Personal income up in Kentucky

Lu-Ann Farrar - Online Content Manager

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The Bureau of Economic Analysis released second quarter estimates ranking growth in personal income. Kentucky is among the states with the highest growth compared to the previous quarter. It is up one percent, which ranks us fifth in the U.S. for income growth from first to second quarter of 2009. Full report from BEA. Kentucky also has the fifth highest poverty rate in the U.S., with 16.5 percent of Kentuckians living in poverty from 2006 to 2008. The national average is 13.2 percent.

The Lane Report for October reports on how University of Louisville responded to the departure of eight neurosurgeons and the threat of losing its Level 1 Trauma Center rating. According to the Lane Report, the university "recruited nine new board-certified neurosurgeons from around the nation and retained its gold-standard trauma center rating. The new Norton Neuroscience Institute will staff 13 neurosurgeons as a start, investing $100 million for research and facilities over the next 10 years. The goal is to make Norton a 'world class' center for treatment, research and training of the next generation of neurosurgeons, the hospital says."

Check the Kentucky Dept. of Travel's Colorfall 2009 for the latest in leaf-watching. For last week, from 30 to 35 percent of the trees had changed color.

The Washington Post reports on book pricing battles between Amazon and discount stores Wal-Mart and Target. The companies sell books at a reduced price if the book is ordered before its release date. Last week, Wal-Mart dropped its price for 10 upcoming releases, and Amazon matched the price. Target then began selling the same books for the same price, so Wal-Mart dropped its price by a penny. Amazon has a distribution center in Lexington

An interesting obit, completely unrelated to Kentucky, the composer of the theme music for television show The Addams Family died Saturday. Vic Mizzy also wrote the theme music for Green Acres. Warning: if you read this obit, you will be humming his tunes for the remainder of the day.