January 25, 2022 Newsletter

January 25, 2022

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Research News

In-Person Iowa State University Research Day Returns in Spring 2022

For the first time since spring 2019, the Iowa State research community will reconvene live and in-person to celebrate and advance research at the university during Research Day 2022. This year’s event – the fifth in the past six years – takes place Wednesday, March 30, 2022, and features a reimagined format to encourage greater faculty participation, peer-to-peer learning, and interdisciplinary collaboration. Read more…

Liang Dong Named Director of Microelectronics Research Center

Liang Dong, Vikram L. Dalal Professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering, has been named director of the Iowa State University Microelectronics Research Center (MRC). The MRC is a multi-disciplinary center focusing on the study of semiconductor materials, devices and applications. Dong replaces long-time MRC director Vikram L. Dalal, who is stepping down after leading the MRC for 22 years. Read more…

Iowa State University Researchers Discover New Approach to Fight Salmonella in Poultry

Researchers in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition at Iowa State have discovered an innovative approach to fight bacteria and their antimicrobial resistance in poultry by exploiting linkages between the gut neurochemical and immune systems. The work, reported in the scientific journal “Nature: Communications Biology,” showed the drug Reserpine can be used to improve gut health. Read more…

Plant Sciences Institute Welcomes Four New Faculty Scholars in Third Cohort

The Iowa State University Plant Sciences Institute recently completed its third Faculty Scholars cohort, welcoming four new researchers to a roster currently comprised of 25 active faculty members. The PSI Faculty Scholars program, which began in 2015, is intended to identify, support, and empower talented researchers who have the potential to contribute to the discipline of predictive plant phenomics. Read more…

Announcements

NIH Begins Enforcing Changes to Biographical Sketch and Other Support Formats

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) will begin enforcing use of its updated Biosketch and Other Support format for applications, Just-in-Time (JIT) Reports, and Research Performance Progress Reports (RPPRs) as of January 25, 2022. Failure to follow the appropriate formats on or after January 25, 2022 may cause NIH to withdraw applications or delay consideration of funding.

CALS Forms Advisory Panel for Engaged Research

CAPER (CALS Advisory Panel for Engaged Research) is a new faculty team working to help CALS researchers achieve more. Their charge: identify opportunities to improve administrative processes that support and encourage the research enterprise. CAPER is made up of one researcher from each of the CALS departments. For departments with a Research Associate Chair, that individual serves as the CAPER. For others, members are selected in consultation with department chairs. Do you have an idea to make things work better? Find the right CAPER to contact below.

ABE: Michelle Soupir
AGEDS: Mike Martin
AGRON: Danny Singh
ANSCI: Nick Gabler
BBMB: Dipa Sashital
ECON: John Crespi
EEOB: Jeanne Serb

FSHN: James Hollis
GDCB: Maura McGrail
HORT: Ajay Nair
NREM: Michael Weber
PLPM/ENT: Justin Walley
SOCJ: J. Arbuckle
STAT: Ranjan Maitra

ISU and UI Hosting Innovation Labs on Sustainability/Climate Change

Iowa State University and the University of Iowa are partnering to host three Innovation Labs – February 23, March 2, and March 9 from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. each day – focused on connecting researchers at both institutions interested in exploring interdisciplinary research opportunities around climate change and sustainability. Interested researchers are urged to complete this survey by February 4 to help identify those climate change and/or sustainability research challenges that researchers at both universities are well-positioned to explore. Innovation Lab registration and additional information about engaging with this process, including potential internal and external funding to kickstart ideas, is available here.

Internal Funding Opportunities

Midwest Big Data Hub Digital Ag Seed Funding

The Midwest Big Data Hub is focused on building networks and collaborations to advance progress and strengthen data ecosystems. The Digital and Precision Ag arm of the Midwest Big Data Hub is offering Digital Ag seed funds to catalyze the formation of diverse teams across institutions in three focus areas: carbon capture, cybersecurity, and environmental sustainability. Each team must have two equal partners as co-leads: one person from the arts/humanities/social sciences and one person from the STEM disciplines. Proposals are due February 1, 2022.

CEAH Symposium Grants

The Center for Excellence in the Arts and Humanities (CEAH) Symposium Grants support the creation of artistic and scholarly conferences, symposia, or seminars on Iowa State’s campus that will highlight the scholarly work being done by arts and humanities faculty. Preference will be given to proposals that promote innovative or emergent themes, and that contribute to advancing arts and humanities research at Iowa State. Applications are due February 11, 2022. 

CEAH Research Grants

The Center for Excellence in the Arts and Humanities (CEAH) Research Grants fund scholarly humanistic inquiry and creative artistic productivity, including research in the design and social sciences disciplines that have artistic or humanistic content and employ artistic or humanistic methods. Applicants must be tenured or tenure-track faculty in the College of Design or College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, with a home department in the arts and humanities disciplines. Applications are due February 11, 2022. 

Bridging the Divide Seed Grant Program

The Bridging the Divide seed grant program provides the foundation to holistically address wicked problems through new integrative collaborations among researchers in design, arts, humanities and social sciences with researchers in the STEM disciplines. Tenured or tenure-eligible faculty may apply for the Bridging the Divide seed program. Applicants must be full-time faculty members. The deadline for applications is February 25, 2022.

External Funding Opportunities

Dreyfus Program for Machine Learning in the Chemical Sciences and Engineering

The Dreyfus Program for Machine Learning in the Chemical Sciences and Engineering provides funding for innovative projects in any area of machine learning consistent with the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation’s broad objective to advance the chemical sciences and engineering. This program is open to any academic institutions in the U.S. that grant a bachelor’s or higher degree in the chemical sciences. Principal investigators are limited to one proposal annually. The deadline for applications is April 7, 2022.

Training and Development

2022 NIAMRRE Winter Research Symposium
January 26 — 1 p.m. – 4 p.m. — Virtual

The National Institute of Antimicrobial Resistance Research and Education (NIAMRRE) Quarterly Research Symposia Series continues this winter with a focus on “AMR Stewardship Through Antibiotic Alternatives, Vaccinology, and Other Therapeutics.” A diverse lineup of speakers includes seven research talks and a roundtable on the process and challenges of bringing new products to market moderated by Cyril Gay from the USDA Agricultural Research Service. Register here.

IRB 101
February 3 — 10:30 a.m. – 12 p.m. — Virtual

In this session, participants will learn tips on developing and submitting protocols to the IRB. A member of IRB staff will walk through key sections of the IRB application and explain what the IRB looks for during the review process. Register here.

Voices in Research

“We found that participants with higher levels of compassion, even those with chronic diseases, were less likely to book the appointment when vaccines were described as scarce. People who were less compassionate had stronger intentions to receive the vaccine when doses were described as scarce. There are so many factors that contribute to vaccine hesitancy, but concern for others seems to stand out.”

Beatriz Pereira, assistant professor, Marketing

“This is a very exciting project. All of this technology has improved quite a bit recently. We have access to today’s technology. And we want to jump the technology gap to prove this concept rather than waiting for industry to catch up. That person operating the snowplow in the snow is facing so much workload and stress. We want to at least give them a helping hand and some tools to help.”

Anuj Sharma, professor, Civil Engineering

“That may not sound like a lot, but if you go from a 10-degree mean temperature in a state like Minnesota to a 60-degree mean temperature in Florida, the data shows more than double the percent of immigrants in the area who have their own business. This idea that the proportion of immigrants who are entrepreneurs was so different was pretty surprising. We’re adding pieces to the puzzle, but we don’t have the full image yet.”

John Winters, professor, Economics