Photo is of Shiloh, where Israeli archaeologists have unearthed the site of the Biblical tabernacle – which pre-dates the Jerusalem Temple
This Weeks Sanity Report from Israel April 8 2018
The highlights include:
- An Israeli device allows a surgeon to operate remotely from the patient.
- Save a Child’s Heart has won an award from the United Nations.
- An Israeli-Arab policeman proposed during Independence-Day rehearsals.
- Israeli fashion jewelry protects the wearer from violent attack.
- An Israeli electronic company was sold for $3.4 billion.
- Israeli archeologists have uncovered the 3300-year-old site of the Biblical tabernacle.
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
US approves surgeon’s extended hand. (TY Atid-EDI) Israel’s Human Xtensions has received FDA clearance for its HandX light-weight, hand-held device that translates the surgeon’s natural hand motions into complex movements inside the patient. It opens vast new horizons for Minimally Invasive Surgery (see video).
http://human-x.com/human-xtensions-receives-fda-clearance/ https://www.youtube.com/embed/F7gzW_U3wYI?rel=0 https://lnkd.in/eiPNDa8
Europe approves abdominal aortic aneurysm repair system. (TY Atid-EDI) Israel’s Endospan has received the CE mark for its HORIZON Stent Graft System to treat Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA). Endospan is also awaiting European approval for its NEXUS™ Stent Graft System to treat Aortic Arch Disease.
https://docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/625ec5_ca352c21453446b0ac8a833dd4b5bacb.pdf
Blood count test in 5 minutes. Israeli blood analysis startup PixCell has been awarded a €2.5 million grant by the European commission to help commercialize its HemoScreen.
http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-israeli-blood-analysis-co-pixcell-wins-25m-eu-grant-1001228031
Antibodies for AstraZeneca. Israeli cancer immunotherapy company Compugen is to provide its pipeline of cancer-fighting antibodies to MedImmune – AstraZeneca’s global biologics research and development arm. Compugen will initially receive $10 million and then up to $200 million for the first MedImmune product.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3735453,00.html
Israeli and Arab doctors save Filipino baby. (TY UWI) A Filipino baby born at the Red Crescent Hospital in eastern Jerusalem had a rare and serious heart defect, which required complex and risky open-heart surgery. He was taken to Jerusalem’s Hadassah hospital where Israeli and Arab doctors together saved the baby’s life.
Using handwriting for psychoanalysis. Scientists at Haifa University have proved that a person’s mood can be determined by examining one’s handwriting. After watching darker, disturbing movies, the 62 study participants all wrote letters of the alphabet smaller in both height and width than after watching positive films.
https://www.haifa.ac.il/index.php/en/home-page3/2889-new-study-our-handwriting-reveals-our-mood
https://www.israel21c.org/how-our-handwriting-reveals-our-mood/
Glaucoma treatment expands to China. (TY Hazel) I reported previously (twice) about Israeli Glaucoma- treatment developer IOPtima. Now China’s Kanghong is partnering IPOtima’s to market its glaucoma laser surgery system, IOPtiMate, in Asia, which has some of the world’s highest rates of blindness from glaucoma.
UN award to Save a Child’s Heart. The United Nations Population Fund is giving the 2018 Population Award to Israel’s Save a Child’s Heart organization. SACH doctors have (free of charge) saved over 4,500 children with congenital heart defects from all over the world, including Arab countries and the Palestinian Authority.
WHO chief praises Hadassah cancer care. The World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus made an impromptu visit to Israel and praised Hadassah Medical Center’s Ein Kerem oncology facility. “Hadassah is proof that medical treatment creates a bridge between people, and a center of hope,” he said. https://haifadiarist.blogspot.co.uk/2018/03/un-health-chief-praises-israeli-cancer.html
180-seconds emergency response time. (TY TIP, Nevet and UWI) Thanks to its ambucycles and SOS emergency app, the average time for a United Hatzalah responder to arrive at the scene of an emergency call in Israel is now just 3 minutes. In 2017 United Hatzalah EMS volunteers treated 207,000 people in Israel.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/CaCHsfeAxmA?rel=0
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Surprise event at Independence Day rehearsal. (TY Hazel and Stand With Us) Israeli Christian Arab Border Policeman Ra’id Ashkar was chosen as a flag-bearer for the 70th Independence Day torch-lighting ceremony on Mount Herzl. At rehearsals, he arranged a most original way to ask his girlfriend Luna to marry him.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/NgsTG-VFSBg?rel=0
Playing and praying together. (TY WIN & I24 News) Israeli soccer team Bnei Sakhnin contains a mix of Jews and Muslims. A recent photo of two players praying together went viral. See also the trailer for the documentary “After the Cup – Sons of Sakhnin United” which highlights the team’s coexistence ethos.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/YgpNR9cqEHU?rel=0 https://www.youtube.com/embed/_fg1sab3eVE?rel=0
Securing borders while protecting wildlife. The Israeli and Jordanian armies have been working together to construct natural wildlife corridors before a new border fence is built. As when the Egyptian border fence was built, specially designed border crossings will allow wildlife to move back and forth.
https://www.jns.org/soldiers-on-israels-border-with-jordan-do-more-than-defend-lives/
Heroes relieve poverty in South Africa. I reported previously (8th Oct) about Israel’s Heroes for Life (HfL) organization and its work teaching in a school in Mumbai, India. Their latest project involves teaching impoverished South African children and improving their living conditions.
https://unitedwithisrael.org/watch-israeli-volunteers-fight-poverty-in-south-africa/
Israel stars in US security conference. (TY Hazel) 16 Israeli companies along with a delegation from Israel’s Defense Ministry attended an International Homeland Defense and Security Summit in Mississippi. Topics included the technological solutions for border security, preventing terror attacks and handling natural disasters.
https://www.jta.org/2018/03/14/news-opinion/israel-star-national-security-conference-mississippi
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
The fastest laptop processor. I reported previously (8th Oct) that Intel Israel had developed its 8th Gen I-Core “Coffee Lake” microprocessor – the fastest yet. Intel has now released further processors in the range, including the Intel Core i9 processor – the highest-performance laptop processor that Intel has ever built.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/haifa-team-sires-intels-best-processor-ever-for-laptops/
Soon – even faster processing. (TY Hazel) Israeli researchers at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem have developed a proof of concept that would enable computers to run 100 times faster using terahertz microchips. The technology integrates speed-of-light optics communications with flash memory.
https://www.israel21c.org/new-technology-will-enable-computers-to-run-100x-faster/
Elon Musk in Israel. Telsa CEO Elon Musk visited Israel and posted several photos of himself including one at Masada. The caption was “Paid respects to Masada earlier today. Live free or die.” Earlier he met PM Netanyahu. He praised Israel as a ‘technological power’ and said the Negev could provide the country with all its energy needs. https://worldisraelnews.com/the-negev-is-the-energy-future-of-israel-business-magnate-elon-musk-tells-netanyahu/
3D-printed jewelry for self-defense. Israeli fashion designer Nitzan Kish has used 3D tech to create uniquely shaped clothing and jewelry with a special purpose in mind – self-defense. Her collection, Me, Myself & I, features garments that, upon any physical force, turn into spikes and look like modern body armor.
http://nocamels.com/2018/03/israeli-fashion-designer-3d/
Israeli software helps crack the soybean genome. Missouri scientists have used software from Israel’s NRGene to map the genomes of two important soybean varieties. The information can help scientists increase their oil and protein content using traditional breeding methods.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israels-nrgene-helps-unveil-genetic-makeup-of-soybeans/
Making motor racing safer. Two Israeli companies have partnered to provide technology to alert motor racing drivers to hazards on the circuit. Vehicle-to-everything chipset maker Autotalks and race car manufacturer Griiip showcased their system at the new motorsport park in Be’er Sheva, Southern Israel.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3735486,00.html
https://www.youtube.com/embed/Zm34OWIal6k?rel=0
Record solar energy production. On a perfectly cloudless Saturday afternoon on 19th March, solar energy was producing 13.4 percent of Israel’s total electricity consumption, breaking the country’s solar power record.
https://worldisraelnews.com/watch-israel-breaks-solar-power-production-record/
https://www.youtube.com/embed/QJIB7FnKIXw?rel=0
Still on course for the Moon. Google’s Lunar X $20 million prize competition (see here) expired on 31st March without a winner. However, Israel is still working to land its SpaceIL module on the moon this year. Of the 33 original entries, Israel was the first of 16 to announce a launch date and now only five teams remain.
https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-space-team-still-shooting-for-the-moon/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocIOH1xbZvs
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Food prices drop; salaries rise. The price of food in Israel has dropped 5% in the past two years, the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) reports. Reasons include a 1% cut in VAT, 3.5% cut in corporate taxes and higher caps for food imports, especially fresh beef. Salaries rose 3% in this period.
http://www.israelhayom.com/2018/03/28/food-prices-in-israel-down-5-oecd-reports/
First Israeli flight over Saudi. India’s national airline, Air India, has completed its first flight between New Delhi and Tel Aviv flying through Saudi Arabian airspace. Recent Saudi government permission for the service has cut flight time to just five hours instead of the seven hours required to circumvent the Arab state.
http://www.bicom.org.uk/news/first-ever-flight-israel-saudi-arabia-airspace/
A $3.4 billion exit. I’ve reported previously (see here) about Israel’s Orbotech, whose systems produce almost every electronic device in the world. Orbotech has just been taken over by US giant KLA-Tencor for a massive $3.4 billion. Orbotech will continue to operate under the Orbotech brand in Yavne, Israel.
www.nocamels.com/2018/03/orbotech-electronic-israel-acquire/
Growing market for Israeli microalgae. Kibbutz Ketura-based (UK-owned) Algatech has acquired New Zealand’s Supreme Health which, like Algatech, produces the algae anti-oxidant product astaxanthin. Algatech can now use Supreme’s client base to target Asia and especially the Chinese market.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3735465,00.html
Israeli wheel to go into mass production. Regular readers will have read several previous articles about the revolutionary new wheel developed by Israel’s SoftWheel. Now Canadian auto parts maker Linamar is investing “millions of dollars” in a production line that will manufacture hundreds of thousands of these wheels.
http://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3735398,00.html
The first private college to issue PhDs. (TY Atid-EDI) The Israeli Council for Higher Education granted the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya permission to apply to confer doctorate degrees, beginning with law. It is a major step towards the IDC becoming Israel’s first private university.
http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-idc-herzliya-becomes-israels-first-private-university-1001228721
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT
Akko hotel wins honors. (TY Nevet) I reported previously (Sep 2013) about the Efendi hotel in Akko (Acre) reconstructed from an abandoned Ottoman palace. The hotel was recently honored in five categories by the US-based TripAdvisor travel site, including being named among the top small hotels in the Middle East.
https://www.israel21c.org/luxury-hotel-in-acre-honored-by-tripadvisor/
70 years in 3 minutes. In advance of Israel’s 70th Anniversary on 18th April, this short video highlights one major news story in each of modern Israel’s exciting 70 years.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/auB4oTQnQag?rel=0
THE JEWISH STATE
100,000 at the Western Wall. (TY WIN, ILTV and UWI) Around 100,000 men and women gathered at the Western Wall in Jerusalem’s Old City for Birkat HaKohanim, the priestly blessings, that takes place on Passover and Tabernacles. One of the kohanim (priests) was David Friedman – the US Ambassador to Israel.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/jty5KhzXdCU?rel=0
https://www.youtube.com/embed/g8OIJEWQkLQ?rel=0
Freedom coins discovered from Jewish revolt. Just before Passover, Hebrew University archaeologist Dr. Eilat Mazar discovered coins from 1st century AD during renewed excavations below Jerusalem Temple Mount’s southern wall. They were inscribed “For the Freedom of Zion” and “For the Redemption of Zion”.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/243632
Uncovering the site of the Tabernacle (Mishkan). Shiloh was the capital for the Jewish Kingdom for 369 years before King David made Jerusalem Israel’s capital and Solomon built the first Temple. Archaeologists are currently working on this 3,300-year-old site and making some astounding discoveries.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/7HHIJJVlWbI?rel=0
