About
From 1999 to 2002 my spouse, Andrea, and I worked in Honduras, in Central America, with Mennonite Central Committee, a private voluntary organization. Our work there was focused on protecting water supplies, assisting community water projects, and promoting sustainable agriculture in rural communities in the western area of the country. Three years was nearly long enough to begin to understand the context and identify some of the underlying problems.
Returning to the US in 2002, We spent a year teaching at Goshen College and concluded that teaching was a good fit for us. So we returned to Penn State in 2003, and I began my Ph.D. studies with Dr. Jonathan Lynch, in the Department of Horticulture. My research focused on understanding the role of the timing of life-history events in the adaptation of plants to low phosphorus soils.
When I am not exploring the confluence of ecology and agriculture, I like to spend time with my family. I also enjoy reading, playing guitar, and working on home improvement projects. I am also inordinately fond of riding, repairing, buying, and selling bicycles.
What do I teach? I teach because: 1) it is the perfect excuse to keep learning myself. 2) there is nothing quite like seeing a student grasp a new idea. 3) knowledge needs to be passed on. 4) I can't help it.
Education
Ph.D. in Ecology, August 2003 – December 2008
The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA
Advisor: Dr. Jonathan Lynch
Dissertation: Phenological Delays as Adaptive Responses to Phosphorus Stress
M.S. in Ecology, August 1996 - December 1998
The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA
Advisor: Dr. Les Lanyon
Thesis: Agroecosystem Nutrient Dynamics in a Central Pennsylvania Watershed
B.A. in Biology, August 1988 - August 1992 Goshen College, Goshen, IN
Minor in Environmental Studies
Awards
2013 Fulbright Scholar, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Malawi
2005-2007 NASA Space Grant Fellow, Penn State University
2003-2004 University Graduate Fellow, Penn State University
Publications
Chow, S-M., & Lee, J., Park, J. J., Kuruppumullage P. D., Hammel T., Hallquist, M. N., Nord, E. A., Oravecz, Z., Perry, H. L., Lesser, L. M., & Pearl, D. K. (in press, 2024). Personalized Education through Individualized Pathways and Resources to Adaptive Control Theory-Inspired Scientific Education (iPRACTISE): Proof-of-Concept Studies for Designing and Evaluating Personalized Education. Journal of Statistics and Data Science Education.
Mahan, D.C., J.T. Betts, E.A. Nord, F. Van Dyke and J.M. Outcalt. 2021. Response of benthic macroinvertebrates to dam removal in the restoration of the Boardman River, Michigan, USA. PLOS One. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0245030 Postma, J.A., V.L. Hecht, K. Hikosaka, E.A. Nord, T.L. Pons, H. Poorter. 2020. Dividing the pie: A quantitative review on plant density responses. Plant, Cell, and Environment. Dec 2020. https://doi.org/10.1111/pce.13968 Burridge, J., C. Black, E. Nord, J. Postma, J. Sidhu, L.M. York, and J. Lynch. 2020. An analysis of soil coring strategies to estimate root depth in Maize (Zea mays) and Common Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris). Plant Phenomics. Nov 8, 2020. https://doi.org/10.34133/2020/3252703 Schneider, H.M., S.P. Klein, M.T. Hanlon, E.A. Nord, S. Kaeppler, K.M. Brown, J.P. Lynch. 2020. Genetic Control of Root Architectural Plasticity in Maize. Journal of Experimental Botany. 71 (10) 3185-3197. https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/eraa084. Kautu, B.B., J. Phillips, K. Steele, M.S. Mengarelli and E.A. Nord. 2017. A Behavioral Survey of the Effects of Kavalactones on Caenorhabditis elegans Neuromuscular Transmission. J. Experimental Neuroscience. 11:1-7 *
Nord, E. A., R.E. Jaramillo, and J.P. Lynch. 2015. Response to elevated CO2 in the temperate C3 grass Festuca arundinaceae across a wide range of soils. Frontiers in Plant Science. 6:95
Bucksch, A., J. Burridge, L.M.York, A. Das, E. Nord, J.S. Weitz, and J.P. Lynch. 2014. Image-based high-throughput field phenotyping of crop roots. Plant Physiology. 166: 470-486.
Saengwilai P., E.A. Nord, J.G. Chimungu, K.M. Brown, and J.P. Lynch. 2014. Root cortical aerenchyma enhances nitrogen acquisition from low nitrogen soils in maize (Zea mays L.) Plant Physiology. 166: 726-735.
York, L.M., E.A. Nord, and J.P. Lynch. 2013. Integration of root phenes for soil resource acquisition. Frontiers in Plant Science. 4:355.
Jaramillo, R.E., E.A Nord, J.G. Chimungu. K.M. Brown, and J.P. Lynch. 2013. Root cortical burden, influences drought tolerance in maize. Annals of Botany. 112 (2): 429-437.
Nord, E.A., M.R. Ryan, W.S. Curran, D.A. Mortensen, and S.B. Mirsky. 2012. Effects of management type and timing on weed suppression in soybean no-till planted into rolled-crimped cereal rye. Weed Science. 60(4):624-633.
Nord, E.A., C. Zhang and J.P. Lynch. 2011. Root responses to neighbouring plants in common bean are mediated by nutrient concentration rather than self/non-self recognition. Functional Plant Biology. 38(12):94-951.
Nord, E.A., W.S. Curran, D.A. Mortensen, S.B. Mirsky, and B.P. Jones. 2011. Integrating Multiple Tactics for Managing Weeds in High Residue No-Till Soybean. Agronomy Journal. 103(5):1542-1551
Ryan, M.R., W.S. Curran, A.M. Grantham, L.K. Hunsberger, S.B. Mirsky, D.A.mMortensen, E.A. Nord, D.O. Wilson. 2011. E?ects of Seeding Rate and Poultry Litter on Weed Suppression from a Rolled Cereal Rye Cover Crop. Weed Science. 59(3):438-444.
Nord, E.A., K. Shea, and J.P. Lynch. 2011. Optimizing Reproductive Phenology in a Two-Resource World: A Dynamic Allocation Model of Plant Growth Predicts Later Reproduction in Phosphorus Limited Plants. Annals of Botany. 108(2):391-404.
Nord, E.A., R.G. Smith, W.S. Curran and M.R. Ryan. 2010. Suppressing weeds using cover crops in Pennsylvania. Agroecology In Practice #2. College of Agricultural Sciences, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA. (Extension publication.) http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/FreePubs/PDFs/uc210.pdf Nord, E.A. and J.P.
Lynch. 2009. Plant phenology: A critical controller of soil resource acquisition. Journal of Experimental Botany. 60(7):1927-1937.
Nord, E.A. and J.P. Lynch. 2008. Delayed reproduction in Arabidopsis thaliana improves fitness in soil with suboptimal phosphorus availability. Plant, Cell and Environment. 31(10):1432-1441.
Nord, E.A. and Lanyon, L.E. 2003. Managing material transfer and nutrient flow in an agricultural watershed. Journal of Environmental Quality. 32(2):562-570.
