AG AND LIFE SCIENCES ONLINE
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The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Newsletter
Iowa State University
Jan. 30, 2012 No. 685
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COLLEGE NEWS
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SPRING ENROLLMENT IN CALS ONLINE COURSES HITS RECORD
The College's online learning program hit record enrollment numbers this spring, with registrations increasing by 24.6 percent to more than 1,107 total registrations. Total online enrollments are up 21 percent from where the program ended last year.  Online classes offer an alternative for students who return home, study abroad or participate in internships. Departments with the largest enrollment included food science and human nutrition, agronomy and agricultural education and studies.
A HUNDRED EMPLOYERS AT SPRING CALS CAREER DAY FEB. 1
About 100 employers are expected to recruit students Feb. 1 at the CALS spring career fair to be held 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Memorial Union Great Hall. "We are seeing companies and organizations that were not at our fall event attend the spring event," said Mike Gaul, director of CALS Career Services. "This is especially true for many of the natural resource-type organizations." A list of companies scheduled to participate can be found online. More: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/news/releases/994/
FOUR DEANS OF AGRICULTURE ADDRESS YAHOO ARTICLE
Four Midwestern deans of agriculture, including CALS Dean Wendy Wintersteen, address a recent Yahoo Education article that described certain college majors as "useless." Three of the majors in the article were agriculture, animal sciences and horticulture. More: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/news/releases/995/
TAKLE NAMED FELLOW OF AMERICAN METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY
Gene Takle, agronomy and geological and atmospheric sciences, has been elected a Fellow of the American Meteorological Society. The award recognizes society members who have made outstanding contribution to atmospheric and related sciences or their applications over many years.
CHILI FEED IN CARVER HALL LOBBY, FEB. 1
The Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow Club is sponsoring a chili feed on Wednesday, Feb. 1, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Carver Hall Lobby. Cost is $3 a bowl.
WORDPRESS IS TOPIC OF BRENTON CENTER LUNCH AND LEARN, FEB. 7
The Brenton Center's next Lunch and Learn will be held Feb. 7 at noon in 8 Curtiss Hall. It will offer an overview of WordPress and its function; cover basic steps for creating a WordPress website and blog; and explain how to use blogging in and out of the classroom. Stacy Noe, Agricultural Entrepreneurship Initiative, will be speaking. Pizza and refreshments will be provided. To attend, contact Amy Pilcher, apilcher@iastate.edu, 4-1862.
GAMMA SIGMA DELTA AWARD NOMINATIONS DUE MARCH 5
Gamma Sigma Delta, the honor society of agriculture, is accepting nominations for 2012 awards. Submit nomination forms to Nick Christians, 133 Horticulture Hall, by March 5. Membership nominations are also due on that date to Barb Osborn, 107 Horticulture Hall. The initiative and awards ceremony will be held April 12 at 5 p.m. in the Curtiss Auditorium. More: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/gsd/
IOWA PORK INDUSTRY CENTER OFFERS TRAINING APRIL 19
Veterinarians and others in Iowa's pork industry have the opportunity to become Pork Quality Assurance Plus Advisors under the National Pork Board's PQA Plus program. The certification process requires attendance at a daylong training session and passing an exam. ISU's Iowa Pork Industry Center will hold one such training April 19. More: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/article/iowa-pork-industry-center-offer...
PRIORITIES OF RURAL ENTREPRENEURS REVEALED IN NEW REPORT
The priorities of rural entrepreneurs are outlined in a new report from the Community Vitality Center at ISU. The report is based on the responses from entrepreneurs who attended a Rural YES "Young Entrepreneurship Summit" last November. More: http://www.econ.iastate.edu/about-department/announce/news/03-2012-usefu...
LEOPOLD CENTER RELEASES 2011 ANNUAL REPORT
The FY2011 annual report includes an illustrated timeline commemorating important events in the Center's 25-year history. More: http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/news/01-26-2012/leopold-center-perseveran...
LIVESTOCK JUDGING TEAM WINS SIOUX EMPIRE FARM SHOW
The ISU Livestock Judging Team won the Sioux Empire Farm Show this past weekend in Sioux Falls, S.D. Fourteen teams were competing. The team also won the reasons, beef and swine divisions.
DEADLINES AND REMINDERS
Feb. 17: Deadline for Computation Advisory Committee call for proposals, http://www.cio.iastate.edu/committees/cac/proposals/2012-2013/cac_cfp_20...
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FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
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ADVANCE FACULTY FELLOWSHIP OPPORTUNITY
The Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost is seeking applications from full tenured professors for an ADVANCE Faculty Fellow starting in fall 2012. The fellowship will support a faculty member to represent the ISU ADVANCE Program for two years post-NSF funding, with possible renewable for a third year. The fellowship is a quarter-time position during the academic year. More: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/research/fundingResources
NSF Dear Colleague Letter - Stimulating Research Related to Science of Broadening Participation. More: http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2012/nsf12037/nsf12037.jsp?WT.mc_ev=click
FUNDING INFORMATION, OPPORTUNITIES AND DEADLINE REMINDERS
Dates listed are application deadlines. Contact: Roxanne Clemens, rclemens@iastate.edu
Additional information is posted at CALS Funding Resources, http://www.ag.iastate.edu/research/fundingResources/
Continuous through Jan. 31, 2013: U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center "“ Broad Agency Announcement. More: http://www.grants.gov/search/search.do?mode=VIEW&oppId=139493
Feb. 12, June 12: NIH NIAID Research Scholar Development Award (K22). More: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/g uide/p a-files/PAR-09-068.html
Feb. 22: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation - State Health Access Reform Evaluation. More: http://www.rwjf.org/applications/solicited/cfp.jsp?ID=21386
Feb. 27 (letter of intent): NSF Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program. More: http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=5733&WT.mc_ev=click
Feb. 27 (letter of intent): NIH Building the Science of Public Reporting (R21). More: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-HS-12-004.html
March 16 (letter of intent): NIH Development of Tools to Study the Synaptome (R21). More: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-MH-12-140.html
March 30: NIFA Higher Education Challenge Grant FY 2012. More: http://www.csrees.usda.gov/fo/fundview.cfm?fonum=1082
April 17: Chemistry and Materials Research in Cultural Heritage Science. More: http://nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=503478
April 18: NSF MacroSystems Biology: Research on Biological Systems at Regional to Continental Scales. More: http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2012/nsf12532/nsf12532.htm?WT.mc_ev=click
April 23: NSF Nanotechnology Undergraduate Education in Engineering. More: http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=13656Â
April 24: NSF Pan-American Advanced Studies Institutes Program. Ten to 16 awards, $1.2M anticipated total funding. More: http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2012/nsf12535/nsf12535.htm
May 29 (letter of intent): NIH Nutrition Obesity Research Centers (P30). More: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-DK-12-004.html
Aug. 20: NIH Cutting-Edge Basic Research Awards (R21). More: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-12-086.html ?
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COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK
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MEDIA SPOKESPERSON TRAINING, FEB. 15 AND 28
News Service provides media spokesperson training for faculty, staff and administrators who regularly serve as expert media sources, as well as those who would like to interact and communicate more effectively with reporters. Sessions are being offered Feb. 15 (afternoon) and Feb. 28 (morning). There's no fee to attend the workshops, but space is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Plan on a time commitment of three hours. Sessions for several members of a department or unit also may be arranged upon request. If you have questions or are interested in attending one of the February sessions, e-mail annette@iastate.edu.
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INFOGRAZING
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SYMPOSIUM ON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, FEB. 16
Edmund Sease, a trial lawyer with more than 30 years experience litigating intellectual property cases, will speak on "The Case for Patenting New Plants" on Feb. 16 at 8 p.m. in the Memorial Union Great Hall. Sease's talk is part of an all-day symposium, "Who Owns Life: Intellectual Property in Biotechnology and the Life Sciences." More: http://www.news.iastate.edu/news/2012/jan/Lecture/Sease
CONFERENCE TO ADDRESS ENERGY CHALLENGES, APRIL 29-MAY 1
The "2012 Public and Land-grant University Conference on Energy Challenges: The Next 50 Years" brings together public university, industry and government leaders from across the country to discuss and promote the role of the university in solving critical questions about energy in the 21st century. Scheduled for April 29 to May 1 on the Ohio State University campus, the conference is one in a series of events celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Morrill Act. More: http://energyinnovation2012.osu.edu/
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INTERNAL VOICES
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HOFSTRAND ON FEEDING NINE BILLION PEOPLE BY 2050
"Although notable exceptions exist, most hunger situations are not caused by an actual shortage of food. Rather hunger is caused by the financial inability to buy food. About 20 percent of the world's population lives on less than $1.25 per day. So this problem is more a sign of poor worldwide income distribution rather than a world-wide shortage of food." Don Hofstrand, ISU Emeritus Extension economist, on feeding more than nine billion people by 2050. More: http://www.agriview.com/news/crop/feeding-billion-in-years-many-moving-p...
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EXTERNAL VOICES
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ACCEPTING THE WAY YOU WRITE
"What I've learned about writing and intellectual work is that there's no right way to get things done, no ritual or routine that is effective unless it's effective for you"¦If you are unhappy with your writing process, make an effort to change it. Try it for three months. See if it makes your life better. If it doesn't, then I would say there isn't a problem. Accept that you are a last-minute person and realize this: writing is hard, no matter when you do it." Rachel Toor is an assistant professor of creative writing at Eastern Washington University. More: http://chronicle.com/article/Accepting-the-Way-You-Work/130465/?sid=at&u...
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AG AND LIFE SCIENCES ONLINE
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EDITOR
Julie Stewart, jstewart@iastate.edu
Phone: (515) 294-5616 Web site: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/aginfo/
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