Good News Israel Archive from the week of March 15, 2015: Israeli water technology for Kenya, the EU praises Israel’s work for Gaza and much more…

By Michael Ordman

ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS

Treatment for cystic fibrosis

Israel’s Advanced Inhalation Therapies has been granted Orphan status by the US FDA to complete the development of its nitric oxide (NO) treatment for cystic fibrosis. The NO gas boosts the body’s immune system, improves blood flow and circulation and kills bacteria, viruses, parasites and fungi.
http://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-firm-boasts-new-cystic-fibrosis-treatment/

Stem cell treatment fights radiation sickness

Stem cells from Israel’s Pluristem have been used in clinical tests to successfully treat bone marrow failure following total body exposure to high doses of radiation.
http://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-radiation-disease-treatment-passes-major-hurdle/
http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0066549

Treatments in Silicon can target cancer

Scientists at Israel’s Technion together with MIT and Harvard have discovered that chemotherapeutics, delivered in tiny silicon containers with nano-sized holes are able to destroy malignant tumors, whilst avoiding adverse effects on healthy tissue.
http://www.technion.ac.il/en/2015/02/silicon-carriers-for-cancer-treatment/

Brain neurons study can help fight Alzheimer’s

Tel Aviv University researchers discovered that neural networks in the brain preserve memories better than individual neurons. This new understanding may lead to a breakthrough in treating debilitating diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
http://jewishbusinessnews.com/2015/03/08/tau-brain-neurons-study-could-help-fight-alzheimers/

Pill balloon to control your appetite

Israel biomed company Tulip Medical has successfully completed its first clinical trial of its pill that expands in the stomach, inflates like a balloon, and creates a sense of fullness. The pill was safe with no side effects. The next trial will test the pill in an inclusive weight-loss program.
http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-fat-transfer-co-tulip-reports-positive-trial-results-1001015838
 

ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL

Triplets in Uniform

May, Chen and Shir maybe triplets, but Shir was born brain-damaged. 19 years later, May and Chen joined the IDF. Thanks to the JNF-supported Yad Layeled Hameyuchad’s “Special in Uniform” program, which integrates young people with disabilities into the IDF, Shir wasn’t left out.
http://jewishnationalfund.blogspot.co.il/2015/02/triplets-in-uniform-one-disabled-story.html

The vital work of autistic volunteers

Interpreting satellite images from Israel’s satellites requires long hours of concentration and constant attention to detail. Volunteers with autism provide a “win-win” situation for those who previously faced a bleak future.
http://www.timesofisrael.com/soldiers-with-autism-give-army-rare-view-into-intel-and-disorder/

Arab chairman of Israeli elections

Only in Israel could an Israeli-Arab be the Chairman of the Election Committee.

Arabs and Jews study space science together

The Moona outer space research center in the Israel-Arab town of Majd Al-Kurum has attracted about 50 Jewish and 50 Muslim high school students. They attend courses in robotics, drones, 3D printing, electronics and other technologies related to outer-space exploration.
http://www.israel21c.org/headlines/arab-jewish-teens-shoot-for-the-moon/

The Israeli-Arab at the top of Apple

This article about Apple CEO Tim Cook’s visit to Israel focuses in on Israeli-Arab Johny Srouji, Apple’s vice president for hardware technology.
http://www.timesofisrael.com/apples-herzliya-rd-center-now-second-largest-in-world/

EU praises Israel’s work for Gaza

European representatives praised Israel’s actions over the past few months to promote reconstruction in Gaza and ease the humanitarian crisis in the Strip. They complimented Israel’s cooperation with the UN, Israel’s doubling of the water supply to Gaza and the ease on export restrictions from the Gaza Strip to Israel, the West Bank and abroad.
http://elderofziyon.blogspot.co.il/2015/03/eu-praises-israel-slams-pa-and-arabs-on.html#.VP0iC44pqSo

Syrian boy fitted with prosthesis

A 13-year-old Syrian boy who was seriously injured by a mortar in the Quneitra region three months ago as a result of the ongoing civil war in Syria was brought to Israel for surgery and fitted with a prosthetic leg that will allow him to walk again.
http://jewishbusinessnews.com/2015/03/07/syrian-boy-who-lost-leg-in-war-fitted-with-prosthesis-in-israel/

Israeli-Australian sustainability course

Israel’s Ben Gurion University and Australia’s Monash University have established the Monash Ben-Gurion Seed Fund to support joint research and education programs in the areas of Sustainability, Social Inclusion and Entrepreneurship.
http://jewishbusinessnews.com/2015/03/08/monash-university-and-bgu-to-launch-joint-seed-fund-and-entrepreneurship-course/

Royal visit to Israeli aid workers

Prince William met relief staff from the Israeli humanitarian group IsraAID while he was in Japan recently, visiting areas hit by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
http://www.algemeiner.com/2015/03/05/britains-prince-william-meets-israeli-aid-workers-in-japan-while-visiting-earthquake-tsunami-disaster-sites/
 

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Best App at Mobile World Congress

Israelis Haran Wolfovitz Yaffe and Omri Erez, developers of the app Fansino, won the 2015 Mobile Premier Awards “Best App of the Year” at Spain’s Mobile World Congress, the largest cross-platform app showcase in the mobile industry and attended by around 70,000 people.
http://jewishbusinessnews.com/2015/03/10/israelis-win-best-app-of-the-year-award-at-barcelona-mobile-world-congress/

Israeli Innovation in San Diego

The Cal-Israel Innovation Expo beginning 8th May in San Diego will showcase Israeli technologies and advance opportunities for students with internships, scholarships and jobs.
http://www.israelinnovationexpo.com/
http://www.israelinnovationexpo.com/#!speakers/cqj2

Israeli sensors for Intel 3D system

Intel has chosen Israel’s Tower Semiconductor to provide the infrared sensor for one of its new 3D imaging solutions. Tower’s unique sensor is a 3.5um global shutter very fast pixel that allows high quantum efficiency at near infrared light.
http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-tower-wins-major-intel-ir-sensor-deal-1001015134

Water technology for Kenya

Kenya’s Governor of Embu County received a delegation of Israelis who will introduce technology to revolutionize agriculture in the arid parts of Embu which have fertile soils.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201502271586.html

A radical new catalyst

Technion scientists have developed the alpha hydrogen nitroxyl radical – a new stable class of chemical that encourages other chemicals to react together without being affected itself. This has major implications for chemical and medical industries including plastics, agriculture, biochemistry and antibiotics.
http://www.technion.ac.il/en/2015/02/free-radical-breakthrough/

Singapore and Israel do tech together

Since 1997, 140 joint Israeli-Singaporean industrial R&D projects have been supported and facilitated through the Singapore-Israel Industrial R&D Foundation (SIIRD) – a product of Israel’s Office of the Chief Scientist and Singapore’s Economic Development Board.
http://www.israel21c.org/headlines/two-small-smart-countries-doing-tech-together/

Building the largest automatic parking lot

Israel’s Unitronics Systems has won a $24 million contract to build a robot-operated parking system for one of the world’s leading hotel chains. With 1,400 parking places, it will be North America’s largest automatic parking system. It can park 3 cars in a single conventional space.
http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-unitronics-to-build-canadas-largest-automatic-parking-lot-1001016531

Israeli technology for electric cars

The Advanced Driver Assistance Systems developed by Bar-Ilan’s Professor Eli Kolberg, will be integrated into the US electric cars built by Electric Vehicle Evolution (EVE). The systems will reduce risk of collisions, provide vital data and are a step closer to autonomous vehicles.
http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-bar-ilan-teams-with-eve-on-autonomous-electric-cars-1001016506

BGU research with Arizona Uni

Ben Gurion University and Arizona State University have signed a joint research agreement. The two universities will cooperate in Cyber security, Homeland security, Nanotechnology, Robotics, Community medicine, Space and remote sensing and Sustainability.
http://in.bgu.ac.il/en/Pages/news/bgu_asu.aspx

PayPal to start Israeli tech hub

Internet payments giant PayPal has bought Israel’s CyActive to kick-start a larger cyber security hub in the country, including potentially more acquisitions. CyActive’s “biology-inspired” algorithm predicts and counters cyber-attacks. PayPal bought Israel’s FraudSciences in 2008.
http://techcrunch.com/2015/03/10/paypal-confirms-acquisition-of-cyactive-plans-to-open-new-security-hub-in-israel/
https://www.paypal-community.com/t5/PayPal-Forward/PayPal-Establishes-New-Security-Center/ba-p/956298
 

ECONOMY & BUSINESS

Stay at an Israeli hotel – in London

Israel’s Fattal Hotels Ltd. is opening its first UK hotel. The company has leased the Holiday Inn Heathrow Airport in London for 25 years and it will open on March 16 as part of Fattal’s Leonardo hotel chain. Fattal is in talks to open more hotels in the UK.
http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-fattal-set-to-open-uks-first-leonardo-hotel-1001015536

Connecting rural Peru to broadband

Israel’s Gilat Satellite Networks has won a $286 million contract for telecommunications infrastructure in Peru. Gilat will connect the remote rural regions of Huancavelica, Ayacucho and Apurimac, including about 600 public institutions, to broadband services.
http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-gilat-wins-largest-ever-contract-1001016341

Israeli innovation comes to B.C.

The Vancouver Israeli Tech Club (ITC) is connecting British Columbia’s technology sector to its Israeli counterpart. Over 200 entrepreneurs, business leaders, researchers, trade officers, investors and officials from Israel and B.C. attended an ITC conference at Simon Fraser University. http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Opinion+Israeli+innovation+comes+British+Columbia/10855274/story.html

Turning the Internet into a language course

I reported about Israel’s Lingua.ly in 2013 when it launched its desktop software that provides students with suitable Internet articles in the language they are studying. Lingua.ly launched its Android smartphone app in April and has now raised $1 million of funding.
http://dcinno.streetwise.co/2015/03/11/1776-invests-in-1m-lingua-ly-round/
http://techcrunch.com/2015/03/10/lingualy-1m/

Quiet trade with Indonesia

Although Indonesia is the largest Muslim country and has no official diplomatic relations with Israel, annual trade with Israel is around $400-500 million, almost 88 percent of which is Indonesian exports. Indonesia exports commodities to Israel while Israel sends back mostly high-tech products.
http://thediplomat.com/2015/03/the-quiet-growth-in-indonesia-israel-relations/
 

CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT

Michael Douglas wins Genesis Prize

US actor Michael Douglas is returning to Israel in June to receive the 2015 Genesis Prize, for his contribution to contemporary Jewish culture. Douglas said that he will donate his prize money to projects that promote inclusiveness in the Jewish community.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4635773,00.html

Israeli wins Euro triple jump medal

Hanna Knyazyeva-Minenko became the first Israeli woman to win a medal at the European Indoor Championships on Sunday, finishing the triple jump final in third place with a new national record of 14.49 meters. Her next target is August’s World Championships in Beijing, China.
http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Sports/Knyazyeva-Minenko-wins-historic-medal-in-Euro-indoors-393338
 

THE JEWISH STATE

Israel honors groundbreaking Israelis

Fourteen outstanding Israelis have been chosen to light the ceremonial torches at Israel’s official Independence Day ceremony at the Mount Herzl national cemetery in Jerusalem. They include hi-tech developers, entrepreneurs, top women achievers and aid workers. One of them, Lucy Aharish, is the first Hebrew-speaking Arab anchor on Israeli television.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4634723,00.html
https://il.newshub.org/arab-israeli-tv-host-chosen-to-light-independence-day-beacon-answers-critics-13158028.html

Hundreds attend Jerusalem Aliya fair

Nearly 1000 young French Masa participants gathered at the Jerusalem Theater to learn about their options if they make Aliya. Most Masa students emigrate. In France, the Jewish Agency holds two information seminars a day, whereas a year ago it held only one a month.
http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Hundreds-of-French-MASA-participants-attend-Jerusalem-aliya-fair-393622

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