In the 6th Sept 2015 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
· IBM Israel has developed an app that can identify sufferers of ADHD.
· Israel is providing an extra $230 million for Arab-Israeli integration.
· IsraAID is heading to Greece to help with the influx of migrants.
· Intel’s new Israeli-developed Skylake microchip goes public.
· An Israeli-app can keep track of your most important possessions.
· The largest exit ($900 million) for an Israeli medical device company.
· An Israeli Paralympic rower won gold at the World Championships.
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
An app to detect ADHD. (TY SDM) Researchers at IBM Israel have developed a prototype app that can detect attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms. Subjects trace an imaginary rectangle ten times and the app analyzes the hand movements. ADHD sufferers have difficulty with continuous motor activity. http://www.ynetnews.com/
Link between Leukemia and HIV. Researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) have discovered similarities between Leukemia and HIV. Dr. Ran Taube is convinced that his team’s discovery is key to finding a clinical solution that can prevent infection with HIV and destroy the deadly virus.
High-pressure Oxygen to treat fibromyalgia. I reported previously on Israel’s Hyperbaric Oxygen treatment here and here. Now a study by 13 Israeli researchers has proved that the high-pressure Oxygen treatment reduces or eliminates medication needed for sufferers of the chronic pain condition fibromyalgia.
Calming autistic children. Israel’s Association for Children at Risk has developed an Autism and Resiliency Program aimed at soothing frayed nerves of the 1,000 Israeli children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The program relieved trauma during Operation Protective Edge but is now being adapted to everyday needs.
Two Israelis in prestigious MIT list. Two Israelis have made MIT’s prestigious “35 Innovators Under 35” list for 2015. Cigall Kadoch, 30, holds a doctorate from Stanford where her expertise is cancer research. Gilad Evrony, 33, from Harvard Medical School, made a major discovery advancing research into brain disorders.
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Israel’s first special needs integration village. Israel’s top building committee has approved land for a rural town integrating 50 Israeli families with dozens of high-functioning special needs adults. The community will employ the special needs adults alongside its regular workers in the local services, and in agricultural tourism.
A record 2.191 million schoolkids. 2,191,004 students began school on 1st Sept, almost 50,000 more than the 2,141,850 enrolled the previous year. Improvements this year include smaller classes in 1st grade; a second kindergarten assistant; new tools for special needs children and a new advanced maths program.
Intel Israel increases bonus for recruiting women. Intel, Israel’s biggest high-tech employer is doubling the bonus for employees helping to recruit women employees. Intel Israel VP human resources Judith Yampolsky said, “We believe that diversity in employment is the company’s engine for innovation and creativity”.
$230 million aid for Israeli-Arabs. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has decided to give a one-time budgetary supplement of 900 million shekels ($230 million) to Israeli-Arab councils. It is designed to “integrate Israel’s Arab citizens into Israeli society as equals among equals”, said the PM.
Employment for Bedouin women. Israel’s Economy Ministry and the Joint Distribution Committee-Israel (JDC) have opened 19 Arab-run Rayan Employment Centers serving 63 municipalities in northern and southern Israel. Since 2012 they have placed 9,100 Arabs, including many Bedouin women, in local jobs.
Israeli help for Gaza farmers. Farmers in Israel’s Nahal Oz have been giving agricultural advice to Gaza farmers in Khan Younis. The Gazans are seeking new varieties of potato suitable for food such as chips. Israeli farmer Yankale Cohen said, “Maybe they’ll stop shooting at us because of the potatoes?”
Help for refugees in Europe. IsraAID Director Shachar Zahavi has announced a campaign to help Greece with the thousands of refugees washed up on the shores of Europe. IsraAID brings its experience of its program to help the Bulgarian Red Cross last year with its influx of Syrian refugees.
Water technology for Nigeria. Israel is to help Nigeria manufacture irrigation equipment, manage water resources, monitor accessibility, produce a water quality safety plan, and develop educational and management techniques.
The fifth most influential fashion school. (TY SDM) Israel’s Shenkar College’s Fashion Design Department in Ramat Gan is among the five most influential fashion schools in the world and the 11th-best overall, according to rankings released on Sunday by the influential Business of Fashion publication.
Saving rare species. (TY Simon) Israel hosted a global UN event last week when 200 scientists from 40 countries came to Tel Aviv to attend the Animals Committee of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). A key issue discussed was illegal hunting.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Israel’s wild wheat can feed the world. Video to accompany my previous article about how Israel’s NRGene mapped out the genome of wild Emmer wheat, with its promise of new hardy and resistant strains. Emmer wheat – the ancestor of modern wheat – was discovered in 1906 by Aaron Aaronsohn in pre-state Israel.
Skylake – Intel Israel’s next generation chip. The Israeli-developed Intel Skylake is another huge advance in microprocessor technology, with more than double the performance, triple the battery life, and 30 times better graphics than most computers in use today. It consumes just 3 watts of power – current chips use 30-45 watts.
Doubling students of advanced math. Education Minister Naftali Bennett, former President Shimon Peres and Israeli high-tech companies have launched “Give 5” – a program to double to 18,000 the numbers studying for advanced (5-point) math matriculation exams. It includes more teachers, resources and hi-tech lecturers.
Smart garbage bins. Afula is the first Israeli city to have sensors fitted to 150 of its public trash cans. Garbage collectors will be now alerted to the receptacles that need emptying more urgently.
A spoon to measure sweetness. Israeli startup Valiber has developed a spoon-like tool that measures the exact levels of sweetness found in drinks and foods. “The swizzle” is a spoon with a sensor that communicates with your smartphone using Bluetooth. Valiber has also invented the “Val” scale to quantify sweetness.
Express delivery – by drone. Israel’s Flytrex claims to be the world’s first delivery drone that operates over the cloud. Its Messenger app lets operators use their Sky drone to perform short-range deliveries of small parcels to friends and family. It is also planning drone deliveries of medicines to rural African villages.
Delivery on one wheel. Kobi Shikar, a student at Shenkar School of Engineering and Design, has conceptually designed a one-wheeled robotic delivery drone that uses GPS to navigate and facial recognition software to identify recipients. Each wheel features a self-balancing gyroscopic system.
Intel Israel 3D tech to power Google’s Tango. (TY SDM) Intel Israel is working with Google to develop a 3-D environment. Intel’s RealSense technology, largely developed in Jerusalem and Haifa, is to be a key input to Project Tango – a Google experiment using smartphones and tablets to record an in-depth, 3-D environment.
http://www.jpost.com/Business-
Why Israel is so good at cyber security. (TY Michelle and Nevet) Another article explaining why Israel dominates the cyber security industry. Reasons include defense against threats, investment in science, and military service. http://fortune.com/2015/09/01/
I don’t like the sound of that. (TY Michelle) Israel’s Augury has developed the Auguscope – a low-cost innovative device that “listens” to machinery to diagnose problems. Preventative maintenance can then save the huge costs of downtime and replacement equipment. Augury has just raised $7 million of initial funding.
Never lose anything ever again. (TY Yehudit) Israel’s GetPixie has developed the Location of Things (LoT) platform and produced Pixie points that you stick to your valued objects (keys, wallet, sunglasses etc.) Use your smartphone to find them anytime. Pixie can even alert you if you leave the house without them.
3D printed fashion collection. (TY Michelle) Danit Peleg used a relatively cheap, home 3D printer to produce clothing for her final project at Israel’s Shenkar College of Engineering and Design. Her video of the “dishwasher-safe” fabrics has had over 100,000 views. Imagine – if you are cold, just print yourself a sweater!
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
20,000 car booster seats. Israel’s Mifold has now had 20,000 orders for its innovative folding car booster seats. It also has released a video of a child attaching his seat belt to the booster seat.
Israel’s Smartbus app launches in California. SmartBus already helps Israelis arrange 40,000 trips per month, whether a regular route (such as a workplace shuttle) or a one-time ride to an event. In Israel, about 1,600 drivers participate in the scheme. Now in four languages, the app is being rolled out California,
You have outlined the “Bad News Israel”, all of which is true. Ted has presented the “Good News Israel”, which is also true and a welcome respite from the “Bad News Israel” that dominates discourse.
I have mixed feelings about all this “Good News”. Israel is helping Arabs who remain mostly hostile and are escalating the attacks on Jews every day. The Government of Israel remains mostly corrupt while it allows so many Jews to be in poverty. It is failing to provide affordable housing while some Israelis are emigrating to Europe over the very high cost of living. The Israeli government refuses to declare that the land belongs to the Jews and that Jordan is Palestine. The government is helping Arabs more than Jews. The stupid and corrupt Israeli government is insuring that Jews will continue to suffer attacks with no end in sight.