She's a Scientist: Laura Thompson

Curt Bright Author

05/07/2021 Added

160 Plays

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Extension specialist Laura Thompson flies drones with sensors over farms to show producers how to save money.

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[00:00:00.158](gentle music)
[00:00:05.520]Today's farmers want to save money
[00:00:07.440]by using nitrogen fertilizers more efficiently.
[00:00:10.980]That's why extension educator Laura Thompson
[00:00:13.550]conducts her field research in actual fields.
[00:00:19.050]She's part of the Nebraska On-Farm Research Network,
[00:00:22.300]collaborating with farmers
[00:00:23.620]to test new methods and technology.
[00:00:25.870]So our extension faculty work very closely with farmers
[00:00:29.010]to help them set up experiments on their farm
[00:00:31.520]using their equipment, their land,
[00:00:33.540]and help them carry out these studies to get information
[00:00:36.780]that's going to help them make better decisions
[00:00:38.890]about their farming operation.
[00:00:40.466](drone whirring)
[00:00:42.910]Thompson uses technology
[00:00:44.390]like remote sensors on drones
[00:00:46.270]to show farmers where, when,
[00:00:48.100]and how much nitrogen fertilizer to apply.
[00:00:51.290]So improving nitrogen management can really help farmers
[00:00:54.370]by improving their profitability, saving on inputs,
[00:00:58.460]making sure that we're efficient with those inputs
[00:01:00.370]so that the nitrogen fertilizer that's being applied
[00:01:02.830]is actually being used to produce the crop.
[00:01:05.680]In our On-Farm Research Network, on average,
[00:01:07.870]producers have been able to increase their profit
[00:01:10.300]by $31 an acre by putting research results into practice.
[00:01:14.670]Thompson unearthed her interest
[00:01:16.310]in soil technology as a teenager,
[00:01:18.160]participating in FFA programs.
[00:01:20.780]I'm from a farm and my family farms
[00:01:23.370]and I always enjoy that connection,
[00:01:25.770]and then in college took some classes
[00:01:27.750]that really furthered that interest
[00:01:29.910]and sparked that interest related to remote sensing
[00:01:33.100]as well as soil science,
[00:01:34.560]and so those subjects always really caught my interest
[00:01:37.010]and got me excited.
[00:01:39.290]I also really love technology,
[00:01:41.160]so I feel like this is a really fun way
[00:01:43.510]for me to be able to merge those two things together,
[00:01:46.160]agriculture and technology,
[00:01:48.040]and see how technology can really help us in agriculture.
[00:01:51.667](gentle upbeat music)

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She's a Scientist: Laura Thompson

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