Daily Business Report-Sept. 11, 2020
Marshmallow photo by iStock-Max Kegfire, via UC San Diego
The Marshmallow Test Revisited
Children will wait longer for a treat to impress others, new psychology experiment shows
When kids “pass” the marshmallow test, are they simply better at self-control or is something else going on? A new UC San Diego study revisits the classic psychology experiment and reports that part of what may be at work is that children care more deeply than previously known what authority figures think of them.
In the marshmallow test, young children are given one marshmallow and told they can eat it right away or, if they wait a while, while nobody is watching, they can have two marshmallows instead. The half-century-old test is quite well-known. It’s entered everyday speech, and you may have chuckled at an online video or two in which children struggle adorably on hidden camera with the temptation of an immediate treat.
But the real reason the test is famous (and infamous) is because researchers have shown that the ability to wait – to delay gratification in order to get a bigger reward later – is associated with a range of positive life outcomes far down the line, including better stress tolerance and higher SAT scores more than a decade later. Whether or not it’s just this ability to wait or a host of other socioeconomic and personality factors that are predictive is still up for debate, but the new study, published in the journal Psychological Science, shows that young children will wait nearly twice as long for a reward if they are told their teacher will find out how long they waited.
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Newsom extends support to small businesses
Governor signs 2 financial lifeline measures
CalMatters
Struggling California small businesses could see a financial lifeline under two bills Gov. Gavin Newsom signed. One allows small businesses to exclude federal Paycheck Protection Program funds from their state income taxes, while the other extends a $100 million tax credit to incentivize small businesses to restore jobs slashed amid the pandemic.
However, an Assembly committee analysis found that “sophisticated businesses at the larger end of the small business range” could disproportionately benefit from the tax credit, potentially leaving smaller businesses in the dust.
Newsom also signed a bill that appropriates $561 million for the next fiscal year, most of which will be used to stimulate the economy, including jumpstarting construction projects. (Other stimulus plans became political casualties, as CalMatters’ Lauren Hepler reports.
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Linking calorie restriction, body temperature and healthspan
New study reveals that reduced body temperature plays major role in
initiating the extensive health benefits of calorie-restricted diets
Cutting calories significantly may not be an easy task for most, but it’s tied to a host of health benefits ranging from longer lifespan to a much lower chance of developing cancer, heart disease, diabetes and neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s.
A new study from teams led by Scripps Research Professors Bruno Conti and Gary Siuzdak illuminates the critical role that body temperature plays in realizing these diet-induced health benefits. Through their findings, the scientists pave the way toward creating a medicinal compound that imitates the valuable effects of reduced body temperature.
The research appears in Science Signaling.
Conti has spent years studying how and why calorie restriction leads to better health, with the ultimate goal of translating the findings into medicines that can mimic what happens naturally when a person eats less.
One consistent observation is that when mammals consume less food, their body temperature drops. It’s evolution’s way of helping us conserve energy until food is available again, Conti explains. It makes sense, considering that up to half of what we eat every day is turned into energy simply to maintain our core body temperature.
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JLL has been retained to provide property
management services for Aperture Del Mar
JLL has been retained to provide property management services for Aperture Del Mar, a four-building, Class A life science and office campus measuring 700,000 square feet located on 15.72 acres in the Del Mar Heights submarket of San Diego.
The project broke ground in November 2019 with completion of the first two buildings, totaling over 200,000 square feet, anticipated in the third quarter of 2021.
As the property manager, JLL will be involved in several aspects of the project including: consulting on the overall design of the development; sourcing and procuring third-party vendors such as security, janitorial, and parking; providing onsite property management and engineering services beginning January 2021; partnering with the JLL leasing team to market the property; creating and implementing customized Experience Management programming for tenants; assisting with construction management for tenant improvement projects before and during move-in; and preparing property accounting and budgets. JLL’s property management team includes Regional Manager Bob Nowak, San Diego Group Manager Ana Tsang, Senior Director of West Coast Engineering Josh Toothman and Senior Project Manager for Southwest Property Management Rich McMahan.
JLL’s team of Chad Urie, Tony Russell and Grant Schoneman are overseeing leasing of Aperture Del Mar.
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Living Coast Discovery Center
raises record-setting $695,000
The Living Coast Discovery Center in Chula Vista said it raised over $695,000 in a major fundraising campaign launched in August to fill a critical funding gap resulting from its extended closure due to the COVID-19 crisis.
The “Love for Living Coast” campaign originally aimed to raise $500,000 by Aug. 31 to keep the center afloat until its income-generating programs can return, which is anticipated to happen in spring 2021. The announcement represents the largest fundraiser in the Living Coast’s history.
“The outpouring of support from the San Diego community was truly overwhelming, especially at a time when so many are struggling,” said Executive Director Ben Vallejos. “When people heard about our need, they quickly rose to the challenge, supporting us in ways both big and small, from making financial gifts to purchasing memberships to spreading the word on social media.”
Major contributors to the fundraising campaign included the J.W. Sefton Foundation and the City of Chula Vista, as well as the Nelson Foundation and the JEM Project, whose $250,000 donation match kicked off the campaign. The $695,000 funding total also included $108,000 in net proceeds from the Living Coast’s virtual “Farm to Bay @ Home” event on Aug. 1.
Additional supporters included Collins Aerospace, Chery and Greg Cox, John and Ricki Willet, an anonymous donor, Ron and Guadalupe Cohn, Seven Mile Casino and KSDY Channel 50.
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Krishna Kabra appointed executive director
of San Diego Children’s Discovery Museum
San Diego Children’s Discovery Museum announced the appointment of Krishna Kabra as its new executive director. Kabra replaces Wendy Taylor, who has accepted a position in her home state of Texas as executive director of the Don Harrington Discovery Center in Amarillo.
Kabra has over 20 years of experience in insights, innovation, and marketing strategy in the corporate world. As part of two large agencies, she worked on some of the world’s largest brands including Coca Cola, Wrigley, Unilever, L’Oréal, and many others. Having previously served on the board of directors of San Diego Children’s Discovery Museum, Kabra has chosen to pivot her career towards the world of nonprofit.
“Krishna is the epitome of a creative thinker. Combined with her passion for reimagining and transformation, Krishna’s innovative nature bodes well for the future of not just San Diego Children’s Discovery Museum, but the entire children’s museum community,” said Kimberlie Dunham, chair of the museum board of directors.
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Airport welcomes fall 2020 Performing Arts
Residency Program artist Margaret Noble
The San Diego International Airport Arts Program introduces the Fall 2020 Performing Arts Residency Program artist, Margaret Noble and her featured work Sky Muse.
Born in Texas and raised in California, Noble’s experimental artworks have been exhibited nationally and internationally. Her interdisciplinary work resides at the intersection of sound, sculpture, and performance and is influenced by the dynamic, dance music cultures of Southern California.
Through her Performing Arts Residency, Noble will present a series of audio-visual works designed to ignite, delight, and reframe the airport experience. Inspired by Brian Eno’s seminal work Music for Airports and the historical art traditions of visual music and graphical notation, Sky Muse is a collection of animated “scrolls” accessible through personal devices such as phones, tablets, and laptops. For passengers preparing to move through portals, time zones, and geographies these short, digital works will enhance their travel by elevating their sensory experiences of color, light, and sound.
From August to December 2020, these thematic digital programs will be available to airport audiences for personal engagement and public conversation. Themes of transformation, destination, and process are presented through the juxtaposition of being exactly somewhere and yet nowhere. Not limited to the experience of air travel, these works are available for anyone in waiting or on a journey.
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Cal State San Marcos to host leadership
expert Marshall Goldsmith for virtual event
Marshall Goldsmith, a world-renowned leadership expert, will be the featured guest for the fall seminar of the Center for Leadership, Innovation and Mentorship Building (CLIMB) at Cal State San Marcos.
The seminar, titled “Leading in a Time of Crisis,” will take place Sept. 24 from 8-9:15 a.m. via Zoom. The virtual event is free and open to the public.
In the interactive session, Rajnandini (Raj) Pillai – CLIMB’s executive director and a CSUSM professor of management and organizational behavior – will lead a discussion with Goldsmith on the importance of keeping clarity and focus in the midst of chaos. Goldsmith will review a proven approach to coaching that leaders can use in a period of rapid change. The event will conclude with a question-and-answer period.
Goldsmith, 71, is a Rancho Santa Fe resident who has been recognized as the top executive coach in the world for 10 consecutive years. His clients have included the CEOs of companies such as Target, Ford and Best Buy. He’s the author of New York Times bestselling books “Triggers” and “What Got You Here Won’t Get You There,” and his leadership books have sold more than 2.5 million copies.
Goldsmith holds a Ph.D. from the UCLA Anderson School of Management, and he teaches executive education at Dartmouth College’s Tuck School of Business.
A link to register for the event can be found on the CLIMB website.
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Agragene announces $4 million in added
investments from Ospraie Ag Science
Agragene Inc., a San Diego-based sustainable agricultural technology company developing eco-friendly alternatives to chemical pesticides, announced that it has raised an additional $4 million in Series A financing from Ospraie Ag Science (OAS), the venture arm of New York-based Ospraie Management.
The additional funding will expand field trials of Knock-Out, their first Precision-Guided Sterile Insect Technology product, as well as their semiochemical attractant-product Border Patrol.
The announcement of another round of OAS funding comes in advance of the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit Sept. 15-16, where bio-based products will take center stage as global demand soars for more sustainable agri-food solutions.
