Israel Active

Excellent article explaining how Israel’s Seambiotic takes the Carbon Dioxide (greenhouse gas) directly from smokestacks and uses it to feed algae for biofuel projects in Ohio and Italy and for the vitamin industry in China. It’s still early days, but shows much promise.

Watch this film clip of RoboThespian teaching a class of Israeli children how to work with weights and levers. Plus some Shakespeare verse and a song. Lessons were never like this in my time.

Israel’s PrimeSense provides the 3D sensing technology for Microsoft’s Kinect for XBox 360. PrimeSense has been selected as a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer and one of the world’s most innovative technology start-ups that can transform the future of business and society.

One week after Tel Aviv announced a new Environmental school, now Israel’s capital is to get one. Ex deputy mayor of New York, Robert Price has donated NIS 30 million to build the 2,000-square-meter facility overlooking Sacher Park on the Hebrew University campus.

The Massachusetts-Israel Innovation Partnership selected Needham-based Automated Medical Instruments to participate in its Accelerator program. AMI develops the CircumBlator which destroys faulty heart tissue that causes irregular heart-beats.

(Thanks to IsraellyCool). Israel’s Ricor Cryogenic & Vacuum Systems manufactures the K508 Integral Stirling 1/2W Micro Cooler. This neat little device is currently optimising the temperature of NASA’s vital CheMin chemical analyser on the Red Planet.

Daniel Gold was IDF’s director of research and development for the Iron Dome missile defence system. Now he is commercialising military technology for farming purposes by integrating ground sensors and airborne drones to monitor biology of the vegetation and regulate plant health.

Tel Aviv’s new Porter School of Environmental Studies is due to open in 2013. The EcoBuilding is built to LEED Platinum standards – the first in Israel. It has a roof garden; solar vacuum tubes to power air conditioners; “passive” wind ventilation; recycled water plus electric car and disabled parking only.

Israel’s Solaredge has installed its advanced solar panels in a New Orleans neighbourhood that was rebuilt after being devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Survivors in the “River Garden Apartments” now live in a new and modern neighbourhood, enjoying Israeli technology at its best.

The Israel Electric Company has completed a new 375-megawatt steam and natural gas power station one month ahead of schedule. The Zafit power station, in the country’s south-central region, has been connected to the national grid and will reduce the risk of power cuts due the current heat wave.