|  | | | Faculty in the News - November 2007 | |
Algae fuel developed at the U of M
KSTP - TV, November 29, 2007
Researchers at the University of Minnesota have taken algae and created a fuel that can power a vehicle. Researcher Paul Chen explains that the algae comes from the St. Paul waste water treatment plant.
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There's Oil in That Slime
Associated Press, November 29, 2007
The 16 big flasks of bubbling bright green liquids in Roger Ruan's lab at the University of Minnesota are part of a new boom in renewable energy research.
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Goldfish urine advertises readiness to mate
Practical Fishkeeping - UK, November 28, 2007
Researchers at the University of Minnesota have demonstrated that goldfish can advertise their reproductive condition through pheromones released in their urine.
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Cutting feed costs may not be good for young calves
Hutchinson Leader, November 28, 2007
The higher cost of milk replacer has made it more expensive to feed
young dairy calves recently. ... Hugh Chester-Jones is an animal
scientist with University of Minnesota.
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Kids eat healthy school lunch too
Fox News Channel, November 26, 2007
A University of Minnesota study shows that school age kids will eat healthy school lunches just as often as the less healthy options and sales don't decline.
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Study: Kids Will Eat Healthy School Food
Associated Press, November 25, 2007
Maybe getting schoolchildren to eat healthy foods isn't a hopeless struggle. Bucking some common notions, a University of Minnesota study has found that school lunch sales don't decline when healthier meals are served, and that more nutritious lunches don't necessarily cost schools more to produce.
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UMore Park home to turkey research site
Twin Cities Daily Planet, November 24, 2007 For a group of researchers stationed in the outskirts of Rosemount,
Minn., Thanksgiving has nothing to do with football or stuffing, and it
comes five times a week. ... The turkey field-research site in UMore
Park - a property intended to house more of the University's research
facilities - has five barns that serve as testing grounds for about
7,600 gobblers. | | |
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Wolf May Lose Endangered Species Listing
Associated Press, November 23, 2007
For rancher Randy Petrich, the removal of gray wolves from the endangered species list — a move that would open up the animals to hunting in the Northern Rockies for the first time in decades — couldn't come soon enough. ... But some wolf experts say managing wolves is not so simple. David Mech, a University of Minnesota researcher considered one of the world's leading experts on wolf behavior, predicted populations in the Northern Rockies could hold steady or keep expanding, even with hunting permitted, if the wily animals prove too smart for hunters.
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All about apples
The Wichita Eagle - Kansas, November 21, 2007
Adam's apple. Apple of your eye. Upsetting the apple cart. ... Honeyed, mild flavor combined with crispness makes this ideal for snacking and salads. Developed by the University of Minnesota, this variety stores especially well. Skin is mottled red over a yellow background.
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Minnesota's economist worries about the future of the state's sputtering economic engine
MinnPost, November 19, 2007
Tom Stinson is a man thorough in his research, nonpartisan in his
behavior and cautious in his pronouncements, which is how he has been
able to serve effectively as the Minnesota State Economist for the past
20 years under governors from three different political parties. ...
After a half-century of robust prosperity, Minnesota's economy has not
kept up with the growth rate of the U.S. economy as a whole in recent
years. In a careful but candid conversation at his office in St. Paul
last week, Stinson (who is also an associate professor in the
Department of Applied Economics at the University of Minnesota) talked
about the long-term challenges facing the state as we seek to maintain
our reputation as a regional economic
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Turkey by the numbers
Rosemount Town Pages, November 19, 2007
Over the years, Thanksgiving has become synonymous with Turkey. ... The University of Minnesota, which, has a turkey research facility on its UMore property in Rosemount, held its annual turkey media day on Wednesday to give the public a glance at projects on topics ranging from preventing turkey-borne illness to reducing ammonia output from turkey growing facilities.
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A more cosmo feel for St. Paul campus?
Star Tribune, November 16, 2007
From most windows in their home, Susan and William Sands can see the lush corn and soy fields on the University of Minnesota St. Paul campus that drew them to their suburban townhouse in Falcon Heights.
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Simply Science: The Asian lady beetle
KARE11 - TV, November 15, 2007
It's an invasive species that we suddenly see around our homes suddenly each autumn ... "It's an invasive species because it not only feeds on aphids, but it feeds on other lady beetle species and there's evidence of it displacing other lady beetle species," says U of M Extension Entomologist Bill Hutchinson.
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Winter nights get warmer, make that, less cold
Star Tribune, November 15, 2007
Throw a smaller log on the fire. ... It's an increase that University of Minnesota Extension climatologist and meteorologist Mark Seeley called "emphatic."
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Rising E. coli cases a danger, a mystery
Pioneer Press, November 14, 2007
At a family cookout in September, Stephanie Smith ate a grilled hamburger. ... "It's still too early to tell whether there's something unusual happening with either this pathogen, or with changes in the meat-production practices," said Francisco Diez, a specialist in food safety microbiology at the University of Minnesota.
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Big cheese on campus
Pioneer Press, November 13, 2007
Ranee May is cheesy. ... "Over the last decade, we are really seeing a trend where we are seeing more specialty cheese," said Lloyd Metzger, a University of Minnesota professor and director of the Midwest Dairy Center.
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New center to study plant pathology
United Press International, November 13, 2007
A new quarantine facility will help agriculture officials get a jump on plant diseases before they hit Minnesota farm crops, researchers said. ... Zhishan Wu, quarantine officer for the new facility on the University of Minnesota's Twin Cities campus, said he's looking forward to tackling some of the most devastating plant diseases that haven't arrived in Minnesota on their own, Wu said in a news release.
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Med diet linked to longer life - study
Nutra News, November 12, 2007
A study of almost 400,000 people with an age range of 50 to 71 reports
that greater adherence to a Med-style diet reduced the risk of death
from cardiovascular disease (CVD) and cancer by 22 and 17 per cent in
men, and 12 per cent for women. ... The researchers, from the National
Cancer Institute (USA), Lund University (Sweden), University of
Minnesota (USA), and the University of Cambridge (UK), used food
frequency questionnaires (FFQ) to assess dietary intakes of the
participants.
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Duluth sewage effluent feminizes minnows
Duluth News Tribune, November 11, 2007
Male minnows placed in Duluth sewage effluent not only developed female characteristics but also lost their male behavior traits and were less able to reproduce, new research revealed. ... The males lost the horns on their heads, their gonads shrank and they began to produce an egg protein found only in healthy females, according to the University of Minnesota study.
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Consider testing corn and corn silage for aflatoxin this year
Bismarck Farm and Ranch Guide, November 8, 2007
Not only have conditions such as drought and hail affected corn yields in Minnesota this year, these stress conditions have also favored the development of molds that can produce aflatoxin, a chemical toxic to animals and humans. ... Dean Malvick, University of Minnesota, and Mike Murphy.
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New publications can help farmers with machine cost estimates
Farm and Ranch Guide, November 8, 2007
Crop farmers have a couple of new tools to help determine machinery costs. ... “Machinery Cost Estimates,” by Bill Lazarus, University of Minnesota economist, lists both time- and use-related cost figures for machinery.
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Going with the grain is a smart, wholesome idea
Modesto Bee, November 7, 2007
Sometime during the recovery from low-carb diets, a curious thing happened: Lots of folks reached for whole grains. ... It's all in how the grains are processed, says Len Marquart, assistant professor in the department of food science and nutrition at the University of Minnesota.
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Drivers collect assaults in addition to their fares
Boston Herald, November 7, 2007
It’s not easy being in the driver’s seat, Boston cabbies say, and the taxi industry brings risks like assaults and ripoffs for not a lot of pay. ... Transportation economist Jerry Fruin of the University of Minnesota calls cab drivers urban sharecroppers, meaning they spend much of their earnings paying for the privilege to do their job.
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Fixit: How safe are kids at college?
Star Tribune, November 6, 2007
When college kids come home for a weekend visit or the Thanksgiving holiday, experts say, parents should sit them down and have a talk. ... Look for cockroach droppings behind the stove or refrigerator, said Stephen Kells, assistant professor of entomology at the University of Minnesota.
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Ethanol: Fuel of the future?
KARE11 - TV, November 6, 2007
If you are like most Americans, you're nothing like Don Brown ... "We're not going to ethanol our way out of reliance on foreign oil," said C. Ford Runge, a distinguished Knight Professor of applied economics at the University of Minnesota.
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Cropland values jump 14.7%
St. Cloud Times, November 6, 2007
When Glen and Sadie Frericks moved to Stearns County from Duluth to start a dairy farm, rising land prices altered their plans. ... Steve Taff, a University of Minnesota economist who analyzes farm data, noted that the 2007 numbers are estimates based on what landowners think they can get for their land.
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Fourteen Global Experts Comment on the Safety and Use of Genetically Modified Food Crops
Earth Times, November 5, 2007
In a new online video and podcast released today, 14 globally recognized and distinguished scientists, economists and thought leaders discuss the use of genetically modified food crops over the last decade -- including their proven safety, benefits to the environment, and contributions to the lives of third-world farm families and communities. ... Dr. C. Ford Runge, director of The Center for International Food and Agricultural Policy, and professor of Applied Economics and Law at the University of Minnesota.
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Ground beef recalled, E. coli contamination possible
KARE11 - TV, November 4, 2007
The giant Minnesota-based agribusiness company Cargill is recalling more than one million pounds of ground beef that may be contaminated with E. coli bacteria. ... Francisco Diez is an associate professor in the Department of Food Science and Nutrition at the University of Minnesota.
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The scoop on gardening terms, Honeycrisp apples
Iowa City Press Citizen, November 4, 2007
Each week, Johnson County Extension Director Gene Mohling sends me the Master Gardener news from Iowa State University in Ames. ... Honeycrisp was developed at the University of Minnesota.
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Massive meat recall affects Michiana
WNDU - TV, November 4, 2007
There is another massive meat recall in the United States that you should be aware of. ... "For this bacterium, if you cook it at least 160 degrees, that ensure that it will die," says Francisco Diez with the University of Minnesota.
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Modified toxin helps crops kill resistant insects
Nature, November 1, 2007
A modified form of a commonly used pesticide may one day provide farmers with a new weapon against the development of resistance among insect pests. ... “These targeted modifications to produce designer toxins could really help in controlling resistance,” says David Andow, an entomologist at the University of Minnesota in St Paul.
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Apple-naming contest draws 6,600 entries
Pioneer Press, November 1, 2007
The contest to name the University of Minnesota's new apple variety ended today, after a blizzard of 6,600 naming suggestions from apple-lovers across Minnesota, and far beyond.
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General Mills recalls frozen pizzas on E. coli link
Trading Markets, November 1, 2007
General Mills Inc. voluntarily recalled nearly 5 million pizzas Thursday after an investigation by federal and state regulators found that the pepperoni topping likely caused several E. coli-related illnesses. ... Jean Kinsey, co-director of the Food Industry Center at the University of Minnesota, said pepperoni seems like "a strange culprit" for E. coli but figures it must have been undercooked.
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