The U.S. House of Representatives has approved allocating $1.4 million to continue Ball State's long-standing research in helping astronauts withstand the rigors of long space flights and to fund a new project to develop interactive media technologies to teach science.

The U.S. Senate is expected to approve the measures in a few days, and the spending bill will then be submitted to President Bush for final consideration.

"We're very grateful for the advocacy of Senator Lugar, Senator Bayh and Congressman Pence, who have worked tirelessly to gain approval for this funding that is earmarked toward very important projects," said Ball State President Jo Ann M. Gora. "Finding new ways to engage elementary school students in science education is critical as we try to prepare more students to succeed in a global economy driven by science and technology.

"Our research on muscle atrophy has important practical applications for improving the lifestyles of our aging population as well as for providing answers to the questions of how we keep astronauts healthy as we send them deeper into outer space," she said.

Under the current proposal, the Human Performance Laboratory (HPL) will receive $1 million for the Bioenergetics Research Initiative that would continue research into developing resistance training exercises designed to combat the loss of muscle size and strength commonly suffered by astronauts during long-duration space flights.

Led by Scott Trappe, HPL director, a team of researchers has been working with NASA for nearly a decade, conducting bioenergetics research in skeletal muscle function during spaceflight and aging, clinical exercise physiology, metabolic regulation of skeletal muscle and pediatric exercise.

HPL researchers are currently testing the muscles of American and Russian crew members before and after long-duration stays aboard the International Space Station. Researchers are also participating in a ground-based study using bed rest to simulate spaceflight.

"If we are going to spend six months traveling to Mars, we cannot expect the muscles of astronauts to atrophy on the way," said Trappe, the John and Janice Fisher Professor of Exercise Science and physical education professor. "We need to identify ways to retain muscle to allow astronauts to live and work on Mars. At the same time, the information we gain from the space program can be transferred to special populations, such as our aging culture here on Earth."

Ball State also will receive $400,000 for a science media program that will merge the university's nationally recognized capabilities in education, technology and communication to develop new, interactive media for the teaching and learning of science.

Working with the U.S. Department of Energy's science education program, Ball State will create a team consisting of educators, scientists, animators, designers and technology specialists. The team will develop new technologies using visualizations and interactive simulations to make learning science concepts more engaging for young learners.

Ball State would deliver digital technologies and content through wireless networks capable of distributing ultra high-speed broadband now being tested as part of the university's Digital Middletown Project, said O'Neal Smitherman, Ball State's vice president for information technology and chief information officer.

"Using wireless broadband technology to deliver animations and other interactive digital content to classrooms and homes provides teachers and parents with a powerful resource that we believe will bring science to life for children, get them excited about learning scientific concepts and help them retain that knowledge," he said.

(Note to editors: For more information, contact Glenn Augustine, associate director of University Communications, at ggaugustine@bsu.edu, (765) 285-1560 (office), or (765) 748-4822 (cell).)