By Michael Ordman
NETANYA, Israel — The current news is full of smart Israeli solutions that benefit the world. It also contains many examples of smart countries, companies and individuals that have recognized this important role of the Jewish State.
Israeli biotech SynVaccine is developing smart, safe synthetic vaccines from the tissue of the recipient’s own cells that the body’s immune system can recognize. SynVaccine also generates the vaccine using computer technology rather than from a potentially dangerous live virus. Meanwhile, Tel Aviv University and Schneider Medical Center researchers have made the smart discovery of a genetic mutation responsible for Primary Ovarian Insufficiency (POI) that affects one percent of all women worldwide. The cause came to light after they DNA tested two Israeli-Arab cousins with the condition. And the smart staff at Jerusalem’s Shaare Zedek Medical Center realized that although they delivered 22,413 babies in 2014 (probably the largest number in the world for one hospital) they could prevent many subsequent deaths and injuries if they provided free infant car seats to get the babies home safely. Please watch this video to see more of Shaare Zedek’s smart innovations.
Israel’s smart surgeons treat everyone regardless of nationality or religion.
- Such as the complex heart surgery to save 18-month old Iraqi Christian Maryam Mansour.
- Or the Syrian boy treated after he lost a leg in an explosion and for whom six Israeli medical students subsequently bought a smart new digital tablet with their own money.
Some of the thousands of Israeli smart apps for smartphones and mobile devices include:
- Green Road Technologies’ smart vehicle monitors that save fuel and reduce accidents.
- E2C’s interface that makes smartphones easier to use for seniors and the technically challenged.
The future of Israeli smart innovations is encouraging, as indicated by the fact that Israeli companies and entities registered 3,555 patents in the United States in 2014 – a 21 per cent increase on 2013. So it’s not surprising that the smart researchers at Israel’s Weizmann Institute of Science were awarded the top percentage of grants by the European Research Council’s 7th Framework Program.
An increasing number of international organizations are becoming wise to the facts about Israel’s smart innovations. They include:
- The delegation of US reporters and editors who came to Israel’s Ben-Gurion University to see cutting-edge Israeli research in neuroscience, stem cells and medical robotics.
- The delegation of leaders from the Miami tech-startup community who have just spent a week in Israel learning from our thriving tech and innovation sector.
- And the Canadian Institute for Jewish Research, which will showcase Israel’s contributions to the world at its 27th annual international conference in Montreal on 29th April.
Countries that have been smart enough to call upon Israel’s help recently include:
- Taiwan, where Israel has been giving smart advice to the government about public campaigns, recycling and better infrastructure that will alleviate Taiwan’s worst drought in over a decade.
- China, which sent a delegation from the city of Shouguang to Israel, as part of the Water City project that Israel is leading.
- South Korea, where a delegation of Israeli cyber security companies is showing how Israeli technology can better secure the Asian state.
- Rwanda, which Israel is helping jump-start its technology ecosystem, using education, skills exchange and investment.
- And Kenya, where the smartest of its agricultural entrepreneurs hopes to win the Israel Kenya Agri Challenge and where Tel Aviv University’s Pears Challenge for Innovation and International Development encourages smart Israeli agricultural entrepreneurs to develop tech solutions for Kenyan farmers.
Smart companies are investing heavily in Israeli hi-tech companies.
- Horizons Ventures, owned by Asia’s richest man – Li Ka-shing, is Israel’s largest foreign startup investor and did a very smart job in persuading Israel’s Waze to accept its funds.
- Spanish bank Santander has invested in MyCheck – the largest mobile payment company in Israel. The move is also smart for MyCheck, which now has access to Sandander’s 107 million-plus customers across Europe and the Americas.
Israel has also been smart to recognize talent within its borders. Tarek Abu-Hamed, a Palestinian Arab from Sur Baher in East Jerusalem, has just been named as deputy chief scientist of Israel’s Ministry of Science, Technology and Space.
Finally, news has only just come to light about Muslim nuclear scientist Noha Hashad who spent 11 years in an Egyptian jail, for conducting pro-Jewish Quran research. During the chaos following President Mubarak’s overthrow in 2011, she escaped and fled to Israel. “Israel is like a jewel, a diamond, I am very fortunate to be here,” she said.
Now that is Smart thinking!
Michael Ordman writes a free weekly newsletter containing positive news stories about Israel. www.verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com For a free subscription, email a request to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com
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