Bans on Bags or Bans on Bans?: A Home Rule Analysis of Recent Attempts in Ohio to Enact Legislation Eliminating Plastic Bags From Stores

This Article addresses how Ohio’s Home Rule provision in the Ohio Constitution has played out as legislators grapple with efforts to ban plastic bags from stores. It discusses the complexities of the Home Rule doctrine in Ohio, especially as it relates to the competing authority of state, county, and municipal governments. The Article discusses the history of Home Rule in Ohio, and the pre-emptive relationships between the competing governmental entities stemming from the existence of County and Municipal Charters that also grant legislative powers. It explains that the opting out of plastic bag bans by Ohio municipalities is a valid exercise of Home Rule power. The Article further examines how Home Rule has played out in other states where there is a tension between entities that wish to ban plastics and those who want to ban any bans. The Article suggests that even though Home Rule tends to be a partisan issue in which conservative legislators seek to limit the power of municipalities, many municipalities in both conservative and liberal states have been successful in enforcing plastic bag bans. The Article concludes, however, that after the quarantine, conservative legislators have returned to partisan lines in attempting to limit the power of municipalities. In Ohio, this has resulted in the Ohio Legislature enacting legislation prohibiting the development of alternative energy sources in some counties. The Article suggests that the return to partisan politics in Home Rule issues will make it much more difficult for counties and municipalities to act on their own in efforts to improve the environment

A Stitch in Time Saves Nine: How the State of Ohio Can Save Money and Distress Through Legal Training for Pre-Service Teachers

For simplicity, this Note will focus on the educational requirements for high school teachers rather than elementary or middle school teachers. Here, the requirements include core content instruction, literacy instruction, and a 12-week student teaching experience. Additionally, ODHE issues a vague requirement of preparation in six different Ohio school-related standards. Only one of those standards, the Ohio Standards for the Teaching Profession, even mentions correctly applying the law. There is clearly a need for some form of legal preparation for teachers in Ohio that must take place before an individual becomes a teacher. Not only is there an ethical obligation to protect student rights, but there is a financial obligation to prevent the waste of taxpayer money on legal fees. This Note will establish the need for the Ohio legislature or ODHE to require that teacher preparation programs contain a set number of hours devoted to instructing pre-service teachers in the basics of education law and ethics because of the liability being placed on school districts. In reaching its conclusion, Part I of this Note discusses the history of education and education standards in Ohio and how the law is omnipresent in a teacher’s day-to-day existence. In Part II, this Note covers the history of claims, the potential for school district liability for failing to train teachers and school personnel, and the ways school districts are immune from suits. In Part III, this Note sets out how more legal education could be added to the basic educational curriculum for pre-service teachers and explains why this move is both necessary and advantageous. The overall conclusion reached by this paper is that, while the state is immune from lawsuits due to a failure to train teachers, continual legal pressure on school districts could increase the support for legal training for teaching education law in universities to pre-service teachers

Luminous Infrared Galaxies With the Submillimeter Array. III. The Dense Kiloparsec Molecular Concentrations of Arp 299

We have used high resolution (~2.3") observations of the local (D = 46 Mpc) luminous infrared galaxy Arp 299 to map out the physical properties of the molecular gas which provides the fuel for its extreme star formation activity. The 12CO J=3-2, 12CO J=2-1 and 13CO J=2-1 lines were observed with the Submillimeter Array and the short spacings of the 12CO J=2-1 and J=3-2 observations have been recovered using James Clerk Maxwell Telescope single dish observations. We use the radiative transfer code RADEX to estimate the physical properties (density, column density and temperature) of the different regions in this system. The RADEX solutions of the two galaxy nuclei, IC 694 and NGC 3690, are consistent with a wide range of gas components, from warm moderately dense gas with T_{kin} > 30 K and n(H_{2}) ~ 0.3 - 3 x 10^{3} cm^{-3} to cold dense gas with T_{kin} ~ 10-30 K and n(H_{2}) > 3 x 10^{3} cm^{-3}. The overlap region is shown to have a better constrained solution with T_{\rm{kin}}$ ~ 10-50 K and n(H_{2}) ~ 1-30 x 10^{3} cm^{-3}. We estimate the gas masses and star formation rates of each region in order to derive molecular gas depletion times. The depletion times of all regions (20-60 Myr) are found to be about 2 orders of magnitude lower than those of normal spiral galaxies. This rapid depletion time can probably be explained by a high fraction of dense gas on kiloparsec scales in Arp 299. We estimate the CO-to-H_{2} factor, \alpha_{co} to be 0.4 \pm 0.3 (3 x 10^{-4}/ x_{CO}) M_{sol} (K km s^{-1} pc^{2})^{-1} for the overlap region. This value agrees well with values determined previously for more advanced merger systems.Comment: 24 pages, 4 figures, ApJ accepte

Luminous Infrared Galaxies with the Submillimeter Array: I. Survey Overview and the Central Gas to Dust Ratio

We present new data obtained with the Submillimeter Array for a sample of fourteen nearby luminous and ultraluminous infrared galaxies. The galaxies were selected to have luminosity distances D < 200 Mpc and far-infrared luminosities log(L_FIR) > 11.4. The galaxies were observed with spatial resolutions of order 1 kpc in the CO J=3-2, CO J=2-1, 13CO J=2-1, and HCO+ J=4-3 lines as well as the continuum at 880 microns and 1.3 mm. We have combined our CO and continuum data to measure an average gas-to-dust mass ratio of 120 +/- 28 (rms deviation 109) in the central regions of these galaxies, very similar to the value of 150 determined for the Milky Way. This similarity is interesting given the more intense heating from the starburst and possibly accretion activity in the luminous infrared galaxies compared to the Milky Way. We find that the peak H_2 surface density correlates with the far-infrared luminosity, which suggests that galaxies with higher gas surface densities inside the central kiloparsec have a higher star formation rate. The lack of a significant correlation between total H_2 mass and far-infrared luminosity in our sample suggests that the increased star formation rate is due to the increased availability of molecular gas as fuel for star formation in the central regions. In contrast to previous analyses by other authors, we do not find a significant correlation between central gas surface density and the star formation efficiency, as trace by the ratio of far-infrared luminosity to nuclear gas mass. Our data show that it is the star formation rate, not the star formation efficiency, that increases with increasing central gas surface density in these galaxies.Comment: 66 pages, 39 figures, aastex preprint format; to be published in ApJ Supplements. Version of paper with full resolution figures available at http://www.physics.mcmaster.ca/~wilson/www_xfer/ULIRGS_publi

Mechanochemical Ni-Catalysed Arylation of Ortho-Hydroxyarylenaminones : Synthesis of Isoflavones

This work describes two new synthetic methods for the preparation of isoflavones following the Ni-catalysed domino arylation reactions of the vast range of ortho-hydroxyarylenaminones utilising aromatic bromides as well as carboxylic acids. The presented protocols tolerated significant variation of all coupling partners and enabled synthesis of isoflavone library of twenty-three representatives. This is the first communicated precedent where the mechanic energy was utilised in the synthesis of isoflavones following the domino cyclisation mode.Peer reviewe

Occupational Therapy Students’ Perceptions of Their Experience in a Role-Emerging Level II Fieldwork Within Higher Education Student Services

BACKGROUND: Role-emerging settings - those where occupational therapy (OT) services have not traditionally been provided - are common sites for practice placements of entry-level occupational therapy students. A growing body of literature has attempted to determine the value and drawbacks of such practice placements on the professional preparedness of OT students with mixed findings. Benefits have been identified, including increased cultural understanding, advocacy, creativity, initiative, and problem-solving skills. However, OT students have been reported to perceive such placement as limiting their professional growth and preparedness to practice compared to traditional placements. METHODS: A phenomenological study was conducted seeking the perceptions of OT students (n = 14) about their clinical placement at a role-emerging site. Recorded semi-structured interviews were conducted by trained interviewers within two weeks of the end of clinical placement. The recordings were transcribed verbatim and then coded using an iterative multi-coder inductive approach. Inter-coder agreement, reflectivity, and audit trail were maintained. RESULTS: Three themes emerged from the analysis: (1) integrating independence and support, (2) becoming occupational therapists, and (3) filling a gap. These themes reflect students\u27 positive perceptions of their role-emerging clinical placement. They felt that this placement allowed them to develop self-confidence and professional identity as occupational therapists and learn new skills while simultaneously filling a gap in services for clients. Most importantly, they felt that this placement prepared them for their future OT practice. CONCLUSION: This finding and their resounding support of the experience suggest that OT students can perceive role-emerging placement as a solid foundation for clinical practice. Factors, included in this placement, that may have contributed to their experience include the level of support provided, time available for learning including space to make mistakes, and freedom from productivity and payor requirements

Effect of Maternal Exercise on Adverse Cardio-Pulmonary Responses in Offspring Exposed to Post-Natal Chronic Hypoxia

Emerging evidence shows exercise by women throughout pregnancy (i.e., maternal exercise) endows the offspring with positive health benefits and resistance to many diseases later in life. PURPOSE: To determine if maternal exercise reduces unfavorable cardiopulmonary development and improves exercise capacity in offspring after chronic hypoxic exposure throughout early life. METHODS: Female adult C57BL/6J mice were randomly assigned to one of the following groups: high altitude, sedentary (HS), high altitude, active (HE), or the respective, low-altitude conditions (LS or LE). Pregnant females in the exercise groups performed voluntary wheel running during mating and the perinatal period (about 4 weeks). Three days after birth, the pups in the high-altitude groups were exposed to chronic hypobaric hypoxia (450mmHg). When pups were eight weeks old, body size (weight and tail length) was measured and exercise capacity was assessed via a Rotarod test. Terminal procedures were performed to measure right ventricular systolic pressure (RVSP), hematocrit, and heart remodeling (Fulton’s Index: right ventricular weight ratio to bodyweight (RV/BW) and to the left ventricle plus septum (RV/LV+S)). RESULTS: All variables measured had a main effect for altitude (pCONCLUSION: Chronic hypoxia decreases exercise capacity and attenuates growth. This stress also induces potentially harmful cardiovascular changes, such as high blood viscosity, RVSP, and right ventricular hypertrophy. Our results indicate that maternal exercise may attenuate some of the negative effects of chronic hypoxia in the offspring, but does not prevent significant development impairments