And in addition: an award from Google for students from the Technion * a high ranking for the Hebrew University * a clinical trial on an inhalation device * an energy program at the Holon Institute of Technology * an Israeli neurotechnology conference in Washington * a British satellite will compete in the Israeli communications space * students at the Academic College of Engineering in Jerusalem donated to children with cancer
IBM opened a research laboratory in Kenya
IBM has opened research laboratories in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, which will be the company's first laboratory on the African continent.
The laboratory in Nairobi, which was opened in collaboration with the Kenyan government, will engage in basic and applied research, with an emphasis on solving problems relevant to the African continent and preparing a scientific and technological base on the continent.
The new lab is IBM's 12th research lab. Today, BMW has research laboratories in the USA (3), Brazil, India, Switzerland, China, Japan, Australia, Ireland and Israel - where the largest laboratory is outside the USA.
The new laboratory in Kenya will focus on research related to future applications in the public sector, smart cities and the development of human capabilities. The IBM laboratory will also run training programs in which outstanding African scientists will be able to get paid in the laboratory.
IBM's activity in Africa is part of the company's strategy to expand operations in developing markets. Today, BM has a presence in more than 20 countries in Africa and the company has developed a series of programs designed to help countries and organizations on the continent.
About 3,000 researchers are employed in IBM's research system worldwide, and IBM's annual investment in research and development reaches about 6 billion dollars a year.
The Hebrew University ranks 2nd in the list of the best academic workplaces to work in outside the USA
"The Scientist" magazine ranked the Hebrew University of Jerusalem at the top of the best workplaces among the academic institutions located outside the US borders. The Hebrew University was ranked second and is the only Israeli institution that made it to the top of the list. The ranking is based on a survey conducted by the magazine among more than 1,000 people working in academic institutions and research institutions in the US and abroad. Among the criteria by which the participants were asked to rank the various institutions were research resources, job satisfaction, the level of teaching, tenure, promotion and the salary level of the ranked institutions.
The first place outside the US was won by the Center for Molecular Medicine in Vienna CeMM and the first place inside the US was won by the independent J. David Gladstone Institutes that operate without profit in San Francisco.
The president of the university, Prof. Menachem Ben-Shashon, welcomed the ranking and said: "I thank the members of the academic community, thanks to whom we regularly reach the top places in this index. A community that is comfortable to serve in also guarantees high academic achievements. The Hebrew University regularly reaches the top of academic achievements thanks to the sense of partnership and responsibility of its staff. I congratulate my friends for the recognition outside of their achievements at home.'
A new program for natural resources at the Holon Institute of Technology
The Holon Institute of Technology - HIT will launch its new curriculum called: "Natural Resources-Energy and Water, Oil Gas and Fuel Alternatives Program", at a fundamental conference called: "The Fuel of Tomorrow". The conference will be held on Tuesday, September 11, 2012.
The international center at HIT will be a focal point for academic, educational and research activities, in close cooperation with industry. The Center for Fuel, Energy and Water Substitutes will offer an applied technological academic infrastructure for the training of professionals in the field, in order to respond to market problems, and to develop new ventures in the field.
A prize for students at the Technion for a Parach campaign on Google
A team of three students from the Technion won first place in the Middle East and Africa region, in the Google Online Marketing Challenge. The three - Alex Zhitnitsky, industrial engineering and management student, Oshri Rosenhak, aeronautics student and Boris Friedman, physics student, and the supervisor Prof. Mishna Sharit Moldovan from the Faculty of Industrial Engineering and Management - promoted the Parah mentoring project for three weeks by digital advertising through Google AdWords. During the activity, they achieved wide exposure for the association, and contributed to the addition of more than 150 new volunteers to the organization.
Associate Professor Sarit Moldovan says: "Due to my work in the field of marketing, I know the competition, but until this year no student has contacted me about it. This year, Alex, who works as my research assistant, asked me to guide him and the team and of course I was happy to do so. As a start, I directed them to an academic article that dealt with the topic of business promotion on Google, from which they could learn and draw conclusions regarding the way of working in their campaign."
Inspiro Medical begins clinical trials on the inhalation device
Inspiro Medical heating Mashgav, owned by the Trendlines Group, which develops an inhalation device intended for the treatment of respiratory diseases, announced that it will begin clinical trials in September at the Schneider Hospital in Petah Tikva
The Inspiro Medical company develops Inspiromatic - an active inhalation device, based on dry powder (DPI) for home use and in medical institutions. The company recently reported that it received approval to begin clinical trials and in September will begin conducting the trial, at Schneider Hospital in Petah Tikva. The trial will include about 30 asthma patients and is expected to continue for about 3 months.
Nimrod Kaufman, CEO of Inspiro Medical: "Inspiromatic is an active inhalation device, which optimizes the passage of medication, without respiratory effort, does not require the patient to follow and follow complicated instructions for its operation and allows the doctor to effectively and continuously monitor how the medication is taken. After completing a laboratory experiment with equipment that simulates human lungs, the results of which showed a very high efficiency in the transfer of the drug through Inspiromatic, and after receiving the approval for clinical trials in asthma patients, we are continuing with the clinical trials phase, as another significant step on the company's path."
BIRD Foundation, BSF Foundation and USISTF will hold a conference on Israeli neurotechnology in Washington
The Bird Foundation, the Israel-US Binational Industrial Research and Development Foundation, the BSF Foundation, the US-Israel Binational Science Foundation and USISTF (US-Israel Science and Technology Foundation) will hold a conference on neurotechnology on September 12 in Washington , USA.
The "Accelerating US - Israel Neuroscience & Neurotechnology Collaborations" event is designed to present the existing potential in creating additional collaborations between the countries in this field, both in the academic field and in the industrial field. At the conference, the speakers will present the latest research in the field, leading developments and breakthroughs in regards to function, disorders and brain diseases. The sessions will focus on memory and brain training, brain-computer interface, trauma and stroke, post-trauma, brain cancer and neurodegenerative diseases.
The event will be attended by senior officials from the USA and Israel, both from the world of academia and from the world of business. Among the speakers: Dr. Michael Oren, Israel's ambassador to the US; Patrick Kennedy, co-founder of One Mind For Research; Dr. James Kelly, Director of NICoE (National Intrepid Center of Excellence) which operates a center for the treatment of traumatized soldiers through simulations and holistic treatment; Bill Doyle, chairman of the Israeli company Novo-Cure, which developed an innovative oncology treatment for a breakthrough brain cancer treatment; Dr. Jeffrey Nee, director of innovation in the field of neuroscience at J&J and more.
Students from Afka will participate in an electric car race
For the first time: a group of students from Israel will try to qualify for a special international competition for the design and construction of electric racing vehicles FORMULA STUDENT ELECTRIC, which will be held next year in Germany (August 2013).
Students from Afeka College - the academic college of engineering in Tel Aviv, founded the Afeka Racing Team organization more than a year ago to plan, design and build the first Israeli electric racing car, with the aim of qualifying for the prestigious competition. The competition includes the development of a physical prototype of an electric racing car and the presentation of a marketing plan for the production of 1,000 vehicles of this type.
In order to help the Israeli team qualify for the prestigious competition, Omnitech, which represents Autodsek in Israel, a world leading manufacturer of 3D software for design, planning and engineering, decided to provide the Afeka Racing Team with an Autodesk software package,
In addition, it provides ongoing technical support and dozens of hours of training delivered by the best of its experts, for the development of a digital prototype of an electric racing car.
Students at the Academic College of Engineering in Jerusalem donated to children with cancer
Fourth year software engineering students, who are finishing their degree at the Jerusalem Academic College of Engineering, donated about NIS 3,000 to the association "Idod Ma'ido", which works for children with cancer in Jerusalem, on the occasion of their graduation.
The outgoing vice-chairman of the student council, a fourth-year student in the college's software engineering department, Eli Ancona, says: "Toward graduation, we decided to hold a tribute to some association and collect donations for it. We decided to do this jointly with the "Idod Ma'ido" association, which we know from the activities of the student council, in which we gave computer lessons for parents of children with cancer and magic classes for the sick children. Of course, we did not require any of the students in our cohort to donate, and anyone who decided to do so could donate as they saw fit, with the recommended amount being NIS 100."
The chairman of the "Idod Ma'ido" association, Ya'akov (Yankela) Ben Hamo, thanked the students for the donation on behalf of the children's families and the association, and congratulated them on the initiative. The association "Idod Ma'ido" was established in 2011 by Yankela ben Hamu, a.k.a. the late Ido Roth, with the aim of helping families from the Jerusalem area and Mete Yehuda who face the difficulties and challenges of being a family to a child with cancer.
Avanti announces the successful launch of the HYLAS 2 satellite
Satellite operator Avanti Communications Group announced the successful launch of the satellite from Europe's spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana on Ariane Flight VA208.
Thanks to the perfect launch using Ariane 5, the satellite arrived at the orbital position exactly at the appointed time. The HYLAS 2 satellite lifted off from the Ariane 5 rocket at the appointed time and the telemetry data was received at the European Spaceport Control Center.
David Williams, CEO of Avanti Communications, said that "I am happy that our second satellite, HYLAS2, was successfully launched and is now operating under our control. In the next three months, we will perform a series of planned tests on the route, before we start providing service to our customers."
Williams also noted that "the HYLAS 2 satellite will provide fast data communication to South and East Africa, the Middle East and the Caucasus." The knowledge site adds that these are the same areas where the Israeli space company that operates the Amos satellites operates.
SGI supercomputer also in the meteorological service
TNN Telecom, part of the stock market Rafek group, won the tender for the meteorological service for a supercomputer that will provide improved capabilities for weather forecasting and the possibility of running future climate models. With an advanced computer manufactured by SGI, which it exclusively represents in Israel, TNN completed the installation of the system at the meteorological service site in Beit Dagan within 3 months (end of April to end of July 2012). Like its predecessor at the Technion, the scope of this tender is also estimated at approximately NIS 2 million.
The computer will make it possible to run very high resolution local models that will improve weather forecasts, as well as run models to assess future climate changes.
