1994_10 Insight October 1994

              •
October 12,1994
IN FOCUS
CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY. FRESNO
Page 3
INSIGHT
Computer technology growing
abundantly in college farming
INSIGHT
Old MacDonald would have a cow
if he could see what computer technology is doing in agriculture. Recent computer advancements have
trickled down from universities into
agriculture, and many farmers increasingly rely on computers to run
their operations.
"There's farmers on the west side
that do nothing but sit in front of their
computers all day," said professor
Dennis Nef, chair of agricultural economics.
Nef said farmers are going on-line
to expand their marketing potential
and to organize their operations.
The Agricultural Technology Institute Network is one such system used
by farmers. Growers can search daily
clippings from domestic and international markets that list commodity prices. According to Nef, foreigners buying produce can go into their
local embassies and request certain
types and quantities of produce.
Their request is then listed in the
ATI-NET under international market
headings. Domestic growers checking the listings can respond to the re
quests, thus globally expanding their
potential markets.
"That kind of information can be
pretty interesting if you're agrape exporter looking for new markets," Nef
said.
The ATI-NET is also popular with
students, because the network displays job listings from throughout the
country. Nef uses field layout spread
sheets in his classes to teach students
to estimate what crops will show the
highest profit based on available resources.
Jeff Ennen, who runs the ATI-NET.
said it receives 350 to 400 callers a
day. Ennen said one example of what
callers can find is the price of beef
from any location in the country.
Frozen fruit and vegetable firms use
the network often.
Monitoring cow herds is another
area computers have simplified.
At CSUF's dairy unit, each of the
300 cows is profiled in the computer.
Health records, breeding records and
programs that forecast a cow's expected delivery date are available,
said Ron Deaver, who runs the dairy
unit along wilh his father, Jim.
Deaver said that based upon information he inputs, the computer tracks
a cow's milk production and predicts
the amount of milk the cow should
make in a certain amount of time.
One new system being used with
dairy herds involves placing a bar
code, like those found in grocery
store scanners, on the ears of cows.
When the cow goes into its stall, the
computer will read the bar code and
distribute feed to the cow based on
the amount of milk the cow has been
producing. Deaver said that particular program isn't being used at CSUF,
but some dairies are using it.
Traditionally, if a farmer wanted to
know the status of the plants in his
fields, he would walk the field. New
technology is making that process all
but obsolete.
Geographic Information Systems
professor Jack Paris said the monitoring of ag land lets farmers know
what's going on in their fields.
Airplanes using infrared waves can
take pictures of the fields storing
them on magnetic tape. Once the airplanes are on the ground, the data is
processed in the computer and then
interpreted to show field locations.
"Every point in the field is being
evaluated according to its growing
See FARM, Page 8
Woman's right to wear pants
written into the law - at last
VP wants Valley to view
CSUF in a charitable way
Samantha K. Pease
INSIGHT
Scott Warrington, the new assistant vice president for university
development, uses his "powwow" method to consolidate the
fund-raising efforts at CSUF.
Warrington left his position as
director of development for the
College of Education at Pennsylvania State University to join
CSUF.
"My responsibilities include university fund-raising, letter of appeals for contributions, corporate
foundations, as well as major
gifts," Warrington said.
"Wc powwow a lot around
here," said Warrington's secretary,
Lolly Granados.
When asked about his "powwow
style," Warrington said that he is
not a Reagan; he does not believe
in letting everything work out for
itself.
He also does not believe in "micro-management."
"I like to give everybody the
space to do the job, but it is also
important to have regular contact," Warrington said.
"I sec myself as the coach in this
position."
Warrington will be "coaching"
the university development office
to "centralize services linked with
school development officers and
other organizational units within the
university," as outlined in president
Welly's "Plan for the 90s." a blueprint for CSUF's future.
According to Warrington, the fund-
raising efforts on campus are fragmented. He recognizes a need to consolidate the efforts in order to target
donors for specific areas.
"Although.we will not discourage
donors from spreading the wealth, it
is important to pinpoint the specific
interests of Ihe donors," Warrington
said. "We arc working with a relatively small pool."
The consolidation is an effort to
decrease the number of fund-raising
appeals sent to the donor base to create more of a focus for the donors'
a cramped
space of Joyal Administration 148
shared with the CSUF Alumni Association office.
According to Warrington, the
office of university development
is planning to expand its staff.
Eventually, the office will include
directors in charge of annual giving, corporate foundations,
planned gifts and major gifts.
Warrington said that he and his
staff hope to start hiring by the
end of the fiscal year.
Warrington started as assistant
vice president for univeristy de-
ve'opment on Aug. 15.
Although he hasn't been in
Fresno long enough to get his
bearings, Warrington said he's developed an early affection for
Fresno.
Warrington received a bachelors' degrees in graphic arts and
English and a master's degree in
English.
Warrington faces a new challenge at CSUF. Although he is not
extracting coal from the earth as
his grandfather did, Warrington is
faced with the challenge of extracting funds from the Valley's
donor base.
Warrington's team-like management style, and his method of
"powwowing" with the university
s'aff has been well-received.
"It's wonderful to work with
Scott," said secretary Granados.
Andriana Doukas
INSIGHT
Men have had the luxury of wearing pants to work, and starting Jan. I
women across California will also,
by law, have the privilege.
The bill that enabled women to
wear pants, SB 1288, was recently
signed by Gov. Wilson.
The new law also makes it illegal
for hairdressers and cosmetologists
to charge different prices for goods
and services based on gender if the
goods or services sold are similar.
Examples include dry cleaning,
haircuts and alterations.
Professor Francine Oputa, coordinator of the Women's Resource Center, said society thinks it has been
progressive on women's issues, but
in reality, society has more issues to
address.
"Why is such a law necessary?
Why is it necessary for people to
dictate what I wear to work as long
as I look like a professional?" Oputa
said. "I think that men who come
from the old school believe that a
woman should 'dress like a woman,'
and therefore, should wear a dress."
Oputa said she could be way off
base in her understanding of society,
but she believes that there is an underlying issue that requires women
to wear dresses or shirts to work.
"It is extremely sexist to dictate
what I wear to work. I can't help to
think it is nothing else but to show
off my legs," Oputa said.
Sophomore Nina Supino is angered
by her work policy. She is allowed
to wear pants to work but the company attaches strict standards that
make it difficult for her to accommodate the policy.
"We are allowed to wear pants, but
they can' t have a seam down the side
and you must wear a coat or a vest
with it and still wear nylons,"
Supino, a Weinstocks employee,
said, "I went out recently and bought
these really nice, cotton pants. They
were in no way inappropriate for
work. But because they had a seam
down the side, I was instructed not
to wear them again."
Patty Garberick, the personnel supervisor for Weinstocks, said their
employees can wear pants with
seams down the side.
"We are in the business of selling
fashion, and we need our employees
to have a finished look," Garberick
said. "We do ask them to coordinate
at least three pieces with their
pantsuits in order to look professional."
KMPH Channel 26 has a dress code
that only allows females to wear ■
dresses or skirts to work. The station
is in the process of developing a new
policy to conform to the law. Station
employee Collete Corowder said she
has no problem with the policy.
"I work in production, and, as long
as clients are not around, we arc free
to wear pants. I understand that other
departments have a harder time with
the policy. It just depends where you
work," she said.
Eric Jaakola and Eddie Dominguez.
both CSUF students, think the law is
outdated.
"It seems ridiculous that just now
in '94 we are proposing this law,"
Jaakola said. "As long as a woman
looks professional at work, then what
does it matter?"
But opponents of the law thought
that it was infringing on employers'
rights. A Republican senator from
Glendale thought that the state was
interfering with workplace standards.
See PANTS .Page 8
A Dialogue for Gender Equity
Schedule of events
Sunday, Oct. 16 Conference Opening. Wine and Cheese Reception
Monday, Oct. 17 Promoting Dialogue Between Men and Women
Tuesday, Oct. 18 Legal, Ethical and Professional Boundaries to Consensual
Relationships on Campus
Wednesday, Oct. 19 Focus on Working Women
Thursday, Oct. 20 Empowering Women's Academic Achievement and Scholarship
Friday, Oct. 21 Art Exhibit and Celebrating the Genius of Women and Women's World
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