Briefs
by John Temple Ligon

Creative
Richard Florida, author of The Creative Class, is scheduled to speak October 10 at the evening meeting of EngenuitySC in the new Columbia Hilton Center. Plan on cocktails at 6 pm, dinner at 7 pm, and an hour's worth of Florida following dinner. At the University of Toronto, Florida is professor of creativity and business for the Rotman School of Management. 233-2466.

Cancer research
USC researchers are in line for $10.7 million to help studies at the Center for Colon Cancer. The federal grant will fund at least 27 laboratory scientists. In S.C., 790 people are expected to die this year from colon cancer.

Go to jail
As of June 2006, there were 2.2 million people behind bars in the U.S. Worldwide there are more than 9 million behind bars, making the U.S. share of the world's prison population 24%. The U.S. population is only 4% of the world's total.

SCANA
South Carolina Electric and Gas, SCANA's largest subsidiary, over the next 10 years is expanding its natural gas customer count by 150,000 in Columbia, Aiken, Beaufort, Charleston, Edgefield, and Horry counties.

Cerf the Web
One of the founding fathers of the Internet, Vint Cerf, was at the Moore School of Business last spring. More recently, Cerf has begged regulators to know "the importance of keeping the network open and generally neutral, and allowing the entrepreneurs to try out their ideas." He shared his ideas on Web freedoms at the Edinburgh International Television Festival, where he also said, "The most important thing is to make sure we have a secure and stable network. There are ways to attack the system, which we need to defend against."

Mailer can't, Butler can
Norman Mailer, the author, had to cancel his appearance at USC due to health concerns. On Monday, September 17, 5:45- 7 pm, in the Gambrell Auditorium, Robert Olen Butler will lecture on his book, A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain.

Berlin should be an inspiration
For the past 15 years, Berlin has been planning, designing, and building Europe's largest and safest train station. Almost 2 million square feet, the station serves 300,000 passengers and 1,100 trains daily. The five- level station cost almost $900 million. The only thing comparable in the U.S. was Pennsylvania Station in NYC, torn down for a new Madison Square Garden in 1964. In Columbia we have a pre- fab sheet metal building off Pulaski, if you can find it.

Sanctuary
The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island Golf Resort was ranked as the NTroa.v 1e lf a+m Leiliys- ufrreie ndly resort in the country and in Canada by Family magazine readers. Also, Andrew Harper's Hideaway Reportnamed The Sanctuary the No. 1 U.S. resort Hotel.

Drought
All S.C. counties except Beaufort and Jasper are in a severe drought, according to the S.C. Dept. of Natural Resource's Drought Response Committee. With the exception of Lake Murray, all S.C. lake levels are below normal.

Nucor
Charlotte-based steel manufacturer Nucor is ranked No. 63 on magazine's annual list of the 100 fastest- growing companies in the U.S. Nucor had revenue of almost $15 billion over the last four quarters, which was a growth rate of 27%.

Foreclosures
According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, for the second quarter of 2007, 0.65 percent of loans entered the foreclosure process on a seasonally adjusted basis, up 22 basis points from a year earlier.

Orangeburg
A delegation from Dubai is in discussions with Orangeburg officials over the possibility of a $700 million investment by Dubai in Orangeburg's Global Logistics Triangle. If the deal goes through, maybe another 10,000 jobs in Orangeburg could be the result. The Port of Charleston and its proximity to Orangeburg is the real draw.

Speaking of exports
In July, the value of U.S. exports to the rest of the world increased 2.7%, the fastest seasonally adjusted growth in more than three years, according to the U.S. Dept. of Commerce.