Resource Magazine July/August 2011 Engineering and Technology for A
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
from the President A Better World ASABE members are making a difference ne of my favorite quotations is from They’re smart, they’re dedicated, and notice how young many of anthropologist Margaret Mead. It’s a them are—that makes me feel confident about the future—and they famous quotation, and you may have understand the power of one. Oheard it before, but it’s worth repeat- Who wouldn’t want to be part of such a distinguished group? ing: “Never doubt that a small group of And who wouldn’t want to invite a colleague into membership in the thoughtful, committed citizens can change the Society that supports such efforts? If you haven’t already done so, world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” there’s no better time than now, before our Annual International In talking with and getting to know many Meeting in August, for you to reach your “just one” new member. As ASABE members over the years, I’ve always I wrote in the previous issue of Resource, building our membership been struck by how active they are in the profession, in their commu- is an important step that each of us can take to help our Society meet nities, and in the larger world. In addition to the important responsi- the demands of the future. bilities of work and family, they find time to serve the Society, and And speaking of the AIM in Louisville this August, our keynote they bring their considerable skills to a fascinating variety of other speaker will be Catherine A. Leslie, PE, executive director of efforts as well. In fact, most ASABE members are involved in some Engineers Without Borders USA. As you may know, Engineers type of neighborhood, national, or even global effort. Our members Without Borders is a non-profit organization committed to humani- are exactly the kind of people that Dr. Mead was talking about: tarian efforts around the world. They do great work, and Ms. Leslie’s people who change the world. address will be supplemented with an informative presentation enti- Of course, each member is “just one” person, but just one tled “Giving Back as an Engineering Professional.” It will make you person can make a difference. Through ASABE sections, student proud of your profession. chapters, as well as NGOs, foundations, and government and aca- On a personal note, I have enjoyed my year as ASABE presi- demic affiliations, our Society offers itself to the world—one person dent, and I look forward to passing the baton to Sonia Maassel at a time. Through their work—improving harvests, ensuring food Jacobsen, who well understands the importance of being “just one” safety, maintaining soil and water quality, and developing sustainable at the right time and right place. My sincere thanks also to the production of fuel, food, and fiber—our members improve lives and Headquarters staff for all the work they’ve done, especially Darrin rural economies around the world. And they put the good name of Drollinger. Thanks, guys—it’s been a great year. ASABE in the public eye. See you in Louisville! In this issue, you’ll meet a few of these members and read their Ronald L. McAllister stories. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting some of these individuals [email protected] face to face, and they are even more inspiring in person than in print. events calendar ASABE CONFERENCES AND INTERNATIONAL MEETINGS To receive more information about ASABE conferences and meetings, call ASABE at (800) 371-2723 or e-mail [email protected]. ASABE ENDORSED EVENTS 2011 2011 Aug. 7-10 ASABE Annual International Meeting. Oct. 9-12 2011 GSA Annual Meeting–Archean to Louisville, Kentucky, USA. Anthropocene. Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. Sept. 18-21 International Symposium on Erosion and Nov. 11-12 Land.Technik–AgEng 2011. Hannover, Germany. Landscape Evolution Conference. Joint conference with AEG. Anchorage, Alaska, USA. 2012 2012 Feb. 21-24 40th International Symposium “Actual Tasks on Agricultural Engineering.” Opatija, Crotia. Feb. 12-15 Agricultural Equipment Technology Conference. Contact: Silvio Kosuti, [email protected] Louisville, Kentucky, USA. July 8-12 International Conference of Agricultural May 26-31 21st Century Watershed Technology Engineering: CIGR-AgEng 2012. Valencia, Spain. Conference: Improving Water Quality Contact: Murat Kacira, [email protected]. and the Environment. Bari, Italy. July 29-Aug 1 ASABE Annual International Meeting. Dallas, Texas, USA. 2 July/August 2011 RESOURCE engineering and technology for a sustainable world July/August 2011 July/August 2011 Vol. 18 No. 4 FEATURES Magazine Staff: Donna Hull, Publisher, 4 Giving Back [email protected]; Sue Mitrovich, Managing Editor, [email protected]; Glenn Laing, William Kisaalita Contributing Editor, [email protected]; A University of Georgia professor has organized an undergraduate design team, Melissa Miller, Professional Opportunities exposing them to Third World engineering challenges. and Production Editor, [email protected]; Sandy Rutter, Professional Listings, 7 The Green Scene [email protected]. Laurie Gengenbach “The Greening of Sockwell Hall” at North Carolina A&T spurs a sustainability movement, Editorial Board: Chair Rafael Garcia, and students bring an eco-vision to life. USDA-ARS; Secretary/Vice Chair Brian 4 Steward, Iowa State University; Past Chair 10 Another Day in the Life Suranjan Panigrahi, Purdue University; Katherine Strass Thomas Brumm, Iowa State University; As a Peace Corps engineer/volunteer, author Strass thrived on global adventure Victor Duraj, University of California, Davis; Tony Grift, University of Illinois; Christopher and got hooked on making a difference. Henry, University of Nebraska; William Reck, 12 Identifying Invisible Invaders USDA-NRCS; John Yagow, John Deere Harvester Works; Jeong Yeol Yoon, Jamie DePolo University of Arizona. Food safety for public health protection begins with biosensor detection in this Michigan State University lab with a wise mentor instructing the next generation in biodefense. Resource: Engineering & Technology for a Sustainable World 14 Making a Staple Food Crop Safer (ISSN 1076-3333) (USPS 009-560) is published six times per year— Tina M. Prow January/February, March/April, May/June, A picture is worth a thousand words and gives a glimpse into the lives of Nigerians July/August, September/October, whose lives are being changed by Engineers Without Borders (EWB). 7 November/December—by the American Bridging Borders Society of Agricultural and Biological 15 Engineers (ASABE), 2950 Niles Road, Victoria Currier Fryer St. Joseph, MI 49085-9659, USA. Penn State EWB students work with local materials to help a remote village in Sierra Leone. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to 16 Quenching a Need Resource, 2950 Niles Road, St. Joseph, MI 49085-9659, USA. Periodical postage is Greg Tammen paid at St. Joseph, MI, USA, and additional Kansas State EWB members spend their spring break replacing rusty water filters post offices. in Guatemala and promoting water treatment. SUBSCRIPTIONS: Contact ASABE order 17 E-Week Pops! department, 269-932-7004. Dolores Landeck COPYRIGHT 2011 by American Society of Showcasing the profession is hands-on—with salt, butter, and crowd-drawing fun! Agricultural and Biological Engineers. 18 Blackawton Bees Permission to reprint articles available on request. Reprints can be ordered in large Students of Blackawton Primary School, Devon, U.K. quantities for a fee. Contact Donna Hull, Teaching with bzzzzz! Primary school students appear in a peer-reviewed journal. 269-932-7026. Statements in this publica- 15 tion represent individual opinions. 22 Follow the Leaders Olivia Maddox and Joanne P. Willis Resource: Engineering & Technology for a Leadership programs for ag and bio engineering students add more to job Sustainable World and ASABE assume no prospects upon graduation, as Purdue’s template proves. responsibility for statements and opinions expressed by contributors. Views advanced in the editorials are those of the contributors and do not necessarily represent the official UPDATE position of ASABE. 24 From soft drink to future fuel: a creative use for the waste stream of ON THE COVER America’s mainstay refreshment William Kisaalita. Photo courtesy of Flip Courant. 25 Free, online tool developed at ISU helps farmers earn more, waste less Kansas State student builds variable-rate fertilizer applicator Erratum: In Resource May/June 2011, 26 Christopher Hay was mistakenly Manure as fuel identified on page 15 as Christopher Hays. We sincerely regret the error. 27 Biofuels without competing claims in Mozambique 28 Portable technology might provide drinking water, power to villages American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers DEPARTMENTS 2950 Niles Road St. Joseph, MI 49085-9659, USA 2 From the President/Events Calendar 269.429.0300, fax 269.429.3852 [email protected], www.asabe.org 29 Professional Listings 30 Last Word: Picking the Low Fruit Tony Grift THE POWER OF 1 Giving Back Lifting smallholders out of poverty one at a time William S. Kisaalita wo-thirds of sub-Saharan Africa’s 863.4 million peo- ple are smallholder farmers, farming about 0.8 ha (2 acres) and cultivating more that 70 percent of the Tarable land. They use mainly family labor, and the smallholder farms provide their principal source of income. I was born and raised in Uganda on a smallholder farm. In those days, pre-college education was heavily subsidized, and college education was provided free by the state. Like many sub-Saharan governments, Uganda raised money to support such education and other projects by borrowing from the West and by buying cash crops (e.g., coffee and cotton) from the smallholder farmers at low controlled prices and selling the raw or semi-processed products at international market rates through state marketing boards. The education of many sub-Saharan professionals, people about my age, was made possible in part by smallholder farmers who, in most cases, are still earning less than $5 a day.