Israel Active

Israel’s National Infrastructure Committee green-lighted construction of a desalination plant in the Western Galilee - Israel’s sixth. It will provide 200 million cubic meters of water annually and save the cost of building infrastructure to move water from the South over the Carmel Ridge.

Israel’s Ben-Gurion University and the UK’s University of Bristol have signed an agreement to collaborate on cyber security and Artificial Intelligence research. It formalizes their many ongoing ad-hoc research projects and exchange opportunities.

Ben Gurion University researchers have greatly reduced the amount of dust on solar panels, significantly increasing their efficiency. Inspired by the lotus leaf, which remains dust free due to its nanotextured surface, they etched nanowires onto the panels and applied a hydrophobic coating.

Israel’s Elbit Systems’ NANOVA nanosatellite was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Southern India. NANOVA was developed as part of the BIRD foundation initiative and is planned to be a part of a nanosatellite constellation for commercial purposes.

Israel’s Actiview.io develops augmented reality (AR) software for human resources - mostly games and assignments to assess potential employees. Now Actiview’s AR software has been integrated into the training courses and classrooms of French graduate business school INSEAD.

An Israeli installation titled “Goren” won the “Big Emotions” award - as part of the Jerusalem Design Week delegation at Design Art Tokyo 2019. A cloud of wheat rises into the shape of a chandelier, symbolizing extinct varieties of wheat that Israel is restoring.

As reported previously the GalaPro app from Israel’s GalaPrompter delivers multilingual real-time subtitles (and more) of Broadway shows to your smartphone in the theatre. This accessibility service is now available at the School of Rock musical in Drury Lane, London.

As reported previously, Israel’s ElectReon develops a real-time wireless electrification system for roads, to reduce dependence on fuel and charging stations. It has now partnered with German energy company EnBW which will implement the technology initially on two roads in Germany.

An international team of underwater archaeologists has uncovered the oldest known manmade seawall off the coast of Haifa. They have concluded that it was built at Tel Hreiz to keep out rising water from melting glaciers. Eventually, Tel Hreiz was submerged and abandoned.

Israeli micro-satellite Duchifat-3 was successfully launched from India’s Space Research Organization’s Sriharikota launch site. It was developed for ecological research imaging by high-school students at the Space Lab of the Herzliya Science Center and the Sha’ar HaNegev school.