Friday, June 8, 2018   
 
Catfish industry struggles despite research advancements
When catfish breeders crossed a channel catfish with a blue catfish, the result was a hybrid catfish with superior growth potential and increased disease resistance. One trait of the new catfish was derived from the blue catfish -- aggressive feeding. Because they are schooling fish in their natural environment, blue catfish are more competitive for food and grow well in crowded conditions. Although it yielded more meat, the fish's great potential is its ability to excel at high stocking densities. "What we needed was a better way to control their environment and allow the genetic potential of this new 'super catfish' to be reached," explains Dr. Craig Tucker, research leader, USDA/ARS Warmwater Aquaculture Research Unit in Stoneville, Miss. "Through a long process of collaborative work with Mississippi State University aquaculture researchers, a 'split pond' system was created."
 
Starkville takes feedback on parking ordinance
Starkville will continue work on a new parking ordinance after receiving an initial round of positive feedback from residents. At its Tuesday meeting, the board of aldermen held the first of two public hearings on the ordinance, which aims to strengthen controls to keep people from parking in yards and introduce a new metric to increase the amount of residential parking available. Daniel Havelin, with the city's Community Development Department, said during a presentation at Tuesday's meeting that the ordinance should help decrease the number of cars parked on streets in residential areas, which hinders traffic flow. The new ordinance also includes restrictions against parking on front yards and separate restrictions for residential vehicles, a definition which includes boats, all-terrain vehicles, temporary storage containers, travel trailers and motorhomes.
 
Mississippi Economic Council announces 2018-2019 Board Leadership
The Mississippi Economic Council (MEC) recently elected officers for the Board of Directors for 2018-2019. Elected officers include Anthony L. Wilson, Chairman, President and CEO of Mississippi Power, as MEC's 2020-2021 Chair. Wilson has worked his entire professional career for Mississippi Power and the Southern Company system, starting in 1984 as an engineering cooperative education student in Biloxi. He moved to Georgia Power in 2002 and held several executive leadership positions before returning to Mississippi Power in 2015. An avid supporter of economic development and education, Wilson serves as Chairman of the MEC's M.B. Swayze Foundation, which annually honors the state's top high school students and teachers. He also is Vice Chair of the Gulf Coast Business Council board of directors and is a director on the boards for the Mississippi Energy Institute and Mississippi State University Foundation.
 
How Long Can a State Go Without Repairing Roads and Bridges?
Mississippi's increasingly unreliable infrastructure -- its crumbling roads and hundreds of deteriorating bridges that have been closed or weight-limited -- is straining the state's businesses and local governments. It's no wonder, then, that they, along with transportation advocates and their allies, have pressed the legislature to do something about it. Yet year after year, lawmakers in Jackson have come up empty-handed. This year was no different, even though lawmakers came tantalizingly close to a road improvement package. Many states face tough questions about how to improve their roads, particularly in rural areas. These dilemmas are the driving force behind President Trump's call for rural infrastructure improvements. But even the president's plan demands increased state and local funding, and Mississippi, more than most places, has struggled to come up with the money to keep its roads and bridges in usable shape.
 
Mississippi runoffs: 1 could be polite, the other combative
The Republican and Democratic campaigns heading into the June 26 runoffs for Congress and Senate are likely to have sharply contrasting tones. The campaign leading up to Tuesday's six-person Republican primary for a seat in the 3rd Congressional District involved polite discussions among candidates who agreed on most big issues. It would not be surprising if the two candidates competing in the runoff, Michael Guest and Whit Hughes, continued in that vein. The Democratic runoff for a U.S. Senate seat appears to be shaping up as a bitter contest.
 
Top vote getters Howard Sherman, Michael Guest balk at debate invites
After Tuesday's primary election, the No. 2 vote getters in two hotly contested races have asked for debates ahead of the June 26 runoff. In each case, the first-place finishers have bristled at the invitation. State Rep. David Baria said he emailed Howard Sherman, his opponent in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, for a debate but received no response. In Tuesday's most-watched Republican contest, Michael Guest, the district attorney in Rankin and Madison counties, dominated the crowded ticket of six total Republicans, earning 28,720 (45 percent) votes. Whit Hughes, who worked in economic development and hospital administration, earned 14,250 (22 percent) votes. When Mississippi Today contacted him, Sherman -- who beat Baria on Tuesday by about 800 votes -- did not explicitly rule out a debate but indicated that he wants to focus his time elsewhere until June 26.
 
Photos of the Day: It's Seersucker Season
It's the first Seersucker Thursday in the Senate for 2018. The tradition of wearing these lighter-fabric suits re-emerged in the late 1990s at the urging of Former Majority Leader Trent Lott. The Mississippi Republican wanted to show that "the Senate isn't just a bunch of dour folks wearing dark suits and -- in the case of men -- red or blue ties," according to the Senate Historian. On Thursday you were likely to see lawmakers from both sides of the Capitol and staff in seersucker suits, in what's become an annual tradition to honor the garb, its Southern roots, and its necessity as a Senate uniform back in the days before air conditioning.
 
Suicide rates rise sharply across the United States, new CDC report shows
Suicide rates rose in all but one state between 1999 and 2016, with increases seen across age, gender, race and ethnicity, according to a report released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In more than half of all deaths in 27 states, the people had no known mental health condition when they ended their lives. Only Nevada recorded a decline --- of 1 percent --- for the overall period, although its rate remained higher than the national average. Increasingly, suicide is being viewed not only as a mental health problem but a public health one. Nearly 45,000 suicides occurred in the United States in 2016 -- more than twice the number of homicides -- making it the 10th-leading cause of death. Among people ages 15 to 34, suicide is the second-leading cause of death.
 
Anthony Bourdain brought 'Parts Unknown' to Jackson in 2014
Celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain was found dead Friday in his hotel room in France while working on his CNN series on culinary traditions around the world. He was 61. CNN confirmed the death, saying in a statement he was found unresponsive Friday morning by friend and chef Eric Ripert, and calling it a suicide. CNN said Bourdain was in Strasbourg filming an upcoming segment in his series "Parts Unknown." Bourdain's show took him all over the world, including a stop in 2014 in Mississippi. Bourdain's show about the Mississippi Delta included a trip to Jackson, where he tried a pig ear sandwich at Big Apple Inn. "It's everything we love about pig: The texture, the mix of fatty, lean, all that. Oh, that's good," Bourdain said then.
 
'Brexit Boys' Data Project at Ole Miss Could Use Mississippi Tax Dollars
After months of negotiations and coordination facilitated in part by Gov. Phil Bryant to bring two British companies stateside, a public United Kingdom office that reports to Parliament is investigating those companies poised to set up shop at the University of Mississippi's Insight Park, a research hub for companies to collaborate with campus faculty or departments. Eldon Insurance and Big Data Dolphins Ltd. signed a lease agreement to move into Insight Park in February 2018. Mississippi taxpayers could help foot the $200,000 bill to construct an office for Big Data Dolphins Ltd. on a 4.98-parcel piece of land, since the project received a $100,000 grant from Mississippi Development Authority, the lease agreement shows. The research foundation, which is run by a board of directors of predominantly UM leaders, will pitch in the other $100,000. The Jackson Free Press is working to confirm whether or not MDA has officially made the grant award for the project.
 
U. of Alabama to consider tuition increase
The University of Alabama System board of trustees will consider tuition increases and details of a lease agreement for the future home football field of the UAB Blazers when its members meet Friday. The board is scheduled to begin comittee meetings at 8:30 a.m. Friday in the ballroom for the Ferguson Student Center on the UA campus. The full board is scheduled to meet at 11 a.m. to consider the agenda items approved by the committees. The tuition rate adjustments will be part of the finance committee meeting. Details of the proposed increases will be released during the committee meeting Friday. For the 2017-18 academic year, UA's tuition for undergraduates was $10,780 for in-state students and $28,100 for out-of-state students.
 
Auburn University's new strategic plan is in its early stages
The Auburn University board of trustees got a peek into the new faculty-led strategic planning process during its work session Thursday afternoon. "As many of you know, and probably all of you should know, the strategic plan for Auburn is coming to an end," university president Steven Leath addressed the board. "It's good timing, because I've been here a year, long enough for me to get a feel for what some of my big buckets are. I had a novel idea for Auburn. We decided to have a faculty-led plan, and I asked two of our most prominent faculty, highly-respected, if they would be willing -- which is a big time commitment for them -- to lead a strategic plan that's highly inclusive of faculty, alumni and citizens."
 
U. of Tennessee's interim chancellor focused on stability, open communications
Wayne Davis had already been the center of fanfare at retirement receptions when he was asked to add up to one more year to the 47 he's already clocked at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. "My plans were fully engaged," said Davis, who announced his retirement as dean of the Tickle College of Engineering almost 14 months ago. While by now, the 70-year-old should be hiking, playing bluegrass music or traveling, he'll spend what he thought would be his first lap of retirement trying to steer the state's flagship university through the aftershocks of a major leadership transition. He was tapped to assume the role of interim chancellor early last month following the controversial firing of Beverly Davenport a little more than a year into her tenure. Davis, who started at the top post on May 7 with a commitment to guide the university for six months to a year, jokes that he enrolled in Retirement 101 and failed the course.
 
Texas A&M, Oklahoma luxury dorms stumble amid sticker shock
Park West, a 3,400-bed student housing complex near the Texas A&M University campus in College Station has a resort-style rooftop pool, three gyms and lounges with billiard tables, ping pong and flat screen TV's. What it doesn't have are students -- or rather their parents -- willing or able to pay as much as $1,000 a month to live there. Just over half the beds at the complex, financed largely by tax-exempt municipal bonds, were filled during the last academic year. About 360-miles north in Norman, Oklahoma, a 1,230-bed residence hall at the University of Oklahoma featuring a "blow dry bar and salon," a market with grass-fed local meats, and a cycling studio is just 26 percent leased, according to a securities filing. It opens in August. As universities tap outsiders to finance a dormitory arms race while keeping debt off the books, the Texas and Oklahoma projects underscore the risks to investors of overbuilding "luxury" accommodations as students and parents become more cost-conscious.
 
U. of Missouri to cut $45.4 million, 185 jobs
The University of Missouri will cut $45.4 million and eliminate 185 jobs on the Columbia campus to balance spending with reduced state support and lower tuition revenue. The cuts represent slightly more than 8 percent of general fund spending in the next fiscal year and range from no cuts to libraries and scholarships to a 19.2 percent cut to the School of Medicine. The largest cuts are in units with outside sources of revenue, such as medicine, the College of Veterinary Medicine and the Office of Advancement. The job cuts include eliminating 155 unfilled positions, with 30 layoffs. Chancellor Alexander Cartwright, interim Provost Jim Spain and Vice Chancellor for Finance Rhonda Gibler briefed reporters on the cuts on Wednesday. Cartwright said he did not order across-the-board cuts to protect services vital to student success.
 
Private Colleges Give Ground on Student Data
Proponents for better data on whether and how college pays off for students saw a victory, if a small one, Thursday as the primary lobbying group for private nonprofit colleges inched closer to backing a new federal system that would give important information to students and policy makers. The National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities signaled a shift in its position on the federal government's role in gathering data on outcomes for college students. David Warren, the group's president, said NAICU was open to exploring legislation that would require colleges to collect and provide more student data to the federal government. However, that bill, known as the Student Right to Know Before You Go Act, isn't the preferred option of most other college groups and student advocates seeking more data on student outcomes.
 
Tourism is on a roll in Mississippi
Consultant and columnist Phil Hardwick writes in the Mississippi Business Journal: "Tourism is on a roll. Although international visitors to the United States is down, domestic tourism continues to climb. ...Visitors spent $6.343 billion while visiting Mississippi in Fiscal Year 2017, the second-highest amount on record, according to the latest Visit Mississippi Tourism Economic Impact Report. That same report said that tourism brought in $398.7 million for the state's General Fund and that it is now the state's fourth largest employer. At the local level, communities have devised ways to fund local marketing efforts to increase their tourism efforts."
 
Will the gloves come off for Mississippi congressional runoffs?
The Clarion-Ledger's Geoff Pender writes: "Mississippi's midterm congressional primaries were the most 'how's your mamma and them?' polite political affairs to come along in a while, with candidates in two crowded fields taking the unusual step of not bad-mouthing each other. But the preliminaries are over. The fields were winnowed Tuesday. Two Democrats are squaring off in a Senate runoff and two Republicans for the House 3rd District. If the gloves are going to come off, the fear and loathing begin, now through the June 26 runoff would be the time. But will they 'go negative?' I predict one will, one won't."


SPORTS
 
Bulldogs believe their time is now
Mississippi State has been on the cusp of reaching the College World Series in each of the past two years. The Bulldogs were eliminated in the Super Regional round in both 2016 and 2017 but have another shot tonight to make amends for those past failures. MSU meets fellow SEC foe Vanderbilt at 7 p.m. on ESPN2 with a trip to Omaha on the line in the best-of-three series. "We all know that it's time," said MSU center fielder Jake Mangum. "My freshman year in '16, we had a team that we thought was the best in the country and coming out and getting swept by Arizona in our home ballpark was tough. Last year, we came out of nowhere and won that (Hattiesburg) Regional and go to ... an LSU team that a lot of people would say was the best team in the country. This year, we really believe it's time."
 
Dustin Skelton's hot bat helps push Mississippi State to Super Regionals
The timing wasn't great, but Dustin Skelton didn't have a choice. In April, catcher Marshall Gilbert started 12 of the Mississippi State baseball team's 16 games. Gilbert's batting average climbed from .238 to .298 and he drive in eight runs in that span thanks to four multi-hit games. Gilbert ended the month with 15 hits. Skelton ended it with 19 at-bats. Skelton was still playing time, but he wasn't catching as much as he wanted, so he changed his approach to hitting. The timing couldn't have been better. Skelton's performance in the NCAA tournament's Tallahassee Regional helped MSU advance to face Vanderbilt in the Super Regionals. The best-of-three series will begin at 7 p.m. Friday (ESPN2) at Hawkins Field in Nashville, Tennessee.
 
3 players Mississippi State needs big performances in NCAA super regional
Mississippi State is appearing in its third-straight super regional. The Bulldogs failed to win a game in the first two trips. In order to advance to Omaha for the first time since 2013, Mississippi State must knock off Vanderbilt, a team that swept the Bulldogs in their first SEC series of the regular season. A lot has changed since mid-March, when Vanderbilt swept Mississippi State in Starkville. Mainly, the Bulldogs have vastly improved, particularly at the plate. How far have the Bulldogs come? That will be learned this weekend. Mississippi State takes on Vanderbilt in Nashville for Game 1 on Friday (7 p.m., ESPN2). Here are three players Mississippi State likely needs major performances from in order to advance.
 
Jake Mangum: What's not to like about him?
Mississippi sports columnist Rick Cleveland writes: "Let's get this out of the way first: If I ran a Major League team's front office, I'd draft Jake Mangum early and pay him what it takes to sign him. I love the way Mangum plays. I love the way he competes. I love the way he wins. Can't wait to see him play this weekend when Mississippi State takes on Vanderbilt in an NCAA Super Regional at Nashville. Mangum is at his best when it matters most, so he should be special at Vandy. ...That's why it is so amazing -- at least to me -- that Mangum, a 22-year-old junior, was not drafted in the recent MLB draft until the Mets took him in the 32nd round. He says he is returning to Mississippi State for his senior season."
 
Joe Moorhead embraces move south to Mississippi State
The beverage is Moxie, a high-fructose carbonated drink he has tasted only once, and then only a sip. The bright orange cans occupy prominent positions on Joe Moorhead's desk --- and in his football program. Which brings us to this important question for Mississippi State's new coach: What do you call Moxie? "I'm from Pittsburgh," he says, "so I call it pop." But then Mississippi State's new coach continues -- and aces the, uh, pop quiz. Moorhead has spent most of his professional career in places where a soft drink is known as soda. And this is important only in that he has recently come to understand that in his new home, it is Coke, all of it. While fans seem ready to embrace Moorhead (see the "MOOR COWBELL T-shirts ...and cowbells), during offseason speaking engagements, Moorhead has made a point of tackling the issue head-on.
 
Anderson Peters leads Mississippi State's 1-2 finish in javelin at NCAA meet
Mississippi State freshman standout Anderson Peters won the javelin Wednesday at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships with a meet-record and collegiate personal-best throw of 82.82 meters (271 feet, 9 inches). The native of St. Andrews, Grenada, also met the standard he needed to enter international competition for his home nation of Spain. He is the second Spaniard to break 80 meters (262-5). "Coming to Mississippi State with a personal best of 84.81m (278-3), it was kind of expected for me to become the NCAA champion," Peters said. "I was physically at my best, but I wasn't able to throw as far as I wanted to. The conditions weren't perfect, but it was OK." Senior Nicolas Quijera finished second (80.21 meters, 263-2) to help MSU become the first school since North Carolina in 2007 to take the top two spots in the javelin at the NCAA Championships.
 
Mississippi State freshman wins NCAA javelin
Mississippi State freshman standout Anderson Peters came up big on college track's biggest stage Wednesday night. The St. Andrews, Grenada, native won the NCAA javelin championship on Wednesday night with a meet record and collegiate personal-best of 82.82 meters (271 feet, 9 inches). "Coming to Mississippi State with a personal best of 84.81 (278-3), it was kind of expected for me to become the NCAA champion," Peters said. "I was physically at my best, but I wasn't able to throw as far as I wanted to. The conditions weren't perfect, but it was okay." Senior Nicolas Quijera finished second, making Mississippi State the first school since North Carolina in 2007 to take the top two spots on the podium in the javelin at the NCAA Championships.
 
Trading Football for Fat Tires in Mississippi
Lots of depressing statistics plague the Magnolia State. Poverty, unemployment, obesity, and teen pregnancy rates rank among the highest in the country, while education equity and life expectancy are at rock bottom. More than 40 percent of school-age children are overweight or obese, according to the State of Obesity, an annual report funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, a national public-health philanthropy. Selena Swartzfager, 47, sees that data come to life every day while running the Mississippi Council on Economic Education, a non-profit working to increase the state residents' economic and financial literacy. But, as founder and coach of the one-year-old Mississippi Blues Composite Mountain Bike team, she also sees the potential to combat some of those issues among a tiny sliver of the state's population.



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