In Focus Articles

“Packing 150,000 meals is no small task, and the Ag Week team couldn’t be happier with the support of the Purdue community,” says Dane Chapman, co-chair of Hammer Down Hunger, part of the annual Purdue Ag Week. “We exceeded our goal of 1,000 volunteers thanks to the Purdue students, faculty and staff who embody the Boilermaker spirit of selflessly serving others.”

Natalie Carroll, professor of agricultural sciences education and communication and agricultural and biological engineering, received the Frederick L. Hovde Award of Excellence in Educational Service to the Rural People of Indiana this academic year.

Plants produce phenylalanine, an essential amino acid used in defense, growth and development, as well as to produce the aromatics that attract pollinators. People and animals don’t produce phenylalanine but need it to live, getting it from plants in our diets.

Algal blooms grow in all 50 states and across the globe, yet they largely remain a mystery. A nearly $2 million National Science Foundation grant gives Jennifer Wisecaver, assistant professor in the Department of Biochemistry, the opportunity to learn what conditions lead to these disruptions in aquatic ecosystems.

Purdue scientists have long studied “invasive species,” or non-native plants, animals or microbes. Now they’re recruiting Indiana citizens to help protect the state from these species, which often spread aggressively, replace native organisms and pose threats to human health and well-being, the environment and our economy.

The American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers recently named the DEHYTRAY one of the year’s 50 best product innovations in agricultural, food and biological systems.