It’s that time again: TEDxLSU this morning revealed the speaker lineup for its fourth annual event slated to take place on the LSU campus next March. This year’s theme is “Why,” with speakers to explore how asking why furthers dialogue and sparks change in the community. The speakers are: Hector Alila, pharmaceutical researcher; Mark Benfield, oceanographer; Sister Judith Brun, sister of Saint Joseph’s Academy; Ginger Guttner, online voice of Mike the Tiger VI; Retired Lt. General Russel Honoré; David Klanecky, energy storage engineer; Gary King, microbiologist; Michael Sarrazin, LSU early childhood education senior; Bianca Smith, comic book writer and LSU mass communication senior; Amanda Exner Staiano, developmental psychologist; Joseph Tucker, entrepreneur and athletic equipment innovator; and Chris Thomas King, blues musician, producer and mentor. Tickets will go on sale later this year. Get more details at the event website.
One-stop shopping: Louisiana farmers now have a new resource they can use to find the latest news on research, diseases, production and other information about the state’s multi-million dollar fruit and vegetable industries. Launched by LSU AgCenter horticulture pathologist Melanie Lewis Ivey and AgCenter vegetable specialist Kiki Fontenot, the Louisiana Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association website is one-stop shopping for all growers’ needs. More than 33,000 acres of Louisiana farmland is used for commercial produce production by more than 7,000 farmers. The website was funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture-National Institute of Food and Agriculture Crop Protection and Pest Management Grants Project with support from the Louisiana Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association.
Better than expected: The U.S. economy grew at a slightly faster rate in the summer than previously reported, mainly because businesses restocked their goods at a stronger pace than first thought. The Associated Press reports that the overall economy, as measured by the gross domestic product, grew at an annual rate of 2.1% in the July-September period, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday. It previously estimated growth of 1.5%. Even with the revision, economic growth slowed sharply from a 3.9% gain in the second quarter. The economy then was rebounding from a harsh winter that had sapped first quarter growth to a barely discernible 0.6% pace. Read the full story.
