The farm's 50th anniversary was celebrated July 7, 2005, with a review at 100 years of crop breeding at WSU that started with Spillman.
Shull's discovery led to increased corn production and to a revolution in crop breeding.
If they could, some scientists say, it would greatly simplify crop breeding.
Supporters of the effort say the free exchange of seeds and technology that once aided crop breeding is impeded by patents held not only by companies but also by universities.
The ability to predict genes of interest for crop breeding is a major advantage to the further domestication of crop species that is facilitated by genomics and the identification of genes and extragenic sequences that control for these desirable traits.
Other, more familiar genetic techniques include crop breeding and the exposure of cells to radiation or to chemicals that induce random genetic changes.
His fellow students were bound for careers in crop breeding, but Valin had other ideas.
Founded in 1946 as a branch of the Institute of Botany, the Institute specialises in crop breeding, plant physiology, genetics and cellular engineering.
In crop breeding, although the use of heterosis in first-generation seeds (or F1) is well known, its application in rice was limited because of the self-pollination character of that crop.
