News Releases

An Iowa State alum and U.S. Air Force general who develops and evaluates requirements for Air Force-wide modernization programs at the Pentagon will speak at Iowa State University. Maj. Gen. Clinton Crosier will present "National Defense and International Security" at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 9, in the Memorial Union Great Hall. His public talk is free and part of the university's World Affairs series.

MSNBC anchor and business correspondent Ali Velshi will discuss the impact of the Trump administration’s domestic and international policy shifts when he presents the fall 2017 Manatt-Phelps Lecture in Political Science.

Some dressing with your greens may help you absorb more nutrients, according to a study from an Iowa State University scientist. The research found enhanced absorption of multiple fat-soluble vitamins in addition to beta-carotene and three other carotenoids. The study appeared recently in the peer-reviewed American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, and the results may ease the guilt of countless dieters who fret about adding dressing to their salads.

Chief of Staff and Chief Financial Officer Miles Lackey will leave Iowa State at the end of the calendar year. He has accepted the chief of staff position at Auburn University, Auburn President Steven Leath announced Oct. 6. Lackey will begin his new role Jan. 2, 2018. He has served Iowa State since April 2012. "Miles has been instrumental over the past five years in advancing Iowa State's strategic priorities to provide a high-quality, affordable, accessible education for our students; expand the university's research and economic development enterprises; and secure federal, state and private support while operating as efficiently as possible," said Iowa State University Interim President Benjamin Allen. "We thank him for his tireless efforts and expertise to enhance Iowa State's role as one of the top land-grant institutions in the country." The search for a new CFO and chief of staff will commence after the new Iowa State University president is in place.

Tomas Gonzalez-Torres, a 1998 Iowa State graduate, is back on campus after working as a NASA flight director. He's passing on some of the lessons he learned at NASA while helping students with senior design projects related to space and courses in lab techniques and computer applications.

Iowa State University's Santosh Pandey helped lead a project that demonstrates an engineering technology used in cell studies can also be used for drug testing on parasitic roundworms used as a model whole organism. In this case, the technology quickly developed a cocktail of four drugs that was effective in paralyzing the roundworms. The discovery is reported in the journal Science Advances.

As high-intensity interval training, or HIIT, has grown in popularity, so has the debate over whether it is an effective public health solution. An Iowa State University professor of kinesiology says the workouts are not sustainable for the majority of people who are trying to lose weight and move more.

The ISU Prairie STRIPS project has found the strategic use of native prairie plants among agricultural fields yields a wide range of environmental benefits, including erosion and runoff reduction and increased wildlife habitat. The findings, published this week, draw on 10 years of data and cover dozens of environmental metrics.

Iowa State’s College of Veterinary Medicine offers students and current veterinarians opportunities to get hands-on experience with bovine embryo transfer, a growing practice that helps cattle producers pass on desirable genetics to more calves. But it requires a trained eye.

Brent Shanks, Anson Marston Distinguished Professor in Engineering and director of the NSF Engineering Research Center for Biorenewable Chemicals, will testify before a U.S. Senate committee Thursday (Sept. 28, 8:30 a.m. CST). The Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry is holding a hearing on rural development, energy programs and the 2018 Farm Bill. Both Iowa senators serve on this committee. Shanks' comments relate directly to Title IX in the Farm Bill regarding development of advanced biofuels production from biomass. A livestream video of the hearing will be available online.