In the 25th Sep 22 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
· Israeli scientists lead Europe’s fight to beat cancer.
· Three examples of coexistence between Israeli Arabs and Jews.
· Four major international delegations and conferences in Israel.
· Scientific cooperation between Israel & the US has never been closer.
· Israeli robotics replaces the tasks that nobody wants to do.
· Israel’s economy is growing at the fastest rate in the developed world.
· Aliyah in 5782 was the highest in two decades.
· Click here to see the 18th Sep newsletter on IsraelSeen, Ruthfully Yours with another excellent intro, IsraPundit, and United With Israel with extra feature on Economy & Business. Also (TY Sandra) in German here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Also (TY Zachy) in Hebrew here and posted by Stuart Palmer here. Please pass on this newsletter to German and Hebrew-speaking contacts. Also (TY Esty) please visit the https://www.facebook.com/verygoodnewsIL Facebook page.
· Please click here, to donate (a small or large amount) to help me publicize VeryGoodNewsIsrael. (Please note that the donate link is now working and a PayPal account is not necessary!)
· Click here to keyword SEARCH almost any topic in the IsraelActive archives (over 21,300 articles).
· If someone wishes to be added to the free email subscription list, they should either click here or send a request (with their name) to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Israeli-led European cancer consortium. Professors from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Hadassah Cancer Research Institute are leading CanceRNA - a European consortium working to develop novel immunotherapy treatments for cancer. The consortium will initially focus on treating acute myeloid leukemia.
https://www.jns.org/israelis-lead-intl-hunt-for-innovative-cancer-treatments/
Turning cancer into a chronic disease. Ofer Shalev, Founder & CEO at Israel’s New Phase (see here previously) spoke at CTech’s Mind the Tech NY Conference. New Phase’s hyperthermic therapy reduces cancer from Stage 4 to Stage 2 so patients can live with a better quality of life. Clinical trials have started.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/bjux3bn11j https://newphase.co.il/clinical-trials/
The full picture of cancer diagnosis. (TY UWI) The death of his mother led Dean Bitan to found Israel’s Imagene (see here previously). The startup has developed tech that can conduct a full molecular analysis on a digitized biopsy image in real time and give a result in minutes, instead of the current situation of a few weeks.
https://www.israel21c.org/diagnosing-cancer-from-biopsies-in-minutes-not-weeks/
Finding the right antidepressant. Israel’s Genetika+ is developing a precision tool to determine if a particular antidepressant will work for an individual. It will also apparently highlight any side effects. (See also Taliaz.)
https://nocamels.com/2022/09/brain-in-a-dish-tech-antidepressant/ https://www.genetikaplus.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7oovQR2j1M8
Algae for mind and body. A recent clinical study has shown that AstaPure Arava® by Israel’s Solabia- Algatech Nutrition benefits the immune system and lowers stress. It boosts the gut microbiome while lowering the stress hormone cortisol. The result is a much better resistance to infections.
A new center for neuroscience. Israel’s Sheba Medical Center is partnering with Thomas Jefferson University in the USA, to promote neuroscience research and clinical treatment at both institutions. It includes construction of a cutting-edge neuroscience center on Sheba’s Tel HaShomer campus, targeted to open in late 2024.
https://www.jns.org/sheba-medical-center-thomas-jefferson-university-to-build-neuroscience-center/
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Arab Israeli scouts march through Jaffa. (TY UWI & Stand With US) Jaffa was the venue for the largest ever Arab Israeli scout march. The Israel Arab Scouts Association was founded in 1956 and is based on values of community service and volunteering. It also promotes coexistence and integration into Israeli society.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaRBvxvUhdU
A day in the life of a Muslim EMT in Jerusalem. (TY UWI) Muslim Ramzi Batesh lives Beit Safafa, Jerusalem. He works at the dispatch center of United Hatzalah and as one of the organization’s volunteer EMTs and ambucycle drivers. In one day, he (and his Jewish colleagues) saved a Jew, a Muslim, and a Christian.
https://www.jns.org/opinion/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-muslim-emt-in-jerusalem/
Arab women’s beehives on Jerusalem roofs. Arab Israeli Tareq Nassar and Jewish Israeli Liel Maghen have founded the Sinsila Center for Urban Sustainability. It has empowered 115 Arab women to each maintain two beehives on Eastern Jerusalem roofs. An additional 200 Arab women have joined the program for 2023.
https://www.israel21c.org/empty-rooftops-bring-sweet-employment-to-east-jerusalem/
Woman head of IDF innovation. (TY UWI) Lt. Col Michal Frenkel is the Head of Innovation at the IDF’s Innovation & Combat Methods Division. Her background is in anthropology, organizational sociology, and behavioral sciences. After her mandatory service, she worked at tech giant Intel Corp, before rejoining the IDF.
Switzerland’s fleet of Israeli UAVs. (TY Hazel) The Swiss Air Force is to counter threats using its new fleet of Hermes Starliner unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) manufactured by Israel’s Elbit Systems. The systems will be mainly used for intelligence gathering, including dealing with illegal infiltrations into the country.
https://www.jpost.com/international/article-716649
Law and Order. (TY Hazel) Judges from 71 countries came to Tel Aviv for the 64th conference of the International Association of Judges. It gave the Israeli representatives the opportunity to emphasize that the State of Israel is a unique beacon of democracy in the Middle East.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-717477
Delegations from Indonesia and Pakistan. Recent visitors to Israel included officials from Indonesia and Pakistan – two countries that do not have diplomatic relations with Israel. The arrival of a top official from Indonesia was being kept relatively secret. Annual bi-lateral trade with Indonesia totals some $500 million.
https://worldisraelnews.com/watch-top-indonesian-official-on-secret-visit-to-israel/
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-717567
Defending the world. For the first time in history, Inspector General of the Moroccan Armed Forces, Lt.-Gen. Belkhir El Farouk arrived in Israel, to participate in the IDF’s International Operational Innovation Conference. He joined the commanders of some 25 armies around the world.
https://worldisraelnews.com/morocco-military-chief-visits-israel-with-commanders-from-25-armies-around-world/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5YcEQ6IRXs
Israel welcomes Indian business delegation. A delegation of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) NGO came to Israel on a business mission, hosted by Tel Aviv University (TAU). The CII represents over 300,000 Indian enterprises. TAU will also host the 15th India-Israel Forum in December.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-717123
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Breakthrough research. The Israel Science Foundation (see here previously) has awarded Breakthrough Research Grants to eleven outstanding scholars. They include for therapeutics for deafness, link between sleep disorders and brain diseases, the energetic state of proteins, big data, bacteria to fight viruses, and blood aging.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/359648
50 years of US-Israel scientific partnership. (TY UWI) The U.S.-Israel Binational Science Foundation (BSF), has helped fund breakthroughs in robotics, cancer diagnostics and therapies, brain defect reversal, space exploration, and chemical warfare protection. Scientists in BSF programs have won Nobels and Turing Awards.
https://www.jns.org/us-and-israel-celebrate-50-years-of-scientific-partnership/
The most US patents. With 63 approved US patents, Israel’s Technion Institute is 40th in the world and number one in Europe. It ranks higher than the University of Oxford, Princeton University, and other well-established and well-known universities. Tel Aviv University was ranked at number 68.
https://www.technion.ac.il/en/2022/09/patents-top100-nai-ipo/
Climate tech hub in NYC. Jerusalem Venture Partners (JVP) has several projects in New York City (see here previously). Now it has inaugurated a first-of-its-kind global center for startups focusing on climate tech, but including clean energy, transportation, water treatment, food tech, waste reduction, and the supply chain.
Science lectures in Belgrade bars. Scientists from Israel’s Weizmann Institute brought their unique “Science on tap” lectures in bars (see here previously) to the bars and taverns of Belgrade Serbia. They partnered Serbian scientists on Serbian National Science Day, to make science accessible over a glass of beer and Balkan raki.
https://www.jpost.com/365days/culinary/article-714998
Teen wins silver medal at computer Olympiad. Israel’s Eitan Elbaum, 17, won a silver medal at this year’s International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI), held in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. A total of 346 students from 90 countries took part. Eitan studies at Jerusalem College of Technology’s Torah U’Mada Yeshiva High School.
https://www.jns.org/israeli-high-schooler-wins-silver-in-intl-computer-competition/
Ultrasonic technology for fabrics. The innovative ultrasonic technology from Israel’s Sonovia (see here previously) makes fabrics antibacterial, water resistant, and flame resistant with less pollution than current methods. The technology is being integrated into the fabrics made by Israeli textile company Delta Galil.
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/tech-and-start-ups/article-716291
Turning polluted water into fertilizer. Researchers at Israel’s Ben-Gurion University have developed an industrial wastewater cleaning process for water polluted with phosphoric acid. Following selective electrodialysis, reverse osmosis, and neutralization, the extracted phosphates are used by the fertilizer industry.
https://nocamels.com/2022/09/researchers-turn-industrial-wastewater-into-fertilizer/
https://www.jpost.com/science/article-716954 https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acssuschemeng.2c03132
Eco-friendly metal recovery. Israel’s Tenova Advanced Technologies is now part of the Italian Tenova metals processing giant. It provides solutions for the mining and chemical industries, including metal extraction and phosphate processing from ore to purified phosphoric acid and salts.
https://tenova.com/about-us/our-brands/tenova-advanced-technologies
Road safety. (TY Hazel) When a sink hole appeared in Tel Aviv’s Ayalon highway, the highway authority called in Israel’s Exodigo (see here previously) to perform an underground scan. The multi-sensing artificial intelligence platform helped identify corrective actions to reinforce the road against further subsidence.
https://www.israel21c.org/sinkhole-danger-revealed-via-no-dig-underground-3d-mapping/
Recycling wood in 4D. (TY UWI) Remember Israel’s Daika Wood (see here) that recycles waste wood, molding, or 3D-printing it into “impossible” shapes? Researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have now developed paste from recycled wood that can be molded in 4 dimensions - shapes that change over time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYe7bDuEDds
The inside view. Some 20% of food is wasted between harvesting and distribution. The hyperspectral-powered AI scanning technology from Israel’s Neolithics can reduce that wastage by at least one third. Neolithics inspects fruits and vegetables from the inside out - in the orchard, in the packing house, and in the store.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/spotlight/rooting-out-the-bad-apples/ https://www.neolithics.ai/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FWCbIJFP88
A better meat alternative. Israel’s Meala FoodTech produces “functional proteins” for plant-based meat alternatives. They replace methylcellulose and other hydrocolloid and gums widely used in meat alternatives as binding and gelling agents. The result is a more natural product, but with a better meat-like texture and taste.
https://www.prnewswire.com/il/news-releases/mealas-functionally-charged-proteins-clean-up-labels-in-meat-alternatives-301628176.html https://finder.startupnationcentral.org/company_page/meala
Distance learning for Ukrainian teachers. Israeli-founded Viber (see here previously), owned by Japan’s Rakuten, has developed “Teach the Teachers”- a chatbot to support remote education of Ukrainian teachers and students. The free 10-module course includes organizing homework, motivation, and monitoring attendance.
https://nocamels.com/2022/09/israeli-app-ukrainian-teachers-free-course%ef%bf%bc/
Intelligent automated responses. Israel’s Tymely has developed an AI-based outsourced contact center that sends intelligent tailored responses to customer correspondence. It even follows company policies on compensation or discounts when processing customer complaints, freeing employees to focus on new business.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/sydvz5r11s https://www.tymely.ai/
Robotics as a service. Israel’s 1MRobotics is developing small, automated, robotic dark stores that can meet the requirements of companies who wish to provide “last mile” delivery and distribution services to customers. 1MRobotics’ storage and retrieval operations require a minimal (often zero) workforce.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/rj60t0hzj https://1mrobotics.com/
Robotic farming. At Calcalist’s Mind the Tech 2022 Conference in New York, Eyal Desheh, of Tevel Aerobotics Technologies (see here previously) explained why automation was essential in front line agriculture. “People just don’t want to do work in agriculture anymore”, he stated.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/ryl3acezj
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Economy grows by 6.8%. Israel's GDP grew 6.8% on an annualized basis in the second quarter of 2022 thanks to recoveries in the tourism, aviation, hospitality, restaurant, and transport services sectors. GDP is 7.4% higher than at Jun 2021 - the highest growth recorded of any OECD country.
https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-defying-forecasts-israels-economy-grew-at-68-in-q2-1001421566
https://www.jns.org/israels-gdp-up-at-6-8-rate-in-q2/
Training for 10,000. Palo Alto Networks, Insight Partners, and executives from across the high-tech industry are establishing PLACE-IL - a new platform for recruiting and training employees. Its goal is to train 10,000 high-tech workers from underrepresented Israeli sectors such as Arabs, ultra-Orthodox, Druze and Ethiopians.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/h2n3fk303
https://www.calcalist.co.il/home/0,7340,L-3704-583054,00.html
R&D priorities. Israel’s National Council for Research and Development has added food tech, renewables, bioengineering, space tech and blue tech to its 14 civilian R&D priorities for the next five years. They already included AI, data science and quantum computing. It will distribute NIS 180 million a year in research grants.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/food-energy-space-tech-in-top-5-of-israels-new-national-rd-priorities/
Clean energy. Three Israeli solar panel cleaning startups have been reported previously in this newsletter. Bladeranger, Ecoppia, and NaanDanJain. Now there’s a fourth - Airtouch Solar, which uses an air blower to lift and push the dust forward horizontally along arrays of panels. The dust falls into the gaps between clusters.
https://www.israel21c.org/robots-that-clean-solar-panels-without-water/ https://airtouchsolar.com/
Redefine Meat is going places. Plant-based New-Meat from Israel’s Redefine Meat (see here previously) is now available in over 500 restaurants, hotels and other foodservice locations across Israel and eight European countries including the UK, Germany, the Netherlands and (just recently) Finland.
https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-plant-based-meat-reaches-finland-now-in-500-sites/
Preventing food waste in seven countries. Latest news about Israel’s Wasteless (see here previously). It is now saving supermarkets in seven countries from throwing out expired food by using its AI to reduce prices dynamically as the expiry date approaches.
https://nocamels.com/2022/09/supermarkets-use-ai-to-cut-prices/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPXr6RWkubA
Travelling together, so book together. Israel’s Joyned (see here previously) has launched Joyned Booking, a travel tech solution that enables travelers to engage with friends while booking their trips. It turns travel websites into an interactive F&F booking experience.
Exits, takeovers and mergers to 25/9/22: Google has acquired Israel’s Breezometer (an app I frequently use) for over $200 million. US cybersecurity CrowdStrike has acquired Israel’s Reposify.
Investment in Israeli startups to 25/9/22: Deep Instinct raised $62 million; AccessFintech raised $60 million; 4M Analytics raised $30 million; CytoReason raised $20 million; Noble (BeNoble.ai) raised $18 million; 1MRobotics raised $16.5 million; BioBetter raised $10 million; Pente Networks raised $10 million; Tymely raised $7 million; Nilos raised $5.2 million; TULU raised $5 million;
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT`
Israeli wines have a bright outlook. (TY Nevet) Two prominent articles on Israeli wines in the latest issue of the prestigious Wine Spectator magazine.
https://www.winespectator.com/articles/alphabetical-guide-to-the-wines-of-israel-101522
Stay safe, get tough. (TY UWI) Israel’s Natan Levy (see here) uses his physical skills to fight antisemitism. He is competing in the Ultimate Fighting Championship martial arts competition. He says, “In Israel, you don’t get antisemitism in school or the workplace, but every Jew in the world should learn the art of self-defense.”
THE JEWISH STATE
Outstanding immigrants. Seven Olim received the 2022 Sylvan Adams Nefesh B’Nefesh Bonei Zion Prize for their contributions to the State of Israel (see previous years). They include Prof. Eidelman (Neonatology and much more), Prof. Hartstein (Opthomology in Ethiopia), and Asher Friedman (Israeli-Emirati Forum).
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/359741
A kosher hotel in Jerusalem. Nothing surprising here, you may think. But this building in the Old City of Jerusalem was once a Jewish kosher hotel, right up to the 1930s as can be seen from the grooves where mezuzahs used to be. And after renovations, it hopefully will be a kosher hotel again.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZQuN7S9INk
Japanese Christian supporters. (TY UWI & Stand With US) Members of the Makuya Japanese Christian group came to Jerusalem to show support for Israel. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXVzp6LRT-I
Preparing for the New Year in Jerusalem. (TY Sharon) The Real Jerusalem Streets were filled last week with the sounds of pre-New Year prayers (Selichot). They take place not only at synagogues but also at the International Conference Center and even in Jerusalem’s public parks.
http://rjstreets.com/2022/09/18/sounds-of-selihot-fill-jerusalem-streets/
Aliyah increased by 128% in 5782. (TY UWI) The Jewish state absorbed 60,000 new citizens during the Jewish year 5782 - a 128% increase compared with 2021, when 28,500 Jews came on Aliyah. The majority went to the cities of Tel Aviv, Haifa, Netanya, and Jerusalem.
https://www.jewishpress.com/news/israel/aliyah-israel/jewish-year-of-5782-sets-2-decade-record-in-aliyah-to-israel/2022/09/19/ https://www.jpost.com/aliyah/article-717539
209 Ethiopians arrive. A flight carrying 209 olim (new immigrants) from Ethiopia, including 41 children and toddlers, landed at Ben Gurion Airport as part of Operation Tzur Yisrael (Rock of Israel) to bring Ethiopia’s Jewry to Israel. They will celebrate Rosh Hashanah together with their relatives in Israel (see 2nd link below).
https://unitedwithisrael.org/over-200-ethiopian-olim-arrive-in-israel/
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/360162
Aliyah at 101. Another example of it never being too late to make Aliyah. Stellah Rokoff is 101 years young. Born in Jerusalem, her family left pre-state Israel for the USA in 1926, when she was five. Israel has changed a bit in the last 96 years! Welcome back Stellah. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/360050
https://www.ynetnews.com/magazine/article/syuezr4wo#autoplay
Population statistics. Israel’s population grew by 187,000 (2%) in the last Jewish year, including some 177,000 babies. The average life expectancy for males is now 80.5 years, whereas for females it is 84.6 years - one of the world’s highest. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/b1ykzxpzs
Five red heifers. Many religious Jews have been waiting for the rare appearance of a red heifer – a cow with entirely brownish red hair, required for the purification process prior to service in the final Temple. Five kosher red heifers have just arrived at Ben Gurion airport – the gift of a Christian Zionist in Texas.
18/9/22
In the 18th Sep 22 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
· Israeli scientists can detect pancreatic cancer with a blood test.
· Israel is top of the global Digital Quality of Life index.
· Israeli technology streams video simultaneously to millions of viewers.
· An Israeli startup makes vegan meat from “used” vegetable oil seeds.
· New York awarded $1 million to an Israeli energy company.
· The movie Captain America 4 will feature an Israeli superhero.
· A rare Judean “Freedom” coin has returned to the Jewish State.
· Click here to see the 11th Sep newsletter on Ruthfully Yours with another great intro, IsraPundit, and United With Israel. Also (TY Sandra) in German here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Also (TY Zachy) in Hebrew here and posted by Stuart Palmer here. Please pass on this newsletter to German and Hebrew-speaking contacts. Also (TY Esty) please visit the https://www.facebook.com/verygoodnewsIL Facebook page.
· Please click here, to donate (a small or large amount) to help me publicize VeryGoodNewsIsrael. (Please note that the donate link is now working and a PayPal account is not necessary!)
· Click here to keyword SEARCH almost any topic in the IsraelActive archives (over 21,200 articles).
· If someone wishes to be added to the free email subscription list, they should either click here or send a request (with their name) to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Oral insulin reduces liver fat. Israel’s Oramed (see here previously) has reported that its ORMD-0801 oral insulin candidate successfully reduced the liver fat in its Phase 2 trial on Type 2 diabetes patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis ("NASH"). There were no safety issues in the double-blind, multi-center trial.
Blood test for colon and pancreatic cancer. (TY Hazel) Scientists at Israel’s Weizmann Institute have developed a blood test to detect colorectal cancer, which is normally found through an invasive test, and pancreatic cancer, which has no single diagnostic test. The proof of concept is now to be taken to trials.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/359363 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41587-022-01447-3
Transforming cancer diagnosis. (TY NoCamels) Israel’s Ibex Medical Analytics (see here previously) has launched a new cancer detection platform - Galen 3.0 with improved AI algorithms to detect cancer in prostate, breast and gastric biopsies. It also calculates the aggressiveness of prostate cancer, reducing time and errors.
https://ibex-ai.com/galen-3-0-announcement/
83 cancer research grants. The Israel Cancer Research Fund (ICRF) has awarded 83 cancer research grants (28 new and 55 continuing) worth almost $5 million for the 2022-2023 funding year. ICRF’s funding has now
reached 2,730 grants totaling more than $87.5 million.
Covid-19 variant vaccines arrive. (TY Hazel) Israel has taken delivery of second-generation coronavirus vaccines, updated to better battle new variants. They are expected to be in clinics by the end of September. The international scientific community is again looking to see how well these new vaccines protect Israelis.
Diagnosing Parkinson’s at the cellular level. A Haifa University-led team of international scientists has discovered a method to identify early Parkinson’s Disease cases. Brain cells of PD patients die when they disconnect from the extracellular matrix. Early detection and subsequent treatment could halt this process.
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-716881
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41531-022-00366-z
Make your time more productive. (TY UWI) Israeli-US startup Hour25.ai has developed an app that learns and monitors a user’s activity patterns and gives an alert whenever it detects inactivity, fatigue or distraction. It then suggests a personalized intervention, e.g., take a walk, or perform an optional exercise.
https://www.israel21c.org/how-to-improve-waning-focus-at-work-and-school/ https://www.hour25.ai/
A helping hand. (TY Hazel) Israel’s 6Degrees (see here previously) has made significant progress with its MyMove wristband that allows people who can’t use their hands to operate any phone, laptop, or tablet. It includes having Tel Aviv municipality adopt the wristband to help people with disabilities come back to work.
https://nocamels.com/2022/09/no-hands-no-problem-wristband-lets-you-use-any-smart-device/
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Discounted vacations for senior citizens. Israeli citizens over retirement age can now receive 20% discount when booking hotels in Israel. The benefit is a joint initiative of the Minister of Tourism, the Minister of Social Equality, and the Hotel Association. It applies to most Sat night to Weds bookings for the coming year.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-716809
Environmentally friendly conference. The PLANETech World 2022 Conference in Tel Aviv on 21 Sep will have a much-reduced carbon footprint thanks to Israel’s Palram and UBQ. Palram will incorporate UBQ’s thermoplastic recycled material in the construction of many of the temporary building structures.
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/energy-and-infrastructure/article-716618
https://www.planetech.org/planetech-world https://www.palram.com/
Jerusalem tunnel for cyclists. Following the recent opening of the Highway 16 tunnels (see last week), Jerusalem has now inaugurated an underground road solely for cyclists. The 2.1km Kerem Tunnel is the fifth longest cycle tunnel in the world, taking two years to complete and costing some NIS 25 million.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/359476 https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-716807
https://www.jerusalem.muni.il/en/newsandarticles/municipalitymessages/ofanaim-ninhara/
Negev Bedouins complete “digital tent”. Over a dozen Bedouin Muslim Arab teens competed a 5-week training camp, dubbed “Digital Tent,” designed to integrate members of the community into Israel’s high-tech sector. The camp was established thanks to MIT, Ben-Gurion University, and the non-profit Siraj.
Utah delegation visits Israel. A delegation of Utah governmental and economic officials made its first stop in Israel, on a trip that will also include the United Arab Emirates. 2021 trade between Utah and Israel exceeded $55 million. Of key interest to the delegation was Israel’s Frontier incubator that specializes in desert ag-tech.
Strengthening ties with Central America. The second annual Central America-Israel Forum, involving 14 countries, has just concluded in Panama City, Panama. This year’s focus was strengthening ties between Christians and Jews. It featured Government ministers including from Panama, Uruguay, and Guatemala.
https://www.jns.org/second-annual-central-america-israel-forum-in-panama-draws-14-nations/
The world’s best Digital Quality of Life. Last year, Israel rose from 8th place to 4th in SurfShark’s annual Digital Quality of Life Index. This year, Israel is top of the 117 countries, mainly due to its fast, affordable mobile Internet. As an Israeli, I can confirm that my digital quality of life has certainly improved this past year!
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/rj9ga11ils
https://surfshark.com/dql2022 https://surfshark.com/dql2021
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Partnering to advance AI. Celebrating 50 years in Israel, IBM is partnering Israel’s Technion Institute and Hebrew University of Jerusalem to advance artificial intelligence capabilities and applications in Israel. IBM will fund AI research into Natural Language processing, medicine discovery and multi-cloud computing.
https://www.afhu.org/2022/09/08/hebrew-university-and-the-technion-partner-with-ibm-to-advance-artificial-intelligence/ https://www.technion.ac.il/en/2022/09/huji-technion-ibm-ai/
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/bjxt11xplj
Streaming to millions. Technology developed by Microsoft’s Israeli R&D team enables video streaming to millions of on-line participants without overloading a company’s network. The secure, easy to install technology was developed by Israel’s Peer5 (see here previously), which Microsoft acquired last year.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/microsoft-integrates-israeli-tech-to-upgrade-video-streaming-quality/
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/hj11ho11pxs
Two ways to purify the air. (TY Hazel) Israel’s Airovation (see here) has two indoor air purifying devices: The “Air-O”, which treats CO2, volatile organic compounds in harmful gases, airborne viruses, and bacteria; and the “Airosphera”, which uses sensors to measure conditions for infants and treat the air around them.
https://nocamels.com/2022/09/israeli-air-purifying-solutions-to-be-adopted-in-china-and-taiwan/
Water from the air in your car. Mullen Automotive has signed a partnership with Israel’s Watergen (see here previously) to develop and equip Mullen’s portfolio of electric vehicles with the ability to produce fresh drinking water from thin air. The aim is to provide up to 5 liters of hot or cold water daily.
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/article-716292
Safe infotainment in your vehicle. Israel’s OVO Automotive enables fleet managers to provide drivers with in-vehicle applications independent of automakers and Apple/Google. These applications run in the cloud and stream to the vehicle screen without compromising safety and security of the vehicle, driver, or passengers.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/skrkiy0yj https://ovo.auto/
Dairy-free “milk” chocolate. Israelis Daniel and Elia Barkat are vegans, but they missed delicious creamy milk chocolate, so, they developed their own vegan chocolate. It is sold all over Israel under the brand name “Panda Chocolate”. They have just started selling it in the USA, under the brand name “Seventh Heaven”.
https://unitedwithisrael.org/delicious-israelis-invent-dairy-free-milk-chocolate/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4o4DTnX-BhA
Slaughter-free lamb. (TY UWI) Israel’s Future Meat Technologies (see here previously) has produced its first cultivated lamb, which it says looks, cooks and tastes like conventional ground lamb meat, without harming a single animal. The company isolated fibroblast cells from Awassi sheep in 2019.
https://www.israel21c.org/coming-soon-for-first-time-lamb-meat-without-slaughter/
Vegan meat from seeds. Israel’s More Foods (see here previously) takes crushed pumpkin and sunflower seeds from oil makers and turns them into clean-label vegan ‘meat’ for restaurants and caterers. The alternative meats, are certified kosher, contain 27% protein, 7% fiber, iron, calcium, potassium and just 1% saturated fat.
https://www.israel21c.org/your-next-shawarma-could-be-made-from-pumpkin-seeds/
Fast-growing, disease-free avocados. Israel’s Bestree, a spinoff from Israel’s MIGAL Galilee Research Institute, has developed avocados from cultivated tissue rather than from seeds. Using sterilized tissue prevents transmission of diseases, improves the quality of the fruit, and speeds up the growth process.
https://www.israel21c.org/fast-growing-disease-free-avocados-via-new-israeli-method/
Growing Brazilian superfruit. (TY UWI) The acai is a palm tree that grows in Brazil’s tropical region of the Amazon basin. Its fruit is of great importance in the Brazilian economy. Israeli agriculture tech, including precise irrigation and sensors, will now allow these trees to be cultivated in drier areas in the heart of Brazil.
https://www.gov.il/en/departments/news/israeli-technologies-to-help-grow-acai-palm-trees-8-sep-2022
Now we’re cooking. Israel’s HomeBiogas (see here previously) is offering household versions of its anaerobic digester, which turns organic waste into gas. Your food waste could produce enough biogas for two hours’ cooking a day, and a rich fertilizer for your garden. Plus, you help the environment. Over 15,000 sold already.
https://nocamels.com/2022/09/turning-kitchen-leftovers-into-cooking-gas/
https://www.homebiogas.com/shop/
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
UAE’s largest business delegation to Israel. Delegates at the Tel Aviv conference for UAE-Israel trade expressed their amazement at how far trade relations had come in the two years since the signing of the Abraham Accords. There are now 72 weekly flights between the two countries.
Free trade with Guatemala. (TY Hazel) Israel and Guatemala have signed a free trade deal, which includes industrial, food, and agricultural goods. Bi-lateral trade rose 11% to $40 million in 2021. Guatemala's foreign minister said his country's economy only improved after moving its embassy to Jerusalem.
https://www.israelhayom.com/2022/09/11/watch-guatemalan-foreign-minister-sings-hatikvah/
400 Israeli startups in NYC. As the Covid-19 pandemic crisis recedes, a huge number of Israeli startups have fulfilled their plans to expand to New York City. The interactive platform Israeli Mapped in NY now lists 400 Israeli startups operating in the Big Apple. See also details of the conference Mind the Tech NY (14-15 Sep).
https://www.jns.org/despite-the-us-economic-slump-israeli-startups-blossom-in-the-big-apple/
https://newmedia.calcalist.co.il/conferences/2022/ny/index.html https://www.israelimappedinny.com/
NY State awards $1 million to Zooz. (TY WIN & Hazel) Israel’s Zooz Power (see here previously) has won the New York-Israel Smart Energy Innovation Challenge. Zooz will use the $1 million prize to help New York integrate fast-charging battery capabilities and eventually phase out gas-powered vehicles.
https://www.algemeiner.com/2022/09/13/nys-hochul-announces-million-dollar-prize-for-israeli-ev-power-start-up-announces-trip-to-israel/ https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/359701
Shop-and-go in Tel Aviv. Israel is finally getting its first grab-and-go, checkout-free grocery store at Israel’s Shufersal on Mendele Street in Tel Aviv, using technology from Israel’s Trigo (see here previously). Trigo’s systems are already powering stores in the UK, US, Germany, and the Netherlands.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/shufersal-opens-israels-first-shop-and-go-grocery-store-in-tel-aviv/
Tel Aviv to ban noisy polluting planes. The Israel Airports Authority said it will aim to reduce noise and air pollution at Ben Gurion Airport by banning 4-engine civilian aircraft, including Boeing 747s and other jumbo jets, starting next year. It will only affect cargo planes, as no 4-engine passenger planes fly to Israel.
Another AI virtual sales assistant. Israel’s Winn.AI offers a real-time AI assistant that unobtrusively monitors sales calls and captures key data so salespeople don't need to take notes or manually update the system. (See also Israel’s Exceed.ai) https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/hkopcugws https://winn.ai/
Investment in Israeli startups to 18/9/22: Kape Technologies raised $220 million; Zesty raised $75 million; CYREBRO raised $40 million; Dig Security raised $34 million; Joonko raised $25 million; Groundcover raised $20 million; Ownera raised $20 million; Sightfull raised $18 million; Winn.AI raised $17 million; Opus Security raised $10 million; Xtype raised $5.8 million; VineSight raised $4 million;
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT`
Israel Philharmonic plays Carnegie Hall. The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (IPO) is to make its first post-Covid-19 tour of the USA from 2nd Nov to 14 Nov. It will perform concerts in Costa Mesa, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Stanford, Miami, with its finale at New York City’s famed Carnegie Hall.
https://www.jns.org/israel-philharmonic-orchestra-returns-to-america-to-play-carnegie-hall/
https://afipo.org/event/israel-phil-us-tour-2022/
Vertigo dances round America. Israel's Vertigo Dance Company toured the United States in July. It received acclaim in Houston Texas, the prestigious American Dance Festival in North Carolina, Reno Nevada (open air), and Chatham New York, before continuing to Montreal Canada.
https://www.jpost.com/365days/dance/article-715913
Israel is so small. This Israel21c article features five sites to enjoy miniature versions of Israel and works by Israelis. Meanwhile, please publicize that full-size Israel is no bigger than New Jersey, Lake Michigan, Wales, and Kruger National Park. Check the maps! https://www.israel21c.org/5-ways-to-tour-israel-in-miniature/
Jerusalem is so busy. (TY Sharon) On Jerusalem’s Streets - AGROMASHOV (Israel’s largest agricultural conference), and CLEANTECH; International Dance Festival; Shlomo Artzi concert; Manofim Contemporary Art Festival; Emunah’s first Ethiopian Israeli Cultural Festival, Woodstock, and Green Inside and Out Festival.
http://rjstreets.com/2022/09/11/jerusalem-conferences-and-festivals-returning/
Israeli superhero in Captain America 4. (TY UWI) Israel’s Shira Haas will play the role of Jewish Israeli superhero Sabra in the MCU's "Captain America: New World Order," set to be released on May 3, 2024. Sabra (alias Ruth Bat–Seraph), first appeared in the 1980s Incredible Hulk comic book series wearing a Star of David.
https://www.jpost.com/omg/article-716850
Watch the migration live. Watch the live migration of half a billion birds through Israel’s Agamon-Hula Lake without leaving your home. KKL-JNF has installed a network of 8 HD cameras around the lake. Click on any of the photos in the 2nd link below to see the live feeds. (The Hula is the Biblical Waters of Merom.)
https://www.israel21c.org/now-you-can-watch-500-million-birds-24-7-live-from-hula-lake/
https://www.kkl-jnf.org/tourism-and-recreation/forests-and-parks/hula-lake-park/live_broadcast/
https://unitedwithisrael.org/off-the-beaten-track-biblical-waters-of-merom-and-the-hula-valley/
Brazil 200 in Tel Aviv. Casa Brasil (4-9 Sep) in Tel Aviv celebrated 200 years of Brazilian independence. Centered at Hanger 11 at Tel Aviv Port, it featured lectures, cultural presentations, a fashion show, a food festival and more. Relations between Israel and Brazil has always been good and trade is at record levels.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/359545 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkCnmcgraPc
Golden fin tuna swims into Eilat. A golden fin tuna was a rare sight amongst the shallow waters of the Red Sea corals off Eilat. The fish is a native of tropical and sub-tropical oceans and grows up to 2.5 meters long.
https://video.i24news.tv/#/content/6312022121112
Maccabi Haifa gives PSG a shock. Maccabi Haifa led Paris Saint-Germain for 13 mins, after Surinamese midfielder Tjaronn Chery scored the first goal in Haifa’s 2nd group match of the UEFA Soccer Champions League. Haifa eventually lost 3-1, with Argentine star Lionel Messi and Brazil’s Neymar among PSG’s scorers.
https://www.jns.org/paris-saint-germain-messi-in-israel-for-soccer-match-against-maccabi-haifa/
THE JEWISH STATE
Come excavate Biblical history. (TY WIN) “Unearth the Land of the Bible,” is a joint partnership between Israel’s Tourism Ministry, the Museum of the Bible, and the Israel Nature and Parks Authority. Its aim is to take American Christians in mid-April 2023 on a 10-day “hands on” tour of Israeli archeological heritage sites.
Million-dollar coin returns to Israel. A Judean quarter-shekel silver coin (one of only two in existence) was returned to the State of Israel in ceremony in New York. It was minted in 69 CE by the Jewish leaders of the Great Revolt (66-73 CE) as a declaration of independence by the Kingdom of Judea from the Roman empire.
https://www.jns.org/extremely-rare-judean-quarter-shekel-coin-repatriated-to-israel-from-the-us/
David Ben Gurion’s archives. Israel’s Ben-Gurion University has constructed a new building to house the archives of David Ben Gurion – Israel’s first President. The new site in Sde Boker will become a focus for studying Ben-Gurion, and through his life, learning about Zionism and the establishment of the State.
https://in.bgu.ac.il/en/bgi/Pages/Archives.aspx https://in.bgu.ac.il/en/bgi/Pages/new-bldg.aspx
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n843oj0MnTI&t=3s
Israel In Our Lives. Don’t miss this Israel21c Zoom event “Israel In Our Lives: Innovation & Impact” on 25 Oct at 12noon Pacific Time. Hear from three Israeli scientists who are pioneering innovations in space and learn about their global impact. https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_-65HsZw2QYm43NSZoMkNXQ
How Israel is attracting young tech talent. Useful summary of four initiatives to help talented individuals make Aliyah and fill the gaps in Israel’s high-tech industry. Israel Innovation Authority grants; MasaTech career relocation program; Government fast-track Law of Return; plus, specific company programs.
https://www.jns.org/opinion/how-israel-is-attracting-young-tech-talent/
20 years of Aliyah work. Nefesh b'Nefesh is celebrating 20 years of moving Jews from North America to Israel. NbN’s tremendous efforts have enabled 75,000+ Jews to begin new lives in the Jewish State.
https://www.jns.org/celebrating-20-years-of-resettling-north-american-jewry-into-careers-homes-and-lives-in-israel/ https://www.jpost.com/jerusalem-report/article-716512
Wrestling with an Angel. United Hatzalah volunteer EMT Yair had spent Shabbat with a family in Tiberias when he was called to save the life of a 73-year-old family member who suffered cardiac arrest. After 20 mins his pulse returned. Yair said afterwards he felt he had been wrestling with the Angel of Death and prevailing.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/359639
11/9/22
In the 11th Sep 22 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
· Israeli scientists have found how to make brain tumors self-destruct.
· A charity is ensuring that all Israeli children are equipped for school.
· An Israeli delegation to Chad brought back children for heart surgery.
· Israeli tech navigated the first unmanned commercial ship.
· Israeli scientists have developed a food that could end global hunger.
· An Israeli supermarket has begun deliveries by drone.
· An Israeli is the oldest player to win a World Championship badminton match.
· Ancient ivories discovered during excavations of a Judean palace in Jerusalem.
· Click here to see the 4th Sep newsletter on IsraelSeen, Ruthfully Yours, and United With Israel with extra feature on Jewish State. Also (TY Sandra) in German here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Also (TY Zachy) in Hebrew here and posted by Stuart Palmer here. Please pass on this newsletter to German and Hebrew-speaking contacts. Also (TY Esty) please visit the https://www.facebook.com/verygoodnewsIL Facebook page.
· Please click here, to donate (a small or large amount) to help me publicize VeryGoodNewsIsrael. (Please note that the donate link is now working and a PayPal account is not necessary!)
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ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Starving brain tumors. (TY UWI & TPS) Tel Aviv University scientists have discovered that brain cells called astrocytes, which normally support brain function, are highjacked by tumors to block the immune system and feed the tumors. The scientists eliminated the astrocytes in the lab, and within days the brain tumors died.
https://en-lifesci.tau.ac.il/news/2022/braint_breakrheough https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPqUfA4pccU
Proteins in the lungs can fight cancer. Scientists from Israel’s Technion Institute and Sheba Medical Center have discovered that proteins in lung fluid, known as HLA peptides, store information that can detect types of lung cancer. The HLA molecules contain antigens that can stimulate the immune system to destroy tumors.
https://jitc.bmj.com/content/10/5/e003733
Two antibodies kill nearly all coronavirus strains. Tel Aviv University researchers have identified two antibodies, TAU-1109 and TAU-2310, from recovered coronavirus patients that are 95% effective in neutralizing Covid-19 variants. When concentrated, they can be the basis for a one-time booster for all.
https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/coronavirus/1662546747-new-israeli-research-could-make-covid-vaccines-unnecessary https://www.nature.com/articles/s42003-022-03739-5
“My Cholesterol”. Israel’s Hello Heart (see here previously) has launched a new cholesterol management feature. ‘My Cholesterol’ allows users to easily track and understand their cholesterol levels, and provides personalized recommendations, to encourage positive lifestyle changes to improve health.
Regenerating gums. Israel’s BioChange has developed CellFoam™ technology - a bio-adhesive 3D foam structure that forms a scaffold to stimulate repair of damaged cells. BioChange’s first product is ReGum™ - a regenerative implant, for the treatment of periodontitis in animals. A human version is also in development.
https://biochange.life/regum-a-regenerative-implant-for-gum-tissue-repair/
Stay sharp. A solution that delays cognitive decline and reduces the risk for dementia can have a huge benefit to society. Israel’s CogniShape sends users three scientifically based 5-minute brain-exercises each day to strengthen the mind and sharpen memory. Thousands of US users are signed up (for free) including this editor.
https://www.cognishape.com/ https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/r1q0dzayo
Ukrainian refugees become EMTs. Israeli NGO United Hatzalah in Jerusalem has trained 10 members of the Breslev community from Uman Ukraine, to be Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs). The new graduates hope to return to Uman and use their acquired skills in the region.
https://www.jns.org/10-ukrainian-refugees-train-with-united-hatzalah-to-become-emts/
18-year-old saves sister’s life. 18-year-old Moriah had just completed a first-aid course with emergency NGO United Hatzalah, when she saw her 6-year-old sister Miriam choking on a candy. Moriah remembered the Heimlich maneuver. Within a few seconds the candy came out and Miriam started breathing once again.
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Back to school vouchers. Thanks to 600,000 The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ) is spearheading a program to distribute 11,500 vouchers worth NIS 300 each, to impoverished Israeli families. They can be used to purchase supplies for schoolchildren in Kravitz office and school supply stores.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-715574
Fashion for people with disabilities. Israeli startup Palta operates the world’s first certification program for inclusive clothing for people who have difficulty dressing due to cerebral palsy, arthritis, etc. Palta’s own designs includes Braille tags, smart fabrics, and the official Israeli uniform for the 2020 Paralympics.
https://nocamels.com/2022/08/adapting-fashion-for-people-with-disabilities/ https://paltaclothes.com/
Israeli startup adopts 130 endangered wolves. Israel’s Overwolf (see here previously) surprised its 130 employees by presenting each one with an adoption certificate for an endangered European wolf. To mark International Wolf Day on Aug 13, Overwolf donated to the Born Free Foundation’s preservation program.
https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-company-throws-its-workers-to-the-wolves-sort-of/
Lifesaving is on the crest of a wave. Surf lifesaving was included in this summer’s Maccabiah Games for the first time - there were even Israeli Arab contestants. It led to the International Life-Saving Federation welcoming Israel as a member and the Royal Moroccan Life-Saving Federation coming to Israel.
https://www.israel21c.org/on-israels-beaches-lifesaving-is-a-conduit-for-regional-peace/
Israeli appointed to cabinet of new UN President. Israel’s Sarah Weiss Ma'udi, has been appointed to the Cabinet of Ambassador Csaba Kőrösi of Hungary, who becomes President of the UN General Assembly on Sep 13. Sarah becomes Senior Adviser and Deputy Team Leader for the Legal, Budget and Reform Team.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/359230
Spotting shady maritime vessels. (TY Roberta) The New York Times recently published a lengthy article featuring Israel’s Windward (see here previously). Windward identifies vessels on the high seas, transmitting fake location coordinates to circumvent international laws and sanctions.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/03/world/americas/ships-gps-international-law.html?
Israel to build embassy in Morocco. Israel has signed a contract to build a $4 million embassy in Morocco. It will be on the same site as the previous Israeli embassy which was closed and abandoned in 2000. when diplomatic relations were severed. https://www.jns.org/israel-signs-contract-to-build-embassy-in-morocco/
Heart surgery for children from Chad. (TY Nevet) Following the first Israeli delegation to Chad in 50 years, Israeli NGOs Menomadin Foundation, and Israeli Flying Aid, together with Israel’s MASHAV program, brought back 3 Chad children to receive heart surgery from Israel’s Save a Child’s Heart.
https://www.ynetnews.com/health_science/article/syizts1rq
Israel since 1967. Excellent video from Ambassador Yoram Ettinger highlighting the transformation of Israel from a burden to the US, to a major benefit and ally. And hear what Israel has provided to the US since.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJ9nS6GBsEU
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Health messages from your car. Israel’s Uveye (see here previously) has partnered with multinational Tekion Corp to improve vehicle servicing. When customers drive through UVeye scanning units at dealerships, they, and service engineers, will instantaneously receive comprehensive vehicle-condition reports.
https://nocamels.com/2022/08/uveye-messages-drivers-with-instant-vehicle-reports/
Monitoring vehicle passengers. Israel’s Caaresys is developing a passenger-monitoring system based on RF (radiofrequency), camera-free technology to make cars safer. It utilizes vital signs to detect the location, health condition, and state of each occupant. Caaresys has just been acquired by Harman, a subsidiary of Samsung.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/hksaboexj https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwLMKQeDlak
https://finder.startupnationcentral.org/company_page/caaresys
The first autonomous voyage. In February, Israel’s Orca AI (see here previously) performed the world's first autonomous navigation for a commercial ship. Orca provided the 749-ton Suzaku with a 360-degree observation system using 18 cameras, integrated ship's sensors, and transmitted the data to a control center.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/gjawo35l7 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yApICE8ryaE
Making smart machines even smarter. Israel’s Elmo Motion Control has been making advanced servo drives and motion controllers for decades. Now German giant Bosch has recognized Elmo’s value and has moved it into the Bosch empire in a super-fast $700 million acquisition. See what this smart company has been doing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQQ5uKQeKyA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWXnYE2XQWg
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/s16nrsxgs https://www.elmomc.com/
Wearable science. (TY Hazel) Israel’s Tropx is developing high-tech clothing designed to maximize athletic performance and minimize injuries. It contains sensors that analyze athletes in real time and create personalized gym training programs for them. Tropx gives feedback on movements and any mistakes the athletes make.
https://www.israelhayom.com/2022/07/28/israeli-startup-designs-smart-workout-gear-to-keep-athletes-injury-free/ https://www.tropx.co.il/
Look like a celebrity. The artificial intelligence of Israel’s Mistrix lets you instantly see yourself wearing the same makeup as a celebrity. Upload a selfie, plus a picture of the celebrity wearing makeup. Mistrix transposes the makeup onto the selfie and then uniquely displays multiple online cosmetic brands of that same makeup.
https://nocamels.com/2022/08/try-on-makeup-ai/ https://www.mistrix.co/
Pool safety device is upgraded. Coral Smart Pool (see here previously) has launched “Mylo” - its upgraded virtual lifeguard device, for residential swimming pools. It can not only detect risk of drowning, but also control water temperature, monitor filters and water quality, produce swimming statistics, and even take selfies.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-startup-touts-ai-powered-virtual-lifeguard-mylo-to-prevent-pool-drownings/ https://israelactive.com/?s=Coral+pool
Phone charger blocks radiation. (TY Hazel) Millions of Americans sleep within reaching distance of their charging phone every night. To reduce the fear from Radio Frequency (RF) radiation, Israel’s Elvy.ai has developed a wireless phone charger with a shield that blocks 95 per cent of electromagnetic radiation.
https://nocamels.com/2022/08/phone-charger-blocks-radiation-for-a-better-nights-sleep/ https://elvy.ai/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aEQGGjSwus
Israeli solar tower visible from space. Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti tweeted from the International Space Station, “Intriguing sight! A bright dot in the Negev desert… so unusual to see human-made lights in day passes.” She was referring to Israel’s solar tower, nicknamed “The Eye of Sauron” from Lord of the Rings.
Enriched seaweed can feed the world. Researchers at Tel Aviv University and Haifa’s Israel Oceanographic Institute have developed a method to grow huge amounts of seaweed containing all the nutrients to sustain both humans and animals. It utilizes fish wastewater and environmental stress factors to stimulate algae growth.
https://www.jpost.com/environment-and-climate-change/article-716044
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1466856422001527
Turning trash into treasure. A detailed article about Israel’s TripleW (see here) which converts commercial and industrial organic food waste into lactic acid – a key industrial raw material. Lactic acid is also the basis for PLA (polylactic acid), a bioplastic which can replace fossil-based plastics in nearly 80% of plastic applications.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/j76zehxwg
Milk from lettuce. Israel’s Pigmentum has developed a variety of lettuce that produces casein – the key ingredient of cows’ milk. Lettuce contains over 90% liquid and when squeezed out, the milky casein plus some natural ingredients, forms a product that is ready to drink, pour on your breakfast cereal or add to your coffee.
https://nocamels.com/2022/09/lettuce-milk/ https://www.pigmentum.co.il/
Roast your own coffee beans. (TY UWI) Israel’s ansā (“the answer” in Japanese) has created a fully automatic micro-roaster that provides on-demand roasting of raw “green” beans just before the cup of coffee is made. It reduces transportation and wastage of resources, to produce a fresh cup of coffee “from farm to cup”.
https://www.israel21c.org/now-you-can-roast-coffee-beans-just-before-you-drink/
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
From food rationing to the Startup Nation. A fascinating recent brief article summarizing the three eras that define the 74-year history of Israel’s economy: 1948-1973, 1973-1985, and 1985-present.
Removing bureaucracy. Israel has removed the need for imported household electrical appliances to comply with Israeli standards in addition to EU standards. Relying only on EU regulations should bring down the cost of these products, reduce import delays, increase competition, and save energy.
Up for awards. Two Israeli organizations have been nominated for a 2022 Prix Galien USA award in the new “Incubators, Accelerators and Equity - Foundational Support for Health Innovation 2022” category. They are the AION Labs accelerator (see here previously), and the aMoon investment fund (see here previously).
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/coronavirus/article-713616
Israeli supermarket to deliver by drone. From Sep 18, selected employees of Israeli supermarket Rami Levi will be able to order their shopping for aerial delivery. The supermarket is using drones from Israel’s Cando, which plans 60 flights a day during the five-day trial. A full drone delivery service is targeted for 2024.
https://nocamels.com/2022/08/supermarket-drone-trials-cleared-for-take-off/ https://cando.co.il/en/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZ6ejb0JfPo
Gilat wins multi-million-dollar orders. Gilat Satellite Networks (see here previously) has won multimillion-dollar orders from SES – the Luxembourg-headquartered Satellite operator. SES, with its 70 orbiting satellites, is expanding its SATCOM business reach utilizing Gilat’s SkyEdge IV multi-orbit, multi-service capabilities.
Laser imaging at Chinese ports. Israel’s Innoviz has deployed its InnovizOne LiDAR sensors at ports across China. Working with its strategic partner HiRain Technologies, Innoviz plans to expand the project to additional Chinese ports, plus installation on HiRain’s autonomous trucks and AGVs.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/h1kkbqvxo
Fast charging batteries on the move. Israel’s StoreDot (see here previously) has begun intensive real-world testing of its extreme fast charging batteries for electric vehicles. It has now delivered them to strategic electric vehicle OEM partners and potential customers. The batteries deliver 100 miles of range in 5 mins of charging.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/rklgw0slo
Cutting edge solutions. Israel’s Pronat is a specialist supplier of components for high value electronics including medical equipment and UAVs (drones). A recent Pronat project is for eco-friendly medical digital skin patches. In November, Pronat will be exhibiting at two shows in Dusseldorf and another in Munich.
https://pronatindustries.com/ https://pronatindustries.com/news/eco-friendly-medical-digital-patches/
Investment in Israeli startups to 11/9/22: Cymulate raised $70 million; Mesh Payments raised $60 million; Carbyne raised $56 million; Taranis raised $40 million; Upwind.io (in stealth) raised $28 million; Olive Diagnostics raised $7.3 million; Raftt raised $5 million;
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT`
A new guy came to the neighborhood. Yahala Lahmish and Eyal Habib recently performed this traditional Moroccan song with the Israeli Chamber Orchestra. Yahala is the daughter of our friend Leonie and the whole show is available to order. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4d3iGYSwbRM
Another Woodstock festival. The Jerusalem community Woodstock festival takes place on 15 Sept at the Silo café in the Baka neighborhood of Jerusalem. It features Libi and the Flashback, Jon Hock, Pine Hills, and Abilene; with a tribute to Santana, the Grateful Dead and other Woodstock era songs.
https://www.nbn.org.il/events/the-jerusalem-community-woodstock-festival/
Nick Cave is out of this world. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds alternated between Heaven and Hell during his 2.5-hour performance to a sold-out audience of 15,000 Israeli fans in Rishon Lezion. His non-earthly songs included “From Her to Eternity”, “Ghosteen Speaks”, “Into My Arms”, and “Higgs Boson Blues”.
https://www.jpost.com/j-spot/article-715449
World badminton record. (TY Nevet) Israel’s mother-and-son badminton mixed doubles pair Svetlana and Misha Zilberman broke a World record in winning their first-round match at the World Badminton Championships in Japan. Svetlana (age 64) became the oldest player to win a world championship match.
Wrestling for Peace. (TY Nevet) In a historic first, the Moroccan Wrestling Team have competed in Israel. The tournament in Beersheba is the first time a wrestling team from a Muslim country has competed in Israel.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U88iyo1LS0k
THE JEWISH STATE
Ivories from the Kings of Judah. Israel Antiquities Authority and Tel Aviv University archeologists have discovered a collection of First Temple period ivory plaques during excavations of a lavish palace at the site of the Givati Parking Lot in the City of David. They are the first of their kind to be found in Jerusalem.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/359281 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2k4-_LEZtk
1st Temple document fragment returns. A rare late 7th or early 6th century BCE document fragment, originally from the Dead Sea area, has been repatriated to Israel from a private US collection. The 4-line papyrus document, written in paleo hebrew (ancient Hebrew script), is a message to a man called Ishmael.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/359413
Fly under Jerusalem’s streets. (TY Sharon). Enjoy this 5-minute 4.7km drive along the new Highway 16 (Ariel Sharon Boulevard) that connects Highway 1 to Highway 50, avoiding central Jerusalem. The tunnels speed you deep under Har Nof and Mount Herzl. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_vz_qgiqlE
700 future Jewish leaders. 700 Jewish teens from 32 communities in seven countries completed a life-changing seminar in Israel as part of a year-long Diller Teen Fellowship (see here previously), an immersive leadership program for teenagers from across the world.
https://www.israelhayom.com/2022/08/11/some-700-jewish-teens-graduate-diller-fellowship-program/
The inclusive orthodox IDF new Chief of Staff. Incoming IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi is an orthodox Jew who lives in a secular town in Samaria. A proponent of the Hesder program (Jewish study combined with IDF service) he believes the IDF can accommodate every soldier in the Jewish army in Israel.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/359381
I’m (still) a Zionist. (TY Hazel) To mark the 125th anniversary of the first Zionist Congress, this classic 2010 video of our friend Antithesis, the Zionist Rapper, is still very appropriate for today’s youths. 12 years since this video was made, Antithesis is now working in hi-tech and as a specialist tour guide, here in Israel.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGdgheC3ijM
4/9/22
In the 4th Sep 22 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
· Two Israeli breakthroughs in the fight against cancer.
· Israeli doctors saved lives of comatose US and Ukrainian children.
· Israeli surgeons repair the deformed faces of children in Ethiopia.
· An Israeli gas heating boiler cuts 50% of CO2 emissions.
· Two Israeli startups are installing renewable energy in 7 Arab countries.
· Israeli air purifiers are being installed in thousands of US classrooms.
· An Israeli gymnast won a European gold medal in Munich.
· Archeologists have unearthed the town where Joshua lived 3,000+ years ago.
· Click here to see the 21st Aug newsletter on IsraelSeen, Ruthfully Yours (revealing a personal secret), and United With Israel. Also (TY Sandra) in German here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Also (TY Zachy) in Hebrew here and posted by Stuart Palmer here. Please pass on this newsletter to German and Hebrew-speaking contacts. Also (TY Esty) please visit the https://www.facebook.com/verygoodnewsIL Facebook page.
· Please click here, to donate (a small or large amount) to help me publicize VeryGoodNewsIsrael. (Please note that the donate link is now working and a PayPal account is not necessary!)
· Click here to keyword SEARCH almost any topic in the IsraelActive archives (over 21,000 articles).
· If someone wishes to be added to the free email subscription list, they should either click here or send a request (with their name) to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
A better way to kill cancer. Researchers at Tel Aviv University and the University of Lisbon have improved the current method of disabling cancer’s defenses. Instead of an expensive antibody infusion that only partially works, they developed a tiny molecule for a totally effective treatment that can be administered orally at home.
https://english.tau.ac.il/molecule_immunotherapy https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-714196
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cjQW_ng02o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzaElqTc6Cw
Pinpointing harmful gene mutations. Researchers at Jerusalem’s Hadassah Medical Organization have developed an AI algorithm to identify, with 96% accuracy, all possible harmful mutations of the TP53 cancer-causing gene. The breakthrough can improve genetic screening and customized treatment for cancer patients.
https://hadassahinternational.org/breakthrough-research-at-hadassah-cancer-institute-pinpoints-harmful-mutations/ https://academic.oup.com/bib/article/23/2/bbab524/6510957?login=false
Nano-diamond delivery. (TY WIN) Researchers from Israel’s Bar-Ilan University have produced tiny diamonds that can deliver medicinal and cosmetic treatments to cells, through layers of human skin. They are also effective antioxidants. The nano-diamonds are produced by detonating explosives inside a closed chamber.
Using Avocado pits to treat sun-damaged skin. (TY UWI & Israel21c) Israel’s AvoMed has patented an ecofriendly process to extract PFA (polyhydroxylated fatty alcohol) from normally trashed avocado pits. PFA is a bioactive compound that AvoMed use to developed skin-care products to treat sun damage and inflammation.
https://www.israelhayom.com/2022/08/12/israeli-tech-turns-avocado-pits-into-beauty-aids/
Fixing aneurysms without open heart surgery. Cardiologists at Jerusalem’s Hadassah Ein Kerem Medical Center are the first in Israel to fix life-threatening heart aneurysms by minimal catheterization. Four patients underwent the 2.5-hour procedure in which an implant is threaded via the arm or leg to the heart.
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-715588
Algorithm predicts risk of stroke. Two students at Israel’s Technion Institute have written a machine learning algorithm that predicts the development of atrial fibrillation (AFib) - a condition that causes strokes. Using one million ECG recordings from more than 400,000 patients, their algorithm was 95% accurate.
https://ats.org/our-impact/student-algorithm-could-lower-risk-of-stroke/
https://academic.oup.com/ehjdh/article/2/4/576/6342413?login=false
Spinal surgery via the waist. Rambam Health Care Campus is the first Israeli hospital to fix back problems via “anterior-to-psoas” keyhole surgery using a minimally invasive incision in the waist. It takes advantage of an “anatomical corridor” running from the waist to the back, where surgeons then perform spinal fusion.
Musical tests to detect mental deterioration. Tel Aviv University researchers have developed musical tests that measure brain activity in old age. 50 patients from Dorot-Netanya Geriatric Medical Center performed melodies on different musical instruments while electrical brain activity was recorded.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/08/220817104010.htm
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnagi.2022.773692/full
Israeli biotechs in Southern California. SCICC with American Israeli Medical Association and Elite Entrepreneur Organization host the “Merage Medical-Biotech Innovations" featuring 20 Israeli biotechs. Sep 14 @ 7.30pm in San Fernando Valley. RSVP: jsegal@investorsresearchgroup.com or drbendrillings@gmail.com
https://www.dropbox.com/s/1la78kouzbsm8ej/MerageSep2022-Fellows.pdf?dl=0
Helping recovery of little leaguer. (TY Jess) Many articles describe how 12-year-old Little League World Series baseball player Easton Oliverson emerged from a coma after a serious fall. His recovery was aided by Israeli neurosurgeon Dr Oded Goren who currently practices at Geisinger Medical Center in Pennsylvania.
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/little-leaguer-easton-oliverson-likely-212322081.html
https://providers.geisinger.org/provider/Oded+Goren/757451
“No chance” Ukrainian teen recovers in Israel. Anna Kosma arrived at Jerusalem’s Shaare Zedek Medical Center in a deep coma suffering from a rare infection, and little chance of survival. Doctors put her in “cerebral anesthesia” state to avoid brain damage from the medication, and after 3 months she has been released to rehab.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/teen-flown-from-ukraine-to-israel-with-2-survival-rate-recovers/
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
First woman air defense commander. The Israeli Air Force has appointed Lt. Col. Revital Barzani to head its 66th Ram Battalion, which operates David’s Sling system against medium-to-long-range rockets and missiles. Barzani, a mother of three, is the first female officer to command a battalion in the IDF’s air defense array.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-first-idf-appoints-woman-as-commander-of-air-defense-battalion/
Shelter for Tel Aviv homeless. Tel Aviv’s Municipality, with help from the charity La’sova, has inaugurated a NIS 36 million shelter for 144 homeless male residents. From 3pm to 9am it will provide a place to sleep, shower, eat, receive counseling, medical referrals and more. La’sova has 13 temporary shelters in the city.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/tel-aviv-opens-11m-designer-shelter-for-citys-unhoused-population/
More Jewish students learn Arabic. (TY Hazel) A new education program has been launched in 30 Jerusalem schools where Jewish students will be taught Arabic. The program seeks to reduce language and social barriers between Jerusalem Arabs and the Hebrew-speaking Jewish population of Israel’s capital.
Water for PA farmers. Israel’s Civil Administration has approved plans to build a 30km pipeline for carrying some 3 million cubic meters of treated wastewater from Ramallah to Palestinian Arab farmers in the Jericho valley. The rare cooperation between the PA and Israel will halt pollution of the Nahal Prat Nature Reserve.
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-714896
More Israeli aid for Kentucky. Israel’s Consul General for the Southeastern United States, via Chabad Kentucky, joined in relief efforts for Kentucky flood victims, providing clothing, shoes, and household goods. Last year Israeli NGOs helped victims of Kentucky’s deadly tornados (see here previously).
Fixing children’s faces in Ethiopia. (TY UWI) Israeli oral and maxillofacial surgeons Oded Nahlieli and Michael Abba fix children’s deformities in Equatorial Guinea, including a boy who had been unable to eat solid food for 4 years. They also trained local doctors to use Israel’s ORVizio remote surgical guidance system.
https://www.israel21c.org/the-israeli-doctors-saving-the-faces-of-children-in-africa/ https://orvizio.com/
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Putting the AI in Retail. Great article featuring Israeli tech startups developing tech solutions to aid retailers join the digital revolution. Includes five startups previously included in this newsletter OneBeat, Drill, Trax, Nexite, and StorEE. https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/rkeum8sko
Israel fuels Spacemilk. (TY UWI) The US vegan health & sports nutrition company Spacemilk has partnered with Israel’s NextFerm Technologies to use the Israeli startup’s ProteVin yeast fermentation-based, non-GMO protein alternative in its new nutrition drink. The product is scheduled to be launched by end 2022.
https://www.israel21c.org/spacemilk-picks-israeli-vegan-protein-for-its-sports-drink/
https://spacemilk-smk.myshopify.com/
How wild wheat protects itself from insects. Scientists at Israel’s Ben Gurion University have isolated the gene in wild wheat that produces a poison to repel insects. Modern cultivated wheat has lost this trait, which Israeli scientists believe they can reintroduce to improve protection for the world’s vital wheat resources.
https://in.bgu.ac.il/en/pages/news/ZinWheat.aspx
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2021.667820/full
Detecting disease in potatoes. The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Israel’s Agricultural Research Organization (Volcani Institute) have developed a biosensor for early detection of disease in potato crops. It emits a luminescence when exposed to an infected potato. The more disease, the more the luminescence.
https://www.bfhu.org/20 22/08/25/israels-hebrew-university-volcani-institute-team-up-to-prevent-looming-global-food-crisis/ https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1aH_DSEvNacoKu_gV-eSLAyInxIIE1Xzd
Israeli tech in farm machinery. (TY UWI) John Deere is one of the world’s largest agricultural and forestry machinery manufacturers. It is integrating the agricultural technology system from Israel’s CropX, enabling users to view data and analytics including soil sensor monitoring, from within John Deere’s Operations Center.
https://www.israel21c.org/john-deere-synching-with-israeli-farm-management-system/
Partnering to make oxygen on the Moon. Israel’s Helios )see here previously) has joined with Florida’s Eta Space to create and store oxygen on the Moon. Helios’ electrochemical reactor will extract the oxygen from moon rocks and Eta Space’s cryogenic technology will liquify it and store it.
Using green hydrogen to heat homes. Israel’s TurboGen has developed a micro-turbine gas boiler that is powered using 50% hydrogen and 50% natural gas (methane). The TG-40 microgenerator produces 50% of the CO2 produced by a conventional gas boiler. TurboGen is working to develop a 100% hydrogen micro-turbine.
https://www.israel21c.org/your-home-could-be-heated-by-non-polluting-hydrogen/
Teen tech entrepreneurs. (TY UWI & I24 News) Great video featuring some of the Israeli teens who presented their inventions at the Unistream’s Young Entrepreneur competition (see here previously).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lkb4CYh_SYc
The Innovation Nation Tour. The Pacific Southwest Israel Business Council has organized the first business mission to Israel of the Southern California Israel Chamber of Commerce. It has the full approval of the Israeli Consulate in Los Angeles. Meet the key players, institutions and companies shaping the Innovation Nation.
https://www.scicc.biz/2022-tour-of-israel/
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Now we’re cooking! (TY Hazel) Israel’s natural gas production surged 22% in the first half of the year, as the government implemented its plans to export gas via Egypt to Europe. 10.85 billion cubic meters was extracted in the last 12 months from the Tamar and Leviathan fields, of which 42% was exported.
https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/israel-eyes-gas-exports-to-europe-as-production-surges-by-22-1.1809731
Innovating with New Zealand. (TY Nancy & Josh) Kiwi expat supporters of Israel are invited on 5th Sept to meet in Jaffa, to network and strengthen Israel’s relationship with New Zealand (email for info). The link to the New Zealand Israel Innovation Hub, has info about forging new partnerships between Israel & New Zealand.
contact@nziih.co.nz https://nziih.co.nz/
NIS 300 million for medical startups. Israel’s Peregrine Ventures has established a consortium of leading companies that will jointly develop and invest over NIS 300 million in startups and graduates of Peregrine’s technology incubator. They include Bristol-Myers Squibb, Elbit, and Tel Aviv & Ben Gurion Universities.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/bjmsrj1cc
Renewable energy for 7 Arab countries. (TY Hazel & Nevet) Israeli energy companies Enlight Renewable Energy and NewMed Energy are to launch renewable energy projects in Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, the UAE, Bahrain, Oman, and Saudi Arabia. The projects focus on solar and wind power production, and energy storage.
Vodafone pilot for green ammonia. (TY Hazel) Telecom giant Vodafone has deployed zero-emission fuel cell technology from Israel’s GenCell (see here previously) in Romania as part of a pilot project aimed at powering remote cell towers. The GenCell FOX alkaline fuel cell’s only byproducts are water, nitrogen, and heat.
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/article-716027
Keeping your eyes on the road. Israel’s Cipia (formerly EyeSight Technologies – see here previously) has added SAIC Motors and Chery to the three other motor manufacturers using its Driver Sense driver monitoring system. Driver Sense will be used in a Chery SUV to be produced in late 2023.
https://nocamels.com/2022/08/eye-tracker-in-the-car-keeps-drivers-awake-and-alert/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qp5mAKQ7KtQ
Israeli tahini takes US by storm. In 2011, Israel’s Jackie Zitelman and her two American sisters have turned Israeli tahini into a hugely successful product, available in 900+ US stores. Soom tahini is produced in Northern Israel, in a factory owned by an Israeli Muslim.
https://www.israel21c.org/the-sisters-whose-tahini-is-taking-america-by-storm/ https://soomfoods.com/
AliExpress sets up in Israel. Chinese online retail giant AliExpress has established warehouses in Israel in Airport City near Ben-Gurion International Airport. Customers can order items online and if they are already in Israel’s warehouses, it will shorten delivery wait times and lower costs.
https://www.jns.org/major-chinese-online-retailer-aliexpress-expands-to-israel/
Clean air for USA classrooms. (TY Hazel) Israel’s Aura Smart Air (see here previously) is installing its air-purifiers in thousands of American schools, universities, and school buses. They include in New York, Maryland, and California. The devices capture and kill 99.9% of viruses, bacteria, germs, and allergens.
https://www.israel21c.org/back-to-school-with-healthier-air-thanks-to-israeli-device/
Investment in Israeli startups to 4/9/22: Theranica raised $45 million; Fairmatic raised $42 million; Accessibe raised $30 million; Landa (real estate) raised $25 million; Rookout raised $16 million; OVO Automotive raised $3.5 million; Mermade Seafoods raised $3.3 million; Deliverider raised $2 million;
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT`
No summer ending in Jerusalem. (TY Sharon) 31 Aug is the official end of summer and start of Israel’s new school year, but there is still much to see on Jerusalem Streets. Sultan’s Pool concerts, Israel Comedy Festival, Theater music, VR shows, Cocktail Festival, Wine Festival, BAFTA award event, and Sefer Torah procession.
http://rjstreets.com/2022/08/28/two-special-events-in-jerusalem/
Maccabi Haifa qualify for soccer’s Champions League. Maccabi Haifa FC has reached the UEFA Champions League group stage for the first time since 2009. In their final qualifying match they defeated Red Star Belgrade 6-5 on aggregate. The win also earns the Israeli team at least Euro 26 million.
https://www.jns.org/maccabi-haifa-reaches-champions-league-group-stage-for-first-time-since-2009/
Another gold for Israeli gymnast. Israeli gymnast Artem Dolgopyat struck gold at the European Artistic Gymnastics Championship in Munich, despite having an injured foot. It was Artem’s third gold medal in international competition. He previously won gold at the Tokyo Olympics.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/sports/article-715204
Scholarships for athletes. Tel Aviv University has launched a new annual scholarship for student-athletes. The International Sports Scholarship Fund will provide full degree support for talented athletes of all nationalities between the ages of 17-30, to study in any of TAU International’s nearly two dozen English-taught programs.
https://english.tau.ac.il/news/intl_sports_scholarship_israel
THE JEWISH STATE
Ancient Israelite settlement discovered. (Source: TPS; TY WIN) Archeologists have discovered an ancient settlement at Tel Tibnah in Samaria, dating back to the time when the Israelites entered the Land of Israel, over 3000 years ago. It is identified with Timnat Serach where Joshua bin Nun lived and was buried.
Turning Hell into Heaven. The City of David organization has revitalized the Valley of Hennom, on the outskirts of Jerusalem into a brand-new park. The valley is mentioned in in the Book of Joshua and is said to be the origin for the concept of hell. Israelis transformed it, just as they did to the once desolate Land of Israel.
https://unitedwithisrael.org/watch-israelis-turn-hell-into-heaven/
Athletes for Israel. Since its launch in 2018, Athletes for Israel has brought high-profile athletes and sports teams to the country to compete in athletic events and get to know the Jewish state. After their trips many of the athletes help publicize the story of Israel’s people, history, food, technology, and culture.
180 young Olim. 180 new immigrants ages 22 to 35 arrived in Israel last month from 30 different countries. They include doctors, engineers, lawyers, architects, journalists, athletes, artists, teachers, and IT professionals who will study Hebrew intensively for 5 months at Ulpan Etzion, the Jewish Agency’s flagship program.
https://www.jns.org/doron-almog-visits-180-new-olim-on-first-day-as-jewish-agency-executive/
A Muslim “Tzadik”. On Aug 17, Noor Dahri wrote to his 10,000+ Facebook followers, “An exciting time has come for me to visit Israel for 10 days, the land of dreams, love, peace, and coexistence. The holy land of divine faiths, Abrahamic Prophets, and the land of Blessings. Insha’Allah.” Read about him and his trip.
https://www.jewishpress.com/news/israel/meet-noor-dahri-kind-of-a-muslim-tzadik/2022/08/21/
https://www.jns.org/noor-dahri-pakistani-born-muslim-counter-terrorism-expert-and-zionist/
The fast road to Jerusalem. A new entrance to Jerusalem, Route 16, has been opened and is expected to significantly ease traffic, providing speedy travel between Route 1 and the city’s southern neighborhoods. It has 4 tunnels, 7 bridges, 50,000 acres featuring bike paths, walks, picnic areas and views over the Jerusalem hills.
We need to be the best. (TY JNS) On the first day of the Israeli school year, President Herzog writes a letter of encouragement to all Israeli children.
https://www.israelhayom.com/opinions/we-simply-need-to-be-the-best/
We are the Blessed generation. Avi Abelow states that it is important to once in a while take a step back from daily life, the headlines and the worries, and see the big picture of life, which is so very good. Great message.
https://pulseofisrael.com/2022/08/31/blessed-generation/
125 years since first Zionist Congress. Some 1,400 people attended an event at the Stadtcasino concert hall in Basel, Switzerland, where Theodor Herzl led the First Zionist Congress on Aug 29, 1897. Israel’s President Herzog began his address with the blessing for being in a place where a miracle happened.
https://www.gov.il/en/departments/news/president-herzog-addresses-gala-event-29-aug-2022
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8qSU1ihH44
21/8/22
In the 21st Aug 22 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
· Israeli scientists have disabled cancer’s defense mechanism.
· Two women have reached the top of the Mossad agency.
· An Israeli company produces Hydrogen from garbage.
· Israeli eco-friendly technology charges an electric car in 5 mins.
· Israel recorded its first annual financial surplus in 15 years.
· An Israeli wave energy system is to be installed in Los Angeles.
· Israel’s marathon men win Gold in Europe.
· Nefesh b’Nefesh has now brought 75,000 new immigrants to Israel.
· Click here to see the 7th Aug newsletter on IsraelSeen, IsraPundit, Ruthfully Yours (with a very clever intro), and United With Israel. Also (TY Sandra) in German here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Also (TY Zachy) in Hebrew here. Please pass on this newsletter to German and Hebrew-speaking contacts. Also (TY Esty) please visit the https://www.facebook.com/verygoodnewsIL Facebook page.
· Please click here, to donate (a small or large amount) to help me publicize VeryGoodNewsIsrael. (Please note that the donate link is now working and a PayPal account is not necessary!)
· Click here to keyword SEARCH almost any topic in the IsraelActive archives (over 21,000 articles).
· If someone wishes to be added to the free email subscription list, they should either click here or send a request (with their name) to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Disrupting tumor’s defenses. Researchers at Israel’s Bar-Ilan University have developed nanotechnology that prevents tumors from disabling the body’s Natural Killer (NK) cells. They used RNA molecules to stop the NK cells from expressing the gene that the tumor attacks. The NK cell is then free to destroy the tumor.
https://www.embopress.org/doi/full/10.15252/emmm.202114073
Infecting gut bacteria to treat IBD. (TY Sidney & JNS) An international team of researchers led by Israel’s Weizmann Institute, has used bacteriophages (good viruses) to kill inflammation-causing gut bacteria that cause inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) such as Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn’s. “Good” bacteria are not harmed.
https://m.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-713952/amp
https://www.israel21c.org/study-shows-viruses-can-kill-gut-bacteria-of-crohns-bowel-disease/
https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(22)00850-9
Saliva bacteria highlights PTSD. (TY JNS) Tel Aviv and Haifa University researchers have discovered Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) sufferers share a similar microbial picture in their saliva. It can help future diagnosis of PTSD and may even lead to micro-biotic-related therapies.
https://www.israel21c.org/study-ptsd-sufferers-share-bacterial-footprint-in-saliva/
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41380-022-01704-6
Helping to breathe. Israel’s Synchrony Medical has developed LibAirty™ - a wearable vest that applies chest compressions on the patient's thorax which is synchronized with the patient's breathing cycle. It was conceived during the pandemic when patients with chronic lung conditions stopped coming to hospitals for treatment.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/s17khn66q https://synchrony-medical.com/
Getting the heart to heal itself. Israel’s HeartPoint Global has developed a stent for patients with congenital heart conditions. The HeartPoint Global Implant System (HPGS) regulates the flow of blood coming in and out of the heart. For children, fixing the blood flow and pressure can heal the heart without surgery.
https://www.israel21c.org/stent-helps-kids-with-congenital-heart-defects-heal-themselves/
https://www.heartpointglobal.com/
Treatment for eating disorders. Israeli biotech Short Wave Pharma is to conduct a clinical trial of its novel treatment for anorexia nervosa at Israel’s Sheba Medical Center for Eating Disorders. The phase II study of psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy is the first of its kind in Israel.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/r1mv2md05 https://www.shortwave-pharma.com/
IDF thermal imaging adapted for medical use. Israel’s Sheba Medical Center is partnering Opgal, a subsidiary of Israel’s Elbit Systems, to repurpose thermal imaging technologies previously reserved for military and security purposes. Energy and heat analysis can reveal many physiological processes in the body.
Record number of transplants. Hadassah-University Medical Center in Jerusalem’s Ein Kerem recently performed 6 liver and 6 kidney transplants in less than 14 days – a record for an Israeli hospital. The transplants were led by Israeli Arab Dr. Abed Khalaileh, Israelis’ altruistic kidney donations are also at a record level.
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-714781
World’s largest wellness conference. Tel Aviv is to host the annual Global Wellness Summit, the largest conference of its kind in the world, from Oct 31 – Nov 03. Participants include entrepreneurs and executives in hospitality, tourism, health, beauty and spa, food tech, fitness, medical tech, manufacturing, and more.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/worlds-largest-wellness-conference-to-make-tel-aviv-debut-this-year/
https://www.globalwellnesssummit.com/2022-global-wellness-summit/
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Making music together. The Israel Integrative Orchestra comprises 40 musicians with and without disabilities who regularly rehearse together. It is a joint project of the nonprofit SHEKEL – Inclusion for People with Disabilities and the Yizhak Navon Community Unit of the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance.
https://www.israel21c.org/an-orchestra-for-musicians-with-and-without-disabilities/
Thousands to receive free baby formula. The National Food Security Initiative, funded by the Israel Ministry of Welfare and Social Affairs and Colel Chabad, is to deliver baby formula to the homes of families in need. Beginning with 3,500 families, it will grow to 36,000 families who will receive 3.5 kg of formula per month.
https://www.jns.org/baby-formula-distribution-to-begin-as-part-of-israels-food-security-program/
Women at the top of Mossad. Israel’s Intelligence Agency, Mossad, has appointed a woman, known as “A” as Director of the Intelligence Authority. She joins “K”, another woman, who serves as head of the Iran Desk, the chief concern of the organization. It is the first-time women have held two senior positions in the agency.
https://worldisraelnews.com/israel-women-break-the-glass-ceiling-in-top-intelligence-agency/
Developing ties with Indonesia. An Israeli delegation of tech professionals, investors, and trade officials recently returned from a trip to Indonesia to foster connections through technology ventures, social impact initiatives, and investments. The most populous Muslim country has no diplomatic relations with Israel.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-delegation-fosters-tech-innovation-ties-in-indonesia/
World Humanitarian Day. To mark World Humanitarian Day on Aug 19th, the Society for International Development (SID)-Israel compiled images to show the faces behind some of Israel’s humanitarian organizations. See the many NGOs featured previously in this newsletter.
https://www.israel21c.org/18-images-of-israeli-humanitarian-aid-workers-in-action/
UN recognizes Zionism. The United Nations awarded NGO Special Consultative Status to the American Zionist Movement (AZM). The AZM can participate in UN events and debates, plus hold events within the framework of the UN. Israel’s UN Ambassador and AZM’s President hailed it as a great day for Zionism.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/357577
International Math competition winners. (TY IsraPundit) Students from Tel Aviv University won first place in the International Mathematics Competition for University Students (IMC) in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria. The TAU students beat prestigious teams including from Cambridge UK and University College London.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Turning non-recyclable trash into Hydrogen. (TY UWI) Israeli-Swedish-Polish startup Boson Energy uses Israeli technology to harvest hydrogen continuously from nonrecyclable waste and biomass. Plasma Assisted Gasification (HPAG) generates hydrogen, captures CO2, and turns residual ash into usable glass material.
https://www.israel21c.org/startup-harvests-hydrogen-from-local-nonrecyclable-trash/ https://bosonenergy.com/
More sustainable Lycra. The Lycra Company of the US has partnered with Israel’s Browzwear (see here previously) to produce garments without wasting samples or failed designs. Browzwear’s Fabric Analyzer ] ensures the 3D versions of Licra’s fabrics result in true-to-life simulations of the garments.
https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-fashion-tech-to-help-lycra-save-time-and-waste/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOU3lclnY0k
Pepsico’s pallets from recycled plastic. PepsiCo is ordering 30,000 eco-friendly shipping thermoplastic pallets from Israel’s UBQ (see here previously) that makes them out of household waste. PepsiCo used 830 UBQ pallets in a March trial as part of a pilot to reduce the carbon footprint of its shipping pallets.
https://nocamels.com/2022/08/pepsico-30000-ecofriendly-pallets-ubq/
The food-waste solution. (TY WIN) Israeli startup Microbiome keeps food fresh longer by replacing harmful bacteria with good bacteria. Microbiome’s natural probiotic compound protects food from mold, fungi, and pathogenic bacteria over long periods of time. https://microbiome-pro.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lu6Zl8D2xiY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L39bOKr8MxE
Buried lithium discovered from space. The technology of Israel’s Asterra (see here previously) has led to the discovery of an underground reserve of lithium, vital for the electronics market until replaced by safer, more common materials. Asterra's algorithms and AI use satellite synthetic radar (SAR) data to locate buried lithium.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/hjtt9c8aq
Another Israeli 5-minute EV battery recharger. (TY UWI) Israel’s EExion is developing “Energize-N’-Go” – an energy-storage technology that can rapid-charge e-mobility vehicles in just five minutes. It uses chemically manipulated supercapacitors, eliminating the need for the rare and hazardous metal lithium. (See also StoreDot)
https://www.israel21c.org/5-minute-electric-vehicle-battery-recharge-could-come-soon/
https://www.eexion.com/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51iG4ZcgNl4
Air-con without electricity. Israel’s Green Kensho has developed an outdoor air conditioner that needs no electricity. It silently blows out a jet of freezing (easily available) nitrogen gas at -10C (14F) that cools the surrounding area with no pollution. The first models are to be piloted in August at six Tel Aviv restaurants.
https://nocamels.com/2022/08/worlds-first-nitrogen-powered-air-con/
https://unitedwithisrael.org/cool-story-israelis-invent-electricity-free-air-conditioner/
Revolutionizing online restaurant booking. Israel’s Ontopo has developed a restaurant seating management system that allows customers to reserve a table online. It works with 730 out of 1,300 restaurants in Israel. Some 5 million people have searched for a place through Ontopo, making about 1.6 million reservations.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/32asz7uxc
How the Iron Beam works. (TY UWI) Interesting video about Israel’s new Iron Beam laser defense system and how working with the US can help improve its life-saving capabilities.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1frHtUEqd4E
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
The first annual fiscal surplus in 15 years. (TY WIN & I24) Israel's fiscal surplus in July 2022 was NIS 2.6 billion, resulting in a cumulative surplus of NIS 9.7 billion for the year. It is the first annual surplus since 2007, resulting from reduced Covid-19 expenditure and higher tax revenue from increased economic activity.
https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-israels-fiscal-surplus-climbs-to-06-1001420787
Advancing technology in factories. Israel’s Ministry of Economy is providing another NIS 20 million to the Advanced Manufacturing Institute to implement innovative technologies and advanced production methods in factories and improve productivity. It is in addition to funds already allocated to establish the institute.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/b1hlk7urc
International supermarkets will bring down prices. (TY Hazel & Nevet) French supermarket giant Carrefour is on track to open its branded shops by the end of this year (see here previously). Now Dutch-owned international supermarket chain SPAR has also signed agreements to open branches in Israel.
https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-netherlands-based-retail-chain-spar-to-enter-israel-1001418985
More intelligence for Europe. Israeli defense electronics company Elbit Systems has been awarded a $660 million contract to provide intelligence systems to a European country. The contract will be undertaken over four years, plus 10 more years’ maintenance. In June, Elbit Systems won contracts worth $838 million.
https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-elbit-systems-wins-660m-european-intelligence-deal-1001417908
So Nice. Israeli software company Nice just reported second quarter total revenues up 16.1% to $530.6 million on the same period in 2021. Gross profit for Q2 was $365.7 million compared to $306.3 million last year.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/h1ibtsjc5
Even better for Amdocs. Israel’s Amdocs (see here previously) reported record revenues of $1.16 billion in the second quarter of 2022 8.8% more than the corresponding period in 2021. It also has a record orders pipeline of nearly $4 billion. https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/h1ec100ypc
Growing kids in South Korea. Israel’s Nutritional Growth Solutions (NGS) – see here previously – has launched its Healthy Heights growth formula in South Korea through a deal with Coupang, Korea’s largest retailer with 18 million customers. Healthy heights helps children ages 3 – 9 reach their maximum height.
Students develop transportation drones. Engineering students at Israel’s Shenkar College of Engineering and Design have developed the Dronet system – 4 network-connected drones to transport loads efficiently. It includes an app to control a drone’s flight path and transport cargo in a safe and stable manner.
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/tech-and-start-ups/article-713966
Wave energy for Los Angeles. (TY UWI) Israel’s Eco Wave Power (see here previously) is installing its first US deployment in September at the 35-acre campus AltaSea eco-friendly business center in Los Angeles – the busiest seaport in the US. The Israeli startup has a total projects pipeline of 327.7MW.
https://unitedwithisrael.org/israeli-sea-wave-electricity-plant-heads-to-la/
A matchmaker for tech jobs. The Layoffs Project is a non-profit website developed by Israel’s fresh.fund (see here) and US-based Angular Ventures that matches out-of-work tech workers with current tech vacancies. Some 350 people have signed up at the site to look for jobs and 324 companies have signed up to hire people.
https://www.israel21c.org/a-new-website-matches-tech-jobless-with-open-jobs/ https://www.layoffs.org.il/
Selina opens more Israeli hostels. (TY Nevet) Israeli-founded Selina (see here previously) has opened two new locations in Israel. The Selina Desert Garden in Mitzpe Ramon in the Negev has 20 glamping tents, a large Bedouin tent, plus family rooms with a jacuzzi. The other hostel is the Selina Metula in the Upper Galilee.
https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-selina-opens-hostels-in-metulla-and-mitzpe-ramon-1001420125
Vegan steak in London. (TY Hazel) Israel’s Redefine Meat (see here previously) is introducing its 3-D printed vegan flank steaks and other plant-based meat alternatives at several London restaurants including Mr. Whites, German Gymnasium, Chotto Matte, and Gillray’s Steakhouse and Bar. It is also available at Selina’s.
https://thebeet.com/redefine-meat-flank-steak/
Exits, takeovers & mergers. Israel’s Stratasys acquired Covestro AG for $43.8 million; Unity Software is acquiring Israeli-founded ironSource for $4.4 billion. Remitly Global acquired Israel’s Rewire for $80 million; Israel’s eToro acquired US options trader Gatsby for $50 million.
Investment in Israeli startups to 21/8/22: Flow (Adam Neumann) raised $350 million; DriveNets raised $262 million; Guesty raised $170 million; Hibob raised $150 million; Pliops raised $100 million; Shopic raised $35 million; GrowSpace raised $25 million; Agora raised $20 million; BioAg raised $18 million; BigPanda raised $15 million; Equalum raised $14 million; Hoopo raised $10 million; SaNOtize raised $10 million; Mesh Security raised $4.5 million;
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT`
Jerusalem under the Sturgeon Moon. (TY Sharon) “Sturgeon” - the last supermoon of 2022 - gave rise to several cultural events in Israel’s capital. Free klezmer shows, Shakespeare in the rough, and Parties in the Park. And see the new Vietnamese Ambassador present his credentials to the Israeli President in national costume.
http://rjstreets.com/2022/08/14/jerusalem-under-the-sturgeon-moon/
Another friendly Iranian Judoka. (TY WIN & I24 News) Iranian judoka Alireza Bahranifard made friends with Israeli judoka Sagi Muki. Like fellow Iranian Judoka Saeid Mollaei (who now competes for Azerbaijan), Alireza has now emigrated from Iran and currently resides in Germany.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wa1C6hI0ljc
Israel wins European team marathon. Israel won gold in the men’s team marathon event at the European Athletics Championships in Munich. Israel’s Marhu Teferi and Gashau Ayale won silver and bronze respectively in the individual competition. Israel’s fastest three runners had the best combined time.
Another gold for Anastasia. Israeli swimmer Anastasia Gorbenko (see here previously) successfully defended her title, winning the gold medal in the 200m Individual Medley at the European Championships in Rome. She previously won the event in 2021 in Budapest. https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-714883
THE JEWISH STATE
Just a game. (TY WIN & I24 News) Archaeologists have found a rare collection of knuckle bones used for gambling and divination in Southern Israel, dating back approximately 2,300 years to the Hellenistic period.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bxJRWFtsnk
Happy kids heal faster. Assuta Medical Center in Ashdod has opened a pediatric playroom. Thanks to Brooklyn-based Toys for Simcha, it features a lounging area, a video game corner, a reading library, a foosball table, a play kitchen, toys and tech for patients and their families, from toddlers to teens.
https://www.jns.org/new-pediatric-playroom-opens-at-medical-center-in-ashdod-south-of-tel-aviv/
AI tool transforms Hebrew texts. Many Rabbinic texts are difficult to read, even for Hebrew speakers. Rashi script, no punctuation, and abbreviations are just some of the issues. Israeli-American computer scientist and Talmud scholar Prof. Moshe Koppel has launched Dicta Maivin (dictation expert) to resolve those problems.
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/article-713942 https://dicta.org.il/
Kosher vegan alternatives to non-kosher meat. Israel’s SavorEat has finally done it. It has just launched kosher 3D-printed, plant-based vegan, gluten-free, allergen-free pork patties. They contain pea and other plant-based proteins with sunflower and coconut fats. (Ed - I wonder if they will be as popular as the facon-burger!)
New Olim young and old. 225 new immigrants from the USA and Canada have just arrived in Israel. They included the 75,000th Oleh brought by Nefesh B’Nefesh, together with 27 medical professionals and 40 future lone soldiers. Earlier, 100-year-old Judy Neiman made Aliyah, joining her son’s family in Beit Shemesh.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/358290
https://www.jns.org/nefesh-bnefesh-welcomes-75000th-oleh-on-summer-aliyah-charter-flight/
Saved with his tzitzit. Shalom, an EMT with Israel’s United Hatzalah was in the vicinity of the recent fatal Jerusalem bus crash but had no medical equipment at the time. He saved a young victim with severe injuries by stemming the blood flow from one of her legs by tying his tzitzit (small prayer shawl) around it as a tourniquet.
https://israelrescue.org/blog/tzitzit-saved-the-life-of-a-bus-crash-victim/
7/8/22
In the 7th Aug 22 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
· Israeli scientists have discovered a molecule that fixes damaged cells.
· Israeli airlines now have official permission to fly over Saudi Arabia.
· An Israeli breakthrough uses silicone instead of lithium in batteries.
· Israeli technology will boost global crop yields.
· Volkswagen has bought $4 billion of Israeli autonomous car technology.
· Tel Aviv hosted France’s soccer “Super Cup”.
· Another Jewish discovery at Shiloh - the site of the Biblical Tabernacle.
· Click here to see the 31st July newsletter on IsraelSeen, Ruthfully Yours (plus another great intro), and United With Israel. Also (TY Sandra) in German here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Also (TY Zachy) in Hebrew here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Please pass on this newsletter to German and Hebrew-speaking contacts. Also (TY Esty) please visit the https://www.facebook.com/verygoodnewsIL Facebook page.
· Please click here, to donate (a small or large amount) to help me publicize VeryGoodNewsIsrael. (Please note that the donate link is now working and a PayPal account is not necessary!)
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ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Covid-19 immunity testing. A team of Israeli immunologists, epidemiologists and other researchers have successfully used the levels of antibody markers to predict the risk of Covid-19 infection. IGG antibodies for 608 healthy adults were monitored over 90 days. The 239 subsequent infections were then correlated.
Weakening the virus. Israeli-UK biotech Eleven Therapeutics is developing RNAi therapy that attacks the genetic structure of respiratory viruses such as SARS-COV-2. Eleven has just received a $9 million grant from the Gates Foundation. https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/h1ju600ltc https://www.eleventx.com/
Ultrasound scans on MDA Ambulances. Magen David Adom (MDA) paramedics on Israeli Intensive Care ambulances and helicopters will use ultrasound probes to monitor patients’ hearts and locate IV points in hard-to-detect veins. If an ultrasound detects a heartbeat but no pulse, fluids should be used - not shocks or CPR.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/357443
A molecule to repair all cells. (TY WIN) Scientists at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have discovered a molecule, 1,8-diaminooctane, that helps cells repair damaged tissue. It could eventually prevent age-related disorders like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases and increase life expectancy and wellness.
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/mind-and-spirit/article-713621
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35579620/
ECG for the lungs. Israel’s Nanovation-GS (see here previously) is now undergoing clinical trials in Israel and the EU of its SenseGuard first-of-its-kind nano-sensor for monitoring and managing chronic respiratory conditions. It is also working to obtain CE certification, with FDA approval to be sought later.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-712509
https://www.exitvalley.com/Projects/Nanovation/?WebLang=EN&RefAd=rPxlQrCC%20
Chipping away at cancer. Israeli pharmacist Eliana Steinberg realized her medicines were not curing cancer patients and went back to university to get a doctorate. She then developed a transparent chip, which takes a sample of the tumor to test numerous treatments to discover which works best. It was even tested in outer space.
https://unitedwithisrael.org/israeli-researchers-nanotech-is-revolutionizing-tumor-treatment/
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/ygzqobysp
Diagnosing fibromyalgia. The medical condition fibromyalgia is hard to diagnose. Now, researchers at Haifa’s Rambam Health Care Campus and Canada’s McGill University can identify it in blood tests using an algorithm that analyzes the bile acids produced by gut bacteria. The scientists are developing a tool for use in clinics.
Intel & Sheba partner to detect Crohn’s disease. (TY Israel21c) Intel Corporation is working with the ARC Innovation Center at Israel’s Sheba Medical Center to develop an AI-enhanced app to help physicians diagnose Crohn’s disease at an early stage. 12,000 images taken by a “capsule pill” can be analyzed in just two minutes.
Avoiding the need for amniocentesis. Israel’s Identifai Genetics is developing a noninvasive prenatal test for the early detection of severe genetic disorders. A simple blood test of the mother in her first trimester can detect every single-point mutation, insertion-deletion, and structural variation in the entire embryonic genome.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/pfp425ruq https://identifai-genetics.com/
Improving visual perception for those with autism. Tel Aviv University scientists have developed a new learning method for people with autism that may significantly improve capabilities in terms of visual perception. It uses “memory flashes” to reinforce the duration and repetition of new skills.
https://www.aftau.org/news_item/new-learning-method-from-tau-could-help-people-with-autism-improve-visual-perception-capabilities/ https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(22)00903-4
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Program to combat hunger. Israel’s government is partnering the charity Colel Chabad and its Blavatnik Food Bank in a new $44 million program. 50,000 most needy households will receive an extra 500 shekels a month for grocery items. They will also attend courses that will empower them to increase their income.
First female Military Secretary is inaugurated. (TY UWI) Brigadier General Naama Rosen Grimberg has been formally appointed as the first female Military Secretary to the Israeli President (see here previously). For the first time there are now three women serving simultaneously on the IDF General Staff Forum.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/357410
All IDF positions open to Haredim. The IDF has opened all roles to ultra-Orthodox recruits who meet the criteria and is providing a package of services to meet the needs of soldiers from this sector. Recruits may postpone their service until they can complete core studies matriculation, to improve their classification.
https://www.israelhayom.com/2022/07/31/idf-opens-all-units-to-ultra-orthodox-soldiers/
Joint US-Israel cybersecurity projects. The US-Israel BIRD Foundation, the US Department of Homeland Security and the Israel National Cyber Directorate are awarding $1.5 million grants to joint US-Israeli approved projects that improve cyber protection and resilience of critical infrastructure and economies of both countries.
Israeli innovator in Automotive Hall of Fame. (TY WIN) Mobileye founder and CEO Prof. Amnon Shashua has won the Mobility Innovator Award from the Automotive Hall of Fame. It recognizes “the outstanding work individuals have accomplished introducing new technologies and services that are redefining mobility.”
https://www.israel21c.org/mobileye-founder-honored-by-automotive-hall-of-fame/
Special mission aircraft for NATO. Israel Aerospace Industries has won a $200 million contract to provide special mission aircraft to a NATO member country in Europe. The unique aircraft use miniaturized sensors alongside artificial intelligence and machine learning software and algorithms.
El Al gets permission to fly over Saudi Arabia. El Al has received official permission from Saudi Arabia to fly over its territory. Duration of flights to Thailand drops from eleven hours down to eight-and-a-half hours.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/357582
Aid to Ukraine. MASHAV - Israel’s Agency for International Development Cooperation - has sent 25,000 instant meals for residents of Kharkiv, Northeastern Ukraine. Meanwhile, Israeli NGO IsraAID is providing the 475,000 residents of Mykolaiv, South Ukraine, with four reverse-osmosis water filtration systems.
https://www.jpost.com/international/article-713331
https://www.jns.org/israel-sends-25000-instant-meals-to-kharkiv-ukraine/
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
$1m. scholarships to Israeli science students. Six outstanding Israeli doctoral students in the exact sciences, mathematics and life sciences received awards of NIS 100,000 a year and full exemption from tuition fees. They also received the equivalent of $3,000 a year for active participation in activities overseas.
https://www.jpost.com/science/article-713346 https://adams.academy.ac.il/fellows/2022-2023/
A novel rechargeable silicon battery. (TY JNS) Researchers at Israel’s Technion Institute have developed a proof-of-concept, design, and architecture for a novel rechargeable silicon (Si) battery. The breakthrough could lead to cheap, available silicon replacing rare and expensive lithium in Electric Vehicle and other batteries.
https://www.technion.ac.il/en/2022/07/rechargeable-silicon-batteries-sustainable-energy-source/
Ultra-fast charging stations. Israel’s ZOOZ (formerly Chakratech – see here) and Israel’s Afcon Electric Transportation (see here) are piloting “ultra-fast” electric vehicle (EV) charging stations. They will operate where the electricity infrastructure is unable to provide the typically required high-power capacity.
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/energy-and-infrastructure/article-712907
Safer US roads. Israel’s Autotalks (see here previously) has partnered Atlanta’s Yunex Traffic to deploy V2X (Vehicle to Anything) technology in Florida and Colorado. Yunex’s RSU2X system, with Autotalks’ chipsets, lets a bus or emergency vehicle turn traffic lights to green, increasing safety, punctuality, and lowering CO2.
https://auto-talks.com/v2x-infrastructures-improve-safety-on-us-roads/
Turning night into day. True Night Vision from Israel’s visionary.ai (see here previously) transforms low-light photography so that cameras can literally see in the dark. It can even penetrate fog. Its use stretches far beyond amateur photography but to drones (rescues, crops etc.), endoscopes, CCTV cameras, and more.
https://nocamels.com/2022/07/seeing-the-unseen-how-photo-ai-turns-night-into-day/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xuoJcFCMMA
Good Result! (TY Stuart Palmer) Israel’s Lavie Bio (see here previously) has delivered, to US customers, its total production of Result™ – its sustainable microbial-based inoculant for improving wheat yields. The product will help US farmers increase wheat production – vital, due to the impact of the Ukrainian crisis.
Boosting crop yields. Israel’s ICL together with Israeli startup PlantArcBio (see here) have developed non-GMO RNAi technology that improves crop yields with minimal impact on the environment. Early-stage field trials significantly increased seed weight per hectare for canola crops. Larger-scale trials are planned in 2022.
The next generation of fresh greens. Israel’s GreenOnyx (see here previously) has developed a technology for growing the next generation of fresh whole and natural green vegetables. They can be eaten with a spoon, directly from the package, without any preparation such as cutting, peeling, or removing inedible parts.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/1zzvop802 https://www.greenonyx.ag/
Proteins from plants with zero waste. Israel’s Gavan Technologies (see here previously) has developed a novel, sustainable method to extract proteins from plants. These are then used to produce natural pigments, gluten substitutes, nutrients, and flavors, using little or no energy and producing no disposable waste.
The world’s strongest organic vanilla flavor. (TY Hazel) Israel’s Vanilla Vida (see here previously) is revolutionizing the vanilla flavor industry. Its business clients say it is the strongest-ever vanilla flavor and end-customers love the taste. It also eliminates the risks of tropical open-air drying in Indonesia or Madagascar.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-tech-firm-creates-worlds-strongest-ever-vanilla-flavors/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DixUYZ4LAvo
Cutting out the racing driver. (TY UWI) The Formula race car team from Israel’s Technion Institute has unveiled its first-ever autonomous electric racing car. It will be entered into the Formula Student International Design Competition in Europe next month. The team won the competition in the previous two years.
https://www.Israel21c.org/technion-unveils-its-first-autonomous-electric-formula-car/
Bringing World Cup soccer to the deaf. Israel’s Sign Now is to make the FIFA 2022 World Cup in Qatar accessible to the deaf community. Its app provides live video translation services in sign language. It will also help when talking to doctors, banks, or customer services.
https://nocamels.com/2022/07/israeli-deaf-accessible-app-fifa/
AI-generated videos. Israel’s Peech (see here previously) has developed an AI-powered automatic video editing solution which transforms raw video footage into professional branded videos in seconds. It uses natural language processing (NLP) technology to turn in-house media content into high-quality branded videos.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/sj7mwerp9 https://www.peech-ai.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-FTG29Q3_8
We live in the Jetson age. “The Jetsons” was a 1960’s cartoon TV series that “showcased” many Israeli innovations - flying cars, video phones, etc. “The Jetsons” was first broadcast on July 31, 1962. It was set in 2062 and George Jetson was 40. So, this clever article figures he would have been born on July 31st, 2022!
https://www.jns.org/opinion/thanks-to-israel-we-live-in-the-jetsons-world/
Start Brightcoding. A reminder that the free Brightcode 6-months hi-tech training course (see here previously) is available to anyone 18-32 who has been to Israel on a Taglit-Birthright program. It is followed by two-years paid work experience in Israel with a high-tech company. In conjunction with Experis Academy (see here).
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/rkj800ixp5
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Record exports predicted. (TY UWI) Israel’s exports of goods and services in 2022 are already up 15% over the same period last year and are projected to reach record high of $165 billion in 2022. Exports of services are again expected to exceed that of goods.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-exports-projected-to-reach-record-high-of-165b-in-2022/
Promoting business with Bahrain. (TY UWI & I24 News) Yariv Becher of StartUpNationHQ describes a recent meeting between Israeli startups and the Bahraini Embassy to discuss business opportunities in the key areas of fintech, manufacturing, travel & tourism, logistics, ICT, and healthcare.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkP3S1tDBXk
300+ desert tech companies. The first report of DeserTech and Start-Up Nation Central highlights Israel’s strength and potential for tackling desert challenges. More than 300 Israeli start-up companies are developing agriculture, energy, water, and infrastructure technologies geared to or adaptable for desert environments.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/first-map-of-israeli-desert-tech-identifies-over-300-companies/
https://nocamels.com/2022/07/business-boom-negev-desert/
Growing Israel’s digital health sector. AstraZeneca, Accenture, Amazon Web Services, and Israeli health organization Clalit have together launched a new startup program called BeyondBio SCALE. It aims to help Israeli startups develop and implement healthcare solutions globally.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/byxhpdlpq
3D-Printed Seafood for Singapore. (TY Nevet) Israel’s MeaTech 3D (see here previously) has partnered Singapore’s Umami Meats to develop 3D-printed cultured structured seafood. Meatech believes it will lead to new markets throughout Asia and worldwide while solving the challenge of diminishing ocean food sources.
https://www.israelhayom.com/2022/07/13/slaughter-free-steak-meats-cultured-seafood-in-singapore/
New e-Passport system for Andorra. Israel’s Pangea-IT (see here previously) has won the Andorran government’s international tender to design the country's new passport system and deliver a complete system for issuing e-Passports for the residents of the European country.
Innoviz’s $4 billion client is Volkswagen. Israel’s Innoviz (see here previously) revealed that Volkswagen is the carmaker that placed a $4 billion order with it. Innoviz will be the direct LiDAR (light detection and ranging) laser sensor supplier for Volkswagen’s autonomous vehicles.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/ry4900ri65
Exits, takeovers & mergers. Israel’s Magic Software Enterprises is acquiring Israel’s Appush (formerly Vidstart) for $25 million.
Investment in Israeli startups to 7/8/22: Talon Cyber Security raised $100 million; Eleven Therapeutics raised $22 million; GreenOnyx raised $18 million; Flow Security raised $10 million; Peech raised $8.3 million;
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT`
The story of “Hawkeye”. Fascinating article and autobiography about Israel’s Giora Epstein (Even). He retired from the Israel Air Force at the age of 59 and then worked for 20 years as an El Al pilot. He is officially the world’s most prolific modern fighter pilot and was promoted to Brigadier General at the age of 80.
https://www.amazon.com/Hawkeye-Enthralling-Autobiography-Top-Scoring-Israel/dp/1911621963
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCZPvnt_Mkk&t=750s
From Jerusalem to Tel Aviv and back. Sharon has been shuttling between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv recently. Her blog includes the Women’s Entrepreneurship Summit in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem’s Food Trucks.
http://rjstreets.com/2022/07/31/multiple-views-of-jerusalem/
Focus! – a slam dunk. Developed by Israelis, the Hour25 AI app receives advice from former NBA stars, including Eddie Johnson, to help ordinary people to block out distractions and develop the focus of superstar Steph Curry. Hour25 improves focus in real-time by reducing the negative emotions that get in the way.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/270u2ubnf https://www.hour25.ai/
Turkish Muslim NBA star’s masterclass in Jerusalem. Turkish NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom is leading a basketball camp in Jerusalem for 40 Muslim, Jewish, Christian and Druze girls and boys ages 10-15. His help includes Yoseph Haddad’s NGO “Together Vouch For Each Other” and ex-Israeli hoops star Tamir Goodman.
https://unitedwithisrael.org/muslim-nba-star-teams-up-with-jewish-jordan-for-jerusalem-camp/
https://www.jns.org/nbas-freedom-spreads-message-of-peace-through-sports-in-israel/
PSG win French Super Cup in Tel Aviv. In front of a capacity crowd of 30,000 at Tel Aviv’s Bloomfield Stadium, Paris Saint-Germain won the prestigious French Super Cup (Trophée des Champions), beating F.C Nantes 4-0. The match was also broadcast to millions of viewers in 140 countries around the world.
https://www.jns.org/psg-beats-nantes-to-win-soccer-champions-trophy-in-tel-aviv/
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/357416
THE JEWISH STATE
84 South Americans start new lives in Israel. The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ) brought 84 new South American immigrants to Israel. Originally from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Paraguay, and Peru, their reasons for Aliyah varied, but for most it was to have a better quality of life.
https://www.jns.org/84-immigrants-to-israel-from-south-america-land-in-israel-to-start-new-lives/
Talmud period storage jars found at Shiloh. Five intact large storage jars have been unearthed at Shiloh in Samaria, under the floor of a building from the Talmudic period (200-400 CE). Previous finds date from the Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, and Early Muslim periods. Shiloh was the site of the Tabernacle c.1250 BCE.
A nation that helps others. (TY IsraelUnwired) Israel is just a sliver on the map in the Middle East, but has earned a global reputation for effectively and sacrificially helping other nations in times of crisis - even enemy countries like Syria. Judaism emphasises giving help to others, so a Jewish state will always make it a priority.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_f85mieJxQ
31/7/22
In the 31st Jul 22 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
· Tel Aviv’s new hi-tech Emergency Room is the largest in the world.
· All 450,000+ Israeli citizens over 75 receive free public transport.
· Take a ride in Haifa’s new cable car.
· Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport is solar-powered.
· Israeli renewable energy company and Saudi company sign agreement.
· Apple and Yahoo! expand Israeli R&D centers.
· ATP tennis tournament comes to Israel - 1st for 26 years.
· Click here to see the 24th July newsletter on IsraelSeen, Ruthfully Yours, and United With Israel. Also (TY Sandra) in German here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Also (TY Zachy) in Hebrew here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Please pass on this newsletter to German and Hebrew-speaking contacts. Also (TY Esty) please visit the https://www.facebook.com/verygoodnewsIL Facebook page.
· Please click here, to donate (a small or large amount) to help me publicize VeryGoodNewsIsrael. (Please note that the donate link is now working and a PayPal account is not necessary!)
· Click here to keyword SEARCH almost any topic in the IsraelActive archives (over 21,000 articles).
· If someone wishes to be added to the free email subscription list, they should either click here or send a request (with their name) to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
It started here. (TY Irene) This article gives more details about the fecal microbial transfer (FMT) trial at Israel’s Sheba Medical Center in 2020 to treat terminally ill melanoma patients (see here previously). FMT trials are now underway in at least 30 global locations. The “gut feeling” is that one day it could save millions.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-01959-7
Making leukemia cells harmless. (TY UWI) Scientists from Tel Aviv University were key members of a team led by University of Barcelona scientists, that reverted malignant blood cancer cells back into “normal” cells in the laboratory. They used messenger RNA to convert acute lymphoblastic leukemia cells to macrophages.
https://www.jpost.com/science/article-709219 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41375-022-01621-1
Startups partner to detect ALS. Israel’s NeuraLight (see here) and NeuroSense Therapeutics (see here) are partnering to improve the diagnosis and monitoring of Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). They will study patients using NeuroSense’s biological markers, together with Neuralight’s digital oculometric biomarkers.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/rj06yaktc
The world’s largest ER facility. Tel Aviv’s Ichilov Hospital has inaugurated the Sylvan Adams Emergency Hospital (see here previously). The 8,000sqm Emergency Room is the largest in the world. Technology includes facial recognition registration, self-triage, alerts for abnormal results, navigation robots and an app.
https://www.jns.org/canadian-philanthropist-sylvan-adams-opens-worlds-largest-emergency-room-at-tel-avivs-ichilov-hospital/ https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/357263
The patient revealed. (TY UWI) Israel’s Navina has made great strides since it was reported here in Nov 2020. Its AI technology filters now organizes and presents patient data to 1,500 physicians in the U.S. The founders’ IDF 8200-unit know-how now helps doctors assess patients more effectively, with less misdiagnoses.
https://nocamels.com/2022/07/military-intelligence-patient-data-overload/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDbtpMi0llg
Teenager’s online mental first aid course. When Maayan Cohen finished a regular first aid course she realized there was no psychological component, so she created one. Some 3,000 people are currently taking part in the pilot phase of the free online course. It focuses on detecting distress and taking initial action.
Attracting doctors to the periphery. Israel’s Aliyah and Integration Ministry is to provide a grant package for physicians who emigrated to Israel and live outside of the center of the country. They will be eligible to receive 50,000 shekels per family. Lower value grants are available for other health care and engineering professionals.
Maccabiah athletes register their bone-marrow. Israeli medical charity Ezer Mizion are offering Maccabiah athletes the opportunity to join the world’s largest Jewish bone-marrow donor registry. They volunteer to submit saliva samples which are then checked against the DNA of blood cancer sufferers.
https://www.jns.org/athletes-at-israels-maccabiah-games-asked-to-join-jewish-bone-marrow-bank/
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
The first female border protection battalion commander. The IDF has appointed the first woman to serve as commanding officer of the Caracal infantry battalion, a part of the Border Protection Corps. Major Or Livni will be promoted to the rank of Lt. Colonel.
https://www.jns.org/idf-appoints-first-female-battalion-commander-in-border-protection-corps/
Free public transport for over-75s. As of Aug 1st, public transportation in Israel, including local and national buses, trains (and new Haifa cable car), will be completely free for people over the age of 75. With 450,000+ citizens over the age of 75, Israel has one of the world’s highest life expectancies.
https://worldisraelnews.com/israel-offering-free-public-transportation-to-people-over-75/
Israeli tourists save entertainer in Morocco. (TY WIN & I24 News) A Moroccan man performing in a riding and shooting exhibition was nearly crushed when his horse fell on him. An Israeli tourist in the audience was a doctor and she stabilized the rider, who was taken to hospital as the rest of the audience applauded.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmWTgEsdw6Y
Saudi magazine praises Arabs in IDF. (TY WIN) The cover story in the latest edition of the Saudi magazine Al Majalla, published from London, was a positive feature about Moslem Arab Israelis who serve in the IDF. It quoted one who had the “great honor” to hold both a weapon and the Quran to defend his homeland, Israel.
https://www.israelhayom.com/2022/07/13/saudi-magazine-cover-praises-arab-israelis-who-serve-in-idf/
Colombia celebrates National Day in Tel Aviv. (TY Stuart Palmer) Colombian Ambassador Margarita E. Manjarrez Herrera hosted her country’s National Day reception at the Tel Aviv Hilton. The event included musical presentations and amazing Salsa dancers from the Ensálsate Company.
Make them notice Israel! This article by David Suissa ironically states “Israeli innovators are so busy solving problems, to make the world a better place, that they’re oblivious to the fact that much of the world hasn’t noticed.” This newsletter editor pleads to its readers to “MAKE THEM NOTICE!”
Mental health training for Ukrainian therapists. (TY Hazel) 20 Ukrainian psychologists have spent two weeks in Israel receiving training on how to treat trauma cases. Ukraine cannot cope with the massive numbers of people affected by the conflict with Russia. A key goal of the course was how to help traumatized children.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Cable Express. The city of Haifa has opened its Rakavlit cable car (aerial tramway). The cars transport mostly students 2.7 miles, from the HaMifratz Bus Terminal to the Haifa Technion in 10 minutes, plus another 9 mins to the University of Haifa. A car with 10 passengers departs every 15 seconds. Ride it on the Youtube video!
https://magazine.esra.org.il/esramagazine/look-into-it/latest-esramagazine/entry/cable-express.html
https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel/technology-science/1649675136-israel-s-first-public-transit-cable-car-begins-operations-in-haifa https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XY7z3ek43LY
Why corals glow. Tel Aviv University researchers have shown that the reason why some undersea corals glow is to attract prey. Plankton, the food of predatory mesophotic (fluorescent) corals, was significantly more attracted to a fluorescent target than a clear “control” target.
Earthquake prediction is 80% accurate. (TY Hazel) Researchers from Israel’s Ariel University can predict a strong earthquake and its location with at least 80% accuracy some 48 hours ahead. They detect changes in the ionosphere layer caused by both acoustic and gravity waves.
https://www.jpost.com/science/article-712972
Don’t go vegan but eat less meat. (TY Hazel) Israel’s Mush Foods has developed “hybrid meat” – 50% meat, 50% edible mushroom known as mycelium. 50% less cholesterol but same meaty taste. Mush Foods plan to launch the product in Tel Aviv restaurants during August. https://www.jpost.com/food-recipes/article-712793
Preventing beverages from spoiling. Israel’s Gat Foods and Israeli biotech Resorcix have developed a natural botanical ingredient - Flavorwatch that prevents clear, fruit-based beverages spoiling from Thermophillic Acidophilic Bacteria (TAB). Flavorwatch eliminates TAB spore outgrowth by disintegrating the cells.
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/resorcix-gat-foods-launch-natural-solution-for-preventing-tab-spoilage-301588969.html https://gatfoods.com/natural-flavor/ https://www.resorcix.com/
Packaging-free deliveries. (TY Hazel) Israel’s WeFill is helping the environment by delivering groceries in reusable packaging. Subscribers order regularly, receive their shopping delivered in glass jars and canvas bags and return the empties. These are sterilized and used for future shipments. No plastic waste and lower costs.
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/tech-and-start-ups/article-713001
https://wefill.co.il/zero-waste-beginners
Walk-in electric van with motorized wheels. Israel’s REE Automotive (see here previously) has unveiled its first UK & US-built production vehicle. The Proxima is a 120kW, 200km urban delivery vehicle for the U.S. market. Its motorized all-wheel drive includes reversing rear wheels for ultimate all-weather maneuverability.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/wzr5j8ttx
A smart robot packer. Israel’s Pickommerce AI Robotics won Calcalist and Poalim 2022 Hi-Tech’s StartUp+ competition. Its AI robot, called Dumbo, can pick up, hold, analyze, and pack an item efficiently in a box - at a rate of 500 to 600 items per hour. https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/bjn0occ25
https://finder.startupnationcentral.org/company_page/pickommerce
https://www.linkedin.com/company/pickommerce-ai-robotics-ltd/
Rise and shine. A team from Netivot in Southern Israeli won the Unistream “Project of the Year 2022” prize. Their EasyWake smart mattress wakes the sleeper with pleasant sounds and gentle vibration. It interfaces with IoT-enabled devices e.g., window shades, lights, and heaters. The Israeli company Polyron “rose” to take it up.
https://www.israel21c.org/easywake-smart-mattress-wins-young-entrepreneur-prize/
Multi-diverse Young Entrepreneurs. Over 100 projects were presented at Unistream’s Young Entrepreneur competition from nearly all regions, religions, and sectors across Israel. The runners up included accessible smart closet shelves; a forest fire detection system using sensors; and a sticker that helps prevent dehydration.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/bjtctd5hc
Ben Gurion Airport to run on solar power. Israel's Ben Gurion International Airport has had an advanced solar energy system installed. The system has a capacity of about four megawatts and includes the innovative technology of Israel’s SolarEdge. The technology was installed by Electra Energy.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356711
How busy is Ben Gurion Airport? (TY Hazel) Frequent traveler Tzahi Zilbershtein has set up a site, which predicts how crowded Ben Gurion airport is likely to be. The site (in Hebrew) assesses the arrivals hall, check-in, and security checks in both Terminal 1 & 3. It has five ratings: deserted, light, medium, heavy, and peak.
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
The first Israeli-Saudi deal. Israeli-founded SolarEdge has signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia’s Ajlan & Bros Holding Group Abilitii. The two companies are to “explore investment in renewable energy,” according to the Saudi ministry. SolarEdge’s $14.7 billion market cap makes it one of Israel’s most valuable companies.
Hotels back to 2019 occupancy levels. The Israel Hotel Association reports June occupancy levels near those of 2019, before the pandemic. In fact, Eilat hotels are even busier than in 2019, as both domestic and foreign tourism are booming. Overall, June 2022 saw 2.1 million hotel overnights, just 5% less than in June 2019.
https://www.jns.org/israel-tourism-bounces-back-hotel-occupancy-approaches-2019-levels/
Air travel takes off. El Al have reintroduced six Boeing 777-200ER planes to meet rising travel demand this summer. It also plans to begin direct flights to Japan and Australia now that Saudi Arabia has opened its airspace to Israeli airlines. Meanwhile, International flights from Eilat’s Ramon Airport will begin in August.
https://www.jns.org/el-al-reintroduces-six-boeing-777-jets-as-summer-tourism-heats-up/
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/all-news/article-713214
https://www.jns.org/international-flights-from-eilats-ramon-airport-to-start-in-august/
Israel21c visits Legends. (TY UWI) Good to see that Legends - the Israeli distillery producing the unique Slingshot Kentucky whiskey (see here previously) - is getting wider publicity.
https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-distillery-makes-countrys-first-kentucky-whiskey/
Apple’s 3rd Israeli R&D center. (TY JNS) Apple is expanding its Israel operations, with a new development center in Jerusalem. The U.S. technology giant already has 2,000 employees in Herzliya and Haifa. Its new site will reportedly focus on hardware and Mac chip development. Apple’s M1 chip was mostly developed in Israel.
https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-apple-to-open-jerusalem-development-center-1001419527
Yahoo! to expand Israeli R&D. (TY JNS) Multinational Yahoo! is expanding its Israel operations and its sales relationships with Israeli advertisers. It is currently recruiting positions both Ramat Gan (Tel Aviv) and Haifa centers. Yahoo! has been operating in Israel for nearly two decades, acquiring several Israeli startups.
https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-yahoo-expanding-israel-rd-centers-under-new-head-1001419189
ElliQ is launched. (TY Hazel) After five years of development, Israel’s Intuition Robotics officially released the ElliQ system (see here previously) in the US. The AI robotic companion helps the elderly stay active, connected, and engaged. A study showed lonely 60-year-olds to live 3-5 years less than “never lonely” ones.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-ai-robotic-companion-for-elderly-launches-in-us-market/
Zeekr installs Mobileye software. (TY Hazel) Israeli-founded Mobileye has updated tens of thousands of Zeekr electric cars in China with what it calls “one of the world’s most advanced highway assist packages”. It uses Zeekr’s seven cameras to react to sudden braking ahead, a parked car door opening or a pedestrian.
https://nocamels.com/2022/07/mobileye-updates-electric-cars-over-the-air/
Exits, takeovers & mergers. Israel’s PerimeterX is merging with US HUMAN Security for a combined value of $1.5 billion. Israel’s Tremor International has bought Israeli-founded Amobee from Singapore Telecom for $239 million. Saudi Arabia’s Mithaq Capital now has over 20% of the shares of Israel’s Otonomo Technologies.
Investment in Israeli startups to 31/7/22: Balance (GetBalance.com) raised $56 million; Diagnostic Robotics raised $45 million; Frontegg raised $40 million; Viably raised $21 million; Cisco invested $10 million in Island.io; INCRMNTAL raised $4.1 million;
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT`
Uncovering “lost” art. (TY Hazel) Three previously unknown (and unfinished) sketches by celebrated 20th-century artist Amadeo Modigliani were discovered at the University of Haifa’s Hecht Museum, hidden beneath the surface of one of his paintings. His works were X-rayed prior to an upcoming exhibit in Philadelphia.
Israeli Jazz in Barcelona. This year’s JAZZ IM festival in Barcelona was dedicated to Israel. The Israeli embassy supported two Israeli jazz ensembles in the festival - the Tal Gamlieli Trio, and the Guy Mintos Trio. The organizers streamed the shows since all their concerts were sold out.
https://www.jpost.com/365days/music/article-712515
Israeli culture in Czech Republic. Střelecký Island, in the heart of Prague, recently became an island of Israeli culture in a unique open-air festival organized by the Israeli Embassy. Some 15,000 people enjoyed Israeli bands, soloists, folk-dancing, Krav Maga (self-defense), pita baking, poetry, children’s activities and more.
https://www.jpost.com/365days/article-712084 https://www.izraelnavltave.cz/en
Unique deep-sea wonderland off Tel Aviv. (TY UWI) Just off the coast near Tel Aviv is the Palmahim Slide – a geological phenomenon, home to a biodiversity of unique creatures and other underwater wonders. It is the first Israeli “Hope Spot” - designated by International NGO Mission Blue as critical to the health of the ocean.
https://www.israel21c.org/deep-sea-wonderland-in-israel-is-declared-a-hope-spot/
https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/ca8f478def7a421fa2ccb0621e1605db https://mission-blue.org/hope-spots/
Israeli students win UK BAFTA award. Israeli film students Shulamit Lifshitz and Oriel Berkovits from the Ma’aleh School in Jerusalem won a British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) student award. Their film “Girl No. 60427” features a young girl who discovers her survivor grandmother’s Holocaust diary.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-student-film-on-holocaust-nabs-bafta-award/
Israel to host ATP Tour 250 tournament. (TY Hazel) Israel is to host an ATP tennis tournament for the first time in 26 years. Starting Sep 25, the Tel Aviv Watergen Open 2022 will take place at the Expo Tel Aviv Complex. Breaking for Rosh Hashana, finals take place on Oct 2nd. https://www.tawo.co.il/
https://www.jns.org/world-class-atp-250-tennis-tournament-returns-to-israel-after-26-years/
The Maccabiah was more than medals. (TY UWI & I24 News) A good (JNS) article and an I24 interview that emphasizes that sporting success was only one aspect of the recent Maccabiah Games in Israel. It was an opportunity for thousands of Jewish athletes to connect and celebrate with their peers from all over the world.
https://www.jns.org/wrap-up-on-the-wrap-down-israel-comes-up-big-on-much-more-than-medals/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gedTWloGcag
Sports and more on Jerusalem’s streets. (TY Sharon) The recent excitement on Jerusalem’s streets has been mainly because of the Maccabiah Games, the Jerusalem Night Run, the Paul Anka concert, and the Jerusalem Film Festival. Meanwhile preparations are underway for August’s International Jerusalem Puppet festival.
http://rjstreets.com/2022/07/24/jerusalem-celebrates-sports-and-more/
THE JEWISH STATE
Coin of benevolent Roman Emperor found. (TY UWI) An 1,850-year-old bronze coin depicting the Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius has been found in the sea, near Haifa. Antonius repealed the cruel edicts of Emperor Hadrian, which encouraged Jews to return to their homeland and establish post-Temple Judaism.
Restoring the River Jordan. The Israeli government has approved an “historic” plan to develop the southern section of Jordan River. It will increase water levels and eliminate pollution. A new desalination plant will ensure a constant flow of water, turning the area into a diverse biological ecosystem and a tourist destination.
https://www.jns.org/israel-approves-historic-plan-to-develop-southern-section-of-jordan-river/
The youngest protected heritage site. The Cymbalista Synagogue and Jewish Heritage Center on the campus of Tel Aviv University has been designated a protected historic site by the Council for the Conservation of Heritage Sites in Israel. Built in 1998, the building is currently the “youngest” in the country to hold this status.
https://www.jns.org/cymbalista-synagogue-and-jewish-heritage-center-designated-protected-site/
From war in Ukraine to home in Jerusalem. (TY UWI) Detailed account of the “miraculous” journey of 100 children and 50 adult carers from Zhytomyr, Ukraine (see here previously) to the beautiful JNF-KKL Ness Harim forest school that is now their home and the help from Israelis everywhere.
https://www.israel21c.org/ukrainian-orphans-find-unexpected-home-in-jerusalem-hills/
Summer camp for bereaved children. The Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF) took 21 children and siblings of fallen IDF soldiers on its 17th annual Legacy Summer Camp in the USA. They included Arab and Druze participants, all benefiting from the opportunity to feel normalcy among other similarly affected children.
https://www.jns.org/21-children-and-siblings-of-israeli-fallen-soldiers-enjoy-us-summer-camp/
24/7/22
In the 24th Jul 22 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
· Israeli trial shows high pressure oxygen treatment can cure “long COVID”.
· A historic official visit to Morocco by the IDF Chief of Staff.
· Five more innovative Israeli startups help to prevent food waste.
· Israel’s flying car gets off the ground.
· Boeing 737 pilots will soon be wearing Israeli headsets.
· Israelis won a record 7 gold medals at the World Games.
· Archaeologists uncover another historical Jewish link to Jerusalem.
· Click here to see the 17th July newsletter on IsraelSeen, Ruthfully Yours (with a terrific intro), and United With Israel. Also (TY Sandra) in German here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Also (TY Zachy) in Hebrew here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Please pass on this newsletter to German and Hebrew-speaking contacts. Also (TY Esty) please visit the https://www.facebook.com/verygoodnewsIL Facebook page.
· Please click here, to donate (a small or large amount) to help me publicize VeryGoodNewsIsrael. (Please note that the donate link is now working and a PayPal account is not necessary!)
· Click here to keyword SEARCH almost any topic in the IsraelActive archives (nearly 21,000 articles).
· If someone wishes to be added to the free email subscription list, they should either click here or send a request (with their name) to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Almost all babies vaccinated against polio. Israel has successfully rolled out its polio vaccine to children between the ages of six weeks and 18 months – the age most at risk of contracting the disease. The vaccination rate was only 81% in March, when the first case of the virus in 34 years was detected. The rate is now 99%.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/health-ministry-touts-99-polio-vaccination-rate-among-babies/
Protecting the elderly from Coronavirus. A study of some 40,000 elderly Israelis shows that the fourth COVID-19 vaccination reduced coronavirus death rates among the most vulnerable Israelis by 72%. It also slashed infection rates in that population by 60% and hospitalizations by 34%.
HBOT relieves symptoms of long COVID. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) significantly improved the condition of 37 patients suffering from post-COVID-19 cognitive symptoms. The clinical trial was conducted by the Sagol Center for Hyperbaric Medicine and Research at Shamir Medical Center and Tel Aviv University.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-15565-0
Early detection of Parkinson’s. Researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have adapted a technique called quantitative Magnetic Resonance Imaging (qMRI) to reveal biological changes in the cellar tissue of the striatum an organ in the brain which is known to deteriorate during the progress of Parkinson's disease.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-lab-says-it-developed-brain-scan-to-make-early-parkinsons-screening-routine/ https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356364
Antibiotic alternative from vegetables. Researchers from Israel’s Ben-Gurion University have discovered that the phytochemical 3,3'-diindolylmethane (DIM) kills bacteria and heals wounds fast. DIM is derived from cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli. The BGU spinoff startup Lifematters is further developing DIM.
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-711688 https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/14/5/967
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-study-chemical-heals-wounds-twice-as-fast-could-be-antibiotic-alternative/ http://lifematters.co.il/
Pay attention – are you awake? We know that Israelis are always having brainwaves, but now researchers at Tel Aviv University have studied them in detail. They found that alpha-beta waves (10 to 30 Hz) are not emitted during sleep or unconscious states. This can help detect if coma patients are aware of external sounds.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-study-brainwaves-may-be-key-to-gauging-awareness-in-unconscious-people/ https://www.nature.com/articles/s41593-022-01107-4
Diamond drill clears clogged arteries. 71-year-old Natan at Jerusalem’s Shaare Zedek Medical Center is the first person in Israel to have his severe arterial calcification cleared using a tiny crown coated with a diamond chip spinning at 100,000 rpm. Natan’s cancer treatment prevented conventional catheterization and angioplasty.
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-711686
From fighter jets to the operating theatre. (TY UWI) The surgical headsets from Israel’s Beyeonics (see here previously) began life as headsets for pilots. Beyeonics is a spinoff from Israeli defense contractor Elbit. Its product now has FDA approval for ophthalmic surgeons and there are plans to adapt it for spinal surgery.
https://www.israel21c.org/a-surgical-headset-born-on-a-fighter-jet/
An AI baby monitor. Israeli startup LittleOne.Care is developing a wearable artificial intelligence device that monitors a baby’s sounds and movements, alerting the parents to emergencies and developmental problems. It can detect abuse at daycare, if baby is forgotten in a car, or if the device is removed.
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/parenting/article-711550 https://www.littleone.care/
A bright Israeli global SPARK. Israeli-born and educated Prof. Daria Mochly-Rosen of Stanford University spoke at a recent Rambam Medical Center international symposium. She has founded 3 startups plus SPARK -an academic-industry partnership that has funded 48 projects and is a global model for translational medicine.
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-711621
https://www.rambam.org.il/en/research_and_innovation/research_programs/spark_nitzoz/
Training North American teens to be lifesavers. 50 members of youth organization NCSY, from different parts of the United States and Canada, have graduated as fully registered emergency medical responders (EMRs). It follows completion of a summer training program with Israeli emergency NGO United Hatzalah.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356260
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
My brother’s keeper. When MDA EMT Ali came to the aid of a heart-attack patient, his own heart almost stopped. The patient was his brother Fahed. Ali had to restart Fahed’s heart with a defibrillator several times on the way to the hospital. Thankfully, Fahed made a full recovery, to the relief of his children – Ali’s nephews.
https://www.mdais.org/en/news/080622 https://afmda.org/donate/
Training PA health workers. Israel’s Sheba Medical Center has launched a program to train female Palestinian Arab healthcare professionals to use telehealth technologies. Sheba’s OB-GYN Beyond initiative will enable them to remotely monitor pregnant Arab women and their fetuses in the Hebron area.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-hospital-trains-palestinian-health-workers-in-remote-care-for-pregnant-women/ https://cdn.jwplayer.com/previews/1kFMc7dU
Peace tree for Abraham Accords. (TY JNS) Representatives of the Abraham Accords countries Israel, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Morocco planted a “Peace Tree” at the 2022 World Games in Birmingham Alabama. https://israelinsightmagazine.com/2022/07/14/world-games-birmingham-honors-abraham-accords-with-peace-tree-ceremony-during-world-games/
History-making in Morocco. (TY WIN) Lieutenant General Aviv Kochavi was made very welcome on the first-ever official trip by an IDF Chief of Staff to Morocco. Meanwhile, Israel and Morocco have signed an agreement on intellectual property, to encourage joint innovation and promote cooperation on patents.
https://worldisraelnews.com/watch-a-first-idf-chief-welcomed-in-morocco/
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356859
Salaam Shalom. When Iraq’s Miss Universe contestant Sarah Idan posed with Miss Israel in 2017, it propelled her on the path of bringing people closer together everywhere. She founded the NGO Humanity Forward to build bridges among Muslims and Jews and promote tolerance, mutual understanding and, of course, peace.
https://www.humanity-forward.org/new-page-2
Ex-IDF soldiers renovate Tanzanian schools. Israel’s Rafi Ryker founded the non-profit Afrikan - Working Together. It sends ex-IDF volunteers to renovate schools and build clean water infrastructure. They transformed eight schools and the water system in the village of Malinda, Tanzania, reducing morbidity by 75%.
https://www.israel21c.org/former-soldiers-renovate-schools-in-tanzanian-village/
https://www.afrikantanzania.com/home
Strategic partnership with Austria. Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer met Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid in Jerusalem and signed an agreement that ranges from issues of security and cyber to health and tourism.
Strategic partnership with the US. Israel and the United States have announced a strategic high-level dialogue on technology to enhance their strategic partnership in cutting-edge technologies. It follows US partnerships with the UK, Australia, and Japan and will address pandemic preparedness, climate, AI, and quantum science.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356444
Global summit launches food and energy projects. The leaders of Israel, India, the US, and UAE convened the inaugural I2U2 virtual summit. Among other goals and projects, the UAE is to invest $2 billion in eco-friendly food production parks across India that will use Israeli and US private sector expertise.
Keeping the lights on in Ukraine. The “Light Up Health” campaign of Israeli NGO SmartAID maintains power to Ukraine’s Kyiv Ochmatdyt Children’s Hospital, EmergeNYC Care Unit in Mykolaiv, and Uman General Hospital. SmartAID has supplied emergency generators, spotlights for surgeons, solar power and more.
https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-ngo-lights-up-health-facilities-in-ukraine/
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Preventing food waste. This latest Israel21c article features several Israeli foodtech startups not previously included in this newsletter. They include Anina (ugly vegetables), Ripe Guard (expiry dates), Varcode (time & temperature tags), Bountica (antifungal peptides), ZOEPAC, and a new video from Yarok Microbio.
https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-startups-aim-to-stop-crops-being-lost-on-route-to-market/
https://aninafoodtech.com/ https://finder.startupnationcentral.org/company_page/ripe-guard
https://finder.startupnationcentral.org/company_page/varcode http://www.bountica.com/
https://zoepac.com/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kToZ_BMb0YA
Growing “out of the box”. (TY JNS) At the Central Arava R&D (Vidor) Center you can see Golden berries, Gulliver’s spinach, Momordia (bitter melon, with a “natural insulin”), and kiwano (horned African melon). All are grown in saline water and temperatures ranging from 40 degrees Celsius midday to 10 degrees at night.
https://www.israel21c.org/turning-an-arid-desert-into-an-unexpected-breadbasket/
Ethiopian superfood seeds. (TY UWI) Hebrew University of Jerusalem researchers are developing a gluten-free superfood from Ethiopian teff seeds. Full of amino acids, minerals, fiber, and protein, teff can grow in drought conditions. Teff seeds have been planted from the Golan Heights to Yotvata in the Negev desert.
https://nocamels.com/2022/07/gluten-free-superfood-israel/
Growing CO2-eating trees in the UK. (TY Hazel) Israeli drip-irrigation specialist Netafim is helping UK’s Carbon Plantations to increase the yield of its 134 hectares of Paulownia trees in Suffolk, England. Paulownia trees consume carbon dioxide seven times faster than other indigenous species.
https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-tech-supports-novel-uk-carbon-sequestering-project/
The eco-friendly IDF. The Israel Defense Forces focuses on protecting the State of Israel, but it is also trying to protect the environment. This involves a 70% recycling target; sensors in garbage containers for efficient collection; converting organic waste into biogas; and a 20% reduction in the use of disposable cutlery.
Sports-tech at the Maccabiah. Several Israeli sports-tech startups showcased at a special Maccabiah Games event at the Silvan Adams National Velodrome in Tel Aviv. They include Pixellot, BlazePod, MindFly, PlayerMaker, and i-BrainTech, New to this newsletter is RSPCT - which provides basketball shot analysis.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/w2ki8jiqk https://www.rspctbasketball.com/
https://finder.startupnationcentral.org/company_page/rspct-basketball-technologies
Streamlining supplies for small businesses. Israel’s Supplyve automates inventory and order management for small retailers, especially independent grocers, and their vendors. Users simply scan product barcodes using a smartphone app. Supplyve is integrated with Square and other point-of-sale systems.
https://www.israel21c.org/a-neat-alternative-to-tracking-retail-inventory-by-hand/ https://www.supplyve.com/
Securing hospital equipment. Israel’s OneLayer is deploying its platform for private 5G cellular networks in the Galilee Medical Center and The Baruch Padeh Medical Center. OneLayer has partnered Nokia and Cellcom to secure hundreds of doctor carts, beds, and medical devices. https://one-layer.com/
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/bymdowwh9
Israelis discover new planets. A team led by Tel Aviv University researchers has discovered, in distant solar systems, two giant planets. It is the first time that the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Gaia space observatory has been used to find new planets. The planets, Gaia-1b and Gaia-2b, orbit their suns in less than four days.
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/all-news/article-711866
https://english.tau.ac.il/distant_planets_discovered
https://www.aanda.org/component/article?access=doi&doi=10.1051/0004-6361/202243497
AIR ONE passes first test with flying colors. Israel’s AIR has successfully completed its first hover test of its AIR ONE flying car (see here previously). The full-scale, full-weight, prototype rose above Kibbutz Megiddo in northern Israel, supervised by the Civil Aviation Authority. A full flight test is planned for October.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/liftoff-israeli-startups-flying-car-completes-first-test/
Another Quantum leap. Israel’s Quantum Machines (see here previously) has developed a quantum operating system (QOP), a language (QUA), and has been selected to establish Israel’s $29 million Quantum Computing Center. Toyota has partnered Quantum Machines to allow Toyota customers access to quantum technologies.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/toyota-partners-with-israels-quantum-machines-for-quantum-computing-solutions/ https://www.jns.org/quantum-machines-tapped-to-establish-29-million-israeli-quantum-computing-center/
The value of justice. Israel’s Darrow.ai is a platform that uses Artificial Intelligence to bring law breakers to justice. It processes class actions of negligence affecting large numbers of individuals - e.g., privacy breaches, consumer fraud, air pollution, and overcharges, which often are too complex to be progressed manually.
https://nocamels.com/2022/06/darrow-ai-platform-justice/ https://www.darrow.ai/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mLCKqgSKUw
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Out with the old, in with the new. Some interesting facts in the latest IVC Israeli Tech Review report. Investment in established Israeli hi-tech startups was lower in 2022 than record-breaking 2021, but funds for early-stage startups were higher! Also, more Israeli startups launched in 2022 than for the same period in 2021.
$250 million fund for investment. Israel’s F2 Venture Capital has announced its largest-ever seed fund of $150 million for Israeli founders of startups, as well as another $100 million fund to continue backing existing portfolio companies. F2’s areas of focus include Fintech, AI, Big Data, Cloud Ops, and Cyber.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/sy4qip11sq
Social & environmental impact investing. Bridges Israel is a Venture Capital fund that invests in Israeli startups that aim to make financial returns alongside significant social and environmental impact. The startups cover technology in areas including agriculture, water, climate, and health. It sees Israel as the Impact Nation.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/06qo0ztm0
Israel’s one-millionth tourist. Israel’s Tourism Minister welcomed Belinda Desoyo Lee Marcelo, a resident of the United Arab Emirates - its millionth tourist of 2022, just over four months since pandemic-related travel restrictions were lifted on 1st March. Nearly a quarter of a million tourists arrived in Israel in June.
Building the value of startups. Wendy Blumfield writes how Haifa’s Road2 startup hub (see here previously) helps local entrepreneurs, industry leaders and investors turn their innovative ideas into inspiring businesses.
https://www.jpost.com/jerusalem-report/article-711978 (Premium subscription required for full access)
Clearer vision for Boeing 737 pilots. Israel’s Elbit Systems’ subsidiary Universal Avionics Systems has won a $33 million order for its ClearVision Enhanced Flight Vision Systems (EFVS) for Boeing 737NG aircraft. ClearVision features the SkyLens 360-degree field of view Head Wearable Display and EVS-5000 cameras.
Investments, takeovers and mergers to 24/7/22: ForSight Robotics raised $55 million; Dot Compliance raised $23 million; Virility raised $10 million; Israel’s MedOne (data center hosting) has sold a 49% stake worth around $210 million, to Berkshire Partners.
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT`
Who by fire. Jonny Steel, VP Marketing at Israel’s Payoneer, shares insights after reading “Who By Fire: Leonard Cohen in the Sinai” by Matti Friedman. The Canadian Jewish singer / songwriter Leonard Cohen was transformed by his experiences in Israel during the 1973 Yom Kippur War.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/hkyjjwv3c
Cheers! Recent Israeli events featuring Adam’s Ale include the 7th annual Tekoa beer festival, which attracted nearly 3,000 people. Meanwhile, our local Netanya AACI hosted a lecture and tasting from Israel’s Jem’s Beer Factory based in Petah Tikva. And finally, Israel21c issued a guide to the many Israeli micro-brewing startups.
https://www.jns.org/seventh-annual-tekoa-beer-festival-draws-thousands/
https://netanyaaaci.org.il/event/beerevening/ https://www.jemsbeer.co.il/
https://www.israel21c.org/the-complete-guide-to-israels-microbrew-industry/
All happening in Jerusalem. Sharon captured the excitement of the Maccabiah Games opening ceremony and the Jerusalem streets in advance of the US President’s visit to Israel.
http://rjstreets.com/2022/07/17/jerusalem-shut-down-for-biden-and-lights-up-for-maccabiah/
Israel’s first World Championship marathon medal. Kenyan-born Israeli Lonah Chemtai Salpeter won the bronze medal in the women’s marathon at the World Athletic Championships in Eugene, Oregon. She is only the third Israeli in history to win a medal at the competition.
More medals at World Games. Israeli Jiu-Jitsu athletes won two gold medals, one silver and two bronze at the World Games in Birmingham Alabama. Nimrod Ryeder won the men’s 77kg Ne-Waza. Meshy Rosenfeld won the women’s 57kg. Israel finished 11th overall, with seven gold medals, ahead of the UK and Spain.
https://www.jns.org/israel-has-noteworthy-top-15-overall-finish-at-the-world-games/
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356674
Another Tour de France stage win. Israel - Premier Tech cyclist Hugo Houle described his win on Stage 16 of the Tour de France as “unbelievable”. He had previously finished third on Stage 13 and when the pack let him go ahead on the final climb, he said he “just went all in, full gas”.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/sports/article-712569
THE JEWISH STATE
Historic times. At the Jerusalem meeting of the Board of Directors of the Jewish Agency, Secretary General Josh Schwarcz said we are in historic times. They will bring at least 50,000 new immigrants to Israel this year, because of the war in Ukraine and from Ethiopia and other places - the largest number since the 1990s.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356407
Twins make Aliyah and join elite Navy unit. Ari and Ron, twin 18-year-old brothers from New York, made Aliyah recently with Nefesh B'Nefesh. They applied to join the Navy at the highest possible level and were drafted into the prestigious “Shayetet 13” unit of the Naval Brigade.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356894
One donation deserves another. 13-year-old cancer patient Eyal underwent a successful bone marrow transplant. In gratitude for the donation of stem cells, Eyal donated his Nintendo to another patient, bringing joy to both children. https://www.rambam.org.il/en/rambam_news/moving_moment_a_gift_to_encourage.aspx
Terrorist victim survives to earn degree. Shira Ish-Ran, who was shot by terrorists in 2018, has now obtained the B.Ed degree she was studying for at the time. Although she lost her unborn baby in the attack, she said, “I love the nation of Israel much more than ever, and I want to raise people who appreciate this nation…”
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356431
IDF guards world’s largest collection of Torah scrolls. (TY JNS) 400 Torah scrolls are being safeguarded at an IDF military base. Some are 750 years old, written on thicker parchment than today. Many have interesting histories – one is called “The Prisoner”, as it was captured by Egypt in 1973 and “released” in 2000.
https://www.israelhayom.com/2022/07/19/closed-idf-base-guards-worlds-largest-torah-collection/
Welcome back. Good article containing details of some of the many archaeological discoveries, from just the last 12 months, that confirm the ancient connection of Israel to the Jewish people. Plus, a 2,000-year-old mikveh (ritual bath) found when installing an elevator for handicap access near the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.
https://www.algemeiner.com/2022/07/11/new-archaeological-discoveries-confirm-ancient-connection-of-israel-to-the-jewish-people/ https://worldisraelnews.com/second-temple-era-ritual-bath-unearthed-while-building-western-wall-elevator/
17/7/22
In the 17th Jul 22 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
· A new Israeli-developed molecule can help treat chronic diseases.
· Good news for endangered sea turtles rescued by Israelis.
· Israelis turn algae into biodegradable plastic, medicine and more.
· Funding for nine new joint US-Israeli projects.
· Israeli dancers and gymnasts win World gold medals.
· The US President visited Israel, accompanied by a remarkable security advisor.
· Click here to see the 10th July newsletter on IsraelSeen, Ruthfully Yours, and United With Israel. Also (TY Sandra) in German here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Also (TY Zachy) in Hebrew here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Please pass on this newsletter to German and Hebrew-speaking contacts. Also (TY Esty) please visit the https://www.facebook.com/verygoodnewsIL Facebook page.
· Please click here, to donate (a small or large amount) to help me publicize VeryGoodNewsIsrael. (Please note that the donate link is now working and a PayPal account is not necessary!)
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ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Chronic disease breakthrough. Researchers from Haifa’s Bnai Zion Medical Center and Israel’s Technion Institute have developed semaphorin 3A - a molecule that maintains the balance of the immune system. It can help treat autoimmune or inflammatory diseases like lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, MS, and IBD.
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-711301
https://www.gov.il/he/departments/b-zion-health-center/govil-landing-page
Bionic bacteria. Scientists at Israel’s Technion Institute have engineered nano-sized hybrid biological components at room temperature. These fast-growing proteins, enzymes, and other biological compounds can be used to develop new, safer medicines and improved fuels that do not exist in nature.
https://www.technion.ac.il/en/2022/05/bionic-bacteria-novel-platform/
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/anie.202202457
How do the astronauts feel? Another experiment conducted by astronauts on the Axiom One Rakia mission to the International Space Station was the helmet of Israel’s Brain.Space (see here previously). Here is a detailed description of the experiment and the implications for future space travel.
https://nocamels.com/2022/07/brain-space-helmet-space/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Do2U-4xGs_Q
Early warning of patient problems. Israel’s Sheba Medical Center has just completed a clinical study of patients using the wearable vital signs monitor from Israel’s BioBeat (see here previously). It shows that the telehealth device can detect patient deterioration 38 hours before clinical deterioration, in 75% of patients.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356032
An alternative to psychiatric hospitals. An interesting report and separate analysis of the performance of three of Israel’s 13 Soteria Houses for psychiatric patients. Their compassion and supportive environments contrast with alternative psychiatric hospitals that focus on anti-psychotic drugs and more invasive therapies.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/psychiatry-through-the-looking-glass/202206/alternative-psychiatric-hospitals https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17522439.2022.2057578
Superfood is even better than mother’s milk. Israel’s Maolac (see here previously) has progressed from just producing an alternative to mother’s milk for babies. It is now using one ingredient for an anti-inflammatory product to help athletes recover after exercise. And another, to make a probiotic that reduces stress in the gut.
https://nocamels.com/2022/07/superfood-breast-milk-proteins/
The future is in HealthTech. "The Future is in HealthTech” was one of a new series of meetings sponsored by Calcalist and Start-Up Nation Central. It highlighted the pandemic-induced rise of telemedicine, Zoom meetings, and virtual reality. https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/rjzeu0gj9
https://newmedia.calcalist.co.il/conferences/2022/preseed/healthtech.html
More medical innovation partners. RISE is the innovation arm of Assuta – Israel’s leading private chain of hospitals. RISE already partners with 30 Israeli startups and has just added five more. Ibex Medical, Senseera, Theator, Magentiq Eye and MaveriQx – the only startup not previously reported in this newsletter.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/u25zmzuig https://www.maveriqx.com/
Paralyzed man is now back on his feet. A mystery illness caused 41-year-old Nir’s muscles to deteriorate and eventually Nir collapsed, paralyzed. At Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital, Nir was quickly diagnosed with an autoimmune disease called Guillain-Barre syndrome. A transfusion and plasma replacement restored Nir’s life.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356063
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Building sports facilities in Jerusalem for Arabs & Jews. Construction has begun on eastern Jerusalem’s first-ever public sports and swimming pool complex. Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion said the center was “only the beginning of the process of closing the gaps between the various parts of the city.”
https://www.jns.org/construction-begins-on-eastern-jerusalems-first-public-sports-and-pool-facility/
Vietnamese refugees in Israel. From 1977 to 1979, Israel gave refuge to some 360 of the so-called Vietnamese “boat people,” in the aftermath of the Communist takeover of the Southeast Asian nation. 45 years later, over 150 have remained in Israel, and are grateful for “the opportunity to rebuild our lives here”.
https://www.jns.org/35-years-on-vietnamese-refugees-are-still-writing-their-story-in-israel/
Murder victims warn against violence. Israel’s D-ID (see here previously) has used its avatar technology to support the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. D-ID has brought the victims “back to life” to publicize the dangers of violent husbands and actions women can take to save their lives.
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/i-was-murdered-video-brings-domestic-violence-victims-back-life-warn-others-2021-11-25/ https://nocamels.com/2021/11/israel-domestic-violence-abuse-d-id/
Rescued sea turtles released back into the wild. (TY Hazel) 17 endangered sea turtles (15 loggerheads and two green sea turtles) that were rescued by Israel after suffering major injuries were released last week back into the Mediterranean after months of rehabilitation at Israel’s Sea Turtle Rescue Center.
Israel and Brazil. Nice video (TY I24 News) showing the close relationship between Brazil and the Jewish State. Brazil was instrumental in the UN vote for Partition in 1947 which led to the founding of the modern Jewish State. Israel is known as the Promised Land and Brazil is known as the Land of Promise.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NepIm8YwJS4
Building hospitals in Morocco. (TY Hazel) The Israeli-founded IMS International Medical Services is to invest $497 million to construct several hospitals in Morocco. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed in Rabat by IMS co-founder Ms. Yardena Ovadia (also IMS’s President) and Morocco’s Ministry of Health.
https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2022/07/350026/israel-to-invest-497-million-to-build-hospitals-in-morocco https://ims-cure.com/about/
Medical equipment for Moldovia. (TY Hazel) Israel has donated a consignment of medical equipment worth $700,000 to Moldova It will be delivered to medical institutions for diagnosis and hospital surgery rooms, benefiting both Moldova’s citizens and refugees from the war in adjacent Ukraine.
https://www.moldpres.md/en/news/2022/07/06/22005039
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Engineering courses to fill hi-tech vacancies. Israel’s Afeka College (see here previously) in Tel Aviv has produced some 7,500 hi-tech graduates since 2014 and its 450-strong faculty is currently training 3,300 more. It aims to develop skills in math, physics, engineering, personal skills, English, Hebrew, programming, and ethics.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/ryjrz0c9q
The world’s most advanced digital mirror. Walmart is acquiring Israeli-founded Memomi, which has developed technology to enhance virtual optical try-on experiences, helping customers virtually “try on” eyewear in real-time. The technology is already used at 2,800 Walmart Vision Centers and 550 Sam’s Clubs.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/hk5n6nic9 https://memorymirror.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xp7s_kCHJS0
Eco-friendly light and shade. More about Israel’s Anai Green and her LumiWeave (see here previously) solar powered shade and lighting system. If Tel Aviv trials are successful, it can be rolled out to cafes and swimming pools and more. Besides cost benefits, by focusing the light downwards, it minimizes light pollution in cities.
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/energy-and-infrastructure/article-710869
Biodegradable plastic from waste and algae. (TY UWI & I24 News) Researchers at Tel Aviv University have produced plastic that degrades in nature within six months. They extracted bacteria from algae and fed it sugars from agricultural waste to produce plastics.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MzpOCQKbz0
The wonders of microalgae. Israel’s BarAlgae in Kibbutz Gan Shmuel near Hadera is the only Israeli company to grow seven species of microalgae. Its corporate clients use this to make into animal (mainly fish) nutrition, cosmetics, and supplements. BarAlgae’s self-built automated production system is amazing.
Supplements from Israeli herbs. On a visit to Israeli startup Bara Herbs in Yoknean, its CEO described the health products produced from Israeli and internationally grown herbs. Also, some great tasty teas, dried fruits, and cosmetics. https://bara.co.il/
“Outside of the box” food tech. See how Israel’s Vertical Farms grows fresh vegetables in a container in a supermarket car park. Also, the CEO of Israeli VC fund Millenium Food-Tech, which invests in innovative Israeli food technology companies. He highlights Israel’s Aleph Farms and its cultured meat technology.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQnceV6IGJY
The spirit of innovation. Another recent visit was to Israel’s Legends whiskey distillery (see here previously). Their unique Kentucky whiskey is sourced from corn, wheat, barley, yeast, and limestone-filtered Israeli water.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avC2yswhM0A https://www.legendsdistilleryisrael.com/
Chickpea alternative to dairy barista coffee. Israel’s ChickP (see here previously) has now customized its chickpea plant-based protein as a non-dairy alternative creamer for barista-style coffee drinks. The product has a smooth consistency, naturally foaming, with no bitter taste, no added sugar, or unnecessary added ingredients.
A “Wonderland” of drone navigation. Israel’s Wonder Robotics (see here previously) is to provide its Wonderland precise autonomous landings solution to Spright – the new drone division of US air medical services company Air Methods. https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/rymuw00ksc
Teen innovators. Four groups of Israeli high school “teenpreneurs” recently pitched to investors. Their products included Moosh - an AI search engine to find the perfect gift. ALTZ - an app to help dementia patients and families. STARYEAM, a VR driving simulator and Pro-Look - AI to reduce electric scooter accidents.
https://nocamels.com/2022/07/teenpreneurs-pitch-investors/
Israeli innovations are changing our lives. This whistle-stop video of Israeli tech features Mobileye, WaterGen, Israeli desalination, drip irrigation, GreenEye, Autonomous Robots, Tevel Aerobotics, PillCam, Re-Walk, and SniffPhone (all reported here previously), Don’t blink or you will miss something big.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aop6ypfERvY
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Israeli hi-tech is still booming. Numbers of employees in Israeli growth companies increases by 30% every year and there are now over 33,000 hi-tech job vacancies. Meanwhile, despite the downturn, Israeli startups raised almost $10 billion in the 1st half of 2022.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/s1u43ryic
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/h1vntlhoq
The world’s leading innovation authority. 3-min video of one of Israel’s most important institutions. The Israel Innovation Authority supports Israeli innovators from least to most experienced. From inception to long-term, high-risk R&D projects. For every shekel it invests, over 5 shekels are returned to the Israeli economy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aS35_tIc6js
Israel reopens economic office in Turkiye. Israel is to reopen its economic office in Istanbul, Turkiye (a.k.a. Turkey), on 1st Aug. It will benefit some 1,540 Israeli companies currently exporting to the Turkish market and help strengthen their business operations. 2021 bi-lateral trade was $7.7 billion, 30% more than in 2020.
https://www.jns.org/israel-to-reopen-economic-office-in-turkey-after-three-year-hiatus/
An $8 billion market. On-line games have made a significant impact on modern day culture, entertainment, education, rehabilitation training and technological advancement. Israel’s 190 digital games companies employ 14,000 people, earning a total of $8.6 billion in 2021 - 800% more than in 2017, and 5% of the global market.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/bko11adfoq
$7.9 million for 9 joint US projects. The US-Israel BIRD Foundation has approved $7.9 million funding for nine new joint projects. Israeli organizations are Compentex NurseSpace, Extreme Simulations, FlyWorks, Highlander, Overwolf, Innosphere, Sourasky Ichilov hospital, Wavelength (SEQENS), and ZutaCore.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/skgah09oq
NIS 2 million donation to train entrepreneurs. Israeli serial hi-tech entrepreneur Dr. Ori Allon has donated two million shekels to Tel Aviv University's Entrepreneurship Center. In addition to boosting TAU’s multi-disciplinary courses, it will also fund an annual hackathon challenge and TAU’s entrepreneurship for women.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/6ozixhuz1
https://english.tau.ac.il/vision/ori_allon_donation_entrepreneurship_center
Advising and investing in Israeli AI. Israel’s Opteamizer has built AI supplication models for several Israeli startups and provided training and consultancy to 90+ Israeli R&D centers. Now it plans to invest in 10 early-stage Israeli startups, join their board and streamline the entire development lifecycle of their AI applications.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/rysqhuwsc https://www.opteamizer.co.il/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waDCLw88pYQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlZtZWRrPB4
Israeli innovation for Michigan. The Michigan delegation visiting Tel Aviv’s EcoMotion was focused on Israel’s autonomous, electric, shared, and connected technology with startups such as Electreon and ZOOZ Power, but the State wants Israeli solutions for security, consumer goods, water, agriculture, and smart cities.
https://www.israel21c.org/why-israel-is-driving-mobility-innovation-in-michigan/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mQiJbimOlc
Takeovers and mergers to 17/7/22. US-based Clearhaven Partners acquired Israel’s SundaySky for $100 million. Israel’s IronSource is merging with Denmark’s Unity Software. Israel’s Optimove has acquired UK’s Graphyte for $40 million.
Investment in Israeli startups to 17/7/22: Cathworks received $75 million from Medtronic; AI21 Labs raised $64 million; Aurora Labs raised $63 million; Edge raised $30 million; Deci raised $25 million; Uncaged Studios raised $24 million; Gigantic (Clawee) raised $7 million; Wonder Robotics raised $4 million;
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT`
More activities for children in Israel. Check out some of the activities for kids in Israel at this site. Make candy, paint pottery, transform tree bark into paper, learn about biblical animals, make bread as they did in Temple times, have fun in Maale Adumim, and more. https://www.loveloveisrael.com/articles
Nefesh b’Nefesh Calendar. Events on the NbN calendar for July include an oasis hike, magic at Center Stage, an Orchestral concert, a guided tour of design art, and a nocturnal hike in the Carmel Forest.
https://www.nbn.org.il/israel-calendar/?mc_cid=a20081eb65&mc_eid=15465044d8
https://www.dmh.org.il/en/exhibitions/overdose/
https://www.nbn.org.il/events/nocturnal-animals-of-israel-journey-at-night-2/
Mental magic. (TY UWI and ILTV). 17-year-old Nevo Abutbul is one of the world’s youngest professional mentalists. He has already performed on US TV. He is about to be drafted into the army as the IDF’s first mentalist. Israel’s enemies should surrender now!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjZgIkfWos0 https://www.nevoabutbul.com/
Those Israeli walking seeds. Tour guide Pamela Levene remembers the pranks Israeli children played with the Israeli seeds featured in last week’s newsletter. Placed on the trouser leg, the seed, stimulated by sweat, would then "walk" upwards, causing great discomfort. The victims had to drop their trousers to remove them!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlUparIDfzE
Spanish gold for Israeli dancers. (TY JNS) Israel’s 23-member team “Chopskick” from Modi’in won a gold medal in the 62-nation, 120,000-competitors, Dance World Cup in San Sebastian, Spain. Their performance “Zombieland” won the Hip-hop Commercial Mega Crew category. Israeli teams won 18 medals at the event.
https://www.jpost.com/israeli-news/culture/article-711385
Israeli gold at World Games. 50 Israeli athletes are competing in the World Games in Birmingham Alabama. 16-year-old Daria Atamanov scooped two golds and a silver in the rhythmic gymnastics, as Israel finished top of the table in the event. Meanwhile Israeli kickboxer Shir Cohen is in the final of the under-52kg category.
https://www.jns.org/israel-sending-50-plus-athletes-to-birmingham-ala-to-compete-in-world-games/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekswDhxUB2U
10,000 compete in Maccabiah Games. The 21st “Jewish Olympics” began with 10,000 athletes from 80 countries who will be competing in 42 events all over Israel. In Netanya we met a team from Chile and a member of the over-55’s US tennis team. US President Joe Biden was a special guest at the opening ceremony.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356398 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrCGh8y_VMo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muLwf-UuOE4
THE JEWISH STATE
Aleppo synagogue reconstructed. An exhibit at Jerusalem’s Israel Museum uses Virtual Reality (VR) to “rebuild” the Aleppo synagogue, destroyed by the Syrians. The exhibit was only possible thanks to the 50 photos smuggled out by Sarah Shammah, a young Syrian Jew, on the last plane to Israel from Beirut in 1947.
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/all-news/article-710003
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Synagogue_of_Aleppo
Building monumental buildings in Jerusalem. Designing new buildings in Jerusalem is unlike building in any other city in the world. This article describes the new entrance pavilion at the Tower of David Museum, the Davidson Museum at the Western Wall, and the National Memorial Hall for Fallen Soldiers on Mount Herzl.
https://www.jns.org/a-hat-trick-of-monumental-architectural-designs-in-jerusalem/
Delegation of European Muslims visit Israel. A 40-member delegation of young Muslim community leaders from France and Belgium visited Israel recently. They were led by French Imam Hassen Chalghoumi. The participants said they saw real Israelis and not the stereotypes they had been told about back home.
US President’s security advisor. Accompanying US President Biden on his Israel trip is Anne Neuberger. She is an orthodox Jew from Brooklyn New York. Granddaughter of Shoah survivors, she speaks Hebrew, Arabic, and Yiddish (and English!). Her parents were rescued by Israelis at Entebbe in 1976 – the year she was born!
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356441 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Neuberger
https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2015/07/12/421816261/at-the-nsa-a-rising-stars-commitment-to-faith-and-public-service https://www.jpost.com/israeli-news/article-712002
A Nation Reborn. David Harris’s potted history of the Jewish State is simply earth-shattering.
https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israel-a-nation-reborn/
A lasting recipe. When Israel’s Ida Kleinman passed away in 2010, aged 91, she was determined not to take her famous recipe for nut cake to the grave. She gave instructions to have it engraved on her tombstone. Now visitors to Rehovot Cemetery can view it anytime, or alternatively at these on-line sites.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/235667149/ida-kleinman
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/30/dining/gravestone-recipes.html
10/7/22
In the 10th Jul 22 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
· 3 examples of Israelis stimulating the immune system to fight diseases.
· Israeli startups are helping Sardinia eradicate a plague of locusts.
· An Israeli partnership will electrify two-wheel deliveries.
· An “extremely” sweet victory for an Israeli-developed sugar replacement.
· Three Israeli startups that can ease global travel chaos.
· A member of the Israeli cycling team won the 5th stage of the Tour de France.
· As one ancient mosaic returns to Israel, archeologists unearth several more.
· Click here to see the 3rd July newsletter on IsraelSeen, Ruthfully Yours (plus great intro), and United With Israel. Also (TY Sandra) in German here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Also (TY Zachy) in Hebrew here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Please pass on this newsletter to German and Hebrew-speaking contacts. Also (TY Esty) please visit the https://www.facebook.com/verygoodnewsIL Facebook page.
· Please click here, to donate (a small or large amount) to help me publicize VeryGoodNewsIsrael. (Please note that a PayPal account is not necessary!)
· Click here to keyword SEARCH almost any topic in the IsraelActive archives (20,800+ news articles).
· If someone wishes to be added to the free email subscription list, they should either click here or send a request (with their name) to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Rebooting the immune system. Israel’s NeoTX (see here previously) is now conducting a Phase 2 trial of its naptumomab estafenatox (NAP) bacteria-coated, immunotherapy cancer treatment on 30 patients in the US. It is also enhancing an AstraZeneca checkpoint inhibitor. NeoTX has 3 Nobel prizewinners in its team.
https://www.israel21c.org/new-cancer-treatment-fools-the-immune-system-to-attack/
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/neotx-announces-successful-first-stage-120000979.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntk8XsxVDi0 https://neotx.com/
How we fight fungal infections. Scientists at Israel’s Weizmann Institute have made a vital discovery in how Candida infections are countered in healthy humans. Until the immune system’s TH17 T-Cell lymphocytes turn up, rare lymphoid cells (Aire-ILC3s) spring into action to hold back the potentially dangerous fungal infection.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/355598 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41590-022-01247-6
https://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/life-sciences/curbing-candida-cells-keep-fungal-infections-bay
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yu7Qj5quVwM
T-Time. Dr. Elad Jacoby - Head of cell therapy, Pediatric Hematology and Oncology at Israel’s Sheba Medical Center talks at Talpiot xmed 2022 about how they re-educate T-cells in the immune system to destroy cancers that used to take the lives of young children. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4oCvOtTgu4
Bacteria may help cancer patients. Israel’s Biomica (see here previously) has given 12 cancer patients, who had poor responses to immunotherapy, pills containing bacteria missing from their gut microbiome. In 2020, doctors at Sheba hospital used fecal bacteria to shrink the tumors of three cancer patients.
Smart fabric accelerates repair of nerves. Scientists at Israel’s Technion Institute have developed an ultra-thin silicon-based membrane that speeds up the repair of damaged nerves. The material is wrapped around the nerve while the wound is open. When the wound is closed, the material is stimulated using near-infrared light.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-smart-fabric-uses-electricity-to-fast-track-repair-of-nerves/
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41563-022-01249-7
Diagnosing diseases in space. Scientists at Tel Aviv University and Israel’s Volcani Institute developed the kit that Israeli astronaut Eytan Stibbe tested on his mission on the International Space Station. It proved that even under zero gravity, diagnosis known as CRISPR-Cas can identify viruses and bacteria infecting crew members.
https://unitedwithisrael.org/israeli-scientists-invent-space-age-diagnosis-method/
Warning of patients at risk of hospitalization. Suboptimal polypharmacy is when medication for two or more chromic conditions clash. Israel’s FeelBetter has been deployed by Israel’s Leumit Healthcare and preliminary results show it can identify 70% of elderly patients at risk of hospitalization in the next 3 to 9 months.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-tech-works-to-avert-hospitalizations-by-flagging-problems-with-clashing-meds/ https://www.feelbetter.healthcare/
Joint medical research with UAE. Israel's Maccabi Healthcare Services HMO and health organizations in the United Arab Emirates have signed several deals to promote joint medical research and tech innovation. They focus on advancing personalized medicine and includes building a genomic research registry for the UAE.
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/all-news/article-710960
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Rescuing food for the poor. The 4th annual Leket Live 2-day tour of Israel took volunteers to a moshav farm, to prepare food parcels near Haifa, to an IDF training base, to see South Tel Aviv, to pick vegetables in Rishon LeZion, and to pack parcels in Jerusalem, and more. Spaces are available for next year’s Leket Live mission.
https://live.leket.org/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQp55PyzUw8
A special swimmer. Ayelet was among 424 other women from Israel and abroad who took part in the 2km Kinneret swimathon in May to raise funds for the special-needs adult workshop at Gevaot in the Gush. Ayelet herself has Downs Syndrome yet has swum the Kinneret for the past 9 years, holding hands of other swimmers.
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-710881 https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-707654
Bringing peace to the region. Article about the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation provides information on its collaborative programs between Israelis and Palestinian Arabs. They include the Saving Children program, the Training Doctors program, and its mentoring events.
https://nocamels.com/2022/06/peres-center-peace-innovation/
https://www.peres-center.org/foundation/projects/entrepreneurship/start-up-link/
Jews and Arabs bring baby formula to US. Israel’s Jonathan Feldstein personally transported 119 containers of Israeli baby formula to churches in the US for distribution to needy families. He enlisted help from his own Genesis 123 Foundation and the Palestinian Arab branch manager of his local Rami Levy supermarket.
https://www.jns.org/opinion/helping-american-parents-get-the-formula-they-need-from-israel/
Global training in Agriculture. (TY UWI) The Arava International Center for Agricultural Training (AICAT) trains 1,200 people annually from 16 countries in methods that raise their yield and their income. The students pay tuition fees from the money they earn while gaining practical work experience on local farms.
https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-farm-school-gives-asian-and-african-students-skills-for-life/
A solar water pump for Ethiopian farmers. Scientists from Israel’s Technion Institute have developed a unique water pump powered solely by solar energy. It can deliver water from wells to crops, to give farmers a second annual harvest and increased yields in Ethiopia and remote areas across Africa.
https://www.technion.ac.il/en/2022/05/solar-water-pump/
Fighting locust infestation in Sardinia. President of Sardinia, Christian Salinas, asked for help to eradicate the locust infestation plaguing his country for the last 3 years. Israeli agro-tech companies in the field were quick to respond with advice. Israel’s last plague of locusts in the Arava region was dealt with in under two weeks.
https://unitedwithisrael.org/israel-helps-fight-locust-infestation-on-this-island/
Still healing Ukrainians. It may no longer be making headlines, but physicians from Hadassah Medical Center are still performing surgery for sick and injured Ukrainians at the Przemysl refugee camp on the Ukraine-Poland border. This article describes one doctor who operated on 10-year-old Alexandra to cure her foot pain.
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-710783
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Israel’s first conference on carbon removal. There are 20+ Israel companies involved in carbon capture and removal. Many of them, and others, presented at Israel’s first conference on carbon sequestration. Projects included deep-sea seaweed to capture CO2 for photosynthesis and converting organic waste into biochar.
https://www.compostor.co.il/en/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKyzowMP26I
Smart Israeli batteries to power smart Israeli scooters. (TY UWI) The light, powerful AI-designed 3D electric batteries from Israel’s Addionics (see here previously) will soon (in 2023) power the smart electric scooters from Israel’s Blitz motors (see here previously). The partnership is a first for both companies.
https://www.israel21c.org/cheaper-lighter-batteries-to-power-e-mopeds-in-tel-aviv/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5dUgEdE-hQ
Computer chips to protect road users. Israel’s autotalks (see here previously) has unveiled 3rd generation chipsets TEKTON3 and SECTON3, designed to support future V2X (vehicle to anything) requirements. They will enable automatic braking to help protect car users, two-wheelers, and pedestrians.
https://semisrael.com/israeli_prs/autotalks-unveils-a-new-v2x-chipset/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzBUGDYAX2c
The age of Aquarius. (TY IsraelUnwired) Newsmax video provides an update on the latest progress of Israel’s Aquarius Engines (see here previously) and its replacement for the combustion engine. It weighs 22lb, can run on pollution-free hydrogen and can power a car for 750 miles on a single tank of gas.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0LplvN4M1s
Preventing overuse of pesticides. (TY UWI) Article features three Israeli companies developing technology to combat agricultural diseases without harmful pesticides. Ecophage uses harmless bacteriophages; IBI-Ag uses insecticides tailored for a specific insect; and Projini AgChem uses AI to identify molecules that combat pests.
https://www.israel21c.org/smart-solutions-for-the-worlds-serious-pesticide-problem/ https://ecophage.com/
https://www.ibi-ag.com/ https://www.projini.com/
Humidity can heat and cool your house. Israel’s ThermoTerra (see here previously) uses the water vapor in the air to heat and cool. Humidity power involves using evaporation to cool and condensation to heat, via an absorbent material. It saves energy, money, and the environment. https://www.thermoterra.com/
https://www.israel21c.org/new-technology-can-heat-and-cool-your-house-using-nothing-but-air/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQ968nrGjrU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNRwXNLvNyk
AI to prevent falls from scaffolding. Israel’s Pangea IT (see here previously) has developed AI technology to solve the problem of construction workers' falls from scaffolding. Pangea's sensors, AI analytics and computer vision systems send immediate alerts if a dangerous load is detected, or if workers are not tied to the lifeline.
https://www.startuphub.ai/pangea-launches-ai-powered-technology-to-prevent-construction-workers-falls-from-scaffolding/ https://pangea-it.com/in-the-news/
Extreme Tech Challenge winner. (TY WIN) Israel’s “super-sweet” sugar replacement startup Amai Proteins (see here previously) was named overall global winner out of more than 2,000 entrants at the Extreme Tech Challenge (XTC) awards in Berkley, California. Amai was also judged best in the agtech and food sector.
https://www.israel21c.org/sugar-replacement-startup-wins-global-award/
https://extremetechchallenge.org/featured/the-2022-xtc-global-finals-winner-is-here/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt_W1ium5EE
Faster searches. Many companies use internal search engines as a critical part of their core technology. Israel’s Opster has developed AutoOps to prevent and resolve performance problems and other issues in real-time. It avoids the need for the company to waste time & money on search administration.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/rk1rasloc https://opster.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6Vl9D4ubPc
The factory of the future. Israel’s 3D Signals (see here previously) transforms industrial machines into ‘smart’ production facilities, boosting efficiency, cutting costs, and saving energy. IoT sensors are placed on the factory machines, connecting them via the Cloud. Samson AG saw productivity boosted by 30% in 3 months.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/spotlight/israeli-startup-brings-pre-digital-factories-online/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9P4xO6UnLKc
Create an app just by describing it. Israel’s Spiritt has launched a platform that allows the development of complex applications such as Tinder, Instagram, or Wolt, by merely describing them. This is achieved through conversation with a chat-bot which mimics a conversation with a professional.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/ryir11twoc https://spiritt.io/
Mapping the planet. Israel’s 4M Analytics (see here previously) uses remote sensing satellite technology, topographical maps, location data, and more, to map underground infrastructure. Its ability to identify power grids, oil and gas pipelines, and fiber optic cables underground is vital for construction companies.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/byd5n511c5
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
More and more trade with Arab states. (TY Algemeiner) Israel’s $200+ million trade with the UAE in May represents a 130% increase on May 2021. Trade with Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, and Bahrain also leaped by huge percentages. https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/middle-east/economy/1656845340-israel-reaches-record-trade-increase-with-arab-states-under-abraham-accords
Solving the airline chaos. OurCrowd hosted CEOs from Israeli startups SeeTrue, IntellAct, Freightos, and IBM’s digital transformation executive advisor to discuss how technology can improve our jet-lagged transportation networks. https://events.ourcrowd.com/on-demand/
Jefferies Bank opens Israeli branch. The prestigious American investment bank Jefferies is setting up an Israeli branch due to the recent the sharp rise in local activity – the most since the 1980s. Jefferies is currently working on seven deals and expects, by September, to bring 20 private funds to Israel.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/ulctnxxsq
Bayer to open Israeli cybersecurity center. German giant Bayer will open a cybersecurity development center at Bayer Israel’s existing Hod Hasharon offices in Israel, as part of the multinational’s global cybersecurity operation. Its aim is to engage and partner with the cybersecurity sector inside Israel’s tech ecosystem.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/pharma-giant-bayer-to-set-up-cybersecurity-center-in-israel/
Helping Israeli cyber startups launch in US. Merlin (US) helps Israeli startups penetrate the U.S. federal market. Merlin Ventures arranges strategic investments in cybersecurity companies, Merlin Cyber helps with marketing strategies, and Merlin Labs brings the technology together. Merlin opened a Tel Aviv office in 2020.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/60qhw0auc
Alt protein R&D for Tnuva. Following its success with alternative milk products, Israeli-based Tnuva has launched an R&D center for alternative protein products. It is investing NIS 5 million in the facility in Rehovot, which will be the first time Tnuva has dealt with meat, fish, and egg alternatives.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/by3qv00k5q
Another carmaker invests in UVeye. General Motors is the fifth multinational car manufacturer to invest in Israel’s UVeye (see here previously). The funds are “to help fund the development and commercialization of the company’s vehicle inspection technology.” The firms will explore using the tech at GM’s 4,000 dealerships.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/general-motors-invests-in-israeli-vehicle-inspection-startup-uveye/
Vegan on display. Several food businesses received popular acclaim at Tel Aviv’s Vegan Fest earlier in June (see here previously). They include The Dim Sum Shop, Green Roll Vegan Sushi, and EggZit.
https://www.israel21c.org/a-non-vegan-tries-new-tastes-at-the-tel-aviv-vegan-fest/
https://dimsum.co.il/ https://thegreenroll.co.il/ https://www.facebook.com/eggzitisrael/
Investment in Israeli startups to 10/7/22: Voyantis raised $19 million; Phytolon raised $14.5 million; Spiritt raised $5.5 million; Opster raised $5 million; Maolac raised $3.2 million; IBM has acquired Israel’s DataBand;
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT`
Old and new streets of Jerusalem. Avi Abelow gives a 9-minute tour of some of the streets in Jerusalem, from the 18th-19th century to the modern day. https://pulseofisrael.com/2022/06/15/old-new-streets-jerusalem/
Ein Hardalit. (TY OFEK) Ein Hardalit, found in the Western Galilee is a magical water hike which is suitable for the whole family. Ein Hardalit is completely shaded and great for a hot summer’s day. One can sit in the water or on the riverbanks, along the length of this gorgeous flowing stream.
https://trippinginisrael.co/ein-hardalit/ https://www.westgalil.org.il/en/ent/ein-hardalit-he/
https://www.loveloveisrael.com/post/ein-hardalit
Busy Jerusalem. (TY Sharon) Tourists filled Jerusalem’s streets in the past week, at the Machane Yehudah Market and Jerusalem Design Week’s “FOR NOW” event. Business was brisk at the Economic Conference and thousands more are expected at the forthcoming Jazz Festival, Paul Anka concert, and Maccabiah Games.
http://rjstreets.com/2022/07/03/jerusalem-busy-in-july/
Israeli TV shows have gone global.
Here come the Pixies. After their 2020 Tel Aviv concert was cancelled due to Covid-19, veteran American alt rock pioneers the Pixies will finally take the stage at the Tel Aviv Expo on Monday, July 11. It will be the band’s third visit to Israel, following sold-out shows in 2014 and 2017.
https://www.jpost.com/must/article-711274
Tour de France stage winner. (TY Hazel) Australia’s Simon Clark, who cycles for Israel-Premier Tech, won the fifth stage of the Tour de France, the first-ever win for the Israeli team at the competition. "Israel is on the map at unbelievable levels today," said team owner and philanthropist Sylvan Adams.
https://www.jpost.com/israeli-news/sports/article-711373
THE JEWISH STATE
A 3-min tour of the City of David. (TY I24 News & Inside Isael) A short video of the excavations revealing 5,000 years of the Biblical history of Jerusalem. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-cmd3i-UtUs
150 more Ethiopians arrive. One hundred and fifty new immigrants from Ethiopia landed in Israel as part of Operation Tzur Israel. One of them said, "This is a very great privilege. We have been waiting for many years to make Aliyah and do not believe that this is happening. The first place I would like to see is Jerusalem."
https://www.jpost.com/aliyah/article-711202
Ethiopian Book of Psalms rescued. After a separation of over thirty years, an Ethiopian family has finally been reunited with their precious Book of Psalms that they had to abandon when fleeing to Israel in Operation Solomon. The book, written in the ancient Ethiopian language of Ge’ez, is hundreds (if not more) years old.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/356056
Wandering Jewish wheat. The normally anti-Israel BBC made this video of Israeli wild wheat seeds. Just like the Jewish story, the seeds have learned to move to places where they can take root and thrive. The re-discovery of hardy Israeli wild wheat (see here) is now helping breed crops that can grow in harsh conditions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlUparIDfzE
Indian Jews celebrate Bar Mitzva at Kotel. (TY UWI) At a moving bar mitzvah ceremony at Jerusalem’s Western Wall, dozens of young Indian Jews celebrated their Bnei Mitzvot. The group was on a trip with Birthright, an organization that brings Jewish youth to Israel to experience their ancestral homeland.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxU8-Xupebk
Ukrainian Jewish refugees to marry in Israel. Yakov and Malka, refugees from Ukraine, are to marry on July 10 in Tiberias, a city on the shore of Israel’s Lake Kinneret. Both headed dormitories at a Kyiv yeshiva but only became friends after the Russian invasion. Quiet Yakov transformed into a hero and Malka was smitten.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/355813
New mosaic center in Lod. Children from both Arab and Jewish kindergartens and a youth music ensemble of Arabs and Jews joined in the festivities at the dedication of the new Lod Mosaic Center. It houses a magnificent 1,700-year-old Roman-era mosaic that was discovered in Lod in 1996 and has just returned from a world tour.
https://www.jns.org/high-hopes-for-new-mosaic-center-to-unite-mixed-israeli-city/
Mosaics of biblical Deborah & Yael unearthed. Archeologists have unearthed nearly 1,600-year-old mosaics in an ancient Jewish synagogue at Huqoq in Israel’s Lower Galilee. They are the earliest known depictions of the biblical heroines Deborah and Yael as described in the book of Judges.
3/7/22
In the 3rd Jul 22 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
· An Israeli pathway to eradicating all dangerous viruses.
· Israeli therapy cured a patient with aggressive prostate cancer.
· The UN elected Israel to help fight discrimination against women.
· Israel’s mobile tech conference attracted thousands to Tel Aviv.
· Israeli technology powers safer transportation on land, sea, and in outer space.
· The UAE’s largest airline has begun scheduled flights to Israel.
· An Israeli dairy is to produce “no-cow” milk products.
· An Israeli paramedic delivered a baby in the ambulance donated by his “survivor” grandfather.
· Click here to see the 26th Jun newsletter on IsraelSeen, Ruthfully Yours (with another great intro), and United With Israel. Also (TY Sandra) in German here, plus posted by Stuart Palmer here. Please pass on this newsletter to German and Hebrew-speaking contacts. Also (TY Esty) please visit the https://www.facebook.com/verygoodnewsIL Facebook page.
· Please click here, to donate (a small or large amount) to help me publicize VeryGoodNewsIsrael. (Please note that the donate link is now working and a PayPal account is not necessary!)
· Click here to keyword SEARCH almost any topic in the IsraelActive archives (20,800+ news articles).
· If someone wishes to be added to the free email subscription list, they should either click here or send a request (with their name) to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
A platform to eliminate all viruses. Hebrew University startup ViroBlock has reported preliminary success of its platform for rapidly generating anti-viral therapies. Its channel blockers inhibit proteins expressed by current and emerging viruses, including COVID-19 and variants, influenza, Zika, West Nile, Hepatitis B and more.
EU funding for cardiac implants. Israel’s Restore Medical (see here previously) been awarded a €2.5 million grant by the European Innovation Council (EIC). Restore Medical is conducting human trials of its ContraBand implant to treat Congestive heart failure. 1,093 global companies applied for EIC funds; only 74 received them.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/rjejifvqq
New skin for old. Scientists at Haifa’s Rambam Health Care Campus and Israel’s Technion Institute reversed the aging of skin cells by grafting aged human skin in lab tests. The skin rejuvenated - even generating new blood vessels and improving age-related biomarkers. It represents a breakthrough for research into aging.
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-710319 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CyWiiR6cOc
Wake up and smell the coffee. (TY UWI) After last week’s article about dogs sniffing to detect cancer (see here) this article summarizes many of the Israeli innovations related to scents and odors.
https://www.israel21c.org/why-scent-is-the-next-frontier-for-technology/
Breakthrough prostate cancer therapy. Israel’s Alpha Tau Medical (see here previously) has successfully treated a patient with aggressive prostate cancer using alpha-radiation - injecting a radioactive isotope into the tumor. Alpha DaRT (Diffusing Alpha-emitters Radiation Therapy) destroys a tumor by breaking its DNA.
Ready for anything. Israeli emergency medical organization Magen David Adom has established a new center at Ben Gurion University of the Negev, designed to simulate real-world emergencies. 23 senior MDA paramedics recently received training there and there are plans to train 100 more over the next few months.
https://www.jns.org/mda-paramedics-gain-hands-on-experience-in-new-emergency-training-course/
Force for good. (TY UWI & I24 News) In Israeli hospitals, the Israel Outpost of the 501st Legion villains of “Star Wars” are actually a force for good, bringing joy to sick children. They also perform at events to raise money for sick children. Watch them pay a visit to Safra Children's Hospital in Israel’s Sheba Medical Center.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1T3qBWmtrE4
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Empowering female entrepreneurs. Israeli NGO Yozmot Atid empowers women from Israel’s geographical, social, and economic periphery. Its training program helps some 1,000 women each year start businesses and become financially independent. The NGO took dozens of senior Israeli executives on a tour of the businesses.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/s19tsjevu https://yozmotatid.org.il/en/
No more building of chicken cages. Israel is among the first countries in the world to ban chicken cages for egg-laying hens and to move to non-cage systems. Israel’s new regulations also include providing regular care for chickens and bans on the practice of induced molting and beak trimming.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/355425
A school for coexistence. (TY WIN) Jalal Toukhi trained as a lawyer in Tel Aviv municipality and has a Social Studies master’s from Al-Quds University. He is the first Israeli Arab to be principal of an Israeli school. The Ajyal school in Jaffa has 150 teachers from all sectors and religions, and is one of the best in Israel.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEyFnOjh27U
Apple for Israelis & PA Arabs. Apple’s R&D centers in Herzliya and Haifa currently employ 2,000 Israeli engineers working on Apple M1 chips and depth sensing camera. Apple also has 60 Palestinian Arab engineers at its Apple hub in the new PA city of Rawabi, run in partnership with PA company, ASAL Technologies.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/bypitho59
Muslim EMT rescues Jewish Ukrainian refugees. United Hatzalah’s Khaled Hardan, a Muslim volunteer paramedic from Wadi Ara in northern Israel, flew to Warsaw to help ensure Jewish Ukrainians could undertake the journey to Israel. Khaled said, “I am happy that I was part of the team that was able to bring them to Israel.”
https://unitedwithisrael.org/muslim-paramedic-helps-rescue-jewish-refugees-after-russian-invasion/
Ending discrimination against women. By a majority of 115, the United Nations General Assembly elected Israel to its Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. UN Ambassador Gilad Erdan was “proud to see more Israeli women leading & promoting women’s rights across the globe".
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/355445
Disaster aid for Afghanistan. Israel’s IsraAID is working with local partners to provide humanitarian relief to victims of the magnitude 6.1 earthquake in Eastern Afghanistan. It plans to provide essential items such as bandages, sterile syringes, gauze, suture kits, tourniquets, pain killers, antibiotics, and basic medication.
IDF warning prevented cyberattack on US power plants. The deputy chief of IDF Unit 8200 said that his intelligence agency warned the United States of attempts to hack the country's power plants in time to thwart the cyberattack. The IDF spotted the attack on the US while they were defending Israel’s water systems
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-710691
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Israel Mobile Summit. After two years of virtual events, 2,000 industry experts returned to Expo Tel Aviv for the Israel Mobile Summit, part of Israel Mobile Week. Some interesting new Israeli apps include Simplify (to overcome the fear of flying) and CR8 (to specify who and where to date).
https://nocamels.com/2022/06/mobile-summit-app-innovative/
https://simpliflyapp.com/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXKhd9bi0c0 https://cr8date.com/
World Bank praises Israel’s fiber rollout. A study by the World Bank praises Israel’s rollout of hi-speed fiber-optic Internet. 60% of Israeli households now have fast Internet access. The Communications Ministry plans to meet again with the World Bank in September to share its deployment model with other countries.
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/tech-and-start-ups/article-710518
World class nano-scientist. Professor Jacob Sagiv of Israel’s Weizmann Institute is the first Israeli to win the international Kavli award, for astrophysics, nanoscience, and neuroscience. Prof. Sagiv shared the Nanoscience prize, with 3 USA colleagues for their pioneering work on self-assembling monolayers on solid substrates.
https://www.jpost.com/science/article-708497
Solar-powered diamond production. (TY Atid-EDI) Israel’s Lusix (see here previously) has launched “Sun Grown Diamonds” - the world’s first 100% solar powered lab-grown diamonds. Lusix’s whole operation is now fully powered by a dedicated 30-megawatt solar farm situated in southern Israel.
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220608006179/en/%C2%A0LUSIX-Unveils-Sun-Grown-DiamondsTM https://lusix.com/
Atomic clocks for all occasions. Israel’s AccuBeat (see here previously) has been supplying the U.S. Air Force with its atomic clocks for 20 years. It outfits Israeli Air Force jets and Israeli Navy submarines, UAVs and is building the Ultra Stable Oscillator for the European Space Agency’s JUICE mission to Jupiter’s moons.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/rkvuhqofc
Safety device for bikes and scooters. Israel’s Autotalks (see here previously) has developed ZooZ2 – a device installed on the handlebar of bikes and scooters. It warns riders of potential collisions with vehicles, plus alerts all V2X (Vehicle to Everything) equipped vehicles about the existence of the rider.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P69KhoER2Rk
Safer ships. Another Israeli maritime safety startup, Captain’s Eye, has developed an AI-based system that detects unusual events on ships in real-time, such as smoke and leakage, security breaches, unsafe crew behavior, and other anomalies. It can prevent property, physical, and financial damage that might occur at sea.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/rkdxrrdq9 https://captain-eye.com/
Eco-friendly power for satellites. Israel’s Space Plasmatics (see here previously) uses solar power to heat up eco-friendly propellant into ionized plasma gas for maneuvering nanosatellites in space. The startup uses patent technology that originated at Israel’s Technion Institute and tested (see here) on Eytan Stibbe’s recent mission.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/h1s2m5r95
Turning desert into fertile soil. (TY Stuart Palmer) Isha Foundation’s Sadhguru spoke to 4,500 in Tel Aviv on the 48th day of his 100-day journey to Save Soil. He said, while the rest of the world had witnessed degradation of fertile land, Israel was one nation that had been busy transforming desert into fertile, agricultural fields.
https://www.news18.com/news/india/israel-leading-innovation-in-agri-tech-turning-desert-into-fertile-soil-says-sadhguru-in-tel-aviv-5147107.html https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-710201
Why food tech in Israel will change our future. Israelis have unlocked the secrets of cellular plant biology, taking active ingredients from plants to develop supplements that the body needs to survive and thrive. Hear from Professor Uri Lesmes at Israel’s Technion Institute, and then from the co-founders of Israel’s Bioharvest.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDgPbK7NvAE https://vinia.co.il/ https://bioharvest.com/
Groundbreaking water recycling. (TY IsraPundit) Israel is to be the first in the world to pipe desalinated water into a natural lake - the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee). After much testing, the NIS 900 million, 15km pipe effectively will, by next year, connect the lake to five desalination plants on the Mediterranean coast.
Life-changing technology. The winner of the 5th annual Women’s Hackathon at the Jerusalem College of Technology was “EasySurf,” a mechanism that enables seniors to have easier access to modern-day technology. Second was a flying defibrillator and third place was a camera that detected babies left in a car.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/355345
Never stop developing. Israel’s Wilco has developed an upskilling platform for software developers. Developers join a game-like experience designed to accelerate their professional growth. Engineers go on quests that challenge them to navigate complex life-like scenarios while utilizing real tools and technologies.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/r1vp1jckc https://www.trywilco.com/
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
The digital Shekel. The Bank of Israel has published the outline and main insights from its first technological experiment of the digital shekel project. The BoI reported that it had established distributed ledger technology (DLT) infrastructure on the cloud and applied a Quorum blockchain based on Ethereum open-source platform.
https://www.boi.org.il/en/NewsAndPublications/PressReleases/Pages/20-6-22.aspx
Boosting economic peace. Just over three decades after the Madrid Peace Conference, the city hosted the first Madrid and The New Middle East Business Summit. It comprised some 200 business delegates, who came to promote investment and trade relations between the United Arab Emirates, Israel, and Spain.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/355356
$880 million for climate-tech development. The Israeli government has approved the implementation of a NIS 3 billion program to promote innovation in climate-tech. Its 5-year plan aims to double the number of startups in this area to 100 and vastly expand the number of related venture capital funds.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/h1jrfzlq9
VC fund for Reichman graduates. Reichman University in Herzliya is setting up a venture capital fund that will invest mostly in startups founded by its graduates. Investors have already committed $30 million, to be allocated to pre-Seed and Seed investments in startups founded by students, even during their studies.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/hjnxuukq9
Inaugural Emirates airline flight. The UAE’s largest airline Emirates made its first scheduled passenger flight to the Jewish state. 335 passengers flew from Dubai to Tel Aviv on a Boeing 777 “Gamechanger,” which, according to Emirates, features the world’s only fully enclosed first-class private suites with virtual windows.
https://www.jns.org/inaugural-emirates-airline-flight-to-tel-aviv-takes-off-from-dubai/
Women, wine & whiskey. Tal Tauber Gottesdiner is the founder of HaShizra (The Stem), a community that empowers women in the Israeli wine, culinary and spirit industries. Over 260 women joined HaShizra in its first year and it now has over 900 members. HaShizra events are open to both women and men.
https://www.israel21c.org/sisters-are-doing-it-for-themselves-in-israels-wine-industry/
https://www.hashizra.com/english
Building a safe partnership. Japanese construction and mining giant Komatsu has signed a partnership agreement with Israeli AI construction safety startup INTSITE (see here previously). INTSITE’s technology helps prevent accidents and improves efficiency by identifying anomalies and bottlenecks during mining work.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/ryk3w9w9c https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lTJ0GjXRJo
Making ADAS affordable. Israel’s Hailo (see here previously) is linking up with the R-Car systems-on-chip from Japan’s Renesas to make high performance Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) technology more accessible in all cars. Hailo’s CEO said that its “AI will play a major role in making our roads safer”.
https://ai.hailo.ai/hailo-renesas-for-adas-av
Glamping in Israel. Several companies provide tourists a view of Israel and its landscape outside of hotel rooms. Gag Eden is located on the roof of Jerusalem’s Clal Center. It also has a campsite in Jerusalem’s Peace Forest. Others include Glamping Israel and Glow Camping. Booking.com and Airbnb also provide options.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/with-glamping-an-israeli-tourism-growth-sector-gets-in-tents/
Israeli dairy to produce no-cow milk products. Israel’s Central Bottling Company (CBC - a.k.a. “Coca-Cola Israel”) has signed a 10-year agreement with Israel’s leading cultured milk production company Remilk. CBC subsidiary Tara Dairy will use Remilk’s proteins to manufacture and market no-cow yogurts, cheeses etc.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/almdqv8av
Investment in Israeli startups to 3/7/22: Gloat raised $90 million; Cyolo raised $60 million; Incredibuild raised $35 million; Konnecto raised $21 million; Cordio Medical raised $18 million; Helios.dev raised $5 million;
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT`
White Night is back. After a two-year break due to Covid, Laila Lavan (White Night) returns to Tel Aviv – an all-night celebration from dusk to dawn. It features music concerts on the beach promenade, street theater and dance performances, sidewalk stalls offering street food from burekas to tapas, and all-night shopping.
https://www.israel21c.org/white-night-tel-aviv-music-dance-films-food-till-dawn/
Samaria Film Festival. (TY JNS) The Samaria Regional Council will host its first film festival beginning July 3. 25 movies will be screened over the course of four days in venues throughout the area. It is financed by the Samaria Cinema Fund, which has supported some 70 movies filmed in Judea and Samaria in the last 3 years.
https://www.israelhayom.com/2022/06/21/samaria-to-kick-off-regions-first-ever-film-festival/
32 things to do with kids in Israel this summer. You shouldn’t run out of ideas with this Israel21c guide!
https://www.israel21c.org/top-32-summer-activities-for-kids-in-israel-2/
Israel reaches European under-19 soccer semifinal. Israel’s youth soccer team made history by qualifying for the semifinal of the UEFA under-19 championships, the furthest an Israeli squad has ever advanced in the contest. They will now participate in the under-20 soccer World Cup, which is to be held next year in Indonesia.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-first-israeli-under-19-soccer-team-reaches-european-semifinal/
Israel’s unprecedented success in judo. Israel won nothing in its first 10 Olympic games. medal. But at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, judoka Yael Arad won a silver medal and dedicated it to the 11 Israeli athletes murdered in 1972. It inspired Israeli judokas to win six of Israel’s total of 13 Olympic medals.
THE JEWISH STATE
Christian tours of the Jewish State. Hundreds of young Christian adults are scheduled to arrive in Israel this summer for the largest Passages tour since the start of the pandemic. College and graduate students from across the US come to Israel to connect with their biblical roots and get to know the modern Jewish state.
https://www.jpost.com/j-spot/article-710281
Conversations on Zionism. Jun 5th's webinar in JNF’s series on Zionism features Fleur Hassan Nahoum - Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem. She speaks about being a woman in power, the Bedouin, Jewish, Arab, and Druze women she works with, and the strong Emirati women in the UAE-Israel Business Council she founded.
https://jnf-usa.force.com/s/lt-event?id=aBH6T0000019iR4WAI (webinar registration link)
https://www.youtube.com/zionismstudios (previous webinars in the series)
Jewish Studies Zionist Network. The new group “Jewish Studies Zionist Network” comprises scholars and educators in the field of Jewish Studies who “affirm that Zionism is a legitimate movement for the national self-determination of the Jewish people in their ancestral homeland.” I hope they use my newsletter material.
https://jsznetwork.weebly.com/
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-YlnODOO_-YZC_XneRPnjGNOPnFQZzN7/view
Rabbi and Gabbai of the Year. Israel’s Barkai Center for Practical Rabbinics gave its 2022 Rabbi of the Year award to Rabbi Yonah Meshulam HaCohen Fodor of the Beit Yehuda Synagogue in Beit Vagan, Jerusalem. Two Gabayim tied for Gabay of the Year, and Lod’s Ramat Eshkol community won Community of the year.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/355749 https://www.israelrabbis.org/en/
Sderot continues to develop. (TY Sharon) Despite attacks from nearby Gaza, the 30,000 residents of the Israeli city of Sderot are not abandoning their homes. See these photos of parks, lakes, yeshiva, animal therapy center, Founder’s Museum, music center, hi-tech businesses, as well as some brightly decorated bomb shelters.
http://rjstreets.com/2022/06/26/sderot-more-than-missiles/
The miracle of life. Holocaust survivors Shimon and Susanna Lifshitz donated an ambulance to Magen David Adom after making Aliyah. Their grandson Avraham, a senior EMT for MDA, recently delivered a baby girl in the same ambulance. Grandfather Shimon said, “it’s for moments like this that we donated the ambulance”.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/355718
