College News
Moore One of Four ISU Faculty Named AAAS Fellows
Four Iowa State researchers, including agronomy professor Kenneth Moore, have been named fellows by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
ISA Honors Fehr With First Lifetime Achievement Award
The Iowa Soybean Association honored Walt Fehr with the association's first Lifetime Achievement Award at its annual policy conference and 45th anniversary kickoff on Dec. 19. John Heisdorffer, ISA president and a soybean farmer from Keota, recognized Fehr for his contribution to soybean plant breeding. "We've worked with Walt for many years, and we appreciate his tireless work for soybean farmers and his visionary leadership in soybean research," Heisdorffer said. A news release on Fehr's honor will soon be posted on the ISA website: http://www.iasoybeans.com/
Meet Our Students: New Profiles on the Web
Three new students are profiled in the rotation found on the College's homepage this week. Samir A'agha is a sophomore in animal science from Cagaus, Puerto Rico. Matt Heard is a senior in horticulture from Aledo, Ill. Laura Rosenbohm is a senior in agricultural and life sciences education from Peoria, Ill. The profiles offer an opportunity for the College to highlight its students and let prospective students view what current students are doing in the College. To view the student profiles go to http://www.ag.iastate.edu and refresh the page to view different stories. If you have students you think would be great web profiles, contact Barb McBreen at barbmc@istate.edu or 4-0707.
United Soybean Board Funds National Swine Nutrition Guide
The United Soybean Board has approved soybean checkoff funding for the development and distribution of the National Swine Nutrition Guide by the U.S. Pork Center of Excellence.
Spencer Award to Carroll County Producer
The Leopold Center will honor Carroll County livestock producer Steve Reinart with its annual Spencer Award for Sustainable Agriculture. Reinart owns and operates Reinart's Prairie Reds, a 500-acre, grass-fed organic beef and seed stock operation. More: http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/news/newsreleases/2008/121708_spencer.html
Average Value of Iowa Farmland Nears $4,500 an Acre
The average value of an acre of farmland in Iowa reached $4,468 in 2008, continuing to increase for the ninth year in a row, according to an annual survey conducted by ISU Extension.
Iowa Seed Directory Offers Quality Seed Options
The Iowa Crop Improvement Association, headquartered in the Department of Agronomy, recently published the 2008 Iowa Seed Directory. Seed production information from more than 100 producers and conditioners is listed in this year's directory.
ISU's Soy Research Offers Greener Materials for Hot Wax Art
The art world could be looking a little greener, thanks to the efforts of two Iowa State professors. Tong Wang, associate professor of food science and human nutrition, is working with Barbara Walton, associate professor of art and design, to modify soy wax for use in encaustic art.
Ag and Life Sciences Online: Next Issue Set for Jan. 5
Ag and Life Sciences Online will take a week off next week for the holidays. It will resume Monday, Jan. 5. Happy holidays!
Deadlines and Reminders
Jan. 9-10: Bioplastic Container Cropping Systems
Feb. 2: "A Dream Fulfilled: The Saga of George Washington Carver," 8 p.m., Great Hall, Memorial Union
Communications Kiosk
Tips Offered for Taking Better Digital Pictures
David Pogue recently shared the following tips for taking better pictures in his Circuit column in the New York Times:
- Half-pressing the shutter button (to prefocus) eliminates shutter lag with point and shoot cameras.
- For the blurred-background effect, back up and zoom in.
- Force the flash outdoors to avoid dark silhouetted faces.
- Exploit the magic hour, the hour before sunset and after sunrise.
- Use a lampshade screw as a tripod. The threads at the top of just about any lamp -- the place where the lampshade screws on -- are the same diameter as a tripod mount. In a pinch, you can remove the lampshade, screw on the camera and use as a tripod. More: http://pogue.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/12/18/pogues-photography-tips-and-tricks/?em
Infograzing
New Grant Program Replaces National Research Initiative
USDA's Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service (CSREES) has added the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) to its funding portfolio to replace the National Research Initiative and the Initiative for Future Agriculture and Food Systems programs. The Request for Applications is expected to be released early in 2009 on the CSREES and Grants.gov Web sites. In FY 2009, CSREES anticipates that $190 million will be available for AFRI.
ISU Teams Forming for Wellness Challenge
Iowa State is participating in a wellness challenge that will be run in conjunction with the Live Healthy Iowa, formerly Lighten Up Iowa. Teams of ISU employees will be competing against those at the other Regents universities to see which university can have the greatest percentage of their employees participating. The Live Healthy Iowa State 100 Day Wellness Challenge will run from Jan. 14 to April 23. ISU and HyVee are offering incentives to reduce the registration fee. More: http://www.livehealthyiowa.org/
Volunteers With Type 11 Diabetes Sought for Study
Nine new Type II diabetic volunteers are sought for a study to determine the effect of food and activity on glucose levels that is already in progress. Volunteer will wear an armband for activity measurements, a blood glucose monitor, complete four glucose lancet measurements daily and log all food consumption. For more information, contact Lucas Beverlin at beverlin@iastate.edu. The study is conducted under the guidance of Derrick Rollins, chemical and biological engineering and statistics departments.
Internal Voices
Transfer to ISU One of New Grad's Best Decisions
"As a transfer student from another four-year university, I personally feel that transferring to Iowa State was one of the best decisions I have ever made, for both personal and professional reasons. After two years at the other university, I eventually 'got smart' as my grandpa described it and quickly felt adopted into the Cyclone family. Whether it was current students going out of their way to make new students like myself feel welcome at events such as Destination Iowa State or professors and advisers taking the time to learn my name even in a larger class (which was definitely a new experience for me), I immediately felt welcomed into the Iowa State family." --Jamie Seeman, agronomy and environmental studies major who graduated summa cum laude, in her speech at the College's convocation for graduating seniors on Saturday, Dec. 20.
Marginalia
Later to Rise Makes Studnets Wise?
College students who avoid early-morning classes seem to benefit from sleeping in, according to a study reported in the Chronicle of Higher Education. The study, whose results appear in the December issue of the Economics of Education Review, found that students earn higher grades in courses that are offered later in the day. For each hour after 8 a.m. that a class begins, students' average grades are 0.024 points higher, on a 4-point grading scale.
Ag and Life Sciences Online
Editor
Ed Adcock, edadcock@iastate.edu
Phone: (515) 294-5616
Website: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/aginfo/
Subscribe
Ag and Life Sciences Online, the newsletter for faculty and staff in Iowa State University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, is e-mailed every Monday. To subscribe, send your name, e-mail address and the message "Ag and Life Sciences Online subscribe" to edadcock@iastate.edu. To unsubscribe, send "Ag and Life Sciences Online unsubscribe."