Another high-tech tour offered by Career Israel was to an emerging company called Better Place. The goal of Better Place is to replace all family cars in Israel by vehicles run 100% by electricity. The Electronic Vehicles (EVs) have a lithium ion battery underneath the car which need about 1 minute of charge time for every 1 minute of drive time.
The goal is to have charging stations (1 meter poles) located in parking lots nationwide so cars can be charged while the driver is at home, the mall, even work. Because the battery will not stay charged for long trips, 100 battery switch stations will be located nationwide. In the same time it takes to pump gas, the car is driven over a robot which takes out the emptying battery and replaces it with one fully charged. A computer onboard incorporates GPS and customer service assistance. Owners will pay a monthly service fee to fund unlimited customer service and charging/switch stations.
As part of the tour, we were able to test drive an EV. They make no noise and accelerate smoothly because there is no gear switching. The ride was extremely comfortable and the technology inside was pretty cool.
The company began just 3 years ago by Shai Agassi (only 42 years old) and will release the first working cars in Fall 2011. The investment in creating a reliable network is high and full of risk, but will hopefully end in a great return. The main flaw I see in this operation is the lack of green energy to change the global impact of the billions of cars on the road. Better Place sees the potential of running cars on 100% clean energy but is not performing or funding research in that area.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Given Imaging
As an optional tour, 20 people headed North past the city of Haifa to visit a company called Given Imaging on February 21st. This high-tech company sells the only pill camera worldwide. The 3 PillCam products they currently have take photographs to create videos of the esophagus, small intestines, or colon. With today’s technology, colonoscopies require the insertion of a tube with a camera on the end of it as the doctor views a video display. The main problems with this are the patient’s comfort and that there is no way to view the inside of the fragile small intestine.
The pills are no larger than vitamins and have different photo frame rates depending on the part of the body to be pictured. The product of the pill is a 15 minute video analyzed by algorithms which look for suspected places of damage or growths as well as a map of the path taken through the body. As of today the colon PillCam has not been approved by the FDA so colonoscopies through this method are not yet available in the states but hopefully will be soon.
The lecture was extremely interesting and informative. I now know exactly how every piece of food travels through my body (whether I wanted to or not). We were able to view actual photos and videos from studies conducted. In one woman, an entire fly was found, still undigested after traveling through her stomach and entering the small intestine. Another funny photo showed the view from the toilet of the patient looking at it after exiting the body. Haha
I think this technology is amazing and will save many lives by encouraging people to get colonoscopies on a regular basis and more than doubling the viewable area in the body with the addition of the small intestine.
The pills are no larger than vitamins and have different photo frame rates depending on the part of the body to be pictured. The product of the pill is a 15 minute video analyzed by algorithms which look for suspected places of damage or growths as well as a map of the path taken through the body. As of today the colon PillCam has not been approved by the FDA so colonoscopies through this method are not yet available in the states but hopefully will be soon.
The lecture was extremely interesting and informative. I now know exactly how every piece of food travels through my body (whether I wanted to or not). We were able to view actual photos and videos from studies conducted. In one woman, an entire fly was found, still undigested after traveling through her stomach and entering the small intestine. Another funny photo showed the view from the toilet of the patient looking at it after exiting the body. Haha
I think this technology is amazing and will save many lives by encouraging people to get colonoscopies on a regular basis and more than doubling the viewable area in the body with the addition of the small intestine.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
The Negev Desert
Heading South
Instead of Ulpan on Thursday morning (Feb 18), we packed a weekend bag and headed South by bus for a tour of the Negev Desert. The Negev covers 60% of Israel’s land mass yet only houses 15% of the population. The main inhabitants are Bedouins, a roaming people who live off the land in tents, or soldiers training in the IDF. The Israeli government tried to establish villages so the Bedouins can pay taxes, receive government-funded projects, and be safe of military activity.
The Bedouins refused and still roam the land as they wish.
Bedouin Village
We visited one Bedouin village in which a member of the tribe spoke with us about his lifestyle. He emphasized living off the land and the relationships within the tribe. One day he came across a wealthy pilot who offered his penthouse apartment in the middle of Tel Aviv so the Bedouin could experience Western civilization. After a month the Bedouin had to return home because he hated that people don’t even know their neighbors and walk past so many people without even acknowledging them.
Another stop along the way was a student village near the city of Sde Boker. Student villages are almost social environments built by hand and run by university students. They are similar to kibbutzim but most students have jobs in nearby cities.
CI Activities
The hotel we stayed at was on the property of a boarding school and our view outside was breath taking… only mountains and desert as far as the eye could see. We participated in a drum circle the first night. Everyone was either playing a drum or dancing around for hours. Later, we had a bonfire with delicious kosher s’mores.
Hikes
The group went on hikes, all with different terrains, 3 days in a row. Flash floods occurred in the Negev three weeks prior to my visit so the landscape was much greener than usual and streams still had small amounts of water. Some of the hikes had manmade steps/ladders while others required rock climbing on steep cliffs. My favorite hike involved first climbing straight up then along the top of the long, skinny mountain. I felt like I was in a biblical scene. The whole time I was thinking about how much my dad would enjoy these adventures. I’ll have to take him on some soon!
Instead of Ulpan on Thursday morning (Feb 18), we packed a weekend bag and headed South by bus for a tour of the Negev Desert. The Negev covers 60% of Israel’s land mass yet only houses 15% of the population. The main inhabitants are Bedouins, a roaming people who live off the land in tents, or soldiers training in the IDF. The Israeli government tried to establish villages so the Bedouins can pay taxes, receive government-funded projects, and be safe of military activity.
The Bedouins refused and still roam the land as they wish.
Bedouin Village
We visited one Bedouin village in which a member of the tribe spoke with us about his lifestyle. He emphasized living off the land and the relationships within the tribe. One day he came across a wealthy pilot who offered his penthouse apartment in the middle of Tel Aviv so the Bedouin could experience Western civilization. After a month the Bedouin had to return home because he hated that people don’t even know their neighbors and walk past so many people without even acknowledging them.
Another stop along the way was a student village near the city of Sde Boker. Student villages are almost social environments built by hand and run by university students. They are similar to kibbutzim but most students have jobs in nearby cities.
CI Activities
The hotel we stayed at was on the property of a boarding school and our view outside was breath taking… only mountains and desert as far as the eye could see. We participated in a drum circle the first night. Everyone was either playing a drum or dancing around for hours. Later, we had a bonfire with delicious kosher s’mores.
Hikes
The group went on hikes, all with different terrains, 3 days in a row. Flash floods occurred in the Negev three weeks prior to my visit so the landscape was much greener than usual and streams still had small amounts of water. Some of the hikes had manmade steps/ladders while others required rock climbing on steep cliffs. My favorite hike involved first climbing straight up then along the top of the long, skinny mountain. I felt like I was in a biblical scene. The whole time I was thinking about how much my dad would enjoy these adventures. I’ll have to take him on some soon!
Monday, February 22, 2010
Darfurian Refugees
An optional seminar was offered on Tuesday (Feb 16) in which a speaker discussed reasons to obtain refugee status and where refugees in Israel are immigrating from. One of the largest situations in Israel today involves Sudan. The Arab Africans are killing tribes of Black Africans in Darfur as well as Southern Sudan. The UN declared this genocide but has taken little action beyond that.
One area of Tel Aviv houses refugees and has a completely different atmosphere. The types of stores, languages seen/spoken, and ethnicity of the people make you feel as though you’ve left Israel. Ben, a participant in my program, said that one street looked exactly like Venezuela.
We stopped in a small store where two Darfurian refugees told their story. They hung a picture on the wall of their former tribe in Sudan, half of which has been killed off. The men managed to escape and worked as computer programmers for high-tech companies in Israel but the pay was not enough to get by. Now they’ve opened a shop in which they teach computer skills and sell accessories. They are fluent in their native language, English, and are learning Hebrew. Their families are growing up as Israelis but they are barely getting by. In addition, random raids by police checking for legal documents make them fear losing their store every day.
An optional seminar was offered on Tuesday (Feb 16) in which a speaker discussed reasons to obtain refugee status and where refugees in Israel are immigrating from. One of the largest situations in Israel today involves Sudan. The Arab Africans are killing tribes of Black Africans in Darfur as well as Southern Sudan. The UN declared this genocide but has taken little action beyond that.
One area of Tel Aviv houses refugees and has a completely different atmosphere. The types of stores, languages seen/spoken, and ethnicity of the people make you feel as though you’ve left Israel. Ben, a participant in my program, said that one street looked exactly like Venezuela.
We stopped in a small store where two Darfurian refugees told their story. They hung a picture on the wall of their former tribe in Sudan, half of which has been killed off. The men managed to escape and worked as computer programmers for high-tech companies in Israel but the pay was not enough to get by. Now they’ve opened a shop in which they teach computer skills and sell accessories. They are fluent in their native language, English, and are learning Hebrew. Their families are growing up as Israelis but they are barely getting by. In addition, random raids by police checking for legal documents make them fear losing their store every day.
Dance Party
Shopping
After Uplan on Monday (Feb 15), Talia and I went shopping down Shenken Street. The clothing options are awful here… Apparently floral leotards are in style. The few familiar brands I saw (Puma, Nike, Steve Madden, Diesel) were really expensive so I have yet to purchase clothing.
Pot Luck
Erez came over in the evening with delicious homemade vegetarian soup. My kitchen is officially the place to hang out because my roommates cook like crazy, people bring over random foods, and we may or may not have dance parties. Haha We are planning on hosting a pot luck soon but almost every night someone brings food over anyway.
After Uplan on Monday (Feb 15), Talia and I went shopping down Shenken Street. The clothing options are awful here… Apparently floral leotards are in style. The few familiar brands I saw (Puma, Nike, Steve Madden, Diesel) were really expensive so I have yet to purchase clothing.
Pot Luck
Erez came over in the evening with delicious homemade vegetarian soup. My kitchen is officially the place to hang out because my roommates cook like crazy, people bring over random foods, and we may or may not have dance parties. Haha We are planning on hosting a pot luck soon but almost every night someone brings food over anyway.
Valentine's Day
Beet Picking
After Ulpan today (Feb 14), all the participants had the option to volunteer at an animal shelter, picking vegetables on a Kibbutz, or if fluent in Hebrew, accompanying children in a cancer ward. I chose to be a farmer for the day. Just south of Tel Aviv a rich lawyer owns farmland where he grows fruits and vegetables for the needy. Everything is donated to an organization which also picks up leftovers from restaurants and events and distributes food nationwide through a logistics center. (If I had known about this company, I would have been interested in interning there.) About 30 of us picked beets for 2 hours… 2.5 tons of beets! It was enough to fill a truck bed. We even stole some handpicked citrus for home. Yum.
Wish I Knew Hebrew
That evening I had to go to the cell phone store to replace my phone. I got a number and waited on a couch with my net book and wifi so it wasn’t too bad… Until some guy started yelling outside as the cops pinned him to the ground. Everyone ran to the windows and I had no idea what was going on because everything was in Hebrew… Slightly scary moment.
Beach Night
Around 10:30pm, my roomies and a few friends walked to the beach to chill with a hookah. We randomly ran into a bunch of other people from the program singing and playing guitar in the sand. It ended up being a really fun night.
After Ulpan today (Feb 14), all the participants had the option to volunteer at an animal shelter, picking vegetables on a Kibbutz, or if fluent in Hebrew, accompanying children in a cancer ward. I chose to be a farmer for the day. Just south of Tel Aviv a rich lawyer owns farmland where he grows fruits and vegetables for the needy. Everything is donated to an organization which also picks up leftovers from restaurants and events and distributes food nationwide through a logistics center. (If I had known about this company, I would have been interested in interning there.) About 30 of us picked beets for 2 hours… 2.5 tons of beets! It was enough to fill a truck bed. We even stole some handpicked citrus for home. Yum.
Wish I Knew Hebrew
That evening I had to go to the cell phone store to replace my phone. I got a number and waited on a couch with my net book and wifi so it wasn’t too bad… Until some guy started yelling outside as the cops pinned him to the ground. Everyone ran to the windows and I had no idea what was going on because everything was in Hebrew… Slightly scary moment.
Beach Night
Around 10:30pm, my roomies and a few friends walked to the beach to chill with a hookah. We randomly ran into a bunch of other people from the program singing and playing guitar in the sand. It ended up being a really fun night.
Work It
The weather was so nice on Thursday (Feb 11)! My kind of day… Right after Ulpan, we walk to the shuk to buy beach towels, relaxed on the beach, then went to the gym which is conveniently located in the mall 4 blocks away. Working out was challenging because I had no idea how fast I was running or how much weight I was lifting… Everything is on the metric system and all the words are written in Hebrew.
So far I’ve taken ab, spinning, and yoga classes at the gym. Not much different from home, but I can’t understand anything the instructors say. At least I’m practicing how to count in Hebrew while I work out! The spin instructor was pretty funny… She turned on black lights, blasted music, and danced/fist pumped the whole time.
So far I’ve taken ab, spinning, and yoga classes at the gym. Not much different from home, but I can’t understand anything the instructors say. At least I’m practicing how to count in Hebrew while I work out! The spin instructor was pretty funny… She turned on black lights, blasted music, and danced/fist pumped the whole time.
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