd/rfp/rfp_item.jhtml?id=370700017 March 26: NSF Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program; informational webinar Feb. 15. More: http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2012/nsf12525/nsf12525.htm March 27 (Feb. 28 Web conference call): Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Public Health Services and Systems Research: Building Evidence for Decision-Making; $200,000 over two years. April 5: NIH, CDC, FDA and ACF Omnibus Solicitation of the for Small Business Innovation Research Grant Applications (Parent SBIR [R43/44]). More: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-12-088.html April 5: NIH Omnibus Solicitation of the NIH for Small Business Technology Transfer Grant Applications (Parent STTR [R41/R42]). More: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-12-089.html April 13: Livestock-Climate Change CRSP Call for Proposals: Adapting Livestock Systems to Climate Change in South Asia. ................................................... COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK ................................................... THE ART OF PERSUASION The Harvard Business Review, in its "Guide to Managing Up and Across," offers the following three recommendations for managers trying to gain consensus on an issue: * Don't make the hard sell. "Setting out a strong position at the start gives opponents something to fight," write the book's authors. "It's better to present your position with reserve, so you can adjust if needed." * Don't resist compromise. "Compromise is not surrender," write the authors. "People want to see that you are flexible enough to respond to their concerns and incorporate their perspectives." * Don't assume it's a one-shot deal. "Persuasion is a process," write the authors. "You'll rarely arrive at a solution on the first try. Listen, test your position and then refine it based on the group's input." ................................................... INFOGRAZING ................................................... APPLY FOR AN UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH ASSISTANTSHIP Applications are being accepted for the 2012-2013 Undergraduate Research Assistantship Program. The URA program encourages outstanding juniors and seniors to pursue graduate study by offering them hands-on experience in a formal research environment. SP@ISU LUNCH ON ACHIEVING SUCCESS IN BROADER IMPACTS Strengthening the Professoriate will host a lunchtime discussion on March 6, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Memorial Union Gallery, featuring faculty members who have been successful in obtaining grant funding and have strong ideas of Broader Impacts. Faculty who will highlight their work are Basil Nikolau, biochemistry, biophysics and molecular biology; Drena Dobbs, genetics, development and cell biology; and Jim McCalley, electrical and computer engineering. More: Megan Heitmann, heitmann@iastate.edu, 4-8061 CELT HAS ISSUED A CALL FOR POSTERS The Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching has issued a call for posters for an upcoming Teaching Poster Symposium on April 10, 3:30 to 5 p.m. in the Memorial Union Pioneer Room. More: Jan Thompson, jrrt@iastate.edu, or Jen Leptien, jenl@iastate.edu ................................................... INTERNAL VOICES ................................................... LAWSON ON MEETING XI JINPING "“ AGAIN "Here in Iowa we're fantastic farmers. We obviously can't consume all of it, and China, what a big market." Vince Lawson, superintendent of the Muscatine Island Research and Demonstration Farm, was among the guests in Muscatine on Feb. 15 for the visit by China's vice president Xi Jinping. Lawson hosted Jinping at the Research and Demonstration Farm 27 years ago when he visited Muscatine. Lawson remembers Jinping being very interested in how the research farm was set up and the benefit to local farmers. ................................................... EXTERNAL VOICES ................................................... CHINA'S XI JINPING ON THE IMPORTANCE OF FOOD SECURITY "China attaches great importance to food security, and ensuring a sufficient food supply for 1.3 billion people." Xi Jinping, China's vice president, at the U.S.-China Agricultural Symposium held Feb. 16 at the World Food Prize Hall of Laureates in Des Moines. More: http://www.worldfoodprize.org/index.cfm?nodeID=24667&audienceID=1&actio… ................................................... MARGINALIA ................................................... AMEMIYA TO SPEAK ON MEMORIES OF INTERNMENT Grace Amemiya, the wife of Minoru Amemiya, a professor of agronomy who retired in 1988 and died in 2000, will speak on the Memories of Internment on March 2 at 12 p.m. in the Memorial Union Sun Room. Amemiya was a nursing student at the University of California, San Francisco, in 1941 when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Her education was interrupted when she and her family, along with 120,000 other Americans of Japanese heritage, were detained in internment camps. Amemiya will talk about her personal experiences as a former internee. She is an Ames resident who often speaks on the impact of internment and has been featured on CBS Sunday Morning News. This is part of the 2012 Iowa State Conference on Race and Ethnicity. ........................................................ 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." 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