Daily Business Report-Nov. 20, 2020
PAC-MAN is one of the longest-running video game franchises in history.
PAC-MAN to be inducted into
Comic-Con Museum Character Hall of Fame
PAC-MAN, who became a pop culture icon as the main character of the highest-grossing video game ever, has been named the
2020 inductee into the Comic-Con Museum Character Hall of Fame. This year, PAC-MAN is celebrating his 40th anniversary and is being honored as the original digital game mascot for his enduring impact he has had on the video game industry and the role of storytelling in games.
PAC-MAN is one of the longest-running video game franchises in history and signaled a shift in video game storytelling as well as character development.
After being created by Toru Iwatani, a Japanese game designer, the game was first released in Tokyo in May 1980 and shortly thereafter made its debut in the United States in October of the same year. PAC-MAN joins Batman, who was the first character inducted, launching the Museum Character Hall of Fame in 2019.
“We thought PAC-MAN would be the perfect addition to the Museum Character Hall of Fame because he inspires a sense of nostalgia in many of us and even though he is turning 40, he is still highly relevant in pop culture today,” said Eddie Ibrahim, senior director of programming for the Comic-Con Museum. “Characters tell the stories of pop culture and what better time, when we are more digital than ever, to honor our first digital character.”
As of 2016, PAC-MAN had generated more than $14 billion in revenue and is considered by many to be one of the most influential video games of all time for its simple yet complex approach to restructuring video game narratives. It took nearly 20 years for anyone to complete a perfect game – finishing with no lives lost and the maximum number of points from each level.
The genesis of PAC-MAN’s creation came from Iwatani’s desire to make video games more accessible to wider audiences by exploring themes beyond battleships and war scenarios. It is credited with introducing non-violent gaming, which opened up the opportunity to market to an untapped audience – women.
The online induction celebration will be held on Thursday, Dec. 17, 2020, from 4 to 6 p.m. and will consist of a combination of interactive live stream elements and pre-recorded content and videos. The celebration will feature discussions and segments featuring game developers as well as fans who share a love of PAC-MAN and have been inspired by him in some way. There will also be additional fun surprises.
For more information and to register to attend the induction, please visit donate.comic-conmuseum.org/pacman.
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Port of San Diego moves forward with microgrid
installation at Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal
The Board of Port Commissioners approved the installation of a microgrid, battery storage system, and electrical infrastructure at the Port’s Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal (TAMT).
The microgrid will provide back-up power to Port-operated facilities, including security infrastructure, lights, offices, and the existing jet fuel storage system in support of the Port’s role as a strategic port. The project supports the recently celebrated Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal Redevelopment Project completion and will assist in establishing a modern, clean, and more efficient cargo terminal.
The microgrid will advance the Port’s use of renewable energy, reducing greenhouse gas emissions on and around the terminal. The project promotes improved regional air quality as the Port continues to electrify the terminal. In addition, the upcoming installation supports and aligns with the Port’s Climate Action Plan and is one of the mitigation measures required by the Environmental Impact Report for the terminal redevelopment.
The total cost of the project is anticipated to be approximately $9.6 million, $4.9 million of which is funded by a California Energy Commission Electric Program Investment Change (EPIC) grant. The Port is contributing $4.2 million, and the University of California San Diego, a partner with the Port on the project, is contributing $201,000.
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California expects $26 billion
windfall despite pandemic
CalMatters
The good news: The recession California officials predicted in the early months of the coronavirus pandemic has not been as dire as they thought it would be, leaving the state with a $26 billion windfall heading into the next fiscal year.
The bad news: A reason for the unanticipated cash reveals the state’s stark economic divide. Pandemic-induced job losses have been concentrated among low-wage workers, who pay relatively little taxes to begin with, while wealthy residents have continued to make money and pay taxes, leading to much greater tax collections than officials predicted in early summer.
“We’re ending up in a place where the overall fiscal picture of the state doesn’t look nearly as bleak as the conditions for the people who are weathering the pandemic and all of its negative effects,” said Chris Hoene, executive director of the California Budget and Policy Center.
“It’s a very weird situation.”
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Renee Stackhouse to serve as president
of San Diego Bar Association for 2021
Trial lawyer Renee Stackhouse, whose practice focuses on plaintiff’s personal injury, military, and criminal defense matters at Stackhouse APC, will serve as president of the San Diego County Bar Association (SDCBA) for 2021.
Stackhouse is lauded throughout the San Diego legal community for her tenacity, diligence, and trial skills, with a particular emphasis on military defense and representing servicemembers. She has served on the SDCBA’s Board of Directors since 2017 as Vice President and inaugural chair of the committee responsible for creating and filling the position of technology and practice management adviser.
In 2018, Stackhouse served as president of California Women Lawyers, one of the state’s largest law-related organizations. She is a past president of San Diego La Raza Lawyers, has served on the board of Lawyers Club of San Diego, and frequently speaks on issues relating to social media, trial skills, and civil litigation.
Stackhouse holds a Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent rating, a distinction given to attorneys ranked at the highest level of professional excellence for their legal expertise, communication skills, and ethical standards by their peers.
Stackhouse holds a J.D. from Thomas Jefferson School of Law (magna cum laude) and a B.S. in management and marketing from Park University.
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CommSafe AI hires Apoorv Srivastava
as its new chief data scientist
As big data and artificial intelligence (AI) continue to accelerate business transformation, more companies are adding experienced chief data scientists to their executive teams.
In an effort to further drive innovation and gain more traction in the market, CommSafe AI, a technology company that specializes in conflict and violence prevention, has created a new chief data scientist position filled by seasoned technology executive Apoorv Srivastava.
In this new role, Srivastava – a predictive analytics and natural language processing expert – will help develop new data science capabilities for CommSafe AI, as well as create and execute strategies that will improve the business’s performance as the company continues to develop its first-to-market AI-driven communications safety analysis software.
Based in Franklin Park, N.J., Srivastava has a track record of building businesses, products, and teams in data analytics, finance, consumer products for video consumption, optical networking, and high-performance computing. He has more than 20 years of experience in general management, finance, venture investing, engineering product and business development and has experience managing an organization through pre and post IPO, acquisition, merger and restructuring. He is also well versed in developing and evaluating emerging technologies for startups and investments.
Founded in 2015, CommSafe AI is an African American and disabled veteran-owned technology company that helps companies disrupt emerging threats 24/7.
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Cal State San Marcos appoints Godfrey Gibbison
as the new dean of extended learning
Cal State San Marcos has appointed Dr. Godfrey Gibbison as the new dean of Extended Learning, effective Jan. 18.
Gibbison comes to CSUSM from the College of Charleston in South Carolina, where he most recently served as dean of The Graduate School.
Gibbison previously served as the College of Charleston’s dean of the School of Professional Studies and launched its Bachelor of Professional Studies in 2013. Gibbison also was responsible for the creation of the Bachelor of General Studies, which was the College of Charleston’s first fully online degree, the Certificate in Project Management and the Certificate in Sustainability and 21st-Century Business Solutions.
Other accomplishments include the expansion of services to military and veteran students.
Before joining the College of Charleston, Gibbison was the director of the School of Economic Development at Georgia Southern University, where he served on the faculty from 2002-12. At Georgia Southern, he launched the online Master of Science in Applied Economics and directed that program for three years.
Gibbison is a Fulbright Scholar and co-author of the book “Crime and Development: The Jamaican Experience.”
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Housing Commission enters into
negotiations to develop Famosa Canyon
The San Diego Housing Commission’s board voted Nov. 13 to enter into exclusive negotiations with Bridge Housing Corporation to further study the proposed development of affordable housing on a five-acre parcel at Famosa and Nimitz boulevards.
SDHC Board’s vote followed the reading of nearly 200 opposition letters from Point Lomans and a group named The Point Loma Recreation Advisory Group. Some residents for months have been contesting the proposed affordable housing project, arguing there is overwhelming support to preserve the long-vacant site as open space in the community.
“We ask the City to reconsider the San Diego Housing Commission’s sale of the Famosa Canyon parcel to an out-of-town organization for $800,000 and explore other options for the site,” wrote the PLRAG in a Nov. 12 letter to the City. “We voted unanimously to request that the City negotiate the sale of the Famosa Canyon to Park and Recreation, so that Famosa Canyon remains a passive park and open space.”
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General Atomics wins $93 million Army contract
GovCon Wire
A General Atomics affiliate has won a potential $93.3 million contract from the U.S. Army to conduct research, development, test and evaluation of artificial intelligence-based sensor technology for potential use in unmanned aerial systems.
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. will provide AI RDT&E services to the service branch as part of a smart sensor prototyping effort, the Department of Defense said.
Army Contracting Command received 999 bids for the cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price contract and obligated $13 million at the time of award.
Work will take place in Poway through March 2, 2023.
The award comes nearly a month after General Atomics acquired Guidestar Optical Systems in a move to grow adaptive optics technology portfolio for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance applications.
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University of California Health and UC San Diego
launch the only accredited milk bank in the Southwest
University of California Health (UCH) and University of California San Diego Health have launched a nonprofit milk bank to serve families in Southern California and statewide through all six UCH academic health centers.
Pasteurized, donated breast milk is critical for feeding sick or premature infants when mothers do not have a sufficient milk supply for their baby’s nutritional needs. Operated by UC San Diego Health and located in the San Diego Blood Bank, the new facility represents one of the first groundbreaking partnerships between a blood bank and a mothers’ milk bank.
The University of California Health Milk Bank, the first milk bank located in San Diego, is the only Human Milk Banking Association of North America accredited milk bank in Southern California, and only one of 30 nonprofit milk banks in North America.
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More community college students completing
math and English courses for UC, CSU transfer
Tens of thousands more California community college students are completing math and English courses essential for transferring to a UC or CSU, according to a report released by the Public Policy Institute of California.
Thanks to a 2017 law that largely allowed students to enroll in transfer-level courses without first needing to take remedial courses, 57,000 more students passed a transfer-level English class in 2019 than in 2015, while 31,000 more students completed transfer-level math, CalMatters’ Mikhail Zinshteyn writes.
The report’s authors: “Overall, our findings show that when given the opportunity, students can succeed in college-level courses.”
Nevertheless, inequities remain. At some community colleges, Black and Latino students were enrolled in transfer-level math courses at lower levels than the systemwide average.
— CalMatters
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City of San Diego recognizes schools and nonprofits
working to reduce waste in the workplace
The City of San Diego is recognizing 10 local businesses and organizations that implemented or expanded innovative waste reduction and recycling programs. From establishing a cigarette butt collection and recycling program, to creating a system to track solid waste tonnage to identify diversion opportunities, the 2020 Business Waste Reduction and Recycling Award winners displayed forward thinking in their programs.
These businesses and organizations are helping the city reach its Climate Action Plan goal of achieving Zero Waste by the year 2040.
The list of winners, recognized for work completed in 2019, includes:
- LJ Crafted Wines — Wine membership utilizes reusable bottles with swing tops that are returned and exchanged for a sanitized bottle where customers choose which wines they want, directly from the barrel. This avoids single-use bottles, foils, corks and cartons.
- San Diego County Regional Airport Authority — Established a cigarette butt collection and recycling program. The butts are collected and shipped to TerraCycle which composts the cigarette paper and tobacco. The plastic filters are recycled and turned into outdoor benches and tables. A total of 17 pounds were collected in 2019.
- San Diego Mesa College — Composted 16.34 tons of pre-consumer food scraps from campus cafeterias and coffee shops for use in the on-campus garden.
- University of California San Diego — All construction and demolition projects are required to divert 75 percent of debris from the landfill.
- San Diego State University — Implemented the SkySpark solid waste tracking system: an online, interactive waste dashboard that tracks tonnages specific to buildings on campus to help analyze and identify diversion opportunities.
- Jansen R&D (Johnson & Johnson) — Efforts taken to become a paperless facility, such as a switch to digital signage to reduce the number of posters and flyers, and canceled subscriptions to scientific paper publications encouraging use of the centralized library with online journals.
- Hazard Center — Hosted annual Recycle/Spring Clean Up event for tenants to properly dispose of items that do not belong in the recycling container.
- San Diego Zoo — “Recycles” electricity via a one-megawatt energy battery that stores and discharges energy during peak hours to assist with park operations.
- Sharp Healthcare — Diverted 4.2 million pounds of material from the landfill. This included composting 500,000 pounds of food waste and reprocessing 106,000 pounds of surgical instruments. Expired, unusable medical equipment was donated to the nonprofit Ssubi is Hope.
- San Diego Food Bank— “Turbo Separator” takes unopened but damaged and inedible cans, boxes, and jars of food and separate the food from the packaging for compost and recycling, respectively.
