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AG AND LIFE SCIENCES ONLINE
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The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Newsletter
Iowa State University
July 30, 2012 No. 711
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COLLEGE NEWS
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SCHNABLE RECEIVES FUNDING FOR BIOMASS GENOMICS RESEARCH
Patrick Schnable, agronomy, has received $1.4 million in funding for biomass genomics research. The U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of Agriculture jointly selected nine projects for awards totaling $11.5 million for biobased-fuel research.
SENIOR ENJOYING SUMMER RESEARCH PROGRAM AT HARVARD
Aubrie James, a senior in animal ecology, is having the time of her life chasing butterflies at Harvard Forest this summer. She is one of 30 students selected for the prestigious undergraduate research summer program in ecology. Her research group is looking at the morphological differences between two populations of the Baltimore Checkerspot butterfly. More: http://www.news.iastate.edu/news/2012/07/26/student-summer-research
TWO ISU RESEARCH FARMS HAVE NEW SUPERINTENDENTS
Myron Rees has been promoted to superintendent of the Southeast Research Farm near Crawfordsville. Rees has worked as an agricultural specialist at the farm since 2003. Josh Sievers has been promoted to superintendent of the Northwest Research Farm near Sutherland. Sievers joined the farm as an agricultural specialist in 2005 and has been the On-Farm Research program coordinator since initiating the pilot program with northwest Iowa crop producers.
MacDONALD DISCUSSES GMO ISSUES DURING EDITORS TOUR
Part of the Soyfoods Council annual Editors Tour took place in the kitchen labs at ISU where participants made their own tofu. Ruth MacDonald, chair of the food science and human nutrition department, also engaged them in a discussion of GMO and non-GMO issues. Nine editors participated in the program.
TOTH STUDIES INTERACTION OF GENES AND ENVIRONMENT
Amy Toth, ecology, evolution and organismal biology, is using wasps to study how genes and the environment interact. Toth was recently awarded two National Science Foundation grants, totaling $756,000, to continue her studies of the insects.
RESEARCH FARMS OFFICE MOVES TO 141 CURTISS
The ISU Research and Demonstration Farms administrative office has moved to 141 Curtiss Hall due to construction. This is a temporary move until remodeled office space is ready in spring 2013. Phone numbers remain the same. Linda Lee has been hired as an administrative specialist to replace Pat Horton who retired in May. Lee can be reached at leell@iastate.edu, 4-1719.
CAD OFFICES MERGE WITH ISU RESEARCH FARMS
The Committee for Agricultural Development offices has been merged with ISU Research and Demonstration Farms. Mark Honeyman, coordinator of ISU Research Farms, is now executive director/treasurer of CAD. The CAD office located at 4611 Mortensen Road has closed. The new address is 141 Curtiss Hall. The Committee for Agricultural Development is a nonprofit affiliated organization established in 1943. It has a history of distributing new seed and plant materials developed by ISU scientists and assisting the Experiment Station and College of Agriculture and Life Sciences in maintaining adequate land for research purposes.
AMES AREA RESEARCH FARM RECEIVES UNIVERSITY NUMBERS
The Agricultural Engineering and Agronomy Research Farms near Boone have new university phone numbers, which means there is no long distance fee. All cell numbers remain the same. The new numbers are:
Mike Fiscus, manager, (515) 294-4082
Richard VanDePol, manager, (515) 296-4081
Will Emley, agricultural specialist, (515) 296-4080
Nathan Meyers and Zack Koopman, agricultural specialists, (515) 296-4083
ATTENTION CALS FACULTY AUTHORS: TEXTBOOKS AND OTHER BOOKS NEEDED
One of the displays in the new student services wing in Curtiss Hall will feature textbooks written by the college's faculty. We need 75 books. If you have a textbook or other book you've written for use in the classroom or lab, please contact Barb McBreen at barbmc@iastate.edu, 4-0707 or drop it off in 304 Curtiss by Aug. 10.
DEADLINES AND REMINDERS
Aug. 13-15: Plastics Workshops, Memorial Union and Food Sciences Building
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FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
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NEW UNIVERSITY CENTER CAHDIT RECRUITING MEMBERS
The Center for Advanced Host Defenses, Immunobiotics and Translational Comparative Medicine is seeking members with diverse expertise. The objective of CAHDIT is to conduct innovative, interdisciplinary biomedical research to develop novel prophylactic vaccines, discover new immunotherapeutic or anti-microbial agents, establish and implement more efficient methods to reduce or prevent transmission, and invent next generation molecular diagnostics. Interested individuals should submit an NIH/NSF biosketch or CV to CAHDIT Program Coordinator Sandra Clark, sclark@mail.iastate.edu, by Aug. 6.
WEBINAR FOR CAYUSE 424 VERSION 5.0
A 20-minute overview session for Cayuse 424 Version 5.0 is available for viewing.
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/
Aug. 20: USDA Expert Integrated Pest Management Decision Support System; $143,000 total funding.
Sept. 21 (letter of intent): NIH Clinically Relevant Genetic Variants Resource: A Unified Approach for Identifying Genetic Variants for Clinical Use (U01).
Oct. 1: Genetic and Genomic Analysis of Xenopus (R21 and R01). More: R21 http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-12-249.html and R01 http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-12-250.html
Oct. 5: NIH Physical Activity and Weight Control Interventions among Cancer Survivors: Effects on Biomarkers of Prognosis and Survival (R01).
Oct. 16: NIH Unconventional Roles of Ethanol Metabolizing Enzymes, Metabolites, and Cofactors in Health and Disease (R21); up to $275,000 per two-year project.
Oct. 16: National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Small Research Program (R03). More: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-12-200.html
Oct. 30: NIH Instrument Development for Biomedical Applications (R21). More: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-GM-13-010.html
Nov. 30 (Step 1 proposals): NASA Land Cover/Land Use Change; up to 10 awards, $450,000 to $750,000 over three years. More: http://goo.gl/RiIgu
Dec. 3: NASA Soil Moisture Active-Passive Mission Science Team; up to 10 awards. More: http://goo.gl/P5k0L
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COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK
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"˜ZOMBIE' NOUNS PUT READERS TO SLEEP
"Nouns formed from other parts of speech are called nominalizations. Academics love them. I call them zombie nouns because they cannibalize active verbs, suck the lifeblood from adjectives and substitute abstract entities for human beings"¦A paragraph heavily populated by nominalizations will send your readers straight to sleep. Wake them up with vigorous, verb-driven sentences that are concrete, clearly structured and blissfully zombie-free." Helen Sword teaches at the University of Auckland. Her latest book is Stylish Academic Writing (Harvard University Press 2012). More: http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/23/zombie-nouns/
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INFOGRAZING
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WATER CONSERVATION TIPS FOR THE HOME
In addition to the surface indicators of severe drought conditions, a serious issue is the reduction of groundwater for necessary uses, including potable (drinking) water, said Kristi Cooper, family life specialist with ISU Extension and Outreach. Cooper offers several tips for homeowners to start conserving water.
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INTERNAL VOICES
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KIMLE ON THE AFFECTS OF INCREASED CORN PRICES
"Corn matures by about Labor Day, but what happens in dry conditions is it shuts down early if it doesn't get any moisture. When the cost of a base ingredient like corn goes up, it fundamentally affects everything," said Kevin Kimle, economics and director of the Agricultural Entrepreneurship Initiative, in a story on NBC News that ran July 27. More: http://economywatch.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/07/27/12975418-businesses-fa…
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MARGINALIA
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BABCOCK INTERVIEWED ON COLBERT REPORT
Bruce Babcock, economics, spoke with Colbert Report host Stephen Colbert live via satellite on July 24 about how the drought will have an impact on a large number of agricultural commodities from eggs to ethanol. More: http://www.card.iastate.edu/about/news/show_brief.aspx?id=44
CALS STUDENT SINGS ANTHEM TO COMPETE FOR SCHOLARSHIP
Bethany Olson, a senior in agricultural business from Jewell, is competing in a national scholarship competition for students in agriculture who submitted videos singing the Star Spangled Banner. Type in Olson's name under search entries and vote online.
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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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