College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Online
June 15, 2015 – No. 854
Top Stories
ISU Hosts 51 Students at Livestock Judging Camp
Fifty-one students representing seven states participated in the Iowa State Livestock Judging Camp, June 8-10 at the Jeff and Deb Hansen Agriculture Student Learning Center. The experiential learning event challenged participants, students age 12 to 18, to improve their critical thinking and oral communication skills via livestock evaluation. Jon DeClerck, animal science, conducted the camp with volunteers from the Livestock Judging Team and Animal Science Judging Club.
Research
ISU Expands Sports Turf Research
A four-acre stretch of land at the Horticulture Research Station north of Ames will allow ISU researchers, including Dan Strey, horticulture, to experiment with soil content and management practices to improve sports turf across the Midwest. More
Researchers Find Little Evidence to Support Skills Gap Claims
An ISU economic analysis of national and statewide employment, education and population data finds that some of the evidence used to support the skills gap debate is weak. Researchers Liesl Eathington and Dave Swenson, economics, say there are several factors contributing to hiring challenges, but a widespread lack of skilled workers is not one. More
Miller Quoted on Long-Running Regional Soil Survey Research
The longest continuous running research committee in the North Central region, NCERA-003, was recently highlighted for its work in making soil survey data more reliable and accessible. Iowa State is one of 12 universities that have cooperated for decades in the soil research effort, which was featured in association with this year’s designation of International Year of Soils. Gerald Miller, retired Iowa State associate dean and soil scientist, was quoted as a former NCERA-003 administrative advisor in a news release by the Agriculture is America website.
Teaching and Students
Students Highlighted on AAU Website on Undergraduate Research
The Association of American Universities launched a website about undergraduate research at AAU universities. Featured on the “Undergraduate Stories: Hands-on Research Makes a Difference” website is Olivia Reicks and Trey Forsyth, two ISU undergraduate students taking part in the Land O’Lakes Global Food Challenge. Reicks, a junior in supply chain management and business economics, and Forsyth, a sophomore in agricultural business and agriculture and society, will spend the next semester finding ways to eliminate waste at different points in the supply chain to prevent spoilage.
CALS Students Present to United Nations Team in Rome
The Dean’s Global Agriculture and Food Leadership Program took place in Rome, Italy, from May 11 to June 5. Students worked with professionals from the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization on three projects; one focused on the reduction of food waste, one on green value chains in food production and one of the FAO publication State of Food and Agriculture in the World. The program is led by Joe Colletti, CALS senior associate dean; Sergio Lence, economics; Kate Gilbert, food science and human nutrition; Ruth MacDonald, food science and human nutrition; and Ted MacDonald, global resource systems.
Extension and Outreach
Farmers Aware of and Supportive of Nutrient Reduction Strategy
Farmers are aware of and supportive of the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy according to results of the 2014 Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll. “Farmers Perspectives on Iowa’s Nutrient Reduction Strategy,” a report released in May 2015 by J. Gordon Arbuckle Jr., sociology and co-director of the Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll, summarizes the results.
Video: Students Share the Dairy Farm Story
The ISU Dairy Farm held an open house on June 5 to celebrate dairy month. Amanda Robinson, graduate student in dairy science; Celina Young, junior in agricultural business, public administration and international agriculture; and Christen Jackson, lecturer in animal science, share a bit of the dairy farm story in a video produced by CALS on the college website. More
Around the College
Huff-Lonergan Recognized as Outstanding Animal Science Professor
Elisabeth Huff-Lonergan was listed as one of 20 outstanding animal science professors by VetTechColleges.com. She is a member of the editorial board for the Journal of Animal Science and is the 2016 acting director-at-large of the American Society of Animal Science. The blog announcement states she is known for “provocative research regarding post-mortem conversion of meat and muscle.” More
Burnett Receives Learning Community Champion Award
John Burnett, academic advisor for natural resource ecology and management, received the Learning Community Champion Award at the 17th Annual Learning Communities Institute on May 11. Burnett was honored for his significant contributions to the advancement of learning communities at ISU.
Youngs Receives Special Commendation from University Honors Committee
Curtis Youngs, animal science, received a special commendation from the University Honors Committee this spring for his consistent and outstanding dedication to the honors program. “Many alumni of our program are indebted to your teaching and guidance, which has launched them on successful career paths,” said Susan Yager, faculty director of the Honors Program.
Horticulture Station Selling Fruits and Vegetables
The Horticulture Research Station has begun its second year of selling in-season produce. Faculty, staff and students can order fruits and vegetables grown at the Horticulture Station and the Student Organic Farm through the online produce-ordering website. Pick-up is every Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the Harl Commons entrance of Curtiss Hall, on the east side of the building. Produce will also be available for purchase without pre-ordering. More
Funeral Services for Former McNay Research Farm Beef Project Supervisor
Dennis Maxwell, retired since 2010 from ISU Research and Demonstration Farms, died June 10. He was 67. Maxwell began working at the ISU McNay Research and Demonstration Farm near Chariton in 1975 as supervisor of the beef breeding project. This project developed into the 400 head Angus cow herd at the McNay farm today.
Calendar
June 20: Pollinator Fest at Reiman Gardens
Reiman Gardens will celebrate National Pollinator Week on June 20, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., with activities hosted by the ISU Pollinator Working Group, the Insect Zoo, the Entomology Graduate Student Organization, and the Graduates in Evolutionary Biology and Ecology.
June 25: Iowa Swine Day
ISU will host the fourth annual Iowa Swine Day on June 25, 9 a.m. to 4:35 p.m., at the Scheman Building. Regional, national and international leaders in swine research, economics, production and the marketplace will address key challenges facing the pork industry. More
July 1: Insect Zoo Open House
The Insect Zoo will host an open house on July 1, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., on the first and fourth floors of Science Hall II. Ginny Mitchell, the zoo’s educational program coordinator, said “Arthropods of all kinds – insects, tarantulas, scorpions, centipedes, millipedes and crabs – will be on display.” The event is free and open to the public. More
Funding Opportunities
New Website for CALS Pre-Award Support Resources
CALS has launched a new Pre-Award Resources website. The site explains pre-award services and resources available from the college. Other features of the site are current and archived weekly lists of selected funding opportunities, funding agency resources, best practices information and announcements of upcoming events. Access the website through the CALS homepage and select Research Programs and Pre-award Resources, or go directly to Pre-award Resources page.
NIH NIAID Concept List Signals Potential Funding Opportunities
Together with focus groups from the extramural research community, the NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases starts planning initiatives to address research opportunities and needs. These ideas are called concepts at this stage, which starts two years before any resulting grants or contracts are awarded. While not all concepts become initiatives, they highlight NIAID's research interests and are good topics for investigator-initiated applications. Concepts posted on May 2015 are now available. More
Cayuse 424 Training Webinars in June
The Cayuse 424 product support team has scheduled training webinars for June. The webinars are sent to everyone who registers, which allows access at a later date for individuals who cannot participate at the stated times. More
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.
Applications accepted on rolling basis: NIST Measurement Science and Engineering; $5,000 to $1.5 million. More
June 25 (letter of intent): Dept. of Education Investing in Innovation Fund – Scale-up Grants; $20 million, 5 percent match required. More
July 1, Oct. 1: NATO Science for Peace and Security. More
July 1 (concept application): The Conservation, Food and Health Foundation; $25,000, one proposal per organization. Contact Sue Shipitalo (sueship@iastate.edu) with interest. More
July 6 (expression of interest): NIH NHGRI Genome Sequencing Program Analysis Centers (U01); one application per institution, contact Sue Shipitalo (sueship@iastate.edu) with interest. More
Aug. 9 (letter of intent): NIH Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award for New and Early Stage Investigators (R35); $250,000 per year up to five years. More
Aug. 17 (letter of intent): NIH Partnerships for the Development of Host-Targeted Therapeutics to Limit Antibacterial Resistance (R01); $750,000 direct costs per year up to five years, additional $300,000 equipment in first year. More
Sept. 25: NIH Resource-Related Research Projects for Development of Animal Models and Related Materials (R24). More
Sept. 25: NIH Animal and Biological Material Resource Centers (P40). More
Oct. 5: NIH Improvement of Animal Models for Stem Cell-Based Regenerative Medicine (R01). More
Oct. 5: NIH Development and Characterization of Animal Models for Aging Research (R01). More
Oct. 20: NSF Environmental Sustainability. More
Dec. 17: NSF EAGER Dear Colleague Letter: Enabling the Future of Making to Catalyze New Approaches in STEM Learning and Innovation. More
Jan. 15: FDA Scientific Conference Grant Program (R13/U13). More
Communications Kiosk
Recognizing 100 Years of Farm Publishing
A new digital exhibit on the Agricultural Communications Documentation Center website at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, features the centennial issues of seven agricultural periodicals in the U.S. Six of the seven continue to publish today. They are: Prairie Farmer (1841), Northwestern Miller (1873), Farm Journal (1877), American Fruit Grower (1880), The Farmer (1882), Progressive Farmer (1886) and The Furrow (1895).
Infograzing
Garden Produce Collection Begins June 22
Plant a Row for the Hungry is collecting locally-grown fruits and vegetables for ACCESS, Bethesda Community Food Pantry, MICA Food Pantry, Salvation Army food pantry and Food at First. Gardeners may take donations to the maintenance shed at Reiman Gardens on Mondays from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. Volunteers will accept produce June 22 through October 19, except on Labor Day Sept. 7. Plant a Row for the Hungry is an international effort that helps gardeners make a difference in their communities by sharing excess produce with those in need. Follow the progress on Facebook at PARStoryCounty.
ISURF Discontinuing its Technology Mailing List
The Iowa State University Research Foundation will no longer be communicating new technology notices by email. New options include RSS Feeds, Twitter and LinkedIn, as well as the “Technologies Available to License” link on the ISURF website.
Marginalia
Students Encouraged to Participate in Farmers Market Scavenger Hunt
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey encouraged students in kindergarten through 8th grade to take part in a “Farmers Market Scavenger Hunt” at any of the 37 participating farmers markets across the state. The Iowa Farm to School program, which is part of the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, is sponsoring the initiative. More
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Online
Julie Stewart, Editor
jstewart@iastate.edu, (515) 294-5616
https://www.cals.iastate.edu/news/agonline
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Online, the newsletter for faculty and staff in Iowa State University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, is published by email every Monday. The deadline for submitting content is 12 p.m. on Friday.