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College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences

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Research News - June 2023

June 5, 2023
Dr. Monica M. Lewandowski in the department of Plant Pathology working a table at an event.

Inside this Issue

  • Cultivate Your Creativity, a message from Dr. Gary Pierzynski, Associate Dean for Research & Graduate Education
  • NIH Resource Roundup: Learn more about Human Subjects, Clinical Trials, and Inclusion
  • NEW NSF proposal requirement: Plan for a Safe & Inclusive Working Environment
  • 10 Researchers Selected for Cohort 3 of the Strategic Alignment for Research Success (STARS) Program

Download the PDF


Funding Opportunties 

As funding opportunities are announced we will compile a full list on our website. The web page will be updated periodically as new opportunities are discovered.

  • NSF Convergence Accelerator
    The NSF Convergence Accelerator, a Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships or TIP program, has issued a new funding opportunity for three new research track topics aligned to equitable water solutions, chemical sensing applications, and bio-inspired design innovations.
    Letter of Intent Deadline: July 11, 2023

  • AFRI Sustainable Agricultural Systems
    Applications to the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) - SAS RFA must focus on approaches that promote transformational changes in the U.S. food and agriculture system. NIFA seeks projects that are expected to improve the supply of affordable, safe, nutritious, and accessible ag products.
    Deadline: July 13, 2023

View All Funding Opportunities


A lightbulb in the middle of many colorful pieces of paper crumpled into ballsCultivate Your Creativity

Gary Pierzynski, Associate Dean for Research & Graduate Education

We tend to think of research and the arts, including literature and music, as polar opposites. Research is logical and follows clearly defined rules while the arts seem to defy logic and have few constraints. Of course, such broad characterizations are not true. The rhythms and patterns in music have a strong mathematical foundation, for example. Creativity is another connection between the arts and science, one that is often underappreciated in research, and the topic of this column. Composers and writers create songs and novels out of nothing other than an idea in their minds. A sculptor combines their creative ideas with their talent, or “gift”, of sculpting to create art from a block of stone. The parallels in research are many. New areas of inquiry are created from the ideas of scientists who could see something that was worthy of investigation. We comb through data looking for the story within. We recognize patterns in disparate areas of knowledge that can be pieced together to advance science. We identify solutions to vexing problems where others have failed. New knowledge is to the scientist what a new song is to the composer.

Many have tried to characterize creativity, often concluding that some people have it while others don’t. My belief is that everyone has creativity to some degree, it can be developed, and we can manage our time such that our creativity can more readily be expressed. As the end of the spring semester approached, no doubt most people were quite busy, which is not the recipe for creativity. Steven Covey notes that we spend too much time doing things that appear urgent but really aren’t important while we should spend more time doing things that do not appear urgent but really are important in the long run. Creativity doesn’t seem urgent but is vitally important. The timing of this article is no accident. As we enter the summer months, and the busyness subsides for a while, it is an excellent time to cultivate your creativity. Take a breather, reduce the clutter in your mind, do something different to exercise your brain, and enhance your creativity in the process. I wish you all a restful and productive summer.


A team sitting around a table in a trainingSpotlight

  • PCard Training Update
    The PCard Office is now offering a training course titled, PCard Use and Responsibilities. This course is designed for Cardholders, Card Managers, Card Users, and those supporting the PCard transaction expense process.

  • Outside Activities & Conflicts | 6/14 & 7/20
    This case-study-based workshop covers the Outside Activities & Conflicts policy, which incorporates the Ohio Ethics Law and federal research regs regarding conflicts of interest. Register via Buckeye Learn.


A screen grab of the NIH Division of Human Subjects Research (DHSR) Resources on Human Subjects, Clinical Trials, and Inclusion ResourcesIn the News

NIH Resource Roundup
Do you work with human subjects in your research? The NIH Division of Human Subjects Research team put together a one-page resource to share info as you develop an app and beyond.

The resource contains useful tips like how to use the participant-level data template, an infographic on exempt human subjects research, a decision tool to determine if a study is considered a clinical trial, and more!

Read More

Travel Training Update
The Travel Office is offering an additional training course titled, Business Travel Life Cycle – Live and Interactive. This is a more comprehensive training option compared to other self-led courses offered through BuckeyeLearn, such as Intro to Business Travel and Online Business Travel Life Cycle Modules.

This course was developed to provide interactive discussion and demonstrations for the four core steps in the business travel life cycle and is recommended for employees who travel frequently, employees who routinely arrange travel for others, and employees who administer business travel processes. The course covers all business travel for the University and the Health Systems and incorporates guidance for Individual, Group, and Team travel. Participants can choose the attendance method that suits their preference: In-Person or Virtual. For questions, contact the Travel Office at travel@osu.edu or 614-292-9290.

Read More

Research Development & Grant Writing News
We invite you to access the current issue of Research Development and Grant Writing News. The Enterprise for Research, Innovation, and Knowledge | Research Development Office provides access to this subscription-based newsletter for the entire campus community.

Articles of Interest:

  • May 2023 Select List of Humanities, HSS, and Arts Opportunities & News – We list funding opportunities for scholars in the humanities, social sciences and the arts.
  • Tips for Pursuing Funding from Industry – What faculty should know about industry research funding.
  • AFRI Sustainable Agricultural SYSTEMS RFA – USDA SAS program and how to define an ag system in this context.
  • Make Your Case for Value-Added Benefits – Why convincing reviewers and funders your proposed research will have value-added benefits is a key consideration in funding decisions.

Read Now

NEW NSF proposal requirement: Plan for a Safe & Inclusive Working Environment

As part of a pilot program, for proposals submitted to certain programs in the Biosciences and Geosciences Directorates, the plan must be submitted to NSF in the proposal. Follow the instructions in the NSF funding opportunity announcement or funding solicitation applicable to your proposal. In most cases, this plan does not have to be submitted to NSF with the proposal. The AOR (SPO) must certify that, at the time of submission, there is a plan if the proposal includes off-site or off-campus research. Therefore, the plan must be submitted to the SPO prior to submission of the proposal to NSF.

OSU provides resources here: https://go.osu.edu/safe-and-inclusive-work-environment-plan. If the proposal is funded, the plan must be distributed to everyone who will be participating in the off-site or off-campus research activities. Please direct any questions to your SPO.

CFAES SPO Assignments

Department

SPO

Cost Center ID

Administration (Wooster Campus)

Anna Shadley (.5)

CC11967

Agric Comm, Educ, & Lead (ACEL)

Stephanie Harrier (.4)

CC11909

Agric, Environmental & Dev Econ (AEDE)

Kerry Hodak (.2)

CC11898

Animal Sciences (AS)

Stephanie Harrier (.4)

CC11882

Ashtabula Station

Anna Shadley (.5)

CC1185

Entomology (Ent)

Stephanie Harrier (.4)

CC11908

Extension/OSUE-Counties

Bojan Brkljacic (.2)

CC1XXXX

Extension/OSUE-all other Extension CC's

Gretchen Turner (.368)

CC1XXXX

Food, Agric, & Biological Engr (FABE)

Kerry Hodak (.2)

CC11887

Center for Food Animal Health (CFAH)

Stephanie Harrier (.4)

CC11945

Food Science & Technology (FST)

Jessica Tweed (.20)

CC11911

Horticulture & Crop Sci (HCS)

Jessica Tweed (.20)

CC11914

International Programs in Agric

Stephanie Harrier (.4)

CC11968

Plant Pathology (PP)

Stephanie Harrier (.4)

CC11930

School Environment & Natural Res (SENR)

Anna Shadley (.5)

CC12040

Stone Laboratory

Anna Shadley (.5)

CC11956

South Centers at Piketon

Anna Shadley (.5)

CC12138

ATI Arts, Science, & Business Technologies

Gretchen Turner (.368)

CCXXXX

 

Hand signing a contractSubaward Issues with Roll-Forward EncumbrancesAs a part of fiscal year-end activities, subaward supplier contract encumbrances will be closed out for FY23 and re-opened in FY24. An encumbrance will not roll-forward into FY24 if a subaward supplier contract has an "Amendment in Process" status. This issue was confirmed in testing. As a result, the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) is providing guidance and deadlines for subaward supplier contract amendments as shared in the full NewsLink post.

Read More

NSF EPSCoR will host upcoming webinars
The NSF Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) will host upcoming webinars for two new EPSCoR funding opportunities, EPSCoR Collaborations for Optimizing Research Ecosystems Research Infrastructure Improvement Program (E-CORE RII) and EPSCoR Research Incubators for STEM Excellence Research Infrastructure Improvement Program (E-RISE RII). Please register to attend the webinar using the link below for the respective webinar date. E-CORE RII and E-RISE RII submissions must be from institutions or organizations in one of the 28 states or territories that meet the EPSCoR eligibility criteria.

E-CORE RII (NSF-23-587) Webinar | Tuesday, June 6, 2023, 1:00 – 2:00 PM Eastern Time
Register here: https://nsf.zoomgov.com/meeting/register/vJItcu-qrjIpE0DTXvTVllsUr1Hj8wVqa_g

E-RISE RII (NSF 23-588) Webinar | Wednesday, June 7, 2023, 1:00 – 2:00 PM Eastern Time
Register here: https://nsf.zoomgov.com/meeting/register/vJIsde2spzsjG0PnxChCe-HGJYovkvBxtwo

Honeycomb-shaped collage of headshots of the CFAES STARS cohort 310 Researchers Selected for Cohort 3 of the Strategic Alignment for Research Success (STARS) Program
A main goal laid out by the university in 2019 is to strive for, “Excellence in research and creative expression.” In doing our part to help facilitate excellence in research within our college, R&GE developed the CFAES STARS (Strategic Alignment for Research Success) program, which is pleased to announce the third cohort of participants.

The goal of the Strategic Alignment for Research Success (STARS) program is to propel emerging research leaders – those individuals with the interest, vision, and motivation – to take their research programs to a higher and more collaborative level.

Read More Meet the Cohort

 


Recent Awards

  • Valente Alvarez - FST, $159,900: OSU FD152 food processing and technology courses - In person and virtual, Food and Drug Administration
  • Justin Chaffin - CLEAR, $880,088: Improving our understanding of cyanotoxins in Lake Erie, Lake Erie Commission
  • Audrey Dimmerling - OSU Extension, $60,952: 2023 DJFS Respite day camp and life skills, Columbiana County Department of Job and Family Services
  • Michelle Jones - HCS, $41,413: Identification and application of plant growth promoting bacteria to improve floriculture crop plant quality and reduce production inputs, Am Floral Endowment
  • Marcus McCartney - OSU Extension, $5000: Junior farmers market, Sisters of St Joseph Charitable Fund
  • Bill Peterman - SENR, $92,363: Distribution and multiscale habitat assessment of green salamanders (Aneides aeneus) in Ohio
  • Feng Qu - Plant Path, $100,000: Testing sugarcane resistance to sugarcane mosaic virus (SCMV) for CTC3, Centro de Tecnologia Canavieira S.A.
  • Margaret Rivera - OSU Extension, $19,945: North Central integrated pest management center (NCIPMC): A regional approach to pest management implementation, Iowa State University

 

BASF

  • David Gardner - HCS, $4,800: BASF turfgrass herbicide trials
  • Francesca Hand - Plant Path, $11,840: Soilborne disease management in greenhouse ornamentals
  • Horacio Lopez-Nicora - Plant Path, $50,000: BASF 89115771_genetics
  • Horacio Lopez-Nicora - Plant Path, $32,250: BASF 89115771_89194849
  • Pierce Paul - Plant Path, $10,800: BASF fungicide efficacy trial Ohio 2023
  • Kelley Tilmon - ENT, $59,000: BASF Seedcorn maggot testing

 

Ohio Vegetable and Small Fruit Research and Development Program

  • Michael Gastier - OSU Extension, $3,600: 2023 Ohio SH2 sweet corn variety evaluation
  • James Jasinski - ANR, $3,250: Automated Insect Trap Pilot Test
  • Ashley Leach - ENT, $3,500: Revisiting a classic pest complex: Thrips control in OH pepper production
  • Sally Miller - Plant Path, $8,000: Seed and seedling treatments to manage bacterial diseases in peppers - Part II
  • Francesca Rotondo - Plant Path, $5,500: Diagnostic on fruit, vegetable and cut flower samples

Events & Opportunities


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