July 2012 - UTIA!

thirdThursdayJuly 2012Third Thursdaygoing digital,insideFrom the ChancellorLarry ArringtonJuly marks two of our most popularfield days, Summer Celebrationand Milan No-Till, both in WestTennessee. With 14 field daysand six special events stretchingfrom March through October, theinstitute offers one of the largestnumbers of events of the nation’sland-grant universities.Summer is also a very busy time forExtension 4-H programs. Together our 4-H agents,three centers and many 4-H events serve 306,000members of Tennessee 4-H Youth Development, andthere are special outreach programs in the College ofVeterinary Medicine, as well.Whether field days, special events or youth camps,these programs represent some of the most impressivequalities of the institute—research, teaching andExtension that prepare students for outstanding careersand improve life for Tennesseans. Thank you forwhat you do to make these important events a success.Go Vols,In MemoriamDarrell Hale, revered4-H agent for 34 yearsin Lincoln, McMinn,Jefferson, and CartercountiesJanice Jackson,beloved volunteerleader of 4-H forUT Extension KnoxCountyMack Steele, longtimeUT Extension agent anddirector, Sequatchie County,and assistant Extension agent inMorgan CountyDairy reunion: More than 30 former workers of the UTDairy in Knoxville and their family members enjoyed goodfellowship and food, and shared stories and fond memoriesof their experiences while working at the dairy. The workers’years of service spanned 1957 to the present. See their namesat http://tiny.utk.edu/Dairy.Lannett Edwards

2Third Thursday July 2012What’s News»»Forbes Walker, associate professorand environmental soil specialistwith the Department of BiosystemsEngineering and Soil Science hasbeen elected president-elect ofthe Tennessee American WaterResources Agency. The professionalassociation’s membership is diverse,representing state and federal agencies,universities and consulting engineers.Agency members work to advancewater resources management, researchand education.»»The sixth annual Comparative andExperimental Medicine and PublicHealth Research Symposium featured78 presentations and 75 presenters.This year, the UT Center for HealthPolicy and Services Research, the UTKOffice of Research, UT GraduateSchool and the Graduate Schoolof Medicine joined the College ofVeterinary Medicine and AgResearchto offer two days of oral presentationson human and animal health research.Members of the Institute who wonawards were Eman Anis, TamaraVeiga-Parga and Ricardo Videlaof Comparative and ExperimentalMedicine; Maria Cekanova andRebecca Hodshon of Small AnimalClinical Sciences; and DouglasLuther of Animal Science. Abstractsfor next year’s symposium will be duein the spring, with the symposiumscheduled for the summer. These dateswill be circulated by email and in ThirdThursday.»»The National Extension MasterGardeners’ Facebook page is sharingposts from UT Extension’s Soil, Plantand Pest Center’s Facebook page.Also, the Hot Spot Club and Cafe inLeira, Portugal, has recently “liked”the center’s page. Alan Windham,professor of entomology and plantpathology and Extension specialist,says it’s his first night club. The pagehas more than 450 likes, the 450thfrom Chishimba Mulenga, a citizen ofZambia. The center’s Facebook page isnow reaching people in 71 countries.It’s Not the Refereed Journal Article – It’sWhat It RepresentsBill Brownby Bill Brown, Dean, AgResearchSometimes I feel that as AgResearch directors, we havenot done the best job at articulating the meaning of theagricultural research mission and how productivity, outputsand outcomes are measured. In some cases, it appears that theonly interest is, “How many papers have you published, andhow many extramural dollars have you brought in?” In my lastThird Thursday article, I discussed the fact that although money(extramural funding) is important, it is only a tool that assistsus in meeting our mission of developing new knowledge toserve the people of Tennessee and the world. The real focus isthe mission.It is easy to get caught up into thinking that extramural funding is a true measureof research productivity. Our research funding model is one that supports a12-month faculty salary and a significant amount of technical and infrastructuresupport, but leaves a modest amount of operating dollars. So, is extramural fundingimportant? Yes, it is. Will we continue to track extramural awards and expendituresinto the future? Yes, we will. However, we must remember that extramural fundingallows UTIA research faculty and staff to leverage appropriated state and federaldollars to develop mission-driven new knowledge that is articulated through manyoutlets, including the refereed literature.Similar thoughts hold for the refereed journal article. New knowledge is developedthrough science-based (physical, chemical, biological and social) research. This newknowledge is subjected to the rigor of peer review to lend credibility and acceptanceof its value. It should be our goal that all UTIA research is published in the peerreviewedrefereed literature. However, the goal is not to publish just for the sakeof the refereed paper: the importance lies in what the refereed paper represents,which is answers and solutions to problems facing our clientele. In addition tothe refereed literature, multiple avenues are used for information delivery, includingExtension publications and presentations and public/private media outlets. So, arerefereed papers important? Yes, they are. Will we continue to track refereed papersinto the future? Yes, we will. However, we must remember that the refereed journalarticle represents near- to long-term answers and solutions to society’s problemsthat are scientifically sound and peer-validated. This philosophy will establishUTIA as the preferred source among our clientele and others of research-basedinformation to meet tomorrow’s challenges.» » The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization has published a digitalbook written by M.S. Plant Sciences alumnus David Hannaway and PlantSciences Professor Emeritus Henry Fribourg. The Country Pasture/Forage ResourcesProfile of the United States of America features the work of 27 contributing authors. Thebook is available at http://tiny.utk.edu/pasture/forage. The text will be of interestto students of agronomy and ecology, forage producers and managers, professionalagriculturists, and horticulturists, as well as the general public. Tennessee’s foragesand beef cattle industry leads many other states through its 6.5 million acres ofpastures and its 2 million head of cattle.

agriculture.tennessee.edu 3Tammy Pass, administrative specialistfor CASNR, has been named UT’s mostcourteous employee of the month. “Tammyis the front face of the dean’s office and isthe first person that students see when theyenter,” says Dean Caula Beyl. “She is thewarm and human face that reassures studentsthat we truly do care about their issues andvalue them as people. Not too long ago, aninternational visitor felt so welcomed byTammy that she told me Tammy’s title shouldbe called ‘Director of First Impressions.’ Sheis truly an inspiration to us all and welldeserves this award.”Third ThursdayGoes Digital inAugustNext month, the institutenewsletter, Third Thursday,will transition from paperto being distributedelectronically.The newsletter will arriveby email. The benefits ofthis change include fasterdistribution of news,accessibility by more people,use of color photos andinclusion of a wider range ofnews, all shared in a quick-toreadformat. Watch your inboxfor the first issue.Thanks to WebCommitteeChancellor Larry Arrington and ChiefInformation Officer Robert Ridenourwish to congratulate the Institute WebAdvisory Committee on a job well done.WAC is responsible for establishingstandards for the UTIA websites thatenhance the institute’s presence in thecyber community and better market itsprograms. As a result of the committee’swork, new Web designs will be announcedsoon. The committee creates andrecommends templates for the UTIAweb presence, explores new initiativesand strategies, and maintains clearguidelines on future web design directions.The membership of WAC includes thefollowing:• Robert Denovo Jr., College ofVeterinary Medicine• Brad Greenfield, Extension• Jean Hulsey, Marketing andCommunications Services• Joel Lown, AgResearch• Lorna Norwood, Marketing andCommunications Services• Steve Oliver, AgResearch• Robert Ridenour, InformationTechnology Services• Lynne Scott, Information TechnologyServices• John Stier, College of AgriculturalSciences and Natural ResourcesBlake BrownEvery other year the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture hosts the largestconservation tillage event in the nation, the Milan No-Till Crop Production Field Day.This is the year for the 27th No-Till Field Day and 50th anniversary of the AgResearchand Education Center at Milan. The field day takes place Thursday, July 26, and involvesemployees from across the institute. The photo is of a tour in a soybean disease control plottaken during the 2010 Milan No-Till Field Day.• Emily Tipton, Information TechnologyServices• John Toman, Extension• Billy Williams, Information TechnologyServices.

4Third ThursdayGabriel ClemonsJessica Johnson and Jeffrey Cox with Altria Group Leaf Services recently presented Chancellor Larry Arrington with a check for $41,368to support student internships and Extension agent training. Representing the institute during the visit were, front row from left, PaulDenton, professor, Department of Plant Sciences, and Extension specialist, burley tobacco production; Bill Brown, dean, AgResearch;Steve Oliver, assistant dean, AgResearch. Second row from left, Barry Sims, director, Highland Rim AgResearch and Education Center;Carrie Stephens, associate professor and graduate program director, Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications; RobEllis, director, AgResearch and Education Center at Greeneville; and Vickie Witcher, research associate, Department of Agricultural andResource Economics.UTIA News is published monthly by the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture. Send comments and suggestions to Margot Emery,memery@tennessee.edu. The University of Tennessee is an EEO/AA/Title VI/Title IX/Section 504/ADA/ADEA institution in the provision of itseducation and employment programs and services. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment without regardto race, color, national origin, religion, sex, pregnancy, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, orcovered veteran status. Visit the Institute of Agriculture on the Internet at http://agriculture.tennessee.edu | E11-1101-00-001-13101 Morgan HallKnoxville, TN 37996-4505