No. 1097: Nacho average Friday, as an SBU cancer drug scores and another heavy-hitter joins Voices!

 

Great again: Welcome to Friday, fellow Americans, and not just any Friday but … wow, where to begin?

Actually, let’s begin here: a circa-2017 Innovate Long Island feature, published shortly after President Donald Trump took office for his first term, detailing the serious concerns Island-based academics shared about Trump’s potential effects on scientific research – a “war on science,” the region’s biggest brains lamented, threatening not only the lifeblood of the local innovation economy but the whole of American economics.

It’s no minor understatement to say those worst fears were fully realized, particularly during Trump’s calamitous second term. But this week, as the entire world knows, the President’s sophomoric anti-science stance – indeed, his entire second-grade, third-rate, petulant, racist, misogynistic, vainglorious, economically ruinous, international-alliance-busting, gold-plated freakshow, along with a handsome selection of spineless enablers – was shown the door.

Kudos to the American voters who did their solemn duty, the pollsters who correctly predicted the blue blowout and the news organizations that accurately and fairly reported the undeniable election results – even Fox “News,” which ultimately admitted defeat (after multiple Election Night visits to a better-red-than-dead Florida bar where bibulous patrons boisterously celebrated a pittance of MAGA-flavored wins, even as their cult crumbled around the nation).

Now the real work begins. Absolutely, the Democratic majorities in the House and Senate will go after Trump and his minions. Certainly, the lame-duck President will go scorched-earth with the dictatorial executive orders, enriching (and pardoning) himself (and his handlers) for however long he remains in office.

Of course, it will be months before the new majorities are seated. And even when they are, the domestic economic recovery, the undoing of boneheaded tariffs, the reinstatement of health coverage for millions of Americans, the dismantling of ICE, the issuance of new scientific-research funding, the rebuilding of the East Wing and replanting of the Rose Garden … all of it will take time, particularly the mending of international fences.

But Tuesday’s well-deserved GOP thrashing is an undeniable message – to wannabe American dictators, to Christian fundamentalists, to Republican leaders hoping to salvage their once-proud party, to right-wing extremists around the globe.

Logic lives. Decency prevails. Equality reigns. Science wins.

America is great again.

And the innovation economy rolls on.

No autopens here: Today is Nov. 6 and a “speaking of rolling” joke might work better here with a ballpoint-pen punchline, but we’re signing on instead with National Fountain Pen Day, a first-Friday-in-November celebration of what is actually a very interesting science, leveraging metal nibs and capillary action and gravity.

Nacho, nacho maaaaan: Also inking deals are National Saxophone Day (a woodwind whirlwind) and National Basketball Day (a hoopster hoopla), with very good reasons why both should be observed on this specific date. (Why, you ask? Read on, we answer.)

And, as if you need a good reason to enjoy a gooey pile of tortilla chips, cheese, beans, jalapenos, sour cream, guacamole and salsa (with grilled steak, please), today is also National Nachos Day, dishing out the Mexican favorite every Nov. 6.

No passing, no carrying – but kicking was OK: Speaking of favorites, American football became a thing on this date in 1869, when Rutgers University and New Jersey University (known later as Princeton University) squared off in what has been immortalized as the first-ever gridiron game (which looked more like a rugby scrum than anything resembling the modern sport.)

No radio, no AC – but internal combustion was OK: Also unrecognizable (compared to modern models) was the single-cylinder Packard Model A, which was introduced on Nov. 6, 1899, as the first automobile produced by the groundbreaking Packard Motor Car Co.

A ladies’ first: After Tuesday’s historic election, there will be at least 17 women governors in the United States (Kansas, where Democrat Cindy Holscher holds the slimmest of leads, was still undecided at press deadline). Whatever the final tally, it would have been impossible without the late-19th/early-20th century women’s suffrage movement, which took a major forward step on this date in 1917, when the women of New York State earned the right to vote.

A man’s man: Leaning more into the scruffier side of things, American military officer and Iowa-based inventor Col. Jacob Schick patented his “Shaving Implement” – recorded as the first electric razor – 98 years ago today.

“Meet” cute: And it was Nov. 6, 1947, when “Meet the Press” – the weekly Q&A show featuring international politicians, entertainers, religious leaders and other high-level influencers – premiered on the NBC Television Network.

The thoughtful, respectful, occasionally tense interview show – which became a television staple two years after debuting on NBC Radio – reigns today as the world’s longest-running TV series, airing continuously for 79 years (and counting).

A sultan with swat: Ottoman Empire Sultan Süleyman I (1494-1566) – known best as Süleyman the Magnificent, the longest-ruling of all Ottoman leaders (nearly 50 years), credited with fostering major advancements in law, literature, art, architecture and military conquests – would be 530 years old today.

Also born on Nov. 6 were Belgian French musical instrument designer Antone-Joseph “Adolphe” Sax (1814-1894), who invented the saxophone and many other musical instruments; American economist, journalist and entrepreneur Charles Dow (1851-1902), who co-founded both The Wall Street Journal and (along with pals Edward Jones and Charles Bergstresser) Dow Jones & Co.; American composer John Philip Sousa (1854-1932), remembered best for his military marches; Canadian American physical-education educator James Naismith (1861-1939), who invented basketball; and American voice actor Elwood Hughes Edwards Jr. (1949-2024), the voice of various soundmarks for the Internet service provider America Online, including AOL’s trademark “you’ve got mail!”

Superbad Supergood: And take a bow, Emily Jean “Emma” Stone! The American actress and film producer – already the proud owner of two Oscars, two Golden Globes, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, a Volpi Cup and two BAFTA Awards, with half-a-dozen other top-drawer nominations – turns 38 today.

Send birthday wishes for The Favourite to editor@innovateli.com, where we’re in La La Land when you include news tips and you always earn an Easy A when you share calendar events. (It’s a Kind of Kindness … come on, don’t be Cruella!)

 

About our sponsor: SUNY Old Westbury is a university where students with a passion for learning are empowered through excellence to thrive in a more just, sustainable world. Ranked as the 18th best Public Liberal Arts College in America by U.S. News and World Report, Old Westbury offers a small-college atmosphere where students learn as part of one of the most diverse student bodies in America. Whether it’s a cutting-edge graduate program in Integrative Neuroscience, a highly respected undergraduate degree in Biological Sciences or any of the other more than 60 degrees available, a SUNY Old Westbury education sets students on a course toward success. Own your future.

 

BUT FIRST, THIS

Colorectal collaboration: A promising new chemotherapy drug developed by Stony Brook University researchers has entered human clinical trials.

Meet RP-001, stage name for a polyunsaturated fatty acid conjugate of a second-generation, SBU-developed taxane in a nanoemulsion formulation. That’s a mouthful for sure – the important takeaway, according to SUNY Distinguished Chemistry Professor Iwao Ojima, director of Stony Brook’s Institute of Chemical Biology & Drug Discovery, is that the original taxane he discovered (essentially, a plant-derived chemotherapy drug) has been reformulated to facilitate “tumor-selective drug delivery by means of an Enhanced Permeability and Retention effect characteristic to nanosized particles.”

Also a mouthful. Bottom line: The nanoemulsion formulation sprouting from Ojima’s research – helped along by collaborators at Northeastern University and SBU spinout startup TargaGenix – has been approved for colorectal cancer clinical trials sponsored by Delaware-based Recurv Pharma, which sublicensed the fatty acid conjugate from TargaGenix. “Dr. Ojima has created a completely novel form of therapy for cancer that is poised to advance our ability to fight cancer in patients who need it the most,” noted Raymond Bergan, the Kavita and Lalit Bahl Endowed Director of the Stony Brook Cancer Center. “His group is at the forefront of changing how we treat cancer and is providing new hope for those with cancer.”

Same as the old boss: Long Island’s homegrown gubernatorial candidate failed to unseat Gov. Kathy Hochul, and at least one Island business booster is just fine with that.

Democrat Hochul handily defeated her Republican challenger, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, in Tuesday’s election (with 92 percent of the votes counted as of Thursday afternoon, Hochul led Blakeman by a healthy 60-40 margin). The win heralds Hochul’s third gubernatorial term, including one partial term (she was promoted from lieutenant governor when disgraced Gov. Andrew Cuomo resigned in 2021) and one full term (Hochul defeated Republican Lee Zeldin, now President Donald Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency hatchet man, in her 2022 re-election bid).

Blakeman – the 10th Nassau executive, a former county legislator and a two-time Hempstead Town Council member – might have been a gubernatorial coup for this region, but the Long Island Association is excited to keep working with Hochul, according to LIA Acting President and CEO Stacey Sikes. “As businesses and residents across the state face mounting affordability challenges, it is critical that New York prioritizes policies that lower the cost of living and doing business,” Sikes said in a statement. “The LIA looks forward to continuing our partnership with the governor … to advance these priorities and ensure Long Island remains a vital driver of New York’s economic growth.”

 

TOP OF THE SITE

Intelligence design: A round of applause, please, for new Voices Real Estate Anchor Leo Farrell, who debuts this week with a hard-hitting look at AI in commercial RE – not about to replace the “personal touch” of human brokers, Leo says, but certainly altering the way those pros do their jobs.

What are you waiting for? “Spark: The Innovate Long Island Podcast” will return soon with all-new one-on-one conversations … until then, catch up with any of the 60-plus educational, entertaining and all-around eye-opening episodes you might have missed. More than five-dozen brilliant innovators are waiting to speak to you.

 

STUFF WE’RE READING

Too big to fail: The electoral blowout was so massive that even ardent election deniers aren’t challenging the results. Wired confirms counts.

Course correction: Expect a renewed focus on renewable energy as the new Congress corrects backward U.S. energy policies. MIT Technology Review looks ahead.

Billionaire blues: With the new Democratic majority likely to enforce actual regulations, shares in SpaceX and AI-related stocks are already plunging. The BBC buys low.

 

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 Arizona: Phoenix-based electric-bike baron Lectric eBikes juices up its flagship XP4 model with its all-new, all-specialized “Xperience” engineering kit.

From California: Campbell-based electronic hand-tool titan Zircon Corp. adds to its 50-year innovation legacy with a state-of-the-art wall-scanner/stud finder.

From New York City: Vertically integrated cannabis operator Ascend Wellness Holdings pops a new line of precision-dosed THC tablets, starting in three states.

 

RECENT FUNDINGS

+ Wrapped Health, a Washington-based, AI-native digital infrastructure platform connecting clinical care with consumer health, raised $2.1 million in Pre-Seed funding led by Lightbank and Arteria Capital.

+ Pathfinder, an Arizona-based fintech platform helping families navigate Education Savings Accounts, raised $12 million in Series A funding led by Portage Ventures, with participation from Reach Capital, Gradient and Stand Together Ventures Lab.

+ nPhase Inc., a Florida-based, AI-native clinical data platform, raised $30 million in Series D funding led by Viking Global Investors.

+ Dulo, a California-based AI foundation model for software engineering and technical automation, raised $130 million in Seed funding led by DST Global, Construct Capital and Lowercarbon Capital.

+ Northwood Space Corp., a California-based shared ground network for satellite operations, raised $375 million in Series C funding led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and DFJ Growth, with participation from Alpine Space Ventures, Washington Harbour Partners, Stepstone Activate and In-Q-Tel.

+ Kalshi, a New York City-based financial exchange and prediction-market operator, raised $1 billion in a Series G funding led by Wellington Management and Sequoia Capital, with participation from Baillie Gifford, Stripes, Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Coatue, Layer Global, Morgan Stanley Investment Management, Sequoia Global Equities, CapitalG, Hudson River Trading and Balyasny Asset Management.

 

ON THE MOVE

+ Michael Schade has been appointed vice president and general counsel of Brookville-based Long Island University. He was executive director for research legal strategy and assistant general counsel at the University of Oklahoma.

+ Anthony Paul has been named the newest Executive in Residence at the SUNY Old Westbury School of Business. He is a former senior staffer at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, a former senior vice president of corporate treasury risk management at Citibank and a longtime member of the SOW School of Business Advisory Board.

+ John Farrell has joined Uniondale-based Harris Beach Murtha as a partner. Farrell – who joins the firm’s Commercial Real Estate Practice Group, Public Finance and Economic Development Practice Group and Municipalities and Local Agencies Industry Team – was a land use and municipal law attorney at Hauppauge-based Sahn Ward Braff Coschignano.

+ Ramana Davuluri has been named a fellow of the American College of Medical Informatics. He is a SUNY Distinguished Professor and interim chairman of Stony Brook University’s Department of Biomedical Informatics.

+ Fayoni Olusesi has joined Uniondale-based Forchelli Deegan Terrana as an associate. He was a legal fellow with the New York State Unified Court System in the Bronx.

+ Paul North has been hired as business development manager at Hauppauge-based HIA-LI. He was virtual chief information officer at Techworks Consulting in Ronkonkoma.

 

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 – on Long Island, and soon, across New York State (just ask SUNY Old Westbury). Gregory Zeller can tell you more.

 

BELOW THE FOLD (Go Go Godzilla Edition)

Plus “One”: “Minus One” director Yamazaki recounts the kaiju-sized challenge of following up his Oscar-winning monster mash.

39th parallel: As the big guy returns to the big screen this weekend, ranking his 38 (!) previous entries.

“Zero” chance: The latest “Godzilla” epic is poised to stomp box-office records.

Monster Island: Please continue supporting the innovative institutions that support Innovate Long Island, including SUNY Old Westbury, an academic and socioeconomic standout – even on an island filled with impressive and progressive universities. Check them out.