Site Archive
Close to finishing his biology degree at the University of Michigan, Tomas Höök decided to sign up for an ecology class.
Twenty-five years later, lessons from that semester continue to apply to the lifework of the recipient of the 2021 Agricultural Research Award, the highest honor for mid-career faculty members in the Purdue University College of Agriculture.
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With looming threats of coffee leaf rust to farmers’ yields, Purdue University mycologist Catherine Aime is working to protect this staple of daily lives and the economies of areas throughout the world.
Aime and colleagues warned of the potential threat to the coffee industry in June. She now is part of a team supported by the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) and led by the Synergistic Hawaii Agriculture Council to investigate the fungus that causes the disease and to develop tactics to counter it.
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Instead of relying solely on nitrogen in the soil, soybeans and many other legumes can pull nitrogen from the air for their growth – a natural process that is environmentally friendly and also increases soil nitrogen levels for the next crop in rotation.
Plant science research at Purdue University has found a potential way to double soybean plants’ use of the process, called biological nitrogen fixation.
“I study the liver of dairy cattle because metabolic disease can lead to the loss of millions of dollars for the dairy industry,” explained Linda Beckett, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Animal Sciences.
Beckett studied animal sciences as an undergraduate at Virginia Tech. She had little experience with cattle before college but answered an ad to work on a farm while a student. There, Beckett came to enjoy caring for the calves and milking the cows.
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Modern agricultural tractors contain so much cutting-edge technology, they rival even the latest spacecraft. But the back end is still old-school, relying largely on fossil fuels. So any optimization in tractor efficiency is a huge win for the environment.
With this in mind, Purdue University researchers have undertaken a $3.2 million Department of Energy project to optimize the hydraulic systems that connect tractors and implements.
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Powerful partnerships among Purdue University’s colleges of agriculture, engineering and science will advance digital forestry tools to save time, money and achieve a deeper understanding of an important natural resource.
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A new tool finds hidden connections across industrial sectors and identifies opportunities to reduce waste and lower carbon emissions by mapping the physical economy for a region.
“The climate and the economy are too important for us to make mistakes,” said Shweta Singh, the interdisciplinary scientist at Purdue University who developed the tool. “This tool provides a big-picture view and allows policymakers and industry to plug in a potential change and see the results. Those involved can virtually test different options before making a decision.”
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The Crop Science Society of America (CSSA) has announced that Purdue professor Jianxin Ma is its 2021 Fellow Award Recipient. The annual award recognizes outstanding contributions to crop science through education, national and international service and research.
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Bruce Hamaker, director of the Whistler Center for Carbohydrate Research and distinguished professor of food science, has discovered a means for replicating animal protein textures to near perfection—with corn zein—a protein in corn. As meat analogues become increasingly popular, companies are looking for healthier and more sustainable ways to improve their products. That is where corn zein could be used, Hamaker said. The protein mimics ingredients like wheat gluten and some manmade products that provide viscoelasticity, an important textural component to any meat substitute. Viscoelastic refers to a material that simultaneous exhibits fluid and solid properties – think silly putty.
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Glenn Hardebeck learned to play golf from his grandfather but recalls being more interested in driving the golf cart than hitting the ball. At 15, he started a part-time job working on the course at Benton County Country Club. “I didn’t realize there were bigger and better things than the little nine-hole golf course I worked on for five summers,” he says.
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“Being in the heart of the Congo Basin, I came to understand forestry’s importance to us as a country and was curious to do studies in that area,” shared Blaise Jumbam, a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Botany and Plant Pathology.
Jumbam had long been interested in biology, but family members in his hometown of Bamenda, Cameroon urged him to pursue banking. Jumbam gave finance a try, studying at the University of Dschang, but switched to botany at the University of Buea.
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“My research keeps me awake at night,” said Trevor Boram. “But in a good way.”
Boram, a Ph.D. candidate in biochemistry, began his collegiate career at Indiana University East. There, a faculty mentor who completed a postdoc at Purdue encouraged Boram to apply to graduate school in West Lafayette.
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Many people are involved in the remarkable range of programs, services and facilities that undergird research in the College of Agriculture. Collectively they’re integral to the college fulfilling its research mission. “Behind the Research” explores their individual roles. Each academic year, we profile six people whose work supports the College of Agriculture’s global reputation for developing innovative, multidisciplinary solutions to challenges and then putting those solutions into action.
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When a ship ran aground and blocked the Suez Canal for six days in March, stranding more than 400 ships at one of the world’s busiest waterways, Manuel Jimenez stayed attuned to its impact.
Jimenez’s research at Purdue focuses on maritime shipping and international trade. The topics reflect his upbringing in Bogotá, Colombia, where his father operated a firm that exported flowers to the United States.
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Anbuhkani “Connie” Muniandy’s curiosity about food developed in her family’s kitchen in her small hometown of Simpang Renggam, Malaysia. While helping her mother prepare meals, she began to wonder why specific ingredient combinations had different outcomes.
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“I started my journey as a nervous high school kid on the other side of the world,” said Johnnie “Junior” Cheng, recalling the first time he e-mailed a Purdue student ambassador. “I remember being scared, thinking this older college student must be the real deal.”
Cheng was considering animal sciences programs in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia. All were far from his home in Taipei, Taiwan.
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If Mike Woodard walks into a greenhouse space and finds a researcher mixing fertilizer one batch at a time in a watering can, he will likely mention the availability of a fertilizer injector. Or if he sees someone watering by hand, he’ll offer information about an automated irrigation system.
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