New Orleans CityBusiness: Briefs: Dept. of Defense grants $2.46M to Tulane+

Guided funding The Defense Department is giving Tulane University a $2.46 million grant to develop technology to help track and destroy missiles as part of a national missile defense system. The program is designed to shoot down nuclear missiles fired at the United States or its allies by rogue nations or terrorist groups. The grant will establish the Tulane Missile Defense Project and fund research for a year, says Nick Altiero, dean of Tulane's Engineering School. Tulane researchers will work in conjunction with Xavier University to develop sensors for missile interceptors that discriminate between incoming missile targets and other objects. Tulane hopes to get follow-up grants to extend the work longer than a year. "We're looking for it to be a long-term project," Altiero says.

Unveiling an unction Dr. Nia Terezakis, a New Orleans dermatologist, is starting to sell a skin care cream she formulated in her practice at Earthsavers beauty and bath stores. Terezakis' Green Cream is an over-the-counter face cream that fights sun damage. Its active ingredient is retinol, a form of Vitamin A widely used in skin care products. Terezakis says she worked with a local biochemist to develop a cream that would reduce the irritation from retinol- based creams. She formed a company called Advanced Skin Technology to market the product. Terezakis says Earthsavers fits well with her product. "It's not the sort of place that is filled with a lot of pseudo-science," she says.

As others see us New Orleans gained some ground on Forbes Magazine's list of best places to build a business, though the ranking also revealed some of the drags on the local economy. The New Orleans area ranked No. 168 out of 296 cities Forbes analyzed for the annual listing, up 26 spots from its rank of No. 194 in 2001. Forbes bases its rankings on nine categories, with five covering job and salary growth and four covering high tech. New Orleans' five- year salary growth proved to be a snag, where the city ranked near the bottom at No. 266. But New Orleans did best when researchers considered its "job momentum," where the city ranked No. 43. San Diego was ranked first and five other California cities were in the top 10. Deepwater projects to grow U.S. Minerals Management Service officials expect 13 oil and gas projects to begin production this year in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, continuing the region's rapid growth. The expected increase will follow the 14 new projects that began production last year. At the end of 2001, a total of 51 deepwater projects were producing, more than three times the number five years ago. The MMS report, released earlier this month, is the third in a series tracking the dramatic growth of deepwater projects, generally defined as those in water depths of 1,000 feet or more. Deepwater discoveries average 10 times greater oil and gas reserves than most shallow-water fields found today. Running the numbers A seminar at Harrah's New Orleans Casino this week will teach attendees how to be successful at a game riskier than poker or roulette: running a small business. This year's Small Business Summit is set for 7:45 a.m. to noon Tuesday at the Canal Street casino. Batholomew Palmisano, president and chief executive of Metairie's Orthodontic Centers of America Inc., will speak about taking his small business from obscurity to a listing on the New York Stock Exchange. University of New Orleans economist Timothy Ryan will report on the state of the local small business sector. Panel discussions with local banking, advertising, legal and hospitality executives on how to market and find capital for small businesses follow. Walk-up admission is $65 for the day. For more information call 504-889-3384.