Cool runnings: Welcome to Wednesday, dear readers, as we enjoy a remarkably mild stretch of summertime weather, but nonetheless sweat out another week of red-hot innovation.
Ahoy: Bet you can’t eat just one … and why would you, on National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day?
Young at heart: It’s Aug. 4 out there, marking a perfect celebration for the latter half of summer vacation – National Hooray For Kids Day, when America’s inventive and fearless youth take center stage.
Chip in: Today is also National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day, as if you need the excuse.
And it’s National White Wine Day … as if you need the excuse.
Champagne toast: Speaking of excellent wines, French monk Dom Pierre Pérignon is said to have invented his namesake champagne on this date in 1693.
Unfortunately, this sparkling wine origin story is a little flat.
On guard: Having absolutely nothing to do with children, cookies or wines of any kind, today we gratefully acknowledge the anniversary of the U.S. Coast Guard, signed into existence by President George Washington – as the Revenue Cutter Service – on Aug. 4, 1790.
Just the fax: The Belinograph – predecessor of the fax machine, invented by French photographer Édouard Belin – transmitted its first message across the Atlantic Ocean 100 years ago today.
The handwritten message, transmitted by radio from Maryland to France, proved that photographs could be sent the same way, and took seven full minutes to complete its journey.
Lightning strikes: The English Electric P-1 Lightning took off on this date in 1954.
Best jet yet: Slightly faster was the English Electric P-1 Lightning, Britain’s first supersonic fighter plane, which made its inaugural flight on Aug. 4, 1954.
Power core: And President Jimmy Carter brought the Federal Energy Administration, the Federal Power Commission and other federal energy agencies under one roof on this date in 1977, by creating the U.S. Department of Energy.
Symbolic gesture: English mathematician and logician John Venn (1834-1923) – known best for creating Venn diagrams, which visually represent the relations between different sets – would be 187 years old today.
Come blow your horn: Satchmo, soaring.
Also born on Aug. 4 were French painter, army officer and balloonist Nicolas-Jacques Conté (1755-1805), who invented the modern pencil; English poet Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822), a major quill of England’s Romantic Era; French fashion designer and businessman Louis Vuitton (1821-1892), who had success in the bag; British monarch Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (1900-2002), consort of England’s King George VI and Queen Mother after his death; and American trumpeter and vocalist Louis Daniel Armstrong (1901-1971), the jazz great who alternately went by “Satchmo” and “Pops.”
Party politics: And take a bow, Barack Hussein Obama II! The 44th President of the United States – whose outdoor birthday bash on Martha’s Vineyard next weekend will test guests for COVID-19 and otherwise comply with CDC protocols, but is still drawing heat – turns 60 today.
Wish the former president a happy birthday at editor@innovateli.com, where the right, the left and everyone in between are welcome to share innovation-focused news tips and calendar events.
About our sponsor: Mazars USA is a high-performing accounting, tax and consulting firm with significant national presence in strategic U.S. geographies. Since 1921, our dedicated professionals have leveraged technical industry expertise to develop customized solutions for clients, create value and optimize their performance. We offer a broad array of industry specialists providing services to growth-oriented enterprises and individuals. As the independent U.S. member firm of Mazars Group, which operates in more than 90 countries and territories around the world, we deliver seamless access to the expertise of 26,000-plus professionals. At local and global levels, we are proud of our value-added services, building lasting relationships with our clients and communities. For more information, visit us at www.mazars.us.
BUT FIRST, THIS
Raising the flag: Women’s flag football, a hot new collegiate sport, is racing to Nassau Community College.
The games are afoot: The National Football League and other sports-focused organizations are teaming up to help Nassau Community College introduce two new official athletics programs.
The college is one of 15 National Junior College Athletic Association member schools chosen to receive $20,000 in grant funds – $10,000 to support a new men’s volleyball program and $10,000 to support a new women’s flag football program. In addition to the NFL, the funds come from the NJCAA Foundation, the First Point Volleyball Foundation and the Reining Champs Experience, an assemblage of former professional and college athletes dedicated to improving the accessibility and inclusivity of youth and collegiate sports.
Nassau Community College is currently selecting head coaches for the new programs and will begin recruiting athletes for the Spring 2022 seasons when the hiring processes are complete. “We are focused on providing our students with a high-quality education, excellent support services and extracurricular activities that provide a solid foundation for their future successes,” noted Nassau Community College President Jermaine Williams. “We thank the NJCAA, the First Point Volleyball Foundation, the NFL and Reigning Champs Experiences for providing the college with the opportunity to bring these athletic offerings to our students.”
O’Shea can you see: Three multi-tenant industrial buildings, totaling roughly 60,000 square feet, will rise in Nesconset, with the help of the Suffolk County Industrial Development Agency.
The IDA has preliminarily approved a 15-year Payment in Lieu of Taxes arrangement for 104 Lake Avenue South LLC, a subsidiary of Ronkonkoma-based commercial-building construction company O’Shea Properties. The project will create as many as 27 individual units across the three buildings, to be built on a currently vacant Lake Avenue property; the units will range between 1,900 and 2,700 square feet, mostly warehousing and office space.
The vacant properties would generate only $46,500 in property taxes over the 15 years of the PILOT deal, which must still undergo a final IDA review and approvals. But the tax-abatement package will generate $62,000 in tax revenue, while creating 135 full-time jobs and some 25 construction-phase jobs, according to the IDA. “We are grateful for the IDA’s assistance that will make the 104 Lake Avenue South project a reality,” said Katie O’Shea Rivas, O’Shea Properties’ leasing and development director, adding the construction effort will “provide jobs to Long Islanders and help our neighbors grow their businesses.”
POD PEOPLE
Episode 7: Mitch Pally, building foundations.
Season 1 of Spark: The Innovate Long Island Podcast set a high bar for great dialogue and fantastic insights into regional socioeconomics, featuring one-on-ones with the elite of the Long Island innovation economy. Season 2 is in the works … better catch up quick!
TOP OF THE SITE
Tower of (solar) power: An Amityville innovator’s solar-powered tower is lighting the way forward at Molloy College, with the help of the college’s Sustainability Institute.
Ford maverick: Henry Ford didn’t become one of America’s great corporate magnates by mistake – and his business-building lessons still ring true today, according to Greg Demetriou.
Get your own: Reading this engaging and enlightening newsletter on our exciting and entertaining website is terrific – but nothing beats the convenience of receiving it in your inbox three days a week. Subscriptions are always easy, always free.
VOICES
Some of the greatest advances in medical imaging were made on Long Island, which doesn’t always get the credit it deserves – and Voices historian Tom Mariner, chief operating officer of Stony Brook-based SynchroPET, sees important parallels to today’s burgeoning biotech corridor.
STUFF WE’RE READING
Letting go: The Great Resignation can be a great instructor for the companies left behind. Fast Company learns the lessons.
Falling short: There’s a clear disconnect between the U.S. Department of Defense’s desire for innovation and its acquisition of innovation. Nextgov fills the gaps.
Smartening up: All those meetings are actually making you and your teammates dumber. Inc. thinks about it.
RECENT FUNDINGS
+ Catch, a New York City-based portable-benefits platform for independent workers, raised $12 million in Series A funding led by Crosslink Capital, with participation from Khosla Ventures, Kindred Ventures, Nyca Partners and Urban Innovation Fund.
+ Everactive, a California-based tech firm focused on wireless Internet of Things solutions, raised $16 million in a strategic funding. Backers included 3M, Ericsson and Armstrong International.
+ Niron Magnetics, a Minnesota-based manufacturer developing permanent magnets free of rare-earth elements, raised $21.3 million in funding. The Volvo Cars Tech Fund and Volta Energy Technologies joined existing investors Anzu Partners and the University of Minnesota.
+ Liatris, a Maryland-based startup developing advanced thermal-insulation materials, raised $1 million in seed funding led by the Maryland Momentum Fund and Old Line Capital.
+ Noetic Cyber, a Massachusetts-based cyber-asset management-platform provider, launched with a total of $20 million in funding led by Energy Impact Partners, with participation from TenEleven Ventures and Glasswing Ventures.
+ Class Technologies, a Washington-based edu-tech enhancing virtual and hybrid classrooms with digital tools, raised $105 million in Series B funding led by SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2, with participation from GSV Ventures, Owl Ventures, Revolution’s Rise of the Rest Fund, Learn Capital, Reach Capital, Slow Ventures, Guy Oseary, Bill Tai and Tom Brady, among others
BELOW THE FOLD (Olympic Edition)
Third, best: Biles, arguably the GOAT, bounced back strong.
Gold standard: How the pandemic delay spurred innovation in NBC’s Olympic coverage.
Silver bullet: Livestreaming can save the day for retailers whose customers have moved online.
Bronze lining: Why rebounding for the beam bronze meant more to Simone Biles “than all the golds.”
Team USA: Please continue supporting the amazing firms that support Innovate Long Island, including Mazars USA, a champion of world-class accounting and value-added tax consulting. Check them out.
