Technion - Israel Institute of Technology > Uncategorized > Page 16

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1912 – 2012: Technion Cornerstone Centennial.

This is the story of how one stone changed the world.

1912. 36 years before Israel declared independence, a ceremony took place on the barren slopes of Mount Carmel near the port of Haifa, which was then occupied by the Ottoman Empire. Unknown to the Haifa community witnessing the event, this would be a milestone in history. This first cornerstone embodied an implausible vision of creating a world-class institute of scientific and technological education in the Holy Land.
The story of the “Technikum” – the original German name of the Technion – is a tale of the century. The second industrial revolution created the printing presses and communications infrastructure allowing Jews scattered across the globe to organize in face of rising anti-Semitism. As Jews were often barred from technical education, the establishment of a technical school was a first priority to rebuilding a Jewish homeland.

The Technion was to become unique worldwide as a university that would precede, create, shape, and protect a modern state.

The cornerstone laid on April 11, 1912, set in motion a century of progress responding to national and global needs. Technion would grow rapidly, becoming a global pioneer in fields such as biotechnology, stem cells, space, computer science, nanotechnology, and energy.

Three Technion professors have won Nobel Prizes. As it celebrates its cornerstone centennial in 2012, Technion City is a thriving world center of research and teaching, with 12,850 students and 80 graduate programs trailblazing excellence in research and teaching for the benefit of humanity.

Thanks to the Steven Spielberg Jewish Film Archives of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the World Zionist Organization for historical footage.

A science and technology research university, among the world’s top ten, dedicated to the creation of knowledge and the development of human capital and leadership, for the advancement of the State of Israel and all humanity.

Israel’s International High Tech Conference at the Technion

The conference was formally opened with a salute to the Technion in celebration of 100 years to the laying of the cornerstone for our historic building in Hadar Hacarmel

(r-l) Maiko Nishimoto and Kazunari Nawa of Toyota, Alfonso Gutierrez of Finland, and the Senior Executive Vice President of the Technion, Professor Paul Feigin.

Israel’s main high tech conference, hosted by IATI (Israel Advanced Technology Industries), began Septrmber 10th, 2012, with a visit to the Technion’s laboratories by dozens of guests from Israel and abroad. In the evening an event took place at Krieger Hall in French Carmel, in a tribute to the Technion’s cornerstone centennial. The conference sessions will continue at the Jerusalem International Convention Center.

This year’s conference boasts an unprecedented concentration of Israeli and international disruptive technologies. It will showcase a unique ‘Invented in Israel’ exhibit of innovative developments by the Israeli R&D centers of multinational companies. It will also showcase the first display of its kind in Israel of the leading Israeli startup accelerators, and, as it does every year, will present new and intriguing Israeli startups. The conference will also serve as a stage for a unique summit meeting of senior representatives of worldwide telecom leaders – Ericsson, Nokia Siemens, ZTE, Alcatel Lucent, and SingTel.

Among the main speakers at the conference are the President and CEO of eBay, John Donahoe; President of Samsung Semiconductors, Dr. Nam-Sung Woo; CEO of SingTel, Allen Lew; President of Intel Israel, Mooly Eden; President of RAD, Zohar Zisapel; President of Cadence, Lip-Bu Tan; CEO of Mellanox, Eyal Waldman; CEO of Y&R, David Sable; and the CEO of Bank Leumi, Rakefet Russak-Aminoach – in addition to a long, illustrious line of senior vice presidents for technology, mergers and acquisitions, from Microsoft, IBM, Google, Citibank, SAP, eBay, Ericsson, Nokia Siemens, Alcatel Lucent, ZTE and others.

The conference will be attended by senior government, academy and local authority officials, notably Israel’s President Shimon Peres, Haifa Mayor Yona Yahav, Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, Technion President Professor Peretz Lavie, former Ministry of Finance Director General Haim Shani, and others. The conference Chairs are Yossi Vardi and Yahal Zilka.

This would be the largest high tech conference in Israel for the third year in a row, and it will be attended by hundreds of senior executives from leading companies in Israel and worldwide, as well as by dozens of Israeli start-up companies that will participate in panels and present innovative technologies to representatives of companies from all over the world. IATI expects 4,000 participants from Israel and the world to attend the three conference days; international delegations of senior high tech representatives from the European Union, India, China, the US and others, venture fund representatives, senior executives of technology leaders from Israel and the world, the CEOs of leading Israeli start-up companies, entrepreneurs, and additional industry and high tech partners.

This year’s conference will be also attended by extended delegations of leading international companies, who are here to pursue business opportunities in the Israeli high tech and to obtain a personal impression of the local industry and entrepreneurship. The conference will address urgent issues in the global and local high tech, among them trends in fundraising, investments, funds and angels, technological innovations from the chip level to the future of man-computer interface, the telecom market and the transition to LTE, and the world of social media and online advertising.

Aaron Mankovski, outgoing Chairman of IATI and Managing General Partner of Pitango Venture Capital: “the international high tech conference taking place in Jerusalem for the third year now has succeeded in establishing itself as one of the top international conferences in the field, and in attracting the senior executives of leading companies worldwide. Last year, the annual high tech conference provided a platform for meetings and for the creation of professional and business relations between Israeli entrepreneurs and companies and worldwide leaders, which resulted in agreements, transactions and joint developments.”

Yahal Zilka, co-chairman of the conference and Managing Partner of Magma Venture Capital: “This year the conference is attended by an unprecedented concentration of global internet, telecom, chip and capital market senior executives – from China, India, the US and European Union countries. This summit meeting of key players from all over the world under one roof is a tremendous opportunity to create a collaborative growth engine for the Israeli high tech”.

Karin Mayer-Rubinstein, CEO of IATI: “During the conference, IATI will sign cooperation agreements with international companies that will bring added value to its members. This, further to cooperation agreements that IATI signed last year with Indian delegations, and which have strengthens relations with the Indian high tech industry.”

About Israel Advanced Technology Industries (IATI)

IATI is an umbrella organization for the high tech, venture capital and life science industries in Israel, including for individuals and companies that engage in research, development and marketing in knowledge intensive fields such as hardware, software, internet, telecommunications, bio-pharma and medical devices. The organization initiates and assists in developing policies and activities aimed at advancing the Israeli high tech and life science industries by promoting its interests vis-à-vis government authorities, creating collaborations between its members, promoting innovation and technology, and generating opportunities for the creation of business relations in Israel and worldwide.

Israel Advanced Technology Industries is the largest umbrella organization in Israel, representing over 300 companies and organizations of the entire industrial spectrum in Israel – high tech, life sciences, venture capital, start-up companies, technological incubators, commercialization companies and service providers – that employ hundreds of thousands of high tech and life sciences employees in Israel.

Social networks have swept the internet scene from other budding concepts and taken center stage in such an overwhelming way, that one is hard pressed nowadays, to find someone who isn’t involved in one network or another. Whether its on Facebook, Twitter, or another venue, people are constantly busy searching out friends, getting, and providing updates, sending messages, and playing games. If you think this whole social scene is mostly for young people looking to mingle, and that you, as a ’serious’ person, have no time to spend on this fad, you should think again. Chances are, that if you work for a medium, to large size organization, you are probably already spending time on a social network within your organization’s enterprise portal, without even knowing it.

If you follow colleagues’ birthdays, tag friends in company photos, or even keep your own blog on the enterprise portal, you are most likely a closet intranet addict. Rest assured though, you are not alone. The rise of organizational portals has seen the increased presence of social networking on these portals. The development of enterprise social media tools is on a steady rise. Microsoft’s Sharepoint, and SAP’s NetWeaver, are two good examples of enterprise tools that are constantly getting their social networking features tweaked and enhanced.

Is it all about social opportunities?

The ongoing growth of the enterprise portal market, constantly requires development of new tools, and feature sets for smart data management. With this market in mind, Technion Institute researchers, Prof. Oded Shmueli, and Royi Ronen, have developed a novel concept: a Generic social protocol, that can upgrade data management within a portal’s social networks.

Social Protocols are automation tools for social networks that govern the network’s structure, and the way data is communicated within, and without it.. Social protocols enable all of the connectivity features that make a network social. For example, say you are invited to a party by someone using the Facebook Events feature. When you receive the invitation you are asked whether or not you will be attending, and given the option to answer tentatively, with a ‘maybe’. Since your response is visible to the rest of the invitees, it may affect their responses, and possibly facilitate with the organization of the party. In fact, the social protocol behind ‘Facebook Events’ directly impacts the party’s organization by providing the three options for response.

The Generic Social Protocol

The idea behind the Generic Social Protocol is to create a malleable protocol that can be adapted to the needs of each organizational social network, by allowing users that initiate an event to set the protocol logic rules themselves. In This way, by applying protocol modifiers, an event initiator can have greater control over the behavior of their invitees. Assume for the moment that you wish to recruit several developers using the “one member brings another” method. An event is initiated by sending an initiation message to any desired set of network members. By applying protocol modifiers, you can define that only developers will enjoy the privilege of forwarding the message to their social network friends outside the company, whereas others can only view the message. In this manner you gain more control over information sharing between your social network participants. A tool such as this is bound to improve an organization’s productivity, streamline it’s work process, and become a meaningful supplement for social networks on enterprise portals. The Generic Social Protocol widens the number of potential participants who are not necessarily directly connected to the event’s initiator and can greatly change decision making, regarding events in any social network.

If you are interested in our novel technology for commercial purposes you are welcome to join the Technion Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR) program.

EiR program introduces entrepreneurs to the Technion’s research environment, helps them, identify promising technologies, and assists them with the launching of Start-up Company.

The above article is extracted from The Wadi.

The Patent

animated gif
Social networks interaction protocol
Ref. COM-1197

BACKGROUND

Recently, social networks turn into an automated platform which enables participants to become dynamic users rather than just provide site contents. Social networks applications structure participants intelligent communication by sending automate invitation to friends in the same network and collect different types of given responses. Since these responses can be viewed by all invited friends, they create great impact during decision making regarding the event on large number of participants.However, a better solution of structured communication is a modified interaction protocol that offers a wide range of communication and dissemination options

METHOD

Our methodology provides a platform for structured communication between participants which includes several types of modifiable messages . In every instance of the modified protocol, the participants determine their status regarding a certain event, which can be any happening, physical or virtual. As the protocol instance runs, participants make some of their friends in the network aware of event. Participants who are aware of the event may determine their status regarding this event as ‘positive’, ‘negative’ or ‘undecided’, and their friends can see these decisions. Based on such status decisions, other participants may determine their own status regarding the event. In addition, Since the protocol fits participant’s specific needs it enables decisions changing by activating additional protocols during each run of the protocol instance.

ADVANTAGES

• Enables protocol modifying according to user’s definition of protocol
• Enables better decision making regarding events in social network

APPLICATIONS

• Enterprise portal social networks
• Web 2.0 social networks – Facebook, Twitter, Linked in

Celebrating the opening of the Jewish year 5773, snake robots from the Biorobotics and Biomechanics Lab (BRML) of Prof. Alon Wolf, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology.

To review the most recent technologies available for commercialization from T3, click the image below! (PDF), or to see the newsletter as a webpage click here.

Technion GTEP pioneers national and global research collaboration into new solar fuels through I-CORE.

Our global future will be affected by our ability to create scientific and technological solutions to unlock new sources and methods of renewable energy. In Israel, regional instability is threatening energy sources and the cost of conventional fuels is multiplied.

At the Solar Fuels I-CORE, top Israeli scientists from Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology and the Weizmann Institute of Science have joined forces to create a synergy of expertise in order to generate clean, efficient energy from renewable sources. In addition, the Solar Fuels I-CORE is an Israeli multidisciplinary task force attracting returning Israeli energy scientists from across the world.

Through intense research, world-class facilities, a dynamic agenda of educational and outreach programs and global collaboration, the Solar FueIs I-CORE team is passionate about fulfilling the promise of paving the road towards a sustainable future for all humanity.

Supported by the I-CORE Program of the Planning and Budgeting Committee and The Israel Science Foundation

“Mr Zielony, your actions cannot be described simply; you are a true visionary. You have provided us with the tools for genuine development. You have given us the foundations for our community. Thank you for giving our campus a heart and our students homes close to that heart. We truly feel blessed.”

Ori Avi-No’am, former chair of the Graduate Students Organization.

“My mission in life is to provide others with the tools to realize their dreams and goals.”
Shalom (Stanley) Zielony ז”ל

Shalom (Stanley) Zielony

Born in Jerusalem in and educated in Haifa, Stanley Shalom Zielony served in the communications division of the Hagana during the War of Independence and in the Israel Defense Forces after the establishment of the State.

He moved to North America, settling in Canada, where he became involved in the export of pulpwood to Europe. He demonstrated his ingenuity by developing a more efficient machine to debark wood prior to process, and also designed Ways to improve the loading of pulpwood on cargo ships for transatlantic journeys. His ability to improve machinery transformed into his aptitude to improve processes. In 1967 Zielony founded New York Publications Expediting Services (PES.) that distributes scientific literature Worldwide. This was the first US company to use air freight and mail to import and export scientific journals and books between Europe and the US, Zielony became a World leader in scientific literature distribution as P.E.S. became the major conduit for leading international scientific publishers.

Throughout his life Stanley Shalom Zielony committed himself to help strengthen Israel by buttressing its scientific and technological character. His generosity and modesty are legendary. In 2003, he received a Technion Honorary Doctorate in appreciation of his recognition of the Institute’s critical role in the development and wellbeing of Israel, and in profound gratitude for his outstanding support of the quality of life at Technion, transforming the face of campus, improving Student life and supporting academic programs.

The inauguration of the Stanley Shalom Zielony Student Union Building

Zielony’s remarkable dedication to priority projects at Technion included funding for faculty recruitment, research, and campus life. The Shalom Zielony Plaza, dedicated in 2002, transformed the Technion into a more beautiful and vibrant campus with attractive waterfalls, a scenic promenade and an expansive central lawn providing a vvonderful location for large gatherings and ceremonies.

The quality of student life has been greatly enhanced and revitalized by the Stanley Shalom Zielony Student Union Building the Stanley Shalom Zielony Graduate Student village, and the strengthening of the Unit for Student Advancement. Loved across campus, March 18th 2009 was declared “Zielony Day” to express the gratitude of Technion students and faculty.

Zielony’s wish was to be buried at the family plot in Haifa, near Technion. His funeral, attended by his daughter Tamara, close family, friends, Technion staff and students, was a poignant yet optimistic tribute, a celebration of a life that touched so many. A recurring theme was the nobility of a man who felt lucky to be able to help others, especially young people. “Whenever I thanked Shalom for his magnificent gifts, he would respond: ‘My mission in life is to provide others with the tools to realize their dreams and goals. I feel privileged to have the opportunity to give, and to ensure the education of the next generation in Israel,” said Technion President, Professor Peretz Lavie.

“Mr. Zielony’s abundant generosity to the Technion and the Student Association has had a significant impact on the students here and will continue to do so for generations to come,” said Assaf Zinger, chairman of the Technion Students Association. “Sir Winston Churchill once said: ‘We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.’ Mr. Zielony’s gifts are a testament to a life well lived.”

A flagship example of T3 Technology Transfer: Rasagiline – a discovery by Prof. Moussa Youdim now marketed as a drug for Parkinsons disease Azilect(TM) by Teva Pharmaceuticals, also demonstrates the powerful Technion process of technology transfer – from the lab. to the marketplace. Image: Wikicommons.

Recent global headlines have evidenced the ongoing miracle of Israel’s ability to translate new discoveries into patented innovations that become applicable on world markets. In the past two months, two flagship companies created through the dynamic activities of the T3 – the Technion office of Technology Transfer, passed the key milestone and significant hurdle in the process of effective technology transfer, with the reception of approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The company Mazor Robotics won FDA approval to apply its robotic surgical system to neurosurgery in July 2012. In the same month, the flagship company Corindus won FDA approval for its CorPath 200 System to be used in performing percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI). The technology is now approved in the United States to assist interventional cardiologists in performing PCI, a procedure to restore blood flow to blocked arteries in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD).

The mission of T3 – the technology transfer arm of the Technion, is to transform scientiﬁc discoveries and innovative technologies into real-life, applied solutions for the advancement of humanity, the State of Israel, and the Technion. By creating optimal alliances between scientists, industry and investors, T3 facilitates the smooth transfer of technologies to the commercial sector. This is accomplished through the licensing of intellectual property and the establishment of start-up companies. Occasionally, T3 also plays an active role as an entrepreneur by building teams, preparing business plans and providing the capital necessary to bring the technologies developed by Technion researchers to maturity.

The Technion – Israel Institute of Technology is Israel’s ﬁrst university and home to three Nobel Laureates. The Technion is credited worldwide for its ability to generate start-ups, its remarkable ability to innovate and its powerful connections to industry. Known as “Israel’s MIT,” the Technion has made a signiﬁcant impact across the range of applied science and technology including electronics, information technology, water management, nanotechnology, life sciences & chemistry, clean-tech, materials engineering and aerospace engineering.

During the past years, T3 has enjoyed a robust and marked increase both in the number of patent families originating from Technion research as well as in the number of commercialization successes. With 80-100 new patent ﬁlings every year, over 400 granted patents and over 900 pending patents, Technion now has approximately 400 patent families available for commercialization.

Image courtesy of SGI

An SGI computer which has been nicknamed the ‘Octopus’ and which is currently the largest civil server cluster in Israel has been installed at the Technion computer labs.

The computer will mainly serve researchers at the Minerva Center for Cognitive Processes and the Russell Berrie Nanotechnology Institute (RBNI) but researchers from a variety of fields that demand high performance computing will also have access.

The Technion purchased the computer with all available management tools including administrative, applicative and compilers. The SGI InfiniBand Cluster supercomputer is equipped with over 1260 cores has 96 gigabytes of memory for every node with the nodes connected through an infiniBand communication protocol developed by Israel’s Mellanox Technologies and has a storage system with a minimum of 60 terabytes.

Speaking at a ceremony to launch the ‘Octopus’ at the Technion computer labs, Technion Deputy Senior Vice President Professor Daniel Rittel said: “The Octopus places us on equal footing with the world’s leading academic institutions.” Dr. Joan Adler a researcher at the Faculty of Physics noted that researchers are already reporting that the code is running 11 times faster on the Octopus than previous systems.