Stone Lab Hooks Students on Science

IMPACT. 1: In the last 30+ years, Stone Lab's outreach program and its ODNR-partnered Aquatic Visitors Center have educated over 175,000 island visitors about Lake Erie and environmental issues. -- 2. Stone Lab annually offers more than $65,000 of scholarships through its endowments and 20 courses and research opportunities to advanced high school students, teachers, and college students from around the country. -- 3. More than 6,000 students from Ohio and the surrounding states of Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, and Illinois come to Stone Lab's field trip program every year.OSU PARTNERS: Ohio Sea Grant College Program; Office of Research; College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences; College of Arts and Sciences; College of Education and Human Ecology; College of Public Health; Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology; School of Environment and Natural Resources; School of Earth Sciences; Continuing Education; Graduate School; Student LifeCOMMUNITY PARTNERS: 100 schools from 5 states; Ohio Department of Natural Resources; Bowling Green State University; Ohio University; Miami University; Kent State University; Case Western Reserve University; Heidelberg University; John Carroll University; Cleveland State University; University of Toledo; Wright State University; Mount Union College; Lake Erie Islands Nature and Wildlife Center; Lake Erie Islands Chapter of Black Swamp Conservancy; Lake Erie Islands Historical Society; National Park Service-Perry's International Peace Memorial; Island Transportation; Miller Boat Line; The Jet Express; The Boardwalk; Friends of Stone LaboratoryPRIMARY CONTACT: Jill Jentes Banicki ([email protected])Stone Laboratory, Ohio State University's Island Campus on Lake Erie, is a living laboratory where students from grade four through adults learn about Lake Erie, Ohio's most valuable natural resource. With hands-on activities, Stone Lab immerses its students in science. From capturing fish on Stone Lab research vessels to examining lake sediments under microscopes, students experience firsthand what it takes to be a scientist and steward of Lake Erie. The program, which is Ohio Sea Grant's education arm, teaches 20,000 people every year

Scientists Teach Region about Climate

IMPACT. 1: The Climate Team has educated more than 34,000 people representing 500+ organizations from governmental agencies, academia, non-profits, private industry, and the legislature through its flagship Global Change, Local Impact monthly webinar series and archives. The team is considered the go-to organization for Great Lakes climate information. -- 2. Agencies such as the National Park Service and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, as well as secondary schools and informal education facilities use the team's programming as teaching tools for their climate-related programs. -- 3. The team launched the first and only online regional repository for Great Lakes climate information at greatlakesclimate.com in 2013.OSU PARTNERS: Ohio Sea Grant & Stone Laboratory; Office of Research; Ohio Supercomputer Center; OSU Extension; Department of Agricultural, Environmental, and Development Economics; School of Environment and Natural Resources; OSU Extension Watershed Program; Byrd Polar Research Center; School of Earth Sciences; Carbon, Water, and Climate Program; Department of Geography; Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal BiologyCOMMUNITY PARTNERS: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Cuyahoga County (Ohio) Board of Health; Ohio Department of Health; Great Lakes Commission; Great Lakes Landscape Conservation Cooperative; Great Lakes Regional Water Program; Great Lakes Sea Grant Network; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); NOAA National Sea Grant Program; NOAA Coastal Services Center; NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory; Ohio Coastal Training Program; The Nature Conservancy; University of Wisconsin; University of Michigan; Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts; Cleveland MetroparksPRIMARY CONTACT: Jill Jentes Banicki ([email protected])The Ohio State University Climate Change Outreach Team is a multi-departmental initiative within the university to help localize the climate change issue for Ohioans and Great Lakes residents. Created in 2008, the team works with university faculty to create outreach tools to get climate research information out to the public. Through such tools as a webinar series, informal educational displays, and secondary education curricula, the team collaborates with experts from around the country to teach the public about issues and impacts the region could face with a changing climate

Stone Lab Hooks Students on Science

IMPACT. 1: In the last 30+ years, Stone Lab's outreach program and its ODNR-partnered Aquatic Visitors Center have educated over 175,000 island visitors about Lake Erie and environmental issues. -- 2. Stone Lab annually offers more than $65,000 of scholarships through its endowments and 20 courses and research opportunities to advanced high school students, teachers, and college students from around the country. -- 3. More than 6,000 students from Ohio and the surrounding states of Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, and Illinois come to Stone Lab's field trip program every year.OSU PARTNERS: Ohio Sea Grant College Program; Office of Research; College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences; College of Arts and Sciences; College of Education and Human Ecology; College of Public Health; Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology; School of Environment and Natural Resources; School of Earth Sciences; Continuing Education; Graduate School; Student LifeCOMMUNITY PARTNERS: 100 schools from 5 states; Ohio Department of Natural Resources; Bowling Green State University; Ohio University; Miami University; Kent State University; Case Western Reserve University; Heidelberg University; John Carroll University; Cleveland State University; University of Toledo; Wright State University; Mount Union College; Lake Erie Islands Nature and; Wildlife Center; Lake Erie Islands Chapter of Black Swamp Conservancy; Lake Erie Islands Historical Society; National Park Service-Perry's International Peace Memorial; Island Transportation; Miller Boat Line; The Jet Express; The Boardwalk; Friends of Stone Laboratory; Stone Lab Hooks Students on SciencePRIMARY CONTACT: Jill Jentes Banicki ([email protected])Stone Laboratory, Ohio State University's Island Campus on Lake Erie, is a living laboratory where students from grade four through adults learn about Lake Erie, Ohio's most valuable natural resource. With hands-on activities, Stone Lab immerses its students in science. From capturing fish on Stone Lab research vessels to examining lake sediments under microscopes, students experience firsthand what it takes to be a scientist and steward of Lake Erie. The program, which is Ohio Sea Grant's education arm, teaches 20,000 people every year

Seroprevalence of Hepatitis E among Boston Area Travelers, 2009-2010

We determined the prevalence of IgG antibodies to hepatitis E virus (anti-HEV IgG) among travelers attending Boston-area travel health clinics from 2009 to 2010. Pre-travel samples were available for 1,356 travelers, with paired pre- and post-travel samples for 450 (33%). Eighty of 1,356 (6%) pre-travel samples were positive for anti-HEV IgG. Compared with participants who had never lived in nor traveled to a highly endemic country, the pre-travel prevalence odds ratio (POR) of anti-HEV IgG among participants born in or with a history of previous travel to a highly endemic country was increased (POR = 4.8, 95% CI = 2.3–10.3 and POR = 2.6, 95% CI = 1.4–5.0, respectively). Among participants with previous travel to a highly endemic country, anti-HEV IgG was associated with age > 40 years (POR = 3.7, 95% CI = 1.3–10.2) and travel history to ≥ 3 highly endemic countries (POR = 2.7, 95% CI = 1.2–5.9). Two participants may have contracted HEV infection during their 2009–2010 trip

Travelers’ diarrhea and other gastrointestinal symptoms among Boston-area international travelers

INTRODUCTION: Travelers' diarrhea (TD) and non-TD gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms are common among international travelers. In a study of short-term travelers from Switzerland to developing countries, the most common symptom experienced was severe diarrhea (8.5%) followed by vomiting or abdominal cramps (4%).1 GI illnesses were the most frequently reported diagnoses (34%) among ill-returned travelers to GeoSentinel clinics.2 Of those returning to U.S. GeoSentinel clinics, acute diarrhea (30%) was the most common diagnosis.3 In one cohort of U.S. travelers, 46% reported diarrhea.4 GI illnesses can last from 2 days to weeks or longer,5 disrupting plans during travel or after returning home. Eighty percent of those who experienced diarrhea during travel treated themselves with medication and 6% sought medical care. METHODS: The Boston Area Travel Medicine Network (BATMN) is a research collaboration of travel clinics in the greater Boston area representing urban-, suburban-, academic-, and university-affiliated facilities. A convenience sample of travelers ≥ 18 years of age attending three BATMN clinics between 2009 and 2011 for pre-travel consultations completed pre-travel surveys, at least one survey weekly during travel, and a post-travel survey 2–4 weeks after return. Travelers were asked to complete a survey at the end of each week of their trip. Institutional review board approvals were obtained at all sites and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and participants provided written informed consent. Information collected included demographic and trip characteristics, vaccines and medications recommended/prescribed before travel, medications taken during travel, dietary practices during travel (consumption of tap water, ice in drinks, unpasteurized dairy products, and salads), symptoms experienced, and impact of illness during and after travel. Vaccinations, prescriptions, and travel health advice given during the pre-travel consultation were recorded by a clinician, and the remainder of the surveys were completed by the traveler. Data were entered into a password-protected database (CS Pro, U.S. Census Bureau, Washington, DC). RESULTS: We enrolled 987 travelers; 628 (64%) completed all three parts (pre-, during, and post-travel) and were included in the study. Comparison of the 628 to the 359 who did not complete all three parts (noncompleters) revealed no differences, except that completion rates were higher for white travelers than all other racial/ethnic groups (P < 0.001) and for older travelers (median age 47 years versus 32 years in noncompleters, P < 0.001).11 Of those 628 travelers, 208 (33%) experienced TD, 45 (7%) experienced non-TD GI symptoms, 147 (23%) experienced non-GI symptoms, and 228 (36%) did not experience any symptoms during or after travel. Of the 208 with TD, 140 (67%) reported diarrhea as their only symptom, whereas 33 (16%) also experienced nausea/vomiting, 23 (11%) abdominal pain, and 27 (13%) fever (Table 1). Of the 45 who reported non-TD GI symptoms, 21 (47%) experienced nausea/vomiting, 19 (42%) experienced constipation, and 10 (22%) experienced abdominal pain during or after travel (Table 2). Almost all travelers (99%) received advice about food and water precautions and diarrhea management during pre-travel consultation