Plant ecologist Kristina Stinson at UMass Amherst, leads a research team that has been studying ragweed for over a decade – particularly how it responds to elevated CO2 levels – worked with climate modeler and corresponding author Michael Case at UW on this project. A new predictive model suggests that climate change may allow common ragweed to extend its growing range northward and into major northeast metro areas, worsening conditions for millions of people with hay fever and asthma. (Health Medicine Network, Medicine Newsline, News Medical Life Sciences, 11/9/18; Phys.org, 11/8/18; News Office release)
News from the Media
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Ragweed May Expand Its Range Northward with Climate Change
November 15, 2018 -
Urban Forestry Video Featured on WGBY
November 8, 2018WGBY features a two-part series on urban forestry. Part one includes interviews with Brian Kane and Kristina Bezanson, Stockbridge School of Agriculture. (WGBY 11/5/18)
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UMass Amherst’s Stockbridge School Launches Student-Run Vineyard on Campus
November 8, 2018AMHERST, Mass. – Fall may not seem like a good time for planting, but cool temperatures and ample soil moisture can help plants settle in, says viticulture expert Elsa Petit at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where her students in the Stockbridge School of Agriculture have been busy this fall planting dozens of cold-tolerant grapes at the campus’s first student-run vineyard. (Western Mass News, Miami Herald, Boston Herald, U.S. News & World Report, WCVB-TV 5, 11/8/18; Fresno Bee, [All from AP], Recorder, Republican, 11/7/18; News Office release)
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UMass Amherst Students Create "Tactical Urban" Display in Northampton
November 6, 2018UMass Amerhest students studying sustainable community development put their lessons into action. They created a pop-up event, temporarily transforming a dark alley in Northampton in a light-filled meeting space. (Gazette 11/5/18)
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UMass Focuses New Attention on Grapes
October 31, 2018Elsa Petit, viticulture specialist and lecturer at Stockbridge School of Agriculture and Sonia Schloemann, UMass Extension specialist for small fruits comment on popularity of new varieties of local grapes.Edible Pioneer Valley, Fall 2018
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Brown Marmorated Stinkbugs Coming in for Winter: UMass Joseph Elkinton Comments
October 18, 2018Joseph S. Elkinton, UMass environmental conservation, comments in a television news story about brown marmorated stinkbugs. He says they are entering people homes now as they try to find a warm place for the winter. (WFXT-TV 25, 10/17/18)
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Urban Planning in Worcester's Challenging Kelley Square, UMass Professor Comments
October 15, 2018“Six streets in search of a stoplight,” they call the spot where Madison, Green, Harding, Water, Millbury and Vernon streets converge without benefit of stoplight or central rotary in Worcester. Michael DiPasqalue, licensced architect and urban planner who directs the UMass Design Center in Springfield, weighs in on the design of this unique intersection. (Telegram 10/15/18)
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Fermented Foods and Colds: UMass Food Science Works With Real Pickles
October 16, 2018A study to explore the role of fermeneted foods in boosting the immune system was conducted by UMass Food Science at Real Pickles (food producer) over a year and a half. Reserchers examined microbiome communities in the Greenfield facility which could lead to future studies and a better understanding of how to enhance nutrition in fermented foods. (Gazette 10/11/18; Recorder 10/15/18)
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Centennial Celebrations Held for UMass Food Science and Stockbridge School
October 9, 2018A news story recaps two departmental milestones celebrated within a week at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. (Republican 10/5/18; News Office release 10/2/18; News Office release 9/25/18)
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Regional Strategy Could Boost Blue Economy, UMass Professor Facilitates Discussion
October 2, 2018Katie Kahl, UMass Amherst assistant professor who heads the school's Gloucester Marine Station, facilitated a discussion about the 'blue economy" with Cape Ann Innovators Collaborative and a panel of local and regional entrepreneurs. Legislators attending included Senator Bruce Tarr and Representative Ann Ferrante along with local business leaders. Blue economy refers to a sustainable, high-technology marine-based economy that experts say requires a regional approach. (Gloucester Daily Times 9/28/18; News Office 9/25/18 )
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Bees’ Medicine Chest Should Include Sunflower Pollen, UMass Amherst Study Suggests
October 1, 2018A new study produced by the University of Massachusetts Amherst may reveal the key to supporting the health of ailing bee populations. The study appears to point to a very crucial but simple resource that aids pollinator health: sunflowers. The UMass study that tackled this problem began as an undergraduate project conducted by former UMass student Jonathan Giacomini, his former academic adviser, evolutionary ecologist Lynn Adler and others. (Republican 9/27/18; News Office 9/26/18)
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UMass Associate Professor Comments on Dangerous Foods
October 1, 2018“I personally do not drink raw milk. Pasteurizing milk reduces or removes potential hazards,” says Amanda Kinchla, associate professor at the University of Massachusetts Department of Food Science. (Reader's Digest 9/28/18)
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UMass Amherst Food Scientists Profile Microbes at a Fermented Vegetable Facility
September 25, 2018Food scientists at UMass Amherst have mapped and characterized microbial populations in a vegetable fermentation facility and report that its microbiome was distinct between production and fermentation areas and that the raw vegetables themselves -- cabbages destined for sauerkraut -- were the main source of fermentation-related microbes in production areas rather than handling or other environmental sources. (Science Daily 9/25/18; Science Codex, Infosurhoy Technology Networks 9/26/18)
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UMass-Amherst Scientists Claim Victory Over Winter Moth
September 6, 2018Entomologists Joseph Elkinton, George Boettner and Hannah Broadley at the University of Massachusetts Amherst are declaring victory this month over the invasive winter moth – which begins life as a leaf-chomping, tree-denuding caterpillar that had threatened wide-spread defoliation of coastal New England shade trees and blueberries until the researchers introduced a natural parasitic fly that has greatly reduced moth numbers. (South Coast Today, Gazette 9/12/18; WFCR, 9/6/18; Republican, Globe, Wicked Local Wayland, 9/5/18; News Office Release)
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Cranberry Farmers Want to Dump Part of Harvest: UMass Extension BOPO Chair Quoted
September 4, 2018Cranberry farmers buried under a glut of the tart fruit are seeking permission for a radical way to dig themselves out: destroying millions of pounds of their crops. "Overproduction is the bane and has been for cranberries in the last few years, and consequently we’re not getting much money for our crops,” said Jack Angley, owner of Flax Pond Farms in Carver, and Chair of Board of Public Overseers [BOPO] for UMass Extension. (Globe 9/3/18)
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Soil Science Society of America Announces 2018 Award Recipient, Baoshan Xing
August 27, 2018The Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) announced Baoshan Xing as the 2018 award recipient to be formally presented at the SSSA Awards Ceremony on January 8, 2019 during the scientific society’s Annual Meeting in San Diego. The annual awards are presented for outstanding contributions to soil science through education, national and international service, and research.
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Rep. McGovern visits UMass Agriculture Learning Center on 8th Farm Tour
August 22, 2018U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern met with local agricultural organizations as part of his eighth annual farm tour. UMass Agricultural Leaning Center was one of his stops. (Recorder, Republican, 8/21/18; New Office Release)
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Strawberries could treat bowel disease, UMass professor reports
August 20, 2018A new study headed by Hang Xiao, University of Massachusetts food science, says eating strawberries could help people manage inflammatory bowel disease. Xiao reports the sedentary lifestyle and dietary habits of many people – high-sugar, high-animal fat, but low-fiber diets – may promote colonic inflammation and increase the risk of IBD. (Endopro 9/28/18; Daily Mail 8/20/18; Women’s Health [Australia], India TV, Xinhuanet.com [China], Outlook [India], 8/21/18; Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News, NewsHealthDigest.com, News Medical Life Sciences, Laboratory Equipment, 8/20/18)
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Hot, Wet Summer Unkind to Central Mass. Crops
August 16, 2018Katie Campbell-Nelson, vegetable specialist with UMass Extension, comments on this year's difficult growing conditions in the central part of Massachusetts. Worcester Telegram & Gazette, August 16 2018.
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Local Extension Continues to Support Rural Community
August 14, 2018Recorder (Greenfield) columnist and former UMass Extension staffer talks about the value of the UMass Extension program. The Recorder, August 14, 2018.
