Amazing Stat About Israel and Tech
Israel is widely known as the Start-up Nation. With countless incredible characteristics and statistics, this small and young country, surrounded by war, has produced more productive high-tech startups than everyone else. For example, Israel hosts more NASDAQ-listed companies per citizen than any country. According to PWC’s MoneyTree survey, in 2012, 660 Israeli high tech companies received $1.9 billion in venture capital. To put this in perspective, in 2012 that amount was 17% of the $10.9 billion funnelled to Silicon Valley start-ups and 59% of the $3.2 billion that New England startups received.
Thanks to a lot of individual talents, a risk-taker and creative population and a friendly government policy, Israel is without doubt the startup nation.
JPup Dates
Website makes kosher vacation easy
Apartment booking site Tellavista.com launches new search feature allowing observant Jews to find ideal holiday accommodation in Israel
Tellavista.com, a vacation apartment booking website, recently launched a new search feature that allows the kosher-observant public to find the ideal holiday accommodation in Israel – the first Israel-wide and Israeli-owned vacation apartment booking engine to offer this facility.
With over 1,200 holiday apartments available throughout Israel, including the main holiday destinations of Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Herzliya and Netanya, Tellavista.com makes the process of booking a vacation apartment as easy, reliable and secure as any hotel booking platform and avoids the need to negotiate directly with private owners and brokers.
A two-week stay in a Tellavista apartment in August for a family of four will cost between $200-300 a night, compared to $500-600 a night in a four star family hotel on bed and breakfast basis.
“Israel is part of the world-wide trend in the tourism industry that sees more and more families and business people preferring vacation apartments to hotels, because of the flexibility, convenience and price benefits of this hospitality option,” says Roee Ziv, who quit Israeli hi-tech to co-found Tellavista.com with his brother Nadav.
“At Tellavista.com, we are pleased to offer a wide range of apartments and search refinements that allow families to book their Israel vacation in line with their budget and their lifestyle.
“These features include the new kosher search, which is of particular interest to both the apartment owner and the family who maintain a kosher lifestyle, and the ‘I want to be close to…’ feature, which allows you to search for apartments close to your family and friends, the synagogue or even your favorite restaurant.”
The kosher search is currently available for Jerusalem and Netanya apartments, but will include other holiday destinations in the near future. Visitors to the site can refine their search according to date, price (US, Canadian or Australian dollars, sterling, euro or shekel), number of rooms, bathrooms, amenities and neighborhood.
For many apartments, there is no minimum or maximum stay and the site, which is available in eight languages, automatically calculates discounts for longer stays. Information on the site is checked for credibility, the photos on the website are untouched and only Tellavista.com clients who have stayed in the apartment can upload a review.
Financial transactions are secure, with clients paying the 15-25% deposit by credit card to Tellavista.com. The remainder can either be paid directly to the apartment owner, or by credit card to Tellavista.com, thereby offering peace of mind.
A three-level cancellation policy clearly marked on each property and the ability to call or visit the Tellavista office in Tel Aviv also adds to the security and convenience of booking through Tellavista.
Bron: Ynet
ing David among world’s top 100 hotels
Historic Jerusalem hotel selected by luxury-lifestyle magazine Robb Report as one of world’s leading hotels in Africa and Middle East category along with Tel Aviv’s Hotel Montefiore
American luxury-lifestyle magazine Robb Report, which has a total circulation of 100,000 copies, has selected the King David Hotel in Jerusalem and Hotel Motefiore in Tel Aviv as two of the world’s top 100 hotels in the Africa and Middle East category.
These are the only two Israeli hotels on the prestigious list.
Explaining their reasons for choosing the King David Hotel, the magazine editors wrote: “A magical mix of history and hedonism, this 233-unit, 83-year-old landmark has played host to presidents and prime ministers. The hotel’s top-floor rooms, opened in 2011, are the best options. Outdoors, the vast swimming pool set amid lush gardens strikes a tropical tone.”
The magazine, which was founded more than 30 years ago, publishes the Robb Report 100 Hotels list once a year.
Respect for Jerusalem’s King David Hotel (Photo: Yoram Ascheeim)
“We take pride in the impressive achievement of the King David Hotel, which has been selected for the most distinguished list alongside the world’s leading hotels and has been chosen as one of the world’s top 100 hotels,” said Rafi Beeri, vice president of marketing and sales at the Dan Hotels.
“We will continue investing in the hotel in the future in order to continue carrying this honorable title while competing against the other excellent hotels in Israel.”
The Jerusalem hotel is a member of the Leading Hotels of the World hospitality consortium and has hosted international leaders throughout the years, including US PresidentBarack Obama, former US Presidents George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Jordan’s late King Hussein, Britain’s Prince Charles, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Prince Felipe of Spain, as well as Irish musician Bono, British supermodel Naomi Campbell, American television personality Martha Stewart, British actor Roger Moore and many others.
Other hotels on the list include:
- Brandenburger Hof, Berlin, Germany
- Royal Mansour, Marrakech, Morocco
- The Merrion Hotel, Dublin, Ireland
- The Siam, Bangkok, Thailand
- Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris, France
- The Connaught, London, England
Bron: Ynet
Top Israeli science and technology students show off innovations in NYC
Some top students from Israel recently showed off their cutting edge innovations, and how they developed such sophisticated devices could be important to America as well. For this edition of Tech Beat, YNN’s Adam Balkin filed the following report.
For one day, some of Israel’s top science and technology high school students took over a corner of the Big Apple’s Union Square with a street lab. It was designed to show what young people are capable of if they invest time in learning the STEM subjects: science, technology, engineering, and math.
The projects inside include a mobile app used to instantly identifying from a barcode, whether the product you’re holding, contains ingredients you’re allergic to.
“For example, if I’m allergic to milk, I pick from the list milk, scan the barcode, and you’re allergic to milk, it includes milk. So, I can’t eat it,” said Sabir Cohen, a high school senior.
There is also a camera that can be installed in teens’ cars and can, if there are any signs of inebriation, initiate a Skype call with mom and dad, who in turn, can initiate a breathalyzer test, even shut down the car.
“The parents can see the results of the test from the breathalyzer, and they can decide if you can start the engine or not,” said Yehuda Negosi, a high school senior.
While the innovations themselves are interesting, what’s also worth noting here is that Israel is having a similar problem the United States is having. It’s having a problem getting its younger people interested in science, technology, engineering and math. So, as one of its potential solutions, it set up what’s called a Sci-Tech Schools Network, a potential solution that it’s now trying to share with the United States.
The charter schools place a heavy emphasis on STEM subjects, which program organizers insist leads to around 67 percent of grads to continue in a STEM field, versus the 37 percent that do from non Sci-Tech schools.
“We have algorithmic, electronic, the science of the sea,” said Gil Shahar, a teacher with the Sci-Tech Schools Network.
For about the last year, seven schools in New York have been implementing a similar Sci-Tech curriculum. Israeli educators said they have now set branches out across the United States, aiming to share the system with around 100 schools within the next few years.
Bron: Your News Now
Streisand to receive honorary PhD in Israel
Hebrew University of Jerusalem to honor legendary American singer in recognition of her support for human rights, dedication to Israel and Jewish people
Legendary American singer Barbra Streisand will receive an honorary doctor of philosophy degree from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The ceremony will take place on Monday, June 17, during the 76th Hebrew University International Board of Governors Meeting.
The honorary doctorate will be presented to Streisand in recognition of her professional achievements, outstanding humanitarianism, leadership in the realm of human and civil rights, and dedication to Israel and the Jewish people.
Prof. Menahem Ben-Sasson, president of the Hebrew University, stated: “Barbra Streisand’s transcendent talent is matched by her passionate concern for equality and opportunity for people of every gender and background.
“Equally important, her love of Israel and her Jewish heritage are reflected in so many aspects of her life and career. We are deeply proud to honor an individual who exemplifies these values which we at the Hebrew University share and uphold.”
A proponent of education, Streisand established the Emanuel Streisand Building for Jewish Studies on the University’s Mount Scopus campus in 1984. She dedicated the building in memory of her beloved father, Emanuel, whom she praised as “a teacher, scholar and religious man who devoted himself to education.”
Referring to her 1983 award-winning movie, “Yentl,” in which she played the role of a young woman who enters a yeshiva disguised as a man in order to study Talmud, Streisand said she was pleased that women could now “pursue Jewish studies without having to disguise themselves as men.”
The film, which she directed, produced, and co-wrote, had its Israeli premiere in 1984 under the sponsorship of the Israel Friends of The Hebrew University. Streisand visited Israel for the dedication and film premiere accompanied by a delegation from the West Coast chapter of American Friends of The Hebrew University (AFHU).
During 2011, Streisand appeared in a program on behalf of the welfare of soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces; the event raised $12 million and brought attention to a vital cause.
Streisand’s multi-dimensional career has kept her at the forefront of the entertainment industry for decades. Born to a Jewish family in Brooklyn in 1942, she lost her father when she was just a child. While still in her teens, the Erasmus High School honors student launched her career as a singer by initially winning a singing contest.
At age 19, Streisand had her Broadway debut, and in 1962, made her debut album, which quickly became the top-selling record by a female vocalist in the United States.
By age 28, she had already earned five of the entertainment industry’s most prestigious awards: the Grammy, Oscar, Tony, Emmy and Golden Globe, making her an icon of American culture and an international favorite. Among her myriad accolades, she received an Oscar for Best Actress (“Funny Girl,” 1968), and for composing the music for Best Original Song (“Evergreen,” 1976).
Civic activism, philanthropic leadership
During her career, she has been honored by the Directors Guild of America and received the National Medal of Arts from President Bill Clinton, the Peabody Award, the American Film Institute’s Lifetime Achievement Award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award for Lifetime Achievement and Kennedy Center Honors.
The internationally recognized artist received France’s Legion of Honor from President Nicolas Sarkozy. Additionally, Streisand is an author and photographer known for her critically acclaimed book, “My Passion for Design.”
Streisand has been long admired for her civic activism and philanthropic leadership. Her commitment is reflected in the work of The Streisand Foundation, which is dedicated to fostering women’s equality and health, protecting human and civil rights, advancing the needs of at-risk children in society and preserving the environment.
Often donating the proceeds from her performances on behalf of important causes, Streisand has been a leading spokesperson and fund-raiser for AIDS research and treatment; she received the 1992 Commitment to Life Award from the AIDS Project Los Angeles.
In 1989, she established a chair in Environmental Science at the Environmental Defense Fund, with a focus on global climate change, and later funded the participation of the organization’s top scientists at the Global Warming World Summit in Kyoto.
She was also a leading contributor to the William Jefferson Clinton Climate Change Initiative. Streisand has been a driving force behind the Women’s Heart Center at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, which renamed the center in her honor, The Barbra Streisand Women’s Heart Center.
Streisand holds an Honorary Doctorate in Arts and Humanities from Brandeis University (1995). A forceful advocate for social justice, she received The Humanitarian Award from the Human Rights Campaign and was awarded the ACLU Bill of Rights Award from the American Civil Liberties Union for her defense of US constitutional rights.
Bron: Ynet
Israeli water management tech wins top award
WhiteWater Technology wins plaudits from clean energy analyst company
Network water management consists of installing sensors to collect data on usage, leaks, and other problems in pipes, water sources, and end user connections.
The company was honored for its BlueBox Intelligent Water Analytics System, which collects, validates, and synchronizes continuous data from online water quality sensors, network diagnostic sensors, valves and control systems. It enables early detection of highly sensitive water quality abnormalities and insights on network events in the distribution system.
Israel is renowned for its innovative water technologies, from drip irrigation to developing techniques that allows farmers to plant crops in arid land.
A part of the Bloomberg financial data empire, BNEF providesinformation on financial, economic and policy analysis in industries and markets for wind, solar, bioenergy, geothermal, hydro and marine, gas and nuclear energies, carbon capture and storage, and much more.
Receiving of an award from BNEF is an important landmark for WhiteWater, said CEO Issey Ende. “It is truly an honor to have been selected by such an esteemed panel of experts,” Ende said. “Our mission has been and continues to be to enable operational efficiency gains in the water sector by improving decision making through analytics and optimization, system integration, and workflow management.”
The BlueBox system is, BNEF said, the most comprehensive water data collection and management system around. The tool uses advanced statistical algorithms to enable production teams to optimize disinfection programs, coagulant use, and improve filter and energy performance through decision support, helping utilities understand how operational changes, consumption patterns and aging infrastructure, WhiteWater said.
This year’s winners represent a broad range of sectors including bioenergy, energy efficiency, digital energy, solar and water. By rewarding game-changing innovators, Bloomberg New Energy Finance hopes to highlight the speed of change in the sectors it serves, the organization said.
The awards program is now in its fourth year. This year the independent panel of industry experts selected the winners from more than 200 candidates from around the world. WhiteWater’s award marks the third time in a row that an Israeli company has been honored.
Bron: Times of Israel
Endemol lanceert Endemol Israël
Endemol heeft een meerderheidsbelang genomen in het Israëlische productiebedrijf Kupermann. Het bedrijf, dat al de lokale versie van Big Brother produceert, gaat verder onder de naam Endemol Israël.
Mede-eigenaar Elad Kupermann blijft aan als CEO van de nieuwe vestiging van Endemol, meldt The Hollywood Reporter. Het bedrijf krijgt toegang tot de wereldwijde rechtenportefeuille van Endemol en blijft internationale formats voor de Israëlische markt produceren, naast het ontwikkelen van nieuwe programma’s.
‘Met de lancering van Endemol Israël vestigen we ons in een van ‘s werelds meest creatieve markten’, zegt Just Spee, CEO van Endemol Group. ‘Het aantal vernieuwende formats uit deze regio blijft groeien en het is een fantastische kansdat die content nu beschikbaar is voor onze klanten in de rest van de wereld.’
Bron: Volkskrant
Israeli Breakfasts – Don’t Skip that Morning Meal
Israel is famous for its breakfast. This fresh and colourful morning meal served at Israeli hotels and vacation destinations includes: an assortment of salads, cheeses, herrings, fruit and breads to start. It might possibly be the reason that Israel was ranked 6thby Bloomberg Rankings of the World’s healthiest countries in May 2012.
Israelis know how to start their morning right.
Are you trying to lose weight by skipping breakfast each day? Do you grab coffees a few times throughout your day rushing to just keep going? Do you find yourself binging at supper and well into the evening?
This is not the ideal weight loss plan. Skipping breakfast must mean that the body’s need and craving for food is ignored. A cycle of binge eating sabotages all efforts at staying nutritionally balanced. Many people overeat in the evenings because they are beyond hungry. Good intentions and weight loss goals can’t be met under these erratic conditions.
The first step to successful weight loss is eating a healthy breakfast. Many studies show that this meal lays the foundation for lifelong health benefits such as lowering cholesterol, improving sugar numbers and possibly preventing heart disease. Breakfast feeds the brain the nutrients it needs for learning, problem solving and improving short term memory while ensuring you feel more energized.
Going without breakfast may mean eating more throughout the day. And finally breakfast eaters consume more nutrients such as calcium and potassium than non breakfast eaters.
A healthful breakfast could consist of eggs, vegetables, fruit and a wholesome grain. You might enjoy a smoothie made with plain yogurt, berries and some ground flax seeds and chia. Leftover brown rice and steamed vegetables make a perfect breakfast. Mix up your breakfast choices to prevent boredom and falling back on old habits.
The possibilities for a creative start to your day are endless. So enjoy your tasty beginnings knowing that you are doing your body a great favour.
Bron: Israel National News
Jerusalem Innovative Tourism Summit 2013 opens in Israel
Jerusalem International Convention Center will host the event
Delegates have begun arriving at the Jerusalem Innovative Tourism Summit 2013, taking place today at the Jerusalem International Convention Center.
The event is expected to attract travel industry leaders and innovators in the travel technology sector from around the world.
Summit 2013 will focus on cutting edge technology and its impact on the tourism industry as well as on the development of urban tourism.
This groundbreaking Summit is being hosted by the Jerusalem Municipality, in cooperation with The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, The Prime Minister’s Office, The Ministry of Tourism, The Jerusalem International Convention Center and the Jerusalem Development Authority.
Nir Barkat, mayor of Jerusalem, noted: “Jerusalem is proud to continue the tradition of hosting the annual Jerusalem Innovative Tourism Summit, and 2013 will be the third.
“As a world leader in innovation and tourism, Jerusalem has broken numerous records for the number of foreign and domestic tourists arriving to the city.
“It is therefore most befitting for Jerusalem to host key figures in the tourism industry from around the globe and locally, as well as to present the next game-changing technological advancements that will impact the travel industry.”
Speakers will include a powerful and diverse cross section of industry leaders including Sheldon Adelson, world renowned hotelier and business magnate, and chief executive of the Las Vegas Sands Corporation; Michael Leven, president, Las Vegas Sands Corporation; Dirk Glaesser, director of the Sustainable Development Program, World Tourism Organisation; and key government tourism officials from leading tourism destinations such as Thailand, Korea, and Spain.
Also in attendance will be urban tourism experts, architects and technology innovators, including leading pioneers in the digital travel space, Expedia and TripAdvisor.
The Summit will also offer an exciting glimpse into the world of application technologies, their importance and use in expanding urban tourism.
Global leaders, academics and experts in the field of hospitality will conduct panels discussing a wide range of subjects within the tourism industry in addition to a special panel focusing on technology in tourism including tourism-related apps.
Bron: Breaking Travel News
Israel’s Tourism Is Booming, And For Good Reason
View of the sea from Mount Carmel: Haifa, Israel
Israel’s tourism is breaking records, with international travel at an all time high. As the nation nears its 65th Anniversary on May 14th, travelers are flocking to Israel to celebrate the birth of the nation.
Visitors have said that Israel has a strong ‘magnetic pull’; I never understood what this meant until I experienced it myself. On my first day in Israel, after wandering around Tel Aviv for about five hours, I had already found myself completely enamored with everything in front of me. This country sends out a vibration that everyone seems to feel. Maybe it’s the holiness, the history, or the unusual, mysterious beauty; whichever way you look at it, Israel is a destination that simply cannot be missed.
A tiny yet immensely powerful country, Israel measures 263 miles (424 km) from north to south, 71 miles (114 km) east to west and a mere 9.3 miles across (15 km) at its narrowest point. Because of Israel’s size, travelers can rent a car and really see it all – the country is an ideal destination for a two-week vacation crunch.
Tourism in the region is unbelievably dynamic and it pulls in every sort of traveler: those seeking adventure, religious sites, beach resorts and heritage or archaeological tourism. Moreover, Israel has more museums per capita than anywhere else in the world. From the blue seas of Tel Aviv, to the hills and valleys of Mount Carmel, to the faith-based sites in the Holy City, Jerusalem, any length of time spent there is an enthralling adventure.
In spite of fears about safety ignited by the Arab Spring and the ongoing political conflicts that overwhelm the region, Israel remains to be one of travel’s top contenders. Their tourism in 2012 was record breaking: the nation saw the arrival of 3.5 million travelers, a 5% increase compared to 2011. Cruising to Israel proved to be a popular choice, with the arrival of 251,000 travelers by sea, a 6% increase compared to 2011. Israel has experienced a “steady increase” over the last few years; they hope to see five million travelers by 2015.
“We are thrilled to have seen a steady increase in tourism to Israel over the last few years,” said Haim Gutin, Israel Commissioner for Tourism, North and South America, “and we hope to carry this momentum through 2013 and continue to strengthen Israel’s image as one of the world’s most dynamic and unique travel destinations.”
Throughout my three week-long stay, I realized there is no place in the world quite like it. The rich, distinctive culture percolates to every corner of this country, and the longing to return is, just as expected, magnetic. Israel is an unparalleled, matchless and entirely transcendent experience.
My experience was part of an all-expenses paid trip, courtesy of the Israel Ministry of Tourism.
Bron: Forbes
From Hula Valley to the Negev: Israeli wildlife’s limited freedom of movement
A main point of focus this year will be on the conservation of nature amid density roads, fences and various barriers. In recent years infrastructure planning authorities have finally stopped ignoring this problem, but solutions to grant continuity of natural surroundings are still a long way off.
Earth Day events are being held on Monday in Israel and throughout the world to demonstrate support for environmental protection. In Israel one of the main points of focus will be on the conservation of nature in a country dense with roads, fences and various barriers. Wild animals suffer most from this density, which limits their movements. In recent years infrastructure planning authorities have finally stopped ignoring this problem, but solutions that will grant the continuity of natural surroundings are still a long way off.
According to observations by Nature and Parks Authority officials, many wild animals, including those declared protected species are run over by cars every day. In recent years several lutras − one of the most unique and endangered species − have been run over in the Hula Valley area. Observations carried out on several Negev roads in 2009-2011 revealed that some 700 animals were run over, including 30 different species of mammals, some of which are endangered. Further observations in Upper Galilee revealed that more than 800 orange salamanders − yet another seriously endangered species − were run over within a year.
Until a decade ago, planning officials viewed these cases as an unavoidable price of development. This attitude changed only when the Nature and Parks Authority published a policy paper defining areas outside nature reserves as “ecological corridors” necessary for wild animals and plants. A main conclusion of the paper was that such corridors should be created and maintained, thus reducing the number of barriers.
In recent years the construction of the West Bank separation barrier was completed, almost completely blocking the main ecological corridor connecting the Carmel and Samaria mountains in the north with the Judea Mountains and Negev in the south. Furthermore, the use of fences surrounding agricultural areas has also intensified, as well as the construction of the Trans-Israel Highway and the development of rail lines.
“The massive use of fences and the improvement of their efficiency in halting the passing of wild animals and humans create a growing problem of separation and isolation of wildlife populations on either side of these fences,” wrote ecologist Professor Yoram Yom Tov of Tel Aviv University in an article published in Ecology & Environment − the Journal for Science and Environmental Policy. “Most fences used to be no more than some iron lines aimed at preventing the entrance of cows. Today’s fences prevent the passing of anything larger than a hare. This might create the existence of small, isolated populations of animals, reduce their genetic diversity and eventually endanger their existence. The problem is becoming more severe since in many cases there is no need for a permit from the local authority to build a fence, and the army and farmers may build fences without taking into consideration the damage caused to nature or to the public’s freedom of movement.”
Abroad, especially in Europe, the need to create corridors for animals and travelers has already become the norm among planning authorities. In some areas in Hollandand Belgium, for instance, special corridors have been constructed for deer and special tunnels for badgers. But the awareness of this approach is relatively new in Israel, and comes mainly as a result of pressure from green organizations.
The precedent was forged when a first ecological corridor was constructed at the Dalya stream area of the Trans-Israel Highway. According to observations, this corridor is used by gazelles. More recently Netivei Yisrael, the government agency in charge of road constructions, decided to build another corridor as part of the project to enlarge Route 1 in the area between Sha’ar Hagai and Jerusalem. When completed, this will create the first opportunity that wild animals have had to move freely and safely from one side of the Jerusalem hills to the other.
Six months ago, Netivei Yisrael and the Trans-Israel Highway company published a detailed document titled “Fragmentation of Habitats by Transport Infrastructures − a Guide for Conflicts and Planning Solutions,” the first time an agency building infrastructures produced a guide to assist planners to decrease the damage to nature.
“There can be no doubt that in the last decade we’ve made progress and finally people admit there is a problem with transport infrastructure that causes fragmentation,” says the guide’s author, ecologist Tamar Ahiron-Promkin. “Still, as far as environment protection goes, we’re trailing by a decade or more in comparison to other countries. There still aren’t enough professionals, and there isn’t enough coordination between the various authorities that will enable the corridors to be managed after they are constructed. Having the construction company build a corridor just isn’t enough. One must later monitor the plants and examine the human presence in the area. There are many authorities and factors, and there’s still the need to find someone who will coordinate between their activities.”
Vineyard fences expanding
One such example of the need for coordination can be found in the Dalya Stream corridor. The area was declared by UNESCO as a “Biosphere Area,” following the initiative of the Megiddo Regional Council. Still, the same council has recently begun planning a huge water reservoir in the area for local farmers, not far from the ecological corridor. The Nature and Parks Authority have voiced their opposition to the current plans forcing the regional council to freeze plans and examine other locations for the reservoir.
While progress is being made in some areas, the dangers of fragmentation caused by fences are increasing. Apart from the separation barrier that might block what is left of the ecological corridor southwest of Jerusalem, new fences constructed around vineyards pose severe problems. “There is an urgent need to map the fenced areas in Israel as to their length and quality,” wrote Yom Tov. “I propose that the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel, the Nature and Parks Authority and the Environmental Protection Ministry cooperate in producing a map of fenced areas in Israel, which will supply data as to their length, placing and the width of areas for the passing of animals between the fences.”
Lately the SPNI documented many fences being constructed in vineyards in the Jerusalem area. In the area of Kibbutz Kiryat Anavim, the organization cooperated with animal rights group Let the Animals Live against the construction of fences that blocked the passing of gazelles, and managed to persuade soft drinks company Tempo (which owns wine production companies) to remove several of the fences, but the struggle is far from over. While gazelles might pass above Route 1 thanks to the crossing, they will immediately run into other vineyard fences limiting their movement and assigning them to a state of ecological siege.
“The development of industrial agriculture in the Judean hills area is a serious threat to nature and bio-diversity,” says Avraham Shaked, the area’s coordinator on behalf of the SPNI. “The situation is deteriorating daily.”
Bron: Haaretz
Israeli scientists discover why soft corals have unique pulsating motion
Jerusalem, April 23, 2013 — Scientists from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology have discovered whyHeteroxenia corals pulsate. Their work, which resolves an old scientific mystery, appears in the current issue of PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in the US).
One of the most fascinating and spectacular sights in the coral reef of Eilat is the perpetual motion of the tentacles of a coralcalled Heteroxenia(Heteroxenia fuscescens). Heteroxenia is a soft coral from the family Xeniidae, which looks like a small bunch of flowers, settled in the reef walls and on rocky areas on the bottom of the reef. Each “flower” is actually a living polyp, the basic unit which comprises a coral colony. Apparently, the motion of these polyps, resembling flowers that are elegantly spreading out and closing up their petals, is unique in the animal kingdom.
Except for the familiar swimming motion of jellyfish, no other bottom-attached aquatic animal is known to perform such motions. Pulsation is energetically costly, and hence there must be a reasonable benefit to justify this motion.
The perpetual motions of jellyfish serve them for swimming, predation and feeding. The natural explanation would be that that the Heteroxenia‘s spectacular motions are used for predation and feeding, however several studies indicate that these corals do not predate on other animals at all. If predation is not the reason for pulsating, there must be another explanation to justify the substantial energetic expense by the Heteroxenia.
Maya Kremien found the answers to these questions, while working on her master’s research at the Interuniversity institute for Marine Sciences in Eilat under the supervision of Prof. Amatzia Genin from the Hebrew University and Prof. Uri Shavit from the Technion in a joint research funded by the National Science Foundation.
After watching several coral colonies with an underwater infrared-sensitive camera night and day, the researchers found their first surprising discovery: Heteroxenia corals cease to pulsate and take a half-hour break every single day in the afternoon hours. At this stage, the afternoon “siestas” remained unexplained.
The labs of Prof. Genin and Prof. Shavit conduct work on the interaction between biological processes of aquatic creatures and the water motions which surround them. Apparently aquatic animals affect the flow and at the same time are absolutely dependent on that flow. In order to solve the mystery of the Heteroxenia coral, the research team developed (as part of Ph.D. work by Tali Mass) an underwater measuring device called PIV (particle imaging velocimetry), which allows measurement of the flow field just around the coral very accurately. The system consists of two powerful lasers, an image capturing system and computation ability. A special set of lenses releases a sheet of light in short, powerful pulses so that the imaging system can capture pairs of snapshots of natural particles moving with the flow. The computational system then performs a mathematical analysis of the pairs of photos, producing a huge database of flow field maps, from which the flow speed, characteristics of solutes transport, and turbulent mixing intensity are calculated.
The measurements were performed at night with the support of divers who volunteered to assist the research team. It was found that if a diver lightly touched the coral, the polyps “close” and remain motionless for a few minutes, after which the coral returns to its normal pulsation activity. The researchers used this behavior in order to repeatedly measure the flow field around the Heteroxenia during pulsation and rest.
These measurements led to the research group’s next discovery. Analysis of the direction of water flow indicated that the motion of the polyps effectively sweeps water up and away from the coral tissues into the ambient water. Corals need carbon-dioxide during daytime and oxygen during nighttime, as well as nutrients (such as phosphate and nitrogen) during day and night. One of the challenges for coral colonies is to render their surrounding waters rich in essential commodities by efficiently mixing the water around them.
By using the sophisticated measuring system, the researchers calculated the mixing intensity of the water as a result of the coral’s pulsation. The unexpected discovery was that even though the polyps’ motions are uncoordinated (i.e. each polyp starts its period of motion at a different time), the accumulated effect of the polyps’ activity is a significant enhancement of the flow around the colony, particularly in the upward direction which sweeps water away from the coral, hence reducing the probability of re-filtration of the same water.
However, these findings still did not yet answer the question of why a coral would invest so much energy to move its tentacles. After receiving a permit from the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, the research team collected a few Heteroxenia colonies from the sea in order to run a series of laboratory experiments. All corals were returned back to their original location after the experiment terminated. The Hypothesis was that the pulsation motions enhance the coral’s photosynthesis rate.
Corals are among the most ancient creatures surviving on our planet. One of the “secrets” of their amazing survival abilities is that they “host” photosynthetic algae in their tissues. The symbiotic algae provides the coral with essential nutrients and lives off the waste of the coral.
In a previous study of the same research team (which the results of were also published in PNAS) it was found that the motion of water around corals is essential in order to enhance the efflux of oxygen from the coral tissues. Without water motion, the oxygen concentration in the coral tissues would rise and the photosynthesis rate would drop.
The answer to the question as to why the Heteroxenia pulsates was finally revealed through the lab experiments. First, the photosynthesis rate of a pulsating Heteroxenia was measured, and it was found to be on an order of magnitude higher than that of a non-pulsating colony. Next, in order to prove that the mechanism of pulsation is intended to sweep away oxygen, the researchers artificially increased the oxygen concentration in the measurement chamber so that even when the coral managed to mix water via pulsation, it was replacing oxygen-rich water with new water, which, unfortunately for the coral , was also rich in oxygen. And indeed it was found that the photosynthesis rate was low in this case, and even when the coral was constantly pulsating, the oxygen concentration remained high and photosynthesis remained low, as if the coral was at rest (i.e. not pulsating).
The elegant motion of Heteroxenia has been fascinating the scientific society and capturing the attention of researchers for nearly 200 years (Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, 1744-1829), yet it has not been explained. Now, in the study of Kremien, Genin and Shavit, it was found that the pulsation motions augment a significant enhancement in the binding of carbon dioxide to the photosynthetic enzyme RuBisCo, also leading to a decrease in photorespiration. This explanation justifies the investment of energy in pulsation — the benefit overcomes the cost. In fact, thanks to pulsation, the ratio between photosynthesis to respiration in Heteroxenia is the highest ever measured in stony and non-pulsating soft corals.
The findings of this study indicate that pulsation motions are a highly efficient means for sweeping away water from the pulsating body, and for an increased mixing of dissolved matter between the body and the surrounding medium. These two processes (expulsion of medium and mixing of solutes) may lead to future applications in engineering and medicine. Currently the research group is focusing on attempts to broaden the results of this study and on developing mathematical models which could serve various applicative purposes.
Bron: Eurekalert
Report: Israel covering up major biblical archeology find
Israel’s Makor Rishon Hebrew daily reported at the weekend that a major biblical archeology find in the Judean hills south of Jerusalem is apparently being covered up by the government.
Last week, a member of the Kfar Etzion Field School in the Eztion Bloc of Jewish communities stumbled across an ancient ornate pillar as he descended into a cave in the Judean hills.
The pillar and its attached capital clearly belonged to a royal structure, and local archaeologists said it certainly dated back to the times of the Judean kings, if not David himself.
The undisturbed nature of the find suggested that a large part of the ancient palace was probably buried intact beneath where the pillar was found.
“We appear to have a complete castle here,” Kfar Etzion Field School Director Yaron Rosental told the newspaper. “Those who lived here after it did not know of its existence and thus, instead of using its stones to build a new building as was the usual practice, left it intact.”
But, when Rosental contacted Israel’s Antiquities Authority, he was harshly rebuffed and told to “keep [his] mouth shut” about the find.
The Antiquities Authority later confirmed to Makor Rishon that the find exists, and had actually been first discovered last year, but that present political sensitivities prevent archaeologist from exploring the site at this time.
It was pointed out that the find is located in territory claimed by the Palestinian Authority. Uncovering a major and even unprecedented archaeological site that solidifies the ancient Jewish presence in and control of these lands could upset the peace process.
Bron: Israel Today
Israeli economy, stable during global crisis, could be disturbed by budget deficit
While the Israeli economy has managed to steadily weather the global financial crisis of recent years, a growing budget deficit now threatens to disturb the relative economic stability of the past several years.
Freshman Knesset Member and newly minted Finance Minister Yair Lapid must now attempt to raise government revenues by increasing taxes and slashing expenditures in order to close sizeable gaps in the 2013 budget.
The uncomfortable measures, and remaining budget shortfalls, leave many worrying about the state of the economy, just months before economic oracle Stanley Fischer leaves his post as longtime governor of the Bank of Israel.
“The state of the economy is good certainly as compared to other advanced economies,” Edward Offenbacher, Director of Monetary/Finance Division of the Bank of Israel’s Research Department, told JNS.org.
Offenbacher has worked at the bank for more than 30 years, following a stint at the U.S. Federal Reserve.
“We’re not growing as fast as we were in the period of 2004 to 2010,” he said. “But we’re doing as well as could be expected based on the circumstances in the world. By and large, our situation is better than in almost all comparable countries.”
According to Offenbacher, there are two major components to the Israeli government’s budget deficit. The first is that the amounts of tax revenues the government collected in 2012 were significantly lower than initially forecasted.
The second component is that the 2013 budget has significant increases in expenditures, including commitments to increase wages for teachers and doctors. Additional expenditures were made based on the recommendations of the Trachtenberg committee which attempted to ease economic burdens on young working couples, following the social protests of the summer of 2011.
“The government made a lot of commitments for expenditures which were undertaken without considering the overall budget implications. Plus, in the defense ministry there were some overruns. So the expenditures were higher than planned,” Offenbacher said.
In order to balance the budget, Lapid has started warning the public to prepare for a number of cuts that will need to be adopted. Several pundits have referred to the cuts as “austerity measures.”
Yet according to Offenbacher, the word austerity may be inappropriate as the situation in Israel is not nearly as alarming as the financial crises currently plaguing many countries in Europe.
“The magnitude of the measures needed to bring the budget back into proportion are far less than we’ve heard about in European countries, like Ireland or Greece,” Offenbacher said.
Lapid is scheduled to meet with Fischer in the coming days to discuss his plan to balance the budget. It is being reported that in addition to sweeping cuts and planned tax increases, Lapid will seek Fischer’s support to loosen the budget constraints placed on the government, by easing a “fiscal rule” that directly links government expenditures and debt to projected economic growth.
In other words, Lapid may attempt to pass a budget with a deficit that is larger than the government has previously agreed upon—a step that may make it even more difficult to close the gap in the years ahead. Carrying a larger debt burden could hurt Israel’s overall economic standing.
Offenbacher explained that this fiscal rule—adopted to curtail government debt relative to the economy—has gained Israel “tremendous credibility and admiration within the investment community.”
Violating its own budgetary policy by acting against the fiscal rule could send signals of irresponsibility to foreign investors and affect Israel’s standing with major ratings agencies.
“Israel’s central bank has a formal role as an advisor to the government on economic issues including the budget,” said Offenbacher. “But ultimately, the authority over the budget rests with the Finance Ministry.”
In addition to the budget gap, the Israeli economy is being challenged by growing income inequality—an issue that has been receiving agreat deal of public attention. Salaries for members of Israel’s upper class are grossly out of proportion with those of poor, and even with the salaries of middle class families.
“There is no consensus on how income inequality affects a nation’s overall growth, or inflation,” Offenbacher said. “But there is a growing sense that in terms of economic efficiency and economic performance that income inequality doesn’t help. There is also a feeling, in my own opinion, that there is an issue of justice with the great disparity in incomes.
“The question is whether the middle class is paying too much of the burden,” he said.
One of the reported measures Lapid is now considering to balance the budget is a reduction in the per-child allowances the government pays out monthly to families. Many in Israel have come to rely on these meager but steady allowances to help pay for recurring expenses such as food and diapers. Slashing the allowance is likely to be unpopular particularly with those that need it most—the poorest sectors of Israel’s society.
“Almost every tax system makes some kind of allowance for dependents in a family,” said Offenbacher, who explained that the concept of the child allowance is somewhat similar to the personal deductions in the U.S. tax code for each dependent.
“The question is: If you are going to cut child allowances, what are you going to do instead?” he said.
Lapid may have an even more difficult time balancing the budget and dealing with the social fallout of so-called austerity measures without the guiding hand of Fischer, who is scheduled to leave his post in less than three months.
Fischer is widely credited with steering Israel safely through the global financial meltdown of 2008 and 2009, an effort that has placed Israel in relatively stable economic standing compared to other advanced economies.
According to Offenbacher, “I had the good fortune to be majorly involved, and my own personal opinion is that Stanley Fischer pulled off a masterly performance.”
While Fischer “anticipated the collapse of the global economy,” Offenbacher said, unforeseen challenges will face the next Bank of Israel governor—whose identity is yet another unknown.
“By and large, given Israel’s record in the past crisis, and given the fact that our banking system has been very well supervised, Israel has been ahead of the curve,” Offenbacher said.
“Solid management of the Israeli economy, as well as good management within Israel’s business sectors including in hi-tech has put Israel in at least as good a position as any other economy to deal with its long-term issues, and that is reflected in the good ratings that Israel has secured, and the foreign investments we have received,” he added.
Bron: JNS.org
Jerusalem Real Estate brings American Jews to Israel
Jerusalem real estate project encourages American Jews to move to Israel.
A new Jerusalem real estate project is being marketed to American Jews. Businessman Gidon Katz told Arutz Sheva that in the long term, such projects help to bring more Jews to Israel.
He explained why he disagrees with those who say that high-end housing projects geared toward the well-to-do mean less affordable housing for young couples.
Bron: Israel National News
Hotelier: Israel’s Open Skies agreement will increase tourism
With the end of the Israeli airlines strike and the finalization of the Open Skies agreement with the EU, Alex Herman, Inbal Hotel VP ofSales & Marketing says: “We welcome the ending of the strike and the return of the tourism industry back to normal.”
“The Open Skies agreement with the EU is expected to bring a significant increase of incoming tourism from Europe in all categories and specifically in those categories of the premium and short-term vacations, that attract tourists who choose to stay in luxury hotels such as the Inbal.”, said Herman.
“Visiting Israel will become much easier for visitors with all budgets coming for short weekend vacations, as well as business travelers. We expect a major increase in the demand for brief stays of 3-4 nights. New direct flight lines from EU countries to Israel are expected to be established, enabling more businessmen to conveniently fly to Israel.”
Bron: Etravel Black Board
Digging Deep Into the Collective Kitchens of Israel
‘Chadar Ochel’ Cookbook Captures the Tastes of Kibbutz Life
A recipe book collected from the now-silent dining rooms of Israel’s kibbutzim sounds like a bad joke, a snide swipe at a relic of the old Israel from a couple of Tel Aviv hipsters. This book’s recipe for French Fried Potato Quiche and references to rubber chicken would fit right in. Yet Assi Haim and Ofer Vardi’s new cookbook “Chadar Ochel,” meaning “dining hall,” is anything but.
With the warmth and affection of people visiting familiar but distant relatives, the authors go in search of the Chadar Ochel, the communal dining room, the “beating heart” of the kibbutz, its physical and social center. They traveled the country, visiting dozens of kibbutzim, collecting hundreds of stories, photographs and close to 60 recipes. Their aim was not to compile another community cookbook, but rather to collect what they could still find of a now-fading institution, before it is too late.
In its heyday, before commercial caterers and differential wages came along, the dining room was the essential focal point of the kibbutz. Its long tables were one of the most iconic images of Israel, instantly recognizable at home and abroad.
The first permanent building in a new settlement, the dining room often dwarfed the modest members’ housing and the wide lawns that encircled them. According to Haifa University sociologist Oz Almog, the architecture of the dining room was a statement, a monument to the communal, modern and secular values of the kibbutz movement. It played multiple roles in the life of the community. Without any means of cooking at home, there was no alternative to eating together. It was also the arena in which communal dramas were played out. In the great Mapai-Mapam schism of the early 1950s over the extent of Israel’s pro-Soviet orientation, which eventually resulted in several kibbutzs physically splitting into two, rival groups ate in roped-off areas for fear of ideological contamination.
Against this background, the food itself might seem secondary. It was frugal, simple and with a strong influence of Ashkenazi culture, notes Israeli celebrity chef Jonathan Roshfeld, who grew up on Kibbutz Ruhama in the Negev. There wasn’t much for the Moroccans, the Algerians or the Tunisians to enjoy in the early years, he added. In those years, food was scarce in any case, although today’s enormous “Israeli breakfast” of salads, cheeses and eggs are typical of breakfasts offered in kibbutzim from the 1950s where access to locally grown produce ensured better food than that of city-dwellers whose consumption was rationed.
The book wisely steers clear of these staples, though, and finds some of the more unusual dishes and the stories behind them, which livened up the otherwise mundane cuisine. In the collective environment of the kibbutz, they took the place of a grandmother’s or mother’s famed recipe for brisket or birthday cake. Often, they were a taste of home for immigrants, or a link to the past.
Bron: Forward
How Israel’s first computer was built in a bike-repair shop
It took 18 months to construct, filled an entire hall and – once functional – became the site of pilgrimage.
In a glass case in the computer sciences building at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, stands a somewhat nondescript item. It’s an old-fashioned machine with lots of wires emerging from it, connecting it to receivers and other electronic components. Only a small sign in the corner reveals its significance.
Bron: Haaretz
From Rummikub to the ‘God Particle’: A timeline of Israeli innovations
While a great deal of international and media focus has been placed on Israel’s military conflicts, the country quietly has become an energetic, ambitious incubator of entrepreneurialism and invention. What follows is a timeline chronicling some of the most important and interesting innovations produced by Israelis during their country’s 65-year existence.
RUMMIKUB (1940s): Ephraim Hertzano invents the smash hit board game Rummikub, which goes on to become the best-selling game in the United States in 1977.
UZI MACHINE GUN (1948): Major Uzi Gal develops the Uzi submachine gun. Gaf builds in numerous mechanical innovations resulting in a shorter, more wieldy automatic. It is estimated that more than 10 million have been built; the Uzi has seen action in numerous wars and in countries throughout the world.
SUPER CUKE (1950s): Esra Galun’s research into hybrid seeds leads to his creation of the world’s first commercial hybrid cucumber. Their descendants and the techniques Galun pioneered account for the majority of cucumbers cultivated today. Galun went on to develop early-blooming melons and disease-resistant potatoes. His work continues to inform and influence crop genetics.
CANCER SCREENER (1954): Weizmann Institute pioneer Ephraim Frei begins groundbreaking research on the effect of magnetism on human tissue. His work will lead directly to the development of the T-Scan system for the detection of breast cancer, which the U.S. Food and Drug Administration described as a “significant … breakthrough.”
EARLY COMPUTER (1955): The Weizmann Institute’s WEIZAC computer performs its first calculation. With an initial memory of 1,024 words stored on a magnetic drum, it is one of the first large-scale stored program computers in the world. In 2006, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers recognizes WEIZAC as a milestone achievement in the fields of computers and electrical engineering.
SOLAR ENERGY BENCHMARK (1955): Harry Zvi Tabor develops a new solar energy system that today powers 95 percent of Israeli solar water heaters and is the standard for solar water heating around the world.
AMNIOCENTESIS (1956): Weizmann professor Leo Sachs becomes the first to examine cells drawn from amniotic fluid to diagnose potential genetic abnormalities or prenatal infections in developing fetuses. His work becomes known as amniocentesis, a routine procedure now conducted on pregnant women worldwide.
LAB-BRED BLOOD CELLS (1963): Sachs becomes the first researcher to grow normal human blood cells in a laboratory dish. This breakthrough leads to the development of a therapy that increases the production of crucial white blood cells in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.
DRIP IRRIGATION (1965): Founding of Netafim, developer and distributor of modern drip irrigation.
COLOR HOLOGRAM (1966): Asher Friesem produces the world’s first color hologram. He goes on to explore 3-D imaging through work that leads to the development of “heads up” displays for pilots, doctors and other virtual reality systems.
DESALINATION (1967): Sydney Loeb takes a position at Ben-Gurion University, where he will develop the reverse osmosis desalination process, now the worldwide standard.
ADVANCED CELLULAR RESEARCH (1970): Ada Yonath establishes the only protein crystallography laboratory in Israel. She begins a course of research on the structure and function of the ribosome, the sub-cellular component that produces protein, which in turn controls all chemistry within organisms. Her work lays a foundation for the emergence of so-called “rational drug design,” which produces treatments for several types of leukemia, glaucoma and HIV, as well as antipsychotic and antidepressant drugs. Along with two colleagues, Yonath is awarded the 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
BLOOD DETOXIFICATION (1972): Meir Wilchek demonstrates that “affinity chromatography” — a method he developed for separating biological or biochemical materials — can be used to detoxify human blood. The work leads to the development of present-day technologies, employed around the world, that are used to remove poison from a patient’s blood.
DRONE AIRCRAFT (1973): Israeli fighter jets sustain serious damage during the Yom Kippur War. In response, Israel initiates the development of the first modern Unmanned Aerial Vehicles – also known as UAVs or drones. The new Israeli drones are lighter, smaller and cheaper than any of their predecessors, with capacities such as real-time 360-degree video imaging, radar decoy capability and increased operating ceilings. Drones enable Israel to eliminate Syria’s air defenses at the start of the 1982 war with Lebanon without losing a single pilot. Drones descending today from Israeli designs conduct military, civilian, research and surveillance operations around the world.
COMPUTER PROCESSORS (1974): Computer heavyweight Intel sets up an R&D shop in Israel, leading to the development of the globally ubiquitous 8088 processor and Centrino chip.
COMPUTER SECURITY (1977): Adi Shamir, working with two American colleagues, describes a method of encryption. Now known as RSA, it is the single most important encryption method used worldwide to secure transactions between customers and banks, credit card companies and Internet merchants.
DIGITAL AGE INFORMATION SHARING (1977): Abraham Lempel and Jacob Ziv develop the LZ data compression algorithms. Aside from their trailblazing academic applications, the algorithms become the primary basis of early computer information sharing. Today, LZ algorithms and their derivatives make possible our ability to send many types of photos and images between computers quickly and easily.
FARM-SCALE FOOD STORAGE (1980s): Shlomo Navarro invents a simple yet paradigm-shifting food storage system intended to help farmers in developing food-poor and resource-poor areas to keep their crops from spoiling after harvest. The system evolves into GrainPro Cocoons, water- and air-tight containers used around the world to prevent the damaging effects of spoilage and parasites without the use of pesticides.
LEUKEMIA TREATMENT (1981): Elli Canaani joins the Weizmann Institute. His research into the molecular processes leading to chronic myelogenous leukemia, or CML, will result in the development of Gleevec, a drug now provided to CML patients around the world. The molecular processes discovered by Canaani were subsequently discovered to be at work in other leukemias, as well as certain tumors and lymphomas.
UNDERSTANDING CELLULAR ACTIVITY (1981): Avram Hershko and Aaron Ciechanover — along with American counterpart Irwin Rose — begin work that will lead to the discovery of ubiquitin, a molecular “label” that governs the destruction of protein in cells. The discovery produces a dramatic improvement in the understanding of cellular function and the processes that bring about ailments such as cervical cancer and cystic fibrosis. In recognition of their work, the team receives the 2004 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
A NEW FORM OF MATTER (1982): Israeli scientist Daniel Shechtman discovers Quasicrystals, a “new” form of matter that had been considered not only nonexistent but impossible. Shechtman becomes the object of disdain and ridicule, but his discovery eventually is vindicated and earns him the 2011 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Applications of Quasicrystals range from the mundane (nonstick cookware) to the arcane (superconductive and superinsulative industrial materials).
COMPUTER “LANGUAGE” (1986): Computer scientist David Harel develops Statecharts, a revolutionary computer language used to describe and design complex systems. Statecharts are used worldwide in areas from aviation to chemistry. Harel’s work is also being applied to the analysis of the genetic structures of living creatures with hopes of applying subsequent discoveries to the analysis and treatment of disease, infection and other biological processes.
IMMUNOLOGY ADVANCEMENT (1991): Weizmann Institute professor Yair Reisner announces the creation of mice with fully functioning human immune systems. Described from an immunological perspective as “humans with fur,” the mice provide for the first time a real-world arena in which to study human ailments and represent a major step forward in the search for a cure for AIDS, hepatitis A and B, and other infectious diseases.
BABY MONITOR (1991): Haim Shtalryd develops the BabySense crib monitor, which becomes standard child safety equipment in millions of homes worldwide.
OFFICE PRINTER (1993): Rehovot-based Indigo Inc. introduces the E-Print 1000. The device enables small operators to produce printing-press quality documents directly from a computer file, revolutionizing the operations of work environments of all stripes.
COMPUTER SECURITY (1993): Gil Shwed, 25, and two partners establish the computer security firm Check Point. Within two years, Check Point signs provider agreements with HP and Sun Microsystems. The company experiences phenomenal growth, and in 1996 it becomes the leading provider of firewall and security services — including anti-virus, anti-spam and anti-data-loss security components – to businesses of all sizes around the globe.
MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS TREATMENT (1996): Teva Pharmaceuticals introduces Copaxone, the only non-interferon multiple sclerosis treatment. The world’s top-selling MS treatment, Copaxone helps reduce relapses and may moderate the disease’s degenerative progression.
INSTANT MESSAGING (1996): Mirabilis launches ICQ, the first Internet-wide instant messaging system. America Online adopts the technology and popularizes the world of online chat.
COMPUTER DICTIONARY (1997): Introduction of the Babylon computer dictionary and translation program. Within three years the system will boast more than 4 million users. Babylon eventually becomes integrated into most user-level Microsoft programs, allowing for seamless cross-language translation of millions of words at the click of a mouse.
“PORTABLE” SLEEP LAB (1997): Itamar Medical Ltd. is founded, and soon brings to market its WatchPAT sleep lab, representing a paradigm shift in the treatment of sleep disorders.
PILLCAM (1998): Given Imaging develops the PillCam, now the global standard for imaging of the small bowel.
FIRST AID (1998): Bernard Bar-Natan makes the first sale of his Emergency Bandage. A giant leap forward in field dressings, it has become standard equipment in both civilian and military first aid kits worldwide.
NANOWIRE (1998): Researchers Uri Sivan, Erez Braun and Yoav Eichen report that they have used DNA to induce silver particles to assemble themselves into a “nanowire,” a metallic strand 1,000 times thinner than a human hair. In addition to staking out new ground on the frontier of electrical component miniaturization, the wire actually conducts electricity, marking the first time a self-assembling component has been made to function and laying a path to exponential advances in the field of nanotechnology.
VISION-BASED CAR SAFETY SYSTEMS (1999): Amnan Shashua and Ziv Aviram found MobilEye, a company that provides advanced optical systems to car manufacturers to increase safety and reduce traffic accidents.
FLASH DRIVE (2000): M-Systems introduces the flash drive in the United States. Smaller, faster and more reliable than floppy disks or CD-ROMs, they will go on to replace those technologies worldwide.
ADVANCED UNDERWATER BREATHING TECH (2001): Alon Bodner founds Like-A-Fish, a manufacturer of revolutionary underwater breathing apparatuses that extract oxygen from water.
GROUNDBREAKING SPINAL SURGERY SYSTEM (2001): Mazor Robotics is founded and goes on to introduce its SpineAssist robotic surgical assistant, the most advanced spine surgery robot in use today.
URBAN AIR COMBAT/RESCUE (2002): Rafi Yoeli develops the initial concept for the AirMule urban carrier, combat and rescue vehicle.
TERRORIST DETECTOR (2002): In the wake of renewed terrorist activity against Israel and the United States, Ehud Givon assembles a team of researchers to develop an advanced and foolproof “terrorist detector,” resulting in the WeCU security system.
MICRO-COMPUTER (2003): Weitzmann scientist Ehud Shapiro develops the world’s smallest DNA computing “machine,” a composition of enzymes and DNA molecules capable of performing mathematical calculations.
BREAST TUMOR IMAGING (2003): The FDA approves 3TP, an advanced MRI procedure, for use in the examination of breast tumors. The brainchild of Hadassa Degani, 3TP distinguishes between benign and malignant breast growths without requiring invasive surgery.
ANTI-BACTERIAL FABRICS (2003): Aharon Gedanken becomes involved in the treatment of fabrics to prevent bacterial growth, which eventually will lead him to develop the technology for treating hospital fabrics with an anti-bacterial “coating” that will dramatically reduce hospital infection rates.
CENTRINO COMPUTER CHIP (2004): Intel Israel releases the first generation of Centrino microprocessor. Centrino is Intel’s mobile computing cornerstone; it drives millions of laptop computers around the world. Successive generations of Centrino have improved laptops’ function, speed, battery life and wireless communication capabilities.
TUMOR IMAGING (2005): Insightec receives FDA approval for the ExAblate® 2000 system, the first to combine MRI imaging with high intensity focused ultrasound to visualize tumors in the body, treat them thermally and monitor a patient’s post-treatment recovery in real time, and non-invasively. Thousands of patients around the world have been treated.
LAB-GROWN HUMAN TISSUE (2005): Dr. Shulamit Levenberg publishes the results of her work in the development of human tissue. Working with mouse stem cells, Levenberg and her partner Robert Langer produce the first lab-generated human tissue that is not rejected by its host. Levenberg goes on to use human stem cells to create live, beating human heart tissue and the circulatory components needed to implant it in a human body.
WATER FROM THE AIR (2006): Researcher Etan Bar founds EWA Technologies Ltd. In 2008 he produces a clean, green system that “harvests” water from the humidity in the air. The technology represents a boon not only to residents of water-starved desert areas, but also to farmers and municipalities around the world. Each device has the potential to provide two average American families with their entire year’s supply of water without contributing to global warming or pollution.
PARKINSON’S TREATMENT (2006): The FDA approves AZILECT, a breakthrough treatment for Parkinson’s disease developed by John Finberg and Moussa Youdim. AZILECT dramatically slows the progression of Parkinson’s in newly diagnosed patients, increasing the longevity of body and brain function and improving the quality of life for millions worldwide.
BEE PRESERVATION (2007): Rehovot-based Beeologics is formed. The company is dedicated to the preservation of honeybees, which are under threat from Colony Collapse Disorder and vital to the world’s food supply.
AIRPORT SAFETY (2007): Boston’s Logan International Airport begins testing of a new runway debris detector developed by XSight Systems. XSight uses video and radar monitors to identify and track runway debris, which has been identified as the cause of several airline accidents, including the 2000 crash of a Concorde jet that killed 113 people. XSight has the potential to save upwards of $14 billion per year and an untold number of lives.
TRAUMA VICTIM STABILIZER (2007): Dr. Omri Lubovsky and his sister, mechanical engineer Michal Peleg-Lubovsky, introduce the LuboCollar, a device designed to stabilize trauma victims while maintaining an open airway. The device replaces the standard procedure of intubating trauma patients before transport, saving an average of five critical minutes between the field and the hospital.
HISTORICAL SOLAR ENERGY PROJECTS (2008): Brightsource Energy Inc. begins formalizing agreements with California power companies to develop the world’s two largest solar energy projects.
SEPSIS MONITOR (2008): Tel Aviv’s Cheetah Medical introduces the NICOM, a bedside hospital monitor that can detect and determine the treatment for sepsis, which occurs in approximately one in 1,000 U.S. hospital patients annually. Sepsis previously had been treatable only after an invasive exploratory treatment, which itself could result in sepsis. The device goes into immediate use by hundreds of hospitals around the world.
ADVANCED FISH FARM (2008): GFA Advanced Systems Ltd. launches Grow Fish Anywhere, a sustainable, enclosed and self-contained fish farming system that is not dependent on a water source and creates no polluting discharge.
A TWIST ON SOLAR ENERGY (2008): Yossi Fisher co-founds Solaris Synergy, a company that creates solar energy panel arrays that float on water.
TOUGH POTATO (2008): Hebrew University Professor David Levy caps 30 years of research with the development of a powerful strain of potato that can be grown in high heat and irrigated with salt water. He shares his findings — and discussions of where they might lead — with scientists from Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan and Morocco.
LUGGAGE LOCATOR (2009): Yossi Naftali founds Naftali Inc. and begins distributing the Easy-To-Pick Luggage Locator, a remote luggage tag that alerts travelers when their luggage has arrived at baggage claim.
ARTIFICIAL HAND (2009): Professor Yosi Shacham-Diamand and a team of Tel Aviv University researchers succeed in wiring a European-designed artificial hand to the arm of a human amputee. In addition to conducting complicated activities including handwriting, the human subject reports being able to feel his fingers. Achieving sensation represents the culmination of Shacham-Diamand’s work and a breakthrough in the evolution of artificial limbs.
WATER PURIFICATION (2010): Greeneng Solutions launches the first of its ozone-based water purification systems. Designed for commercial, industrial and domestic applications, Greeneng’s product line uses ozone-infused water to eliminate germs on kitchen equipment, household surfaces, swimming pools and more. Purifying with ozone is faster and more effective than the global-standard tap water additive chlorine, and ozone produces none of the harmful side effects of chlorine such as asthma and contaminated runoff.
VISION LOSS TREATMENT (2010): VisionCare Opthalmic Technologies debuts the CentraSight device, a telescopic implant that addresses age-related macular degeneration. CentraSight is the first and only treatment for AMD, a retinal condition that is the most common cause of blindness among “first-world” seniors.
MINIATURE VIDEO CAMERA (2011): Medigus Ltd. develops the world’s smallest video camera, measuring 0.99mm. The device provides for new diagnoses and treatments of several gastrointestinal disorders.
HELPING PARAPLEGICS WALK (2011): The FDA approves clinical use of ReWalk, a bionic exoskeleton developed by Argo Technologies that allows paraplegics to stand, walk and climb stairs.
BREAST TUMOR TREATMENT (2011): IceCure Medical launches the IceSense 3, a device that destroys benign breast tumors by infusing them with ice. The procedure is quick, painless, affordable and is conducted on an outpatient basis. Soon after, clinical trials begin to study the efficacy of the treatment on malignant breast tumors.
MISSILE DEFENSE (2011): Iron Dome, a short-range missile defense system developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, shoots down a Grad rocket fired at Israel from Gaza. It marks the first time that a short-range missile has been intercepted, opening up new possibilities for military, civil and border defense in the world’s conflict zones.
ENDANGERED SPECIES STEM CELLS (2012): Israeli scientist Inbar Friedrich Ben-Nun leads a team of researchers in producing the first stem cells from endangered rhinos and primates in captivity. The procedure holds the potential to improve the health of dwindling members of numerous endangered species, as well as staving off extinction.
DIABETES TREATMENT (2012): DiaPep277, a vaccine based on the work of Irun Cohen, is shown to significantly improve the condition of Type 1 (juvenile) diabetes in newly diagnosed patients.
HELPING THE BLIND TO “SEE” SOUNDS (2012): Dr. Amir Amedi and his team at Hebrew University demonstrate that sounds created by a Sensory Substitution Device (SSD) activate the visual cortex in the brains of congenitally blind people. MRIs of blind people using the device show that it causes the same brain responses of sighted people. This discovery allows the team to adapt the SSD to allow blind individuals to “see” their surroundings by learning to interpret audio signals visually.
FUTURISTIC FOOD PACKAGING (2012): Israeli computer engineer Daphna Nissenbaum creates a revolutionary, 100 percent biodegradable food packaging material. Her company, Tiva, produces materials for drink pouches, snack bars, yogurt and other foods – all of which provide a minimum of six months of shelf life, will completely decompose in a landfill, and can be composted industrially and domestically.
THE “GOD PARTICLE” (2012): Switzerland’s Large Hadron Collider produces the Holy Grail of physics – the Higgs Boson, or “God Particle,” a subatomic particle that accounts for the existence of matter and diversity in the universe. A team from Israel’s Technion was charged with building and monitoring the collider’s elementary particle detectors, without which the discovery of the Higgs Boson would have been impossible.
Bron: JUF News
W Hotels Worldwide to Enter Israel With W Tel Aviv – Jaffa and the Residences at W Tel Aviv – Jaffa
Landmark W Project will Bring Cutting-Edge W Lifestyle to the Revitalised and Historic Jaffa District when It Opens in 2015
TEL AVIV, Israel–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) today announced that it will debut the W brand in Israel in 2015 with the opening ofW Tel Aviv – Jaffa and The Residences at W Tel Aviv – Jaffa. Owned by Manhattan-based RFR Holding, the hotel will be set inside a historic 19th century heritage building in the revitalised ancient port neighbourhood of Jaffa. W Tel Aviv – Jaffa is being designed by acclaimed British architect John Pawson along with Ramy Gill Architects and Urban Designers, who has also designed the new Jaffa port.
“We are proud and excited to be working with Starwood on this expansion in Tel Aviv with this prestigious project”
“We are delighted to expand our relationship with RFR Holding, who also owns W South Beach Hotels & Residences, as we open the first W Hotel in Israel,” commented Roeland Vos, President, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Europe, Africa and Middle East. “Tel Aviv is one of the most stylish and cosmopolitan cities on the Mediterranean and we are excited to expand our footprint into Israel.”
“We are proud and excited to be working with Starwood on this expansion in Tel Aviv with this prestigious project,” added Aby Rosen, Co-Founder and Principal of RFR Holding. ”We believe that the W brand, with its exceptional reputation, will further cement Jaffa’s reputation as a unique world-class destination.”
W Tel Aviv – Jaffa will provide a cutting-edge lifestyle experience, featuring 125 stylish guest rooms and suites, including one Extreme WOW Suite (W’s interpretation of the Presidential Suite), as well as panoramic views of the Mediterranean coast.
The hotel will offer a signature restaurant, a destination bar and W Living Room (W’s take on the traditional hotel lobby). Other luxury leisure facilities include an Away Spa,SWEAT® state-of-the-art fitness, and a glamorous outdoor WET pool deck. Guests can also expect the W brand’s signature Whatever/Whenever® service philosophy, providing guests whatever they want, whenever they want it. The hotel will also offer a full-service, 24-hour WIRED business centre.
This project will also feature 38 W-branded Residences at W Tel Aviv – Jaffa, which will come with a private entrance. Featuring luxurious apartments ranging from 70 to 400 square metres, the six-storey Residences at W Tel Aviv – Jaffa will be built alongside the heritage building in which the hotel is housed. Residents will enjoy access to the facilities at W Tel Aviv – Jaffa, including signature W offerings and services.
With more than 4,000 years of history, Jaffa is south of the main city centre of Tel Aviv and is undergoing a meticulous revitalisation project, including multi-million dollar investments in infrastructure and an extended sea promenade. W Tel Aviv – Jaffa and The Residences at W Tel Aviv – Jaffa will serve as the centrepiece of the redevelopment of the ancient port city. Spanning over 20,000 square metres, this landmark project is located within close proximity to the newly renovated Jaffa port, the pristine beach, as well as fashionable boutiques, charming sidewalk cafes and stylish nightlife destinations.
Starwood Strengthens Luxury Position
“W Hotels is well poised to continue its expansion into some of the most exciting and vibrant destinations around the world,” says Bart Carnahan, Senior Vice President, Acquisitions & Development, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Europe, Africa & Middle East. “The signing of W Tel Aviv – Jaffa and The Residences at W Tel Aviv – Jaffa underlines Starwood’s continued commitment to grow our portfolio of luxury brands globally.”
With 44 hotels and retreats open, W is on track to reach more than 60 hotels by the end of 2015, expanding its presence in the most sought-after markets from Milan to Bogotá, Muscat to Beijing, Shanghai to Abu Dhabi and beyond.
About W Hotels Worldwide
W Hotels is a contemporary, design-led lifestyle brand and the industry innovator with 44 hotels and retreats, including 16 W-branded residences, in the most vibrant cities and exotic destinations around the world. Inspiring, iconic, innovative and influential, W Hotels provides the ultimate in insider access, offering a unique mix of cutting-edge design and passions around fashion, music and entertainment. W Hotels offers a holistic lifestyle experience that is integrated into the brand’s sensibility through contemporary restaurant concepts, glamorous entertainment experiences, stylish retail concepts, signature spas and inspiring residences. With more than 14 years of proven success, W Hotels is on track to reach 60 hotels by the end of 2015. W Hotels have been announced for Milan, Shanghai, Beijing, Bogota, Abu Dhabi, Mumbai, Dubai, Jakarta, Panama, Muscat, Suzhou, Changsha, New Delhi, Kuala Lumpur, and Sante Fe, Mexico, while upcoming W Retreats include Verbier, Goa, and Mexico’s Riviera Maya. For more information, visit www.whotels.com orwww.facebook.com/whotels. To live the W Hotels lifestyle 24/7/365, visit www.wresidences.com. Follow @WHotels on Twitter and Instagram.
Bron: Business Wire
Microsoft Israel offers childcare grants for women
The company will provide women with monthly grants for childcare for two years and a gradual return to full-time work.
Women employees at Microsoft Israel’s R&D center were notified today that they will receive a monthly grant for childcare for two years. New mothers will have the right to gradually return to full-time work: a 50% position for one year and 80% position through the second year. The policy will come into effect on May 1.
Men will not be eligible for the benefit, even though men account for 90% of Microsoft Israel’s R&D center’s 6,000 employees.
Microsoft Israel said that the new policy was a pioneering effort, but it raises the question whether, in addition to financial savings, it involves discrimination against a substantial proportion of the company’s employees. The benefit will apply to only a limited number of employees out of its entire workforce. Microsoft Israel will apparently have to provide answers, first to its men employees, who work long hours, but will not be eligible for the benefit even though they share with their wives in monthly expenses.
“Women make up half the population and 28% of all technology students, but only 22% of high-tech employees,” said Microsoft Israel R&D center general manager Yoram Yaacovi. “The small number of women who study technology is a major challenge in Israeli high tech, but the high drop-out rate from the profession adds another dimension to the problem. This is mainly because most women have accumulated the wealth of unique experience and knowledge that is needed to develop new products. We believe that the monthly childcare benefit and gradual return to work will give women employees enough flexibility and encourage them to return to work after giving birth.”
Yaacovi added, “In recent decades, women have led major technological developments, demonstrating their extraordinary capabilities. It is our duty to do whatever possible to encourage women’s participation in the industry and to help them return to work after giving birth.”
Microsoft Israel said in response, “On the basis of data gathered, Microsoft’s R&D center saw a specific need to reduce the rate at which women leave work after giving birth. This is why the benefit is intended for women at this stage. This is the first step taken by the company in this area, and it will probably be expanded in other directions later, on the basis of accumulated data and experience.”
Bron: Globes
Israel’s Economy Has the Power to Astound
Global agencies assess Israel
During 2012, the three leading global credit rating companies, and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) commended Israel’s economic performance and expressed confidence in its long-term viability. On September 30, 2012, Standard and Poor’s (S&P) reaffirmed Israel’s A+ credit rating, at a time when it lowered the credit rating of an increasing number of Western countries. According to S&P, “the Israeli economy continues to generate solid economic growth…. Major security risks will be contained…. There is sufficient political will to prevent a sizable increase in the government’s debt burden…. We forecast that by the middle of the decade domestic natural gas production should contribute to improved external and fiscal balances.”
On September 3, 2012, Moody’s sustained Israel’s A1 credit rating, stating that “Israel’s stable outlook is underpinned by the country’s high economic, institutional and government financial strength…supported by its relatively high GDP per capita [US$32, 000] and its economic resilience…. The country’s specialized-export sector is well-positioned to rebound quickly should the global environment normalize…. Moody’s judges Israel’s susceptibility to event risk as moderate based on the political risks facing the country, both domestic and external…. Israel’s own gas production will increase substantially between 2013 and 2016.” On April 23, 2012, Fitch Ratings maintained Israel’s long-term foreign exchange and local currency credit rating at A and A+ respectively, despite the ongoing war on Palestinian terrorism, the Iranian nuclear threat and the raging Arab Street. Fitch cited “Israel’s strong institutions and solid recent macroeconomic performance, rich, diversified economy and strong external balance sheet against a high level of government debt and longstanding geopolitical concerns.”
On April 2, 2012, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) published its annual report on Israel’s economy: “Israel’s economy remains strong… led by robust private consumption and buoyant investment…. Israel’s fundamentals are strong: inflation and inflation expectations are squarely within the 1-3 percent target range; unemployment is at historic lows; the net international investment position is a surplus; and public debt has fallen steadily to below 75 percent of GDP…. The Israeli financial system currently appears to be generally robust…. The current combination of external threats and the relative stability of the domestic system are propitious for strengthening the crisis management framework….” The IMF report adds that the recent discoveries of natural gas fields may transform Israel to a net energy exporter in coming years.
Israel’s economic indicators
While most of the world is afflicted by an economic meltdown, Israel demonstrates fiscal responsibility, sustained economic growth and a conservative, well-regulated banking system with no banking or real estate bubble. For example, from a 450% galloping inflation in 1984, Israel managed to hold inflation in check – 1.6% in 2012. Israel’s budget deficit and unemployment were 4.2% and 6.9% respectively in 2012, significantly lower than the OECD average of 7% and 8%. During the 2009-2012 global economic crisis – without a stimulus package and in spite of the stoppage of the natural gas supply from Egypt, which increased energy cost – Israel experienced a 14.7% growth of gross domestic product (GDP), the highest among OECD countries. Israel led Australia (10.7%), Canada (4.8%), USA (3.2%), Germany (2.7%), France (0.3%) and the Euro Bloc which suffered a 1.5% decline in GDP. Israel’s 2012 GDP growth (3.3%) leads the OECD which averaged 1.4%, higher than the US (2.2%) and Canada (2%), but lower than India (4.5%) and China (7.5%).
Israel’s GDP of $250BN in 2012 catapulted 120 times since 1948. From $1,132 and $19,836 GDP per capita in 1962 and 2000 respectively, Israel surged to $32,000 GDP per capita in 2012. While the debt/GDP ratio – a key indicator for the rating companies – is the Achilles’ heel of most countries, Israel has managed to reduce it rapidly. From about 100% in 2002, it was compressed to 75% in 2012, compared with the OECD average of 78%.
The Bank of Israel foreign exchange reserves – which are critical to sustain global confidence in Israel’s economy and Israel’s capabilities during emergencies – soared from $25BN in 2004 to $75BN in 2012, 26th in the world and one of the top per capita countries. The Swiss-based Institute for Management Development (IMD) ranks the Bank of Israel (Israel’s “Federal Reserve”) among the top five central banks in its 2012 World Competitiveness Yearbook for the third year in a row. Recognizing Israel’s promising economic indicators, Kasper Villiger, Chairman of the United Bank of Switzerland (UBS) indicated that China, Hong Kong, Brazil, Russia and Israel are the future growth engines for UBS. Deloitte Touche, one of the top four global CPA firms opined that Israel is the fourth most attractive site for overseas investors, trailing the USA, Brazil and China, but ahead of India, Canada, Singapore, Taiwan, Australia, England, Germany and Japan.
Israel – the high-tech country
According to Warren Buffet, one of the most successful and conservative investors in the world: “If you’re going to the Middle East to look for oil, you can skip Israel. However, if you’re looking for brains, look no further. [Israel] has a disproportionate amount of brains and energy.” In 2006, Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett’s investment company, made its first ever acquisition outside the US, in Israel, purchasing 80% of the Israeli company Iscar for $4 billion. In his annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway’s stockholders, Buffett defined the Iscar investment as “the highlight of the year,” adding that “at Iscar, as throughout Israel, brains and energy are ubiquitous (New York Sun, March 2).”
Eric Schmidt, Google’s Executive Chairman, has been a frequent investor in Israel’s high-tech via his own private venture capital fund, Innovation Endeavors. He considers Israel “the most important high-tech center in the world after the US,” which will have an oversized impact on the evolution of the next stage of technology. In fact, Google established a large engineering and sales operation in Israel, whose achievements are definitely world-class. Intel has led the pack of some 400 global high tech giants which operate in Israel. Intel features, in Israel, four research and development centers, two manufacturing plants and investments in 64 Israeli start ups. Intel’s President and CEO, Paul Otellini, revealed that “we are the largest private employer in Israel (8,200 employees), and most of those employees have technological know-how. Some of our most sophisticated engineering efforts are carried out in Israel…. We have been in Israel for 40 years and we have done many things. We’re here for the long term. A Wall Street Journal book review of The Start Up Nation reported that “Steve Ballmer [Microsoft's CEO] calls Microsoft as much an Israeli company as an American company, because of the importance of its Israeli technologies. Google, Cisco, Intel, Microsoft, eBay…live and die by the work of [their] Israeli teams…. Israel, a tiny nation of immigrants torn by war, has managed to become the first technology nation….”
Highlighting Israel’s emergence as a high-tech superpower and a unique ally of the US, George Gilder, the author of The Israel Test and a high-tech guru, wrote in The Wall Street Journal: “Israel cruised through the recent global slump with no deficit or stimulus package… It is the global master of microchip design, network algorithms and medical instruments…water recycling and desalinization…missile defense, robotic warfare, and UAVs…[supplying] Intel with many of its microprocessors (Pentium, Sandbridge, Atom, Centrino)… Cisco with new core router designs and real-time programmable network processors… [supplying]Apple with miniaturized memory systems for its iPhones, iPods and iPads, and Microsoft with user interface designs for the OS7 product line and the Kinect gaming motion-sensor interface….U.S. defense and prosperity increasingly depend on the ever-growing economic and technological power of Israel. If we stand together we can deter or defeat any foe…. We need Israel as much as it needs us.”
The high-tech giants don’t just talk the Israel-talk; they walk the Israeli-walk. For instance, Cisco just made its 11th Israeli acquisition, acquiring IntuCell for $475MN; IBM acquired WorkLight for $60MN, its 11th Israeli acquisition; Sequoia Capital, one of the world leading venture capital funds, introduced its 5th Israeli-dedicated $200MN fund; Hong Kong’s $22.5BN Sir Li Ka-Shing, the 9th wealthiest person in the world, made his 7th Israeli investment; ChemChina acquired 60% of Agan for $1.44BN; Siemens acquired solar energy Solel ($418MN) and 40% of Arava Power ($15MN); Apple made its 1st Israeli acquisition – its first research and development center outside the USA – acquiring Anobit for $400MN; the Dallas-based DG acquired MediaMind $517MN; etc..
Israel’s competitive edge
Israel attracts the elite of global high-tech due to its competitive edge, offering a unique high-tech environment. For instance, the Shanghai Jiaotong University’s Academic Ranking of World Universities – one of 3 most influential rankings – includes four Israeli universities among the top thirty computer science universities in the world. Twenty universities are from the US, four from Israel, two each from Canada and the UK and one each from Switzerland and Hong Kong.
Israel leads the world in its research and development manpower per capita: 140 Israelis (per 10,000) and 85 Americans (per 10,000) are ahead of the rest of the world. Israel’s qualitative workforce benefits from the annual Aliya (immigration of Jews) of skilled persons from the former USSR, Europe, the USA, Latin America and Australia, who join Israeli graduates from Israeli institutions of higher learning. In addition, Israel’s high-tech absorbs veterans of the elite high-tech units of Israel Defense Forces. Israel’s defiance of unique security and economic challenges has produced unique, innovative and cutting edge solutions, technologies and production lines. Israel’s informal society has also nurtured ongoing interaction between the academic, research, military and industrial sectors. Moreover, Israel’s robust demography – which leads the Free World with three births per Jewish woman – provides a tailwind for Israel’s economy.
In order to sustain its competitive high-tech edge, Israel dedicates 4.5% of its GDP to research and development, the highest proportion in the world, ahead of the OECD (2.3%), Sweden (3.8%), Finland (3.5%), South Korea (3.4%), Japan (3.3%), the US (2.8%), Germany (2.7%) and Canada (1.7%). In advance of Israel’s 64th anniversary, Nicky Blackburn, editor and Israel Director of “Israel 21stCentury”, wrote: “With the most startups per capita worldwide, and the third highest number of patents per head, Israel has become one of the leading players in the world of high-tech innovation, attracting international giants to its shores. From health breakthroughs to technology, agriculture, the environment and the arts, the country’s innovations are transforming and enriching lives everywhere. Israel today is playing a significant role in some of the most important challenges facing our planet.”
In hindsight, the ongoing wars and terrorism, since Israel’s establishment in 1948, have been just bumps on the way to unprecedented economic and technological growth. Wall Street is much more pertinent than the Gaza Strip!
Bron: Algemeiner
Israeli hospitals to serve tastier food
After Health Ministry discovers 40% of hospital patients barely touch their food and are at risk of developing malnutrition, hospitals ordered to replace menus and serve more wholesome meals.
The Health Ministry has issued for the first time uniform standards for food served in Israeli hospitals, aiming to guarantee that patients receive more wholesome and tastier meals.
The quality of food served in Israel‘s hospitals has a bad reputation among anyone who has ever been hospitalized in the country, causing many patients to turn up their nose at the sight of the trays placed in front of them. Now it turns out that not only is hospital food not tasty, but it is also not very nourishing.
An inquiry conducted by the Health Ministry three years ago revealed that 40% of hospital patients are at risk of developing malnutrition during their hospitalization period, which could increase the chance of sudden death.
The most common explanation provided by patients asked why they lost weight during their hospitalization that they were unable to finish the food on their plates.
In surgical and heart wards, for example, less than half of the patients reported finishing their entire meal. In the general surgery unit in one of the examined hospitals, not a single patient managed to finish the breakfast served to them. One can only imagine the reason.
Now the Health Ministry has decided to take a significant step towards improving the quality and taste of hospital food. A memo released by Health Administration Director Prof. Arnon Afek determines that hospitals must ensure reduce the quantities of salt and oil in their menus and serve wholegrain bread.
In order to encourage patients to eat, Afek recommends giving them the option of choosing from a number of menus.
According to the new instructions, which will take effect on July 1, the daily menu of hospital patients who do not require a special diet will contain 1,800-2,000 calories. About 50% of the calories will come from carbohydrate, 15% from protein, and about 35% from fat.
Each patient will receive up to 300 milligrams of cholesterol a day through the food (not including one egg a day), and 75-90 milligrams of vitamin C. The menu must include about 25 grams of dietary fibers.
Patients will be able to order a vegetarian menu or any other special menu according to the instructions of a dietician.
So what will patients be able to eat in hospitals soon?
Breakfast will include fresh vegetables in a variety of colors, whole-wheat bread, challah, eggs in different forms, white cheese, cottage cheese, olives, tahini, oatmeal and jam. Fruit will be served at around 10 am.
For lunch, nurses will serve a variety of soups, including chicken soup (without soup powder), bean soup or vegetable soup. For main course, patients will be able to choose between grilled chicken, fish fillet, pot roast or fish cakes, in addition to cooked vegetables, fresh vegetables and a side dish such as baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, couscous, bulgur or buckwheat. Fruit will be served for dessert.
Dinner will comprise of whole-wheat bread or challah, a selection of cheese, yogurt, fresh and cooked vegetables, different kinds of quiches, and a variety of spreads: Tahini, avocado, hummus salad and eggplant salad.
If they’re still hungry, the night meal will include biscuits, crackers, fruit and cakes made of wholegrain flour and canola oil – for example, carrot cake, apple cake or cheese cake. Coffee will be served with whole milk.
The Health Ministry has also decided that hospitals must use low-fat poultry and fish products, and dairy products containing up to 5% of fat. Ready and processed food like schnitzel and meatballs may be served to patients just once a week. Bon Appetite!
Bron: Ynet
Students of Azerbaijan Tourism Institute go to Israel for internship
Azerbaijan, Baku, April 9 / Trend /
On April 8, 2013 Ambassador of the State of Israel Rafael Harpaz and Deputy Head of Mission Ronen Krausz met with 20 students of Azerbaijan Tourism Institute who are leaving for Israel for 5-months internship program at leading Isrotel hotels chain in Israel, the Israeli embassy in Azerbaijan said today.
Ambassador Harpaz congratulated the students for being successful throughout the selection process and wished them good luck in the future. He underlined good bilateral relations between Israel and Azerbaijan in all areas including tourism. He added that this program is another impetus for deepening and widening of relations between the two countries.
In his turn, Deputy Head of Mission Ronen Krausz also congratulated the students and wished them to have a fruitful experience in Israel which will contribute to their future professional activity.
This program is implemented by the Embassy of the State of Israel in Baku in cooperation with the Azerbaijan Tourism Institute and Isrotel hotels chain in the city of Eilat. It is already the fifth year that the Embassy successfully implements this project. The aim of this program is to assist the students of Tourism Institute to gain a good practical experience in international hotel business which will make a great input in their further career development. The program also serves for enhancing and deepening of cooperation between Azerbaijan and Israel in the area of tourism.
Bron: Trend
Microsoft Israel offers childcare grants for women
The company will provide women with monthly grants for childcare for two years and a gradual return to full-time work.
Women employees at Microsoft Israel’s R&D center were notified today that they will receive a monthly grant for childcare for two years. New mothers will have the right to gradually return to full-time work: a 50% position for one year and 80% position through the second year. The policy will come into effect on May 1.
Men will not be eligible for the benefit, even though men account for 90% of Microsoft Israel’s R&D center’s 6,000 employees.
Microsoft Israel said that the new policy was a pioneering effort, but it raises the question whether, in addition to financial savings, it involves discrimination against a substantial proportion of the company’s employees. The benefit will apply to only a limited number of employees out of its entire workforce. Microsoft Israel will apparently have to provide answers, first to its men employees, who work long hours, but will not be eligible for the benefit even though they share with their wives in monthly expenses.
“Women make up half the population and 28% of all technology students, but only 22% of high-tech employees,” said Microsoft Israel R&D center general manager Yoram Yaacovi. “The small number of women who study technology is a major challenge in Israeli high tech, but the high drop-out rate from the profession adds another dimension to the problem. This is mainly because most women have accumulated the wealth of unique experience and knowledge that is needed to develop new products. We believe that the monthly childcare benefit and gradual return to work will give women employees enough flexibility and encourage them to return to work after giving birth.”
Yaacovi added, “In recent decades, women have led major technological developments, demonstrating their extraordinary capabilities. It is our duty to do whatever possible to encourage women’s participation in the industry and to help them return to work after giving birth.”
Microsoft Israel said in response, “On the basis of data gathered, Microsoft’s R&D center saw a specific need to reduce the rate at which women leave work after giving birth. This is why the benefit is intended for women at this stage. This is the first step taken by the company in this area, and it will probably be expanded in other directions later, on the basis of accumulated data and experience.”
Bron: Globes
Israel’s Economy Has the Power to Astound
Global agencies assess Israel
During 2012, the three leading global credit rating companies, and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) commended Israel’s economic performance and expressed confidence in its long-term viability. On September 30, 2012, Standard and Poor’s (S&P) reaffirmed Israel’s A+ credit rating, at a time when it lowered the credit rating of an increasing number of Western countries. According to S&P, “the Israeli economy continues to generate solid economic growth…. Major security risks will be contained…. There is sufficient political will to prevent a sizable increase in the government’s debt burden…. We forecast that by the middle of the decade domestic natural gas production should contribute to improved external and fiscal balances.”
On September 3, 2012, Moody’s sustained Israel’s A1 credit rating, stating that “Israel’s stable outlook is underpinned by the country’s high economic, institutional and government financial strength…supported by its relatively high GDP per capita [US$32, 000] and its economic resilience…. The country’s specialized-export sector is well-positioned to rebound quickly should the global environment normalize…. Moody’s judges Israel’s susceptibility to event risk as moderate based on the political risks facing the country, both domestic and external…. Israel’s own gas production will increase substantially between 2013 and 2016.” On April 23, 2012, Fitch Ratings maintained Israel’s long-term foreign exchange and local currency credit rating at A and A+ respectively, despite the ongoing war on Palestinian terrorism, the Iranian nuclear threat and the raging Arab Street. Fitch cited “Israel’s strong institutions and solid recent macroeconomic performance, rich, diversified economy and strong external balance sheet against a high level of government debt and longstanding geopolitical concerns.”
On April 2, 2012, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) published its annual report on Israel’s economy: “Israel’s economy remains strong… led by robust private consumption and buoyant investment…. Israel’s fundamentals are strong: inflation and inflation expectations are squarely within the 1-3 percent target range; unemployment is at historic lows; the net international investment position is a surplus; and public debt has fallen steadily to below 75 percent of GDP…. The Israeli financial system currently appears to be generally robust…. The current combination of external threats and the relative stability of the domestic system are propitious for strengthening the crisis management framework….” The IMF report adds that the recent discoveries of natural gas fields may transform Israel to a net energy exporter in coming years.
Israel’s economic indicators
While most of the world is afflicted by an economic meltdown, Israel demonstrates fiscal responsibility, sustained economic growth and a conservative, well-regulated banking system with no banking or real estate bubble. For example, from a 450% galloping inflation in 1984, Israel managed to hold inflation in check – 1.6% in 2012. Israel’s budget deficit and unemployment were 4.2% and 6.9% respectively in 2012, significantly lower than the OECD average of 7% and 8%. During the 2009-2012 global economic crisis – without a stimulus package and in spite of the stoppage of the natural gas supply from Egypt, which increased energy cost – Israel experienced a 14.7% growth of gross domestic product (GDP), the highest among OECD countries. Israel led Australia (10.7%), Canada (4.8%), USA (3.2%), Germany (2.7%), France (0.3%) and the Euro Bloc which suffered a 1.5% decline in GDP. Israel’s 2012 GDP growth (3.3%) leads the OECD which averaged 1.4%, higher than the US (2.2%) and Canada (2%), but lower than India (4.5%) and China (7.5%).
Israel’s GDP of $250BN in 2012 catapulted 120 times since 1948. From $1,132 and $19,836 GDP per capita in 1962 and 2000 respectively, Israel surged to $32,000 GDP per capita in 2012. While the debt/GDP ratio – a key indicator for the rating companies – is the Achilles’ heel of most countries, Israel has managed to reduce it rapidly. From about 100% in 2002, it was compressed to 75% in 2012, compared with the OECD average of 78%.
The Bank of Israel foreign exchange reserves – which are critical to sustain global confidence in Israel’s economy and Israel’s capabilities during emergencies – soared from $25BN in 2004 to $75BN in 2012, 26th in the world and one of the top per capita countries. The Swiss-based Institute for Management Development (IMD) ranks the Bank of Israel (Israel’s “Federal Reserve”) among the top five central banks in its 2012 World Competitiveness Yearbook for the third year in a row. Recognizing Israel’s promising economic indicators, Kasper Villiger, Chairman of the United Bank of Switzerland (UBS) indicated that China, Hong Kong, Brazil, Russia and Israel are the future growth engines for UBS. Deloitte Touche, one of the top four global CPA firms opined that Israel is the fourth most attractive site for overseas investors, trailing the USA, Brazil and China, but ahead of India, Canada, Singapore, Taiwan, Australia, England, Germany and Japan.
Israel – the high-tech country
According to Warren Buffet, one of the most successful and conservative investors in the world: “If you’re going to the Middle East to look for oil, you can skip Israel. However, if you’re looking for brains, look no further. [Israel] has a disproportionate amount of brains and energy.” In 2006, Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett’s investment company, made its first ever acquisition outside the US, in Israel, purchasing 80% of the Israeli company Iscar for $4 billion. In his annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway’s stockholders, Buffett defined the Iscar investment as “the highlight of the year,” adding that “at Iscar, as throughout Israel, brains and energy are ubiquitous (New York Sun, March 2).”
Eric Schmidt, Google’s Executive Chairman, has been a frequent investor in Israel’s high-tech via his own private venture capital fund, Innovation Endeavors. He considers Israel “the most important high-tech center in the world after the US,” which will have an oversized impact on the evolution of the next stage of technology. In fact, Google established a large engineering and sales operation in Israel, whose achievements are definitely world-class. Intel has led the pack of some 400 global high tech giants which operate in Israel. Intel features, in Israel, four research and development centers, two manufacturing plants and investments in 64 Israeli start ups. Intel’s President and CEO, Paul Otellini, revealed that “we are the largest private employer in Israel (8,200 employees), and most of those employees have technological know-how. Some of our most sophisticated engineering efforts are carried out in Israel…. We have been in Israel for 40 years and we have done many things. We’re here for the long term. A Wall Street Journal book review of The Start Up Nation reported that “Steve Ballmer [Microsoft's CEO] calls Microsoft as much an Israeli company as an American company, because of the importance of its Israeli technologies. Google, Cisco, Intel, Microsoft, eBay…live and die by the work of [their] Israeli teams…. Israel, a tiny nation of immigrants torn by war, has managed to become the first technology nation….”
Highlighting Israel’s emergence as a high-tech superpower and a unique ally of the US, George Gilder, the author of The Israel Test and a high-tech guru, wrote in The Wall Street Journal: “Israel cruised through the recent global slump with no deficit or stimulus package… It is the global master of microchip design, network algorithms and medical instruments…water recycling and desalinization…missile defense, robotic warfare, and UAVs…[supplying] Intel with many of its microprocessors (Pentium, Sandbridge, Atom, Centrino)… Cisco with new core router designs and real-time programmable network processors… [supplying]Apple with miniaturized memory systems for its iPhones, iPods and iPads, and Microsoft with user interface designs for the OS7 product line and the Kinect gaming motion-sensor interface….U.S. defense and prosperity increasingly depend on the ever-growing economic and technological power of Israel. If we stand together we can deter or defeat any foe…. We need Israel as much as it needs us.”
The high-tech giants don’t just talk the Israel-talk; they walk the Israeli-walk. For instance, Cisco just made its 11th Israeli acquisition, acquiring IntuCell for $475MN; IBM acquired WorkLight for $60MN, its 11th Israeli acquisition; Sequoia Capital, one of the world leading venture capital funds, introduced its 5th Israeli-dedicated $200MN fund; Hong Kong’s $22.5BN Sir Li Ka-Shing, the 9th wealthiest person in the world, made his 7th Israeli investment; ChemChina acquired 60% of Agan for $1.44BN; Siemens acquired solar energy Solel ($418MN) and 40% of Arava Power ($15MN); Apple made its 1st Israeli acquisition – its first research and development center outside the USA – acquiring Anobit for $400MN; the Dallas-based DG acquired MediaMind $517MN; etc..
Israel’s competitive edge
Israel attracts the elite of global high-tech due to its competitive edge, offering a unique high-tech environment. For instance, the Shanghai Jiaotong University’s Academic Ranking of World Universities – one of 3 most influential rankings – includes four Israeli universities among the top thirty computer science universities in the world. Twenty universities are from the US, four from Israel, two each from Canada and the UK and one each from Switzerland and Hong Kong.
Israel leads the world in its research and development manpower per capita: 140 Israelis (per 10,000) and 85 Americans (per 10,000) are ahead of the rest of the world. Israel’s qualitative workforce benefits from the annual Aliya (immigration of Jews) of skilled persons from the former USSR, Europe, the USA, Latin America and Australia, who join Israeli graduates from Israeli institutions of higher learning. In addition, Israel’s high-tech absorbs veterans of the elite high-tech units of Israel Defense Forces. Israel’s defiance of unique security and economic challenges has produced unique, innovative and cutting edge solutions, technologies and production lines. Israel’s informal society has also nurtured ongoing interaction between the academic, research, military and industrial sectors. Moreover, Israel’s robust demography – which leads the Free World with three births per Jewish woman – provides a tailwind for Israel’s economy.
In order to sustain its competitive high-tech edge, Israel dedicates 4.5% of its GDP to research and development, the highest proportion in the world, ahead of the OECD (2.3%), Sweden (3.8%), Finland (3.5%), South Korea (3.4%), Japan (3.3%), the US (2.8%), Germany (2.7%) and Canada (1.7%). In advance of Israel’s 64th anniversary, Nicky Blackburn, editor and Israel Director of “Israel 21stCentury”, wrote: “With the most startups per capita worldwide, and the third highest number of patents per head, Israel has become one of the leading players in the world of high-tech innovation, attracting international giants to its shores. From health breakthroughs to technology, agriculture, the environment and the arts, the country’s innovations are transforming and enriching lives everywhere. Israel today is playing a significant role in some of the most important challenges facing our planet.”
In hindsight, the ongoing wars and terrorism, since Israel’s establishment in 1948, have been just bumps on the way to unprecedented economic and technological growth. Wall Street is much more pertinent than the Gaza Strip!
Bron: Algemeiner
Israeli hospitals to serve tastier food
After Health Ministry discovers 40% of hospital patients barely touch their food and are at risk of developing malnutrition, hospitals ordered to replace menus and serve more wholesome meals.
The Health Ministry has issued for the first time uniform standards for food served in Israeli hospitals, aiming to guarantee that patients receive more wholesome and tastier meals.
The quality of food served in Israel‘s hospitals has a bad reputation among anyone who has ever been hospitalized in the country, causing many patients to turn up their nose at the sight of the trays placed in front of them. Now it turns out that not only is hospital food not tasty, but it is also not very nourishing.
An inquiry conducted by the Health Ministry three years ago revealed that 40% of hospital patients are at risk of developing malnutrition during their hospitalization period, which could increase the chance of sudden death.
The most common explanation provided by patients asked why they lost weight during their hospitalization that they were unable to finish the food on their plates.
In surgical and heart wards, for example, less than half of the patients reported finishing their entire meal. In the general surgery unit in one of the examined hospitals, not a single patient managed to finish the breakfast served to them. One can only imagine the reason.
Now the Health Ministry has decided to take a significant step towards improving the quality and taste of hospital food. A memo released by Health Administration Director Prof. Arnon Afek determines that hospitals must ensure reduce the quantities of salt and oil in their menus and serve wholegrain bread.
In order to encourage patients to eat, Afek recommends giving them the option of choosing from a number of menus.
According to the new instructions, which will take effect on July 1, the daily menu of hospital patients who do not require a special diet will contain 1,800-2,000 calories. About 50% of the calories will come from carbohydrate, 15% from protein, and about 35% from fat.
Each patient will receive up to 300 milligrams of cholesterol a day through the food (not including one egg a day), and 75-90 milligrams of vitamin C. The menu must include about 25 grams of dietary fibers.
Patients will be able to order a vegetarian menu or any other special menu according to the instructions of a dietician.
So what will patients be able to eat in hospitals soon?
Breakfast will include fresh vegetables in a variety of colors, whole-wheat bread, challah, eggs in different forms, white cheese, cottage cheese, olives, tahini, oatmeal and jam. Fruit will be served at around 10 am.
For lunch, nurses will serve a variety of soups, including chicken soup (without soup powder), bean soup or vegetable soup. For main course, patients will be able to choose between grilled chicken, fish fillet, pot roast or fish cakes, in addition to cooked vegetables, fresh vegetables and a side dish such as baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, couscous, bulgur or buckwheat. Fruit will be served for dessert.
Dinner will comprise of whole-wheat bread or challah, a selection of cheese, yogurt, fresh and cooked vegetables, different kinds of quiches, and a variety of spreads: Tahini, avocado, hummus salad and eggplant salad.
If they’re still hungry, the night meal will include biscuits, crackers, fruit and cakes made of wholegrain flour and canola oil – for example, carrot cake, apple cake or cheese cake. Coffee will be served with whole milk.
The Health Ministry has also decided that hospitals must use low-fat poultry and fish products, and dairy products containing up to 5% of fat. Ready and processed food like schnitzel and meatballs may be served to patients just once a week. Bon Appetite!
Bron: Ynet
Economy Plus Class en extra capaciteit El Al
De Israëlische luchtvaartmaatschappij EL AL zet in het zomerseizoen grotere toestellen in op de route Amsterdam – Tel Aviv. Daardoor wordt niet alleen de capaciteit uitgebreid, maar ook een nieuwe klasse boekbaar wordt. Deze Economy Plus Class biedt passagiers meer comfort dan de Economy Class, zoals extra beenruimte en comfortabelere stoelen.
EL AL vliegt dit zomerseizoen, dat van 31 maart tot en met 25 oktober loopt, elf keer per week van Amsterdam naar Tel Aviv en v.v
Op de dagvluchten vanuit Amsterdam wordt een Boeing 767 ingezet in plaats van de huidige Boeing 737. Dit gebeurt ook op de ochtendvluchten vanuit Tel Aviv. De grotere B767 is voorzien van de nieuwe Economy Plus Class. In de piekmaanden juli, augustus en september maakt de B767 plaats voor de nog grotere B747, waarop ook Economy Plus Class wordt aangeboden.
Oranit Bet Halachmi, General Manager the Benelux bij EL AL: “Het vernieuwde vluchtschema biedt meer flexibiliteit voor zowel de zakelijke als leisure markt vanwege de variëteit aan vertrektijden. Om tegemoet te komen aan de toenemende vraag in het hoogseizoen zetten we bovendien op veel vluchten grotere toestellen in om de capaciteit te vergroten. Extra voordeel daarvan is dat we de Economy Plus Class kunnen aanbieden. Voor een geringe toeslag vlieg je al een stuk comfortabeler in deze tussenklasse. Ideaal bijvoorbeeld voor zakenreizigers die in deze tijd geen Business Class vliegen, maar toch op zoek zijn naar extra service en comfort.”
Bron: Tourpress
Record Tourism in Gush Etzion
A record number of tourists visit the Judea region and Gush Etzion. Most popular: Herodium, Deer Land. New minister among visitors.
A record number of visitors toured the Gush Etzion region of Judea this week during the intermediate days of Passover. Local authorities estimated tourism at 15,000 visitors, from Israel and around the world.
Many local sites saw high levels of interest, among them the regionalbike trail and freshwater springs.
One of the most popular sites was the Herodium, the ruins of an ancient palace and town built by Herod on a hilltop in the Judean desert. Thousands of visitors came to the site each day.
Another popular destination was Havat Eretz Haayalim – Deer Land – which had to close its gates to newcomers as roughly 6,000 people came to visit. Deer Land boasts many attractions, including a climbing wall, carousel, and bungee trampoline.
Site manager Lior Levi said, “As happy as we were to see so many people visiting the farm, we had to close earlier than we thought because there was no room left. We left disappointed faces, who heard about the farm by word of mouth.”
Levi added, “We invite everyone to come visit during the rest of the year.”
One of the visitors was new Education Minister Shai Piron of Yesh Atid, who came with his family. The family started at the Herodium and continued with a jeep tour of the Maaleh Amos region in the Judean desert. They went on to visit a local dairy farm and a historic site dedicated to those who fell defending Gush Etzion in the War of Independence.
Piron also met with Davidi Perl, head of the local Regional Council, to talk about education in the region.
Bron: Israel National News
Israel Strikes It Rich
Natural gas field will benefit Israel’s economy
JERUSALEM — Natural gas began to flow into Israel over the weekend from a large offshore field, ending Israel’s status as a dry patch in an oil-rich region.
The flow came from the first of two enormous gas fields discovered off Israel’s coast in the past three years. The two fields, known as Tamar and Leviathan, are sufficient to supply Israel for 150 years, according to Bloomberg Business Week.
The Bank of Israel estimated that the flow this year from Tamar, the smaller of the two fields, would contribute one percent to Israel’s gross domestic product. Overall, the bank expects Israel’s economy to grow 3.8 percent this year.
The field is located 56 miles west of the Haifa port. The Leviathan field is slated to come online in 2016. The long-term value of the fields at today’s prices has been estimated at about $240 billion. More than half of profits are to be paid in taxes to the Israeli government.
“This is the beginning of a new era,” Isaac Tshuva, controlling shareholder of Delek Group Ltd., which holds a major stake in Tamar, told Business Week. “The Israeli economy will be able to exploit natural gas environmentally, geopolitically, socially and economically.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Business Week in an emailed statement, “We are taking a major step toward energy independence.”
Noble Energy of Houston is the majority shareholder in the enterprise, holding 36 percent of shares compared to Tshuva’s group, which holds 31 percent. Two smaller Israeli companies are also partners.
The government has not yet decided whether to allocate some of the gas for export or to use it only for domestic needs.
If a substantial portion is designated for export, a host of geopolitical factors come into play, including who gets it, at what rate, and what the political implications are.
Jordan and the West Bank are potential customers, since the rates will likely be substantially less than what they pay now for energy. Israel has received about 40 percent of its natural gas from Egypt, but in the past two years the pipeline in Sinai has been blown up more than a dozen times by militants, forcing Israel to import gas from elsewhere.
Israel’s own offshore infrastructure will be vulnerable to attacks and the Israeli navy and air force have already made preparations to meet them.
Bron: Free Beacon
Intel eyeing Israeli gesture recognition start-up
The multinational chip giant is reportedly in negotiations to acquire Omek Interactive, a Beit Shemesh-based start-up that develops software that creates an interface for identifying gestures through the use of three-dimensional cameras.
The multinational chip giant Intel is reportedly in negotiations to acquire Omek Interactive, a Beit Shemesh-based start-up that develops gesture-recognition and tracking technology.
Intel competitors Qualcomm and Samsung are also considering bidding on the Israeli company, according to a report published Friday by the website VentureBeat. The article quoted one source, however, as saying a bidding war for Omek is unlikely.
Intel did not respond to the news of its interest in the start-up, which develops software that creates an interface for identifying gestures through the use of three-dimensional cameras.
Omek CEO Janine Kutliroff told VentureBeat: “Omek is always having conversations of a strategic or financial nature. We never comment on rumors in the marketplace.”
VentureBeat reported that “For these companies [Intel, Qualcomm and Samsung], gesture control technology is attractive as it offers a way to simplify increasingly sophisticated devices, draw customers to cool sci-fi-like devices, and chew up a lot of computing power that can be produced by their future chips.”
Omek Interactive was founded in 2007 by Kutliroff and her husband, Gershom Kutliroff, who is Omek’s VP for technology. According to the company website, Janine Kutliroff was CEO of IDT Global Israel and has a degree in applied mathematics from Columbia University in New York.
The company has raised about $14 million to date. It raised $3.5 million during its first financing round, including funds from the Kutliroffs. A second round in 2011 generated $3.8 million from the U.S. investment fund Artists & Instigators, which according to its website invests in “creators who are crafting game-changing businesses.” A third financing round, also in 2011, raised $7 million and was led by Intel’s investment arm, Intel Capital.
Jim Moore, a technology mergers and acquisitions executive, commented on the possible acquisition in VentureBeat: “In this case, using depth of field camera data for gesture input will allow people to control their computers without touching them.”
“It is [the] early days for this technology as the application builders will need to build this into their interface and functionality,” he said. “But the possibilities are enormous.” In addition to Omek, Israel has spawned an impressive number of gesture-recognition companies, including PrimeSense, which developed the chip that Microsoft’s first generation of Kinect systems was based on.
Bron: Haaretz
Israeli CEO of global pesticide company: Develop technology now to fight future food shortage
Erez Vigodman, former head of Strauss and current CEO of a global pesticide company, wants to see countries around the world offering incentives to entrepreneurs of agriculture technology.
Countries around the world must stop providing farmers with subsidies and start offering incentives to entrepreneurs who seek to make agriculture more efficient if global food production is to match the population growth expected within the next four decades, said Erez Vigodman, the CEO of Makhteshim Agan, the world’s leading generic agrochemical company.
Just as technology has been used to rapidly click and scroll us through the digital communication age, it must also be developed to help avoid the severe hunger predicted for the coming years, said Vigodman.
“In the last two decades, technological innovations have transformed our world and assisted in speeding up processes in almost all areas, first and foremost in information communication,” he said. “The world has become more competitive, but one important field has yet to join the revolutionary process – and that field is agriculture.”
Though he now deals with the agriculture side of food manufacturing, as the head of a global pesticide company that operates in 120 countries plus Israel, Vigodman came to Makhteshim after eight years as the president and CEO of Israel’s second largest food manufacturer, Strauss. So he knows a little something about food — and the extent to which it gets wasted.
As part of his vision for a more efficient food industry, Vigodman called for a reduction of waste in picking and storing crops and in food production, packaging and distribution. Some experts say at least 10 tons of food – between 30 percent and 40 percent of all food on the planet – is wasted every day.
Vigodman also highlighted the importance of developing technologies for the more efficient use of land and, especially, water.
“Most of the innovation in this field in the last decades led to an increase in the size of the products, instead of more significant innovations,” said Vigodman. “Apart from stopping the waste, the solutions must include more use of land reserves that could be used for agriculture, but the most urgent need is innovative ways to use water. Seventy percent of the water on the globe is used for agriculture, and we must find more efficient ways to use that water.”
The two basic elements holding back innovation are farming subsidies, which “distort the market prices and decrease the attraction of investments,” and a lack of incentive for entrepreneurs, said Vigodman, who is a member of the advisory committee of Israel’s National Economic Council and a graduate of the management development program at Harvard Business School. He is also a director of Teva Pharmeceuticals.
Vigodman is particularly concerned by what some refer to as the global food crisis expected by 2050, when the world population is expected to have expanded by 2.5 billion people, 95 percent of whom will live in developing countries. Some speculate that if drastic steps aren’t taken, some of those countries will be facing severe food shortages.
“The role of agriculture today is more important than ever before,” said Vigodman. “I have no doubt that the challenge of food makes agriculture the next big thing.” He is wary of the popular term “food crisis,” which he considers “too extreme,” but adds that “even without talking about global crises, the issue of food is crucial”.
Israeli farmer as entrepreneur
Israel is increasing its agricultural productivity and holds the world record for reusing the most water for agricultural purposes, said Vigodman.
That can be attributed more to “the creativity of Israelis” than to any kind of government initiative, he said.
“You start off with near-impossible conditions, with hardly any land or water, and with different climates – and the productivity is growing based on innovative changes in production of milk, seeds, fruits and vegetables and the move to aquaculture,” he said.
“On top of that, 70 percent of the water used for agriculture is reused water – three times as much as the global average,” said Vigodman. “Israel proves that you can promote innovation in agriculture, because it’s a must for survival. The Israeli farmer is educated, an entrepreneur and individualist. He has a deep understanding, and is experienced with dealing with difficult conditions. All these factors created a very high level of agriculture. Still, most of the innovative methods originated from the farmers themselves, not as a result of state-initiated processes.”
He said that companies also rarely invest in Israeli agriculture.
For all Israel’s achievements in agriculture, the world should look not to this country but to Brazil, which Vigodman said is the leading country in the world when it comes to agricultural research and development.
“The [Brazilian] government initiated the establishment of an organization for applied research, dealing with innovative steps in agriculture, leading some 10,000 technological projects, all focused on suiting the crops with the conditions in Brazil, including the needs, the climate and the agriculture,” he said.
All that research, he added, is aimed at strengthening Brazil’s standing as a food exporter, indicating that what’s good for the world’s poor and hungry may also be good for the bottom line.
Bron: Haaretz
Chinese film to be shot in Israel
Tourism Ministry invests more than NIS 300,000 in promotion of movie expected to be blockbuster in China. Producers choose Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Dead Sea as locations for some of film’s scenes
A well-known Chinese production company is set to shoot scenes in Israel this month for a Chinese epic called “Old Cinderella,” which is expected to be a blockbuster movie thanks to stars such as Zhang Jingchu (“Rush Hour 3”) and director Lu Chuan.
More than 15 of the 95 minutes in the movie are expected to feature scenes shot in Israel. During a recce in Israel in January, the production team chose Tel Aviv-Jaffa, Jerusalem and the Dead Sea as their locations.
Twenty-two members of the production team and cast will arrive in Israel on April 16 for a week of filming, assisted by a local film production company.
The Tourism Ministry is investing over NIS 300,000 (about $82,300) in the promotion of the movie. Given the influence of the movie industry on the Chinese public, it is thought that the effect of a blockbuster movie shot in Israel will have more significant impact than other alternative marketing activities.
Similar activities in other destinations have generated significant increases in visitor demand to those countries. According to a survey, in 2012 eight million Chinese selected their tourist destination according to those countries they had seen in movies.
The Tourism Ministry offices in China are working in cooperation with the production company to promote tourism to Israel, including a competition whose first prize is a vacation in Israel.
Other marketing activities in March and April include campaigns on Weibo, China’s most popular social website as well as hosting journalists from leading Chinese media in Israel. CNN recently broadcast an interview with the director about the film and another item is scheduled to be broadcast on the making of the film.
China is a significant source of world tourism, with an increase of 20% in outgoing tourism between 2010 and 2011. Some 20,000 tourists have visited Israel from China in the years 2011-2012.
The Tourism Ministry has invested about $500,000 in promoting tourism to Israel, including seminars, marketing agreements and support for wholesalers and tour operators.
Bron: Ynet News
What’s Next From the Israeli Tech Community?
It’s no secret that Israel has become one of the world’s most important technology epicenters. While the tiny Middle Eastern country was best known in the 90′s as a robust producer of hardware (semi conductors, chips and the likes) – and then became known for software (particularly for the enterprise) around the dot com boom – the Israeli tech scene today is blossoming and foraying into many new, exciting niches.
According to Chemi Peres, one of Israel’s leading venture capitalists, there is tremendous advancement on the horizon for Israel’s startup community. Peres, in a phone conversation last month, told me that because the young country is still on a learning curve and the venture market in Israel has existed for only two decades, the floodgates are just beginning to open in terms of what is possible.
While there are certainly challenges facing Israeli tech entrepreneurs – including the fact that the local market is weak due to a lack of free trade with hostile neighboring countries – Peres is very optimistic.
He says that Israel is making a tremendous transition from becoming just a “startup nation” (there are nearly thousands of startups in the country, the highest per capita ratio in the world) to also being a “category leader nation.” In other words, Israel is shifting from an exclusively exit-focused mindset to one in which entrepreneurs attempt to build and sustain industry-leading companies for the long haul.
In terms of which industries, Peres says advertising tech, big data, media, cyber security, enterprise software, communication infrastructure and health tech are all on the rise. Particularly hot niches experiencing exponential growth are: mobile, consumer web and business-to-business-to-consumer software.
One particular mobile startup, DudaMobile, launched in 2010 in order to help SMBs convert their websites into mobile friendly sites cheaply and easily.
The platform, which can convert a site in just a few minutes, has already landed 3.5 million users and has raised a collective $8.3 million in venture capital.
“There needed to be a tool to help small and medium businesses create great mobile websites,” says co-founder and CEO Itai Sadan. “Our service helps them create a mobile web presence and drive business.”
DudaMobile has landed partnerships with Go Daddy, Google and AT&T, and has over 50 employees working in Palo Alto and Tel Aviv.
Sadan says that like many Israeli startups, his company’s bi-continental presence works well. R&D is in Israel, where there is a strong network of engineers (another benefit, he said, about having engineers in Israel is that you do not have to worry as much about them being poached by giants like Google, Facebook or Twitter). Management is in the U.S. – which is where the user base primarily resides.
Sadan is excited about the future of DudaMobile and the Israeli tech scene at large. He says there is something in the Israeli mindset that cultivates entrepreneurship and a desire to create solutions and break through barriers.
Language barriers, one of the great challenges facing our global economy, inspired entrepreneur Yael Karov to form Ginger Software in 2008 to help native and non-native English speakers improve their English writing skills over time by using contextual grammar and spelling corrections.
Incorporating a series of sophisticated patented algorithms, Ginger’s writing assistant/proofreading tool – which is offered directly to consumers – now helps over one million users (mostly immigrants in the U.S.) strengthen their writing skills.
The startup has raised $20 million in funding and has 40 employees based in Tel Aviv. Recently, the company released a personal assistant tool that incorporates speech recognition (somewhat like Siri) – a B-to-B-to-C offering being sold to mobile and web apps in order to offer their end-users a more enjoyable experience.
Karov, in a phone interview, says Ginger will have two exciting product launches in the coming months, including an app that will help people linguistically express themselves in new, alternative ways.
When asked what’s hot in the Israeli tech scene, Karov said there are many “algorithmic” startups that tackle complex issues.
“Something in the Israeli culture is very suited toward startups. Israelis know how to confront crises and are tailored to solving them,” she says. “Once everyone started opening startups, it became exponential and people started asking themselves ‘why not open a startup?’”
That thought certainly entered the minds of Idan Cohen, Avner Ronen and Tom Sella, who co-founded Boxee in 2007.
Boxee is revolutionizing the way individuals consume television by combining free channels with a no-limits cloud DVR system and integrated web apps such as Netflix. In other words: a mix of live channels and on-demand content. Think Slingbox meets TiVo meets Apple TV, all in one device.
The turbo-charged product known as Boxee TV, which is available for $99 in thousands of Walmart stores, is dramatically increasing access and flexibility to television, and is overlaying social data so friends can interactively share and comment on what they are watching.
The company, which has raised over $25 million in venture capital, has almost 50 employees in its New York and Tel Aviv offices. Management is located in the U.S. while R&D is in Israel – due to the country’s stellar engineering talent.
Israel, as a young immigrant country, offers youth cutting-edge knowledge learned in the army and at great universities, he says. “Israelis simply don’t take no for an answer and seek to make situations better. Israelis are problem solvers and always look for a path to solve a problem,” he adds.
Whether creating fun consumer technologies, advanced enterprise software or biotech breakthroughs, Israelis are certainly proving – startup by startup – that they are able and willing to solve some of the world’s greatest issues.
In the famed words of the country’s founder, David Ben-Gurion: “In Israel, in order to be a realist you must believe in miracles.”
Bron: Huffington Post
Moroccan Jews study high-tech in Israel
As part of fast-growing phenomenon, Jewish families from Morocco send their sons to study at Jerusalem College of Technology. After their graduation, most students decide to make aliyah
Thirteen young Jewish men from Morocco began their studies at the Machon Lev academic institution for men in the Jerusalem College of Technology this year.
These youngsters are part of a fast-growing phenomenon of Moroccan Jewish families sending their children to study in Israel, particularly at the Jerusalem institute.
These 13 men join 25 other young Moroccan Jews who arrived in Israel in a secret operation in the past three years. Machon Lev helps them maintain their Jewish tradition and values while engaging in academic studies.
On their way to Israel they pass through several countries, in an attempt to cover their tracks and ensure that the Moroccan authorities are unaware of their real destination.
Encouraging their arrival, the State of Israel lets them in without stamping their passports, thus protecting the families left behind and allowing them to return safely to Morocco after completing their degree.
The young men study engineering and high-tech for four years, and most of them decide to immigrate to Israel upon completing their degree.
“There is no future for us in Morocco,” explains Yitzhak, an accounting student. “I came to Israel and I see myself staying here in the future and starting a family.”
According to Machon Lev President Professor Noah Dana-Picard, the students from Morocco are integrating very well into the academic institution. “They have managed to quickly adjust to the language and mentality of the rest of the students,” he says.
Bron: Ynet
For Israel’s Negev pioneers, a tough but fulfilling lifestyle
Conversations with several remarkable individuals about what it takes to live in the remote, spacious, silent south
With thousands of locusts swarming through the fields and farms of the Negev, the last week was a stressful one for residents of the desert plain, concerned as they are about their livelihoods, from growing potato crops and grapes to raising goats and caring for bike-riding tourists.
But Golan Cohen, who grows medicinal herbs from the sand-dune hilltops of Be’er Milka, part of the Nitzana region, wasn’t too perturbed.
“We were lucky,” he said. “Only a few came our way, so our fields haven’t suffered any damage.”
It’s a fairly typical response for Cohen, a low-key, former Jerusalemite in a dusty cowboy hat who likes to pour homemade herbal tea for visitors, seating them under the shade of the thatched gazebo on his property. A desert transplant who’s been in love with the region since he was a third-grader, and who regularly hosts tourist and Birthright groups as part of his work, he takes things like locusts and sandstorms in stride.
Cohen is one of a small group of hardy, steadfast Negev residents with whom The Times of Israel spoke recently, on a tour through a region that is physically and philosophically remote from the densely populated, immensely fast-paced life in the heart of the country.
“Nothing is the norm here, but that’s my way, I can’t do it another way,” said Cohen, 37, who has been in the south for 13 years, now with a wife and four children. “The salary at the end of the month isn’t the goal here. We do okay, it’s a modest life, but we’re not missing anything.”
Shirat Hamidbar, or Song of the Desert, is the name of Cohen’s unconventional farm that uses brackish water to grow the desert herbs he sells to other companies and to make his own line of cosmetics. His methods are on the unorthodox side: He also uses an Israeli-designed process for collecting water — a ribbed plastic square that fits around the base of each tree, trapping any dew or rain that falls and slowly feeding it to the tree.
While desert living and farming were always Cohen’s goal, it took him some time to figure out where and what. Having first settled in Mitzpe Ramon, where he met his wife — a dancer at Adama, the local dance school — they found that Mitzpe, the one-street town north of Nitzana, was “a little too urban for us.” From there they went to Ezuz, a far-flung community that is also part of the Nitzana region, but farming land wasn’t easy to come by.
Be’er Milka, a bare, sparsely populated community of just 25 families, which is also part of the Nitzana region, felt right to them, Cohen said.
“There’s a quiet here and space that I can’t get in any other place,” he said. “I appreciate that what I do is pioneering, but I do it for me. I’m doing this to make something from nothing, and that’s my vision going forward.”
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The adopted Bedouin
Creating something from nothing is a fairly common concept in this neck of the woods, where one can see stretches of empty land for miles and miles, almost an unknown sight in small, crowded Israel. It’s that sense of space and solitude that seems to draw most of the Negev settlers, as well as the opportunity to do something different, to define what feels like uncharted territory.
Ami Oach ambled around the oversized slab-of-wood dining table, his newborn daughter nestled in his beefy arms. She’s the youngest of Oach’s four children, all of whom were born during the family’s 17 years living in Shivta, an ancient city of Roman and Byzantine ruins that was a caravan stop on the ancient Nabatean Spice Route.
Oach and his wife, Dina, live in the simple house built by American archaeologist H. Colt, the son of the gun manufacturer, back in 1933, when he conducted a dig at Shivta. They are the caretakers of the site, running a restaurant and three-room bed-and-breakfast, serving homemade hummous, shakshouka and breads, as well as full dinners that are cooked in an underground clay oven, similar to the way the Bedouin cook.
Oach has more than a little of a Bedouin about him, having run away to the desert when he was still a teenager in urban Petah Tikva, and lived with a Bedouin hamula for a time. To this day, he spends time every couple of months with his Bedouin family, getting away “from everything,” he said with a smile, which is punctuated by a rotting front tooth. Even in his everyday life, far away from his extended family and the rest of the country, he needs that downtime.
“You’d be surprised how much time you have to spend dealing with bureaucratic issues,” said Oach, referring to the local authority, which is in charge of sites such as Shivta, a national park and UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Ramat Negev Regional Council — the largest in the country, responsible for the Negev region — is “very involved” with places like Shivta or Ezuz, said Raz Arbel, director of the council’s tourism and partnership department, as well as with the larger, more industrial farms that develop clustered grape tomatoes and new kinds of lettuce greens. “We’re not allowing anyone to just come in and build a hotel with a lot of money. We’re into humble, simple places like Shivta,” he said. “The idea is not to change the desert.”
Arbel is another long-time desert lover, brought up in the south by a father who heeded David Ben-Gurion’s call to help settle the Negev. He grew up in his father’s fields in Lachish, as well as in the Sinai desert, where his father would spend several days each month testing crops. He then went to study at Midreshet Ben-Gurion in Sde Boker, Ben-Gurion’s desert home, and got hooked on life in the sand dunes.
“When I first came here at 16, the whole community was around 50 families and it was a long drive from Beersheba — an hour-and-a-half ride,” he said. “But there’ve been dramatic changes. Now we’re more than 5,500 families (in the Ramat Negev Council area), the roads are better and so are the cars.”
Now the Negev has 1 million visitors each year, including 300,000 tourists from abroad. That’s a significant change, said Arbel; until five or six years ago, around 90% of the visitors to the Negev were Israelis. With the advent of the Birthright program for Diaspora youngsters, and other Jewish visitors looking for a different kind of Israel experience, “the numbers have changed,” he said.
“What characterizes this area — and what hasn’t been ruined — is that the people who come here and build projects are still pioneers,” Arbel enthused. “We’re in a very big region, and most people just drive through on Route 40 (which runs from Kfar Saba to just north of Eilat) and don’t veer off the road. Those who stop find that the people who live here have time for them. They’re not pressured, they’re calm, there’s the peacefulness of the desert and it’s a quality feeling. We’re off the grid.”
Still, with slightly more than 4 million dunams of land (nearly one million acres) settled by 15,000 people in 14 communities — including kibbutzim, moshavim, villages and farms, where inhabitants derive 90% of their income from farming — the Ramat Negev area offers a “crazy” amount of space, said Arbel, and no shortage of opportunity.
Marketing Mitzpe
Mitzpe Ramon is considered the center of Negev tourism, assembled as a base camp for the workers who initially built Route 40 to Eilat, and it is now becoming the slowly developing tourism center for the south. With the addition of luxury hotel Beresheet, built by Israeli hotel empire Isrotel nearly two years ago, Mitzpe is experiencing a paradigm shift in character, explained Arbel, which is visible in the increased number of visitors to the region.
“Until Beresheet was built, the local authority in Mitzpe didn’t think that tourism could be the platform for the area,” Arbel continued.
The plan is to have a total of 3,000 hotel rooms in Mitzpe within 15 years, with 4,000 hotel rooms in the entire region, not including hostels or B&Bs, but rather the type of simple but ample hotel rooms offered by the kibbutz hotel at Mashabei Sade, he said.
“Our goal is to leave the open space for everyone to enjoy,” enthused Arbel, “but it’s important to us that inside the communities will be the tourism centers.”
Sa’ar and Hadass Badash are part of that tourism push within Mitzpe, a young couple of “refugees” from the north, as they call themselves, who were looking for something more meaningful and ideological in their move south.
They opened Hadasa’ar, a combination cafe, health food store, wine shop and community cooperative nearly a year ago, and have found themselves becoming an information resource for the growing tourism trade — from IDF units serving in the area to tourists stopping in for a quick coffee and bite. They’re still struggling for cash flow, but feel certain that they made the right choice in coming here.
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“When I lecture to soldiers, I talk about why people move here, the delicate connection between individual choice and something that’s more social, communal,” said Badash. “It’s not the same for everybody, but if you zoom out and look at those who choose to come, you can see a thread that binds them together.”
Badash, a tall, rangy 36-year-old who often has a scruff of beard on his face and wears socks with his sandals, possesses an intense spirit that is apparent whether he’s sitting still, rolling a cigarette, or talking about his plans for Mizpe.
He likes to tell the story of their move four years ago, when the mover was finishing up and handed Badash his business card.
“I looked at him and I said, ‘Why are you giving this to me? I don’t need it now.’”
“He said to me, ‘Take it, because half of the people I move here move back six months later.’”
This kind of change isn’t easy, reflected Badash. “It forces us to do things out of our comfort zone. And whoever chooses to do this, to move here, already has a common language with whoever’s here. It’s a passion for something more ideological — could be Zionist, or fulfillment of a dream — but it’s easier for us to share ideas because we all share that passion.”
Gazing at the stars
That’s certainly true of Ira Machefsky, a 66-year-old high-tech entrepreneur and venture capitalist originally from Memphis, Tennessee by way of Palo Alto, California and then New Jersey, who, with his wife, Pam, followed their only daughter when she madealiya and moved with her young family to Mizpe.
“It didn’t feel like a crazy thing to do,” said Machefsky, a short, white-haired Santa Claus of a man in a kippah, chuckling in hindsight and remembering that their Nefesh b’Nefesh immigration file got flagged because they were “doing something outrageous” in moving to the Negev. “It felt exciting.”
Now three years into their aliya, the Machefskys are settled in to their cramped apartment in one of Mizpe’s older buildings, but still wowed by the “incredibly beautiful” scenery, the vistas, the Ramon crater in their “backyard,” the ibex that occasionally wander through town.
The access to nature is awe-inspiring, added Machefsky, but the region is “incredibly isolated,” he said, far from the most basic things. “You can’t buy a pair of shoes in Mizpe Ramon, you can’t cut your hair, you can’t get an X-ray. We’re all very far away from everything, and that’s the downside of being remote.”
“The crater is our office,” added Haim Berger, a licensed tour guide and PhD in animal behavior and ecology who spends his days guiding tourists through the Ramon craters and lives in Sde Boker with his family. With his sidekick, Moshiko, another Israeli Bedouin wanna-be, they spent each spring guiding Israelis through authentic tours of Morocco’s Atlas Mountains, and track wolves and other predators in their spare time. “We have to take care when we show this area to visitors,” he said, “offering them the right insights and perceptions.”
That’s particularly true now that Beresheet has made the area more of a tourist destination. Machefsky is still surprised by that change, since he didn’t think one hotel could make that much of a difference. But it has, and it’s a major shift for him as well, with his star-gazing business. A lifelong star lover, Machefsky hung out his stargazing shingle when he moved to Mizpe, and has been conducting nighttime tours of the sky ever since, turning his lifelong hobby into a profession.
He’s concerned about the advent of too much tourism to the area, the proliferation of hotels that will light up the dark sky that is a Mizpe Ramon asset; dark skies can even be “certified” as such by various organizations, making the town a site for star tourism.
“It’s a hard thing to balance, development and keeping things pristine,” said Machefsky. “I love the things I do here; it would be impossible to do them anywhere else. I don’t want to be in venture capital; I want to be doing this.”
That deep, driven desire to be doing something very specific, following a path that only leads to this particular region, is what drives many of those who live here. They seek what is unique about the desert; the intense seasons, marked by sandstorms and beating sun, following what intrigued the ancient people who settled and traveled through here. It is a place like no other, and while the tourists come and go, they get to live in this place permanently, enduring and imbibing the region and its spirit.
“We all live in this quiet, this silence,” said Badash, the creative entrepreneur. “It’s not easy to hear your dilemmas, your difficulties. There’s no white noise here. But if you can do it, you’re making a rare commitment. You don’t come to places like this for your career. Anyone who chose to come here is looking for something slightly different.”
Bron: Times of Israel
Prinses Margriet reikt Europese prijs uit
BRUSSEL – Prinses Margriet heeft dinsdagmiddag in The Egg Brussel de naar haar vernoemde prijs van de European Cultural Foundation uitgereikt. Het kunstenaarsduo Dan en Lia Perjovschi uit Roemenië en de Israëlische dirigent Yoel Gamzou wonnen de ECF Princess Margriet Award dit jaar.
Prinses Laurentien, die met haar gezin in Brussel woont, was ook bij de uitreiking aanwezig. Zij volgde prinses Margriet in 2007 op als president van de ECF en gaf de openingsspeech. Prinses Astrid van België zat ook in het publiek.
Met de ECF Princess Margriet Award worden denkers, kunstenaars en activisten geëerd die het Europese publiek met hun werk raken en aan het denken zetten over de rol die cultuur en culturele diversiteit in de samenleving spelen. De prijs wordt in samenwerking met de ministeries van Onderwijs, Cultuur en Wetenschap en Buitenlandse Zaken uitgereikt.
Bron: Refdag
“Dr. Fischer”: The Man Behind the Brand
Eli Fischer sits in a Tel Aviv café wiping his eyes with a disposable towelette. The unassuming 77-year-old head of Fischer Pharmaceuticals is demonstrating how to use the Israeli hygiene product that recently debuted in New York and soon will hit Los Angeles.
“We sell over a million Dr. Fischer Eye-Care Cleansing Wipes in Israel every month, so we decided to start with this one item in New York to see how the branded product will do,” says Fischer, who for the past 10 years has sold eye-care and skin-care products in the United States and other countries under private labels for major pharmacy chains. Amazon and eBay also now carry his blue-and-white products.
In Israel, the Dr. Fischer logo is ubiquitous. Unlike Betty Crocker or Aunt Jemima, the name does not refer to a fictional marketing persona. Hence the title of his newly released autobiography, Dr. Fischer: The Man Behind the Logo.
It’s difficult to separate Fischer the man, from Fischer the business. After 47 years, the Czech-born pharmacist has become the face of 500 leading products from prescription eye drops to sunscreen. He has acquired 10 companies including the Israeli chain of Body Shop stores, which he has grown from 20 to 45.
He’s also a doting family man and a leading philanthropist with a special interest in promoting peace through the arts.
From car mechanic to pharmacist
Over a lasagna lunch, Fischer relates to ISRAEL21c that both his grandfather and father were physicians at a healing spa in the Sudetenland. Staying one step ahead of the coming Holocaust, the Fischer family landed in the Jaffa Port on March 15, 1939, just as Hitler’s forces were entering Prague.
Fischer claims he was a lackluster student who wanted to quit school and be a mechanic. But one year into high school, something clicked. Instead of working in a garage, Fischer earned a master’s degree in biochemistry and microbiology at the Hebrew University.
At 23 and newly married, Fischer found himself working as a teaching assistant to a Nobel Prize winner at Harvard before going on for his doctorate in pharmacy at the University of California-San Francisco.
While there, in 1961, he helped develop Eppy, a revolutionary eye-drop product to treat glaucoma. “It was the drug of choice for several years, and now there are better ones,” he says modestly.
Returning to Israel, Fischer joined Assia, one of the forerunners of Teva Pharmaceuticals.
“After 10 months, I wanted to leave because I’m an individualist and I don’t like being told what to do,” he says. “I wanted to start my own lab with a friend.”
First, he spent a year back in California learning every aspect of pharmaceutical production at Barnes-Hind, a maker of contact lenses and solutions. In 1963 he joined the company’s board, and returned to Israel with $5,000 in seed money to start his own business.
Fischer and his wife, Dvora, rented a factory in Bnai Brak, near Tel Aviv. And so Fischer Pharmaceuticals was born.
“We started with two products – one for eyes and one for skin. Most of the week, I went out selling it at doctors’ offices. My wife was chief accountant, but there were no accounts for nearly two years,” he recalls.
The slow road to success was strewn with setbacks and crises, as in many new businesses. Today the company employs more than 700 people of all races and religions at its two Israeli facilities, and provides income for about 300 ancillary support staff from printers to drivers to electricians.
“We export to 30 countries,” says Fischer. “Every day, we send two 40-foot containers from the Haifa Port to the US and two to Europe.”
All eyes on the US
The Israeli popularity of Fischer’s sterilized eye-cleansing wipes made this product a natural for the brand’s US debut.
- A sales force was hired to meet with New York-area ophthalmologists, pediatricians and pharmacists, because the product is sold mostly through doctor recommendation and only in pharmacies.
“We will see after one year how we do. After seven months, we already knew it was time to spread to LA,” he says. “I hope to be there by April.”
His goal is not only to sell more wipes, but to start a whole new trend. “I’m trying to teach a new concept: daily eye hygiene as preventative medicine,” he says. “You do it after you brush your teeth, and it just takes a second.”
Though two of the three Fischer daughters now run the business day to day – freeing their father for press interviews and trips to the US to manage the new operation there – the man behind the logo is involved in all research and marketing decisions and in many charitable endeavors.
Art for Peace
“My late wife and I were always involved in volunteering,” he says. One of his pet charitable projects is the Dr. Fischer Art for Peace Foundation.
“In 1979, when the peace treaty was signed between Israel and Egypt and a stamp was issued to commemorate this event, we took first-day issue envelopes and asked artists to paint on them on the subject of peace. We made an exhibit from this. We repeated it in 1994 after the peace treaty with Jordan.”
“Artists: Messengers of Peace” has traveled to major cities including New York, Washington, Paris, London, Tokyo and just recently Prague, under the curatorship of Israeli artist Doron Polak and with the backing of Israel’s Foreign Ministry.
A hardcover book of the images made its way to then-President Ezer Weizman, to Jordanian King Hussein, to former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger – “everyone we thought can help bring peace,” says Fischer. “Now I am not as optimistic as I was then.”
A related project, “Children of the World Paint Peace,” resulted in 1,500 entries. Many of them were later donated to brighten up Israeli pediatric wards.
After Dvora Fischer died in 2006, Fischer rented exhibition space in her name at Tel Aviv’s ZOA House, and mounts a new show there every two months. Participating artists are required to donate half their sales profits to social causes such as schools for autistic children and shelters for battered women.
First and foremost, Fischer is a proud father and grandfather. He hosts his daughters Dafna, Sigal and Nurit and their husbands and children at his home every Friday.
“You should of course take care of your family,” he writes in his autobiography, “but do not close your eyes to those who need help, to the weak people in society, the poor and underprivileged. This should be an integral part of your life and business activity and should not be considered philanthropy.”
Bron: Matzav
Israeli high-tech firms raid Barcelona
Some 3,000 Israelis attending Mobile World Congress in Spain this week as part of fourth biggest delegation to prestigious event
Some 2,000 high-tech officials left Israel on Sunday to participate in the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, which opens Monday. El Al, Arkia and Air Europa reinforced their flights to the northern Spanish city.
According to estimates, a total of 3,000 Israelis are expected to attend the MWC this week. The Israeli “occupation” will be completed by hundreds of Israeli soccer fans, who will arrive in the Catalan capital on Tuesday for FC Barcelona‘s Spanish Cup semi-final second leg game against Real Madrid.
Some 150 companies will present their products during the event alongside 1,500 companies and 67,000 visitors from 205 countries.
Israel has sent the fourth largest delegation to the conference after the United States, the United Kingdom and France, and Israeli representatives have already scheduled some 3,000 business meetings.
In addition, four Israeli applications are nominated in the prestigious Global Mobile Awards competition which will be held during the event, including the Waze mobile navigation app which is competing in the main category, Judges Choice – Best Overall Mobile App.
More than 50 of the Israeli companies are displaying their products at the prestigious exhibition for the very first time. The entry fee to the exhibition is €700 ($923) per person.
The official Israeli pavilion is organized for the fourth year in a row by the Israel Export and International Cooperation Institute (IEICI). It includes three display areas, a business meeting compound and an interactive application display, which includes dozens of Israeli-developed apps.
Name of the game: Business
IEICI workers will present the developments to the pavilion visitors and help create business contacts between visitors and developers.
The products presented in the pavilion include cloud storage solutions, mobile payments, online advertising, network optimization and expanding coverage, remote access, etc.
Some 50 companies will present their products in a second pavilion sponsored by the Israel Mobile Association (IMA), which enjoys the support of international communication giants.
“We are providing Israeli companies with the best platform to create strategic cooperation with key players in the global mobile market,” says IEICI CEO Ofer Sachs.
According to IMA CEO Eyal Reshef, the level of interest in the Israeli companies is unprecedented. “I have hardly slept in the past two weeks,” he says.
The Industry, Trade and Labor Ministry’s commercial attachés around the world have also been recruited for the mission in the past year, helping develop direct channels between Israeli companies and executives of the world’s leading communication operators.
Bron: Ynet News
Israel and Singapore
The Marina Bay Sands resort is not the only Israel or Jewish related element you will see in beautiful Singapore
Photo by: Courtesy
Tourist tip #172 / The Holon Design Museum
The museum building itself is a tribute to beauty and functionality.
Holon is famous for its Holon Children’s Museum and annual Purim street carnival, the Adloyada. But since 2010, it has another claim to fame: the cutting-edge Holon Design Museum.
The museum itself is housed in an extraordinary, sweeping edifice created by Ron Arad. The building is made up of red, brown, and orange bands of Weathering Steel (Cor-Ten) which surge and meander their way in, out and around the museum’s internal structural, overlapping and creating an Escher-esque sense of depth.
The notion of creating and exploiting the tension between an internal arrangement of efficient box-like spaces and the dynamic and curvaceous external envelop is the guiding design principle for the entire museum, explain Arad and his design partner for the building, Bruno Asa.
Inside are two staggered levels of galleries with changing exhibits. The galleries are connected by a ramp, which is the main circulation route in the building, taking visitors between galleries and floors. The upshot is a cave-like environment opening up to large, bright open spaces that house the artwork.
Currently the Lower Gallery, on the main floor, is showing two separate, but related, exhibits. On its walls, the rise of the Israeli textile industry is mapped out with explanations and visual examples of the Fourth Aliyah (or “Textile Aliya”), tying Israel’s design history to the wave of immigration from Eastern Europe in the 1920s.
Viewers are free to wander through in a non-linear manner, or follow the trajectory established by the curators to learn about the initiative undertaken by artisans and industrialists.
The center of the gallery is devoted to post- World War II objects, from 1945 to 1989. The objective is to show that Eastern European designers under Communism did not significantly differ from their Western European counterparts. A diverse arrangement of chairs, floor lamps, radios, and television sets recreate the creative interiors of times past.
Walking up the ramp but before reaching the stairs to the Upper Gallery, are three television screens showing TED.com talks. Here, you can take a moment to sit on the cushions provided and watch an engaging lecture for a few minutes.
In the Upper Gallery, the exhibit “Common Roots: Design Map of Central Europe” features the unique design landscape from several Central European countries. Forty years after the end of World War II, the exhibit explains, there was a rebirth of a distinct Central European culture, which today is referred to as “post-Communist”. The common roots of Central Europe and Eastern and Western Europe is explored, specifically the influence and fall of Communism in the 1990s and the emergence of the European Union in 2004. Here you can again see functional works of interior art, such as a throne-like chair made of bamboo and a wooden desk with legs that function as a bookcase, where your personal library is visible through the glass surface.
Visiting the museum on a sunny day is the most rewarding, since the architectural uniqueness of Ron Arad’s vision is most visible when the sun shines through the windows.
Starting in March, 2013, the exhibit “Lady of the Daisies: A Tribute to Lea Gottlieb” will give visitors an in-depth view of the work of that famous fashion designer, who initiated a leading and innovative area of fashion in Israel’s textile industry. The historical portion will be curated by fashion researcher Ayala Raz.
Although extremely informative, tourists who don’t speak Hebrew may have a harder time understanding the significance of each artwork, since most of the informative plaques are only in Hebrew. Bring a Hebrew speaking friend or tour the museum with an audiovisual guide.
The museum sports a shop and is connected to a small cafe.
Opening hours
Mondays and Wednesdays – 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.
Tuesday and Thursday – 10:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M.
Friday 10:00 A.M. to 2:00 P.M
Saturday 10:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M.
The museum is closed on Sundays. It is wheelchair-accessible with ramps and elevators.
Tickets can be purchased at the Museum box office located in the kiosk just outside the main entrance, in person or by phone.
Pinhas Eilon St. 8, Holon, Tel. 03-215-1515; Box Office 03-215-1500; email info@dmh.org.il.
For more information and admission fees, check their website.
Bron: Haaretz
Kenya: Israel Celebrates 50 Years With Food Festival
Israel celebrity Chef, Omer Miller and the world famous percussionist Gilad Dobrecky were recently in Kenya week to inaugurate and celebrate the 50th anniversary of Israel’s relationship with Kenya.
Chef Miller is also the author of two Israeli cuisine cookbooks and as a “celebrity-chef” has starred in several TV cooking shows, the most recent one of them launched several months ago.
The Tribe hotel invited food Chefs to a food festival courtesy of the Israel Embassy in Kenya and showcased a special menu collaboration between the Tribe’s executive chef Luca Molteni and his Israeli counterpart.
According to the chief guest Israel ambassador Gil Haskel, the food festival was planned to coincide with Valentine’s Day, on February 14. In addition to a one-of-a-kind culinary experience, the guests also experienced a live performance from Gilad Dobrecky alongside Kenyan vocalist, Alisha Popat.
Bron: All Africa
Not your grandfather’s Israeli wine
You can’t go wrong with a bottle of wine from one of Israel’s big five wineries — Carmel, Barkan, Golan Heights, Binyamina, Teperberg — or from other well-known brands whose consistent quality has earned them a solid place on American retail shelves, such as Tishbi, Dalton, Galil Mountain and Recanati.
These wines have been winning customer kudos and international tasting awards in the past decade, which is largely responsible for the steady growth in Israeli wine exports to the level of about $15 million annually.
But if you’re ready to spend more and be a bit adventurous, you’ll find additional choices from Israeli wineries you’ve probably never heard of.
“There’s been an explosion of the [Israeli] boutique brands, such as Domaine Ventura, Adir, Saslove, Gvaot, Lueria, Alexander, Psagot,” said Richard Fishman, general manager of Skyview Wine & Spirits in New York.
Some of these boutique brands were brought to Fishman’s attention by importers, but most of them are on Skyview’s shelves because customers told him they’d tasted these wines in Israel and wanted to buy them locally. His personal favorites include Gvaot Pinot Noir, Adir Plato and Alexander Amarolo.
They are not cheap. “Generally these brands range from $25 to $75,” Fishman said. “It does not seem to be a barrier. They’re very high-end, unusual and extremely different tasting.”
“All around the world, wine magazines are naming Israeli wines, so among experts, everybody recognizes the surge in quality,” said Gary Landsman, director of marketing for Royal Wine, the largest importer, distributor and producer of kosher wines in North America.
Importers and Israeli trade organizations are trying to get the word out that these labels are worth the price. “Israel isn’t what you think,” Landsman said.
He noted an “elegance trend” in newer Israeli wines that reflect where winemakers get their training. Those schooled in Australia or the Napa Valley favor robust, fruit-forward wines, he explained, while winemakers trained in Italy or France espouse the European approach that wine is made to be enjoyed with food and shouldn’t overwhelm the food or be overwhelmed by it. “According to this philosophy, wine should be complementary, restrained or elegant as opposed to bombastic,” Landsman said.
“You’re starting to see a trend more toward that style, in larger wineries like Carmel and Binyamina, and in the Castel boutique winery for example, where the proprietor is Egyptian-born and grew up in Europe enjoying their cuisine. You’re beginning to see this also in the small Flam Winery, whose owner was trained in Italy. And Shiloh, Psagot and Alexander all are doing a great job with this.”
Israeli-bred Manhattanite Yossie Horwitz offers contact information and a map for 70 Israeli wineries on his “Yossie’s Corkboard” kosher wine blog.
“In any wine store specializing in kosher wine — which is unfortunately how Israeli wines are still marketed, instead of with Mediterranean wines — the majority is going to come from Israel just because of the sheer number of the wineries,” Horwitz said.
Altogether, more than 100 Israeli wineries (kosher and a few non-kosher) produce about 60 million bottles per year. Exporting is critical because the Israeli market is so small, and more than half the bottles of exported Israeli wine are bound for the United States.
When asked for a few recommendations, Horwitz reflected a bit. “I like different, interesting tastes,” he replied. “Recanati Wild Carignan is a good wine but high-priced. Gvaot Pinot Noir is one of the best. Bravdo, a Judean Hills winery, has a Coupage blend that is excellent. Carmel Riesling 2010 succeeds in an area where kosher wine has not been so successful, and it’s the right price, too. Yarden Katzrin 2008 is the best kosher wine, period.”
The Golan Heights Winery decided a few years ago to create a brand of wine specifically tailored for the American palate. “The Gilgal product line consists of wines which have been found to be exceptionally well-suited to American tastes. They are of a high quality, yet not overly complex, and excellent value for money,” said Udi Kadim, the CEO of Yarden Inc., which imports Gilgal Wines.
A new Israeli wine Web site is soon to debut from the Israel Wine Producers Association, which works closely with Royal. The 15 wineries it promotes represent all of Israel’s grape-growing regions, from the Golan Heights and Galilee in the north through the Judean Hills down to Mitzpeh Ramon and the Southern Hebron Hills: Alexander, Barkan, Bazelet Hagolan, Binyamina, Carmel, Castel, Domaine Netofa, Flam, Gamla, Psagot, Segal, Shiloh, Tzuba, Yatir and Zion.
“The wineries are helping fund this initiative to penetrate places that don’t know such wines exist in Israel,” Landsman said. “The idea is to put a nice glass of Merlot in someone’s hand and hear them say, ‘Can you believe this is from Israel?’ ”
Bron: Jewish Journal
Israel only country in West to reduce debt
Israel is the only country in the West which has managed to reduce its debt as a proportion of GDP in 2012.
Yedioth Ahronoth has learned that the Israeli government’s debt in the past year (which is calculated this week and published soon) will total some 73.5% of GDP, compared to 74.1% of GDP in 2011 and 80% of GDP five years ago.
In total, the State’s debts today amount to NIS 720 billion (about $194 billion). The GDP is close to NIS 1 trillion ($267.5 billion)
Debt has increased in all Western countries in recent years, and in some it has even reached more than 100% of GDP.
In the past four years, Britain’s debt-to-GDP ratio has gone up by 48%, in Japan it has increased by 42%, and in the United States by 33%. The debt-to-ratio of all OECD countries has increased by 28%, in France it has gone up by 26%, in Germany – 19%, in Australia – 16%, and in Italy – 15%.
Due to the ongoing decline in state debts, Israel is also the only country in the Western world whose credit rating has increased since 2008, when the subprime mortgage crisis broke out in the US. Meanwhile, the credit rating of the US, Britain, France, Austria, Belgium and Japan was cut due to a huge increase in debts.
Yet if a state budget is not approved in the near future, Israel’s credit rating may be reduced as well later this year. Despite the huge deficit in its budget, Israel has avoided increasing its debts and has even paid them back at a higher rate than in the past. As a result, the debt-to-GDP ratio is expected to drop by a further 1% in 2013.
‘Major accomplishment’
In the Maastricht Treaty, signed upon the establishment of the European Union, countries were given permission to join the EU as long as their debts did not exceed 60% of GDP. That year, 1991, Israel’s debts reached more than 100% of GDP. Now the Jewish state is moving closer to the European criterion, while many EU countries have deviated from it with debts exceeding 100% of GDP.
A senior Finance Ministry official told Yedioth Ahronoth earlier this week, “It’s true that the Israeli economy is experiencing problems, it’s true that there is a serious housing problem and cost of living, and it’s true that the state budget deficit increased significantly in the past year, beyond expectations.
“But thanks to the wise activity of the Treasury’s accountant general, Michal Abadi-Boiangiu, and thanks to the supervision and warnings issued by the Bank of Israel, there is an ongoing decline in the State of Israel’s debts. This is a huge accomplishment, and the world highly appreciates the State of Israel for that.”
Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz said recently that “Israel is leading the world in terms of reducing debt in recent years. I see it as a major accomplishment.”
Only last month, Israel’s dollar-denominated bond offeringgarnered demand of more than $9 billion from foreign investors and provided the government with its lowest ever funding costs in a dollar bond issue.
Bron: Ynet
Airport debris detector tops Israeli innovation list
XSight bids bye-bye to junk on runways
Israel’s XSight Systems, which detects runway debris that can endanger planes and passengers, has been called one of Israel’s most innovative companies by US tech magazine Fast Company. “Foreign Object Debris (FOD) costs the aviation industry around $13 billion per year,” and is a major safety risk, Fast Company wrote about XSight, naming it one of the top 10 Israeli innovators for 2013. The XSight system “has emerged as one of the leading solutions, using hybrid radar and electro-optical technology to detect junk on runways,” the magazine wrote.
XSight’s premier product, FODetect, uses hybrid radar and electro-optical technology to detect junk on runways, with units installed together with runway lights, ensuring that all parts of the runway are constantly monitored. When debris is detected, the control tower is alerted and can contact the pilots and hold up flights as necessary. The system’s GPS, meanwhile, alerts ground crew to exactly where the debris is located, enabling them to quickly remove it without holding up flights.
Runway debris is a serious safety issue in the airline business, and has been responsible for damage to aircraft and even crashes. One of the most well-known instances of an FOD-related tragedy occurred in 2000, when an Air France Concorde supersonic plane caught fire, exploded, and crashed into a hotel within minutes of takeoff. All passengers and crew on the flight were killed, as were some hotel employees, with a death toll of 113.
The reason for the crash? A 17-inch metal strip that fell off a plane that had taken off minutes before. The pilot didn’t see it — he was too high off the ground. The ground crew missed it, too, and as a result, over 100 people lose their lives.
According to Alon Nitzan, president & CEO of XSight Systems, the the product has helped enhance safety at the airports where it is installed, including Boston Logan, Charles de Gaulles in Paris, Ben Gurion Airport and others.
“We take pride in being on this honorable list, beyond that we are happy to contribute to the state of innovation in the world’s economy driven by the aviation industry. XSight innovative Runway Management Solution provides leading airports with improved runway safety, increased runway capacity and enhanced operational efficiency,” said Nitzan. “The company will continue to develop its innovative technology to deliver crucial benefits to airport operators and answer growing needs.”
Bron: Times of Israel
Waze Awarded ‘Best Overall Mobile App’
The Israeli startup Waze has been awarded “Best Overall Mobile App” at the 2013Global Mobile Awards!
Now in its eighteenth year, the Global Mobile Awards recognizes the latest and best innovations across the mobile ecosystem.
Waze beat out popular apps such as Dropbox, Flipboard and Square.
Waze is the world’s fastest-growing community-based traffic and navigation app. It uses crowd sources from other drivers who share real-time traffic and road info.
Bron: Israel national news
Safer and greener: Israel’s high-tech highways
Asphalt that uses recycled tires makes roads easier to brake on and helps the environment, says Dimona Silica Industries
Leave it to Israel to infuse high technology into something as prosaic as asphalt. A Negev company has developed a road asphalt compound that uses old tires for strength and safety, and is friendly to the environment to boot.
The new compound, called RuBind, is already in use in Israel. Approved by the Israel Standards Institute last October, the compound was used to pave roads in the Beit She’an Valley that are particularly notorious for their accidents. Among the qualities of RuBind is its “rubberiness,” due to the bits and pieces of rubber mixed in with the asphalt, and as a result, cars have an easier time braking thanks to the higher friction that occurs when a car’s rubber tires meets the rubber on the road.
RuBind is based on recycled rubber tires that would otherwise have littered junk piles, or would have been burned, the company, Dimona Silica Industries (DSI), said. Because of the ubiquitous presence of old tires, the production process is cheap, and because rubber handles wear and tear far better than plain asphalt, the roads paved with the compound will be longer lasting, DSI said, with fewer potholes and gaps developing due to the impact of traffic.
Scientists from several countries have been evaluating the Israeli roads paved with RuBind, and now DSI has contracts to supply its special mix to companies paving roads in Portugal, Russia, Sweden, Italy, China, the US, and other countries.
DSI, located in the Negev, has a tradition of recycling. The company is know for producing precipitated silica derived from porcellanite, the waste material from the production of phosphates. The silica is used in a variety of products, including tires for autos (silica is a major component of tires).
“Each year, some 50,000 tires in Israel are disposed of, and become trash,” said DSI CEO Ronen Peled. “According to new environmental laws, you can no longer bury or burn these old tires. Now for the first time, there is a method to use these tires as part of an asphalt mix to pave roads that are safer, sturdier, and environmentally friendly, at a lower cost.”
Bron: Times of Israel
Large Israeli Presence at Hong Kong Show
(IDEX Online News) – Underscoring the importance of the Far East market to the Israeli diamond industry, the largest-ever delegation of Israeli companies will be showcasing their goods at the upcoming HKTDC Hong Kong International Jewellery Show.
| The Israel Diamond Pavilion, organized by the Israel Diamond Institute Group of Companies (IDI), will feature 90 companies. At more than 1,000 square meters, it will be the largest national pavilion at the show. |
There will be seven major Israeli companies positioned in the Chancellor Room, which is devoted exclusively to diamonds. An additional 10 Israeli companies will be exhibiting in the Hall of Nature and the Hall of Fame and various other locations throughout the show.
To make doing business at the show easier, there will be translators at most booths. IDI’s information booth, located in the heart of the pavilion, will provide background on the industry and will help buyers find their way through the pavilion.
An online mini-site, which can be accessed through the IDI portal site, enables buyers to visit the pavilion virtually before the show. The mini-site includes contact details of all Israeli exhibitors, including those not participating in the pavilion, as well as a map indicating their location at the show.
Asia is Israel’s second-largest market for polished diamonds, representing more than 35 percent of total polished diamond exports.
The HKTDC Hong Kong International Jewellery Show takes place from March 5-9.
Bron: IDEX Online News
McGregor fashion coming to Israel
International fashion brand to open its flagship store at Tel Aviv’s Azrieli Mall. Franchisees planning total of 10 stores in Israel
A new international fashion brand is coming to Israel. McGregor, which manufactures luxury casual wear, will open its first flagship store will open in March at Tel Aviv’s Azrieli Mall, Yedioth Ahronoth has learned.
The new store will stretch over 170 square meters (1,830 square feet)
The brand’s Israeli franchisees are Yoav Basan, the former CEO of Tommy Hilfiger Israel, and his wife, Attorney Maya Milstein. The couple plans to open 10 McGregor stores in Israel in the next five years.
McGregor will be one of the first international brands to arrive in Israel since American Eagle Outfitters entered the market last year. Due to the drop in fashion sales over the past year, Israeli entrepreneurs have been holding back their plans to bring in new brands.
The new brand offers premium fashion for women, men and children, accessories, bags and shoes.
McGregor was founded in New York in 1921 by Sir David Doniger, a Scottish immigrant. The brand’s trademark is the tartan (famous Scottish woolen cloth woven in plaid patterns). Its most famous item is a jacket worn by late American film actor James Dean.
The company’s clothes can be found in 4,000 department stores across Europe, including Galeries Lafayette in Paris, Germany’s Kaufhof chain and El Corte Inglés in Spain. It also operates some 200 flagship stores.
Bron: Ynet News
Israëlische kunstenaar Aya Ben Ron maakt spiegelende vijver in de hal van Maxima Medisch Centrum
EINDHOVEN – Er is nog niet zo veel te zien. Een grote bak, de binnenkant beschermd met dekens. Rood-wit afzetlint houdt het publiek in het Eindhovense Maxima Medisch Centrum op een afstand. De Israëlische kunstenaar Aya Ben Ron ziet al veel meer. ‘Een vijver met een wateroppervlak waarin je jezelf kunt zien maar waarin ook de roestvrijstalen beelden spiegelen die boven het water hangen’.
Eind van deze maand is de verbouwing van het Eindhovense ziekenhuis klaar. Anderhalf jaar zijn ze er mee bezig geweest en vanaf het begin was duidelijk dat in de nieuwe hal een mooi kunstwerk moest komen.
Aangename omgeving
“We willen een aangename omgeving maken voor al de mensen die hier komen”, zegt Ralph van Disseldorp. Hij zit in de kunstcommissie van het ziekenhuis. In die aangename omgeving speelt kunst een grote rol. Het ziekenhuis heeft een poos geleden al een overeenkomst gesloten met het Van Abbemuseum en samen zochten ze Aya Ben Ron uit die op meerdere plaatsen in de wereld kunst voor ziekenhuizen heeft gemaakt.
Het Maxima Medisch Centrum is niet het enige ziekenhuis dat kunstenaars te hulp roept. Het Jeroen Boschziekenhuis in Den Bosch werkt samen met het Noordbrabants Museum. In de afgesloten binnentuinen van de nieuwbouw staan kunstwerken uit de collectie van het museum.
Bruns
Even later zit Aya in de auto naar Bergeijk. Het bedrijf Bruns heeft in de werkplaats daar een laser gebruikt om Aya’s ontwerpen uit platen roestvrij staal te snijden. Het resultaat: manshoge gestalten opgebouwd uit smalle lijnen waarin ook bloemmotieven zijn verwerkt. Als ze draaien, zoals straks als ze in het ziekenhuis hangen, ontstaat er een spel met het licht waardoor het beeld soms zichtbaar, soms bijna onzichtbaar is.
Aya lacht als ze het ziet: “Ik zie ze nu voor het eerst en ze zijn zoals ik had bedacht. Ik ben tevreden.” Eind februari wordt de nieuwe hal van het Maxima Medisch Centrum officieel in gebruik genomen. Dan is ook het kunstwerk helemaal klaar, inclusief de zuiveringsinstallatie voor het water die in de fietsenkelder staat, ónder de vijver.
Bron: Omroep Brabant
Cell-based computers could someday snuff out cancer
Researchers in Israel are working to develop tiny computers that can be inserted into cells to assess their condition and independently provide an appropriate treatment. In a study published at Scientific Reports, the researchers–from the Weizmann Institute of Science–highlight the success they’ve had in creating a genetic device that operates independently in bacterial cells.
The device monitors transcription factors–proteins that control the expression of genes in the cell. The transcription factors don’t workproperly in cancer cells, for instance, allowing increased cell division that leads to tumor growth.
The device conducts a “roll call” of transcription factors, and if the results meet preprogrammed parameters, it emits a protein that glows green. The researchers plan to replace that response with a different one–perhaps one that could cause the cell to self-destruct, according to an announcement from the institute.
The study drew on a concept in computing known as a NOR logical gate: The device checked for two transcription factors and glowed green only if both were missing. Using four types of genetically engineered bacteria, they created samples with no transcription factors missing; both missing; and two types in which one was missing. The device proved adept at signaling only the appropriate conditions. The researchers then moved on to more complex logical gates.
They hope to create a similar system that can operate inside human cells, which are more complicated than bacteria cells.
Researchers have been studying a host of devices and treatments that take place inside the body. They’re looking at the feasibility of harnessing the motion in the eardrum, heartbeats and body heat to run low-power electronic devices that could, for instance, monitor conditions inside the ear among people with balance impairments or provide treatments such as for ear infections.
At the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, materials scientists are at work developing biodegradable components that could deliver treatments for a set period of time, then dissolve once their work is done.
And tiny iron fillings are being injected into patients at the Centre for Cardiovascular Science at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, which cardiologists there track through magnetic resonance imaging as a way to monitor medical therapies.
Bron: FierceHealthIT
Treasury: There May be Hope for Lower Home Prices
There are signs that voracious appetite of Israelis for apartments and homes may be calming down.
After another year of near record demand for housing, there are signs that voracious appetite of Israelis for apartments and homes may be calming down. In January, the Finance Ministry said, there was a slight downturn in closings in real estate deals, the continuation of a trend that began in December – which is the result of a change in policy bythe Bank of Israel, which has instructed mortgage banks not to provide preferred conditions to investors who already own homes, leaving the benefits for families that do not yet own a home.
Whether the trend will continue is questionable, real estate experts said – because in 2012, Israeli contractors seemingly could not build homes fast enough to meet demand. In September, sales were low because few Israelis buy homes during the period between Rosh Hashana and Sukkot, but in October, demand again shot up, with 21% more people buying homes that month than the month before. Demand was up even more in November, by an additional 11%.
Higher demand usually means higher prices. The government has declared numerous times that it was going to do what was necessary to bring down real estate costs, but so far has not discovered the combination of actions and factors that would actually accomplish this. Thus, real estate prices continue to remain high and even climb in some areas, making purchasing a home for young families and, often, new immigrants, nearly impossible.
In December, though, sales were lower or flat in many areas. Experts attributed the dropoff to a lack of activity by investors, who are said to be trying to work in the Bank ofIsrael’s new rules into their portfolios. As such, demand is expected to continue to be strong, leading to continued high prices for homes – but the Bank of Israel expressed hope that demand might go down somewhat, at least to temper prices over the next few months.
Bron: Israel National News
An Orthodox Star Is Born
When Ofir Ben Sheetrit sang on Israel’s The Voice, her high school suspended her, but the country went wild.
Last month, when the new season of the Israeli reality show The Voice—the local version of NBC’s hit singing competition—debuted, no one expected extraordinary drama. Marching up to the studio’s stage, the eager contestants looked like the usual grab-bag of talent show aspirants: the frustrated actor, the high-school ingénue, the bartender who crooned to overcome her personal hardships, and so on.
Then it was Ofir Ben Sheetrit’s turn.
Ben Sheetrit—at 17, one of the youngest of the show’s more than 50 contestants—is a student at an Orthodox yeshiva for girls in Ashdod and the only Orthodox young woman in the competition. Before she stepped in front of the microphone, she briefly introduced herself. “I’ve loved singing ever since I was little,” she said. “I’m looking for a way to cultivate my talent.” One of the show’s producers asked her if religion would get in the way; many Orthodox Jews consider the public singing of women immodest. Ben Sheetrit smiled sweetly. “I think the Torah wants us to be happy,” she said. “It wants music to make people happy. I think you can combine Torah and music, and this is why I chose to come on the show.” With that, she started singing an Israeli classic, Ofra Haza’s “Od Mechaka La’Echad.”
Almost immediately, the judges began pressing the buttons that swing their tall chairs around to face the contestants. Shlomi Shabbat, a veteran Israeli rocker, looked stunned. “You’re an angel,” he told Ben Sheetrit. Sarit Haddad, the queen of what can only be called Israeli soul music, was barely less hyperbolic. “You have entered my heart,” she told the blushing young woman in front of her, “and you’ll never leave it.”
The rules of the show require each contestant to choose one of the celebrity judges as a mentor, and both Haddad and Shabbat seemed like fine choices for Ben Sheetrit. Like them, she is a Mizrachi Jew, and by choosing to cover Haza—a pop star whose most famous hits were renditions of the traditional tunes her parents brought with them from their native Yemen—she was placing herself fairly close to Haddad and Shabbat’s own musical styles. But there was one more celebrity judge interested in Ben Sheetrit.
Aviv Gefen, Israel’s quintessential pop star, wasn’t as ebullient as his fellow judges. Gefen, who famously dodged military service and, during his heyday in the 1990s, frequently wore black eyeliner and walked around barefoot, is best remembered for his cri de coeur ballad subtly titled “We’re a F***ed Up Generation.” Geffen complimented Ben Sheetrit and said that, if she was so inclined, he’d like to be her mentor.
The show’s other judges took Gefen’s offer as a joke. What, they asked, might a lovely religious girl have to do with the prince of Tel Aviv’s godless bohemia? Ben Sheetrit soon silenced them: She chose Gefen. “Don’t worry,” she told her new mentor, “it’s not too late for you to become a ba’al teshuva.” Then, the two shook hands.
It was a perfect TV moment, but very soon it became something far more meaningful. Ben Sheetrit’s school, incensed that their student had flouted the stricture forbidding religious women to sing in public and the prohibition against touching members of the opposite sex, suspended her for two weeks. Reality television being more popular in Israel than any other human pursuit, the suspension soon made front-page news.
Reluctant to embrace her new-found status as a rebel with a golden voice, Ben Sheetrit explained in an interview that she was accepting her suspension. “I understood that what I did was against the spirit of the ulpana,” she said, “and didn’t want to create an opening for other girls to do the same. The punishment is symbolic.” Her meek protestations, however, were largely ignored. Ben Sheetrit has become the newest focal point of one of Israeli society’s oldest and most bitter struggles, the ever-growing rift between an increasingly stringent Orthodoxy and a combative secular majority wary of religious extremism. Caught in the middle of this culture war is a large swath of religious Jews who feel at home in both worlds and who want to live a traditional, observant life without subscribing to the strictest of rabbinic interpretations. To these Israelis, Ben Sheetrit is a heroine.
Naftali Bennett, the leader of the popular religious Zionist party Ha’Bayit Ha’Yehudi, identified himself early on as a huge Ben Sheetrit fan. “Her voice is pure,” he wrote on his Facebook page, “and it seems like her personality is magical as well.” The progressive rabbinical organization Tzohar ran an article in its official publication hailing Ben Sheetrit as a role model for her peers, “a religious girl who only loved her God and wanted, wanted so much, to sing in His honor.” And Ben Sheetrit’s neighbors in Nir Galim, the religious moshavwhere she lives, expressed their enthusiastic support for their most famous daughter. The community’s rabbi, Tzvi Arnon, said that while “no rabbi would ever permit a woman to sing for men, let alone on television,” he understood why so many of his constituents supported Ben Sheetrit. “I understand that girls today grow up in this generation where everyone around them is talking about fulfilling your potential,” he said. “It’s a tough conflict. And while I don’t support her decision, I understand the context for it and know that she is truly faithful to halakhah.”
The rabbi also stated that he intended to meet Ben Sheetrit and hoped to mentor her and give her the right spiritual tools to help her navigate her experience on television. With both him and Aviv Gefen on hand to consult her, Ofir Ben Sheetrit may become something far more sublime than a reality show star: the rare Israeli that can bring religious and secular Jews closer.
Bron: Tablet
Could Israel be the New Hot Spot for Hoteliers?
While it is tempting for budding hoteliers to look for a safe haven like London to invest money, those willing to take more of a risk should consider Israel, as it seems that it is turning into the new hot spot. True, the country has been the subject of much unrest lately, with tensions along the Gaza Strip running high. However, experts are quietly confident that the country’s tourism will not be affected.
Dov Meyer, chief executive of Toronto-based Terra Firma Capital Corp and a partner in the Hilton’s Waldorf Project in Jerusalem, told Skift: “We know the tourism market in Israel, especially in Jerusalem, is very cyclical, is very sensitive to the security situation. Developing in Israel is a long-term project, you don’t make decisions on a dime, and when the market is good here it’s very, very good.”
The Tourism Ministry has also announced more hotels will be built in the country, as there won’t be enough space to cope with demand over the next three years. Haaretz reported that there is a projected shortfall of 10,000 rooms in 2015, with five million travellers expected to arrive in the country. This is a significant rise on the 3.5 million recorded in 2012 and indicates there will be significant property investment opportunities available for buyers.
Schmuel Zurel, director general of the Israel Hotel Association, told the newspaper: “We are seeing a positive trend – certainly a better one than the complete freeze that once prevailed in the industry. After four strong years in terms of tourist arrivals, something has to light a fire under the hotel industry.”
Israel has slowly begun to build up its hotel stock over recent years, adding 3,900 new rooms between 2009 and 2012. A further 5,000 are at various stages of development, taking the number of rooms nation-wide to 47,000. This comes after a decade of little hotel construction – a symptom of the volatile and high risk environment. Nonetheless, there is a new breed of traveller – one willing to take risks to see the wonders of the world – and thus far Israel is managing to tap into this market.
Bron: IPIN Global
Banker Turned Artist Expresses His Love of Israel and Judaism Through Art
For most people, making significant, life-altering decisions can be the most difficult challenge they’ve ever encountered. For others, it can be as simple as waking up, suspending your day-job, and walking over to the store to buy art supplies.
This was more-or-less the story for Canadian-born investment banker turned artist Glen Shear. Involved in various philanthropic and volunteer initiatives available through UJA Federation of Greater Toronto, Shear was also an active member of Jewish Toronto, with a strong connection to Israel. After spending several years working as an Executive Director at CIBC World Markets, he made the life-altering decision of making Aliyah and moving with his family to Israel.
As a resident of Ra’anana, Shear spent the next nine years continuing to work in finance before he came to his next epiphany: to withdraw from finance, and devote all of his energies to better serving the international Jewish community.
It just so happened that painting would be the most formidable – and efficient – method of doing just that.
Shear began to embrace his love for Judaism and Israel through a unique style of Pop Art, merging Jewish and Zionist symbols, like the Shofar and hands raised upright (Birkat Kohanim), with his fascination with expressionism and graphic art. “Certainly, we all search for meaning and inspiration,” says Shear. “When we visit or live in Israel, the cradle of our shared Jewish and Western heritage, it’s a clear reflection of our personal, individual journeys. Whatever we truly believe to be meaningful, shapes us, moves us, and inspires us and perhaps others as well.”
After only a few months at the easel, Shear put on his first art show at the “Al Haagam” gallery in Ra’anana, as part of his contribution to “Table to Table” (now “Leket”), an agency that collects and donates surplus food to charity associations all over Israel. Even in Shear’s initial works, symbolism and hidden images would serve as metaphors for the intangible: the wonderment of nature and science, spirituality, and his love and support of his adopted homeland, the State of Israel.
“Whether we’ve immigrated to Israel or are living abroad, we Jews are especially focused on life’s most meaningful issues: defining our purpose, pursuing justice, overcoming our more destructive desires, and treating each other with decency and kindness,” Shear explains via his newly revamped website, www.glenshear.com. Here, it becomes conspicuously apparent that Shear’s artwork stems from his personal journey, and is meant to galvanize our own quest for personal enlightenment, meaning and inspiration. In a nutshell, with Shear’s art we are prompted to focus on our day to day experiences, and revel in what he refers to as the ‘bigger picture.’
Today, Shear continues to volunteer for UJA Federation every chance he gets, claiming “their role and contribution has never been more important.” He will bring his brand of inspirational and reflective artwork to a number of important art expositions this spring, including the New York Art Expo in March, and the Toronto Art Expo in April, marking the first time his work will be showcased in his native city. Visit www.torontoartexpo.com for tickets.
Bron: ShalomLife
Samsung Opens $100 Million Fund Directed to Israeli Projects
Samsung Electronics has opened a $100 million fund—part of which will be directed to projects in Israel– to support innovative services.
Samsung Electronics has opened a $100 million fund—part of which will be directed to projects in Israel– to support innovative applications ofproduct systems related to its product line of televisions, mobile phones, computers and other digital devices.
“We’re going to support early stageentrepreneurs and academia. We want to make sure we’re part of the disruptive forces sweeping the technology industry,” said Samsung Electronics chief strategy officer Young Sohn, according to Israel’s business daily Globes newspaper.
Money will also be invested in projects in California’s Silicon Valley as well as Cambridge, Mass., and will focus on projects related to cloud infrastructure, human interface and mobile health.
To jumpstart the fund, Samsung launched a contest that will award $10 million in seed investments later this year to entrepreneurs, engineers and artists hoping to use technology “to improve people’s lives,” Globes reported.
Bron: Israel national news
Getting to the ‘core’ of Israel’s tech leadership
A bid to prepare Israel for future leadership roles in science and technology seems to be paying off, government officials believe
If you want to stay ahead in the tech game, you’ve got to stay ahead in the education game, say the experts. To that end, several years ago Israel established the I-CORE program, a group of university-associated research centers specializing in a range of disciplines that are going to be crucial to the future development of Israel’s high-tech economy. And last week, the Israel Council for Higher Education, responsible for the program, authorized the establishment of 11 new I-CORE programs.
The Israeli Centers for Research Excellence (I-CORE) program began operations at the end of 2011, as top researchers, Nobel laureates, and leaders of education and industry in Israel expressed deep concern over the state of technology and science education in Israel. At a 2010 roundtable discussion with journalists, for example, Prof. Uri Sivan of the Technion, one of Israel’s leading nanotechnology experts, said that “fewer than 20% of students in Israeli high schools today study science, and the pool of university students who can excel in areas like physics is already small.”
Even worse, he said, “in the coming few years, many of our science and technology professors will be retiring – and right now we don’t have sufficient personnel to replace them.”
Echoing those fears was Shlomo Gradman, Chairman of the Israeli High Tech CEO Forum. At a recent conference, Gradman said that “Israel produces about 10,000 new engineers annually, while China and India graduate 850,000. Israel is looking at a lot of competition in the coming years for investment money for innovative development.” Add to that the problem of funding, brain-drain, and lack of opportunity for academics – all three endemic to Israel – and you’re looking at the makings of a future education disaster. “And we can’t afford to fall behind,” Gradman said. “Half of this country’s exports are in the area of hi-tech. Imagine what would happen to the economy if we lost that number of exports.
I-CORE can, and hopefully will, be a way for Israel to overcome these obstacles, said Prof. Manuel Trajtenberg, Chairman of the I-CORE Planning and Budgeting Committee. On the occasion of I-CORE’s launch, Trajtenberg said that the program was designed to “once again make academic research a national priority. The I-CORE program will significantly boost Israel’s research capabilities and enable our researchers to continue leading the way to discoveries that will impact the lives of people everywhere.” With the power of I-CORE, Trajtenberg hopes, Israel will “continue producing Nobel Prize winners.”
The I-CORE program is a key component of the government’s Multi-Year Reform Plan in Higher Education, established in 2010 to strengthen Israel’s academic research position and stature in Israel and abroad, the Council for Higher Education said.
The first set of four I-COREs concentrated on areas including alternative energy sources, the molecular basis of human diseases, cognitive sciences, and computer sciences. Each I-CORE is assigned to be led by a university, and includes top researchers and professors who will carry out projects in specific areas of the I-CORE disciplines. For example, the computer science I-CORE, under the leadership of Prof. Yishay Mansour of Tel Aviv University, is studying algorithms, “which significantly drives the core of new computer technologies and profitable commercial applications,” he said.
Along with Mansour, who heads TAU’s Blavatnik School of Computer Science, 24 other researchers from the Technion, Hebrew University, TAU, and the Weizmann Institute are studying the applications of algorithms to areas like machine learning, computer vision and human perception, and distributed computing – all areas considered to be the leading edge of tech research.
The program has proven so successful that the Council has decided to implement another 11 I-COREs, and even expand their scope beyond tech. Four of the new programs will engage in research in the social sciences and humanities, and seven will deal with exact Sciences, engineering and life sciences, and medicine. Among the new I-CORE programs: Structural Biology of the Cell, Mass Trauma Research, Education and the New Information Society, Empirical Legal Studies, Astrophysics, Chromatin and RNA Gene Regulation, and Modern Jewish Culture.
The four latter programs will be established at Hebrew University, which was assigned more I-COREs than any other institution. Commenting on the honor, Hebrew University’s president Prof. Menahem Ben-Sasson said that “with the Hebrew University ranked first among Israel’s institutions of higher learning and 53rd in the world, it is fitting that our researchers have been called upon to strengthen research in Israel and take part in so many research centers.”
Bron: The times of Israel
Another Israeli astronaut in space?
Ministry of Science and Technology in talks with international space officials, hoping to send an Israeli astronaut up to the International Space Center in the next few years.
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Photo credit: After astronaut Ilan Ramon’s life was tragically cut short, will another continue his life’s work?
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The Ministry of Science and Technology announced that it intends to renew its initiative to send another Israeli astronaut to space.
The first and only Israeli astronaut was Ilan Ramon, who died in 2003, along with the rest of the space shuttle Columbia crew. The shuttle exploded over east Texas during re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere,16 minutes prior to its scheduled landing.
Representatives of the Israel Space Agency have begun initial talks with international space officials with the goal of exploring the ramifications of such an eventuality. If the ISA can locate the necessary resources, they hope to place an Israeli astronaut at the International Space Station in the next few years.
More than 14 senior space officials from around the world were in attendance at The 8th Ilan Ramon International Space Conference, held this Tuesday through Thursday in Herzliya, organized by the ISA, the Ministry of Science and Technology and The Fisher Institute for Air & Space Strategic Studies.
Director-general of the Science Ministry, Menachem Greenblum and Dr. Paul Weisenberg, deputy director-general for Entrepreneurship and Industry in the EU signed a framework agreement, which will open doors for further cooperation with Israel on various European space projects.
Bron: Israel Hayom
Europeans clamor to take Tel Aviv for a ride
AMSTERDAM (JTA) — A short ride on a luxury wooden bicycle can take much longer than expected in south Tel Aviv.
The roads are fine, Maxime van Gelder says, “but people keep asking you to stop and take their picture with the bike.”
Van Gelder, the 22-year-old marketing director for the 2-year-old boutique Dutch bicycle maker Bough Bikes, was in Tel Aviv this month to help establish the city as the company’s fourth international market, after New York, London and Berlin. Bough, based in the city of Alkmaar, manufactures the distinctive bikes entirely from sustainably grown French oak and sells them for about $1,600 a pop.
Van Gelder ended up leaving three bikes with Caspar Veldkamp, the Dutch ambassador to Israel, whose staff was to try them out before they were formally unveiled at the embassy’s annual Holland Day event on Jan. 28.
‘In comparison to Europeans, Israelis really love bling-bling’ on their bicycles
“I know bikes and I know Tel Aviv and the advances the city has made, so I know it has the potential of being an ideal arena for us,” van Gelder said.
Bough isn’t the only European bike maker to notice the growing demand for high-quality, luxury bicycles in Tel Aviv, whose residents are relying increasingly on bike-friendly developments that have reshaped the flat, congested metropolis into a world-class bicycle city.
Dozens of miles of bike lanes now wind along the iconic Rothschild and Arlozorov boulevards in central Tel Aviv; along the city’s broad beach promenade; and most recently along Sheinkin Street, the epicenter of the city’s vibrant cafe culture. In 2011, Tel Aviv joined some 100 other cities in launching a municipal bike-sharing service.
“We in Israel have always turned for inspiration to Europe’s bicycle culture, and to Holland and Denmark in particular, so it’s very exciting and perfectly logical that they are now looking back,” said Oded Gilad, a spokesman for the nonprofit Israel for Bikes. “There is a real bicycle renaissance in Israel, and especially in Tel Aviv.”
Among the pioneers of Israel’s European-inspired bicycle market is Ari Rozenweig of Copenhagen, who seven years ago opened Israel’s first boutique bicycle factory.
“In comparison to Europeans, Israelis really love bling-bling,” said Rozenzweig, 41, a former professional dancer who immigrated to Israel shortly before opening his shop.
While Danish and Dutch cyclists prefer the reliability and low profile of a good kibbutz bicycle over a snazzy mountain bike, Rozenzweig says, “Israelis will buy anything special or flashy. It’s good for business, and I like their openness to novelty, but sometimes they buy crap they don’t need.”
In 2010, Israel’s adoption of European standards for electric bicycles attracted other foreign bike makers. Kalkhoff, a high-quality German brand, is now available through the Israeli bicycle supply company Moto Ofan. The Dutch Gazelle brand and the German A2B electric bicycle also are now available in Israel.
A 2012 survey by Heker Rating Marketing Surveys reported that in two years, the number of cyclists in Tel Aviv has increased by 50 percent, from 12,000 who cycled to work every day in 2010 to 18,000 last year. Meanwhile, the number of drivers has dropped in the same period by 5 percent.
‘There is a real bicycle renaissance in Israel, and especially in Tel Aviv’
Even as Israeli bike enthusiasm flourishes, the local infrastructure leaves much to be desired, recent advances notwithstanding. In the past five years, an average of 15 cyclists were killed on the road annually, and another 100 or so sustained moderate to serious injuries in a nation of 7 million people and 1 million bicycles, according to data compiled by the Or Yarok road safety association.
The figures are high compared to the 22 cyclists killed in 2012 in Denmark, a nation of 5.5 million people and 4.4 million bicycles, according to a study by the University of Technology in Sydney.
“Drivers are generally unaware of cyclers and bicycle paths, which are not always well-defined, and this makes cycling comparatively dangerous in Israel,” Rozenzweig said.
Rosenzweig says it will take another 20 to 30 years until Israel matches the bicycle-friendliness of countries like Holland and Denmark.
“Like everything here, it’s going to take a lot of lobbying,” he said. “But we’ll get there.”
Bron: Times of Israel
Software voorspelt toekomst op basis van nieuwsfeiten
Een algoritme om bestaande en oude nieuwsberichten te analyseren en op basis daarvan de toekomst te voorspellen, daar werken softwarebedrijf Microsoft en het Israëlische technologie-instituut Technion aan.
Het algoritme maakt gevolgtrekkingen op basis van bepaalde nieuwsfeiten, dankzij de analyse van eerder gebeurd nieuws. De database die wordt gebruikt is opgebouwd uit 90 verschillende bronnen, waaronder 22 jaargangen van de Amerikaanse krant New York Times en DBpedia, meldt Technology Review.
De software heeft bijvoorbeeld bij droogteperiode in Angola de melding gegeven dat er kans was op een cholera-epidemie. Dat concludeerde het algoritme op basis van droogtes uit het verleden en de daaropvolgende berichten. Met een dergelijke voorspelling zouden hulpverleners efficiënter kunnen werken.
Er zouden nog geen plannen zijn voor een commerciële toepassing. Wel wordt onderzocht wat het effect is als je nog meer bronnen toevoegt – zoals boeken en oudere archieven – en als je verder teruggaat in de tijd.
Bron: Trouw
Israel restaureert antieke stad Avdat
- In Israël is zojuist de twee miljoen kostende restauratie van de antieke Nabatese stad Avdat, waar in 1973 de film Jesus Christ Superstar werd opgenomen, voltooid.
Avdat ligt in Negev woestijn en behoorde tussen de eerste voor en de zevende eeuw na Christus tot een uitgebreid wierookhandelsnetwerk opgezet door de Nabateërs . Deze Nabateërs, die we vooral kennen als de stichters van de woestijnstad Petra in Jordanië, bouwden verschillende steden in Jordanië, Israël, Saoedi-Arabië en Syrië. Tussen die steden liepen karavaanroutes waarlangs vooral wierook werd vervoerd en verhandeld. Petra en Avdat waren de twee belangrijkste steden aan de route.
Begraven in plaats van cremeren
Wierook werd in die tijd door veel volkeren gebruikt bij allerlei rituelen. Vooral de Romeinen waren grootverbruikers van wierook. Ze benutten wierook om de onaangename geur tijdens crematies te verdrijven.
Toen de Romeinen zich bekeerden tot het Christendom en de doden niet langer gecremeerd, maar begraven werden hadden ze de wierook niet meer nodig. Het handelsnetwerk raakte in verval en de bewoners van Avdat gingen zich richten op landbouw. Door hun ingenieuze irrigatiesysteem slaagden de Nabateërs er zelfs in druiven voor wijn in de woestijn te verbouwen. De wijnpers die ze gebruikten is tegenwoordig nog altijd te zien.
Vandalisme
In de vijfde eeuw werd Avdat getroffen door een aardbeving, maar daarna opnieuw opgebouwd. Een aardbeving in de 7e eeuw betekende het einde van de stad. Daarna woonden er nooit meer mensen, toch valt er nog altijd het nodige te zien.
Zo staan er nog resten van huizen, een acropolis, een Nabatese tempel, een Romeins militair kamp en een Byzantijnse kerk met marmeren graven met leesbare Griekse opschriften. Helaas richtten vandalen in 2009 veel schade aan in Avdat: ze duwden pilaren om, gooiden stenen kapot en bespoten muren met graffiti.
Deze schade is nu allemaal hersteld en volgens lokale archeologen is de site mooier dan ooit tevoren.
Werd Mohammed in Avdat geboren?
Avdat kwam onlangs ook nog op een andere manier in het nieuws. De Britse schrijver Tom Holland beweerde in zijn boek In the Shadow of the Sword (in het Nederlands vertaald als Het vierde beest. God, de strijd om de wereldmacht en het einde van de oudheid) dat het best zo zou kunnen zijn dat de profeet Mohammed niet in Mekka, maar in Avdat geboren werd. Het leverde hem veel kritiek van wetenschappers en doodsbedreigingen op.
De historische stad en Unesco site Avdat maakt deel uit van Avdat National Park zodat u een bezoek aan de ruïnes kunt combineren met wandelingen door de natuur. (MS)
Bron: Knack .be
Nieuwe blaastest kan ziekten opsporen in adem
Een nieuwe blaastest detecteert ziekten in uitgeademde lucht. ‘Veel goedkoper dan met scanners naar tumoren speuren.’
Wilt u even blazen? Het is een vraag die nu vooral door de politie aan automobilisten wordt gesteld. Een team van Israëlische onderzoekers doet iets vergelijkbaars bij medische diagnoses. Met hun ‘elektronische neus’ speuren ze in uitgeademde lucht naar ziekten. De sponsor van het onderzoek, de Europese Unie, maakte onlangs melding van testresultaten. Bij experimenten blijkt het apparaat met redelijke betrouwbaarheid tal van ziekten te kunnen spotten, zoalsalzheimer, kanker en multiple sclerose.
De Nano Artificial Nose, of kortweg Na-Nose, registreert gassen als xyleen, benzeen en hexanal. Die ademt iedereen uit, maar bij ziekten is de stofwisseling in het lichaam verstoord en veranderen de concentraties.
De Na-Nose is nog niet betrouwbaar genoeg voor klinische toepassingen. Bij experimenten van Israel Institute of Technology bestempelt het apparaat doorgaans 2 op de 10 patiënten onterecht als gezond – iets wat in de praktijk niet mag gebeuren. Ook stelt de neus bij ongeveer 2 op de 10 gezonde proefpersonen onterecht een diagnose als kanker.
Toch worden de prestaties van de elektronische neus in rap tempo beter, constateert Peter Sterk, expert op dit gebied bij het AMC in Amsterdam. Hij is onder de indruk van de laatste resultaten van zijn Israëlische collega’s, die nu zelfs verschillende subtypen kanker kunnen meten in uitgeademde lucht.
Patroonherkenning
Sterk merkt op dat de Israëli’s dezelfde weg zijn ingeslagen als zijn eigen onderzoeksgroep. ‘In het verleden zochten we naar gasmoleculen die uniek zijn voor bepaalde ziekten, maar dat bleek erg lastig. Nu richten we ons op patroonherkenning. We zoeken niet naar de speld in de hooiberg, maar kijken naar de vorm van de hele hooiberg.’
Hij ziet een grote toekomst weggelegd voor elektronische neuzen in de gezondheidszorg. ‘De techniek van elektronische neuzen is supergoedkoop en ongelooflijk klein. Je zou die bij wijze van spreken kunnen inbouwen in een T-shirt zonder dat de drager daar iets van merkt.’
Bron: Volkskrant
Nog een jaar of vijf, schat Sterk, dan zullen de eerste elektronische neuzen opduiken in huisartsenpraktijken. Het AMC werkt hiervoor samen met nanowetenschappers van de Universiteit Twente. Sterk denkt dat artsen verschillende modules tot hun beschikking zullen krijgen die ze aan het apparaat kunnen koppelen, elk gespecialiseerd in de detectie van een bepaalde ziekte.
Zoals met elke nieuwe technologie zijn er ook nadelen denkbaar. Zo zou de komst van elektronische neuzen kunnen leiden tot een ‘medische testcultuur’, waarbij mensen voor het minste geringste hun uitgeademde lucht laten doorlichten. Sterk: ‘Je zult maar hypochonder zijn en op je mobieltje een app hebben om je adem op ziekten te scannen. Even m’n mail checken, even kijken of ik al diabetes heb.’
Tourist tip #156 / The Soreq Cave of stalactite wonders
An underground stone forest of naturally formed figurines in the Judean Mountains lets your imagination run wild.
An underground stone forest of naturally formed figurines in the Judean Mountains lets your imagination run wild.
Bron: Haartetz
Six New Top Hotels in Israel’s Hotel Construction Pipeline
Israel continues to be a popular tourism destination. After the Gaza Strip turmoil and the uncertainty about the effects of the Arab Spring in this region, the number of foreign travelers entering Israel increased to 3,5 million tourists.
The Israeli hospitality sector offers top quality accommodation and continues to expand. Currently TOPHOTELPROJECTS (www.tophotelprojects.com), the worldwide leading provider of global b2b hotel data and lead contacts, counts five new top hotel projects in the “holy land” in its database tool. An outstanding project is the construction of the Herods Hotel in Herzliya, north of Tel Aviv. The premium resort will have 250 rooms and should be finished by late 2013. The next opening of premium branded Herods is the inauguration of Herods Dead Sea Hotel on 26 March this year. The outstanding interior design is by German-based hotel interior architect Andreas Neudahm.
New top resort close to Tel Aviv: the Herods Herzliyah will open late 2013
David Fattal, from the same-named hotel chain, concentrates large part of his business efforts on his home country. With the Fattal hotel brand the Israeli created the country’s largest hotel chain. The hotel chain has grown substantially with the takeover of the Holiday Inn Hotels in Israel. Together with the Leonardo Hotels – Fattal acquired the hotel brand Leonardo by taking over an Architect-Hotel in Nuremberg/Germany – David Fattal is now an important hotel industry player in Europe. Andreas Neudahm – chief designer of those design hotels – is now also creating the new Herods Resort. The interior designer from Wuppertal/Germany was responsible for many famous hotel projects abroad in the past – now he is also a highly recommended hotel designer in Germany.
The Herods Herzliya Resort will be the third resort by the premium brand of the Fattal Hotel Group; two properties in Tel Aviv and in Eilat at the Red Sea are already under operation. Two further Herods Hotels are planned in Jerusalem and at the Dead Sea. The new resort will be built with its Marina straight into the sea and will be surrounded by warm waves at the Eastern Mediterranean Sea. Israel’s beaches are a dream for romantic couples, surfers and kite-surfers – and of course for sailing enthusiast. With its modern design, groundbreaking technology and large guest rooms, the Herods Herzliyah will set a new hospitality standard in the region. Ilan Pivco is in charge of the design.
Hotel projects in Israel:
Herods Dead Sea Hotel – 215 rooms – opening: 26th March 2013
Heiku Resort & Spa Mt. Gilboa – Hephzibah – 70 rooms – June 2013
Hotel Indigo Tel Aviv – 110 rooms – July 2013
Ritz-Carlton Herzliya Marina – 110 rooms – July 2013
Kempinski Tel Aviv Hotel – 220 rooms – December 2013
Herods Herzliya Hotel – 250 rooms – December 2013
Tourism grows hesitantly
In 2012 3,5 million international travelers contributed 4,6 billion US-Dollar to the Israeli economy. This constitutes a growth of four percent in comparison to 2011. The visitor increase was primarily due to the large sum of day-trip-visitors. Nevertheless, towards the end of the year the military operation in Gaza had its negative effects.
The total tourism sector revenue generated by Israeli customers amounted to 18,2 billion Shekel (approx.. 3,7 billion Euro). This is almost the revenue generated by foreign tourists. The national tourism income groups toghether all domestic travel within Israel as well as business made by tour operators or airlines taking Israeli travelers abroad. This reduces the dependence of the tourism sector by the influx of foreign visitors.
During 2013 Israel intends to increase the number of tourists with the respective marketing activities and advertising campaigns. The tourism planners are eager to reach the set target of five million foreign visitors by 2015. This however requires an average growth of 13 percent per year between 2013 and 2015 and is, looking at the moderate expansion rate during the recent years, an ambitious objective.
According to the TOPHOTELANALYTICS Country Reports published by TOPHOTELPROJECTS (www.tophotelanalytics.com), the largest number of foreign visitors arrived from the USA, followed by the Russian Federation. But a high ratio of the Russian guests – 36 percent – traveled to Israel as day travelers. Other important countries were France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Ukraine and Poland. With 31 percent the number of one-day-visitors coming from Germany was also above average.
Religious motives are an important travelling motive to visit Israel. According to a survey by the Ministry of Tourism 29 percent of the tourism arrivals are pilgrims. 24 percent traveled through the country, while only nine percent were on vacation. 20 percent of the guests traveled to Israel have been staying with friends or relatives; twelve percent of the people travelling to Israel did so for business. Nearly eight percent of the jobs in Israel depend directly or indirectly on the tourism sector.
Bron: Hotel news resource
Kosher Wine Fest Shows Israel’s Lead in Field of Wine
Arutz Sheva visits the second annual Wine Seven Two kosher wine exhibition, featuring over 45 Israeli wineries.
Arutz Sheva was at the second annual Wine Seven Two kosher wine exhibition, which took place last week at Binyanei HaUma in Jerusalem.
More than 80 different wines from dozens of wineries throughout Israel and the entire world were launched during the exhibition, which featured under one roof a collection of hundreds of kosher wines from the best wineries. Over 45 Israeli wineries took part in the exhibition.
“In the past year several small vineyards have become kosher and this is the first year that you can taste their wines,” said Roi Carmeli, a member of the managing staff of Wine Seven Two.
He added, “Lots of wineries here in Israel are becoming kosher due to high demand and because people who eat and drink kosher want better quality wine. This is part of the wine revolution that is ongoing here in Israel.”
Among the many Israeli wineries that took part in the exhibition were quite a few wineries from Judea and Samaria, an area known for its many vineyards and award winning wineries. Last summer the Shomron Regional Council launched an alliancebetween Shomron winemakers and the Italian Winemakers Association.
Menachem Livni, owner of the Livni Winery near Hevron, told Arutz Sheva that the rain that falls in Judea in the winter, combined with the dryness of the Judean Desert in the summer, “results in a beautiful wine.”
A wine is designated as kosher if, in addition to rabbinical supervision of the ingredients, it has been handled — from the vine to the wineglass — only by Sabbath-observant Jews, or has been heated to 185 degrees F, called mevushal. Some claim that the heating affects the taste, but producers have developed flash-pasteurization techniques that minimize this. Kosher wine bottles have the words mevushal or lo mevushal. on them. In the latter case, the wine is kosher only if a Sabbath-observant Jew opens and pours it, a halakha partially based on the use of wine in idol worship.
Bron: Israel National News
First Kosher Restaurant en route to Eilat
Moshe Dvir told INN he ran a restaurant in Dimona for 40 years, “But working on the Sabbath doesn’t pay. I vowed to open a Kosher establishment with full Sabbath and holiday observance. With my new restaurant at Kibbutz Ein Yahav, religious customers can enjoy kosher cuisine and Rabbinical kitchen supervision. Sabbath observance brings blessing from Above, and I have more time to enjoy with my family as well.”
Bron: Israel National News
Israeli innovation aims to bring tablets into country’s classrooms
New technological platform AURA, designed to run on Android tablets, simplifies the transfer of information between teachers and students and fosters quick, clear communications, creating a more fluid and productive learning process.
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Photo credit: AP
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Will tablet computers soon replace textbooks in Israeli schools? A new Israeli innovation may be marching the education system precisely in that direction.
The new technological platform AURA, to be presented by Israeli companies Contentnet Education and Radix Technologies at the Bett 2013 technology in education show in London from Jan. 30 to Feb. 2, offers an advanced educational interface that streamlines and enhances the learning process.
Designed to run on Android tablets, AURA simplifies the transfer of information between teachers and students and fosters quick, clear communications, creating a more fluid and productive learning process.
The platform has already been successfully tested in an ongoing pilot program in the Amit chain of schools, and has already been fully incorporated in some of the locations.
Dr. Dina Goren-Bar, the chairwoman of the Optimum Group which owns Contentnet Education, said that “for the teachers, this is a futuristic teaching experience, made easy thanks to the tools we have built especially for them.”
Dov Shoham, the CEO of Radix Technologies, said that “the control platforms and monitoring tools are a product of our vast experience, which we have amassed over more than 10 years of development.”
Bron: Israelhayom
Israëlische start-up maakt qr-code onzichtbaar
De Israëlisch start-up Visulead ontwikkelt een techniek waarmee het uitzicht van een standaard qr-code kan worden vervaagd en op termijn zelfs onzichtbaar worden gemaakt, terwijl de code toch scanbaar blijft.
Google plaatst nieuwe Street View beelden online van Israël
In augstus 2011 kreeg Google na lange tijd toestemming om in Israël de weg op te gaan met Street View en de eerste beelden werden afgelopen jaar in april online geplaatst. Het ging in eerste instantie om beelden van een beperkt aantal steden waaronder de hoofdstad van het land Jeruzalem, havenstad Haifa en de tweede stad van Israël, Tel Aviv.
Nu heeft Google Street View in Israël flink uitgebreid, het gaat om onder ander de volgende steden en dorpen, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Be’er Sheva, Bnei Brak, Eilat, Isfyia, Kfar Qasem, Kiryat Gat, Nazareth, Netanya, Ofakim, Petah Tikva, Rishon LeTsiyon, Sderot en Tira. Verder kunnen diverse historische plekken en museums zoals het Museum voor Wetenschap, Technologie en Ruimtevaart in Haifa bezocht worden evenals twee stadionsen het Nationaal Park van Beit She’an. Het is nog niet zo uitgebreid als in veel andere landen maar Google geeft aan dat er nog meer beelden gaan volgen in de toekomst.
Bron: websonic
Nederlanders ontwerpen metrolijn Tel Aviv – met ‘schuilstations’
Het Nederlandse ingenieursbureau Royal HaskoningDHV ontwerpt een nieuwe metrolijn door het hart van de Israëlische stad Tel Aviv. De ondergrondse stations moeten in oorlogstijd ook kunnen functioneren als gigantische schuilkelders.
De 22 kilometer lange metrolijn dwars door Tel Aviv en de Gush Dan-regio, een gebied met ruim 2,5 miljoen inwoners, wordt bij uitvoering het grootste bouwproject van Israël. De metro moet in eerste instantie vooral de sterk overbelaste verkeerssituatie in de regio ontlasten. Maar bij de inrichting wordt rekening gehouden met het risico van raketaanslagen. Dat risico werd eind vorig jaar duidelijk toen Tel Aviv een week onder vuur lag van raketten die de militante Hamas-beweging vanuit de Gazastrook afvuurde.
De tien ondergrondse metrostations moeten in zo’n situatie beschutting kunnen bieden aan meer dan 2000 personen en zijn zo ingericht dat schuilende mensen er 5 dagen zonder enige hulp van buitenaf kunnen overleven.
Voor Royal HaskoningDHV, dat de metrolijn met een Canadese partner ontwerpt, is het een bijzondere onderneming. ‘Wij hebben nog nooit meegemaakt dat aan een station zulke strenge veiligheidseisen worden gesteld. Volgens mij is dit uniek in de wereld,” zegt Jack Sip, de Nederlandse hoofdontwerper die voor de duur van het project in Tel Aviv is gestationeerd.
Tassencontroles
Door de strenge veiligheidseisen moeten creatieve oplossingen gezocht worden om de snelheid van het uiteindelijke systeem te garanderen. In Israël ondergaan trein-, bus- en vliegreizigers standaard tassencontroles en moeten zij door detectiepoortjes. ‘Deze metrolijn is twee keer zo lang als de Noord/Zuidlijn in Amsterdam, waar wij ook aan werkten. Dat betekent grote aantallen reizigers die gelijktijdig in en uit de stations komen. Tassencontroles houden de boel dan flink op’, zegt Tie Ang, een van de Nederlandse ontwerpers in Tel Aviv. ‘De Israëlische ontwerpers zoeken daarom naarstig naar manieren om het systeem snel én veilig te houden.’
Het metroproject in Israël is, in het licht van de teruglopende Europese markt, voor Royal HaskoningDHV van groot belang. Volgens Sip is het qua omvang momenteel een van de grootste opdrachten van het bedrijf.
Zoals de schuilkelders in de metrostations zijn er meer opmerkelijke ondergrondse faciliteiten in Israël. Na de Tweede Libanonoorlog in 2006 waarbij raketten uit het zuiden van Libanon op steden in Noord-Israël landden, bouwden twee grote ziekenhuizen in het land grootschalige ondergrondse faciliteiten. In oorlogstijd kunnen deze ziekenhuizen binnen 72 uur vrijwel al hun werkzaamheden in beveiligde ondergrondse bunkers voortzetten. Er zijn speciale ingangen voor mensen die met chemische wapens in aanraking zijn geweest. In vredestijd parkeren ziekenhuismedewerkers er hun auto.
Bron: Volkskrant
Unexpected Israeli cuisine
Croissants at the Port of Jaffa. Photo by Cheryl Sternman RuleI personally loved our visits to Israeli bakeries, from tiny Ugata in Kibbutz Kinneret, to Dallal and Bakery 29 in Tel Aviv, to the most casual outdoor bakery cart in the Port of Jaffa, piled high with two-toned croissants. For Rubin, the baker in our group, these bakery visits were especially exciting. At Bakery 29, owner Netta Korin glowed visibly when Rubin introduced himself. A former investment banker at Lehman Brothers in New York, Korin (who was born in Israel but raised in the United States and Europe) was a devoted customer at Rubin’s City Bakery before she moved back to the country of her birth. In early 2011, she opened her small, quaint Tel Aviv bakeshop, specializing in cinnamon rolls and scones. Korin, remarkably, donates 100 percent of her profits to the IMPACT! scholarship program, which supports Israel Defense Forces soldiers who could not otherwise afford to pursue higher education.As for the restaurants, they spanned a wide spectrum. We enjoyed our first dinner high in the hills above Jerusalem at Rama’s Kitchen in Nataf. Run by Rama Ben Zvi (an Israeli Jew and former dancer with a doctorate from the Sorbonne), the rustic outdoor eatery gave us our first taste of Israeli-style communal dining, with each of us sweeping bits of pita through plates of pureed baked potato, garlic confit and olive oil; creamy labne; and chicken liver pate with roasted beets. Dishes of white balsamic aubergine (eggplant), rare filet mignon with green tahini sauce, and Jerusalem artichoke and sweet potato followed.We soon tasted the ebullient and colorful cuisine of Jerusalem chef Uri Navon at Machneyuda, his popular restaurant adjacent to the famous Mahane Yehuda Market; enjoyed a multicourse Lebanese- and Jordanian-inflected lunch at Ktze HaNachal restaurant in the Galilee; and experienced the handiwork of chef Moshe Segev, chef of El Al airlines, at his eponymous restaurant Segev in Herzliya. At one point, servers brought out a salad in a glass wine bottle that had been sawed in half and opened flat like a book; this was, by far, the strangest serving vessel I’ve ever seen.Was every dish a home run, every meal worth raving about? Of course not. But many high-end chefs are pushing boundaries, taking risks and infusing old-fashioned dishes with modernist touches. Some succeed, and some fail — and to pretend otherwise, or to see the failures as disappointments — would be to miss the point entirely.For me, the point is this: The cuisine of Israel is on the precipice of change, and much of it is not only fresh, but exciting. It’s like art, with hits and misses, highs and lows. Perhaps most telling was my favorite dish of the trip, at once both humble and almost absurdly transgressive in its simplicity. It was a whole head of charred cauliflower plopped, plateless, in the center of a paper-lined table at the cheeky Tel Aviv restaurant Abraxas North. Any country whose chefs have the chutzpah to serve diners a head of blackened cauliflower and expect them to pick off florets with their fingers is a country I’m glad I visited, and to which I hope soon to return.
Waterpeil Dode Zee stijgt voor het eerst in tien jaar
Door de hevige regenval van de voorbije maand is het waterpeil van de Dode Zee voor het eerst in tien jaar gestegen. Het water staat er nu tien centimeter hoger dan bij de vorige maandelijkse meting, meldt de Times of Israel.
De Dode Zee, het laagst gelegen punt op aarde, wordt gevoed door de Jordaan en andere rivieren van de Westelijke Jordaanoever. Veel van die waterstromen traden buiten hun oevers tijdens een storm in januari.
Het waterpeil van de Dode Zee daalde met ongeveer 20 meter sinds de jaren 70. Dat komt door waterafvoer van het Meer van Galilea (het belangrijkste zoetwaterreservoir van Israël), dat de Jordaan voedt, de aftapping van water naar lokale industrie en een uitzonderlijk droog klimaat.
Eergisteren keurde de Wereldbank de haalbaarheid goed van een project dat de bouw van een kanaal van de Rode Zee naar de Dode Zee voorziet. Het Israëlisch-Jordaanse project zou 10 miljard dollar kosten en moet water doen vloeien van de Rode naar de Dode Zee. Zo moeten waterkrachtcentrales aangedreven worden, die op hun beurt ontziltingscentrales van stroom voorzien. Het zoute bijproduct moet de Dode Zee dan aanvullen. Milieubeschermingsgroeperingen zijn echter tegen het project gekant. (BRON: DeMorgen)
Wederom recordaantal Nederlanders op vakantie naar Israel
In 2012 bezocht een recordaantal toeristen het Heilige Land. Israël verwelkomde 3,5 miljoen bezoekers, een stijging van 5% ten opzichte van dezelfde periode vorig jaar.
Vanuit Nederland bezochten 67.850 reizigers Israël, 8% meer dan dezelfde periode vorig jaar. Voor het derde jaar op rij heeft Israël daarmee een recordaantal Nederlandse toeristen ontvangen. In 2009, 2010 en 2011 waren dat respectievelijk 46.000, 56.000 en 60.500 toeristen.
Ook in het cruise-toerisme werd een record verbroken. Meer dan 250.000 toeristen arriveerden per boot, een stijging van 6% ten opzichte van 2011.
“We zijn verheugd door de toename van het toerisme naar Israël”, zegt Erik Verschoof, marketingmanager van het Israëlisch Nationaal Bureau voor Toerisme. “We hopen dat de stijging in 2013 voortzet, dit hopen we te bewerkstelligen door Israël neer te zetten als één van de meest dynamische en unieke reisbestemmingen ter wereld.” (BRON: Tourpress Holland)
Houston, We Have A Problem; Bnei Brak, We Have A Solution
Two Bnei Brak graduates of Lustig Institute in Ramat Gan – a branch of the Jerusalem College of Technology that serves members of the chareidi community – have developed a microchip for use in Israel’s aerospace industry.
The chip – which was developed by Tehiya Dayan and Lior Halevi – can perform multiple tasks while simultaneously synchronizing four additional programs. The operational use of the chip has been successfully tested, and the two women have received awards for their innovation. The Jerusalem College of Technology also honored the project as an outstanding development project.
Dr. Dan Buchnik of the institute supervised the project and helped to develop the algorithms and procedural methods for ensuring the chip’s functionality.
The students took a three-month crash course in spacecraft technologies prior to their development of the software.
In a chic auditorium typically reserved for late-night concerts, Israel’s next generation of high-tech entrepreneurs are gathered. Though their vocation is modern, their appearance and lifestyle are distinctly traditional and they are seated separately – men to the left, woman to the right.
It’s a first for Israel, a high-tech conference designed specifically for ultra-Orthodox Jews.
They are a community long stigmatized for enjoying sweeping draft exemptions and raising large families on taxpayer-funded handouts. They are under ever-growing pressure to break out of their cloistered world of Torah study and get jobs.
In recent years they have indeed begun joining the work force, and some have found an unlikely home in the country’s booming high-tech industry.
That changing reality was illustrated by last week’s gathering of bearded men in black suits and women in head coverings and long dresses who came to network at a leading Jerusalem venture capital firm.
Yitzik Crombie, who initiated the Chareidi Hi-Tech Forum, says about 10,000 chareidim work in high-tech, 75 percent of them women.
Although they may lack basic math and science skills, advocates say their intense, methodical study of religious texts provides tools that are oddly applicable to computer programing.
“Someone who finished yeshiva and studied Talmud and Gemara, his brain is built for high-tech,” said Crombie, a 30-year-old chareidi and chief executive of iSale, which offers mobile guided selling solutions to businesses. “With a little faith, we can make a major breakthrough and become leaders in the field.”
Many rabbis fear immersion in mainstream society will expose chareidim to secularism and cut into the prayer and study that has distinguished the Jewish people for centuries.
But unemployment and poverty are very high among chareidim who make up about 8% of Israel’s eight million citizens, and families of eight to 10 children are common. More than a quarter of all Israeli first-graders are chareidim, studying in independent school systems that focus primarily on religion while barely teaching math, science or English.
Experts have long warned these trends are jeopardizing Israel’s long-term economic prospects. Now, according to Israel’s central bank and its Central Bureau of Statistics, the tide has begun to turn.
In 2011, for instance, 54.5% of chareidi women and 45% of the men held jobs – an increase from 48% and 33.1% respectively nine years earlier. The numbers, while still far below the national average of around 80%, show the community is far from the homogenous mass viewed by outsiders. The shift is further highlighted by their participation in Israel’s greatest engine of economic growth, the high-tech sector, which is secular-dominated.
At the Jerusalem research and development center of the semiconductor giant Intel, more than 100 of the 700 employees are chareidim, making chips and performing quality assurance.
“The public discourse in Israel has yet to internalize the enormous changes taking place in the chareidi community,” said Jerusalem mayor Nir Barkat, himself a former high-tech executive.
Bringing the chareidim and their ethos of scholarly rigor into the work force could ease one of Israeli society’s greatest schisms, which is a perennial source of partisan political discord, especially with the approach of Tuesday’s general election.
So employing the chareidim is ethically wise, and also makes smart business sense, said Erel Margalit, founder of the Jerusalem Venture Partners firm that hosted the conference and a parliamentary candidate.
“Israel can compete with India as far as software development. What we now send there, we can send here,” he said. “We offer a working alliance with the chareidi community.”
Still, challenges remain. High-tech firms have to provide segregated male and female work space, cafeteria menus must follow the dietary kosher rules more stringently, time must be allocated for prayer and women must be allowed flexible hours if they are to manage their often large families.
Nili Davidovitch, a mother of five, heads Daat Solutions, a firm that specializes in Internet development and quality assurance. She employs 40 chareidi women like herself and aims to offer them a career in a cutting-edge field without undermining their lifestyle.
“If you give them an appropriate working environment they will come,” she said. “There are lots of shades of chareidim. The society today is not what it once was.”
Shlomo Peeri, the vice president for human resources at the Israeli branch of NDS, a part of Cisco, said the company has never experienced any religion-driven tension. About 100 of the company’s 1,200 employees are chareidi systems engineers and developers, he said.
“We’ve created a working environment based on mutual respect and harmony,” he said. “We are a microcosm of Israeli society that shows we can live together.”
But even if the main obstacle remains the chareidi community’s lack of scientific education, what is already happening “is a revolution,” said Stuart Hershkowitz, a senior official at the Jerusalem College of Technology.
“It is becoming mainstream in chareidi society to find a normal way to support yourself,” he said. “Being resigned to a life of poverty is no longer acceptable to the chareidim themselves.” (BRON: ISRAEL HAYOM)
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