Winter rush: Amazing job, dear readers – five more workdays in the books, bringing us that much closer to socioeconomic greatness and another well-earned weekend.
It’s Feb 26 on Long Island and around the world, and by the time we meet again on Monday, it will be March already. Spring is in sight!
Shell game: Plenty to go around.
Shell of a tribute: As for today, it’s National Pistachio Day, but let’s not be greedy – it’s also World Pistachio Day.
Credited to a team of young Michigan activists, today is also the fifth-annual National Skip the Straw Day, held on February’s fourth Friday to encourage humanity to suck it up and make do without drinking straws.
Deaf ears: Turning to last straws, Catholic Cardinal Roberto Francesco Romolo Bellarmine, on orders from Pope Paul V, warned Italian astronomer Galileo to knock it off already with the heliocentrism – or else – 405 years ago today.
It became this whole big scandal. And Galileo wasn’t listening anyway.
Mass effect: Speaking of the world’s oldest continuously functioning international institution, the first Catholic Mass on American soil was celebrated on Feb. 26, 1732, at St. Joseph’s Church in Philadelphia.
A rare invention, well done: Carnivorous Ohio inventor John McDonnell patented his all-new meat broiler on this date in 1877.
Other U.S. patents issued on Feb. 26 include one in 1895 for fellow Ohioan Michael Owens, who carefully protected his Apparatus for Blowing Glass.
Watson: Not so black-and-white.
Twisted tale: “The Double Helix” was published on this date in 1968, a nonfiction page-turner detailing the race to decode human DNA that propelled American author James Watson – credited with discovering DNA’s double-spiral form alongside English scientists Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins – to celebrity scientist.
While engaging, the book doesn’t treat Watson’s lab partners very well. And Watson, longtime chancellor of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, ultimately traded fame for infamy.
Damn Yankee: And it was Feb. 26, 1992, when the Yankee Rowe Nuclear Power Station – then the nation’s oldest atomic power plant – was permanently decommissioned.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has deemed most of the 185-megawatt plant’s Massachusetts grounds safe – though 500-plus spent nuclear fuel assemblies, each weighing around 800 pounds, remain buried on the banks of the Deerfield River (in 21-inch concrete casks with 3 1/2-inch steel liners).
He was Hugo: Arguably the most celebrated of all French Romantic writers, Victor-Marie Hugo (1802-1885) – the poet, novelist and dramatist known best for the novels “Les Misérables” and “Notre-Dame de Paris” (a.k.a. “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”) – would be 219 years old today.
Helms officer: Susan Jane, floating ideas.
Also born on Feb. 26 were American industrialist Herbert Henry Dow (1866-1930), who founded the influential Dow Chemical Company; denim designer Levi Strauss (1829-1902), who birthed blue jeans during the California gold rush; Italian chemist Giulio Natta (1903-1979), who earned a Nobel Prize for trailblazing high polymers used in plastics and films; Brooklyn-born “Great One” Jackie Gleason (1916-1987), who knew the truth about spacemen; and retired U.S. Air Force Lt. General Susan Jane Helms (born 1958), who actually is a spacewoman.
Kiwi prime: And take a bow, Helen Elizabeth Clark – the former Prime Minister of New Zealand, longtime administrator of the United Nations Development Programme and famed philanthropist turns 71 today.
Wish these and all the other Feb. 26 innovators well at editor@innovateli.com. News tips, calendar events and Chinese gooseberry smoothie recipes gratefully accepted (yeah … that’s a kiwifruit).
About our sponsor: Sahn Ward is one of the region’s most highly regarded and recognized law firms. Our attorneys are thought leaders, dedicated to achieving success through excellence. With our broad experience in land use, development, litigation, real estate, corporate and environmental law, we have the vision and knowledge to serve our clients and our communities. Please visit sahnward.com.
BUT FIRST, THIS
The Mother of all immigrant-services programs: Thanks to the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation, expanded assistance awaits recent Long Island immigrants at the Garden City-based Family & Children’s Association’s Newcomers Resource Center.
The New York City-headquartered foundation has awarded a $294,126 grant to the FCA in support of the center, following up on a $139,209 investment that got the Newcomers Resource Center going in 2020. The program offers a menu of services designed to address the needs of immigrant and refugee populations on Long Island, including community counseling, school advocacy, legal guidance, vocational training (including ESL) and short-term childcare.
The need for such services among immigrant populations was exacerbated by the COVID-19 crisis, according to FCA President and CEO Jeffrey Reynolds, placing a premium on the new Mother Cabrini grant, which helps fund a second year of the Newcomers Resource Center. “We remain focused on creating services that are responsive and allow disadvantaged families to not only survive, but thrive as a critical part of our neighborhoods,” Reynolds said this week. “We are grateful for this continued support from the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation and look forward to achieving transformative results.”
Honorable fellow: Fred Millán, Latinx leader.
Una gran distinción: The interim chairman of SUNY Old Westbury’s Department of Psychology has earned a prestigious State University distinction.
Fred Millán, who also directs SUNY Old Westbury’s Master’s in Mental Health Counseling program, has been named a 2021 fellow of the State University of New York Hispanic Leadership Institute, which supports the next generation of Hispanic and Latinx pacesetters across the SUNY system. Only 11 faculty and staff members from the vast State University system were selected for the 2021 class by SUNY Chancellor Jim Malatras.
A former president of the Association of State & Provincial Psychology Boards and the National Latinx Psychological Association, Millán currently sits on the New York State Board for Licensure/Discipline and is a trustee for The Trust, an independent trust offering insurance, financial security and risk-management programs for nationwide psychologists. “It is a testament to Dr. Millán’s intellect, dedication and talent to be selected for this program,” noted SUNY Old Westbury Officer-in-Charge and Chief Diversity Officer Teresa Miller. “The Hispanic Leadership Institute showcases SUNY’s efforts to make the university system the most inclusive in the nation.”
TOP OF THE SITE
National grid: Creators from sea to shining sea are invited to join the new National Inventor Club, the latest expansion from untiring Long Island innovator Brian Fried.
Forward thinking: Here’s another inventive idea – Innovate LI newsletter subscriptions for your entire innovation team, so you don’t have to keep forwarding yours. Always easy, always free.
Innovation in the Age of Coronavirus: Wow, you got Knicks tickets? Northwell Health will see you at the game (and before it). Your pandemic primer has the story, and 250 more.
ICYMI
Stony Brook University goes to Mars; Smithtown West High School inventors go national.
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 Florida: Fort Lauderdale-based fitness innovator Gsport unwinds performance-enhancing kinesiology tape for amateur athletes.
From Colorado: Lakewood-based supplements trailblazer Wixar Naturals mines “superfood of the sea” for world’s first sea moss gummies.
From New Jersey: Princeton-based “athleisure and wellness brand” Yogactiw rolls out a trendy fitness-gadget line designed for “new normal” fitness enthusiasts.
ON THE MOVE
Neftali Collazo
+ Neftali Collazo, has been named an ambassador to the National Junior College Athletic Association’s Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Council. He serves as associate dean of athletics and special events for Suffolk County Community College.
+ Andrew Yoon has been named medical director of the Heart Failure Program at the MemorialCare Heart & Vascular Institute at Long Beach Medical Center.
+ Mary Rogers has been elected to the board of the Hauppauge-based HIA-LI. She serves as the small business liaison officer at Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton.
+ Gregory Galdi has been elected to the board of the Hauppauge-based HIA-LI. He is the founder and president of Hauppauge-based Custom Computer Specialists.
+ William Evans has joined Old Westbury-based New York Institute of Technology as director of facility management. He previously worked for Cobham Advanced Electronic Solutions in Plainview.
+ Ian Alberts has been promoted to partner in the Jericho office of Manhattan-based Berdon LLP. He serves as co-leader of the firm’s Manufacturing, Distribution and Retail Practice Group.
BELOW THE FOLD
Book ’em: Read all about it.
Need less space: Why law offices are shrinking fast.
Need more space: Why you should collect more books than you’ll ever read.
Fish in spaaaaace: Why French researchers want to establish lunar fish farms.
They own this space: Nobody understands land-use, environmental and real estate law like Sahn Ward, one of the amazing firms that support Innovate LI. Check them out.
