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[[IBM]] Israel, registered on June 8, 1950, was the country's first high-tech firm. The company, located on [[Allenby Street]] in [[Tel Aviv]], assembled and repaired punch card machines, sorting machines and tabulators. In 1956, a local plant was opened to produce punch cards, and a year later, the first service center opened, offering computerized data processing services. <ref>[http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1122975.html When Big Blue was a start-up, [[Haaretz]]]</ref>
[[IBM]] Israel, registered on June 8, 1950, was the country's first high-tech firm. The company, located on [[Allenby Street]] in [[Tel Aviv]], assembled and repaired punch card machines, sorting machines and tabulators. In 1956, a local plant was opened to produce punch cards, and a year later, the first service center opened, offering computerized data processing services. <ref>[http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1122975.html When Big Blue was a start-up, [[Haaretz]]]</ref>


Scientific and technological research in Israel was boosted by the appointment of a chief scientist for the Industry and Trade Ministry at the recommendation of a committee headed by [[Ephraim Katzir]], later [[president of Israel]]. <ref>[http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1132815.html Super-capitalism at work, [[Haaretz]] Books, December 2009]</ref>
Scientific and technological research in Israel was boosted by the appointment of a chief scientist for the Industry and Trade Ministry at the recommendation of a committee headed by [[Ephraim Katzir]], later [[president of Israel]]. <ref>[http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1132815.html Super-capitalism at work, [[Haaretz]] Books, December 2009]</ref> The Israeli government provided grants that covered 50-80 percent of the outlay for new start-ups, with no conditions, no shareholding and no participation in management. <ref>[http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1132815.html Super-capitalism at work, [[Haaretz]] Books, December 2009]</ref> In the early 1980s, [[Control Data Corporation]], a partner in [[Elron]], formed the country's first venture capital firm. <ref>[http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1132815.html Super-capitalism at work, [[Haaretz]] Books, December 2009]</ref>


==Natural sciences==
==Natural sciences==

Revision as of 12:24, 21 December 2009

Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot

Science and technology in Israel is one of the country's most developed sectors. The percentage of Israelis engaged in scientific and technological inquiry, and the amount spent on research and development (R&D) in relation to gross domestic product (GDP), is amongst the highest in the world.[1] Israel ranks fourth in the world in scientific activity as measured by the number of scientific publications per million citizens. Israel's percentage of the total number of scientific articles published worldwide is almost 10 times higher than its percentage of the world's population.[2]

Israeli scientists have contributed to the advancement of agriculture, computer sciences, electronics, genetics, medicine, optics, solar energy and various fields of engineering. Israel is home to major players in the high-tech industry and has one of the world's most technologically-literate populations.[3] In 1998, Tel Aviv was named by Newsweek as one of the ten most technologically influential cities in the world.[4]

History

Agricultural research dates back to the establishment of the Mikveh Yisrael School in 1870. The Agricultural Station, set up in Tel Aviv in 1921, eventually became the Agricultural Research Organization (ARO), today Israel’s major institution of agricultural research and development.[1] On a field trip to Mount Hermon in 1906, Aaron Aaronsohn discovered Triticum dicoccoides, or emmer wheat, believed to be the "mother of all wheat." [5] In 1909, he founded an agricultural research station in Atlit where he built up an extensive library and collected geological and botanical samples. [6]

Medical and public health research was initiated prior to World War I with the founding of the Hebrew Health Station. The Institute of Microbiology and departments of biochemistry, bacteriology, and hygiene opened at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, established in 1925. These provided the basis for the Hadassah Medical Center, today Israel’s most prominent medical research facility.[1]

Industrial research was pioneered at the Dead Sea Laboratories in the 1930s, and advances in basic science and technology were begun at the Hebrew University, the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology (established in 1924 in Haifa), and the Daniel Sieff Research Center (established in 1934 in Rehovot), which later became the Weizmann Institute of Science in 1949.[1]

IBM Israel, registered on June 8, 1950, was the country's first high-tech firm. The company, located on Allenby Street in Tel Aviv, assembled and repaired punch card machines, sorting machines and tabulators. In 1956, a local plant was opened to produce punch cards, and a year later, the first service center opened, offering computerized data processing services. [7]

Scientific and technological research in Israel was boosted by the appointment of a chief scientist for the Industry and Trade Ministry at the recommendation of a committee headed by Ephraim Katzir, later president of Israel. [8] The Israeli government provided grants that covered 50-80 percent of the outlay for new start-ups, with no conditions, no shareholding and no participation in management. [9] In the early 1980s, Control Data Corporation, a partner in Elron, formed the country's first venture capital firm. [10]

Natural sciences

Environmental science

The world's largest parabolic solar dish at the Ben-Gurion National Solar Energy Center.[11]

The country’s lack of conventional energy sources has spurred extensive research and development of alternative energy sources and Israel has developed innovative technologies in the solar energy field.[12] Israel has become the world's largest per capita user of solar water heaters in the home. A new, high-efficiency receiver to collect concentrated sunlight has been developed, which will enhance the use of solar energy in industry as well.[13]

In a 2009 report by the CleanTech Group, Israel was named one of the top 10 clean tech countries in the world, alongside Denmark, Sweden and Germany.[14]

The Arrow Ecology company has developed the ArrowBio process a patented system which takes trash directly from collection trucks and separates organic and inorganic materials through gravitational settling, screening, and hydro-mechanical shredding. The system is capable of sorting huge volumes of solid waste, salvaging recyclables, and turning the rest into biogas and rich agricultural compost. The system is used in California, Australia, Greece, Mexico, the United Kingdom and in Israel. For example, an ArrowBio plant that has been operational at the Hiriya landfill site since December 2003 serves the Tel Aviv area, and processes up to 150 tons of garbage a day.[15]

Space science

During the 1970s and 1980s Israel began developing the infrastructure needed for research and development in space exploration and sciences. In November 1982, the Minister of Science and Technology, Prof. Yuval Ne'eman, established the Israel Space Agency (ISA), to coordinate and supervise a national space program. Because of geographical constraints, as well as safety considerations, the Israeli space program focuses on very small satellites loaded with payloads of a high degree of sophistication, and cooperation with other national space agencies.[16]

Ilan Ramon ((June 20, 1954 - February 1, 2003) Israel's first astronaut

Israel launced its first satellite, Ofeq-1, from the locally built Shavit launch vehicle on September 19, 1988 and has made important contributions in a number of areas in space research, including laser communication, research into embryo development and osteoporosis in space, pollution monitoring, and mapping geology, soil and vegetation in semi-arid environments.[17]

Key projects include the TAUVEX telescope, the Tel Aviv University Ultra Violet Experiment, a UV telescope for astronomical observations which was developed in the 1990s to be accommodated on an Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) geo-synchronous satellite GSAT-4, for joint operation and use by Indian and Israeli scientists; the VENUS micro-satellite, developed in collaboration with the French space agency, CNES, which will use an Israeli-developed space camera, electric space engine and algorithms; and MEIDEX (Mediterranean - Israel Dust Experiment), in collaboration with NASA.[18]

Ilan Ramon was Israel's first astronaut. Ramon was the space shuttle payload specialist onboard the fatal STS-107 mission of Space Shuttle Columbia, in which he and the six other crew members were killed in a re-entry accident over the southern United States. Ramon had been selected as a Payload Specialist in 1997 and trained at the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas, from 1998 until 2003.[19] Among other experiments, Ramon was responsible for the MEIDEX project in which he was required to take pictures of atmospheric aerosol (dust) in the Mediterranean area using a multispectral camera designed to provide scientific information about atmospheric aerosols and the influence of global changes on the climate, and data for the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) and Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instruments. Researchers from Tel Aviv University (TAU) were responsible for the scientific aspect of the experiment. The TAU team also worked with a US company, Orbital Sciences Corporation, to construct and test special flight instruments for the project.[20]

In 2009 Israel was ranked among the 20 top countries in space sciences research by the Thomson Reuters agency.[21]


Applied sciences

Engineering

Aerospace engineering

Aerospace engineering related to the country's defense needs has generated technological development with consequent civilian spin-offs. The Arava short take-off and landing (STOL) plane manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries was the first aircraft to be produced in Israel, in the late 1960s, for both military and civilian uses.[22] This was followed by the production of the Westwind business jet[23] from 1965-1987, and later variants, the Astra[24] and the Gulfstream G100, which are still in active service.

Israel is among the few countries capable of launching satellites into orbit and locally designed and manufactured satellites have been produced and launched by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), Israel's largest military engineering company, in cooperation with the Israel Space Agency. The AMOS-1 geostationary satellite began operations in 1996 as Israel's first commercial communications satellite. It was built primarily for direct-to-home television broadcasting, TV distribution and VSAT services. AMOS-2 was launched in December 2003 and a further series of AMOS communications satellites (AMOS 2 - 5i) are operated or in development by the Spacecom Satellite Communications company, headquartered in Ramat-Gan, Israel. Spacecom provides satellite telecommuncations services to countries in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.[25]Another satellite, the Gurwin-II TechSAT, designed and manufactured by the Technion, was launched in July 1998 to provide communications, remote sensing and research services. EROS, launched in 2000, is a non-geostationary orbit satellite for commercial photography and surveillance services.[26]

Israel also develops, manufactures, and exports a large number of related aerospace products, including display systems, aeronautical computers, instrumentation systems, drones and flight simulators. Israel's second largest defense company is Elbit Systems, which makes electro-optical systems for air, sea and ground forces; drones; control and monitoring systems; communications systems and more. [27]

Agricultural engineering

Anaerobic digesters at Hiriya waste facility

Israel’s agricultural sector is characterized by an intensive system of production stemming from the need to overcome the scarcity in natural resource, particularly water and arable land, in a country where more than half of its area is desert. The growth in agricultural production is based on close cooperation of scientists, farmers and agriculture-related industries and has resulted in the development of advanced agricultural technology, water-conserving irrigation methods, anaerobic digestion, greenhouse technology, desert agriculture and salinity research.[28] Israeli companies also supply irrigation, water conservation and greenhouse technologies and know-how to other countries.[29][30][31]

The modern technology of drip irrigation was invented in Israel by Simcha Blass and his son Yeshayahu. Instead of releasing water through tiny holes, blocked easily by tiny particles, water was released through larger and longer passageways by using velocity to slow water inside a plastic emitter. The first experimental system of this type was established in 1959 when Blass partnered with Kibbutz Hatzerim to create an irrigation company called Netafim. Together they developed and patented the first practical surface drip irrigation emitter.[32] This method was very successful and had spread to Australia, North America and South America by the late 1960s.

Israeli farmers rely heavily on greenhouse technology to ensure a constant, year-round supply of high quality produce, while overcoming the obstacles posed by adverse climatic conditions, and water and land shortages. Technologies include computerized greenhouse climate control, greenhouse shading, irrigation, fertigation, greenhouse water recycling and biological control of plant disease and insects, allow farmers to control most production parameters. As a result, Israeli farmers successfully grow between 3.5 and 4.5 million roses per hectare in season and an average of 400 tons of tomatoes per hectare, four times the amount harvested in open fields.[33]

Computer engineering

Israel's Weizmann Institute of Science and the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology are ranked among the top 20 academic institutions in the world in computer science.[34]

Israeli companies excel in computer security technologies, semiconductors and communications. Israeli firms include Check Point, a leading firewall firm; Amdocs, which makes business and operations support systems for telecoms; Comverse, a voice-mail company; and Mercury Interactive, which measures software performance.[35] A high concentration of high-tech industries in the coastal plain of Israel has led to the nickname Silicon Wadi (lit: "Silicon Valley").[36]Both Israeli and international companies are based there.

Intel[37] and Microsoft[38] built their first overseas research and development centers in Israel, and other high-tech multi-national corporations, such as IBM, Cisco Systems, and Motorola, have opened facilities in the country. Intel developed its dual-core Core Duo processor at its Israel Development Center in Haifa.[39]

Optics, electro-optics, and lasers are significant fields and Israel produces fiber-optics, electro-optic inspection systems for printed circuit boards, thermal imaging night-vision systems, and electro-optics-based robotic manufacturing systems.[40]

Research into robotics first began in the late 1970s, has resulted in the production of robots designed to perform a wide variety of computer aided manufacturing tasks, including diamond polishing, welding, packing, and building. Research is also conducted in the application of artificial intelligence to robots.[40]

An Israeli, CEO and president of M-Systems, Dov Moran, invented the first flash drive in 1998.[41]

More than 3,850 start-ups have been established in Israel, making it second only to the US in this sector[42] and has the largest number of NASDAQ-listed companies outside North America.[43]

Military engineering

The nation's military relies heavily on local military technology and high-tech weapons systems designed and manufactured in Israel. Israeli-developed military equipment includes small arms, anti-tank rockets and missiles, boats and submarines, tanks, armored vehicles, artillery, unmanned surface vehicles, aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), air-defense systems, weapon stations and radar.

An impetus for the development of the industry was the embargo on arms sales to Israel during the Six-Day War which prompted Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI), founded as a maintenance facility in 1953, to begin developing and assembling its own aircraft, including the Kfir, the Arava and the Nesher.[44]

Uzi submachine gun

Notable technology includes the Uzi submachine gun, introduced in 1954,[45] the country's main battle tank, the Merkava, and the jointly designed Israeli and U.S.Arrow missile, one of the world's only operational, advanced anti-ballistic missile systems.[46]

Israel has also developed a network of reconnaissance satellites.[47] The Ofeq (lit. Horizon) series (Ofeq 1 - Ofeq 7) were launched between 1988 and 2007.[48] The satellites were carried by Shavit rockets launched from Palmachim Airbase. Both the satellites and the launchers were designed and manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), with Elbit Systems' El-Op division supplying the optical payload.

Health sciences

Israel has an advanced infrastructure of medical and paramedical research and bioengineering capabilities. Biotechnology, biomedical, and clinical research account for over half of the country's scientific publications, and the industrial sector has used this extensive knowledge to develop pharmaceuticals, medical equipment and treatment therapies.[49]

Medicine and genetics

Israeli scientists have developed methods for producing a human growth hormone and interferon, a group of proteins effective against viral infections. Copaxone, a medicine effective in the treatment of multiple sclerosis, was developed in Israel from basic research to industrial production. Genetic engineering has resulted in a wide range of diagnostic kits based on monoclonal antibodies, along with other microbiological products.[49]

Advanced stem cell research takes place in Israel. The first steps in the development of stem cell studies occurred in Israel, with research in this field dating back to studies of bone marrow stem cells in the early 1960s. By 2006, Israeli scientists were leaders on a per capita basis in the number of articles published in scientific journals related to stem cell research.[50]

Biomedical engineering

Sophisticated medical equipment for both diagnostic and treatment purposes has been developed and marketed worldwide, such as computer tomography (CT) scanners, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems, ultrasound scanners, nuclear medical cameras, and surgical lasers. Other innovations include a controlled-release liquid polymer to prevent accumulation of tooth plaque, a device to reduce both benign and malignant swellings of the prostate gland, the use of botulin to correct eye squint, and a miniature camera encased in a swallowable capsule used to diagnose gastrointestinal disease,[49] developed by Given Imaging.

In 2009, scientists from several European countries and Israel developed a robotic prosthetic hand, called SmartHand, which functions like a real one, allowing patients to write with it, type on a keyboard, play piano and perform other fine movements. The prosthesis has sensors which enable the patient to sense real feeling in its fingertips.[51]A new MRI system for identifying and diagnosing tumors developed at the Weizmann Institute has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and is already being used in diagnosing breast and testicular cancer. The new system will replace invasive procedures and eliminate waiting time for the results. [52]

Pharmaceuticals

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, headquartered in Petah Tikva, Israel, is the largest generic drug manufacturer in the world and one of the 20 largest pharmaceutical companies worldwide.[53] It specializes in generic drugs and active pharmaceutical ingredients and has developed proprietary pharmaceuticals such as Copaxone and Laquinimod for the treatment of multiple sclerosis, and Rasagiline for the treatment of Parkinson's disease.[54]

Nobel prize laureates

Three Israelis have won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry: In 2004, biologists Avram Hershko and Aaron Ciechanover of the Technion shared the prize, and in 2009, it was won by Ada Yonath of the Weizmann Institute of Science,.

Additionally, the 1958 Medicine laureate, Joshua Lederberg, was born to Israeli Jewish parents, and 2004 Physics laureate, David Gross, grew up partly in Israel, where he obtained his undergraduate degree.

In the social sciences, the Nobel Prize for Economics was awarded to Daniel Kahneman in 2002, and to Robert Aumann of the Hebrew University in 2005.

Scientific institutions

Israel has seven research universities, namely, Bar-Ilan University, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Haifa University, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, Tel Aviv University and the Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot. Other scientific research institutions include the Volcani Institute of Agricultural Research in Beit Dagan, the Israel Institute for Biological Research and the Soreq Nuclear Research Center.

Israeli universities are ranked among the top 100 academic institutions in the world in the following scientific disciplines: in physics (Hebrew University, Weizmann Institute of Science and Tel Aviv University),[55] chemistry (the Technion, Tel Aviv University and Hebrew University),[56] computer science (Weizmann Institute of Science and the Technion - in the top 20, Tel Aviv University, Hebrew University, and Bar Ilan University),[34] and mathematics and natural sciences (the Technion, Hebrew University, Tel Aviv University and Weizmann Institute of Science).[57]


High-tech companies

Civilian

Environmental and waste treatment technology

Security, military, government

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Science and Technology, Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, retrieved 2009-11-25
  2. ^ Israel ranks 4th for the number of scientific papers per person, Haaretz
  3. ^ BBC country profiles
  4. ^ Tel Aviv Hailed as One of the World's Top Hi-tech Centers. The Israeli Economy, Achievements and Potential, Ministry of Finance of Israel (MOF) November 1998
  5. ^ Molecular Genetic Maps in Wild Emmer Wheat
  6. ^ Biography of Aaron Aaronsohn
  7. ^ When Big Blue was a start-up, Haaretz
  8. ^ Super-capitalism at work, Haaretz Books, December 2009
  9. ^ Super-capitalism at work, Haaretz Books, December 2009
  10. ^ Super-capitalism at work, Haaretz Books, December 2009
  11. ^ Giant solar plants in Negev could power Israel's future, John Lettice, The Register, January 25, 2008
  12. ^ Seven solar technologies from Israel that could change our planet in Israel 21c Innovation News Service retrieved 2009-11-27
  13. ^ Science and Technology: Energy R&D Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, retrieved 2009-11-27
  14. ^ Cleantech powerhouse
  15. ^ Sorting through garbage for gold, retrieved 2009-11-24
  16. ^ About ISA - Israel Space Agency Israel Space Agency, Israel Ministry of Science and Technology, Retrieved 2009-12-15
  17. ^ Israeli Space Research by Wendy Elliman, in Jewish Virtual Library, Retrieved 2009-12-05
  18. ^ ISA International Relations Israel Space Agency, Israel Ministry of Science and Technology, Retrieved 2009-12-15
  19. ^ Payload Specialist Astronaut Bio: Ilan Ramon, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Retrieved 2009-12-05
  20. ^ U.S.-Israel Cooperation in Space by Shira Schoenberg and Mitchell Bard, in Jewish Virtual Library, Retrieved 2009-12-05
  21. ^ "Top countries in space sciences". The Times Higher Education supplementary. 2009-10-08. Retrieved 2009-10-08.
  22. ^ IAI-101, 102, 201 Arava in Virtual Aircraft Museum/Israel Retrieved 2009-11-26
  23. ^ IAI Westwind in Virtual Aircraft Museum/Israel Retrieved 2009-11-26]
  24. ^ IAI 1125 Astra in Virtual Aircraft Museum/Israel Retrieved 2009-11-26
  25. ^ Spacecom Coverage maps
  26. ^ Israeli satellites, 2007 report
  27. ^ Wars that make and break, Haaretz
  28. ^ Israel: Waterworks for the World?
  29. ^ Agrotechnology Company Directory in The Israel Export and International Cooperation Institute Retrieved 2009-12-02
  30. ^ Israeli company offers liquid know-how to India in Israel 21c Innovation News ServiceRetrieved 2009-12-02
  31. ^ Out of Israel to Africain Israel 21c Innovation News ServiceRetrieved 2009-12-02
  32. ^ A kibbutz-based MNC
  33. ^ Israeli advanced technology for Greenhouses in The Israel Export and International Cooperation Institute Retrieved 2009-12-02
  34. ^ a b [Academic Ranking of World Universities in Computer Science - 2009]
  35. ^ Venture capital investment in Israeli high tech
  36. ^ Israel’s Silicon Wadi: The forces behind cluster formation, Catherine de Fontenay and Erran Carmel, June 2002
  37. ^ Krawitz, Avi (2007-02-27). "Intel to expand Jerusalem R&D". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 2007-08-04.
  38. ^ "Israel R&D Center: Leadership Team". Microsoft. Retrieved 2009-12-06.
  39. ^ Israel Saves Intel
  40. ^ a b Science and Technology: Industrial R&D, Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, retrieved 2009-11-26]
  41. ^ Flash drives
  42. ^ Senor and Singer, Start-up Nation: The Story of Israel's Economic Miracle
  43. ^ "NASDAQ Appoints Asaf Homossany as New Director for Israel". NASDAQ. 2005-02-06. Retrieved 2007-08-04.
  44. ^ Israel's military industry
  45. ^ Israel's army phases out country's iconic Uzi submachine gun
  46. ^ Katz, Yaakov (2007-03-30). "'Arrow can fully protect against Iran'". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 2007-09-16.
  47. ^ Zorn, E. L. (2007-05-08). "Israel's Quest for Satellite Intelligence". Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved 2007-09-16.
  48. ^ "Israel successfully launches Ofek 7 satellite". Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
  49. ^ a b c Science and Technology: Medical R&D, Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, retrieved 2009-11-25
  50. ^ "Stem cell density highest in Israel". The Scientist. 2009-03-21. {{cite web}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Missing or empty |url= (help); Text "http://www.the-scientist.com/news/print/23240/" ignored (help)
  51. ^ Israelis help develop revolutionary prosthetic hand ynetnews.com Retrieved 2009-11-25
  52. ^ Taking MRI a step beyond
  53. ^ BioJerusalem - Teva Pharmaceutical Industries - Jerusalem
  54. ^ "Prescribing Information" (PDF). Teva Neurosciences. 2005-06. Retrieved 2007-03-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  55. ^ [Academic Ranking of World Universities in Physics - 2009]
  56. ^ [Academic Ranking of World Universities in Chemistry - 2009]
  57. ^ [Academic Ranking of World Universities in Natural Sciences and Mathematics - 2009]

Bibliography

Senor, Dan and Singer, Saul, Start-up Nation: The Story of Israel's Economic Miracle, Hachette Book Group, New York, (2009) ISBN 044654146X

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