International and Homeland Security News and Current Events

The Lantern - Campus
Issue: 07/24/03

Award money to aid technology research
By Misty Alli

The Ohio Board of Regents recently gave Ohio State five new awards - totaling $8 million - to help advance projects in research and technology.

Out of a total of $11 million in the 2003 Hayes Investment Fund Program, OSU received more than half of the money awarded, enabling them to lead five research consortia.

Partners in the consortia will include other Ohio research institutions and industries.

The Hayes Investment Fund Program provides support for major equipment purchases and facilities to enhance the research infrastructure of Ohio's universities, and to foster collaboration among them.

"Ohio State had a fantastic showing in this round of the Hayes Investment Fund," said Tom Rosol, interim vice president for research and a professor of veterinary biosciences at OSU.

"These five new consortia will let the university take a leadership role in making Ohio a center for high-tech research, creating new jobs (for researchers) and new opportunities throughout the state," he said.

The consortium will address different areas of industry. The various areas, however, will all focus on laboratory efforts to understand and control the behavior of materials, particularly though micro- or nanotechnology.

The Production and Storage of Hydrogen Consortium is one OSU-led project the Regent approved and awarded $1 million. The project's goal is to make hydrogen a viable energy source.

This consortium will work on new processes for generating hydrogen and developing porous materials for safe hydrogen storage.

"Hydrogen economy for fueling sustainable development is beginning to emerge as the central theme for global energy needs in the 21st century," said Prabir Dutta, a professor of chemistry and deputy director of the Center for Industrial Sensors and Measurements.

"Concerns about urban air pollution, climate change and dependable energy are responsible for the push toward a hydrogen economy," Dutta said.

L. James Lee, a professor of chemical engineering and director of OSU's Center for Advanced Polymer and Composite Engineering, is the principal investigator of the consortium for Affordable Manufacturing of Polymers at the Nanoscale project, which was awarded $2 million.

"Demand has been growing rapidly for products with nanoscale features and functions for industrial, informational, biomedical and environmental applications presenting significant career opportunities for future generations," Lee said. "These new facilities will greatly enhance OSU's research and education capability in the nanotechnology area."

The Board of Regents also funded a consortium led by the University of Toledo with OSU as a partner.

The consortium received $1.2 million in Hayes funding, and will work to modernize and increase the power of X-ray facilities used to study protein structures in the human genome.

The Hayes Investment Fund Program requires each university provide partial matching funds, including 10 percent of its share of the requested equipment costs. The program also requires Ohio universities maintain laboratory equipment and operate the consortium. The matching funds are provided by the colleges and departments involved.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Five new awards totaling $8 million from the Ohio Board of Regents will help Ohio State University take the lead in tomorrow’s materials technology.

The Regents are providing the awards through the 2003 Hayes Investment Fund Program , enabling the university to lead five research consortia. Partners in the consortia will include other Ohio research institutions and industries. Of the nearly $11 million in Hayes funds awarded this year, Ohio State-led consortia have won the majority.

The Hayes Investment Fund Program provides support for major equipment purchases and facilities to enhance the research infrastructure of Ohio's universities and to foster collaboration among them.

Though each consortium will address different areas of industry -- including electronics, energy, automotive, aerospace and biomedical technology -- all five focus on laboratory efforts to understand and control the behavior of materials, particularly through micro- or nanotechnology.

“Ohio State had a fantastic showing in this round of the Hayes Investment Fund,” said Tom Rosol , interim vice president for research and a professor of veterinary biosciences at Ohio State. “These five new consortia will let the university take a leadership role in making Ohio a center for high-tech research, creating new jobs and new opportunities throughout the state.”

In its meeting July 17, the Board of Regents approved the following Ohio State-led projects:

Description: This consortium will work to design software tools to accelerate the development of new materials at greatly reduced cost. A Hayes Investment Fund award established the creation of CAMM in 1999.

Ohio State will partner with: University of Cincinnati, Wright State University, Air Force Research Laboratory, Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory, Alcan Technology and Management, Ford Motor Co., the Timken Co., and General Electric Aircraft Engines.

Principal Investigator: L. James Lee , professor of chemical engineering, Helen C. Kurtz Chair of Chemical Engineering , and director of Ohio State's Center for Advanced Polymer and Composite Engineering. Kurt Koelling , associate professor of chemical engineering, will be site director for Ohio State’s role in the consortium.

Description: This consortium will develop new methods for fabricating materials with useful structural properties, to improve the manufacture of biomedical and other devices.

Ohio State will partner with: University of Akron, University of Dayton, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Air Force Research Laboratory, Ashland Specialty Chemical Co., Applied Sciences, Inc., Owens Corning, Procter & Gamble Co., and Honda of America Manufacturing.

Description: This consortium will create a facility for patterning a variety of materials -- including electronic, magnetic and photonic materials and devices and biomedical devices -- at the nanometer (one billionth of a meter) scale, in order to strengthen ongoing university-based nanotechnology research, spark the growth of high technology start-up companies in Ohio, and create new jobs in existing companies.

Ohio State will partner with: Ohio University, Wright State University, Lake Shore Cryotronics, Inc., Battelle Memorial Institute, Air Force Research Laboratory, and NASA Glenn Research Center.

Description: To speed the development of electronics made from alternative materials, including polymers, this consortium is working on better fabrication and materials synthesis technologies. This award continues support of OOSC from the last Hayes Investment Fund competition.

Ohio State will partner with: Kent State University, Case Western Reserve University, BTG International, Inc., DuPont Circleville, AlphaMicron, Inc., and Nanofilm, Inc.

Description: With the goal of making hydrogen a viable energy source, this consortium will work on new processes for generating hydrogen and developing porous materials for safe hydrogen storage.

Ohio State will partner with: Kent State University, University of Akron, University of Cincinnati, and NexTech Materials Ltd.

The Board of Regents also funded a consortium led by the University of Toledo, with Ohio State as a partner. The leaders of the Ohio State portion of the Macromolecular Crystallography Consortium are Michael Chan , associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry , and Charles Bell , assistant professor of molecular and cellular biochemistry .

That consortium, to which the Board awarded approximately $1.2 million in Hayes funding, will work to modernize and increase the power of X-ray facilities used to study protein structures in the human genome. Doing so will give the researchers insight into the roles certain proteins play in metabolism, cellular signaling and the transmission of genetic information.

The Hayes Investment Fund Program requires that each university provide partial matching funds -- 10 percent of its share of the requested equipment costs -- to maintain laboratory equipment and operate the consortium. The matching funds are provided by the colleges and departments involved.

Since its inception in 1991, the Hayes Investment Fund Program has awarded almost $95 million to individual universities and university consortia.

In July of 1998, the Board renamed the program in honor of Edward F. Hayes, the Ohio State vice president for research and president of OSU's Research Foundation, who died suddenly in March of that year at the age of 56.

The Lantern - Campus
Issue: 07/17/03

OSU gets high marks for research funding
By Chris Juhl

Ohio State ranked No. 1 among public universities and third nationally for industry-sponsored research.

Gathered by the National Science Foundation, this latest report evaluates based on funds spent on research rather than through grants received, said Tom Rosol, the interim vice president for research at OSU.

"These numbers are more accurate (than numbers based on grants)," Rosol said. "It shows that we have many faculty that are successful at their research."

Rosol said seeking funding forces researchers to be salespeople - selling their ideas to federal and state agencies, corporations and foundations.

OSU researchers put forth about 4,000 proposals a year and nearly half of the proposals are funded, Rosol said.

"Our faculty are competing well," he said.

Engineering, with 62 percent, and medicine, with 23 percent, make up the majority of proposals from OSU faculty, he said.

Martin Sarter, a researcher in the department of psychology, said he would expect nothing less than high marks from a quality university such as OSU.

"This is a very comprehensive institution; it's not a surprise," Sarter said.

Sarter has three active projects concerned with neurobiology and "brain circuitry."

These are exciting times for the university, especially the psychology department, an extremely research-intensive department, he said.

"This is a great place to be," Sarter said.

The research funding continues to grow. A 13 percent increase in the level of funding can be seen from the previous year alone, Rosol said. OSU boasts an 80 percent increase from just three years ago.

Rosol said the reason for the tremendous growth is due to the significant growth of the national budget, as well as the competitive nature of the faculty.

"Our faculty are growing faster than the national average," he said.

Rosol said he's not concerned about the effects of Ohio's budget crisis on the next report. Despite the gloomy fiscal forecast, he expects a healthy five to 10 percent increase.

"I think it will be challenging," he said.

In today's economy, all institutions will struggle to maintain growth, he said.

For the time being, the latest figures point to a brighter future for Ohio's workforce, Rosol said. More "start-up companies" and high-technology jobs could result from the funded research.

The Expenditure Survey also ranked OSU fifth nationally among all public universities and colleges during the 2001 fiscal year.

Ed Gardner, director of institutional research and data analysis at OSU, said he's still gathering expenditure numbers from last fiscal year. Gardner said he expects to release OSU's latest output by mid to late September.

The Lantern - Campus
Issue: 07/17/03

New bill may give more money to Columbus-area defense projects
By Ashley Brown

The Columbus area may receive nearly $16.5 million from the national government for defense projects in fiscal year 2004, which begins October 1.

The increased funding is part of the new Defense Appropriations Bill passed by the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee July 9.

Sen. Mike DeWine, R-Ohio, who serves on the Appropriations Committee, is pleased with the bill's construction.

"This bill represents our continued dedication to ensuring the strongest national defense possible, now and in the future," he said.

"Bringing funding to Ohio's military installations is one of my priorities as a member of the Appropriations Committee," DeWine said. "The projects included in this bill will fund more research and development so that our defense preparedness is strengthened where it's needed most."

Sen. George Voinovich, R-Ohio, also said the bill is beneficial due to the United States' rapidly changing times.

"With new challenges to our national security, it's more important than ever that our armed forces are ready, equipped and well-trained," Voinovich said. "Fundamental to that is making sure our troops have at their disposal the most cutting-edge resources available, and these funds help guarantee that by investing heavily in the advanced research and manufacturing that we do so well in Ohio."

If the vote is successful, Ohio will be awarded a total of $186.8 million for statewide defense projects. Nearly nine percent - $16.5 million - will be given to the Columbus area for four major projects.

The Navy Manufacturing Technology Program will receive $9 million to aid in the development of new technology and Navy systems manufacturing. The Army Research Laboratory Program will receive $3 million to create advanced lightweight weapons materials.

Project Madison, headed by the National Ground Intelligence Center, also will receive $3 million to aid research into foreign states' chemical weapons programs. The money will improve the Intelligence Center's efforts to combat chemical weapons threats.

The Chemical Biological Incident Response Force Research Program requires $1.5 million for its Marine Corps Program Wide Support that invents "state-of-the-art chemical and biological defense personnel protection, detection and decontamination, to support the unique mission requirements" of the response force.

An additional $2 million will be given to the state of Ohio in order to fund its part in a nationwide plan to develop a cadet program promoting "interest and skill in seamanship and aviation, while also instilling the cadets with self-discipline and strong moral character."

The remaining $170.3 million will be dispersed among several areas.

The first is for military personnel. More money will be provided for pay, allowances, clothing, travel and expenses for those who are on active duty or reserve duty in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and National Guard.

Funding will also be made available for the "construction, procurement, production, modification and modernization" of weaponry and equipment, as well as research.

The topics of environmental restoration and overseas humanitarian, disaster and civic aid round out the proposed bill.

The 300-page bill has been placed on the Senate calendar and, barring any last-minute amendments, will be voted on by the end of the month.

The Lantern - Campus
Issue: 07/03/03

Bush to visit Dayton tomorrow
By Katy Slota

President George W. Bush will be speaking at the Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton for the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Wright brothers' first flight.

Bush is expected to address the public at noon tomorrow. He will be speaking at the outdoor venue adjacent to the U.S. Air Force museum.

Bush served as a fighter pilot in the Texas Air National Guard, making Wright Patterson Air Force Base an appropriate location for his speech.

One hundred years ago two brothers from Dayton, Wilbur and Orville Wright, put powered flight into motion. Although the flight was from Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, they put together their ideas in Dayton and practiced at the Huffman Prarie Flying Field.

This year Dayton celebrates the 100th anniversary of their invention. Space pioneers John Glenn and Neil Armstrong will join actor Harrison Ford and other notables in Dayton throughout The Centennial Celebration to commemorate the Wright brothers invention.

According to local media, Sen. John Glenn said, "This is an honor for Dayton and Ohio that the president will join our Inventing Flight Celebration on Independence Day."

The Lantern - Campus
Issue: 07/01/03

Ruling may change OSU admission policies
By Michelle L. Dupler

Ohio State is re-examining its undergraduate admissions policies in the wake of the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in the University of Michigan affirmative action case.

OSU uses a point-based system for undergraduate admissions similar to the one struck down by the Supreme Court last week in the Gratz v. Bollinger case. In Gratz, the Supreme Court determined the University of Michigan's system of automatically awarding 20 points, out of a possible 100 needed for admissions, to minority students based on race was unconstitutional.

However, in a concurrent case, the Supreme Court upheld the idea that universities can consider race when evaluating applications for admissions, as long as individual merits are also considered.

OSU officials said their commitment to diversity on campus will continue even as undergraduate admissions policies are re-evaluated.

"Diversity fosters intellectual and social growth, and prepares our students for the workplace," OSU President Karen A. Holbrook wrote in a statement issued June 23, 2003, following the release of the Supreme Court decision.

Vice Provost of Minority Affairs Mac A. Stewart also released a statement.

"I am confident that our core values will not change and that our commitment to diversity will increase as the State of Ohio becomes increasingly diverse in the decades to come," Stewart said.

Points are used only in the undergraduate admissions process. Elliot Slotnick, assistant dean of the graduate school, said admissions to graduate programs are determined on an individual basis by the respective department or school.

For undergraduate admissions, primary consideration is given to "cognitive factors" including high school grade point average, class rank, performance on the ACT and SAT, and whether the student took additional courses in math, science and foreign languages. These factors are all indicators of success on the college level, said Mabel Freeman, assistant vice president for Undergraduate Admissions and the First Year Experience.

A prospective student can be assigned up to 139 points, enough to guarantee admission, for cognitive factors alone.

"Over 80 percent of the freshman class is admitted just on cognitive factors, including more than 50 percent of minority candidates," Freeman said.

Each year, the admissions office receives roughly 20,000 applications for admission. Out of those, there are approximately 3,500 applications in which the full 139 points for cognitive factors have not been awarded, but that may be strong enough in non-cognitive factors to warrant placement in one of the 700-800 remaining spots in the freshman class, Freeman said.

A staff of 25 readers evaluates these applications on an individual basis - a key difference between the OSU policy and that of the University of Michigan.

Non-cognitive factors include leadership, extracurricular activities, community service, special talents, and the student's ability to contribute to the diversity of the student body.

Students can get 15 points for leadership and 25 points for diversity. Other factors are evaluated on an individual basis, Freeman said.

Diversity encompasses more than just minority status. The admissions staff also considers whether the student can contribute to the university's cultural diversity either by being an international student or being a U.S. student who has lived abroad.

Two additional non-racial factors considered in the evaluation of diversity are geography and socio-economic status. The admissions office looks for students from Ohio, and in particular from the state's poor counties, which may not offer the same educational opportunities as wealthier counties, Freeman said.

Applications also are evaluated for evidence of adversity that may have affected the student's performance in high school.

Freeman said she believes it is important to note the majority of students only get points for minority status after all cognitive factors have been reviewed. She emphasizes this process is different than the one used by the University of Michigan.

"Our process is a combination of objective and subjective information," she said. "We're different from the University of Michigan because we put in the points (for minorities) at the end of the process."

In the final stages of the admissions process, three to four staff members read each application. Either two out of three or three out of four must agree to admit the student before final approval is given.

Despite the differences between the University of Michigan admissions policy and the process used by OSU, there are enough similarities to prompt OSU to review its admissions process to ensure it is in compliance with the Supreme Court's ruling.

"We have to read the decision line-by-line," Freeman said. However, she said the admissions process, including policies regarding diversity, is re-evaluated every year.

"We're always running models of other ways to do this," Freeman said. "We felt this was the best model."

Although the admissions process will be thoroughly scrutinized, Freeman said she believes any changes to current undergraduate admissions policies will be a matter of "tweaking, rather than major overhaul."

Slotnick, also a professor in the political science department specializing in judicial politics, said she is confident OSU can make any necessary changes to its policy while still preserving diversity on campus.

"The court has given very clear signals to universities about how to handle diversity," Slotnick said.

Any changes to the point-based system will most likely be implemented for the Fall 2004 incoming class.

Today is a watershed day for higher education and for all those who value diversity. We are pleased that the U.S. Supreme Court, by affirming the Bakke decision, has recognized the importance of
diversity in higher education. We believe that the University of
Michigan made a compelling case, supported by the amicus briefs
representing the views of so many universities and higher education
associations, the business community and the military, for continuing efforts to increase diversity on college campuses.

The Ohio State University is and will continue to be fully committed to diversity. Diversity fosters intellectual and social growth, and prepares our students for the workplace. Our campus is more ethnically and racially diverse than at any time in its history, and at the same time the academic quality of our student body is at its highest level ever.

As we become more familiar with the fine points in the Court's
opinion, we will be charting our course for the future.

First, let me add my support to President Holbrook's comments. The Ohio State University was created by a great act of federal legislation, and we have always lived within the law of the land. As the law changes, we will continue to live within the law.

We believe that the strategic leadership documents of Ohio State the Academic Plan and the Diversity Action Plan -- are consistent with our land grant heritage and with the tradition of valuing diversity that we have built over the years. We will continue to value diversity, although the precise ways in which our policies may need to be modified are as yet unclear.

I am confident that our core values will not change and that our
commitment to diversity will increase as the State of Ohio becomes increasingly diverse in the decades to come.

The Moritz College of Law faculty and administration believe firmly in the value of diversity. The college enjoys a broadly diverse student body. We are pleased that the Supreme Court has so strongly affirmed the educational importance of diversity and upheld the doctrine of Bakke, which recognizes that a diverse student body is "at the heart of a law school's proper institutional mission." Bakke has served as a basis for the college's admissions policies. As the Court has said today, law schools are the training ground for the national leaders of tomorrow. Our diverse graduates serve the nation well. They include members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives, state supreme court justices and many judges, as well as leaders of business, the military, and law firms. And, what all of our graduates have learned from classmates and faculty in a diverse learning environment has prepared them superbly to serve people with differing life experiences. As the Court said today, "Effective participation by
members of all racial and ethnic groups in the civic life of our Nation is essential if the dream of one Nation, indivisible, is to be realized."

Homeland Security Bill Would Provide $125-Million for a Group That Includes 3 Universities
By ANNE MARIE BORREGO, Washington mailto:annemarie.borrego@chronicle.com

A key committee of the U.S. House of Representatives approved on Tuesday a 2004 appropriations bill for the Department of Homeland Security that would provide $125-million for a consortium of research and training programs at universities and federal facilities. The Bush administration's original budget request did not include any money for the consortium, whose academic partners include Louisiana State University at Baton Rouge, the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, and Texas A&M University at College Station.
The $29.4-billion bill, approved by the Appropriations Committee, also includes $900.4-million for the department's science and technology division, an increase of $97-million, or 12 percent, more than the administration requested. As previously reported in The Chronicle, the House bill would provide $25-million for university-based research centers and $10-million for fellowships. The administration had requested $10-million for both programs combined.
The bill would also allot $14-million for research to combat agricultural terrorism. In the bill's accompanying report, the committee directed the Homeland Security Department to coordinate with the Department of Agriculture to identify high-priority research areas.
While the committee report mentioned the new department's Homeland Security Advanced Research Projects Agency as having an "essential role in engaging the private sector, the academic community, and others," it did not explain just how much the research agency would have to finance developing technologies. Lawmakers created the agency to act much like the Defense Department's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
The National Domestic Preparedness Consortium includes not only the three university centers but also the Nevada Test Site, a nuclear-weapons test facility maintained by the Department of Energy, and the Center for Domestic Preparedness in Anniston, Ala., which was created by the Department of Justice. The committee noted in its report that its staff had received "numerous requests for inclusion" in the group. The committee said it "expects" the department to look at other qualified university, commercial, and government entities that could add to training efforts already offered by the consortium.
Van D. Romero, vice president for research at New Mexico Tech and national chairman of the consortium, said that the group trains emergency workers to respond to terrorist attacks, by using individual member institutions' area of expertise. The New Mexico Tech division involved in the consortium, for instance, works with large bombs at a secure facility, while the Louisiana State program trains emergency workers to respond to bio-terrorist attacks.
The Senate has yet to unveil its spending proposals for the new department.

House Panel Proposes More Homeland-Security Money for University Programs
By ANNE MARIE BORREGO mailto:annemarie.borrego@chronicle.com
Washington
A U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations subcommittee approved a $35-million budget last week for the Department of Homeland Security to spend on university fellowships and centers in the 2004 fiscal year. That amount would represent an increase of $25-million, or 250 percent, over the Bush administration's original $10-million request.
The $35-million would be split between homeland-security fellowships and university-based centers of excellence, which would conduct related research. The bill indicates that $25-million would go to the centers, leaving the remaining $10-million for the fellowships.
"The research community has a lot of ideas that can help us in the homeland-security arena," said Richard J. Turman, director of federal relations for the Association of American Universities, a group of 62 leading research institutions. Mr. Turman, who said he was pleased with the action, believes an increase in financing would allow the centers to get off to a "robust start."
Mr. Turman also said he was pleased that the bill would allow the new department to choose the centers based on a merit-review process. Some university officials had feared that members of Congress would pick the centers.
The bill says that financing for universities would not be limited to the department's science-and-technology division, but would include financing for "the National Domestic Preparedness Consortium and the Centers for Emergency Preparedness." Members of the consortium include the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Louisiana State University's Academy of Counter-Terrorist Education, and Texas A&M University's Emergency Response and Rescue Training Center.
The full Appropriations Committee is expected to meet on Tuesday to mark up the bill.

The Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory recently published an
article detailing its longtime connection with Ohio State in its
magazine, FermiNews. Since the 1970s, Ohio State faculty members have led Fermilab experiments, and graduate students have participated in research conducted there. In particular, the article praised the faculty in physics for its speedy development of an electronic device called the Extremely Fast Tracker (XRT). Brian Winer and Richard Hughes, both associate professors of physics, led the team that built the XRT, which was recently used in an experiment in Fermilab's particle accelerator.
SEE: http://www.osu.edu/osutoday/0301/ferminews.html

OHIO STATE FEATURED ON SCIENCE COALITION WEB SITE

Research being conducted at Ohio State is featured this week on the web site of the Science Coalition, a national lobbying group that supports federally funded research at universities. Among the important university research findings that are featured are studies on stock market investing, preventing colon cancer, and road detectors that help alleviate traffic jams. The web site also includes links to other research news as well as to the Office of Research.
SEE: http://www.osu.edu/researchnews/scicoal/2003/

CONSORTIUM FOCUSES ON HOMELAND SECURITY

Ohio State recently established the National Academic Consortium for Homeland Security (NACHS), an alliance of academic institutions across the nation with research, technology development, education, training, and service programs focused on various aspects of homeland security. The consortium has three primary objectives: to encourage academic contributions to homeland security by promoting awareness, collaboration, and communication among the nation's colleges and universities; to establish a comprehensive, searchable online database of ongoing research, education, training, and service programs; and to
serve as a sounding board and advisory body to government agencies and non-governmental organizations responsible for homeland security. To date, nearly 40 universities and colleges have joined with Ohio State in the consortium. Call to include new or revised information about research, technology development and education/training programs in the database at http://www.osu.edu/homelandsecurity/NACHS.
CONTACT: 688-3420 or mailto:carey.81@osu.edu
SEE: http://www.osu.edu/researchnews/archive/stewart.htm

The Lantern - Campus
Issue: 05/29/03

ROTC grads ready to serve
By Mike White

For many students, graduation from Ohio State represents a new beginning that offers uncertainties and new situations. Nowhere is this uncertainty more evident than in the lives of ROTC students who, after commencement, will serve their country in a new, active and dangerous military world.

When they joined the OSU ROTC program they, like anyone else, did not anticipate the Sept. 11 attacks and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. However, ROTC students said they understood when they signed up for the program the military can be called on to do anything without much warning.

"I realized when I joined the ROTC that it was the Army," said Tom Hardy, a senior in electrical engineering. "That's the Army's job, to fight the United States' wars. I knew that would come into play at some point."

Phil Sautter, a senior in aeronautical engineering said the conflicts gave him mixed emotions about the dangers he might face, but he is willing to do whatever the military asks him to do.

"It's kind of a grim reminder of the business that I chose to be in," Sautter said. "But it didn't bother me one bit. I'm very optimistic about going over there because I know that I'm doing everything for the right reasons. I'm excited to get out there, but nervous as well."

Now that the world has changed, ROTC students, like all military personnel, will almost certainly be called on for duty, said Army Maj. Ralph Locke.

"The Army has changed drastically recently," Locke said. "The number of major deployments has drastically increased. A soldier coming into the Army today will be deployed somewhere around the world. He knows that he will be, whether it is in Bosnia or Afghanistan or Iraq or somewhere else."

Locke said his students are ready and willing to face the danger.

"We will respond to whatever our civilian leaders call us to do," he said. "It's a very exciting time in the Army. I think our students are looking for the challenges and want to serve our country."

When more than 60 ROTC students graduate on June 13, they will not just receive a diploma as a sign of their college career's end. Marine, Air Force and Army ROTC students will become second lieutenants, and Navy ROTC students will become ensigns as a signal of their completion of the ROTC leadership program.

Most will then go off to basic officer training programs across the country to learn more about how to be an officer in their respective branches of the military. After that they can either choose to enter active duty or join the Reserve and enter the private sector.

Although the number fluctuates, about 75 percent of all ROTC students will choose active duty. Those who choose active duty will be assigned a leadership position in the military somewhere across the globe. Their deployment usually takes at least nine months following graduation.

OSU ROTC students have aspirations to do many different jobs once they are deployed. From flying fighter jets to being a lawyer in post-war areas to coordinating medical missions, there will be many OSU alumni serving the United States in various aspects of the military.

Adam Weitzel, who received his law degree from OSU's Moritz College of Law on May 9, sees himself as a judge advocate general. He will enter Georgetown Law School to receive an advanced law degree while serving in the National Guard and will then enter JAG corps to learn more about military law.

"They need attorneys everywhere over there," Weitzel said. "While I won't be out there driving a tank or carrying a rifle, I will be out there doing some important things. Right now in Afghanistan and Iraq, lawyers are going to be a big part of rebuilding. They need lots of judges and lawyers. In the next three years, I'm sure I'll be a part of it."

Sautter will go to Pensacola Fla. for flight school for two years after graduation to learn how to become a fighter pilot in the Navy.

Sautter said while the ROTC program didn't teach him how to fly a multi-million dollar aircraft, it did prepare him for the mental situations he will have to deal with in combat.

"They put you under a lot of calculated stress," Sautter said. "They teach you how to deal with stress. They throw you into the fire and take you out and tell you what you did wrong, and you learn a lot from those situations."

ROTC's mission is to develop the future military leaders of America, said Marine Maj. Todd Hunt.

"The mission of the ROTC program is to develop the future leaders of the military - mentally, physically and morally," Hunt said.

The students said they are prepared to be those leaders.

"We are going to have a lot of responsibilities," said Neil Copenhaver, a senior in aviation flight systems. "A lot of the ROTC is based on leadership and learning how to deal with subordinates."

"The ROTC is pretty much the best leadership course there is," Hardy said.

Hardy will be in charge of deploying medical staff and equipment to soldiers who are in need.

"Someone higher than me will say that I need medical support here," he said. "And I will have to get my people to respond."

While their deployment could prove to be in a hostile area, many in the ROTC program are cautiously optimistic that they will end up safe.

"I have a lot of faith if you do your best, things will work out," said Kyle Whitehair, a senior in aviation management. "Any normal person would be a little worried, but I have faith and confidence that things will work out."

The students said their families are concerned about their futures but are also confident that things will work out.

"They're worried, of course, as any family would be," Sautter said. "But mostly they're very supportive. They're more proud then they are worried."

Often times the conversations with their families tend to stay off the topic of war, said Erik Graham, a senior in history.

"Sure, there's some concern," Graham said. "But we never really talk about it. We just keep it light and don't dwell on it."

ROTC students will be officially done with the program on June 13, when they are commissioned at Mirror Lake after commencement.

Statement by Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge on Raising the Threat Level

May 20 - The Department of Homeland Security in consultation with the Homeland Security Council, has made the decision to raise the national threat level from an Elevated to High risk of terrorist attack or Level Orange. The U.S. Intelligence Community believes that Al Qaida has entered an operational period worldwide, and this may include attacks in the United States.

The Lantern - Campus
Issue: 05/27/03

New U.S. bill honors Asian Civil War vets
By Melanie Sonderman

Legislation was recently introduced in the U.S. Congress to grant honorary citizenship to soldiers of Asian descent who fought in the Civil War.

More than 250 Asian soldiers served in the Union and Confederate armies, 17 of which were from Ohio. But upon completion of their service they were not permitted to become citizens, a right normally granted to foreigners who join the U.S. military.

House Bill 125, introduced by Rep. Mike Honda, D-Calif., is a resolution to give those deceased soldiers honorary citizenship to commemorate their bravery and sacrifice.

"This legislation is way overdue," said S.L. Lee of the Columbus Chapter of the Organization of Chinese Americans.

"Asian Americans have participated in building this nation before it was even born. The bill declares that Asians are not perpetual foreigners," Lee said.

At the time of the Civil War, there was a great deal of anti-Asian sentiment in the United States. This racism led to the Chinese Exclusion Act.

Passed in 1882, the Exclusion Act banned Chinese immigration to the United States and prohibited those immigrants already in the United States from becoming citizens. The act was the result of a large influx of Chinese immigrants who created competition in the job market.

Because it was made a law that no Chinese immigrants could become U.S. citizens, even those who fought in the Civil War were restricted.

"These brave souls demonstrated great courage," Honda said, "but they were rewarded with sanctioned injustice."

In 1943 the Chinese Exclusion Act was repealed because China became an important ally of the United States against Japan. But until this recent legislation, no action was taken to grant citizenship to the Asian veterans of the Civil War.

"Some gave their lives for this country in battle, while others suffered life-long injuries. It is time to right a historical wrong," Honda said.

Edward Day Cohota of Company I, 23rd Massachusetts Infantry, is one of the veterans this legislation will honor. He enlisted in 1864 and, while involved in combat, saved the life of a fellow soldier.

After the war, Cohota joined the 15th Infantry and served an additional 30 years. Although he served 32 years in the military, officials told him he could never be a citizen.

"Asian Americans today are still suffering from discrimination and prejudice, if not openly, in a subtle way," Lee said. "While the bill only refers to the Civil War soldiers, the common Asian Americans should also be recognized for their proud citizenship and contribution."

Last month, an Ohio historical marker was unveiled as the first official public recognition of Asian American sacrifices and contributions to the United States. It was made to remind the public about past anti-Asian sentiment and discrimination and to educate the public about Asian American contributions to U.S. history.

The founder and former president of the OCA Columbus chapter, Chih Ping Chen, referred to the marker as "one giant leap toward eliminating the perpetual-foreigner perception" of Asian Americans. It is on display in Franklin Park.

The bill is under review by the House Committee on the Judiciary.

"Although few in numbers, Asians enlisted more than their share during the Civil War," Honda said. "They risked their lives and declared their allegiances as vigorously as any other group. It is only just that their contributions now be honored."

The Lantern - Campus
Issue: 05/23/03

Military honored at OSU luncheon
By Traci Beck

All Ohio State students, faculty and staff who are active members or who have served in the U.S. military will honored at a luncheon today.

The event will be held at 11:30 a.m. at the Faculty Club.

"Armed Forces Day is May 17, and because that was a Saturday we were not able to have it. Therefore, we chose the most available day closest to Armed Forces Day," said Bill Hospodar, director of Veteran Affairs at OSU.

Hospodar expects about 150 people to attend the luncheon.

"We have representatives all the way back to World War II, and Vietnam, the Korean War, the Gulf War, and the recent war in Afghanistan," he said.

Judge Richard Pfeiffer Jr. will be the guest speaker. Pfeiffer is a Columbus city attorney and a Vietnam veteran.

"I'll be talking about responsibility and citizenship," he said. "I'm a veteran so I will talk about civilian life and my view of the role of the military."

Hospodar said the luncheon will not only honor those who have served in the military, but honor eight winners of the Arnold Skurow Student Veteran Award.

"These award winners are students who were selected by application review," Hospodar said. "They are students who are patriotic and active in all four branches of the U.S. military. Some are in the National Guard or ROTC. They are all outstanding students."

The student veteran award is named in honor of Arnold Skurow. As a Navy veteran, he was a leader in helping disabled veterans and Vietnam veterans receive affirmative actions rights.

Skurow was a charter member of the OSU chapter of American Veterans and was an adviser for many staff and students at the university. He died, unexpectedly, in 1996.

At the luncheon the Skurow award winners will receive a certificate of achievement and a check for $300.

Benjamin Dougherty, a senior in finance and award recipient, is a four year veteran of the Marine Corps and a member of the Marine Corps Reserves.

"I figured, why not?" Dougherty said about the reason he applied for the award. "It is an award based on military involvement and academics, and I've worked hard for both of those."

His future plan is a career in finance, which he is advancing through an internship with the Department of Defense.

"Plan B has always been to go back into the Marines as an officer, but it depends on where my career path goes," he said.

Dougherty said he entered the reserves because he missed the camaraderie of the Marines.

"One of the most rewarding things is the people you meet. You are together all the time with these people," he said. "I also missed wearing the uniform on a regular basis."

Joseph Amato, a sophomore in political science and award winner, is a six year veteran of the Air Force and a member of the Air Force ROTC.

Amato was awarded a scholarship through the Airman's Scholarship Commissioning Program.

"This allowed me to leave active duty to return to school. I earned it though honorable service and competed among many," he said.

After graduation, Amato will be commissioned back into the military and resume active duty as an officer. He will take command as 2nd Lt. in the Air Force.

The Lantern - Campus
Issue: 05/22/03

DNA vaccines could prove safer, cheaper alternative
By Caroline Soltesz

With the nation's terror alert level raised to orange - or high - on Tuesday and evidence that al-Qaida may be planning another strike, fear of a biological terrorist threat is again running high.

Dr. Darrell Galloway, associate professor of microbiology and director of biological defense at the Naval Medical Research Center, has been researching the use of a DNA-based vaccine to immunize against anthrax or other pathogens - a vaccine which may prove safer and more effective than traditional vaccines.

"Anthrax is a toxin-mediated disease bacterium that, once it gets in the body, grows," Galloway said. "It secretes three proteins as it grows and they can combine to produce toxins, causing the symptoms of anthrax," Galloway said.

Anthrax is caused by the bacterium Bacillus anthracis.

"If we target the toxin proteins and neutralize them, we can prevent the physiological effects of anthrax," Galloway said.

In traditional vaccines the actual pathogens or proteins produced by the disease itself, or some byproduct of it, are used to immunize. The immune system responds by making antibodies to neutralize the toxin. This involves a lot of work, time and expense to inject or prepare a vaccine, Galloway said.

The DNA-based vaccine provides cells with the target proteins needed to develop an immunity.

"We inject genes and individual cells. They make the vaccine on their own within the body," Galloway said. "There are no side effects from preservatives normally in a vaccine."

The current vaccine has a large number of complications, requiring several booster immunizations.

With the DNA-based vaccine, recipients "don't have to boost as many times - it's easier and cheaper," said Mike Boehm, professor of plant pathology, who is also in the same Naval Reserve unit as Galloway.

The research started in conjunction with the U.S. Navy and Ohio State.

ViCal Incorporated, based in San Diego, holds the patent on the DNA-based vaccine, and Galloway was interested in their expertise.

"My lab and the Navy demonstrated proof of principle vaccine, so we expanded the project with ViCal," Galloway said.

ViCal will take vaccine to human clinical trial. These initial trials are divided into phases. Phase I is a safety study where a few individuals are immunized. Here they look for indications of safety. Studies are usually conducted on volunteers from colleges.

"Its going to take several years for al the studies to be done. It depends on how aggressively the study is pushed," Galloway said. "It will probably be two to five years to complete the study to the FDA's satisfaction."

Pending the FDA's approval, ViCal will then choose whether to market it.

"They could sell it to the military, foreign governments or even the public," Galloway said. "It depends on cost effectiveness - how it compares to the current vaccine."

While anthrax is the particular area studied in Galloway's research, the vaccine can be used on other pathogens.

"DNA vaccines show a lot of promise - this new approach is also being used experimentally for HIV and tuberculosis," said Andrew Phipps, research scientist at the Batelle Memorial Institute. Phipps specializes in biodefense research.

These advancements in technology are the most important issue.

"DNA-based immunization can be effective is the key point here," Galloway said. "If we show it works here, we can show it can work elsewhere."

Anthrax was a way to get more attention and money for the research.

"It's a novel approach to a hot topic," Boehm said.

Water, fuel cells conserve fossil fuels
By Leslie Gabel

President Bush's proposed energy plan focuses on ensuring the United States' freedom from energy dependence on other countries.

Alternatives to traditional energy sources need to be put into action to provide supplements for decreasing amounts of fossil fuels, Bush said earlier this year in a radio address to the nation.

"America is already using more energy than our resources can provide, and unless we act to increase our energy independence, our reliance of foreign sources of energy will only increase," Bush said.

Taking advantage of renewable resources of energy is also one way to fight the looming energy scarcity the United States faces, Bush said.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the United States relies upon fossil fuels to produce the majority of the energy used in the nation today.

"We need to alert the world that the oil production peak is close at hand," said Seppo Korpela, professor of mechanical engineering at Ohio State. "We need to figure out how to replace traditional fuel sources with alternative or renewable options," he said.

Hydropower is the leading alternative source of energy in the United States at this time, and accounts for 10 percent of the nation's electricity, according to the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

These hydropower plants typically use a dam on a river to hold a large amount of water, which generates power by running through turbines. Another type of hydropower plant simply diverts water from a river, and takes it through a pipeline to reach the turbine.

Downfalls of hydropower plants include decreased water quality and negative effects upon natural wildlife habitats, according to the NREL. Now, power plants producing energy through the movement of water are being designed to minimize impacts on nature.

"Wind power is the fastest-growing renewable energy source," Korpela said. According to the NREL, wind energy has increased at an average rate of 25 percent per year, since 1990.

"Many improvements have been made to this technology in recent years," Korpela said. "Now, blades on the windmills are much larger and have a slower rotation."

These blades, or air foils, have led to less noise production and increased safety for birds, which were often struck by the smaller, faster blades, he said.

In the United States, wind turbines are being installed across the Great Plains. Potential energy from good wind areas, which make up 6 percent of the land of the contiguous 48 states, could supply more than one and a half times of the nation's 1993 electricity consumption, according to the NREL.

Bioenergy, energy derived from biomass or organic matter, is the second-leading source of renewable energy in the United States, according to the NREL. Today, biomass resources provide about 3 to 4 percent of the United States' energy.

"Biomass is the most prolific product that we have in the U.S.," said David Ramey, physicist and president of Environmental Energy, Inc. The company is working to construct a biorefinery near Van Wert, Ohio, by 2006 in order to produce butanol, an energy made from plant waste.

Biorefineries are modeled after petroleum refineries and typically depend on a local biomass resource, Ramey said.

"Depending on the agriculture in the area, this biorefinery will give the farmers a value-added, high-demand product," he said.

Butanol solves any of the shortfalls associated with other non-traditional energy sources, including fuel cells, Ramey said. This type of biofuel can be shipped through existing pipelines, and it is more efficient than traditional sources of energy, he said.

"Butanol can help the U.S. become independent of foreign oil, and comply with pollution regulations," Ramey said.

"Fuel cells are devices that convert chemical energy into electrical energy, without combustion," said Umit Ozkan, associate dean for research in the college of engineering. These devices have applications including transportation, mobile energy sources, and large-scale permanent energy sources, she said.

"It's certainly an area with a lot of potential for energy and reducing dependency on foreign fuels," Ozkan said.

Interdisciplinary research concerning fuel cells has taken place at OSU, involving such departments as materials science, mechanical, electrical and systems engineering, she said.

The main barrier to widespread usage of fuel cell energy is the lack of funding because of the nation's bad economy, she said.

Ozkan said fuel cell technology cannot be introduced to the general public at this time because improvements can still be made to fuel cell technology, and because of the lack of an existing infrastructure for hydrogen fuel stations.

"It's exciting to see the federal government willing to invest in science and technology," she said. "We should keep an open mind, and push the boundaries of technology."

Bush's new budget proposal includes investment in new technologies, particularly fuel cell research, along with improvement of energy retrieval methods and innovation of energy delivery systems.

"Conservation technology and renewables are important, yet they alone cannot solve our energy problems," Bush said.

Bush's comprehensive energy plan encourages drilling in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in order to decrease the nation's dependency on foreign fuels.

"ANWR is home to the best producing fuel in the U.S.," Korpela said. By drilling in ANWR with more advanced technology, the United States will have learned to use fossil fuels more effectively, and the vehicles using these traditional fuels will be developed to be more efficient, he said.

The U.S. Senate Energy Committee said drilling in ANWR would not be included in its version of the energy bill, and the Senate voted earlier this year against including ANWR drilling in the federal budget. The version of the energy bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in April allows ANWR drilling.

Ohio State has announced Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome
(SARS) policy guidelines that relate to the safety of the campus
community; treatment of students, faculty and staff traveling to and
from SARS-affected areas; and plans to address visitors to campus from SARS-affected areas. President Holbrook and her cabinet this week approved the policy, which was created by a SARS advisory group that has been working for the last several months to develop procedures to prevent a possible occurrence of the disease on campus. The advisory group included representatives from university administration, Student Health Services, Student Affairs, Residence Life, the Medical Center, International Education, International Affairs and the Department of Athletics.

The policy was created consistent with current guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization (WHO). In summary, the guidelines:
Assure the campus community that policies are in place to rapidly
identify, isolate and treat suspected SARS patients in a way that
minimizes risk to health care providers and exposure to others.
Advise against anyone attending public campus events, including
classes, commencement, athletic events, concerts, etc., with a fever or acute illness and that those suspecting they could have SARS symptoms seek medical treatment immediately.
Explain the university's decision to not restrict visitors or students
from SARS-affected areas from coming to the campus because of
screenings that are taking place both within affected countries and
again upon entry to the United States.
State the university's decision to not authorize or fund travel for its
faculty, staff or students to SARS-affected areas that remain under
CDC travel advisories. The CDC currently has posted travel advisories for China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
Make the commitment that the university will monitor the situation
closely and make any adjustments to the policy as necessary should conditions change.

Ted Grace, director of Student Health Services, said at this time, the university will continue to enroll international students from affected areas during summer or autumn quarters. People traveling from SARS- affected areas are being screened before they leave and those showing symptoms are not given visas to travel. In addition, those who do travel are being screened upon entry to the United States. Therefore, the CDC does not recommend individuals be re-screened as they arrive on campus. Ohio State has canceled or postponed several university trips to the affected areas, including three summer study abroad trips to China. One student who was studying abroad in Taiwan was asked to return early.

The Lantern - Campus
Issue: 05/15/03

Students show off research
By Nick Reed

The eighth annual Denman Undergraduate Research Forum held in the Blackwell Inn hosted 220 students from 11 different research areas yesterday.

This year the forum experienced a 62 percent increase in the number of entrants from last year's 141.

"The purpose of the program is to recognize and celebrate undergraduate achievement here at Ohio State," said Shannon Duval, program manager at the University Honors and Scholars Center, which helped stage the event.

The students competed for cash prizes in each of the 11 different research areas, which included agricultural and environmental science, arts/architechture, biological sciences, engineering, health professions, humanities/buisness, mathematical and physical sciences, medical biological sciences, psychology, social behavioral sciences and education.

First, second and third place prizes were awarded in each of the areas. First place prize was $500, second prize was $300, and third prize was $200. Awards were also presented for best sophomore and best junior overall.

The judging was based on six key criteria and was carried out by 72 judges assigned to evaluate projects within their particular area of expertise. Each project was evaluated by two different judges and received a combined score.

"We judge projects on a three-point scale, based on overall organization, clarity of goals, methodology, validity of conclusions, significance of research and finally effectiveness of presentation," said Linda Harlow, interim associate provost for honors and scholars.

The forum's organizers said they were extremely pleased with the quality of this year's projects. The organizers attribute the high caliber of this year's entries to increased advisor oversight.

"The quality is definitely better. This year we required students to get signatures from their advisors before submitting their abstracts," Harlow said.

The forum was put on through a collaborative effort between the Office of Undergraduate Studies, the Honors and Scholars Center, and the Office of Research and Development as well as many volunteers and contributors.

The forum is made possible by funding from Richard J. and Martha D. Denman.

"Hopefully this will benefit society, that's what this is all about," said Richard Denman. "Giving people a quality of life that they wouldn't normally enjoy, through new discoveries, whatever they may be, scientific and otherwise."

Denman said support of the undergraduate program through events such as yesterday's forum will help the university to achieve overall academic excellence.

"At Ohio State we're trying to develop a premier research university," Denman said. "We're trying to do that by attracting high-ability students and world class faculty. Hopefully a lot of these students, when they graduate, will go into graduate school and hopefully they'll attend graduate school at Ohio State. If you're going to have a high class research institution, you have to have a quality research faculty. What attracts a quality research faculty is a quality graduate program. The underpinning of that is the undergraduate program," he said.

Students entered the forum for a wide variety of reasons. Some are seeking postgraduate fellowships, and others who already have such fellowships are presenting the work they have completed thus far. Additionally, some of the participants entered the forum to showcase their honors projects and upper-level classwork.

"I have contemplated winning the prize, but I'm here more for the fact that I have research and I'm interested in getting a sense of whether others are interested in my topic," said James Han, a senior in cognitive science and linguistics. "My goals in showcasing my work here are to present and prove that I can do a good job of that and also to have a good time," he said.

Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) is expanding
educational opportunities for colleges and universities by electing three new institutions to its consortium -- Ohio State, the Imperial College of Science, Technology, and Medicine in London, and associate member Johnson C. Smith University. "I feel very positive about the value of ORAU and believe that Ohio State will benefit by representation in this important organization," said President Holbrook.

Among the benefits of joining the ORAU consortium, member and
associate institutions take part in scientific research programs
sponsored or administered by ORAU and benefit from internships,
laboratory research and travel grants. ORAU now has 88 member
institutions and nine associate members, which are found in 25 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and London.

"Since the consortium's inception in 1946, ORAU has led the way in bringing together government and academia to further our knowledge of science and continue to expand our nation's technology infrastructure," said ORAU President Ronald Townsend.

ORAU is a university consortium leveraging the scientific strength of major research institutions to advance science and education by
partnering with national laboratories, government agencies and private industry. ORAU manages the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education for the U.S. Department of Energy.

Faculty, staff, and students who served in the U.S. military armed
forces, or who are currently members of the active forces, or the
National Guard, or Reserves are invited to a free Armed Forces Day Luncheon. The luncheon will be held on May 23 11:30-1 p.m. at the Faculty Club. Guest speaker will be Judge Richard C. Pfeiffer Jr., Columbus City Attorney and Vietnam Veteran. Also, the winners of the Arnold Skurow student veteran scholarship will be announced and presented with their certificate and a check for $300. Please place reservations by Friday (5/16) by contacting Bill Hospodar. CONTACT: (614) 292-7047 or mailto:whospoda@hr.osu.edu

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The latest federal figures ranking universities by their annual expenditures for research and development activity place Ohio State University in first place in the state and third nationally among public universities for industry-sponsored research.

Ohio State ranks fifth nationally among all universities for industry-sponsored research, according to the FY 2001 National Science Foundation Expenditure Survey, the latest survey available.

The report shows that the university rose from 40th to 32nd place in federally financed research and development expenditures, and from 21st to 17th place when compared to other public universities competing for federal funding.

While some rankings use the amount of research funding through grants and contracts as a measure for evaluation, gauging expenditures spent on research is believed to offer a more accurate comparison.

“We are elated by these latest figures,” explained Tom Rosol, interim vide president for research and a professor of veterinary biosciences at Ohio State.

“This is just another indication of the great strides our faculty are making in competing with other universities for research support from federal and state agencies, foundations and private corporations. The research advances that follow this progress will lead to major improvements in the lives of Ohioans and people throughout the nation.”

Late last year, Ohio State reported that its research funding had topped $426 million in fiscal year 2001-2002, the latest year for which figures are available. That represented a 13 percent increase over the previous year but an 80 percent growth compared to what the university received in 1997-1998.

Night Vision
By Lindsay Ferg

An Ohio State professor is developing a video surveillance system that uses body heat to track and identify basic human movement.

The research has broad implications for national security as well as search and rescue, border patrol, law enforcement and many other types of military applications.

James Davis, assistant professor of computer and information science, is using computers to simulate human activities, such as walking, running or riding a bike. Video cameras are linked with this computer, so when the camera records a person walking, the computer recognizes the activity.

"We use thermal cameras to locate the people and use statistical methods to classify the activity of the person into different categories such as walking, running, standing and throwing," Davis said. "We are also interested in more qualitative aspects of the action, like determining if the person is a child or adult, moving leisurely or in a hurry or carrying light or heavy packages."

The system uses a thermal camera to measure the amount of heat in a scene. Thermal cameras are already widely used by law enforcement and military agencies, especially to locate people in the dark when the difference between the air's heat and person's heat is greatest.

"Thermal images provide a unique signature of humans so they stand out as a bright white image against a dark background," Davis said.

Eventually Davis said he wants the system to identify a person's intent by mapping such behaviors as breaking into a building or car.

"This is the hardest part because it takes a lot of knowledge," Davis said. "There are so many ways to break into a building, it's almost impossible to map them all."

The first version of the thermal surveillance system will be available in two or three years, but will not identify human intent because it is such a new area of research, Davis said.

The system will have advantages over traditional video surveillance and that used by the military.

Traditional video surveillance systems can fail because there is often one or two security guards watching 20 different television screens at once, Davis said. The new surveillance system can identify and catalog what it recorded and alert security guards of behaviors it cannot identify.

"The system can summarize what happened throughout an entire night. If anything out of the ordinary happened, it will note the deviation," Davis said.

With traditional surveillance systems, a security guard would have to watch hours of video to look for strange activity. With the advanced system, any strange activity would be identified with a specific date and time.

The military will also benefit from the system's ability to identify odd behavior, Davis said.

"An army in the field could use these cameras by having some behind them to look for enemy movement. So if someone turns to point and shoot you, the system would alert you," Davis said.

The military agrees that it can benefit from this new technology. The U.S. Army Night Vision Lab and the National Science Foundation are funding the project.

"We're happy with the progress Professor Davis is making at Ohio State," said George Strawn, spokesman for the National Science Foundation. "We saw the potential in this project and expect positive results."

However, purchasing one of these "positive results" will not be cheap.

The price of a camera ranges from $12,000 to $60,000. Part of the reason for its hefty price tag is the nearly foolproof surveillance it provides.

Even the most devilish criminals would have a hard time fooling the thermal surveillance system, Davis said. A person's body temperature would have to be the same temperature as the air to remain undetected, which is nearly impossible.

Davis' work in investigating computer vision methods was recognized last month by the National Science Foundation with the prestigious NSF Faculty Early Career Development Program award. The awards, which are highly competitive, are given only to the nation's more outstanding junior researchers. Davis will receive $500,000 over the next five years to continue his research in this area.

One given in the war against terrorism seems to be that suicide attackers are evil, deluded or homicidal misfits who thrive in poverty, ignorance and anarchy.
President Bush, at last year's United Nations conference on poor nations in Monterrey, Mexico, said that "we fight against poverty because hope is an answer to terror." Senator John Warner, the Virginia Republican, argued that a new security doctrine including wars of preemption was necessary because "those who would commit suicide in their assaults on the free world are not rational." A State Department report issued on the first anniversary of the 9/11 attacks said that development aid should be based "on the belief that poverty provides a breeding ground for terrorism."
As logical as the poverty-breeds-terrorism argument may seem, study after study shows that suicide attackers and their supporters are rarely ignorant or impoverished. Nor are they crazed, cowardly, apathetic or asocial. If terrorist groups relied on such maladjusted people, "they couldn't produce effective and reliable killers," according to Todd Stewart, a retired Air Force general who directs the Ohio State University program in international and domestic security.
In the suicide bombing of a cafe in Tel Aviv last week that killed three bystanders, for instance, the bomber and the man accused of being his accomplice grew up in Britain, in relatively prosperous circumstances, and attended college.
The Princeton economist Alan Krueger and others released a study in 2002 comparing Lebanese Hezbollah militants who died in violent action to other Lebanese of the same age group. He found that the Hezbollah members were less likely to come from poor homes and more likely to have a secondary school education.
Nasra Hassan, a Pakistani relief worker, interviewed nearly 250 aspiring Palestinian suicide bombers and their recruiters. "None were uneducated, desperately poor, simple-minded or depressed," she reported in 2001. "They all seemed to be entirely normal members of their families."
A 2001 poll by the nonprofit Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research indicated that Palestinian adults with 12 years or more of education are far more likely to support bomb attacks than those who cannot read.
Officials with the Army Defense Intelligence Agency who have interrogated Saudi-born members of Al Qaeda being detained at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, have told me that these fundamentalists, especially those in leadership positions, are often educated above reasonable employment level; a surprising number have graduate degrees and come from high-status families. Their motivation and commitment are evident in their willingness to sacrifice material and emotional comforts (families, jobs, physical security), to travel long distances and to pay their own way.
The body of research shows that over all, suicide terrorists tend not to have the attributes of the socially dysfunctional (fatherless, friendless, jobless). They don't vent fear of enemies or express hopelessness or a sense of "nothing to lose" because of lack of a career or social mobility as would be consistent with economic theories of criminal behavior. Suicide attackers don't opt for paradise out of despair. If they did, say Muslim clerics who countenance martyrdom for Allah but not personal suicide, their actions would be criminal and blasphemous.
A study of world attitudes toward America by the Pew Research Center in December 2002 and many other polls of Muslims from Algeria to Indonesia show ever-rising support for "martyrs." A United Nations report indicated that as soon as the United States began building up for the Iraq invasion, Qaeda recruitment has picked up in 30 to 40 countries. Recruiters for groups sponsoring terrorist acts tell researchers that volunteers are beating down the doors to join.
This allows terrorist agents to choose recruits who are intelligent, psychologically balanced and socially poised. Candidates who mostly want virgins in paradise or money for their families are weeded out. Those selected show patience and the ability to plan and execute in subtle, quiet ways that don't draw attention. Al Qaeda, especially, is rarely in a hurry. It can wait years and then strike when least expected.
It's the particular genius of the institutions like Al Qaeda, Hamas or Hezbollah that they are able to make otherwise well-adjusted people into human bombs. Intense indoctrination, often lasting 18 months or more, causes recruits to identify emotionally with their terrorist cell, viewing it as a family for whom they are as willing to die as a mother for her child or a soldier for his buddies. Consider the oath taken by members of Harkat al Ansar, a Pakistan-based ally of Al Qaeda: "Each martyr has a special place - among them are brothers, just as there are sons and those even more dear."
Brian Barber, a psychologist at the University of Tennessee, has interviewed some 900 young adults from Gaza and a comparison group of Bosnian Muslims who had also suffered through violence but had not become a source of suicide bombers. The Bosnians had markedly weaker expressions of self-esteem and less hope for the future. Faith was the largest difference: the Palestinians routinely invoked religion to invest personal trauma with social meaning, whereas the Bosnians did not consider religion significant to their life.
This overall pattern was also captured in a white paper by the Parliament of Singapore concerning captured operatives from Jemaah Islamiyah, a militant group allied with Al Qaeda: "These men were not ignorant, destitute or disenfranchised. Like many of their counterparts in militant Islamic organizations in the region, they held normal, respectable jobs. As a group, most of the detainees regarded religion as their most important personal value."
Like the best Madison Avenue advertisers, but to ghastlier effect, the charismatic leaders of terrorist groups turn ordinary desires for family and religion into cravings for what they're pitching.

How do we combat these masters of manipulation? President Bush and many American politicans maintain that these groups and the people supporting them hate our democracy and freedoms. But poll after poll of the Muslim world shows opinion strongly favoring America's forms of government, personal liberty and education. A University of Michigan political scientist, Mark Tessler, finds Arab attitudes to American culture most favorable among young adults (regardless of their religious feeling) - the same population that recruiters single out.
It is our actions that they don't like: as long ago as 1997, a Defense Department report (in response to the 1996 suicide bombing of Air Force housing at the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia) noted that "historical data show a strong correlation between U.S. involvement in international situations and an increase in terrorist attacks against the United States."
Shows of military strength don't seem to dissuade terrorists: witness the failure of Israel's coercive efforts to end the string of Palestinian suicide bombings. Rather, we need to show the Musl