Each month staff in the Office of University Relations report on Ohio State research and connect reporters with experts across the University. They then monitor articles that mention Ohio State in the 50 largest U.S. and select world media markets. The dozens of articles each month are just one indication of the high profile the University enjoys in the national media.

William Marras, professor of industrial, welding, and systems engineering, was interviewed recently for reports on attempts by federal Republicans to get rid of new ergonomics standards set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Marras said research shows the need for ergonomic regulations to protect workers. Coverage included NPR's All Things Considered, March 6, and the Los Angeles Times, March 11 and 25.

Numerous articles and reviews were published about a new book, Communazis, by Alexander Stephan, professor of Germanic languages and literatures. Communazis reveals how the FBI and other government agencies spied on hundreds of German writers who had fled Hitler and sought refuge in the United States during the 1930s and 1940s. Coverage included: London Guardian, Sept. 22; Los Angeles Times, Oct. 22; London Daily Telegraph, Dec. 23; The Nation, Jan. 1; and the New York Times, Jan. 28.

A Nov. 20 Tampa Tribune article discussed research by Mauro Ferrari, director of the Biomedical Engineering Center, and associate director of the Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute. Ferrari presented his research at the BioMEMS and Biomedical Nanotechnology World 2000 meeting, held at Ohio State.

Jill Goldberg-Arnold, clinical assistant professor of psychiatry, was quoted in the Indianapolis Star, Nov. 20, about how parents can recognize children with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Articles about research by Susan King Roth, professor of industrial, interior and visual communication design, ran in the Baltimore Sun, Nov. 20, and the New Yorker, Nov. 27, and were carried by the Associated Press, March 18. Roth examined the design flaws with various voting methods that make voting confusing and difficult for some people.

Articles in the Nov. 25 Fort Worth Star-Telegram and the Nov. 29 Newsday mentioned that research at Ohio State in the 1970s proved that poinsettias are not poisonous to humans, despite popular belief to the contrary.

A Nov. 26 Houston Chronicle article mentioned research at Ohio State that found patients with lung disease who exercised their respiratory muscles three times a week for three months showed significant improvement in respiratory muscle endurance, strength and walking speed.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Nov. 28, mentioned that the first human trial of gene therapy for muscular dystrophy began in September 1999 at Ohio State.

Articles about research by Tony Buffington, professor of veterinary clinical nutrition, that found stressed-out cats appear to relax when exposed to a synthetic form of a natural feline pheromone ran in the Nov. 30 London Times, the Philadelphia Inquirer, Dec. 16, and the Tampa Tribune, Feb. 19.

The December 2000 Popular Mechanics included an article about research by Robert Rapp, professor emeritus of materials science and engineering. Rapp has a patent on a potentially major improvement in aluminum production: an electrode that could cut smelting costs by one-fourth and air pollution by half.

Charles Billings, professor emeritus of public health, was quoted in USA Today, Dec. 1, about how NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS), which is used by pilots and other airline employees to anonymously report safety concerns, needs a budget increase to properly do its job.

Articles about research by Carl Zulauf, professor of agricultural, environmental and development economics were carried by the Washington Post, Dec. 3; Copley News Service, Dec. 4; and the Toronto Globe and Mail, Dec. 6. The articles were about his research that suggests college students have to spend a lot of time studying in order to improve their grades. He found a one-letter-grade increase in quarter GPA was associated with a 40-hour increase in weekly study time.

The Dec. 7 Newsday ran an op-ed article written by Jon Krosnick, professor of psychology and political science, arguing that the presidential votes in all the precincts in Florida should have been recounted to assure a fair tally.

The Dec. 9 New York Times contained a letter to the editor written by Steve Kremer, director of residence life, commenting on a recent story about babies in the workplace. He discussed the hidden benefits his employees discovered when a staff member began bringing a baby to the office.

David Frid, assistant professor of internal medicine, was interviewed on CNN's Your Health, Dec. 10, for a report on how eating and drinking moderately before a long airplane flight can be healthy because it increases blood volume, which means better blood circulation. That's important because of the possibility of blood clots caused by sitting in one position for too long.

The Dec. 12 Christian Science Monitor quoted Galal Walker, professor of East Asian languages and literatures, in an article about the fact that more than 95 percent of resources expended on language study in the United States are poured into French, Spanish, and German -- languages spoken by only 8 percent to 12 percent of the world's population. About one-fifth of the world speaks Chinese, she said.

Lawrence Baum, professor of political science, was quoted in the Dec. 14 Houston Chronicle in an article about how the U.S. Supreme Court decision that ended Al Gore's presidential quest may have harmed the court's image with much of the public.

A Dec. 14 New York Times article quoted Leslie Fine, associate professor of marketing, in an article about the relationships between buyers and sellers who do business over the Internet.

Deborah Jones Merritt, professor of law, was quoted in the Dallas Morning News, Dec. 14, about how she believes that U.S. Supreme Court justices don't vote in partisan ways.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Dec. 15, quoted Robert Michler, chair of cardiothoracic surgery and transplantation, in an article about the future of full organ xenotransplantation -- transplants of livers, kidneys or other organs across species. He said scientists are still debating how long animal tests should continue before xenotransplants are allowed in humans.

The Dec. 16 Tampa Tribune included advice from the Ohio State Extension service in an article about how to remove some common stains from clothing.

Paul Beck, professor and chair of political science, was quoted on election matters in several national publications. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Dec. 17, quoted him in an article about how the contentious and litigious struggle for the presidency this year has probably made voters more cynical about the political parties. In a Feb. 4 New York Times article, he talked about how Democrats need to avoid schisms in their party in order to regroup after the failed presidential bid last November. The Associated Press on Feb. 27 quoted Beck about the growing trend of men and women who replace their spouses as members of state legislatures.

The Washington Post, Dec. 17, ran an article about William Eveland, assistant professor of journalism and communication, and his research that suggests television news, much maligned for its lack of content, may actually help less-educated people learn about political candidates.