Monthly Archives: September 2015

The ABCs of colony health

Think about the last time you bit into a nice, juicy apple. The crisp flesh and sweet flavor has been enjoyed for centuries. These are quite literally the fruits of the labor of pollinators. Since the mid-2000’s, however, honeybee health has been quite a concern with the onset of a widespread phenomena known as pollinator decline that includes such disorders such as Colony Collapse Disorder. One potential culprit for pollinator decline is the use of neonicotinoid insecticides, which are a new class of systemic insecticides.

Stephanie measuring the protein content of bees' hypopharyngeal glands (which produce food for the honey bee larvae) in response to the pesticide treatments

Stephanie measuring the protein content of bees’ hypopharyngeal glands (which produce food for the honey bee larvae) in response to the pesticide treatments (photo courtesy S. Parreira)

Stephanie scrapes newly-emerged honeybees for experimentation

Stephanie scrapes newly-emerged honeybees for experimentation (photo courtesy S. Parreira)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tonight at 7PM PST, Stephanie Parreira, a Masters student in the department of Horticulture, will talk with us about how she became interested in colony health. In particular she’s interested in finding out how neonicotinoids affect colony health when they consume it from pollen. Tune in on 88.7FM or stream at http://kbvr.com/listen to find out how a first-generation college student came to do first class research to help understand our pollinators’ plight.

A Bridge over Troubled Water: Connecting Policy Makers and the Public

As a graduate student in public policy, Misty Freeman has a passion for bridging the communication gap between decision makers at the state and local level and the people who are affected by their policies. Working underneath Dr. Denise Lach, Misty’s dissertation work has focused specifically on the issue of water usage. As the climate continues to change and droughts on the West Coast worsen, Misty’s work becomes ever more important. By comparing the needs and resource availability of water among different rural areas in Oregon, Misty hopes to contribute to initiatives across the United States bringing critical thinking about rural needs to resource management policies at the state level.

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To lean more about Misty’s research and her personal journey, tune in tonight to 88.7FM KBVR Corvallis at 7PM PST, or stream the show live online at http://kbvr.com/listen!

Modifying Textile and Design to Make a Modern Hijab

The hijab is a veil, covering the head and chest typically worn by Muslim women’s as a symbol of modesty and privacy around the world. Although it is usually only worn for short periods of time in Saudi Arabia, there are more dynamic situations they face in western countries where this attire can hinder everyday actions like navigating a fall thunderstorm, driving a car, and playing sports. A group of Muslim women in the US have thus modified the traditional hijab for comfort and fashion. Our guest today is Elham Maqsood who will describe her tremendous journey from Saudi Arabia to the US where she seeks to introduce these designs to other Muslims and help increase the quality of life of the next generation of Muslim women. Elham is entering the last year of her Ph.D. program in Design and Human Environment and will return to Saudi Arabia to become a university teacher to potentially start her own fashion line!

 

Tune in tonight at 7PM Pacific Time to 88.7FM KBVR Corvallis or stream the show live at http://kbvr.com/listen and hear how Elham is helping a new generation of Muslim women feel more comfortable in their own skin and how textile modification can make all the difference!