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OSU Researcher is giving turkeys a stronger leg to stand on – Helping Mother Nature give us stronger turkeys is the goal of Ohio State research. To meet consumer demand for white meat, turkey breeders are already raising bigger birds. But the added weight causes leg deformities and other problems that cost the poultry industry $32 million a year. Alfred Soboyejo, an agricultural engineering researcher at Ohio State, studied factors associated with poultry breeding to determine what combinations increase tibia and femur bone strength in turkeys and broiler chickens. He believes that since certain poultry breeds play a role in bone problems, the deformities could eventually be eliminated through genetic selection in much the same manner it has paved the way for bigger birds with good meat. Soboyejo suggested that a change in diet or addition of vitamins to a diet might enhance the effects of those chemical indicators to improve bone strength. Soboyejo’s research may also have practical applications in other scientific fields such as veterinary medicine and orthopedic medicine. Contact: Alfred Soboyejo, (614) 292-1368. See: http://fusion.ag.ohio-state.edu/news/story.asp?storyid=77
What can retailers expect for holiday shopping? Uncertainty seems to be the watchword this year as the holiday shopping season approaches. In light of the economic slowdown, the terrorist attacks and other recent events, will the day after Thanksgiving still be the biggest shopping day of the year? What are the year’s hottest items? Which products will be difficult to sell? Roger Blackwell, professor of marketing at the Fisher College of Business, offers a look at the holiday shopping season. He is available beginning Tuesday (11/20). Contact: Anna Rzewnicki, Fisher College of Business, (614) 292-8937.
Bert and Ernie visit James support groups – Nov. 21. Characters from the “Sesame Street Live” tour will visit youngsters associated with support groups sponsored by The Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute on Wednesday (11/21). Reporters are welcome to attend the get-together at 10:30 a.m. in the OSU Child Care Center, 725 Ackerman Road. Media should check-in at the facility’s front desk. The support groups – Kids Can Cope Too, Good Grief, and Good Grief and Beyond – are unique programs developed for children and adolescents who are coping with the serious illness or loss of a loved one, or long-term grief issues. The groups meet regularly at the Child Care Center with a facilitator from the James. Sesame Street Live is playing at the Value Center Arena Nov. 21-25. Contact: David Crawford, Medical Center Communications, (614) 293-3737.
Rehabilitation patients hold Beat Michigan rally – Nov. 21. Physical rehabilitation patients at the OSU Medical Center will break out pom-poms for a “Beat Michigan” pep rally at noon on Wednesday (11/21) in the Dodd Hall gymnasium, 480 W. 9th Ave. Reporters are invited to the rally, which features the Ohio State University Alumni Band and a twirling exhibition by Michelle Graf, Ohio State’s first female drum major who is now a physical therapist at the Medical Center. The rally ends with Graf and the band leading a wheelchair procession through the halls for “Script Ohio.” Media parking is available at the front entrance to the Davis Center, 480 W. 9th Ave. Dodd Hall is nationally recognized for the quality of its programs to treat patients with head, neck and spinal cord injuries, and for those recovering from strokes. Contact: David Crawford, Medical Center Communications, (614) 293-3737.
It’s Beat Michigan Week at OSU – through Nov. 24. The rivalry between Ohio State and the University of Michigan gets bloody – for a good reason – during Beat Michigan Week, through Saturday (11/24). Before the opening kick off, both university communities will compete in the annual Blood Battle to raise the most donations for the American Red Cross. More than 33 sites are set up to accept blood donations from members of the public and Ohio State community. The big push comes on Tuesday, (11/20), when blood donations can be made from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Ohio Union. Ellen Tressel and the other football coaches’ wives will assist with the project 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Ohio Union will also host a Good Luck Bucks Banner Signing, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Tuesday. Students, faculty and staff can sign a good luck banner, which will be hung in Ohio State’s locker room at the University of Michigan. Contact: Shannon Wingard, University Relations, (614) 247-6821.
Hope’s Boutique goes mobile – beginning Nov. 19. Hope's Boutique, a source of hats, wigs, jewelry and other accessories for the cancer patient, is going mobile. Beginning November 19, patients at the Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute will not only be able to visit Hope's Boutique at JamesCare in Dublin, but will also be able to shop on campus, or even at their bedside. “Some of our customers have to spend prolonged days in the hospital, or are often not feeling well enough to make the trip to the main store,” says founder Wendy Avner, store manager and cancer survivor. “So we are going to bring the store to them.” The new service, dubbed “Hope's Boutique, Too” will be housed on the second floor of The James, and will offer a selected range of wigs and hair care products patients may order and have delivered to them. Additionally, by appointment only, volunteers will stock a shopping cart with selected items and bring it right to a patient's bedside, where they will be able to make direct purchases. Contact: Michelle Gailiun, Medical Center Communications, (614) 293-3737.
The person listed as Contact will have the best information about the story. Call on our media relations staff for help with any Ohio State story – Elizabeth Conlisk, (614) 292-3040; Randy Dunham, (614) 292-8295; Amy Murray, (614) 292-8385, and Shannon Wingard, (614) 247-6821.