In the 22nd Feb 2015 week’s edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
· An award-winning Israeli website provides individually tailored medical advice.
· 10% of all Israeli high-school children attend a Sci-Tech school.
· Israel’s economy experienced a huge boost in the final quarter of 2014.
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTSA traffic-light pacemaker. (M) A joint Israeli-UK project is testing whether a pacemaker emitting pulsating blue and yellow light can be used to regulate the beating of newly implanted heart tissue generated by stem cells. Also interesting because the UK’s Independent newspaper rarely includes any positive Israeli news.
ReWalk makes miracles possible. (M) Here’s a rare positive Israel article from CNN. It describes the exoskeleton from Israel’s ReWalk that is changing the lives of paraplegics. People previously confined to wheelchairs can now walk upright once again. (Stop video after 2 minutes.)
Turning darkness into light. (Israel21c) Ben-Gurion University is hosting “Light and Blindness” – a full-day exhibition of research-and-development activities in Israel designed to improve the quality of life for people with visual impairment. It includes a startup contest and the opening of a trail for the blind.
Boost for ice treatment to destroy tumors. Israeli biotech IceCure Medical has received $21 million of funds from Epoch Partner Investments to speed up the sales and distribution of its IceSense3 cryoablation system to treat breast cancer. IceSense3 uses extreme cold to destroy targeted tumors in less than 15 mins, with no pain.
$9 million donation to fight cancer. Philanthropists Laura and Isaac Perlmutter have pledged $3 million to finance six joint cancer research projects between NY University and Israel’s Technion, plus a further $6 million to establish a state-of-the-art research facility focusing on cancer metabolomics at the Technion.
Winning medical advice. (Israel21c) Israeli startup Medivizor uses patent-pending technology to find the most essential information applicable for each individual’s medical situation. Medivizor won 4 prestigious competitions in 2014, was highlighted by Forbes and is recommended by doctors to their patients.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
The most efficient desalination plant in the world. (M) Israel’s new Sorek desalination plant is now at full capacity, producing 627, 000 cubic meters of drinking water daily. With the lowest rate of energy consumption in the world, its water is the cheapest of any large-scale desalination plant.
Israel establishes Cyber Defense Authority. Israel’s cabinet has approved the establishment of a national cyber defense authority which will have overall national responsibility for cyber defense. It will also operate an a Cyber Event Readiness Team to strengthen the resilience of organizations and sectors in the economy.
The importance of technology and education. (M) Graduates of Israel Technion have won 4 Nobel Prizes and have either founded or are managing two-thirds of the Israeli companies on NASDAQ. Technion’s President Peretz Lavie describes why Israel’s foremost technical institute has been so successful.
Israeli Sci-Tech schools. 100, 000 Israeli kids – 10 percent of all Israeli high school students (Jews, Muslims, Christians and Druze) – attend a Sci-Tech school. The Sci-Tech network builds curricula based on the demand for professionals in various Israeli industries, and it currently has 18 industrial vocational schools.
Israeli cleantech in Germany. Nine Israeli cleantech companies attended Leipzig’s Green Ventures Forum – Germany’s leading B2B platform in the cleantech arena. Thanks to the Israeli Economic Office in Berlin and Israel NewTech, Israeli companies held over a hundred meetings with companies from over 30 countries.
Technion’s new hi-tech student lab. Israel’s Technion and Microsoft have together built a development lab that resembles that of a startup company. Students can develop innovative technologies that will add to the “Internet of Things” – Internet-enabled devices and applications to rival anything a hi-tech company can design.
Your TV interacts with your smartphone. (M) Israel’s Applicaster lets you watch a program on your TV set whilst interacting with the program and its characters on your smartphone. Applicaster has released more than 100 mobile apps for 36 broadcasters, including Fox International and Mediacorp.
Israeli technology with every diamond. (M) If you’ve got a diamond on your finger, there’s an 80% chance it’s been touched by Israel’s Sarine. (Stop the automatic video sequence at the end of the Sarine clip).
Washington to host US-Israeli cyber security conference. The Israel Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) will hold its 5th annual Defensive Cyberspace Operations & Intelligence Conference and Exhibition in Washington, DC, April 27–28, 2015. This is the first INSS cyber conference to be held in the US.
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
GDP up 7.2%; exports up 7.3%. Israel’s economy expanded at its fastest rate in almost eight years in the fourth quarter, with overall GDP growing an annualized 7.2 percent, following previous estimates of 3.3%. The recovery was seen in all segments – exports, Government spending, investment and business GDP.
New car deliveries up 23%. Israeli demand for new cars is a key indicator of economic optimism. So the 23% rise in deliveries in Jan 2015 compared to Jan 2014 (itself a record month) was significant.
An all-Israeli cyber takeover. Israel’s strength in cyber security was evidenced when Israel’s SuperCom acquired Israel’s PreVision. SuperCom’s NASDAQ share price has risen 1600% in two years.
Aiming to transform London’s banking. (M) 15 Israeli financial technologies startups will showcase their innovation to UK finance leaders in London on March 2-5. The 15 won their places in the 2015 TeXchange Fintech challenge, organized by the UK Israel Tech Hub at the British Embassy in Israel.
The Rhode Island – Israel partnership. (M) Rhode Island has followed the path set by its New England neighbor Massachusetts and developed strong business relationships with the Startup Nation. Latest joint projects include R-I Hospital with Israel’s Timocco and Crawford HPC with Israel’s Softwheel.
Israeli business leaders open London Stock Exchange. (M) Sorry – I missed this originally. On 17 Nov 2014 a delegation of CEOs/CFOs from Israeli companies formally opened the day’s trading on the London Stock Exchange.
Infosys to buy Israeli auto-tech company. (M) India’s giant IT company Infosys is acquiring Israel’s Panaya Inc for $200 million in cash. Panaya was among the top 100 global tech start-ups in 2009. It provides automation technology for companies such as Mercedes Benz, Sony and Unilever.
Apple’s new Israeli offices. (M) Take a look inside Apple’s new offices for its 800 employees in Herzliya. Apple’s CEO Tim Cook is scheduled to open the offices this week.
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
BBC applauds Israeli op on Syrian’s face. (Thanks to Eli) The BBC describes the amazing reconstruction work that Israeli surgeon Yoav Leiser of Haifa’s Rambam hospital performed on Mohammad – a Syrian farmer whose face was shattered in an attack by a Syrian warplane. A rare positive Israel story from the BBC. Also a report (thanks Michelle) on the $10 million plus spent by Israel in the last 18 months treating 1500 Syrians.
UN-Israeli workshop on renewable energy. The UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and Israel’s Agency for International Development Cooperation (MASHAV) organized a workshop to teach successful renewable energy practices and energy efficiency technologies to 23 experts and policymakers from across Eurasia.
Hong Kong students experience Startup Nation. (M) 50 Hong Kong university and secondary students got the chance to see firsthand the secrets to Israeli entrepreneurial success, thanks to a six-day trip co-organized by the Technion (Israel Institute of Technology) and Li Ka Shing Foundation.
