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Ohio
State's news, experts and events give you more on the news

News

OSU Medical Center Among Top 100 Most Wired Hospitals – For the sixth consecutive year, The Ohio State University Medical Center has been named one of the country's "Most Wired" hospitals. It also ranked as one of the 25 most wireless. The prestigious designation refers to the use of advanced information technology tools by the nation's hospitals to provide quality care and patient safety. "Hospitals & Health Networks," the journal of the American Hospital Association, compiled a list of top 100 Most Wired hospitals based on the surveys from 1,255 hospitals. According to the journal, those listed, on average, have risk-adjusted mortality rates 7.2 percent lower than other hospitals. While the new survey does not establish a cause-and-effect relationship between information technology use and improved outcomes, it does show technology can play an important role in quality. Contact: Apryl Ehmann, Medical Center Communications, (614) 293-3737.

Operation: Military Kids Gives Back to Ohio's Military Families. Children in Ohio's military families often feel stresses and challenges when a parent is deployed. Those children and teens will benefit from "Operation: Military Kids" this week. Over $70,000 has been granted to Ohio State University Extension's 4-H Youth Development Program to support Operation: Military Kids in Ohio, said Theresa Ferrari, 4-H youth development specialist for Ohio State University Extension and Ohio 4-H's military liaison to support youth and family programs. "Operation Purple" camp, which begins this week, is the first major event under the Operation: Military Kids umbrella. 4-H's Camp Graham, in Clinton County, will be home-away-from-home for 10- to 15-year-olds from Ohio's deployed families until July 29. The camp is geared specifically toward helping them deal with military-related stresses and challenges, and can accommodate up to 140 campers. Ferrari has been working with military kids since 2002, focusing her efforts mainly in partnership with the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton. This grant will help expand efforts to reach children and teens statewide. Operation: Military Kids program is open to all military-connected children, but is geared toward children of deployed National Guard and Reserve members. Contact: Theresa Ferrari, (614) 247-8164 or ferrari.8@osu.edu

Experts

Experts available to discuss U.S. Supreme Court Confirmation Process. U.S. Circuit Judge John Roberts Jr. has been nominated to fill the Supreme Court vacancy left by the retirement of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Roberts, 50, has been a member of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit since 2003. Several faculty members at the Moritz College of Law at The Ohio State University are available to talk with the media about the U.S. Supreme Court confirmation process:

*James J. Brudney, (614) 292-0795 or brudney.1@osu.edu. Professor Brudney served as clerk to Associate Justice Harry A. Blackmun during the 1980-1981 term, the final Term of an all-male Court (Justice O'Connor began her tenure the following autumn). He can discuss changes in recent decades as to the background and experience deemed suitable for Supreme Court service, the divergent philosophies of statutory interpretation among the current Justices, and recent (and possible future) trends from the Court on workplace law cases, which comprise roughly one-sixth of the Court's decisional docket.

*Edward B. (Ned) Foley, (614) 292-4288 or foley.33@osu.edu. Professor Foley served as clerk to Associate Justice Harry A. Blackmun during the 1988-1989 term. He can address the respect for precedent and stare decisis, how a court adheres to a principle of law once that principle has been laid down by the court. He can discuss how the new Supreme Court will follow the law set down by the previous members or if it will deviate from current law.

*Alan C. Michaels, (614) 688-3451 or michaels.23@osu.edu. Professor Michaels served as clerk to Associate Justice Harry A. Blackmun during the 1987-1988 term. He is an expert in Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure. In addition to discussing the Court in relation to Criminal Law and Procedure, he can discuss the effects of new appointments on the balance of power within the court.

*Peter M. Shane, (614) 688-3014 or shane.29@osu.edu. Professor Shane is an expert in the area of administrative law. He can discuss the history of Supreme Court appointments, responsibilities of the Senate, judicial records of retiring Justices, issues likely to be important on the Court's agenda that the new Justice could influence, and philosophies of constitutional interpretation and adherence to past precedents.

Research

Bitter or sweet? The same taste bud can tell the difference. The tongue's ability to differentiate between sweet and bitter tastes may reside in the same taste bud cells, a new study reports. The study explains the discovery of a chemical messenger called neuropeptide Y (NPY) in taste bud cells. Though researchers have long known that NPY is active in the brain and gut, this is the first study to show that it is also active in taste bud cells. That finding gives scientists a deeper understanding of how the human brain may distinguish between different types of tastes, said Scott Herness, the study's lead author and a professor of oral biology and neuroscience at Ohio State University. Contact: Scott Herness, 614-292-2735; Herness.1@osu.edu, see: http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/tastebud.htm

Events

Veterinary Medicine holds open house at new Large Animal Clinic in Marysville – July 31. The College of Veterinary Medicine will hold an open house at its new large animal clinic in Marysville from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sunday (7/31) at the clinic building, 16410 County Home Road, Marysville. The clinic, which opened last month, serves more than 900 clients in 13 counties. The state-of-the-art facility includes a surgery suite, pharmacy, laboratory, conference room, housing for students and faculty offices. There will be a short program at 2:15 p.m. with tours and refreshments all afternoon. The new facility illustrates the College's commitment to large animal medicine and rural veterinary practice, and to providing students with the most comprehensive learning experience in large animal medicine as is available in the U.S. today. Contact: Melissa Lamb Peale, College of Veterinary Medicine, (614) 292-3752.