PLAUDITS
AGRONOMY PROFESSOR SELECTED AS A TOP SCIENTIST IN KANSAS
Charles W. Rice, university distinguished professor of soil microbiology, has been selected as one of the top 150 scientists in Kansas.
This selection is part of the Science in Kansas: 150 Years and Counting project of the Ad Astra Kansas Initiative, which will help celebrate the Kansas Sesquicentennial. This project highlights scientists of accomplishment with the goal of inspiring young Kansans.
Rice was a member of the 2007 Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and performs research in areas involving agricultural greenhouse gas mitigation and soil carbon sequestration. He also is one of five team leaders for a $20 million Kansas National Science Foundation Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, or EPSCoR, project researching the impact of varying climate on terrestrial ecosystems and renewable energy research. Rice will lead the group that will use climate-modeling tactics to predict the effects of different climate scenarios and develop strategies for adaptation and mitigation to possible changes in climate.
Rice’s research has also been supported by more than $15 million in grants from the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Energy, National Science Foundation and others. He is director of the Consortium for Agricultural Soils Mitigation of Greenhouse Gases. He has advised more than 30 graduate students and has more than 100 publications.
In addition to his involvement in research and teaching in soil microbiology at K-State, Rice has been active with the Soil Science Society of America, where he currently serves as president. He also serves on the National Academies Board on Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Air Quality Task Force.
Rice joined the K-State faculty in 1988 and was promoted to associate professor in 1993 and to professor in 1998. He was named a university distinguished professor in 2009.
The Ad Astra Kansas Initiative is an organization based in Hutchinson whose mission is to promote the accomplishments of Kansas in science, space and the cosmos.
More information on the Ad Astra Kansas Initiative's Science in Kansas: 150 Years and Counting project, including an educational series of trading cards featuring each scientist selected, is available at www.adastra-ks.org.
ALLAN GOODMAN WINS PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST
Allan Goodman, associate professor of architectural engineering and construction science, won first place in the adult professional category in a photo contest sponsored by Visit Topeka.
Goodman's photo, The Pride, was taken at the Topeka Zoo over winter break. His winning entry received a cash prize as well.