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C O N T E N T S
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COLLEGE NEWS
- A Veishea sampler in the College of Agriculture
- Search on for new placement director
- Retirement reception for Bruene May 6
- College in-service on portfolios May 5
- Ukrainian ambassador to visit campus April 21
- Provost will discuss globalization at April 23 lunch
- Third annual Ag Online awards issue coming May 8
- Deadlines & Reminders
COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK
- Accessing phone book data on Eudora
INFOGRAZING
- More than 12,000 register for non-credit ag courses
- Generous friends give support to college
EXTERNAL VOICES
- Slow leak in ag research funding
MARGINALIA
- Wait till these pigs graduate to Donkey Kong
- Pigs on PCs: Is it really necessary?
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C O L L E G E N E W S
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A VEISHEA SAMPLER IN THE COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE
- The Public Service and Administration in Agriculture Club will have a face-painting booth in the Big Top tent on central campus, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday.
- The Microbiology Club will have displays in 107 and 109 Science I that include homemade root beer and sparkling grape juice to demonstrate the role of yeast in carbon dioxide production; a video on the body’s response to germs; coloring books on microbiology; and other displays and posters. Visitors also can try gram staining, which is used to identify bacteria.
- The Entomology Club display can be found in the first floor lobby of Science II.
- The Department of Horticulture open house will feature displays by the Horticulture Club, Turf Club and faculty members on the first floor of Horticulture Hall, , 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday.
- The Hort Club will hold its annual plant sale in the greenhouse until 6 p.m. today (Friday); 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday; noon to 5 p.m. Sunday; and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, April 25. The sale includes many herbaceous annuals and perennials, including vegetables and ornamentals.
SEARCH BEGINS FOR NEW PLACEMENT DIRECTOR
Roger Bruene, the college’s placement director since 1975 and an ISU employee since 1959, will retire at the end of June. Tom Loynachan, agronomy, chairs the search committee for a new director of career services. There is a May 5 deadline for applications. Faculty or staff who have an interest, or who know colleagues who do, should contact Loynachan. The position description can be found on the ISU website (check the April 5 issue under Previously Advertised Vacancies) or contact Flora Tyler, 4-4548 or ftyler@iastate.edu.
RETIREMENT RECEPTION FOR BRUENE MAY 6
Roger Bruene’s retirement reception will be held 2 to 5:30 p.m., Wednesday, May 6, in the Campanile Room, Memorial Union. There will be a brief program at 3:30. Please pass the word to students, former students, colleagues and others.
COLLEGE IN-SERVICE ON PORTFOLIOS MAY 5
The College of Agriculture spring in-service will be May 5 in Rooms 230-240, Scheman Building. Dinner will be served at 5 p.m. followed by the program at 5:45 p.m., "Developing and Using Portfolios", by speaker Leverne Barrett, University of Nebraska. If you plan to attend, RSVP to Norma Hensley, nhensley@iastate.edu. For more information: Jim Dyer, 4-8363 or jdyer@iastate.edu.
UKRAINIAN AMBASSADOR TO VISIT CAMPUS APRIL 21
Yuri M. Scherbak, ambassador of Ukraine in the United States, will speak on "Ukraine: Present and Future" at 8 p.m., Monday, April 20, Great Hall, Memorial Union. Scherbak also will visit with College of Agriculture officials during his stay on campus.
PROVOST WILL DISCUSS GLOBALIZATION AT APRIL 23 LUNCH
Phi Beta Delta will host a brown bag lunch with ISU Provost John Kozak at noon, Thursday, April 23, in the Campanile Room, Memorial Union. The provost will discuss globalization efforts at ISU. For more information: Shelley Taylor, 4-3803 or szim@iastate.edu.
THIRD ANNUAL AG ONLINE AWARDS ISSUE COMING MAY 8
Ag Online’s third annual awards issue will be sent Friday, May 8. Communications advisers in each department have been collecting information from faculty and staff on awards, honors and other recognition received since last spring. Contact them, or send a note to Brian Meyer, bmeyer@iastate.edu.
DEADLINES & REMINDERS
April 17: Pre-registration deadline, "Is It Ethical to Increase World Food Production," Earth Week ISU Bioethics Symposium, April 25, 4-0343.
April 21: Science in Agriculture Day, 4-3273.
April 21: "Using Critical Thinking: Acknowledging the Role of Argument in Technical Text," 8 Curtiss, Ag Comm workshop, 4-6614.
April 21: Speech by Curt Meine, Aldo Leopold biographer, 7:30 p.m., 220 Scheman. 4-3711.
April 22: Planting of oak tree in Aldo Leopold’s honor, 11 a.m. southwest of Curtiss Hall; followed by speech by Curt Meine, Leopold biographer, noon, Sun Room, Memorial Union. 4-3711.
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C O M M U N I C A T I O N S K I O S K
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ACCESSING PHONE BOOK DATA ON EUDORA
The Eudora e-mail application has a Directory Services feature that provides a shortcut to looking up phone numbers, addresses and e-mails of ISU faculty, staff and students. First, make sure Eudora is configured to look for ISU’s "Ph" server. On a Mac computer, go to the Special menu of Eudora, open Settings and find Hosts. (On PCs running Windows, go to the Tools menu, open Options and look for Hosts.) There will be a window that should be set up as follows:
SMTP: mailhub.iastate.edu
Ph: ph.iastate.edu
Finger: iastate.edu
When that’s done, open Directory Services under the Special menu on Macs and under the Tools menu on Windows. Type in the name of the person you want, press the "Ph" button and it will call up the information.
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I N F O G R A Z I N G
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MORE THAN 12,000 REGISTER FOR NON-CREDIT AG COURSES
In FY97, 12,612 persons registered for College of Agriculture non-credit courses and conferences offered through ISU Extended and Continuing Education. A total of 223,793 signed up for ISU Extension non-credit offerings. The total for the entire university was 256,192. (The numbers don’t include those offered directly by colleges.)
GENEROUS FRIENDS GIVE SUPPORT TO COLLEGE
From July 1997 through March 1998, the College of Agriculture has received $17,567,883 in gifts (includes gifts received, new pledges and deferred commitments), according to the ISU Foundation.
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E X T E R N A L V O I C E S
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SLOW LEAK IN AG RESEARCH FUNDING
"From World War II on into the 1990s, public investment in agricultural research has been responsible for three-quarters of all growth in U.S. agricultural productivity . . . That's the good news. The not-so-good news is that funding for agricultural research has stagnated since the 1970s. My budget folks at USDA say that since 1985, research funding in real terms has declined by 15 percent. The potential consequences of this slow leak extend far beyond economics." Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman, in introducing the report "U.S. Agricultural Growth and Productivity: An Economy-wide Perspective." (The report’s references include work done by ISU economist Wallace Huffman.)
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M A R G I N A L I A
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WAIT TILL THESE PIGS GRADUATE TO DONKEY KONG
A Penn State professor experimenting with computer games for pigs says the animals can be taught to use icons on a computer screen to relay their thoughts to humans. The goal is to provide the best environment for pigs and other farm animals. The idea is to get pigs to first recognize symbols for a word or two, such as "want" and "heat," says Stanley Curtis. Someday a pig that wants the heat turned up will be able to join the two symbols. With the computer resting just outside the pigpen, beginner pigs use a joystick to move a circle around the screen, trying to put it on a blue target. If they do, they receive a food pellet. While most of the pigs are still working on the circle game, one has learned to solve a maze. One problem: The pigs don't want to stop playing. "Nine times out of 10,'" Curtis said, "we have to terminate the session. Otherwise, they may play all day." (Associated Press, April 14)
PIGS ON PC'S: IS IT REALLY NECESSARY?
Not everyone in agriculture thinks it's necessary for a pig to have computer skills to make its feelings known. "A good animal husbandry person has looked at signs for years and has always been able to look at a group of animals and read them as to whether they're comfortable," said Ken Esbenshade, head of animal sciences, North Carolina State University. "I have real concerns sometimes that we try to give human qualities to animals. Even though they may have some of the same responses and feelings, and there's some reasoning power present, they are not humans."; (Associated Press, April 14)