Podcasts about Weizmann

The American Studies Association has boycotted Israeli academic institutions since 2013. The Association for the Advancement of Anthropology has refrained from formal collaborations with Israeli academic institutions. And just this past summer, the American Association of University Professors opened the door to academic boycotts against Israel.  Enter: two scientists at MIT who see firsthand the consequences of academic boycotts and the damage it can cause to scholarship and scientific progress. To ensure Israeli scholars and their American colleagues can collaborate freely, and foster research and innovation that benefits all of humanity, they formed The Kalaniyot Foundation (pronounced Ka-la-nee-yought), named after Israel's national flower.  Hear from Drs. Or Hen and Ernest Fraenkel, co-founders of this initiative, on the impact of anti-Israel boycotts on academic collaboration with Israeli scholars, and what they're doing to rehabilitate the reputation of Israeli researchers in the eyes of the world.  Listen – AJC Podcasts: The Forgotten Exodus: with Hen Mazzig, Einat Admony, and more. People of the Pod:  U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff on Gaza Reconstruction, Israeli Security, and the Future of Middle East Diplomacy Why Germany's Antisemitic Far-Right Party is Thriving Instead of Disappearing Follow People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you've appreciated this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. __ Transcript of Conversation with Drs. Or Hen and Ernest Fraenkel: Manya Brachear Pashman:   Since the Hamas terror attacks of October 7, 2023 many university campuses have been riven by anti-Israel protests, demonstrations, often unfortunately fueled by disinformation and rife with rhetoric that too often crosses the line into antisemitism. But even before October 7, Israeli scholarship had become a target of the boycott divestment sanctions movement.  The American Studies Association has boycotted Israeli academic institutions since 2013. The Association for the Advancement of Anthropology has refrained from formal collaborations with Israeli academic institutions. Even study abroad programs that give students an opportunity to live and study in Israel have come under scrutiny. Enter: two scientists at MIT who see firsthand the consequences of academic boycotts and the damage it can cause to scholarship and scientific progress. To ensure Israeli scholars and their American colleagues can collaborate freely, foster research and innovation that benefits all of humanity, they formed The Kalaniyot Foundation, named after Israel's national flower. Dr. Or Hen and Ernest Fraenkel are with us now to discuss this initiative. Dr. Hen, Dr. Fraenkel, welcome to People of the Pod.  Ernest Fraenkel:   Thank you very much.  Manya Brachear Pashman:   So I want to work backward here a bit with a purpose. I want to start by sharing with our audience a little about your research. Dr Fraenkel, you work in health science, technology. What is the goal of your research and scholarship? Are there particular diseases you're trying to cure or treat? Ernest Fraenkel:   We are interested in the diseases that are the hardest to treat, ones like Alzheimer's, ALS, Parkinson's, where we don't really know the root cause, and we believe that by gathering many different kinds of data about genes and molecules, about RNA and also about people's lived experience of these diseases, and using computational models, we can identify new targets for drugs and hopefully better therapies. Manya Brachear Pashman:   Have you collaborated with Israeli scientists on this?  Ernest Fraenkel:   Yes, we collaborate with quite a few scientists all over the world, including top researchers in Israel. Manya Brachear Pashman:   And Dr. Hen, you are a nuclear physicist, and you study the strongest force in nature, right? What is the goal of your research?  Or Hen:   So my research is very much on the fundamental curiosity driven science side of things, I am trying to understand how the fundamental building blocks of matter come about. We're building a new particle collider in the US called the electron hand collider. It's a $3 billion project funded by the Department of Energy, where we will try to understand why the proton and from that nucleus and all of us have mass. Trying to understand how we get the proton to a specific spin, which is the reason that we can go into an MRI machine and image ourselves. And I also try to understand things like, how do protons and neutrons interact with each other at extremely short distances, which tell us about exotic phenomena in the universe, like neutron stars. So trying to understand, really, the fundamental building blocks of matter and how they come about. Manya Brachear Pashman:   Wow. And is there promising scholarship in this realm in Israel? Or Hen:   Yes, there's quite a few groups working in this area. I did my own training in Israel. I am a graduate of the Hebrew University for undergrad and Tel Aviv University for grad school. And actually, ever since I came to MIT, I've still been collaborating with colleagues from Technion, Tel Aviv, Hebrew University, Weizmann, Ben Gurion. I've always had a strong collaboration with Israel, actually. Manya Brachear Pashman:   So after October 7, or maybe even leading up to it, what were you seeing when it came to support of Israeli scholarship and collaboration in your institutions, in your fields, in academia in general? Ernest Fraenkel:   I think before October 7, we were living in a bit of a bubble, because MIT is a special place which is very deeply immersed in science and technology. Where really, quite honestly, before October 7, I had no hint that there were biases against Israel, Israelis or Jews. I know that was not the experience in many other areas, especially in other fields. But things really turned 180 degrees on October 7, and what we've seen since then has been deeply disturbing. That some of the boycotts that have been bubbling for years in the humanities suddenly burst forth into the sciences and the engineering fields in ways that are both global and also very local. Seeing bias against individual researchers inside laboratories, as well as these kind of blanket attempts to boycott Israel. Manya Brachear Pashman:   And Dr Hen, did you see the same?  Or Hen:   Yes, definitely. I work with a lot of international collaborations, actually, within collaborations, because there's structured bodies with bylaws and rules, It was very hard for anyone to object the presence of Israeli researchers. But what we have observed in many places is peer to peer collaborations dying down. We've seen a very significant social tax being applied to people who continue to collaborate with Israelis, and honestly, maybe in contrast a bit to what we know from academic boycotts in other areas, but are very much politically driven, within the STEM, within exact sciences, biosciences, etc, the social taxing is actually much stronger because we are people who usually instead, people keep a very clear separation between the politics and then, you know what they view from the work in the lab, which is very clear and data driven, and not a lot of room for opinions. It's very much exact.  But on the other hand, the second that walking within Israel, and you know collaborating with Israel, is start costing other corporations, other people will now not work, then you get a problem. And that's what people really avoid and that's how an academic boycott within the STEM areas is progressing. It's a very deeply bound social tax that is just running in the air of the institutions. Manya Brachear Pashman:   So what is the Kalaniyot Foundation doing to promote these collaborations? Can you give us some specific examples, or projects or partnerships? Or Hen:   Yeah, so one of the things that we really believe in is that, at the end of the day, actually, what we see, also data shows, is, well, there is existing strong collaboration, that peer to peer, that person to person connection, is so strong that it's very hard to break that. You can go into my department and you can talk to people about Israel. And they know Or, and they know the person, right? And they might have a positive opinion about, you know, negative opinion about me. But whatever that opinion is, right, it's stronger than anything.  They will try to protest and say, Okay, maybe there's a political issue. But you know, we know the researcher. We know the scientists. We know our colleagues. So the approach of Kalaniyot is to actually bring in more Israelis to campus, to bring in brilliant people who are excellent researchers that will come and enrich the academic environment, first and foremost, through this quality, and second, by the people that they are. Maybe Ernest, you want to continue with this? Ernest Fraenkel:   So it's really this dual mission. We think that if we bring more top notch Israeli scholars to us campuses, it will normalize interaction with Israelis, humanize the Israeli, but there's a problem, right? Because if you just bring Israelis into campus environments that are hostile, they won't thrive. Many of them won't want to come, right? And so the other piece of it that's necessary is to build community, and that's something that we've been doing since October 7 of last year, trying to figure out how to do that, and what we found is face to face interaction is really critical.  And so at MIT, we've been having weekly lunches of the Israelis, Jews, allies, everybody who felt isolated and left out of society by all the protests that were taking place. And the beautiful thing is that that started as a reaction, right, a sort of a safe place to retreat to, and it's actually become a wonderful, positive place. And still, now, you know, so far into this crisis, people are coming, and actually the numbers are even growing. And so on a typical week, we get more than 100 people in person. We, of course, feed them lunch, and it's just a wonderful place where you can make friendships, develop academic collaborations, and Israelis realize that there is a community here that appreciates them and welcomes them and it helps them thrive. Manya Brachear Pashman:   Because, of course, food is a vital currency, both on college campuses as well in Jewish as in Jewish life. Food heals all. But I am curious, do you? In addition to building these thriving communities, are you also so that people are surrounded and comfortable but are you also trying to build bridges with people who perhaps do tend to throw the word Israeli around in a negative capacity, but you need to actually have some face to face contact. Or is that really not the purpose of Kalaniyot. Or Hen:   I mean, it's a yes and a no. We certainly have done that, right. So if you think about how it all started very soon after October 7, basically after the first protest on campus at MIT. We went to talk to our president, three Jewish Israeli faculty, and we asked her. We said, Look, we hear from the students about what's happening in the dorms, what they're experiencing. It's really bad, and it's very hard to handle through the existing mechanisms.  Please actually give us the budget. We'll get kosher food. I'm a Mizrahi, that's what I know how to do, feed people. Let's put everybody together, and let's make sure everybody feel welcome. And we also said, you know, we'll be your bridge. We'll help the students communicate with administration through our guidance, right? We'll be able to filter, to guide them, but also to pick up on the important things that you need to know. But then we said something else. We said, Look, this is going to become very tough, also for the students who are protesting out there right now. It was before Israel responded, but we knew exactly what happened in the kibbutzim, and we knew this is not going to be just another round with Gaza. This is going to be something different.  So we actually suggested to the President that alongside starting our group, we will start a parallel group of peers who we might disagree with politically and have different perspectives on the Middle East, but we know that they are reasonable people that we can talk to, that we can collaborate with, that we can work with, despite or alongside disagreements. And so the idea was to start our lunch, to start a second lunch, and slowly, through the faculty leadership, bring the groups together. Some of it has worked. Some of it didn't work.  We used to meet once a week as the faculty and say, students tell us that this and this is happening. Can you maybe walk with your students to tone that down, and they would tell us what's bothering them, etc. Getting the students to come together, that was a bigger lift, a challenging one. And there was another initiative that came about called the Third Space Lunch, that maybe Ernest can elaborate more on. Ernest Fraenkel:   So just to add a little bit to that. So the faculty leads from the other group came to speak to our students. Were very respectful to them. The faculty listened quietly to the concerns of the Jewish students. And I think we did see an attempt by many of the faculty to bridge the gaps. Obviously, faculty are an extremely, you know, diverse group. We have extremists, we've got centrists, we've got moderates. And not everybody was trying to help, but many, many were, and I think that was very encouraging, and I've seen that continue throughout this. There are hidden allies. Probaby the average faculty member probably doesn't really want to know too much about Israel or Palestine. Doesn't want to have to understand the conflicts. They just want to go about their daily lives, teach what they love to teach, do the research they love to do, and they are natural allies in trying to bring order back to campus. And the more that we can engage them, the better off it is. Or Hen:   But I think in terms of the formal program for Kalaniyot - Kalaniyot is really meant to bring in researchers and make sure that they have a supporting environment. And if people want to take that extra step of building bridges and building, that's all great, but it's not kind of a mandatory part of the program. Manya Brachear Pashman:   I get it. You really just want to foster academic research and progress and innovation, right? Put political strife aside. You've named this foundation Kalaniyot after Israel's national flower. Can you describe for our listeners that flower and why you chose that name for this initiative? Ernest Fraenkel:   The Kalaniyah looks a lot like a poppy. It's a red poppy, and during good times, there actually was an annual festival where Israelis would flock to the south in the area right around Gaza to see the bloom of this flower that would cover the otherwise fairly barren, quite honestly, countryside. And it was called the South Red, Darom Adom, and people would rush there to see it. And it was a symbol, which actually takes place right around the time we're recording. People have been sending us photos from from Israel the last few weeks of these flowers, the more they hear about the program.  And it's a sign that the winter is going to end and spring is going to come, and everything will be renewed. And so it was the South in red, in a sense, that was all positive. And we think the same sort of thing is possible here, that while Israel is right now a touch point for conflict on campus, we want to see a time when Israel, this is something like, Oh, of course. You know, everybody wants to have some connection to Israel. That's where the best researchers are in every field.  I often tell the story, when I was first on the faculty here, one of my first assignees as an undergraduate advisee was somebody from Hawaii, and he told me, asked him what he was going to do this summer, and he said he's going to Israel. So no, really, what's, what's your connection to Israel? He said, Oh, I don't have any I thought, maybe he's a strong Christian. I asked him about that. Said, no, no, I don't have any particular faith. I just heard it's startup nation, and I want to go and experience it.  And I just think, how many students today is their first association with Israel, startup nation? Probably not that many anymore, but we can get back to that and realize that it's more than startups, right? It's basic science, it's the arts, it's culture. And so there's much that Israel has to offer the world, and we want to get back to the point where that's the first thing people think about Israel. Manya Brachear Pashman:   So this initiative did start at MIT, but it appears to be sprouting, to use a pun, it appears to be sprouting on other campuses. Dartmouth is developing a chapter and Penn, right, the University of Pennsylvania. Are they being led by fellow scientists who have seen the consequence of this scholastic snub, for lack of a better word? Ernest Fraenkel:   So at each university, and there are several others in the works that are still working their way through the administration at each university, and by the way, this is not a renegade effort. At each university, the faculty form a faculty board, we encourage them to find a diverse group. So it's not all the sciences on our board. And on those boards, there seem to be many members of humanities departments. Not all Jews, not all Israelis.  And these diverse faculty boards are people who are allied with the goals, and we have bylaws. This is a program entirely about positivity. It's not attempting to suppress anybody else's speech. It's not attempting to make any political points. It's a purely academic program that will help restore the image of Israel as a place of academic excellence and help the United States maintain its academic edge through those collaborations. Or Hen:   And I think you're hitting on a very unique point, right? And that is that this is entirely faculty led program. When you think about the role of faculty in universities, especially faculty from STEM fields, right, we don't lead a lot of things in the academic world that are not our research, right? Honestly, that's kind of, why am I here and not in Google, right? I would probably make a much bigger salary for Google these days.  I'm here because I really care about my research, those open questions I really want to explore, and that's what I'm doing. So I'm teaching my class, and I'm focusing on my research. And me is everybody else around me, that's what we do. So there is a very high activation energy to get the faculty to do something that is not their research, their own research, but once you do that, faculty is a force of nature at the university. That's kind of what we're here to stay, right? We'll tenure, we're going to be at the retirement. We run the place eventually.  So it's both to activate the people who can really make an impact from within in a very strong way. That's number one, who have these decades of connections, right? Well before the challenge, you know, I've had my 10 years of collaborations here at MIT, and this has a lifetime of more than 10 years of collaborations here, right? And many of us and people remember those connections, right? Remember how we teach together, how I lent them something from my lab, and stuff like that, right? We have these personal connections.  So it is really the first and uniquely faculty led program that is very helping to come back, see faculty do that. There's a lot of power, and that's also why it's such an academically focused program, because that's what we know how to do. There's many other who can combat antisemitism and can give antisemitism training and title six and all that. And we don't do it, not because it's not important, just because we are not the people who bring in unique expertise in those areas, but when it comes to research collaboration, connections with Israel around those things, we are the ones who can really promote it from within in a way that's unpowered and parallel to anyone else. And that's the, I think the strongest point of Kalaniyot, the faculty leadership.  Manya Brachear Pashman:   In other words, you're not activists, you're not advocates. That's not what you set out to do. You are researchers, scientists who just want to do research in science. Or Hen:   And when I see everybody around us do the best research and science possible, which means engaging with the brightest minds anywhere in the world, and that includes Israel.  And we don't want to see that door shut down. There's no hiding it – Ernest and I are Zionists, we're not going to shy away from that. And we think that an academic boycott in the STEM is a risk to Israel. Israel doesn't have oil, right? What Israel has is the Jewish mind, and that mind is the thing that helps Israel, and that mind is the thing that helps the world. And we can go on and on about inventions and discoveries that came out of Israel and Israelis and Jews for the benefit of mankind. So both for the benefit of Israel and all of humanity, we don't want to see the Israeli Academy get isolated. It's going to be bad for all of us. Manya Brachear Pashman:   Now I know that there is a program at Indiana University called Olamot, focusing on the humanities. Does this only apply to STEM fields, or do you also have partnerships and collaborations developing across multiple disciplines? Ernest Fraenkel:   Yes, absolutely, this is a program that's open to all academic fields, and each university will craft a slightly different program, we're sure. At MIT, because we're STEM dominated, our Kalaniyot program is dominated by STEM, but it's not exclusively STEM here, either. We do have deep involvement with several of our board members in the humanities. Many of the people who come to our programming are in humanities. We're hoping that some of the scholars whom we will select in our first cohort of post doctoral and sabbatical visitors will be in the humanities, but that's going to be much a bigger component of it at other universities such as Dartmouth and Penn, where they have huge humanities programs. Manya Brachear Pashman:   And are you getting mostly support, or are you getting any pushback from faculty members?  Ernest Fraenkel:   So this is really fascinating. Early on, when we first started formulating this program, we wrote a memo explaining, a letter, explaining why we were doing this for something called the faculty newsletter, which is usually a place where people write fairly anti-Israel things, and we kind of braced ourselves for the pushback. And nothing came back. There was no pushback. Because if you believe in academic values in the United States, unless you're a hardcore BDS person, there's really nothing objectionable here.  Our goal is to bring brilliant scholars to campus and encourage them to be able to work broadly, without regard to nationality, religion, anything else, any other protective category. And so we were very pleased. And initially, you know, the administration was curious. They were interested. They wanted to review exactly what we're doing. The MIT administration went through everything we're doing, and they gave us the thumbs up, and they've now been helping us make connections and behind the scenes, I believe, I understand that, you know, some provosts and presidents occasionally talk about this when they meet and they, you know, tell each other it's not a bad thing to have at your University. Or Hen:   I remember when we kind of got people to know the program, we met with a very high ranking individual at MIT. And that person said, Look, MIT stands on three legs: research, education, and entrepreneurship. Israel excels in all three. Of course, we want those connections. Of course we want those collaborations. And who in the right mind can say that this is anything political, right? Now I'm sure that some people will try at some point. But like Ernest said, we've worked very hard on the language and the messaging to make sure that the language and messaging reflects the way we really see it, as a very strong academic program. Manya Brachear Pashman:   So, Dr. Hen, I do want to ask you a personal question. I have read that as a child, you navigated some pretty significant learning disabilities stemming from dysgraphia. You have difficulty translating your thoughts into written form, but the assessment to determine those disabilities also determined that you had a unique gift for abstract comprehension, the ability to conceptually pare down complex ideas to their fundamental core. So I wanted to ask you, in your opinion, what is at the fundamental core of these academic boycotts? Or Hen:   Honestly, I do believe that the academic boycotts come from antisemitism. That's the core. I do believe that there are a lot of people who engage in that, not understanding that is what they're doing. I'd like to give people the benefit of the doubt. I think that a lot of people do see a difference between anti-Zionism, anti-Israel, antisemitism, right, which I personally do not share. And that's a different point of view, which is allowed. But I think at the end of the day, trying to isolate Israel, eventually is from a top level, and attempt to bring down the country, because that's the core. Core of Israel is its academics. That's really where it all starts. And if we don't have academia, if we're attacking the Israeli Academy, you're attacking Israel. And any person who takes the time to learn about the Israeli Academy, who listens to speeches by the head of Tel Aviv University about the judicial reform in Israel. Who listens to the head of the Israeli National Academy about how he sees democracy and what he sees about the war, situation, you would learn that the Israeli Academy is really the hallmark of independent academia that stands by itself, as an independent body that really promotes research and good for the world. And anyone who attacks that either doesn't know or doesn't care to know, and I'd like to hope that most people don't know, and once they'll know and appreciate the people, they will see different people. There is a core that doesn't want to know, and okay, we need to make sure that that call remains as small as possible. Manya Brachear Pashman:   Dr. Fraenkel, do you agree? Ernest Fraenkel:   I'm by nature, a centrist and not a political person, and I also have learned over time that it's very hard to understand other people's motivations. But I do think that one of the paths to it, to solving the problem, is to re-humanize Israel and Israelis in the minds of the people who are currently protesting. And I think we'll have good results if we do that. Manya Brachear Pashman:   I'm curious, we've been talking a lot about Israeli research and innovation. Can you kind of share a piece of Israeli innovation that you've heard about recently, that maybe our audience has not and should know about? Ernest Fraenkel:   I was just at a conference yesterday, and one of the best talks yesterday, this was at a conference on ALS, was given by a researcher from the Weitzman Institute, Eran Hornstein. And he spoke about an entirely new way to analyze what goes on inside cells in the course of disease. He calls it organellealomics, I think. It's kind of a mouthful, but it was completely innovative. No one has anything similar. It allows you to get a wonderful view of all the different processes that are going on in the cell at a very high level, in a way that is experimentally very accessible. And I think it's really going to transform a lot of how we research diseases, and may lead to some rapid advances in some of these tough cases. Or Hen:   Yeah, I can add to that, you know, from the more industry side of things, right? We all have technology in our pockets, in our homes, in our offices, developed in Israel. The most advanced processors by Intel are built on architecture that was developed in Haifa. Apple has engineering centers in Israel. Facebook has engineering centers in Israel, Nvidia. All of us use Israeli technology day in and day out. We either know it or we don't. But there's not a single person in the western world that does not rely on Israeli technology sometime, someplace, some point in his day. Manya Brachear Pashman:   And when you were at that conference, Dr. Fraenkel, or Dr. Hen, consider that, when you pull out your phone and consider the many ways in which we use Israeli technology, does that further validate, does it affirm that what you are doing is the right thing to do, and that this will only benefit humanity at large? Ernest Fraenkel:   In biology, we often do these experiments where we delete a gene, we make it stop working, and we see what happens to the cell or to the animal that we're studying, right? And just do the thought experiment. What would happen to American science if it didn't have these strong collaborations with Israel? And be weaker in consumer electronics, and be weaker in AI, we would be weaker in all the underpinnings of all the technology that we're all walking around with every day.  We'd be weaker in healthcare. Think about the contribution that Israel made to understanding what was going on during the COVID pandemic, right? It's just shocking how much we would lose from this small country not being there.  And absolutely, when we think about that, it just drives us even more to try to get this program to spread across all the best universities in the United States, and hopefully we'll make inroads in Europe as well and really bring Israel back to the forefront in everybody's mind as a place where positive things are happening. Manya Brachear Pashman:   Well, thank you both for joining us so much and for sharing about this program. Really do appreciate it. It's fascinating and refreshing to learn that academics are supporting academics. Ernest Fraenkel:   Thank you very much. Real pleasure to speak with you.

Los Angeles (L. A. ) is renown as a City of sunlight, a place of gorgeous topography from the mountains to the desert to the Pacific ocean. And yet, Writers for the last hundred years have been attracted to finding out what is lurking in the shadows of L. A. Daniel Weizmann in his second mystery novel, follows in that long tradition of what is called, “crime noir”, with an added bonus. The Author is a native of this sprawling global locale who is gifted with a curiosity and a keen sense of observation taking the reader to corners of diverse neighborhoods that he can write about with special detail. He introduces us to an amazing variety of characters from a couple living in a trailer park to some low life types who have come to own a mansion, to an Attorney who hides away living on a boat docked in the Marina at the mouth of the ocean. The story is set in Los Angeles in 2024, and in the mid- 1980s, full of the rock and roll music scene at that time, which Weizmann covered back then as a Music Reviewer. At the very opening of the book, we meet Adam Zantz, the hero of the story, and we learn about the mystery of a long ago crime that he must solve. As a Private Investigator (P. I. ) in training he has the passion for his assignment which is also fueled by complicated family relationships. It all brings color to this beautifully written tale of suspense and surprise. Once you finish CINNAMON GIRL you will know Los Angeles in its true mosaic, a magnet for all people of the world with dreams for a better life underneath all that sunshine. TO PURCHASE: Penguin Random House and Amazon - The Author is available via zoom to speak at Book Groups.

On a foggy morning in London, over a century ago, a visionary chemist met with one of Britain's most influential politicians. This wasn't just any meeting; it was a pivotal moment that would forever alter the course of Jewish history. Chaim Weizmann, a Russian immigrant and a passionate Zionist, found himself in the drawing room of Lord Arthur James Balfour. Armed with his sharp intellect and relentless drive, Weizmann presented his case for a Jewish homeland in Palestine. His argument was compelling, blending the urgent need for a safe haven for Jews with the potential benefits to the British Empire. This meeting, pivotal in its outcome, led to the historic Balfour Declaration of 1917, which proclaimed British support for the establishment of "a national home for the Jewish people" in Palestine. Today, we delve into this extraordinary story with Professor Jehuda Reinharz, a distinguished historian and former President of Brandeis University. As co-author of the biography "Chaim Weizmann: A Biography," Professor Reinharz brings us closer to understanding the man behind the political triumph. Through his journey from the shtetls of Belarus to the highest echelons of global politics, Weizmann navigated the turbulent waters of early 20th-century geopolitics with a singular goal: the realization of a Jewish state. Professor Jehuda Reinharz is currently the Richard Koret Professor of Modern Jewish History at Brandeis University. He served as the President of Brandeis University from 1994 to 2010. Professor Reinharz is the recipient of the President of Israel Prize along with many other awards and accolades, far too long to list. We are thrilled to be joined on the podcast today by Professor Jehuda Reinharz to discuss the life and legacy of Chaim Weizmann, the current state of affairs for Zionism, and of course, as we have one of American academia's foremost scholars with us, the recent anti-Israel protests across US university campuses. Stay tuned, this episode is sure to be an interesting one. "Chaim Weizmann: A Biography" on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Chaim-Weizmann-Biography-Institute-European/dp/1684581966

Patrick Millikin in conversation with Daniel Weizmann

The debate about the supposed “colonial” foundations of Israel goes on and on. But I wonder whether Jehuda Reinharz's definitive new biography of Chaim Weizmann might help clarify the unintentional colonial foundations of the Zionist project. Reinharz explains that Weizmann made his name as a brilliant chemist in the UK, where he leveraged his equally glittering social networking skills into the publication of the 1917 Balfour Declaration. As Reinharz told me, it was Weizmann's ability to appear like a British aristocrat that enabled him to successfully schmooze imperial Brits like Lloyd-George, Balfour, Astor and Mark Sykes (of Sykes-Picot fame). So even if his Zionist dream wasn't formally designed as a colonial project, the fact that Chaim Weizmann had to dress up like British colonialist to get his way might have unintentionally resulted in Israel becoming a spooky replica of a European colony. To remix Marx, great men make their own history, but they do not make it just as they please.Jehuda Reinharz was a long-time professor at Brandeis University, serving as Richard Koret Professor of Modern Jewish History in the Department of Near Eastern and Judaic Studies; Director of the Tauber Institute for the Study of European Jewry; founder of the Jacob and Libby Goodman Institute for the Study of Zionism and Israel; Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs; and University President. In January 2011, Dr. Reinharz assumed the presidency of the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation. Dr. Reinharz is the author or co-author of more than one hundred articles and thirty-one books in various languages and the recipient of eight honorary doctorates. He is an elected Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He earned his master's degree in medieval Jewish history from Harvard and his doctorate in modern Jewish history from Brandeis University.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children.Keen On is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit keenon.substack.com/subscribe

This one was fun.In the latest episode of Tech on Drugs, Shai met with Prof. Eran Segal from the Weizmann Institute of Science.Eran heads a multidisciplinary team of computational biologists and experimental scientists working in the area of Computational and Systems biology. His lab at Weizmann aims to develop personalized nutrition and personalized medicine using machine learning, computational biology, probabilistic modeling, and analysis of heterogeneous high-throughput genomic and clinical data.Among other things, Eran and Shai talked about precision nutrition and preventative medicine, and the importance of large-scale, longitudinal health data for advancing personalized medicine and improving drug development efficacy.

This week on Salt Lake Dirt, I talk with author Daniel Weizmann about his writing journey from the LA punk scene to his most recent novel The Last Songbird, a mystery involving a Lyft driver and a famous folk singer. Great book, great chat! Thanks for listening. Kyler --- Synopsis: "A struggling songwriter and Lyft driver, Adam Zantz's life changes when he accepts a ride request in Malibu and 1970s music icon Annie Linden enters his dented VW Jetta. Bonding during that initial ride, the two quickly go off app— over the next three years, Adam becomes her exclusive driver and Annie listens to his music, encouraging Adam even as he finds himself driving more often than songwriting.Then, Annie disappears, and her body washes up under a pier. Left with a final, cryptic text— ‘come to my arms'— a grieving Adam plays amateur detective, only to be charged as accomplice-after-the-fact. Desperate to clear his name and discover who killed the one person who believed in his music when no one else in his life did, Adam digs deep into Annie's past, turning up an old guitar teacher, sworn enemies and lovers, and a long-held secret that spills into the dark world of a shocking underground Men's Rights movement. As he drives the outskirts of Los Angeles in California, Adam comes to question how well he, or anyone else, knew Annie— if at all.  The Last Songbird is a poignant novel about love, obsession, the price of fame and the burden of broken dreams, with a shifting, twisting plot that's full of unexpected turns." --- Episode Links: PURCHASE The Last Songbird www.danielweizmann.com IG: @danielweizmann --- SLD Podcast Info: www.saltlakedirt.com Radio Broadcast every Monday on KPCR 101.9 FM Santa Cruz - 6PM - 8PM PST Listen on APPLE Podcasts Listen on SPOTIFY Instagram: @saltlakedirt

Commençons notre programme par un tour d'horizon des principaux sujets d'actualité de la semaine. Nous parlerons tout d'abord de le défi urgent que représente pour l'Europe le renforcement de ses capacités de défense. Ensuite, nous nous intéresserons au 18ème sommet du G20, qui s'est tenu du 9 au 10 septembre à New Delhi, en Inde. Ce sommet a été marqué par l'absence des dirigeants russe et chinois. Dans la partie de notre programme consacrée à la science, nous mettrons en lumière l'exploit réalisé par une équipe de chercheurs de l'institut Weizmann, en Israël : elle a réussi à créer une structure ressemblant à un embryon humain à un stade précoce sans utiliser ni sperme ni ovules ni utérus. Enfin, nous conclurons la première partie de notre programme par un bilan de l'US Open 2023.    Cette semaine, nous parlerons de la hausse inquiétante de la mortalité infantile en France, et particulièrement en région parisienne. Nous discuterons pour finir du retour du journal Tintin, qui publie un numéro unique pour ses 77 ans. Tintin est le célèbre personnage de bandes dessinées créé par Hergé en 1929. - L'Europe peine à optimiser l'augmentation de ses dépenses de défense - L'Inde accueille avec succès le sommet du G-20 marqué par l'absence des dirigeants chinois et russe - Des chercheurs créent un modèle embryonnaire complet à partir de cellules souches - Novak Djokovic et Coco Gauff remportent l'US Open 2023 en simple - Inquiétude autour de la mortalité infantile en région parisienne - Le journal Tintin revient pour un numéro unique

**1. A New Gravity Perspective:** Evidence points towards modified Newtonian dynamics (MOND). This potential shift in understanding gravity could rival the significance of general relativity. The scientific community awaits further confirmation. **2. Delving into the Universe's Infancy:** The Australian National University spearheads a groundbreaking research project. Dive deep into the early universe in three dimensions, exploring the formation of its first elements post the big bang, 13.8 billion years in the past. **3. Chandrayaan-3's Lunar Feat:** India's ambitious lunar mission, Chandrayaan-3, achieves a pivotal milestone by successfully transitioning into a lunar orbit. **4. The Science Report Highlights:** - A new variant of COVID-19 emerges, rapidly becoming dominant. - The Great Barrier Reef faces potential irreversible damages due to climate change. - Discoveries hint at possibly the largest animal ever to have existed. **5. Skeptic's Corner:** A light-hearted guide to the concept of marrying a ghost.**Support SpaceTime with Stuart Gary: Be Part of Our Cosmic Journey!** SpaceTime is fueled by passion, not big corporations or grants. We're on a mission to become 100% listener-supported, allowing us to focus solely on bringing you riveting space stories without the interruption of ads.

Debajo del suelo que pisamos hay mucha vida y en la mayoría de los casos, con organismos sorprendentes. Un reciente estudio revela la presencia de complejas comunidades microbianas hasta 700 m de profundidad en la Faja Pirítica Ibérica, capaces de obtener la energía a partir del hierro y de otros elementos presentes en las rocas y cuya actividad da lugar a las condiciones extremas de las aguas del Río Tinto, teñidas de rojo y muy ácidas. Hemos entrevistado a Ricardo Amils, investigador del Departamento de Planetología y Habitabilidad del Centro de Astrobiología y profesor emérito de la UAM, y a Carlos Briones, investigador del CSIC en el departamento de Evolución Molecular del Centro de Astrobiología. Con Lluís Montoliu hemos analizado las posibles aplicaciones y las consecuencias éticas y legales de los embriones humanos creados en sendos laboratorios de los institutos de Tecnología de California y Weizmann de Israel. Almudena Delgado nos ha informado del descubrimiento de una nueva especie de ácaro del género Lasioseseius, que se desplaza sobre ejemplares adultos del picudo negro del agave. Con testimonios de Iñaki Balanzategui, técnico Especializado del CSIC en la Estación Experimental de Zonas Áridas y descubridor del artrópodo. Javier Cacho nos ha hablado de uno de los dilemas geográficos sobre los que no existe acuerdo: definir cuál es el punto más austral del continente americano, y las tres posibles soluciones. Eulalia Pérez Sedeño ha trazado la biografía de Mª Josefa Molera Mayo, una de las pioneras de la cromatografía en nuestro país. Nuestra compañera Esther García nos ha contado como es el "Material Minds Lab", una infraestructura única en nuestro país que tratará de comprender la relación entre la humana y todo lo material que creamos. Con testimonios de Felipe Criado, director del Instituto de Ciencias del Patrimonio del CSIC. Escuchar audio

Debajo del suelo que pisamos hay mucha vida y en la mayoría de los casos, con organismos sorprendentes. Un reciente estudio revela la presencia de complejas comunidades microbianas hasta 700 m de profundidad en la Faja Pirítica Ibérica, capaces de obtener la energía a partir del hierro y de otros elementos presentes en las rocas y cuya actividad da lugar a las condiciones extremas de las aguas del Río Tinto, teñidas de rojo y muy ácidas. Hemos entrevistado a Ricardo Amils, investigador del Departamento de Planetología y Habitabilidad del Centro de Astrobiología y profesor emérito de la UAM, y a Carlos Briones, investigador del CSIC en el departamento de Evolución Molecular del Centro de Astrobiología. Con Lluís Montoliu hemos analizado las posibles aplicaciones y las consecuencias éticas y legales de los embriones humanos creados en sendos laboratorios de los institutos de Tecnología de California y Weizmann de Israel. Almudena Delgado nos ha informado del descubrimiento de una nueva especie de ácaro del género Lasioseseius, que se desplaza sobre ejemplares adultos del picudo negro del agave. Con testimonios de Iñaki Balanzategui, técnico Especializado del CSIC en la Estación Experimental de Zonas Áridas y descubridor del artrópodo. Javier Cacho nos ha hablado de uno de los dilemas geográficos sobre los que no existe acuerdo: definir cuál es el punto más austral del continente americano, y las tres posibles soluciones. Eulalia Pérez Sedeño ha trazado la biografía de Mª Josefa Molera Mayo, una de las pioneras de la cromatografía en nuestro país. Nuestra compañera Esther García nos ha contado como es el "Material Minds Lab", una infraestructura única en nuestro país que tratará de comprender la relación entre la humana y todo lo material que creamos. Con testimonios de Felipe Criado, director del Instituto de Ciencias del Patrimonio del CSIC. Escuchar audio

durée : 00:35:00 - Les Nuits de France Culture - par : Albane Penaranda - En 2008, Victor Malka recevait, dans "Maison d'Études", Henri Minczeles et Yves Plasseraud pour "Litvaks", un ouvrage consacré à ce monde englouti des Juifs de Lituanie qu'ils cosignaient avec Suzanne Pourchier. La Lituanie fut autrefois un Grand Duché qui s'étendait sur une superficie infiniment plus vaste que celle qui est la sienne aujourd'hui. Dans cette Litvakie tardivement christianisée, qui réunissait une part de la Biélorussie, de l'Ukraine, de Pologne et de la Russie, aura vécu pendant des siècles une très importante population juive, longtemps dans une relative quiétude, longtemps aussi sous la menace de brimades. Dans un temps où Vilna - autrement dit Vilnius - pouvait être appelée "la Jérusalem du Nord", avant d'être effacée de la carte de l'Europe par l'Allemagne nazie, les Juifs "Litvaks" purent développer là une vie spirituelle, culturelle, artistique et politique, ouverte au monde et à la modernité, dont le rayonnement fut considérable. Beaucoup des héritiers et survivants de ce monde Litvak ont laissé leurs noms dans l'histoire du XXème siècle : parmi d'autres, Emmanuel Levinas, Chaïm Weizmann, Golda Meir, Marc Chagall, Soutine ou encore Mark Rothko et Romain Gary. En 2008, Victor Malka recevait, dans Maison d'Études, Henri Minczeles et Yves Plasseraud pour Litvaks, un ouvrage consacré à ce monde englouti des Juifs de Lituanie qu'ils cosignaient avec Suzanne Pourchier. Avec : Henri Minczeles (journaliste et historien) et Yves Plasseraud (spécialiste en droit des minorités), à l'occasion de la publication de leur livre "Les Litvaks", consacré à la communauté juive de Lituanie. Retrouvez l'ensemble de la Nuit : "Marc Chagall, du shtetl de Vitebesk au soleil de Provence" Production : Victor Malka  Réalisation : Bruno Sourcis Maison d'études - L'héritage d'un monde juif disparu (1ère diffusion : 26/10/2008) Indexation web : Documentation Sonore de Radio France

The Partition Plan of November 1947 has a glaring error insofar as that it never occurred; and there never was a partition between a Jewish and an Arab country. The significance of the Partition Plan was that it delineated a point from which both sides could begin their struggle. For the Zionists it was never more than a starting point as no one believed that it was the ending point for the map according to the Partition Plan was unrealistic and absurd. From the Arab position the Partition Plan was not even a starting point, but rather a non-starter. The Arabs had pledged that they would rid the land from the Jews, and the chiefs of staff of the Arab neighbors plus army contingents from Iraq and Saudi Arabia that do not even border Israel, met to devise a strategy how to annihilate the Jewish menace. Proof that as Weizmann had spoken and Alterman had composed into poetry, Israel was not going to be delivered on a “silver platter.”

A star in the nearby Pinwheel Galaxy has exploded spectacularly into a supernova, dubbed SN 2023ixf. It is the brightest in a decade and it has got astronomers around the world into a frenzy. Science in Action hears from both amateur and professional astronomers alike as they scramble to collect exciting new images and data. Back on the ground, we hear from the Professor of Climate Change and Earth System Science at the University of Exeter, Tim Lenton about his new paper highlighting how rising global temperatures could push human populations from their homes. Contributors: Dan Milisavljevic, Assistant Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, Purdue University. Dr Jane Clark, Trustee of the Cardiff Astronomical Society Bronco Oostermeyer, amateur astronomer Raffaella Margutti, Associate Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California, Berkeley Erez Zimmerman, Astrophysics PhD student, Weizmann institute of science Professor Avishay Gal-Yam, Head of Experimental Astrophisics Group, Weizmann institute of science Professor Tim Lenton, Director of the Global Systems Institute and Chair in Climate Change and Earth System Science at the University of Exeter Presenter: Roland Pease Producer: Ella Hubber (Image: Supernova SN 2023ixf. Credit: Dr Jane Clark and The Cardiff Astronomical Society)

Do you know who was Franklin Roosevelt's most trusted advisor? Do you know who practically invented the law clerk infrastructure and controlled the clerk assignments to 60% of the justices at once?  Do you know who was a key early reporter for The New Republic? Do you know who was the first Jewish professor at the Harvard Law School?  Who was the sharpest critic of the Supreme Court only to become a Justice of that Court?  Who went to Versailles and advised both Weizmann and T.E. Lawrence? Who fought bitter battles with Harvard's President again and again? These are all the same person:  Felix Frankfurter.  A new and important biography of Justice Frankfurter tells this incredible story, and he joins our podcast today:  Professor Brad Snyder.  Believe it or not, the superlatives you just read only scratch the surface of this Man Who Was Everywhere.  You have to hear it all.

Chaim Weizmann fue un químico destacado, líder sionista y quien luego se convertiría en el primer presidente de Israel; fue nombrado asesor para el Almirantazgo Británico, en el cargo honorario de técnico de suministros de acetona. Esto sucedió producto de los resultados de sus investigaciones e innovaciones en la producción de acetona; descubrimientos que resultaron de gran ayuda a los esfuerzos militares de Gran Bretaña durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Esta posición llevó a Weizmann a Londres, donde obtuvo acceso a oficiales del gobierno británico y líderes sionistas influyentes. Las relaciones que formó en Londres fueron cruciales para crear y promover los canales diplomáticos entre sionistas y británicos, facilitando la declaración Balfour en 1917, un corto documento donde los británicos prometieron facilitar el desarrollo de un Hogar Judío en Palestina. La redacción de la declaración se convirtió en la directiva principal del gobierno británico en Palestina hasta después de la Segunda Guerra Mundial.

El líder sionista, Chaim Weizmann, envió una carta a Malcolm Macdonald, secretaria de estado británica de Dominion Assations, para que gestionara sus quejas contra el gobierno británico y así revertir su política pro-sionista. En julio de 1937, el Informe de la Comisión Pelel del Gobierno británico había recomendado terminar el mandato y crear estados judíos y árabes separados en Palestina. Los líderes árabes tomaron una postura unificada contra la idea de partición. Para 1939, los británicos revirtieron su posición con el Libro Blanco de 1939, donde restringieron la inmigración y limitaron la compra de tierra de judíos en Palestina; tomando así una perspectiva decididamente pro-árabe y pro-palestina. Weizmann dejó en claro que los británicos ya no estaban actuando de acuerdo con los hallazgos de la Comisión Peel o el mandato que prometía el desarrollo del hogar nacional judío. Intimó que los británicos abandonaron a los sionistas, sin tener en cuenta el pacto de lealtad judía frente a los intereses estratégicos británicos. En este punto, David Ben-Gurion, el líder sionista emergente decididamente avanzó fortalecimiendo las relaciones con los Estados Unidos como una alternativa a las políticas británicas. Los instintos de Ben-Gurion demostraron ser correctos, ya que después de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, Truman y los judíos-americanos se alinearon con la idea de formar un estado judío.

Jacob ist der Gründer der Nachhaltigkeitsorganisation Daily4Climate und eine wahnsinnig inspirierende Persönlichkeit. Mit ihm spreche ich darüber, was wir für die Umwelt und uns selbst tun können, damit wir alle eine schönere Zukunft haben. Viel Spaß beim Zuhören! Deine Lena von Goldene Zeiten Website: https://daily4climate.com/ Zum Insta Profil: https://www.instagram.com/daily4climate/ Du bist selbstständig und hast Lust"#169 Was wir für eine schönere Zukunft tun können | Talk mit Jacob Weizmann von Daily4Climate" weiterlesen

Episode 29: Interview with Moshe Vardi. Professor of Computer Science at Rice University. Winner of Gödel Prize (2000), and Knuth Prize (2021). ACM Fellow, IEEE Fellow, AAAS Fellow, AAAI Fellow, AMS Fellow, EATCS Fellow, Guggenheim Fellow. Member of NAE, NAS, and EAS. Topics include: Moshe's childhood and college years in Israel, Fighting in two of Israel's wars (1970s, 1980s), Computing Revolution in the 1960s and 70s, Comparing Industry vs. Academia, and A clarion call to the Computing Community to change the way we view ourselves. And much more! Immigrant from Israel in 1981. 

Episode 23 of Sexy Is Timeless Talks Season 2. This talk show is about inspiring, motivating and entertaining. This weeks special guest was, Susan Stern. She is the National Executive Director and CEO of Weizmann Canada. We will be discussing "Knowledge," which is one of the 10 timeless sexy assets that lie within you. https://www.facebook.com/luisadiaztv/ Get your copy of my book, Sexy Is Timeless on Amazon or on my website www.luisadiaz.com.

Which is healthier - whole wheat bread or white? Most people think the answer is whole wheat. But researchers at the Weizmann institute were surprised when they did a study comparing specially baked fresh artisanal sourdough with processed, packaged white bread. They found different people reacted differently - about half the people had a better response to the white, and the other half had a better response to the whole wheat sourdough. Half of the study participants were assigned to eat an increased amount of the processed, white bread for a week, representing about 25 per cent of their calorie intake. The other half was told to consume an increased amount of whole wheat sourdough. Afterwards the diets for the two groups were reversed. The researchers monitored health effects like levels of glucose essential minerals, cholesterol and kidney and liver enzymes They also looked at markers for inflammation and tissue damage. They say the findings are potentially important because they can help people understand which foods are a better fit for them based on their genetics and their microbiome - in other words a personalized approach to choosing a diet similar to personalized medicine for the treatment of illness.

El líder árabe Emil Faisal, hijo de Sharif Husayn regente de La Meca, principal ciudad de la región en Arabia Saudita, y Chaim Weizmann, líder sionista, firmaron un acuerdo en Inglaterra expresando el respeto mutuo y la cooperación entre árabes y judíos en el Medio Oriente. La reunión tuvo lugar en medio del creciente descontento entre los sionistas y los nacionalistas árabes sobre el futuro de Palestina tras la derrota otomana durante la Primera Guerra Mundial. En el acuerdo, Faisal aceptó una presencia judía en Palestina si se concedía la independencia árabe en el resto del Medio Oriente, anteriormente controlado por Turquía. El acuerdo nunca se concretó, pero la intención estuvo allí para que las dos comunidades intentaran vivir juntas en armonía.

Lider principal del movimiento sionista nacido en 1874 en Motol un pueblo pequeño en Polonia, primer Presidente del Estado de Israel recordado por promover el desarrollo de instituciones sociales, culturales y educativas en Palestina y en Israel. Durante su juventud, Weizmann se mudó a Berlín para estudiar bioquímica. Durante sus estudios, se volvió parte de un creciente grupo de intelectuales sionistas. Luego de su graduación, se mudó a Inglaterra para enseñar en la Universidad de Manchester, trabajó en proyectos militares de investigación, sus éxitos academicos le abrieron puertas para formar conexiones con líderes políticos británicos y abogar por la causa sionista que resultó en la Declaración Balfour de 1917: apoyo formal y público del gobierno británico durante la Primera Guerra Mundial, a favor del establecimiento de un «hogar nacional» para el pueblo judío en la región de Palestina.

Emendo was founded in 2015 by Rachel and a group of classmates from Weizmann. Her role at Emendo as Chief Intellectual Property Officer & Head of Pipeline Development includes building is to design an IP strategy for Emendo that both generates an extensive patent portfolio to cover various novel aspects of the technology and products and also navigates the IP space. Additionally, she is building Emendo's pipeline of clinical programs and the academic and industrial collaborations and partnerships for the pre/clinical development of Emendo's selected indications and genomic targets.

Which is healthier whole wheat bread or white? Most people think the answer is whole wheat. But researchers at the Weizmann institutewere surprised when they did a study comparing specially baked fresh artisanal sourdough with processed, packaged white bread. They found different people reacted differently - about half the people had a better response to the white, and the other half had a better response to the whole wheat sourdough. Half of the study participants were assigned to eat an increased amount of the processed, white bread for a week, representing about 25 per cent of their calorie intake. The other half was told to consume an increased amount of whole wheat sourdough. Afterwards the diets for the two groups were reversed. The researchers monitored health effects like levels of glucose essential minerals, cholesterol and kidney and liver enzymes They also looked at markers for inflammation and tissue damage. They say the findings are potentially important because they can help people understand which foods are a better fit for them based on their genetics and their microbiome - in other words a personalized approach to choosing a diet similar to personalized medicine for the treatment of illness.

Parshat matot - This week, along with Rabbi Adam Mintz and Rabbi Raphael Davidovich  we discuss compromises and differences of opinion relating to the Biblical borders of the promised land and the modern State of Israel. We explore how these discussions might actually be the only way out of the current conflict.  So throw away your maps and pull out your sacred texts and lets discuss the Compromised Land. Link to Sefaria Source Sheet here: www.sefaria.org/sheets/334569 Transcript: Geoffrey Stern  This week, we have a new episode in asking Moses for an exception to the rule. This week, the Jewish people after 40 years wandering in the desert have finally come to the border. They've actually already conquered some land outside of the land of Israel, just to get passageway they're about to cross over the Jordan River. And two tribes; the Reubenites and Gadites approach Moses. And the Bible starts by saying they owned a lot of cattle. And they noted that the land on the west side, the West Bank of the Jordan River, were really good for cattle. And they said, Would it be okay? If we stayed here? And Moses, as seems to be the standard falls on his face. And says to them, does that mean that you're questioning the whole endeavor, that you're not going to come and take the Promised Land. And he even talks and reminds them, that a whole generation, their parents, had also come close to the border, had sent the spies over, and then had had their second thoughts and doubts, and decided, again, not to engage in this endeavor of gaining the Promised Land. And he says, The Lord was incensed that Israel and for 40 years, he made them wander in the wilderness. And he says, and now you a breed of sinful men have replaced your fathers to add still further to the Lord's wrath against Israel. So again, he's shocked by their question, the way they phrase, their question is kind of interesting, too, because they say that what we want to do is we will build places for a cattle to graze, and we will go ahead and build places for our families to abode. And then we're actually going to come with you and help you conquer the land. And until the project of fulfilling the promise of the Promised Land is fulfilled, we will not go back to our settlement here on the West Bank. But until that time, we will fight along with you. And at this point, Moses comes back, and he talks not so much to God, but I think to the other leaders, and to Aaron, and the priests, and he says, if you will commit to do exactly that, then I will permit you to stay on the West Bank of the Jordan River. And it really goes on and on in terms of each of the different steps. And that I think is the last time .... I might be willing next week. But I think it's the last time that the people of Israel, or a segment from the people of Israel asked for an exception. And Moses came back and gave them the exception. So Rabbi, in your opinion, what makes this story worth a whole chapter in the Torah? And what are the lessons and what are the takeaways?   Adam Mintz  Okay, first of all, this is an amazing story. It's about exceptions. But ultimately, in the end, it's about what commitments are the Land of Israel means, because what we have is we have the two tribes of Reuven and Gad. And basically, they're willing to say we're willing to put ourselves on the line, to be able to live where we want to live. Now, they didn't necessarily have to offer that. But they decided to offer that. And it shows what their commitment to the land is about. And I think that's very important. Yu know, the whole Torah, they're always complaining about going into the land of Israel, why'd you take us out of Egypt, we should have stayed in the land of Egypt and all of these things, right? The Miraglim, the spies come, and they say bad things about Israel. And now you have a group of people who are willing to say, we're putting ourselves on the line, to be part of Israel to fight the battles before anybody else settles down. We're gonna fight with everybody. I think that's a wonderful lesson.   Geoffrey Stern  So it's interesting that you kind of see In the, the the members of these two tribes, someone who is virtuous, their intentions were good. And you would put them in the same category as the daughters of Zelophechad, or Jethro. They were good and well intentioned.   Adam Mintz  that's a good term.   Geoffrey Stern  Well intentioned and in a sense, selfless, because what they were saying is they will fight for the rest of the nation to redeem the Promised Land, and then they would go back to the houses. But I sense in the commentators that there's actually a bias in the other direction. In other words, Rashi picks up on the fact that when they said, We will build sheepfolds for our cattle, and then they say, and we will go ahead and build homes for our children. Rashi said, "asu Ikar Ikar vehatfal tafal"  they actually were materialists that they show their colors, in terms of caring more about grazing rights and prosperity. And I think, in a sense, the way they're introduced also kind of places them as someone whose intentions in fact, were very materialistic. So how do you square that with your circle?   Adam Mintz  Good. I mean, there is no question that Rashi is critical of them, or Rashi says that they're interested, they're interested in their self-interest, right? Where is it going to be better for us? I'm really taking a different view. Rashi decides that these tribes are no good. Rashi doesn't like people who break with the norm. Rashi thinks that everybody should do the same thing. I don't think that that's the way that we're necessarily trained. I think that we're trained that it's okay to be a little different. And that if you're willing to make a commitment, that it's okay to be different. So I understand Rashi, I'm not a traditionalist as Rashi in the same way, in terms of the fact that everybody needs to do the same thing.   Geoffrey Stern  Well, I think that's wonderful. That's why you and I are made for each other.   Adam Mintz  Tere we go.  Madlik.  That's right.   Geoffrey Stern  So so let's talk in biblical terms, it would be called the Promised Land, and in modern day terms, it would be called Zionism. In a sense, the Reubenites that Gadites, were the first Jews to live in the galut [Diaspora] so to speak, in other words, they were saying you can go into the land, we want to live outside of the land. I think historically, the fact that they live there, ultimately became part of Greater Israel. But in that moment, in any case, they were acting very similar to Jews, like you and I, who live in New York, who say, we are going to do everything we can to support you in the building the dream of Zion and the Land of Israel. But we're actually going to live on the other side of the river so to speak Is is this the first instance .... and it's funny, it's it happened even before they took the land, they already had these outliers.   Adam Mintz  Yeah, well, I mean, by definition, it's the first example. They're just taking possession of the land. And they're outliers. I think the Torah is really making a comment about how they feel about these outliers. Now, Rashi has one view, and I presented another view. Obviously, there are different views about these outliers. But clearly, this is the story of the outlier. It's different than the daughters of Zelophechad .  The daughters of Zelophechad , are making sure that they get an equal portion. That's not about being an outlier. That's about protecting their own interest. It's really a different story than the daughters of Zelophechad .   Geoffrey Stern  Well, absolutely. Do you do you give any import to the fact again, I've already mentioned that the Bible seems to go out of the way to say that they own cattle and that they were looking for land suitable for cattle, ...cattle cattle. Do you think that this is part of a tension throughout the Bible that we haven't discussed before, between agriculture and cattle grazing (herders and ranchers). Between vegetarianism, if you will, and a culture of raising cattle. Of the wanderer, the grazer and the land holder who prays for the rain, who tides the crops. There are so many laws of Judaism that have to do with agriculture, in a very positive sense that it almost becomes the paradigm. And cattle grazing and certainly of slaughtering animals was almost limited to the temple. I don't believe that it was even permissible to eat meat outside of the temple culture.   Adam Mintz  That's right.   Geoffrey Stern  Is there any of that going on here?   Adam Mintz  There might be. They're clearly making an argument to the fact we need more land, because that's the way our that's our livelihood, and our livelihood needs more land. Now, you wonder, I think, Geoffrey, this is an interesting question. What did the other tribes think about the request of Reuven and Gad. T Torah never tells us, but it's left open for our imagination. What do you think to Torah thought?   Geoffrey Stern  It makes it seem that the key issue that Moses had was, number one, are you going to be included in the draft? Are you going to help the rest of the people? If we let you pursue your own private interests and your different lifestyle? Are you going to still be committed to the national movement? That was one thing, the other argument that Moses makes, which I find even more fascinating, is he harkens back to when the spies came back, any Harkens back at great length, because he says you're going to be doing the same thing, you're going to be taking away the idealism. We all were looking forward to going into the land until the spies punctured that bubble. And here you are at this precipitous moment, we're going into the land. And already you're taking away from from the whole, from Clal Israel, if you will, but he doesn't really put any words into the mouths of the leaders of the other tribes or to the priests either. So I don't know how to answer that. But I do find it fascinating, where his concerns were,   Raphael Davidovich  that's interesting. You say he doesn't put words in their mouths. You wonder, about why the leaders of the other tribes, you know, when it came to the spies, they weren't so quiet, all of a sudden, here they are quiet? And you wonder why that is?   Geoffrey Stern  Well, I mean, you know, again, we only can read what what's in the text, and we can't read in between lines. There are two words that are kind of interesting to me. One is they talk about, okay, so after you fulfill your obligation, you will come back here, and it'll be an "ahuza". It'll be a holding for you. And the other word is we're crossing the Jordan, you know, the word "Ivri" Hebrew comes from the word "L'avor" to go over. And certainly, one of the references or associations that we always have, is that we crossed over the Jordan, or in the case of Abraham over the Tigris, but the point is, we were coming home. And the cattle grazers are still wanderers so there's also that tension between coming home [to settle] and ending  the wanderings in the desert or of the diaspora. And then there is the other side of it is well, we've gotten used to this life and we like this untethered existence. And then there's this sense of what is the land to them anyway, is it is is something that ... we just passing through? What does "achuza" actually mean?   Adam Mintz  So that's a very good question. What is what is the attitude of these people towards the land? These two tribes? What's their attitude? What about the other tribes? Do they have a different attitude towards the land? Does everybody recognize the holiness of the land? I think from the story in the Torah it's very hard.   Geoffrey Stern  Yeah. I mean, I think at the end it says "Vehoyta ha'aretz hazot  l'chem l'achuza liphney Hashem"  that this land will be to you, "achuza" a holding in front of God? You know, I'm reminded that actually does the land really belong to any of us? And that it doesn't talk about "achuzah L'olam" forever. So it does raise these questions. There's so much talk about coming into the Promised Land. What does that even mean? Is it our land to live on our or is it something that we own? You know, I don't think we'll ever know. But I know that these issues are there, even if we just look at the simple words. This conflict between a wandering people and people that comes home?   Adam Mintz  Maybe we should open it up Jeffrey and see whether we have some some opinions Michael, anyone else who wants to hear their views? You kind of threw out a lot of ideas today   Geoffrey Stern  Absolutely. So if there's anyone who would want to comment on what we've been talking about in terms of the first time that the Jewish people came to the land, and the first time that the kind of borders were started to be made both physical borders and borders between lifestyles, Raphael, welcome.   Raphael Davidovich  Thank you. Fascinating conversations.  I just want to point out, that  it was mentioned that Rashi objected to the tribe of Reuben and Gad for their request. But that's not necessarily the case. You know, that's not necessarily the voice of the Torah itself. And I just wanted to make sort of a point, not so much in defense of Rashi. But more in defense of the point that Rashi makes. To me, it seems fairly clear from the narrative, not only of Reuben and Gad, but meaning the long arc narrative that you see at the end of the book of Joshua, that what Reuben and Gad's request, while it was honored, was not considered appropriate. And you see this in two ways. One way is that the fact that they were on the other side of the Jordan, led to their being separated from the Jewish people or the Israelite people at a much earlier stage. There's a Midrash that makes the point that they were exiled, leaving me for the remainder of the 10 tribes, and also that they had distanced themselves. And they almost started a civil war later on at the end of the book of Joshua for wanting to build an altar, which led to a big misunderstanding there. But sometimes, while a Jew might feel he wants a little bit of distance from other Jews, it's ultimately not really a good thing. And I think that's why Moshe never apologizes for his initial rant. It's not as if Ruben and Gad say no, no, listen we'll help as soldiers. And Moshe says, Oh, I apologize for the misunderstanding. You know, the point is left unresolved. And it seems to me that the narrative voice of the Torah feels that all things being equal, what they did was not considered appropriate. So I just wanted to sort of register that that voice, you know, that point of view,   Adam Mintz  okay. I mean, you're you're reading it, within the Chumash [Text of the Torah], and I'm suggesting that there might be two ways to read the book.   Raphael Davidovich  I understand. I heard that other way. But I think ultimately, given the distance. not only in Chumash. But like I said, there are many things in the Torah that foreshadow later stories that take place in the Nevi'im [Prophets]. And I think this one foreshadows the greater distance that would occur later. I think there's a strong point, not just in Rashi's way of looking at it.well,   Geoffrey Stern  I think Raphael that what you emphasize, is this healthy discussion about the different ways that we can look at these tribes, and the unintended consequences in later history, but I think ultimately, like any situation like this, the real issue to me, the real excitement to me is that from day one, this Promised Land was a Compromised Land, meaning to say that these two and a half tribes came even before they got into the brand new car, they already had issues. And were talking about, can they add a trailer? Can they sit in the backseat? It was spanking new. We look at Israel today with all of the different factions and all of the different opinions about who owns what land and how we should cut our borders. And to me, the biggest takeaway is: There is one discussion that had relates to their intention, and where they fall within the commentaries and within history. But there's the other issue. And I want to bring it into the not the not so distant present already, that even from the get go, there were discussions about where the borders were, whether you were in or whether you were out whether you were a purist or were detracting from the movement. And that is pretty amazing .... that already from that time this occurred. If I wanted to take it up into the present in modern Zionist history, there was a big discussion between Weizmann and Ben Gurion on the one hand, and Jabotinsky, on the other hand about what the boundaries of the future State of Israel should be. And Weitzman and Ben Gurion were willing to compromise and Jabotinsky did not. And the main issue was whether the borders would be on both sides of the Jordan or the Jordan would actually be the border. So it's fascinating that the story that we have in front of us is actually a prequel to an argument that related to the founding of the State of Israel. Jabotinsky, wrote a song that became actually the anthem of Herut and the rejectionists who felt that Ben Gurion should not make the compromise. And he has verses in it. The refrain is "two banks has the Jordan, this is ours. And that is as well. It's stretching from the sea to the desert and the Jordan, the Jordan in the middle two banks has the Jordan, this is ours. And that is as well." And it's fascinating that this concept of enlarging the borders, so that what happened in the parsha that we're reading with the Reubenites, and the Gadities went ahead and said they wanted to live outside of the borders, that actually changed the facts on the ground, and it became a new border. And it just seems to me that it's so fascinating when we talk about what the borders of the land should be, and how we should even look at these borders, that we can't but help go back to that first moment when the Jews hadn't even passed over the river. And already they were having these kinds of discussions. And I should say, compromises .... so I wonder what everyone's thoughts are in terms of it almost becomes it's a land of compromise. And it's a land where different people have different visions from the get-go.   Michael Stern  I kind of envision that the Promised Land and when the Israelites crossed over that that was like, opening up an oasis that would flood the whole planet, with the milk and honey with this divine consciousness and mistaken, of course, human frailties of thinking started to think about borders. And it was really just a key in a lock. And In came the Israelites in the alchemy was ready to flood the whole planet with divine consciousness. And so I just wanted to add that feeling that I have that we really could just forget about all the human limitations and borders and strife and see it as an oasis that was unlocked to release that to the world but humans got in the way.   Adam Mintz  Nice idea. And Michael, finish up your thoughts. Is that a good thing or a bad thing?   Michael Stern  Oh, I think it's a good thing that it isn't about borders and it's really about going back to the moment and put the key in the lock and let this be the work. To make one holy planet, and of course, you have to start with a seed. And why run after the leaves when you can go back to the seed and then grow a tree of life on the whole planet that goes everywhere and brings everyone together, and no borders and global citizenship and consciousness.   Adam Mintz  Fantiastic... I love that idea.   Geoffrey Stern  But I want to take maybe a little bit of what Michael was saying in a slightly different direction. And that is, yes, I think that Jerusalem and the Promised Land have always been both a reality and a metaphor. And there is absolutely no question, especially in their later history where the two could live simultaneously. But unfortunately, for people living on a particular piece of land, the metaphor doesn't help. And that, ultimately, is what borders and conquest and troop movements and relocation of citizens always ends up. So I would like to talk about an amazing situation that is happening as we speak in Israel. And the New York Times had an article in July 4th, and it talked about how the secular peace effort has pretty much died. And that this might be a moment in time for people who are knowledgeable and committed to religion, to actually start talking about the issues that are dividing the Palestinians and the Israelis. And the example that they give. And the reason why it's happening right now is as you may all know, there is a new party that is a part of the Knesset, and part of the coalition, the ruling coalition. It's headed by Mansur Abbas. And it's called Raam. And unlike what one would think that it's would be a secular party. It actually is a Muslim Brotherhood type of party, it's absolutely committed to Islam. It's one of those instances where exactly the type of person that you think, could not reach out and compromise, is seeing the ability to make the livelihood of his people better. And the times gave a history of this person who had a teacher named Sheikh Abdullah Nimr Darwish, who was put in Israeli jail because he was part of the Muslim Brotherhood and when he came out, he did a turnabout, and said that actually, the Muslims living in Israel, should try to obey the laws. And he met up with a Rabbi Michael Melchior, and the two of them ( he since has passed away. But Rabbi Melchior has continued and clearly his student who is the head of the wrong party has continued) seeing the future seeing the potential of religious people who can read a text like we're reading today, and can discuss the issues from the perspective of religious categories of thought that they in fact, are the ones who are most equipped to look for ways out I mean, even if it's the most basic thing that the concept of the state does not exist, either in Islam or in biblical, or Talmudic Judaism. The idea that you can make covenants and those covenants can be permanent, they can be temporary, the fact that you can live on the land, but every 70 years, the land reverts back to somebody else, and looks at land ownership, totally different. All of these categories are religious categories that we study week in and week out. And sometimes we look at ourselves and saying, why are we studying these texts that have no relationship with human affairs and politics and people's lives? And the truth is, it might actually be the opposite. And I'm just intrigued by this movement of religious scholars being able to sit down and to figure out ways that we can communicate, because clearly religious scholars have more in common than they have apart. And I'd like to open that up for a short discussion and comment or just leave you with that thought.   Adam Mintz  That's a great thought. I think, Geoffrey, if we leave it at that, I think we've done a good job. And it's amazing that we took it back from Reuven and Gad and we took it to modern politics and some of the some of the real achievements in the State of Israel. That's really nice. idea, a good way to end this conversation about this parsha.   Geoffrey Stern  Fantastic well, Shabbat Shalom   Adam Mintz  Shabbat Shalom to  everybody. Enjoy the parsha, it's a double parsha. I look forward to next the next week with everybody.   Geoffrey Stern  Absolutely. Shabbat Shalom.    

It took a while before it was officially recognised as a major symptom of Covid-19, but loss of smell has affected up to 60 percent of people who have had the virus. And for a significant portion, smell continues to be an issue for weeks or months after their recovery. So what's going on and how can you get your sense of smell back? We tend to think of our sense of smell as something universal – if it smells bad to me, it probably does to you but that is not the case for CrowdScience listener Annabel, who wonders why things other people love to sniff, she finds disgusting. Anand Jagatia investigates the science of smell, gets up close to the world's smelliest plant and finds out if smell training can help those with long-term issues after Covid. Contributors Ellie Byondin, supervisor of the Princess of Wales Conservatory at London's Kew Gardens Thomas Hummel, University of Dresden Carl Philpott, from the UK's Norwich Medical School Sissel Tolaas, artist and smell historian based in Berlin Noam Sobel, Weizmann institute of science Presented by Anand Jagatia and Produced by Marijke Peters for the BBC World Service

TFJ: The Birth of Israel: Episode 21  The issuance of the Balfour Declaration required a number of factors, several key players and significant Divine Intervention. The declaration electrified Jews the world over. Edited and Produced by Alex Drucker  Learn more at TellerFromJerusalem.com  Don't forget to subscribe, like and share! Let all your friends know they too can have a new favorite podcast.  © 2021 Media Education Trust llc

A natural food supplement may relieve anxiety Weizmann Institute of Science, May 24, 2021 A natural food supplement reduces anxiety in mice, according to a new Weizmann Institute of Science study. The plant-derived substance, beta-sitosterol, was found to produce this effect both on its own and in synergic combination with an antidepressant known under the brand name Prozac. If these findings, published today in Cell Reports Medicine, are confirmed in clinical trials, they could point the way toward the use of beta-sitosterol as a treatment for relieving anxiety in humans. Anxiety is not always a bad thing. In fact, in evolutionary terms, feeling anxious about potential threats is critical for survival because it helps us mount an appropriate response. That's precisely why developing antianxiety drugs is so challenging. The circuits for anxiety in the brain are closely related to those responsible for memory, awareness and other functions vital for handling danger, so scientists are on the lookout for compounds that can selectively suppress anxiety without causing unwanted side effects. The starting point for the present study was research conducted several years ago in the lab of Prof. Mike Fainzilber in Weizmann's Biomolecular Sciences Department. Dr. Nicolas Panayotis and other lab members studied the roles of proteins that shuttle cargoes into the nuclei of nerve cells, and they discovered that in stressful situations, mice lacking a shuttling protein known as importin alpha-five showed less anxiety than the control mice. The researchers then checked how these 'calmer' mice differed from regular ones in terms of gene expression, and they identified a genetic signature of their calmness: about 120 genes with a characteristic pattern of expression in the hippocampus, one of the brain regions that regulate anxiety. In the new study, Panayotis, now a senior intern in Fainzilber's lab, together with colleagues, searched an international genomic database for existing drugs or other compounds that might mimic the same gene expression signature. He identified five candidates and tested their effects on behavior in mice. That was how the researchers zeroed in on beta-sitosterol, a plant substance sold as a dietary supplement intended mainly to reduce cholesterol levels. In a series of behavioral experiments, mice given beta-sitosterol showed much less anxiety than the controls. They were, for example, less fearful than the controls when placed in an illuminated enclosure, daring to walk into its brightly lit center, whereas regular mice were careful to stay on the darker periphery, avoiding the stress of the bright light. Moreover, the mice receiving beta-sitosterol did not exhibit any of the side effects that might be expected from antianxiety medications—their locomotion was not impaired, and they did not refrain from exploring novel stimuli. Next, the researchers tested the effects of beta-sitosterol on mice when given in combination with fluoxetine, a drug belonging to the class of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRIs, and sold under the brand name Prozac, among others. The combination had a synergistic effect: Both beta-sitosterol and fluoxetine reduced the anxiety of mice at lower doses when given together, compared with the doses needed to produce the same effect when they were administered separately. "One of the major problems with existing antianxiety medications is that they produce side effects, so if beta-sitosterol could help cut down the dosage of such medications, it might potentially also reduce the unwanted side effects," Panayotis says. A great advantage of beta-sitosterol is that it is naturally present in a variety of edible plants, and it is thought to be safe, as it has been marketed for years as a nutraceutical. It is found in particularly large concentrations in avocados, but also in pistachios, almonds and other nuts, in canola oil, in various grains and cereals and more. However, this does not mean that eating avocado can induce a calming effect, since it doesn't contain enough beta-sitosterol. "You'd need to eat avocado day and night to get the right dose—and you would be more likely to develop digestive problems than relieve your anxiety," Panayotis says. The precise mechanism of beta-sitosterol's effect on anxiety remains to be revealed, but the scientists did find that the expression of several genes known to be activated in stressful situations was reduced in mice given the supplement. They also found that these mice had changes in the levels of certain metabolites and neurotransmitters in brain areas involved in anxiety. Since the study focused on brain regions and neural pathways that are involved in regulating anxiety in both mice and humans, it is likely that the findings will apply to humans as well. This will, however, require further clinical testing. As Fainzilber points out: "There's a need for a clinical trial to test the use of beta-sitosterol for reducing anxiety in humans. Until then, we recommend that people consult their physicians before taking the supplement for this purpose."   Benfotiamine, vitamin B derivative, intake associated with reduced progression of cognitive decline Weil Cornell Medicine, May 20, 2021 A randomized phase II trial reported in 2020 in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease resulted in positive effects among individuals with amnestic mild cognitive impairment or mild Alzheimer’s dementia who were given capsules that contained benfotiamine, a derivative of thiamine (vitamin B1).  The trial included 70 cognitively impaired men and women who received physical examinations and completed the Mini-Mental Status Exam (MMSE) prior to enrollment. Prospective candidates received positron emission tomography (PET)/CT scans of the brain to confirm the presence of amyloid plaques that are characteristic of Alzheimer disease) and other general blood tests, an electrocardiogram and neurological exam prior to enrollment. Screening tests commonly used to test for diabetes were also performed prior to enrollment, and participants were required to have a hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) of less than 8% and/or a fasting glucose of less than 200 milligrams per deciliter to be enrolled in the trial. APOE genotype was determined upon enrollment in the trial. The presence of one or two copies of the APOE4 variant of the APOE gene is associated with a greater risk of Alzheimer disease in comparison with APOE2 or APOE3. Blood testing conducted at the beginning and end of the trial measured levels of vitamin B1 and advanced glycation end-products (AGEs), which are formed when fats or proteins react with sugar in the blood. (Research suggests that AGEs are predictive of long-term decline in cognition-related daily living performance in Alzheimer disease patients.) Participants also underwent fluorodeoxyglucose positron-emission tomography (FDG PET) at these time points to assess brain glucose utilization which, when reduced, is associated with cognitive decline. Cognitive tests, including the Alzheimer Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive Subscale, Clinical Dementia Rating and others were administered at the beginning of the study and at varying time points thereafter. Participants received capsules containing 300 milligrams benfotiamine or a placebo twice daily for one year.  At the end of the treatment period, thiamine levels were significantly elevated in the benfotiamine-intake group. The 12 month increase in Alzheimer Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive Subscale scores (indicating increased cognitive dysfunction) was lower among those who received benfotiamine compared to the placebo group. Benfotiamine intake participants additionally experienced 77% less deterioration in Clinical Dementia Rating scores compared to the placebo group; however, the effect seen with benfotiamine was stronger among participants who did not have the APOE4 variant. Benfotiamine was also associated with a significant reduction in the increase in AGEs compared to the placebo, which again was stronger in noncarriers of APOE4. FDG PET data suggested that participants without APOE4 were more responsive to benfotiamine intake. “Benfotiamine is safe and cost effective, and the results of this pilot study are encouraging, providing preliminary evidence of efficacy,” authors Gary E. Gibson of Weil Cornell Medicine and colleagues concluded. “Our next step is to propose a larger clinical trial appropriately powered to replicate our findings. We believe that further studies would be very valuable to determine whether benfotiamine may be helpful in delaying onset or treating Alzheimer disease.”   '45 is the new 50' as age for colorectal cancer screening is lowered Dana Farber Cancer Institute, May 21, 2021 BOSTON - Prompted by a recent alarming rise in cases of colorectal cancer in people younger than 50, an independent expert panel has recommended that individuals of average risk for the disease begin screening exams at 45 years of age instead of the traditional 50.  The guideline changes by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), published in the current issue of JAMA, updates its 2016 recommendations and aligns them with those of the American Cancer Society, which lowered the age for initiation of screening to 45 years in 2018. Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most preventable malignancies, owing to its long natural history of progression and the availability of screening tests that can intercept and detect the disease early. Overall incidence of CRC in individuals 50 years of age and older has declined steadily since the mid-1980s, largely because of increased screening and changing patterns of modifiable risk factors. "A concerning increase in colorectal cancer incidence among younger individuals (ie, younger than 50 years; defined as young-onset colorectal cancer) has been documented since the mid-1990s, with 11% of colon cancers and 15% of rectal cancers in 2020 occurring among patients younger than 50 years, compared with 5% and 9%, respectively, in 2010," said Kimmie Ng, MD, MPH, first author of an editorial in JAMA accompanying the article about the guideline change of the USPSTF. Ng is the director of the Young-Onset Colorectal Cancer Center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.  The causes of the increase in young-onset CRC aren't currently known.  Lowering the recommended age to initiate screening "will make colorectal cancer screening, which is so important, available to millions more people in the United States, and hopefully many more lives will be saved by catching colorectal cancer earlier, as well as by preventing colorectal cancer," said Ng. The USPSTF is an independent panel of experts funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It systematically reviews the evidence of effectiveness of preventive services and develops recommendations. American health insurance groups are required to cover, at no charge to the patient, any service that the USPSTF recommends with a grade A or B level of evidence, regardless of how much it costs. The task force recommendation means that insurers will be required to cover preventive procedures such as colonoscopies and stool tests designed to detect colon cancer in early stages. The task force selected age 45 based on research showing that initiating screening at that age averted more early deaths than starting at age 50, with a relatively small increase in the number of colonoscopy complications. There is no change to the USPSTF 2016 recommendation to only selectively screen individuals aged 76 to 85, as research shows only small increases in life-years gained. The accompanying JAMA editorial asked rhetorically whether the age of screening should be lowered even younger than age 45. While the majority of young-onset CRC diagnoses and deaths occurs in persons 45 to 49, the rate of increase in young-onset CRC is actually steepest in the very youngest patients. Colon cancer incidence is increasing by 2% per year in 20 to 29-year-olds, compared with 1.3% in 40 to 49-year-olds. Rectal cancer incidence is increasing by 3.2% per year in 20 to 29-year-olds and 30 to 39-year-olds, versus 2.3% in 40 to 49-year-olds. "We are now seeing patients even younger than 45 - in their 20s and 30s - who are being diagnosed with this cancer and often at very late stages," said Ng. "Clearly the USPSTF recommendation to start screening at age 45 will not be enough to catch those young people who are being diagnosed." Ultimately, optimal prevention and early detection of CRC in people younger than 45 will require further research into the underlying causes and risk factors of young-onset CRC, which have thus far remained elusive, said the editorial authors.  The authors also called for "bold steps" to translate the lowered age of beginning screening into meaningful decreases in CRC incidence and mortality, noting that despite the preventive benefits of colorectal cancer screening, only 68.8 percent of eligible individuals in the United States undergo screening. The rate is lower among the uninsured and underinsured, those with low incomes, and racial and ethnic minorities. Barriers include lack of knowledge of the importance of screening, concerns about the invasive nature of colonoscopy, and lack of access to and provider recommendations for screening. The editorial lists examples including public awareness campaigns, including those aimed at gaps in CRC incidence and mortality between Black and white Americans, and specific actions. Employers could provide 45-year-old employees with a paid "wellness day" to undergo CRC screening, or offer day care or transportation vouchers to overcome the logistical hurdles of colonoscopies. Health systems could offer weekend or after-hours appointments for colonoscopies. The new recommendation "represents an important policy change," the authors wrote, "to drive progress toward reducing colorectal cancer incidence and mortality."     Study Finds New and Effective Treatment for Vitamin D Deficiency Boston University School of Medicine, May 20, 2021 There are several million people worldwide with various fat malabsorption syndromes including those who have undergone gastric bypass surgery and those with obesity. These patients often have a difficult time absorbing vitamin D and both groups of patients are at an increased risk for vitamin D deficiency and therefore at higher risk for osteoporosis and osteomalacia (softening of the bones). Patients with obesity are also susceptible to vitamin D deficiency as vitamin D derived from intestinal absorption and cutaneous synthesis is diluted in a larger body pool of fat. Now a new study demonstrates 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 is an effective treatment for vitamin D deficiency for these specific patients. According to the researchers, approximately one third of adults are obese and require much larger doses of vitamin D to satisfy their requirement. "This vitamin D metabolite is better absorbed in patients with fat malabsorption syndromes and since it is not as fat soluble, it does not gets diluted in the body fat and is effective in raising and maintaining blood levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D in obese people," explained corresponding author Michael F. Holick, PhD, MD, professor of medicine, physiology and biophysics and molecular medicine at Boston University School of Medicine. Healthy adults, adults with a fat malabsorption syndrome and obese adults were compared to evaluate if a more water-soluble form of vitamin D3 known as 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 was more effective than the same dose of vitamin D3 in improving their vitamin D status. The researchers observed that compared to healthy adults only about 36 percent of orally ingested vitamin D3 was found in the blood of patients with fat malabsorption syndromes including patients who had gastric bypass surgery. When the same adults ingested 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 the patients with fat malabsorption syndromes were able to absorb it as well as the healthy adults thereby raising their vitamin D status to the same degree. A similar observation was made in the obese subjects compared to the healthy controls. "Therefore using 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 could be a novel approach for treating vitamin D deficiency in patients with fat malabsorption syndromes and obese adults," added Holick. Vitamin D deficiency not only results in bone loss increasing risk for fracture but causes the painful bone disease osteomalacia. Patients who are vitamin D deficient with osteomalacia have unrelenting achiness in their bones and muscles. Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with an increased risk of many chronic illnesses including multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, depression, neurocognitive dysfunction and Alzheimer's disease as well as infectious diseases including COVID. These findings appear online in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.   Young teens should only use recreational internet and video games one hour daily Rutgers University, May 24, 2021 Middle-school aged children who use the internet, social media or video games recreationally for more than an hour each day during the school week have significantly lower grades and test scores, according to a study from the Center for Gambling Studies at Rutgers University-New Brunswick. The findings appear in the journal Computers in Human Behavior.  Researchers say the findings give parents and children a moderate threshold for using entertainment-related technology -- no more than one hour daily on school days and four hours a day on weekends.  "Interactive technology is widely used to promote children's educational access and achievement," said lead author Vivien (Wen Li) Anthony, an assistant professor at the School of Social Work and research associate at the Rutgers Center for Gambling Studies. "During the COVID-19 pandemic, technology has been essential to facilitating remote learning. At the same time, there is a growing concern that excessive technology use, particularly for entertainment, may adversely affect children's educational development by facilitating undesirable study habits and detracting from time spent on learning activities."  The researchers, which include Professor Lia Nower of the Rutgers Center for Gambling Studies and a researcher from Renmin University of China, analyzed the China Education Panel Survey data, a national survey of educational needs and outcomes of children in China. Approximately 10,000 first-year middle school students were surveyed and followed. Their average age was 13.5 years. The results showed that children who used the internet, social media or video games for entertainment four or more hours daily were four times more likely to skip school than those who did not. Boys used interactive technology for entertainment significantly more than girls. Boys also performed worse and showed lower school engagement levels than girls. "Such findings are critical, particularly in light of the recent movement toward online learning in countries throughout the world," said Anthony. "In a learning environment that integrates the internet, it is easy for children to move across educational and entertainment platforms during learning without alerting teachers or adults to alternate activities." Anthony said children in the study who used technology in moderation (i.e., less than one hour per day on weekends) experienced less boredom at school, potentially due to the positive effects of participation in social media, video games and video streaming such as peer bonding and relationship building. Using interactive technology for entertainment in moderation advanced children's cognitive development.  The findings suggest that parents place time limits on their children's interactive technology use, and that parents and teachers should help children to develop effective time management and self-regulation skills to reduce their reliance on technology.   Do people aged 105 and over live longer because they have more efficient DNA repair? University of Bologna (Italy),  May 19, 2021 Researchers have found that people who live beyond 105 years tend to have a unique genetic background that makes their bodies more efficient at repairing DNA, according to a study published in eLife. This is the first time that people with ‘extreme longevity’ have had their genomes decoded in such detail, providing clues as to why they live so long and manage to avoid age-related diseases. “Aging is a common risk factor for several chronic diseases and conditions,” explains Paolo Garagnani, Associate Professor at the Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine, University of Bologna, Italy, and a first author of the study. “We chose to study the genetics of a group of people who lived beyond 105 years old and compare them with a group of younger adults from the same area in Italy, as people in this younger age group tend to avoid many age-related diseases and therefore represent the best example of healthy aging.” Garagnani and colleagues, in collaboration with several research groups in Italy and a research team led by Patrick Descombes at Nestle Research in Lausanne, Switzerland, recruited 81 semi-supercentenarians (those aged 105 years or older) and supercentenarians (those aged 110 years or older) from across the Italian peninsula. They compared these with 36 healthy people matched from the same region who were an average age of 68 years old. They took blood samples from all the participants and conducted whole-genome sequencing to look for differences in the genes between the older and younger group. They then cross-checked their new results with genetic data from another previously published study which analysed 333 Italian people aged over 100 years old and 358 people aged around 60 years old. They identified five common genetic changes that were more frequent in the 105+/110+ age groups, between two genes called COA1 and STK17A. When they cross-checked this against the published data, they found the same variants in the people aged over 100. Data acquired from computational analyses predicted that this genetic variability likely modulates the expression of three different genes. The most frequently seen genetic changes were linked to increased activity of the STK17A gene in some tissues. This gene is involved in three areas important to the health of cells: coordinating the cell’s response to DNA damage, encouraging damaged cells to undergo programmed cell death and managing the amount of dangerous reactive oxygen species within a cell. These are important processes involved in the initiation and growth of many diseases such as cancer. The most frequent genetic changes are also linked to reduced activity of the COA1 gene in some tissues. This gene is known to be important for the proper crosstalk between the cell nucleus and mitochondria - the energy-production factories in our cells whose dysfunction is a key factor in aging. Additionally, the same region of the genome is linked to an increased expression of BLVRA in some tissues - a gene that is important to the health of cells due to its role in eliminating dangerous reactive oxygen species. “Previous studies showed that DNA repair is one of the mechanisms allowing an extended lifespan across species,” says Cristina Giuliani, Senior Assistant Professor at the Laboratory of Molecular Anthropology, Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, and a senior author of the study. “We showed that this is true also within humans, and data suggest that the natural diversity in people reaching the last decades of life are, in part, linked to genetic variability that gives semi-supercentenarians the peculiar capability of efficiently managing cellular damage during their life course.” The team also measured the number of naturally occurring mutations that people in each age group had accumulated throughout their life. They found that people aged 105+ or 110+ had a much lower burden of mutations in six out of seven genes tested. These individuals appeared to avoid the age-related increase in disruptive mutations, and this may have contributed in protecting them against diseases such as heart disease. “This study constitutes the first whole-genome sequencing of extreme longevity at high coverage that allowed us to look at both inherited and naturally occurring genetic changes in older people,” says Massimo Delledonne, Full Professor at the University of Verona and a first author of the study. “Our results suggest that DNA repair mechanisms and a low burden of mutations in specific genes are two central mechanisms that have protected people who have reached extreme longevity from age-related diseases,” concludes senior author Claudio Franceschi, Professor Emeritus of Immunology at the University of Bologna.       Your Risk of Dying Hinges on Well-Being Not Diseases     University of Chicago, May 18, 2021 A new study has yielded a radically different picture of aging in America, finding that how old you are plays little or no role in determining differences in health and well-being. The researchers say the results suggest the medical community is focusing on the wrong set of factors to determine risk of dying. Rather than rely on a checklist of infirmities—heart disease, cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, and cholesterol levels—perhaps it’s time to consider a new “comprehensive model” that looks at factors such as psychological well-being, sensory function, and mobility. “The new comprehensive model of health identifies constellations of health completely hidden by the medical model and reclassifies about half of the people seen as healthy as having significant vulnerabilities that affect the chances that they may die or become incapacitated within five years,” says Professor Martha McClintock, a biopsychologist and lead author of the study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. “At the same time, some people with chronic disease are revealed as having many strengths that lead to their reclassification as quite healthy, with low risks of death and incapacity,” adds Professor Linda Waite, a demographer and study coauthor. The study is a major longitudinal survey of a representative sample of 3,000 people between the ages of 57 to 85 conducted by the independent research organization NORC at the University of Chicago. SOME OF THE FINDINGS INCLUDE: Cancer itself is not related to other conditions that undermine health. Poor mental health, which afflicts one in eight older adults, undermines healthin ways not previously recognized. Obesity seems to pose little risk to older adults with excellent physical and mental health. Sensory function and social participation play critical roles in sustaining or undermining health. Breaking a bone after age 45 is a major marker for future healthissues. Older men and women have different patterns of healthand well-being during aging. Mobility is one of the best markers of well-being. The comprehensive model reflects a definition of health long advanced, but little studied, by the World Health Organization, which considers health to include psychological, social, and physical factors in addition to the diseases that are the basis for the current medical model of health. THE HEALTHIEST 22% Twenty-two percent of older Americans were in the model’s healthiest category. This group was typified by higher obesity and blood pressure, but had fewer organ system diseases, better mobility, sensory function, and psychological health. They had the lowest prevalence of dying or becoming incapacitated (six percent) five years into the study. A second category had normal weight, low prevalence of cardiovascular disease and diabetes, but had one minor disease such as thyroid disease, peptic ulcers, or anemia. They were twice as likely to have died or become incapacitated within five years. Two emerging vulnerable classes of health traits, completely overlooked by the medical model, included 28 percent of the older population. One group included people who had broken a bone after age 45. A second new class had mental health problems, in addition to poor sleep patterns, engaged in heavy drinking, had a poor sense of smell, and walked slowly, all of which correlate with depression. The most vulnerable older people were in two classes—one characterized by immobility and uncontrolled diabetes and hypertension. A majority of people in each of these categories were women, who tend to outlive men. “From a health system perspective, a shift of attention is needed from disease-focused management, such as medications for hypertension or high cholesterol, to overall well-being across many areas,” says William Dale, associate professor of medicine and a member of the research team. “Instead of policies focused on reducing obesity as a much lamented health condition, greater support for reducing loneliness among isolated older adults or restoring sensory functions would be more effective in enhancing health and well-being in the older population,” says Edward Laumann, also a collaborator and sociology professor.

Cases of COVID-19 continue to surge across Latin America and access to and local production of vaccines remains a challenge for many countries. Meanwhile, the region is facing one of its worst recessions, mostly due to the ripple effects of the pandemic. What is driving the resurgence of cases in the region, and what will it take to widen access to vaccines? How does the approach leaders take to communications impact a country or population's health outcomes? To learn more about “COVID-19: The Path Forward,” visit: https://www.webershandwick.com/podcast/

Salve meus soldados! Preparados para uma pequena viagem no tempo? Neste episódio nós debatemos a evolução da Química nas guerras, desde gás mostarda até o Fat Man. Entenda também como um cara que mudou o mundo todo com uma descoberta, salvando milhões da fome, também levou a morte de milhares com o gás cloro. Mas será que esses avanços só serviram para a guerra ou alguns deles têm alguma função que não seja pra matar pessoas hoje em dia? Apertem as fivelas, coloquem as bandoleiras e não esqueçam suas máscaras de gás, porque esse episódio está um estouro! Referências [1] Adams, M. R. The birth of modern industrial microbiology: the acetone–butanol fermentation. The International Journal for the History of Engineering & Technology, 87(1), 81–95, 2017. doi:10.1080/17581206.2017.1329970 [2] Le Thanh Huong Nguyen, Céline Raynaud, Isabelle Meynial Salles, Philippe Soucaille. Reviving the Weizmann process for commercial n-butanol production. Nature Communications, Nature Publishing Group, 2018, 9 (1), 8 p. ⟨10.1038/s41467-018-05661-z⟩ [3] Tan SY, Tatsumura Y. Alexander Fleming (1881-1955): Discoverer of penicillin. Singapore Med J. 2015;56(7):366-367. doi:10.11622/smedj.2015105 [4] https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1059/1059-h/1059-h.htm (The world set free) [5] Silva, Marcos Valle Machado da. 2019. “O Tratado Sobre a Proibição De Armas Nucleares (TPAN): Inovação No Desarmamento Nuclear Ou esforço inócuo?”. Meridiano 47 - Journal of Global Studies 20 (dezembro). https://doi.org/10.20889/M47e20012. [6] Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (Dica dos cinéfilos cult)

Lo que no sabias de la vida y obra del compositor judío Felix Mendelssohn Amigos instituto Weizmann --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/diariojudio-mexico/message

Moshe sharing with me the story of givaat brener basketball team with a past present future perspective.

Morgane Koresh et Illana Weizmann-Attali, militantes féministes en Israël, co-fondatrices de « HaStickeriot », mouvement inspiré des colleuses françaises qui luttent contre la culture du viol. Sujet : Les violences sexuelles en Israël

Alcione era atriz, voice over talent e apresentadora de eventos no Brasil. Percebendo que já tinha alcançado o que queria e como sempre teve a meta de ter uma carreira internacional e impactar positivamente o maior número de pessoas, uniu o útil ao agradável. Decidiu ir morar em Portugal e tentar a sorte por lá. Hoje, mora em Carcavelos há 9 meses e continua atuando como atriz, voice over talent e apresentadora de eventos. @FelipeFonsecaTV @AlcioneWeizmann Oferecimento: @IP.School

Daniel und Henrik sprechen in dieser Folge mit Meinhard Weizmann, Geschäftsführer der Bucerius Law School, und Dirk Hartung, Executive Director für Legal Tech an der Bucerius Law School. Es geht um den Umgang der privaten Universität mit Corona, digitale Klausuren, Videokorrektur und Legal Tech an der Universität. Außerdem gibt Dirk spannende Einblicke in die Legal-Tech-Szene in Amerika.

Which is healthier whole wheat bread or white? Most people think the answer is whole wheat. But researchers at the Weizmann institutewere surprised when they did a study comparing specially baked fresh artisanal sourdough with processed, packaged white bread. They found different people reacted differently - about half the people had a better response to the white, and the other half had a better response to the whole wheat sourdough. Half of the study participants were assigned to eat an increased amount of the processed, white bread for a week, representing about 25 per cent of their calorie intake. The other half was told to consume an increased amount of whole wheat sourdough. Afterwards the diets for the two groups were reversed. The researchers monitored health effects like levels of glucose essential minerals, cholesterol and kidney and liver enzymes They also looked at markers for inflammation and tissue damage. They say the findings are potentially important because they can help people understand which foods are a better fit for them based on their genetics and their microbiome - in other words a personalized approach to choosing a diet similar to personalized medicine for the treatment of illness.

durée : 00:56:31 - Les Savantes - par : Lauren Bastide - Aude Bernheim est spécialiste en microbiologie et en génétique, et post-doctorante à l’institut Weizmann des Sciences à Tel Aviv. - invités : Aude Bernheim - Aude Bernheim, Biologie, cofondatrice de l'association WAX Science avec Flora Vincent. Ensemble elles ont écrit : L'intelligence articificielle, pas sans elles ! (éd Belin)

durée : 00:56:31 - Les Savantes - par : Lauren Bastide - Aude Bernheim est spécialiste en microbiologie et en génétique, et post-doctorante à l’institut Weizmann des Sciences à Tel Aviv. - invités : Aude Bernheim - Aude Bernheim, Biologie, cofondatrice de l'association WAX Science avec Flora Vincent. Ensemble elles ont écrit : L'intelligence articificielle, pas sans elles ! (éd Belin)

À propos du livre : « Les douze piliers d'Israël » paru aux éditions Perrin L'histoire d'Israël à travers ses figures de proue. Peut-être parce que sa vocation est d'être le refuge ultime d'un peuple persécuté durant des siècles, parce qu'il est aussi le premier État moderne dont la naissance procède non de la force militaire ou de l'arbitraire politique mais d'une volonté clairement exprimée par la communauté internationale, Israël n'est pas un État comme les autres. Sa naissance et son développement, son épanouissement – sa survie, aussi – reposent sur la condition et la volonté d'hommes et de femmes dont Georges Ayache brosse ici le portrait avec talent. Douze personnalités, de Theodore Herzl le " visionnaire " à Shimon Peres le " survivant " en passant par Ben Gourion et Golda Meir, et autant de piliers d'Israël qui parvinrent à s'imposer avec la foi parfois utopique des précurseurs, mais toujours aussi la détermination implacable des pionniers bâtisseurs. Ancien diplomate et universitaire, aujourd'hui avocat, Georges Ayache a déjà écrit plusieurs ouvrages remarqués, dont, chez Perrin, Kennedy, Nixon : les meilleurs ennemis, Les Présidents des États-Unis et Joe Kennedy.

Ever since the movement’ s inception, Zionists have advocated very different ideas of Israel: would the dream of Herzl, Ahad Ha’am, Weizmann, Jabotinsky, Ben Gurion or Begin triumph? Would Israel be a ‘normal’ state, or a ‘light unto the nations’? The state that emerged, partially out of the ashes of the Shoah, became a refuge for those escaping the horrors of WWII and its aftermath, and to many a utopian ideal. Seventy years on, at the heart of one of the world’s most volatile regions, in a country that still struggles to define itself, was it ever possible for Israel to become the moral super state? In Association with The New Israel Fund This event took place on 2nd March as part of Jewish Book Week 2019

Latest RGR Video --> Eric Berry, David Amerson and fixing Bob Sutton's DefenseOn Today's Show:  Starters may not play at allSaturday cutdown deadlineTrades that could help on cutdown dayWhat RBs could have valueDieter or Chesson?Weizmann? Eigner? Mackenzie?Ben Niemann should make itThe SecondaryConnect:  @RyanTracyNFL | @ChrisClarkNFL  | @RealMNChiefsFan @LockedOnChiefs | LockedOnChiefs.com | Voicemail: 913-777-4457Subscribe:  iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | Spreaker | SpotifyThe 2018 Athletic Matrix Draft Guide #Chiefs #ChiefsKingdom #RGR #NFL  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Close to 60 years ago, in the early 1960s, Marijuana AKA Cannabis wasn't exactly the friendly substance it is today. In pretty much every developed country, recreational use of the drug was totally illegal and medical research was limited. So as a junior faculty member of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, Dr. Raphael Mechoulam had to jump through a few loops to get his hands on a sample for his research. Luckily for Dr. Mechoulam, the director of the Weizmann institute had an old army buddy in an opportune place - the head of the investigative branch of the national police. Dr. Mechoula, reach out to him and was provided with 5 kilos of seized Lebanese Hasish. This sample allowed Dr. Mechoulam and his research partners to discover cannabidiol in 1963 and THC the following year. In 2001 Prof. Mechoulam was awarded the Israel Prize, the country's most prestigious award for scientific achievement and today he continues his research at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. We are super thrilled to be talking to Prof. Mechoulam today about cannabis, his life and his research.

Einstein, Ben-Gurion, Weizmann, and Jabotinsky all bring different ideas about Zionism to the Roaring Twenties in Palestine.

I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness; I saw your fathers as the first ripe in the fig tree at her first time: but they went to Baalpeor, and separated themselves unto that shame; and their abominations were according as they loved. Hosea 9:10 After Theodor Herzl, known as the father of modern Jewish Zionism, passed away in 1904, Chaim Weizmann picked up the baton. Chaim was a Zionist leader and Israeli statesman who served as President of the Zionist Organization. He believed that the ancient homeland of Israel was the only practical solution for the Jewish people. One of the major results of Weizmann’s diplomacy was the Balfour Declaration. There was an integral relationship between WW 1 and Jewish Zionism. The first World War proved decisive in the history of Zionism. On November 2, 1917 the British government issued the Balfour declaration, pledging to facilitate the establishment of a national home for the Jewish people within Palestine. The mandate recognized the historical connection of the Jewish people to their ancient homeland. Only 9 days after the Balfour declaration was signed, the armistice agreement thus ending WW 1. In this session, we will also look at the contributions of David Ben Gurion in the founding of Israel, the White Paper of appeasement to the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, and the onset of WW 2 and the Jewish Holocaust. For more Eddie Chumney teachings and beautiful worship music, visit us at our internet streaming radio station; http://hebrootsradio.com Visit our home page at http://hebroots.com Are you being blessed by these teachings? Please consider making a donation at http://hebroots.com and click the donate button. Thank you for listening!

Host: Jeff Fox with special guests, Ron Milo and Shai Fuchs. Ron Milo of Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, and Shai Fuchs at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada, talk with Jeff Fox about their efforts, with Ron Sender at Weizmann, to redetermine the ratio of microbial to human cells. This ratio, widely cited as being 10 to 1, is closer to even, they find, while arguing that it may prove helpful in the long run to have a better and more rigorous grasp of how many cells there are in both the host and the microbiome. Milo, Fuchs, and Sender update the widely-cited 10:1 ratio, “showing that the number of bacteria in our bodies” is instead “of the same order as the number of human cells. Indeed, the numbers are similar enough that each defecation event may flip the ratio to favor human cells over bacteria.” Thus, the total number of bacteria in the ″reference man″ is about 3.9 x 1013 with an uncertainty of 25%, and a variation over the population of 52%. For human cells, they find that the hematopoietic lineage of cells plays a “dominant role, accounting for about 90% of all body cells. They also revise estimates to the a new total of 3.0 x 1013 human cells in a 70-kg ″reference man″ with a 2% uncertainty. This story was featured in the May 2016 issue of Microbe Magazine. Subscribe to MMP (free) on iTunes, Stitcher, Android, RSS, or by email. You can also listen on your mobile device with the Microbeworld app. Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or audio file) to jfox@asmusa.org Tweet me your questions or just let me know you heard this episode! Image: Colored transmission electron micrograph of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). MRSA are among the drugresistant pathogens that are drawing researchers to look at how such resistance moves through the environment (see p. 201). (Image © Credit: Biomedical Imaging Unit, Southhampton General Hospital/Science Source.)

This week on the Newsstand we host Dr. Chaim B. Weizmann to speak about the domestic political situation in Israel. [...]

Prof. Benjamin Z. Kedar, Professor Emeritus of History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and former Vice-President of the Israeli Academy of Sciences and Humanities, talks to host Gilad Halpern about his newly published collection of essays about Chaim Weizmann. Prof. Weizmann was Israel's first president and leader of the World Zionist Organization throughout much of the pre-state period, and maintained an active career as a chemist in parallel to his statesmanship. Where do science and state affairs interact? If you ask Weizmann, almost everywhere. Song: Buttering Trio - No Joke This season of the Tel Aviv Review is made possible by The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which promotes humanistic, democratic, and liberal values in the social discourse in Israel.

This week on the Newsstand Dr. Chaim B. Weizmann joins us to discuss the latest in the Israeli domestic arena [...]

Después de la guerra, un grupo judío conocido como “Los Vengadores” no dejaba de impresionarse por la gran cantidad de nazis a los que se les permitía vivir con normalidad, a pesar de tener sus manos manchadas de sangre. Por ello, decidieron cazarlos. Sus objetivos incluían al abogado Wilhelm Stuckart, autor de las leyes de Nuremberg, cuyo trabajo consistió en proveer una justificación legal para la Solución Final. También estaba Aleksander Laak, responsable de la muerte de 100 mil judíos en Estonia. Y Otto Abetz, ex embajador alemán en Francia, quien había deportado a gran cantidad de judíos franceses a los campos de concentración. En cierto momento, “Los Vengadores” también persiguieron a seis millones de alemanes, tan sólo por el mero hecho de serlo. En hebreo, se autodenominaban los Nakim (“Los Vengadores”). En la primavera de 1945, mientras la Segunda Guerra Mundial llegaba a su fin, un sobreviviente de la prisión judía del ghetto de Vilna, Abba Kovner, presidió la reunión de Pascuas. Algún día se transformaría en el poeta nacional no reconocido del estado de Israel. Hablaba apasionadamente, invocando el Salmo 94, en el cual Dios promete hacerse cargo de los enemigos del pueblo de Israel: " Y él hará volver sobre ellos su iniquidad y los destruirá en su propia maldad”. Kovner sugería que era el destino el que indicaba deshacerse de los alemanes. Si las cortes de justicia internacionales no lo hacían, entonces los judíos deberían terminar el trabajo. Entre los oyentes se encontraban Joseph Harmatz y Leipe Distel. Juntos formarían el grupo de “Los Vengadores”. Cientos de prisioneros de la SS encarcelados en Stalag 13 fueron envenenados con arsénico. Esa fue la historia reportada por la Associated Press. De lo que no informaron fue de que Distel, que parecía ario, había conseguido empleo en la panadería que proveía el pan a esos prisioneros. Posteriormente declaró que hubiera querido matar a muchos de ellos. Inmediatamente comenzaron a surgir otras historias acerca de muertes misteriosas. Por ejemplo, la de que un nazi que estaba hospitalizado, murió a causa de una intervención menor, cuando misteriosamente se encontró cierta cantidad de queroseno en su sangre. Rápidamente se volvieron más ambiciosos con respecto a sus objetivos. Wilhelm Stuckart era el abogado responsable de escribir las leyes de Nuremburg en la conferencia de notarios Wandsee. Después de la guerra, sin embargo, regresó a la práctica privada luego de una breve estancia en prisión. Los vengadores consiguieron eliminarlo en 1953. Aunque su muerte pareció resultado de un accidente automovilístico, Joseph Harmatz sabía que no había sido así. Otto Abetz había sido el embajador alemán en Francia durante los años de Vichy y había dispuesto la deportación de cientos de miles de judíos. Lo mataron en otro accidente de automóvil en 1958. Su técnica con Aleksander Laak fue aún más inteligente. Laak había dirigido un campo de concentración en Estonia, en donde habían muerto aproximadamente 100 mil personas, muchas de ellas judías. Laak había escapado a Canadá y estaba felizmente casado en Winnipeg bajo un nombre falso. Los vengadores lo acorralaron y le dieron una opción. O se ahorcaba en la cochera de su casa sin que ellos le revelaran la verdad a su esposa o lo mataban delante de ella. Él prefirió ahorcarse. Embriagados de poder y creyendo que estaban por encima de las leyes, los vengadores organizaron uno de los actos de venganza más monstruosos jamás planeados. Abba Kovner decidió que los alemanes debían sufrir tanto como lo habían hecho los judíos. En definitiva, un “ojo por ojo y diente por diente”. Seis millones por seis millones. Kovner se relacionó con Chaim Weizmann, químico de la Universidad de Manchester y le informó que quería envenenar los suministros de agua de Munich, Berlín, Nuremburg, Hamburgo y Weimar, cuyos habitantes sumaban aproximadamente seis millones de alemanes. Weizmann dio su consentimiento y accedió a ayudar a Kovner para identificar el lugar en donde poner el veneno. La planta elegida fue la compañía Potash del Mar Muerto.

Después de la guerra, un grupo judío conocido como “Los Vengadores” no dejaba de impresionarse por la gran cantidad de nazis a los que se les permitía vivir con normalidad, a pesar de tener sus manos manchadas de sangre. Por ello, decidieron cazarlos. Sus objetivos incluían al abogado Wilhelm Stuckart, autor de las leyes de Nuremberg, cuyo trabajo consistió en proveer una justificación legal para la Solución Final. También estaba Aleksander Laak, responsable de la muerte de 100 mil judíos en Estonia. Y Otto Abetz, ex embajador alemán en Francia, quien había deportado a gran cantidad de judíos franceses a los campos de concentración. En cierto momento, “Los Vengadores” también persiguieron a seis millones de alemanes, tan sólo por el mero hecho de serlo. En hebreo, se autodenominaban los Nakim (“Los Vengadores”). En la primavera de 1945, mientras la Segunda Guerra Mundial llegaba a su fin, un sobreviviente de la prisión judía del ghetto de Vilna, Abba Kovner, presidió la reunión de Pascuas. Algún día se transformaría en el poeta nacional no reconocido del estado de Israel. Hablaba apasionadamente, invocando el Salmo 94, en el cual Dios promete hacerse cargo de los enemigos del pueblo de Israel: " Y él hará volver sobre ellos su iniquidad y los destruirá en su propia maldad”. Kovner sugería que era el destino el que indicaba deshacerse de los alemanes. Si las cortes de justicia internacionales no lo hacían, entonces los judíos deberían terminar el trabajo. Entre los oyentes se encontraban Joseph Harmatz y Leipe Distel. Juntos formarían el grupo de “Los Vengadores”. Cientos de prisioneros de la SS encarcelados en Stalag 13 fueron envenenados con arsénico. Esa fue la historia reportada por la Associated Press. De lo que no informaron fue de que Distel, que parecía ario, había conseguido empleo en la panadería que proveía el pan a esos prisioneros. Posteriormente declaró que hubiera querido matar a muchos de ellos. Inmediatamente comenzaron a surgir otras historias acerca de muertes misteriosas. Por ejemplo, la de que un nazi que estaba hospitalizado, murió a causa de una intervención menor, cuando misteriosamente se encontró cierta cantidad de queroseno en su sangre. Rápidamente se volvieron más ambiciosos con respecto a sus objetivos. Wilhelm Stuckart era el abogado responsable de escribir las leyes de Nuremburg en la conferencia de notarios Wandsee. Después de la guerra, sin embargo, regresó a la práctica privada luego de una breve estancia en prisión. Los vengadores consiguieron eliminarlo en 1953. Aunque su muerte pareció resultado de un accidente automovilístico, Joseph Harmatz sabía que no había sido así. Otto Abetz había sido el embajador alemán en Francia durante los años de Vichy y había dispuesto la deportación de cientos de miles de judíos. Lo mataron en otro accidente de automóvil en 1958. Su técnica con Aleksander Laak fue aún más inteligente. Laak había dirigido un campo de concentración en Estonia, en donde habían muerto aproximadamente 100 mil personas, muchas de ellas judías. Laak había escapado a Canadá y estaba felizmente casado en Winnipeg bajo un nombre falso. Los vengadores lo acorralaron y le dieron una opción. O se ahorcaba en la cochera de su casa sin que ellos le revelaran la verdad a su esposa o lo mataban delante de ella. Él prefirió ahorcarse. Embriagados de poder y creyendo que estaban por encima de las leyes, los vengadores organizaron uno de los actos de venganza más monstruosos jamás planeados. Abba Kovner decidió que los alemanes debían sufrir tanto como lo habían hecho los judíos. En definitiva, un “ojo por ojo y diente por diente”. Seis millones por seis millones. Kovner se relacionó con Chaim Weizmann, químico de la Universidad de Manchester y le informó que quería envenenar los suministros de agua de Munich, Berlín, Nuremburg, Hamburgo y Weimar, cuyos habitantes sumaban aproximadamente seis millones de alemanes. Weizmann dio su consentimiento y accedió a ayudar a Kovner para identificar el lugar en donde poner el veneno. La planta elegida fue la compañía Potash del Mar Muerto.

This week Etai and Sophie breakdown all the controversial bills in the Knesset and speak with Dr. Chaim B. Weizmann [...]

Chuck Morse Speaks broadcasts live Mon - Fri 10am - Noon on the IRN/USA Radio Network Listen Live: http://www.irnusaradio.com/ Chuck Morse Author Page: http://t.co/oxZNlr94Fw Chuck Morse is joined by Islamologist and radio host Dr. Kevin Barrett in a surprisingly civil conversation (until the end of the second hour) about Islam, Judaism, Jihad, Israel and the Palestinian Arabs. Dr. Kevin Barrett's website: http://www.truthjihad.com/

chuck Morse Speaks broadcasts live Mon - Fri 10am- Noon ET on the IRN/USA Radio Network. LISTEN LIVE: http://www.irnusaradio.com/ 1st hour Guest: Michael Dozier, spokesman for www.TeaParty.org, political host and analyst for www.Rant2014.com and reporter for Examiner.com discusses the unrest in Ferguson, MO and "The Racist Superheroes" Sharptom, Jackson, Holder, The Black Panthers and...Where's Farrakhan? 2nd hour guest: Author and Israeli commentator Barry Chamish harshly criticizes Labor Zionism tying them into the Nazi Holocaust. Website: http://www.barrychamish.com/

Joel Sussman, Ph.D. is a professor of structural biology at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel. In his research, Dr. Sussman is interested in elucidating the structures and functions of proteins, particularly those involved in the nervous system. He is also the lead scientist behind Proteopedia – a new online protein structure encyclopedia. Scientific endeavors have historically been a one-way street: an investigator or lab makes a discovery, then delivers the good news to the rest of the community via publication. Nowadays, computers and the internet are enabling easier and more seamless means of collaboration and communication. Proteopedia, with which Dr. Sussman is greatly involved, automatically gathers and compiles information from multiple curated sources of information, but its more revolutionary side is the wiki tool, which enables registered users to contribute information themselves. In this interview with Dr. Sussman, I talked with him about his work with acetylcholinesterase and “intrinsically unstructured proteins” and about Proteopedia – how it works and about the possibility of misinformation making its way onto the site. The video extra shows Proteopedia in action. It is narrated by Eran Hodis, the graduate student, who, together with Professors Jaime Prilusky & Joel L. Sussman developed Proteopedia at the Weizmann Institute of Science.