Upcoming Event
September 20-November 1
Photo Exhibit: A Georgic Odyssey--Where Your Food Comes From
An exhibit of 54 agricultural photographs by Edwin Remsberg, college staff photographer. Food is everyone's preoccupation, and for some it's also their occupation. Presents a view of a world that exists side-by-side most people's lives, but which they rarely see or think about--a behind-the-scenes tour of your dinner.
Time: Mon-Thurs, 10 am-8 pm, Fri-Sat, 11 am-4 pm, Closed Sunday.
Location: Stamp Students Union Art Gallery
Contact:
Jacqueline Milad, jmilad@umd.edu
Edwin Remsberg, edwin@remsberg.com
|
|
|
|
Maryland does science
I n 1975 the U.S. ranked third in the world in the proportion of college students majoring in science and engineering. Back then who would have thought that by 2005 we'd have slipped to 17th place among developed countries--this according to a National Science Board (NSB) report. Today almost 30% of college freshmen must sign up for remedial classes in science and math. Pre-college science and math teachers are hard to find. Forty-eight percent of our middle schools and 61% of our high schools report problems finding teachers qualified in these subjects, the NSB says. And public pressure to remedy this educational deficit won't surface anytime soon: 69% of the public don't regard math and science classes as "very relevant" to life for students who aren't math or science majors. Maryland Sea Grant Extension, working with UM's Center of Marine Biotechnology, offers challenging professional development opportunities for elementary and high school science teachers. Ongoing programs such as the following three are vital to raising U.S. literacy in science and math: Chesapeake Teacher Research Fellowship
"Teachers are always requesting lab experience," says marine scientist Adam Fredericks, from Maryland Sea Grant Extension. This summer 10 6th through 12th grade science teachers from the mid-Atlantic worked with university scientists in one of the state's 4 Environmental Science Education Partnership labs. Chosen to take part in the Chesapeake Teacher Research Fellowship (CTRF), the teachers worked on regional ecological research projects. The fellows are now using their sharpened scientific skills and knowledge to work on classroom applications, finish lesson plans, and prepare for Spring 2008 professional development presentations. The lesson plans, such as "The Impact of the Physical Environment on Stream Macroinvertebrates"--one of the 25 now online developed by past fellows--follow the inquiry-based teaching and learning 5E format. Fredericks, an education specialist, heads up the program with Jackie Takacs, Sea Grant marine specialist. CTRF, now in its 6th year, has been copied by 35 other professional development programs around the country.Aquaculture in Action
Friendship with a Carroll County Public School science teacher already using aquaculture as a classroom learning tool led Adam Fredericks to create Aquaculture in Action (AiA) in 1997. Through AiA, Maryland Sea Grant Extension scientists now partner with 43 Maryland public schools in a program that involves one-week teacher workshops that stress, Fredericks says, "the integrative nature of science through hands-on experiences." The program also supplies teachers with everything they need to build a 260-gallon recirculating aquaculture system. An array of lab-based activities enable high school students to raise fish--striped bass right now--for release at the end of the school year into designated locations. Fredericks and Jackie Takacs, among others provide teachers program support throughout the year. Chesapeake Quarterly's "A Fish Story: Hooking Students on Science," offers an in-depth account of the program.
 Biofilms and Biodiversity Project
"Some kids don't have any perception of their environment," says Adam Fredericks, Maryland Sea Grant Extension educator. The Biofilms and Biodiversity Project helps teachers encourage students to develop and sharpen their own awareness skills. Sometimes called slime cities, biofilms are bacterial coatings with adhesive properties that form in aqueous environments. Biofilms form in our mouths as plaque and on ship bottoms as barnacles. Oyster beds contain biofilm. In the program, kids grow biofilms on acrylic discs suspended in Baltimore Harbor and conduct their research at UM's Center of Marine Biotechnology. "Biofilm under a microscope," Fredericks says, "resembles a miniature coral reef." One of the beauties of the project: in spring and fall, students and teachers participate in live video conferences, sharing online data with cohorts in Sweden, Norway, Italy, and Estonia. Elmo polycom projectors enable students to view, compare, and marvel at each other's samples. Teachers and students can download interactive lessons from the program website. So far lessons have been downloaded by 75 countries around the world.
|
Keeping farms, and farm families, from breaking up
What happens to farms when farmers are ready to retire or nearing the end of their lives? If they have children, they pass the land onto the next generation. Simple, right? Well, not so simple, actually. According to Wes Musser and Lori Lynch, a lack of communication in farm farmilies is common. "Sometimes," says Musser, a professor in Agricultural and Resource Economics (AREC), "families break up over the transfer of the farm." For instance, says Musser, also a specialist in farm management for University of Maryland Cooperative Extension, "how does a cash-strapped farmer bequeathe his only asset to his children if one or more of them isn't interested in running the farm?" "What farmers don't think of," says Lynch, an AREC associate professor and Extension specialist in land policy, "is the transfer of the business operation." This lack of planning can result in the sale of the land to development, a result often harmful to the environment.To encourage farm families to deal with issues of succession, Musser and Lynch organize and help conduct farm estate planning workshops. A big problem farmers face is paying taxes on land that over the years has greatly appreciated in commercial value. The estimated market value of land and buildings per acre in Maryland is the fifth highest in the country. The free workshops educate farmers about tax-saving options available to them, such as conservation easements. Or the option of agreeing to farm the land for the 10 following years, and having the land assessed at its agricultural value instead of its market value. The goal is providing farmers with planning tools that will prevent them from having to sell their land because they can no longer afford to own it.
|
 Agrarian artist image-maker
For Edwin Remsberg, another day at the office could be photographing divers in the South Pacific islands of Micronesia as they select the best pearl-producing black-lipped oysters from the reefs. Or it could be traveling to the Eastern Shore to photograph oyster spat at the hatchery at UM's Horn Point Laboratory. Whether documenting programs for USDA around the world or for University of Maryland Cooperative Extension around the state, Remsberg's interest in agriculture and in the changing nature of traditional work in a modern economy are two central themes that inform his work. The university is hosting an exhibit of his photos, "A Georgic Odyssey: Where Your Food Comes From," September 20-November 1 in the Student Union Art Gallery. The national-award-winning photographer and UM graduate has worked in marketing and media services for the college since 1994. He maintains image databases--available free to the public-- for USDA, numbering 5000+ photographs, and for the university. |
Wei's Way
Exciting things are happening on the environmental front with the campus' new sustainability effort. As reported in a recent issue of Outlook, President Mote has pledged the campus will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and achieve climate neutrality by 2050. Dave Tilley, associate professor, Environmental Science and Technology, was recently appointed director of the greenhouse gas inventory. He and an undergraduate from Environmental Science and Policy and a Ph.D. candidate from the Marine Estuarine Environmental Sciences graduate program have already begun collecting emissions data on campus. Dave and his team are working in partnership with UM's new Center for Integrative Environmental Research.Other college faculty I'd like to recognize are: Bahram Momen, an expert in biostatistics and environmental science. Earlier this year, he delivered a presentation to the Group of 77, an intergovernmental organization of the United Nations representing more than 130 developing countries. "Direct effects of climate change and policies adopted to curb such change," he says, "can adversely impact the economical and environmental sustainability of these countries to a great extent." Bahram is associate professor in Environmental Science and Technology.Gary Coleman, associate professor, Plant Sciences and Landscape Architecture (PSLA). Gary has been awarded a 3-year grant, along with Zhongchi Liu, cell biology and molecular genetics specialist in Life Sciences, for their work in the developmental genetics of tree bud dormancy. Their research has practical significance for forest and horticultural tree crop production, possibily leading to improved plant performance and tree crop productivity. Gary is also working with Harry Swartz, PSLA associate professor, on a study of breeding strawberry plants that ripen simultaneously, which would allow for mechanical harvesting and reduce growers' costs.Assistant professors Jennifer Becker and Brian Needleman and adjunct professor Prabhakar Tamboli, Environmental Science and Technology. All were awarded certificates of merit in Extension, research, and teaching, respectively, by Gamma Sigma Delta, the national honor society of agriculture, University of Maryland-National Area Chapter. Jonathan Kays, natural resources Extension specialist and co-author of the manual, The Woods in Your Backyard. The Association of Natural Resource Extension Professionals awarded the publication second place in the educational and the outstanding team categories. Jonathan co-authored the book with colleagues from Pennsylvania and Virginia.Wanda MacLachlan, senior Extension agent and environmental management specialist. Howard County's executive board, charged with identifying recommendations for county environmental protection and sustainability, has selected Wanda to be a member of its Commission on the Environment and Sustainability. Wanda manages Extension's Bay-Wise Management, a program she started in 1998.Amy Burk, Kristen Wilson, Erin Peterson, Rick Kohn, and Les Vough. USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service has awarded the five partners an NRCS Conservation Innovation grant. Their goal: to develop a 5.5 acre rotational grazing demonstration site to help horse farmers adopt environmentally sound best management practices for pastures. Amy is assistant professor & Extension specialist, equine science, Animal & Avian Sciences (ANSC). Kristen is an Extension agent and regional 4-H horse specialist, Central Maryland Research and Education Center, and lecturer for the Institute of Applied Agriculture (IAA). Erin is lecturer & horse Extension specialist, IAA. Rick is professor, Extension specialist, animal nutrition management, ANSC. Les is associate professor emeritus & Extension specialist, forage systems management, Plant Science & Landscape Architecture.
|
|
|
|
|
