8/16/99

Contacts:
Michael Thompson, Agronomy, 515/294-2415
Susan Thompson, Agriculture Information, 515/294-0705

DON NIELSEN TO PRESENT 1999 PIERRE LECTURE IN SOIL SCIENCE

AMES, Iowa -- An internationally renowned soil scientist who earned his doctorate degree from Iowa State University in 1958 will return to campus as a guest lecturer September 1.

Donald R. Nielsen will present the 1999 Pierre Lecture in Soil Science Sept. 1 at 4 p.m. in Agronomy 2050. His topic will be "Emerging Concepts for Field Research in Soil Science."

Nielsen is noted for his achievements in the areas of chemical transport through soil, spatial variability of field soils, determining nitrogen pollution levels from agricultural operations, hydrological properties of soils, and how soil management affects microbial transformations.

Nielsen spent his 40-year career at the University of California, Davis. He has authored or co-authored more than 300 publications and is a fellow of the Soil Science Society of America, the American Society of Agronomy, and the American Geophysical Union. He also has served as president of the Soil Science Society of America and the American Society of Agronomy.

The Pierre Lecture Series honors the memory of William H. Pierre. Pierre served as chair of the ISU agronomy department from 1938 until 1964. Under his leadership, the number of agronomy faculty more than doubled, outlying research centers were established to enable field research on major soils in Iowa, the climatology program was established, and the Soil Testing Laboratory was organized. In addition, the North Central Regional Plant Introduction Center and USDA scientists were aligned with the agronomy department, and groundwork was laid for the cooperative soil survey program in Iowa.

Nielsen's lecture will be the 13th in the Pierre Lecture Series. It will deal with how improved sampling and statistical designs can transform agricultural and environmental research in the 21st century.

On September 2, Nielsen will present a half-day workshop, "Sampling Field Soils and their Vegetation -- Learning Spatial and Temporal Statistics by Example." The workshop will run from 8:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. in Agronomy 3140. Nielsen is well-known as an enthusiastic, dynamic communicator, and the workshop will be an ideal opportunity for ISU faculty and students to learn about statistical approaches to soil and vegetation sampling that go beyond classical Fisherian designs. There is no cost for the workshop but registration is requested. Contact Jill Smart at 294-8921 or smarty@iastate.edu.

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