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What is driving the high suicide rate among farmers?
Josie Rudolphi is a professor of agricultural and biological engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign whose research examined suicide among farmers and ranchers, as well as the mental health of their children. She is the co-director of the North Central Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Center, a 12-state, 15-partner collaborative based in Illinois Extension […]

Nine Illinois scientists rank among world’s most influential
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Nine researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have been named to the 2022 Clarivate Analytics Highly Cited Researchers list. The list recognizes research scientists and social scientists who have demonstrated exceptional influence – reflected through their publication of multiple papers frequently cited by their peers during the last decade. This year’s […]

What is place-based adaptation to climate change?
A recent Washington Post-ABC News poll states that roughly half of registered voters say climate change is either “very important” or “one of the most important issues” in their vote for Congress this year. However, many citizens struggle to understand their place in this global issue. Applied Research Institute senior research scientist Ann-Perry Witmer, also […]

Study looks at food-buying behavior during different stages of the COVID-19 pandemic
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A new study examines how Americans acquired food at various points during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how those activities changed over time as case numbers fluctuated and vaccines became available. “In addition to food acquisition and the restaurant and grocery industry, this also tells us how people behave in a time of […]

Study tracks plant pathogens in leafhoppers from natural areas
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Phytoplasmas are bacteria that can invade the vascular tissues of plants, causing many different crop diseases. While most studies of phytoplasmas begin by examining plants showing disease symptoms, a new analysis focuses on the tiny insects that carry the infectious bacteria from plant to plant. By extracting and testing DNA from archival […]

Will renaming carp help control them?
Illinois officials this month announced that Asian carp would now be called “copi” in an attempt to make the fish more desirable for eating. Joseph Parkos, the director of the Illinois Natural History Survey’s Kaskaskia, Ridge Lake and Sam Parr biological stations in Illinois, spoke with News Bureau life sciences editor Diana Yates about scientific […]

Corn genetic heritage the strongest driver of chemical defenses against munching bugs
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Plants release chemical distress signals when under attack from chewing insects. These “911 calls,” as entomologist Esther Ngumbi refers to them, alert other bugs that dinner or a nice place to lay their eggs is available nearby. If predatory or parasitic insects detect the right signal, they swoop in like saviors to […]

Will Russian invasion of Ukraine spark a global food crisis?
Scott Irwin is the Laurence J. Norton Chair of Agricultural Marketing in the department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Irwin, an expert in agricultural commodity markets, spoke with News Bureau business and law editor Phil Ciciora about the potential for a global food crisis. Are we on the verge […]

How do we solve the problem of agricultural nutrient runoff?
Agricultural runoff from Midwestern farms is a major contributor to a vast “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico. Nitrogen, phosphorous and other farm nutrients drain into the Mississippi River, which empties into the Gulf, spurring algae to overpopulate and suffocating other aquatic life. Illinois is a main culprit in this ongoing environmental blight. News […]

Overweight dogs respond well to high-protein, high-fiber diet
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A study of overweight dogs fed a reduced calorie, high-protein, high-fiber diet for 24 weeks found that the dogs’ body composition and inflammatory markers changed over time in ways that parallel the positive changes seen in humans on similar diets. The dogs achieved a healthier weight without losing too much muscle mass, […]

Climate adaptation increases vulnerability of cocoa farmers, study shows
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — New research offers an alternative perspective on adaptation to climate threats in Southeast Asia. Sean Kennedy, a professor of urban and regional planning at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, looked at the ways that small cocoa farmers in Indonesia are adapting to threats from climate change, including prolonged drought. He found that […]

Study provides basis to evaluate food subsectors’ emissions of three greenhouse gases
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A new, location-specific agricultural greenhouse gas emission study is the first to account for net carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide emissions from all subsectors related to food production and consumption. The work, led by University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign atmospheric sciences professor Atul Jain, could help identify the primary plant- and animal-based […]