1960 Gypsy moth pheromone discovered; proposed using sex attractants to
disrupt mating.(more)
US-1140 great northern bean
released; dominant variety in this seed class for 25 years.
Developed method for
shrinkproofing wool called interfacial polymerization; known as the WURlan
process.
Revealed that protein
similarities between plant and disease organism are involved in susceptibility
of the plant to the disease.
Instant sweet potatoes
developed.
Discovered mechanism of delayed
bitterness in citrus juices and identified enzyme system that prevents
bitterness in whole fruit.
(more)
Determined cause and prevention
of cockle defect in sheepskins.
Robinson, Osceloa, and Lee
tangerines released. (more)
PD-611 tobacco released; first
tobacco line resistant to root-knot nematodes.
Wells and Lakota durum wheat
released.
Vinall wild rye
released.
Utah Synthetic C alfalfa
released.
Chinook and Ranier cherries
released.
Midway strawberry
released.
1961 Path of carbon in photosynthesis
determined (Calvin cycle).
Statistical Reporting Service
established.
Neutron probe developed for
field measurements of soil-water content.
First commercial semidwarf
cultivar of a cereal grain in North America released; Gaines high-yield wheat
helped launch 'Green Revolution. (more)
Feed Grain Act passed
Peace Corps established.
Equine piroplasmosis reported in the
U.S.
Economic Research Service
established.
Developed cytoplasmic
male-sterile millet. By 1965, Indian scientists had developed a new hybrid from
these seeds that yielded 88 percent more grain than common millet. (more)
Developed method to prevent
gelling in canned evaporated milk.
Demonstrated that flavor
components in fruit could be incorporated into amorphous sugar that was
moisture stable at room temperature; used to fortify flavors of candies,
cookies, and cakes.
Discovered that spraying linseed
oil mixtures on new concrete prevented damage from salt put on roads to melt
ice during winter.
Emerald crownvetch discovered by
plant exploration team in southeastern Russian, introduced into
Midwest.(more)
Developed method for measuring
pungency of onions by determining amount of pyruvic acid.
Isolated an
abscission-accelerating chemical from cotton burs, absicisn.
Badger Shipper cabbage released;
first with some resistance to clubroot.
Bethel and Kent soybean
released.
Woodard blueberry
released.
Belle Patna rice
released.
Denta sweetclover released;
first nonbitter white sweetclover.
1962 Silent Spring published;
documented the effect of chemicals on the environment. (more)
Discovered breeding line that
could restore fertility to male-sterile wheat plants.
Library collection of USDA designated as
National Agricultural
Library.
Cereal leaf beetle discovered to be established
in Michigan.
Purified and structurally
identified three soluble ribonucleic acids (RNAs). (more)
Developed method for built-in
permanent creases for wool trousers.
First laboratory test developed
to detect bluetongue neutralizing antibody.
Released four inbred lines that
resulted in first commercial production of hybrid seed of pearl
millet.
Developed methods using calcium
to remove strontium-90 radioactivity from wheat and milk.
Developed method using cyclic
lighting and chemical retardants to produce compact poinsettias with dark-green
foliage.
U-1421 safflower
released.
First precision weighing
lysimiter with automated data processing developed.
Discovered new sugar in honey,
named erlose, resulting from the action of the honey bee enzyme invertase on
sucrose.
1963 Virulent-virus hog cholera vaccines
outlawed. (more)
Produced first evidence of large genetic
differences in amino acid composition of cereal protein, thereby making
possible improvement of the nutritional quality of cereal protein.
Abscisic acid identified.
Slack mercerization developed to
improve cotton stretchability.
(more)
Simple test for galactose
developed; served as basis for diagnosing infants with galactosemia.
Discovered Chediak-Higashi
syndrome in mink and cattle.
Fiber retriever invented to
increase efficiency of cleaning section of card in cotton by up to 40
percent.(more)
Proved that tropical horse tick,
Dermacentor nitens, can transmit equine piroplasmosis.
Discovered that wild carrots
give sheep acute sensitivity to sunlight, causing sunburn of sensitive
areas.
Starch-based polyethers
developed and converted to foam; dries as a rigid layer of
insulation.
Crane and Orrin Chinese
chestnuts released, the only chestnuts that can be grown in the eastern
U.S.
Penobscot potato discovered;
first with good resistance to leaf roll virus.
Jensen-Haise equation
developed.
1964 Agricultural Appropriation Act
authorized fifth utilization laboratory at Athens, GA.
Showed that detergents made from
fats are biodegradable and produce much less foaming than detergents made from
alkybenzene-sulfonates.
Discovered that different plant
varieties alter soil pH differently.
Developed plastic frames for bee
honeycombs.
Simple method developed to
determine amount of available lysine in oilseed meals.
Chemically treated cotton
batting created; held its shape better than older versions.(more)
First field test of devices for
an automated irrigation system performed.
1965 United States entered Vietnam
conflict.
Discovered molecular structure
of transfer RNA. (more)
Juvenile hormone of insects
identified and synthesized.
Durable-press cotton textile
(permanent press) developed.
(more)
Water Resources Planning Act passed.
Nugaines soft white winter wheat
released; sister to Gaines with resistance to stripe rust and cephalosprium
stripe. (more)
Hood strawberry released; most
important processing cultivar for many years.
Light-absorbing pigment called
chromosphere discovered as the activating agent for phytochrome.
(more)
Conducted initial field trials
using corrugated-wall polyethylene plastic tubing for subsurface drainage;
installed tubing with an ARS-developed plow, rather than excavating trenches to
install tubing in the soil.
Discovered that addition of
vitamins C and E reduced levels of nitrosamines in fried bacon and
nitrite-cured products; industry changed processing to minimize consumer
exposure to cancer-causing nitrosamines.
Developed a continuous process
for making bulgur, while reducing cost by two-thirds; invented WURLD wheat, a
chemically peeled, creamy white bulgur that looks like rice.
Abscisin II, a plant hormone
that accelerates plant defoliation, isolated.
Tidwarf bermudagrass
released.
Spring Pink poinsettia released;
first variety with pink bracts and green foliage.
Yakima snap bean released; first
commercial snap bean with good resistance to curly top.
Controlled European wheat stem
sawfly in the eastern U.S. using biological control. (more)
Developed Beltsville Universal
Computerized Spectrophotometer, which led to commercial development of
near-infrared reflectance instruments for analysis of bulk commodities like
wheat, corn, and soybeans.
1966 High-lysine corn developed; bred to
enhance protein level. (more)
Eradicated screwworm fly from
the U.S. using sterilization.
(more)
First monitoring program
established to determine effects of typical agricultural pesticide
use.
Laboratory Animal Welfare Act passed; renamed
Animal Welfare Act in 1970.
Cotton Research and Promotion Act
passed.
Discovered that protein is not essential in a
milk cow's diet.
Camptothecin shown to have antitumor activity;
isolated from Camptotheca trees grown by
ARS, samples provided to National Cancer Institute as part of a germplasm
research project.
Identified methionine as the
precursor of ethylene, the plant hormone that promotes fruit
ripening.
Smoothstem and Thornfree
semierrect blackberries released, first thornless blackberry
cultivars.
Juvabione isolated, a substance
in balsam fir wood that prevents immature insects from maturing.
First electron microscope image
produced of virus that causes foot-and-mouth disease in infected animal
cells.(more)
Food for Peace program amended to permit the
enrichment and fortification of commodities to improve their nutritional
quality.
Showed that dairy cows could
have protein needs met with low-cost urea instead of high-cost protein feeds;
research funded by ARS.
Fortuna released; first rust and
sawfly resistant wheat.
Developed method for chemical
pruning side buds from chrysanthemums without harming the growing
tip.
Conducted initial testing of
prototype laser-beam system for controlling depth and grade in subsurface
drainage installation equipment. The laser-plane grading system was adopted and
modified by industry and is now used worldwide.
Showed that ozone and sulfur
dioxide in combination more seriously affected plants than either did
alone.
Developed high-calorie, nontoxic
fat emulsion for intravenous feeding from purified cottonseed oil and egg
lecithin.
1967 Viroids discovered, the smallest known agents of plant
disease. (more)
Wholesome Meat Act passed.
Blueboy released; first
semidwarf soft red winter wheat.
Grew Marek's disease-causing
virus in the laboratory for the first time.
Developed wheat-soybean
tempeh.
1968 Alfalfa blotch leafminer found in the
U.S.
Reported that soil eventually
controls disease 'take-all after years of continuously grown
wheat.
Determined that lupine is toxic
to cattle; caused crooked calf disease or abortion.
Arthur soft red winter wheat
released; double the yield of standard Trumbull variety.
Friar plum released.
Team alfalfa released; ozone
resistant.
Concept of crop coefficients for
use with evapotranspiration developed.
1969 Food and Nutrition Service
established. (more)
Use of modified live-virus hog cholera vaccines
outlawed.(more)
National Environmental Policy Act
passed.
Discovered bovine leukemia virus.
Mycoplasmalike organisms discovered.
Discovered bovine C-type virus; later renamed
bovine leukemia virus.
A mycoplasma, a type of
microorganism associated with animal disease, identified for the first time as
the cause of a mechanically transmitted plant disease.
Patented ammoniation process for
detoxification of aflatoxin.
Discovered mode of inheritance
of Ehlers-Danlos syndrome in dogs and mink. |