Entomology - Dr. Justin McMechan
Mattie MacIntosh
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01/07/2020
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Dr. McMechan describes his work in the Entomology Department.
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- [00:00:00.033](bright music)
- [00:00:06.070]Hi, my name is Justin McMechan.
- [00:00:07.540]I'm a crop protection and cropping systems specialist.
- [00:00:10.290]Well, I have a research and extension appointment,
- [00:00:12.120]and the primary focus of my research is on
- [00:00:14.490]new and emerging pests of either cover crops and arthropods,
- [00:00:17.990]or the case of soybean gall midge,
- [00:00:19.810]which is a new pest to the region and the U.S.
- [00:00:22.910]I grew up on a family farm,
- [00:00:24.060]so we've constantly been challenged by insects and diseases,
- [00:00:27.520]and weeds and other things on the farm.
- [00:00:28.950]And so it was a natural fit,
- [00:00:31.130]as I found out research
- [00:00:32.380]and extension positions like this existed,
- [00:00:34.730]to be part of the solution
- [00:00:36.270]in solving those difficult problems.
- [00:00:38.070]What I enjoy most about my job is working with students.
- [00:00:40.430]Like my own experiences, the chance to watch them grow.
- [00:00:43.870]You know, you see them develop their own ideas,
- [00:00:45.840]and it's just a really gratifying experience
- [00:00:49.040]to watch another scientist develop
- [00:00:50.880]and have their own identity,
- [00:00:52.510]and, in a sense, identify who they are.
- [00:00:54.490]And working with them through that journey
- [00:00:55.810]is just a really wonderful experience.
- [00:00:58.470]They get a lot of different experiences,
- [00:01:00.340]I guess, is the best way to describe it.
- [00:01:02.270]Although I describe a lot of entomology projects I work on,
- [00:01:05.190]I also work in agronomy.
- [00:01:06.970]And so they'll be interacting
- [00:01:08.720]with cover crop and insect projects.
- [00:01:11.010]They'll be working with gall midge.
- [00:01:13.150]They could be working on ear formation issues in corn
- [00:01:15.450]or a hail machine that we have as part of our lab.
- [00:01:18.550]We also usually bring up a lot of international students
- [00:01:20.840]as scholars during the summer,
- [00:01:21.970]so they tend to work with those scholars as well.
- [00:01:24.480]And so there's a cultural experience in the lab
- [00:01:26.130]working with people from outside the U.S.
- [00:01:28.080]So we have a unique state in terms of the opportunities.
- [00:01:30.960]And we spend most of our time
- [00:01:32.170]in the eastern half of the state,
- [00:01:33.990]but we are heavily involved with growers,
- [00:01:35.740]and so that is unique to having a research
- [00:01:38.160]and extension appointment.
- [00:01:39.690]And so a student looking to get into the field,
- [00:01:42.340]and I think any agricultural fields like that,
- [00:01:44.630]interacting with clientele is critical in communicating,
- [00:01:48.190]first of all, their problems,
- [00:01:49.190]but then also the solutions
- [00:01:50.510]that might exist for their operation.
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