College News
Card Director Briefs USDA Secretary on Biorenewables
Bruce Babcock, professor of economics and director of the Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD), traveled to Washington Dec. 22 for a briefing of Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns on issues surrounding biorenewable fuels. The meeting was attended by the deputy secretary, the under secretaries for Rural Development and Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services, and Chief Economist Keith Collins. Much of the discussion centered on increasing E-85 fuel supply and meeting ethanol, livestock and export demands for corn. Discussion also focused on CARD's preliminary estimates of the long-term impacts of ethanol expansion on the grain, oilseed and livestock sectors, one of the earliest attempts to project the effects of a major shift in U.S. energy policy.
Science with Practice Orientation Wednesday
Science With Practice orientations will take place Wednesday, Jan. 10 from noon to 1 p.m. and from 4 to 5 p.m. in Room 8 Curtiss. Interested students and mentors are invited to hear information about the program. Packets will be available and questions answered. Contact: Liz Gaskins, gaskins@iastate.edu.
Arboriculture Society Presents Scholarships to College Students
The Midwestern Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture, a professional society of arborists, has awarded scholarships to three students in the urban forestry program directed by Jan Thompson, natural resource ecology and management. The students are seniors Kyle Eastwood of Pella and Eric Nath of Riceville, and junior Emma Bruemmer of Davenport. They are forestry majors.
Retirement Reception Jan. 30 for Lorna Michael Butler
A retirement reception for Lorna Michael Butler, Henry A. Wallace Endowed Chair for Sustainable Agriculture and Professor of sociology and anthropology, will be Jan. 30 from 3 to 5 p.m. She will retire from the university on Feb. 1. Butler joined Iowa State in 2000. The reception will be in the Agronomy Hall Commons with a short program at 4 p.m.
Iowa Ag Secretary to Speak at Beginning Farmers Conference
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey will deliver the keynote address at the Beginning Farmers Conference Feb. 3. The Beginning Farmers Network at Iowa State is hosting the conference in the Scheman Building. A list of all the conference topics and speakers is available at the Beginning Farmer Center website: www.extension.iastate.edu/bfc. The cost to attend the conference is $25 before Jan. 26, and $35 after Jan. 26 or at the door. More: http://www.ucs.iastate.edu/mnet/beginningfarmer/home.html
Alum Honored by Iowa Farm Bureau
Alumnus Vivan Jennings was one of Iowa Farm Bureau's Distinguished Service to Agriculture recipients for 2006. The award which honors people with a passion for agriculture and a lifetime of achievement was presented Dec. 9 at the group's annual meeting._ Jennings earned a bachelor's in farm operations in 1959, a masters and doctorate in agronomy in 1966 and 1974. He then became a professor at Iowa State and served in many leadership roles with ISU Extension. He served as deputy administrator for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Cooperative States Research, Education and Extension Service in Washington D.C. After retiring from the USDA in 1995, he returned to Iowa and started his latest venture, Asoyia LLC in 2004. Jennings has retired as CEO of Asoyia, but remains as the chief technology officer.
"Butter Cow Lady" Creates Bronze Cow for New Dairy Farm
Norma "Duffy" Lyon, known for her many butter sculptures of cows and personalities for the Iowa State Fair, has created a bronze sculpture of a cow for the new Iowa State Dairy Farm.
Iowa State Professor to Head American Society of Agronomy
Kenneth Moore, Iowa State agronomy professor, has been named the 2006-2007 president-elect of the American Society of Agronomy.
New Corn Production Web Site
Lori Abendroth and Roger Elmore from the agronomy department have designed a new web site for ISU Extension with management information for producing corn in Iowa. The site provides recommendations and diagnostic tools based on research findings. The largest section is devoted to corn management, but additional information also is available including extension newsletter articles and publications, scientific papers and current research. More: http://www.agronext.iastate.edu/corn.
Leopold Center Helps Launch New Water Quality Web Tool
The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture has helped develop a new web-based map and database designed to connect organizations throughout the Mississippi River watershed working on water quality. Learn more: http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/news/newsreleases/2007/rivermap_010507.htm
Information Technology Proposals Requested
The Computation Advisory Committee, CAC, expects to recommend the expenditure of approximately $700,000 of student computer fees to the CIO and provost. This annual request for proposals is searching for projects that will have a broad impact on student computing and represent innovative uses of information technology for instruction at Iowa State. Student involvement in the development of proposals is encouraged. Proposals must be reviewed within their administrative units (colleges, etc.) before they are submitted to CAC. The suggested deadline for submitting proposals for administrative approval is Friday, Feb. 23, 2007. Proposals must be forwarded to CAC by Friday, March 9, 2007.
Deadlines & Reminders
Jan. 24: College convocation, 2:30 p.m., Sun Room, Memorial Union
April 1: Last day of Reiman Gardens Conservatory display "Stream of Passion: Plant Lovers of ISU," College of Agriculture faculty and staff and their children under age 17 receive free admission to the display by identifying themselves as College employees at the front desk of Reiman Gardens, spouses and friends are $5 each.
Communications Kiosk
Talking Science with the Media
In their new book, "A Scientist's Guide to Talking with the Media," Richard Hayes and Daniel Grossman draw on their expertise in public relations and journalism to help researchers communicate. The authors provide tips on how to translate abstract concepts into concrete metaphors, craft sound bites and prepare for interviews. For those looking for a higher profile, the authors explain how to become a reporter's trusted source on controversial issues. More: http://www.sigmaxi.org/programs/public/media.shtml
Infograzing
Analysis Compares Employment at Ethanol Plants, Livestock Operations
It takes more people to raise Iowa livestock than to make ethanol from the same amount of corn, according to an analysis conducted by John Lawrence, economics. Using an example of a 100 million gallon ethanol plant that uses 37 million bushels of corn and employs about 80 people, Lawrence compared beef and swine operations that would use similar amounts of corn. Beef feedlots would need 278 full-time equivalent (FTE) workers while farrow-to-finish swine operations would need 800 FTEs, and wean-to-finish hog operations would need 241 FTEs.
Plant Sciences Fellowshop Program Offered
The Plant Sciences Institute is offering its Fellowship Program again this year. The objective of the program is to attract graduate students in the plant sciences to Iowa State. Fellowship recipients are awarded a stipend of $25,000 for 12 months, paid tuition for four years, guaranteed stipend support for four years and nine months to spend time in up to three research laboratories before deciding on major professor.
High School Seniors Sought for Soybean Scholarships
The Iowa Soybean Association seeks applications from high school seniors pursuing a degree in agriculture or an agriculture-related field for its scholarship program that will award in eight, $2,000 scholarships. Seniors must be an Iowa resident and be attending any ag-related college or university. Other criteria include: an accumulated GPA of at least 3.0, community involvement, leadership, future plans in agriculture, a short essay regarding the student's role in the future of agriculture and three letters of recommendation. Preference will be given to those applicants whose parents or grandparents are or become ISA members. Applications must be postmarked no later than March 1. More: http://www.iasoybeans.com
External Voices
Educated Seen as More Healthful
"If you were to ask me what affects health and longevity, I would put education at the top of my list." --Michael Grossman, a health economist at the City University of New York, (A Surprising Secret to a Long Life: Stay in School, New York Times, Jan. 3)
Marginalia
Wasabi and Maple Among Top Flavor Combinations
McCormick, the seasoning company, has compiled a Flavor Forecast 2007, its annual look at the tastes that will define the year. The report looks at pairings of flavors this year. "In creating this report, we examined two overarching trends influencing flavor," said Laurie Harrsen, director of consumer communications at McCormick. "The first is the ever-expanding breadth of choices, specifically within individual ingredients. Even staples like salt are now available in a diverse palette of flavor, color and texture. Also, global cuisines, particularly those of North Africa, Asia and the Middle East, continue to drive our exploration of new foods and flavors." These combinations will be influencing the foods we eat in restaurants and at home: -Clove and Green Apple -Thyme and Tangerine -Tellicherry Black Pepper and Berry -Sea Salt and Smoked Tea -Lavender and Honey -Crystallized Ginger and Salted Pistachio -Cumin and Apricot -Toasted Mustard and Fennel Seeds -Wasabi and Maple -Caramelized Garlic and Riesling Vinegar (Institute of Food Technologists newsletter, Jan. 3) Next issue: Jan. 16
Ag Online
Editor: Ed Adcock, edadcock@iastate.edu
Phone: (515) 294-5616
Web site: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/aginfo/
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