Sessions about Research

This breakout session will demonstrate new technologies used to enhance education and research through 3D simulations. The DEAL Lab at CIT is working with a system which interfaces a 3D portable system with a 3D immersive environment to enhance the student, instructor or researcher's educational experience with a virtual model or environment. The group is comprised of people who have been developing educational modules of this nature for several years. These specialists have consequently developed a vast knowledge, respect from the campus community and vested interest in the field. This technology has evolved into a much more affordable system over recent years and its applicability for educational use is undeniable. Our team is currently focusing efforts toward the generation of more 3D media. The group has been working with the departments of Entomology, Biochemistry, Veterinary Science and Animal Science, to render learning modules to teach complex visual concepts for students. Some of the key features of this 3D demonstraton are the 3D immersive environment, portability and enhanced content development.

In 2005, the LSU AgCenter launched a newly remodeled Web site driven by content management system (CMS) technology. Although this technology made it easier to add content, is the site addressing user needs? Learn about the results of a three-part study – a pop-up survey, a snail-mail survey and a usability study – to make a land-grant university Web site more valuable to clientele.

Agricultural journalists and agricultural communicators are called upon to develop print or broadcast news releases or educational material on complex issues. Two questions arise: whether agricultural journalists and agricultural communications are trained or educated to cover these issues, and whether their training has an impact on the way they cover these issues. The purpose of the study was to determine the perceptions of members of the Association for Communications Excellence in Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Life and Human Sciences as to their training and the training needs of future agricultural journalists and agricultural communicators. ACE members in the electronic media, graphic design, information technology, international, leadership and management, media relations, photography, publishing, and writing special interest groups (n = 136) were asked to fill out a descriptive survey. These are the results of that survey.

Money and time for programs and projects are seemingly disappearing right before our eyes. As a result, the available resources must be used to their fullest potential. But, how do we know if this is happening? Evaluation can serve many purposes in assessing the return on investment made in programming or other unit efforts. This session will address two principle elements of evaluation. The first is determining what needs to be evaluated. Developing the evaluation question is an integral part of a useful evaluation. After all, good wine can not be made with bad grapes. The second principle is how evaluation “fits in” with the program or project. Evaluation often is an afterthought when it should be an element of the planning process. Attending this session will provide a basis for embarking on your own evaluation expedition, in search of answers to the once ambiguous questions of “was this worth the money?” and “why did this take so much time?”

Google Analytics is a free tool that allows you to learn about the behaviors and preferences of your Web visitors. Mike Atwell will guide you through setting up an account to installation and finally monitoring and interpreting the results. Pros and cons of the service will be discussed along with legal considerations.

Irrigation- when to irrigate corn, cotton, milo , and soybeans based on the high temperatures during the growing season.

Think research is inaccessible or even otherwordly? Not when it comes from members of the ACE Research SIG. Check out this session with posters from the presentations selected as the top efforts for the 2007 ACE Preconference Research Symposium. Presenters will focus on what their research means to communications practitioners on the ground.

Recognizing that public radio is an underutilized outreach method for Extension, University of Florida launched a project to develop a two-minute gardening radio show at the campus NPR radio station. A team of communicators, horticulturists, and Extension faculty undertook the task to develop something appealing for today’s quick-paced society. Initially set to launch in April 2006, the launch date was pushed back until July to give time for focus group studies of homeowners and Extension agents. A week before the new launch date, research results were compiled, which showed that the program format needed work and the topics were too technical. Although more than 70 shows had been recorded and were ready to air, we went back to the drawing board and began the process over. The program was reformatted into a one-minute show, new music was developed, and a marketing campaign was begun. Gardening in a Minute launched October 2 and has generated outstanding results. The team has plans to syndicate the program throughout the state and the coastal gardening southeast. Through trial and error, a great product was developed that helps to bring attention to UF Extension.

See for yourself how customized online systems can vastly simplify, speed up and improve the submission and peer-review of publications. Janet Byron, managing editor of the University of California's California Agriculture journal, will demonstrate how editorial staff, authors, associate editors, and reviewers use the Berkeley Electronic Press EdiKit system to submit and vet manuscripts, request reviews, send decision letters, and maintain an editorial record. We will also look at ScholarOne's Manuscript Central peer-review system, and open-source journal software. Such systems can be customized for books, extension publications, and other peer-reviewed content. Are you currently using an online system for peer review? During the Q&A, please share information on the system that you're using. Please upload peer-review information to share with your colleagues at: http://acepeerreviewinfo.wikispaces.com/space.menu

Land-grant university publications have long been "open-access journals," making research available to the public and professionals who needed it. How can we now augment the Web presence of land-grant university research through a better understanding of online scientific databases? How do we approach the problem of getting the AES research publications indexed on the appropriate scientific databases? We have been pursuing such indexing for California Agriculture and will share our experiences. This is important not only to our user groups and clienteles, but to our faculty researchers.

Peer-review gives Extension publications the experts’ seal of approval, letting your audience know that the information they’re reading is technically sound, reliable, and current. But a peer-review “seal” will only be respected if the system that you use to review content is solid and transparent. Slow or inefficient peer review can also discourage researchers from submitting manuscripts for review. A panel of experienced editors will discuss the ins and outs (and ups and downs) of managing peer review, including working with associate editors and authors, creating and distributing forms, and handling deadlines. Presenters will give short presentations about their own peer-review systems, followed by a facilitated discussion and plenty of time for Q&A. Sample documents will be provided. Please upload peer-review information to share with your colleagues at: http://acepeerreviewinfo.wikispaces.com/space.menu

Are you tired of the same old backdrops for videotaping interviews? Are you lacking a studio? Serious Magic Visual Communicator 2 Studio is self contained green screen software that allows you liven up video interviews for taped presentation, or live! In this presentation we'll learn about what the software is capable of doing.

NMSU Regularly engages in user testing for development of websites and educational games. In this session, they'll review the methods they use, including access to kids, consent and Instititional Review Board forms, and questioning and observation techniques.

We recently developed an integrated marketing communication (IMC) approach for the new UF/IFAS Extension NPR radio program, Gardening in a Minute, in order to reach a broader audience with sustainable landscape management information. Associated marketing materials include the Web site, a poster, a Web card, a seed packet, fact sheets, a press release, a display banner, and shirts. This session will explore, in panel format, how we used the already-extant Solutions for Your Life Extension Web site and marketing materials to create a brand extension to help further the UF/IFAS branding effort. Our panel will give an overview of IMCs, as well as an explanation of SolutionsForYourLife.com research, and how both were applied to the Gardening in a Minute effort.

ACE is changing and so is the Journal of Applied Communications. Results of a recent readership survey will be presented and a facilitated discussion of how to improve the journal will follow.