Technion leaders and heads of Israel’s pharmaceutical industry held a commemorative evening in memory of the late Abraham Barry Cohen, who served as Senior Vice President of Merck & Co. and from 1977 to 1988 as President of the Merck Sharp & Dohme International Division, and as a longstanding member of the Board of Directors of Teva and Technion’s AMIT Institute. He passed away a few months ago in New York.

The President of Technion, Professor Peretz Lavie, said that he appreciates that the ceremony was being given at Technion, since Barry Cohen played an important role in his AMIT Institute.

Moshe Arens, Former Israeli Defence Minister, praised the enormous contribution of Mr. Cohen to “Teva” and his foresight and business vision. He said that, “Teva was and remains an Israeli company not looking for an exit.”

Dr. Jeremy Levin, the President and CEO of Teva, said that Barry Cohen interviewed him when he first started working for the company. He said that it was not an easy interview, and that Barry asked him a lot of difficult questions. “He was especially interested in my knowledge of medicine, globalization, and my connection with Israel,” he said. “He again stressed the importance of innovation in helping patients around the world,” he added. “Good people have led Teva to what it is today, and Barry was one of them.”

Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, Professor Aaron Ciechanover from Technion’s Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine (both he and his brother were very close friends with Barry Cohen) lectured on “Personalized Medicine.”

The host of the evening: Mr Avi Kerbs, President and CEO of Teuza  .

Above: President and CEO of Teva, Dr. Jeremy Levin, speaking at the event. Photographed by: Moran Wiesman, Technion Spokesperson’s Office

“Vaterite” is an unstable atomic arrangement of “calcium carbonate”

Assistant Professor Boaz Pokroy and his doctoral student Lee Kabalah-Amitai from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, explain that calcium carbonate, a compound of calcium carbonate and oxygen, is the most abundant mineral in nature, and appears in different forms that vary in their spatial atomic positioning (atomic arrangement). “Vaterite” is a specific atomic arrangement of “calcium carbonate” and in relation to other atomic arrangements, is extremely rare (in nature). Although it is not very uncommon, “vaterites” are present in many aspects of our lives.  For example, it can appear as gallbladder stones, can be found in certain geological structures, used as an essential material for the paper industry, an important constituent of cement, and even found in meteorites from space.  Scientists from the Technion are studying the development and formation of vaterits in the important biological process known as Biomineralization. In this process, living organisms control the production of different minerals on its atomic level. For example, when a mollusk shell receives a blow that cracks its shell it uses “vaterite” to repair the damage, a pearl usually has a deep shine (resulting from a collection of different calcium carbonate) but occasionally (as a result of a growth error) vaterite forms in the pearl and eliminates its shine, and fish (such as salmon) grow vaterite in their ears to aid them with their balance.

For over 100 years, scientists have failed to reach a clear cut explanation for the atomic arrangement of “vaterite”. Doctoral student Lee Kabalah-Amitai, with the guidance of Assistant Professor Pokroy, studied this topic by examining crystals found on  and within the bodies of small marine animals (from the Tunicate family also known as sea squirts) called “Hardomia momos”, with help from Boaz Mayzel, a sea biologist and scuba diver from the Tel-Aviv University who collected the specimens, Dr. Yaron Kaufman, who examined materials under the Technion’s “Titan” electron microscope (the only one of its kind in Israel), and assistance by Dr. Andy Fitch, a scientist at the synchrotron in  Grenoble, Leonid Bloch from the team of Assistant Professor Pokroy, and Professor Pupa Gilbert from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

“This small organism produces a bundle of crystals from “vaterite” that are very sharp and relatively large, making them relatively easy to work with”, explains Pokroy and Lee Kabalah-Amitai. “This is why we examined these crystals; and this is the first time they have ever been studied on the atomic level. Until now, different scientists tried to find a unified atomic arrangement for vaterites or determine which of its original structures were the most accurate. We found that vaterites actually consisted of two different atomic arrangements that exist in harmony with one another. The second atomic arrangement was found in a microscopic area (nano-metric – around 40,000 times smaller than a human hair) and this is the reason it eluded the eyes of scientists who believed this was a singular structure rather than a dual structure.”

Vaterite is an unstable atomic structure, making it a rare formation in nature.  Nonetheless, it can still be found in different areas. Technion scientists expect that their discovery will facilitate future understanding of the formation mechanisms and stabilization of “vaterite”.

Above: Spicule made of vaterite crystals that were removed from the “Hardomia momos”

Scientists from the Technion and the Hebrew University discovered why Heteroxenia corals pulsate – so reports the prestigious scientific journal PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences).  One of the most fascinating and spectacular sights in the coral reef of Eilat is the perpetual motion of the tentacles of a coral called Heteroxenia (Heteroxenia fuscescens). Heteroxenia is a soft coral from the family Xeniidae, which looks like a small bunch of flowers, settled in the reef walls and on rocky areas on the bottom of the reef. each “flower” is actually a polyp, the basic unit which comprises a coral colony. Apparently the motion of these polyps, which looks like flowers that are elegantly spreading out and closing up their petals, is unique in the animal kingdom.

Except the familiar swimming motion of Jellyfish, no other bottom-attached aquatic animal is known to perform such motions. Pulsation is energetically costly, and hence there must be a reasonable benefit to justify this motion. The perpetual motions of jellyfish serve them for swimming, predation and feeding. The natural explanation would be that that the Heteroxenia’s spectacular motions are used for predation and feeding, however several studies indicate that these corals do not predate on other animals at all. If predation is not the reason for pulsating, there must be another explanation to justify the substantial energetic expense by the Heteroxenia.

Maya Kremien found the answers to these questions, while working on her Master’s research at the Inter-University institute in Eilat Under the supervision of  Prof. Amatzia Genin from the Hebrew University and Prof. Uri Shavit from the Technion in a joint research funded by the national science foundation.

After watching several coral colonies with an underwater infrared-sensitive camera night and day, the researchers found their first surprising discovery, that Heteroxenia corals cease to pulsate and take a half an hour break every single day in the afternoon hours. At this stage the afternoon “siestas” remain unexplained.

The labs of Prof. Genin and Prof. Shavit work on the interaction between biological processes of aquatic creatures and the water motions which surround them. Apparently aquatic animals affect the flow and at the same time are absolutely dependant on that flow. In order to solve the mystery of the Heteroxenia coral, the research team developed (as part of Tali Mass’ Ph.D work) an Underwater measuring device called PIV (Particle imaging velocimetry), which allows to measure the flow field just around The coral very accurately. The system consists of two powerful lasers, an image capturing system and an impressive computation ability. A special set of lenses releases a sheet of light in short powerful pulses in order for the imaging system to capture pairs of snapshots of natural particles moving with the flow. The computational system then performs a mathematical analysis of the pairs of photos, producing a huge database of flow field maps, from which the flow speed, characteristics of solutes transport, and turbulent mixing intensity are calculated.

The measurements were performed at night with the support of divers who volunteered to assist the research team. It was found that if a diver lightly touched the coral, the polyps “close” and remain motionless for a few minutes, after which the coral returns to its normal pulsation activity. The researchers used  this behavior in order to repeatedly measure the flow field around the Heteroxenia during pulsation and rest.

These measurements lead to the research group’s next discovery. Analysis of the direction of water flow indicated that the motion of the polyps effectively sweeps water up and away from the coral tissues into the ambient water. Corals need carbon-dioxide during daytime an oxygen during nighttime, as well as nutrients (such as phosphate and nitrogen) during day and night. One of the challenges for coral colonies is to render their surrounding waters rich in essential commodities by efficiently mixing the water around them. By using the sophisticated measuring system, the researchers calculated the mixing intensity of the water as a result of the coral’s pulsation. The unexpected discovery was that even though the polyps’ motions are uncoordinated (i.e. each polyp starts its period of motion at a different time) the accumulated effect of the polyps is a significant enhancement of the flow around the colony, particularly in the upward direction which sweeps water away from the coral, hence reducing the probability of re-filtration of the same water.

However these findings do not yet answer the question why would a coral invest so much energy to move its tentacles. After receiving a permit from the Nature and Parks authority, the research team collected a few Heteroxenia colonies from the sea in order to run a series of laboratory experiments. All corals were returned back to their original location after the experiment terminated. The Hypothesis was that the pulsation motions enhance the coral’s photosynthesis rate.

Corals are amongst the most ancient creatures surviving on our planet. One of the “secrets” of their amazing survival abilities is that they “host” photosynthetic algae in their tissues. The symbiotic algae provides the coral with essential nutrients and lives off the waste of the coral. In a previous study of the same research team (which the results of were also published in PNAS) it was found that the motion of water around corals is essential in order to enhance the efflux of oxygen from the coral tissues. Without water motion the oxygen concentration in the coral tissues would rise and the photosynthesis rate would drop.

The answer to the question why the Heteroxenia pulsates was finally revealed through the lab experiments. first the photosynthesis rate of a pulsating Heteroxenia was measured, and it was found to be an order of magnitude higher than that of a non-pulsating colony. Next, in order to prove that the mechanism of pulsation is intended to sweep away oxygen, the researchers artificially increased the oxygen concentration in the measurement chamber so that even when the coral managed to mix water via pulsation, it was replacing oxygen rich water with new water, which, unfortunately for the coral , was also rich in oxygen. And indeed it was found that the photosynthesis rate was low in this case, and even when the coral was constantly pulsating, the oxygen concentration remained high and photosynthesis remained low, as if the coral was at rest (i.e. not pulsating).

The elegant motion of Heteroxenia tentacles has been fascinating  the scientific society and capturing the attention of researchers for nearly 200 years (Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, 1744-1829), yet it has not been explained. Now, in the study of Kremien, Genin and Shavit, it was found that the pulsation motions augment a significant enhancement in the binding of carbon dioxide to the photosynthetic enzyme RuBisCo, also leading to a decrease in photorespiration. This explanation justifies the investment of energy in pulsation – the benefit overcomes the cost. In fact, thanks to pulsation, the ratio between photosynthesis to respiration in Heteroxenia is the highest ever measured in stony and non-pulsating soft corals.

The findings of this study indicate that pulsation motions are a highly efficient means for sweeping away water from the pulsating body, and for an increased mixing of dissolved matter between the body and the surrounding medium. These two processes (expulsion of medium and mixing of solutes) may lead to future applications in engineering and medicine. Currently the research group is focusing on attempts to broaden the results of this study and on developing mathematical models which could  serve for various applicative purposes.

In the picture: The soft coral Heteroxenia (Heteroxenia fuscescens). Each coral is a “colony” of tens to hundreds of brother polyps. As seen in the photograph, each polyp has eight feather-like tentacles, each with a very big surface area. During pulsation the tentacles of each polyp close up and spread out periodically, without synchronization between neighbor polyps. In the photograph polyps are seen in different phases of the pulsating period. Photography (stills and movie): Victor China.

The Joan and Irwin Jacobs Technion-Cornell Innovation Institute is a key component of Cornell Tech in New York City; program will offer unique dual master’s degrees

The Jacobses are both Cornell alumni who have a long history of supporting both Cornell and the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. They have established the Irwin M. and Joan K. Jacobs Scholars and Fellows Programs and the Irwin and Joan Jacobs Professorship, both in the College of Engineering, as well as the Joan Klein Jacobs Cornell Tradition Fellowship in the College of Human Ecology at Cornell. Dr. Jacobs is a former member of the Cornell University Council and Mrs. Jacobs served on the President’s Council of Cornell Women.  In recognition of their distinguished service to Cornell, Dr. and Mrs. Jacobs were both elected Presidential Councillors in 2005. The Jacobses’ visionary support of the Technion includes the Irwin and Joan Jacobs Graduate School and the Irwin and Joan Jacobs Center for Communications and Information Technologies. A member of the Technion International Board of Governors, Dr. Jacobs is a Life Trustee of the American Technion Society (ATS) National Board of Regents, and a member of the ATS San Diego Chapter. Dr. Jacobs, along with Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt, serves as an advisor to Cornell Tech.

Dr. and Mrs. Jacobs are among the world’s most generous philanthropists. Their support has had a significant impact on numerous cultural, medical, educational, and civic organizations. The engineering school at the University of California, San Diego bears Dr. and Mrs. Jacobs’ names, as do the performing arts center of the campus La Jolla Playhouse and the new UCSD Medical Center.

“We are delighted to partner with Cornell and the Technion on this unique educational initiative,” said Joan and Irwin Jacobs. “We believe strongly in the mission of this international collaboration to drive innovation and to foster economic development. We are proud of our long association with both of these distinguished institutions and share their dedication to inspire and train a next generation of entrepreneurs, forming new companies and strengthening existing ones including, of course, Qualcomm.”

“Cornell Tech will bring a sharp increase in science and engineering teaching, attract students from around the world, and spin off new local companies and thousands of new jobs, and inject billions of dollars into our economy,” said Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. “Irwin and Joan Jacobs have helped pave the way for innovations that improve our world, and the endowment they’re creating at Cornell Tech will do the same. We’re grateful for their investment in the future of New York City.”

“This transformative gift will support the distinctive international partnership between Cornell and the Technion that is already creating a new model of graduate tech education in New York City,” said Cornell President David J. Skorton. “We are overwhelmed by the continuing generosity of Joan and Irwin Jacobs, whose commitment to Cornell and to innovation in engineering and related disciplines is deeply appreciated.”

“Joan and Irwin’s magnificent gift will play a major and decisive role in fulfilling Mayor Bloomberg’s vision of creating a leading global center of innovation in the heart of New York, enabling the city to become the technology capital of the world,” said Technion President Peretz Lavie. “The Joan and Irwin Jacobs Technion-Cornell Innovation Institute will also serve as a bridge between Israel and the USA and Haifa and New York. We are also very grateful to the American Technion Society for their continued support and help in securing this gift.”

Craig Gotsman, the Founding Director of JTCII and the Technion’s Hewlett-Packard Professor of Computer Engineering, said, “I am proud to lead this endeavor that will help bring a global startup culture to New York and encourage the entrepreneurial efforts of our faculty and students. Together with our partners at Cornell Tech, we look forward to nurturing the next generation of applied technology leaders who will meet the needs of New York’s economy.”

“Today marks another important step forward for an initiative that we believe will transform our City for generations to come,” said New York City Economic Development Corporation President Seth W. Pinsky. “Applied Sciences NYC is a key piece of our larger innovation strategy that includes ongoing efforts to foster research and training at all levels of education. I would like to thank Dr. and Mrs. Jacobs for their generosity, as well as Presidents Skorton and Lavie, for their partnership and collaboration. ”

The JTCII plans to offer a two-year interdisciplinary program where students earn dual master degrees concurrently — one from Cornell and one from the Technion. This degree program will allow students to specialize in applied information-based sciences in one of three hubs focused around leading New York City industries – Connective Media, Healthier Living and The Built Environment–while honing their entrepreneurial skills. The first area of specialization will be in Connective Media and is slated to begin in the fall of 2014. Research will also be focused on the hub areas.

A novel program for Postdoctoral Innovation Fellows will launch in Fall 2013. The aim is to support individuals who seek to commercialize their research ideas in the stimulating environment at the JTCII while taking full advantage of the entrepreneurial network of Cornell Tech and the proximity to New York City-based markets.

Cornell Tech offers a distinctive model of graduate tech education that fuses scientific excellence with real-world applications and entrepreneurship, rooted in the latest academic research. Students, faculty and industry experts learn and work together to develop ideas and create new ventures that have global impact. The campus is attracting the best and brightest in technology, immersing them in an entrepreneurial culture with deep ties to the local business community, aiming to spawn new companies and tech ventures in New York City.

This gift marks another major milestone for the campus. Cornell Tech launched its first degree program in January – a Cornell University Master of Engineering in Computer Science and is rapidly rolling out new academic programs, recruiting star faculty, developing a distinctive new model of tech entrepreneurship, and designing its permanent campus on Roosevelt Island, which will break ground early next year.

The City’s Applied Sciences NYC initiative was designed to capitalize on the considerable growth presently occurring within the science, technology and research fields in New York, and builds on the Bloomberg Administration’s dedication to creating a more diversified and competitive economy for the future. In December 2011, the Cornell and Technion partnership was selected by the City as the first winner of the Applied Sciences competition. When completed, the Roosevelt Island campus will house approximately 2,000 full-time graduate students.

Above (right to left): Consul General Ido Aharony, Prof’ Peretz Lavie, Joan and Irwin Jacobs, Prof’ Haim Gotsman. Photo credit: Jeff Weiner

 Harvey Prize 2012

In the Field of Human Health

To Professor Eric S. Lander

Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Professor of Biology MIT and Professor of Systems Biology at Harvard Medical School.

In recognition of his significant contributions to the field of genomics, as the driving force behind most of the major advances in this field. He has made important contributions by both developing methods to exploit the power of genetic information and leading large endeavors to identify and annotate entire genomes. Most notably he consolidated the efforts of the human genome project and first-authored the resulting historic manuscript.  Prof. Lander also pioneered the analysis of the genetic components underlying complex diseases, including cancer.

Harvey Prize 2012

In the Field of Science and Technology

To Professor Eli Yablonovitch

Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of California, Berkeley, USA

In recognition of his pioneering discoveries in the fields of photonics, optoelectronics, and semiconductors. His groundbreaking studies are highly influential and broad in scope, combining deep physical insights with an applied technological approach. He established the field of photonic crystals and photonic band gap engineering, made fundamental and pioneering contributions to the research and development of photovoltaic cells, and the design and improved performance of semiconductor lasers.

Researchers at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology have developed and successfully demonstrated a photonic topological insulator, a new device used to protect the transport of light through a unique, lattice of ‘waveguides’. The advancement may play a key role in the photonics industry. A description of the advancement was published in the current issue of NATURE.

The photonics industry is at the heart of modern computing and communication.  It has allowed vast amounts of data to be transmitted extremely quickly over fiber optic lines that cross the oceans.  Photonic technology (i.e., technology that is based on the flow and control of light) is at the heart of DVDs, fabrication of computer chips, and solar cells.

As computers get faster and computer chips get denser, there is a need for smaller and smaller devices that manipulate light.  But when devices get smaller, imperfections in the fabrication processes can play a large role, making light move irregularly and unpredictably.  In other words, there’s a need for a new methodology to prevent unwanted scattering from any kind of defect.

Researchers at group of Prof. Mordechai (Moti) Segev at the Technion, in collaboration with the group of Prof. Alex Szameit at the Friedrich-Schiller University in Jena, Germany, have done exactly that.  Using a lattice-work of ‘waveguides’ (which are like wires that guide light instead of electricity), the researchers have experimentally demonstrated a ‘photonic topological insulator.’  The researchers used an array of helical ‘waveguides’ (shaped like curly hairs) arranged in a ‘honeycomb’ lattice structure, similar to the pattern observed in beehives.  In such a structure, where each waveguide is thinner than a tenth of a human hair, light is ‘topologically protected,’ which means it flows uninterrupted despite the presence of defects.

According to Professor Segev, “topological protection means that light simply flows around imperfections essentially without noticing them.”

Topological protection was first conceived not for light, but for electrons flowing in a solid material.  However, Dr. Mikael Rechtsman and Mr. Yonatan Plotnik from the Technion, figured out how to bring topological protection into photonics, using an array of waveguides that interact with one another.  The additional step needed to achieve topological protection was to make the waveguides helical (in the shape of a helix), rather than straight.  “The helical nature of the waveguides breaks the symmetry, so that in the forward direction the waveguides are spinning clockwise, and in the backward direction, counterclockwise,“ said Dr. Rechtsman.  “In our procedure, this is an essential ingredient in preventing unwanted scattering.“

“Photonic topological insulators have the potential to provide an entirely new platform for probing and understanding topological protection,” explained Rechtsman. “For example, all sorts of experiments that would be difficult or impossible to carry out in solid-state materials can now be accessed using light.” “Also”, added Plotnik, “such new ideas might one day be an important part of the optical communication industry, being robust to scattering and disturbances: a super conductor of light”. “This discovery is another step in the progress towards optical and quantum computing” said Julia Zeuner, the graduate student at Friedrich-Schiller University in Jena, who fabricated the sophisticated photonic structure and did part of the experiments. Her contribution, as well as the contribution of her PhD advisor, Prof. Szameit, was absolutely crucial, and manifested a long standing Israeli-German collaboration between the teams.  “We have discovered a completely novel phenomena”, concluded Professor Segev, “and new phenomenon are destined to find applications in directions that we can’t even imagine”.

A delegation of 30 senior entrepreneurs and officials of NYC’s Department of Economic Development visited the Technion and met with economic leaders

“New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has made it a goal to develop the high-tech industry in the city and to attract companies, investors and technology entrepreneurs. The joint Technion-Cornell Applied-Engineering-Science Center for Research will play a pivotal role in achieving this end,” adds Dove, in charge of infrastructure development and operations, as well as human resources on the new campus. “Bloomberg envisions this project as a magnet for attracting high-tech companies and students in engineering and technology fields. The research center will change the face of the entire area and will have a huge impact on NYC, starting from developing the public transportation to the Roosevelt Island, necessary for the establishment of the campus, through the construction of residential towers for students and the academic faculty, and the creation of thousands of new jobs.”

Dove explained that places not on the subway lines are considered by New Yorkers to be inaccessible. According to her, developing the public transportation on the Island is necessary and a key to the progress of the new campus, and will occur simultaneously with the construction of the campus. The campus will be built in a number of stages, starting from the northern part of the Island southward, with its construction consistent with the progress of public transport development in the area.

Already in the initial stages of campus construction, scheduled to open in 2017, residential towers for students and academic faculty will be built alongside academic buildings, which will draw new residents to the area. “The new campus will create hundreds of new places of work, in construction and infrastructure, and in service oriented jobs on the new campus,” says Dove. “It is well known that the establishment of a university has a catalytic effect on urban development. The new research center will act as a stimulus for growth and prosperity of the entire region.”

Members of this sizeable delegation met at the Technion with Israel’s senior economic leaders. According to delegation, a “high-tech strip” has already formed in New York all along the “F” subway line. “We are seeing start-ups forming one next to the other in minutes, and as far as we can tell, the interactions between these companies are excellent.”

The panel was hosted by Dr. Yossi Vardi, who emphasized that Uzia Galil (present in the audience) and Dan Tolkovsky are hailed as  “the fathers of Israel’s high-tech industry.”  He added that the establishment of the Technion-Cornell campus in the middle of NYC is sure to draw serious investors and spur high tech growth in the region, just as development centers of multinational companies were built in Haifa near the Technion, the high-tech industry of the Silicon Valley grew near and around Stanford, technology centers were established along the 128 Highway running near MIT, and the British high-tech industry situated itself near the University of Cambridge.  Even the famous “Bell” laboratories were built near the University of Princeton.

All attendees were presented with the book “Technion Nation: The Technion’s Contribution to Israel and the World” by Professors Amnon Frenkel and Shlomo Maital.

Above: Cathy Dove with Technion’s President Professor Peretz Lavie

And 1^st place for supporting a “challenging environment” among universities worldwide

The Technion was ranked in sixth place in the world for entrepreneurship and innovation, in the first ever comprehensive survey conducted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The study was performed in collaboration with Skolkovo (the Innovation Center known as Russia’s Silicon Valley). The survey aimed to identify the most innovative universities around the world.

Among the top ten leading universities worldwide – only two institutions of higher learning are located outside the United States and Europe – the Technion and the National University of Singapore (NUS). MIT and Stanford University topped the list.

The survey findings also showed that the Technion and Imperial College London are counted among the “emerging giants whose reputation had grown considerably in recent years.”

The study was carried out among 61 experts in 20 countries. They identified 120 universities having brought decisive influence and major contributions to the world in the areas of entrepreneurship and innovation. In answer to the question: Which universities would you identify as having created/supported the world’s most successful innovation ecosystems? – the Technion was ranked at sixth place, after MIT, Stanford, the University of Cambridge, Imperial Collage London, and the University of Oxford, and ahead of the University of San Diego, UC Berkeley, ETH Zurich, and NUS in Singapore. Owing to the Technion’s standing, Israel was ranked third in the areas of entrepreneurship and innovation, after the United States and Great Britain, and ahead of Sweden, Singapore, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, China and Canada.

The Technion was ranked first place in answer to the question: Which universities would you identify as having created/supported highly effective technology innovation ecosystems despite a challenging environment? Ahead of universities in France, New Zealand, Finland, Great Britain, Korea, China, Russia and the United States. As a result, Israel was nominated to first place in this category.

Instituting an institutional E&I culture – for entrepreneurship and innovation – is considered among experts as the essential ingredient for sustaining a successful system. In this respect, the Technion is mentioned as an institution that possesses the ethos of aspiration and achievement.

This is the first stage (out of three) in the comprehensive survey. In his reaction to these most favorable results, Technion President Professor Peretz Lavie said, “Technion’s position among the top ten leading universities in the world in the areas of innovation and entrepreneurship brings us closer to fulfilling our mission goals: to be counted among the top ten leading universities in the world. This is not the first time the Technion has earned international acclaim such as this,” he continued. “The university’s contribution to Israel’s advanced technology industry is recognized around the world. Not by coincidence did we prevail in the New York City’s tender last year to establish a scientific-engineering research center in partnership with Cornell University. The city’s mayor, Michael Bloomberg, said then that the Technion is the only university in the world capable of successfully turning the economic tide of an entire country, from exporters of citrus fruit to a global center for advanced industry and an authority of knowledge. To date, 61 experts from around the world have endorsed this statement.”

The list of AACR Academy fellows represents the most distinguished group of scientists from around the world in biology and medicine in the second half of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century

“Our Board of Directors decided to found the AACR Academy as a means by which to recognize scientists whose contributions to the cancer field have had an extraordinary impact,” says Margaret Foti, Ph.D., M.D., chief executive officer of the AACR. “Membership in the Fellows of the AACR Academy will be the most prestigious honor bestowed by the American Association for Cancer Research.”

The inaugural class of AACR Academy fellows will consist of 106 individuals, a number that symbolizes the “age” of the organization upon the establishment of the Academy.

The list of fellows of AACR represents the most distinguished group of scientists from around the world in biology and medicine in the second half  of the 20^th century and  the beginning of the 21^st century. One of the most prominent scientists in this group is James Watson, who was among the discoverers of the double helix structure of DNA. The list includes many Nobel Laureates, among them Professor Paul Berg (Nobel Laureate in Chemistry 1980, for his fundamental studies of the biochemistry of nucleic acids, with particular regard to recombinant-DNA), Sydney Brenner who was awarded the 2002 Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology (with two other colleagues, H. Robert Horvitz and John E. Sulston for their discoveries concerning programmed cell death – apoptosis), Robert Lefkowitz (the 2012 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, for his joint studies with his colleague Brian K. Kobilka of G-protein-coupled receptors), and Shinya Yamanaka (the 2012 Nobel Laureate in Medicine or Physiology; the prize was awarded jointly with his colleague Sir John B. Gurdon for the discovery that mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent).

Above: Professor Hershko (left) and Professor Ciechanover. Photo: Technion Spokesman