Site Specific Farming, Environmental Concerns, And Associated Advanced Technologies, Provide A Platform For Active Learning And Research At A Land Grant University
- Conference
- Location
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Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Publication Date
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June 22, 2008
- Start Date
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June 22, 2008
- End Date
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June 25, 2008
- ISSN
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2153-5965
- Conference Session
- Tagged Division
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Biological & Agricultural
- Page Count
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14
- Page Numbers
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13.1081.1 - 13.1081.14
- DOI
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10.18260/1-2--3139
- Permanent URL
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https://peer.asee.org/3139
- Download Count
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514
Paper Authors
Abhijit Nagchaudhuri University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Madhumi Mitra University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Madhumi Mitra is currently an Assistant Professor of Biology and Environmental Science at University of Maryland Eastern Shore. She is also the Coordinator of the Biology Education program at UMES. Dr. Mitra obtained her Ph.D. degree in 2002 from the Department of Botany at North Carolina State University. She is actively involved in research in the fields of marine biology, environmental science and paleopalynology.
Lurline Marsh University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Dr. Lurline Marsh is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Agriculture and Resource Sciences at University of Maryland Eastern Shore.
Craig Daughtry United States Department of Agriculture
Dr. Craig S.T. Daughtry is a Research Agronomist at USDA-ARS Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory at Beltsville,Maryland. He actively collaborates with faculty at UMES on remote sensing and precision agriculture related efforts.
Tracy Earle University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Tracy J. Earl received her Bachelors of Science in Fisheries and Wildlife Management with a dual in Animal Behavior from Michigan State University and then her Master of Science in Fisheries and Wildlife Resources from West Virginia University. She took classes in GIS, both during her Bachelors and Masters degrees. While at WVU, she used ESRI’s products to work on the GAP Analysis project. After graduating, she started working at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore as a Geographic Information System Specialist. She is now the GIS Program Manager in the Dept of Agriculture at UMES.
Jurgen Schwarz University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Dr. Jurgen G. Schwarz is an Associate Professor in the Department of Agriculture and Resource Sciences and Director for the interdisciplinary Ph.D. program in Food Science and Technology. Dr. Schwarz received his Ph.D. in Food Science and Technology from Cornell University and a Diploma in Food Engineering from the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart, Germany.
Abstract
NOTE: The first page of text has been automatically extracted and included below in lieu of an abstract
Site Specific Farming, Environmental Concerns, and Associated Advanced Technologies Provide a Platform for Active Learning and Research at a Land Grant University
Abstract A course titled “Advanced Technologies in Agriculture and Environmental Sciences” was offered for the first time at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore in spring of 2007. The course was conceived to develop a broader student base for the “Precision Agriculture” related activities that have been ongoing at UMES for the past few years, with support from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Maryland Space Grant Consortium (MDSGC), and as such has been opened to all Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) seniors and graduate students on campus. In an effort to diffuse the compartmentalization of knowledge and rigid disciplinary boundaries within academia, the course has been designed to be a multi-instructor course. Faculty and staff from Agriculture, Natural Sciences, Engineering, Aviation Sciences, and collaborators from USDA, NASA, and representatives from a local industry involved in “Precision Farming” have worked together to plan and deliver the course. The course content spans over the fundamentals of global positioning systems (GPS), yield monitoring, soil testing, variable rate applicators, fundamentals of plant physiology and agronomy, Geographical Information Systems (GIS), statistics and data analysis, aerial imaging and remote sensing, & nutrient and watershed management. Significant field work using various field sensors, including a chlorophyll meter, pH meter, and other instrumentation to measure leaf area index (LAI) in conjunction with hand held GPS units, is integrated with the course. Funds from USDA will cover at least four summer interns who will be selected from the course participants each year, while the grant is active ( 2009) to continue experiential learning and research activities initiated in spring as an integral part of the course, during the summer months.
1.0 Introduction Precision Agriculture [1,2] is a knowledge-based system that enables farmers to apply precise amounts of fertilizers, pesticides, seeds, or other inputs to specific areas where and when they are needed for optimal crop growth. It integrates many advanced engineering technologies,[3] including GPS receivers, GIS data bases, grid sampling/mapping techniques[4,5], yield monitors, variable-rate applications[6] and remote sensing imagery [7]. Potentially, these advanced technologies can improve farm profitability, reduce chemical use, and reduce environmental degradation. Environmental concerns and agricultural needs are of critical importance in the rural setting of UMES and its proximity to the Chesapeake Bay.
Nagchaudhuri, A., & Mitra, M., & Marsh, L., & Daughtry, C., & Earle, T., & Schwarz, J. (2008, June), Site Specific Farming, Environmental Concerns, And Associated Advanced Technologies, Provide A Platform For Active Learning And Research At A Land Grant University Paper presented at 2008 Annual Conference & Exposition, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 10.18260/1-2--3139
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