...................................................
C O N T E N T S
...................................................
COLLEGE NEWS
- Students plan ISU Ag Week events
- Caring systems of agriculture speech Oct. 23
- Collaborative cause marketing seminar Oct. 25
- Interns talk about experiences next week
- Dillman to speak on 37 years of sample surveys
- Drought Mitigation Center director to speak Oct. 25
- Kentucky names ag engineering building for ISU ag alum
- College alum's family chosen for annual award
- Hort Club selling apples and apple cider
- Deadline approaches for travel grants
- New report analyzes publicly funded ag research
- Say farewell to Jim Gulliford of IDALS
- Mexican researcher cancels campus visit
- Nov. 2 deadline for applied research projects
- Study-abroad proposals due Jan. 1
- Site visit funds for study-abroad programs available
- Competitive grants comments sought
- NASA Center annual report available online
- Rachel Carson subject of Nov. 8 play
- Meyer named interim director of ag communications
- Deadlines & Reminders
COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK
- A quality sentence is always a challenge
INFOGRAZING
- Financial planning and the stock market
- Energy center preproposals due Nov. 7
EXTERNAL VOICES
- Carson on how to lessen the taste for destruction
MARGINALIA
- Finding comfort in shoes and psychics . . .
- . . . or try being part of the world’s largest smile in Ames
...................................................
COLLEGE NEWS
...................................................
STUDENTS PLAN ISU AG WEEK EVENTS
Agriculture students are planning several events during ISU Ag Week, Oct. 22-26, including:
- AST Club equipment display north of Memorial Union, all week
- Ag Council prize patrol for wearing college or ag club shirt, Monday
- Muffins for faculty/staff, by PSA Club, Curtiss Hall Rotunda and Kildee Hall, Monday, 7:30 to 9 a.m.
- Ag Week kickoff, Curtiss Hall steps, by International Ag, Monday, 11:50 a.m. to 12:10 p.m.
- Costume dance, Coconut Cove, by Dairy Science Club, 8 p.m., Monday
- Volleyball tournament, Leid Rec, by NAMA, Tuesday, 7 p.m.
- Barbecue, Curtiss Hall steps, by ASAE, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Wednesday
- Bobbing for apples, by forestry/horticulture clubs, and roping by Rodeo Club, during barbecue Wednesday
- Hayride, bonfire and pumpkin carving, Dairy Farm, by Block & Bridle Club, 7 p.m., Wednesday
- Scavenger hunt, Curtiss Hall steps, by ag ed/farm op clubs, 10 p.m., Wednesday
- Chili cook-off, with Ag Week wrap-up and awards, Farm Bureau Pavilion, by Pre-Vet Club, 5 p.m., Thursday
For more information: Jess Schnitzler, 268-9556 or jsnitz@iastate.edu.
CARING SYSTEMS OF AGRICULTURE SPEECH OCT. 23
Janel Curry, former chair of the Leopold Center advisory board, will speak on "Care Theory and Caring Systems of Agriculture," Oct. 23 at 8 p.m. in the Sun Room, Memorial Union. Curry, a professor of geography and environmental studies at Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Mich., will examine how a feminist theory of caring can judge the ethics of agricultural production and management.
COLLABORATIVE CAUSE MARKETING SEMINAR OCT. 25
June Holley, president and founder of Appalachian Center for Economic Networks (ACEnet), will discuss values-based marketing in an Oct. 25 seminar, "Collaborative Cause Marketing," 11 a.m., 3140 Agronomy. ACEnet is a nonprofit community development group in southeastern Ohio. Holley will outline how small food businesses are learning to use cause marketing to promote regional products in the specialty food industry, especially for organic, gourmet, natural and vegan markets. Her visit is sponsored by the Leopold Center. For more information: Rich Pirog, 4-3711.
AG ED INTERNS TALK ABOUT EXPERIENCES NEXT WEEK
Twenty agricultural education and studies students who completed internships last summer will share their experiences next week, Oct. 15-19. Students in Lynn Jones’s AGEDS 412 and 418 courses will talk about their internships with visitors from 8:30 to 10 a.m. each day on the ground floor rotunda of Curtiss Hall. The students are fulfilling a class requirement to talk to others about internships as learning experiences.
DILLMAN TO SPEAK ON 37 YEARS OF SAMPLE SURVEYS
Iowa State alum Don Dillman, a distinguished professor of rural sociology at Washington State University, will receive the Distinguished Achievement Citation from the ISU Alumni Association on Oct. 19. Earlier that day, at 3:30 p.m., Dillman, a pioneer in the development of modern survey methods, will present a seminar in the Sun Room, Memorial Union. He will speak on "Cars, Stamps, Telephone Dials, and Hotlinks: Some Thoughts about 37 Years of Conducting Sample Surveys." Dillman earned a bachelor's degree in agronomy and master's and doctorate degrees in sociology, all at ISU. The seminar is sponsored by the college and the Department of Sociology.
DROUGHT MITIGATION CENTER DIRECTOR TO SPEAK OCT. 25
Donald Wilhite, director of the National Drought Mitigation Center and International Drought Information Center, will present a seminar on "Planning for Drought: Moving from Crisis to Risk Management," 10 a.m., Oct. 25, 2050 Agronomy. Wilhite will speak on global trends in drought preparedness, and suggest how regional networks can help nations improve their drought early warning systems and reduce hardships through mitigation planning. The event is sponsored by the Department of Agronomy as an activity of the Global Agricultural Science and Policy Institute. For more information: Ray Arritt, 4-9870.
KENTUCKY NAMES AG ENGINEERING BUILDING FOR ISU AG ALUM
The University of Kentucky has named its agricultural engineering building for an Iowa State agriculture alumnus. Charles Barnhart, who earned ISU master's and doctorate degrees in animal science in 1948 and 1954, served as dean of Kentucky’s College of Agriculture for 19 years. Barnhart retired in 1988 after 40 years with the university.
COLLEGE ALUM'S FAMILY CHOSEN FOR ANNUAL AWARD
The H. Clifford and Monica Hinkhouse family of West Liberty was honored Sept. 28-30 as Iowa State’s 2001 Family of the Year. Clifford Hinkhouse is a 1970 farm operations graduate. The Hinkhouse's two children, Amy and Chris, are both ISU students. Amy is a graduate student in educational leadership and policy studies and Chris is majoring in agriculture systems technology.
HORT CLUB SELLING APPLES AND APPLE CIDER
The Horticulture Club is selling apples and pasteurized apple cider every weekend this month. Several apple varieties are offered, including Chieftain, Delicious, Gala and Liberty. Sale hours are Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sundays, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., in the parking lot behind the Horticulture Building.
DEADLINE APPROACHES FOR FACULTY TRAVEL GRANTS
Oct. 31 is the deadline for fall-semester proposals for grants to strengthen linkages of ISU faculty and their counterparts at historically black land-grant colleges (1890 institutions) and Tuskegee University; tribal colleges (1994 institutions) and Hispanic-serving institutions. The Experiment Station provides up to $1,000 per grant to support travel and subsistence expenses of agriculture faculty. Grants can be used to visit or host a faculty member from another institution to enhance research, teaching or extension collaborations. Jan. 31 is the deadline for spring semester. Contact Mary de Baca, mmdb@iastate.edu or 4-8574, for an application and list of institutions.
NEW REPORT ANALYZES PUBLICLY FUNDED AG RESEARCH
The National Research Council has released a report on the impact of publicly funded agricultural research on the structure of agriculture. Two of its eight authors are from ISU: Cornelia Flora, director of the North Central Regional Center for Rural Development, and Fred Kirschenmann, director of the Leopold Center. The report notes that research does have some impact on the changing structure of agriculture, but there are many other contributing factors. Recommendations include studying the distributional effects of public research and extension and serving all farmers, and broadening research and extension beyond productivity and efficiency to serve constituents in a variety of circumstances and production systems.
SAY FAREWELL TO JIM GULLIFORD OF IDALS
A farewell reception for Jim Gulliford will be held Oct. 19, 4 to 5:30 p.m., with a program at 4:30 p.m., in the Agronomy Commons. Gulliford, a longtime friend of Iowa State’s and an ISU forestry alumnus, has worked closely with faculty and staff since 1982, when he became the director of the Soil Conservation Division of the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. He is leaving Iowa to become regional administrator of EPA Region 7 in Kansas City.
MEXICAN RESEARCHER CANCELS CAMPUS VISIT
Salvador Lozano Trejo, director of the Technological Institute of Agriculture of Oaxaca, had to cancel his visit to campus this week. His visit will be rescheduled for November. Trejo was interested in speaking to faculty about possible collaborations, especially in sustainable agriculture, forestry, biotechnology, livestock management and natural resource management. For more information: Heidi Asbjornsen, 4-7703 or hasbjorn@iastate.edu.
NOV. 2 DEADLINE FOR APPLIED RESEARCH PROJECTS
ISU’s Center for Advanced Technology Development seeks proposals by Nov. 2 for applied research projects intended to benefit Iowa business and industry. Four to five awards are expected to be made in the range of $15,000 to $25,000 per project, and will be announced by Nov 30. For proposal guidelines, contact your DEO or director, or Elena Polouchkina, 4-8493 or elenap@iastate.edu.
STUDY-ABROAD PROPOSALS DUE JAN. 1
The deadline is Jan. 1 for faculty members to submit proposals for study-abroad programs to be held during winter break 2002. Program approval applications from the Study Abroad Exchange Committee can be downloaded online. Assistance in proposal writing is available from the Agriculture Study Abroad office. Contact Shelley Taylor, 4-5393 or sztaylor@iastate.edu.
SITE VISIT FUNDS AVAILABLE FOR STUDY-ABROAD PROGRAMS
Faculty members who are considering leading study-abroad programs can apply for funding for site visits. Applications are due a month before the trip. They can be downloaded online. Assistance in proposal writing also is available. Contact Shelley Taylor, 4-5393 or sztaylor@iastate.edu.
COMMENTS, QUESTIONS SOUGHT ON CSREES COMPETITIVE GRANTS
Elena Polouchkina will represent the College of Agriculture at a USDA-CSREES competitive grants workshop on Oct. 18 in Syracuse, N.Y. The workshop will provide up-to-date information on the agency’s competitive grants and higher education programs. If you have questions, concerns or interests that you want addressed at the workshop, contact Polouchkina, 4-8493 or elenap@iastate.edu.
NASA CENTER ANNUAL REPORT AVAILABLE ONLINE
The NASA Food Technology Commercial Space Center’s annual report is available online. The center is leading a national effort to develop foods and food processing technologies that enhance space missions and advance commercial food products. The report can be downloaded as a PDF document.
RACHEL CARSON SUBJECT OF NOV. 8 PLAY
The Leopold Center is one of the sponsors of the Nov. 8 performance of a one-woman play based on the life and works of author Rachel Carson. "A Sense of Wonder" will be presented at 8 p.m. in the Maintenance Shop. New York actress Kaiulani Lee will perform the play, which depicts the time in Carson's life when she battled breast cancer and the public furor over her book "Silent Spring." Following the performance, Leopold Center director Fred Kirschenmann will lead a discussion of Carson's views on sustainable agriculture. No admission will be charged, but seating is limited. Doors open at 7 p.m. For more information: Laura Miller, 4-3711.
MEYER NAMED INTERIM DIRECTOR OF AG COMMUNICATIONS
Brian Meyer has been named the interim director of the College of Agriculture Communications Service. He has worked as a communications specialist for the office since 1990. Karen Bolluyt recently retired as office director after 23 years.
DEADLINES & REMINDERS
Oct. 18-20: World Food Prize 15th anniversary events, Des Moines, http://www.worldfoodprize.org
Oct. 15: Deadline, Dean of Agriculture Global Research Grant proposals
Oct. 16: AgComm Seminar: Assessing Written Documents, 224 Curtiss, noon
Oct. 19: Plant Sciences Institute Scientific Symposium: Roger Beachy, Danforth Science Center, and Pat Schnable, Agronomy, 1414 Molecular Biology, 4:10 p.m.
Oct. 19: "Cars, Stamps, Telephone Dials, and Hotlinks: Some Thoughts about 37 Years of Conducting Sample Surveys," Sun Room, Memorial Union, 3:30 p.m.
Oct. 22-26: ISU Ag Week
Oct. 23: "Care Theory and Caring Systems of Agriculture," Sun Room, Memorial Union, 8 p.m.
Oct. 24: Biotechnology Career Day
Oct. 25: "Planning for Drought: Moving from Crisis to Risk Management," 2050 Agronomy, 10 a.m.
Oct. 25: "Collaborative Cause Marketing," 3140 Agronomy, 11 a.m.
Oct. 27: Deadline, college/university award nominations
Oct. 30: Ag Career Day
.......................................................................
COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK
.......................................................................
A QUALITY SENTENCE IS ALWAYS A CHALLENGE
"The Text Generation is all around us. Billions of text messages are being sent over mobile phones. Nobody predicted it. It just happened. Young people took to words and created a new fashion and craze. How could words become so cool? Words are cool because they are intensely human. In so many areas, computers are doing what people do in a more efficient and cost-effective manner. Numbers have long been better manipulated by calculators. Anything that is logical, that has a process that can be automated, is being automated. Words, on the other hand, are still more an art than a science. A quality sentence is always a challenge. Twenty people see the same event and they will all write different versions of what happened. Our sentences and paragraphs will be the last thing to be truly automated, which means that they will be an area where humans will and must continue to excel."
- Gerry McGovern, publisher of the New Thinking Newsletter, which focuses on written content on the Internet
...................................................
INFOGRAZING
...................................................
FINANCIAL PLANNING AND THE STOCK MARKET
If you have questions about how recent stock market fluctuations may affect your retirement, TIAA-CREF has several resources. In a Sept. 27 letter to plan administrators, John Briggs, chairman and president of TIAA-CREF, wrote: "Counsel your employees not to move too quickly from their long-term investment strategy. Historically, financial markets have regained their equilibrium pretty quickly, even in the face of major world events. The underlying U.S. economy is solid for the long-term and we fully expect the markets to return to more stable patterns." ISU retirement information specialist Ann Doty says TIAA-CREF representatives visit campus four days a month. Appointments can be made by calling (800) 842-2005. If you need immediate help, Doty suggests phoning TIAA-CREF representatives, who are available to answer questions from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. during the week and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends. The phone number is (800) 842-2776.
ENERGY CENTER PREPROPOSALS DUE NOV. 7
The preproposal deadline is Nov. 7 for Iowa Energy Center research and demonstration projects.
...................................................
EXTERNAL VOICES
...................................................
CARSON ON HOW TO LESSEN THE TASTE FOR DESTRUCTION
"The more clearly we can focus our attention on the wonders and realities of the universe about us, the less taste we shall have for destruction."
- Rachel Carson, environmentalist and author of "Silent Spring"
...................................................
MARGINALIA
...................................................
FINDING COMFORT IN SHOES AND PYSCHICS . . .
After Sept. 11, Americans have sought comfort in many ways. The Oct. 8 issue of Newsweek documents some of them: At Neiman Marcus nationwide, shoe sales for the week of Sept. 17 were up 7 percent over last year. In the seven days after the attack, pizza sales jumped 3.2 percent from the week before. Membership applications at Crunch, a nationwide chain of gyms, are up 29 percent from a year ago. Actual gym usage is up 19 percent. Bible sales have risen 28 percent at Family Christian Stores. In three days, GasMaskExpress.com sold more than 3,000 gas masks at $200 each. Video and DVD rentals were up 30 percent in the week of the attack and 26 percent the second week. The American Association of Professional Psychics reports that callers seeking advice increased from 715 a day the week before the attacks to 1,120 a day the week after.
. . . OR BY BEING PART OF THE WORLD’S LARGEST SMILE IN AMES
Iowa State is one of the sponsors of the FACES (Families in Ames Celebrating Ethnicities) celebration on Saturday, Oct. 13. The daylong event is filled with activities, international food and cultural ethnic performances in downtown Ames. To start the day, Hy-Vee is sponsoring an effort to break the record for the world's largest human smile. Hy-Vee will serve a free breakfast to everyone who helps. Help put Iowa State and Ames in the record book -- go to the Hilton Coliseum south parking lot at 8:30 a.m. for breakfast and to get your place in the smile photo. The event should conclude by 10:30 a.m.
........................................................
AG ONLINE
........................................................
NEXT ISSUE: Oct. 26 DEADLINE: Oct. 24
EDITORS
Brian Meyer, bmeyer@iastate.edu, and Ed Adcock, edadcock@iastate.edu
Phone: (515) 294-5616 Web site: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/aginfo/
SUBSCRIBE
Ag Online, the newsletter for faculty and staff in Iowa State University’s College of Agriculture, is e-mailed every other Friday. To subscribe, send your name, e-mail address and the message "Ag Online subscribe" to bmeyer@iastate.edu. To unsubscribe, send "Ag Online unsubscribe."
Iowa State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, sex, marital status, disability or status as a U.S. Vietnam Era Veteran. Any persons having inquiries concerning this may contact the Director of Affirmative Action, 1031 Wallace Road Office Building, Room 101, (515) 294-7612.