Happy Independence Day

ISRAEL AT 59!

7,150,000 RESIDENTS IN ISRAEL—(Tel Aviv) As Israel’s 59th Independence Day approaches,
the country’s population stands at 7,150,000 residents, almost nine times its population
of 806,000 at the time of the state’s creation in 1948. According to the Central
Statistics Bureau, 76 per cent are Jewish, 20 per cent are Arab and 4 per cent are
other. In 1948, Tel Aviv—with 248,500 residents—was the only city in Israel with over
100,000 residents. Today, 44 per cent of Israelis live in a city with a population
greater than 100,000. (Ynet News, April 22)?xml:namespace prefix = o ns =
"urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /



DEVICE MAKES WALKING EASIER FOR MS PATIENTS—(Haifa) A Technion Institute computer
science researcher has devised an auditory feedback system which enables patients with
multiple sclerosis to improve their gait. Professor Yoram Baram said that the apparatus,
which is an updated version of a virtual reality visual feedback device he developed a
decade ago, can also help Parkinson’s disease patients walk better. The visual feedback
apparatus developed ten years ago influences more stride length while the auditory
apparatus influences walking speed. Now that both devices have been integrated, the
patient wears the visual feedback apparatus on his eyes and the earphones are connected
to it. The results of Baram’s work were recently published in the Journal of
Neurological Sciences. (Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Apr.10)



ISRAELI BREAKTHROUGH PROMISES TO SAVE LIVES—(Haifa) Cardiologists from Rambam Medical
Center have proven for the first time that a prototype hybrid device combining a
computerized tomography coronary angriography with an advanced nuclear camera can be
much safer and more accurate in determining whether patients with chest pains need
invasive treatment to prevent a heart attack. The innovative technology provides an
accurate diagnosis of clogged coronary arteries—the same level as that in invasive
catheterization but much more accurate than that from ordinary CT imaging of the heart
alone. This will make many diagnostic catheterizations—which pose risks to the
patient—unnecessary. Articles on the research were published in the Journal of the
American College of Cardiology. (Jerusalem Post, March 1)



ISRAEL DEVELOPS BIOLOGICAL CLEANING PROCESS—(Tel Aviv) Professor Eugene Rosenberg, an
Israeli professor from Tel Aviv University, has discovered “good” variety of bacteria
called arthrobactor which is present at sites of crude oil contamination. The
single-celled microorganisms enjoy feasting on oil and therefore play a major role in
cleaning up oil spills. Based on Rosenberg’s research, the newly formed Israeli company
BioPetroClean is helping oil companies clean up accidental and purposeful oil
contamination. The company has reared Rosenberg’s strains of bacteria on a large scale
and is building custom-made reactors to provide a green, clean, and cost-effective
solution to many forms of oil contamination. (Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, April
8)



FIRST ISRAELI SAVED FROM ACUTE LEUKEMIA—(Tel Hashomer, Israel) For the first time in
Israel, the life of a woman suffering from secondary acute leukemia was saved by
umbilical cord blood donated by two mothers after they gave birth. Stem cells from cord
blood do not have to be the exact tissue type of the recipient, unlike bone marrow from
adults. Sheba Hospital said the graft took in two weeks rather than the month it usually
takes for bone marrow. The hospital’s cord blood bank recently became the first in
Israel to be accredited by the American Association of Blood Banks, which is the biggest
regulatory body for the accreditation of blood banks, including that of the American Red
Cross. (Jerusalem Post, February 2)



COMPUTERIZED LEGS HELP IDF AMPUTEES—(Tel Aviv) In March 2006 Dr. Ido Katz was one of 25
Israel Defense Forces veteran amputees whose mechanical, prosthetic legs were replaced
with computerized models. Katz, deputy director of Assaf Harofeh Hospital, had one of
his legs amputated above the knee after he was wounded in the first war with Lebanon. He
explains that the main advantage of a microprocessor knee prosthesis is the confidence
that it instills in its users. The mechanical prosthesis currently used by most amputees
may collapse when it hits an obstacle—causing the user to fall—while the computerized
prosthesis allows users to descend stairs and hills smoothly, Katz said. About 15,000
amputees around the world use mircroprocessor knees, which were developed in Canada and
produced by the German Otto Bock company, an expert in prosthesis manufacturing.
(Ha’aretz, May 31, 2006)



ENZYME COMPUTER COULD LIVE INSIDE BODY—(Jerusalem) A molecular computer that uses
enzymes to perform calculations has been built by researchers in Israel. Itamar Willner,
who constructed the molecular calculator with colleagues at the Hebrew University,
believes enzyme-powered computers could eventually be implanted into the human body and
used for various purposes. One use could be tailoring the release of drugs to a specific
person’s metabolism. Martyn Amos from University of Exeter in the UK, also sees great
potential for such devices. “If such counters could be engineered inside living cells,
then we can imagine them playing a role in applications such as intelligent drug
delivery, where a therapeutic agent is generated at the site of a problem.” (New
Scientist, February 23, 2006)

__________________________________________________ _____________________________________________

No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG Free Edition.
Version: 7.5.463 / Virus Database: 269.5.10/774 - Release Date: 4/23/2007 5:26 PM

Hi Mirjam et al.,

I pop in from time to time to check out the group - wishing you all well!
I'm slo-o-owly crocheting, and still owe some unnamed people a crocheted
piece! *grin and sorry for being late*
And thanks Mirjam for the numerous interesting articles you posted here, one
of which I wanted to reply to.

I got my first below-right-knee prosthesis in 2001, and heard about the
computerized knees which were helping above-knee amputees. And I recently
felt a prosthesis for a child with an above-knee amputation - the knee
itself wasn't computerized, but did have LED's (light emitting diodes - red
lights, essentially) which flashed as the child stepped. Which I thought was
a marvellous way of further motivating the child to walk and have fun! In
case you're interested, I go to Award Prosthetics in Burnaby bordering
Vancouver www.awardprosthetics.com . Shameless plug I know, they've helped
me tremendously!

Cheers all!

David

--
David R. Sky
http://www.shellworld.net/~davidsky/


On Tue, 24 Apr 2007, Mirjam Bruck-Cohen wrote:

COMPUTERIZED LEGS HELP IDF AMPUTEES(Tel Aviv) In March 2006 Dr. Ido Katz
was one of 25
Israel Defense Forces veteran amputees whose mechanical, prosthetic legs were
replaced
with computerized models. Katz, deputy director of Assaf Harofeh Hospital,
had one of
his legs amputated above the knee after he was wounded in the first war with
Lebanon. He
explains that the main advantage of a microprocessor knee prosthesis is the
confidence
that it instills in its users. The mechanical prosthesis currently used by
most amputees
may collapse when it hits an obstaclecausing the user to fallwhile the
computerized
prosthesis allows users to descend stairs and hills smoothly, Katz said.
About 15,000
amputees around the world use mircroprocessor knees, which were developed in
Canada and
produced by the German Otto Bock company, an expert in prosthesis
manufacturing.
(Haaretz, May 31, 2006)

On Apr 25, 10:24 pm, "David R. Sky" wrote:
Hi Mirjam et al.,

I pop in from time to time to check out the group - wishing you all well!

Hi, David! Good to hear from you again. I hope all is well with
you. Judy

Hi Judy,

Yes, everything's going quite well thanks! Slowly crocheting as I wrote
previously, and getting a bit smarter at it too. I hope. *grin* The most
recent piece I finished (a combination of variegated blue eyelash acrylic
yarn with iridescent mother-of-pearl crochet thread) - a doily of sorts with
a wavy edging - had a loose thread that wouldn't tighten when I finished the
piece. I shudder at the thought of it coming untangled and undone, so
decided to sew the end yarn to the edge with appropriately-matched color
thread. Hoping that works!

How've you been doing? Well I hope!

Hugs,

David

--
David R. Sky
http://www.shellworld.net/~davidsky/


On Thu, 26 Apr 2007, JCT wrote:

Hi, David! Good to hear from you again. I hope all is well with
you. Judy

On Apr 26, 9:50 am, "David R. Sky" wrote:
The most
recent piece I finished (a combination of variegated blue eyelash acrylic
yarn with iridescent mother-of-pearl crochet thread) - a doily of sorts with
a wavy edging - had a loose thread that wouldn't tighten when I finished the
piece. I shudder at the thought of it coming untangled and undone, so
decided to sew the end yarn to the edge with appropriately-matched color
thread. Hoping that works!

That sounds like a good idea - I think it should work.

Things are busy here this spring. Lately I have been working on a box
of baby things to go to Afghans for Afghans for a project for new
mothers. I knit some baby socks, hats, and a blanket. The blanket
was a simple pattern - like a giant garter stitch dishcloth - but it
is wool and it will wrap well as it is stretchy. It should keep some
baby nice and warm.

I am also making my husband a pair of socks and starting on a sweater
for myself.

I need to crochet some more hot pads. They are better than the ones I
can buy and my boys want some for their kitchens. I am really a
beginner at crochet but enjoy it. I haven't made anything very
complicated yet.

Judy

Wow Judy, lots of great yarn projects! And good luck with your improved
crocheting!

David

--
David R. Sky
http://www.shellworld.net/~davidsky/


On Thu, 26 Apr 2007, JCT wrote:

Things are busy here this spring. Lately I have been working on a box
of baby things to go to Afghans for Afghans for a project for new
mothers. I knit some baby socks, hats, and a blanket. The blanket
was a simple pattern - like a giant garter stitch dishcloth - but it
is wool and it will wrap well as it is stretchy. It should keep some
baby nice and warm.

I am also making my husband a pair of socks and starting on a sweater
for myself.

I need to crochet some more hot pads. They are better than the ones I
can buy and my boys want some for their kitchens. I am really a
beginner at crochet but enjoy it. I haven't made anything very
complicated yet.

Judy

*cheerful wave* Hi back to you Noreen!

I'm starting to feel motivated to crochet on a more regular basis once again
after reading all these delicious yarn posts. :-)

David

--
David R. Sky
http://www.shellworld.net/~davidsky/


On Thu, 27 Apr 2007, YarnWright wrote:

Hi, David, good to "see" you!
Noreen

Mirjam Bruck-Cohen wrote:

ISRAEL AT 59!

7,150,000 RESIDENTS IN ISRAEL—(Tel Aviv) As Israel’s 59th Independence
Day approaches,
the country’s population stands at 7,150,000 residents, almost nine
times its population
of 806,000 at the time of the state’s creation in 1948. According to the
Central
Statistics Bureau, 76 per cent are Jewish, 20 per cent are Arab and 4
per cent are
other. In 1948, Tel Aviv—with 248,500 residents—was the only city in
Israel with over
100,000 residents. Today, 44 per cent of Israelis live in a city with a
population
greater than 100,000. (Ynet News, April 22)?xml:namespace prefix = o ns =
"urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /



DEVICE MAKES WALKING EASIER FOR MS PATIENTS—(Haifa) A Technion Institute
computer
science researcher has devised an auditory feedback system which enables
patients with
multiple sclerosis to improve their gait. Professor Yoram Baram said
that the apparatus,
which is an updated version of a virtual reality visual feedback device
he developed a
decade ago, can also help Parkinson’s disease patients walk better. The
visual feedback
apparatus developed ten years ago influences more stride length while
the auditory
apparatus influences walking speed. Now that both devices have been
integrated, the
patient wears the visual feedback apparatus on his eyes and the
earphones are connected
to it. The results of Baram’s work were recently published in the
Journal of
Neurological Sciences. (Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Apr.10)



ISRAELI BREAKTHROUGH PROMISES TO SAVE LIVES—(Haifa) Cardiologists from
Rambam Medical
Center have proven for the first time that a prototype hybrid device
combining a
computerized tomography coronary angriography with an advanced nuclear
camera can be
much safer and more accurate in determining whether patients with chest
pains need
invasive treatment to prevent a heart attack. The innovative technology
provides an
accurate diagnosis of clogged coronary arteries—the same level as that
in invasive
catheterization but much more accurate than that from ordinary CT
imaging of the heart
alone. This will make many diagnostic catheterizations—which pose risks
to the
patient—unnecessary. Articles on the research were published in the
Journal of the
American College of Cardiology. (Jerusalem Post, March 1)



ISRAEL DEVELOPS BIOLOGICAL CLEANING PROCESS—(Tel Aviv) Professor Eugene
Rosenberg, an
Israeli professor from Tel Aviv University, has discovered “good”
variety of bacteria
called arthrobactor which is present at sites of crude oil
contamination. The
single-celled microorganisms enjoy feasting on oil and therefore play a
major role in
cleaning up oil spills. Based on Rosenberg’s research, the newly formed
Israeli company
BioPetroClean is helping oil companies clean up accidental and
purposeful oil
contamination. The company has reared Rosenberg’s strains of bacteria on
a large scale
and is building custom-made reactors to provide a green, clean, and
cost-effective
solution to many forms of oil contamination. (Israel Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, April
8)



FIRST ISRAELI SAVED FROM ACUTE LEUKEMIA—(Tel Hashomer, Israel) For the
first time in
Israel, the life of a woman suffering from secondary acute leukemia was
saved by
umbilical cord blood donated by two mothers after they gave birth. Stem
cells from cord
blood do not have to be the exact tissue type of the recipient, unlike
bone marrow from
adults. Sheba Hospital said the graft took in two weeks rather than the
month it usually
takes for bone marrow. The hospital’s cord blood bank recently became
the first in
Israel to be accredited by the American Association of Blood Banks,
which is the biggest
regulatory body for the accreditation of blood banks, including that of
the American Red
Cross. (Jerusalem Post, February 2)



COMPUTERIZED LEGS HELP IDF AMPUTEES—(Tel Aviv) In March 2006 Dr. Ido
Katz was one of 25
Israel Defense Forces veteran amputees whose mechanical, prosthetic legs
were replaced
with computerized models. Katz, deputy director of Assaf Harofeh
Hospital, had one of
his legs amputated above the knee after he was wounded in the first war
with Lebanon. He
explains that the main advantage of a microprocessor knee prosthesis is
the confidence
that it instills in its users. The mechanical prosthesis currently used
by most amputees
may collapse when it hits an obstacle—causing the user to fall—while the
computerized
prosthesis allows users to descend stairs and hills smoothly, Katz said.
About 15,000
amputees around the world use mircroprocessor knees, which were
developed in Canada and
produced by the German Otto Bock company, an expert in prosthesis
manufacturing.
(Ha’aretz, May 31, 2006)



ENZYME COMPUTER COULD LIVE INSIDE BODY—(Jerusalem) A molecular computer
that uses
enzymes to perform calculations has been built by researchers in Israel.
Itamar Willner,
who constructed the molecular calculator with colleagues at the Hebrew
University,
believes enzyme-powered computers could eventually be implanted into the
human body and
used for various purposes. One use could be tailoring the release of
drugs to a specific
person’s metabolism. Martyn Amos from University of Exeter in the UK,
also sees great
potential for such devices. “If such counters could be engineered inside
living cells,
then we can imagine them playing a role in applications such as
intelligent drug
delivery, where a therapeutic agent is generated at the site of a
problem.” (New
Scientist, February 23, 2006)

__________________________________________________ _____________________________________________


No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG Free Edition.
Version: 7.5.463 / Virus Database: 269.5.10/774 - Release Date:
4/23/2007 5:26 PM

Sorry I am a little late Mirjum but, thanks for the post!
Dennis

Dennis we say Better later than never ::::
THank you
mirjam