Aging

Lt. Governor Andr Bauer was scheduled to testify Tuesday, May 2, before a Congressional subcommittee on the reauthorization of the Older Americans Act, the

federal law that funds many of the services available to South Carolina seniors. The subcommittee hearing was located in the Raybum House Office Building, Washington, DC.

Art

Also scheduled for Tuesday, May 2, was the opening day for spring art auctions in New York City at Christie's International, Sotheby's Holdings, and Phillips de Pury & Co. Among the three, about 3,000 works were expected on the block for a total take of more than $840 million, up more than 40% from last year.

Fuel cells

FuelCellSouth 2006 was recently held in Columbia. More than 200 leaders in fuel cell research, policy, and commercialization attended. The participants offered ideas for local proposals to fully utilize and develop energy derived from fuel cells. Come September, winning proposals will be announced by the USC Columbia Fuel Cell Collaborative.

More fuel cells

Congressman Bob Inglis (R-SC) recently discussed with the House Science Committee his idea to federally fund prizes to spur scientists' creativity and competitiveness. The grand prize would be $10 million in federal money and another $90 million from the federal government to match $90 million in private funding.

Haier in Camden

Haier, the Chinese appliance manufacturer, will add to its presence in Camden later this year. Additional employment projections surpass 1,000.

The way we were

The Stock Exchange Luncheon Club, open above the trading floor of the NYSE since 1898, closed last week due to increasing overhead and decreasing business. Brokers and traders became progressively too busy, too competitive in recent years. Leisure lunches are out. Besides, the security measures put in place after 9/11 made the club less accessible.

Fred Carter stays put

For the past seven years, the president of Francis Marion University in Florence has been Fred Carter. He put his name in consideration for president at the College of Charleston, but he withdrew his name.

More lawyers

The Charleston School of Law, school officials announced, has been recommended for provisional accreditation. The 400-student Charleston School of Law opened in 2004. Columbia's Alex Sanders is chair of the Charleston School of Law board.

What's up. Doc?

According to the Public Citizen's Health Research Group, South Carolina is among the 10 worst states in protecting patients from dangerous doctors.

State employment up

South Carolina employment gained 29,000 jobs in March. The state has 54,400 more jobs than it had a year ago. Still, the state's 6.5% unemployment rate is the fourth highest in the nation.

First quarter jump in gross domestic product

The country's GDP grew by 4.8% annual rate in the first quarter of 2006, the best gain in almost three years.

It must be the contractor

Columbia City Manager Charles Austin is threatening to fire the Lady Street improvements contractor for unacceptable delays in more than $10 million in construction. The project was due for completion January 17, 2006. Since the project began in 2004, four businesses have closed, including Hiller Hardware and Meritage, the bar/restaurant.

So, what day was April 26?

That was the day 50 years ago when Ideal-X, a war-surplus oil tanker with a frame welded above its deck, loaded almost 60 aluminum containers at a Newark dock and took off for Houston. The metal boxes were unloaded at the Houston dock and placed onto trucks to carry them away. The container revolution began, as the SC Ports Authority was happy to acknowledge.

A Playboy Bunny hops above all

Amy Sue Cooper, a 23-year-old nursing student and Playboy model, is picking stocks better than all 9,771 Momingstar-rated mutual fund managers in the US, as recorded in the Trading Markets/Playboy 2006 stock picking contest. So far this year, she's up 46%.