June 04, 1999
Seventh Annual All-College Staff Meeting
The College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences' seventh annual All-College Staff Meeting will be held Thursday, June 10, 1999, from 1:30 to 3:00 p.m. in the Cabernet Room, Silo Pub. Join Dean Barbara O. Schneeman, James MacDonald, chair of the Steering Committee for Academic and Strategic Planning (SCASP), and John Yoder, chair of the Executive Committee, in a discussion about academic planning. Dennis Shimek, associate vice chancellor, Human Resources, will discuss Staff Workload Task Force and Model Employer reports. Everyone is encouraged to attend. Release time is appropriate with supervisor concurrence.
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CA&ES Commencement Ceremony
The College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences will award approximately 1,728 B.S. degrees at its commencement ceremony on Saturday, June 19, 1999, at 9 a.m. The ceremony will be held in Recreation Hall. Gurdev Khush, principal plant breeder and head of the division of plant breeding, genetics and biochemistry at the International Rice Research Institute is commencement speaker. Victoria Smith, a candidate for a degree in environmental and resource sciences, also will speak. Commencement organizers are depending on the assistance of lots of CA&ES volunteers to ensure a smooth-running, memorable event. Please call Commencement Coordinator Shirley Jordan if you can assist.
Shirley Jordan
Commencement Coordinator
College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
jordan@agdean.ucdavis.edu
(530) 752-6972
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Nobel Laureate Presents Special Seminar
Dr. Kary B. Mullis, vice president and director of molecular biology, Burstein Laboratories, will present a special seminar titled "Science and the Realm of the Senses" on Tuesday, June 8, 1999, at 4 p.m. in the AGR Room of the Buehler Alumni and Visitors Center. The Department of Entomology sponsors this seminar. Mullis received both the Nobel Prize in Chemistry and the Japan Prize for his investigation of the polymerase chain reaction. The process, which he conceptualized in 1983, is hailed as one of the monumental scientific techniques of the twentieth century.
DeeDee M. Kitterman
College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
dmkitterman@ucdavis.edu
(530) 752-9484
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SAFS Annual Field Day
The Sustainable Agriculture Farming System Annual Field Day will be held Monday, July 26, 1999, from 8 a.m. to 12 noon at the UC Davis Agronomy Farm. The event is focused on water-plant relationships and water management to increase agricultural productivity and sustainability. Professor John Luna of Oregon State University is guest speaker.
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Environmental Health on the Ag/Urban Frontier
A town hall meeting will be held Tuesday, August 17, 1999, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in downtown Sacramento. Titled "Environmental Health on the Ag/Urban Frontier," it is hosted by the Center for Environmental Health Sciences, Department of Environmental Toxicology The program includes keynote speaker is Dr. Kenneth Olden, director of the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences and an open-mike community panel of experts on local environmental and human health problems. The meeting is free and open to the public. A banquet luncheon is available by reservation for $10.
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Arboretum Activities
On Tuesday, June 8, 1999, Friends of the Davis Arboretum will present a slide show titled "South African Bulbs for California Gardens." Rachel and Rod Saunders, proprietors of Silverhill Seeds in Cape Town, South Africa, will show slides and talk about exotic plants of South Africa and the landscape in which they grow. The Southern Cape region of Africa enjoys the same Mediterranean climate as California, with cool, wet winters and hot, dry summers. Many South African plants are good choices for Central Valley gardens because they adapt to summer heat and drought. The program begins at 7:30 p.m. at the University Club. Admission is free. Parking is $3.00. On Wednesday, June 9, learn about Arboretum collections and get some exercise at the same time. UC Davis Arboretum Superintendent Warren Roberts is leading a lunchtime stroll through the Arboretum. Join him at 12 noon at the Gazebo, off Garrod Drive.
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1/4-Scale Tractor Competition
A team of UC Davis students successfully completed in the American Society of Agricultural Engineers' 1/4-Scale Tractor National Student Design Competition in Moline, Illinois. The team of four women and three men designed and assembled a tractor for the competition held May 21-23, 1999. Each team was provided a 16-hp engine, two rear tires and many engineering constraints. The UC Davis team won the Appearance Award and shared the Safety Award, finishing ninth overall in competition with 29 other teams from throughout the United States and Canada. The overall ranking was determined by combining competition placements of sixth in the Pulls category, tenth in the Written Design Report category, twelfth in the Design Judging category and thirteenth in Presentation. Agricultural equipment industry leaders served as judges for the competition. Even though teams from as far away as Florida, Texas, Manitoba and Quebec participated, UC Davis was the only team from west of the Rockies. The team received generous financial and in-kind support from numerous sources, including major contributions from the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, the College of Engineering, and faculty and staff of the Department of Biological & Agricultural Engineering. "This event provides an opportunity for our students to experience healthy competition and sportsmanship," said David Hills, chair of the Department of Biological & Agricultural Engineering. "Our students had excellent opportunities to impress leaders from major corporations who served as sponsors or judges." Advisors attending the competition were Professor Bryan Jenkins and Victor Duraj, associate development engineer, Department of Biological & Agricultural Engineering.
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Ann Noble Inducted into Women For WineSense Hall of Fame
Professor Ann Noble, Department of Viticulture and Enology, received a recognition award of academic excellence from the Los Angeles Chapter of Women-For-WineSense and has been inducted into the group's Hall of Fame. She is recognized for advancing the science, art and business of wine and for her contribution to "society's enjoyment of wine as a healthy part of a balanced lifestyle." Noble is an expert in sensory science and flavor chemistry. She developed the Wine Aroma Wheel used by consumers and researchers to define specific aromas found in wine. Also honored were Department of Viticulture and Enology alumni Merry Edwards (M.S.); Celia Masyczek (B.S.); Christina Benz (M.S.); and Margaret Davenport (M.S.), all successful winemakers. The awards were presented at the Women-For-WineSense Gala Benefit Dinner and Award Ceremony in Santa Monica.
Dr. Noble'swebsite
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Design Students Develop Racecar Uniforms
When the UC Davis Chapter of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) needed a racecar uniform for its electric car and human-powered vehicle teams, UC Davis design faculty and students responded to the challenge. Design Program chair JoAnn Stabb, Department of Environmental Design, was project advisor to students Narges Kamali, Melysa Starrett and Shawn Louthian. Design students consulted with racecar team members about sizing, fit and special requirements. They produced a prototype that was wear tested and approved by ASME. The uniforms will be worn by student engineers during ASME collegiate competitions and when constructing their vehicles. They needed to be functional as well as visually appealing. The design would represent UC Davis at competitions across the country. The final design was a uniform of 100% cotton twill with Velcro tabs on wrists and ankles so that sleeves and cuffs could be tightened, protecting engineers when working with fiberglass. Six-inch zippers were designed into the ankle portion of the uniform, allowing engineers to slip the uniform on and off without removing clothing or shoes. Pockets added at the knees allow engineers to easily insert kneepads when working on vehicles. Patterns and prototypes were turned over to ASME, along with a list of manufacturers and textile suppliers researched by student designers. ASME will arrange for production of the uniform for the UC Davis Chapter.
Rhonda R. O'Brien
Program Representative
Department of Environmental Design
rrobrien@ucdavis.edu
(530) 752-6223
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UC Undergraduate Research Opportunities
A report prepared by the office of Robert N. Shelton, systemwide vice provost for research, and presented to the UC Board of Regents indicates that undergraduate students at the University of California have an ever-widening network of opportunities to participate in organized research. Thousands of students are taking advantage of those opportunities, the report says. Research opportunities for undergraduates at the eight undergraduate UC campuses range from special conferences where students share their research results to awards for outstanding undergraduate research and journals created specifically for undergraduates to highlight their research. All campuses have active programs involving increasingly more frequent undergraduate research opportunities. At UC Davis, 3,688 undergraduates completed research-based academic internships in 1997-98. "The evidence in this report shows the campuses are doing an excellent job of integrating research with undergraduate education to the advantage of our students," said UC President Richard C. Atkinson.
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Hardwood Range Management Program Update
The "UC Integrated Hardwood Range Management Program 1999 Update," published by the Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, highlights specific programs and long-range accomplishments of the Integrated Hardwood Range Management Program (IHRMP). Contents include restoration and regeneration, vineyard conversion, local policy development and land use issues, fire effects on woodland values, sustainable management practices, and water quality and watershed management.
IHRMP online
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Joe DiTomaso, Jay Rosenheim and Charles Summers Receive UC-IPM Project Funding
Director Frank Zalom, Statewide Integrated Pest Management Project, announces that the following UC-IPM research proposals have received approval: Joseph DiTomaso, Extension specialist, Department of Vegetable Crops/Weed Science - Integrated Use of Prescribed Burning and Clopyralid for Yellow Starthistle Control and Optimum Rangeland Health Jay Rosenheim, professor, Department of Entomology - Modifying Cultural Practices to Control a Complex of Cucurbit Pests Charles Summers, entomologist, Kearney Agricultural Center (with J. Millar, Entomology Department, UC Riverside) - The Isolation and Characterization of Squash Bug, Anasa tristis, Pheromones and the Development of a Management Program Using Pheromones in Mating Disruiption
Donna Connolly
UC Statewide IPM Project
(530) 752-5336
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California Energy Commission Funding Opportunity
The California Energy Commission's Energy Innovations Small Grant Program announces a cutoff date for the second round of proposals. Deadline: May 31, 1999
UCEI website
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Potato Research
In each of the last 11 years, Congress has appropriated funds to the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) to help solve specific production and marketing problems of the U.S. potato industry. ARS determined that some of the funds would be used for agreements with state agricultural experiment stations or other institutions with active potato research programs. In anticipation of appropriation of funds in fiscal year 2000, USDA-ARS is soliciting research proposals from major potato-producing states on ring rot disease, early dying disease, aphids, Colorado potato beetle, late blight and silver scurf.
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CA&ES Currents, the faculty/staff newsletter of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at UC Davis, is distributed every other Friday. News deadline is noon Monday preceding Friday publication. Send inquiries to Ann Filmer, afilmer@ucdavis.edu
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(530) 752-9328
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