WIND INDUCED CROP FAILURE (STALK LODGING) IS A MAJOR PROBLEM THAT HAS PLAGUED AGRICULTURE FOR DECADES THAT LIMITS FOOD SECURITY AND REDUCES WORLDWIDE GRAIN YIELDS BY APPROXIMATELY 5% ANNUALLY. THIS POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP WILL MERGE STATE-OF-THE-ART ENGINEERING TOOLS WITH EXPERTISE IN AGRICULTURE AND STATISTICS TO INVESTIGATE WHICH GEOMETRIC AND MATERIAL PARAMETERS EFFECT STALK LODGING. COMPUTATIONAL GROWTH MODELS OF MAIZE STEMS WILL BE USED TO INVESTIGATE (1) HOW WIND LOADING AFFECTS THE PLANT'S ARCHITECTURE OVER TIME, HOW TISSUE AND SUB-TISSUE PROPERTIES EFFECT STALK STIFFNESS, AND (3) HOW PROXY MEASURES CURRENTLY USED IN AGRICULTURE RELATE TO STALK STRENGTH. THE RESULTS OF THIS PROJECT WILL PROVIDE PLANT BREEDERS WITH BETTER TOOLS TO PHENOTYPE FOR STALK LODGING RESISTANCE. THIS PROJECT ADDRESSES THE AFRI PRIORITY AREAS OF PLANT HEALTH AND PRODUCTION AND PLANT PRODUCTS, AND BIOENERGY, NATURAL RESOURCES, AND ENVIRONMENT.