Israel's status as a major centre for scientific discovery is not widely known, but here are 3 examples that show both the breadth and the innovative thinking of Israeli science. Thanks to reader "Nikita Windrider" for these.
- Israeli-made device helps restore use of paralyzed hands. Apparently, part of post-stroke paralysis is from "learned non-use." The NESS H200 reverses that, and has been approved by the U.S. FDA after tests:
"A brace-like device fits snugly over the forearm and hand, with built-in electrodes touching key muscles. It's connected to a portable unit easily operated by the patient that may be set in different modes, to exercise the hand by shocking the muscles to open and close the fingers and to help the hand grasp and release objects."
- Israeli fruit hybrid lowers cholesterol. Take a grapefruit. Cross with a pomelo, an ancient Asian anscestor of the modern grapefruit. Drink the pomelit juice. Lower LDL cholesterol and increase blood anti-oxidant activity. Bless you - again - Sheila Gorenstein, a scientist with her priorities screwed on right:
"During her illustrious career, Gorinstein has led a study that for the first time proved that the persimmon fruit can help reduce the risk of clogged arteries (atherosclerosis), which bring about heart disease and strokes - the leading cause of death in the Western world. She has also spent a great deal of effort improving the quality and stability of Israeli wines and beers."
- Israeli scientist discovers cause and cure for bad breath. Turns out that many people who have a stubborn bad-breath problem just need their tonsils fixed. Yehuda Finkelstein of the Meir Hospital at the Sapir Medical Center in Kfar Saba figured this out, and also developed a 15-minute laser treatment that fixes it. Doc, dentists everywhere are ordering statues of you for their offices.
Last year the Arabs created a prayer mat buzzer that told them when to pray.
OT, but here's a bit of good news: Rutgers researchers may have stopped HIV. It's an ambitious claim and likely overinflating things a bit, but at any rate it does look like progress at the very least.
Given the amount of money we sink into Israel it's good that some work is getting done. Of course that research could have been done here in the US for a fraction of the cost. Ah, well. At least the rate of return is better than USG aid to the PA (utterly worthless) or the huge resource sink that is Iraq.
T.J. believes that the U.S. government is illegitimate, so complaining about its disbursements is nothing new for him. Of course, if it IS illegitimate, then there really isn't any "WE" in those disbursements, is there T.J?
T.J.'s point as phrased also seems to have a problem with basic economics, though it may be valid in a different sense.
Economics: If these discoveries could have been made so much more cheaply in the USA, why weren't they? Nothing stopped anyone (including the US government, which did not finance these projects) from financing competing projects at this presumed lower cost.
Given that these are economically valuable discoveries, the fact that they were NOT made elsewhere calls T.J's assertions about relative costs into serious question.
T.J.'s statement re: a "return" may be true in another sense.
Scientists pursue the things that interest them, and bring their own talent to bear. This predisposes them in different directions. Sometimes, too, it's all about a particular combination of scientists, or the environment of a particular place which allows the right pieces to align, approvals to be given etc. that draws research in certain directions. These things are not always duplicable. Science is a human endeavour, whose conclusions are universal but whose path is bound up in space, time and relationships.
In that sense, contributing to Israel's ongoing existence produces a "return" that includes discoveries like these.
Would they have been done elsewhere for less? Would they have been done elsewhere at all? Hard to say. What we do know is, they weren't done elsewhere.
Me, I'm just glad they were done.
>>Of course, if it IS illegitimate, then there really isn't any "WE" in those disbursements, is there T.J?
Oops. I have to watch that. Let me try again:
Given the amount of money stolen from us poured into Israel it's good that at least some work is getting done.
There, that's better.
The huge amounts of money poured into Israel (and Egypt) are considered by most around here to be vital to keeping those places from sliding into the abyss. This represents an up front cost for keeping Jews alive and prosperous that wouldn't have to be paid for Jews living in Arizona or Texas. This needs to be factored into the cost effectiveness of any research done in Israel. It's a huge US government subsidy, roughly $1000 per Israeli per year, or somewhere near 10% of the annual NIH budget.
As I mentioned, some subsidies are even less efficient than the Israeli subsidy. I'm quite certain that the $100 billion sunk into Iraq this year could have been used to turn Israel into an even more impregnable fortress and still have piles of money left over for alternative energy, doubling the NIH budget, etc.
Personally, I'd rather keep my own money and spend it how I saw fit, rather than have the bureaucrats in DC find new ways to waste it. Maybe I could finance Mr. Darling's research with my share . . .
Personally, I'm a big fan of deregulation in the Israeli economy, which would make Israel more independent of aid of any sort.
But the cost effectiveness of medical research in Israel stands on its own, just as the cost effectivness of research in the USA is not forced to include the defense budget.
MYTH
“U.S. military aid subsidizes Israeli defense contractors at the expense of American industry.”
FACT
Contrary to popular wisdom, the United States does not simply write billion dollar checks and hand them over to Israel to spend as they like. Only about 26 percent ($555 million of $2.1 billion in 2003) of what Israel receives in Foreign Military Financing (FMF) can be spent in Israel for military procurement. The remaining 74 percent is spent in the United States to generate profits and jobs. More than 1,000 companies in 47 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico have signed contracts worth billions of dollars through this program over the last several years. The figures for 2001 are
in the link
Businessweek: Why Israel Is A Land Of Tech Promise -- Again
Forbes: The Global Startup
The Wall Street Journal Announces Winners of Its First Global Technology Innovation Awards:
Gold Winner — Sun Microsystems Laboratories (U.S.): New method for chips to transmit data inside a computer up to 100 times faster than today’s top speed.
Silver Winner — Given Imaging Ltd. (Israel): Pill-shaped video camera screens the esophagus for disorders.
Bronze Winner — InSightec Image Guided Treatment Ltd. (Israel): Device destroys tumors using ultrasound waves together with magnetic resonance imaging.