2022 - Technion - Israel Institute of Technology

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On March 31, the Technion – Institute of Technology received a historic visit from a Moroccan delegation headed by Mr. Hicham El Habti, President of Morocco’s Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) – one of Morocco’s leading technical universities. UM6P focuses on applied research and innovation with an emphasis on African development and maintains international relations with other leading institutions, including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), McGill University, and the Max Planck Institute.

At a ceremony held at the Technion, a document of academic cooperation between the two universities was signed by UM6P President Mr. Hicham El Habti, Technion President Prof. Uri Sivan, Senior Vice President of the Technion Prof. Oded Rabinovitch, and Vice President of Research Prof. Koby Rubinstein. This document was the first of its kind to be signed between these two institutions. The ceremony was chaired by Technion Vice President for External Relations and Resource Development Prof. Alon Wolf.

From right to left: Amal el Fallah Seghrouchni, Prof. Koby Rubinstein, Technion President Prof. Uri Sivan, President of the Mohammed VI Polytechnic University in Morocco, Mr. Hicham El Habti, Prof. Gabriel Malka and Prof. Oded Rabinovich

The high-level delegation from Morocco, together with Technion representatives

Technion President Prof. Uri Sivan addressed the delegation and said that their visit to the Technion “reflects a rapid and dramatic historical change in the region. We at the Technion are determined to participate in leading this process and building bridges through education and research. Since the Abraham Accords, we have received delegations from the UAE and Bahrain, countries that none of us ever imagined would come to visit. Both of our institutions – the Technion and UM6P – educate young people and equip them for the future. The cooperation we are establishing here today goes beyond its academic value; it is our duty to the region and to the future of the next generation.”

The President of Morocco’s Mohammed VI University, Mr. Hicham El Habti, studied applied mathematics, economics, and engineering in France and worked for many years at the phosphate company OCP, where he served in a series of senior managerial positions. “Today we are signing a piece of paper,” he said at the ceremony, “but what is more important is what stands behind it – the mutual desire for cooperation, which will lead to student and faculty exchange from both institutions. It is an honor to be here at the Technion – and a great responsibility. We are part of an historic era, and we must continue to strengthen ties between Morocco and Israel. As a very young university, we are open to international cooperation and are delighted to establish this relationship with you.”

Technion President Prof. Uri Sivan and President of the Mohammed VI Polytechnic University in Morocco, Mr. Hicham El Habti sign the agreement

After the signing, both presidents exchanged gifts; Mr. Hicham El Habti gave the Technion President a book on the history of Moroccan Jewry, and Prof. Sivan gave the UM6P President a glass engraving bearing the symbol of the Technion.

“There are many similarities between Morocco and Israel,” said Prof. Koby Rubinstein, Executive Vice President for Research of the Technion, “both in the physical terrain and climatic conditions, as well as in our people and interests. This cooperation is important to us and has every reason to be successful.”

President of the Mohammed VI Polytechnic University in Morocco Mr. Hicham El Habti presents a gift to the President of the Technion Prof. Uri Sivan

After the agreement was signed, the delegation visited the David and Janet Polak Visitors Center, where they were impressed by the research and technology discoveries and breakthroughs of Technion researchers, including those of Nobel Prize laureates from the Technion. Many of the discoveries showcased led to the establishment of groundbreaking technology companies. They also visited the Electron Microscopy Center at the Technion headed by Dr. Yaron Kauffmann. Afterwards, individual meetings took place between delegation members and Technion faculty with the aim of furthering specific collaborations in various fields of research relevant to the two countries. Topics of those discussions include water engineering, energy, biotechnology and food engineering, biomedical engineering, entrepreneurship, and artificial intelligence.

When do waves break? Researchers from the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the University of Melbourne respond to this question in an article in Physics Fluids. They predict that the study’s findings will help improve our understanding of the dynamics of waves breaking, significantly improve wave prediction capabilities and enable advances in applications including safety and efficiency of maritime navigation and structures, harvesting of renewable energy, climate research, and more.

The study was conducted by Technion Professor Dan Liberzon, Ph.D. student (in the Inter-Faculty Program for Marine Engineering) Sagi Knoblerand, and Ph.D. student Ewelina Winiarska, in collaboration with Professor Alexander Babaninof the University of Melbourne, Australia.

Prof. Dan Liberzon

Ph.D. student Sagi Knobler

One of the currently accepted paradigms of waves study is that a wave breaks when it reaches a threshold steepness – a steepness at which the wave can no longer maintain its form and collapses. But the findings by the Technion and the University of Melbourne researchers show that this approach is wrong, and that there is no absolute threshold steepness beyond which any wave is doomed to break. The team’s findings were made possible by the development of a new method for accurate detection of breaking waves, developed in recent years in Prof. Liberzon’s laboratory. The study is based on data collected in a series of observations and experiments in the Black Sea and in laboratory conditions in the 17.4-meter-long wind-wave flume at the Technion Sea-Air Interactions Research Laboratory (T-SAIL) headed by Prof. Liberzon.

Ph.D. student Ewelina Winiarska

“Breaking of sea waves is one of the most intricate scientific problems in fluid mechanics,” explains Prof. Dan Liberzon. “No-one doubts there is a connection between the steepness of the wave and the inception of breaking, but we show that the picture is more complex, making it impossible to predict the breaking of the wave based on its steepness alone. The breaking depends on many complex parameters – the intensity of the wind blowing over the waves, the speed of the wave peak propagation, and so on. During this complex evolution of the wave, it becomes highly asymmetric both horizontally and vertically. The collapse of the wave begins with the formation of a ‘bump’ at the frontside of the wave, from which, depending on the combination of many of the factors previously mentioned, the wave breaks either intensely or gently. In the current study, we were able to produce detailed statistics of many features for breaking and non-breaking waves, using combined experimental data both from the laboratory wind-wave flume at the Technion and waves data from the Black Sea. These detailed statistics will serve as the basis for forecasting which waves will break and when.”

Wave-breaking experiments in the wind-wave flume at the Technion

Prof. Dan Liberzon is a faculty member in the Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the Technion, a member of the Interfaculty Program for Marine Engineering at the Technion and head of the Technion Sea-Air Interactions Research Laboratory (T-SAIL) which is focused on various aspects of waves evolution under wind, sea-currents, and atmosphere-sea interactions.

Prof. Alexander Babanin is a member of the Department of Infrastructure Engineering at the University of Melbourne, Australia. He is a researcher of sea waves and currents and an expert in marine engineering.

Click here for the paper in Physics Fluids

The spring semester recently opened, and our classrooms, laboratories — and lawns — are bustling with activity. The April edition of our e-newsletter, ‘Technion LIVE,’ features a Passover greeting from Technion President Prof. Uri Sivan, adventures in space, a record number of Israel Prize winners, and more exciting news.

The April edition of our e-newsletter, Technion LIVE

To read the April edition of Technion LIVE, click here. To receive our newsletter by email, sign up here.

Past issues can be found here.

A historic moment: a lens was fabricated in space for the first time earlier this week, using innovative technology developed at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The fluidic shaping method, developed by Prof. Moran Bercovici’s research team, in collaboration with NASA, could revolutionize space optics by overcoming the current limitations due to the size of the launcher and enabling fabrication of giant lenses for space telescopes.

איתן סטיבה עם העדשה במעבדתו של פרופ' ברקוביץ' בטכניון

Israeli astronaut Eytan Stibbe at the Technion, last year

“No dream is beyond reach,” Prof. Bercovici says, and adds about the success of the experiment, that it was “out of this world to see our experimental setup in space.”

Read Prof. Moran Bercovici’s full statement, made moments after the success of the experiment:

Watch the excitement in the NASA control center in Florida, as lab members watch the progress of the successful experiment, conducted by Israeli astronaut Eytan Stibbe (Hebrew):

Watch our video explaining this experiment, and more (English):

The successful creation of edible muscle fibers by bioprinting a plant-based scaffold and living animal cells is the subject of a new article by Professor Shulamit Levenberg and Ph.D. student Iris Ianovici of the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, in collaboration with cultured meat producers Aleph Farms. Other partners in the research described in the article are Dr. Yedidya Zagury, Dr. Idan Redensky, and Dr. Neta Lavon.

It is estimated that besides the scientific-engineering accomplishment, this technology is likely to enable the robust production of cultured meat at large scale in the near future.

The development of cultured meat, i.e., meat that does not involve the raising and slaughtering of animals, is a potential solution for the growing need for meat products following population growth, the environmental damage caused by breeding cattle, and the increasing awareness about animal welfare.

To fulfill the promise of cultured meat to meet various consumer expectations, there is a need for technologies that enable the production of whole muscle cuts that are as similar as possible – in terms of taste, smell, and texture – to those from animals.

Prof. Shulamit Levenberg, a world leader in tissue engineering, became involved in cultured meat several years ago after recognizing that her inventions in tissue engineering for medical needs are also relevant for growing cultured meat. Her research on the subject led to the founding of Aleph Farms, which sponsored the research study now being published. Last year, Aleph Farms presented the first cultured ribeye steak in history — created in the Levenberg lab — and has since pursued the development of new products. Aleph Farms’ CEO is Didier Toubia, Prof. Levenberg is Chief Scientific Advisor, and Dr. Neta Lavon is the company’s CTO.

L-R : PhD student Iris Ianovici and Prof. Shulamit Levenberg

Developing the technology to produce a wide variety of cultured meat products was the primary focus of the present research, which sought to create thicker cultured steaks using alternative materials as scaffolds for this purpose.

Enabling the perfusion of nutrients across the thicker tissue has been a significant challenge, with most of the scaffolding materials currently used for growing tissues being derived from animals. In the article, the Technion researchers present a solution to these challenges by using an alternative bio-ink to bioprint scaffolds from animal-free proteins, as well as living animal cells. The bio-ink contains the cells that will form the muscle tissue – satellite cells originating from a biopsy taken from livestock – and is formulated by combining alginate (a compound found within the cell walls of brown algae), and soy or pea proteins isolated from plants. The printing process enables the creation of protein-enriched scaffolds with different geometries. The printing process is based on a method in which the bio-ink is deposited into a suspension bath that supports the materials during printing.

The results: after the scaffolds were printed with the living animal cells, a high cell viability was observed. Furthermore, the cells successfully matured to create muscle fibers as the tissue grew. Since the geometry of the scaffold can be controlled, it is possible to control the introduction of nutrients and the removal of waste from the developing tissue.

“In the engineering process we developed in the lab, we tried to mimic the natural process of tissue formation inside the animal’s body as much as possible,” said Prof. Levenberg. “The cells successfully adhered to the plant-based scaffold, and the growth and differentiation of the cells proved successful as well. Our bio-ink led to a consistent distribution of the cells across the bioprinted scaffold, promoting growth of the cells on top of it. Since we used non-animal-derived materials, like pea protein, which is non-allergenic, our findings promise greater development of the cultured meat market moving forward.”

Click here for the paper in Biomaterials.

By Dr. Motti Haimi

Telehealth is the delivery of healthcare services by healthcare professionals through information and communication technologies, where distance separates the participants. In recent years, with the development of the internet and communication infrastructure, telehealth has become a convenient and safe method for patients to obtain reliable information and medical consultation.

There are many benefits in using telehealth, especially in routine care and in cases where a direct patient-healthcare provider interaction is not mandatory.

Since December 2019, the world has been facing an epidemic threat to global health, caused by the novel coronavirus, “SARS-CoV-2“.

Elderly people and those who have underlying medical conditions are at greater risk of developing an intensive and severe form of the disease. On the other hand, people who are not currently infected with COVID-19 but are at greater risk of “catching” the infection (e.g., elderly people and people with underlying diseases), should be able to receive routine healthcare without being at risk from exposure to others.

COVID-19 has catalyzed the rapid use of information communication technologies such as telehealth and virtual software platforms to deliver healthcare at a distance.

Telehealth has become an important tool for the general population, healthcare providers, and patients with COVID-19, enabling patients to maintain real-time contact with healthcare providers for advice on their health problems, especially useful when in quarantine. Remote medical treatment, using telemedicine services, can promote the patients’ access to professional medical advice without having to wait for long periods of time. It reduces unnecessary visits to clinics and hospitals, both in normal times and especially during the pandemic.

Among the most significant benefits of telehealth technologies will be the ways in which they will enable healthcare providers to effectively address and treat chronic diseases, which are one of the major health problems nowadays, and the largest cause of death. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, older adults with complex medical diseases had limited access to healthcare. The elderly population will particularly benefit from telehealth, which has the potential to increase equality in care, but which can also further exacerbate disparities.

The COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbated access to care, especially among the elderly population, due to reduced clinic visits, transport restrictions, and other societal measures to mitigate the pandemic. Age-related barriers such as lack of exposure and familiarity to new technology were also contributing factors.

Nevertheless, there is a misconception that older people do not have internet or network connection, which they need for telehealth solutions. In fact, most of them do have such access, but have difficulties using the internet. Several studies also described a successful experience for older adults when special equipment was provided and installed, enabling them to experience home telehealth services.

In this systematic review, we explored the availability, application, and implementation of telehealth services during the COVID-19 pandemic designed for the aging population (age 65 and over), who needed them the most during this challenging period.

In our analysis, a total of 5319 articles were identified in the database, of which 3225 articles were left after deleting the duplicates. Following the removal of duplicate studies and screening titles and abstracts of the different study reports, we finally appraised 40 relevant studies in full. 11 studies were finally included after reviewing the full texts.

Our study shows that although older patients may benefit the most from using home telehealth visits, which improves their access to care, paradoxically there are still not enough telehealth solutions aimed at this specific population. It seems that not enough efforts were made.

Many older adults may have trouble accessing telemedical services. Policy makers should recognize and bridge this digital divide.

We suggest using simple, uncomplicated devices (such as tablets), supplied to the elderly enabling them to easily communicate with their physicians or other healthcare providers. Lectures and demonstrations on telehealth opportunities given to the general population can help address this digital divide. Another option is to train and prepare special health-related or technology-related personnel who can visit the elderly patients several times a month and help them operate the telehealth devices, thus connecting them to their remote healthcare professionals.

We believe that appropriate and successful digital solutions should be tailored and developed specifically for the elderly sub-groups, and aim to address their needs, desires, and everyday activities, not only during pandemics. As demonstrated in this systematic review, despite the hesitations around operating telehealth solutions for older patients, it can be done and is effective.

This article is in memory of my mother, Rachel Haimi, who passed away one year ago, not from COVID-19, but due to the lack of appropriate medical attention caused by the COVID-19 restrictions.

Dr. Motti Haimi

Dr. Motti Haimi, M.D. Ph.D., MHA, is an experienced pediatrician and pediatric onco-hematologist, and medical director, working at Clalit Health Services since 2007.

He has a demonstrated history of working in the hospital and health care industry. Skilled in clinical research, medical education, epidemiology, pediatrics, hematology, telehealth, and anti-healthcare disparities activist.

He is a clinical lecturer at the Rappaport Faculty of Medicine at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology; he is also a research associate and lecturer at the School of Public Health, University of Haifa, and at HIT (Holon Technological Institute).

He earned his M.D. from the medical school of The Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He also got a Ph.D. degree, and master’s degree (cum laude) in Health Administration and Health Care Management from the School of Public Health at Haifa University.

His areas of research and interest include pediatric hematology, dysmorphology and familial genetic syndromes, hereditary predisposition for cancer, gastroenterology and nutrition in children, and decision making of the primary care doctor.

During recent years, he is especially interested in the field of telemedicine and health-informatics, pediatric telemedicine services, and especially finding telehealth solutions for the elderly population and other populations who may have difficulties in accessing digital solutions.

He is part of the Healthcare Disparities and Digital Health working group of the International Society for Telemedicine & e-health

Dr. Haimi recently received the Prof. Haim Doron Award for outstanding Ph.D. thesis at the 14th Conference on Health Policy of the National Institute for Health Services Research.

Prof Anat Gesser-Edelsburg

Anat Gesser-Edelsburg, Ph.D. is an associate professor, the head of Health Promotion Program, School of Public Health, Faculty of Social Welfare and Health Sciences, and the founding director of the Health and Risk Communication Research Center at University of Haifa. During 2020, Anat was a visiting scholar at the School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago.

Dr. Gesser-Edelsburg is also a researcher at the Center for Evaluation of Health Promotion Interventions and at the Emili Sagol Creative Arts Therapies Research Center, University of Haifa.

She has won or collaborated in many research grants, and has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals.

Dr. Gesser-Edelsburg has a B.A. and Ph.D. from the Faculty of Arts, Tel Aviv University.

Her areas of research include health and risk communication, positive deviance, social marketing, persuasive communication, health-promotion programs, entertainment-education, and qualitative research. She investigates a variety of health-related issues, including emerging infectious disease communication, vaccination compliance, drugs and alcohol abuse, drunk-driving, sex education, nutrition, and prevention of hospital-acquired infections.

The full article published in Health Informatics Journal, can be found here.

On March 23, Nir Almog, a 22-year-old student in our Faculties of Biomedical Engineering and Physics, showcased his first solo art exhibition, entitled “What if Science Were to Burst Through the Door?” Bursting with colors and eye-catching shapes, his paintings are full of life, expressing the “sense of marvel” he draws from his studies. “In every exercise and lecture, the challenge and the thoughts evoke a wave of wonder in me, which I can only fully express through painting.,” said Almog.

Almog has been painting for as long as he can remember and has produced nearly 100 works of art. He sees no conflict between science and art. In fact, he observes that the opposite is true. People continually ask how come an artist is studying science at the Technion, he tells, and answers that his art is an expression of his love for science, while simultaneously providing a relief from its rigid confines. . The expression of joy is clear to see in his artwork – psychedelic, bold, with large brushstrokes, and bursting with life and color – his paintings lift the spirits.

Painting helps him unwind, he said, and gives him space to be less careful, to be unafraid of making mistakes. It helps him rely on his intuition and to think freely. “When we approach a complex experiment or exercise, we plan routes and destinations, armed with hypotheses and obeying the rules,” he said. “Art does not work the same way … it simply enters … says what it wants to say and moves on.”

This exhibition launches the Technion’s “Spotlight on a Creative Student” series and invites interested students to apply for an exhibition to be presented in the Corridor Gallery.

The exhibition is on display at the Ullmann Building.

Curator: Valeria Geselev

Design: Ofri Fortis and Hagar Messer

Printing: Studio Kaleidoscope, Line Cut

Framing: Aman Art

Dear Members of the Technion Family:

The spring semester recently opened, and we were thrilled to welcome students, faculty, and staff to campus. After more than two years of disruptive pandemic, we’re reminded, yet again, that meaningful learning, teaching, researching, and social interaction, are at the heart of the Technion. Now that we’re about to celebrate Passover – the Jewish spring festival – our classrooms and laboratories are bustling with academic activity, and our lawns are as lively as ever.

But Passover is not only about celebrating the spring. The Passover story is one of overcoming hardship, finding hope and liberty; it’s a story of gathering the resilience to emerge from dire straits. As we’re experiencing tensions in our region, and great conflict in other parts of the world, we must believe that even in such difficult times, there is reason for hope – just like in the story of Passover.

Our hope leads the Technion to take immediate actions, such as allocating funds toward hosting undergraduate and graduate students, post-doctoral students, and faculty from the Ukraine and Russia, while our peaceful campus continues to be a beacon of tolerance and coexistence.

Hope also leads us to explore new frontiers, including the groundbreaking Technion experiment successfully completed in space earlier this week; and to keep inspiring youngsters. Israeli astronaut Eytan Stibbe recently took the Nano Bible – developed and produced at the Technion – to the International Space Station – and this journey of the world’s smallest bible perhaps symbolizes the perseverance of our people, on their journey from slavery to a flourishing country. Taken into space, the Nano Bible connects distance and time, the past and the future, and ancient human culture with modern technology.

When we read the Passover Haggadah this holiday, I hope it will inspire us to strive for peace and freedom for all.

I wish you and your families a happy, healthy, and peaceful Passover.

Hag Same’ach,

Prof. Uri Sivan

President of the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology

On March 30, a large Austrian delegation visited the Technion, headed by Ms. Margarete Schrambock, Federal Minister for Digital and Economic Affairs, and Mr. Alexander Schallenberg, Federal Minister for European and International Affairs, and accompanied by the Austrian Ambassador to Israel.

המשלחת האוסטרית עם נשיא הטכניון פרופ' אורי סיון ועם המשנה לנשיא ומנכ"ל פרופ' בועז גולני

The Austrian delegation with Technion President Prof. Uri Sivan and Technion Executive Vice President & Director General Prof. Boaz Golany

Arriving at the Technion by cable car, the delegation was welcomed at the David and Janet Polak Visitors Center by Technion President, Professor Uri Sivan, who talked about the Technion being the technical university of the Jewish people, and about its history and close ties with Austrian science and research. Indeed, Professor Anton Zeilinger, the renowned Austrian quantum physicist, is due to receive an honorary doctorate from the Technion later this year. The President went on to say that “what makes us different from other universities is our mission to develop Israel’s economy and security – this is embedded in our DNA.” He emphasized the Technion’s expertise in AI – the University is ranked #1 in Europe – as well as its strong ties with industry and its emphasis on commercialization.

The highlight of the visit was a meeting on Digital Health moderated by Mr. Markus Haas from Advantage Austria and led by Austrian’s Minister for Digital and Economic Affairs Ms. Margarete Schrambock. Technion ‘stars’ on the panel included Professor Hossam Haick, Dean of Undergraduate Studies and Head of the Laboratory for Nanomaterial-based Devices, Faculty of Chemical Engineering; Assistant Professor Joachim Behar, Faculty of Biomedical Engineering; Dr. Shuli Schwartz, Managing Director of the Technion DRIVE Accelerator; and Mr. Sagiv Segal, Machine Learning Intelligent Systems (MLIS) Business Development Manager. The group conversed on ways to further strengthen digital collaborations and partnerships within health and life sciences.

שר החוץ אלכסנדר שאלנברג והשרה לענייני כלכלה ודיגיטל ד"ר מרגרט שרמבוק סוקרים את מיצג הננו-תנ"ך במרכז המבקרים ע"ש פולק בטכניון

Austrian delegation looking at the nano-bible at the David and Janet Polak Visitors Center

Sagiv Segal presented MLIS and its activities, saying that “data is the fuel of the AI economy.” He also mentioned that there were considerable challenges surrounding data privacy and the prevention of biases in data analysis to deal with.

Prof. Joachim Behar talked about the new Technion Human Health Initiative (THHI), which brings together many disciplines, aiming to break barriers and allow access to the data. The initiative focuses on developing tools to help doctors choose, in real time, the most accurate and appropriate medical treatment for the patient. Prof. Behar emphasized the importance of multidisciplinary cooperation.

Prof. Hossam Haick talked about the importance of commercializing the technologies. He explained how many students dream of bringing the technology into the world through their start-up, and how the Technion supports them on this journey.

Dr. Shuli Schwartz explained that their role at DRIVE (Dream, Research, Invent, Venture, Excel) was to find problems that matched the solutions. “Our accelerator supports entrepreneurs at an early technological and business stage,” she said. She added that as a scientist turned entrepreneur, she recognized this was a transformation and not a transition.

Having heard about progress and innovations, Ms. Schambrock was impressed by the Technion’s advances in this area and said that Austria “can learn from Israel.” She stressed that R&D in health and life sciences was very important for Austria and talked about these areas being cornerstones for both countries. The Minister went on to talk about the challenges of data protection, asked how the Technion had succeeded in bringing about multi-disciplinary partnerships in digital health, and agreed that more problems need to be found and matched to the innovative solutions that scientists and engineers are discovering.

The discussion was a promising start for future joint Israeli and Austrian collaborations. The participants promised to continue the conversation.

The new Technion-Rambam Center for Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare (CAIH) – a joint initiative of Rambam Health Care Campus and the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology – organized a Datathon – an information-based competition – as its inaugural event. Eight teams and 50 participants worked on four challenges proposed by Rambam physicians. The event took place in the Technion Faculty of Biomedical Engineering.

“The clinicians bring their side, which is formulating the problem and the clinical knowledge, while the students and researchers from the Technion bring their side, which is how to build algorithms and analyze big data. Together we’ll find solutions,” said Assistant Professor Danny Eytan.

The teams were asked to develop a model based on computational learning to solve clinical problems encountered by hospital physicians, using real anonymized data from the hospital. The groups included students and graduates from eight faculties at the Technion, medical personnel, and industry personnel.

The winning team of students. From left to right: Prof. Leo Anthony Celi, the winning students (in white shirts), the facilitator Eytan Katz, Dr. Jonathan Sobel, Dr. Joachim Behar, Dr. Ronit Almog, Asst. Prof. Danny Eytan Photo credit: Yossi Weiner

The list of winners is as follows:

The winners were Team Stem Cells, who presented a model for early prediction of blood infection in bone marrow transplant patients. Team members: Omer Shubi, Tom Yuviler, Oren Ploznik, Yoav Danieli, Yotam Martin, Nitzan Dahan, and Shoval Zandberg. The team was mentored by Eytan Kats, Israel Henig, and Asaf Miller.

Second place went to Team Birth, who presented a model for the personalized prediction of birth weight (as an indicator of future defects) based on clinical parameters and previous births. The team was comprised of Anastasiya Kuznetsova, Alon Hacohen, Noam Keidar, Rotem Shapira, Galya Segal, and Shiri Fistel. The team was mentored by Marie-Laure Charpignon, Pierre Aublin, and Ron Beloosesky.

In third place was Team COVID-19, who presented a model for early prediction for Coronavirus patients regarding the chances of recovery, and the number of days artificial ventilation would be required. The team members were Yotam Granov, Michal Jacob, Hadar Guthmann, Alon Tsaizel, Ofek Avraham, Gal Binary, and Hagay Michaeli. The team was mentored by Einat Borohovich and Danny Eytan.

Technion and the Rambam IT and Epidemiology Department worked hand in hand to set up the computational cloud infrastructure and collate original datasets from several units across the hospital. The Datathon was a joint effort between the Technion, Rambam Health Care Campus, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). It was organized by staff from all three institutions: Assistant Professor Joachim Behar (Technion), Assistant Professor Danny Eytan (Technion and Rambam), Dr. Ronit Almog (Rambam), Professor Leo Anthony Celi (MIT), and Dr. Jonathan Sobel (Technion). The event was also supported by several academic and industrial partners including Roche, GE Healthcare, and Technion Human Health Initiative (THHI).

Video from the datathon: