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COLLEGE NEWS
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COMPETITIVE GRANTS BRING $1.4 MILLION IN DECEMBER
Researchers in the College of Agriculture received 34 sponsored funding awards last month amounting to $1.4 million. The most awards (14) came from businesses. The six federal awards, all originating with the USDA, accounted for the most funds ($477,526). The second highest dollar figure by group represented awards from universities and colleges, amounting to four for $254,014. The listing of awards is online.
FALL SEMESTER OFF-CAMPUS CLASS NOTIFICATION DUE ASAP
The deadline for identifying off-campus classes for fall semester 2003 was last Friday, Jan. 17. Faculty planning to offer a course off-campus regardless of delivery method, should notify their department chair, departmental coordinator, or contact Richard Carter or Neena Bentley in the Brenton Center as soon as possible. Call for help in preparing the Course Initiation Form and in establishing preliminary course budgets. Contact Carter at 4-6950, ricarter@iastate.edu, or Bentley at 4-1862 or nbentley@iastate.edu.
NEW CENTER STUDIES HERBAL SUPPLEMENTS
The Board of Regents, State of Iowa last week received a report of the new Center for Research on Dietary Botanical Supplements at ISU and the University of Iowa. The center will focus on the genetic, developmental and environmental qualities of Echinacea and St. John's Wort, two herbs that grow in Iowa. The center will offer a pre-doctoral training program at Iowa State and a professional training program at the University of Iowa. Diane Birt, the new center’s director, will report to the ISU Center for Designing Foods to Improve Nutrition. Funding of $1.2 million comes from the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences, part of the National Institutes of Health.
SCIENCE IN AG DAY PRESENTERS SOUGHT
Science in Agriculture Day will be April 22 and organizers are looking for faculty to present workshops. Recruiting new students into the College of Agriculture has become a major priority and Science in Agriculture Day is an event to help demonstrate to prospective students the breadth and depth of agriculture, including its strong links to science. Last year's event attracted more than 100 high school sophomores and juniors to participate in 33 workshops and to experience life at the university for one day. The workshop sessions are one hour and fifteen minutes long and you may choose to offer workshops anywhere from one to three different times. If you are interested, contact Beth Foreman at 4-4548 or bforeman@iastate.edu by the Jan. 31 deadline.
CAMPBELL GIFT BOOSTS MORRILL HALL CAMPAIGN
Lyle and Nancy Campbell of Paradise Valley, Arizona, have pledged $1 million to the Morrill Hall renovation project. Lyle Campbell is a 1966 agricultural business graduate of Iowa State University and chairman of the board of Founders Group, Inc. Iowa State President Gregory L. Geoffroy last August announced a private gift goal of $9 million for the renovation of Morrill Hall.
ISU COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE PRESENTS AWARDS TO FACULTY, STAFF
The College of Agriculture presented annual awards to faculty and staff at the spring semester convocation on Jan. 16. Find details on the award winners online.
IOWA PORK PRODUCERS LOSE MONEY IN 2002
The numbers are in and they aren't good news. Iowa pork producers experienced significant losses in 2002. "Farrow-to-finish producers lost an average of $16.22 per head marketed during the year with losses in September near $36 per head," said John Lawrence, associate economics professor in the Iowa State University College of Agriculture. Red ink for producers began in November 2001 and is expected to continue through late spring 2003.
IOWA PRODUCERS AHEAD OF CURVE ON NEW FEDERAL LIVESTOCK RULES
Many Iowa producers already are in compliance with new federal regulations on large livestock operations, said John Lawrence, associate economics professor in the Iowa State University College of Agriculture and director of the Iowa Beef Center. "While Iowa's larger livestock producers will face some additional costs and paperwork, many already have adopted the newly required management practices or will be able to do so in the time allotted," Lawrence said.
HIGHER GUARANTEES, LOWER RATES FOR LIVESTOCK INSURANCE
Quotes just released for spring Livestock Gross Margin (LGM) insurance should make the product more appealing to pork producers, said an Iowa State University agricultural economist. Chad Hart with the ISU Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD) said the new LGM rates for the six-month period beginning Jan. 31 signal a more positive outlook on U.S. futures and options markets for Iowa hog producers. Hart, Bruce Babcock and Dermot Hayes, agricultural economists who conduct research on risk management policy at CARD, helped develop the LGM policy.
ISU AG ENGINEER ORGANIZES INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
In 1977, a first-ever international conference on grain and forage harvesting was held on the Iowa State University campus. It was co-sponsored by Iowa State and the American Society of Agricultural Engineers and organized by Wesley Buchele, a long-time faculty member in Iowa State's agricultural and biosystems engineering department. Assisting was a graduate student, Graeme Quick. Now Quick, leader of power and machinery engineering in the ISU agricultural and biosystems engineering department, is organizing an international conference on crop harvesting and processing. Learn more in "Agriculture in Action."
DEADLINES AND REMINDERSJan. 22: Understanding China: Agriculture and Natural Resources workshop series begins, 3:30 p.m., Room 150/154 Scheman, to register contact Bob Jolly at 4-6267 or rjolly@iastate.edu or Shen Difei at dfshen@iastate.edu
Jan. 24: Practical Farmers of Iowa Annual Conference, Gateway Center, Ames
Jan. 27: Think Tank on Animal Agriculture, 6 p.m., Campanile Room, Memorial Union, RSVP before noon Jan. 24 to Julie Roberts at jrober@iastate.edu
Jan. 28: AgComm workshop, noon to 1:30 p.m., Room 8, Brenton Center
Jan. 28: Collaborative Research and Education Opportunities in the Squaw Creek Watershed Forum, 3:15 to 5 p.m., Room 1951 Food Science Building, RSVP by calling Cheryl Abrams at 4-5872
Feb. 1: Miller Faculty Fellowship Proposals due in 138 Curtiss (13 copies)
Feb. 3: Application deadline Center for Integrated Animal Genomics Genomics Scholar and Fellows Program
Feb. 4: Concentration in Agriculture conference, Benton Auditorium, Scheman Building
Feb. 17: Application deadline Center for Integrated Animal Genomics Genomics Symposia and Workshops Program
Feb. 17-19: Seed Science Center’s 25th Annual Seed Technology Conference
Feb. 18: Beginning Spanish short course for faculty and staff, 4:30-6 p.m. through April 10, contact: Eduarda Becerra at 294-3972, ebecerra@iastate.edu
Feb. 25: Visual Thinking Process in Design: From the Viewpoint of a Person with Autism, Temple Grandin, associate professor of animal science at Colorado State University, 8 p.m., Sun Room, Memorial Union
March 1: Deadline for proposals to college Computation Advisory Committee
March 7: Agriculture and the Environment: Research and Technology Update for Water and Air Quality, 8 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., Scheman Building
March 25: Application deadline Center for Integrated Animal Genomics Competitive Grants Program
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COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK
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FINDING FACTS ON THE WEB
Research shows that many people use the Internet inefficiently because they use the same web sites over and over, according to Mark Shainblum, head writer for Airborne Entertainment in Montreal, who has some tips to improve internet searches.
1. Type in the most likely URL first, often the companies initials.
2. If you have a good idea of where to look, go to the likely site first. It's easier than sifting through all the possibilities that a search engine suggests.
3. Use delimiters, such as quotation marks and semicolons, to narrow your search.
4. Learn how search engines work to reduce the amount of worthless results. Go to http://www.searchenginewatch.com to learn how to use search engines that fit your needs.
5. Check the reliability of sources. Be particularly careful of sites set up on free servers, such as Geo Cities. To find who owns a site use a service, such as www.checkdomain.com.
Tips from Writing that Works, December 2002.
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INFOGRAZING
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COMPUTER-BASED INSTRUCTION PROPOSALS DUE MARCH 1
The Computation Advisory Committee seeks proposals that address university needs for computer-based instructional support. Approximately $500,000 is available for centrally funded projects. All proposals should address campus needs for student computing. University-wide initiatives and innovative projects will receive priority in the review process. Proposals are due by March 1 to the college and March 15 to the committee.
NSF SEEKS PROPOSALS FOR LEARNING CENTERS PROGRAM
The National Science Foundation’s Centers For Learning and Teaching (CLT) program seeks proposals for its comprehensive, research-based effort that addresses needs of the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) instructional workforce in formal and informal education. Proposals must involve partnerships of organizations with a scientific, engineering and/or educational mission. An institution or agency may serve as administrative home for only one CLT proposal, however, an institution or agency may be a partner on more than one proposal. Approximately $2 million will be allocated per year per center for up to five years. Iowa State has an internal deadline for possible submissions of Feb. 3 by sending a letter or fax (no email) to James Bloedel, vice provost for research. More information: http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2003/nsf03522/nsf03522.htm
PROPOSED FEDERAL “BIOTERRORISM PROTECTION” RULES AFFECT CAMPUS RESEARCHERS
The federal government’s new rules are covered in the latest newsletter produced by the Department of Environmental Health and Safety. The rules go into effect early next month and a comment period for the regulations ends Feb. 11. There is a new state law that governs the possession, use and transfer of agents that could be involved in bioterrorism. The newsletter covers the steps ISU is taking to comply with the regulations and items that are restricted as well as how to comment on the federal proposals.
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EXTERNAL VOICES
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WHAT KING CONSIDERED MOST DANGEROUS
“Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.” Martin Luther King Jr., Dec. 11, 1964 acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Prize
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MARGINALIA
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GENETIC ENGINEERING MAY BE NEEDED FOR ENDANGERED BANANA
Science may be the only hope for one of the world's favorite fruits. Reuters reports that without scientific help the sterile, seedless banana could disappear within 10 years. Emile Frison, a Belgian plant pathologist and head of the International Network for the Improvement of Banana and Plantain in Monpellier, France, said the fruit lacks the genetic diversity to fight off diseases and pests that are plaguing banana plantations and only biotechnology and genetic manipulation may be able to save it. Without assistance banana production could drop and mark the beginning of the end of the fruit, stated Frison in an article in the New Scientist.
Next issue: Jan. 27 Deadline: Jan. 24
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AG ONLINE
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EDITORS
Ed Adcock, edadcock@iastate.edu, and Brian Meyer, bmeyer@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 Monday. To subscribe, send your name, e-mail address and the message "Ag Online subscribe" to edadcock@iastate.edu. To unsubscribe, send "Ag Online unsubscribe."
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