News Archive
Wednesday, October 22 2014
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Veterinary research on lambs leads to advances in treatments for respiratory disease in human infants
Veterinary research involving lambs at Iowa State University is helping to advance new treatments to a common virus in humans that sometimes poses a serious threat to newborns. Respiratory syncytial virus infects the vast majority of humans, and it usually results in nothing more serious than cold symptoms in healthy adults. But in infants, especially those born prematurely, the virus can lead to pneumonia and serious health complications.
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No silver bullet: ISU study identifies risk factors of youth charged with murder
News of a school shooting or a homicide involving a teenage suspect always leads to the question of why? It is human nature to want an explanation or someone to blame, and policymakers try to pinpoint a cause in an effort to prevent it from happening again. But too often, the speculation or rush to judgment clouds reality, said Matt DeLisi, a professor of sociology at Iowa State University.
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Retired Gen. Wesley Clark will speak at Iowa State University Oct. 29
Retired four-star Gen. Wesley Clark will speak at Iowa State University about how Americans can move forward together on non-military global challenges, such as cyber security and accelerating climate change. "Don't Wait for the Next War" will be at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 29, in the Memorial Union Great Hall. Clark's lecture is the keynote for the World Affairs Series at Iowa State. It is free and open to the public.
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Mock campaign gives Iowa State students new perspective on political process
Voters only get a glimpse of the operation behind a political campaign, even with all the negative ads and 24-7 news coverage. And a textbook or class lecture cannot replicate the pressure of giving a stump speech to voters, answering questions from reporters, or responding to a crisis. To expose students to that environment, Kelly Winfrey turned her campaign rhetoric class into a mock U.S. Senate campaign.
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Center for Biorenewable Chemicals helps Iowa State researchers launch startup companies
The Biobased Foundry established by the Center for Biorenewable Chemicals based at Iowa State has helped nine startup companies. The foundry combines teaching and mentoring to help graduate students and postdoctoral researchers create technologies and businesses that meet the needs of customers.
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Iowa State University will host Planet Money team for Oct. 23 talk
Two correspondents from NPR's "Planet Money" team will deliver an informative and entertaining live stage show next week at ISU. Jacob Goldstein and David Kestenbaum will present "Planet Money Live!" at 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23, in the Memorial Union Great Hall. Their talk is part of the Greater Iowa Credit Union Business Lecture Series. It is free and open to the public.
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Bullies in the workplace: ISU researcher examines the struggles for victims to tell their story
The stories are shocking and heartbreaking, but they are often disjointed and hard to follow. In severe cases, the narratives are even more chaotic. This is reality for victims of workplace bullying and a major reason why they stay silent, said Stacy Tye-Williams, an assistant professor of communications studies and English at Iowa State University.
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Turf management students will tend Wembley field for NFL International series
Sometimes, when what-you-know intersects with who-you-know, something extraordinary can occur. At least that's how it happened for two Iowa State University graduate students who study sports turf management in the horticulture department. They're getting paid to help prep the field at Wembley Stadium for two NFL games.
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ExxonMobil supports Iowa State research in biofuels science and engineering
ExxonMobil is beginning an advanced biofuels research program at Iowa State University by supporting two research projects. The projects focus on the fundamental scientific and engineering questions of the fast pyrolysis of biomass. Fast pyrolysis is rapidly heating biomass (including corn stalks) without oxygen to produce liquid bio-oil, which can be upgraded to transportation fuels.
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Iowa State University researchers turn to robotics to improve understanding of plant growth
Iowa State University faculty members are developing a new facility that will utilize a specially designed robot to gather unprecedented amounts of data on the growth of plants under different environmental conditions. The facility won’t require plants to be moved for data gathering, a major advantage over existing plant-growth facilities.
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ISU design prof's e-textbook on 3-D modeling and animation lowers students' costs
Anson Call didn't want his Iowa State University design students paying nearly $300 for instructional materials that would be out of date in a matter of months. So when the associate professor of graphic design wrote his textbook on using industry-standard software to create 3-D modeling and animation, he did it digitally. His e-textbook, "Cinema 4D R15 Fundamentals for Teachers and Students" is available for about $282 less than the alternative.
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MEDIA ADVISORY: Iowa State political experts available to comment on 2014 election
What issues will influence voters at the polls? Will Iowa elect its first woman to Congress? And what is the role of social media in this election? Iowa State University political experts are available for interviews to answer these questions and discuss other issues leading into the November election.
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Iowa State physicists among teams preparing for new Energy Department supercomputer
Iowa State's Pieter Maris and James Vary will scale up their computer codes for Cori, the Energy Department's next-generation supercomputer. They'll study two classes of nuclear states to understand the basic physics of the burning sun and exploding stars. What they learn could one day lead to safer, more efficient forms of nuclear power.
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Iowa State University research explores new possibilities for the treatment of epilepsy
Ongoing research at Iowa State University is investigating the connection between initial seizures and the onset of epilepsy later in life. Gaining a better understanding of why and how the disease develops may hold the key to stopping its progression and developing new treatments, according to ISU biomedical science researchers.
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Costume designer makes her way from Broadway to Iowa State University
The path that led Sara Jablon to Iowa State is far from typical. Unlike her colleagues or other ISU students who may aspire to one day work on Broadway, Jablon spent 10 years there dressing actors for productions of the Lion King, Cabaret and Rent. As a guest designer for ISU Theatre’s “Spring Awakening,” Jablon is also pursuing a Ph.D. in fashion and apparel.
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ISU research team developing new measurement tool for schools and research
To improve health and help combat childhood obesity, more schools are changing physical education requirements and finding new ways to keep children active throughout the day. However, the challenge for both educators and researchers is accurately measuring the time children spend performing physical activity. That’s why Welk and a team of Iowa State researchers are working to improve the Youth Activity Profile, a tool designed to help schools assess children’s physical activity behavior.
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Gender barriers: ISU professor looks at history of discrimination against women in engineering
To better understand the striking gender divide that still exists today in engineering, it is necessary to look at the history of the field, said Amy Bix, an associate professor of history at Iowa State University. Unlike other fields, such as science and medicine, in which women slowly gained access by starting as research assistants or nurses, it was more difficult to get a foot in the door in engineering. In her book, “Girls Coming to Tech!: A History of American Engineering Education for Women,” Bix looks at how women fought to overcome gender stereotypes by gaining acceptance to engineering programs.
Change Agent: Hongwei Xin
For the director of ISU's Egg Industry Center, science and agriculture have no borders.
Take a tour of Sukup and Elings halls
Elings Hall and Sukup Hall and Atrium together are adding over 170,000 square feet of classroom and research space to the Biorenewables Complex.