In the 14th May 17 edition of Israel’s
good news, the highlights include:
·
Israeli
scientists discover protein that protects against Alzheimer’s disease.
·
An Israeli
surgeon saved an Iraqi boy with a heart valve made from a cow.
·
The
daughter of Filipino workers joined the IDF in gratitude to Israel.
·
Israeli-designed
hi-tech electric trucks are being built in the UK.
·
April was
a record month for tourists and air passengers to Israel.
·
The Justin
Bieber concert was successful in more ways than one.
·
UK’s
Archbishop of Canterbury and Chief Rabbi pray together at Jerusalem’s Western
Wall.
·
Click here
to see the 30th April newsletter on IsraelSeen,
Ruthfully
Yours, Janglo
and United
With Israel. Also (TY Sandra) in German
and (TY Karen) in Portuguese.
·
Click here
to read my latest feature article “69
Years Young”. Also on Jerusalem
Post, United
With Israel (with 2,800 likes), Ruthfully
Yours and San
Diego Jewish World websites. Also (TY Sandra) translated into German
and (TY Karen) in Portuguese.
·
Click here,
to SEARCH the IsraelActive archives of
over 10,000 previous news articles.
·
Click
here, to donate a
small amount to help me expand the reach of VeryGoodNewsIsrael.
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Protein protects brain against DNA damage. (TY Eli) Scientists at
Israel’s Ben Gurion University have discovered that the protein SIRT6 is key to
repairing DNA damage that causes neurodegenerative brain diseases. SIRT6 was almost
completely absent in Alzheimer’s disease patients. http://www.jpost.com/Business-and-Innovation/Health-and-Science/Israeli-scientists-find-likely-cause-of-neurodegenerative-diseases-490134
New
understanding about Parkinson’s. Researchers from Israel’s Technion and
Harvard have a new theory on how Parkinson’s disease develops. The responsible
toxic protein alpha-synuclein doesn’t spread like an infection but accumulates
throughout the body. It could change the way the neurological disease is
treated.
Removing lung
tumors using AR.
Israel’s Body Vision Medical has integrated CT scans with X-rays to help
surgeons remove small, early-stage lung-cancer tumors. Pre-surgery 3D CT images
are overlaid with 2D X-ray images during the operation to produce
high-resolution Augmented Reality maps of the tumors in real-time.
Easier removal
of colon polyps. Israel’s Tandem Technologies has
developed Tandem Snare – a device for precise removal and retrieval of polyps
in the colon. Tandem’s CEO Noam Hassidov
described the device on ILTV. https://www.youtube.com/embed/3IRkVWCVwYA?rel=0
Safe stitches. I reported previously (Jan
29) about Israel’s Gordian Surgical and its safe suturing (stitching)
system to assist minimally-invasive surgery.
Gordian’s Doni Mayerfield was interviewed recently on ILTV.
Another cure
for pelvic prolapse. Israel’s Escala Medical has developed what it
describes as “the only non-surgical, incision-free 20-minute solution for
patients suffering pelvic prolapse.” It is targeting FDA approval by the end of
2017. (I
reported on a similar solution previously.)
Cartilage
regeneration aims for FDA approval. Israeli bone regeneration biotech CartiHeal has
raised $18.3 million to fund a trial that will help it achieve US FDA approval
for its cartilage regeneration technology.
CartiHeal already has CE (European) marketing approval.
Cancer biotech
launches on NASDAQ.
Israel’s UroGen has three treatments for the treatment of cancers of the
urinary system (bladder and kidneys). It has just raised $58.2 million on
NASDAQ. UroGen’s MitoGel treatment for Upper Tract Urothelial Carcinoma has
received Orphan status from the US FDA.
UK medical
magazine publicizes Israeli achievements. Newsletter readers may remember (Oct
2014) when UK Lancet editor Professor Richard Horton visited Rambam
hospital after writing an anti-Israel article.
In his latest publication, Horton has made a complete turnaround, publishing
15 positive Israeli medical articles.
Israel’s first “green” hospital. (TY Eli) Jerusalem’s Herzog
Medical Center, Israel's foremost center for geriatric, respiratory, mental
health and psycho-trauma treatment, is opening Israel’s first environmentally-friendly
pavilion. The 270-bed 8-floor facility includes a 200-bed underground emergency
hospital.
Personalized cancer treatment. Israel’s GeneSort detects
specific genetic mutations linked to various types of cancer. Oncologists can then
adapt treatments to the patient's specific genetic mutations, dramatically
improving outcomes. GeneSort has just
been acquired by Hong Kong investment fund AID Partners for $23 million. http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-aid-partners-buys-israels-genesort-for-23m-1001187888
Iraqi boy gets bovine heart valve. Israeli surgeon Sagi Assa
from Save A Child’s Heart worked together with his former mentor Dr Stephan
Schubert from Germany to implant an artificial heart valve into 11-year-old
Iraqi-Kurdish boy Marwan Ghazi Ali. The valve was made from the jugular vein of
an Australian cow.
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
A home for the homeless. (TY Nevet) A rare positive CNN report. Israeli
Mariuma Ben Yosef ran away from home at 14 and lived on the streets. She got her life back on track and set up the
Shanti House, in Tel Aviv and the Negev, which has since provided over 46,000
young people with temporary housing and long-term support.
A consumer club for disabled. "Adif," a special
consumer and social club for people in Israel with recognized disabilities, has
been launched. It offers monetary and
consumer benefits and covers 50 disabled people's organizations. Adif undertakes
to return 50% of its profits through projects benefiting its members.
Israel saved my
grandmother.
Staff. Sgt. Joana Chris Arpon isn’t Israeli, or even Jewish. She is the daughter
of Filipino parents who came to Israel to find work. She enlisted in the IDF
because an Israeli army team rescued her grandmother in the aftermath of the
2013 typhoon that devastated the Philippines.
Israel-Arab diplomat gives a tour of
Jaffa. George
Deek, is the highest-ranking Arab statesman in Israel’s Ministry of Foreign
Affairs. His Christian primary school had
mostly Muslim pupils and at Jewish high school he was the only Arab in his
class. Now he lives between 3 Jaffa mosques and quotes Rabbi Soloveitchik.
Indian navy ships arrive in Haifa. Three ships of the Indian
Navy docked in Israel’s Haifa Port on a three-day visit to mark 25 years of
India-Israel ties. The Indian ships also
took part in a joint drill with the Israel Navy. It is the 8th visit of Indian
ships to an Israeli port since 2000. Also.
an article on those ever-closer ties.
http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Indian-Navy-ships-dock-in-Haifa-port-ahead-of-historical-visit-by-Indian-PM-490336
http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Why-India-and-Israel-are-drawing-closer-490355
Harnessing the sun for Africa. (TY Avi) Video showing the
work of Israeli NGO Innovation: Africa.
It is using solar power to provide electricity for Africans to pump
water, power medical centers and illuminate homes so that children can read
when it gets dark outside. http://www.israelvideonetwork.com/the-israeli-heart-and-mind-just-transformed-the-lives-of-1-million-africans-forever/
Exporting the Kibbutz model to Africa. (TY Eli) Israeli architectural
and engineering company AlefBet Planners is exporting the Israeli kibbutz model
all over the world. These include 12 kibbutz-style
villages in Angola and three in Nigeria.
The kibbutzim help develop the region and create hundreds of jobs.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Israeli tech powers UK
electric truck.
(TY NoCamels)
Asher Bennett - brother of Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennet – has
founded Tevva Motors in the UK. The
company is building emission-free delivery trucks based on Israeli submarine
technology. Tevva has received orders from UPS, DHL and Kuehne+Nagel.
The age of digital farming. Israel’s Taranis has
developed a precision agriculture intelligence platform to allow farmers to
predict and prevent detrimental threats to their crops. Its systems manage
millions of acres of farmland in Argentina, Brazil, Israel, Russia and the
United States.
Israeli kids excel at International technology
contest. (TY
Karen) 15,000 students from 33 countries took part in the FIRST STEM
Championships in Houston, Texas. Of the 23
Israeli teams, category wins and awards went to Arad, Emek Hefer, Binyamina (2),
Holon (2), Dimona, Misgav, Kfar Yona, Tel Sheva and Herzliya,
Saving money for millions of electricity
customers. Dr.
Noa Ruschin-Rimin founded Israeli startup Grid4C, which uses Artificial
Intelligence to detect problems at both electricity producers and their home
customers. Texas’s electric company Direct Energy uses Grid4C's products for
1.5 million of its customers.
Growing vegetables in water. I featured previously (July
2014) Israel’s LivingGreen which markets “The Living Box” system for anyone
to produce up to 30 different organic vegetables using only water (hydroponics)
and solar energy. No soil or fertilizer. In this new video, CEO Nitzan Solan describes
the system.
Controlling hi-tech production. Israel’s Nova Measuring
Instrument makes metrology systems to enable semiconductor, integrated circuit
and optical CD manufacturers to develop reliable products.
http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-nova-jumps-on-fivefold-profit-1001187950
http://www.novameasuring.com/
Innovation award for wearable blanket. A wearable blanket now
available on El Al flights has won an innovation award at the TravelPlus
Amenities competition in Hamburg, Germany. The blanket was designed Idan
Noyberg and Gal Bulka of Israel’s LyLy Design Studio. https://www.lyly.design/
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Currency reserves soar by nearly $2
billion. Israel’s
foreign exchange reserves rose by another $1.97 billion during April, to reach a
record $105.14 billion (33% of GDP). It
includes $250 million added into the fund set-up to reduce some of the adverse effects
of natural gas production on the exchange rate.
All-time-record for
air passengers.
April 2017 was a record month for Ben Gurion Airport with 1.74 million passengers
– a massive 26% more than in April 2016.
Over 5 million passengers have passed through the airport in the first
four months of 2017 – an increase of 20% over the same period in 2016. Another all-time-record of 349,000 foreign
citizens visited Israel in April – 38% more than in 2016.
Direct flights Tel Aviv to Miami. El Al is launching a new non-stop
service, three times a week between Miami International airport and Tel Aviv’s
Ben Gurion airport starting in November.
More Eilat routes for Ryanair. Irish low-cost carrier
Ryanair is adding Bremen and Dusseldorf to its 14 winter routes into Ovda
airport, near Eilat. Ryanair has already
announced 7 new routes to Tel Aviv.
Largest-ever business delegation to Israel. Quebec Province Premier
Philippe Couillard is leading a delegation to Israel of 80 Canadian
businesspeople from the aviation, transportation, IT, and medical industries.
It is reported to be the largest-ever business delegation to visit Israel.
Program brings US business execs to Israel. (TY Eli) The US and
Israel-America Chambers of Commerce have set-up a new program called Business
Israel. It will bring executives from all 50 US states to Israel, to expand US markets
and collaborate with Israeli companies in water, agriculture, cybersecurity and
health.
Smart manufacturing roadshow in Southern
China. Eight
Israeli companies providing advanced solutions for the manufacturing industry
held a roadshow in Taipei, Guangzhou and Hong Kong. The delegation comprised ATE,
Colibri Spindles, Elbit, Elmo, Frisimos, K&S, LeaderMES and Precognize.
Invest in BDS-banned companies and make
money. (TY
Bennett) The share prices of eight of the nine publicly-quoted companies on the
BDS (Boycott, Divest and Sanctions) list have done very nicely over the past
year. And SodaStream’s share price jumped nearly 300%.
New startup center in Hefer valley. A new entrepreneurship
center named Yarok will open on the Ruppin Technology College Campus in the
Hefer Valley (Emek Hefer between Netanya and Hadera). One of the founders is Ruppin
chairman Eli Barak. Yarok will have an initial investment of NIS 5 million.
Doubling the size of Acre / Akko. Israel is to double the size
of the Northern city of Akko (Acre) by building 17,000 new housing units,
hundreds of classrooms, plus daycare centers, synagogues, libraries and sports
centers. The NIS 3 billion project will attract young families, revitalizing the
city and the entire western Galilee.
Cheaper coffee for polite customers. Customers of Israeli coffee
chain Café Café who say "please" and "thank you" when they
order an ordinary sized cup of coffee will pay NIS 6, instead of NIS 8. Cafe
Cafe owner Ronen Nimni says he wants "to encourage more respectful
conversation in Israel society.”
Medtronic to open two Israeli R&D
centers. US
medical device giant Medtronic is to open new Research & Development
centers in Jerusalem and Yokneam. Medtronic already has a major presence in
Israel with 750 employees following acquisitions Given Imaging, superDimension,
Oridion Systems and PolyTouch.
Water companies merge. Israeli wastewater treatment
company Emefcy (eight previous
articles) is to merge with RWL Water, which is controlled by World Jewish
Congress President Ron Lauder. The new
company, renamed Fluency, will accelerate Emefcy's operations in China and
other key markets.
Yokee Music goes for a song. Israel’s Yokee Music has
been bought by Canada’s Stingray Digital for an estimated $30 - $40
million. Yokee’s social music apps Yokee,
Yokee Guitar and Yokee Piano are ranked in the music category's top ten in 100
countries, with over 80 million downloads and 4 million monthly users.
More multi-million exits. April takeover news includes
Dutch game developer GamePoint buying Israel’s Luck Genome for £12.5 million;
Israel’s WalkMe acquiring Israeli analytics startup Jaco; US-based Magento buying
Israel’s Shopial and U.S. ticket marketer SeatGeek taking over Israel’s TopTix
for $56 million.
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT
Justin Bieber delivers
in Tel Aviv.
King of Pop Justin Bieber enthralled 50,000 fans at Park Hayarkon in Tel
Aviv. The 90-minute performance included
25 songs, accompanied by lasers, fireworks and acrobats. His first song also
helped a pregnant fan (three-weeks overdue) go into labor and later give birth
to a healthy baby girl.
Other May events. Upcoming concerts this
month include Aerosmith, Paul Young and Jose Gonzales.
Eurovision contestants visit Israel. Eurovision artists from 28
different countries visited Israel to perform their original songs live for
Israeli fans as a part of Israel Calling 2017. The participants also toured
Jerusalem's must-see cultural and religious sites. See other links to Israel’s
entry “I Feel Alive” with Imri Ziv.
Israel’s beautiful beaches. With the start of the
swimming season, Israel has life guards supervising 144 beaches on the
Mediterranean Sea, the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee), the Dead Sea and the Red
Sea. This article describes some of
them. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4958487,00.html
Dowitcher makes a rare stop in Israel. International birdwatchers in
Eilat were delighted to spot a long-billed dowitcher in the salt ponds off
Israel’s southern coast. Last seen in
Israel in 1984, the dowitcher normally migrates to South and Central America
but probably took a wrong turn and headed for Africa instead. http://www.jpost.com/Business-and-Innovation/Environment/Bird-makes-a-rare-stop-in-Israel-after-wrong-turn-488926
Israelis are world wheelchair tennis
runners-up.
Israel narrowly lost 2-1 to Great Britain in the finals of the wheelchair
tennis World Team Cup in Sardinia.
Israel had won four world championships previously.
THE JEWISH STATE
Israeli Arabs are more positive than
Jews. (TY
Ron M) A poll by the Israel Democracy Institute and Tel Aviv University Peace
Index found 66% of Israeli Arabs are satisfied with life in Israel, whilst only
43.9% of Jewish-Israelis were satisfied.
They need to start reading my newsletters!
Happy Independence Day.
- From Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu https://www.youtube.com/embed/sD71USrN0LM?rel=0
- From Israel’s Technion Institute https://www.youtube.com/embed/4VPeNVePCtQ?rel=0
UK religious leaders
pray at Western Wall. (TY Eli) The UK’s Archbishop of Canterbury,
Justin Welby, was joined by UK Chief Rabbi Ephaim Mirvis for prayers at the
Western Wall. Mirvis described “a unique
moment in history,” as the two religious leaders toured the Old City of
Jerusalem and visited Yad Vashem.
Bible quiz winner is from secular school. On Israel’s Independence
Day, 15-year-old Sagiv Lugasi, from the ORT Sci-Tech high school in Maalot, won
Israel’s annual contest - the first secular contestant to win since the 1980s. The
Bible in Israel is a shared national document. Each soldier gets a copy upon
joining the army.
Jacob sheep are doing well. I reported previously (Jan 15)
about the return to Israel of the Biblical breed that Jewish patriarch Jacob originally
reared when he worked for his uncle Laban. Here is a recent video showing the
sheep thriving in their new / old homeland.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/vUcg8Rj8KFM?rel=0
What Israel children say about their
country. (TY
Avi) Israel’s future is bright with children such as these.
240 Ukrainians arrive on Freedom flight. The International Fellowship
of Christians and Jews (IFCJ) has brought another 240 new immigrants (62
families) from Ukraine to Israel. The IFCJ
provides the air fare plus financial assistance, in addition to that provided
by the Israeli Government to all new immigrants.
Israel’s first interactive hiking path. Israel is constructing the “Sanhedrin
Trail” - its first “smart” hiking trail - between Tiberias and Beit Sheʽarim
National Park in the Lower Galilee. It will
feature an augmented reality-based smartphone app that will reconstruct
heritage sites and bring to life historical biblical scholars.
