Stay tuned: You made it, dear reader – the end of another weak-in-the-knees workweek, with deadly pandemics and everything else overshadowed by the sickening schism in our nation’s capital.
We’re in uncharted waters for sure – unprecedented impeachments, a GOP civil war, whispers of collusion within the House (“Benedict Arnold territory,” according to one former U.S. attorney), very real fears of violence in the streets.
What happens next? This much we know: Innovation continues. Read on.
Looks a little stale: Nope, even older than that.
Plot hole: It’s Jan. 15 out there, and this will help you forget your worries for a while – it’s National Bagel Day, when history’s favorite breakfast bread gets extra-special attention.
By the way, for those who think the bagel was invented in Brooklyn, 15th-century Poland would like a word.
AKA: Today is also Alpha Kappa Alpha Founders Day. marking the 1908 origins of Vice President-elect Kamala Harris’ college sorority – part of the powerful Divine Nine, a.k.a. the National Pan-Hellenic Council.
History making: Now boasting 8 million permanent pieces – among the largest and most comprehensive collections of human art and culture – the British Museum opened as the world’s first public museum on this date in 1759.
Amped up: The three-element vacuum tube was patented on this date in 1907 by American inventor Lee de Forest, marking the invention of the electronic amplifier – or did it?
Other U.S. patents issued on Jan. 15 include one in 1861 for elevator innovator Elisha Otis, who locked up a steam-powered version.
Blues line: Got a problem with that, dog breath?
Let’s be careful out there, Potsie: The ABC Network’s “Happy Days” first brightened American living rooms on this date in 1974.
Striking a completely different tone, the NBC Network’s gritty police drama “Hill Street Blues” debuted on Jan. 15, 1981.
Space racer: And it was this date in 1975 when Space Mountain – centerpiece of Tomorrowland at Florida’s Disney World Resort – blasted off.
A 2,000-member band, thousands of flying doves and a crew of U.S. astronauts took part in the roller coaster’s elaborate opening ceremony.
Hi, IQ: American psychologist and author Lewis Terman (1877-1956) – who spearheaded educational psychology, led the U.S. Army’s first mass-group intelligence studies and set the standards for the modern IQ test – would be 144 years old today.
They looking for the perfect man: And that’s no bull.
Also born on Jan. 15 were Frederick Arthur Stanley (1841-1908), the sixth governor of Canada and namesake of the National Hockey League’s cherished trophy; gender-busting Russian mathematician Sofia Kovalevskaya (1850-1891), Europe’s first female math professor; Finnish biochemist Artturi Virtanen (1895-1973), who was good fodder for the Nobel crowd; U.S. civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968); and American rapper, singer, songwriter and busy philanthropist Armando Christian Pérez (born 1981), known best as Pitbull.
Happy happy: And take a bow, Lisa Velez – the youngest of 10 raised by a single mother in Hell’s Kitchen, who rose to headline 1980s chart-toppers Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam, turns 53 today.
Can You Feel the Beat? We can, Head to Toe … that’s you wishing these and all the other Jan. 15 innovators well at editor@innovateli.com, and adding your story tips and calendar events to our cultural jam. Now Everything Will B-Fine (so Kiss Your Tears Away).
About our sponsor: Northwell Health is New York’s largest healthcare provider and private employer, with 23 hospitals, 750 outpatient facilities and 70,000-plus employees. We’re making research breakthroughs at the Feinstein Institutes and training the next generation of medical professionals at the Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell and the Hofstra/Northwell School of Graduate Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies. Visit Northwell.edu.
BUT FIRST, THIS
Of mice and coronaviruses: A Long Island laboratory with an international rep for genetic modification will use a chunky federal grant to produce a new weapon in the war against COVID-19: modified mouse models simulating the human enzyme receptor that allows the novel coronavirus into the body.
Ronkonkoma-based inGenious Targeting Laboratory has landed a $589,914 Phase I Small Business Innovative Research grant, signed off by the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, to fund the design, development and commercialization of genetically modified mouse models expressing the human ACE2 receptor. Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 attaches to cell membranes and regulates blood pressure, but the ACE2 receptors that facilitate the necessary chemical reactions also open the door for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
In researchers’ hands, the modified mice will be key to understanding the novel coronaviruses’ unique biology. “The SBIR award is critical to our ability to successfully generate and validate these humanized ACE2 mouse models,” noted inGenious Targeting Laboratory President Paul Sheiffele, adding the mouse models could help “to fast-track the discovery and pre-clinical evaluation of potential COVID-19 treatments and vaccines, for which there is an urgent need.”
Change is gonna come: Coinstar machines are working their way into more than 20 Bethpage Federal Credit Union branches.
Coinstar of the realm: The Northeast’s largest credit union and the multinational master of loose change have announced an alliance benefiting union members and employees alike.
Bethpage Federal Credit Union, now the nation’s 13th largest credit union by assets, has joined forces with Washington State-based Coinstar LLC to install coin-counting kiosks at 22 New York State branches, including several on Long Island. Replacing BFCU’s in-house coin-counting equipment, the new kiosks will be maintained on-site by Coinstar, adding to the mothership’s multinational armada of 22,000-plus kiosks and freeing up credit union employees – who “don’t have to count, bag or handle heavy coin bins,” according to BFCU – for other member-focused services.
Members, meanwhile, will be able to conveniently convert coins to cash (for a 5 percent service fee) through nationally networked-and-optimized kiosks, with BFCU planning to add Coinstar direct-deposit services soon. “Change can easily amount to significant, needed spending money – something we can all use a little more of these days,” noted BFCU Vice President of Retail Banking Tara Labriola. “Coinstar provides us with an updated, highly efficient turnkey service which is owned, operated and maintained by Coinstar, freeing up our branch staff’s time to service our valuable members.”
TOP OF THE SITE
Strangely familiar: NYSERDA, Farmingdale State and Stony Brook University will head up a $20 million Offshore Wind Training Institute – and if you think you’ve heard that before, you probably have.
Get your own: It’s nice that you forward our newsletters to your innovation team, but you’re not, like, little Jimmy from the mailroom – subscriptions are always easy, always free.
Innovation in the Age of Coronavirus: The “Columbus strain” comes out swinging and Long Island is already on the ropes – but LI’s one and only pandemic primer always gives you a puncher’s chance.
ICYMI
Governor Andrew Cuomo aims high, and to the left, with his 2021 agenda; Applied DNA Sciences hones in on the mutant “UK strain.”
BEST OF THE WEST (AND SOMETIMES NORTH/SOUTH)
Innovate LI’s inbox overrunneth with inspirational innovations from all North American corners. This week’s brightest out-of-towners:
From Washington: Bellingham-based low-carb creator HighKey expands its “sugar sucks” line with new cookies and candies.
From Virginia: Arlington-based restaurant commerce platform GoTab cooks up contactless order starter kit for forward-thinking restaurateurs.
From Colorado: Denver-based nano-coating boss Forge Nano optimizes automotive batteries at the atomic level.
ON THE MOVE
Robert Ciatto
+ Robert Ciatto has been named executive director of Bethpage-based Adults and Children With Learning and Developmental Disabilities. A 25-year veteran of developmental disability organizations, Ciatto joined ACLD in 2014 as assistant executive director.
+ Steven Porcaro has joined Cold Spring Harbor-based Daniel Gale Sotheby’s International Realty as the sales manager of its North Fork offices. He previously was an executive serving the operations of the Rockefeller family and other wealthy families.
+ Woodbury-based D&B Engineers and Architects has announced three staff promotions:
- Anthony Cucuzzo is now an associate in the Woodbury office, where he supports the firm’s growing Civil/Site Engineering and Water Supply Division. He previously served as a senior engineer and project manager.
- Matthew Thogersen is now an associate at the firm’s Woodbury office, where he is project manager for the Belgrave Water Pollution Control District Effluent Pump Station and Outfall Replacement projects. He previously served in the Wastewater Design Division.
- Matthew Hoskins is now an associate in the East Syracuse office, where he serves as the office project and contract manager. He previously served as manager of the Division of Environmental Remediation and Multimedia Environmental Compliance.
+ Monica Murray has been named sales manager of the Rockville Centre and Long Beach sales offices of Cold Spring Harbor-based Daniel Gale Sotheby’s International Realty. She also is of counsel for Brooklyn-based law firm Coffey & Coffey.
+ Sean McGowan has been named partner of Hauppauge-based Kaufman & Associates, now formally known as Kaufman McGowan PLLC. He previously served as a senior associate.
BELOW THE FOLD
Eye eye: All strain, no gain.
Eyes wide: What the essential CIO is planning for 2021.
Lines of sight: Eye yoga and other tips to mitigate eye strain.
Looking ahead: A five-year FDA mission to reverse endemic vision loss.
Visionary: Please continue supporting the incredible organizations that support Innovate LI, including Northwell Health, where they’re already eyeing tomorrow’s breakthroughs. Check them out.
