Hot (off the presses): Welcome to Wednesday, dear readers, as we sweat out the first full workweek of July – and we do mean sweat.
It certainly has been a muggy start to the Summer here on Long Island, replete with heat, humidity and some booming thunderstorms. Let’s cool our jets for a few minutes with this review of the latest and greatest news from around the innovation world.
Flood of emotions: Before we get to the snark and the science and all that ingenious innovation, we offer a heartfelt hug to the people of Texas’ Hill Country, who are of course confronting an unimaginable tragedy.
Much has been said this week about draconian cuts to government weather agencies, the already-deadly effects of global warming, purported “acts of God” and the catastrophic danger of reversing programs designed to counter climate change … blame laid, fingers pointed, hatred spewed.
There are certainly some hearty debates to be had. But let’s try to remember that real people are dealing with unreal loss – and that’s what matters most right now.
Distant horizon: With tears for Texas, humankind looks toward a brighter tomorrow.
Sugar-coating it: Life, as they say, must go on – this is the nature of the human experience. And so, as July 9 arrives, we embrace Call of the Horizon Day, which encourages us to work toward our dreams, appreciate each moment and always remember the most important things about life on Earth.
You’ve got to eat, too, so please enjoy International Durian Fruit Day (celebrating the pungent, tropical “king of fruits,” a big hit in Southeast Asia) and National Sugar Cookie Day (sweetening the offer every July 9).
Rights on: Sweet freedom was the theme when the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – which has been in the news a lot lately (see “Birthright Citizenship”) – was ratified on this date in 1868, focused originally on granting citizenship to emancipated slaves.
The hole truth: Also enjoying the sweet taste of success was Maine-based inventor John Blondel, who punched his ticket to immortality on July 9, 1872, by patenting a spring-loaded doughnut-hole puncher.
Old school: The Wimbledon tennis tournament has come a long way since 1877.
Net gain: Also punching through is Wimbledon, which is a professional Grand Slam event now but was just getting started 148 years ago today, when the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club hosted its first-ever amateur tournament. (Gentlemen only, thank you.)
’Skins in the game: They were known as the Washington Redskins for 87 years, then the Washington Football Team for two years, then settled on the Washington Commanders (at least for now). But they were originally the Boston Braves when the National Football League granted Beantown a franchise on July 9, 1932. (The team became the Redskins in 1933 and relocated to Washington in 1937, for those keeping score.)
It’s a gas, gas, gas (gas): And it was this date in 1979 when Voyager 2 made its closest approach to Jupiter, passing within 400,000 miles or so of the fifth planet from the Sun.
Now cruising through interstellar space, the NASA probe is the only Earth spacecraft to make close-up studies of the Solar System’s four gas giants (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune), racking up several major discoveries along the way.
They had that spark: American blacksmith Thomas Davenport (1802-1851) – a middling inventor who earned all-time-innovator status by teaming up with his wife, Emily, to build the first practical electric motor, and using it to power a number of interesting machines – would be 223 years old today.
You damn right: Roundtree’s “Shaft” was a Black private dick and a sex machine to all the chicks.
Also born on July 9 were American physicist and electrical engineer Percy LeBaron Spencer (1894-1970), who accidentally invented microwave ovens; American architect, designer and educator Michael Graves (1934-2015), a modernist master who did some of his best work for The Walt Disney Co.; British painter, photographer, printmaker and stage designer David Hockney (born 1937), among the most prolific – and arguably the most influential – British artists of the 20th and 21st centuries; American actor Richard Roundtree (1942-2023), remembered best as tough and smooth private eye “Shaft”; and American felon and unrepentant murderer O.J. Simpson (1947-2024), who also played football.
That thing you do: And take a bow, Thomas Jeffrey Hanks! The American actor, director and producer – an American treasure who’s earned two Oscars, three Golden Globes and seven Emmys (including multiple wins for producing and directing) – turns 69 today.
Wish Private Ryan’s savior well at editor@innovateli.com, where mama always says our (Toy) Story begins with your news tips (which we never Cast Away) and we’d walk a Green Mile to share your calendar events (even if they’re in Philadelphia … or Houston, no problem!).
About our sponsor: Whether it’s helping with site selection, cutting through red tape or finding innovative ways to meet specific needs, businesses that settle in the Town of Islip soon learn that we take a proactive approach to seeing them succeed. If your business wants to locate or expand in a stable community with great quality of life, then it’s time you took a closer look at Islip.
BUT FIRST, THIS
Panther pinch: A national search is underway to find a permanent successor to Christine Riordan, who abruptly stepped down last month after 10 years as president of Adelphi University.
The first woman to lead the 128-year-old school announced her departure in late June and was replaced, immediately though temporarily, by Interim President Christopher Storm Jr., who served most recently as Adelphi University provost and executive vice president. Neither the university nor Riordan – who has not announced her next career move – offered any details on the sudden departure.
However, the university did heap praise on its former president, who “elevated” Adelphi to “a nationally recognized, modern metropolitan university,” according to Adelphi University Board of Trustees Chairman Michael Balboni. Among her accomplishments: the creation of 50-plus new academic-degree programs, the remaking of the Ruth S. Harley University Center, the opening of the Nexus academic building, record-high student-retention rates and the development of the Momentum and Momentum 2 strategic plans, based on input from students, alumni, faculty and staff – all achieved through the teeth of the COVID pandemic and all leveraging a “commitment to diversity and inclusion, student social mobility and alumni outcomes,” Balboni added.
Ship to shore: The ECO Liberty prepares to launch from its berth at the Port of New Orleans.
Give us Liberty: From our Innovate New Orleans desk comes the ECO Liberty, a made-in-Louisiana service operations vessel destined for duty in Long Island waters.
Built by Edison Chouest Offshore, the 262-foot, hybrid-powered ship – which can operate for weeks at sea – will be deployed regularly to service Empire Wind 1, the 810-megawatt, 80,000-acre wind farm being constructed 15 miles south of Jones Beach Island by Norwegian energy firm Equinor. Christened June 28 during a launch ceremony on the Mississippi River’s Port of New Orleans, the ECO Liberty is expected to arrive in New York later this month and will be homeported at the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, where Empire Wind’s land-based staging facility and control center are under construction.
Molly Morris, president of Equinor Renewables Americas, expressed gratitude for “the opportunity to collaborate with Louisiana’s world-class shipbuilding industry” and trumpeted a major forward step for both U.S. shipbuilding and the nation’s offshore-wind ambitions. “The ECO Liberty showcases the positive impact Empire Wind is having on the American economy,” Morris added. “This vessel reflects how offshore wind can create durable, high-quality jobs while building out a homegrown energy supply chain.”
TOP OF THE SITE
Micro(plastics) management: A new study by St. Joseph’s University researchers tracks the feeding habits of dozens of marine-invertebrate species – a big step toward an ingenious system for monitoring microplastics pollution in global waterways.
Full of grace: More new episodes of “Spark: The Innovate Long Island Podcast” are in production – before they drop, catch up with Martha Stansbury, Adam Haber, Kyle Strober and all the other brilliant innovation economy leaders who’ve graced our latest season!
VOICES
Voices Healthcare Anchor and former Northwell Health Senior Vice President Terry Lynam cuts deep into the One Big Beautiful Bill – and exposes the wide-ranging funding package’s devastating effects on national healthcare, particularly regarding health insurance and rural hospitals.
Something to say? Welcome to The Entrepreneur’s Edge, Innovate Long Island’s new promoted-content news feature platform – a direct link from you to our innovation-focused audience. Progressive product to promote? Singular service to sell? Sociopolitical position to push? Shine a bright light on the big picture, the little details and everything in between with The Entrepreneur’s Edge. Living on the edge.
STUFF WE’RE READING
Love story: It’s a nice place to visit, but don’t “fall in love” with your vacation destination. Salon draws the line.
Hate story: When hatred – literally – becomes the focal point of an Independence Day address. The Daily Beast details the despicable.
Love/hate relationship: Artificial intelligence may be coming for your job – so you better learn how to get along with it. Vox seeks middle ground.
RECENT FUNDINGS
+ Fantasy Life, a New York City-based fantasy sports and gaming startup, raised $7 million in Seed funding led by LRMR Ventures and SC Holdings.
+ Chloris Geospatial, a Massachusetts-based climate-tech innovator focused on measuring carbon in terrestrial ecosystems, raised $8.5 million in Series A funding led by Future Energy Ventures.
+ Terra CO2, a Colorado-based manufacturer creating low-carbon building materials, raised $124.5 million in new equity capital led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Eagle Materials, GenZero and Just Climate.
+ Circulate Health, a California-based health-tech harnessing the potential of therapeutic plasma exchange to advance human health and lifespans, raised $12 million in Seed funding led by Khosla Ventures.
+ Civ Robotics, a California-based construction-robotics innovator, raised $7.5 million in Series A funding led by AlleyCorp.
+ Nascent Materials, a New Jersey-based producer of durable, low-cost, safe cathode chemistries to support the EV, grid-storage and industrial markets, raised $2.3 million in Seed funding led by SOSV.
Like this newsletter? Innovate Long Island newsletter, website and podcast sponsorships are a prime opportunity to reach the inventors, investors, entrepreneurs and executives you need to know (just ask the Town of Islip). Gregory Zeller can tell you more.
BELOW THE FOLD (National Parks Edition)
What lies beneath: Dry Tortugas National Park hides a surprising secret.
Our flag is still there: Visitors flock to the big ones, but small national parks deserve love, too.
Land of the fee: Why international visitors must now pay more to visit U.S. national parks.
Home of the graves: The hidden history of the little-known national park floating in the Gulf of Mexico.
Park it right here: Please continue supporting the outstanding organizations that support Innovate Long Island, including the Town of Islip Office of Economic Development, best friend of any startup, small business or established corporation looking for the right place to hang its shingle. Check them out.
