Water Authority prepares to open Degania Dam amid high hopes for Kinneret

(Photo By: Noam Bedein)

By: Tzvi Joffre - November 24, 2020

The Water Authority is preparing for the possibility that it may need to open the Degania Dam for the first time in 25 years as the Kinneret remains high after two years of especially rainy winters.

If the rainfall in the coming winter exceeds 90% of the perennial average, then the dam will need to be opened.

The hydrological service's forecasts predict that the coming winter will have slightly lower rainfall than the perennial average, but the Kinneret is already just a little less than 1.2 meters below the upper red line which marks a full lake, due to the last two rainy winters. The Water Authority therefore believes that there is a likelihood that the Kinneret will fill up this winter and that the Degania Dam will need to be opened.

Read More: Jerusalem Post

Breakthrough study shows hyperbaric oxygen can reverse aging

(Photo By: Sagol Center for Hyperbaric Medicine and Research)

By: Abigail Klein Leichman - November 22, 2020

Hyperbaric oxygen treatments can stop the aging of blood cells and even reverse the aging process in healthy aging adults, according to a recently published study from scientists at Tel Aviv University (TAU) and Shamir Medical Center.

The researchers found that a unique protocol of high-pressure oxygen treatments in a pressure chamber can reverse two major processes associated with aging: the shortening of telomeres (protective regions at both ends of every chromosome) and the accumulation of old, malfunctioning (senescent) cells.

“For many years, our team has been engaged in hyperbaric research and therapy — treatments based on protocols of exposure to high-pressure oxygen at various concentrations inside a pressure chamber,” explained Prof. Shai Efrati of the Sackler School of Medicine and Sagol School of Neuroscience at TAU and founder and director of the Sagol Center for Hyperbaric Medicine and Research at Shamir Medical Center.

Read More: Israel21c

Mastercard Ranks Israel as Best Country for Women Entrepreneurs

(Photo By: Reuters/Amir Cohen/File)

By: Shiryn Ghermezian - November 23, 2020

Israel is the best country for women entrepreneurs, according to a new ranking.

The Jewish state was ranked first in the 2020 Mastercard Index of Women Entrepreneurs (MIWE), a rise from fourth place the previous year.

The US came in second this year, followed by Switzerland, New Zealand, Poland, the UK, Canada, Sweden, Australia and Spain.

Israel’s first-place ranking was “largely driven by a focused institutional support” for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), according to the MIWE report.

Read More: Algemeiner

6 Israeli Innovations Feature on TIME Magazine’s 100 Best Inventions of 2020

(Photo By: Asaf Kliger)

By: NoCamels Team - November 24, 2020

TIME magazine has listed six Israeli-made innovations among its annual list of 100 Best Inventions of 2020 that are “changing how we live.” In 2019, the magazine featured nine Israeli innovations.

This year’s list was published late last week and features gadgets, devices, products, and services in multiple categories such as artificial intelligence, accessibility, electronics, augmented reality, design, finance, and entertainment. There is also a “special mention” category where one Israeli innovation was listed.

The magazine said the list was compiled through solicited nominations from TIME editors and correspondents around the world, and through an online application process. Each contender was then evaluated on key factors such as “originality, creativity, effectiveness, ambition, and impact.”

Read More: NoCamels

How is Israel handling growing water scarcity issues in the desert?

(Photo By: Eduard Marmet/Wikimedia Commons)

By: Maya Margit/The Media Line - November 21, 2020

Humanity’s most precious resource is becoming scarce.

Due to climate change as well as growing populations and poor resource management, whole areas in the Middle East are transforming from once-fertile ground into barren wasteland.

Prof. Jay Famiglietti is executive director of the Global Institute for Water Security at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, Canada. A world-renowned hydrologist, he was previously senior water scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

According to Famiglietti, the Middle East is one of the world’s top hotspots in terms of freshwater loss. He estimates that in recent years, parts of Turkey, Iraq, Syria and Iran have together lost nearly 300 million acre-feet of groundwater, equaling roughly two and a half times the volume of the Dead Sea, which is located between Jordan and Israel.

Read More: Jerusalem Post

Saudis confirm Netanyahu flew in for talks with crown prince on ties, Iran – WSJ

(Photo By: Bandar Aljaloud/Saudi Royal Palace via AP)

By: TOI Staff and Agencies

A Saudi government adviser confirmed that Riyadh’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held talks Sunday on Iran and normalization, but said no substantial agreements were reached, The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.

Two Saudi government advisers confirmed the trip by the Israeli leader to Saudi Arabia on Sunday night to the US paper. One of the sources said the meeting, which lasted several hours, focused on Iran and the establishment of diplomatic ties between Riyadh and Jerusalem, but did not yield substantial agreements.

Israel’s Education Minister Yoav Gallant also confirmed the trip, calling it “an amazing achievement.”

Read More: Times Of Israel

Lifting the lid on Israel’s best ancient toilets

(Photo by: Eliyahu Yanai/City of David)

By: Naama Barak - November 16, 2020

On Thursday, November 19, we’ll all be celebrating World Toilet Day, established by the United Nations to raise awareness of sanitation challenges across the globe.

To mark the special event, we looked at the sanitary situation in the Land of Israel these past couple of millennia and learned more about the best ancient toilets uncovered by archaeologists. What can we say — it certainly left us feeling flushed.

Read More: Israel21c

Pompeo: US to recognize BDS movement as antisemitic

(Photo By: Amos Ben-Gershom/GPO)

By: Lahav Harkov - November 19, 20202

The US will withdraw funding from groups that boycott Israel, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said during his meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Thursday.

“We will recognize the global BDS campaign as antisemitic,” he said. “The time is right… We want to join all the other nations that recognize BDS for the cancer that it is.”

Read More: Jerusalem Post

Snoop Dogg teams up with SodaStream to help save the environment

(Photo By: Mike Blake/Reuters)

By: Zachary Keyser - November 19, 2020

The Israeli subsidiary of PepsiCo, SodaStream, decided to employ the talents of rapper Snoop Dogg to explain how the "small things," such as switching to reusable bottles, can make a large impact on reducing a person's carbon footprint with regard to plastic waste.

Accompanied by his "nearly extinct friend," a sea turtle sporting an Israeli accent, Snoop Dogg noted that "smalls things" are the most meaningful, adding that amid the coronavirus pandemic the rapper would be dialing back his normally lavish lifestyle to enjoy the little things in life, such as dinner with the family instead of a big holiday party, and in lieu of his family's culinary trip, they would be opting for a little baking right at home.

Read More: Jerusalem Post

Washington Wizards hail pick of Israel’s Avdija in NBA draft as a ‘no brainer’

(Photo By: Youtube)

By: Alexander Fulbright - November 19, 2020

The Washington Wizards cheered their selection Wednesday of Deni Avdija with the ninth pick in the 2020 NBA draft, making him the first Israeli basketball player to be chosen in the top 10.

Tommy Sheppard, the general manager of the Wizards, said the team was “grateful” Avdija was still available, as the 6’9″ forward was considered a potential top-five pick, and called his selection a “no brainer.”

“We were a little bit surprised he was gonna be there at nine. We were very excited but certainly Israeli fans around the world are texting right now… I think we made some Wizards fans tonight,” Sheppard said.

Read More: Times of Israel

Arabs from Gulf states rush to learn Hebrew

(Photo By: Courtesy)

By: Abigail Klein Liechman - October 27, 2020

Maysoon Hameed comes home from work as a vice president of an Emirati bank, spends time with her family – and then begins a 90-minute live Hebrew class online.

“After the UAE signed [the Abraham Accords] with Israel, there are a lot of investment opportunities” for both sides, Hameed tells ISRAEL21c.

“To make connections and build relations, you need something in common with the other party no matter where in the world they are. You have to find a common comfort zone,” she says.

“If I have colleagues from Israel, we don’t have to speak English all the time, even though that is the international business language,” says Hameed. “We will feel closer speaking in a mother tongue.”

Read More: Israel21c

Israeli hoopster Deni Avdija shoots for top 5 in Wednesday’s NBA draft

(Photo By: AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

By: TOI Staff and Agencies - November 17, 2020

Top Israeli basketball prospect Deni Avdija is set to become the country’s highest-profile pick ever in the upcoming NBA draft on Wednesday night.

Avdija, 19, is a 6’9″ forward for Maccabi Tel Aviv and also plays on the Israeli national team.

He is considered a potential top-five pick in the 2020 draft, which was initially scheduled for June 25 but was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Avdija had a strong performance during FIBA U20 European Championship last year, in which he was named the most valuable player of the tournament and led the Israeli youth team to gold.

Read More: Times Of Israel

Israeli astronaut to fund own space flight, just might fly alongside Tom Cruise

(Photo By: GPO/AP)

By: TOI Staff - November 16, 2020

The former fighter pilot announced Monday as the second Israeli to become an astronaut will pay the cost of his flight to space next year out of his own pocket, according to the Israel Space Agency.

The agency, part of Israel’s Ministry of Science and Technology, said that Eytan Stibbe will be taking part in a mission late next year made up entirely of privately funded individuals. Stibbe, a former fighter pilot in the Israel Air Force who holds numerous IAF records, is the head of a private equity fund and reportedly a multi-millionaire.

Read More: Times of Israel

This doctor travels the world treating people in disasters

(Photo By: Courtesy)

By: Abigail Klein Leichman - November 10, 2020

Micka, 23, was the last person rescued from under the rubble of the January 2010 Haiti earthquake and brought to the Israel Defense Forces field hospital in Port-au-Prince.

Though one leg had to be amputated, Micka survived and thrived. Ten years later, she had an emotional reunion in Haiti with her Israeli orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Elhanan Bar-On.

“And just a few weeks ago she sent a picture of her newborn baby girl,” he tells ISRAEL21c.

Bar-On will never forget Micka, one of countless people he has helped to heal in disaster zones.

His most recent assignment was on the Greek island of Lesbos, where the World Health Organization asked him to coordinate emergency medical teams after Camp Moria – the largest refugee camp in Europe — was destroyed in a September fire.

Read More: Israel21c

Israeli NGO performs 5,555th lifesaving surgery on Palestinian toddler

(Photo By: Save a Child’s Heart)

By: Zachary Keyser - November 8, 2020

Israeli humanitarian NGO Save a Child’s Heart (SACH) performed its 5,555th lifesaving procedure last Sunday, with some 50% of those procedures dedicated to treating Palestinian patients.

For its 5,555th procedure, the NGO treated a five-month-old Palestinian boy from Gaza, Mahmad, who - at two weeks of age - was brought to a local hospital after he started experiencing breathing issues, while separately being unable to gain weight - suffering from a life-threatening heart defect.

Read More: Jerusalem Post

How Israeli Tech Protects The World’s Most Scarce, Essential Resource: Water

(Photo By: Courtesy)

By: Viva Sarah Press, NoCamels - November 4, 2020

From China to Israel, the US to South Africa, the world’s freshwater lakes and seas are witnessing a surge in harmful algal blooms (HABs) that are endangering the health and economy of nearby communities. These cyanobacterial blooms, algae that grow out of control, are also producing toxic effects and causing harm to animals, birds, marine life, people, and local ecology.

Market-approved algaecides have long tried to keep these toxic plant-like bacteria at bay but many of these treatments cause the release of even more toxins into the water thus creating more problems than they solve. 

Read More: NoCamels

King David-era fort found in Golan, may be 1st evidence of Bible’s ‘Geshurites’

(Photo By: Yaniv Berman/Israel Antiquities Authority)

By: Amanda Borschel-Dan - November 11, 2020

Dating to around the time of King David 3,000 years ago, what may be the earliest fortified settlement in the Golan Heights was recently discovered during salvage excavations ahead of the construction of a new neighborhood. Incredible rock etchings of two figures holding their arms aloft — possibly at prayer with what could be a moon — were uncovered inside the unique fort, which was dated to circa 11th-9th century BCE.

The striking find is being tentatively linked to the Geshurite people, whose capital is recorded in the Bible as having been located nearby, to the north of the Sea of Galilee.

Read More: Times of Israel

Sotheby's auctioning 18th-century Torah shield for $1 million

(Photo By: AP)

By: Philssa Cramer/JTA - November 1, 2020

(JTA) – Among the relics up for sale in a forthcoming Sotheby’s auction are two Torah shields that the auction house is calling “the most important pieces of Judaica to appear at auction in a generation.”

The items are part of a trove from the Sassoon family, a wealthy family originally from Iraq, that the auction house is bringing for sale next month. The 68 items include a robe and marriage contract from an 1853 wedding in Bombay, ornate Torah decorations from the Netherlands and a prayer book and set of tefillin that belonged to a leading 19th-century Baghdadi rabbi.

Read More: Jerusalem Post

Israeli drone kept tabs on spread of fire in Washington state

(Photo By: Courtesy)

By: Shoshanna Solomon - November 8, 2020

A drone developed by Israel’s Percepto, a maker of unmanned aerial vehicles, helped telecom conglomerate Verizon inspect critical communications infrastructure that could have been destroyed by fire, in the northwestern US state of Washington, ensuring the potentially life-saving communications capability of rescue workers who could not access the area in person.

The Big Hollow Fire in Washington state burned more than 24,000 acres and resulted in mandatory evacuation orders in September. Concerned that fire, heat, water or smoke damage could potentially interrupt critical rescue and firefighting communications, the company needed to urgently assess the integrity of its equipment and facility.

Read More: Times of Israel

West Coast Salmon to use Israeli aquaculture firm to farm Atlantic salmon

(Photo By: Reuters)

By: Jerusalem Post Staff - November 1, 2020

A US-based salmon production facility is set to implement Israeli-made Recirculating Aquaculture System (RAS) technology for aquaculture on land, Israel21c reported.

Though based in Norway, the company West Coast Salmon has a 15,000-ton production facility in Reno, Nevada. As reported by Israel21c, the company has the goal of becoming the leading supplier of high-quality and sustainably raised Atlantic salmon to the US West Coast, according to its chairman Hallvard Muri. To that end, it has chosen Israel-based AquaMaof Aquaculture Technologies to help it develop its on-land aquaculture.

Read More: Jerusalem Post