It was a successful debut for Ed Orgeron as interim coach of the LSU Tigers. Jeff Palermo has a recap of Saturday’s 42-7 win over Missouri…
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The LSU AgCenter is making progress with plans to grow and produce medical marijuana. Emelie Gunn has more…
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State officials will be in Cuba today to discuss trade options between island nation and Louisiana. Halen Doughty has more…
Cut 3 (31) “I’m Halen Doughty”
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Deepwater Horizon was a success at the box office this weekend and just in time for the release of the movie is a new study looking at how coastal marshland recovered from the 2010 environmental disaster. Marine conservation biology professor at Duke University, Brian Silliman, says patches of marsh grass nearly covered by oil never recovered.
cut 4 (09) “erosion occurring”
Silliman says marshes will less than 90-percent oil coating did not erode as quickly as they expected, but 40 to 50 acres of marsh is permanently lost and can’t be brought back without active restoration. He says the study took a while to complete, because their methods are not high end.
Silliman says environmentalists are interested in understanding thresholds because it helps them determine how to restore these ecosystems. He says they now know that there is high resistance in these areas, meaning it takes a lot of oiling to destroy the system.
Silliman says it’s important to restore these marshes because they protect the coastline from wave impact, soak up carbon from the atmosphere and pollution, and generate shrimp production.
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The LSU AgCenter is continuing with plans to grow medical marijuana and hope to have seeds in the ground early next year. AgCenter President Dr. Bill Richardson says they should have a business plan in place this month and they are working closely with law enforcement to ensure they are comfortable with every aspect.
Richardson says they hope to get started in 2017 at an off campus location in East Baton Rouge Parish. He says legislation passed this year helped them move forward with the process and gave them exclusive rights to produce the drug.
Richardson says no students and no one under 21 will be able to work in the growing facility and security is their number one priority. He says the AgCenter needs third party financing due to the budget situation the state faces and hopes to get rid of the angst associated with a project like this.
Cut 9 (10) “medical marijuana”
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Governor John Bel Edwards, Agriculture Commissioner Dr. Mike Strain, and other state officials will be in Cuba today on a trade mission. Strain says representatives from LSU will also join them, because they want to trade more than just commodities.
Strain says Cuba will import up to $2 billion worth of food next year, and as much as $1 billion of that could be from the US. He says they believe Louisiana is in a prime position to capture a lion’s share of that trade.
Governor Edwards says before the Cuban Revolution in 1959, Louisiana had a long standing relationship with Cuba and was a trade partner. He says they are trying to lean forward anticipating the day that the Bayou State can resume that historical relationship. But he says this is not unique to Louisiana.
The officials plan to meet with the Cuban ministers of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Foreign Investment, as well as the National Port Administration of Cuba.
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A ULM professor receives a 5 year, 1.7 million dollar grant that could possibly lead to a new treatment of Type-1 diabetes. Dr. Karen Briski is working to improve the quality of life of diabetics, by reducing harmful effects of hypoglycemia. Hypoglycemia can cause nerve cell damage and neurological dysfunction, so she wants to see if increasing the amount of glycogen in the brain can help…
Hypoglycemia is an unavoidable aspect of a diabetic’s daily life, but Briski hopes her research can protect the brain during strict insulin therapy….
This grant is the biggest single grant awarded to a faculty member in ULM’s history. Briski says she is humbled by this honor and happy to have a chance to improve a diabetic’s quality of life.
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It wasn’t flashy, but Louisiana Tech picked up a much needed victory on Saturday with a 28-7 win over UTEP. Ryan Higgins threw for 191 yards and two touchdowns and Coach Skip Holtz says it was nice to get a win after losing two straight on the road…
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For the second straight week, UL Lafayette lost in overtime on the road. New Mexico State beat the Cajuns 37-31 in double overtime on Saturday night to drop U-L-L’s record to 2-3, 1-and-1 in the Sun Belt. Cajuns Coach Mark Hudspeth says the two interceptions thrown by quarterback Anthony Jennings were costly…
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What a debut by Interim Head Coach Ed Orgeron as he guided the Tigers to a 42-7 thrashing of the Missouri Tigers on Saturday night. LSU’s offense, which was stagnant through the first four games of the season, rolled up 634 yards of total offense, which is a school school record for total offense in SEC games. Orgeron on what changed with him at the helm…
LSU rushed for 418 yards, Derrius Guice had 163 yards on the ground and Darrel Williams had 130, as each running back had three touchdowns. Orgeron says a dominating win like that is huge for this program…
LSU is at Florida for an 11 AM kickoff this Saturday. Wide receiver Malachi Dupre is anxious to see how the rest of the season plays out…