Israel Active

I wrote previously on the rehabilitation progress of Israel’s once-polluted Kishon River. Nature lovers were pleasantly surprised this winter to see the thousands of narcissus flowers in and around the river where they hadn’t bloomed in 20 years.

Researchers at Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, have developed a new method of plant analysis and identified an average 15,000 organic chemicals (metabolites) in each plant. They then set up a database of metabolites, called WeizMass, and a tool MatchWeiz

Israel’s NRGene and US giant Monsanto have signed a non-exclusive, multi-year global licensing agreement for NRGene’s genome-analysis technology. The accord “will enhance Monsanto’s ability to predict, compare and select the best genetic makeup.

Israeli startup GTC Sound Innovations has produced the RevPad, an innovative wireless sound-effects controller designed as a compact touchpad that attaches easily to any amplified instrument.  It frees guitarists from sound-effects pedals that connect via cables to their guitars.

Israel’s Gilat Satellite Networks is partnering with Air Media Group to provide an in-flight broadband service exceeding 100Mbps to air passengers in flights over mainland China.

Israeli startup GPSdome is marketing a miniature “GPS anti-jammer,” a low-cost pocket-sized gadget to counteract radio frequency transmitters that deliberately block GPS communications. GPS is essential for autonomous vehicles and GPSdome is talking to car manufacturers.

Remember the SCIO scanner from Israel’s Consumer Physics Inc?  Now SCIO’s technology has been built into the Changhong H2 to produce the world's first molecular sensing smartphone. It was unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.

Tel Aviv is one of 10 cities in the prestigious “Global Initiative on Autonomous Vehicles.”. It joins London, Paris, Helsinki, Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires and five US cities, each aiming to incorporate driverless cars into its public transit system.

I wrote recently about Israeli cybersecurity startup Aperio and its ability to detect attacks against critical infrastructure.  Aperio was selected as the most innovative startup in the Cybertech 2017 Startup Competition, winning a trip to the RSA Conference in San Francisco.

An Israeli-led study over 15 years reveals that 3.5 trillion insects, weighing a total of around 3,200 tons, migrate hundreds of kilometers every year.  This is one of the first comprehensive studies that examines the phenomenon of insect migration.