But who’s counting? Welcome to your Friday Newsletter, dear readers – not just any Friday but the first Friday of September, and not just any newsletter but the very last before we reach momentous, monumental Newsletter No. 1,000 (not including this coming Monday’s Calendar Newsletter, since we don’t number our Calendar Newsletters).
We’ll get into our unique numbering system next week – and boy howdy, will next Wednesday’s first-ever four-digit edition be a big deal. As for today, we’re wrapping up this late-Summer workweek, and welcoming another well-earned weekend, with a typically snazzy innovation review.
The more, the merrier: Pile on the mozzarella on National Cheese Pizza Day.
Give (and take): Today is Sept. 5, and for starters we’re feeling generous on the International Day of Charity, the UN’s annual homage to altruism, volunteerism and all collective-action efforts reinforcing the notion of an all-for-one-and-one-for-all global community.
More focused on personal prosperity is National 401(K) Day, a Friday-after-Labor Day tradition established in 1996 by the Plan Sponsor Council of America to urge employers to offer retirement plans – and encourage employees to utilize them.
Can’t have one without the other: Also covering the spectrum are National Cellulite Day (which is less about reducing subcutaneous fat deposits than encouraging acceptance of our natural bodies) and National Cheese Pizza Day (an annual Sept. 5 pie-fest likely to, you know, cause cellulite).
But we hear the venison was delish: Pizza was not likely on the menu when the first Continental Congress – including delegates from 12 of Britain’s 13 original American colonies (Georgia abstained) – convened in Philadelphia on this date in 1774, fueling the formation of the United States of America.
Pump action: Also hitting the gas was the newly invented kerosene pump – precursor of the modern gasoline pump – sold to an Indiana grocery store owner on Sept. 5, 1885, by inventor Sylvanus Bowser.
Nothing to see here: We considered some more risqué pictures, but this is a family show.
Shouldering the burden: Also getting a handle on things was German inventor Christine Hardt, who patented the modern bra on this date in 1889. (While Hardt incorporated some modern over-the-shoulder ingenuity, bosom buddies actually date back to 2,500 BC, for those keeping score.)
“Road” work: Considered by many the defining tome of the Beat Generation, Jack Kerouac’s masterwork “On The Road” was first published 68 years ago today.
Out of order: And it was Sept. 5, 1977, when NASA’s Voyager I space probe blasted off from Cape Canveral, en route to Jupiter and Saturn and history.
Powered by three radioisotope thermoelectric generators and packing the famous Golden Record, Voyager I – which actually departed Earth two weeks after its twin, Voyager II – became the first human spacecraft to cross the heliopause and enter interstellar space in 2012. (Voyager II departed the Solar System in 2018; both probes are still beaming home valuable data.)
Ratings machine: American businessman, electrical engineer and market research analyst Arthur Charles Nielsen Sr. (1897-1980) – namesake of the famous Nielsen Ratings, which have evolved through the years to cover not only television broadcasts but streaming and Big Data platforms – would be 128 years old today.
You only live once: Lazenby was the Bond series’ only single-0.
Also born on Sept. 5 were English chemist/physicist John Dalton (1766-1844), the “Father of Modern Atomic Theory” who created the first atomic symbols (as noted in Wednesday’s newsletter); American composer and pianist Amy Beach (1867-1944), considered the first successful American female composer of large-scale art music; American actor and comedian Bob Newhart (1929-2024), a Grammy and Emmy award-winning national treasure; Japanese molecular biologist Susumu Tonegawa (born 1939), who earned a 1987 Nobel Prize for discovering VJ recombination, the genetic mechanism behind antibody diversity; and British singer/songwriter Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsar, 1946-1991), famously flamboyant frontman of rock band Queen.
One and done: And take a bow, George Robert Lazenby! The retired Australian model and actor – who replaced Sean Connery as British superspy James Bond for just one big-screen outing, before Connery returned to the role – turns 86 today.
Send your best to the star of “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” at editor@innovateli.com, where our desire for news tips and calendar events is no secret (and, of course, we’re at your service).
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BUT FIRST, THIS
SWFT code: The Research Foundation for the State University of New York has signed an exclusive patent-licensing agreement leveraging a cutting-edge, zero-waste biotechnology developed at Stony Brook University.
The SUNY RF has inked a deal with SWFTLabs, a circa-2017 biotech startup dedicated to transforming organic waste into high-value, ecologically friendly products via groundbreaking research led by SBU Distinguished Professor of Chemistry Benjamin Hsaio. The scientist’s patented nutrient-recapture process uses functionalized nanocellulose fibers to develop next-generation fertilizers, biodegradable packaging, state-of-the-art water-filtration materials, hydrogels (water-insoluble polymer chains that can absorb and retain large amounts of water) and other specialty biomaterials that can reduce reliance on plastics and promote sustainability.
SWFTLabs co-founder and CEO David Clausen applauded a licensing agreement that will “bring this innovative science into the hands of farmers, manufacturers and communities,” while SBU Vice President for Research and Innovation Kevin Gardner trumpeted a deal that “underscores how university research drives real-world impact,” with positive effects advancing science and socioeconomics alike. “SWFTLabs is turning scientific discovery into scalable solutions that strengthen the economy, improve sustainability and prepare the next generation of innovators,” Gardner added.
Wish you were here: And we hope you keep coming, even as national tourism nosedives.
Tourism trifecta: Reports abound about massive 2025 declines in U.S. tourism – but coming into this tumultuous year, Long Island tourism was smoking hot.
So says Discover Long Island, the region’s only accredited destination-marketing organization, which announced Aug. 27 that Island visitors spent roughly $7.9 billion across tourism-related sectors in 2024, setting a regional tourism-revenue record for the third straight year. Relaying data from Albany’s annual statewide Tourism Economics report, Discover Long Island also cheered significant growth in tourism-related employment last year, with 78,418 local jobs attributed to the tourism sector – a 3 percent increase over 2023’s totals.
The Trump Administration’s ruinous effects on international tourism will certainly skew Long Island’s 2025 numbers, but the three-year winning streak – including the $945 million in state and local taxes generated by tourism in 2024 – is still cause for celebration, according to Discover Long Island Interim President and CEO Mitch Pally. “This continued success … is guided by the vision of our Board of Directors, strengthened by our partners and local leaders, and executed by our dedicated Discover Long Island team,” Pally noted. “Together, we’re helping ensure that tourism continues to enhance the quality of life for Long Islanders while elevating our region’s standing among the nation’s premier destinations.”
TOP OF THE SITE
All systems Green: A $100 million renovation of Valley Stream’s Green Acres Mall is underway, with old eyesores removed, new construction rising and a host of additional retail and restaurant selections coming soon.
And they always will be: Next week’s Newsletter Issue No. 1,000 will change everything! Make sure your entire innovation team is there when the curtain rises – Innovate Long Island Newsletter subscriptions are always easy, always free and always a click away.
ICYMI
Stony Brook University is crystal clear about its intentions to speed applied research to market, as exemplified by the university’s flexible and efficient CLEAR-IP commercialization program.
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.
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 Minnesota: Three River Falls-based automation-components distributor DigiKey raises robots in the fifth season of its “Factory Tomorrow” video series.
From Florida: Miami-based Liebherr USA’s Refrigerators and Freezers Division ices its scientific standing with high-performance, laboratory-grade cooling units.
From Texas: Dallas-based juice bar Clean Juice lands at Dulles International Airport with world’s first USDA-certified organic cold-pressed automated juice kiosk.
ON THE MOVE
Jane Savage
+ Jane Savage has been named vice president for human resources at Stony Brook University. She was associate vice president for human resources, organizational effectiveness, learning and strategic initiatives at Yale University.
+ Emma Flahive has been hired as director of development at the EAC Network in Uniondale. She was director of development, individual giving and corporate giving at the SCO Family of Services.
+ Burner Prudenti Law has announced two promotions at its East Setauket office:
- Brittni Sullivan has been promoted to partner. She was an associate attorney focused on elder law, estate planning and trust administration.
- Melissa Doris has been promoted to partner. She was an associate attorney focused on elder law, estate planning and trust administration.
+ Kristen Anisis has been hired as director of humanities in the East Rockaway School District. She was assistant principal of Paul D. Schreiber Senior High School in Port Washington.
+ Richard DeMaio has been promoted to partner at Ronkonkoma-based Campolo, Middleton & McCormick. He was a senior associate.
+ Diana Capalbo has joined Garden City-based Schroder & Strom as an associate attorney. The recent graduate of the St. John’s University School of Law was an office manager and paralegal at the Litt Law Group.
+ George Germano has been hired as a market specialist-energy at H2M architects + engineers. He was vice president for operations and asset management at Con Edison Clean Energy Business.
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 ZE Creative). Gregory Zeller can tell you more.
BELOW THE FOLD (Puzzling Edition)
Major pain: The Old Gray Lady is catching some heat for locking up The Mini.
Cicada 3301: Mysterious origins, cryptic clues and dubious solutions – decoding history’s most difficult online puzzle.
They’ll pay for this: The New York Times has put The Mini behind a paywall, and fans are furious.
Love you, sudoku: The psychology behind our affection for online brain games.
Piecing it together: Please continue supporting the amazing agencies that support Innovate Long Island, including ZE Creative Communications, where clear and concise communications solve even the most puzzling PR challenges – and crafting your best message is no game. Check them out.
