Researchers at Iowa State University are turning to wax made from soybean oil as a potential biodegradable alternative to standard industrial paraffin wax, ISU reports. If successful, the product could reduce waste from the nearly 3 billion pounds of paraffin-coated boxes that end up in landfills every year. Lead researcher Tong Wang and her team […]
The National Science Foundation awarded a five-year, $2 million grant to researchers at Iowa State University who developed a new machine-learning and mathematical modeling to plant breeding and farm management practices. Researchers plan to focus on three areas: harnessing mathematical models to better predict traits of crops; genomic selection, or the decisions plant breeders make […]
Danielle Feinberg, Pixar Animation Studio’s director of photography for lighting, is bringing her experience on movies like “A Bug’s Life,” “Toy Story 2” and “Finding Nemo” to Iowa State University’s campus on Thursday with her lecture “The Art of Science: Bringing Imagined Worlds to Life,” reports the Iowa State Daily. Feinberg, who will speak at […]
Kent Corporation announced the opening of a new Kent Innovation Center on the Research Park campus at the Iowa State University, the company announced in a press release. Kent Corporation will be able to collaborate with more than 90 Iowa companies through Kent Corporation’s Enterprise Innovation Group, the company said in a statement. Jeff Underwood, […]
A John Deere tractor fitted with Smart Ag’s AutoCart driverless technology trucks through a demonstration field during the 2018 Farm Progress Show. Photo by Kate Hayden Driverless cars may take over most of the national headlines these days, but an Iowa software company is betting that autonomous vehicles can make a much larger impact off […]
Ag Startup Engine has announced a second investment of $25,000 in FarmlandFinder, a search software that allows clients to buy, search for and sell agricultural land and property information, reports Clay & Milk. FarmlandFinder, formerly known as Terva, serves land owners and buyers in Iowa but will expand into 12 states by this winter, founder and […]
The ISU Startup Factory is accepting two new cohorts based in Ames and Austin, Minnesota, reports Clay and Milk. The program is based in Ames, but also hosts startups in Northwest Iowa. Startups accepted in the Startup Factory receive formal training, mentorship and access to investors in two 26-week blocks, said program president Bill Adamowski.
Iowa billionaire Harry Stine, founder of Stine Seed Co., announced an investment of $5 million into an Ames startup focusing on driverless tractors, the Des Moines Register reports. Founded by 28-year-old Colin Hurd, Smart Ag aims to solve critical labor shortages in agriculture with a software system that automates tractors used during the harvest. Smart […]
Ames-based Workiva won a Gold Stevie Award for Most Innovative Company of the Year at this year’s annual national American Business Awards, one of three from the June 11 event. Workiva also won two Silver Stevies for Software Company of the Year and Most Innovative Tech Company of the Year, and a Bronze Stevie for […]
Iowa State University ranks No. 83 worldwide in the number of patents granted within the United States last year, according to an announcement released by the National Academy of Inventors and Intellectual Property Owners Association.The Iowa State University Research Foundation was granted 32 patents in 2017. ISU is tied on the list with Texas A&M […]