Story Ideas for Media 11/6/06

News

Ohio State closed on Friday – Due to the Veterans Day holiday, Ohio State offices are closed and there are no classes on Friday, Nov. 10.

Experts

Election Law@Moritz provides up to date analysis of legal issues in elections – Ohio State’s Election Law @ Moritz program offers up to the minute analysis of critical legal developments in this year’s election. A weekly teleconference begins at 2 p.m. ET every Tuesday. Reporters may join the weekly teleconference by calling 1-800-261-9609. Moritz Law experts are available at (614) 247-8880 or http://moritzlaw.osu.edu/electionlaw/

Ohio ballot initiatives on smoking – Smoking issues are receiving even more attention in Ohio this year because of two smoking initiatives on the November ballot. Issue 4 is funded almost entirely by the tobacco industry and Issue 5 is endorsed primarily by health organizations and non-profits. Professor Mary Ellen Wewers is able to discuss smoking cessation in adults; best practices in treating tobacco use and dependence; and smoking and cessation among low-income Ohioans, specifically in Appalachia. Wewers is a professor in the School of Public Health (SPH) and associate dean for Research & Faculty Development. She can be reached at (614) 292-3137 or Wewers.1@osu.edu. SPH Communications director is Christine O’Malley, (614) 293-9406, comalley@sph.osu.edu

Research

Phys Ed class more effective when there’s more talking. A new approach to traditional high school gym class dramatically increases how often teens exercise outside of school.
Researchers at Ohio State and Denison universities developed and tested the new program in which students at a rural Ohio high school learned how to create a personalized exercise program. The students spent one gym class each week learning the skills necessary for planning a lifelong exercise program.
Nearly half of the students said that they spent no time exercising outside of school prior to beginning the program. That number dropped to less than one in 10 students once the program ended.
“Traditional gym classes don’t work for many students,” said Rick Petosa, a study co-author and an associate professor of physical activity and educational services at Ohio State. “Sports-based physical education does not increase physical activity outside of school.”
The new approach to gym class, called “Planning to be Active,” was developed by Petosa and Brian Hortz, an assistant professor of physical education at Denison University. CONTACT: Rick Petosa, (614) 292-8345; Petosa.1@osu.edu, or Brian Hortz, (740) 587-6441; Hortz.1@osu.edu SEE: http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/planact.htm

The next avian flu vaccine: Ohio State scientist tackles virus. An Ohio State University scientist is on his way to creating a more effective, cheaper, easier-to-use and faster-to-produce vaccine to protect poultry from avian influenza. The research could also benefit humans.
High-pathogenic avian influenza is one of the top threats facing the poultry industry and, because of the spread of the Asian H5N1 virus strain, it also poses a major human health risk around the world. Chang-Won Lee, a virologist with the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) at Wooster, is developing a live attenuated influenza vaccine that would give poultry a more cross-protective and longer-lasting immunity against high-pathogenic avian flu viruses — a key weapon to protect an industry worth more than $20 billion in the United States and $3.3 billion in Ohio. CONTACT: Chang-Won Lee, (330) 263-3750, lee.2854@osu.edu,, SEE: http://www.ag.ohio-state.edu/~news/story.php?id=3840

Events

Ohio State honors veterans with new Remembrance Park and Memorial Wall – Nov. 9. Ohio State University President Karen A. Holbrook, Ohio State Battalion Commander Lt. Colonel Todd Miller, and women’s basketball head coach and Vietnam veteran Jim Foster, will unveil Ohio State’s tribute to its brave alumni, faculty, staff and students who have served in the armed forces at the public dedication of Remembrance Park at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday (11/9). The result of collaboration between the Athletics Department and the Army ROTC, the new park will be at the northwest corner of Tuttle Park Place and Woody Hayes Drive, just north of Ohio Stadium and south of Converse Hall, the ROTC facility. Designed as a memorial to all veterans that will last for generations, Remembrance Park will feature a Wall of Honor and Remembrance that pays special tribute to the more than 1,000 Ohio State Alumni who have given their lives in the service and defense of our country. The park will provide a green space that veterans and their families, as well as members of the university and Central Ohio communities, can enjoy. CONTACT: Roger Addleman, (614) 292-3647, addleman.1@osu.edu

Veterinary Medicine students support Children with “Josh Project” – Nov. 9. Veterinary Medicine students at Ohio State are embarking on a community outreach project to benefit child surgery patients at Columbus Children’s Hospital. The “Josh Project” delivers a stuffed dog with a book that explains what to expect in the hospital to children facing surgery. Creator Dr. Randy Lange, accompanied by his dog, the real life “Josh,” will speak to students, faculty, staff and local veterinarians at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday (11/9) in the Veterinary Hospital Auditorium, 601 Vernon Tharp Street. Members of the Student Chapter of the American Veterinary Medical Association (SCAVMA), Dr. Lange and “Josh” will be available for interviews throughout the day. CONTACT: Joshua Stern, (614) 353-7088; stern.65@osu.
More information about the project and organizations can be found: www.joshandfriends.com, http://www.vet.ohio-state.edu/clubsOrgs/SCAVMA/,