December 3, 2001
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Landmark study uncovers reasons behind recurring back injury – Ohio State University researchers have found an important factor in recurring back injury: our tendency to avoid using hurt muscles. The findings, published in the December 1 issue of the journal Spine, point to new forms of physical therapy and new safety standards for physical labor in the workplace. At Ohio State’s Biodynamics Laboratory, William Marras, professor of industrial, welding and systems engineering, and his colleagues found that people with back injuries unknowingly inflict twice as much twisting force on their spine, and 1.5 times as much compressive force as uninjured people, when lifting the same object. Over time, greater loads on the spine lead to more serious back injuries. Marras says after a back injury, people need to re-learn how to use their muscles naturally. That new rehabilitation strategy, combined with weight loss and redesign of the workplace, could reduce the possibility of repeat back injuries. “Bottom line,” says Marras, “you can send people back to work after a back injury, but you have to be very careful about what you have them do.” Contact: William Marras, 614-292-6670; see http://www.osu.edu/researchnews/archive/backemg.htm
Sending your holiday greeting cards via e-mail? E-mail users wanted for survey. – E-mail makes it easier to spread jokes, and connect with friends and family who are far away. But is electronic mail changing the way we communicate? In a new study supported by the National Science Foundation, Ohio State sociology professor James Moody is trying to discover the impact of e-mail on the way people interact around the world. In “The Electronic Small World Project,” Moody hopes to map the social connections that link people together through e-mail. In order to complete the map, the project needs about 500,000 e-mail users to complete an online survey that asks participants demographic questions, and then asks about their use of e-mail. So far, about 500 have completed the survey. Contact: James Moody, 614-292-1722; see http://www.osu.edu/researchnews/archive/smalwrld.htm
Board of Trustees meets – Dec. 6. The Ohio State University Board of Trustees will meet in regular session at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday (12/6) in 140 Pfahl Hall, 280 West Woodruff Avenue. Committee meetings, where most of the discussion takes place, begin at 9:15 a.m. Contact: Elizabeth Conlisk, University Relations, 614-292-3040.
Ohio State’s 357th commencement is Friday – Dec. 7. Kenneth Lee, chair of food science and technology, will be the featured speaker at autumn quarter’s commencement ceremony, which will take place at 9:30 a.m. Dec. 7 at St. John Arena. Approximately 1,700 students will earn degrees this quarter. An OSU faculty member since 1990, Lee is a nationally recognized expert on the nutritional effects of food processing. Contact: Amy Murray, University Relations, 614-292-8385.
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.