Issue: 1074

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Online
Sept. 30, 2019

Research

New Screening Tool Can Speed Detection of Bovine Tuberculosis
A new screening tool developed by Jacek Koziel, agricultural and biosystems engineering, Devin Maurer, a research associate in ABE who now works in industry, and collaborators in USDA, can dramatically reduce the time to detect strains of bacteria that cause a serious livestock disease and that impact the health of millions of people worldwide. Bovine tuberculosis is a zoonotic disease – one capable of being transmitted from animals to humans. More

Researchers Use Laser to Stimulate Bird Activity
Elizabeth Bobeck and Anna Johnson, animal science, and Hui Hu, aerospace engineering, recently completed a research project in which they examined the feasibility of using a laser device in a broiler house to stimulate enhanced bird activity. According to a Sept. 24 report by Canadian Poultry Magazine, they found that bird activity increased when this laser enrichment device was used. What's more, weight gain and feed conversion significantly improved. More

Youngs Co-Author of CAST Paper on Food Animal Gene Pools
The Council for Agricultural Science and Technology released a new issue paper today titled Protecting Food Animal Gene Pools for Future Generations – A paper in the series on The Need for Agricultural Innovation to Sustainably Feed the World by 2050. Curt Youngs, animal science, is one of six co-authors. More

2019 Animal Industry Report Available Online
The 2019 ISU Animal Industry Report is now available online. The annual report features animal industry-related research conducted at ISU and supported by the Iowa Agriculture and Home Economics Experiment Station. The report is coordinated through the animal science department.

Teaching and Students

CALS Awards $3.5 Million in Scholarships
CALS has awarded nearly $3.5 million in scholarships to students for the 2019-20 academic year. Since 2005, scholarship totals for incoming freshman and current students have tripled, thanks to gifts from donors. The college’s study abroad program is an example of the benefits these gifts provide students. Last year the program awarded more than $221,000 in scholarships to 358 students who studied in 36 countries. More

CALS Students Complete Wallace-Carver Fellowship
Chase Krug, sophomore in agronomy, and Kelli Wicks, junior in agriculture and society, are two of 30 college students who recently completed the Wallace-Carver Fellowship, created by the World Food Prize Foundation and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Students are stationed at USDA research centers and field offices across the country to analyze agricultural and economic policy; assist in the management of food, nutrition and rural development programs; and take part in groundbreaking field and laboratory-based research. More

Leopold Center Offering Scholarships for Undergraduates
Junior and senior undergraduates at Iowa four-year colleges and universities are invited to submit proposals to a new sustainability scholarship program sponsored by the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture. Awards of up to $1,000 will be provided to selected proposals to support planned learning and participation experiences for students interested in the broad area of sustainability. The program is made possible by private donor funds supporting the Leopold Center. Additional scholarships will be provided by private donor funds supporting CALS; scholarships from these funds will be awarded to eligible juniors and seniors from among the 25 majors in CALS. The deadline for submission is Oct. 30. More

Students Exhibit Grand Champion at National Barrow Show
Undergraduate students working at the ISU Swine Teaching Farm exhibited the grand champion truckload at the National Barrow Show on Sept. 7-10 in Austin, Minn. They were led by Carson Stilwill, graduate student manager who is studying swine genetics under Ken Stalder, animal science. More

Extension and Outreach

Iowa Farm Income Appears Higher, but Farm Values Decline
The 2018 Iowa Farm Costs and Returns analysis is now available, and despite a slight increase in net farm income last year, farmers saw another year of tight margins and a decrease in total farm assets and net farm worth, according to Alejandro Plastina, economics. More

Video: Insect Zoo Introduces Students to Bugs
A new video on the CALS website features Ginny Mitchell, education program coordinator for the Insect Zoo, a traveling outreach program introducing children and adults to arthropods. The zoo’s traveling exhibit visits schools around the state, averaging 325 programs a year. In the past six years, the Insect Zoo has traveled to 91 of the 99 Iowa counties, educating more than 150,000 children. More

CALS Extension Professionals Receive University Awards
Nine extension professionals were honored during the university’s annual awards ceremony on Sept. 23 in the Memorial Union Great Hall. Angela Shaw, food safety specialist, received the Inclusive Excellence award; Mark Edelman, extension ag economist, received the Achievement in Economic Development in Iowa award; and Anna Johnson, swine specialist, received the Outstanding Achievement in Extension or Professional Practice award. More

Around the College

Iowa Crop Improvement Association Commits $1.5 Million to Feed Mill Project
The Iowa Crop Improvement Association has pledged $1.5 million to ISU’s feed mill and grain science complex. The ICIA gift was announced earlier this month, during the groundbreaking ceremony for the $21.2 million project, which will be located on university-owned land south of Highway 30 in Ames. More

Save the Date: Town Hall Meeting on Oct. 15
CALS will hold a town hall meeting for all college faculty and staff on Oct. 15 from 11:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. in the Dolezal Auditorium in Curtiss Hall, Room 127. Feel free to bring your lunch. Beverages and cookies will be provided. Dean Dan Robison will provide a welcome and remarks. Key topics will be enrollment, budget and future plans for the college. Bring your questions, comments and ideas.

Donations Needed for CALS United Way Online Auction
Donations are being accepted for the CALS United Way online auction, which will run Oct. 7-10. Contact Carla Persaud (4-1823, cpersaud@iastate.edu) with a description and picture of the item. The auction website is being developed and details will be sent at a later date. Proceeds will go to the ISU 2019 United Way Campaign.

In Memoriam: Joe Legg, Retired County Extension Director
Joseph Legg (’49 animal science) died Sept. 22 in Anamosa. He was 91. Legg served as the Jones County Extension director for 36 years, retiring in 1986. He volunteered extensively following retirement. In 1989, Norman Borlaug asked Self Help International in Waverly, Iowa, to take one of their Self Helper tractors to Ghana, West Africa. Self Help requested that Legg lead the program. Legg and his wife went on seven trips to introduce farm mechanization and Quality Protein Maize, developed by Borlaug. Legg and his wife also took many trips for the U.S. State Department through ADCI/VOCA and Winrock International, including to Russia, Bulgaria and Poland, where he assisted in privatizing farming after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. A memorial service was held Sept. 28 in Anamosa.

Calendar

Sept. 30: Iowa’s Medical Cannabidiol Program
The Horticulture Department is hosting a seminar today, Sept. 30, at 4:10 p.m. in 118 Horticulture Hall. Randy Mayer, director of the Office of Medical Cannabidiol with the Iowa Department of Public Health, will present “Iowa’s Medical Cannabidiol Program.”

Oct. 1: CALS P&S Ice Cream Social
The CALS Professional and Scientific Council is hosting an ice cream social on Tuesday, Oct. 1, from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. in the Kildee Hall Pavilion. You are invited to meet your representatives on the college-specific P&S council and provide feedback on P&S issues. An RSVP is requested, but not required.

Oct. 2: Retirement Reception for Jeanne Stewart
A retirement reception for Jeanne Stewart, assistant scientist in food science and human nutrition will be held Wednesday, Oct. 2, from 2:30 to 4 p.m. in 2379 Food Sciences Building. A brief program will take place at 3:15 p.m. Refreshments will be provided.

Oct. 3: Feeding the World Seminar Series
The Feeding the World seminar series continues Thursday, Oct. 3, at 3:40 to 5 p.m. in 1204 Kildee Hall, Ensminger Room. ISU and Makerere University students who participated as 2019 Uganda Service Learners will present.

Oct. 3: Errington Memorial Lecture
The Paul L. Errington Memorial Lecture will be held Thursday, Oct. 3, at 7 p.m. in the Memorial Union Great Hall. Karen Oberhauser, director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Arboretum and founder and director of the Monarch Larva Monitoring Project, will present “Monarch Conservation: Saving an Iconic Insect.” More

Oct. 8: CALS Career Day
The Agriculture and Life Sciences Career Day is scheduled for Oct. 8 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Lied Recreation Athletic Center. More than 260 employers will be present, including at least 30 new organizations such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The U.S. Sugar Corporation, J.R. Simplot, Scripps Research Institute and other life sciences firms and employers. “This is the largest event of its kind in the country,” said Mike Gaul, director of CALS Career Services. “It’s as plain as day that these companies hold our students in incredibly high regard.” The career fair is open to all ISU students and alumni as well as the general public. More

Oct. 22: Staniforth Memorial Lecture
The 2019 David W. Staniforth Memorial Lecture will be held Oct. 22 at 4:10 to 5:10 p.m. in 0018 Horticulture Hall. Michael Walsh, director of weed research at the University of Sydney – Australia, will present “The Importance of Harvest Weed Seed Control in Integrated Weed Management Decisions.” The lecture series is presented in honor of David Staniforth, a pioneer in the field of weed science who was particularly interested in weed biology-ecology. More

Communications Kiosk

Imply vs. Infer
Writers or speakers imply in the words they use. A listener or reader infers something from the words. (Associated Press Stylebook, 2019 edition, pg. 146)

Infograzing

Antibiotic Symposium at ISU to Focus on Communicating Science
The National Institute for Animal Agriculture is hosting its ninth annual antibiotic symposium in Ames on Oct. 15-17, in collaboration with the ISU-based National Institute of Antimicrobial Resistance Research and Education. This year’s theme is Communicating the Science of Responsible Antibiotic Use in Animal Agriculture. Presentations and a hands-on workshop developed in partnership with ISU’s Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication will help attendees understand how to take science updates and new advances in research, technology and innovation and convey useful information to meet the needs of consumers. More

History of the Computer Begins at ISU
An essay for The Conversation recalls the first computer ever built by Iowa State professor John Vincent Atanasoff and graduate student Clifford Berry. More

Marginalia

Video: Beef Teaching Farm Posts “Cyclone Warning”
A video in a Facebook post by the ISU Beef Teaching Farm prior to the Iowa State/Iowa game has been viewed by more than 89,000 people, with more than 16,000 engagements and 430 shares. The video depicts “weather conditions perfect for chopping silage,” and banners of ISU and UI are involved. 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 Friday.

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