On Thursday, October 11, 2012, Caroline Whitacre, vice president for research, will deliver the 2012 annual State of Research address. The event, which is open to the public, will take place at 8:30 a.m. in the Wexner Center Theater. In recognition of the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Morrill Act, which established the public land grant university, Dr. Whitacre will review the influences that created today’s public research university and explore the forces that will shape the future, highlighting Ohio State research that exemplifies how the university is meeting these future challenges.
Whitacre used the inaugural state of research address (2010) to illustrate how researchers at the university were working across disciplines to tackle some of the world’s biggest challenges, including assuring the safety and security of the world’s food supply, developing an alternative energy portfolio to reduce oil consumption, discovering ways to combat poverty, chronicling the rate of global climate change, and seeking remedies for the harmful effects of man’s presence on the planet. She talked about the great strides the university had made in both externally-funded and institutionally-funded research activities and gave examples of the programs within the Ohio State that had seeded the development of broad multidisciplinary teams and brought new scholars to the university.
The 2011 address highlighted Ohio State’s immense reach – on campus, in Columbus, throughout the state, around the nation, across the globe, and even in outer space. Whitacre also focused on Ohio State’s strategic industry partnerships that are creating jobs and impacting economic development at all levels – locally, nationally, and globally. She highlighted the work of numerous scholars who were working collaboratively to find solutions to the world’s most pressing problems.