The NDSU Core Labs have launched a new website, so the campus can more readily learn about their many services and be aware of emerging opportunities. The site can be found at www.ndsu.edu/ndsucorelabs.
The Core Labs are shared cutting-edge research facilities most commonly used by faculty and students in chemistry, engineering, animal sciences, biological sciences, pharmaceutical sciences, microbiology and plant sciences, but the facilities are available to all disciplines. NDSU’s four Core Labs include the Advanced Imaging and Microscopy Core, Core Biology Facility, Core Synthesis and Analytical Services and the Electron Microscopy Core Laboratory.
“Core laboratories provide highly advanced and specialized expertise and services to multiple investigators that are unfeasible or unaffordable for individual investigators,” explained Larry Reynolds, Distinguished University Professor of animal sciences and chair of the NDSU Core Labs Advisory Group, noting university-supported core laboratories are featured at top-tier universities such as the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. “The expertise and services that are provided contribute to the research and teaching capabilities of the entire institution, thereby generating invaluable intellectual capital.”
Reynolds said the criteria for a university core laboratory include these points:
• Available to and supports the entire campus, serving the needs of many investigators and educators.
• Evidence of its contributions across campus in the form of publications, grants supported, presentations contributed to, courses taught or contributed to and documented user groups.
• State-of-the-art by providing ongoing training for its staff, seeking funding for equipment add-ons, upgrades and replacements, while refining methods and applications and developing new ones.
• Able to generate income through user fees.
The new website includes the latest information about the NDSU facilities and the people responsible for them. It also features links to “In the News,” “Publications” and “Recognition” pages.
“The members of the NDSU Core Labs Advisory Group are excited to launch the new 'Core Research Laboratories at NDSU' web site," Reynolds said. “Not only will it increase the visibility of the core labs, but it also announces to the entire campus community that the university’s commitment to the NDSU Core Labs effort is ongoing and that we have made tremendous strides in the last six months.”
Starting July 1, the facilities will be under the administrative umbrella of the Office of the Vice President for Research and Creative Activity.
NDSU is recognized as one of the nation's top 108 public and private universities by the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education.