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AG AND LIFE SCIENCES ONLINE
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The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Newsletter
Iowa State University
February 17, 2014 No. 786
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COLLEGE NEWS
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WINTERSTEEN TALKS PARTNERSHIPS AT NATIONAL SCIENCE MEETING
Wendy Wintersteen, dean of ISU's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, spoke on Sunday of the importance of public-private partnerships in strengthening global food security during the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Chicago. During her talk, part of a panel on research and development for sustainable agriculture and food security, Wintersteen stressed the importance of partnerships in providing the innovation necessary to meet global challenges. More: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-02/isu-isu021414.php
RESEARCH VIDEO RELEASED ON PERENNIAL GRASSES REDUCING POLLUTION
CenUSA Bioenergy has released a video on enhancing the Mississippi River watershed with perennial bioenergy crops. Perennial grasses have been shown to reduce sediment, phosphorus and nitrogen fertilizer runoff by as much as 90 percent compared to row crops. CenUSA Bioenergy is a multistate, USDA-sponsored research project. Ken Moore, agronomy, is the project director.
NEW MINOR APPROVED FOR FSHN
A new undergraduate minor in food and society is now available through the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition. The minor will address issues that impact the production, access and sustainability of the food system in the U.S. and globally. Students will gain an appreciation of the broader issues of the food system that include how food is produced, processed and marketed, how agricultural systems affect people, the environment and the economy, the role of food in human health and disease, and global issues of food access and food security. Through the required courses, ethical issues surrounding food will be addressed and students will be engaged in critical and scientific thinking to gather accurate and reliable information to develop a personal perspective about the food system. Students do not need to be in an FSHN major to take the courses leading to the minor. More: Amber Kargol, 4-2553, akargol@iastate.edu.
COLLEGIATE FFA PANCAKE BREAKFAST TOMORROW, FEB. 18
CALS faculty, staff and students are invited to the annual Collegiate FFA Pancake Breakfast on Tuesday, Feb. 18, from 7 to 9 a.m. in the Iowa Farm Bureau Pavilion in Kildee Hall. Pancakes, juice, coffee and milk will be served.
2014 ISU ANIMAL INDUSTRY REPORTS AVAILABLE ONLINE
The 2014 ISU Animal Industry Report is now available online. The annual report, developed by the Department of Animal Science, features animal agriculture-related research that was supported by the Iowa Agriculture and Home Economics Experiment Station.
ISU FACULTY LOOK TO CHICKEN GENETICS TO FIGHT HUNGER IN AFRICA
ISU animal science faculty members, including Susan Lamont and Jack Dekkers, are studying the genetic makeup of chickens in Africa in an effort to improve nutrition and alleviate food scarcity across the continent. The five-year project is funded by a grant from the U.S. Agency for International Development. More: http://www.news.iastate.edu/news/2014/02/11/chickengeneticslamont
IOWA LEARNING FARMS’ FEBRUARY WEBINAR THIS WEDNESDAY
The Iowa Learning Farms’ monthly webinar is Wednesday, Feb. 19, at 11:30 a.m. Mark Tomer, research soil scientist at the USDA National Laboratory for Agriculture and the Environment, will talk about watershed scale planning framework that is based on computerized mapping tools and helps improve water quality.
DEKKERS CO-TEACHES SUMMER COURSE IN AUSTRALIA
Jack Dekkers, distinguished professor in animal science, just completed co-teaching the Armidale Animal Breeding Summer Course for the University of New England in Australia with colleague Julius van der Werf, professor of animal genetics at the University of New England. Plans are to repeat the course offering in the summer of 2015 in Ames.
MUSIC VIDEOS TELL WATER STORY
Water Rocks! is a statewide youth water campaign in which music is used as a primary component. Many of the songs have been made into music videos -- a romance between hydrogen and oxygen, a modern classical ode to prairies, and dogs asking us not to pollute. Partners of Water Rocks! are ISU Extension and Outreach, Iowa DNR, Leopold Center, Iowa Water Center and Iowa Learning Farms.
IOWA BEEF CENTER SEEKS INPUT FROM COW-CALF PRODUCERS
ISU’s Iowa Beef Center is asking cow-calf producers for opinions on several topics in a survey that was mailed Feb. 7. “We place a high value on the input of producers because their first-hand knowledge and need for information will drive future research, education, and extension and outreach programming from IBC,” said director Dan Loy.
LIVESTOCK JUDGING TEAM EARNS FIRST PLACE AT IOWA BEEF EXPO
The ISU Livestock Judging Team earned first place honors at the Iowa Beef Expo, held Feb. 9-16 in Des Moines. The team also won the reasons and placings divisions. Amber Shipe, junior in agricultural and life sciences education, finished first overall. Kyle Ruth, senior in agricultural business, finished third overall.
INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON RESISTANT STARCH TO BE HELD IN AMES
An international symposium, “Integrating Resistant Starch, Microbiome and Disease Risk Reduction,” will be held in Ames on May 14-16. The symposium will explore research on the development and chemistry of dietary digestion-resistant starches, incorporation into human foods, and the impacts of resistant starch on the risk for chronic health conditions. Sponsors include CALS and the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition.
DEADLINES AND REMINDERS
March 6: “The Extinction of Passenger Pigeon” lecture, 7 p.m., Memorial Union Great Room
March 12: CALS Spring Awards Program, 4:10 p.m., Memorial Union South Ballroom
March 21-23: American Pre-Veterinary Medical Association Symposium, Ames
April 15-16: 2014 Egg Industry Issues Forum, Indianapolis
April 23: George Washington Carver Life and Legacy Symposium, Scheman Center
April 29-May1: Global Food Security Consortium Spring Symposium, Ames.
May 14: Food and Agriculture National Conference, Minneapolis
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FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
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BHEARD GRAD STUDENT ACADEMIC ADVISOR OPPORTUNITY
Michigan State University, the implementing institution for the Borlaug Higher Education for Agricultural Research and Development program, invites review of candidates from Bangladesh. All the candidates are currently employed at research institutions in Bangladesh and are seeking admission to doctoral programs in the U.S. starting in fall 2014. The BHEARD project will pay for all doctoral program expenses. All doctoral research projects will be conducted in Bangladesh. The U.S. academic advisor of the student will receive funding for a trip to Bangladesh during the student’s field work, to provide guidance as needed, and to establish professional relationships with the student’s home research institution. The deadline for submission is March 14.
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/
March 18: DARPA BAA Big Mechanism.
March 28: FY 2014 Upper Midwest and Great Lakes Landscape Conservation Cooperative projects; $10,000 to $200,000 per year. More: http://www.fws.gov/midwest/
March 31: NIST Standards Services Curricula Development; undergraduate or graduate. More: http://www.grants.gov/view-opportunity.html?oppId=251394
April 21: DOJ FY 2014 Research and Development in Forensic Science for Criminal Justice Purposes. More: http://www.grants.gov/view-opportunity.html?oppId=251361
May 1: NEH Fellowships for Advanced Social Science Research on Japan. More: http://www.neh.gov/grants/research/fellowships-advanced-social-science-…
May 23: DOD Awards to Stimulate and Support Undergraduate Research Experiences.
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COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK
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IS MY PAPER A CANDIDATE FOR OUTREACH?
Outreach efforts are time consuming. How do you know if the juice will be worth the squeeze? You don’t. But here are some important considerations. If your paper meets several of these criteria, it may well be worth the effort:
* It is new and surprising, or possibly goes against the grain.
* It can be simply summarized.
* It is clearly relevant to people’s lives or interests.
* It is timely and relates to something important happening in the world.
* It has policy implications.
* It is a global result with local examples and stories to tell.
* It has a wide range of authors from different disciplines and countries.
* It will be published in a high-impact journal.
(Escape from the Ivory Tower: A Guide to Making Your Science Matter, 2010, pg. 172)
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INFOGRAZING
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SESSIONS ON NEW RESEARCH FOCUS FOR PSI
Patrick Schnable, agronomy, director of the Plant Sciences Institute, will hold two sessions this month to explain a new research focus and funding model for the Institute. He will describe a new Faculty Fellows program and gage interest in a future workshop series. The first session will be held Feb. 21, 1 to 2:30 p.m. in the Memorial Union Gallery. The second session will be held Feb. 25, 1 to 2:30 p.m. in the Memorial Union Multicultural Center.
ZUMBA CLASS OFFERED FOR AMERICAN HEART MONTH
A free Zumba class is available for ISU employees and students for American Heart Month. “Zumba for your Heart” will be held Tuesday, Feb. 18, 5:20 to 6 p.m., in Forker 202 West Gym. For more information: Sally Barclay, barclay@iastate.edu.
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EXTERNAL VOICES
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RESTAURANT OWNER: FARMERS AS PARTNERS
The latest “Food for Thought” column through the Iowa Food and Family Project features Bruce Gerleman, owner of Des Moines-area Splash Seafood Bar & Grill and Jethro’s BBQ restaurants. “There are 1,002 details we have to take care of each day before we open a restaurant and not one relates to food. You need to intensely manage a restaurant just like you manage a farm. There are a lot of details but no shortcuts.”
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MARGINALIA
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GREAT LAKES NEARLY COVERED WITH ICE
As of Friday, ice cover extended across 88 percent of the Great Lakes, according to the U.S. government’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory in Ann Arbor, Mich. The deep freeze is more than a novelty. By limiting evaporation, it may help replenish lake water levels. Also getting relief are cities along the lakes that have been pummeled with lake-effect snow, which happens when cold air masses suck up moisture from open waters and dump it over land. At Apostle Islands National Lakeshore in Wisconsin, the rock-solid cover has allowed around 35,000 visitors to trudge miles over Lake Superior to explore caves featuring ice formations.
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AG AND LIFE SCIENCES ONLINE
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EDITOR
Julie Stewart
jstewart@iastate.edu, (515) 294-5616
https://www.cals.iastate.edu/news/agonline
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