Ag and Life Sciences ONLINE

COLLEGE NEWS



- Full day of events for ISU's Ag Day, March 23



- Extension's commodity leaders forum April 6



- Deadline nears for Leopold Center conference proposals



- Deadlines & Reminders



SPRING BREAK



- A sampling of spring break in the college



- Ruins and rain forests in Central America



- Life under the sea near Honduras



- Mexican agriculture and a library gift



- Coffee, sugar and volcanoes in Costa Rica



- Agriculture and forestry in Yucatan



- Corn genetics in Wisconsin



- Gulf Coast biology tour



MARGINALIA



- Careers in agriculture -- fun jobs!







C O L L E G E N E W S







FULL DAY OF EVENTS FOR ISU'S AG DAY, MARCH 23



Ag Day at ISU is Monday, March 23. A barbecue starts at noon west

of Kildee Hall. The cost is $2 for agriculture faculty, staff

and students (bring fee card and ID). During the meal, WHO radio

will broadcast and the student-nominated 1998 Ag Man and Woman

of the Year will be announced. In the afternoon, the Novartis

Tech Van Tour, a showcase of new ag products and technology, will

be set up outside Kildee. At 5 p.m., there will be a tour of the

Kildee-Meat Lab expansion. A panel discussion on ag careers with

agribusiness representatives will begin at 6 p.m. in 2050 Agronomy.

At 8 p.m., a best butts contest will be held at Hunky Dory's.

The $3 cover charge will benefit Farm Safety for Just Kids.



EXTENSION'S COMMODITY LEADERS FORUM APRIL 6



The Iowa members of the National Association of County Agricultural

Agents and the ISU Extension to Agriculture and Natural Resources

Program are sponsoring a commodity leaders forum, 4-6:30 p.m.,

April 6, at the Scheman Building. The purpose is to discuss with

commodity leaders areas of mutual cooperation and concern; introduce

Gerald Miller, the new associate dean of extension; and help extension

staff better understand the goals and programs of commodity and

farm organizations. For more information: Julie Honeick, 4-7801.





DEADLINE NEARS FOR LEOPOLD CONFERENCE PROPOSALS



The deadline is March 27 for second-quarter proposals for the

Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture's Conference and Workshop

Support Program. For more information: Rich Pirog, 4-1854 or rspirog@iastate.edu.

Check the web page: www.leopold.iastate.edu



DEADLINES & REMINDERS



March 24: Presentation Skills: Preparing Students to Be Effective

Presenters, AgComm workshop, 8 Curtiss, 4-0896.



March 27: Deadline, Leopold Center conference and workshop support

proposals, 4-1854.



March 30: Animal Agriculture Career Day at ISU, 4-7235.



April 2-4: MANRRS National Conference, Des Moines and Ames, 4-8574.



April 17: Preregistration deadline, Is It Ethical to Increase

World Food Production - Bioethics Symposium on April 25, 4-0343.









S P R I N G B R E A K







A SAMPLING OF SPRING BREAK IN THE COLLEGE



The following items detail some spring break activities of faculty,

staff and students in the College of Agriculture.



RUINS AND RAIN FORESTS IN CENTRAL AMERICA



Professor Bill Franklin and animal ecology students are in central

America for an honors course in tropical and coral reef ecology.

The trip provides students with a hands-on experiential learning

environment. They will visit Mayan ruins in Guatemala, hike and

spelunk in the rain forest in Belize and scuba dive at the Cayes.

Students will present seminars during the trip.



LIFE UNDER THE SEA NEAR HONDURAS



Don Sakaguchi and Kathleen Flickinger, zoology and genetics, are

leading 11 undergraduate students on a marine biology field trip

to the Roatan Institute for Marine Sciences, Roatan Island, Honduras.

The students are enrolled in the international field trips in

biology course. They will hear from local experts and have extensive

scuba diving and snorkeling activities in several marine habitats.

Students have been in seminar this semester to prepare for the

trip.



MEXICAN AGRICULTURE AND A LIBRARY GIFT



Greg Miller and Ana Carr, agricultural education and studies,

and 24 students are studying agriculture in the state of Jalisco

in Mexico. They will get acquainted with students and programs

at the University of Guadalajara's College of Agriculture. The

ISU study-abroad students are bringing almost 300 documents to

donate to the college's library.



COFFEE, SUGAR AND VOLCANOES IN COSTA RICA



Russ Mullen, agronomy, William Edwards, economics, and Lisa Breja,

agricultural education and studies, are in Costa Rica with 36

students as part of a study-abroad course on agricultural production

and marketing in the Central American country. The students will

learn about the country's history, culture, geography and economy;

observe tropical agriculture production and marketing; study ecological

variability; and learn about the role of agricultural trade and

international business. They will visit ornamental, coffee and

sugar farms and processors, a farmers' market and an active volcano.

They'll meet with ISU alumni at the University of Costa Rica.





AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY IN YUCATAN



Patricia Negreros-Castillo, forestry, is leading an agroforestry

study-abroad program in which six students will spend time with

farm families in Yucatan and visit a research station.



CORN GENETICS IN WISCONSIN



Students and researchers in the lab of Phil Becraft, zoology and

genetics, are attending the 40th annual Maize Genetics Conference,

Lake Geneva, WI.



GULF COAST BIOLOGY TOUR



The Biology, Zoology and Genetics Club is touring the Gulf Coast

Research Station, Ocean Springs, MS. They'll also visit other

sites of interest to biologists in New Orleans and Memphis.







M A R G I N A L I A







CAREERS IN AGRICULTURE -- FUN JOBS!



For National Agriculture Week, March 15-21, Texas A&M University

set up a web site on "Careers in Agriculture -- Fun Jobs!"

The site, geared to K-12 students, includes video clips, games,

quizzes and information on agricultural careers. The site can

be found at: http://agweek.tamu.edu/