Who’s there? Knock knock, friends – it’s Nov. 11 out there, which is Veteran’s Day, of course, and we can come back later if you’re among the lucky few taking a holiday.
Old Zealand: New Zealanders flood the streets in 1918, after The Armistice officially ended World War I hostilities.
For those on the job, welcome to Wednesday and the midpoint of this latest workweek – not to mention Armistice Day in New Zealand, France, Belgium and Serbia, plus Polish Independence Day, since you asked.
Underestimating their forces: We grossly misstated the number of living U.S. armed forces veterans in Monday’s calendar newsletter, when we highlighted oldest living veteran Lawrence Brooks of Louisiana.
Brooks is one of about 325,000 surviving veterans of World War II – just a fraction of the 18 million-plus U.S. Armed Forces veterans living in our country. Thank one today.
Overestimating our chances? Not with you on our side, faithful readers – the X factor in Bethpage Federal Credit Union’s 2021 Best of Long Island contest, where Innovate LI is up for Best Long Island Blog.
You can vote once per day through Dec. 15, for us and your favorite Long Island wedding officiant, Twitter account, roofing company, school psychologist … the best of the Island’s best in dozens of categories. Thanks for your support!
Blame game: German mathematician Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz demonstrated integral calculus for the first time on this date in 1675, and now you can’t figure out your kid’s homework.
Say WA? Washington State was admitted as the 42nd U.S. State 131 years ago today.
Get outta here: New York inventor Daniel McCree patented the portable fire escape on Nov. 11, 1890.
Also patented on this date, in 1930, was the Einstein refrigerator, by inventor Leó Szilárd and some scientist he knew.
Name that tomb: Resting place of “an American soldier known but to God.”
Tomb it may concern: Known colloquially as the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the officially unnamed Arlington National Cemetery memorial was officially dedicated by President Warren Harding on Nov. 11, 1921.
The monument was originally constructed to honor an unidentified U.S. serviceman who perished in France during World War I.
Up, up and away: And it was this date in 1935 when adventurers Albert William Stevens of the U.S. Army Air Corps and Orvil Anderson of the U.S. Air Force reached 72,395 feet in the Explorer II, a pressurized gondola attached to a giant helium balloon, setting a substratosphere altitude record.
The record stood until November 1956, when the high-altitude balloon Stratolab carried two American pilots to 76,000 feet, higher than any humans had ever flown without a rocket.
Lead, follow, or get the hell out of the way: Four-star U.S. Army Gen. George Smith “Blood and Guts” Patton Jr. (1885-1945) – the disciplined, tough and controversial U.S. Olympian, master of tank warfare and possible champion of dyslexia – would be 135 years old today.
You gotta meme it: Many more, Leo.
Also born on Nov. 11 were Russian literary giant Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1821-1881), who pondered “Crime and Punishment” and other big issues; American surgeon George Washington Crile (1864-1943), who electrified surgical shock; English physicist and engineer Thomas Edward Allibone (1903-2003), a leading authority of high-voltage physics; satirical, celebrated American novelist Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (1922-2007); Italian racecar driver Maria Teresa de Filippis (1926-2016), Formula One’s first woman competitor; and American actress and producer Demi Gene Guynes (a.k.a. Brat Packer Demi Moore, born 1962).
Titanic: And take a bow, Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio – the American actor, producer and environmentalist, known for his unconventional roles and unassailable bankability ($7.2 billion in worldwide box office receipts, and counting), turns 46 today.
Wish the actors, writers and other Nov. 11 innovators well at editor@innovateli.com, where it’s no crime to drop off story tips and calendar events are always welcomed without punishment.
About our sponsor: Farrell Fritz, a full-service law firm with 15 practice groups, advises startups on entity formation, founder and shareholder agreements, funding, executive compensation and benefits, licensing and technology transfer, mergers and acquisitions and other strategic transactions. The firm’s blog, New York Venture Hub, discusses legal and business issues facing entrepreneurs and investors.
BUT FIRST, THIS
The apprentice(s): Hundreds of high schoolers from across Nassau, Suffolk and Queens counties will converge Friday for Adelphi University’s annual “Apprentice Challenge,” which has made a pandemic-flavored virtual pivot.
About 270 big brains, representing 25 regional high schools, are registered for the 2020 Virtual Apprentice Challenge: Business Conference, which will see students divided into teams and tasked with quickly creating strategic marketing plans for sample case assignments, in a race for the coveted title of Adelphi Apprentice. Standing by to rate them: a “distinguished panel of judges,” according to Adelphi, representing the university and event partner Jovia Federal Credit Union.
Now in its 13th year, the Apprentice Challenge – which has engaged more than 2,700 high school students through the years, with many subsequently studying at Adelphi’s Robert B. Willumstad School of Business. – is adopting a virtual format for the first time. The challenge is part of the university’s High School Special Event Series, designed to give high schoolers a chance to experience college life while exploring areas of academic interest.
Kristen Jarnagin: Star of podcast and screen.
Where you live: The tireless promoters at destination-marketing stalwart Discover Long Island have launched an aggressive multimedia campaign aiming to leverage new interests in digital content.
The Hauppauge-based tourism agency has flipped the switch on a new podcast and a new YouTube series, each designed to showcase hot Long Island attractions and trends. Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Audible, Amazon, Stitcher and Google Play, “Long Island Tea” features hosts Kristen Jarnagin and Sharon Wyman dishing on LI life and seasonal attractions; “Long Island TV,” debuting on YouTube and Instagram’s IGTV video app, invites viewers on a weekly road trip aboard LiLi, Discover Long Island’s mobile visitor center.
Noting a “digital climate” in which podcasts play large and YouTube boasts 2 million-plus monthly viewers, Jarnagin – Discover Long Island’s president and CEO – said it was “more important than ever” that the Island’s tourism leader embrace these hot media. “This is an exciting time for Long Island to share its unique story with the world, personalized with everything from our famous food and wine, notable celebrity residents, festive seasons, downtown hotspots and much more,” Jarnagin added.
TOP OF THE SITE
Brains of the operations: The Viscardi Center has scheduled a first-ever pitch-a-thon featuring early-stage businesses created by disabled innovators.
Form, function: A bonus Voices from law anchor Michael Sahn, who applauds evolving U.S. voting methods – but believes they demand uniform national voting laws.
Innovation in the Age of Coronavirus: The Rauch Foundation goes downtown, SUNY goes back to school and the North Fork Country Club goes nowhere fast – keep up with Long Island’s one-and-only pandemic primer.
VOICES
COVID and other challenges are threatening LI’s small-batch food producers – and innovation is the recipe for success, according to food-and-beverage boss Kate Fullam, who spotlights some of the Island’s tastiest quick-thinkers.
STUFF WE’RE READING
Book it: Suddenly, everyone is journaling – and it’s helping. Vox writes it up.
Ask it: Entrepreneurs should never be afraid to request help. Startup Nation asks the big questions.
Forget it: Or don’t – turns out childhood memories dictate brand loyalty. Phys.org looks back.
RECENT FUNDINGS
+ Vimeo, a New York City-based professional video platform, received a $150 million equity investment. Backers included Thrive Capital and GIC.
+ Cytek Biosciences, a California-based provider of cell-analysis instrumentation and solutions, closed a $120 million Series D funding round co-led by RA Capital and Hillhouse Capital, with participation from OrbiMed and LYFE Capital.
+ WishBone Medical, an Indiana-based maker of pediatric orthopedic medical devices, closed a $20 million equity-funding round funded by LKCM Headwater Investments, private equity arm of Luther King Capital Management.
+ Q32 Bio, a Massachusetts-based biotech developing biologic therapeutics, closed a $60 million Series B round co-led by OrbiMed Advisors and Acorn Bioventures, with participation from Osage University Partners, Atlas Venture, Abingworth, Sanofi Ventures, University of Colorado and Children’s Hospital Colorado Center for Innovation.
+ Shoulder Innovations, a Michigan-based developer of shoulder replacement systems, closed a $21.6 million equity financing led by US Venture Partners, Lightstone Ventures, Alumni Venture Partners, the Biosciences Research and Commercialization Center of Western Michigan University and the Michigan Angel Fund, among others.
+ One Health Company, a California-based biotech focused on precision medicine for dogs, raised $10 million in financing led by Polaris Partners and Borealis Ventures, with participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Lerer Hippeau, Y-Combinator and Tau Ventures.
BELOW THE FOLD
Numbers game: Bourbaki, on a secret mission.
A team: America finally has a science-based COVID-19 super-squad.
B squared: Inside Bourbaki, the 85-year-old secret math society.
C Suite shuffle: Leadership roles AI can handle (and those it can’t).
All of the above: Please continue supporting the amazing firms that support Innovate LI, including Farrell Fritz, where there are always multiple choices and multiple solutions. Check them out.
