Category Archives: כתבות אמצע

The fellowship, amounting to $3,000, supports the career development of outstanding doctoral students through international travel, networking opportunities, and more. According to the Academy’s statement, “The fellowship recipients are the cutting edge of Israel’s future researchers in the fields of natural sciences, life sciences, engineering, mathematics, data science, and computer science.”

The fellowship award ceremony took place on Sunday, September 29, 2024, as part of the annual Adams Seminar, with the participation of a family representative, Mr. Sylvan Adams, and former Academy President, Prof. Nili Cohen.

In the photo from the left: Head of the Adams Fellowships Program Ms. Batsheva Shor, Prof. Moshe Oren, Academy Member and chairperson of the program’s Steering and Approval Committee, Former Academy President Prof. Nili Cohen, Former Academy President Prof. Ruth Arnon and Mr. Sylvan Adams, with the Adams Fellows of 2024-2025. Photo: Michal Fattal, Courtesy of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities

 

 

The Technion recipients are:

Jonathan Somer from the Andrew and Erna Viterbi Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Somer completed a bachelor’s degree in computer science at Tel Aviv University and a bachelor’s degree in medicine at the Technion, both summa cum laude. He is currently a PhD student under the supervision of Prof. Shie Mannor from the Technion and co-supervised by Prof. Uri Alon from the Department of Molecular Biology at the Weizmann Institute. Somer is enrolled in the MD/PhD program, which trains physician-scientists at the Technion’s Rappaport Faculty of Medicine and has published seven academic articles so far. His research focuses on developing computational tools for cancer research and treatment using machine learning and principles from physics and control theory.

Evgenii Zheltonozhskii from the Faculty of Physics. Zheltonozhskii was born in Russia and immigrated to Israel at the age of 14 as part of the Na’aleh program. After his military service, he was accepted into the Technion Excellence Program, completed a bachelor’s degree summa cum laude (in computer science and physics-mathematics), and continued to a master’s degree in computer science, which he also completed summa cum laude under the supervision of Prof. Alex Bronstein and Prof. Avi Mendelson. Currently, he is working on the theory of material phases, primarily in the context of topological quantum computing, aiming to improve the performance of “traditional” quantum computing.

Ron Ruimy from the Viterbi Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Ruimy completed a dual bachelor’s degree in physics and electrical and computer Engineering at the Technion, during which he began working in Prof. Ido Kaminer’s lab. Even during his undergraduate studies, which he completed summa cum laude, he was a lead author on a paper published in the prestigious journal Physical Review Letters. In his direct-track PhD, he focuses on electrons, electron microscopy, and possibilities for creating new types of quantum technologies.

Majd Machour from the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering. Machour completed a dual bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering and medicine at the Technion summa cum laude after which he was accepted into the MD/PhD program and began his research in Prof. Shulamit Levenberg’s lab at the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering. His doctoral research involves 3D bioprinting of multi-layered tissues containing blood vessels, and developing new printing methods and materials that can serve as bio-inks for printing thick and mechanically stable tissues intended for implantation. During his PhD, Majd co-authored nine scientific papers and three patents and won the 2023 Rappaport Award for Outstanding Doctoral Students.

Michael Birk from the Nanoscience and Nanotechnology program. Birk completed a dual bachelor’s degree in physics and electrical and computer engineering as part of the “Psagot” military-academic program and is currently a PhD student under the joint supervision of Prof. Ido Kaminer (AdQuanta) from the Viterbi Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Prof. Oren Cohen from the Faculty of Physics. His doctoral research focuses on the theory and application of quantum optics. According to Prof. Kaminer, “Michael’s contributions were crucial to our publications in Nature Physics and Nature Photonics last year, where he was one of the lead authors. Together, these two papers laid the foundation for a new research field—quantum optics of strong fields—which has already begun to engage researchers worldwide. In a third paper, published in the Journal of Optics, Michael led the Technion’s contribution in an international collaboration, demonstrating impressive leadership and teamwork skills.”

The Adams Fellowship Program, now celebrating its 20th anniversary, is a joint initiative of the Academy and Mr. Marcel Adams from Canada. Each year, the Adams Fellowships are awarded to around eight young researchers starting from the second year of their PhD studies, for a period of up to four consecutive academic years. The fellowship amount is currently 100,000 NIS per year. In addition, the Adams Fellowship Program allocates up to $3,000 annually to each fellow for active participation in scientific conferences and workshops abroad, scientific collaborations, or travel to interview for postdoctoral positions overseas. Participation in the fellowship program greatly contributes to the professional advancement of the fellows. Adams Fellows have the opportunity to form connections with each other and build a young scientists’ community through meetings at the Academy for students from all cohorts.

The founder of the fellowship program, the late Mr. Marcel Adams (1920–2020), was a passionate Zionist. He was born in Romania and, during World War II, was imprisoned in a labor camp established by the Nazis. He managed to escape, immigrated to Israel, and even fought in the War of Independence. In 1951, he emigrated to Canada, and seven years later, founded a real estate company, which grew and expanded over the years. Mr. Adams established the fellowship program as a way to give back to the country where he found refuge. He passed away in the summer of 2020 at the age of 100.

16 Technion graduate students together with a similar number of German students from Aachen and Jülich research center participated in a series of lectures and seven different hands-on laboratory sessions. The lectures covered fundamental principles of electron microscopy, and applications in material science, life science and quantum physics. The experimental part introduced the students to some of the most advanced electron microscopy systems worldwide.  Social events for the students and staff were also included in the program. The Technion delegation was headed by Professor Gadi Eisenstein, director of RBNI. Two Technion faculty members, Professor Yeshayahu (Ishi) Talmon and Professor Ido Kaminer were among the lecturers. 

The school was a late follow up of a very successful RBNI winter school on the same topic held in 2018 in Kfar Bloom. 

Prof. Michael (Miki) Elad received the prize for his research in engineering, which has led to practical developments, including reducing radiation levels in CT scans and shortening MRI scan times.

Prof. Michael (Miki) Elad received the prize

Distinguished Professor Mordechai (Moti) Segev received the prize for his pioneering contributions in photonics and nonlinear optics, and the innovative research paths he developed. His groundbreaking work in optical communications has had a global impact, advancing new technologies to improve wireless communication and the Internet.

Distinguished Professor Mordechai (Moti) Segev received the prize

The Rothschild Prize has been awarded by Yad Hanadiv, the Rothschild Family Foundation, in ten academic fields, since 1959. Yad Hanadiv also contributed to the construction of the Knesset, the Supreme Court, and the National Library.

2024 Rothschild Prize winners

Photographed by: Yoni Kelberman

The materials, which are expected to lead to significant improvements in the quality of Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans and expand their usage, are presented in a newly published article by Prof. Aharon Blank and Dr. Itai Katz in Science Advances. The research, supported by the Technion Human Health Initiative (THHI) and the European Research Council (ERC), included contributions from Prof. Boaz Pokroy and Dr. Arad Lang from the Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering at the Technion, who worked on preparing some of the unique nature-inspired materials, and Dr. Benno Meier from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. 

Prof. Aharon Blank (left) and Dr. Itai Katz

MRI is a non-invasive, radiation-free imaging technology used in diagnosing various clinical conditions. One of the limitations of conventional MRI devices is that they have trouble detecting metabolites, which have a very low concentration in tissues. Metabolites are small molecules involved in chemical process in the body, many of which serve as clinical markers indicating various health conditions, including malignant tumors, abnormal cell division, cell death, and cellular stress. This is the motivation for many research groups trying to find a solution that allows the identification of metabolites in non-invasive imaging scans. 

In their article, the researchers present a new method enabling the identification of metabolites in MRI. The method, called MMV, is based on new composition of metabolites characterized by two significant advantages in this context: a dramatic enhancement (by about four orders of magnitude) of the magnetic resonance signal and the preservation of signal strength for a relatively long time compared to existing metabolites – about ten minutes versus one minute. 

The practical implication of the findings is that the new materials will allow tracking metabolites in various tissues over time. Furthermore, due to the new qualities these materials provide to MRI scans, such tests could, in certain cases, replace expensive and radiation-intensive tests like PET-CT. 

One of the stages in the preparation process of the unique materials. This stage includes high-voltage plasma disintegration passing through the material grains

According to Prof. Blank, “Our discovery is very exciting for us, as the new method will provide physicians with a broader time window to perform the scan, and we estimate it will expand the use of radiation-free MRI scans. These materials will improve the capabilities of medical and research teams in early disease diagnosis, tissue characterization, disease progression monitoring, surgery planning, optimal treatment selection, and informed decision-making.” 

Click here for the paper in Science Adva

In 2017, the Technion awarded Dr. Ciechanover an honorary doctorate “in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the international standing of the State of Israel; in recognition of his many and varied achievements as a jurist, economist and statesman; and as a sign of gratitude for his longstanding support for the Technion and its students as chair of the Dr Jacob Isler Foundation”. Distinguished Professor Aaron Ciechanover spoke at the honorary doctorate ceremony and said, “Words cannot describe my brother’s work on behalf of the State of Israel, and I too owe him so much. We lost our parents when I was a young boy, and Yossi [Joseph], who was 14 years my senior, supported me along every step of the way ever since. He brought me to where I am today. Without him, I would not be standing here before you.”

Dr Ciechanover was a diplomat, businessman and entrepreneur. He served as director general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was part of the team that negotiated the peace accord with Egypt, worked as the defense establishment legal advisor, and was chair of the board of directors of El Al. In 2021 he was awarded the Israel Prize for Lifetime Achievement — special contribution to the state and Israeli society — “for his significant contribution to the State over many years in numerous areas of public life, the economy, security, diplomacy and jurisprudence — both within the public service and outside of it.”

May his memory be a blessing.

H2OLL has launched its first complete system for producing water from the air at Wadi Attir, a Bedouin community initiative in the Negev. The project, which started with an idea from Professors Eran Friedler and David Broday, faculty members in the Technion’s Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, is in the midst of a crowdfunding campaign that has already raised more than 4 million shekels. The goal of the project is to solve one of the greatest challenges of our time – clean drinking water for all. Dr. Khaled Gommed from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering was also instrumental to the development of the technology.

Within a few years, the idea has turned into an alpha prototype at the Technion. Last week the first complete system was launched at Wadi Attir. The translation of the research into a practical system was made possible by H2OLL, led by Joab Kirsch (CEO), Ilan Katz (CTO), and Oded Distel (VP of Business Development).

According to a 2023 UN report, 3.5 billion people suffer from a lack of clean drinking water for at least one month each year. The issue of access to drinking water appears in many of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals set by the UN, including realizing every person’s right to clean water, health for all, reducing inequality, and addressing climate change and its consequences. The goal set by the UN is clean water for everyone by 2030.

The water crisis is not limited to the developing world. For example, about 60% of drinking water in Los Angeles is imported, and in Europe, rivers are becoming increasingly polluted. The bottled water market is currently worth $363 billion annually, and H2OLL intends to tap into this huge market, offering a better solution in terms of health, cost, and environmental impact.

The technology developed by Professors Broday and Friedler enables water extraction from the air even in dry and desert areas, while completely blocking chemical and biological contaminants. It is based on adsorption, unlike most companies in the field that operate on direct cooling technology. The difference is dramatic: while water extraction via direct cooling requires at least about 10 grams of water vapor per kilogram of air, H2OLL’s adsorption technology can produce water even when the amount of water vapor in the air is half that – about 5 grams of water vapor per kilogram of air.

The new water system in the Negev

The prototype that was built at the Technion more than four years ago produces 200 liters of water per day. On September 10, the company launched its first full commercial system, which will supply 1,000 liters of water per day in the Negev. The system will operate under the auspices of the Wadi Attir project, and the International Sustainability Laboratory, a non-profit organization based in New York. Wadi Attir, a Bedouin community initiative in the Negev, combines local and global innovation, the production of sustainable food, and education (a school & a learning center), all based on Bedouin tradition and a variety of technologies.

L-R: Ilan Katz, Dr. Khaled Gommed, Ben Gido and Prof. Eran Friedler

After registering a patent, winning prestigious awards, and receiving a special grant from the Innovation Authority and the Ministry of Environmental Protection, H2OLL launched a crowdfunding campaign, raising more than 4 million shekels to date. The goal is to expand international marketing efforts, build the brand, connect the technology to solar energy, and develop a system that will produce about 10,000 liters of water per day. The company’s managers emphasize that the Negev climate is not unique but is similar to the climate in many areas, including the southwestern U.S., northern Mexico, and northern India. The company believes that H2OLL’s technology can help reduce the global water accessibility problem.

At the system’s launch on September 10, speeches were given by Dr. Muhammad Al-Nabari, founding member and co-chairman of the Wadi Attir project management committee, Prof. Eran Friedler from the Technion, and H2OLL CEO Joab Kirsch. The event included a ceremonial “opening of the tap,” distribution of branded bottles to guests, and a guided tour of Wadi Attir.

The couple, currently in the midst of their internships at the Rambam Health Care Campus, were awarded PhDs last week during a ceremony at the Technion. Both completed the challenging MD-PhD program, which trains physician-scientists at the Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine at the Technion. After finishing their internships in a few months, they will also receive their medical degrees.

Dr. Jonathan Gross and Dr. Tamar Koren

Tamar and Jonathan, now the proud new parents of nine-month-old Naomi, met at the Rappaport Faculty of Medicine in 2013 and became a couple shortly after the start of their first year. Tamar, a gifted violinist, came to the Technion after graduating with honors with a bachelor’s degree in music from the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music at Tel Aviv University. She joined Prof. Asya Rolls’ lab, which studies the physiological mechanisms underlying the connection between the brain and the immune system. In her PhD study, led by Prof. Rolls, and published in Cell (2021), they demonstrated that in cases of inflammatory processes, a brain region called the insula accumulates substantial information about the dynamics of inflammation. Moreover, targeted reactivation of the insula can reignite the inflammatory response, broadening the concept of “immune memory” beyond the immune system to the brain itself.

Jonathan Gross grew up in Tel Aviv, studied a scientific track (physics, electronics, and computer science), and thought he would focus on physics in the future. “But during the last months of my military service, I had time to read and reflect. I used that time to read several different books describing the experiences, memories, and insights of doctors from various fields. After being discharged, I was exposed to the activities of the open clinic run by Physicians for Human Rights, which provides medical care to people without access to the public healthcare system (refugees and asylum seekers). I started volunteering there. That was the first time I saw doctors working up close, and I decided I wanted to study medicine. That’s how I ended up at the Technion Faculty of Medicine, where I met Tamar and asked her to study calculus together. She agreed — and the rest is history.”

Jonathan’s doctoral research, under the guidance of Prof. Ruth Hershberg, continues the research initiated by postdoctoral fellow Dr. Sarit Avrani. It is known that many species of bacteria can survive for decades in food from which they have extracted resources. Previous studies conducted in Prof. Hershberg’s lab demonstrated that E. coli bacteria can genetically adapt to extreme and prolonged starvation conditions. In evolutionary experiments and whole-genome sequencing, the researchers in the lab deeply characterized these processes.

Tamar and Jonathan

“In my research,” says Jonathan, “we wanted to better understand the dynamics of bacterial evolution under prolonged starvation conditions. We did this by making changes in the experimental design, such as changing the volume of bacterial cultures or using a different bacterial species. In this experimental setup, we examined how these changes affected both the overall dynamics of the adaptation observed under these conditions as well as the specific genes involved in this adaptation. We found that many aspects of the genetic adaptation dynamics of ‘starved’ bacteria remained fairly consistent, even when significant parameters in the experimental design were altered. However, certain aspects of this dynamic are sensitive to the experimental design. In particular, we observed that the identity of the genes accumulating adaptive changes is highly dependent on the specific conditions of the experiment and the bacterial species chosen (Genome Biol Evol. 2020; Genome Biol Evol. 2024).”

Tamar and Jonathan have experienced both research and medical studies, and they hope to be able to combine the two fields, as well as family life and parenting, as they continue their careers — a challenging task. Tamar continues to perform research with Prof. Rolls in addition to her internship, intending to bring their insights to the medical treatment world through clinical trials. Jonathan estimates that he will specialize in radiology, “because it is a field that touches on many branches of medicine — internal medicine, surgery, pediatrics, and more.”

Twins: Amiel (on the right) and Eitan Gorbunov at the award ceremony

Twin brothers Amiel and Eitan Gorbonos have developed an innovative chip for image enhancement. The project, conducted at the Andrew and Erna Viterbi Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering and supported by Apple, was supervised by lab engineer Goel Samuel.

In recent years, Apple has funded student projects in the VLSI lab at the Faculty, aiming to provide students with the opportunity to experience the industry process from concept to design, and testing the physical chip after production.

The innovative chip content

Dalia Haim, a director in the silicon group at Apple Israel, explains that Apple’s involvement is intended to expose students to the vast potential in the hardware field and thus develop the next generation of chip engineers. Students participating in these projects receive personal guidance from Apple engineers, and upon completing the design phase, Apple funds the chip’s production in relevant factories. After production, the chips are returned to the lab, and students test them and their performance. This gives them experience working in a development team similar to the reality in the high-tech industry.

In the pictures, you can see the dramatic improvement in image quality – from left (raw image) to right (the image after noise filtering by the chip developed at the Technion)

The new chip developed by the students is designed to filter image noise. The students began with the general design (architecture) of the chip. The chip was manufactured according to the plan in a factory and returned to the Technion for testing. This was the first product in the VLSI lab produced using the TSMC65 process for manufacturing nanometric chips.

Technion graduate Dr. Anastasia Braginsky is a professional dancer, high-tech professional, mother of two, lecturer on operating systems, and ballroom dance instructor – not necessarily in that order

Dr. Anastasia Braginsky’s daily schedule is divided into half-hour slots, with a task appearing in her app every thirty minutes. Unusual but not surprising, as Dr. Braginsky is a high-tech professional, a dance instructor, a Technion lecturer, and a mother of two young children.

Dr. Braginsky was born and raised in Chișinău, the capital of Moldova. At age 14, she immigrated alone under the Naale program, or “Youth Aliyah before Parents.” She was placed in a boarding school in Bustan HaGalil and studied at Bosmat, a high school for scientific and technological education, established by the Technion in 1928.

At the age of six, she was exposed to ballroom dancing, “and I immediately knew this was what I wanted to do,” she shared. However, she only danced as an amateur before she began studying at the Technion. “After I arrived at the Technion in 2000, I discovered the ballroom dancing club led by Margarita Polyakov.”

As with everything she does, Dr. Braginsky approached ballroom dancing with utmost seriousness and dedication. During her studies, she became a professional dancer, completed a ballroom dance coaching course at the Wingate Institute, and began participating in international competitions. Today, she dances professional Latin ballroom with her dance partner Sergey Olovarenko.

Dr. Anastasia Braginsky

Ballroom dancing began as social dancing and became institutionalized in Europe – mainly in London – at the beginning of the 19th century. Gradually, a standard was established, comprising five dance genres: slow waltz, tango, slow foxtrot, Viennese waltz, and quickstep. Influenced by Latin American dances, five more genres were added to the European standard: cha-cha, samba, rumba, pasodoble, and jive. The standardization of ballroom dancing allowed it to become a professional field with local and international competitions, and in some countries – Denmark, for example – these dances are part of the school curriculum.

The Technion club turned into the Dance Spirit Club for Ballroom Dancing and was held in various venues in Haifa. In 2022, Dr. Braginsky teamed up with Polyakov to bring Dance Spirit back to the Technion. Last semester, the club was held for the first time as an academic course, granting participants academic credit points. According to Dr. Braginsky, “For the students, it’s a bright spot within their demanding studies, a few hours where they move and exercise their bodies like in other sports. Ballroom dancing has many additional benefits, including improved coordination, cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, and self-confidence. Today, there are also such clubs for Parkinson’s patients, after it was proven that dancing halts motor deterioration.”

Dr. Braginsky completed all her academic degrees in the Taub Faculty of Computer Science: a bachelor’s degree with an average grade of 89 and a master’s degree that turned into a direct track to a Ph.D. under the supervision of Prof. Erez Petrank. Between finishing her bachelor’s degree and starting her master’s, she worked at the IBM research labs in Haifa. Like in dance, she steadily advanced in the high-tech world. Dr. Braginsky worked at Yahoo! for more than seven years and now works in the research department of Red Hat, where she delves into all aspects of parallel and distributed computer systems.

Another of Dr. Braginsky’s pursuits, which began at the start of her master’s studies and continues to this day, is teaching. “Dr. Leonid Raskin, one of the veteran teaching assistants in the faculty (now the lecturer for the operating systems course), suggested I become a teaching assistant for the course. I was a head teaching assistant for many years and became a lecturer, and I continue to do so today alongside my work and dancing. I really, really love teaching, and it seems the students love learning from me.”

Alongside her many pursuits, Dr. Braginsky got married, and together with her husband Alexander Pevzner, raises two daughters: Sarah, nine years old, and Sophia, five years old. How does she combine all these things in a 24-hour day? “Proper time management, without movies, TV, and other distractions,” she said. “I love everything I do and don’t want to give any of it up, so I need to be focused and efficient on all fronts. I have no doubt it’s worth it.”