Israel Active

(Thanks to Yair) An Israeli company has made a watch to keep your loved ones safe. The Foxiwatch has GPS, a mobile phone and an emergency contact button. For children or at-risk adults.

(Thanks to Jacob) A long but very positive article on Israel’s technical prowess. Covers cyber-security, UAVs (unmanned drones), computer processor chips, the Start-up nation, Be’er Sheva’s Advanced Technology Park, Negev agriculture and Ben Gurion University.

A site for a new technology and engineering campus has been allocated in southeast Tel Aviv. The 6.75-acre site will accommodate 5,000 students, dormitories, the Afeka Academic College of Engineering, plus education institutions already in the area, such as the ORT Singalovksi School.

Half of Israel’s electricity now comes from natural gas – mainly from the new Tamar offshore gas field. Israel Electric Corporation announced that this is its cleanest year ever for environmental quality and the production of clean, green electricity.

Israel Corporation subsidiary IC Green Energy has inaugurated a facility in New Jersey to produce gasoline from natural gas. The plant can produce up to 100,000 gallons (440,000 liters) of gasoline a year. Automobiles will be able to use the lower cost, less emissions fuel without any modifications.

Israel’s Ormat Technologies builds Recoverable Energy Generators (REGs) that turn waste energy from industrial processes into usable electrical power. It already recovers 160 megawatts in the USA and 595 MW worldwide. It has just agreed to build a 5MW REG power plant for eBay in Utah.

Tel Aviv University is to set-up a new research center at China’s Tsinghua University. Initially, the new “XIN” center will focus on life sciences and nanotechnology. It will recruit researchers and students in Israel and China.

Israeli agriculturists have cultivated the world’s largest date. The Anbara date species, which can grow to over 10cm, was planted at the Eden R&D center seven years ago and is being harvested for the first time. The largest specimen was presented at President Peres’ open succa.

(Thanks to Size Doesn’t Matter) The 2x2x2 inch CuBox-i from Nazareth-based SolidRun has no moving parts. You need a separate monitor (or TV screen) and power adaptor, but you have probably got these already. From $45 to $119. Deliveries begin in November.

(Thanks to Eli) Defeating the threat from Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) has been the aim of the world’s anti-terrorist forces. The Miniature Reactive Jammer (MRJ) from Israel’s Elbit Systems was launched at DSEi in London. The device detects, analyzes and disrupts the IED trigger signal.