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2015 Extension Highlights

Lancaster County, Nebraska Extension: Reports

Nebraska Extension is your local connection to university research-based information. We extend knowledge, provide solutions and change lives. Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County is a partnership between the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lancaster County and the United States Department of Agriculture.

Here’s a look at some of Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County’s 2015 impacts.

A Cooperative Study On The Standardized Total-Tract Digestible Phosphorus Requirement Of Twenty-Kilogram Pigs, O. Adeola, M. J. Azain, S. D. Carter, T. D. Crenshaw, M. J. Estienne, B. J. Kerr, M. D. Lindemann, C. V. Maxwell, P. S. Miller, M. C. Shannon, E. Van Heugten

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

A cooperative study comprising growth performance, bone mineralization, and nutrient balance experiments was conducted at 11 stations to determine the standardized total-tract digestible (STTD) P requirement of 20-kg pigs using broken-line regression analysis. Monocalcium phosphate and limestone were added to a corn–soybean meal–based diet at the expense of cornstarch to establish 6 concentrations of STTD P from 1.54 to 5.15 g/kg in increments of 0.62 g/kg at a constant Ca:total P of 1.52:1.0. Diets were fed to 936 pigs (average initial BW of 19 kg) in 240 pens for 20 replicate pens of barrows and 20 replicate pens of gilts …

Yield And Forage Value Of A Dual-Purpose Bmr-12 Sorghum Hybrid, Melinda K. Yerka, Andrea K. Pederson, J. J. Toy, Galen E. Erickson, Jeffrey F. Pedersen, Rob B. Mitchell

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Grain sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] is an important crop for rainfed production systems with 2.7 million ha grown in the United States in 2013. The brown-midrib (bmr) mutations, especially bmr-12, have resulted in low stover lignin and high fiber digestibility without reducing grain yield in some sorghum lines. However, the effect of the bmr trait on beef cattle (Bos taurus) performance when grazing crop residue is unknown. Our objectives were to validate previous small-plot results reporting no grain yield difference between near-isogenic bmr-12 (BMR) and wild-type control (CON) A Wheatland × R

Tx430 …

The Effects Of Technology Use In Feedlot Production Systems On Feedlot Performance And Carcass Characteristics, C. L. Maxwell, B. C. Wilson, C. F. O'Neill, B. K. Wilson, C. G. Hixon, C. L. Haviland, A. N. Grimes, M. S. Calvo-Lorenzo, D. L. Vanoverbeke, G. G. Mafi, C. J. Richards, D. L. Step, B. P. Holland, C. R. Krehbiel

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

The objectives of this study were to examine the effects of feedlot production systems with and without the use of a β-adrenergic agonist compared to an all-natural production program on feedlot performance and carcass characteristics. Crossbred beef steers (n = 336; initial BW = 379 ± 8 kg) were randomized to 1 of 3 treatments in a randomized complete block design (RCBD; 14 steers/pen; 8 pens/treatment). Treatments consisted of an all-natural treatment (NAT), a conventional treatment (CONV), and a conventional treatment with a β-agonist (CONV-Z). All treatments were fed the same basal diet with NAT cattle receiving no growth promoting …

Health, Obesity, And Behavioral Economics, Christopher Rand Gustafson

Cornhusker Economics

Non-communicable diseases (NCD) such as cancer diabetes, and heart disease im-pose significant human and economic costs. The occurrence of NCDs is the result of multiple factors; in many cases, individ-ual choices increase or decrease the likelihood that these diseases will occur. Preventive behaviors, though effective at preventing the occurrence of many of these diseases, are adopted less frequently than would be optimal. Behavioral economics, a field of economics that has integrated findings from psychology into the economic model of choice, provides important insights into why people take preventive measures less frequently than they should. Behavioral economic models are particularly important …

North Central Extension Risk Management Education Center, Christine Lockert, Bradley D. Lubben

Cornhusker Economics

After peaking near $130 billion in 2013, U.S. net farm income fell to $108 billion in 2014 and is expected to fall to $74 billion in 2015, the lowest level since 2009 (USDA Economic Research Service). The large drop from 2013 to 2015, after nearly a decade of strong growth in agricultural income, presents a substantial challenge to agricultural producers and an increased need to carefully manage risk on the farm or ranch.

Understanding And Enhancing Soil Biological Health: The Solution For Reversing Soil Degradation, R. Michael Lehman, Cynthia A. Cambardella, Diane E. Stott, Veronica Acosta-Martinez, Daniel K. Manter, Jeffrey S. Buyer, Jude E. Maul, Jeffrey L. Smith, Harold P. Collins, Jonathan J. Halvorson, Robert J. Kremer, Jonathan G. Lundgren, Thomas F. Ducey, Virginia L. Jin, Douglas L. Karlen

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Our objective is to provide an optimistic strategy for reversing soil degradation by increasing public and private research efforts to understand the role of soil biology, particularly microbiology, on the health of our world’s soils. We begin by defining soil quality/soil health (which we consider to be interchangeable terms), characterizing healthy soil resources, and relating the significance of soil health to agroecosystems and their functions. We examine how soil biology influences soil health and how biological properties and processes contribute to sustainability of agriculture and ecosystem services. We continue by examining what can be done to manipulate soil biology to: …

Fertilizers In Aquaculture, Bartholomew Green

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Pond fertilization is an important component of semi-intensive to intensive aquaculture pond management that supports successful production of the culture organism. Semi-intensive and intensive aquaculture pond management fall along the extensive to hyper-intensive management continuum and are characterized by high stocking rate of the culture animal, limited use of fertilizers, use of compound or complete feeds, and water quality monitoring and management, including use of mechanical aeration. Fertilization contributes to establishing and maintaining a pond environment that allows the culture organism to utilize efficiently the compound or complete feeds offered. This chapter presents information on pond food webs, sources and …

Female Breakfast Skippers Display A Disrupted Cortisol Rhythm And Levated Blood Pressure, Megan Witbracht, Nancy L. Keim, Shavawn Forester, Adrianne Widaman, Kevin D. Laugero

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Chronic stress and over-activity in the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis may link breakfast skipping and poor cardiometabolic health. Missing the first major meal of the day in rodents prolongs elevated circulating corticosterone at a time when it's normally decreasing. To extend these findings to humans, we hypothesized that habitual breakfast skippers would display a similar pattern of circulating cortisol and alterations in meal and stress-induced cortisol reactions. Normal weight to obese women aged 18–45 years old who were strictly defined as either breakfast skippers (n = 30) or breakfast eaters (n = 35) were invited to participate in our …

Hypoxia Affects Performance Traits And Body Composition Of Juvenile Hybrid Striped Bass (Morone Chrysops X M. Saxatilis), Bartholomew W. Green, Steven D. Rawles, Sidney A. Fuller, Benjamin H. Beck, Matthew E. Mcentire

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Performance traits and body composition of juvenile hybrid striped bass (Morone chrysops x M. saxatilis) in response to hypoxia were evaluated in replicate tanks maintained at constant dissolved oxygen concentrations that averaged 23.0 ± 2.3%, 39.7 ± 3.0%, and 105.5 ± 9.5% dissolved oxygen saturation. Fish were fed a commercially formulated feed daily to apparent satiation. Total feed intake and fish growth and yield increased linearly in response to increased dissolved oxygen concentration. Nutrient utilization was reduced significantly only at the greatest level of hypoxia. With the exception of whole-body protein content, whole body compositional indices and nutrient …

Food Reinforcement And Delay Discounting In Zbmi-Discordant Siblings, Denise M. Feda, James N. Roemmich, April Roberts, Leonard H. Epstein

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Objective: The interaction of food reinforcement and the inability to delay gratification are related to adult energy intake and obesity. This study was designed to test the association of sibling pair differences in relative reinforcing efficacy of food and delay discounting on sibling pair differences in zBMI scores of same-gender zBMI-discordant siblings. Design and methods: We tested main and interactive relationships between delay discounting and relative reinforcing efficacy of food on zBMI discordance in 14 zBMI- discordant biological sibling pairs (6 female pairs) using a discordant sibling study design. Results: Sibling pair differences in relative reinforcing efficacy of food were …

Registration Of ‘Newell’ Smooth Bromegrass, Kenneth P. Vogel, R. B. Mitchell, B. L. Waldron, M. R. Haferkamp, J. D. Berdahl, D. D. Baltensperger, Galen E. Erickson, Terry J. Klopfenstein

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

‘Newell’ (Reg. No. CV-275, PI 671851) smooth bromegrass (Bromus inermis Leyss.) is a steppe or southern type cultivar that is primarily adapted in the United States to areas north of 40° N and east of 100° W that have 500 mm or more annual precipitation or in areas that have similar climatic conditions because of elevation or latitude. It was developed to replace ‘Lincoln’, which is the most widely used smooth bromegrass cultivar in the region, by improving its forage digestibility. Newell bromegrass was developed by four generations of population improvement breeding for in vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD) …

Development Of A Large Set Of Microsatellite Markers In Zapote Mamey (Pouteria Sapota (Jacq.) H.E. Moore & Stearn) And Their Potential Use In The Study Of The Species, Renée S. Arias, Jaime Martínez-Castillo, Victor S. Sobolev, Nasib H. Blancarte-Jasso, Sheron A. Simpson, Linda L. Ballard, Mary V. Duke, Xiaofen F. Liu, Brian M. Irish, Brian E. Scheffler

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Pouteria sapota is known for its edible fruits that contain unique carotenoids, as well as for its fungitoxic, anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant activity. However, its genetics is mostly unknown, including aspects about its genetic diversity and domestication process. We did high-throughput sequencing of microsatellite-enriched libraries of P. sapota, generated 5223 contig DNA sequences, 1.8 Mbp, developed 368 microsatellites markers and tested them on 29 individuals from 10 populations (seven wild, three cultivated) from Mexico, its putative domestication center. Gene ontology BLAST analysis of the DNA sequences containing microsatellites showed potential association to physiological functions. Genetic diversity was slightly higher in …

Increased Seed Consumption By Biological Control Weevil Tempers Positive Co2 Effect On Invasive Plant (Centaurea Diffusa) Fitness, Justin L. Reeves, Dana M. Blumenthal, Julie A. Kray, Justin D. Derner

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Predicted increases in atmospheric CO₂ and temperature may benefit some invasive plants, increasing the need for effective invasive plant management. Biological control can be an effective means of managing invasive plants, but the anticipated range in responses of plant–insect interactions to climate change make it difficult to predict how effective biological control will be in the future. Field experiments that manipulate climate within biological control systems could improve predictive power, but are challenging to implement and therefore rare to date. Here, we show that free air CO₂ enrichment in the field increased the fitness of Centaurea diffusa Lam., …

Seasonal Variation In Vitamin D Status Of Beef Cattle Reared In The Central United States, E Casas, J D. Lippolis, L A. Kuehn, T A. Reinhardt

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

The objective was to retrospectively measure seasonal sunlight-associated variation in serum concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) in beef cattle. The concentration of 25OHD was measured in crossbred animals born from March to May in 2011 and 2012. Vitamin D status 2 to 3 mo after birth (period 1) was only available for 2012 calves and was measured in June 2012. Period 1 animals had serum 25OHD concentrations of 26.3 +- 1.5 ng/mL. The 25OHD concentrations for late summer (period 2) were 46.6 +- 1.4 and 51.0 +- 1.5 ng/mL for 2011 and 2012, respectively. Serum concentration of 25OHD in early …

One Environment, One Health, Margaret Baker, Sienna Cipriano, Madeline Clark, Kelli Green, Hope Hemme, Jessica Horn, Jenna Jenkins, Brooke Jindra, Valerie Kesterson, Ashley Maher, Colleene Marriott, Joshua Poore, Kelly Schnoor, Chelsea Taylor

Strategic Discussions for Nebraska

Nebraska’s place as an international agricultural epicenter is important for feeding a hungry world, but the work that makes that position possible is truly incredible. Thanks to research conducted at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln by many of the world’s finest scientists, discoveries are being made that improve the health of all kingdoms–plant, animal, human and the natural environment.

The UNL Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources scientists are Growing a Healthy Future through their work in laboratories on campus and in the laboratories of the world – fields, rivers, pastures, feedlots, swine facilities, hen houses, zoos and public health clinics. …

Nebline, January 2015

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Feature: Extension 2014 Highlights

Food & Health

Family Living

Farm & Acreage

Horticulture

Pests & Wildlife

4-H & Youth

Extension Calendar

and other extension news and events

Across-Ecoregion Analysis Suggests A Hierarchy Of Ecological Filters That Regulate Recruitment Of A Globally Invasive Fish, Przemek G. Bajer, Timothy K. Cross, Joseph D. Lechelt, Christopher J. Chizinski, Michael J. Weber, Peter W. Sorensen

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Aim -- Even successful invaders are abundant only in a fraction of locales they inhabit. One of the main challenges in invasion ecology is explaining processes that drive these patterns. We investigated recruitment of a globally invasive fish, common carp (Cyprinus carpio), across three ecoregions to determine the role of environmental characteristics, predatory communities and propagule pressure on the invasion process at coarse and fine spatial scales.

Location -- Lakes across Northern Forest, Temperate Forest and Great Plains ecoregions of North America.

Methods -- We used data from 567 lakes to model presence or absence of carp recruitment …

Anticipatory Testimonies: Environmental Disaster In Claudine Jacques's Fictional Prophecies, Julia L. Frengs

French Language and Literature Papers

In Caledonian author Claudine Jacques's 2002 novel L'Âge du perroquet-banane, Parabole païenne, a tribal elder warns a man "from elsewhere": "in our country, if you remove a taboo bone, you disrupt the sea, if you touch it without respect you invite a cyclone, if you toss the bones of our elders you provoke a...tidal wave" (54). Although this work is set in a futuristic world after an ambiguous "Great Disaster" on an unnamed Oceanic island, the author manages to allegorically recount the history of the environmental atrocities attributed to the earth's human occupants that have transformed the present reality of …

Scientific And Regulatory Policy Committee (Srpc) Review*: Interpretation And Use Of Cell Proliferation Data In Cancer Risk Assessment, Charles E. Wood, Renee R. Hukkanen, Radhakrisha Sura, David Jacobson-Kram, Thomas Nolte, Marielle Odin, Samuel M. Cohen

United States Food and Drug Administration: Publications

Increased cell proliferation is a central key event in the mode of action for many non-genotoxic carcinogens, and quantitative cell proliferation data play an important role in the cancer risk assessment of many pharmaceutical and environmental compounds. Currently, there is limited unified information on assay standards, reference values, targeted applications, study design issues, and quality control considerations for proliferation data. Here, we review issues in measuring cell proliferation indices, considerations for targeted studies, and applications within current risk assessment frameworks. As the regulatory environment moves toward more prospective evaluations based on quantitative pathway-based models, standardiza- tion of proliferation assays will …

Planning Versus Action: Different Decision-Making Processes Predict Plans To Change One’S Diet Versus Actual Dietary Behavior, Marc T. Kiviniemi, Carolyn R. Brown-Kramer

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Most health decision-making models posit that deciding to engage in a health behavior involves forming a behavioral intention which then leads to actual behavior. However, behavioral intentions and actual behavior may not be functionally equivalent. Two studies examined whether decision-making factors predicting dietary behaviors were the same as or distinct from those predicting intentions. Actual dietary behavior was proximally predicted by affective associations with the behavior. By contrast, behavioral intentions were predicted by cognitive beliefs about behaviors, with no contribution of affective associations. This dissociation has implications for understanding individual regulation of health behaviors and for behavior change interventions.

Modeling The Dynamic Processes Of Challenge And Recovery (Stress And Strain) Over Time, Fan Yang

Department of Statistics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

A dynamic process with challenge and recovery is an important branch in the family of stochastic processes. The dependent data of such processes are often observed over time, and hence, are time dependent. The purpose of this dissertation is to develop methods to characterize a dynamic process with challenge and recovery under different dimensionalities and error assumptions. In this dissertation, a univariate dynamic process under Gaussian assumption is discussed first and a bi-logistic model is developed by three different methods: compartment, additive, and Bayesian. Then the discussion is extended to a bivariate hysteresis system with challenge and recovery. Three methods: …

The Implications Of Climate Change For Nebraska: Summary Report Of Sector-Based Roundtable Discussions (September-October 2015), Donald A. Wilhite, Kimberly Morrow

National Drought Mitigation Center: Faculty Publications

Introduction ... iv

Roundtable Reports: Overview ... iv

Rural Nebraskans Poll: Summary of Key Outcomes on Climate Change ... vi

Summary of Roundtable Discussions ... 1

Addressing the Impacts of Climate Change on Ecosystems and Wildlife in Nebraska ... 1

Implications of Climate Change on Human Health in Nebraska ... 11

Implications of Climate Change on Nebraska’s Forests and Fire ... 21

Implications of Climate Change on Nebraska’s Agriculture, Food and Water ... 27

Implications of Climate Change on Energy Availability, Use and Management in Nebraska ... 31

Climate Change in Nebraska: What Does it Mean for our Faith Communities? …

Short-Horned Grasshopper Subfamilies Feed At Different Rates On Big Bluestem And Switchgrass Cultivars, Muhammad Ullah, Fatima Mustafa, William W. Hoback, Mathew L. Brust, Kerri M. Farnsworth-Hoback, John E. Foster

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

Grasshopper species belonging to subfamilies Melanoplinae, Gomphocerinae and Oedipodinae were tested for their feeding rate on three types of grass. All grasshopper species were offered Shawnee and Kanlow cultivars of switchgrass, Panicum virgatum L. and big bluestem, Andropogon gerardii Vitman. The grasshoppers, Melanoplus femurrubrum and Melanoplus differentialis were also tested for their feeding on turgid or wilted leaves of the Shawnee cultivar of switchgrass. We found that M. differentialis consumed more switchgrass compared to big bluestem while M. femurrubrum and Arphia xanthoptera consumed the most Shawnee switchgrass. The M. differentialis consumed more turgid grass compared to wilted switchgrass. The feeding …

Descriptions Of Sampling Practices Within Five Approaches To Qualitative Research In Education And The Health Sciences, Tim Guetterman

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

Although recommendations exist for determining qualitative sample sizes, the literature appears to contain few instances of research on the topic. Practical guidance is needed for determining sample sizes to conduct rigorous qualitative research, to develop proposals, and to budget resources. The purpose of this article is to describe qualitative sample size and sampling practices within published studies in education and the health sciences by research design: case study, ethnography, grounded theory methodology, narrative inquiry, and phenomenology. I analyzed the 51 most highly cited studies using predetermined content categories and noteworthy sampling characteristics that emerged. In brief, the findings revealed a …

Early Contexts Of Learning: Family And Community Socialization During Infancy And Toddlerhood, Carolyn P. Edwards, Lixin Ren, Jill Brown

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

The contexts of early learning and socialization are diverse and complex but not without some predictability. The tension between predictability and variation fascinates researchers interested in childhood and culture and motivates careful exploration of different developmental niches to better understand socialization during infancy, toddlerhood, and early childhood. Contexts of early socialization vary in the people and activities present, and the beliefs and norms of caregivers and daily companions. The chapter utilizes anthropological constructs (household structure and composition, settlement patterns and subsistence level, mothers’ workload, gender division of labor, intimacy levels between husbands and wives, and cultural roles and norms pertaining …

Model And Sensor-Based Recommendation Approaches For In-Season Nitrogen Management In Corn, L. J. Thompson, R. B. Ferguson, N. Kitchen, D. W. Frazen, M. Mamo, H. Yang, J. S. Schepers

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Nitrogen management for corn (Zea mays L.) may be improved by applying a portion of N in-season. This investigation was conducted to evaluate crop modeling (Maize-N) and active crop canopy sensing approaches for recommending in-season N fertilizer rates. These approaches were evaluated during 2012–2013 on 11 field sites, in Missouri, Nebraska, and North Dakota. Nitrogen management also included a no-N treatment (check) and a non-limiting N reference (all at planting). Nitrogen management treatments were assessed for two hybrids and at low and high seeding rates, arranged in a randomized complete block design. In 9 of 11 site-years, the sensor-based …

Characteristics Of Mothers Caring For Children During Episodes Of Homelessness, Melissa L. Welch-Lazoritz, Les B. Whitbeck, Brian E. Armenta

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

This study provides a description of the physical, psychological, and substance use problems of adult homeless women who are and are not caring for children. We also examined differences in the characteristics of these two groups of women. Interviews were conducted with 148 homeless women from three mid-sized U.S. cities, 24.3 % of whom were caring for at least one child. Our results showed that women caring for children were more likely to be sheltered and have health insurance. Homeless women caring for children and solitary homeless women were generally similar in terms of substance abuse problems. However, rates of …

The Effects Of Insecticide Dose And Herbivore Density On Tri-Trophic Effects Of Thiamethoxam In A System Involving Wheat, Aphids, And Ladybeetles, Michael M. Bredeson, R Neil Reese, Jonathan G. Lundgren

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

We assess how herbivore density and insecticide dose affects the tri-trophic interactions among thiamethoxam-treated wheat (Triticum sp.), Rhophalosiphum padi and the predatory Coleomegilla maculata DeGeer. In the first experiment 2nd and 4th instar C. maculata were fed aphids reared for 24 h on wheat plants treated with sub-lethal thiamethoxam soil drenches to assess the effect of insecticidal dose on the predator. In the second experiment a constant, sub-lethal thiamethoxam soil drench was used on wheat plants, but the plants were infested with different densities of aphids. Aphids from each density treatment were then fed to C. maculata 2nd instars. Insecticide …

The Effect Of Mineral-Ion Interactions On Soil Hydraulic Conductivity, Maya C. Buelow, Kerri Steenwerth, Sanjai J. Parikh

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

The reuse of winery wastewater (WW) could provide an alternative water source for vineyard irrigation.The shift of many wineries and other food processing industries to K+-based cleaners requires studies onthe effects of K+on soil hydraulic conductivity (HC). Depending on clay content and mineral composition,K+additions can affect the HC either positively or negatively. Soil mineralogy was anticipated to exhibita strong influence on HC responses and, therefore, soils of contrasting mineralogy were evaluated forchanges in soil HC resulting from applications of solutions elevated in Na+and K+. To examine the impactof mineral-ion relationships on HC, soils dominant in montmorillonite, vermiculite, or kaolinite from …