Yes, you May: Welcome, dear readers, to the first Friday in May, and the warm and sunny conclusion of another busy workweek (at least here on Long Island).
Red alert: They sneak up on you, those cosmos.
In space, no one can hear you celebrate: Whatever the weather in your neck of the woods, it’s May 7 on Earth and in the heavens above – International Space Day, when hearts and minds reflect on the infinite boundaries of the final frontier.
Too much? Try International Tuba Day or, here in the States, National Roast Leg of Lamb Day, which pairs nicely with National Cosmopolitan Day.
Breaking it down: May 7 is also National Barrier Awareness Day, a 1986 Ronald Reagan proclamation counteracting the societal stigmas that hinder people with disabilities.
Code makers: Also overcoming barriers were the frustrated doctors who convened a national medical convention in New York City on May 7, 1847, and adopted an unassailable Code of Ethics governing U.S. medical education – backbone of today’s American Medical Association.
Sorry to Popov your bubble: Tesla procured the patents, Marconi grabbed the glory – but it was Russian physicist Alexander Popov who first demonstrated the radio receiver on this date in 1895, to the Russian Physical and Chemical Society.
Taking a Flyer: Trademarking “the sled that steers.”
(Don’t) try to be Flexible: Patented in August 1889 by inventor Samuel Allen, the snow sled with the T-shaped runner and slatted seat became known as the “Flexible Flyer” 117 years ago today, when Allen trademarked the name.
For those keeping score, the trademark now belongs to a Maine-based sled manufacturer.
Junior circuit: The human experience-altering integrated circuit became a thing on May 7, 1952, when British electrical engineer Geoffrey Dummer proposed the sophisticated breakthrough to the United States Electronic Components Symposium.
Telstar us all about it: And NASA launched the Telstar 2 – a high-orbit, radiation-shielded satellite owned by AT&T – on this date in 1963.
Primarily a communications relay, the satellite – which also carried a scientific payload designed to explore the Van Allen radiation belt – ceased VHF transmissions after two years, but is still up there half-a-century later.
Took a moment: British author Vera Chapman (1898-1996) – an accomplished author of fantasy and pseudo-history also known as “Belladonna Took,” founder of the Tolkien Society of Great Britain – would be 123 years old today.
U better believe it: Unitas drops back.
Also born on May 7 were English poet and playwright Robert Browning (1812-1889), a cornerstone of Victorian literature; American scientist and industrialist Edwin Land (1909-1991), who co-founded the Polaroid Corp.; American engineer, author and businessman Simon Ramo (1913-2016), the “father of the intercontinental ballistic missile”; beloved Argentinian First Lady Eva “Evita” Perón (1919-1952), who may have been the victim of a sinister lobotomy; and all-time American football great Johnny Unitas (1933-2002), prototype of the modern marquee quarterback.
What the Heckerling: And take a bow, Amy Heckerling! The Bronx-born author, producer and director – who helmed “Clueless,” “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” and other modern comedy classics, but can’t seem to land another Hollywood gig – turns 67 today.
Wish the underrated filmmaker and all the other May 7 innovators well at editor@innovateli.com, where we’re fairly clueless without your story tips and calendar events (and we shall serve no fries before their time).
About our sponsor: Bridgeworks is Long Island’s modern coworking and office space. Headquartered in Long Beach, our workspace offers flexible month-to-month private offices, meeting rooms and innovative amenities for companies of all types. Membership includes onsite management, high-speed Internet access, mail services, full café, onsite parking and easy access to the Long Island Rail Road. Members also gain early access to the Airbnb for commercial real-estate, DropDesk.
BUT FIRST, THIS
Bioelectronic buy-in: Throw another $3.7 million onto the pile at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research, Northwell Health’s R&D mecca, where groundbreaking bioelectronic medicine work has earned a fresh National Institutes of Health grant.
Championing electric nerve stimulation over pharmaceutical interventions, bioelectronic medicine aims to treat diseases and injuries throughout the body with tiny zapping devices implanted at key points along the nervous system. Feinstein Institutes President and CEO Kevin Tracey, of course, has trailblazed the science, making the Manhasset-based research hub an ad hoc global bioelectronics headquarters – with grants in abundance from the NIH and other institutions intrigued by the promising science.
This time, the hefty five-year award – from the NIH’s National Institute of General Medical Sciences – will help the founding father of bioelectronics and the crack staff at Feinstein’s Institute of Bioelectronic Medicine dig deep into the molecular roots of their science. “The foundation of bioelectronic medicine is basic research in molecular biology, neuroscience and biomedical engineering,” Tracey said Thursday. “The NIH support of this work is essential for translating our science into clinical studies.”
SUNY standout: Future fraud finder Diana Muyibi, current scholarship winner.
Real accountability: A SUNY Old Westbury graduate student has become the first State University of New York student to earn the top award in a prestigious national scholarship program for future accountants.
Diana Muyibi, a student in SUNY Old Westbury’s Forensic Accounting program, is the sole 2021 recipient of the $10,000 Ritchie-Jennings Memorial Scholarship from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. The scholarship program – which also annually issues $5,000, $2,500 and $1,000 awards, paid directly to each winner’s university to offset tuition – offers financial assistance and a free one-year ACFE Student Associate Membership to exceptional students interested in pursuing fraud examination-related careers.
Muyibi, a Brooklyn resident who enrolled in the three-year-old Forensic Accounting program after learning about SUNY Old Westbury’s Justice for Fraud Victims Project, certainly fits the bill, according to program director and CPA David Glodstein. “Since she joined the program, she has been involved in numerous meetings for the Justice for Fraud Victims Project,” Glodstein said Wednesday. “We couldn’t be more proud that she earned this award … she’s a true role model for our students.”
TOP OF THE SITE
Test pattern: The country is turning a COVID corner, but fast-and-easy testing is still critical – and a Plainview laboratory has a new nationwide deal to prove it.
Package delivered: Another multimillion-dollar IDA pact, this for a New York City-based developer, will bring e-commerce king Amazon to Woodmere.
Applied logic: Our new podcast series heads into the lab with Applied DNA Sciences President and CEO James Hayward discussing innovation, deoxyribonucleic acid-style.
ICYMI
Australia comes to Long Island; congeniality comes to IP law.
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 California: San Francisco-based AI solutions provider Kyndi launches game-changing “natural language” cognitive search platform.
From New York City: Sustainable-mobility motivator Gravity Inc. debuts zero-emission taxi fleet in the Big Apple, including dedicated charging infrastructure.
From Florida: Fort Lauderdale-based prenatal, postnatal and newborn products manufacturer Earth Baby puts emphasis on wellness with new skin/body-care line.
ON THE MOVE
Stelios Karatzias
+ Stelios Karatzias has been hired as a tax attorney for Melville-based Tenenbaum Law P.C. Karatzias previously worked as an attorney at Port Washington-based Parker Waichman LLP.
+ Melville-based EGC Group has announced two promotions:
- Danielle Mount, formerly a production artist, is now a graphic designer.
- Tina Zhen, formerly an account manager, is now an account supervisor.
+ Melville-based EGC Group has announced several new hires:
- Michael DiMarco has joined as SEO manager. He previously worked at global communications company Havas.
- Courtney Hanusch has joined as marketing analyst. She previously managed social media for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
- Erin Lagano has joined as associate creative director. She previously served as a graphic designer and art director.
- Brian McAlpin has joined as a developer. He has been an independent developer, designer and digital brand steward for more than 20 years.
+ Derrick Rubin has been promoted to partner at Great Neck-based Wisselman, Harounian & Associates. His practice focuses on matrimonial and family law.
BELOW THE FOLD (The Little Things Edition)
It clicks: The other White Album, featuring “10,000 tiny instruments.”
Tiny steps: How small, consistent changes drive larger transformations in any organization.
How nano can you go: The most important part of your computer is getting even smaller.
Bit players: Lego has assembled the most experimental album of 2021.
No small feat: Please continue supporting the amazing companies that support Innovate Long Island, including Bridgeworks, which muscled through the pandemic to remain at the forefront of Long Island’s coworking industry. Check them out.
