COLLEGE NEWS
- Learn about CSREES unit at grantsmanship workshop
- Ag Comm session on visuals and graphics Feb. 17
- Rural health center becomes an institute
- Where are the ag graduates now?
- New College of Agriculture t-shirts available
- Deadlines & Reminders
COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK
- What A.U.D.I.E.N.C.E. stands for in presentations
- An e-mail shortcut for Eudora users
INFOGRAZING
- Proposed ag funding in President's new budget
EXTERNAL VOICES
- Preventing small farms from becoming a footnote
MARGINALIA
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C O L L E G E N E W S
LEARN ABOUT CSREES UNIT AT GRANTSMANSHIP WORKSHOP
There are still openings for two sessions on Monday, Feb. 9, to
learn more about the Communications, Technology and Distance Education
Unit (CTDE) of USDA-CSREES. Cathy Bridwell, CTDE's national program
leader, will speak. The first session, 3:30-5 p.m. in the Memorial
Union's Oak Room, will be a general overview of CTDE. The second,
7:30-9 p.m. in Gateway Center's Central Prairie Room, will go
into funding details. RSVP to Carla Persaud, 4-9376 or cpersaud@iastate.edu.
AG COMM SESSION ON VISUALS AND GRAPHICS FEB. 17
Using visuals and graphics in technical documents and presentations
is the topic of the next Ag Comm workshop, noon-1:30 p.m., Feb.
17, in 8 Curtiss (Brenton Center). A light lunch will be served.
The workshops are open to faculty, graduate students and administrators.
RSVP to Norma Hensley, 4-6614 or nhensley@iastate.edu. Ag Comm
is the college's program to enhance communication skills across
the agriculture curriculum.
RURAL HEALTH CENTER BECOMES AN INSTITUTE
The Social and Behavioral Research Center for Rural Health has
a new name -- the Institute for Social and Behavioral Research.
Rand Conger, institute director, said the new name better describes
the expanding scope of the organization, from studies of only
rural populations to those in urban settings as well. The organization
also has been providing research services and expertise to investigators
across the university who study many social and behavioral issues,
some of which extend beyond rural populations. The center was
created in 1988 with funds from ISU and Iowa Methodist Health
Systems. The Center for Family Research in Rural Mental Health,
funded by the National Institute of Mental Health in 1990, will
be part of the institute. For more information: 4-4518.
WHERE ARE THE AG GRADUATES NOW?
What are the College of Agriculture graduates who received bachelor's
degrees in 1995-96 doing? According to ISU Office of Institutional
Research, 86.6 percent are employed, 0.8 percent are seeking employment
and 12.6 percent are pursuing other education. Almost 97 percent
of the ag graduates responded to the survey, which was done within
the first six months after graduation. Overall, of the ISU graduates
who received bachelor's degree in 1995-96, 75.6 are working, 16.5
percent are pursuing other education and 4.7 are seeking work.
NEW COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE T-SHIRTS AVAILABLE
The Student Ag Council is selling new College of Agriculture t-shirts.
They can be viewed in the Ag Council's display case in the rotunda
on the ground floor of Curtiss Hall. The new shirts are $10; last
year's t-shirts are $8. Buy both kinds for $15. Visit Student
Services, 23 Curtiss, to get the shirts. Proceeds will help the
council organize events for National Agriculture Day and Veishea.
C O M M U N I C A T I O N S K I O S K
WHAT A.U.D.I.E.N.C.E. STANDS FOR IN A PRESENTATION
When preparing a speech or presentation, the first step should
be considering your A.U.D.I.E.N.C.E. (Analyze, Understand, Demographics,
Interests, Environment, Needs, Customization and Expectations).
That's the advice of Lenny Laskowski, author of "No Sweat
Presentations: The Painless Way to Successful Speaking."
In the January issue of Presentations magazine, he presents the
planning process and what presenters should ask themselves to
customize their message. The article can be found online.
AN E-MAIL SHORTCUT FOR EUDORA USERS
Tired of typing "iastate.edu" on campus e-mail addresses?
If you have Eudora, it can automatically add it for you. Pull
up Settings, under the Special menu. Click on Sending Mail. Type
iastate.edu in the space called "Domain to add to unqualified
names." Now when you send a message, all you need to do is
type the first part of the recipient's address.
I N F O G R A Z I N G
PROPOSED AG FUNDING IN PRESIDENT'S NEW BUDGET
Some highlights of proposed USDA funding from the President's
FY99 budget include the following. CSREES research funding, up
9.5 percent. Cooperative Extension funding, down 1.1 percent.
Higher education funding, steady. Support for base formula funds,
down; support for competitive grants, up (proposed decreases in
formula funds include Hatch Act by 9 percent; Smith-Lever, 4 percent;
and McIntire-Stennis, 3 percent). Two new major initiatives recommended:
food genome and small farms. National Research Initiative, up
$32.8 million (including $16 million for food genome and $3 million
for food safety). Research for the aquaculture centers, down 3
percent. Several line items were deleted, including extension
programs in farm safety, agricultural telecommunications and rural
health and safety. The President's budget can be found online.
E X T E R N A L V O I C E S
PREVENTING SMALL FARMS FROM BECOMING A FOOTNOTE
"Small farmers can have a vibrant place in agriculture's
future . . . if America chooses to take a stand . . .This administration
will not stand by and watch hard-working, family farmers relegated
to a footnote in a history book." USDA Secretary Dan Glickman,
presenting the report of the National Commission on Small Farms,
which made recommendations on how to improve service to small
and beginning farmers. The report concluded that "if we do
not act now, we will no longer have a choice about the kind of
agriculture we desire as a nation." The report can be found online.
M A R G I N A L I A
SMELL TECHNOLOGY IN SUPERMARKET AND THE JUNGLE
Tired of waiting in the checkout line while the clerk tries to
figure out the code for some unfamiliar produce, like papaya or
starfruit? A New Jersey inventor has been awarded a patent for
a device that senses the aromas of produce and indicates the correct
code. Meanwhile, perfume makers hope to tap the biodiversity of
the rainforest using a hand-held scent collector. The device encapsulates
and analyzes the fragrant object. The scent can then be reconstituted
and mixed with other fragrances to enhance a shampoo or create
a perfume. The scent collector has already yielded success in
the scent of Leueha candida, a white jungle flower described as
"reminiscent of a gardenia but without the harsh green note
and with tones of tuberose but without the animalic note"
(Scientific American, February, and May 1997)