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The Laboratory for Applications of Remote Sensing is moving (one more time) to Potter Engineering Building. We will be "co-existing" with the Center for Advanced Applications of Geographic Information Systems within the Environmental Sciences and Engineering Institute. The Water Resources Research Center will also be moving to Potter. Our new address will be: LARS, 1202 Potter Hall, Purdue University, W. Lafayette, IN 47907-1202. The phone will continue to be 765-494-6305 but our new fax number will be: 765-496-3216. I will be maintaining an academic office within the Agronomy Department (AGRY, 1150 Lilly Hall, Purdue University, W. Lafayette, IN 47907-1150). You can reach me at either address. I recall previous moves from Flex Lab 1 (now called "Hentschel") to Flex Lab 2 (now called "Business and Technology Center") and for a while during the 70s we occupied both buildings. We moved from Flex 2 to Entomology in 1985 while storing the library of tapes and materials in the basement of the library. Most of those materials have now been permanently loaned to others. Glenda has significantly reduced our files and historical items to the minimum. I have learned what every LARS Director has learned...that the really important "Space" is space on campus and not space where the satellites roam!--CJJ
A voice from the past comes from ERIC STONER (Ph.D. 1979, Agronomy, Major Professor: M. Baumgardner) who may be attending the Intl. Conf. on Geospatial Information in Agriculture and Forestry. To quote Eric says, "It is still gratifying to know that some of the evolving precision farming techniques may be making use of our (now ancient) work on reflectance properties and soil organic matter content." He is still in Brasilia as Environmental Advisor with USAID/Brazil at least until the year 2002. They have a program in the order of $5 million per year directed mainly to conservation and sustainable use of forest resources in the Amazon. Most of their projects have strong remote sensing/GIS components. He was involved in preparations for the Clintons' visit in mid-October. He hopes to negotiate a Partner Parks agreement between the Everglades National Park and the Pantanal National Park in Brazil. The Pantanal is where he worked in the Peace Corps 25 years ago. His email: estoner@usaid.gov
ERIC GUSTAFSON, (Ph.D. 1994, Forestry and Natural Resources, Major Professor: George Parker) currently with the U.S. Forest Service at Rhinelander,Wisconsin, has been chosen to receive a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. Government on outstanding scientists and engineers at the outset of their independent research careers. He attended an award ceremony and reception the Old Executive Building in Washington, DC, on November 3.
VINCENT (XIN) ZHUANG, (Ph.D. 1993, Agricultural & Biological Engineering, Major Professor: Bernie Engel) is currently working at SAIC and has a paper published in the October issue of GIS World, "Spatial Engines DriveWeb-based GIS," p. 54-56. He contributes updates to EPA's Envirofact Warehouse (http://www.epa.gov/enviro), especially for its Maps On Demand. And he's keeping up on Boilermaker football, "I don't remember anything like what they have achieved so far when I was at Purdue."
VAN GELDER LIAISON TO NATIONAL GEODETIC SURVEY. Purdue University engineers are helping coordinate a statewide effort to establish a network of highly accurate reference points for use in surveying and navigation. New measurements taken with global positioning equipment should improve the existing reference points made many years ago. Boudewijn van Gelder, professor of civil engineering in the area of surveying engineering, is the Indiana liaison to the National Geodetic Survey, which is responsible for measuring some 20 sites in Indiana one of which is at the Purdue Airport. Pilots use GPS surveys for navigation, which is why many of the GPS reference points being measured in Indiana are at airports. About another 100 Indiana sites are scheduled for measurements. The information will be processed and made available on CD-ROM in about a year, according to Thomas Mahon, a Purdue engineering graduate student involved with the survey. These reference points are used in construction projects, property boundary surveys and locating underground utilities and the geographic information gathered can be incorporated into graphical computer displays used by city and county planners.
ENGEL BOOSTS INDIANA'S PESTICIDE PLANNING FOR SITE-SPECIFIC FARMING. Professor Bernie Engel, Agricultural & Biological Engineering, is developing environmental programs that could provide the basis for "smart laws". Using computers to examine the many variables and prescribe solutions, he is working with the Office of the Indiana State Chemist in assisting them to monitor groundwater contamination by agricultural runoff. With an on-line computer database and program he hopes to tell pesticide users how much chemical usage is needed for specific soil type areas within a field. He has already created an Indiana groundwater vulnerability map which identifies problem areas. The maps are educational tools that will hopefully avoid reaching the point where actual regulations are needed. He will be working on future mapping efforts related to pesticide types, application rates, methods of tillage and other farming practices and weather models.
John W. Moser, Jr., Prof. of Forest Biometry received the John A Beale Memorial Award from the Society of American Foresters. The Beale Award recognizes outstanding efforts over a sustained period of time by a society member in the promotion of forestry through voluntary service to the SAF. Congratulations John!
Patrick R. Willis, Graduate Student in Agronomy, was a receipent of the 1997 George D. Scarseth Scholarship. Scarseth was a former Head of Agronomy at Purdue who promoted new ideas and new approaches to crop production. The scholarship provides travel funds for graduate students to present papers at American Society of Agronomy Meetings. Chris Johannsen is his major professor. Patrick presented a poster paper at the 1997 ASA meetings in Anahiem on "High spatial resolution data for precision agriculture." Congratulations Patrick!
(* = New listing)
Please note that we are not repeating conferences/ workshops mentioned in previous newsletters except those of Professional Societies/organizations that appear to be of special interest to our faculty/students.
--Chris J. Johannsen, Director NOTE: New address for LARS Laboratory for Applications of Remote Sensing (LARS) 1202 Potter Hall, Purdue University, W. Lafayette, IN 47907-1202, USA (765) 494-6305, Fax: (765) 496-3216 johan@purdue.edu Note: login change! johannsn@ecn.purdue.edu also valid login.