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News

Lizards and salamanders may use lungs to hear
– Certain species of salamanders and lizards can actually hear through their lungs, according to a new Ohio State University study. Thomas Hetherington, professor of Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology at Ohio State, says the research extends previous studies showing that some types of earless frogs and toads use their lungs to pick up sound vibrations. The results suggest lung-based hearing may exist in a variety of land-based animals. “This primitive system of hearing may have been the auditory system for the first animals that lived on land,” says Hetherington. “And it appears that it may still be important for some species today, particularly ones that lack middle ears.” Contact: Tom Hetherington, 614-292-0832; see http://www.osu.edu/researchnews/archive/earlung.htm

Experts

OSU professors, students, employees, fighting terrorism in a variety of ways. – An Ohio State University researcher is one of a trio of scientists who may be America’s most mighty warriors against diseases caused by bioterrorism. Captain Darrell Galloway is a Naval Reservist who was recently called to active duty in the war against terrorism. Galloway is one of about 70 Ohio State students and 15 faculty or staff members who have been called to duty since the war began last year.
Galloway, a medical researcher in DNA vaccines at Ohio State, is part of a research team working at the Naval Medical Research Center in Silver Spring, Md., to develop the next generation of DNA anthrax vaccines. The vaccines are expected to be safer, cheaper, stable, have fewer side effects, be more effective against a wider variety of diseases, and easy to administer. They also are expected to have what the researchers call “agility” – an ability to be retailored quickly to become “just-in-time” inoculations against bacteria, viruses or other pathogens that have emerged or re-engineered to make existing vaccines ineffective. The story of the OSU veteran and his research team is featured in a recent issue of Navy & Marine Corps Medical News. Contact: Bill Hospodar, Director of Veterans Affairs, Office of Human Resources, (614) 292-7047.

Events

Washington Post editor delivers ‘the news about the news’ – March 20. Leonard Downie Jr., executive editor of the Washington Post and an OSU graduate, will talk about the news business in “The News About the News: American Journalism in Peril,” at 4 p.m. on Wednesday (3/20) at the Faculty Club, 181 S. Oval Drive. Downie, who earned his B.A. and M.A. degrees at Ohio State, is widely regarded as one of the nation's most ethical journalists. Downie's fourth book, bearing the title of his lecture, was published in February. Prior to the lecture, at 3:40 p.m., Downie, former Sen. John Glenn and Provost Ed Ray will be available to reporters in the library of the Faculty Club. An audio mult box will be provided at both the media availability and the lecture. The lecture is the first in the series “Book Marks: Notable Authors on Public Policy,” sponsored by the John Glenn Institute for Public Service and Public Policy. Downie's talk is co-sponsored by the School of Journalism and Communication. Contact: Amy Murray, University Relations, (614) 292-8385.

Medical students hoping for the perfect match – March 21. About 200 senior medical students at Ohio State are hoping to celebrate Thursday (3/21) when they unseal envelopes revealing where in the United States they will spend the next several years of their medical training. The Ohio State University College of Medicine and Public Health students will simultaneously tear open the envelopes precisely at noon in the auditorium of the Fawcett Center, 2400 Olentangy River Road. The students, their friends, families and instructors will gather at 11:30 a.m. for a brief ceremony prior before they open their envelopes. National Residency Match Day is the traditional day senior medical students across the country learn where they will go to receive training in their chosen field. Throughout their senior year, medical students interview for positions in residency programs at hospitals of their choosing. The students and hospitals rank each other in order of preference. A computer does the final matching. Last year, half of the graduating medical students from Ohio State received matches at Ohio hospitals. Contact: David Crawford, Medical Center Communications, (614)-293-3737.

Judicial independence, including analysis of Bush v. Gore, is subject of conference – March 21-22. Judicial independence – the ability of a court to decide an issue without pressure from outside interests – is an ideal Americans highly value. But there are many challenges to judicial independence, including campaign fundraising and judicial appointive systems. A national array of judges, scholars and lawyers will look at the current challenges and future prospects for U.S. courts during a two-day conference, “Perspectives on Judicial Independence,” on Thursday and Friday (3/21-22). All panels and keynotes are open to media and mult boxes will be available. Judge Robert Duncan, former U.S. District Court judge, will moderate a panel on “Bush v. Gore and Judicial Independence,” at 10:30 a.m. on Friday at the Moritz College of Law. Other panels include “Judicial Independence in the States,” “Campaign Finance and Beyond,” and “Judicial Independence in the Federal Courts. The complete schedule is at http://www.osu.edu/units/law/CLPSS/JudicialIndependence.htm The conference is a three-way partnership among The John Glenn Institute for Public Service and Public Policy, the Moritz College of Law and the League of Women Voters of Ohio Education Fund. Contact: Amy Murray, University Relations, (614) 292-8385.

Ohio State holds winter quarter graduation exercises – March 22. David Brennan, chair of The Ohio State University Board of Trustees, will be the featured speaker at winter quarter commencement exercises, which will take place at 9:30 a.m. on Friday (3/22) at St. John Arena. In his address to graduates, Brennan plans to offer a patriotic message about America and Americans. Also during the ceremony, five people will receive commencement awards: Father Theodore M. Hesburgh, of the University of Notre Dame, Ray D. Owen of the California Institute of Technology, and Wilford Robert Gardner of the University of California will receive honorary doctorate degrees. Distinguished Service Awards will go to David W. Cole, and Ronald L. Racster, both professors emeriti in Ohio State’s Fisher College of Business. Contact: Amy Murray, University Relations, (614) 292-8385.

Two College of Education programs are award winners – The Social Studies and Global Education Program in The Ohio State University College of Education is the 2002 winner of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education's award for the most outstanding teacher education program in global and international education. The award recognizes Ohio State for collaboration with local public school teachers in teacher education, and for its impact on research in global education. The program leaders, Professors Merry Merryfield, Steven Miller, and Cynthia Tyson, are currently developing a new on-line course in world cultures and global issues in collaboration with Ohio State's five 'area studies' centers. Contact: Merry Merryfield, (614) 292-4314.

A project to help Head Start teachers apply technology in their classrooms has received a 2001 National Telecommunications Partnership Award from the SBC Foundation and Partners in Education. The Technology Helping Educators (THE) Consortium project is based at the College of Education's Center for Special Needs Populations. Directed by James Scott Jr., it seeks to improve the quality of early childhood teacher education programs by enhancing Head Start teachers’ academic opportunities through increased exposure to and use of technology in authentic and culturally relevant contexts. Contact: James Scott Jr., College of Education, (614) 447-0844

The person listed as Contact will have the best information about the story. Call on our media relations staff for help with any Ohio State story – Liz Cook, (614) 292-7276; Elizabeth Conlisk, (614) 292-3040; Randy Dunham, (614) 292-8295; Amy Murray, (614) 292-8385, and Shannon Wingard, (614) 247-6821.