Ag and Life Sciences ONLINE

COLLEGE NEWS



- Ag Comm workshop for instructors on Nov. 19



- New agronomy degree and catalog changes approved



- Successful Grantsmanship: USDA official to speak



- Visit with USDA's Rockey at Dec. 3 meetings



- Recent college events . . . by the numbers



- Deadlines & Reminders



COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK



- Helping writing tips not just for researchers anymore



INFOGRAZING



- Fall enrollment at Iowa's colleges, universities



EXTERNAL VOICES



- Why farm?



MARGINALIA



- Turkey coma fells thousands on Thanksgiving







C O L L E G E N E W S







AG COMM WORKSHOP FOR INSTRUCTORS ON NOV. 19



Mark your calendars for Tuesday, Nov. 19, and participate in a

workshop on Communications Across the Curriculum -- now named

Ag Comm. The workshop will be held from noon to 1:30 p.m. in Room

13 of the Brenton Center in Curtiss Hall. Rebecca Burnett and

Robert Martin will conduct this workshop focusing on evaluation

of assignments in communications. All faculty, instructors and

graduate teaching assistants are encouraged to attend. For more

information: Robert Martin, 4-0896 or drmartin@iastate.edu.



NEW AGRONOMY DEGREE AND CATALOG CHANGES APPROVED



The proposed non-thesis M.S. degree in agronomy has been approved,

77-21, by College of Agriculture faculty, according to the college's

Curriculum Committee. On the same ballot, ag faculty approved

the 1997-99 catalog changes, 96-2. The agronomy degree proposal

also has been approved by the Graduate Curriculum and Catalog

Committee, and will next be discussed by the Faculty Senate Curriculum

Committee. The new degree is in general agronomy and will be offered

to off-campus students through distance education technologies.





SUCCESSFUL GRANTSMANSHIP: USDA OFFICIAL TO SPEAK



Sally Rockey of the USDA Cooperative State Research, Education

and Extension Service will discuss USDA grants programs at 7 p.m.,

Monday, Dec. 2, in the Sun Room, Memorial Union. Rockey, the deputy

administrator of the CSREES Grants Management Branch, will focus

on the Fund for Rural America, a new three-year $100 million program,

and give an update on Competitive Research Grant Programs, especially

the National Research Initiative. This is the sixth in a series

of Successful Grantsmanship seminars sponsored by the Experiment

Station and the College of Veterinary Medicine. If you plan to

attend, RSVP by Nov. 27 to Carla Persaud, cpersaud@iastate.edu

or 4-9376.



VISIT WITH USDA'S ROCKEY AT DEC. 3 MEETINGS



All faculty, staff, postdocs and grad students are invited to

visit with Sally Rockey of the CSREES/USDA (see item above) at

several departmental/program meetings on Tuesday, Dec. 3. No registration

is required. The meetings are:



8 - 8:50 a.m.: Animal sciences, 105 Kildee



9 - 9:50 a.m.: Entomology, 5 Insectary



10 - 10:50 a.m.: Plant sciences, 3140 Agronomy



11 - 11:50 a.m.: Social sciences, 142 Curtiss



1 - 1:50 p.m.: Food science & human nutrition, 142 Curtiss



2 - 2:50 p.m.: Agricultural and biosystems engineering, 142

Curtiss



RECENT COLLEGE EVENTS . . . BY THE NUMBERS



Number of College of Agriculture faculty, staff and spouses who

attended three briefing sessions this week on the new "ISU

Plan": 225



Number of parents, students and family members who attended the

college's Parent and Family Weekend Reception: 200



Number of faculty, staff and Ag Council members at that reception:

50



Number of employers at Ag Career Day: 142



DEADLINES & REMINDERS



Nov. 18: Leopold Center research proposals due, 209 Curtiss



Nov. 19: Ag Comm Workshop, 13 Curtiss Hall



Dec. 2: Successful Grantsmanship Series: USDA's Sally Rockey,

Memorial Union, 7 p.m. (refreshments at 6:30 p.m.)



Dec. 3: Departmental/program meetings with USDA's Sally Rockey

(see item above)



Dec. 21: Commencement







C O M M U N I C A T I O N S K I O S K









HELPFUL WRITING TIPS NOT JUST FOR RESEARCHERS ANYMORE



Experiment Station Editor Carol Greiner has shared her "Word

Usage for Scientific Writing" tip sheet with college researchers

for years, but now it's readily available to everyone -- or at

least everyone with access to the World Wide Web. The page is

located off the Ag Information home page. Reach it directly by

telling your Web browser to go to:



http://www.ag.iastate.edu/aginfo/checklist.html



Don't let the title fool you, the tips are good for any kind of

writing.







I N F O G R A Z I N G







FALL ENROLLMENT AT IOWA'S COLLEGES, UNIVERSITIES



The following statistics on fall enrollment at Iowa's colleges

and universities were prepared by the Iowa Coordinating Council

on Post-High School Education:



Percentage change in enrollment at ISU from fall '95 to fall '96:

0.9



Percentage change in enrollment at all 3 state universities, same

period: -0.1



Percentage change in enrollment at private colleges/universities:

-0.3



Percentage change in enrollment at community colleges: 0.4



State universities' percentage of total Iowa college/university

enrollment this fall: 37



Private colleges and universities' percentage: 26



Community colleges' percentage: 33



Percentage change in new freshmen at state universities from a

year ago: -2.5



Percentage change at private colleges/universities: -3.5



Percentage change at community colleges: 6.3







E X T E R N A L V O I C E S







WHY FARM?



The following reader responses were sent to Progressive Farmer

when the magazine posed the question, Why do you farm?



"I farm because nature is putting on a 24-hour-a-day,a-week

show, and we have a front row seat." A Crawfordsville, Iowa,

farmer.



"Asking me why I farm is like asking me why I breathe."

-- A Dothan, Ala., farmer.



"I'm glad you asked why I farm. My land is too far from town

for a parking lot and too flat for a golf course. Hence, I farm!"

-- An Arthur, Ill., farmer.



(Other reader responses can be found at this Progressive Farmer

Web site: http://pathfinder.com/@@Nc3IJQYATkZzZhWf/PF/features/1196/whyfarm/index.html)









M A R G I N A L I A







TURKEY COMA FELLS THOUSANDS ON THANKSGIVING



Boring dinner conversation may not be to blame for that drowsy

feeling after the Thanksgiving meal. Various neurological and

physiological processes take place in your body that cause you

to fall asleep on the couch before Grandma even serves the pumpkin

pie. Researchers have nicknamed this "turkey coma."

Large amounts of carbohydrates, like those found in potatoes,

stuffing and candied yams, help the body produce serotonin, a

chemical in the brain that has a calming effect, says Joseph Hulihan,

a neurologist at Temple University. Also, the sudden onslaught

of food sends the body's insulin production into overdrive, depleting

blood sugar and causing you to feel sleepy. Plus, blood concentrates

in the digestive system and away from extremities, including the

brain. Top it off with alcoholic beverages and it's no wonder

you're snoozing after Thanksgiving dinner. To prevent yourself

from nodding off, Hulihan suggests: Don't skip breakfast or lunch

Thanksgiving day; limit the amount of alcohol you drink; and get

outside for some activity.