MidnightCall Magazine
In this issue:
- Before the Last Flood — By Norbert Lieth
- Gaza Flotilla: Aggression or Self-Defense? — By Arno Froese
- Far East AsiaTrendsToday – Part III:Geo-prophecy or Geopolitics? — By Wilfred Hahn
News From Israel MagazineIn this issue:
- The Myth of the Al-Aqsa Mosque: Part 1 — By Herbert Novitsky
- ON THE HORIZON:
- Obama Honors Jewish Heritage Month
- Building an Electronic Human Brain
- ‘Iran Critics Must Get Rid of Nukes,’ Says Turkish PM
- Israel Joins Prestigious OECD Club
- Israel Accepted after Unanimous Vote
- Spy Satellite Successfully Launched
Nanotech Will Change the World
Although he was unable to attend Israel’s first international conference on nanotechnology in Jerusalem because of his state visit to the Czech Republic, President Shimon Peres would have relished the fact that there were 800 participants - 150 of them from abroad and many at the top of their fields.
Peres declared that nanotechnology “offers great promise to all humankind. Nothing is new in nano; what is new is that we have discovered it... All things existed before, but we weren’t able to see it.”
One nanometer is one-billionth of a meter, and nanotech involves the development of new materials, structures or objects up to 100 nanometers in size either by the “bottom up” approach in which atoms or molecules assemble themselves under chemical, electrical or other influences, or a “top-down” approach in which nanosized objects are cut down from larger entities.
One such innovation is the “nano nose” developed by Tel Aviv University chemistry Prof. Doron Shabat. Using molecular techniques in nanotechnology, he developed new molecules that can magnify weak traces of minuscule substances such as pollution in water or explosives, as well as biomarkers in cancer, by “sniffing” them out. The “bionic nose” is actually a molecular sensor that can amplify such substances tenfold and make them detectable. The prototype is ready and will be used experimentally to improve healthcare, safety and security.
Dan Vilenski of the Israel National Nanotechnology Initiative (INNI) compared the potential of nano today with that of semiconductors after World War II. “Then, people said semiconductors would never contribute to mankind, but now it is a trillion-dollar industry.”
INNI, he said, wants to persuade decision makers and industry that nano is a real business here with a great potential, worthy of commercial investment along with research and development in the academic world.
The Jerusalem Post, 31 March 2009, pg. 17
Israel’s contribution toward the development of high-tech is nothing short of remarkable. Knowledge is Israel’s greatest asset and strongest defense. Those who wish Israel would disappear, such as Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, will continue to be disappointed. Israel has much more than knowledge and technology; they have the promise of the God of heaven and earth: “And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.” (Isaiah 35:10).