News Archive
Saturday, March 29 2008
News
ISU's graduate program in engineering jumps in U.S. News rankings
ISU's College of Engineering jumped four spots in national rankings of graduate and professional schools published by U.S. News and World Report magazine. The engineering college ranked 41st among all American universities and 24th among public schools.
ISU psychologist offers tips to remember more in today's high-tech world
If you're having a hard time remembering important things in today's information age, Rob West has some memory fitness tips for you. West is director of the Cognitive Psychology Program at ISU, where he is also an associate professor of psychology.
Iowa State part of consortium developing world's first petascale computing system
Iowa State University is one of 28 charter members of the Great Lakes Consortium for Petascale Computation. Researchers from the institutions will apply petascale computing power -- capable of more than a quadrillion calculations per second -- to advance research in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
ISU grad Hamilton provides lessons from two of nation's largest disasters in April 10 talk
ISU graduate Scott Hamilton will draw on past employment experiences during a talk titled "From Bad to Worse: WorldCom to Hurricane Katrina. Lessons from Two of the Nation's Largest Disasters from Someone Who Was Involved in Both," which he'll present on Thursday, April 10, starting at 4 p.m. in Room 2117 of Iowa State's Gerdin Business Building.
See student demos, hear from an innovation leader and play PowerPoint Karaoke
Iowa State University's annual Emerging Technologies Conference will be Thursday and Friday, April 3-4. Thursday's IgniteIT event will feature short talks, networking and PowerPoint Karaoke. Friday's activities include student technology and poster presentations, a keynote address and student talks. The events are free and open to the public, but registration is required for IgniteIT. For more information, see www.vrac.iastate.edu/etc2008 .
Geoffroy seeks Regents' go-ahead on recreation facilities project
Iowa State President Gregory Geoffroy has accepted the recommendation of the Special Student Fee and Tuition Committee to proceed with planning of the proposed recreation facilities project.
Symposium will address biotechnology and law at Iowa State April 23.
The fifth annual symposium of ISU's Biosafety Institute for Genetically Modified Agricultural Products will be held April 23 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The symposium will feature discussion of biotechnology regulations that are responsive to scientific innovation.
The Fashion Show 2008 set for Friday, April 25; J.Crew VP is guest alumni designer
The 26th Annual Textiles and Clothing Fashion Show will be held on Friday, April 25, in ISU's Stephens Auditorium. This year's show will also feature work by guest designer Todd Snyder, a 1992 ISU graduate who is vice president of menswear design for J. Crew.
Pellet gun discovered in Willow Hall room
On March 23, the ISU Police Division was informed that a weapon had been discovered in a Willow Hall room. Police believe the pellet gun bears a strong resemblance to the semi-automatic handgun, which was reportedly displayed in Willow Hall during the early morning of March 16.
Serious student science featured at State Science and Technology Fair of Iowa
The State Science and Technology Fair of Iowa will be Friday and Saturday, March 28-29, on the Iowa State University campus. The fair is free and open to the public from noon to 5 p.m. March 28 at Hilton Coliseum. Public hours continue from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 29 at Hilton and the Scheman Building. An award ceremony is 4 to 6 p.m. March 29 in Hilton. A keynote address at 7 p.m. March 28 in Hilton is also open to the public. Robert Adams, an engineer for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, will tell the students about "All I Needed to Know."
Morrill Act highlights campus exhibit
The Morrill Act, a rare historical document, never seen outside of D.C., will go on display in ISU's Christian Petersen Art Museum March 22. Above, James Zeender, registrar, Museum Programs, National Archives and Record Administration and Lynette Pohlman, director, University Museums.
Schnable to present Spring Presidential Lecture on the present, future of genomics
Professor Pat Schnable will discuss the corn genome map and future of genome research in the Presidential University Lecture March 31.
Iowa State researchers developing system to efficiently convert biomass to ethanol
A team of Iowa State University researchers led by Victor Lin, a professor of chemistry and director of the Center for Catalysis, is developing a system of thermochemical and catalytic technologies to produce ethanol from plant biomass. Lin has already worked on his catalyst for a year and has filed a patent application.
ISU Police remind students of everyday safety precautions
The students who remain in Willow Hall over spring break have returned to their normal routines following an incident in the early morning hours of March 16, but ISU Police urge all students to be mindful of basic safety precautions.
Belated birthday fun
March 22 marked Iowa State's 150th birthday. Join the celebration by launching our virtual fireworks display.
In the news
For carbon emissions, a goal of less than zero
The New York Times
Iowa State's Robert C. Brown talks about collecting the "agrichar" left by the thermochemical conversion of biomass to fuel and plowing that into farm fields. That would not only store carbon but fertilize crops.
Smart Science: What is a food mile?
The Weather Channel
Forecast Earth, a weekly program produced by The Weather Channel, explains the science behind food miles (weighted average source distance) in a segment that aired beginning March 17, 2008. Heidi Cullen, the program's climate expert, quotes work done by the Leopold Center about the number of food miles for a carton of strawberry yogurt.
