Digging out: Welcome to Wednesday, dear readers, and the other side of the Blizzard of 2021, a school-closing, industry-snarling, vaccination-halting, long-time-coming reminder of what Long Island winters can do, when Mother Nature is so inclined.
For the record: There were about 23,000 reported PSEG outages, Hicksville led all Nassau County locations with 17.6 inches and Suffolk County hamlet East Northport officially topped the Island with 18.1 inches. Could have been worse.
Root cause: The sweet side of Daucus carota.
It will all make sense soon: It’s Feb. 3 out there, which is American Painters Day and National Women Physicians Day, and you’ll see why on both in a minute.
Meanwhile, it’s an acquired taste for sure, but if you’ve acquired the taste, get excited – today is also National Carrot Cake Day.
Drinking game? Author Samuel Clemens first used the nom de plume “Mark Twain” in a newspaper byline on this date in 1863 – accounts differ on how he actually came up with it.
Edison who? The first practical incandescent-filament electric lightbulb was publicly demonstrated on Feb. 3, 1879, by English chemist and inventor Sir Joseph Wilson Swan.
Swan would go on to open the world’s first electric lightbulb factory in South Benwell, England.
Step right up: African American inventor Joseph Waller of Baltimore patented his “Shoemaker’s Cabinet or Bench,” combining the tools of the trade with a seat for customers, on this date in 1880.
The most wonderful time of the year: For the IRS, at least.
Just the tax, ma’am: The 16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, establishing Congress’ right to impose a federal income tax, was ratified 108 years ago today.
Soft touch: The Soviet Union’s Luna 9 spacecraft touched down on the moon on this date in 1966, achieving humanity’s first “soft landing” on a celestial object.
And on that same day – Feb. 3, 1966 – America put the ESSA-1, the nation’s first operational weather satellite, into orbit.
Rock of life: New York-born painter and illustrator Norman Rockwell (1894-1978) – who enjoyed wide-ranging popularity for creations that captured Americana (and graced covers of The Saturday Evening Post for 47 years) – would be 127 years old today.
Elmo’s world: We’ve just been living in it, for 49 years now.
Also born on Feb. 3 were the first woman to earn a medical degree in America, Elizabeth Blackwell, (1821-1910), who later opened a medical college for women; Swiss physicist Paul Scherrer (1890-1969), who collaborated with Dutch physicist Peter Debye to develop X-ray diffraction analysis; famed Kenyan conservationist George Adamson (1906-1989), the “father of lions”; New York-born novelist James Michener (1907-1997), who took Americans around the world; and innovative American gymnast George Nissen (1914-2010), who created the trampoline.
Monster’s ball: And take a bow, Elmo! The red-furred “Sesame Street” favorite is now and forever 3 1/2 years old, but he made his first appearance on the beloved children’s show 49 years ago today.
Give the scarlet Muppet your best at editor@innovateli.com, where it’s always a sunny day, sweepin’ the clouds away, when you send along story tips and calendar events. Come and play!
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BUT FIRST, THIS
Schein right here: Even Long Island’s largest companies can use a hand sometimes – and one of the region’s biggest is getting a lift from one of the Island’s busiest IDAs.
The Suffolk County Industrial Development Agency has granted preliminary approval for a tax-abatement package that will help Fortune 500 stalwart Henry Schein complete $15 million in upgrades at its two-building global headquarters in Melville. The buildings will be outfitted with new telecommunications and IT equipment and “other applicable upgrades,” according to the IDA, which said the improvements would help Henry Schein attract high-caliber talent – and retain its 1,200-strong Long Island workforce.
The deal, which must undergo full IDA review and final approvals, freezes the company’s property tax rate – already in excess of $1 million annually – during and after its upgrades, which could have resulted in heftier property tax assessments. “Retaining Henry Schein is so important for the overall health of our local and regional economies,” noted Suffolk County IDA Executive Director Tony Catapano. “The IDA is pleased that its assistance means 1,200 Long Islanders will … continue supporting our economy in many different and significant ways.”
Kristina Deligiannidis: Perinatal cause, effect, response.
Perinatal promise: A pair of multi-year grants totaling more than $4 million will help the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research develop new treatments for perinatal depression in women.
Perinatal depression (depression during pregnancy or within a year after birth or the end of a pregnancy) affects roughly one in seven women. Led by Associate Professor Kristina Deligiannidis of the Feinstein Institutes’ Institute of Behavioral Science, researchers will leverage a $2.7 million National Institutes of Health grant to study the physiological causes of perinatal depression in women, and a separate $1.4 million NIH award – via Rhode Island Hospital – to participate in a multi-site clinical trial exploring personalized integrated chronotherapy as a perinatal-depression tool.
Deligiannidis, director of women’s behavioral health at Zucker Hillside Hospital in Queens, said understanding perinatal depression’s origins – and how it manifests in women – is critical to developing effective new treatments. “With the NIH’s support, we will be able to design future clinical studies to intervene sooner and help women suffering from depression,” the professor added.
TOP OF THE SITE
Long division: Combining product-development aces in Hauppauge and Minnesota will extend Forward Industries’ reach into the critical med-tech space.
Quick multiplication: The head of the Northwell Health Cancer Institute likes what he sees, but believes declining U.S. cancer-mortality rates can drop even faster.
Innovation in the Age of Coronavirus: Saluting volunteer nurses, applauding better numbers … hope lives in Long Island’s one-and-only pandemic primer.
VOICES
Media master David Chauvin issues a call to arms for all professional communicators, who share responsibility for the truth – and must take immediate action against all instances of “fake news.”
STUFF WE’RE READING
Clear cut: See-through wood – lighter, stronger and cheaper than traditional windows – could soon replace glass. Fast Company saws it first.
Air fare: Electric flying taxies – cheaper, faster and cleaner than traditional transportation – could soon fill the skies. Axios takes a flier.
Consumer control: Popular trends – always the truest drivers of global innovation – rule at the 2021 CES Trade Show. Forbes takes it all in.
RECENT FUNDINGS
+ NWO.ai, a New York City-based predictive AI platform for enterprises to identify microtrends, raised $3.5 million in a seed funding round co-led by Hyperplane, Wavemaker and Colle Capital, with participation from Adit Ventures and SuperAngel.
+ Elsa, a California-based mobile app that uses AI and speech recognition technology to help learners improve English speaking skills, raised a Series B funding of $15 million co-led by Vietnam Investments Group and SIG, with participation from Gradient Ventures, SOSV, Monk’s Hill Ventures, Endeavor Catalyst, Globant Ventures and U2’s The Edge.
+ OwnBackup, a New Jersey-based cloud-to-cloud backup and system-restore platform, raised $167.5 million in Series D funding co-led by Insight Partners, Salesforce Ventures and Sapphire Ventures, with participation from Innovation Endeavors, Vertex Ventures and Oryzn Capital.
+ Nuvalent, a Massachusetts-based biotech creating targeted therapies for clinically proven kinase targets in cancer, raised $50 million in Series A financing. Deerfield Management made the investment.
+ Literati, a Texas-based subscription book club company, raised $40 million in Series B funding led by Aydin Senkut of Felicis, Dick Costolo and Adam Bain of 01 Advisors, the Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Shasta Ventures, Silverton Partners, Springdale Ventures and Stephen Curry.
+ Mission Secure, a Virginia-based cybersecurity technology company, closed a Series B financing round bringing total funding to date to $22.5 million. Backers include Ireon Ventures Ltd., Energy Innovation Capital, Blue Bear Capital Partners, Chevron Technology Ventures and the University of Virginia LVG Seed Fund.
BELOW THE FOLD
Main course correction: Yep … made from plants.
Weird Al dente: Barilla’s Spotify playlists help you perfect your penne.
Eat your veggies: “Veg-tech” is taking over, and that includes your steak.
Recipe for success: Five ingredients for a successful food-and-beverage startup.
Food for thought: Please continue supporting the amazing firms that support Innovate Long Island, including Sahn Ward, where well-seasoned professionals offer a full menu of land-use law services. Check them out.
