COLLEGE NEWS
- Lawrence Named Director of Iowa Beef Industry Center
- Visiting Professors Made 96 Presentations Last Year
- Business Resources for Classes Available
- Support Available for Entrepreneurship Conference
- Grad Students Can Learn About Latest in Teaching
- Grants for Work with 1890 and 1994 Institutions
- Spanish Short Course for Faculty/Staff Begins Sept. 15
- Leopold Center Seeks Grant Preproposals
- Senior Forestry Students Place Second in Contest
- Deadlines & Reminders
COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK
- E-Mail Bug May Munch Your Computer
INFOGRAZING
- Magazine Does Taste Test of Irradiated Beef From ISU
- Ag Faculty Visit 58 Countries in 1997
EXTERNAL VOICES
- Value-Added Ag Also Adds Value to Ag Careers
MARGINALIA
- Carton Sweetens Grapefruit Juice
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C O L L E G E N E W S
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LAWRENCE NAMED DIRECTOR OF IOWA BEEF INDUSTRY CENTER
John Lawrence, associate professor of economics, has been named director of the Iowa Beef Industry Center. The center began in 1996 with a legislative mandate to support Iowa's beef cattle industry. The center serves as the central point for ISU programs related to cattle production and the beef industry. Lawrence has been an extension economist since 1991, and will continue that appointment. Nolan Hartwig, now a department head in veterinary medicine, had served as the center's interim director. For more information on the center: 4-BEEF or check the website.
VISITING PROFESSORS MADE 96 PRESENTATIONS LAST YEAR
In 1997-98, 33 faculty participated in the college’s Visiting Professor Program, and 96 presentations were made in Iowa high schools. (The previous year, 28 faculty participated and 58 presentations were made.) The most popular topics selected by the schools included: "Cloning: It Could Happen to You," "World Weather Puzzles: Climate Change, Ozone Holes and El Ninos" and "Antibiotic-Eating Bacteria: The Next Scourge." Since 1990, there have been 437 presentations made by the college’s "visiting professors." To become a visiting professor, contact Norma Hensley, 4-6614 or nhensley@iastate.edu.
BUSINESS RESOURCES FOR CLASSES AVAILABLE
ISU’s Pappajohn Center for Entrepreneurship has helped College of Business faculty identify guest speakers for their classes, and helped match student teams to businesses to work on special projects. This fall, the center is expanding these resources to faculty in agriculture, engineering and veterinary medicine. If you’re interested, contact Steve Carter, stc@iastate.edu.
SUPPORT AVAILABLE FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP CONFERENCE
Faculty members with interests in entrepreneurship may be interested in attending the annual meeting of the U.S. Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Jan. 14-17, 1999, in San Diego. Support for attending the meeting is available. Contact Flora Tyler, 4-4548, for more information.
GRAD STUDENTS CAN LEARN ABOUT LATEST IN TEACHING
Graduate students interested in preparing themselves to become the next generation of teaching faculty should consider taking Advanced Teaching Methods (Ag EdS 520). The course, taught by Wade Miller, will introduce them to the use of alternative learning models, student-centered learning, cooperative learning and other current teaching methods and philosophies. The course is offered on Thursday nights in the Brenton Center.
GRANTS FOR WORK WITH 1890 AND 1994 INSTITUTIONS
The Experiment Station sponsors a competitive grants program to strengthen research and teaching linkages of ISU faculty and their counterparts at historically black land grant colleges (1890 institutions and Tuskegee University) and tribal colleges (1994 institutions). The program provides grants to support travel and other expenses, or to host faculty from other institutions. Deadline for proposals is Aug. 31. For more information: Carla Persaud, 4-9376 or cpersaud@iastate.edu
SPANISH SHORT COURSE FOR FACULTY/STAFF BEGINS SEPT. 15
In conjunction with the colleges of agriculture, engineering and veterinary medicine, the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures will provide short courses in beginning or intermediate Spanish this fall and next spring. The eight-week courses are designed for faculty and staff participating in international travel or research. The fall course runs Sept. 15 to Nov. 12. Cost is $50 plus materials. Register by Sept. 4 by contacting Madeleine Henry, 4-4046.
LEOPOLD CENTER SEEKS GRANT PREPROPOSALS
The Leopold Center is requesting preproposals for its competitive grants program for projects and practices that support a more sustainable agriculture. Priority topics for funding are: water quality, soil quality/health, biologically intensive farming, diversification and economic risk assessment, and agriculture and community. Deadline is Sept. 3. For more information: 4-3711.
DON’T FORGET AG ALUMNI WEEKEND ACTIVITIES
Sign up for the Agriculture Alumni Weekend activities on Sept. 4-5. Information and registration material is available online. Or call Flora Tyler, 4-4548 for more information.
SENIOR FORESTRY STUDENTS PLACE SECOND IN CONTEST
ISU senior forestry students placed second in the 1997-98 Upper Midwest Capstone Report Awards. The students submitted papers from their capstone courses to a panel of seven judges. Capstone courses integrate the coursework of a student's four-year academic career, requiring them to synthesize their knowledge in order to solve a complex land management problem. The ISU team’s paper outlined a management plan for an Iowa farm which involved timber harvesting, cattle grazing and a hermitage experience.
DEADLINES & REMINDERS
Aug. 13-23: Iowa State Fair.
Aug. 27: College of Agriculture Convocation, Sun Room, 4 p.m.
Sept. 4: "Agricultural Contracts: Freedom or Restraint?", Fall Agricultural Policy Conference, Scheman Bldg., 4-6257.
Sept. 4-5: Ag Alumni Weekend.
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C O M M U N I C A T I O N S K I O S K
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E-MAIL BUG MAY MUNCH YOUR COMPUTER
If you use Netscape Communicator or Microsoft Outlook as your e-mail software, there is a bug in the way both programs handle attachments that can crash your computer. The only complete fix at present is to not use them to read e-mail. Use Eudora or another program as an e-mail reader until ether Netscape or Microsoft post a fix for the problem. Another option is to set a limit on the size of e-mail you download to 10K, which should keep most attachments from being downloaded. For more information from the companies: http://www.netscape.com/products/security/resources/bugs/longfile.html?…
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I N F O G R A Z I N G
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MAGAZINE DOES TASTE TEST OF IRRADIATED BEEF FROM ISU
ISU's Meat Lab provided irradiated and regular beef patties to U.S. News & World Report for an "admittedly unscientific blind taste test." Thirty-four of the magazine's employees tasted the grilled patties. The magazine's report: "The two types looked the same -- no, the irradiated version didn't glow. Our tasters tried both, cleansing their palates between bites. Twenty people could not tell which meat was treated; 17 even preferred the irradiated meat." (U.S. News & World Report, Aug. 3)
AG FACULTY VISIT 58 COUNTRIES IN 1997
During calendar year 1997, more than 170 College of Agriculture faculty traveled to 58 countries to participate in teaching, research, training or conferences. The most-visited countries were Canada, Mexico, China, Ukraine, Germany, Russia, India and Costa Rica.
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E X T E R N A L V O I C E S
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VALUE-ADDED AG ALSO ADDS VALUE TO AG CAREERS
"I would encourage any young person to get involved in agriculture because there will be plenty of opportunities available to them. The changes will be incredible . . . The jobs will be different than they are today, but I'd sign up and do it all over again. Over the next three to four years, value-added, end-use traits will begin to revolutionize how we look at agriculture. It will totally change the nature of foods. The outcome will be healthier and more nutritious foods. There are plans to develop nutraceuticals -- giving plants the ability to produce beneficial drugs and vitamins -- and even ways of replacing plastics as we know them today with plant-based plastics. The possibilities are endless." Nicholas Reding, ISU graduate and vice chairman of Monsanto's board, in the July/August issue of AgriMarketing.
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M A R G I N A L I A
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CARTON SWEETENS GRAPEFRUIT JUICE
Cornell University food scientist Joseph Hotchkiss has developed a paperboard juice carton that can make grapefruit juice taste sweeter. The carton is lined with a cellulose polymer impregnated with an enzyme that breaks down the two ingredients responsible for the tartness of grapefruit juice, making the packaged juice sweeter than the fresh-squeezed kind. Hotchkiss is hoping to find a sponsor for his next idea -- shrink-wrap films and plastic bags that contain antimicrobial agents to deter the spoilage of meat, cheese and produce. (Business Week, Aug. 3)