The highlights include: Israeli scientists have developed a fast, accurate blood test for women at risk of cancer. A restaurant in Tiberias has been serving free meals to needy residents for 12 years. Israel, Jordan and the PA have agreed the “Dead Sea to Red Sea Canal” plan. CERN’s center for nuclear research elected Israel as its first non-European member. Israeli-Chinese cars are now on sale in Europe. Evgeny Kissin, one of the world’s best pianists has become an Israeli citizen.
Thanks to our Friend Michael Ordman and verygoodnewsisrael
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Accurate test for cancer gene. Thanks to scientists at Hadassah Medical Center, a simple blood test will now detect the presence of harmful BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations in otherwise healthy women. Gene expression profiling is far quicker, cheaper and more accurate than the previous method of full gene sequencing.
Slowing down to speed up DNA sequencing. Technion scientists have made a breakthrough that will improve the accuracy and speed of calculating an individual’s genome. A focused low-power green laser slows down the flow of DNA nanopores to enable sensors to get a higher-resolution analysis of the proteins in the DNA.
Seeing is believing. I featured the “talking glasses” from Israel’s OrCam in a previous newsletter, but here is a new video showing the power of the unique Israeli device for the visually impaired.
Israeli experts at G8 Dementia Summit. Israel has participated in an international summit on dementia in London, England, bringing its know-how to bear on a disease that is set to treble globally by 2050.
Digital dentistry has wide-open benefits. Thanks to the Israeli-developed Objet30 OrthoDesk 3D printer, small dental labs can now produce stone models, orthodontic appliances, delivery and positioning trays, retainers and surgical guides, which were previously only accessible by large labs.
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Technion’s revolutionary program for Haredim. Rabbi Dov Lipman outlines the Israel Technion’s goal to help ultra-orthodox citizens reach the highest Talmudic, academic and professional standards.
12 years of kindness. The Meir Panim Free Restaurant in Tiberias is celebrating its 12th anniversary. Funded entirely by Mrs Lee Steinberg of New York, the restaurant serves 160 meals every day to needy residents and delivers another 60 meals to the homebound. It provides a dignified and social atmosphere for its customers.
Uriel scores a touchdown. 11-year-old Uriel Wang from Jerusalem has had two bone marrow transplants to treat his leukemia. Thanks to the Jerusalem Big Blue Lions football team, Uriel achieved his dream of playing for the team and scored a dramatic touchdown, with a little help from both sides.
Scholarships for evacuees. Yedidut Toronto is granting University scholarships to 202 students formerly evacuated from Gush Katif as part of Israel’s disengagement from Gaza. The scholarships will be distributed by the employment organization JobKatif, which has already found work for 2,500 ex-Gush Katif residents.
Better English for Israeli kids. Israeli and UK education ministers signed an agreement promoting English studies in Israel. A national plan developed by the British Council, includes joint seminars and on-line tools to help improve the professionalism and English language skills of hundreds of Israeli teachers.
Crossing Boundaries Through Medicine. The “Heart for Peace” Foundation and Israel’s Civil Administration for the Territories organized a party at the Hadassah Ein Karem Hospital, for Palestinian Arab and Israeli children who underwent cardiac surgery and catheterization.
Arabs rush for Technion course. Thousands of Arab students, including 600 Egyptians, have applied for Israel Technion’s online course in nanotechnology and micro sensors. Technion Professor Hossam Haick, who invented Israel’s NaNose cancer detection device, offers the course beginning in March in Arabic and English.
G8 taskforces take up Israeli social initiative. The organization Social Finance Israel presented an innovative blueprint for preventing type-2 diabetes to the G8 Taskforce on Social Impact Investment. Social Impact Bonds invest in companies tackling social or medical issues and governments pay dividends based on results.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Jordan chooses Israeli as VP of science project. The Jordan-based SESAME scientific research project has chosen an Israeli as vice president. Professor Eliezer Rabinovici of Jerusalem’s Hebrew University is the new Vice President of the Synchrotron-light for Experimental Science and Applications in the Middle East.
Israel, Jordan & PA sign agreement. Israel, Jordan, and the Palestinian Authority have agreed to build a pipeline from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea. The initiative will produce millions of cubic meters of drinking water for the region, hydroelectric power and replenish the critically dwindling Dead Sea.
Airport security – El Al is the best. UK Daily Mail’s travel editor praised the Israeli airline for ensuring safety. “Maybe it’s time to ditch the security scanner and actually talk to people at airports…it works for El Al”
Israeli aerosol wins International green-tech award. Israeli start-up GreenSpense represented Israel in the International Cleantech Open Ideas Competition in San Francisco, the “Oscar” of clean-technology awards. Its no-gas eco-friendly aerosol can won 1st place in the Chemistry & Advanced Materials category.
Israel is a world leader in cyber security. This article describes why Israel is to host January’s Cybertech 2014 International Exhibition and Conference.
Israel is the first and only non-Euro member of CERN. The prestigious CERN European nuclear physics Council in Geneva unanimously accepted Israel as its 21st full member state. The organization is the largest center for the study of nuclear particles and operates the longest particle accelerator in the world.
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
OECD praises Israel’s economic growth. “Israel’s output growth remains relatively strong, unemployment is at historically low levels, its high-tech sector continues to attract international admiration, and new off-shore gas fields have come on stream,” The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said in the executive summary of its 2013 Israel Economic Survey.
Israeli deficit shrinks further. The cumulative deficit for the last 12 months dropped sharply in November and totaled NIS 31.7 billion, 3% of GDP – much lower than the original target of 4.65% of GDP.
The Chinese market. (Thanks to Uri) Israeli firms are finding billions of new middle-class customers in the far-east superpower for Israel’s advanced medical and hi-tech products. Weekly flights between Tel Aviv and Beijing have just been increased from three to fourteen to cater for the increased business demand.
First European showroom for Israeli-Chinese cars. Car manufacturer Qoros Auto Co. Ltd., a joint venture controlled by Israel Corporation and China’s Chery Automobile Co. Ltd. has officially opened its first showroom in Europe in the Slovakian capital Bratislava. The price of the Qoros 1.6 turbo will be 20,960 Euros.
Flying to Israel will be “easy-er” (and cheaper). UK low-cost airline easyJet is introducing three new routes to and from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport. They are London Gatwick (three flights a week starting April), Milan Malpensa (four times a week starting March) and Berlin (3 times a week starting February).
Israel’s Pillcam is swallowed up. Irish medical devices company Covidien has bought Israel’s Given Imaging, manufacturer of the unique digestible Pillcam colon diagnosis camera, for a reported $860 million.
Israel’s Frutarom is flavor of the month. One of Israel’s biggest companies, Frutarom has just purchased US-based flavor manufacturer Hagelin & Co for $52.4 million. It follows Frutarom’s recent acquisitions of Russia’s Protein Technologies Ingredients for $50.3 million and Guatemala’s Aroma SA for $12.5 million.
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT
“The greatest pianist in the world” is now Israeli. Evgeny Kissin, generally regarded as one of the world’s greatest living pianists, has taken Israeli citizenship. Kissin, who was born in Russia, said “Israel is the only state on our planet which I want to represent with my art and all my public activities, no matter where I live.”
Cirque du Soleil returns to Israel. Canada’s Cirque du Soleil enchanted Israelis last summer with its show “Alegria”. It returns to Tel Aviv’s Nokia Arena between 6th and 16th Aug 2014 with ten performances of the award-winning production “Quidam,” seen already by more than 10 million viewers worldwide.
Israeli actress is “Wonder Woman”. Israel-born actress Gal Gadot is set to star as Wonder Woman in a Warner Bros superhero film featuring Ben Affleck as Batman and Henry Cavill as Superman. Director Zac Snyder said that Gadot “has that magical quality that makes her perfect for the role.”
Two UK TV channels to air Israeli series. Israel’s original hit series “Hostages” will be broadcast on BBC Four in Hebrew with English sub-titles. It is the first time that the BBC has shown an Israeli series. Meanwhile, Channel Four will show the US remake in which the family of a woman surgeon is taken hostage in order to coerce her into killing the US President.
Netanya to host international soccer tournament. The International Winter Soccer Tournament for Youths will be held at Netanya’s new 13,800-capacity stadium. Teams from Serbia, Germany, Moldova and (of course) Israel will participate and entrance is free of charge.
THE JEWISH STATE
Subbotnik Jews make Aliyah. The forefathers of Ariel and Moriah Shishlenikov were Christian peasants who embraced Judaism some 200 years ago. Now they are the first of the 400 – 500 residents of the southern Russian village of Vysoky to immigrate to Israel.
UK tourists love Israel. A survey of easyJet passengers from the UK showed that 65 percent of first-time tourists had improved views of the Jewish State following their trip. 78 percent would visit again and 82 percent would recommend it to others as a holiday destination.
63 special bar & bat mitzvot. Boys and girls from all over Israel gathered under the auspices of the International Young Israel Movement (IYIM) – Israel to celebrate their Bar and Bat Mitzvot. Every one of the 63 participants was deaf or hearing impaired.
Does Hanukah have a message for America? For the first time since 1888, the day of Thanksgiving and the first day of the Jewish festival of Hanukah coincided. It will not happen again for over 70,000 years. Is there a connection between the two festivals?
Here comes the rain and snow. Winter has finally arrived in Israel. The Kinneret is rising and there are some beautiful photos of Israel as Jerusalem has its heaviest snowfall for 60 years.
