CALS Online and Dean’s Message
June 6, 2022
Dean’s Message
Hello CALS Colleagues – There is so much news to report, so many good things happening among us this summer and so much promise in all that we do here. Thank you. But the only news that really seems fit to mention in my short note today is the utterly senseless tragedy and loss of our two Iowa State students, Vivian Flores and Eden Montang. Vivian was a member of our CALS family in the animal science department… More
Top Stories
ISU Extension and Outreach Releases ANR by the Numbers
ISU Extension and Outreach’s Agriculture and Natural Resources program provides clients, policy makers, agencies, agribusiness professionals and other stakeholders the opportunity to learn from research-based education to inform their decisions, which leads to a sustainable agriculture and environment. In turn, this benefits all Iowans by ensuring clean water, profitable farms, thriving communities and a more secure food system. Selected highlights of this work is available in the 2021 ANR by the Numbers report. More
Research
AG2PI Awards New Research Grants
The Agricultural Genome to Phenome Initiative has awarded nine grants to 27 institutions in the third and final round of its project seed grant competition. The awarded projects help advance multidisciplinary crop and livestock research by addressing genome-to-phenome challenges, developing solutions for research infrastructure needs, or sharing solutions across kingdoms. Two of the new grants, which support critical needs in research data management and standardization, involve Iowa State faculty.
Teaching and Students
ABE Seniors Design, Assemble and Install Machine in Poultry Farm for Safety and Efficiency
Four seniors in agricultural and biosystems engineering researched livestock, machinery and safety as part of their senior capstone project. Austin Marshek, Max Lindgren and Logan Heims, agricultural systems technology, and Hunter Frerichs, industrial technology, designed a new and efficient winch for the Robert T. Hamilton Poultry Teaching and Research Facility at Iowa State. More
CALS Student Named Land O’Lakes Intern
Leah Marek, junior in global resource systems and biology, is one of Land O’Lakes 2022 Global Food Challenge Emerging Leaders for Food Security interns. The program’s eighth-year class will participate in professional development activities – from focusing on agriculture business case studies to visiting cooperatives in the U.S. and abroad. More
CALS Staff Recognized for Service to Learning Communities
The following college faculty and staff were recognized for years of service as learning community coordinators during Iowa State’s Learning Communities Institute on May 16: Susan Cramer (5 years), microbiology; Lindsay Frueh (10 years), agricultural and biological systems engineering; and Amber Kargol (10 years) and Anne Oldham (20 years), food science and human nutrition.
Extension and Outreach
Cash Rental Rates Rise Significantly Across Iowa
The most recent annual survey of cash rental rates for Iowa farmland showed rates increased an average of 10.3% in 2022, to $256 per acre. This is the third consecutive and largest uptick in cash rents since 2013, when rents peaked at $270 per acre, said Alejandro Plastina, economics. More
Research and Demonstration Farm Reports for 2021 Now Available
The latest version of Iowa State’s Research and Demonstration Farms summary reports are now available online and in print. The nine farm reports have a new look that includes larger headings, expanded tables and color photography. Specialists with Iowa State conduct research at the farms year-round, with field days held during the spring, summer and fall. About 20,000 people visit the farms each year, including school-age youth, according to Tim Goode, director of Research and Demonstration Farms. More than 130 Iowa State faculty members use the farms for teaching, research and extension. More
‘Garden Variety’ Podcast to Feature Iowa State Horticulturalists
A new podcast by Iowa Public Radio and ISU Extension and Outreach – “Garden Variety” – focuses on issues impacting gardeners across the Midwest. More
Around the College
Scholarship Honors Legacy of Distinguished Professor
The family of Neil Harl has provided a gift commitment of $2 million to help establish the endowed Dr. Neil Harl Opportunity Scholarship, which will provide support for students who wish to attend CALS. Friends, colleagues and former students have also contributed to the scholarship and additional donations are being sought to further honor Harl’s legacy. The scholarship will provide full tuition for students who demonstrate academic potential and would not otherwise be able to attend Iowa State. More
Kinzenbaw Gift Supports Student Scholarships and Research
Through a gift from Jon and Marcia Kinzenbaw of Williamsburg, Iowa, the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering has established support for students studying technical agriculture, women studying agriculture engineering and technology, and faculty research in agricultural and biosystems engineering. More
Tylka Awarded for Awareness Campaign among Soybean Farmers
Greg Tylka, plant pathology and microbiology and director of the Iowa Soybean Research Center, was part of a team awarded a Silver Anvil Award in issues management from the Public Relations Society of America. Tylka and other leaders of the SCN Coalition, a public-private partnership across 28 states and Ontario, Canada, were honored for efforts to raise farmer awareness of soybean cyst nematode, the top yield-reducing pest in U.S. soybean fields. The coalition's public relations campaign resulted in up to 18% more farmers actively managing SCN, at a savings estimated at hundreds of millions of dollars annually. More
Baum Visiting Professor at University of Cambridge
Thomas Baum, plant pathology and microbiology, has joined Sebastian Eves-van den Akker and his Plant-Parasite Interactions Group at the University of Cambridge as a visiting professor. Supported by the British Society for Plant Pathology, Baum is exploring and engaging in collaborative research on cyst nematode biology and genomics with his Cambridge host during his six-month stay. More
Animal Scientist Receives Kolmer Award
Kenneth Stalder, animal science, is the recipient of the 2022 Dean Lee R. Kolmer Award for Excellence in Applied Research from CALS. Stalder is nationally and internationally recognized for his ability to apply research to create teaching and learning programs for swine producers and employees. More
Dean’s Citation Goes to Carbon Report Team
The 2022 Dean’s Citation for Extraordinary Contribution to the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences went to the Carbon Report Team, led by Lisa Schulte Moore and Jim Jordahl, natural resource ecology and management and the Bioeconomy Institute. The team has completed a 280-page report that addresses ways to further improve the credibility of agricultural carbon credits and reduce the cost of carbon programs by assessing the underlying science and adding transparency to how carbon markets function. The college recognized more than 50 contributors to this effort at its award ceremony in March. More
Young Alum of the Month: Sonia Carrola
Sonia Carrola (’19 food science) creates formulas for ice cream products as a food product technologist at Wells Enterprises, the maker of Blue Bunny, Halo Top, Bomb Pop, Blue Ribbon Classics and more. More
Calendar
June 8-10: World Pork Expo
The World Pork Expo will be held Wednesday through Friday, June 8-10, at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines. On the agenda from CALS is Dermot Hayes, economics. More
June 10: Dairy Farm Open House
The annual open house at the ISU Dairy Farm is scheduled for Friday, June 10, from 7 a.m. to noon. Tours include stops at the milking parlor, the milk house and dairy barns. Visitors can sample free dairy products while learning about the dairy industry.
Sept. 3: Save the Date
The annual CALS BBQ will take place Sept. 3 at the Jeff and Deb Hansen Agriculture Student Learning Center. The event will start four hours prior to the Iowa State vs. Southeast Missouri State Redhawks football game, set to begin at 1 p.m. More
Communications Kiosk
Quotations – Revise Rather than Change Verb Tense
Square brackets can be used to change the tense of a verb so that a quotation fits grammatically into your sentence. But this technique should be used sparingly, and it is usually better to revise. (Modern Language Association Handbook, 9th edition, pg. 278)
Brackets to show change in verb tense (acceptable)
If Charles Dickens were alive today, he would likely say, “It [is] the best of times, it [is] the worst of times.”
Revision to avoid change in verb tense (preferred)
In 1859, Charles Dickens wrote in A Tale of Two Cities, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” If he were alive today, he would likely make a similar comment about our era.
Infograzing
Ames Laboratory Focus of ISU’s State Fair Exhibit
Iowa State’s exhibit at the Iowa State Fair on Aug. 11-21 will highlight 75 years of innovation at the Ames Laboratory, the U.S. Department of Energy’s only national research laboratory on a university campus. In June, the Office of University Marketing will begin recruiting staff and faculty volunteers. More
Marginalia
Extension Provides Support for Mobile Museum
The State Historical Society of Iowa’s mobile museum is packed with 56 artifacts and a video that explores 13,000 years of Iowa history. Housed in a custom-built Winnebago, the 300-square-foot museum on wheels launched in 2017 and completed its first 99-county tour in 2019, making 175 stops and attracting nearly 65,000 visitors. The current exhibition, “Iowa History 101: Iowa’s People & Places,” debuted last year and will continue its 99-county journey through 2023. ISU Extension and Outreach is providing partner support. More
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.