Monday January 28, 2013 year: 133 No. 12
the student voice of
The Ohio State University
www.thelantern.com
thelantern OSU’s animal treatment to be investigated
sports
SHAY TROTTER Lantern reporter trotter.35@osu.edu
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No place like home
The OSU hockey team swept Lake Superior State at the Schottenstein Center over the weekend.
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Animal welfare group Stop Animal Exploitation Now has asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture to re-examine the 16 animal research violations for which Ohio State was cited last year to ensure corrections took place. Michael Budkie, the executive director of SAEN, said the group routinely examines reports for laboratories in the U.S. which the USDA makes available online. OSU’s large number of citations immediately stood out to the group as a problem, causing SAEN to file a complaint to the USDA last week. “We’re very concerned any time we see that many animal welfare violations because that starts to demonstrate a serious pattern of breaking the law,” Budkie said. “When you see that many violations, you are looking at a laboratory that is not following the regulations, they’re not providing adequately for the animals and they’re not meeting even the minimal standards.” The 10 violations cited in July,
OSU had 16 animal research violations • •
Use of expired drugs on canines Inadequate veterinary care Resulting in the loss of hair on half of the grass rats.
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Hamsters being housed at 46.4 F The minimum temperature to house hamsters is 60 F.
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Unsanitary hamster procedure rooms Use of plywood between animal stalls Resulting in animals chewing heavily on these barricades.
Stop Animal Exploitation Now is checking up on OSU’s animal research violations. The USDA cited OSU in 2012. The group routinely examines reports for laboratories in the US and OSU’s large number of violations led SAEN to file a complaint with the USDA last week.
Photo courtesy of MCT JACKIE STORER / Managing editor of design
according to the USDA inspection report, included use of expired drugs on canines, inadequate veterinary care resulting in hair loss in half the grass rats, and hamsters being housed at 46.4 degrees Fahrenheit, below the minimum of 60 degrees. Other violations in the July inspection
involved housing all of the lab’s 12 macaques, a species of monkey, separately when pair or group housing is required for primates that exist in social groups in nature. Six violations were reported in May, including an issue of unsanitary hamster procedure rooms and various plywood
doors between animal stalls being significantly chewed, according to the May inspection report. Jeff Grabmeier, senior director of Research and Innovation Communications at OSU, said the university constantly ensures that its researchers are using the most humane methods in their work with the 130,000 animals under the university’s care. “We take seriously our obligation to meet and exceed all federal regulations involving the use of laboratory animals and we remain committed to continually looking for ways to improve the care of the animals housed at the university,” Grabmeier said in statement. Budkie said the regulations in the Animal Welfare Act that set the standards for the care of research animals were being overlooked. The act was signed into law in 1966 and, according to the USDA website, “is the only federal law in the United States that regulates the treatment of animals in research, exhibition, transport and by dealers.”
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Gee discusses higher ed’s future, underwear JOHN WERNECKE Lantern reporter wernecke.5@osu.edu
The right way
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Our columnist says boy band One Direction is encouraging women to be happy with the way they look.
campus
Jobs rare for international students
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virtual app in question
weather high 48 low 47
LIZ YOUNG Senior Lantern reporter young.1693@osu.edu
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Courtesy of OSU
OSU President E. Gordon Gee answers questions on Twitter for roughly a half-hour on Jan. 25 about higher education.
“Boxers or briefs?” Jim Ellia, a third-year in communication, asked Ohio State President E. Gordon Gee. “I wear both,” he responded. That was one of the more than 20 questions Gee answered on Twitter Friday afternoon as he directed users to the hashtag #HigherEdFuture during the roughly half-hour conversation, covering topics from the importance of residential life, the future of campus diversity and the financial future of OSU. OSU students, faculty and administration had questions answered, as well as local journalists and administrators from other universities. University of Cincinnati President Santa Ono asked Gee “How might we in higher Ed align better with K-12 education and workforce development?” “Become partners, rather than act like Red Cross units,” Gee said. OSU Undergraduate Student Government President Taylor Stepp asked Gee where he thought public universities would get funding with declining support from the state. “(We) Must rethink traditional way(s) we fund universities by using our resources, seeking less regulation from govt,” Gee said. Gee also responded to concerns about whether the value of a college degree is changing. “Labor economists predict earning power bet/ college degree & high school degree is economically substantial,” Gee said in response to a question from Columbus Dispatch reporter Encarnacion Pyle. Gee also reiterated his commitment to increasing graduation rates for the purpose of lowering tuition costs. “The concept of completion is also the concept of cost control and cost containment.” Though most of the questions Gee answered focused on OSU, he also found time to respond diplomatically to the question “Will Michigan still suck in the future?” from Dustin Stinson, a fourth-year in sport and leisure studies. “Michigan is a great Big 10 university. Next question...” Gee said.
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A newly released iPhone game that allows a player to shoot a virtual gun at various targets isn’t anything new. However, the fact that it was released by the National Rifle Association and not a video game company might raise some eyebrows. Some students and faculty on Ohio State’s campus said they think the application’s release came too soon after the Newtown, Conn., shooting. “I think the timing is bad. Maybe it’s consistent with NRA’s position that the only way to stop bad people is to give good people guns, but there’s no data to support that,” said Brad Bushman, OSU professor of communication and psychology. Bushman has conducted research
on the relationship between video games and shooting accuracy and the relationship between violent media and violent behavior. Meghan Vermillion, a second-year in psychology, likewise said she thought the timing felt wrong. “It almost feels like it’s too soon — too much, too soon. I don’t think a game like that should be a problem, but I do think it will raise questions,” Vermillion said. Eyes have been on the NRA since a company representative gave a statement in a Dec. 21 press conference calling for armed police officers in schools nationwide as a preventative measure against school shootings, such as the one that occurred days before in Newtown. On Dec. 14, 20-year-old Adam Lanza shot his mother in the head multiple times before driving to Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, where he killed
Courtesy of ‘NRA: Practice Range’
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The National Rifle Association released a shooting video game in January, less than a month after the deadly shooting in Newtown, Conn.
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