science

How do river ecosystems support fish? How do environmental changes influence the system’s capacity to support fish? And how might different restoration strategies influence fish? These are questions J. Ryan Bellmore, a research fish biologist who works in Juneau, Alaska, for the USDA Forest Service’s Pacific Northwest Research Station, and his partners set out to answer.

Sometimes food scraps can turn into gold. Tara McHugh, of USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS), has overseen this alchemy as director of ARS’s Western Regional Research Center in Albany, California. Over the course of her career, McHugh has investigated ways to take food-processing waste and turn it into value-added products, such as fruit bars, vegetable crisps and even edible films made from produce.

Have you ever considered what it takes to create the perfect picnic beyond the hamburgers, hot dogs, and iced tea? Most often, we include wholesome fruit and veggies to create the perfect side items or sweet treats. Whether its fresh corn-on-the-cob or plump, juicy strawberries on the shortcake, USDA-related research helps bring it all together.

Warmer weather in many parts of the country means more opportunities for outdoor activities. Whether it’s a picnic, backyard barbecue, or even an intimate wedding ceremony, no one wants to feel the painful sting of the red imported fire ant.

Every day, some 2,000 ARS scientists go to work at over 90 research locations across the United States and abroad. Their job? To deliver scientific and innovative solutions to agricultural challenges affecting our Nation. As part of that job, ARS scientists frequently collaborate with research partners from universities, companies, organizations and even other countries.

Uncontrolled bleeding is the main cause of preventable death in people who experience traumatic injury. This can happen in 5 to 10 minutes if severe blood loss from the injury site isn’t slowed or stopped.

Now, Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists in New Orleans, Louisiana, have helped develop a nonwoven cotton gauze that quickly stanches bleeding and promotes healing.

Sweet potatoes, which are native to the Americas, sustained our founding pioneers with beneficial nutrients like beta carotene, calcium, fiber, and a host of vitamins. No wonder it’s a holiday favorite, especially during Thanksgiving. But what makes a good sweet potato?

The next time you stroll outside after the rain, thank the soil bacteria below for the sweet, earthy smell that fills the air.

Pomace, the heavy puree left over after fruits and vegetables are juiced and processed, is used mostly as a feed additive for livestock. The rest of the wet puree is discarded in landfills.

Fusarium head blight is a devastating fungal disease affecting wheat and barley crops worldwide. According to the American Phytopathological Society, this disease has cost U.S. wheat and barley farmers more than $3 billion since 1990. Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists, together with land managers and other scientists at research universities, are taking a variety of approaches to solving this problem. These include breeding resistant cultivars, using massive disease-forecasting models and applying fungicides during critical junctures in crop growth to prevent fusarium head blight. Recently, many scientists have also become interested in the idea of employing microbial species that already live on and inside crop plants to do the dirty work of controlling disease epidemics.