Name: Gerd Bobe
Title: Associate Professor
Institution: Oregon State University
Role with Journal of Dairy Science: Section Editor of Physiology
Can you tell us a bit about your background, and what your current research is focused on?
I’m an associate professor in animal nutrition at Oregon State University and principal investigator at the Linus Pauling Institute, who focuses on nutritional disease prevention in humans and animals. After studying for my undergraduate degree in Germany, I received my MS and PhD degrees in animal nutrition and physiology in 1997 and 2002, respectively, from Iowa State University and my MPH degree in public health nutrition in 2006 from Johns Hopkins University. I worked as a postdoc at Michigan State University and the National Cancer Institute on health benefits of foodstuffs, which I continued at Oregon State University. I have authored or co-authored over 140 peer-reviewed articles.
What advice do you have for grad students or other early-career scientists submitting their first manuscripts? What are common oversights you see?
You can only succeed if you are willing to accept rejection. My first three manuscripts were all rejected by the first journal. I would recommend a buddy system, where you team up with a scientist with a track record of publishing. Incorrect experimental design is the biggest challenge; the buddy system will help you with the JDS format requirements.
Why should authors publish in JDS?
It is the place to stay up to date about dairy research.
What do you think are the biggest challenges currently facing the dairy industry, and how is JDS part of the solution?
The only constant in life is change. Recent technical innovations will result in structural changes in the dairy industry. JDS will provide the science-based expertise in how to navigate the ever-evolving dairy landscape.