A gray whale sighting in Israel stunned researchers this past weekend, believed to be the first such sighting outside the Pacific Ocean in some 300 years.

Gray whales are typically only found in the Pacific Ocean, and years of hunting is believed to have made them vanish in the North Atlantic around the 17th or 18th centuries, USA Today reports.

To be found in the Mediterranean Sea, the gray whale presumably traveled "a huge distance from its natural habitat thousands of kilometres away," and one researcher said it was "bizarre in the extreme," per BBC.

Another researcher, Phillip Clapham of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said of the discovery: "There are really only two explanations: that there has been a relict population in the N Atlantic that no one has noticed (virtually impossible), or (more likely) that this whale came down through the ice-free Northwest Passage and is now hopelessly lost."

Here is a video of the whale sighting:

Simply turning on the bathroom light for a few seconds in the middle of the night can cause changes that may lead to cancer, scientists claim. Researchers in Israel and the UK found that when a light is turned on at night, it triggers an 'over-expression' of cells linked to the formation of cancer. While previous research has found an increased risk of cancer for workers on the night shift under artificial light, this is the first study to show that even short-term exposure can be harmful. You can read more about this – er – enlightening study in the Daily Mail (UK).

On March 25, I had the privilege of attending a seminar at Globe 2010, one of the world’s largest and longest-running events dedicated to the business of the environment,  showcasing at  Israel Cleantech companies. The event was hosted by the Israel Economic Mission to Canada and Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP.

While the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) brigade tries to steer the public away from doing business with Israel, events like this prove how futile their efforts are. Roughly 200 people were in attendance, ranging from venture capitalists in environmental technology to government agencies from across Canada.

There were five Israeli companies at the Globe 2010 event:

Arad Technologies
Arad Technologies was established in 2000, and is a world leader in automated energy metres, and the technology and data management associated with them to the tune of $110 million in sales for the group in 2008. AMR (Automatic Meter Reading) technologies have been Arad Technologies’ “bread and butter,” but the company has also made large inroads into the business of Reading, Billing & Collecting (RBC). Arad’s presenter aptly posed the question, “why AMR?” Because they are more precise due to digitalized micro electronics. They cut costs on meter-reading expenses because they can all be transmitted back, recorded and consolidated in one central database. Their leakage control is second-to-none because it is all digitally monitored.

Nirosoft
Nirosoft is a company, founded in 1990, which proudly claims an ability to make hi-tech, tailor-made water solutions that are both economically and environmentally efficient. They have designed projects across the globe to solve water problems ranging from water and wastewater treatment; desalination; demineralization; industrial wastewater treatment and recycling; municipal and industrial effluent upgrading and numerous other projects. With 90% of their projects undertaken outside of Israel, they are truly a global company and pride themselves on their ability to tailor-make systems in accordance with client requirements as well as site- and project-specific conditions. In addition to their flexibility and innovation exhibited in their projects, they also boast an extremely fast and efficient project-building phase.

PowerSines
PowerSines is a business which provides energy-efficiency solutions from domestic all the way to major grid energy-reduction. Part of their business model’s claim to success is that the existing power infrastructure does not need to be replaced or even altered that much. They improve grid performance, optimize peak demand and increase overall network reliability and efficiency. What this means is that they take somewhat unstable energy grids which tend to presently fluctuate an average of ten per cent and they control and optimize the grid so that a lesser amount of voltage and energy are needed. The Power Sines presenter showcased three prototypes (though there are others which they employ, apparently) which increase the efficiency of energy grids: LEC (Lighting Energy Controller); SinuMEC (Sinusoidal Motor Efficiency Controller); and DCTI.

RealiteQ
RealiteQ is an Information Technology (IT) company which remotely monitors, controls and aggregates data in through numerous IT mediums on utility projects such as water, gas, oil and the like. RealiteQ uses internet, satellite and cellular standards to aggregate IT applications into one oversight network, as opposed to distributed control of connectivity, performance, network configuration and security, which is often where IT problems take place. In addition to supplying the technology and applying it to IT services like remote control, monitoring and data management, RealiteQ also allows for user-friendly 3rd party interfacing with its technology.

Noga Water
Based in the Netherlands, Israeli company Noga Water Care strives to develop and customize products to develop clean, pure water. They offer several products, ranging from reverse osmosis to filtration systems to dispensers and filter casings, all designed to be high quality products delivered and developed at a high standard of service, all the while at lower prices. Noga is based in the Netherlands with offices in Turkey and the UK and distribution throughout all of Europe.

You can get more information on a wide range of Israeli Cleantech companies at the Israel NEWTech website: http://www.israelnewtech.gov.il

The Canada-Israel Industrial Research and Development  Foundation, renewed for a further five year period, to  support Joint Industrial Projects totaling over C$8.1m  through the injection of C$3.2 Million in New Funding

CIIRDF Will Support Seven  Industrial Projects that Combine  Canadian and Israeli Strengths for Competitive Advantage

Ottawa, March 2010 – The Canadian government has recently  joined Israel in agreeing to the renewal of the Canada Israel  Industrial Research and Development Foundation (CIIRDF) for a  further five year period. The foundation will provide support  for new Joint Industrial Projects totaling over C$8.1m  through the injection of C$3.2 Million in New Funding for  seven industrial research and development projects involving  Canadian and Israeli companies. The funding will cover up to  50 percent of the joint development costs of new products  that have good commercialization potential in the global  marketplace. Funding for each project is subject to final  contract negotiations.

The CIIRDF Board of Directors approved the funding in January  in Vancouver, Canada, on the occasion of its 30th semi-annual  meeting.  Composed of three Israeli and three Canadian  members, the CIIRDF Board has the final say on project  proposals that meet basic eligibility requirements and have  been subjected to independent technical and business merit  reviews in Israel and Canada.  This meeting the Board had 13  proposals to consider for approval and nearly all received  very high ratings from both the Canadian and Israeli  evaluators.  Competition between the projects was fierce and  only the very best were ultimately selected for funding. “In  the fifteen years since I have been managing CIIRDF never  have we had so many high quality projects to present to the  Board”, said Dr. Henri Rothschild, President of CIIRDF.

“CIIRDF is instrumental in helping Israeli and Canadian  companies improve their competitive offerings and achieve  faster access to global markets than they would otherwise do  on their own,” said the Chief Scientist in Israel’s Ministry  of Industry and Trade, Dr. Eli Opper, who chairs the CIIRDF  Board of Directors.

The new projects represent strong additions to the CIIRDF  portfolio of more than 70 previously approved projects at  various stages of completion or in repayment mode.

The projects will result in the development of Insulin feed  additive for animals, Tracking Technology & Trainer for the  Neurogym, Ethernet 5-play Multimedia connection, Air Quality  Mapping in GIS Formats, technology enabling Next-Generation  Wireless USB Radio,  High Resolution X-Ray Non-Destructive  Analysis and Wireless HDMI modules for the TV and PC.

About CIIRDF

The Canada-Israel Industrial Research and Development  Foundation (CIIRDF) was established in 1994 to promote  collaborative R&D between firms in both countries. With a  sophisticated research base to draw on in each country,  Canadian and Israeli companies are well suited to form  productive partnerships.  CIIRDF’s President and a small  staff are located in Ottawa, Canada. CIIRDF also maintains an  office in Israel.

The listing of the 7 funded projects is as follows:

1. Improving Production with Novel Feed Additive by  Nutrinia Ltd. of Yokneam, Israel & East-Man-Feeds Animal  Nutrition of Winnepeg, Manitoba, Canada.

These companies have established a partnership to develop a  new generation of bioactive feed supplements with a special  focus on Insulin. This will be achieved by the use of an  Insulin based product, NovoMax™.which be orally administered,  in order to enhance gut maturation and gastrointestinal  health in young piglets, and consequently reduce mortality  and improve growth.

2. Integration of Timocco’s Tracking Technology & the NeuroGym Trainer by Timocco Ltd. of Tel Aviv, Israel & Neurogym Technology  Inc. of Ottawa, Canada.

The goal of this R&D project is to  develop a hybrid of the NeuroGym Trainer and the Timocco’s  tracking technology. The desired product will enable the  Trainer application to work with a camera and without the  active sensors, thus turning the Trainer into a ‘wireless’  device. The desired device would be able to train gross motor  control around most joints and would attempt to pick up  rotational movements as well flexion/extension and  abduction/adduction movements.

3. Next-Gen Universal and Interactive HDBaseT™ Platform for Enhanced & Uncompressed Multimedia and  Entertainment Applications by Valens Semiconductor Ltd. of  Hod Hasaron, Israel & Icron Technology Corporation of Vancouver, B.C.,  Canada.

The proposed cooperation between  the companies sets to establish a state of the art solution  to fully distribute players/consoles/PC’s and screens around  the house and office. This is accomplished by enabling a real  uncompressed HD quality delivery and enablement of control in  the form of USB connectivity along with several other  controls.

4. Development of Interactive User Interfaces for Air  Quality Mapping in GIS(Geographic information system) Formats  by Envitech Ltd. of Givataim, Israel & A-MAPS Environmental  Inc. of Ottawa, Canada.

Main objective of the initiative is  the development of web based Air Quality mapping, analysis  and forecasting interfaces, based on novel data acquisition,  processing and analysis principles.  The interactive interfaces to be developed will enable direct  on line interpretation, analyses and easy presentations of  the Air Quality records.

5. Enabling Semiconductor Technology for Next- Generation Wireless USB Radio by Wisair Ltd. of Ramat  Hahayal, Israel & Kaben Wireless Silicon Inc. of Ottawa,  Canada.

Main objective of the initiative is the development  of to develop and productize a next-generation, significantly  faster wireless USB integrated circuit.

6. Development of a High Resolution X-Ray Non- Destructive Analysis System by Vidisco Ltd. of Or-Yahuda,  Israel & Dalsa Inc. of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.

The  project plan entails development and integration of an X-Ray  portable test device based on high resolution CMOS  (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) digital imaging  sensor that is capable of covering a large area.

7. Wireless HDMI module for the TV and PC markets by  Celeno Communications Ltd. Of Raanana, Israel & Vixs Systems  Inc. of Toronto, Canada.

ViXS and Celeno Communications are  joining forces to jointly develop a hardware and software module that will stream compressed High Definition video over  the air throughout the home, enabling consumers to enjoy wire- free and location-free video entertainment anywhere in their  home.

Click here to view a report by Lauren McNabb about an Israeli company that specializes in snow making even in warmer temperatures »

Thus far, the Israeli search and rescue units have rescued 70 people from beneath the rubble.

Israel also established a field hospital that includes 40 doctors, 24 nurses, medics, paramedics, x-ray equipment and personnel, a pharmacy, an emergency room, two surgery rooms, an incubation ward, a children’s ward, a maternity ward, and more. The field hospital is capable of treating nearly 500 victims per day and performing initial surgeries, and is currently the best-equipped medical facility in Haiti.

The video below is from the IDF Field Hospital in Haiti, including coverage of a baby boy delivered there, whose mother named him Israel:

To see a CNN report on the IDF field hospital, click here »

To see ABC coverage on how the Israeli doctors helped an at-risk mother deliver her baby, click here »

To see more videos direct from the Israeli team in Haiti, click here »

Two-and-a-half years ago, Israeli analyst Manfred Gerstenfeld wrote an essay for the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs titled “What the West Should Learn from the Assault on Israel and the Jews.”

This was at a time, Gerstenfeld noted, when European leaders, confronting mounting threats from Islamists, were starting to rely increasingly on Israel for its expertise in security-related matters.

Gerstenfeld wrote: “European security models in many places are often partly based on Israeli ones, because Israelis have frequently been targeted.

“For instance, in the West not so many decades ago one could board a plane without a security check. At the time such checks were already the norm in Israel. El Al’s security approach has become a model for many other airlines…In anticipation of the summer 2007 travel season, directors from a variety of American airports visited Israel to study its successful passenger-screening system. Such visits are frequent but only few make the newspapers.”

But that certainly changed after Christmas Day, when a Nigerian, allegedly working for Al Qaeda, tried to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner, resulting in a massive security clampdown at airports in the United States and around the world. The chaos caused during the busy holiday travel season prompted an outpouring of media stories on how the West might benefit from Israel’s security expertise.

In “What Israel can teach us about security” (Toronto Star, Dec. 31), Cathal Kelly began her article with the following contrast: “While North America’s airports groan under the weight of another sea-change in security protocols, one word keeps popping out of the mouths of experts: Israelification. That is, how can we make our airports more like Israel’s, which deal with far greater terror threats with far less inconvenience.

Drawing upon the expertise of Israeli airport security consultant Rafi Sela, Kelly described Israel’s approach to coordinated intelligence gathering and the multiple layers of security checks at Ben-Gurion airport that screen for suspicious individuals while allowing the vast majority of air travellers to move relatively quickly through the lines and onto the planes.

Why isn’t the same system used in North America, she asked. Seal’s answer: a rigid bureaucracy that relies on the wrong security concepts.

On CTV National News Jan. 4, anchor Tom Clark introduced a similar report: “While many countries look to toughen up airport security through body scanners and baggage searches, some suggest there’s a lesson to be learned from Israel. It has faced countless threats since it came into existence more than six decades ago. CTV’s Scott Laurie looks at why Israel has been so successful in stopping terror in the skies and whether its methods could work here.”

Laurie noted: “Instead of just relying on technology, wands, and scanners, security [in Israel] involves up-close and personal interrogation.”

Laurie interviewed airport security consultant Rafi Ron, who spoke about the successful screening technique used at Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport: “What we are looking for are people that exhibit a behavioural indicator that may be related to their intention to carry out a violent act…We’ve developed a program called behaviour pattern recognition.”

Contrary to popular misconception this is not, strictly speaking, racial profiling. On several U.S. news programs, Ron explained that many years ago, Ben Gurion Airport was attacked by Japanese and German terrorist gangs working on behalf of radical Palestinian groups. So Israeli experts are aware of the fact that a terrorist threat can come from people of various backgrounds and nationalities, which is what “behaviour pattern recognition” is meant to detect (in addition to the pre-screening inquiries that are routinely undertaken of all passengers on a flight list).

These measures could be adopted at airports in Canada and around the world. This point was made in “Focus On Passenger Behaviour: Israeli Expert,” by Glen McGregor (National Post, Jan. 4).

McGregor also turned to Sela, who explained that an airport cannot function if the security system treats the vast majority of travellers as potential terrorists: “You have to actually look for the things that are dangerous and not just scan everybody…This calls for a total change in approach to the transportation security issue,” Sela said.

Israel is showing the world what this total change involves. Some, as Gerstenfeld noted back in 2007, have started to pay close attention. Others, one would assume, are sure to follow now.