Special Topics in Crop and Soil Science Farming Today for Tomorrow A Seminar Series Concerning Issues of Sustainable Agriculture BioProducts CSS 499/599
The overriding theme of most issues in agriculture today is sustainability in all its various facets - environment, economics, and social impacts. Each winter term, the department of Crop and Soil Science presents an undergraduate seminar series entitled Farming Today for Tomorrow that will deal with a specific theme of agricultural sustainability.		Videotape Speakers and Topics Links to related web pages and other resources Class Requirements and Grading Instructors Archived Lectures

Class Overview - Bioproducts: New 'Value Added' Crops for Energy, Raw Materials and Farmaceuticals

This is a one-credit pass/no-pass class consisting of nine videotapes each approximately one hour in length. Each tape is a recording of a seminar pertaining to the new bioproducts industry and was presented during the on-campus CSS199 seminar series offered Winter Term 2005 by the Crop and Soil Science Department of Oregon State University. This seminar series presents both results from scientific research on sustainable agricultural and from the experience of growers seeking to use sustainable agricultural methods in their operations. The theme of the series during the winter quarter 2005 is "Bioproducts", crops beyond those traditionally grown for food, feed and fiber. Use of crops to produce bioproducts including energy, raw materials for industry and pharmaceuticals would enhance the sustainability of Oregon agriculture by opening up new markets for farm products, reducing on-farm energy costs, and lower environmental pollution and vulnerability to foreign oil supplies by reducing dependency on oil-based products. Seminars will include an over-view of what "Bioproducts" are and how they fit into agricultural sustainability, including information on the national "SunGrant" program; plant biomass for energy production; the principals of biodiesel for transportation and industry; biodiesel vehicles; the status of a proposed Eastern Oregon Biodiesel Project; fuel cells and agriculture; production of base industrial produces from agriculture; the Vale Bioproducts Plant Case Study; and growing crops for pharmaceutical production.

The course requirements are simple - watch each tape, take a short on-line quiz, and write a 3-5 page final paper on some aspect of BioProducts. Details on these requirements are given below. A web site is maintained for the class with information links.

Beginning Fall term 2005, this class can be accessed through the OSU's teaching and learning portal (Blackboard). Students enrolled in CSS 499/599 classes are encouraged to use this system to participate in on-line discussion groups about issues related to BioProducts with other students in the course.

Students will need to order the videotapes for this course from the OSU bookstore, by calling the toll free number (800) 595-0357. The videos will be sent by mail, or they can be picked up at the textbook counter on the lower level of the bookstore. There is a $25 rental fee for the videos for each class. If the videos are not returned, there is an additional $50 charged to the student’s account. This fee is nonrefundable.

Class Requirements and Grading

The class is graded pass/fail. To pass students must do the following:

1. View all video tapes.
2. Take a short on-line quiz pertaining to the important concepts and ideas presented in the video tape.
3. Write a three-page Final Paper with at least five references (journal article, magazine articles, web page sites, etc.) on the issue of pertaining to Cropping Systems. Examples of a final papers and bibliography are posted on each class Blackboard site. Papers are to have one-inch margins on all sides and be 12 point font, Times Roman, single spaced.
4. Those students who are taking the class for graduate credit (CSS599) a five page Final Paper must be written on a topic relevant to the class material.
5. All Final Paper topics must be approved in advance by the instructor.
6. Grading for the course is based on 100 total points. At least 70 points must be accumulated by the student in order to get credit. There are a total of 45 possible points available from the exams, and 55 possible points assigned to the final paper. Any combination of point will allow the student to pass the course.

Videotape Speakers and Topics

Instructor

Kimberly Hannaway
Expertise Area: Educational Design
Office: Crop Science Building 022
Phone: 541-737-5036
Fax: 541-737-1589
Email: kimberly@oregonstate.edu

Mailing Address:
Department of Crop and Soil Science
Crop Science Building 107
Oregon State University
Corvallis, OR 97331-3002t