Dongping Zhong, The Ohio State University (IMAGE) Ohio State University Caption Researchers led by Dongping Zhong, the Robert Smith Professor of physics at The Ohio State University, are getting closer to directly observing how and why water is essential to life as we know it. Credit Photo by Jo McCulty, courtesy of The Ohio State University. Usage Restrictions None License Licensed content Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.