March 30, 1999

Here are descriptions of the radio stories available on the Ohio State University Info Line, April 2 through April 9, 1999. Stories are changed at noon on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. All feeds include one wraparound report of approximately 1:00 and at least one other actuality plus background material. If you have questions, want additional information, or need a re-feed of a missed story, call Amy Murray at 614-292-8385.

Friday 4/2-Monday 4/5 - About 10,000 people a year may be wrongly convicted of serious crimes in the United States. A study by Ron Huff, a professor of public policy and management at Ohio State University, finds more than half of all convictions that were later overturned were based on eyewitness misidentification. Huff says many wrongful convictions are also due to overzealous law enforcement and prosecution.

Monday 4/5-Wednesday 4/7 - Patients who experience less anxiety in the first 48 hours after a heart attack may suffer fewer complications later. Ohio State University Nursing Professor Debra Moser studied 86 patient who had acute myocardial infarctions and found that patients who became very anxious in the early hours after a heart attack were almost five times more likely to develop serious complications as patients who were less anxious.

Wednesday 4/7-Friday 4/9 - Scientists at Ohio State have engineered changes in a common biological insecticide that makes it four times as toxic to young gypsy moth larvae as the most potent gypsy moth toxin currently available. The insecticide--Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt)--kills gypsy moth larvae and other caterpillar-type insects by binding to receptors in their midgut. Biology Professor Donald Dean says the re-engineered Bt is more toxic to insects because it binds more readily to these receptors.

Many news outlets are getting our news releases electronically. Would you like to receive your weekly Info Line rundown via e-mail? It’s faster than the postal service and offers less chance for bad addresses, lost or damaged mail. We can e-mail this and other news releases directly to your computer. E-mail Amy at murray-goedde.1@osu.edu or call 614-292-8385 to make arrangements.

www.osu.edu is Ohio State’s Internet address. News releases (including this rundown sheet) from University Communications and many other offices are posted on the website. The site is also a great source for answers to frequently asked questions about OSU.