# Information Services for Agriculture: The Role of Technology

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## Record

- **Collection:** Congressional research report
- **Document type:** CRS Report
- **Published:** November 16, 1982
- **Citation:** 82-183S

## Text

Report No. 82-183 S

INFORMATION SERVICES FOR AGRICULTURE:

Ob:-.,

7k

,

THE ROLE OF TECHNOLOG':

Robert L. Chartrand
S e n i o r S p e c i a l i s t i n I n f o r m a t i o n P o l i c y and Technology
A. B a r n Carr
S p e c i a l i s t i n Agricultural Policy

and

Nancy R. Miller
Research A s s i s t a n t i n Information P o l i c y and Technology

November 1 6 , 1982

.

..*.:

T h e Congressional Research Service works exclusively for
the Congress, conducting research, analyzing legslation, and
providing information at the request of committees, Members, and their staffs.
T h e Service makes such research available, without partisan bias, in many forms including studies, reports, compilations, digests, and background briefings. Upon request, CRS
assists committees in analyzing legislative proposals and
issues, and in assessing the possible effects of these proposals
and their alternatives. T h e Service's senior specialists and
subject analysts are also available for personal consultations
in their respective fields of expertise.

ABSTRACT

Significant improvements in technology-supported information services
have created opportunities for their utilization by the farmers and ranchers
of our Nation.

This report highlights the development and expanded offering

of these systems, describes current operational and experimental systems, and
presents salient legislative initiatives which address this priority area.

CONTENTS

I.

INTRODUCTION

..............................................

1

I1 .

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ITS APPLICATION IN AGRICULTURE

. 13

............................. 23
IV . ILLUSTRATIVE INFORMATION SYSTEMS FOR AGRICULTURE .......... 27
V . RECENT LEGISLATIVE OVERSIGHT .............................. 41
VI . SELECTED REFERENCES ..................................... 50

I11 .

CHRONOLOGY OF SELECTED EVENTS

I.

INTRODUCTION

The a g r i c u l t u r a l s c e n e i n t h e 1980 d e c a d e r e f l e c t s t h e c h a n g i n g ,
and y e t o f t e n s t r i k i n g l y t r a d i t i o n a l , s u p p o r t p r o v i d e d by o u r f a r m e r s and
r a n c h e r s who f u l f i l l t h e w a n t s o f t h i s n a t i o n .
l e g e n d a r y "sod-house

The s m a l l e r f a r m s o f t h e

f r o n t i e r " have been r e p l a c e d i n c r e a s i n g l y by " a g r i -

b u s i n e s s e s " of g r e a t h o l d i n g s and f i n a n c i a l r e s o u r c e s .
f a m i l y farm h a s s u r v i v e d , w i t h s t a n d i n g - - i n
of A g r i c u l t u r e O r v i l l e Freeman--"the

Nonetheless, t h e

t h e words of f o r m e r S e c r e t a r y

t e s t of t i m e and c o m p e t i t i o n . . . [making]

t h i s c o u n t r y t h e envy of t h e w o r l d and American f a r m p r o d u c t i o n t h e g r e a t e s t
p r o d u c t i o n m i r a c l e i n t h e h i s t o r y o f mankind."

1/ C o u n t l e s s i n n o v a t i o n s

have enhanced t h e p r o d u c t i o n p r o c e s s , and a l t h o u g h t h e number o f p r a c t i c i n g
farmers continued t o d e c l i n e , t h e a g r i c u l t u r a l output i n c r e a s e d w i t h each
passing year.

A t t h i s t i m e , o t h e r f a c t o r s i n c l u d i n g g r e a t l y i n f l a t e d equip-

ment and f i n a n c i n g c o s t s as w e l l a s f l u c t u a t i o n s i n t h e m a r k e t p l a c e have
combined t o b r i n g a b o u t a s e r i o u s s t a t e of a f f a i r s .

I n h i s testimony before

t h e House Subcommittee on Department O p e r a t i o n s , R e s e a r c h and F o r e i g n
2/
A g r i c u l t u r e , s e l f - p r o f e s s e d " d i r t farmer" Roy Meek declaimed t h a t : -

...

t h e a g r i c u l t u r e i n d u s t r y i s e x p e r i e n c i n g some o f
t h e most d i f f i c u l t t i m e s s i n c e t h e Great D e p r e s s i o n
we have m e t t h e s e problems i n t h e p a s t by i n c r e a s i n g o u r
e f f i c i e n c i e s of p r o d u c t i o n and i n c r e a s i n g o u r volume o f
production.

...

It i s t h e b e l i e f o f many a g r i c u l t u r a l l e a d e r s , s p e c i a l i s t s and

p r a c t i t i o n e r s t h a t t h e t r a d i t i o n a l l i s t of a g r i c u l t u r a l e s s e n t i a l inputs-l a n d , l a b o r , capital--must

b e expanded i n t o d a y s ' w o r l d t o

1/ B r a d l e y , John P. The I n t e r n a t i o n a l D i c t i o n a r y of Thoughts.
c h i c a g o , Ferguson P r e s s , 1969. p. 25.
2/ Remarks o f Roy A. Meek, Manager, E a s t e r n Lamb P r o d u c e r s A s s o c i a t i o n , d u r i n g
h e a r i n g on A p p l i c a t i o n s o f Computer-based I n f o r m a t i o n Systems and S e r v i c e s i n
A g r i c u l t u r e , U.S. House o f R e p r e s e n t a t i v e s , May 20, 1982. T r a n s c r i p t , p . 60

i n c l u d e "information."

A number of spokesmen and i n t e r e s t e d p a r t i e s

i n both t h e p u b l i c and p r i v a t e s e c t o r s have gone on r e c o r d a s s a y i n g
t h a t t h i s new element must be c o n s i d e r e d t h e "glue" t h a t melds a l l
of t h e s e i n g r e d i e n t s i n a way t h a t maximizes s u c c e s s .

R e l i a n c e upon t h e

American farmer h a s n o t diminished i n t h e l e a s t ; indeed, f o r e i g n d i f f i c u l t i e s ( S o v i e t Union, I n d i a ) i n c r o p p r o d u c t i o n have sharpened t h e
f o c u s on t h e c r i t i c a l s u p p o r t f u r n i s h e d by our a g r i c u l t u r a l community.
But change i s " i n t h e wind" and t h e consensus e x i s t s t h a t an e r a of r e a s s e s s m e n t h a s been e n t e r e d upon by governmental a g e n c i e s and p r i v a t e
groups w i t h r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s r e l a t e d t o t h e a g r i c u l t u r a l i n d u s t r y .

A Range of Information-Related I s s u e s
I n c o n s i d e r i n g t h e s e v e r a l dimensions of mounting and s u s t a i n i n g
a n i m a g i n a t i v e s u p p o r t e f f o r t which could a d e q u a t e l y f u r n i s h f a r - f l u n g
r u r a l d w e l l e r s w i t h t i m e l y , comprehensive, a c c u r a t e , and r e l e v a n t inf o r m a t i o n of c o n s i d e r a b l e v a r i e t y , policymakers and program implem e n t e r s a r e f a c e d w i t h a spectrum of i s s u e s t o be addressed:
o

o

o

o

The k a l e i d o s c o p i c r o l e s and r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s of
e s t a b l i s h e d and emerging e n t i t i e s , both i n t h e p u b l i c
and p r i v a t e s e c t o r s , who s e r v e as information prov i d e r s f o r t h e a g r i c u l t u r a l community;
An e v e r p r e s s i n g requirement t o determine t o what
e x t e n t and under which c o n d i t i o n s governmentally
c o l l e c t e d d a t a could be a c c e s s e d by p r i v a t e v e n d o r s j
The c o n d i t i o n s under which i n d i v i d u a l s o r groups
a t t h e l o c a l l e v e l could i n f l u e n c e , even t o a
modest d e g r e e , t h e i n f o r m a t i o n o f f erings--content ,
f r e q u e n c y , form-made a v a i l a b l e t o them;
The e x t e n t t o which f o r m a l i z e d r e s p o n s i b i l i t y could
be a s s i g n e d t o i n f o r m a t i o n p r o v i d e r s and systems
implementers r e g a r d i n g such p o s t - i n s t a l l a t i o n
a c t i v i t i e s a s t r a i n i n g , maintenance, and t h e rnodif i c a t i o n of f i l e s and software;

The ramifications of private organizations acquiring government-developed data files and/or software which would then be modified, reselting in
"value-added" products and services, with particular attention to ownership of such improved elements.
o The difersity of hardware and software offerings which
has raised vociferous arguments for and against
standardization, either through a government mechanism or imposed by the information industry.
o The desirability of continued, or enhanced, governmental
subsidization of research and first-phase enterprises
leading to new or improved information services.
o The need to look ahead at efforts which could be undertaken at present to protect the confidentiality of
personal and corporate data being entered into some
of the agriculturally-oriented on-line files.

o

Myriad changes have taken place in the past quarter-century as
farmers have moved do stay abreast of the technology which can keep
them competitive and productive.

Many times they are reportedly at

the mercy of the marketplace, and in the past were at a disadvantape
in knowing of marketing opportunities, current pricing, or trends in
the futures' market.

With the introduction of improved information

systems which could bring up-to-the-minute information on Board of
Trade quotes and analyses of activity patterns acrocs the agricultural industry, agri-businesses and smaller farm units began to feel
more in control of their own destinies. These are seen as difficult
times for farmers, whose production costs have continued to mount in
an unprecendented fashion while the vagaries of the marketplace often
have prevented them from obtaining sufficient remuneration for their
labors.
One of the key underpinnings of agriculture today is the series of
information networks which serve farmers and ranchers and those with
whom they regularly interact--the extension services, local governments,
banks, and farmers' organizations. The proliferation of computer-based

i n f o r m a t i o n systems a v a i l a b l e t o t h e farmer i s bound t o impact n o t o n l y t h e
b u s i n e s s o p e r a t i o n s b u t many of t h e p e r s o n a l l i v i n g p a t t e r n s a s w e l l .
R e l a t i o n s h i p s w i t h F e d e r a l , S t a t e , and c o u n t r y government a g r i c u l t u r a l
s p e c i a l i s t s may be a f f e c t e d , and t h e t r a d i t i o n a l r o l e s of t h e s e
organizations altered.

Consider t h e s e q u e s t i o n s which must be a d d r e s s e d

31
i n t h e y e a r s t o come: o

o

o

W i l l new i n f o r m a t i o n systems be used t o i n c r e a s e t h e
c a p a c i t y of t h e county e x t e n s i o n s e r v i c e t o s e r v e
farm and nonfarm c l i e n t s , o r w i l l they r e p l a c e t h e
t r a d i t i o n a l e x t e n s i o n d e l i v e r y system f o r c e r t a i n t y p e s
of i n f o r m a t i o n ?
W i l l t h e a d o p t i o n of new i n f o r m a t i o n t e c h n o l o g i e s req u i r e E x t e n s i o n t o make tough c h o i c e s about t h e audiences i t w i l l serve?
Should S t a t e i n s t i t u t i o n s c o p y r i g h t and f r a n c h i s e t h e i r
s o f t w a r e o r do t h e y have an o b l i g a t i o n t o s h a r e i t
with others?

And perhaps most b a s i c i n t h e minds of t h e p o t e n t i a l u s e r c l i e n t e l e :
A t what p o i n t i n t h e system may an i n d i v i d u a l g a i n a c c e s s t o d e s i r e d

i n f o r m a t i o n , from which r e s o u r c e , and a t what c o s t ?

A number of v i t a l i n s t i t u t i o n a l i s s u e s w i l l have t o be f a c e d , b o t h
i n t h e Congress and t h e sundry implementing a g e n c i e s comprising t h e
Federal-State-local

t r i a d , i n c l u d i n g t h e s e t h r e e s p e c i f i c cnncerns t h a t

were i d e n t i f i e d i n t h e Subcommittee b o o k l e t prepared f o r d i s t r i b u t i o n
d u r i n g t h e aforementioned h e a r i n g :

A/

F i r s t . t h e a p p r o p r i a t e r o l e f o r t h e F e d e r a l government i n
i n f o r m a t i o n technology r e s e a r c h and development m e r i t s r e e v a l u a t i o n i n view of changing c o n d i t i o n s .
Second, t h e r o l e of F e d e r a l and S t a t e a g e n c i e s i n t r a i n i n g
p e r s o n n e l t o use t h e new t e c h n o l o g i e s should be d e f i n e d .
T h i r d , t h e development of approaches t o improve c o o p e r a t i o n
between t h e v a r i o u s F e d e r a l and S t a t e a g e n c i e s involved . i n
i n f o r m a t i o n technology d e s e r v e s c o n s i d e r a t i o n .

3-1 U.S. L i b r a r y of Congress. Congressional Research S e r v i c e .
Computer-Based I n f o r m a t i o n Systems and S e r v i c e s f o r R u r a l America. A
pamphlet produced by Robert L. Chartrand and A. Barry Carr f o r Hearings h e l d
by t h e Subcommittee on Department O p e r a t i o n s , Research and Foreign A g r i c u l t u r e
of t h e Houee Committee on A g r i c u l t u r e , May 19-20, 1982, p. 6
4 / C h a r t r a n d and C a r r , Computer-Based I n f o r m a t i o n Systems and S e r v i c e s
f o r R n r a l America, p. 7

Repeatedly, there is an emphasis on raising the level of governmental
performance:

planning, programming, monitoring, budgeting.

The
In -

Recovery of Confidence, John Gardner stresses that: 51

..

we must build into organizations, particularly in
government, the evaluative processes that will permit
us to judge performance. This means that government
officials must be required to be specific about goals
-that is, about outcomes that would have to be achieved
to count a given activity successful; they must
develop measures to determine whether those outcomes
have occurred; and they must apply the measures
systematically to performance-all to the end that
they can say of any program, "It worked" or "It didn't
work." [italics added]
The Evolving Role of Information Technology
A parallel pattern of change with far-reaching ramifications, including
some for the agricultural community, has been that brought about by the
cascading improvements in "information technologyn--computers, telecommunications, microfo m s , word processors, audio and video devices.

During the

past half-century, the impacts of these often astonishing tools and techniques
have been felt in every segment of our business and personal lives.

Listen

to the optimistic prognostication of David Sarnoff, President of the Radio
Corporation of America, as he spoke in 1927 of one such invention, "radiotelevision:" 6/
The possibilities of the new art are as boundless as the
imagination. But this much is certain: in the sphere of
communication man will forever seek a medium of transmission
in pace with his thoughts and desires.

51 Gardner, John W.
1970.~. 40-41.

The Recovery of Confidence.

New York, Norton,

6 1 Remarks of David Sarnoff, President of RCA Corp., before the
chicago Association of Commerce, June 8, 1927.

Another form of " e l e c t r o n i c i n f o r m a t i o n p r o c e s s o r " soon was t o j o i n t h e
a r r a y of "wizard machines," and i t s p o t e n t i a l i s noted i n t h e s e modest
7/
words of computer p i o n e e r Samuel Alexander, i n 1952: They may e n a b l e s c i e n c e , i n d u s t r y , and government t o
t a c k l e l a r g e - s c a l e complex problems which h e r e t o f o r e
c o u l d n o t be handled v e r y e f f e c t i v e l y i n t h e time
allowed. They may e v e n t u a l l y reduce t h e n e c e s s i t y
f o r c e n t r a l i z a t i o n and a t t e n d a n t overcrowding by perm i t t i n g t h e d i s p e r s a l of people and equipment witho u t s a c r i f i c i n g some of t h e advantages of c e n t r a l i z e d
control.
The o u t r e a c h and i n f o r m a t i o n a c c e s s a f f o r d e d by t h e s e t e c h n o l o g i e s ,
o f t e n used i n combination, e p i t o m i z e t h e changing n a t u r e of o u r s o c i e t y .
The " I n f o r m a t i o n Age" has a r r i v e d , and i n s t i t u t i o n s and i n d i v i d u a l s everywhere
a r e s t r i v i n g t o understand and cope w i t h i t .

The dynamic n a t u r e of t h i s

" i n f o r m a t i o n r e v o l u t i o n " can h a r d l y be o v e r s t a t e d f o r even a s s u c c e s s i v e groups
of hardware o r s o f t w a r e a p p e a r on t h e s c e n e , t h e f u l l impact of o t h e r
r e c e n t i n n o v a t i v e p r o d u c t s o r systems such as d i r e c t b r o a d c a s t s a t e l l i t e ( D B S ) ,
c a b l e s e r v i c e s , and f i b r e o p t i c s o r l a s e r s i s y e t t o be absorbed.

The

i n t r o d u c t i o n of such i n n o v a t o r y d e v i c e s o r methods p l a c e s s t r e s s e s upon
e x i s t i n g r e l a t i o n s h i p s and r o u t i n e s ; i n t h i s r e g a r d , t h e words of Robert Boguslaw
i n The New Utopians m e r i t r e c a l l :

8/

Computers a r e n o t found i n n a t u r e . They have t o be b u i l t .
And t h e y must t a k e t h e i r p l a c e s w i t h i n a framework of
e x i s t i n g s o c i a l systems. A d e c i s i o n t o p l a c e them w i t h i n a
framework r e d e f i n e s e x i s t i n g system arrangements i n s i g n i f i c a n t ways.

71 Remarks of Samuel N. Alexander b e f o r e t h e E a s t e r n J o i n t Computer
~ o nefr e n c e , 1952.

a/
1965.

p.

Boguslaw, Robert.
182.

New Utopians.

Englewood C l i f f s , N.J.,Prentic_e-Hall.

Information technology can perform many useful services for those
who comprise the rural community:
Speeding the transmission of information from the
creator to the user;
Sifting selectively, according to user profiles, through
vast quantities of available information to obtain the
most relevant material:
Storing information, and in some cases raw data, so that
concept terms and "keyword" indexes will allow rapid,
precise retrieval; and
Facilitating the dissemination of needed information to
individual and orgaqizational users in the most expeditious
fashion.
The importance of public investment in the production (research) and
dissemination (education) of key knowledge is underscored in a recent paper 91
by Nobel Laureate Economist Theodore Schultz. Entitled "Knowledge is Power
in Agriculture," it stresses the criticality of promoting agricultural growth
by improving the quality of farm people as economic agents.

Those responsible

for agricultural productivity must, in the present setting, draw upon the valuable
lessons of the past even as they are stretching their horizons into the future.
Bruce Catton wrote that:l~/
Americans were a people of whom much had been asked and
to whom much had been given. and their rendezvous with destiny
had fairly started--an ongoing destiny, to be partaken of
and defined and a ~ ~ l i ein
d different ways bv each generation in turn.

Schultz, Theodore. Knowledge Is Power in Agriculture. Challenge,
September-October 1981. p. 1-12.
la/ Catton, Bruce and William B. The Bold and Magnificent Dream.
Doubleday, 1978, Garden City, New York. p. 465

Today, t h e d e b a t e c e n t e r s i n c r e a s i n g l y on t h e b e s t means of obt a i n i n g needed d a t a - m a r k e t , w e a t h e r , p e s t - o r i e n t e d ,

etc.--and

trade-offs

information ser-

vices.

i n h e r e n t i n a c q u i r i n g technology-supported

the

The t e c h n o l o g i e s now b e i n g t e s t e d o r used o p e r a t i o n a l l y t o

d i s s e m i n a t e i n f o r m a t i o n t o more remote a r e a s a r e o n l y t h e l e a d i n g edge
of systems a l r e a d y under development.

S i g n i f i c a n t , proven a d v a n t a g e s

have been d e r i v e d from t h e m i n i a t u r i z a t i o n of components i n computers
and telecommunications and a n u n r e m i t t i n g t r e n d toward l e s s c o s t l y
configurations.
Many m i s c o n c e p t i o n s can a r i s e r e g a r d i n g t h e e f f i c a c y and u t i l i t y
of e x t e r n a l i n f o r m a t i o n which i s made a c c e s s i b l e t o t h e farming community.
No magic i s wrought by t h e c o l l e c t i o n , e i t h e r w i t h i n government o r a s an
e n t r e p r e n e u r i a l endeavor by a p r i v a t e s e c t o r " i n f o r m a t i o n p r o v i d e r , " and
p o s s i b l e subsequent i n t e r p r e t i v e h a n d l i n g of n a r r a t i v e , g r a p h i c , o r
s t a t i s t i c a l information.

..

Norman Cousins c a u t i o n s t h a t : 11/

.

. i n a computerized age.
. t h e r e may be a tendency
t o m i s t a k e d a t a f o r wisdom, j u s t a s t h e r e h a s always
been a tendency t o confuse l o g i c w i t h v a l u e s , and
i n t e l l i g e n c e w i t h i n s i g h t . Unobstructed a c c e s s t o f a c t s
c a n produce u n l i m i t e d good o n l y i f i t i s matched by t h e
d e s i r e and a b i l i t y t o f i n d o u t what t h e y mean and where
t h e y would l e a d . .
I n t e r a c t i o n s I n v o l v i n g A g r i c u l t u r a l i s t s and The I n f o r m a t i o n Community
I n contemporary America, t h e r e a r e s e v e r a l f o c a l developments which
embody key f a c e t s of i n t e r a c t i o n between f a r m e r s and r a n c h e r s and t h o s e
e n t i t i e s which a r e r e s p o n s i b l e f o r a c q u i r i n g , i n d e x i n g , a b s t r a c t i n g , s t r o i n g ,

111 Pylyshyn, Zenon W., ed. P e r s p e c t i v e s on t h e Computer Revolution.
~ n ~ l e w o oCdl i f f s , N. J.., P r e n t i c e - H a l l , 1970. p. 4 9 9

processing, retrieving, and disseminating selected information of proven
value to that user community:
o

During the 1970s counties with no settlement as
large as 2,500 persons and not adjacent to a metropolitan area grew by 14.6 percent, faster than the
metropolitan growth rate, the rural population increased by 5.9 million persons. 121
o Although the emphasis on productivity has continued
unabated, and technologies have been utilized to
that end to the utmost, there appears to be a growing
feeling that the role of technology-supported information services can become critical in improving the
management and hence the productivity of farming units.
o For those living at "the end of the road," who often
see themselves as being informationally disadvantaged,
any move toward establishing a better balance in the
offering of advanced information services is viewed
with enthusiasm, although this may place new burdens
on Federal services and local government.
o The "internationalization" of American agriculture,
which had its genesis nearly a decade ago, has included the creation of an awareness on the part of the
American farmer--through such services as AGNET--of market opportunities akin to those exising in an adjoining
county or State in earlier periods.

Since new information systems are generated as the result of a clearly
urgent need as expressed by the users, or come about due to an entrepreneurial
belief that there is a market for them, experience has shown that their
usefulness should be assessed regularly.

In his book Society as a Learning

Machine, former Science Advisor to the President Dr. Jerome Wiesner pointed
out that "any learning process requires feedback of information for a
comparison of the accomplishment with the goal."

With the advent of on-line

technology, this monitoring can be achieved much more easily than in the
past. 131
-

121 Long, Larry, and Diana DeAre. Repopulating the Countryside: A 1980
Census Trend. Science, v. 217, September 17, 1982. p. 1112, 1114
131 Wiesner, Jerome.
~~ril-24,
1966. p. 15

Society As a Learning Machine.

The New York Times,

The t e c h n o l o g i e s now b e i n g used o p e r a t i o n a l l y t o d i s s e m i n a t e
i n f o r m a t i o n t o more remote a r e a s a r e b u t t h e l e a d i n g edge of more advanced
systems.

With t h e i m p r e s s i v e advantages gained through t h e m i n i a t u r i z a t i o n

of components, b o t h i n computers and telecommunications, and t h e c o n t i n u i n g
t r e n d toward l e s s e x p e n s i v e c o n f i g u r a t i o n s , t h e number of i n d i v i d u a l s and
o r g a n i z a t i o n s a b l e t o purchase o r l e a s e t h e new systems grows apace.
Government and s o c i e t y a l i k e a r e b e i n g changed a s a r e s u l t of t h e s e developments.

A thought-provoking o b s e r v a t i o n on t h i s phenomenon was made by t h e

l a t e Marshall ~ c ~ u h a n : l g /
The medium, o r p r o c e s s , . of our time--electronic technology--is
r e s h a p i n g and r e s t r u c t u r i n g p a t t e r n s of s o c i a l interdependence
and e v e r y a s p e c t of o u r p e r s o n a l l i f e . I t i s f o r c i n g us t o
r e c o n s i d e r and r e e v a l u a t e p r a c t i c a l l y every thought, every a c t i o n ,
and e v e r y i n s t i t u t i o n f o r m e r l y t a k e n f o r g r a n t e d .
It i s a p p a r e n t t o t h o s e d e v e l o p i n g a s w e l l a s u s i n g t h e e v o l v i n g i n f o r -

mation r e s o u r c e s and s e r v i c e s t h a t t h e i n t e g r a t i o n of t h e new d e v i c e s and
t e c h n i q u e s i n t o e s t a b l i s h e d r o u t i n e s w i l l t a k e time, and i n many i n s t a n c e s
w i l l cause u n a n t i c i p a t e d changes i n t h e ways of doing t h i n g s .

This c a l l s

f o r c a r e f u l thought t o be g i v e n t o t h e scope and n a t u r e of t h e o r i e n t a t i o n
s e s s i o n s where new u s e r s f i r s t h e a r and l e a r n about how t h e systems work,
what i s expected of them a s u s e r s , and t o whom they can t u r n f o r a s s i s t a n c e
when problems occur.

The importance of good t r a i n i n g and follow-through u s e r

a s s i s t a n c e p r o c e d u r e s can n e v e r be o v e r s t a t e d .

1 4 / McLuhan, M a r s h a l l .
~ e w y o r k ,1967. p. 8.

The Medium i s The Massage.

Bantam Books,

The Stakeholders Involved in Advanced Information Systems for Rural America
Any examination of the groups involved in the creation, maintenance,
and utilization of technology-based information services designed to
support the farming and ranching communities reveals a diverse set of private
and governmental institutions, as well as individuals and families.

These

include:

Individual or f amily-owned farms and ranches
Ilgri-business corporations
Newspapers
Television and radio stations
Banks
University and college agricultural departments
Town and county governmental units
Telephone and satellite utilities
Federal, State and local extension services
Associations and farm organizations

Each of these has a special stake in the effective introduction and
functioning of better rural information systems.

Quite often, there are

interlocking activities which, if properly carried out, can serve to benefit
several of the participating groups simultaneously.

There will be times when

communication--in the traditional sense--will be improved, perhaps to the
same extent as when the telephone became widely used.

In terms of the

marketplace, particularly the handling of crops and livestock, the timeliness
of information afforded by these services can be vital.

J u s t h a v i n g more i n f o r m a t i o n i s n o t , of c o u r s e , t h e answer t o e v e r y o n e ' s
problems, b u t new a c t i o n a l t e r n a t i v e s a r e coming t o l i g h t .

Those w i t h a r e a l

need f o r b e t t e r (and sometimes more) i n f o r m a t i o n must b e r e a d y t o go t h r o u g h
an " e d u c a t i o n " p r o c e s s of s o r t s .

T h i s may i n v o l v e a s h i f t i n p r i o r i t i e s , i n c l u d

i n g how t i m e i s s p e n t and s p e c i f i c a l l y what t y p e s of i n f o r m a t i o n a r e c r i t i c a l
t o t h e management of t h e i r o p e r a t i o n .

Any change i n v o l v e s an element o f r i s k ,

b u t a s P e t e r Drucker ( i n Management S c i e n c e ) c o u n s e l l e d n e a r l y 25 y e a r s ago:

". . . w h i l e i t i s f u t i l e t o try t o e l i m i n a t e r i s k , and q u e s t i o n a b l e t o t r y t o
minimize i t , i t i s e s s e n t i a l t h a t t h e r i s k s t a k e n be t h e r i g h t r i s k s . " l 5-/
The r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r d e t e r m i n i n g p r i o r i t i e s and program t h r u s t s i s one
which w i l l n e c e s s a r i l y b e s h a r e d by a n a r r a y of o r g a n i z a t i o n s i n b o t h t h e
p u b l i c and p r i v a t e s e c t o r s .

15 1 D r u c k e r , P e t e r F. Long-Range P l a n n i n g :
i n Management S c i e n c e , v. 5 , 1959. p . 240

C h a l l e n g e t o Management S c i e n c e ,

11.

INFORMATI3N TECHNOLXY APJD ITS APPLICATION IN AGRICULTURE

Uhen the European settlers established their first colonies on the shores
of America in the early seventeenth century, they brought with them the tools,
seeds, and agricultural technology of the old world.

In their first contacts

with the native American Indian, they were exposed to the tools, seeds and
agricultural technology of the new world.

The older colonies in New England

and Virginia became the first "experiment stations" where the old and the new
were tried and proven, and the practical information thus obtained was sought
by and shared with settlers at the newer colonies.
In the earliest days information was exchanged among farmers, and almost
all of the settlers lived on small farms.

That is to say, people traveled

from place to place obtaining needed supplies and information on a one-to-one
basis.

Hand-carried letters rere another means of transmitting information.

Newspapers eventually became the first mass media, and given the nature of the
times, agricultural information was a prominent feature of these publications.
In the late eighteenth century, books--for example, The Old Farmers Almanac,
published in Sterling, Massachusetts, in 1792--became important sources of agricultural information.

The herican Farmer magazine, which began publication in

Baltimore in 1819 at a cost of $4.00 per annum, stated its purpose: "to collect
information fron every source,
systems,

. . . to enable the reader to study the various

. . . and to put him in possession of that knowledge and skill." Besides

articles on the main subject of the paper, it promised original essays "for amusement and instruction, substantial detail of passing occurrences--and

...a

faithful account of the actual prices" of principal farm comodities for sale in
the Baltimore market.

It s e e m worth pointing out that the explosion of publications in early
America was certainly facilitated by the use of a connon language--English.

,41-

though many tongues were spoken by early Americans, and early publications reflected such diverse readerships, English rapidly became the universal language.
Computer-based information systems have not had the advantage of a universal
programing language.
Americans early expressed an interest in science.

The American Philosophical

Society, the first significant scientific society in America, was founded in 1 7 4 3 .
The first society devoted entirely to agriculture was the Philadelphia Society for
Promoting Agriculture, formed in 1735 by a group of citizens, only a few of whom
were actually farmers.

Many local agricultural societies were thereafter orga-

nized throughout the United States.
The beginning of involvement in scientific agriculture by the U.S. Government is traced to activities of the U.S. Patent Office in 1839 when the Congress
appropriated $1,000 for collecting agricultural statistics, conducting agricultural investigations, and distributing seeds. The agricultural collections of the
Patent Office library are said to be the beginnings of the National Agricultural
Library, now maintained by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

By 1 8 5 9 there was

general dissatisfaction on the part of the Congress and the public with the activities of the agricultural department of the Patent Office.

President Lincoln's

first annual message to the Congress suggested that "annual reports exhibiting the
condition of our agriculture, commerce and manufactures would present a fund of
information of great practical value to the country."

Congress responded the fol-

lowing year with an act establishing the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

he Act

of 1 8 6 2 instructs the USDA to "acquire and diffuse among the people of the united

States useful information on subjects connected with agriculture in the most general and comprehensive sense of that word."
At the same time Congress was establishing the U.S. Department of Agriculture, it began a series of Acts which collectively created the Land-Grant University system.

The %orrill Act of 1862 provided land or funding to each State to

endow, support, and maintain at least one college to teach, among other subjects,
agriculture.

This was followed in 1587 by the Hatch Act which established State

agricultural experiment stations for the purpose of "acquiring and diffusing among
the people of the United States useful and practical information on subjects connected with agriculture."

Additional funding was provided to States by the Second

Xorrill Act of 1890, for the establishment of a separate colle3e "for the education of colored students in agriculture and the mechanical arts."

And finally,

the Smith-Lever Act of 1914 created a Federal-State-local government partnership
to carry out a program of extension work designed not only to diffuse useful and
practical informtion relating to agriculture and home economics, but also to "encourage the application of the same."
Although mass media were being provided an ever-increasing stream of information from Federal agencies, State universities, and other sources, the problem
of serving a geographically isolated farm population with timely information still
remained.

Initfally farm families could only receive newspapers and magazines

i~henthey visited the nearest large town or city.
The first step toward bringing the world to the farm came when Postmaster
William L. Wilson ordered that mail would be delivered directly to farm homes.
Rural free delivery ( W D ) began in 1895 in West Virginia and was enlarged to include all rural residents, as successive Congresses provided funds.

This meant

that newspapers, magazines, and books could be sent directly to rural residents
and at very low cost.
Although Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1876, it was many
years before its benefits were fully available to rural residents.

Again it was

geographic isolation, and the dispersed nature of farm population, which caused
the private sector to consider telephone service to rural areas an unprofitable
business investment.

In the early days farmers banded together to form small, mu-

tual (cooperative) telephone companies to serve their areas.
Soon, however, the heavy capital costs associated with a nodern telephone
network were beyond the means of most rural telephone systems. 'The poor service
caused by equipment obsolescence was a major problem. Fewer farmers had telephones
in 1940 than in 1920.

In 1949, Cbngress authorized an agency of the USDA, the

Rural Electrification Administration (REA),

to make loans "to assure the avail-

ability of adequate telephone service to the widest practical number of rural
users."

At that time only 38 percent of all farms had telephone service.

Although the first successful radio station, KDKA Pittsburgh, went on the air
in 1920, the full benefits of radio, and later television, could not be available
to farmers until their homes were electrified.
by electric utility companies.

In 1920 almost no farms were served

According to the 1930 census,9 percent of the farms

were served by utility companies and another 4 percent generated their own
electricity.
Because of the low density of farm population, farmers were charged higher
rates for electrical service, and the extension of service was slow.

In 1935

President Franklin Roosevelt established REA by Executive order for the purpose
of making loans to local organizations to finance the distribution, generation,

and transmission of electric power to unserved rural persons.

Although nearly

half of all farms and ranches still lacked electrical service by the end of the
Second World War, today 99 percent of all farms receive electrical service.
The first all-purpose, all-electronic computer was developed in 1946, but
commercial computers did not begin to appear on Land-Grant University campuses
until about 1960.

Agricultural research and Extension workers were among the

first to use this new technology.

By the early 1960s, a number of state uni-

versities had in operation computer-based recordkeeping and farm management programs for farmers, and linear programing models were baing used on a regular
basis.

This early exposure of farmers to computer information management set the

stage for the ready adoption of terminals and personal computers on the farm in
the 1980s.

Current Information Technology in Agriculture
In focusing on the application of current information technology to a range
of farm-related activities, it is helpful to delineate the types of information
which are normally used in the daily personal lives and business operations of
those who farm and ranch:
News and cornunity service information--what's happening;
Weather forecasts and related emergency or disaster information;
Crop and livestock production information, including pest management, irrigation water management, and feeding recommendations;
Marketing information, including current and future prices;
Selling of farm products through teleauction or computer auction
Purchasing farm and home supplies, including teleshopping;
Banking services, including lending and cash management;

8.

Business management including recordkeeping, budgeting, and
planning ;

9.

Information concerning farm and public policy including regulations;
and

10. Personal education and entertainment.
Farm families have available to them an unprecedented variety of sources of
information and services such as those just listed.

One major type of information

service is the public or tax-supported sector, consisting of Federal, State, and
local agencies.

The USDA is still a major source of technical information about

the production and marketing of farm commodities as well as home economics.

The

National Weather Service of the U.S. Department of Commerce collects, interprets,
and distributes weather data.

State agencies and institutions, including the

research and extension components'of the Land-Grant Universities, and the Crop
Reporting Services, are also an important source of production, management, and
marketing information.

At the local level, libraries, county Extension Offices,

and the local school system, including community colleges, are major sources of
information. Local institutions tend to be places where information from other
sources is stored and retrieved for local users, or where information is conveyed
through formal educational processes such as group lectures.

A second major category of information service is the private sector. Here,
businesses or not-for-profit organizations provide information for a fee which may
be paid by the user or an advertiser, or shared by both.

In some cases private

sector information sources are called mass media because the individual has no
direct control over the content of the information presented; for example, newspapers, magazines, radio, and television.

?lass media can make large quantities

of information available to large numbers of people at a low cost per person.

However, i t i s o f t e n n o t a s i m p l e t a s k f o r t h e u s e r t o s i f t t h r o u g h t h i s mass t o
obtain the p a r t i c u l a r information desired.
When a N a t i o n a l O p i n i o n R e s e a r c h C e n t e r s u r v e y a s k e d f a r m e r s i f t h e y were
d i s s a t i s f i e d w i t h t h e i r c u r r e n t s o u r c e s of i n f o r m a t i o n , t h e i r most f r e q u e n t c c n r
p l a i n t i n v o l v e d a l a c k of c o n f i d e n c e i n a c c u r a c y and r e l i a b i l i t y .

Information

r e c e i v e d from government s o u r c e s was sometimes f e l t t o be p o l i t i c a l l y s l a n t e d .
A v a i l a b l e i n f o r m a t i o n o f t e n d i d n o t a p p l y t o t h e p a r t i c u l a r t y p e of f a r m o r geog r a p h i c a r e a , was t o o g e n e r a l o r vague, t o o o l d o r o u t d a t e d , o r i t w a s t o o c o s t l y
o r d i f f i c u l t t o obtain.

Yet i n s p i t e of t h e s e c o m p l a i n t s , most f a r m e r s e x p r e s s e d

t h e b e l i e f t h a t t h e i r p r o d u c t i o n and m a r k e t i n g problems c o u l d be a l l e v i a t e d i f
t h e y had a c c e s s t o t h e s p e c i f i c i n f o r m a t i o n t h e y needed.
With t h e a d v e n t of computer t e c h n o l o g y , and a s s o c i a t e d d a t a t r a n s m i s s i o n
t e c h n o l o g i e s , i t h a s r e c e n t l y become f e a s i b l e t o o f f e r u s e r s d i r e c t a c c e s s t o
i n f o r m a t i o n b a s e s from remote l o c a t i o n s s u c h a s t h e i r home o r o f f i c e .

Some of

t h e s e i n f o r m a t i o n b a s e s may c o n t a i n a narrow r a n g e of d a t a r e l a t e d t o a s p e c i f i c
t o p i c , as f o r example t h e C R I S s y s t e m which l i s t s a g r i c u l t u r a l r e s e a r c h c u r r e n t l y
i n progress.

O t h e r s y s t e m s may o f f e r l a r g e c o l l e c t i o n s of d a t a b a s e s networked

f o r a c c e s s t h r o u g h a s i n g l e s e r v i c e , a s f o r example The S o u r c e s y s t e m o r AGNET.
But i n e i t h e r c a s e , u s e r s , e q u i p p e d w i t h a t e r m i n a l o r p e r s o n a l computer t o
a c c e s s t h e s y s t e m ' s main computer and a p r i n t e r o r a t u b e t o d i s p l a y t h e r e s u l t s ,
c a n q u i c k l y s e a r c h huge c o l l e c t i o n s of d a t a , r e t r i e v e what i s u s e f u l , a n d c a r r y
o u t w h a t e v e r m a n i p u l a t i o n s of t h e d a t a a r e n e c e s s a r y t o answer t h e i r q u e s t i o n s o r
s o l v e t h e i r problems.
F a r m e r s who have p u r c h a s e d computers a g r e e t h a t t h e b i g g e s t problem i s f i n d i n g u s e f u l programs.

F o r w h i l e minicomputers a r e w i t h i n t h e p r i c e r a n g e of most

farmers, without proper programming the units are of little value.
should provide more than just basic information.

Systems

Successful systems also pro-

vide the means for analysis of information in ways which assist farmers in their
management decisions.
It takes not only hardware and software, but also human and financial resources to build and market a viable computer-based information system.

Because

there are significant costs associated with the development and maintenance of
computer-based information systems, users are usually charged a fee before access
to the system is granted and a second fee based upon the extent of their usage.
These costs have often discouraged commercial firms, leaving the burden of development to State universities and government agencies.

R o w e r , it can be expected

that, as the technology is perfected, the private sector will play an increasingly important role in computer-based information systems.

What Does the Future Hold?
The computer-based information revolution in agriculture is based upon three
major forms of technology:

1.

Interactive computer systems which involve medium to large computers with powerful computational and information access capability. Users are usually connected to the main computer via
terminals and telephones.

2.

Videotex systems involving small to medium computers designed to
provide a wide range of information. Users require a video device
provided with a terminal and telephone system.

3.

Microcomputer systems on site in offices or homes can meet the data
processing needs of most users in addition to interfacing with large
time-sharing systems and many videotex systems. The availability of
quality software is important.

New information technology is changing the form in which farm families receive information.

Increasingly, information is being brought to the user, via

terminal or television; the user no longer has to go to the information.
courses can take place in the home instead of the classroom.
placed with programmed learning sequences on terminals.

Formal

Lectures can be re-

Even the tried-and-true

Extension demonstration can be videotaped and made available to farm families in
their homes and at their convenience.

More and more, Extension bulletins and re-

search reports, as well as magazines and even newpapers, will be available as
videotex on home television rather than delivered in hardcopy.

Even person-to-

person communications now limited to personal visits, telephone or letter, will
be handled--when speed and convenience are important--through "electronic mailboxes" provided by many computer-based systems.
The penetration of computerbased information technologies into the farm
scene raises some vexing social questions.

The basic policy issue is:

At what

point in the system may an individual gain access to desired information, from
which source, and at what cost? Promoting equality in this dimension is a major
challenge for both public and private sectors.

The emergence of new information

technologies may also have important consequences for traditional agricultural
information institutions.

Will the new information systems be used to increase

the capacity of the county Extension service to serve farm and nonfarm clients,
or will they replace the traditional Extension delivery system for certain types
of information? Should State institutions copyright and franchise their software,
or do they have an obligation to share it with others? Will the important role of
farm magazines and other publications be diminished?
Much has been written about the present "Age of Information" and the emphasfs
has been on the array of electronic devices which can store, process, retrieve and
distribute information at incredible speeds and in a variety of forms.

Literally

hundreds of people at universities, on farms, and elsewhere are at work developing

software and data collections to utilize this technology.

3ne can hardly pick up

a farm magazine today which does not contain an article about computers for the
farm.

Dr. Robert Kramer, of the Kellogg Foundation, predicts that three-quarters

of the comercia1 farms and 90 percent of the county Extension offices will be
equipped with computers or intelligent terminals by 1990. While this prediction
may seem far-fetched to some people, the information technology revolution is impacting the farm sector right now.

The electronic technology already exists.

111.

CHRONOLOGY OF SELECTED EVENTS

Although information technology has been evolving since the dawn of
civilization, many persons believe that recent developments indicate an
"information revolution" is underway.

A brief review of significant events

is helpful in developing a perspective on where anricultural information technology
is today, and how we got here.

The following is a selected sampling of

significant events in the history of the United States, including recent
Federal initiatives, that have influenced the utilization of new information
systems fn American agriculture.
1743

The American Philosophical Society, the earliest society in the
United States to promote scientific agriculture, is organized.

1785

The Philadelphia Society for the Promotion of Agriculture is
founded.

1790

The New England Farmer by Samuel Dean, which became a standard
textbook on American agraiculture, is published.

1792

The Old Farmers Almanac is founded and published by Robert Thomas
at Sterling, Massachusetts. It is one of the oldest running
periodicals in the United States.

1819

The American Farmer magazine begins publication in Baltimore.

1831

Many schools and colleges begin to offer courses in agriculture
and sciences helpful to agriculture.

1837

Samuel Morse develops the first practical telegraph machine and
filed for a patent.

1840

For the first time the U.S. Census includes questions on
agriculture.

1858

First successful trans-Atlantic telegraph cable completed.

1860

First pony express mail route between St. Louis and Sacramento.

1875

Frank Baldwin is granted first U.S. patent for a practical
calculating machine that performs the four arithmetic functions.

1876

Alexander Graham Bell invents the telephone.

1881

First long-distance telephone line placed into service between
Yew York and Chicago.

1895

Guglielmo Marconi invents the wireless telegraph (radio).

1896

Postmaster William L. Wilson orders rural free delivery (RFD)
of mail.
KDKA (Pittsburgh) becomes first successful radio station.

Charles Jenkins invents the television.
President Franklin Roosevelt establishes Rural Electrification
Administration by executive order.
Eckert and Mauchly invent and develop first all purpose, all
electronic digital computer, the Electronic Numerical Integrator
and Calculator.
Transistors perfected.which replace vacuum tubes and improve
speed and efficiency in moving electrons.
Computer tabulated farm record/management systems begun by
Michigan State University and several other Land-Grant
Universities.
Tiros satellites send back pictures of hurricanes and cloud
movements.
TELPLAN information system implemented by Michigan Extension
Service.
Low cost, limited capacity "micro-computers" are introduced.
Chase Econometrics markets simulation model of U.S. agricultural
economy.
TELCOT system for computerized marketing of cotton begins with
15 buying terminals in Lubbock, Dallas, and Memphis.

AGNET information system established at University of Nebraska.
National Agricultural Library combines all bibliographic data
bases into on-line AGRICOLA system.
Regional Energy Environment Information Center established at
Denver Public Library.

1980

Computerized system for sale of livestock begun by Electronic
Marketing Association with 23 terminals throughout the Eastern
seaboard.

1981

Iowa Beef Processors establishes a satellite voice communication
system.

1982

U.S. Department of Agriculture begins electronic dissemination
of news releases and reports.

1982

Federal Communications Commission adopts interim rules for the
licensing and operation of direct broadcast satellite.

Coneressional Initiatives
Congress appropriates $1,000 to the Patent Office for collecting
agricultural statistics, conducting agricultural investigations,
and distributing seeds. Library is begun which later becomes the
National Agricultural Library.
President Abraham Lincoln signs legislation which created the
U.S. Department of Agriculture.
President Lincoln approves the Morril Land-Grant College Act.
Hatch Act establishes State Agricultural Experiment Stations.
The Smith-Lever Act formalizes cooperative extension work.
Congress authorizes Rural Electrification Administration to
make loans to rural telephone companies.
Vocational Education Act (P.L. 90-576) provides basis for subsequent communications demonstration experiments.
Rural Development Act (P.L. 92-419) establishes pilot program
for rural development and small farm research and education
to be administered through the Land-Grant Institutions.
Federal Program Information Act (P.L. 95-220) transfers Federal
Assistance Program Retrieval System (FAPRS) from USDA to OMB.
Subcommittee on Communications of Senate Committee on Commerce,
Science and Transportation holds hearings to examine potential
applications of telecommunications technology.
Public Telecommunications Financing Act (P.L. 95-567) establishes
Public Telecommunications Facilities Program.

1980

Paperwork Reeducation Act (P.L. 96-511) strengthens agency
information management procedures.

1982

House Subcommittee on Department Operations, Research, and
Foreign Agriculture holds hearings on computer-based
information systems for agriculture.

IV.

ILLUSTRATIVE INFORMATION SYSTEMS FOR AGRICULTURE

A s w i t h many s e c t o r s of t h e U.S. economy, farm income i s o f t e n dependent

upon t h e a v a i l a b i l i t y of a c c u r a t e , up-to-date
t i v e decision-making.

information necessary f o r effec-

There e x i s t s i n t h e United S t a t e s today a w e a l t h of

i n f o r m a t i o n on a g r i c u l t u r e and r e l a t e d s u b j e c t s , a l o n g w i t h an expanding
foundation of computer-based systems and t e l e c o m u n i c a t i o n s networks t o p r o c e s s
and d i s t r i b u t e t h e s e d a t a .

Yet i n many i n s t a n c e s , t h e s e i n f o r m a t i o n d e l i v e r y

systems a r e n o t e a s i l y a c c e s s i b l e t o a l l members of t h e a g r i c u l t u r a l community,
p a r t i c u l a r l y limited-resource

farmers.

I n r e c e n t y e a r s , Extension a g e n t s , farm a s s o c i a t i o n s , and USDA o f f i c i a l s
have e x p r e s s e d growing concern over how t o c o r r e c t t h i s imbalance through t h e
t i m e l y d e l i v e r y of low-cost i n f o r m a t i o n t o a l l of t h e N a t i o n ' s f a r m e r s and
ranchers.

D e s p i t e a wary a t t i t u d e on b e h a l f of t h e a g r i c u l t u r a l community,

t h e momentum f o r p r o v i d i n g computer-based i n f o r m a t i o n s e r v i c e s t o t h e a g r i c u l t u r a l s e c t o r i s s t e a d i l y increasing a s farmers a r e r e a l i z i n g t h e f i n a n c i a l
advantages t o be gained by i n t e g r a t i n g t h e s e systems i n t o t h e i r o p e r a t i o n s .
C u r r e n t l y , both t h e p u b l i c and p r i v a t e s e c t o r s a r e becoming a c t i v e l y i n v o l v e d
i n t h e development of o n - l i n e a g r i c u l t u r a l d a t a b a s e s , farm management s o f t w a r e ,
e l e c t r o n i c t r a d i n g systems, v i d e o t e x t systems, and e l e c t r o n i c messaging networks.
A s e l e c t i o n of systems demonstrating t h e s e v a r i o u s a p p l i c a t i o n s a p p e a r s i n

S e c t i o n A.

S e c t i o n B c o n t a i n s a comprehensive l i s t i n g of o p e r a t i o n a l and

e x p e r i m e n t a l a g r i c u l t u r a l i n f o r m a t i o n systems i n t h e United S t a t e s , followed
by a map d e p i c t i n g t h e c e n t e r s of o p e r a t i o n s f o r t h e s e programs.

(Figure 2 )

A.

S e l e c t e d Systems Demonstrating Various Technological A p p l i c a t i o n s

1.

I n t e r a c t i v e Systems w i t h Farm Management Software
AGNET - T h i s " A g r i c u l t u r a l Network" i s a time-sharing

information

d e l i v e r y system designed t o f u r n i s h management a n a l y s i s of complex a g r i c u l t u r a l
problems on t h e b a s i s of f i e l d e x p e r i e n c e and knowledge of c u r r e n t r e s e a r c h
findings.

Developed i n 1975 by D r . James Kendrick and D r . Thomas C. Thompson

of t h e U n i v e r s i t y of Nebraska, AGNET c u r r e n t l y c o n t a i n s more t h a n 200 programs
which a r e a c c e s s e d by s u b s c r i b e r s i n more t h a n 40 s t a t e s .

The problem-solving

c a p a b i l i t y of t h e v a r i o u s programs o f f e r s a s s i s t a n c e i n such a r e a s a s l i v e s t o c k
and crop p r o d u c t i o n , g r a i n h a n d l i n g , marketing and f i n a n c e , and home economics.
For example, a s p e c i f i c program can manipulate an i n d i v i d u a l farm's r e c o r d s
t o a n a l y z e t h e c o s t and r e t u r n f o r f e e d e r c a t t l e .

Another important f e a t u r e i s

t h e e l e c t r o n i c m a i l o r message r e l a y system; t h e MAILBOX program a l l o w s t h e sender
t o r o u t e communications t o a s i n g l e u s e r o r a p r e d e f i n e d l i s t of u s e r s .

AGNET

a l s o p r o v i d e s a c c e s s t o USDA crop and l i v e s t o c k r e p o r t s a s w e l l a s t r a d e l e a d s
i s s u e d by t h e F o r e i g n A g r i c u l t u r a l S e r v i c e .
B e s i d e s t h e c o s t of a p o r t a b l e computer t e r m i n a l , most u s e r s spend about
$10 p e r hour f o r computer use.

T h i s c o s t i s based on a charge f o r being

connected t o t h e computer p l u s a charge f o r p r o c e s s i n g time.

Any r e g u l a r t e l e p h o n e

l i n e can be used t o a c c e s s AGNET, although long d i s t a n c e t e l e p h o n e charges may c o s t
two t o t h r e e times t h e amount s p e n t f o r computer t i m e .
CMN
-

- Developed by t h e V i r g i n i a P o l y t e c h n i c I n s t i t u t e and S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y

a s a n a t i o n a l i n f o r m a t i o n system f o r use by S t a t e Extension s e r v i c e s , t h e
"Computerized Management Network" a s s i s t s Extension workers i n s o l v i n g problems,
r e t r i e v i n g i n f o r m a t i o n , and e v a l u a t i n g programs.

To d a t e , many CMN programs

have p r o v i d e d t h e f o u n d a t i o n f o r s e v e r a l h i g h l y s u c c e s s f u l Extension s e r v i c e s .

Two of t h e most p o p u l a r a r e :

t h e S i m p l i f i e d D a i r y C a t t l e F e e d i n g Program which

h a s had a s u b s t a n t i a l impact on t h e economics of f e e d i n g d a i r y h e r d s ; and t h e
OUTLK program which p r o v i d e s u s e r a c c e s s t o USDA1s Computerized Outlook I n f o r mation Network (COIN) , a s y s t e m c o n t a i n i n g t h e Department ' s c r o p and l i v e s t o c k
The CMN s y s t e m i s d e s i g n e d t o be used by non-computer

reports.

trained in-

d i v i d u a l s and i s c u r r e n t l y a c c e s s e d by more t h a n 500 u s e r s i n 44 s t a t e s and Canada.
Honeywell's t i m e - s h a r i n g s y s t e m , DATANETWORK, s u p p l i e s computer and
communications s u p p o r t f o r CMN u s e r s ; s u b s c r i b e r s a c c e s s t h e s y s t e m w i t h computer
terminals v i a telephone l i n e s .

The c o s t s o f r u n n i n g CMN programs v a r y from

$0.50 f o r v e r y s i m p l e problem-solving

t o $15 f o r complex l i n e a r programming

models.

The c h a r g e f o r t e r m i n a l connect t i m e i n t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s i s $18 p e r

hour.

G e n e r a l l y , l i g h t usage of t h e CMN s y s t e m c o s t s $15 p e r month, w h i l e moder-

a t e and heavy usage a v e r a g e s $50 p e r month and $300 p e r month, r e s p e c t i v e l y .

2.

E l e c t r o n i c Trading
EMA - E l e c t r o n i c a u c t i o n i n g f o r U.S. a g r i c u l t u r a l p r o d u c t s o r i g i n a t e d
-

w i t h t r a d i n g conducted v i a c o n f e r e n c e t e l e p h o n e c a l l s i n t h e 1960s -- one of
t h e e a r l y " t e l e a u c t i o n s " s o l d s l a u g h t e r hogs from V i r g i n i a t o meat p a c k e r s i n
V i r g i n i a and n e a r b y S t a t e s .

g/ S i n c e t h e n , e l e c t r o n i c t r a d i n g h a s expanded t o

i n e l u d e more s o p h i s t i c a t e d computerized s y s t e m s which can h a n d l e a h i g h e r volume
of t r a d i n g a s w e l l a s bookkeeping f u n c t i o n s .

An example of t h i s t y p e o f s y s t e m

i s t h e E l e c t r o n i c Marketing A s s o c i a t i o n , I n c . of C h r i s t i a n s b u r g , Va., which h e l d
i t s f i r s t computerized a u c t i o n f o r l i v e s t o c k i n 1980.

The members of t h i s non-

s t o c k c o r p o r a t i o n had e a r l i e r p a r t i c i p a t e d i n a p i l o t e l e c t r o n i c t r a d i n g program
which r e s u l t e d i n h i g h e r p r i c e s f o r l i v e s t o c k and a d e c r e a s e i n t h e c o s t s of
marketing.

1 6 1 U.S. Department of A g r i c u l t u r e . A g r i c u l t u r a l M a r k e t i n g S e r v i c e . The
F e a s i b i l i t y of E l e c t r o n i c M a r k e t i n g f o r t h e Wholesale Meat Trade. AMS 583,
May 1979. Washington, 1979. p. 24.

Through a t e l e p h o n e hookup t o computer t e r m i n a l s i n any l o c a t i o n , b u y e r s
and s e l l e r s are b r o u g h t t o g e t h e r a t a s p e c i f i c t i m e t o d e t e r m i n e t h e p r i c e , on
a competitive b a s i s , of t h e animals being o f f e r e d f o r s a l e .

The EMA s y s t e m p e r -

m i t s p r o s p e c t i v e b u y e r s t o o b t a i n w r i t t e n d e s c r i p t i o n s on t h e a n i m a l s s e v e r a l
hours before s a l e t i m e .

During t h e a u c t i o n i t s e l f , t h e computer d r o p s t h e a s k i n g

p r i c e u n t i l a b i d i s r e c e i v e d , t h e n c o n t i n u e s upward from t h a t p o i n t .

A t the

end of a s a l e , a h i g h b i d d e r r e c e i v e s a summary of h i s p u r c h a s e s p l u s a summary
of t h e e n t i r e s a l e .

P r e s e n t l y , EMA i s p r o v i d i n g computer a u c t i o n s e r v i c e s n o t

o n l y t o t h e E a s t e r n Lamb P r o d u c e r s A s s o c i a t i o n o f V i r g i n i a , b u t a l s o t o two
o t h e r lamb m a r k e t i n g c o o p e r a t i v e s l o c a t e d i n Wisconsin and I n d i a n a .

3.

Videotext
Green Thumb - Green Thumb, a n e x p e r i m e n t a l v i d e o t e x t p r o j e c t funded

by t h e U.S. Department of A g r i c u l t u r e and t h e N a t i o n a l Weather S e r v i c e , began
o p e r a t i o n i n two c o u n t i e s i n Kentucky i n March 1980.

Two hundred p a r t i c i p a n t s

r e c e i v e d d e c o d e r s which were c o n n e c t e d t o t h e i r home t e l e v i s i o n sets and t e l e p h o n e
l i n e s and w e r e u s e d t o e n t e r and r e c e i v e i n f o r m a t i o n from microcomputers i n t h e
counties' Extension o f f i c e s .

(See F i g u r e 1 ) .

From a "menu" of o p t i o n s , f a r m e r s

c o u l d r e t r i e v e d a t a on w e a t h e r , f u t u r e s p r i c e s , and market c o n d i t i o n s t h r o u g h
a v a r i e t y of i n f o r m a t i o n p r o v i d e r s i n c l u d i n g t h e Chicago Board of T r a d e ,
t h e N a t i o n a l Weather S e r v i c e , and t h e USDA A g r i c u l t u r a l M a r k e t i n g S e r v i c e .

State

and c o u n t y E x t e n s i o n a g e n t s c o u l d a l s o e n t e r i n f o r m a t i o n of l o c a l i n t e r e s t s u c h

as home economic f e a t u r e s o r 4-H

Club a c t i v i t i e s .

Weather u p d a t e s r a n g e d from

a n h o u r l y t o d a i l y b a s i s , w h i l e r e n e w a l of c r o p and l i v e s t o c k f u t u r e s ' d a t a
was s c h e d u l e d e v e r y 1 5 m i n u t e s b u t g e n e r a l l y o c c u r r e d e v e r y 30 m i n u t e s .

By f a r

t h e most f r e q u e n t l y - r e q u e s t e d c a t e g o r i e s of i n f o r m a t i o n were m a r k e t i n g and w e a t h e r .
A t t h e end o f t h e Green Thumb e x p e r i m e n t i n J u l y 1981, t h e S t a n f o r d U n i v e r s i t y

I n s t i t u t e f o r Communication R e s e a r c h and t h e U n i v e r s i t y of Kentucky C o l l e g e of
A g r i c u l t u r e e a c h s t u d i e d t h e impact of t h e v i d e o t e x t p r o j e c t on t h e f a r m e r s '

agricultural operations and assessed the technical aspects of the system.
While users found the overall system to be workable, about half of the farmers
experienced technical problems and two-thirds reported inadequate updating of
information; thus, farmers tended to rely on more conventional sources of
information such as newspapers and radio broadcasts.

Due to these findihgs,

efforts have been made to improve the reliability of the Green Thumb system.
Currently, a videotext service is being offered to 20 farmers in Davis County,
Kentucky under the direction of the Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service.
The project will be evaluated during the next few months to determine if
reliability has improved and if the program should be continued. I-//

Modified
television
receiver

-0
Computer

Information
provider
terminal

ir
Data base

display
generator
User's
keypad

FIGURE I.-- Videotext via telephone line. 1g/

171
Ragland, John. University of Kentucky.
~e%Fhone interview. July 26, 1982.

Cooperative Extension Service.

181
Tydeman, John, and others. Teletext and Videotex in the United States:
Market Potential, Technology, Public Policy Issues. (Institute for the Future,
Menlo Park, Calif.).
New York, Data Communications, McGraw-Hill, 1982. p. 5.

CRS-32

4. Electronic Messaging
USDA Electronic Mail Network - Based on the positive results of a yearlong test, the Governmental and Public Affairs of USDA began electronic dissemination of the Department's news releases and current reports through the DIALCOM
electronic mail service in January 1982.

The system was adopted in response

to the need for more efficient communications between USDA and the Land-Grant
University system and the State departments of agriculture; prior to the acceptance
of DIALCOM, USDA officials relied on surface mail and telephone facsimile, both
of which proved to be somewhat unsatisfactory for the rapid transmission of
current information.

Through the electronic mail service, an individual can send

a message to the receiver's "electronic mailbox" where it is stored until that
person is ready to receive and read the information. Additionally, the DIALCOM
service provides the capability of handling automatic distribution lists as well
as providing access to United Press International's national and international
news files.
The USDA electronic mail network supplies several categories of information.
USDA ONLINE offers the "~ews"file, which contains nationally significant news
releases, along with summaries of the various "outlook and situation reports"
issued by the Economic Research Service and the "highlights of crop and livestock
reports" issued by the Statistical Reporting Service.

Another file, "FAS Reports",

provides the Foreign Agricultural Service's weekly roundup of world agricultural
production and trade. FAS trade leads, along with the "News" segment of USDA
ONLINE are transmitted to the University of Nebraska's AGNET system.lg/
Plans are underway to include the full texts of crop, livestock, and outlook
1

reports on the DIALCOM system; these USDA reports are generated under the name
of COIN (Computerized Outlook Information Network) and are available on the CMN

191 U.S. Department of Agriculture. Office of Governmental and Public
"Krfairs. Report on U. S. Department of Agriculture Electronic Information
Exchange and Dissemination. July 1982. Washington, 1982. p. 7, 12.

s y s t e m under t h e OUTLK program.

The USDA e l e c t r o n i c m a i l network w i l l n o t

n e c e s s a r i l y r e p l a c e t r a d i o n a l methods of i n f o r m a t i o n d i s s e m i n a t i o n s u c h a s p r i n t e d
p u b l i c a t i o n s and r a d i o b r o a d c a s t i n g t a p e s .

R a t h e r , i t s p u r p o s e i s t o enhance

t h e e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f USDA i n f o r m a t i o n d i s t r i b u t i o n by o f f e r i n g f a r m e r s and S t a t e

and l o c a l a g r i c u l t u r a l o f f i c i a l s a means of o b t a i n i n g USDA r e p o r t s and news
r e l e a s e s a s soon as t h e y a r e announced.

R.

Operational m d Experigental Systems in U.S.

Operational
System Name
MCSys

Sponsoring
Organization

Location

Americcm Farm
8 S t a t e Farm
Bureau Federation B u r e a u a d
prtidpating
members

U. of Nebraaka

more than 40
States

nationvide

.
.

.

.

Information and
S e r v i c e s Provided

Kcy Contact
and Phone Number

information r e t r i e v a l :
market d a t a , v e a t h e r ,
pest management, l e g i s l a t i v e developments,
s p e c i f i c advice from
market a n a l y s t s ,

m. Kim Wells
312-399-5770

p r o b k s o l v i n g f o r farm
nanagarcnt
information r e t r i e v a l :
USDA r e p o r t s on crops,
l i v e s t o c k , markets,
t r e n d s , and t r a d e l e a d s

D r . James Kendrick
402-47 2-2033

. information
retrieval:
bibliographic c i t a t i o w

M r . David Eoyt
202-334-4248

t o books, journal
a r t i c l e s , govt. r e p o r t s
i n f i e l d of a g r i c u l t u r e
ANSW

U. of Kentucky

25 Extension
o f f i c e s in
Kentucky

. pmanagement
r o b l e ~ s o l v i n gf o r farm Ur. John Byars
606-257-3335
. information
retrieval:
wciocconomic d a t a f o r
counties in Kentucky

Chase Econoret- Chase Econometrics
rice Daestic
Agricultural
Service

nationwide,
Canada and
Europe

.

V i r g i n i a Polytech- Extension ofn i c I m t i t u t e and f i c e s in 44
S t a t e University S t a t -

Michigan S t a t e
Univerrity

. information
retrieval:
agricultural statis-

Bxtenrion off i c e s in
Uichigan

.
.

t i c s , h i s t o r i c a l data,
and f o r e c a s t information
'Agricultural Model':
econometric rode1 f o r
a g r i c u l t u r a l business
aMlyses
p r o b l c r s o l v i n g f o r farm M r . Craig Woods
rmclgement
703-961-5184
information r e t r i e v a l :
USDA r e p o r t s on crops,
l i v e s t o c k , and marketing

. information
retrieval:
serves re connecting
.

M s . Donna F a l g i a t o r c
215-896-4756

l i n k t o several agric u l t u r a l computer datahses
electronic m a i l m p a b f l i t y

D r . Steve Harsh
517-355-3776

System Name

Sponsoring
Organization

ms

Dixie-S t g l e
Selling

FACTS

Information and
S e r v i c e s Provided

Location
nationvide

. information r e t r i e v a l :

Mr. Ted Bauer
publicly-supported a g r i - 202-344-3846
c u l t u r a l and f o r e s t r y res e a r c h i n U.S.

Alabama c a t t l e
marketing associatiom

7cattle
.video-auctionwith
s e l l i n g assoslides
ciatione i n
Ala barn

Egg Clearinghouse,
Inc.

160 members
nationwide

E l e c t r o n i c Marketi n g Association

electronic trading for
lamb marketi n g cooperalambs
t i v e s in V i r g i n i a , Uiscons i n , and Indiana

Purdue U.

92 county Ext e n s i o n and
10 a r e a Ext e n s i o n offices in
Indiana

. eggs
electronic trading f o r
.

U SDA

Key Contact
and Phone Number

. problem-solving
for
farm management

. information r e t r i e v a l :

Mr. Dan L i n t o n
205-826-4963

M r . Frank Koelbrich
603-868-2899
Mr. Kenneth Nee1
703-382-1781

D r . Eldon Frederick:
317-494-8396

weather, market p r i c e s ,
emergency information
bulletins
e l e c t r o n i c mail

.
. information
retrieval:
Federal food, n u t r i t i o n

nr. Tom T a t e
202-344-3750

and a g r i c u l t u r e programs
Cox Cable COIZWn i c a t i o n s , Inc.

I n s t a n t Update

P r o f e s s i o n a l Parmers of America,
Inc.

Iowa Beef
Iowa Beef ProcesProcessors
s o r s , Inc.
S a t e l l i t e Cow
munications
System

Omaha,
Nebraska

nationwide

Kansas

information r e t r i e v a l :
oews, weather, f i n a n c i a l
d a t a , commodities p r i c e s
transactional features:
banking, shopping

.
. market
information r e t r i e v a l :
c o n d i t i o n s , weather, futures prices
. omnendations
s t a f f a n a l y s e s and recfrom PFA
. st iaotnesl l system
i t e communicalinking
headquarters t o f i e l d
buyers i n Kansas

M r . David C.
Andersen
404-393-0480

nr. Stewart Cross
319-277-1278

M r . Dean Houle
402-241-2630

S y s t a Name

Sponsoring
Organization

I n f o ~ t i o n&nd
S e r v i c e s Provided

Loution

.

inforution retrieval:
8pproxiutelg
30 S t a t e Extea- program accomplisheents
sion offices
of S t a t e Cooperative
E x t e ~ i o nS e r v i c e s
OSU P a m IlaPagelcnt
Progran

O k l a h o u S t a t e U.

Cornell U

.

Key Contact
and Phone Number

Mr. Tom Tare
202-344-3750

. pfarm
roblrrsolving for
ranagement

rutionvide

3
l county at e n s i o n off i c e s , 1.Y.
S t a t e agenc i e s , 170
p r i v a t e sect o r u s e r s in
N.Y.

.
.
.

D r . Ted Nelson
405-624-6081

information r e t r i e v a l :
Dr. J i m Tete
p e s t c o n t r o l and p e s t i 315-787-2208
ddes
s i u l a t i o n model; p o t a t o
b l i g h t m d a l f a l f a weevil
e l e c t r o n i c 11111: f o r rep o r t i n g f i e l d obeervations
and r e t r i e v i n g p e s t Panagement s t r a t e g i e s

.

. dinformation
retrieval:
Ur. J e f f G r i f f i t h
t c l t i o ~t o b o o b , jour- 202-287-8768

L i b r a r y of Congress L i b r a r y of
Congress

d articles, congres
s i o ~ rle p o r t s in t h e
L i b r a r y of Congress; a b
s t r a c t o from Congressional
Record and information on
l e g i s l a t i o n s i n c e 94th
Congress

rn SOOP(Z

Source TelecomputCOW.

rutionwick

-

P h i n o Cotton Coo p e r a t i v e Assoc.

Texas and
Oklahoma

U. of C a l i f o r n i a
Cooperative Ex-

Sacramento
Co., C a l i f .

tension Service

.

. iMd oi mtt iyo Nn wr e tSreirevviacle:,

current business trends,
updated l i s t i n g of s t o c k s ,
bonds, c o m o d i t i e s , and
futures
e l e c t r o n i c mail

.
. ec loet ct ot rno n i c t r a d i n g f o r
. telephone
a c c e s s t o rerecorded messages on a

v a r i e t y of a g r i c u l t u r a l
topics

M s . J a n e Brovn
703-734-7500

M r . J a c k Kenwright
806-763-8011

Leila Bettr
916-366-2013

System Name

Sponsoring
Organization

TELPLAN

Michigan S t a t e U.

.

Extension
p r o b l e h e o l v i n g f o r farm
a g e n t s and farm management
businessmen in
over 30 S t a t e s

Tennessee Tele- Tennessee Dept.
phone Auction
of A g r i c u l t u r e
System

Tennessee

USDA E l e c
tronic M a i l
NetworL

Land-Grant
University
system, some
S t a t e departe e n t s of agric u l t u r e , and
v a r i o u s farm
magazines and
agricultural
news s e r v i c e s

USDA

Information and
S e r v i c e s Provided

Location

. electronic trading for
feeder pigs, feeder
c a l v e s , and y e a r l i n g
feeder c a t t l e

Key Contact
and Phone Number

Dr. S h e r i l l ~ o t t
517-353-4522

Dr. John Ragan
615-741-1441

. eofl eUcStDrAo nnevs
i c dissemination Ur. S t a n Prochaska
releases
202-447-7454
and r e p o r t s over D I l l t C O n
and AGNET systems

S y s t e r Name

Spo~oring
Organization

Loution

Agrisource

CCA/USDA

nationvide

I n f o r u t i o n and
S e r v i c e s Provided

Key Contact
and Phone Number

. providea
infomation retrieval:
access t o d i s
permed a g r i c u l t u r a l
&tabarcs

CAT~~X

T ~ X UA L n u .

CDC A g r i c u l t u r e CDC

Illinoh

. wholesale
electronic trading for
neat

Texan

.

Uinnesota

. information
retrieval:
Mr. B r i a n Roth
'how-to' technology f o r
6 12-853-6770

and Business
Servia
Centers

electronic trading for
cattle

.

Uinnesota

D r . Tom Sporleder
713-845-2116

farming
eduation: W
O cow
puter-based courses f o r
* d l fanners
p r o b l e w s o l v i n g f o r farm
management and personal
coluulting

.
DEVELOP

D r . 'M. E. Sarban
217-333-6465

. ii dd eonr mt i faies
tion retrieval:
sources of

Ms. Beth Eolngren
612-853-7895

t e c h n i c a l a s s i s t a n c e in
a r e a s such as a p i c u l t u r e ,
coruervation, education
m d homing
Plaryhnd

. ueather.
i n f o r u t i o n retrieval:
Mr. Ralph Adkins
u r k e t r e p o r t s . 301-454-4848
f u t u r e 8 p r i c e s , new
bulletiru
rcC-en&tioM
f t o ~
E~t#?luionS e r v i c e

.
Farm h r k e t
Infodata
Servia

PBS/USDA

F IB S M

F i r s t B a n k System
of Minneapolin

5 t e s t urh t a mtionwi &
Fargo, U.D.

. idn fiotr ui t ieo ns rper ti rcieesv, a l :

M r . Ben K i t t c r (PBE
202-488-5129

u r k e t ntwa

.
.
.

information r e t r i e v a l :
weather, f i n a n c i a l and
c o a o d i t y reports, local
and n a t i o n a l new6
t r a ~ a c t i o n a lf u t u r e s :
Lunking, shopping
OM computing

Ms. Wendy Bollua
612-370-5154

-f

System Name

Sponsoring
Organization

Genetic
Profiles

Applied G e n e t i c s
International

Information and
S e r v i c e s Provided

Location

Key Contact
and Phone Number

. ccomputer
a n a l y s i s of
a t t l e aeasurements t o

warning

Mr. Norm Rayes
307-527-7173

determine reproduct i v e e f f i c i e n c y and
gainability
Grassroots

Green Thumb

IPM in
Kentucky

BakersfieldCalifornian

USDA

. weather,
information r e t r i e v a l :
comodities
p r i c e s , market r e p o r t s
. banking,
transactional features
shopping

San J o a q u i n
Valley i n
California

200 farmers
ln Shelby and
Todd Counties.
Kentucky

Ohio S t a t e U.

Ohio and
warby States

U. of Kentucky

Kentucky

M r . Ron Montgomery
805-395-7222
:

. home computing
. information r e t r i e v a l :

weather, f u t u r e s p r i c e s ,
market c o n d i t i o n s , l o c a l
news

. es ll ae uc gt rhotne irc hogs
trading for
. isncfoourtmi nagt i odna t ar e ont r i ecvr oa pl :s

M r . Howard Lehnert
202-447-4681

D r . Dennis Renderso:
614-422-2701
D r . Grayson C. Brow
606-258-5638

and presence of p e s t s ,
i n f o r m a t i o n on each
field, pesticides
National
Purdue U.
P e s t i c i d e Inf ormatim
Retrieval
System

p i l o t project in
Illinois,
Indiana,
Kansas, and
ninnesota

R u r a l Ventures

Princeton,
Minn.

. pinformation
retrieval:
est control, pesti-

D r . John Osmun
317-494-4565

cides

-

. and
computer-based e d u c a t i o n Mr. Robert Rumpza
t r a i n i n g programs
612-853-3886
. crop
information r e t r i e v a l :
and l i v e s t o c k pro.

d u c t i o n , equipment
selection
problem-solving and personal consultation i n
interpreting data

CRS-40

FIGURE 2.

- Location of Operational and Experimtal Systems.

--

1 IICSyw
2
AQm
3 m w u
4-mER
5
chue B c s o r t r i c w B r w t i c
A&riculturr Serviw
6 - OQI
7-CWIET
8 - CILIS
9 D M c S t y l w Sell*
10
ICI
11 m.4
12 rms
13 P U n
14 l m u
15 Iuwtmlt UpdAtw
16 I w r h e f Procww*orw Satrllit. r - t i ~ ~ S y~w t a
w
17 PW
UI O U W s u r e u. Farm

-------

27
21
29

-- AGXISCURCE
- CATS
CATTIEX,

5 0 - C D C 4 ~ d & u i n w

Bkdubuq. VA
Fast humins. M
Wuhington. DC
Auburn. AL
Durham. QI
Chriwttuubur~.VA
w. k f . y r t t 8 . W
Washinaton. DC

-,

At

Cedar Fwllw, U
Dakota City. At

V.

RECENT LEGISLATIVE OVERSIGHT

A heightening awareness of numerous governmental and private sector initiatives
designed to improve information support for agricultural America, particularly
through the utilization of computer and telecommunications technology, caused
the Subcommittee on Department Operations, Research and Foreign Agriculture
of the House Committee on Agriculture to undertake a series of oversight initiatives during the 97th Congress.
The purpose of these efforts, in the words of Chairman George E. Brown, Jr.,
included taking "cognizance of probably the most rapidly developing technology
in the world and in the United States society...we think it is helpful and
constructuve to review this situation as a part of our general responsibility
of oversight of

agriculture."^/ The first action, designed to provide a useful

insight into an often complex area still in evolution was the development by the
Congressional Research Service at the direction of the Subcommittee, a booklet
entitled "Computer-Based Information Systems for Rural ArnericaWg/ that was
to be used during the two days of formal hearings and workshop sessions, conducted
on May 19-20, 1982. Utilizing this background material, and the ensuing contributions emanating from hearings testimony, workshop findings, and other
ancillary offerings, a subsequent comprehensive report--"Information Technology
for Agricultural Americaw--would serve as an instrument for viewing broader trends
involving information technology as well as setting forth delineated options for
subsequent congressional action.

20/ Renarks of Rep. George E. Brown, Jr. during hearing on Applications
of computer- Based Information Systems and Services in A~riculture,U. S. House of
Representatives, May 20, 1982. Transcript, p. 184
21/
- Chartrand and Carr.
20 p.

Computer-Based Information Systems for Rural America.

Participants in the 1982 hearings and workshop became fully aware of the
Subcommittee desire to ensure that farmers and ranchers had full access to all
resources, including an array of technologies, which would allow them to
continue making, in the words of Senator Hubert H. H m h r e v ? "a lasting
contribution to our health, to our national prosperity, and to peace in the world." 22/
The needs of the agricultural community for a variety of information--about
impending weather conditions, marketplace activities and projections, and factors
affecting crop and livestock management--had become increasingly strident, and
in many instances appeared to exceed the capacity of existing institutions to
provide responsive service.

It seemed to some Members of Congress, along with

concerned individuals and organizations in many sectors of society, that such
requirements, often of gripping urgency, must be confronted and solved. Preparatory to convening the Subcommittee-sponsored sessions, extensive background
exploration was undertaken by staff in order to scrutinize existing policies
and programs, as reflected in public laws and executive branch promulgations,
focusing on this area.

In addition, care was taken to examine the genesis of

private sector endeavors which had led to the establishment of pilot projects
and operational support systems designed to serve the agricultural industry.
Response to the Subcommittee declaration of interest and intent to act
prompted a widespread expression of willingness to participate actively in the
announced hearing and workshop.

Among those who ultimately gave testimony, and

led or were involved in the discussion group meetings, were university Extension
directors, State and local government representatives, information industry
executives, farm organization leaders, senior Federal officials, media management,
special information service providers (including librarians), and consultants
in information systems analysis and design.

Remarks of Hubert H. Humphrey before the American Agricultural Editors
2q
Association, Washington, D.C., June 22, 1966.

P u b l i c and P r i v a t e S e c t o r P e r s p e c t i v e s
The v i e w p o i n t s t a k e n and c o n c e r n s v o i c e d by t h e s e r e p r e s e n t a t i v e e l e ments a r e i l l u s t r a t e d t h r o u g h t h i s random s a m p l i n g o f comments:

231

Raymond D. L e t t (USDA S e n i o r Executive)-- American a g r i c u l t u r e always h a s been t h e envy of t h e w o r l d f o r i t s b a s i c
r e s e a r c h and p r a c t i c a l a p p l i c a t i o n of new p r o d u c t i o n and
m a r k e t i n g t e c h n i q u e s . A m a j o r i n g r e d i e n t i n making t h i s s y s t e m
work h a s been t h e c o l l e c t i o n and s h a r i n g of i n f o r m a t i o n
among government and academic s o u r c e s , p r i v a t e b u s i n e s s e s and
individual citizens.
John C. D a t t (AFBF A d m i n i s t r a t o r ) - - A l l p a r t i e s ought
t o have e q u a l a c c e s s t o t h e same government i n f o r m a t i o n .
And from t h a t p o i n t o n , t h e n , i t i s up t o eakh of u s t o
see w h e t h e r we can package i t . . . a n d make i t m e a n i n g f u l
and s a l a b l e t o t h e membership of o u r o r g a n i z a t i o n .
D r . M.C. Harding, S r . (Academic E x t e n s i o n A d m i n i s t r a t o r ) - It i s e s t i m a t e d t h a t t h e number o f f a r m e r s u s i n g computers
i n t h e n e x t f i v e y e a r s w i l l r a n g e between f i v e and f i f t e e n
p e r c e n t of commercial f a r m s
management s t r a t e g i e s a r e needed
t o g i v e guidance t o t h i s t e c h n o l o g i c a l innovation.

...

Douglas R. LeGrande ( C o r p o r a t e D i v i s i o n Director)--Computers
have been s u c c e s s f u l l y used t o "model" r e a l i t y , g i v i n g t h e
u s e r answers t o "what i f " q u e s t i o n s , e n a b l i n g t h e i n v e s t i g a t i o n
of a l t e r n a t i v e s and f a c i l i t a t i n g d e c i s i o n s which would b e most
prof i t a b l e .
A l f r e d T. F r i t t s (newspaper executive)--We are n o t g o i n g
t o o f f e r up a c o n t e n t p r o d u c t i n a brand-neb b u s i n e s s u s i n g
a whole new p r e s e n t a t i o n and a c o s t i m p o s i t i o n on t h e
f a r m e r w i t h o u t b e i n g d a r n e d s u r e t h a t we have a p r o d u c t t h a t
w i l l b e a c c e s s e d e v e r y day.
D r . L o u i s A. B r a n s f o r d ( t e c h n o l o g y c o n s o r t i u m e x e c u t i v e )
--If we c o u l d j u s t i f y a s a t e l l i t e l i n k , and t h e a v e r a g e
f a r m e r c o u l d i n t e r f a c e h i s farm computer t o t h e s t a t e ext e n s i o n o f f i c e , o r any one of t h e a g r i c u l t u r a l , v e t e r i n a r y
o r f o r e s t r y c o l l e g e s i n t h e United S t a t e s . . . t h e p o s s i b l i t y
of d e c r e a s i n g t h e c o s t of o p e r a t i o n o r i n c r e a s i n g product i v i t y would become e v i d e n t .

23/
-

These q u o t a t i o n s were t a k e n from v a r i o u s s o u r c e documents.

P e r i o d i c a l l y t h r o u g h o u t t h e two days o f h e a r i n g s , Chairman Brown emphas i z e d t h a t t h e Committee on A g r i c u l t u r e and " t h e Congress as a whole," looked
f o r guidance t o t h e p a r t i c i p a n t s .
T h i s h e a r i n g and workshop grew o u t of a p e r c e p t i o n t h a t
i n f o r m a t i o n and communications t e c h n o l o g i e s a r e e n t e r i n g
t h e a g r i c u l t u r a l s e c t o r a t a d i z z y i n g rate.
The K e l l o g g F o u n d a t i o n e s t i m a t e s t h a t by 1 9 9 0 , t h r e e - q u a r t e r s
o f t h e commercial farms and 90 p e r c e n t of t h e county e x t e n s i o n
o f f i c e s i n t h i s c o u n t r y w i l l b e equipped w i t h computers o r
i n t e l l i g e n t terminals.
The a p p l i c a t i o n of t h e s e t e c h n o l o g i e s h o l d s g r e a t p r o m i s e ,
b u t t h i s p r o m i s e can o n l y b e r e a l i z e d i f we do a n a d e q u a t e
j o b of p l a n n i n g i n t h e e a r l y s t a g e s . 2-J
The d i v e r s e p e r s p e c t i v e s o f f e r e d by t h o s e p a r t i c i p a t i n g on a s p e c t r u m of
t e c h n i c a l and u s e r - o r i e n t e d

i s s u e s , governmental r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s and oppor-

t u n i t i e s , and q u a n d a r i e s f a c i n g b o t h t h e p r i v a t e and p u b l i c s e c t o r , more t h a n

m e t t h e o b j e c t i v e s of t h e Subcommittee a s e x p r e s s e d by Chairman Brown:25/

1.

2.

3.

P r o v i d e a n o p p o r t u n i t y f o r Members o f C o n g r e s s ,
t h e i r s t a f f s , and a c t i v i s t s i n t h e p u b l i c and
p r i v a t e s e c t o r s t o exchange i d e a s and experiences i n t h i s v i t a l area.
I d e n t i f y and d i s c u s s p o l i c y and program q u e s t i o n s ,
and o b t a i n r e a l i s t i c recommendations f o r l a t e r
initiatives.
I n c r e a s e p u b l i c a w a r e n e s s of t h e p o t e n t i a l b e n e f i t s
and l i m i t a t i o n s of advanced i n f o r m a t i o n r e s o u r c e s
and s e r v i c e s .

D e l i n e a t i o n of P r i o r i t y I s s u e s
The e x p e c t a t i o n s of t h e s p o n s o r i n g Subcommittee were exceeded as a r e s u l t
of t h e w e a l t h o f i n f o r m a t i o n t h a t was f o r t h c o m i n g a b o u t t h e i n f o r m a t i o n
r e q u i r e m e n t s of t h e u s e r community, b a s i c c o n s i d e r a t i o n s which must b e d e a l t
w i t h i n d e s i g n i n g and implementing t e c h n o l o g y - o r i e n t e d i n f o r m a t i o n s e r v i c e s ,
t r a i n i n g and s y s t e m m a i n t e n a n c e m a t t e r s , and f u t u r e a p p l i c a t i o n s o f s u c h t e c h n o l o g y
i n s u p p o r t of a g r i c u l t u r a l management and p r o d u c t i o n .

A number of s p e c i f i c

i s s u e s emerged, many of a l o n g - s t a n d i n g n a t u r e :

24/ Remarks of Rep. George E. Brown, J r . d u r i n g h e a r i n g on A p p l i c a t i o n s of
Computer-Based I n f o r m a t i o n Systems and S e r v i c e s i n A g r i c u l t u r e , U.S. House of
R e p r e s e n t a t i v e s , May 1 9 , 1982. T r a n s c r i p t , p. 4
25/ C h a r t r a n d and C a r r , Computer-Based
f o r ~ z a America,
l
p. 1

I n f o r m a t i o n Systems and S e r v i c e s

Roles of public and private sector information providers
Concern for protecting the confidentiality of system data
Pro's and con's of hardware and software standardization
Conditions governing access to government information
Ownership of "value-added" information products and services
Local role in determining content of information offerings
Responsibility for post-installation system support, including software and file enhancements
Government subsidization of research and pilot projects
These and additional issues of note preoccupied the 150 participants throughout the hearing and workshop meetings, and were often evidence of a desire,
in the words of Walter Lippmann, to create policies which "reflect a
deference to life's ambiguities and to the necessity of practical human

- A listing of the workshop discussion group areas of
a~commodation.~'26/
purview follows:
Group 1 - Private sector information services
Group 2 - Government information services: management and marketing
Group 3 Government information field operations
Group 4 - User requirements
Group 5 - System implementation: hardware installation, training,
maintenance, software and data file modification
Group 6 - Present and projected technology

-

Identifiable Action Alternatives
The need for action in the near future was stressed many times, with
a number of specific action alternatives identified in the findings and
recommendations of the discussion groups, as well as appearing in various
witness statements:
o Long-range studies which would attempt to delineate
responsive information delivery and access systems;
o Analysis of existing Extension Service and private
sector delivery capabilities, including enhancements
featuring utilization of advanced technology;
o Creation of "clearinghouses1'which would centrally
store key material, along with requisite indexes, with
subject contents of priority value to farmers and ranchers;

26/ Bradley, John P. The International Dictionary of Thoughts.
~ e r ~ u i oPress,
n
1969. p. 659

Chicago,

o Development of a system that would allow monitoring of
the varied information products and services available
to the agricultural community, and a means of describing these on-going resources to users;
o Creation of scenaries, employing dynamic computer models,
that could project the impact of information technology
on existing agricultural management and marketing tasks;
o Periodic reviews, through surveys and polls, of user
requirements, including those of the smaller family
farms and agri-businesses;
o Simply formatted comparisons of equipment and software products which would enable would-be buyers to
understand the benefits and limitations of the devices,
program packages, and systems being acquired; and
o Design of initial orientation and technical training
sessions that would allow new system users to grasp
the fundamentals of performance in a minimum period
of time.
These actions in the 97th Congress are evidence that within the United
States Congress there has been a growing concern about the shortcomings involving
information services for those living in more remote areas.

In the past,

hearings were held on salient aspects of rural telecommunications' service, the
changing role of rural libraries, and alternatives for providing educational
opportunities for inhabitants of areas beyond suburbia. In addition, Members
have exhibited interest in the potential of present and projected technologies,
particularly computer and telecommunications, for offering a wide range of information products and services to rural citizenry.
Relevant Studies and Congressional Reports
Although relatively few major reports have been issued on this area of
burgeoning interest, three are noteworthy:
1978 -- Communications and Rural America, prepared by the
Office of Technology Assessment for the Senate
Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.zL/

221 U. S. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Rural America. Washington, U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1978

Communications and

CRS- 4 7
1980 -- N a t i o n a l Symposium on E l e c t r o n i c Marketing of
A g r i c u l t u r a l Commodities, c o n f e r e n c e p r o c e e d i n g s . 281
1982 -- Report on U.S. Department of A g r i c u l t u r e Elect r o n i c I n f o r m a t i o n Exchange and Dissemination.

221

Two o t h e r r e p o r t s of more t h a n t a n g e n t i a l v a l u e d e s e r v e mention because of t h e i r
t r e a t m e n t of c e r t a i n developments i n t h e s u b j e c t t e c h n o l o g i e s and t h e i r a p p l i c a t i o n , and t h e i n v a l u a b l e b r o a d e r c o n t e x t which t h e y p r o v i d e :
1978 -- I n t o t h e I n f o r m a t i o n Age: A P e r s p e c t i v e f o r F e d e r a l
Action on I n f o r m a t i o n , p r e p a r e d by A r t h u r D. L i t t l e , I n c .

301

1982 -- P u b l i c S e c t o r / P r i v a t e S e c t o r I n t e r a c t i o n i n P r o v i d i n g
I n f o r m a t i o n S e r v i c e s , i s s u e d by t h e N a t i o n a l Commission
on L i b r a r i e s and I n f o r m a t i o n S c i e n c e . 31/
Drawing upon t h e a n a l y t i c a l and f a c t u a l m a t e r i a l embodied i n t h e s e miles t o n e s t u d i e s , c o g n i z a n t c o n g r e s s i o n a l o v e r s i g h t groups have been a b l e t o d e l i n e a t e
an agenda which would l e a d t o a f u r t h e r rewarding e x p l o r a t i o n of t h i s p r i o r i t y
l e g i s l a t i v e concern.

A r e f l e c t i o n on t h e r o l e s of b o t h policymakers and program

managers, who must b e a r t h e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r shaping t h e i n f o r m a t i o n i n f r a s t r u c t u r e and o f f e r i n g s of t h e f u t u r e , i s s e t f o r t h i n t h e volume, I n f o r m a t i o n
Technology S e r v i n g S o c i e t y : 321
Those who s t r i v e t o d e c i d e which i n f o r m a t i o n w i l l o r
should have r e s i d u a l value--and i f t e l e v i s i o n o r t h e
p r i n t e d word i s t h e b e s t means o f e n s u r i n g that--are
doing a g r e a t d e a l of s o u l - s e a r c h i n g where i n v e s t m e n t s
i n i n f o r m a t i o n systems and s e r v i c e s a r e concerned.

a/

N a t i o n a l Symposium on E l e c t r o n i c Marketing of A g r i c u l t u r a l Commodities,
D a l l a s , 1980. Proceedings. College S t a t i o n , Texas, Texas A g r i c u l t u r a l Experiment
S t a t i o n , 1980.

=/ U.S. Department of A g r i c u l t u r e . O f f i c e of Governmental and P u b l i c A f f a i r s .
Report on U.S. Department of A g r i c u l t u r e E l e c t r o n i c I n f o r m a t i o n Exchange and
Dissemination. Washington, 1982.

a/

A r t h u r D. L i t t l e , I n c .
A s s o c i a t i o n , 1978.

I n t o t h e I n f o r m a t i o n Age.

Chicago, American Library

/
U.S. N a t i o n a l Commission on L i b r a r i e s and I n f o r m a t i o n S c i e n c e . P u b l i c
S e c t o r / P r i v a t e S e c t o r Task Force. P u b l i c S e c t o r / P r i v a t e S e c t o r I n t e r a c t i o n i n
F r o v i d i n g I n f o r m a t i o n S e r v i c e s . Washington, U.S. Govt. P r i n t . O f f . , 1982
321 C h a r t r a n d , Robert L. I n f o r m a t i o n T r a n s f e r i n a G i f t e d Age. I n
c h a r t r a n d , Robert L., and James W. Morentz, e d s . I n f o r m a t i o n Technology
S e r v i n g Technology. New York, Pergamon P r e s s , 1979. p. 3-4

Continuing c o n g r e s s i o n a l concern about t h e s t a t e of a g r i c u l t u r e h a s taken
many forms, and r e q u e s t s f o r background i n f o r m a t i o n have emanated from Members
w i t h c o n s t i t u e n c i e s a c r o s s t h e country.

I n response t o t h e s e r e q u i r e m e n t s , t h e

Congressional Research S e r v i c e h a s p r e p a r e d a s e r i e s of " I s s u e B r i e f s " i n r e c e n t
y e a r s which d e a l w i t h s a l i e n t a s p e c t s of a g r i c u l t u r a l c o n d i t i o n s and problems:
"Agriculture:

S o i l Conservation and Farmland P r o d u c t i v i t y , " 3 3-/ "Crisis

i n t h e Farm Economy, "341
"Agriculture:

"Rural Development :

t h e F e d e r a l Role ,"35-/ and

S i g n i f i c a n t L e g i s l a t i o n of t h e 97th Congress."36/
-

The importance

of t h e s e and r e l a t e d m a t t e r s i s comprehended, although n o t always i n a way t h a t
a l l o w s t h e f o r m u l a t i o n of a m e l i o r a t i v e a c t i o n , i n many q u a r t e r s .

The v i a b i l i t y

of American a g r i c u l t u r e may depend i n l a r g e p a r t , i n t h e f u t u r e , on t h e p e r c e p t i o n
of Congress, t h e F e d e r a l e x e c u t i v e branch, S t a t e and l o c a l governmental a g e n c i e s ,
and c o g n i z a n t o r g a n i z a t i o n s i n t h e p r i v a t e s e c t o r , and t h e i r w i l l i n g n e s s and
a b i l i t y t o d e f i n e o b j e c t i v e s and i n s t r u m e n t s of e x e c u t i o n which can r e n d e r t h e
n e c e s s a r y s u p p o r t t o t h e farming i n d u s t r y .

33.1 U.S. L i b r a r y of Congress. Congressional Research S e r v i c e . A g r i c u l t u r e :
S o i l C o n s e r v a t i o n and Farmland P r o d u c t i v i t y .
I s s u e B r i e f No. IB8OO31, by
R i t a S. D a l l a v a l l e , Feb. 6, 1980 (updated May 21, 1981). Washington, 1981.

3 4 1 U.S. L i b r a r y of Congress. Congressional Research S e r v i c e . Crisis i n
t h e ~ Z r mEconomy. Audio B r i e f No. AB 50056, by J a s p e r Womach and o t h e r s ,
A p r i l 1, 1982. Washington, 1982.
3 5 1 U.S. L i b r a r y of Congress. Congressional Research S e r v i c e . R u r a l Development:
The Fe'deral Role. I s s u e B r i e f No. IB77113, by Sandra S. Osbourn, October 1 9 , 1977
(updated S e p t . 23, 1980). Washington, 1980.
3 6 1 U.S. L i b r a r y of Congress. Congressional Research S e r v i c e . A g r i c u l t u r e :
s i g n i f i c a n t L e g i s l a t i o n of t h e 97th Congress. I s s u e B r i e f No. IB81161, by
E l i z a b e t h W i t h n e l l , Aug. 20, 1982 (updated Sept. 1 5 , 1982). Washington, 1982.

CRS-49

VI. SELECTED REFERENCES

Government Publications
Chartrand, Robert L. and A. Barry Carr. Computer-based information systems
and services for rural America. Washington, Congressional Research
Service, 1982. 20 p.
U.S. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment. Coxammications and rural
America. Washington, U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1978. 49 p.
At head of title: 95th Cong., 1st sess. Committee print.
Printed for the use of the Senate Conrmittee on Commerce, Science,
and Transportation.

--

Computer-based national information systems: technology and public
policy issues. Washington, U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1981. 166 p.

U.S. Department of Agriculture. Office of Governmental and Public Affairs.
Report on U.S. Department of Agriculture electronic information exchange
and dissemination. Washington, U.S. Dept. of Ag., 1982, 15 p.
U.S. Office of Tel.ecommunications Policy. Interagency committee report on
rural communications. [Washington]1977. 1 v. (various pagings)
Books and Reports
Case, Donald and others. Stanford evaluation of the Green Thumb Box experimental videotext project for agricultural extension information delivery
in Shelby and Todd counties, Kentucky; final report. Stanford, Calif.,
Institute for Conrmunications Research, Stanford University, 1381. 207 p.
"USDA contract no. 53-3K06-1-63"
Electronic Marketing of Agricultural Commodities, Winnipeg, Nov. 2-4 1981.
Proceedings. Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Agriculture Canada, Marketing
and Economics Branch, 1981. 200 p.
National Symposium on Electronic Marketing of Agricultural Commodities, Dallas,
1980. Proceedings. College Station, Texas, Texas Agricultural Experiment
Station, 1980. 154 p.
"MP-1463"
Strain, J. Robert and Sherry Fieser. Updated inventory of agricultural
computer programs available for Extension use. Gainesville, Florida,
Food and Resource Economics Department, Institute of Food and Agricultural
Sciences, University of FloridaIin cooperation with Federal Extension
Service, U.S.D.A. I , 1982. 186 p.
Warner, Paul D. An evaluation of a computer-based videotext information
delivery system for farmers: the Green Thumb project; executive summary.
Lexington, University of Kentucky, 1982. 32 p.

Periodical Articles

CRS-50

Brown, G.C. Microprocessor-based information management system for an integrated
pest management program. Bulletin of the Entomological Society of
America, v. 28, June 1982: 135-137.
Diesslin, H.G. The computer--extension's delivery system of the future.
American journal of agricultural economics, v. 63, Dec. 1981: 863-867.
Electronic Technology. Extension review, summer 1982 (entire issue).
Harsh, Stephen B. The developing technology of computerized information
systems. American journaP of agricultural economics, v. 60, Dec. 1978:
908-914.
Infanger, Craig L., Lynn W. Robbins, and David L. Debertin. Interfacing
research and extension in information delivery systems. American journal
of agricultural economics. v. 60, Dec. 1978: 915-922.
Linton, Daniel. Marketing cattle board auction style. Extension review,
spring 1982: 20-21.
Reynolds, Bruce J. TELCOT: a case study of electronic marketing. Agricultural
history, v. 56, Jan. 1982: 83-98.
Schotsch, Linda. CATTLEX. Farm journal beef extra, Feb. 1981: 1-2,5.
Schotsch, Linda. Your computer options; a Farm Journal report. Farm journal,
v. 106, Feb. 1982: 9-13.
General Reports on Information Policy and Technology

Congressional Research Service. Information and telecommunications: an
overview of issues, technologies, and applications. July 1981. 138 p.
Issued as a Committee Print. U.S. Congress. House.
Conunittee on Science and Technology, Subconunittee on Science,
Research and Technology. 97th Congress, 1st session.
Domestic Council Committee on the Right of Privacy. National information
policy; report to the President of the United States. Washington,
National Commission on Libraries and Information Science, 1976. 233 p.
Little, Arthur D. Inc. Into the information age. A report prepared for the
National Science Foundation. Chicago, American Library Association, 1978.
134 p.
National Commission on Libraries and Information Science. Public sector/private
sector interaction in providing information services. Washington, National
Commission on Libraries and Information Science, 1982. 88 p.
U.S. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment. Computer-based national
information systems; technology and public policy issues. Washington,
U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1981. 166 p.
U.S. Department of Commerce. National Telecommunications and Information
Administration. Issues in public information policy. Washington,
U. S. Govt. Print. Off. , 1981. 101 p.

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Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/crs%3A82-183S. Public record. Not legal advice.