Who’s counting: Welcome to Wednesday, dear readers, and not just any Wednesday but the “last” Wednesday of the Summer of 2023 (there are technically three more before Fall, but after Labor Day they simply don’t count).
On that note, a gentle reminder that Innovate Long Island is taking a few days to reflect on seasons come and gone – no newsletters Friday or Monday. Have a safe and happy Labor Day weekend, back at you next week.
Sticky on sticks: A toast to the end of summer.
We feel you: We’ll miss you, too, but don’t be sad – although, that’s OK on National Grief Awareness Day, when we’re encouraged to seek support (and be supportive) regarding deep personal losses.
Mood enhancements: This might cheer you up – today is National Beach Day, inviting one and all to enjoy a shore thing.
After soaking up some Vitamin D (with the appropriate SPF, of course), build a little fire and grab a long stick – it’s also National Toasted Marshmallow Day, getting gooey and sweet every Aug. 30.
Hot wheels: Also catching fire was the first true motorcycle – essentially, a gassed-up bicycle patented on this date in 1885 by German automotive giant Gottlieb Daimler.
Fear itself: Spreading fire was certainly on Winston Churchill’s mind on Aug. 30, 1941, when the UK prime minister greenlighted a project code-named “Tube Alloys” – the world’s first national atomic bomb project.
Everything on the line: Speaking of A-bombs and other weapons of mass destruction, a direct emergency hotline connecting Washington and Moscow went live 60 years ago today.
Marshall plan: Thurgood broke a major barrier in 1967.
All ’good: Elsewhere in the nation’s capital, the U.S. Senate voted 69-11 on this date in 1967 to confirm Thurgood Marshall as the first African American member of the United States Supreme Court.
Breaking barriers (probably) in spaaaaace: And it was Aug. 30, 1983, when American engineer Guion Bluford Jr. became the first African American in space, hurtling into orbit aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger.
At least, Bluford was the first known African American in space – it’s still unclear exactly what happened to interracial alien abductees Barney and Betty Hill in September 1961.
Created a monster: English novelist Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1797-1851) – who edited the poems of her famous husband, Percy, but is better known for inventing science fiction with the 1818 smash “Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus” – would be 226 years old today.
Teddy Ballgame: Without five years of (heroic) wartime service, Williams might have broken every record.
Also born on Aug. 30 were New Zealand-born British physicist Ernest Rutherford (1871-1937), a daring experimentalist considered the “father of nuclear physics”; American physicist John Mauchly (1907-1980), co-creator of the first general-purpose digital computer; American professional baseball player Theodore Samuel “Ted” Williams (1918-2002), who lost five years (over two wars) to military service but still compiled all-time-great numbers; American microbiologist Maurice Hilleman (1919-2005), who amassed an unparalleled vaccination-creation record; and American marine biologist Sylvia Earle (born 1935), a world-renowned oceanographer, explorer, author and lecturer.
The Oracle of Omaha: And take a bow, Warren Edward Buffett! The American business magnate, investor and philanthropist – still the reigning Berkshire Hathaway chairman and Earth’s fifth-wealthiest person – turns 93 today.
Wish world’s best-known fundamental investor well at editor@innovateli.com, where we’re heavily invested in your news tips – and we take your calendar events to the bank.
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BUT FIRST, THIS
COVID caution: Be careful where you travel this holiday weekend – the nefarious SARS-CoV-2 spent the summer conjuring a new variant, and it’s nasty.
Meet Pirola (a.k.a. the BA.2.86 Variant), which has not yet been detected anywhere in New York State – in fact, only nine global cases were on the books Tuesday, none domestic – but is already suspected of causing breakthrough infections (community-wide COVID outbreaks, including the potential to infect previous COVID patients and the COVID-vaccinated). With COVID-related hospitalizations spiking this summer and the new variant lurking, Albany is getting its planes in the air, refreshing protection protocols with statewide nursing homes, supplying local officials with masks and test kits and urging New Yorkers to consider the latest vaccines.
An updated COVID vaccine targeting Omicron variants is due this Fall, and Gov. Kathy Hochul, for one, is a fan. “While New Yorkers might want to be done with COVID-19, COVID-19 isn’t done with us,” Hochul said Tuesday. “With the increase in hospitalizations and reported cases this summer, I strongly urge everyone to take appropriate precautions to protect themselves and their communities.”
Financial health: Jovia Financial Credit Union representatives present a big check to the Zucker School’s MSPP.
Pipeline partner: From the Two Birds, One Stone Department come first-time partners on a quest to shepherd economically disadvantaged students toward healthcare careers – and impart some financial literacy along the way.
Huntington-based Jovia Financial Credit Union has donated $3,000 to the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell’s Medical Scholars Pipeline Program, which gives students from less-affluent communities a running start on their college – and possibly medical – careers. The $3,000 will sponsor the first year of enrollment in the multiyear MSPP for two Underrepresented in Medicine students (referencing an official Association of Medical Colleges racial/ethnic designation).
Jovia Financial also presented a lunchtime “financial literacy lesson” this summer for pipeline students, emphasizing the importance of budgeting and maintaining good credit scores. “Supporting [the MSPP] helps ensure that the best and the brightest entering the Zucker School of Medicine have the knowledge, tools and skills to effectively manage money,” noted Jovia Financial Credit Union Vice President of Business Development Peter Purpura. “Working with the next generation of medical professionals to solidify their financial futures exemplifies banking on the bright side.”
POD PEOPLE
Episode 42: David Battinelli, leading healthcare present and future.
Summer vacation is over for Spark: The Innovate Long Island Podcast, which comes back strong with David Battinelli, dean of the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine and physician-in-chief of the mighty Northwell Health system.
David joins Spark host Gregory Zeller to discuss his mold-breaking medical school, his awesome day-to-day responsibilities and his innovative solutions – and the unique challenge of keeping one eye on current healthcare priorities and one on the future.
TOP OF THE SITE
Community soldiers: Black Business Month ends Thursday, but the critical socioeconomic mission continues for the BlaQue Resource Network and founder Aleeia Abraham.
Community expansion: New podcasts, new Voices experts, new sponsors … what we need now are some new newsletter subscribers! You know why you love this smart, funny and resource-packed freebie – tell your friends!
VOICES
Innovate Long Island’s powerful Voices lineup welcomes its latest heavy hitter this week: Twomey, Latham, Shea, Kelley, Dubin & Quartararo LLP ace attorney Allison Singh, our new IP and patents expert, who barrels up innovative defenses against counterfeit Long Island wines.
STUFF WE’RE READING
Over already? Interest in generative AI tools is quickly waning. Vox keeps it real.
Smarter building: Tech and data are cutting carbon across construction. Forbes celebrates emission innovations.
In the soup: “Wildly hot” waters churned Idalia into a 100-year superstorm. E&E News battens the hatches.
RECENT FUNDINGS
+ Raleon, a North Carolina-based web3 engagement platform, raised $3.8 million in seed funding led by Blockchange, Play Ventures, Alliance DAO and Portal Ventures.
+ Companion Protect, a Kansas-based pet insurance and wellness platform, raised $27 million in Series A funding led by Avanta Ventures, Liberty Mutual Insurance, Old Republic International Corp. and Stray Dog Enterprises.
+ Fore Biotherapeutics, a Pennsylvania-based precision-oncology pioneer, raised $75 million in Series D funding led by SR One, Medicxi, OrbiMed and HBM Healthcare Investments.
+ FranklinWH, a California-based whole-home energy-management leader, raised $25 million in Series B funding led by Particle Future.
+ ZeroEyes, a Pennsylvania-based, AI-driven gun-detection video analytics platform, raised $23 million in funding led by Octave Ventures, Alliance Holdings and existing investors.
+ Creatively Focused, a Minnesota-based educator-driven tech firm, raised $3 million in seed funding led by York IE, Mairs & Power Venture Capital, Groove Capital and Gopher Angels.
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 Brandtelling). Marlene McDonnell can tell you more.
BELOW THE FOLD (Kinky Edition)
Good gravy: Saucy entertainment from across the pond.
Foot fetish: The truth about wearing socks to bed.
To each his own: The personalized pleasures of history’s greatest innovators.
And you thought mud wrestling was dirty: Behold, the World Gravy Wrestling Championships.
Sexy beast: Please continue supporting the attractive agencies that support Innovate Long Island, including Brandtelling, our partner in podcasts and a true master of messaging – like, 50 shades of awesome. Check them out.
