CALS NewsLine from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
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IN THIS NEWSLINE ISSUED May 16 , 2008:
- CALS COMMENCEMENT MAY 17
- SANDER RETURNS AS CALS DEAN, HAY BECOMES UA PROVOST
- WATER SUSTAINABILITY PROGRAM: CALS GRANT PROJECTS FY09
- GROW CITRUS TREES IN POTS
- RETURN ON INVESTMENT BROCHURE
- 10 EASY SOIL TESTS
- MORE ACCESS TO BIOTECH CROP DATA
- NEW PUBLICATION: CHOOSING HEALTHY FATS
- MINIMIZING BARK BEETLE COLONIES IN PONDEROSA PINE
- CALS IN THE NEWS
The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and its Schools of Family and Consumer Sciences and Natural Resources will honor graduating seniors and graduate students on Saturday, May 17, 2008 at Centennial Hall preceding the University Commencement ceremony. Degrees will be conferred upon 391 undergraduates, 50 master's students and 18 Ph.D. students.
Student registration and guest seating begin at 8:30 a.m.; the program starts with a processional at 9:30 a.m. The duration of the ceremony is approximately 1.5 hours. Refreshments will be served immediately following the reception.
PLEASE NOTE: Seating for this event is very limited. All guests of students must have a ticket for admittance. Faculty and staff do not need tickets to attend; but must rsvp before the event to request a space. See the link below.
For a list of CALS honors students, see http://cals.arizona.edu/oap/graduation/CALSgrads2008.pdf
The commencement program is at http://cals.arizona.edu/oap/graduation/CALSGradProgrMay08.pdf
Cecilia Mazon, Office of Academic Programs, cmazon@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://cals.arizona.edu/oap/Grad%20Info.htm
2 SANDER RETURNS AS CALS DEAN, HAY BECOMES UA PROVOST
Eugene Sander and UA President Robert Shelton made a deal last year when Shelton asked Sander to take over provost duties at the UA. "Now look here! We're really going to get some things done," Sander said to Shelton. "None of this interim stuff." The moment defined Sander's tenure as provost, a position responsible for overseeing all of the university's academic programs and units.
Holding the position for only a year, Sander set up relationships in the community crucial to the university's growth as an academic institution, Shelton said. That tenure officially ended yesterday as another began. Sander passed the responsibilities of the Office of the Provost onto Meredith Hay in a tribute to Sander's service and in a welcome to the new provost.
Read the rest of this article that appeared in the May 9 Arizona Daily Wildcat at the link below.
To learn more: http://media.wildcat.arizona.edu/media/storage/paper997/news/2008/05/07/News/Sander.Departs.Hay.Enters.As.Provost-3366514.shtml
3 WATER SUSTAINABILITY PROGRAM: CALS GRANT PROJECTS FY09
Ten of 16 projects funded through the UA Water Sustainability Program, Competitive Grant Program are led by investigators in CALS:
Kelly Bright and Chuck Gerba, SWES, Impact of Temperature and Precipitation Events on Recreational Water Quality in the State of Arizona.
Theresa Crimmins and Katherine Waser, OALS, Simple Techniques for Backyard Water Harvesting: An Online Instruction Module.
Joel Cuello, ABE, Use of Secondarily Treated Wastewater and Ground Water in Algae Photobioreactors for Biofuel Production.
Cado Daily, Cochise County, Candice Rupprecht, Master Watershed Stewards and Cynthia Warzecha, Coconino County, Cooperative Extension, Rainwater Harvesting Certificate Program and Demonstration Project.
Ian Pepper, SWES, Detection and Intervention of Vulnerable Tap Water Via Customer Surveillance and Enhanced Water Quality Monitoring.
Channah Rock and James Walworth, SWES, Seasonal Reclaimed Water Quality: An Assessment of Nutrient, Chemical and Biological Variability.
Charles Sanchez, Yuma Ag Center, Preliminary Evaluation of Antibiotic and Illicit Drug Contaminants in the Colorado River and Their Potential for Food Chain Transfer.
Ursula Schuch, Plant Science, Ed Martin, Maricopa Ag Center and Rick Gibson, Pinal County, Cooperative Extension, Optimum and Minimum Irrigation Requirements of Landscape Trees.
Kerry Schwartz, WRRC, Science Education That Makes a Difference - through Inspired Teacher Leaders.
Kristine Uhlman, WRRC and Steve Campbell, Navajo County, Cooperative Extension,
Ground Water Age Dating for Water Budget Development in the Show Low Watershed, Navajo County, AZ.
For project descriptions, see the link below.
Jackie Moxley, Water Resources Research Center, jmoxley@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://www.uawater.arizona.edu/grants/grants08.html
You can add beauty and interest to your patio with citrus trees grown in containers.
There are several types of these miniature trees that can be grown in containers--trees that have all the appeal of their full-grown counterparts: glossy green leaves, fragrant flowers, colorful and, yes, even edible fruit.
Mexican limes, calamondins, kumquats and limequats are the most popular citrus for growing in containers. But, you also can grow other varieties of citrus in pots on the patio if you purchase them on a dwarfing root stock that keeps them small.
To read the rest of this article that appeared in the April 27 Arizona Daily Star, see the link below.
John P. Begeman, Pima County Cooperative Extension, jbegeman@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://www.azstarnet.com/allheadlines/235880.php
5 RETURN ON INVESTMENT BROCHURE
As the land-grant institution in the state, the University of Arizona has a three-pronged mission: teaching, research and outreach. One of the most effective ways to fulfill this mission is through Cooperative Extension educational programs, designed to make science useful for people in their everyday lives.
Arizona Cooperative Extension programs are grounded in county and community needs, and developed based on feedback from the county board of supervisors and appointed advisory boards. These extension-driven programs leverage over one dollar of outside funding for every state dollar. In addition, extension educational programs save dollars to consumers and clientele and promote healthy environments and lifestyles.
A new guide titled "Return on Investment" describes Extension programs that are making a difference in health and nutrition, agriculture and natural resources, 4-H Youth Development, community leadership, agricultural literacy and other areas.
Jim Christenson, Arizona Cooperative Extension, jimc@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://cals.arizona.edu/delivers/featured_programs/returninvstbrochure081.pdf
What's the secret to raising healthy, carefree vegetables and flowers? Great soil. How can you tell if your soil has what plants need? A soil test. When you send a soil sample to a lab, you get a detailed analysis of soil nutrients and you find out about deficiencies. That's valuable information. Now you can also assess your soil for even more critical qualities, using a system developed by a team of farmers and soil scientists in Oregon. The methods are quite simple and the only supplies you need are a few items commonly found around the house.
The system, called Willamette Valley Soil Quality Guide, was designed with farmers in mind. But it can be used by gardeners in most zones across the country, says Richard Dick, Ph.D., codeveloper of the system and a professor of soil science at Oregon State University. "The general principles of the test are applicable anywhere," concurs James Walworth, Ph.D., soil scientist with the University of Arizona's Cooperative Extension in Tucson, "but the specifics will differ."
To read more from this article from Organic Gardening magazine, see the link below.
James Walworth, Department of Soil, Water and Environmental Science, walworth@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://www.organicgardening.com/feature/0,7518,s1-3-78-314,00.html
7 MORE ACCESS TO BIOTECH CROP DATA
Biologists call for making available more detailed maps of the locations of biotech crops. Access to maps of biotech crops on a county and township level will give researchers greater ability to analyze the effects of biotech crops on wildlife, water quality and on pest and beneficial insects.
"Since 1996 more than a billion acres have been planted with biotech crops in the U.S.," said lead author Michelle Marvier of Santa Clara University in Calif. "We don't really know what are the pros and cons of this important new agricultural technology."
"People on both sides of the debate about genetically engineered crops have been making a lot of claims," said Marvier, an associate professor of biology and environmental studies. "One side has been saying that biotech crops reduce insecticide use, reduce tillage and therefore the erosion of top soil. People on the other side say that biotech crops could hurt native species."
The scientists' article, Harvesting Data from Genetically Engineered Crops, has a map showing the distribution of crop fields in Arizona township by township. The article will be published as a Policy Forum in the April 25, 2008, issue of the journal Science.
Read the rest of this article that appeared April 28 in UANews at the link below.
Bruce Tabashnik, Department of Entomology, brucet@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://uanews.org/node/19467
8 NEW PUBLICATION: CHOOSING HEALTHY FATS
Everyone needs fats in a diet and "good" fats are essential to our health. Fats provide and store energy in the body, keep our skin soft, insulate our body and transport fat soluble vitamins through the blood. Too much fat, however, or the wrong kind, can lead to obesity, heart disease and various cancers.
A new extension bulletin titled "Healthy Fats: A Guide for Improving the Quality of Fat Intake" explains the different kinds of fat: saturated vs. unsaturated, mono- and polyunsaturated, and trans fats. The publication also includes specific suggestions for adding the right fats to your meals, and lists serving sizes for mayonnaise, butter, avocado, nuts and a variety of vegetable oils.
The concise, two-page guide, available online as a pdf, can be printed from the link below and kept in the kitchen.
Noboku (Kay) Hongu, Department of Nutritional Sciences, hongu@email.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://cals.arizona.edu/pubs/health/az1452.pdf
9 MINIMIZING BARK BEETLE COLONIES IN PONDEROSA PINE
Due to high fire hazard and perceived reductions in forest health, thinning of small diameter trees has become a prevalent management activity particularly in dense stands. Creation of large amounts of logging slash, however, has created large quantities of habitat for bark beetles primarily in the Ips genus.
Bark beetles are a large and diverse subfamily of insects commonly recognized as the most important biotic mortality agent in western coniferous forests. Attacks reduce tree growth and hasten decline, mortality and subsequent replacement by other tree species.
In the southwestern U.S., thinning is advocated by land managers as a means of reducing fuel loads, improving residual tree growth, and as a preventive measure for reducing subsequent amounts of bark beetle-caused tree mortality.
A new UA Cooperative Extension publication presents treatment options and guidelines for managing slash that minimize bark beetle activity in
response to thinning treatments. The 12-page, full-color guide can be downloaded from the link below.
Tom DeGomez, School of Natural Resources, degomez@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://cals.arizona.edu/pubs/natresources/az1449.pdf
THE FRESH FISH MYTH: FISH FARMING IN THE DESERT
Kevin Fitzsimmons' passion for aquaculture is evident, right down to the blue fish swimming on his tan collared dress shirt. The University of Arizona professor has devoted his career to correcting what he believes is a stigma placed on fish farms based on misconceptions that have been amplified by environmental groups.
"We can no more feed the world by hunting and gathering fish out of the ocean than we can by hunting and gathering on land. I mean if we were all out there hunting deer and buffalo we'd be in pretty bad shape," he said laughing at the notion.
Fish farming and aquaculture, the method of harvesting fish in farms for commercial sale, is quickly taking over the seafood market and replacing commercial fishermen. Though it has been practiced in Asia for hundreds of year, American aquaculturists have struggled to convince environmentalists, health experts, and the general public that farmed fish is equal in quality and health to wild fish.
Arizona alone is home to more than 30 fish farms that produce an average of 500,000 pounds of fish a year, according to the Arizona Aquaculture Association. Arizonan fish farms produce mainly catfish, tilapia and trout.
Read the rest of this story that appeared in the April 28 edition of Inside Tucson Business: http://www.azbiz.com/articles/2008/04/28/news/profiles/doc4812135485439384866088.txt
Kevin Fitzimmons, Environmental Research Laboratory, kevfitz@ag.arizona.edu
MORE UNIVERSITIES HASTEN BIOINFORMATICS DISCOVERIES USING HIGH-PERFORMANCE SGI SOLUTIONS
SGI shared-memory servers can be found in university research facilities throughout the world, but a new trend is prompting universities to migrate from smaller systems that serve individual departments to larger clusters and shared-memory systems capable of meeting the needs of many departments and disciplines. This trend is saving IT administrators the cost and time of managing multiple small systems, and it offers a new generation of researchers the kind of HPC resources they need to tackle ever-larger bioinformatics problems.
Research Professor Cari Soderlund heads the Arizona Genomics Computational Laboratory (AGCoL) that is currently working on the computational aspects of sequencing 30,000 genes for maize. In order to determine the sequence of genes, subsequences of about 800 base pairs (bp) are generated. To reconstruct the original gene sequence, the sub sequences are analyzed to determine the overlapping sub-sequences. For the 700,000 sequences, the global shared memory of the SGI Altix system will accelerate data generation and analysis.
"As our lab is often processing large datasets, the speedup from the SGI Altix system should increase the turn-around time between the generation of biological data and computational analysis," said Soderlund, who recently began porting her project to the SGI Altix system. "It would also allow for more experimentation of parameters and algorithms for larger datasets."
See the rest of this article from the April 29 issue of PR Newswire: http://sev.prnewswire.com/computer-electronics/20080429/AQTU11629042008-1.html
Cari Soderlund, Arizona BIO5 Institute, cas1@email.arizona.edu
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