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Columnists

Laughter: What the world needs now

Laughter: What the world needs now

    What the world needs now is love, sweet love…” Jackie DeShannon’s 1965 hit record spoke a truth. The world always needs more love.

    Keep ‘America the Beautiful’ for another 250 years

    Keep ‘America the Beautiful’ for another 250 years

      I have a quarterly project with Rudi, my 3-year-old, wonderful German Shepherd. We take a bag while walking so we can collect garbage.

      Candid answers to questions about AI

      Candid answers to questions about AI

        At the outset, let me use a common term in today’s vernacular to describe the experience: Amazing! Absolutely amazing! All you want to know and are not afraid to ask. The fruit of scientific discovery, the best practices and the wisdom and knowledge of the world’s best thinkers is accessible to us.

        Established farmers advise the next generation

        Established farmers advise the next generation

          Editor’s note: This column was originally published on Nov. 1, 2004.

          Human intervention sought in age of AI

          Human intervention sought in age of AI

            I have a confession to make: I do not follow social media, but I do some doomscrolling.

            Non-verbal language a pathway to intimacy

            Non-verbal language a pathway to intimacy

              Editor’s note: This was originally published May 30, 2005.

              Reflections on readin’, writin’ and ’rithmetic

              Reflections on readin’, writin’ and ’rithmetic

                Some time back I saw a bumper sticker that read, “If you can read this, thank a teacher.” I quietly mumbled, “Amen.”

                ‘Jeepers!’ When words become obsolete

                ‘Jeepers!’ When words become obsolete

                  Jeepers Creepers, where’d ya get those peepers?” Now there’s a phrase you probably haven’t heard for a while. Perhaps you’ve never heard it. The line is from a song recorded by Louis Armstrong in the late 1930s.

                  Soft words win over foul language during confrontations

                  Soft words win over foul language during confrontations

                    As a twice-married man and a father, I have been made fully aware of all my faults. One of those faults is my temper. Over the years, I have learned to control that temper… until someone pushes all the right buttons.

                    Growing old not for sissies

                    Growing old not for sissies

                      As a mere lad of 60 years with some semblance of youth, or as some would say “denial,” I wrote about meeting the challenges of growing old in a column entitled “Seven Ways to Grow Old Gracefully.”

                      Identify pieces of farm transition puzzle

                      Identify pieces of farm transition puzzle

                        Fitting the pieces of a farm transition puzzle together can be challenging. Like a puzzle, you need to find the corner pieces first, then the outer straight edges to frame up the foundation.

                        Carnival games teach life lesson

                        Carnival games teach life lesson

                          David and his two grandsons decided to take the afternoon off and go to the county fair.

                          Aroma of Independence Day on the farm

                          Aroma of Independence Day on the farm

                            People who study those things tell us that the sense of smell is most closely related to our memory. An odor or fragrance can trigger a memory more quickly, they say, than sound, sight, touch or taste.

                            Companies charge ahead with baler automation

                            Companies charge ahead with baler automation

                              Unless the spigot shuts off in July, this ought to be a banner hay season across the upper Midwest.

                              Continue to bloom through retirement

                              Continue to bloom through retirement

                                The morning sun shined brightly through the front window of a newer house on the corner of a city block. Herman and his wife had moved there less than a year ago.

                                Farmers can be cool with AI

                                Farmers can be cool with AI

                                • By John Shutske, University of Wisconsin

                                You may have heard the latest buzz about a technology that will forever change the worlds of business, communication, entertainment, education and … agriculture. We’re talking about massive advancements in artificial intelligence or “AI.”

                                Puns: ‘Unless you thought of it yourself’

                                Puns: ‘Unless you thought of it yourself’

                                  When I was about 11 years old, I subscribed to Boy’s Life magazine, the monthly magazine of the Boy Scouts of America. I was not a member of the Boy Scouts, but I enjoyed the magazine.

                                  ‘Ask in Earnest’ a mental health resource

                                  ‘Ask in Earnest’ a mental health resource

                                    Editor’s note: Today’s Farm and Ranch Life article is written by a guest author in Montana, Darla Tyler McSherry. She founded the Ask in Earnest initiative to provide resources about preventing suicide.

                                    TV memories: A one … and a two … and a three!

                                    TV memories: A one … and a two … and a three!

                                      My Saturday nights in the late 1950s were unexciting. Pre-pubescent me turned 10 years old in January 1958, so Saturday nights were spent at home with my parents and three younger brothers (two sisters came later).

                                      Follow the wisdom of old farmers

                                      Follow the wisdom of old farmers

                                        Albert Einstein once profoundly stated, “I fear the day that technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots.”

                                        Precision ag hits, misses and insights

                                        Precision ag hits, misses and insights

                                          Where is your farm on the precision ag adoption curve?

                                          Open the door for the next generation

                                          Open the door for the next generation

                                            It was the same story repeated over and over again. The successful older farmer, who is now between 60 and 65, looking to see if there is a way to continue the farming operation with one of his children.

                                            Phono fun all over again

                                            Phono fun all over again

                                              As Julie’s family opened gifts on the most recent Christmas Eve, I was delighted to watch 13-year-old granddaughter Eliza open her gift from us. She told Julie earlier in the year that she wanted a phonograph and two long-play albums for Christmas.

                                              Farmer answers ‘Is farming changing?’

                                              Farmer answers ‘Is farming changing?’

                                                During a January blizzard, a farmer whom I didn’t know called me. He said he reads my columns regularly.

                                                Newest planters right-sized  for small- to mid-size farms

                                                Newest planters right-sized for small- to mid-size farms

                                                • By Rick Haun

                                                Thanks to ever-expanding farms and ever-tighter planting windows, wide-working, acre-devouring planters have become the norm. In fact, a new generation of 120-foot 48-row planters can knock out up to 800 acres a day or better when conditions are right and everything’s clicking.

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