Monthly Archives: December 2013

“Adopting the Dog Made My Life at Technion More Colorful,”

dogs2According to Eshhar Tal, a fourth-year Technion student who adopted a guide dog pup. Eshhar is one of 19 students at Technion who adopted guide dog puppy, which accompany them all around campus, to lectures and even the library

Those of you who have walked around the main campus lately, would have spotted an unfamiliar sight – cute Labrador pups accompanying students all through the day – to classes, during breaks and visits to the library. These students are raising the puppies and training them to be guide dogs for the blind. The project, operating at the Technion and at other academic institutes in the North, is coordinated by the “Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind.”

According to Ella Matek, who heads the puppy program at the Foundation, “Technion has the largest concentration of dogs in Israel’s northern region. Approximately 20 dogs were given to students when they were about eight weeks old for a period of one and a half years. A puppy becomes a guide dog after a long training period, when it reaches the age of two and up. Students walk the pups all day, thereby exposing them to their daily lives, which include situations such as travelling by public transportation, walking around campus, studying in classrooms and at the library, and even accompanying them to their workplace for those students who work. We provide students with close guidance such as instruction on how to train their pups at home, on the street, and in crowded public areas. Choosing to adopt a puppy is a heavy responsibility and this is why I usually tend to work with families. At first I was weary about handing over such a great responsibility to young people, but now I see that I was mistaken. Students never cease to amaze me! They take the matter very seriously and invest many hours in training their pups.”

“The pups are given to people with a dynamic lifestyle so that they may experience a wide variety of circumstances,” explains Tom Shefi, a third year student at Technion’s Faculty of Biology. “Since these are future guide dogs for the blind, we have been given special permission to walk around with them everywhere – on public transport, on campus and in classrooms. Throughout the day the dogs are always by our side, accompanying us to lectures and workplaces. I really love animals and I’m glad I can contribute to a good cause. Over the past several years, students from the Technion have been adopting guide dogs and walking them around campus, but last year it really gained momentum. Many students are asking to adopt a dog and right now, the demand exceeds supply. Those responsible for caring for the pups at the Foundation, supply us with dog food every month and instruct us on how to train them and get them used to their role as future guide dogs for the blind.”

“After looking after them for a year and a half, students must part with their dogs. “I’m trying not to think about giving my pup up,” says Tom. “This is the best decision I made during my time at Technion. Whenever I’m upset or stressed out Yoshi puts her little head on my lap and this relaxes me. She really helps me cope with my studies.”

“My mother never agreed to raise a dog in the house,” tells Eshhar Tal, a fourth year student in the Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering. “I really love dogs and always wanted to raise one, so for me, adopting a puppy for a year and a half is an ideal arrangement – I don’t have to dwell over what will happen to it after. In two months from now I have to part from Taz, and I know it’ll be hard but it’s for a good cause and I’m certain that they’ll take very good care of him.”

“All my teachers have been very agreeable about Taz attending their lectures. Sometimes, when he falls asleep they tease me, asking how can he fall asleep in the middle of the most important lecture of the semester and how will he make up all the material he missed! Taz is a good dog and fast learner. He is very well behaved and obedient, and I’m very proud of him. I’m certain that he will be an excellent guide dog and of great help to blind people.”

The Prestigious Scientific Journal, Nature, Reports:

Technion Scientists developed a new method, the “zipper approach,” for selective synthesis of complex molecules

This is a new approach to complex molecular framework for which Professor Ilan Marek from the Schulich Faculty of Chemistry received a grant in the amount of 2.4 million Euros from the European Union – it is for “thinking differently about chemical synthesis and going against mainstream wisdom.”

Technion scientists developed a new method, the “zipper approach,” for selective synthesis of complex molecules. This has been reported by the prestigious scientific journal, Nature.

The synthesis of new molecules is central to the development of many areas of science from medicine to materials science. Since the 19th century, the conventional approach to syntheses of organic materials was through the building of new bonds, mainly carbon-carbon (C-C), while controlling their spatial structure (stereochemistry). But is this the only way to create complex organic molecules, asked Prof. Marek?

According to an article published by the prestigious scientific journal, Nature, Professor Ilan Marek and his research team from the Schulich Faculty of Chemistry, have demonstrated for the first time, a novel approach through selective bond activation that combines the simultaneous activation and fragmentation of otherwise difficult transformations: allylic C-H (H=Hydrogen) and selective C-C bond activations. To reach this goal, they used a molecule that has on one of its sides some strain, because of a presence of a three-membered ring, and on its other side a double bond. By adding zirconium complexes, they were able to initiate a double bond migration, similar to -the zipping action of a zipper, up towards the three-membered ring, causing a selective cleavage of one carbon-carbon bond of the strained ring. “It’s much like zipping up your jacket, joining both sides of the zipper from the bottom end and zipping it upwards,” explains Professor Marek. “Sometimes the link between the two sides disconnect when you move the zipper up. We were able to conceive this detachment and fragment it in a premeditative manner to achieve our target.”

This breakthrough is linked to a publication made a year ago, also in Nature, in which Professor Marek’s team reported an innovative approach for creating molecules possessing a specific chiral center in a single-pot operation using only primary material. Up till then, only few scientists reached this point through tedious synthetic approaches.

Both of these groundbreaking studies by Professor Marek have far-reaching implications for the synthesis and development of new drugs and have aroused great interest in the scientific and industrial community. For his “innovative and alternative way of thinking about synthetic chemistry which went against the mainstream” Professor Marek has now received a grant in the amount of 2.4 million Euros from the European Union. He is getting ready to recruit additional researchers to assist in this promising research.

For developing unconventional methods of synthesis, Professor Ilan Marek received in 2012 the Israel Chemical Society (ICS) Award for Excellence and the Janssen Pharmaceutical Prize for Creativity in Organic Synthesis and the Moore Distinguished Scholar Appointment from the California Institute of Technology.

Mayor Bloomberg, Cornell President Skorton and Technion President Lavie officially transfer 12 acres of Roosevelt Island to Cornell Tech.

Construction on a Sustainable, Innovative Technology Campus Will Begin in January;

First Phase to Open in 2017

Project a Key Piece of the Mayor’s Applied Sciences NYC Initiative, Designed to Transform New York City’s Innovation Economy

19/12/2013

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, Cornell University President David J. Skorton, and Technion-Israel Institute of Technology President Peretz Lavie today formally executed a 99-year lease between the City of New York and Cornell Tech, which will pave the way for construction of the Cornell Tech campus on Roosevelt Island, exactly two years after Cornell and academic partner Technion were named the first winners of the City’s Applied Sciences NYC competition.

Cornell Tech is a revolutionary model for graduate-level technology education and is establishing itself as a world-leading institution, conferring graduate degrees and conducting research that drives technology, innovation, commercialization and the creation and retention of businesses and jobs in New York City. The land transfer will allow for groundbreaking on the campus to begin in January, with the first classrooms on Roosevelt Island set to open in 2017. Cornell Tech students began classes this fall in space donated by Google at their Chelsea headquarters on Eighth Avenue. Construction of the entire 2 million square foot build-out, which will span 12 acres on Roosevelt Island and house approximately 2,000 students and nearly 280 faculty and researchers, will be completed by 2043. New details and renderings for the first phase of the full campus were also released today, revealing how the physical campus will be designed to support Cornell Tech’s focus on innovation, entrepreneurship and collaboration between academia and industry. Mayor Bloomberg and President Skorton signed the lease documents at a City Hall ceremony to finalize the official land transfer to Cornell Tech, where they were joined by President Lavie, Deputy Mayor for Economic Development Robert K. Steel, New York City Economic Development Corporation President Kyle Kimball, U.S. Representative Carolyn Maloney, Council Member and Borough President-Elect Gale Brewer, Council Member Jessica Lappin, Cornell Tech Vice President Cathy Dove, Cornell Board Chair Robert Harrison, Cornell Provost Kent Fuchs, Cornell Tech Dean Daniel Hutenlocher, Forest City Ratner Companies President and CEO MaryAnne Gilmartin, and Hudson Companies Principal David Kramer.

“Our goal has been to make New York City the global capital of technological innovation, and this new campus on Roosevelt Island is a central part of our strategy for achieving it,” said Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg.  “It is one of the most ambitious and forward-looking economic development projects any city has ever undertaken, and it’s going to help add thousands of new jobs to our economy in the decades ahead.”

“The State was proud to work closely with the Mayor’s Office, RIOC and Cornell because we strongly believe that the path to New York State’s continued economic growth will largely be defined by partnerships that start with our State’s academic institutions,” said Governor Andrew M. Cuomo. “This project leverages two of the world’s most notable institutions in a way that will help foster technological innovation within New York State, while creating jobs and spurring business investment.”

“Cornell Tech is the proof that government and universities can work together to innovate and support economic growth, and we will be forever grateful for Mayor Bloomberg’s leadership in making this campus possible,” said Cornell University President David J. Skorton. “The Roosevelt Island campus is being built for the future, to be the place that generates the next big ideas, the new companies and extraordinary talent that will change New York and the world.”

“Thanks to Mayor Bloomberg’s vision, New York City is fast becoming a leading global center of innovation,” said Technion President Peretz Lavie. “Through the Joan & Irwin Jacobs Technion-Cornell Innovation Institute, our international partnership with Cornell Tech, we look forward to helping to further the city’s future as the technology capital of the world.”

Applied Sciences NYC was launched by Mayor Bloomberg in 2011 in an effort to capitalize on the considerable recent growth and even larger opportunity for future growth in technology-related jobs and businesses in New York City, and builds on the Bloomberg Administration’s record of creating a more diversified economy for the City’s future. In July 2011, NYCEDC issued an RFP seeking a university, institution or consortium to develop and operate a new or expanded campus in the City in exchange for City capital, access to City-owned land and the full support and partnership of the Bloomberg Administration, and subsequently received seven responses from 17 world-class institutions from around the globe. Cornell Tech was the first of four Applied Sciences projects to be announced by the City in an effort to strengthen New York City’s global competiveness – including its growing technology sector – and ensure that the City establishes itself as a worldwide hub of science, research, innovation and urban solutions for the digital age and the information economy. Cornell Tech was selected for this initiative based on its innovative model for graduate technology education and its emphasis on the intersections between academia and industry and forward-thinking areas of study. When completed, the new Roosevelt Island campus alone will nearly double the number of full-time, graduate engineering students enrolled in leading New York City Master’s and Ph.D. programs.

The four Applied Sciences NYC projects that have been announced by the Mayor include:

  • Cornell Tech on Roosevelt Island
  • The Center for Urban Science and Progress in Downtown Brooklyn, operated by an international consortium led by New York University
  • The Institute for Data Sciences and Engineering at Columbia University
  • Carnegie Mellon University’s Integrative Media Program at Steiner Studios in the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

Collectively, the four Applied Sciences NYC projects are expected to generate more than $33.2 billion in nominal economic activity, over 48,000 permanent and construction jobs, and approximately 1,000 spin-off companies by 2046, fulfilling the initiative’s goal of dramatically transforming the City’s economy for the 21st century. These institutions are already strengthening the City’s position as a hub of science, research, innovation and world-class urban solutions in a global economy driven by technological fluency and innovation.

“Mayor Bloomberg’s Applied Sciences initiative will transform the City’s economy, doubling the number of engineering faculty and graduate students in New York City. These are the skills we need to compete in the knowledge and information economy of the 21st Century,” said Deputy Mayor for Economic Development Robert K. Steel. “The closing of the Cornell Tech lease is a major step toward that goal and I congratulate Presidents Skorton and Lavie on this critical moment in the arc of Cornell and the Technion’s history.”

“Over only two years, thanks to an unprecedented model of collaboration across City and State government, top academic institutions, and the private sector, we have transformed Applied Sciences NYC from a visionary idea into a physical reality that is already reshaping our City,” said NYCEDC President Kyle Kimball. “Since selecting Cornell and the Technion as our first winners, in partnership with the Health and Hospitals Corporation we have built and opened a new hospital in Harlem that is currently serving former Coler-Goldwater patients; secured all necessary approvals for the Roosevelt Island campus; selected three additional Applied Sciences winners; and launched classes. Thanks to Mayor Bloomberg’s leadership, this initiative will create jobs, businesses, and technologies, resulting in transformative economic activity that will help secure the City’s future.”

“Cornell Tech is extremely grateful for the unwavering support of the Roosevelt Island community throughout the public review process and we are committed to being great neighbors during construction and beyond,” said Cornell Tech Vice President Cathy S. Dove. “We are also fortunate to have such extraordinary development partners in Forest City Ratner and Hudson/Related to help us make this vision a reality.”

“We are thrilled to be working with Cornell and so many great partners to help create a truly extraordinary new place on Roosevelt Island,” said Forest City Ratner Companies President and CEO MaryAnne Gilmartin. “Under Mayor Bloomberg’s watch the City’s tech sector has grown enormously and we are well poised as a company and as a project to continue with that growth at Cornell Tech.”

“With Mayor Bloomberg’s vision guiding the way, Cornell Tech will be at the leading edge of the next generation in tech and applied sciences,” said David Kramer, partner of The Hudson Companies. “We look forward to bringing out-of-the-box thinking to a best-in-class building on the forefront of design and sustainability.”

“I am pleased to join Mayor Bloomberg for this monumental step toward making the Cornell Tech camps a reality. I have strongly supported bringing Cornell Tech to Roosevelt Island from the very beginning of this process,” said U.S. Representative Carolyn Maloney. “The campus holds great promise for Roosevelt Island and for New York City, attracting future leaders in the technology and engineering industry.  Many of the amenities included in the plans will be open and available to the public, including areas of park space.  I commend Cornell for its transparency during the planning process and commitment to being a good neighbor to Island residents.”

“Cornell Tech will generate opportunities and innovations for generations to come, and today we take a step closer to our city’s future,” said Council Member Jessica Lappin.

“I applaud Mayor Bloomberg, Cornell Tech, and the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation on their historic lease signing to build a new applied sciences campus on Roosevelt Island,” said Manhattan Borough President-Elect Gale A. Brewer. “This partnership will play a key role in the growth of New York City’s tech sector in the coming years, and will attract new development to Roosevelt Island. I look forward to working with all parties to ensure the success of this venture.”

Academic uses of the campus are anticipated to include classrooms, laboratories, teaming areas, and lecture halls, as well as start-up incubator/accelerator space to encourage entrepreneurship. The remainder of the space in the campus will be devoted to corporate co-location space designed to facilitate the interaction between academia and industry, residential uses, an executive education center, and ancillary uses, such as retail in support of the faculty, staff and students on the campus, as well as the creation of new open space.

While planning is underway for the opening of the permanent campus in 2017, Cornell Tech is already operating in temporary space in Manhattan. The campus master plan, designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill with James Corner Field Operations, includes a number of innovative features and facilities across a river-to-river campus with expansive views, a series of green, public spaces, and a seamless integration of indoor and outdoor areas. Cornell Tech will combine cutting edge technologies to create one of the most environmentally friendly and energy-efficient campuses in the world, not only employing, but developing new environmental technology.

A sustainable and innovative academic building will be designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Thom Mayne of Morphosis Architects and, in a significant departure from traditional academic facilities, take its cue from the tech world by offering open-plan space and extensive collaborative workspaces. The phase one academic building, if completed today, would be the largest net-zero energy building in eastern United States, with all of its power generated on campus.

A corporate co-location building, designed by Weiss/Manfredi and developed by Forest City Ratner Companies, will bring together corporate innovators, world-class researchers and energetic start-ups under one roof, a concrete reflection of the campus’ mission of fusing academia and industry to encourage innovation for the public good. Cornell Tech will be an anchor tenant. Renderings of this building and the academic building were released today, and are available at tech.cornell.edu/press/.

Ensuring that the campus is active 24/7, a residential building, designed by Handel Architects and developed by Hudson and Related Companies, will be built to provide convenient and affordable campus housing for students, faculty and staff. It will rely on passive sustainable design features to reduce energy usage and further advance the campus’ sustainability goals.

Plans are also under underway for an Executive Education Center and Hotel, which will help ensure that Cornell Tech is a magnet in New York City for innovation by providing conference, executive program and academic workshop space along with a hotel and destination restaurant.

The 12-acre footprint of the Cornell Tech campus includes the site of the former Goldwater Specialty Hospital and Nursing Facility, which has been replaced by the new state-of-the art, 365-bed, $300 million Henry J. Carter Specialty Hospital in Harlem, built by NYCEDC, which is operated by the NYC Health and Hospitals Corporation and provides world-class medical care for New Yorkers in need of highly specialized, complex treatment. Former Goldwater patients were relocated to the new hospital last month. The campus footprint also includes property formerly controlled by the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation. Cornell Tech has spent the past year working with the Roosevelt Island community on plans to minimize the impact of construction on residents, including deployment of the largest barging program in New York City to remove demolition materials from the site.

Cornell Tech classes began earlier this year in space donated by Google in Chelsea. The school now includes masters and Ph.D. students, world-class faculty and established collaborations with dozens of industry-leading organizations contributing to graduate study in areas such as Computer Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Information Science, Operations Research and Business. Cornell Tech also launched its commitment to partnership with New York City’s public school students earlier this year, working with numerous organizations to bring tech education to a diverse audience. A director of K-12 education for Cornell Tech will be announced early in 2014.

Beginning in January, the Joan and Irwin Jacobs Technion-Cornell Innovation Institute at Cornell Tech will welcome a number of postdoctoral students to the current campus. Later in 2014, the Jacobs Institute will launch a master’s degree program in Connective Media designed to educate the entrepreneurial engineers and technologists needed in the media sector to steward the continuing digital transformation of the industry. Students in this two-year program will receive degrees from both Technion and Cornell.  Also in 2014, Cornell Tech will launch a Johnson MBA that will combine business, technology, innovation and entrepreneurship in a fast-paced, hands-on learning environment.

Cornell Tech will host entrepreneurs-in-residence, organize business competitions, provide legal support for startups, reach out to existing companies to form research partnerships and sponsor research, and establish a pre-seed financing program to support promising research. In addition, the campus will structure its on-site tech transfer office to facilitate startup formation and technology licensing. Cornell Tech will also invest $150 million that will be solely devoted to start-up businesses in the City.

In keeping with the focus on community involvement contained in the RFP, the Cornell Tech proposal outlined a number of areas in which the universities will touch the lives of New Yorkers — the type of involvement to which both schools have been committed for many years in their primary campus communities. Plans for community involvement in New York City include the creation of education enhancement programs that will impact a minimum of 10,000 New York City students and 200 New York City teachers per year. Cornell Tech also intends to work closely with PS/IS 217 on Roosevelt Island to enrich their curricula and participate in STEM-oriented programming. They will also work to meet the goals of the City’s HireNYC employment program and develop partnerships for job placement and training. In furtherance of its community outreach goals, Cornell Tech will offer significant programming on and off its campus designed to engage with residents of Roosevelt Island and the larger City. Cornell’s campus plan will further create new public open space on the campus.

10 Technion Moments in 2013

Between advances in world-class research, multiple international agreements with top institutes from Paris to China, through to the daily drive toward start-up innovation through student ventures, it would be impossible to encapsulate Technion’s 2013 in a list of 10.

So as we round up 2013 and look towards the new year, here is a (very) partial list of Technion news highlights, in no significant order.

A very happy and fulfilling New Year to all the Technion family and to our friends, colleagues and followers across the world!

1.

Obama’s gift

United States President Obama was presented with a unique gift when he came to Israel in 2013. Set in biblical Jerusalem Stone, a nano chip crafted by Technion scientists enshrined the world’s tiniest Declarations of Independence – of Israel and America side by side.

2.

The Mystery of Soft Coral Pulsation

Scientists from Technion and the Hebrew University reveal the mysteries of why corals pulsate.

3.

Top Innovator Dr Kira Radinsky

 Dr Kira Radinsky, 27, who recently completed her PhD at Technion in the Faculty of Computer Science under the mentorship of Prof. Shaul Markovitch, was announced as one of the 35 Top Innovators under the age of 35.

4.

First rate nano-rust for solar hydrogen

EPFL and Technion researchers find the “champion” nanostructures able to produce hydrogen in the most environmentally friendly and cheap manner, by simply using daylight.

5.

F.I.R.S.T becomes top pre-university program

FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Israel becomes the leading pre-university program of Technion.

6.

Let the blind see – optogentics & holography

Scientists from the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Technion have developed a new approach to non-invasive vision restoration in blind retinas, by combining holography and optogenetics – a rapidly developing field in neuroscience.

7.

Technion & China

Amid increasing international exchange and with the deepening friendship between Chinese visionary Li ka Shing and Technion, the Technion-Guangdong Institute of Technology (TGIT), is born.

8.

JTCII in New York City

Unravelling with the speed and passion of the city, the Jacobs Technion Cornell Innovation Institute in New York City launches collaborative projects, new study programs, and the final designs for its form on Roosevelt Island.

9.

Artificial skin

Using tiny gold particles and a kind of resin, Technion scientists at the reveal how to make a new kind of flexible sensor that one day could be integrated into electronic skin, or e-skin.

10.

Nobel alumni

Technion graduate Prof. Arieh Warshel, Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Southern California wins the 2013 Nobel Prize in Chemistry,

The 2013 IEEE Signal Processing Society Technical Award will be awarded to Professor Yonina Eldar from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering at the Technion

Professor Yonina Eldar has been selected for the 2013 IEEE Signal Processing Society Technical Achievement Award for her “fundamental contributions to sub-nyquist and compressed sampling, convex optimization and statistical signal processing.”

Professor Eldar, who heads the Sampling Research Laboratory in the Faculty of Electrical Engineering at Technion, is a member of: the Council for Higher Education (CHE) in Israel, the Young Academy of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, and the Commission for making higher education accessible to Haredim (Orthodox). She also serves as a research fellow at MIT and as a visiting professor at Stanford University. In addition, she consults for high-tech companies.

Professor Eldar has developed a new paradigm allowing to break through the Nyquist barrier, traditionally believed to be the ultimate limit for analog to digital conversion (ADC). She was able to exploit signal structure in the sampling stage in a hardware efficient way so as to reduce sampling rates, power, size and DSP rates, while attaining better communication performance. Beyond her achievement in the development of theory and algorithms, Eldar achieved a global breakthrough in the field of sampling, when she built, along with her research students and development team at her laboratory, hardware prototypes and working demos (in the form of an electric card) that prove the theory, enabling sampling and processing of a wide class of continuous-time signals, at especially low rates. These methods can allow the miniaturization of a wide array of communication devices: from smart phones to ultrasounds, radars and more.

The technology she developed demonstrates practical application in many areas including improved performance of radar systems and fast three-dimensional ultrasound imaging. A potential market is the healthcare industry, where sampling speed translates into less exposure of patients to dangerous radiation emitting devices. From an economic point of view, this may serve as a great advantage, as it will allow for a greater number of patients to undergo testing. The defense industry is also very interested in this technology as it allows for fast scanning of a very wide frequency range.

Professor Eldar has been awarded many prestigious awards, among them the Krill Prize for Excellence in Scientific Research, The Michael Bruno Memorial Award from the Rothschild Foundation, the Weizmann Prize for Exact Sciences, the Hershel Rich Innovation Award, the Haifa Municipality Award for Women with Distinguished Contributions, and many others.

The IEEE Signal Processing Society Technical Achievement Award is foremost prize in the field of signal processing, awarded to researchers who have over the years contributed significantly to the theory and application of technical issues within the spectrum of areas in which the Society is engaged in, including publications, patents and recognized impacts in the field. This year Professor Eldar shares her prize with Professor Alfred  Hero, a former head of the IEEE Signal Processing Society and a pillar of the community (he received the IEEE Third Millennium Medal).

Technion President, Professor Peretz Lavie, congratulated Professor Eldar: “The Technion is proud that Professor Yonina Eldar has been selected for this important award and congratulates her on her great achievements.”

In the photo: Professor Yonina Eldar in her lab.

Photographed by: Click Photographers, Technion’s Spokesperson’s Office

Israeli –Dutch Cooperation at the Technion

Student Workshop Presents Water Problem Solutions at Water Seminar with Dutch and Israeli water experts

The winning solution – “reclaiming agriculture” – aims to encourage Arab farmers in the Western Galilee to return to working their land using reclaimed wastewater for irrigation

Graduate students taking part in a joint Israeli-Dutch workshop at the Stephen and Nancy Grand Water Research Institute (GWRI), Technion – Israel Institute of Technology at the beginning of the week presented solutions to water issues to Mr. Wienjes (President of the Dutch Confederation of Netherlands Industry and Employers (VNO-NCW)) as part of the visit of the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte in Israel. In the evening, the students had the privilege to have a meet & greet and photo with the Prime Minister. The winning solution in the competition – Wetskills Israel: 2013 – is called “Reclaiming Agriculture”. Its aim is to encourage Arab farmers in the Western Galilee to return to cultivate their land using tertiary-reclaimed wastewater (RWW) for irrigation. Other plans presented by the Israeli and Dutch students were: a compact system for producing drinking water from humidity in the air intended for use in desert regions; forestation in desert regions that combines in its water supply modern technology with ancient technology from the Nabatean period (some 2,000 years old); and a holistic monitoring and prevention system for reducing parasites in potable water.

In the framework of the competition, which was organized by the Technion’s GWRI and the Dutch organization Wetskills, the students were asked to present solutions to challenges and water problems in Israel using creative thinking and innovation, on the one hand, and which can be implemented, on the other hand.

The students presented the solutions at the beginning of the week in a forum for joint Israeli-Dutch cooperation that included water experts from both countries and took place in the framework of the visit to Israel by the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, and senior ministers in his government.

Last week, a number of Israeli water companies and organizations (Mekorot Israel National Water Company, Shefar’am Area Water & Wastewater Corporation, the Jewish National Fund – Netherlands Branch and the Keren Kayemet LeIsrael-KKL) presented water problems for the students to solve. The students had only five days to put together and present solutions through consultation with water experts and with the aid of the GWRI information center. The judges – from both Israel and the Netherlands – were Shimon Tal (ex-water commissioner of Israel), Tami Shor (assistant director general in charge of water regulation at the Israel Water Authority), Prof. Avi Shaviv (head of the GWRI), Dr. Hadas Maman from Tel Aviv University and Menno Holterman (CEO Nijhuis Technology) and Jaap Feil (CEO H2O-job) from the Netherlands. Each group had only two minutes to present its solution. The presentations were clear, succinct and precise. In two minutes, the students succeeded in presenting intensive work done over one week. Afterwards, the projects were presented in greater detail on posters to the professionals.

The project chosen by the team of judges was “Reclaiming Agriculture”, which presents a solution to the challenge given the students by the Shefar’am Area Water & Wastewater Corporation. The Corporation deals with the water and sewage system of the Shefar’am municipality and surrounding towns and villages. It serves some 160,000 residents. In light of a shortage in freshwater and its high cost to farmers, most of the residents of the villages, who traditionally were engaged in vegetable farming, have stopped cultivating their agricultural land. This reduction in agriculture has hurt their income and impinged on the region’s socio-economic fabric.

The corporation asked the students to find ways get the farmers back to farming their land and to suggest alternative possibilities for agricultural crops that can be irrigated using recycled water (RWW). The students proposed an integrated solution that includes setting up a model site with constructed wetland, as well as establishing a committee of experts.

“Our proposal includes building a constructed wetland into which the tertiary-RWW from the Carmiel wastewater treatment plant will be introduced” explained Noa Aharoni, a master’s graduate from Tel Aviv University who took part in the workshop. “In the wetland, which will provide additional filtering of the water (an alternative to filters), water plants will be planted and goldfish will be raised as testimony to the quality of the water. The project’s aim is to make the wastewater treatment process accessible to local farmers and to demonstrate to them through the addition of the constructed wetland and a pond with gold fish that we are talking about clean water, good for agriculture. In order to overcome cultural obstacles to the use of such water, we suggested raising fish and water snails, which live in fresh water, in the ponds. Thus around the constructed wetland and the ornamental pond will create demonstration site to serve as an educational system for the farmers and the younger generation that will assist them to overcome psychological barriers to the use of reclaimed water for agriculture.”

“In addition, we suggested setting up a joint committee of experts made up of representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture, the local authorities, the Water Corporation and the local farmers”, added Dennis Steinberg, a master’s student at the Technion. “The committee will assist the local farmers to jointly organize and will aid in promoting the benefits of using recycled water. The members of the Shefar’am Corporation were enthusiastic about the solution we presented and promised that they will implement it in the near future. “I think that our project offers an immediate solution that can aid in social change in the area. The challenge which we dealt with was very different from our daily scientific/engineering work. Suddenly, I also had to relate to sociological and social considerations” said Dennis.

“There is a traditional aversion of some in the Arab sector to the use of treated wastewater effluent based on a belief or fear that this water is not clean enough,” added Prof. Eran Friedler of the Technion’s Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, who served as an advisor to the students. “Israeli agriculture in agricultural settlements is very organized while here we are talking about small, family based agriculture, without an umbrella organization, traditionally growing mostly vegetables. The farmers abandoned some of the fields because the price of freshwater went up significantly. The solution the students proposed enables the farmers to continue to work the land using recycled water which cost is much lower than freshwater.”

Those in the Shefar’am Corporation were satisfied with the results. “Winning first place by the students was a great honor for us,” said Engineer Ahlam Ganam, director of the Corporation’s licensing department. “They worked creatively on a solution and we are already looking for a team of experts to implement and carry out the plan.”

“The workshop’s purpose was to train future leaders in the field of water. This is a program to encourage international cooperation on the subject of water, during which students from different countries get together and deal with joint tasks with respect to water,” related Johan Oost, coordinator of the Wetskills program, who led the program in Israel together with Prof. Avi Shaviv, head of the Technion’s GWRI. “The workshop has been going on for some four years and already has been held in China, Indonesia, South Africa, Morocco, Romania, Egypt, the Netherlands, Oman and Mozambique. I am very pleased that we succeeded in also holding it in Israel. The aim is to challenge young water experts with problems from the field and to encourage them to think creatively. The students worked hard on the tasks they received and I am very proud of them. We have to attract the best people to work in the field of water.”

“I was very impressed with the students’ work,” said Bernard Wientjes, head of the Industrialists and Employers Union in the Netherlands, who awarded the prize to the winning group. “It was difficult for the judges to decide because all the works presented simple and creative solutions that can be implemented and, especially, demonstrated the ability for independent thinking and high-level creativity.”

“We see it as tremendously important to have held this competition at the Technion,” concluded Prof. Avi Shaviv.

“Presentation of the joint challenges to young water experts from Israel and the Netherlands constitutes a basis for cooperation between the countries and a joining of forces. We enjoyed very much seeing the cooperation, creativity and exchange of ideas among the students. We also appreciate the encouragement of young water scientist to feel proud of the important work they do in solving water problems relevant to different regions and cultures in the world.

For more information: www.wetskills.com

“Detailed knowledge of chemical processes makes it possible to optimize catalysts, drugs and solar cells.”

Technion graduate Prof. Arieh Warshel, Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Southern California has won the 2013 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, together with Michael Levitt and Martin Karplus for “the development of multiscale models for complex chemical systems.”

The three scientists won the world’s highest honor for research which lay the foundations for future computers to understand complex chemical processes from the purification of exhaust fumes, through to photosynthesis.

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said in a statement, when awarding the prize of 8 million crowns ($1.25 million), that Martin Karplus, Michael Levitt and Arieh Warshel had pioneered the use of computer models that mirror chemical reactions. The work also has applications in the use of complex processes in the development of drugs.

“Chemical reactions occur at lightning speed; electrons jump between atomic nuclei, hidden from the prying eyes of scientists,” the academy stated. “The Nobel Laureates in Chemistry 2013 have made it possible to map the mysterious ways of chemistry by using computers. Detailed knowledge of chemical processes makes it possible to optimize catalysts, drugs and solar cells.”

Israel Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu called new Nobel laureate Arieh Warshel today: “This is exceptionally impressive. We’re proud of you & people at Technion & Weizmann,” he said.

Arieh Warshel was born 1940 in Kibbutz Sde-Nahum in Israel.  He earned his undergraduate degree at the Faculty of Chemistry (now the Schulich Faculty of Chemistry), class of 1966 – which was the same year Distinguished Prof. Dan Shechtman (Nobel Laureate 2011) completed his BSc in mechanical engineering at the Technion.

In 1965, Prof. Warshel was awarded the “Technion Award – Best Third-Year Student in Chemistry”. He graduated Summa Cum Laude. Warshel went on to comlete advanced degrees at the Weizmann Institute of Science, and was an associate professor at Weizmann until 1978, when he moved to the University of Southern California.

The kick-off in Israel:

Dutch and Israeli Students Offer Solutions to Water Issues in Israel

The Wetskills Israel 2013 Competition has Started at Technion

Wetskills

The Grand Water Research Institute (GWRI) at Technion together with the Wetskills organization from the Netherlands started a special competition on Sunday (December 1) for postgraduate students from Israel and the Netherlands, during which students will be required to offer solutions to challenges and problems regarding water issues in Israel.

Attending this ten day workshop are 16 postgraduate students in water-related disciplines; about half of them are from Dutch universities while the other half are from universities in Israel. Four Israeli water organizations kicked off the workshop by presenting issues to the students that they will be dealing with. Students will receive support from water experts from Technion and from outside the Technion, and will have access to broad databases available at the information center of the Technion’s Grand Water Research Institute (GWRI).

“This program was designed to encourage international cooperation on water issues, during which students from different countries have an opportunity to sit together and challenge various water issues,” said Johan Oost, Manager of the Wetskills Water Challenges Program who is leading the program in Israel together with Professor Avi Shaviv, Director of GRWI.

“The Workshop has been running for about a decade and has already been held in China, Indonesia, Romania, Egypt, the Netherlands, Oman, Marocco, South Africa and Mozambique. This is the first time it is being held in Israel. The goal is to challenge young water experts on issues from the field, and encourage them to think creatively.”

In order to gain a deeper understanding of the unique characteristics of each country, students visit unique cultural attractions in addition to sites with specific water related projects that are relevant to the project. Last week, Dutch students visited Jerusalem and the Dead Sea. A tour was held with their Israeli counterparts at the Eshcol site, the “Chera” Lookout Point and other sites around Lake Kinneret (Sea of ​​Galilee).

Professor Oded Shmueli, the Executive Vice President for Research at the Technion, welcomed participants at the start of the workshop and said that, “Global challenges on water issues are both cross national and cross cultural. Collaboration has become the essence of scientific research. Nowadays, a researcher cannot undertake research on his/her own. This joint workshop for Dutch and Israeli students is a wonderful opportunity to make ​​future connections.”

Professor Avi Shaviv, Director of GRWI at the Technion, briefed students on the water problems facing Israel and its neighbouring countries in the Middle East. He said that because Israel has been dealing with water issues from day one, a thriving water industry developed in the country that allows for maximum utilization of water and seeks alternative solutions to the shortage of rain water. Israel’s achievements in efficient use of water and the implementation of alternative sources constitute it as the most significant authority on water technologies and knowledge in the world.

Student’s work will be presented next week during the water seminar of the Wittenberg Council in Tel Aviv; and will include hearings on water cooperation between Dutch and Israeli companies. It is expected that the Dutch Prime Minister and other Ministers will attend within the framework of a visit to Israel to discuss and strengthen Israeli-Dutch cooperation in water issues, energy, agricultural technology and food production.

The judges’ panel will consist of Israeli and Dutch professionals that will discuss and grade the student’s work during the event, and will select the winning project based on criteria that include innovation and creativity, practicality and feasibility, economic viability, social relevance and the ”Pitch and Poster” of their solution.

The students are divided into four working groups; each group is given a different challenge to deal with:

  1. Mekorot Israel National Water Company – The company asked students to find a solution to reduce single-celled parasitic pathogens of the Cryptosporidium and Giardia type in drainage basin of the lake. The Sea of ​​Galilee (Lake Kinneret) is the primary source of fresh water in Israel and is an important water source and at the same time is also a popular tourist and fishing destination. In the drainage basin of the lake there is a lot of activity which may lead to the release of parasites to waterways and from there they could reach the lake. The problem is that some water sources that feed into the lake are coming from outside of Israel’s borders, and there are issues concerning the monitoring of pollutants spilling into them. Cryptosporidium and Giardia parasites cause disease in the digestive system and small children are especially susceptible to them. This group’s mission is to reduce the presence of these parasites to a minimum and to come up with advanced water monitoring methods for detecting these parasite types.
  2. Water Corporation of Shefar’am area – The Association, established in 2009, treats water and sewage systems belonging to the city of Shefa-Amr and other nearby villages. The Association provides services to over 160,000 residents. Due to the lack of potable water and the high cost for agriculture, most villagers who were traditionally engaged in growing vegetables stopped to work their agricultural lands. Reduced agricultural yields affected the livelihoods of locals and damaged the social-economic fabric of the region. The Association has asked students to find ways to restore the farmers to their fields and offer them alternative crop options which can be irrigated by reclaimed water (treated wastewater). Students will need to rely on one of the wastewater treatment facilities located in the area (Karmiel or Acre) and propose the design of a pipe system capable of transporting treated wastewater from the treatment facilities to the farmers’ fields. In addition, the group will also need to come up with guidelines and find ways by which to disseminate this information to convince local farmers to prepare the area for farming based on treated wastewater, and prevent potential future environmental impacts which may arise from transporting recycled water.
  3. Anonymous Company (which has asked not to be mentioned) – The amount of vapour in the air equals the amount of water found in rivers and streams. Due to the growing shortage of water in the world, students have been asked to face the challenge of utilizing dew and moisture from the air as a source of water. The members of the group are expected to come up with an extraction method of water vapour from the atmosphere either by “milking” of fog or by passively collecting dew without investing energy, or by actively cooling surfaces. Students will need to select a region of the country with high humidity levels and which enjoy a greater number of potential days covered with dew in order to increase the economic viability of the system that they will design. This area will serve as a case study of possible applications around the world, particularly in areas that lack available water resources.
  4. Jewish National Fund (JNF) (in Hebrew Keren Kayemet LeYisrael) – Over the past few years the JNF replaced a variety of trees planted in Israeli forests from a variety of pine to natural wooded varieties of the region. Pine trees develop and grow rapidly compared with natural tree species which grow much slower. The JNF wants to encourage the growth of natural forest species stimulated through assisted irrigation. The JNF has challenged a student group to develop more efficient irrigation methods that will lead to increased forest growth. Students have been provided with an experimental forest plot for this assignment.

“The joint Wetskills Water Challenge, held for the first time in Israel, is an important leverage for collaborative interaction with research institutes in the Netherlands,” said Professor Avi Shaviv, Director of the GWRI at the Technion. “This is a great opportunity for us to encourage young people to engage in water issues in Israel. The Grand Water Research Institute at the Technion took it upon itself to organize the workshop on very short notice as we believe that it is of high importance that it will be held here at Technion.”

The workshop is funded by member companies, and supported by the Yanai Fund for Exact Sciences. Participating students also paid a participation fee.

Into the fast lane!

It just takes a minute…watch Technion students build and race the university’s first Formula race car.

Coming in first place worldwide out of all newcomer teams, 25 Technion students built and raced the Technion’s first Formula SAE car in Sept. 2013 in Italy. Congratulations to the team!

Technion Formula SAE took students out of the classroom and into the fast lane to apply textbook theories,as well as gaining real-world experience in Prof. Reuven Katz’s “New Product Design” course in the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering. The course instructor is Dr. Hagay Bamberger of Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd.

The 25 member team was co-sponsored by the Grand Technion Energy Program (GTEP). GTEP supports projects in outreach and general education as an integral part of its global mission to advance research and education in fields related to energy. Individual faculty, students and GTEP itself is involved in projects to promote and enhance energy awareness at Technion, throughout Israel and across the world.

For over 30 years,  The Society of Automotive Engineering, SAE, has been organizing events and contests for engineering students. The most prestigious competition of them all  is Formula Student. Over 250 student teams from around the world research, design and manufacture a genuine Formula car,