Davis College
News/Events

Everyone’s heard the phrase “snake in the grass” at one point or another, but there’s more lurking in those seemingly innocent stalks of green than a metaphorical reptile.

Ergot alkaloids are chemicals produced by fungi that live in grasses found in most lawns and pastures, and they can really do a number on livestock. They can hurt weight gain and fertility – two of the most desired outcomes in animal agriculture.

A West Virginia University researcher has been studying these ergot alkaloids and the fungi for over a decade, devising ways to minimize their negative effects without hampering their benefits to host grasses.

“Ergot alkaloids can be beneficial to plants,” said Dan Panaccione, Davis-Michael Professor of Plant and Soil Sciences. “They can help plants by discouraging feeding by insects and mammals.”

It’s that last defense mechanism that can pose a problem for livestock producers who rely on grasses as a significant component of their herds’ diet.

“These chemicals can cause poor weight gain, impair the animals’ ability to reproduce, make them more subject to heat stress, and even cause circulatory problems,” Panaccione said.

He’s studied the fungi that produce ergot alkaloids at the genetic level. Now, with the support of a $500,000 grant from the USDA, he’s taking that knowledge base to the next level.

“This grant will support our efforts to eliminate some of the genes of the fungi that live in the grasses and hopefully change the spectrum of ergot alkaloids that they create,” Panaccione said.

For the rest of the story, please visit WVU Today.

In Mother Nature’s world, everything is related to everything else – some call it the butterfly effect.

So when researchers at West Virginia University were trying to figure out why so many golden eagles were being killed by wind turbines – and how to prevent it – they decided they needed to know how the birds figured out where to fly.

And that led them to try to understand whether birds opted to fly fast, and get to their feeding grounds early, but tired, or fly more slowly, and arrive well-rested.

Why would that help with a solution to placement of wind turbines? If the answer was “fast, but tired,” then the birds would be choosing to fly in the same areas that were also the best places for wind turbines – locations with high winds.

The answer? Fast, but tired.

“Our research shows that it is better to arrive on your breeding grounds early – and presumably tired – than late and well-rested,” said Adam Duerr, a research biologist with the WVU Research Corp. “If an eagle is early, it can reclaim its breeding territory from the previous year or lay claim to another territory. Such early arrival will help to ensure successful breeding. Late arrivals to breeding grounds run the risk of not acquiring a territory, not finding a high-quality and experienced mate, or not finding a mate at all.”

Read the rest of the story at WVU Today.

Landscape architects spend their careers turning inspiration into reality. A group of West Virginia University landscape architecture students used their own campus to hone their skills in turning an idea into a setting.

Students in Peter Butler’s sophomore design studio were given a complex assignment: use one of the academic disciplines taught at WVU as the foundation of a design concept for WVU’s Evansdale Campus. WVU is embarking on an ambitious, $159.5 million building project that will remake the Evansdale campus with several new buildings and a more pedestrian-friendly layout.

“This project involved master planning and design of the property between the new Agricultural Sciences Building and the Engineering PRT station,” said Butler an assistant professor in the landscape architecture program. “Creating positive public space with multiple uses, and with the removal of automobile traffic, placing an emphasis on the pedestrian experience, was central to the design of the space.”

Butler asked his sophomore students to incorporate outdoor classrooms and event spaces, various planting zones including forest and orchard spaces, better pedestrian connectivity and circulation, and environmental art. He also asked them to choose an academic discipline to serve as their design inspiration.

Students were asked to research the history, traditions, values, research methods, and other aspects of their chosen disciplines, and to let the particular character, materials, methods, and forms of those disciplines influence the design of the space.

Danelle Howell of Harrisburg, Pa., looked to music. She felt that music, like landscape, is an omnipresent but sometimes overlooked aspect of everyone’s lives, so she let the rhythms of classical music and jazz inspire variety in her layouts, creating different spaces that inspire different moods.

Sound was also important for Margaret Blatt of Erie, Pa., who chose speech pathology and audiology as her starting point. She thought about the ways that plantings and sculptural sound walls could create different effects in various parts of the campus.

The idea of motion as it relates to dance inspired Alexis Halka of Millstone Township, N.J. The steps and rhythms of salsa dancing led her to consider different movement patterns in space planning.

“Bringing the outside in” is a common inspiration for interior designers, but Nathan Sweitzer of Youngstown, Ohio, decided to flip the equation by bringing the inside out. He created different rooms throughout his design and included the installation of empty picture frames to emphasize views of landscapes that surround the campus.

Rachel Rittler of Philadelphia drew inspiration from her roommate, a mechanical engineering major. “She joked that everything mechanical engineers do can be broken down into ‘circuits, gears, and Legos,’” Rittler explained. Rittler used the organized linearity of circuits, the movement of gears, and the textural elements of Lego blocks to define her design.

Even the mathematical discipline of fractal geometry made its presence known in the projects thanks to Justin Pitsenbarger of Franklin, W.Va. He contemplated the ways that fractal geometry occurs naturally, as in a crystal or a seashell, and in created objects like a city plan. His vision of Evansdale features central points that interconnect and spike off into varied spaces.

“While the projects are conceptually driven, I do hope that the student work has an impact on the transformation of Evansdale in the next few years,” Butler said. “They were very successful at creating innovative spaces and experiences that would add character and a strong ‘sense of place’ to campus.”

To view more of the students’ plans, visit the landscape architecture program’s Facebook page.

After spending eight months on their research projects – and giving their first of what could be many important scientific presentations – three Morgantown High School students will be rewarded with a trip to the nation’s capital this month.

As part of West Virginia University’s EnvironMentors Chapter, Emma Mathers, Heather Strahin and Kaveen Herath Bandara will attend the National EnvironMentors Fair in Washington, D.C., May 23.

The students competed against seven of their peers in a juried poster session during WVU’s EnvironMentors fair in late April.

EnvironMentors is a national environment-based mentoring program developed by the National Council for Science and Environment. The program provides high school students the opportunity to work with researchers and professionals to develop scientifically rigorous research projects. The program also promotes future studies and careers in environmental science fields.

WVU was selected in May 2011 as the newest of 13 university chapters distributed across the U.S.

For the full story, visit WVU Today.

Learn more about the West Virginia University Davis College’s diverse research efforts in the Spring 2012 edition of our magazine. Click here to download a copy, or click here to read the issue online.

The West Virginia University Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design has selected its outstanding faculty for 2012.

Megan Govindan, outstanding teaching

Megan Govindan, teaching assistant professor of human nutrition and foods, was named outstanding teacher. In 2011, Govindan was the sole or lead instructor for 23 credit hours, teaching a total of 464 students and served as the academic advisor for 40 undergraduate students. She was also named program director of the accredited undergraduate Didactic Program in Dietetics and took the lead in developing a proposed minor in foodservice production.

E. Keith Inskeep, outstanding service

E. Keith Inskeep, professor of reproductive physiology, was honored for outstanding service. Inskeep has developed a broad service portfolio, with significant contributions related to his research in the area of small ruminants, primarily sheep and goats. He has led farm visits in Ireland, Scotland and England for farmers and extension agents, chaired the Heritage Committee for the Society for the Study of Reproduction, and presented demonstrations on reproduction in sheep for audiences throughout the Mid-Atlantic region.

Jianbo Yao, outstanding research

Jianbo Yao, associate professor of animal and nutritional sciences, was honored for outstanding research. Yao’s research specialization is functional genomics and the discovery of novel genes. In 2011, he published six peer-reviewed journal articles, bringing his total to over 30 during his tenure at WVU, which began in 2003. He has made significant contributions to the map of the genome of rainbow trout. Yao was one of three WVU faculty to receive the 2012 Benedum Distinguished Scholar Awards.

Dennis K. Smith, outstanding advisor

Dennis K. Smith, professor of agribusiness management and rural development and associate dean for academic affairs, was named outstanding advisor. As associate dean, Smith coordinates faculty advising for the Davis College’s 1,777 undergraduate and 276 graduate students. He also oversees curriculum development in the college’s 22 undergraduate, 17 master’s, and seven doctoral programs. Smith is also faculty advisor for all students in the college’s Master of Agriculture, Forestry and Consumer Sciences program and works closely with student organizations and college alumni groups.

Honors for outstanding teaching, research and service are selected by the Davis College’s Promotion and Tenure Committee. The college’s outstanding advisor is nominated by the student body and selected by the Davis College Student Council. Outstanding faculty were recognized at the college’s employee appreciation event on May 7.

A group of West Virginia University students recently competed in the Professional Landcare Network Student Career Days event in Manhattan, Kan.

Hosted by Kansas State University, the three-day competition gives collegiate students pursuing majors like horticulture, landscape architecture and agribusiness management and rural development the chance to compete in events directly related to the skills necessary for careers in the green industry.

This year’s contest featured 700 students from 63 colleges and universities across the country.

According to David Davis, visiting assistant professor of horticulture in the WVU Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design, students benefit from participating in events like this in a variety of ways.

“This is a great networking event for students,” he said. “Not only are they able to interact with their peers, but they have the chance to meet with industry representatives during the career fair.”

For the full story, visit WVU Today.

From Australia to Mexico and Korea to Sweden, everyone needs to eat, and more and more people want to eat well. As a result, countries around the world have developed food guides to help their citizens craft a balanced and nutritious diet.

A noted food psychologist will lead a guided tour of some those international food guides in a lecture at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 16, in the Fukushima Auditorium of the Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center at West Virginia University.

James E. Painter, PhD and RD, will serve as the keynote speaker for the 2012 annual meeting of the West Virginia Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (WVAND). The lecture is open to the public. For more information, contact Cindy Gay, RD, LD, at gayc@wvuhealthcare.com or 304-598-6306.

“In our multicultural society it is of ever increasing importance to understand the food practices of diverse populations and be aware of their corresponding food guidance systems,” Painter said.

In Painter’s presentation pictorial food guides from 50 countries will be compared to the US Food Guide Pyramid.

Painter serves as professor and chair of the School of Family and Consumer Sciences at Eastern Illinois University. His presentations about portion sizes, calorie reduction, heart health, antioxidants, and others have taken him around the world to inspire large and small audiences with the knowledge to help them succeed in today’s food culture.

He has produced “Portion Size Me,” a documentary about fast food and health, and been featured on CBS’s “Early Show” and in journals and magazines including the Journal of the American Dietetic Association and pop magazine Glamour.

The theme of this year’s WVAND meeting is “Seven Decades of Service,” marking the organization’s 70th anniversary as an affiliate of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Session topics focus on the role of the registered dietitian, nutrition as a public policy issue, and nutrition’s influence on the management of chronic disease.

The West Virginia Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics is a professional organization for Registered Dietitians (RD’s) who are committed to serving the public through the promotion of optimal nutrition, good health and well-being.

A student in the Davis College’s resource management and sustainable development doctoral program is part of an effort to revitalize Moundsville, W.Va.:

During the organizing process, students met with key stakeholders in the community including government, business, nonprofit and school leaders. They also mobilized citizens through a variety of civic and volunteer groups. Each student is responsible for identifying a target demographic in the area ranging from tourism to government. They will act in an advisory capacity throughout the project so that they can engage in collaborative responses to issues and opportunities that are identified.

“I really wanted to bond with the community,” said Festus Manly-Spain, a master of public administration graduate and doctoral student in resource management and sustainable development in the Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design. “I’ve been working with the community on tourism and helping them to see the treasures within their community.”

For the full story, please visit WVU Today.

Katrina Lawrence of Morgantown is as a four-year senior in the Mountaineer Marching Band.

“Every year, we work harder than the last to earn the title of ‘Pride’ of West Virginia,” Lawrence said.

Additionally, Lawrence is a member of Phi Kappa Phi, Xi Sigma Pi National Forestry Honor Society, National Society of Collegiate Scholars, Golden Key International Honor Society and Alpha Lambda Delta. She was awarded the Tom Clark Memorial Scholarship, Frank “Doc” Stevens Memorial Scholarship, Alpha Natural Resources Scholarship and the Presidential Scholarship.

Since Lawrence’s ultimate career goal is to become a lawyer, she chose the wildlife and fisheries resources program to provide herself with the necessary skills to excel in the legal profession specializing in environmental law.

“Such a university-wide reward and recognition as an outstanding senior further encourages one of our brightest students to succeed to even greater heights in one of the fields in which we need the brightest minds,” Merovich wrote in a letter of recommendation. “We need future leaders like Katrina to provide advice and guidance in the stewardship and conservation of our natural resources.”

(Lawrence’s bio is courtesy of WVU Today.)