Corporations from opposite ends of the globe came together earlier this 
summer to celebrate a partnership based around the research findings of 
Ohio State's Arthur Epstein -- an alliance which will develop products 
based on Epstein's light-emitting plastics research.

We are interested in transforming plastics into a much broader range of materials. 
If you suddenly can use plastic to be magnetic, give off light. To take and cut it 
into pixels, be flexible, so you could have displays everywhere.  Make transistors 
or help keep you safe, wonderful opportunities. 

All of these potential uses are made possible by a rearrangement of the carbon 
atoms in the molecular structure of traditional plastics.  Ohio State's diverse 
resources are helping to rapidly turn this discovery into applicable technology we 
can use.

It's a very complex thing to do this kind of research and you can't do this a 
lone. Having  a large university that is comprehensive in the types of programs, 
with fist class leading chemistry, physics and engineering, that's important.  And 
that is why it's very good for me to be here at Ohio State.



Not only is the research at Ohio State groundbreaking, it's 
record-breaking, too. This past October, a team of students from Ohio 
State's Center for Automotive Research set a new land-speed record for 
an electric car, at 257 miles per hour. Among the "Buckeye Bullet" team 
leaders was Ed Hillstrom, a recent graduate who's now applying his 
knowledge in the cars we all drive, working for Daimler-Chrysler in 
Detroit. 

When I interviewed for jobs, my experience with this car was crucial to my getting 
hired.  What I brought in was a stack of pictures of my design projects for this 
car. So they said name a time you solved a challenging problem.  Well I showed 
them my parachute release design. You know, I talk about the teamwork and the 
planning, the timing it takes to make this car work. 

The Buckeye Bullet program jumped right off the page and the applied engineering 
experience he had in that program just was truly incredible. Exactly what we are 
looking for coming out of and academic program like that.

I think what you have here is a really unique experience at this university. A 
university this size and the resources.  A group of students with the educations 
they have and the experience they gain in school can build a safe fast car that 
can beat professional teams.  And we are a bunch of students learning having fun, 
going just as fast or faster than everybody else and I think that says a lot about 
Ohio State.