News Archive
Wednesday, February 4 2009
News
ISU Theatre announces spring season
Four diverse productions -- "On the Open Road," "The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail," "Gypsy," and "Vinegar Tom" are on ISU Theatre's spring season lineup.
Kevin Nordmeyer to direct the Iowa Energy Center
Kevin Nordmeyer, an architect with wide experience in sustainable design, will be the new director of the Iowa Energy Center. Nordmeyer begins his new job March 1. He designed two Iowa State University projects -- the Morrill Hall restoration and the new King Pavilion at the College of Design -- to meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards.
Students begin building solar house for 2009 Solar Decathlon competition
Iowa State students have set up shop in an off-campus warehouse to build a solar house so powerful it will produce nearly twice as much energy as it consumes. And once the Interlock House is constructed and tested, the students will take it apart, move it to Washington, D.C., reassemble it for competition in the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) 2009 Solar Decathlon, and operate it during public tours on the National Mall. For the 75 Iowa State students with 11 varied majors, the past year has been a learning experience like no other.
'River of Milk' mural installed at ISU Dairy Farm
An etched glass mural titled "River of Milk" has been installed at the Iowa State University Dairy Farm's visitor center. The mural combines dairy production, science and a bit of history.
Iowa State hosts Black History Month events through March 3
Iowa State kicked off its annual observance of Black History Month with a Jan. 27 lecture from author Manning Marable, and will continue the celebration of African-American culture with four other events through March 3.
As the country braces for new poverty, ISU sociologist charts 20-year poverty trends
David Peters, an assistant professor of sociology in Iowa State's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, has studied community poverty rates across the country between 1980-2000. His paper, "The Typology of American Poverty," was published in this month's International Regional Science Review 2009.
Idea of Ecotones to Highlight Department of English Symposium
Writers, artists, scholars and scientists will converge at Iowa State for the 5th Annual Symposium on Wildness, Wilderness & the Creative Imagination, Feb. 8-9, at the Brunnier Art Museum and Memorial Union.
Iowa State economists assess the state of the Iowa economy and its 2009 future
Iowa State economists Peter Orazem and Liesl Eathington agree that the country's economic crisis hasn't hit bottom yet, but they say that Iowa continues to weather the economic storm better than the rest of the nation.
Iowa State student receives $25,000 Geoffrey Beene fashion scholarship
ISU student Danielle Sponder was awarded a $25,000 YMA Geoffrey Beene National Scholarship at a dinner this month honoring the scholarship recipients in New York's Marriott Marquis. Four other Iowa State students also were awarded $5,000 YMA scholarships.
Greenlee School professor sees consumer drawbacks to digital TV conversion
Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication assistant professor Jeff Blevins questions the benefit to consumers of the mandated digital television conversion on Feb. 17, and the government's involvement in the process.
ISU report to United Nations conference says drug prevention programs help the economy
Iowa State researchers Richard Spoth and Max Guyll have authored a report showing that substance abuse prevention programs return nearly $10 for every dollar invested. The report was presented at an international conference, co-sponsored by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the World Health Organization.
Chimp reunited with mom
Iowa State anthropologist Jill Pruetz recently helped reunite a 9-month-old chimpanzee who'd been taken by hunters with her mother in Senegal. The captors of baby Aimee planned to sell the chimp, but Pruetz' field assistant Johnny Kante talked them into giving her back. Pruetz, Kante and field assistant Michel Keita reintroduced Aimee to the community of savanna chimpanzees at the Fongoli research site -- producing a reunion with her mother Tia. The event was captured on video (courtesy of National Geographic) by Pruetz, who tells the story here.
ISU researchers develop technique for quick detection of salmonella
Byron Brehm-Stecher, ISU food science and human nutrition, has developed a technique for testing for the presence of salmonella.
In the news
Rescued Fongoli chimp baby reunited with her mother
National Geographic News Watch
Jill Pruetz, an anthropologist at Iowa State University, helped reunite a nine-month-old chimpanzee that was taken by hunters from her research site in Senegal with her mother.
Shaky economy shakes up retailers in Perry, Iowa
USA Today
As in many small Iowa towns, Perry's population of 7,600 is aging, and competition from nearby big cities draws customers, said Liesl Eathington, an assistant economics researcher at Iowa State University.
Postcard from San Francisco
Time magazine
It's Saturday night at the American Economics Association's conference, and Iowa State University economics professor Peter Orazem has just taken the podium in an overcrowded ballroom at the San Francisco Hilton for The Economics Humor Session.