CALS Online and Dean’s Message
Jan. 18, 2022
Dean’s Message
Hello CALS Colleagues – Welcome to the spring semester. This is the time that we enjoy the vibrancy and energy of returning students and campus snapping back to life… Welcome back, too, to another semester of hard work, of fun and of laughter, of discovery and learning and engagement, of COVID cautions and precautions, of care and concern about mental health and stress management, and of pursuit of all the things that make Iowa State extraordinary. Thank you for your resilience and determination in all these regards. More
Top Stories
Tarté Leading Innovator in New ‘Healthy’ Fat Technology
Rodrigo Tarté, animal science, is a leader in research to create alternatives for saturated animal fats that can retain the original products’ desirable qualities of taste, texture and appearance. His biphasic oleogel could also replace highly saturated vegetable-based fats, like coconut and palm oils, often used in vegetarian meat substitutes. More
Research
New Grants Awarded in Agriculture Genome to Phenome Research
The Agricultural Genome to Phenome Initiative has awarded 11 grants to institutions across the country in a second round of seed grants to support projects that help advance multidisciplinary crop and livestock genetics research. The new projects include “Harnessing Ag Genomics Data to Link Genotype to Phenotype” led by Iowa State animal scientists James Koltes and Chris Tuggle, working with partners at the European Bioinformatics Institute and Pennsylvania State University. More
Faunal Resilience Threatened by Species Decline
Research co-authored by Haldre Rogers, ecology, evolution and organismal biology, was featured on the cover of the Jan. 13 issue of Science, warning that adaptation to climate change is likely reduced significantly by the loss of seed-dispersing mammals and bird species that help plants adapt to environmental changes. More
Teaching and Students
FSHN 101 Offered During Winter Session
Terri Boylston, food science and human nutrition, is one of about 50 faculty members that led a course during this year’s four-week winter session. The course was set up in modules, the content was online and students worked at their own pace. Boylston said she provided target completion dates for each unit that would keep students on pace to complete the coursework, but given the time of year, flexibility was important. More
Extension and Outreach
Annual Iowa Pork Congress Returns
The Iowa Pork Congress will be held Jan. 26-27 at the Iowa Events Center in Des Moines. Iowa Pork Industry Center and ISU extension specialists will be available in booth 1401. More
Farm Transitions Conference to Help Farmers Plan for Change
To help farmers prepare for transitions, ISU Extension and Outreach and the Beginning Farmer Center at Iowa State are offering a two-day event on Feb. 10-11. “Farm Transitions: Entering, Expanding or Exiting the Business” will be held at the Gateway Hotel and Conference Center. More
Around the College
Record Setting Fundraising by CALS Development Team
The CALS Development Team has surpassed $47 million in fundraising. This marks the college’s largest ever fundraising year, with six months left in the fiscal year. “The generosity of the college’s donors stems from the work you do with them when they are here with us as students and when they come to us as experts in our fields,” said Sarah Roelfs, senior director of development. “Those relationships are then cultivated by our team of skilled fundraisers up on the third floor of Curtiss Hall, and they culminate in incredible financial commitments to support all areas of our work, including innovation, enhanced leadership experiences, value-added opportunities for students and cutting edge facilities for teaching and research. Congratulations to the CALS Development Team on their record-setting efforts!”
INRC Announces Spring Water Quality Research Seminars
The Iowa Nutrient Research Center’s spring 2022 Water Quality Research Seminar series, “Focus on Phosphorus,” begins Jan. 26 with a presentation on Lake Erie cyanobacterial blooms by Justin Chaffin, research coordinator with Stone Laboratory and Ohio Sea Grant of The Ohio State University. The seminars will be held the fourth Wednesday of each month through April, from 3:10 to 4 p.m., with presentations in person and online. More
GDCB Releases Spring 2022 Seminar Schedule
The Department of Genetics, Development and Cell Biology has released information on its spring 2022 seminar series, which begins today, Jan. 18, at 4:10 p.m. in 1414 Molecular Biology Building. Teresa V. Bowman, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, will present on developmental hematopoiesis. More
Calendar
Jan 19: Iowa Learning Farms Webinar
Amy Toth, ecology, evolution and organismal biology, will highlight connections between bee populations and conservation practices on farms for the Iowa Learning Farms webinar on Wednesday, Jan. 19, at noon. More
Jan. 25: CAST Webinar
“Goals, Strengths and Limitations Governing the Use of Life Cycle Assessment in Food and Agriculture” is the topic of a webinar on Jan. 25 at noon presented by the Council for Agricultural Science and Technology. Kurt Rosentrater, agricultural and biosystems engineering, is a co-author of the CAST Commentary. More
Jan. 28: Max Rothschild Retirement Celebration
A retirement celebration for Max Rothschild, professor emeritus of animal science, is scheduled for Jan. 28 from 3:30 to 5 p.m. (program at 4 p.m.) in the Kildee Hall Atrium. Rothschild joined the animal science faculty at Iowa State in 1980. His research, identifying genes that control traits of economic importance in pigs, has impacted more than 90% of the U.S. pork industry. Rothschild has been an invited speaker in more than 60 countries and his work includes 12 U.S. patents. More
Infograzing
Carillon Concert to Honor Martin Luther King Jr.
An Iowa State campanile carillon concert in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. will be held Wednesday, Jan. 19, at 11:50 a.m. “Let Freedom Ring” will be performed by university carilloneur and Cownie Professor of Music Tin-Shi Tam.
Study Abroad Fair Set for Jan. 20
The spring Study Abroad Fair will be held Thursday, Jan. 20, from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Memorial Union South Ballroom and Sun Room. All members of the campus community can also apply for a U.S. passport at the fair. More
Marginalia
Who Gets to Write and Document History?
In 2016, artist Bethany Collins created April 12, 1963, an embossed paper framed like a painting. “From far away, it appears to be a blank sheet of white paper placed in a glass frame,” describes Natalie Beauchaine, former University Museums intern and 2020 graduate in advertising, on the University Museums website. “Upon closer investigation, the viewer finds that the blank sheet is a reproduction of the front page of The Birmingham News (Birmingham, AL) from April 12, 1963, the words clearly embossed on the white paper. Bethany Collins chose this specific newspaper and date to make a statement about who gets to write and document history. A few days before the paper was published, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. led a march and sit-in in the Birmingham area, which the newspaper failed to report. By leaving out specific stories like the highly charged march, history becomes incomplete and dull, like a blank sheet of paper.” April 12, 1963 is part of the Art on Campus collection and is housed in Parks Library.
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Online
Julie Stewart, Editor
jstewart@iastate.edu, (515) 294-5616
http://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 Thursday.