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July 10, 1998 JOURNALISTS: Here 's a story idea and a Purdue event during the next two weeks. Highway projects gear up, speed up It's summer, and those big orange signs cropping up on highways can only mean one thing -- construction ahead, and with it delays and driver angst. While summer road construction can be frustrating to motorists, Kumares Sinha, professor of civil engineering at Purdue, says that private contractors hired by the state for major road projects actually have an incentive for finishing quickly. Contractors get a bonus if they finish early and pay a penalty if they are late. Also, contractors try to use the least amount of road space possible, and often work at night when traffic is light. Sinha, head of Transportation and Infrastructure Systems Engineering in the School of Civil Engineering, is an expert on how highway projects are financed and planned, safety issues, and the materials used in highway construction and repair. CONTACT: Sinha, (765) 494-2211; e-mail: sinha@ecn.purdue.edu Events Saturday, July 25. Purdue Garden Day. Lectures, tours and demonstrations will be part of Purdue's Garden Day from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. in the Horticulture Gardens of Purdue's West Lafayette campus. Tours will include stops at the teaching and research greenhouses and the flower garden. Lecture topics include pest management and yard and garden diseases. There will also be a demonstration on making a birdhouse from a gourd. CONTACT: Purdue's Horticulture Department, (765) 494-1296. July 26-29. Top Farmer Crop Workshop. More than 35 farmers, landlords and researchers will give their take on leasing, equipment budgeting, crop management and people management during sessions on the West Lafayette campus. Sessions include land-grant university research in risk management software, crop disease prevention, fertilization, grain storage and precision farming. CONTACT: Howard Doster, associate professor of agricultural economics, (765) 494-4250, e-mail, doster@agecon.purdue.edu Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@purdue.edu To the Purdue News and Photos Page