August 7, 2008

The Latest Business Headlines from WWJ Newsradio 950

Chrysler, Nissan Talking | The Wall Street Journal says the automakers are discussing a partnership involving joint production of midsize cars, Reuters reports. | Story | Related Podcast

Toyota Profit Down | The automaker's fiscal first-quarter profit fell 28 percent from a year ago on lower North American sales. | Story

2 Charged in Cobo Investigation | the U.S. Attorney's Office brought felony charges against a former director of Cobo Center and a businessman, The Detroit News reports. | Story

Ford Cuts Over For Now | Ford's top North American executive says the company has finished its latest round of white collar cuts, but won't rule out more in the future. | Story

New Electric Car | Nissan's new electric car has a battery that is more powerful than those commonly used in hybrids. | Story

Ice Price Probe | A former Detroit executive is helping with a federal investigation targeting alleged price fixing in the U.S. market for pre-packaged ice, The Wall Street Journal reports. | Story

Granholm Approves Aid for Schools | About 70 smaller, student-friendly high schools could be created under a proposal partly financed by Michigan's upcoming schools spending plan. | Story

Stocks Finish Higher | The market received a boost from a drop in oil prices and a firmer dollar, with investors buying up battered shares of oil refiners and mining firms. | Story

WAYNE STATE LEGAL CLINIC TO AID FAMILIES, GIVE VALUABLE EXPERIENCE TO LAW STUDENTS

Detroit-area families and children in need of legal services are about to get a new place to seek help.

Wayne State University Law School has partnered with the Legal Aid and Defender Association of Detroit to launch the Child Advocacy Clinic, a legal-aid organization set up to help Detroit-area families, while providing hands-on experience to Wayne State law students.

The clinic, to be offered for the first time during the fall term, will allow law student interns to represent children in abuse, neglect, foster care review, termination of parental rights, adoption and delinquency proceedings.

The Child Advocacy Clinic is the law school's fifth live-client clinic. The school's other clinics are the Criminal Appellate Practice, the Disability Law Clinic, the Free Legal Aid Clinic and the Small Business Enterprises and Nonprofit Corporations Clinic. More...

A Good Sign For Tomorrow's Energy Economy

James A. Croce,
CEO NextEnergy

This is not about "left" and "right" presidential candidates. My use of the terms are a little more "macro" and deal with this past month's G8 Summit in Toyako, Hokkaido, Japan which concluded July 11th, (which I characterize for my purposes as "the right") and former Vice President Albert Gore's speech delivered on July 17th in Washington, D.C. on behalf of The Alliance for Climate Protection entitled "A Generational Challenge to Repower America" (which I characterize for my purposes as "the left"). More...

BUSINESS EVENT LOOKS AT THE FUTURE OF CRUISIN': Can you enjoy your cool cruiser and still get great fuel economy? Join WWJ Newsradio 950 and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation for "High Mileage Muscle - Cruisin' Into The Future," a business breakfast. It takes place Aug. 15 at Forte Restaurant in Birmingham. For more information and to register online, click here.

UM MAKES PROGRESS IN FIGHT AGAINST COMPUTER VIRUSES: Antivirus software on your personal computer could become a thing of the past thanks to a new "cloud computing" approach to malicious software detection developed at the University of Michigan. The researchers' new approach, called CloudAV, moves antivirus functionality into the "network cloud" and off personal computers. CloudAV analyzes suspicious files using multiple antivirus and behavioral detection programs simultaneously. More...

TECHTOWN AND THE FUTURE OF DETROIT: In an "Our Michigan, Our Future" report, WWJ Newsradio 950's Vickie Thomas talks with Randal Charlton, director if Detroit's TechTown business incubator, located on the campus of Wayne State University. Charlton talks about TechTown's work – and its importance to Michigan's future. More...

EXPANDED GREEKTOWN GAMBLING FLOOR TO OPEN SOON: Greektown Casino plans to open its expanded gambling floor on Aug. 29, weeks ahead of schedule. The 25,000-square-foot expansion will add about 700 slot machines to the 2,300 already in place. The 30-story hotel tower's steel skeleton, sheathed in blue glass, was completed last week. Greektown Casino CEO Craig Ghelfi says contractors now will concentrate on completing the 400 hotel rooms, hallways, a two-story lobby and meeting space. Ghelfi says the hotel is expected to open in early 2009. More...

FIRST U.S. PATIENT GETS NEW HEART DEVICE: Anthony Shannon made history on July 30. That's when he became the first person in the United States to receive a new type of experimental, high-tech heart-assist device. Called a DuraHeart, it was implanted in his chest, and connected to his failing heart, to help pump his blood and keep him alive. Shannon, a 62-year-old from Livonia, is doing well less than one week after the operation, which was performed by a team led by surgeon Francis Pagani at the University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center. The DuraHeart, made by Terumo Heart Inc. of Ann Arbor, uses advanced magnetic-levitation technology. For more, from the Great Lakes IT Report, click here.

GRANT FOR BRAIN INJURY RESEARCH: The Southeastern Michigan Traumatic Brain Injury System, housed at DMC Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan (RIM) and the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Wayne State University, has been awarded a five-year grant totaling $1.7 million from the U.S. Department of Education's National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research. The grant earns RIM the rare distinction of being one of only 16 Centers of Excellence in the country for the care and research of those with traumatic brain injury. For more, from the Great Lakes IT Report, click here.

WORLDWIDE AUTOMOTIVE REPORT PODCAST: Chrysler reportedly is looking at a mid size car deal with Nissan. We talk with Ford's President of the Americas Mark Fields about joint ventures, job cuts and fuel economy. A new J.D. Power study says vehicles are becoming more dependable.

HEAR 'EDUCATION MINUTE' ON WWJ AND ONLINE: WWJ Newsradio 950's Pat Vitale gives education tips in an on-air series that is a joint production of Eastern Michigan University-Education First! and WWJ. "Education Minute" airs daily on WWJ at 9:22 a.m., 12:23 p.m., 5:40 p.m., and 9:53 p.m. For podcasts of Vitale's reports, as well as other resources for helping our kids learn, click here.

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