How ya Gonna Keep ’em Down on the Farm

2011 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 341-352 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georgeanne Artz ◽  
Li Yu

This article analyzes factors related to the rural/urban residence choice of college-educated adults using a unique data set resulting from a 2007 stratified random sample survey of Iowa State University alumni graduating between 1982 and 2006. Rural origin is the most significant predictor of rural residence choice. An important finding is that nonpecuniary goals and values such as family tradition, being respected by friends, and building a business for one’s children to inherit have more weight with Iowa State University alumni who reside in rural areas after college than do monetary returns. This implies that incentives such as tax breaks will not work, or will be too expensive, to attract or retain college graduates in rural areas. Second, entrepreneurship rates are higher among Iowa State University alumni in rural areas and rural entrepreneurs tend to have local or, at least, rural roots. This finding lends support to the increasingly popular “grow your strategies” for rural business development.

Author(s):  
L. S. Chumbley ◽  
M. Meyer ◽  
K. Fredrickson ◽  
F.C. Laabs

The development of a scanning electron microscope (SEM) suitable for instructional purposes has created a large number of outreach opportunities for the Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) Department at Iowa State University. Several collaborative efforts are presently underway with local schools and the Department of Curriculum and Instruction (C&I) at ISU to bring SEM technology into the classroom in a near live-time, interactive manner. The SEM laboratory is shown in Figure 1.Interactions between the laboratory and the classroom use inexpensive digital cameras and shareware called CU-SeeMe, Figure 2. Developed by Cornell University and available over the internet, CUSeeMe provides inexpensive video conferencing capabilities. The software allows video and audio signals from Quikcam™ cameras to be sent and received between computers. A reflector site has been established in the MSE department that allows eight different computers to be interconnected simultaneously. This arrangement allows us to demonstrate SEM principles in the classroom. An Apple Macintosh has been configured to allow the SEM image to be seen using CU-SeeMe.


Author(s):  
L. S. Chumbley ◽  
M. Meyer ◽  
K. Fredrickson ◽  
F.C. Laabs

The Materials Science Department at Iowa State University has developed a laboratory designed to improve instruction in the use of the scanning electron microscope (SEM). The laboratory makes use of a computer network and a series of remote workstations in a classroom setting to provide students with increased hands-on access to the SEM. The laboratory has also been equipped such that distance learning via the internet can be achieved.A view of the laboratory is shown in Figure 1. The laboratory consists of a JEOL 6100 SEM, a Macintosh Quadra computer that acts as a server for the network and controls the energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), four Macintosh computers that act as remote workstations, and a fifth Macintosh that acts as an internet server. A schematic layout of the classroom is shown in Figure 2. The workstations are connected directly to the SEM to allow joystick and computer control of the microscope. An ethernet connection between the Quadra and the workstations allows students seated there to operate the EDS. Control of the microscope and joystick is passed between the workstations by a switch-box assembly that resides at the microscope console. When the switch-box assembly is activated a direct serial line is established between the specified workstation and the microscope via the SEM’s RS-232.


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