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Show BY MANETTE NEWBOLD Senior Writer Farming has changed and is no longer about using simple rakes and shovels. Major food production has gone from the crops to computers, soil to outer space and tractors to high-tech. According to Bruce Miller, a professor in the College of Agriculture, new technology is being used in planting, growing and harvesting from satellites that take pictures of crops to sprinkler systems that save water and diesel engines that are environmentally friendly. "Technology is making great strides and its all been in the last 10 to 12 years," Miller said, adding that advancements in agriculture save farmers time, money and land as they are able to grow more food in less space. Laser technology for planting and irrigation is all about being cost efficient during production. Royce Hatch, USU agriculture instructor, said new technology is necessary as population increases and crops decrease. In Cache Valley alone, 640 acres of land are zoned out of farm production every year, Miller said. "We certainly produce more food on less land than we used to," said Bruce Bugbee, crop physiology professor. "And there's a new discipline now called 1 2 5 8 CO 9 7 6 4 3 1 5 7 8 3 2 2 1 5" 6 3 4 9 Farming goes techno 5 1 2 6 9 4 7 CO €2Z 20061 8 9 6 2 3 6 7 3 5 4 7 1 4 3 7 9 1 5 8 2 6 6 8 4 7 2 1 9 3 5 3 7 9 4 5 8 6 1 2 Answer to Today's Puzzle 2 5 1 3 6 9 4 7 8 You may be a H*. TrueAggie, but are you a CareerAggie? Photo by Liquid Library precision agriculture, where fertilizers and water are controlled through remote sensing from satellites. Plants receive not too much and not too little." Bugbee said farmers can also use balloon-like intstuments that take pictures of crops from above and relate information of the health of the whole field. The information is sent to computers and farmers know what sections are stressed or need to be watered. The whole process costs less for the farmers. Donald Snyder, economics professor, said productivity has increased tremendously over the last 20 years, but prices of food haven't really changed, making it a winwin situation for producers and consumers. Snyder said computers have helped farmers tremendously because data can be analyzed more quickly and pictures can be obtained faster. New advancements aren't just changing the way crops are raised, but it's changing jobs too. "As constraints on the environment keep increasing, so will the constraints on laborers," Hatch said. "It shifts the jobs and Did you know CareerAggie gives you accessip oven1 • • • • 5,000 employer contacts ^ 1,500 alumni networking contacts ' internships/career positions targeted to USU students personalized emails regarding campus recuiting and events Bring this completed adtoCareer Service* byWedneiday, October 11. New users wfllbeenteredlnaoYaw1ngfora$80pun<^ confidential registration info. Email: Name: (your username) Emphasis:. Major:. • TECHNO see page 7 Degree Seeking: AS BS BA MS Grad Date: MA PhD EdD (circle one) Birthdate: • TIPPING (your password) From page 4 Whitney Fleetwood, a family dairy farmer from Murray says she thinks it's highly unlikely. "When we're herding cows and they're on the road, we will sometimes accidentally hit them with our cars and they still won't tip over. I'm pretty sure a bunch of crazy kids couldn't do it," Fleetwood said. Fleetwood said cows are very aware when they sleep and would be awakened before anybody could put their hands on them. She also said cows sleep in herds and would alert each other before any intruders were at a reachable distance. "They're smart animals," she said. "They're not just going to sleep through anything, like humans." Fleetwood said she would advise practical jokers to not try this prank because it's harmful to the animals and could potentially be harmful to the perpetrators, especially if the cows became aggravated or angry. "Besides," Fleetwood added, "you'd probably have to be drunk in order to do it because that's probably the only time it would be fun." Dale Zobell, associate professor of animal science, said he agrees that cow tipping is nothing but "a good myth that sounds logical." Zobell added to Fleetwood's arguments, saying that cows are very aware because they only sleep periodically and are very light sleepers who are easily awakened at anything. "You have to understand cattle behavior to realize that it is a myth," Zobell said. He said his biggest argument would be that cattle normally lay down when they sleep. He said on rare occasions they do fall asleep while standing, but they usually sleep with their knees slightly bent and their legs apart, making it impossible for an animal who weighs several hundred pounds and is low to the ground to be tipped. "I've never known someone to actually go into a pasture and try it, but it seems like total foolishness to even try it," Zobell said. Lewiston dairy farmer Gordon Barlow said he "has never known a cow who slept standing," but wasn't completely convinced that cows couldn't be tipped if there were other factors helping in the process. "I think maybe if a cow was standing up and for some reason it couldn't move, you could maybe tip it over," Barlow said. Although these factors could help make the legend true, Barlow said he feels in any normal circumstance, tipping a cow would be very unlikely and maybe even impossible. "I think it's kind of one of those joke things," Barlow said, "but it makes for a fun legend, doesn't it?" -megan@ccusu.edu Work Authorization Status: (check one) • US Citlzen/US National n Perm Resident • tCAREER \ SERVICES F-l Visa D Other:. www.usu.edu/career (435)797-7777 Return to Career Services, University Inn, Rm. 102 Met Life Auto & Home Call Janet 752-4531 95 E. 400 IN. Logan 752-9673 'Drink may be substituted for another side A\sh.J i Store Hours: Monday - Saturday 10:00 - 7:00 The Diamond Engagement Ring Store...since 1896 141 North Main • 752-7149 www.seneedham.com Mlddl* of the block dC **« iign of tbt ch<k |