Israeli Firms Invest in Clean Tech
JTA--With an eye toward the global energy crisis and Israel's own looming power shortages, dozens of Israeli start-up companies are investing in clean technology, including Zenith Solar which licensed solar technology from Ben-Gurion University.
Making the Negev Bloom
Chronicle of Higher Education--Ben-Gurion University was established in 1969 in Beer-sheva, the south's largest city, with a self-proclaimed double mission: to educate students and to help solve the many problems that have plagued the communities that surround it. And while it is clear that one university cannot solve the region's economic and social problems, Ben-Gurion is making an impact.
From Far Beneath the Israeli Desert, Water Sustains a Fertile ...
The New York Times--Fish farming in the desert may at first sound like an anomaly, but in Israel over the last decade a scientific hunch has turned into a bustling business.
No Room Left for Nomadism
Jewish Exponent--The Bedouin are full Israeli citizens -- comprising about 80,000 people in the north, and 180,000 in the south, roughly 25 percent of the entire Negev population -- entitled to the same rights of Israeli Jews.
Olive Oil Yields Soar with NMR
Scientific American--By correlating fruit color with oil content measured via nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), growers can find the optimal time to harvest their olives.
Going Viral: Israeli Doctor Fights Disease around the World
J Weekly--Dr. Michael Alkan, BGU professor emeritus of medicine, might turn up in Botswana to teach local doctors how to combat infectious diseases. Or he might spend a month in Ecuador setting up a hospital.
Israel’s Big Green Future
E Magazine--From biofules to fish farms, water purification, "green" building, and marine life restoration, BGU researchers are doing what they can to maximize Israel���s limited natural resources.
Can Seaweed Mend a Broken Heart?
Scientific American--New research indicates that an alginate-based biomaterial injected into heart attack victims may stave off further damage.
BGU Study Fuels Low-Fat vs. Low-Carb Debate
The Wall Street Journal--Overweight people on low-carbohydrate and Mediterranean diets lost more weight and got greater cardiovascular benefits than people on a conventional low-fat diet.
Shining a Light on Infection
A new type of fiber optic biosensor-enabled blood test that resembles a pen rapidly determines what type of infection a patient has and whether he needs antibiotics. The biopen, called PhagoLum, was developed by Drs. Moni Magrisso and Robert Marks of BGU's National Institute for Biotechnology in the Negev and could be on the market by 2009.