Real scorcher: Welcome to Wednesday, intrepid innovators, as we reach the midpoint of a springlike – dare we say summerlike – mid-April workweek (in the 80s Thursday?).
The early-season heatwave is temporary, but the innovation economy is hot and getting hotter – and we’re fanning the flames with this sizzling socioeconomic review.
Star man: Gagarin’s roughly two-hour trip remains eternally awesome.
Yuri gonna love it: Belying the heat, we kick off this April 12 in the cold emptiness of outer space, where we find the UN’s International Day of Human Spaceflight, recognizing decades of achievement beyond Earth’s surly bonds – and the launchpad of an unparalleled date for final-frontier observances.
It’s also Yuri’s Night, a.k.a. the World Space Party, and we’ll get back to that in a minute.
Got Tang? You’ll need the powdered drink mix – not invented by NASA, but made famous by it – to wash down your space-lunch, including a nice sandwich (you can’t miss on National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day) and a tasty snack (always delightful on National Licorice Day, twizzling every April 12).
Reds in spaaaaace: Our historical review orbits first to Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, whose sky-breaking mission to space changed everything 62 years ago today.
Near-disasters in spaaaaace: Speaking of Soviet space shots, the USSR survived its own Apollo 13-esque crisis when the Soyuz-33 returned safely to Earth on this date in 1979, two days after an engine failure prevented its rendezvous with the Salyut 6 space station.
Space shuttles in spaaaaace: Marking a major space-travel upgrade, the first Space Shuttle flight blasted off on April 12, 1981, with Columbia lifting off majestically from the Kennedy Space Center.
A spring, a spring, a marvelous thing: Astronauts Jeff Hoffman (left) and Rhea Seddon play around.
Toys in spaaaaace: They became a thing on this date in 1985, when the Space Shuttle Discovery carried 11 playthings – including a yo-yo and a Slinky – into orbit for some zero-g testing.
Congress in spaaaaace: And it was that same date and mission – STS-51D, launched April 12, 1985 – when U.S. Sen. Jake Garn (R-Utah) became the first sitting member of Congress to fly in space.
Garn – who requested the flight in his role as the head of the Senate appropriations subcommittee that funded NASA – also became the first civilian observer aboard a U.S. spaceflight.
Aid in our resuscitation! Australian anesthesiologist Peter Safar (1924-2003) – credited as the creator of cardiopulmonary resuscitation and with establishing the benchmarks of EMT and EMS training – would be 99 years old today.
Key contributor: Hancock, lighting it up.
Also born on April 12 were American politician Henry Clay (1777-1852), the “Great Compromiser” of the antebellum era; American children’s author Beverly Cleary (1916-2021), who sold nearly 100 million copies of her books during her remarkable 104-year life, and beyond; American computer designer Evelyn Berezin (1925-2018), who built the first practical word processor; American novelist Tom Clancy (1947-2013), dead 10 years and still executive producer of Amazon’s “Jack Ryan” series; and American television host, comedian, writer and producer David Letterman (born 1947), still busy (and fuzzy).
Post-bop pioneer: And take a bow, Herbert Jeffrey Hancock! The American jazz pianist, bandleader and composer – an iconic performer, 14-time Grammy-winner and UCLA professor of music, with six honorary doctorates to his credit – turns 83 today.
Give the jazz, fusion, funk and electro master your best at editor@innovateli.com, where the honor of receiving your news tips and calendar events is all ours (and they always jazz us up).
About our sponsor: Whether it’s helping in site selection, cutting through red tape or finding innovative ways to meet specific needs, businesses that settle in the Town of Islip soon learn that we take a proactive approach to seeing them succeed. If your business wants to locate or expand in a stable community with great quality of life, then it’s time you took a closer look at Islip.
BUT FIRST, THIS
In development: A top university’s new professional-development initiative is custom-built for regional industries.
Adelphi University has announced the launch of Organizational Learning Solutions, a College of Professional Continuing Studies effort designed to help employees develop new skillsets while directly addressing the needs of local businesses, nonprofits and government organizations. The program offers tuition discounts on select degree and certification programs in the CPCS and other Adelphi schools; for starters, it focuses heavily on emergency-management skills, with one courseload leading to a master’s degree in emergency management, three bachelor’s degree tracts (including one focused on emergency services administration) and various professional certifications.
The OLS program, which figures to add new specialties as professional collaborations multiply, also offers internal corporate-training programs (for college credit) and other professional-development options customized to meet local-business needs. “I look forward to engaging … leaders of organizations across Long Island about their talent-development needs,” noted CPCS Dean Andy Atzert. “Together, we can create a tailor-made program that delivers a superior ROI to the organization and the employee.”
LONG story: Discover Long Island’s new merch was created by longtime collaborator Spectrum Designs, which employs people on the autism spectrum.
Full spectrum: Long Island’s leading tourism bureau has unveiled new made-on-LI products that not only plug the Island as a vacation destination but promote autism awareness – and even address a national underemployment issue.
Discover Long Island, well-known for its pro-Island merchandise, has added three new products to its online store, each riffing on the bureau’s “Where You BeLONG” promotional campaign. The products – a hoodie, a trucker hat and a dog bandana, available in different colors and each stating “Where I BeLONG” – were designed, printed and packaged by Port Washington-based Spectrum Designs, where the workforce is comprised of Islanders on the autism spectrum.
People on the spectrum suffer exceptionally high national under-employment rates, ranking this among the tourism bureau’s more consequential partnerships, according to Discover Long Island President and CEO Kristen Reynolds. “Creating meaningful partnerships with organizations that … help us illuminate the character of our community remains key to our success,” Reynolds said. “Quality products that showcase and support local, diverse and socially conscious businesses … not only benefit our brand but truly uplift the entire community.”
POD PEOPLE
Episode 21: Kevin Law, our man in Albany.
Loaded with leadership lessons from across the regional innovation economy, Spark: The Innovate Long Island Podcast highlights creativity, determination and best practices in humorous half-hour sessions. Dozens of enjoyable, educational conversations are standing by … choose a mentor!
TOP OF THE SITE
Smart move: Brookhaven National Laboratory’s next big-brained director will be the first woman to run the lab in its 76-year history.
Gassed up: It may take 10 years or longer to build out, but the $3.6 billion Northeast hydrogen hub proposed by New York and six other states could change everything.
Below your paygrade: Thank you for sharing this informative and entertaining newsletter with your entire innovation team … of course, if they had their own easy-and-free subscriptions, you wouldn’t have to be, like, the kid from the mailroom.
VOICES
Here’s the pitch: An all-star rotation of unparalleled innovation-economy leaders hurling unique perspectives, success strategies and other major-league stuff over the heart of your business-development plate. Grab a bat and dig in, dear readers – the whole game is on the line, and you’re up!
STUFF WE’RE READING
Been there: Familiar faces fill the ranks of this year’s 25 Richest People in the World (though not as rich as they used to be). Forbes breaks down the billionaires.
Done that: Why do so many “Under 30” corporate superstars wind up in jail? The Guardian conducts criminal investigations.
Worn that: With savings and sustainability up its sleeve, the secondhand-clothing market is soaring. Quartz shows its thrifty side.
RECENT FUNDINGS
+ Innovare, an Illinois-based ed-tech innovator, raised $2 million in additional seed funding backed by Cleveland Avenue of Chicago, Dux Capital, Tawani Ventures and Portfolia’s Rising America Fund.
+ Engin Sciences, a New York City-based, AI-powered recruitment-software developer, raised $2.5 million in seed funding led by Gotham Green Partners, The London Fund, JourneyOne Ventures, David Belsky and Peter Flint.
+ True Anomaly, a Colorado-based space security and sustainability company, raised $17 million in Series A funding led by Eclipse, with participation from Riot Ventures, Champion Hill Ventures, Space.VC and Narya.
+ Oxos Medical, a Georgia-based med-tech developing X-ray-based solutions, raised $23 million in Series A funding led by Parkway Venture Capital and Intel Capital.
+ AVS, a Massachusetts-based medical-device manufacturer, raised an additional $8.8 million in Series B funding led by BioStar Capital and CUE Growth Partners.
+ Covariant, a California-based, AI-powered robotics innovator, raised an additional $75 million in Series C funding co-led by Radical Ventures and Index Ventures, with participation from Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Gates Frontier Holdings and AIX Ventures.
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 (just ask the Town of Islip). Marlene McDonnell can tell you more.
BELOW THE FOLD (At The Movies Edition)
We need a hero: Indy, just like old times.
Popcorn? Sure … but you might want to avoid the microwave kind.
Sneak peeks: The undeniable, shared magic of movie trailers.
Blockbuster: How Indiana Jones can save the movies.
Best picture: Please continue supporting the amazing organizations that support Innovate Long Island, including the Town of Islip Office of Economic Development, which is always rewriting the script to help businesses scout their best location. Check them out.
