CAES Newswire

 College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences UGA Cooperative Extension
Menu
Published on 09/15/05

Rural wireless conference set Nov. 1-2 in Tifton

By Brad Haire
University of Georgia

Wireless Internet communication technology can allow a farmer to work his land thousands of miles away. It can give a doctor quick access to patients' records. It can connect a country store to the world.

The "UnWired: Rural Wireless Conference" Nov. 1-2 at the University of Georgia's Tifton campus will bring experts, researchers and users of wireless technology to rural south Georgia.

"Most conferences like this take place in large urban areas," said Craig Kvien, chair of the UGA National Environmentally Sound Production Agriculture Lab in Tifton.

"We're bringing many people here that have worked a lot of the bugs out of this technology," said Kvien, who is helping to organize the event. "The conference will demonstrate and investigate how this technology can be used for rural economic development."

The technical jargon of wireless communications can leave many people scratching their heads. "But anyone who attends this conference will walk away with a much better understanding of the potential of this technology," Kvien said.

The conference keynote speaker, Hans-Werner Braun, spearheads the High-Performance Wireless Research and Education Network at University of California at San Diego. The National Science Foundation funds this project, which has set up a wireless network over hundreds of square miles, connecting schools, research stations and remote Indian tribes in rural San Diego County.

"Braun's work connects the unconnected," Kvien said.

Wade Mitchell will tell how wireless technology has revolutionized his Iowa farm. Mitchell and his son Clay farm 2,500 acres of corn and soybeans. Their farm-wide, high-speed wireless network with Internet access allows them to remotely control grain handling and storage facilities, auto-steer tractors and monitor fields.

Wireless technology has "turned our tractor cabs into mobile offices," he said. "It has saved us hugely in labor and time and allowed us to be more accurate in our operation."

Professionals from two Tifton healthcare facilities will discuss how going wireless has improved their operations and allowed doctors to more efficiently treat patients.

Paul Mask, an assistant director in the Alabama Cooperative Extension System, will explain how wireless communications can help extension agents better serve their clients.

The UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences precision agriculture team will show how off-shelf products can monitor farm facilities and irrigation and control a robot.

And representatives from Cattlelog will show how radio frequency identification can help the cattle industry run smoothly and safely.

Funding agencies will be at the conference, too. So will those who've received funding for wireless projects.

"Not only will attendees learn about the advances and opportunities," Kvien said, "but also where to go to help fund them."

Other conference topics will include living wireless from a community perspective, funding a large-scale wireless network, setting up a wireless hotspot and pitfalls of going wireless.

Registration is $100 before Oct. 1. It's $150 after Oct. 1. To register or to find out more about the conference, go to www.nespal.org/unwired05/.

Brad Haire is the former news editor with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Experts/Sources:
Craig K. Kvien
Wade Mitchell
The holiday season can be a time of anticipation and joy, but balancing multiple commitments and personalities across families and friends can be a source of stress for hosts and visitors alike. Like preparing parts of the meal ahead of time to spend more of the holiday with guests, taking time ahead of the day to set expectations can go a long way to ensuring enjoyable gatherings, said Ted Futris, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension specialist and professor of human development and family science in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences. CAES News
Manage holiday stress with kindness, boundaries 11/21/24 Maria M. Lameiras
The holiday season can be a time of anticipation and joy, but balancing multiple commitments and personalities across families and friends can be a source of stress for hosts and visitors alike. Much like preparing parts of the meal ahead of time allows you to spend more of the holiday with guests, setting expectations ahead of the celebration can go a long way to ensuring enjoyable gatherings, said Ted Futris, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension specialist and professor of human development and family science.
Conner Hall CAES News
CAES welcomes 2024 cohort of Rural Scholars 11/20/24 Maria M. Lameiras
The University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences welcomed its fourth cohort of students chosen for the CAES Rural Scholars Program this fall just weeks after celebrating the program's first graduation. Georgia Orman, one of four inaugural Rural Scholars in CAES, graduated in May with a bachelor’s degree in agricultural education. The new scholars for 2024, all from Georgia, are Ela Ash of Ocilla, Lauren E. Coley of Cochran, Amelia Housley of Canon, and London O’Steen of Ambrose.
Women play a vital role in rural American farming, but much of that work is "invisible," like raising children or household chores, according to a new UGA study. (Getty Images) CAES News
The women and stress behind rural farming in America 11/19/24 Leigh Hataway
Recent research from the University of Georgia suggests the unique stresses from farm life may be taking a toll on one of the pillars of the families that make your dinners possible: the women who keep farming families running. “If we don’t control our food sources, we don’t control our health and safety,” said Anna Scheyett, lead author of the study and a professor in UGA’s School of Social Work. “It’s a matter of national security that farmers survive in the United States. And one of the big factors in helping farms survive is women.”
Mergoum at Creature Comforts CAES News
That's the spirit! 11/18/24 Maria M. Lameiras, Claire Sanders Kinnard
Wheat breeders spend years meticulously crossing varieties to coax the best traits out of each species, carefully propagating plant varieties that are healthier, heartier and better suited for the environments where they are grown. Professional brewmasters are equally painstaking when choosing the components that will give their beers a specific flavor profile.
Contest-winning concept becomes viable business for alumnus who developed solar-powered, self-propelled chicken coop as a student. CAES News
Poultry in motion 11/14/24 Sean Montgomery
Chris Ayers emerged from his orange and black rough-terrain vehicle with an ear-to-ear grin. “This is Chiktopia,” he said, sweeping his arm wide to indicate the back half of a 3,600-square-foot warehouse on his family’s farm in Ball Ground, Georgia. “This is where I manufacture and assemble the chicken coops. Everything is done entirely from over here.”
UGA Grand Farm Site Plan web CAES News
UGA Grand Farm wins stage two of 2024 Growth Accelerator Fund competition 11/13/24 Jordan Powers
Startups in the agricultural technology sector face significant barriers on the path to establishment, including access to training and capital. These barriers are heightened for underrepresented entrepreneurs seeking to start new companies. The University of Georgia Grand Farm, part of a historic partnership between the University of Georgia and Fargo, North Dakota-based Grand Farm, aims to change that.