Comfort zone: Welcome to Wednesday, dear readers, and another beautiful Summer day here on Long Island.
Yes, we Islanders are quite comfortable as we hurdle the hump with moderate temperatures and low humidity, though fellow innovators across the South, the Plains and the Midwest are cooking under another brutal heat dome. Oppressive temperatures and humidity are forecasted to creep into the Northeast later this week – before they do, let’s enjoy this super-cool midweek innovation review.
Real scorcher: It’s rather nice on Long Island, but National Hot Enough For Ya Day is another story under the dreaded heat dome.
Grand prize: Today is July 23, and for openers we’re nodding to Nana, admiring Mamaw and giving it up for Ga-Ga – it’s National Gorgeous Grandma Day, glorifying grandmothers since 1984.
It’s also National Hot Enough For Ya Day, a humorous holiday meant to brush off the balminess (and as previously mentioned, for our many readers from Omaha to Tampa, it certainly is hot enough, thank you very much).
Two Four great tastes that go great together: Regardless of age or temperature tolerance, it’s a big day for dessert-lovers, starting with National Peanut Butter and Chocolate Day, a real Reese’s pleaser for sweet tooths.
Throw in National Vanilla Ice Cream Day (fêting the no-frills favorite) and National Sprinkle Day (topping things off with plenty of color, though chocolate sprinkles work just fine) and you’ve got everything you need for a decadent July 23 celebration.
Cone head: Vanilla isn’t your thing? That’s all right – “favorite ice cream” is a personalized choice based on individual tastes, just like the “official origin story” of the ice cream cone. (There are many options, though one of our favorites says ice cream vendor Charles Menches was the first to roll up a waffle 121 years ago today at the St. Louis World’s Fair.)
Small steps: There’s less ambiguity about the first successful liver transplantation, which was performed on July 23, 1967, at the University of Colorado. (Though “successful” is a relative term – the 19-month-old recipient survived just 400 days after the procedure, which doesn’t sound great but marked enormous progress at the time.)
Beach affront: Despite international outcry, whaling continues around the world.
Looked good on paper: Also open to interpretation was the effectiveness of the International Whaling Commission’s vote to indefinitely ban commercial whaling among its member nations, which occurred 43 years ago today. (Loopholes immediately surfaced, allowing plenty of whale-hunting to continue to this day.)
Vaccination innovation: More scientifically sound was the first-ever recombinant DNA vaccine (a.k.a. the first genetically altered vaccine), a yeast-recombinant hepatitis B serum produced by Merck & Co. and licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on this date in 1986.
Innovative, if not profitable: And speaking of unassailable inventiveness, it was July 23, 1995, when Inventure Place – the first home of the National Inventors Hall of Fame – opened its doors in Ohio.
They’d close soon after – citing monetary losses for the City of Akron, the hall later relocated to the headquarters of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in Virginia.
The Walnut Queen: American inventor, businesswoman, conservationist, musical composer and suffragist Harriet Williams Russell Strong (1844-1926) – a water-conservation pioneer, staunch women’s rights activist and inductee of both the aforementioned National Inventors Hall of Fame and the National Women’s Hall of Fame – would be 181 years old today.
Top PIX: Kaity Tong has been anchoring New York City newscasts for 40-plus years.
Also born on July 23 were Indian nationalist, teacher, Sanskrit scholar, astronomer and activist Bal Gangadhar Tilak (1856-1920), the “Father of the Indian Unrest” and a key figure in the Indian independence movement; German solid-state physicist Walter Schottky (1886-1976), who developed the theory of electron- and ion-emission phenomena and invented many common electronic devices; Japanese theoretical astrophysicist Chushiro Hayashi (1920-2010), who introduced fundamental physics to the analysis of astronomical phenomena; American actor Philip Seymour Hoffman (1967-2014), whose brief-but-brilliant career included masterclasses in characterization, numerous awards and a brutal lesson about addiction; and British actor Daniel Radcliffe (born 1989), who’s managed to break free from his “Harry Potter” breakthrough.
Top story: And take a bow, Kaity Tong! The Chinese American broadcast journalist – a cancer survivor, winner of multiple broadcasting awards (including several Regional Emmy Awards) and cornerstone New York City news anchor for more than four decades – turns 78 today.
Give NYC’s most recognizable newswoman your best at editor@innovateli.com, where our top stories always start with your news tips (and we’re anchored by your steadfast calendar events).
About our sponsor: At Nixon Peabody, we deliver sophisticated legal services to our clients and our communities by combining high performance, entrepreneurial spirit, deep engagement and an unwavering commitment to a culture of collaboration, diversity and humanity. Visit NixonPeabody.com.
BUT FIRST, THIS
Magic touch: A chunky award from the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation will facilitate some high-tech upgrades at one of Long Island’s most innovative museums.
The 22-year-old foundation – named for the 16th lord of the manor of the Town of East Hampton’s Gardiner’s Island and focused on promoting Long Island and New York State history – has issued an $87,400 grant to the Stony Brook-based Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame, which will use the money to purchase high-end electronic touchscreen stations. Massachusetts-based Northern Light Productions, an interactive-media specialist that’s worked with several prominent U.S. museums, will collaborate with LIMEHOF on the creation of professional audio/video interfaces highlighting many of the hall’s exhibits and special attractions.
The new interactive touchscreens are expected to be up and running by the end of the year. “We are so grateful to the Gardiner Foundation for their generous support in funding the new touchscreen interactive stations,” noted LIMEHOF Executive Director Judi Lach Veeck. “This innovative technology will greatly enhance the interactive experience and storytelling for our guests at the Hall of Fame.”
AIDS aid: Yeztugo can be a game-changer for at-risk populations that can’t be bothered to pop a pill.
Best shot: Northwell Health has jumped onboard with a new pharmaceutical treatment that promises to dramatically reduce the transmission of HIV/AIDS.
The New Hyde Park-based health system is now offering patients Yeztugo, an injectable HIV-1 capsid inhibitor for adults and adolescents produced by California-based Gilead Sciences. The twice-per-year injectable is a major step up in the class of drugs known as pre-exposure prophylaxis, which has been proven to significantly reduce the spread of HIV through sexual intercourse or intravenous drug use – but requires a daily oral pill, a commitment that has greatly limited its use.
Enter the new, twice-annual shot – a “holy grail” in the fight against HIV proliferation, according to Joseph McGowan, who leads the Center for AIDS Research and Treatment at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset and predicts “significant” demand for Yeztugo, which earned FDA approval in June. “It’s a major advance,” McGowan noted. “It’s a medication that is easy to take, is highly effective and won’t have to rely on adherence.”
POD PEOPLE
Episode 54: Scott Burman, racing toward the future.
“Spark: The Innovate Long Island Podcast” sits down with Scott Burman, the one-time heir apparent to the Burman real estate empire now creating his own legacy as the founder of innovative development firm Burman RE.
Scott joins Spark host Gregory Zeller to share invaluable advice on starting a business in a cutthroat, highly competitive industry – and a thorough review of past projects, current developments and the future of Long Island real estate.
TOP OF THE SITE
It’s who you know: One of Long Island’s most prestigious law firms has announced a strategic partnership with a powerful Washington-based lobbying firm, with a special focus on rapidly changing healthcare laws.
Good sign: Three of these good-humored, information-packed, action-oriented newsletters every week? Sent directly to my entire innovation team?? For free??? Where do they sign up?!? (Right here!)
VOICES
An A-list lineup of experts in healthcare, media, law, technology, real estate and other critical sectors sharing their unique perspectives and best advice on today’s most vexing socioeconomic issues – that’s Innovate Long Island’s amazing Voices Library. And this is your invitation to apply their priceless knowledge to your business, one lesson at a time.
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
Guilty conscience? Why the GOP would rather shut down Congress than discuss the Epstein files. Axios calls out hypocrisy.
White guilt: How minority-owned businesses can benefit from centuries of systemic racial injustices. McGill University balances the field.
Guilt trip: Why Americans suffer “vacation guilt” when taking the downtime they’ve earned. The Conversation takes a holiday.
RECENT FUNDINGS
+ Litero AI, a New York City-based “ethical academic copilot” designed to help students research, write, paraphrase and cite sources in academic papers, raised $800,000 in Pre-Seed funding led by Pre-Seed to Succeed.
+ LeadStory, a NYC-based on-demand personalized-news streaming platform, raised $2.75 million in Seed funding led by Checker Media and CP Ventures.
+ Little Sesame, a Washington-based hummus and healthy-snack innovator, raised $8.5 million in Series A funding led by InvestEco Capital.
+ Hadrian, a California-based defense and aerospace manufacturing startup, raised $260 million in funding co-led by Founders Fund and Lux Capital.
+ BiomEdit, an Indiana-based biotech focused on animal health, raised $18.4 million in Series B funding led by Anterra Capital.
+ BQP, a NYC-based dual-use quantum-accelerated simulation-software creator, raised $5 million in funding led by Monta Vista Capital and Empire State Development’s New York Ventures.
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 Nixon Peabody). Gregory Zeller can tell you more.
BELOW THE FOLD (Day At The Beach Edition)
Negative reinforcement: Because this is not a realistic goal.
Cooped up: Southampton’s Cooper’s Beach has been named the top U.S. beach, once again.
Body positive: Why you should ignore the “beach body” myth.
Kid-approved: Behold, the year’s best beach toys.
They’ve got sand: Please continue supporting the fantastic firms that support Innovate Long Island, including Nixon Peabody, which brings true grit to every government-regulation, land-use, business-finance, IP and corporate-law case. Check them out.
