College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Online
June 8, 2015 – No. 853
Top Stories
Research Reports Available Online
Results from dozens of research projects conducted last year at ISU Research and Demonstration Farms are available online. The project reports deal mostly with crop production, with some related to animal science. ISU operates 13 research farms across the state, eight of which are owned by associations of farmers that provide management input. More
Teaching and Students
APEX Program Begins June 15 with Seven Students
The summer Academic Program for Excellence will begin June 15 with seven incoming freshmen starting summer courses. APEX is an eight-week summer program designed for incoming, multicultural freshman that helps students transition to ISU prior to their first fall semester. Elizabeth Martinez-Podolsky, CALS multicultural liaison officer, and Jessica Sanchez, senior in microbiology, will facilitate programming to help the students become more familiar with the college.
Team KinoSol Awarded $40,000 for Solar Food Dehydrator Innovation
ISU’s Team KinoSol won $40,000 in awards for a mobile solar food dehydrator built to help subsistence farmers in developing countries. Team members include global resource systems majors Ella Gehrke, sophomore; Mikayla Sullivan, junior; Elise Kendall, junior; Clayton Mooney, senior; and Alexandria Wilson, freshman in animal science. More
AGEDS Hosts Agricultural Mechanics Career Development Event
The Department of Agricultural Education and Studies, as part of its STEM efforts, hosted the Iowa FFA Agricultural Mechanics Career Development Event at the Ag450 Farm and the agricultural mechanics laboratory on June 4. Almost 100 high school students participated. Ryan Anderson organized the event with assistance from faculty, staff and graduate students in the department, including Sara Lundvall. Several alumni also returned to Ames to assist with the event.
Extension and Outreach
Extension Online Store
ISU Extension and Outreach provides learning opportunities to Iowa citizens through a variety of ways, including the Extension Online Store. Working with 4-H Youth and Development, Agriculture and Natural Resources, Community and Economic Development and Human Sciences, research-based information authored by ISU faculty and staff is produced and distributed. The Extension Online Store offers hundreds of publications as downloadable PDFs and printed copies at low or no cost. A limited number of publications are available as E-books, compatible with Kindle and iPad.
Field Day at McNay Farm Scheduled for June 16
Iowa Learning Farms, along with the STRIPS project and the Iowa Cover Crop Working Group, will host a field day June 16, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., at the McNay Memorial Research and Demonstration Farm in rural Chariton. The field day is free and open to the public, but a RSVP is requested.
Summer Field Days Focus on Crops
Research and Demonstration Farms summer field days begin June 23 with a variety of topics focused on crop production. Field days are open to the public. More
- June 23 – Southeast Research and Demonstration Farm near Crawfordsville, 1 p.m.
- June 24 – Northeast Research and Demonstration Farm near Nashua, 1 p.m.
- June 25 – Northern Research and Demonstration Farm in Kanawha, 9 a.m.
- July 8 – Northwest Research and Demonstration Farm near Sutherland, 10 a.m.
Around the College
Rosenbloom Named Chair of Economics Department
Joshua Rosenbloom, a professor of economics at the University of Kansas, has been named the chair of the Department of Economics. Rosenbloom will begin his duties Aug. 1. He succeeds John Schroeter, who has served as interim chair since 2011 and will return to the faculty. More
Britt Named Chair of Sociology Department
Chester Britt, dean of the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Northeastern University, has been named chair of the Department of Sociology. Britt will begin his duties Aug. 1. He will succeed Paul Lasley, who is returning to the faculty after leading the department since 2002. More
DeWitt Honored as NCR-SARE Hero
Jerry DeWitt, professor emeritus of entomology, was honored as a 2015 NCR-SARE Hero by the North Central Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program. Coordinated by the NCR-SARE Alumni Organization, this recognition honors the leadership, vision, contributions and impact that these heroes have made in the field of sustainable agriculture in the North Central region. During his 38-year tenure with ISU, DeWitt served as an associate dean, assistant extension director and director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture.
Calendar
June 20: Pollinator Fest at Reiman Gardens
Reiman Gardens will celebrate National Pollinator Week on June 20, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., with activities hosted by the ISU Pollinator Working Group, the Insect Zoo, the Entomology Graduate Student Organization, and the Graduates in Evolutionary Biology and Ecology.
June 25: Iowa Swine Day
ISU will host the fourth annual Iowa Swine Day on June 25, 9 a.m. to 4:35 p.m., at the Scheman Building. Regional, national and international leaders in swine research, economics, production and the marketplace will address key challenges facing the pork industry. More
July 1: Insect Zoo Open House
The Insect Zoo will host an open house on July 1, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., on the first and fourth floors of Science Hall II. Ginny Mitchell, the zoo’s educational program coordinator, said “Arthropods of all kinds – insects, tarantulas, scorpions, centipedes, millipedes and crabs – will be on display.” The event is free and open to the public. More
Funding Opportunities
Internal Competition: Kinship Foundation’s Searle Scholars Program
The VPR office is accepting proposals for Kinship Foundation’s Searle Scholars Program. This program supports individual investigators who began their first appointment at the assistant professor level on or after July 1, 2014. Applicants are expected to be pursuing independent research careers in biochemistry, cell biology, genetics, immunology, neuroscience, pharmacology and related areas in chemistry, medicine and biological sciences. Concept papers are due by July 2. Contact: Chitra Rajan (rajanc@iastate.edu) or Donna Van Pelt (cvanpelt@iatate.edu).
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.
June 15: Stanley Smith Horticultural Trust; ornamental horticulture, one application per organization, contact Sue Shipitalo (sueship@iastate.edu) if interested. More
June 19: Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unity, Great Rivers CESU; monarch butterfly catch-mark-release, $15,600 first year, two years additional funding. More
June 19: Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit, Great Rivers CESU; mathematical support for invasive species project, $40,000 first year, one to four years additional funding. More
July 3, Aug. 1, Sept. 1 (letter of intent): NIH Mechanism for Time-Sensitive Research Opportunities in Environmental Health Sciences (R21); $275,000 over two years. More
July 6: USDA Agriculture Risk Management Education Partnerships Competitive Grants Program.
July 6: DHS National Bio- and Agrodefense Facility Transition Research Project. More
July 7 (pre-proposal): ISU Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture - Research and Project Grants.
Aug 31 (letters of intent accepted on rolling basis until Aug. 31): USDA AFRI Foundational – Exploratory Research; $100,000.
Sept. 9 (letter of intent): NIH Transformative Research Awards (R01). More
Oct. 9: NSF Advancing Digitization of Biodiversity Collections; Partners to Existing Networks (no limit on submissions) and Thematic Collections Networks (one proposal as lead organization, contact Sue Shipitalo to express interest). More
Communications Kiosk
Tips for Making Effective PowerPoint Presentations
Many associations hold their annual conferences in June and July. As you prepare PowerPoint presentations, consider these tips from the National Conference of State Legislatures. “Slideshows are quick to produce, easy to update and effective to inject visual interest into the presentation. However, slideshows can also spell disaster even for experienced presenters. The key to success is to make certain your slide show is a visual aid and not a visual distraction.” More
Infograzing
Soil – One of Nature’s Most Complex Ecosystems
Soil is one of nature’s most complex ecosystems. As part of the 2015 International Year of Soils, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations put together an infographic showing how soils host a quarter of our planet’s biodiversity, the soil food web, and soil biodiversity and agriculture. More
Marginalia
Webcam Shows Honey Bees Hard at Work
The Insect Zoo honey bee webcam is up and running. The observation hive is on the fourth floor of the Science II building. The Insect Zoo in ISU’s Department of Entomology is an outreach program developed to foster an appreciation of insects found in Iowa and throughout the world. More
ISU Entomologist Consultant on Discovery Channel Book
Bendan Dunphy, entomology, was an insect consultant and expert on “Bugopedia,” an educational book on insects targeted for children aged 8 to 12. Released by the Discovery Channel in April, the book aims to get kids interested in bugs, Dunphy said. “It’s meant to give children an introduction to the world of insects (and arthropods), so it highlights some fascinating biology,” he said. “It’s also stocked with a bunch of striking photos that showcase the beauty of these creatures, which is important in cultivating an appreciation for them at a young age.” More
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Online
Julie Stewart, Editor
jstewart@iastate.edu, (515) 294-5616
https://www.cals.iastate.edu/news/agonline
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Online, the newsletter for faculty and staff in Iowa State University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, is published by email every Monday. The deadline for submitting content is 12 p.m. on Friday.