Rehovot's Shame: Weizmann Institute Corruption Begins at the Stone Administration Building

Please don't miss the story about the corruption by the Institutes' former vice president Yoram Groner and present academic secretary Boaz Avron (who also holds the post of the Head, Directorate for Research and Academic Affairs, Weizmann Institute Fools students and staff, My Rehovot, 25 May 2006); and Police to question heads of Weizmann Institute about embezzlement affair by Globes.co.il.

"Around two months ago, the president of the Weizmann Institute of Science, Prof. Ilan Chet, flew with his wife to New York to attend a special evening at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. It was supposed to be a farewell tribute to him ahead of the end of his term, and was part of the annual event organized by the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science. But a surprise awaited Chet upon his arrival in New York. The executive vice president of the American Committee, Martin Kraar, advised him not to attend the event - because he was not permitted to do so.

This humiliating incident was the climax of an episode that has embarrassed one of Israel's most prestigious institutions for several months. The circumstances surrounding Chet's departure from his post at the beginning of the month have become the talk of the institute's green, tranquil grounds in Rehovot. At the heart of the episode are charges of inappropriate behavior on the part of the departing president, focusing on private work he did, ostensibly without authorization, for an American company.

Chet, 67, was selected as the Weizmann Institute's ninth president five years ago. Some of his predecessors include the first president of the State of Israel, Dr. Chaim Weizmann (for whom the institute was named); Prof. Ephraim Katzir, who also served as president of Israel, and a series of such distinguished scientists as Prof. Israel Dostrovsky, one of the heads of Israel's nuclear program, and Prof. Albert Sabin, who developed the polio vaccine.

Chet is considered a world-renowned expert and research pioneer in the biological control of plant disease, concentrating on the use of environmentally friendly microorganisms to decrease the need for pesticides.

He was born in Haifa in 1939 and studied at Hebrew University's agriculture department, where he served as a tenured professor and vice president and was awarded numerous prizes for his research. The prizes he received include the Rothschild Prize for Agriculture (1990), the Israel Prize (1996), the Wolf Prize (1998) and others. He holds 30 patents for his research and inventions. As president of the Weizmann Institute, he enjoyed very comfortable conditions. There was nothing unusual about this. Weizmann Institute presidents receive an official residence in an on-campus villa, an expense account, numerous trips abroad to promote institute affairs, a car, and a salary that rivals the highest in Israeli academia. In addition to his salary, Chet also received a pension from the Hebrew University.

Chet, according to colleagues and Weizmann Institute officials, was not considered a particularly successful manager. Therefore, the leaders of the institute decided after three and a half years to search for a replacement. After interviewing several candidates, the search committee selected Prof. Daniel Zajfman, 47, a physicist who took up the post around two weeks ago.

'A lame duck'

The appointment of a search committee naturally angered Chet, who viewed it as his ouster. He became, as he said to his friends, "a lame duck." Of the eight presidents who preceded him, four served for periods of eight to 18 years; and four served shorter terms of two or three years, but they left of their own accord.

During the last year and a half of his tenure, he functioned as usual, but his mind was already occupied with his departure. He chose a house where he was to live following his departure and started renovating it. According to the terms of their employment, professors at the Weizmann Institute are entitled to housing on the beautiful campus until they retire at the age of 65. Then they move to an apartment off the campus of the Weizmann Institute, which pays their rent for another three years. Weizmann Institute presidents are entitled to live on the campus, in an apartment owned by the institute until they turn 80.

As renovations on his residence neared completion, Chet reached the conclusion that the apartment did not suit his needs and decided to move into another. He paid for the cost of the renovations in the first apartment out of pocket. At the same time, in September of this year, the Weizmann Institute's leaders received complaints that their president was providing paid consulting services to an American company that deals in intellectual property rights - and opened an investigation into him. According to the complaints, he received $5,000 a month for his consulting services. The complaints came from employees in his office. There were also charges that Chet concealed computer correspondences.

As a result of the complaints, Moroz, the chairman of the Weizmann Institute's board of governors, summoned Chet to a meeting abroad and charged him with doing private work contrary to guidelines and regulations. According to the institute's rules, any professor may do private work outside the institute for the equivalent of one day a week, provided he obtains the consent of his superiors. Chet denied the accusations against him, but the chairman was not convinced and notified him of the decision to appoint an oversight committee. Attorney Avraham Ben-Naftali, the chairman of the institute's executive committee, was appointed to head the oversight committee.

Attorney Ben Naftali and the oversight committee members were unable to find evidence for the claim that Chet committed criminal violations that should be presented to external bodies, or to the police for investigation. However, committee members felt that the president of the Weizmann Institute violated its rules by not asking for the required permits to undertake private consulting work. Therefore they found his actions to be ethically flawed. "As president of the institute, he should have served as a personal example and exercised extreme caution in all cases," stressed one committee member who asked to remain anonymous. A report on the committee's findings was submitted to the executive committee members.

When he realized that an oversight committee had been formed, Chet approached Attorney Eli Zohar and asked him to represent him. Zohar advised him not to agree to the formation of the committee and not to cooperate with it.

He also asked Chet to write his version of events, in which he vehemently denied the charges against him and argued that he did not engage in any consulting work and that all of his actions were in accordance with the laws and regulations. He also denied the charge that he destroyed e-mail correspondences to conceal his actions and argued that it could easily be ascertained on the server of the Weizmann Institute's computer unit whether this had, indeed, occurred.

Thousands in compensation

Later, Zohar contacted the institute's legal adviser, Attorney Ruta Cohen, of the offices of S. Horowitz, and the parties reached an agreement. Chet would not live on the Weizmann Institute campus and would not have access to a research lab there, and the institute would pay him compensation for waiving his right to live on the campus and to a lab. The two parties have kept confidential the details of the agreement, but according to Weizmann Institute sources, the compensation amounts to at least several tens of thousands of dollars.

Chet believes he has suffered serious injustice. He declined to respond to Haaretz's requests, but Haaretz did receive a letter, which presents his complaints. The letter is written in a bombastic style, which is not typical of the former president, say some Weizmann Institute sources. It contains phrases such as "witch hunt," "McCarthyism," "incorrect facts," "duplicitous employees," "frightened and pressured workers," "a bunch of hypocrites who watch the show and cluck their tongues," "foul odors reeking from the garbage pile of lies in this libel."

Chet refused to answer whether he wrote the letter or if it was sent in his name. A few days after the new president assumed his post, Chet left for a sabbatical at an elite American university.

The Weizmann Institute gave this response: "Around the end of the term of Weizmann Institute president, Chet, questions arose relating to consulting agreements with external bodies. The institute's administration saw fit to verify the facts as they are and, to that end, appoint members of these institutions to review the matter.

At no point was there a suspicion raised that his actions constituted a violation of the law. While the institute was conducting its inquiries, Chet decided to leave the institute to return to conducting research. It should be noted that according to the institute's procedures, a scientist here is permitted to consult for a fee equivalent to one day a week.

With regard to the matter of housing: Chet was entitled after his departure from the post of president to live in a university apartment, by virtue of his status of 'an institute professor,' which every departing president receives. A special committee found an apartment for him. The apartment found for him will now serve another institute employee."

The offices of Chet's attorney, Eli Zohar, did not respond to Haaretz's request for a comment.

Source: Yossi Melman. The president has left the building. Haartez.com (15 December 2006) [FullText]

Also see:

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MyRehovot Reader Responds to "Weizmann Institute Threatens Employee With a Dismissal for Bearing Magen David Patch"

Rehovot's Weizmann Institute Has Become A Luxury Housing
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Rehovot Woman is a Biomedical Science Star

Is Weizmann Institute the Best International Placeto Work for Academics?

US National Academy of Sciences Member Rehovot's Michael Sela Says Weizmann Scientists Have Bad Ethics

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Rehovot Scientist Teaches Global Neuroscience Community on Open Access at the Major Congress of Neurosciences

Government to Circumcise the Budget of Rehovot's Rabbis, Kosher Supervisors

The government is planning to fire at least 10 percent of rabbis, kashrut supervisors, ritual slaughterers and other religious council workers as part of a sweeping reorganization of religious services to be launched in the coming weeks, sources in the Prime Minister's Office said Wednesday.

A total of NIS 77 million has been earmarked for the reorganization, said the source. Another NIS 31m. has been allotted for the war-damaged North and the area surrounding the Gaza Strip.

Between 85 and 90 percent of the NIS 350m. annual religious services budget goes to salaries.

Meanwhile, over 5,000 workers in the nation's 133 religious councils joined the Histadrut union's general strike Wednesday in protest against salary delays.

The reorganization plan is geared toward solving the chronic budget deficits of religious councils in towns.

"In places like Hatzor Haglilit, there are two chief rabbis of the city and two neighborhood rabbis for a tiny population, while much larger cities have one or two rabbis," said a Histadrut source.

"We've been waiting for this reform for over a year," the source said, adding that the Histadrut supports the reorganization, including the layoffs. "The ball is in the Treasury's court."

In Rehovot, one of the most financially unstable municipalities, the religious council suffers from a monthly budget deficit of NIS 250,000.

Shlomo Stern, head of the Histadrut's religious services department, said that in the first stage of the strike most essential services were being provided.

"Burials are being postponed a few hours, but not cancelled," said Stern. "Couples scheduled to marry in the next couple of days can still pick up their ketuba (marriage contract) but we might stop registering couples for future marriages soon."

Stern also said that while most kashrut supervisors were on strike Wednesday, there were many restaurants that could not be left unattended. "If we stop supervision altogether we will have to come in tomorrow and kasher the entire kitchen all over again," he explained.

According to Meir Spiegler, head of the Religious Services Authority in the Prime Minister's Office, a three-way group labor agreement will be signed in the coming weeks among the government, the Histadrut and the religious councils that will streamline services.

The total annual budget for religious services is NIS 350m., 40% of which is provided by the state and 60% is provided by local government. In financially stable towns, religious council workers get paid on time. However, in about a dozen towns with big deficits the religious councils also suffer.

MK Yitzhak Cohen (Shas), Minister of Religious Services in the Prime Minister's Office, said that he hopes to increase state support for religious services so that the state portion of the budget would be 75% while the local government would have to provide only 25%.

Source: Matthew Wagner. Government to layoff 10% of rabbis, kosher supervisors. JPost.com (29 Nov 2006) [FullText]

Weizmann Institute Visitor Says Mideast Situation Has Deteriorated Since Last Visit

Renowned physicist Stephen Hawking on Sunday told Prime Minister Ehud Olmert that he has noticed a marked deterioration in the situation in the Middle East since he last visited the region in 1990.

The two met in Jerusalem on Sunday for a 45-minute conference, primarily regarding chances for peace in the region, past agreements and the recent cease-fire.

Hawking, Cambridge University's Lucasian Professor of Mathematics, arrived Thursday for a nine-day visit to Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Hawking, whose visit was originally scheduled last year during the World Year of Physics, will meet with scientists and give several lectures. The British embassy organized the visit to promote scientific cooperation between the nations.

Earlier Sunday, Hawking met with aspiring scientists at the Bloomfield Science Museum in the capital. He was also due to pay an evening visit to Weizmann Institute at Rehovot.

This is Hawking's fourth visit. On a previous 1988 visit, Hawking was awarded the Wolf Prize in Physics.

Hawking was greeted at Ben-Gurion International Airport on arrival by the British Ambassador to Israel, Tom Phillips.

Next Thursday, Hawking will lecture at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem on "The Origins of the Universe." The lecture will be open to the public.

Hawking is also scheduled to lecture at Ramallah's Bir Zeit University and to hold a video conference with young Palestinian scientists from the West Bank.

Hawking's research focuses on the subject of black holes and the Theory of Relativity. Hoking won international renown with his best-selling book, "A Brief History of Time."

Source: Tamara Traubmann, Haaretz Correspondent. Hawking says Mideast situation has deteriorated since last visit. Haaretz.com (10 Dec 2006) [FullText & Talkback]

Made in Rehovot: Rehovot's Optical Breakthrough Stands to Change the World of Mobile Entertainment

"In today's on-the-go world, people want their entertainment and information to move with them - whether they're watching their favorite TV show on the beach or viewing a downloaded movie while commuting on a train or bus.

That's why trendy mobile phones and ipods with video features are big sellers throughout the US. But the problem with most of portable digital gadgets on the market is that you have to squint to see the picture. Unless you want to lug around a laptop, peering into a tiny screen on an ipod, cell phone, or even one of the new palm-sized portable video recorders (PVR) may get the job done, but they're no match for the full large-screen viewing experience.

That's where Lumus comes in. The Israeli company has developed 'designer' eyeglasses with proprietary optic lenses which promise to make the squint problems passé. Lightweight, fashionable, and offering a large see-through screen with high resolution in full color, Lumus is set to lead a new era in video viewing.

The Lumus stylish frames are attached to a miniature projector/LCD microdisplay on the side of each lens. The display recreates the image from a media source, reflects it, and transmits it to the optic lens where prisms and mirrors enlarge the image which the eye sees.

"It is as if you are watching a 60-inch TV from 10 feet away," Lumus business development manager Ari Grobman told ISRAEL21c.

That impression is thanks to Lumus' unique technology, called the Light-guide Optical Element (LOE) - a sliver of flat glass or plastic that incorporates a set of embedded partially reflecting facets, delivers a virtual image to the eye. This results in an exit image that is much larger than the original image, and includes a wide (virtual) big screen.

The Lumus eyewear which is due to be ready for consumers next year is already making a splash, with Popular Science featuring it in their September issue. And it earned high praise from Insight Media, in its "Mobile Display" report in November, which read: "The beauty of the design is that the light-guide (lens) is thin, about 2mm, but offers a large surface area... It makes the product more like 'video-eyeglasses'..."

In Lumus' office in Rehovot's high tech science park, the inventor of the video eyeglasses, Dr. Yaakov Amitai, is excitedly giving ISRAEL21c a demonstration of the product to a reporter.

"What do you see when you look through these glasses?" asked Amitai.

The answer was Nemo - swimming around in full animated view, with no video player or DVD anywhere around. Then, Amitai stands behind the big virtual screen and demonstrates another feature of the startup company's product: the Lumus image is transparent and Amitai can be seen through the 'screen'. The viewer's vision is not blocked by a screen.

This 'see-through' technology was the result of Amitai's research after he left his position as the head of the optics group at El-Op, Israel's largest electro-optic systems manufacturer.

"I was working on optical switching technology, when I suddenly had a flash of insight. It was a Eureka moment. I realized that by utilizing methods which I intended to use for switching optical channels I can find the solution for a complex optical paradigm that has baffled physicists for almost 100 years: how to project a wide image through a thin transparent plate that could then be reflected into one's eye. This 'holy grail' became the basis for Lumus' see-through screen, which would circumvent previously considered optical limitations," Amitai told ISRAEL21c.

With over 35 patents to his credit, plus 70 scientific publications, Amitai had an entrepreneurial sense that the LOE invention was groundbreaking and would transform the mobile personal display industry. But it still wasn't easy to gain financing for Lumus, which he founded in 2000, a down year for investment amid skepticism about innovative technology. However, by the end of the year, seed funding came from an Israeli VC firm, CapVentures, managed by Dr. Michael Anghel, who understood from day one the tremendous potential for Lumus' technology.

In January 2005, Motorola Ventures invested in Lumus as did Jerusalem Global Ventures whose investors include Time Warner, Agilent, Bank of America, China Development Industrial Bank, Bausch & Lomb, Motorola.

Lumus has spent five years in research, refining the technology, and enhancing the resolution of the image. Their latest prototype boasts high VGA resolution with 640 x 480 pixels, and can even be extended. Previous headsets used 320 x240 pixels. Effort has also gone into making the product even smaller, more compact, and lightweight. The weight of the entire headset is going to be less than 50 grams.

According to Amitai, amid the competition in the marketplace only Lumus uses new optic technology, while others use a limiting miniaturization. And more importantly for appearances sake, the headsets already on the market have the disadvantage of looking like goggles - because they are goggles - and a person wearing them in public could feel very conspicuous.

In addition, said Amitai, the goggles do not offer a transparent image, only some peripheral viewing. That rules out the possibility of 'Augmented Reality', an overlap image that can be used to demonstrate or serve as a tutorial in a detective search and for military purposes.

"The possibilities of applications for our LOE boggle the imagination," said Grobman. The company is already working on integrating its technology into future consumer products, with talks and negotiations underway with several of the top players in the field of communication and entertainment.

"Our technology delivers a whole new way of living, working and enjoying movies, TV, and video games. And, you can bet the transparent image it projects can offer big benefits for the visually and hearing-impaired people, and anyone who has to stand in front of a crowd and make a speech or presentation," Grobman said. "We are talking about a generic revolution that will eventually convert a standard pair of glasses into a high tech display."

A recent feature called "Tech Pioneers," in TIME Magazine gave a glimpse into the new reality of personal video display with a focus on the goggle-like product on the market. Existing headgear has drawbacks, noted TIME: "It's tough bringing science fiction into the streets..." Will the product become trendy? "Not until the gear stops drawing stares from passersby."

Lumus' prototype video glasses can already get by in a crowd. And, as Lumus' technology is embedded in a host of electronic consumer products, it seems a winning wager to bet that Amitai's invention will become a "must have" in mobile video personal displays.

Lumus will be demonstrating its see-through "designer" video glasses at the CES-07 (Consumer Electronics Show) in Las Vegas (Booth IP220) in early January. "

Source: Sharon Kanon. Israeli optical breakthrough poised to change the world of mobile entertainment. israel21c.org (17 December 2006) [FullText]

International Profit Associates President Inducted onto Board of Governors for Rehovot Science Institute

IPA-IBA's president was recently inducted onto the Weizmann Institute's Board of Governors to help guide the future of the Institute and its scientific work.

Buffalo Grove, IL (12 December 2006) - Gregg M. Steinberg, President of International Profit Associates (IPA-IBA), was inducted onto the Board of Governors for the Weizmann Institute of Science, at the recent Board of Governor’s meeting on November 13, 2006 in Rehovot, Israel.

As a Governor-elect, he joins volunteers from the United States, Canada, France, Latin America, the United Kingdom, Israel and the European Union in helping to guide the future of the Institute and the important international scientific work performed at the Wiezmann Institute of Science. Steinberg has volunteered with the organization for 7 years.

Steinberg joined International Profit Associates in 1992 and became its Chief Financial Officer in 1995. He has been President since 1997. Civically, he has been a board member of the Jewish Community Centers of Chicago and a past board member and Chairman for various committees of the Jewish Council for Youth Services. Currently, he is a member of Aspen Institute’s Middle East Strategy Group, a member of the Midwest board of Operation Hope, Midwest chair for the American Committee for the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science (ACWIS) and a member of ACWIS’ national executive committee, an officer of Touchstones Discussions Board and is involved in a leadership role with the Suburban Human Relations Commission.

The Weizmann Institute of Science, located in Rehovot, Israel, is a center of science and technology research and graduate study. For over 60 years, the Institute has engaged in basic and applied research addressing crucial problems in medicine and health, technology, agriculture and the environment. Research projects at the Institute have yielded treatments for cancer, diabetes, multiple sclerosis and AIDS as well as ground-breaking research into global warming; alternative energy; and world hunger.

International Profit Associates, Inc. (IPA-IBA), the largest privately held management consulting and professional services firm for small and medium size businesses in North America, is a leading authority on small business. With more than $250,000,000 in annual revenues, IPA-IBA is the 6th largest management consulting company in Chicago and the 61st largest consulting company in the world. IPA-IBA offers a wide range of proven and innovative methodologies to help businesses grow and prosper. International Profit Associates and its alliance partners, including Integrated Business Analysis, Inc. (IBA), International Tax Advisors, Inc. (ITA), Accountancy Associates, LLC (AAL) and IPA Advisory & Intermediary Services, LLC (IPA A&I), provide comprehensive business advisory services and tax strategies to companies in the United States, Canada and other locations worldwide. Additional information is immediately available by visiting http://www.ipa-iba.com, http://www.iba-usa.net, http://www.internationaltaxadvisors.com, http://www.accountancyassoc.com/ and http://www.aiservices.com. The Public Relations Department may be contacted at: telephone (847) 495-6786; facsimile (847) 495-6773.

Contact Information : International Profit Associates, Jennifer Cumbee (1 847) 495-6786, jennifer.cumbee@ipa-iba.com, ipa-iba.com

Source: International Profit Associates President Inducted onto Board of Governors for the Weizmann Institute. PR.com (12 Dec 2006) [FullText]

Ramaha Planned to Orchestrate a Suicide Bombing in Rehovot, Now Killed in Gunfight With IDF

The IDF and Border Police killed a top wanted Fatah terrorist Thursday as he tried to run a checkpoint set up to catch him. An armed companion was also killed.

Muhammad Amin Muhammad Ramaha headed Fatah’s Tanzim terror group in the Ein Beit Ilma slums near Shechem (Nablus), in northern Samaria.

Acting in conjunction with the Shabak (General Security Service), IDF and Border Police Special Forces set up a temporary roadblock in order to apprehend Ramaha, who was wanted for planning and facilitating several terror attacks in the region that were foiled over the past six months.

The terror chief tried to run the roadblock and crashed into another vehicle, IDF sources said, injuring a number of Palestinian Authority Arabs. As soldiers rushed toward the vehicle, Ramaha and another man opened fire at them with an M-16 assault rifle and a pistol. The soldiers returned fire and killed both men.

Ramaha was planning a suicide bombing to be carried out in the near future, the IDF spokesman said, and was aided and funded by PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah faction. IDF paratroopers intercepted an 8-kilogram bomb dispatched by Ramaha near the Ein Bidan Checkpoint east of Shechem. They found the bomb in the trunk of a vehicle that raised their suspicion and arrested the four Fatah men riding in the car. The bomb was detonated in a controlled explosion by IDF sappers.

Fatah’s armed men in Gaza have received arms and training from the United States in recent months in the hope that they will use them to weaken the ruling Hamas terrorist organization and protect Abbas (Abu Mazen). Israel and the United States hoped that PLO chairman Yassir Arafat’s successor would serve as a moderate leader.

Fatah’s terror groups are manned by many members and former members of the Palestinian Authority’s police force, which was trained and armed by the Rabin government following the 1993 Oslo Accords. When Fatah lost the last elections to the Islamist Hamas group, Hamas men took control of much of the PA’s armed groups, freeing Fatah to activate its armed groups Tanzim and the Al Aksa Brigades.

Intelligence information about Ramaha has now been released for publication. He was involved in several planned and foiled attacks over the past six months:

* Ramaha planned to orchestrate a suicide bombing in the Israeli town of Rehovot. The suicide bomber was arrested near Shechem on July 30th while on his way to carry out the attack. The terrorist told interrogators that Ramaha had recruited him for the attack and helped him prepare for it.

* Mustafa Ramaha, arrested on July 9th, told interrogators that Muhammad Ramaha had appointed him to recruit people willing to become suicide bombers. Ramaha had also presented him with an explosive belt and propositioned him to blow himself up in order to kill Jews.

* Amer Fahmawi, arrested on August 18th with 15,000 shekels in cash that he said was given to him by Ramaha in order to purchase weapons.

* Hassan Taim, arrested on September 11th, told investigators that he had bought 800 small metal pieces of shrapnel to be used in making deadly explosive belts.

* Muhammad Galiz, arrested on October 22nd, was days away from carrying out a suicide bombing. He was instructed by Ramaha to detonate himself amidst an IDF force in the Shechem region.

Source: Ezra HaLevi. Wanted Fatah Terrorist Killed in Gunfight With IDF. INN.com (14 Dec 2006) [FullText]

Rehovot Hospital News: Streets' Crosswalks Are Dangerous

An Ashdod woman was evacuated to Kaplan Hospital in Rehovot with serious injuries after she was hit by a car while crossing the street at a crosswalk.

The driver, a Holon resident, tried to flee the scene and was stopped by traffic police. When the driver refused to take a breathalyzer test, he was arrested.

The suspect is scheduled to be remanded on Saturday evening, Israel Radio reported.

Source: Pedestrian hit, seriously injured in Ashdod. JPost.com (9 Dec 2006) [FullText]

Israel's First Computer Celebrated in Rehovot

WEIZAC, Israel's first locally built electronic computer - which was designed and constructed at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot 52 years ago - will be recognized on Tuesday as a "Milestone in International Computing History" by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

The first computer's builders will be honored with a "WEIZAC" medal presented at a special ceremony by Weizmann Institute president Prof. Daniel Zajfman.

WEIZAC was not only Israel's first electronic computer but also one of the first in the world.

After being launched in 1954, it functioned on the Rehovot campus until the early 1960s.

It was used for mathematical research that entailed complex calculations that could not easily be performed manually. One set of early computations enabled scientists to chart maps giving a very close approximation of high and low tide fluctuations throughout the world and predict the precise location of the point in the Atlantic at which high and low tides never occur - a prediction later confirmed by measurement.

In another study, Weizmann scientists used it to calculate the spectrum of a helium atom. Solving the dynamic relationships between the three particles making up the atom is considered a highly complex mathematical task, and despite the development of modern, powerful computers, there is still no general, complete solution to such problems.

Two successors to WEIZAC - GOLEM I (1964) and GOLEM II (1972), which were also designed and constructed at the institute, were innovative and extremely advanced in their class. They were used for research at the institute and by scientists from other Israeli research centers. In one area, the GOLEM I held a world record: It was capable of handling words 75 bits long, which was longer than the words any other computers at that time could hold.

Source: Judy Siegel-Itzkovic. Israel's first computer to be celebrated in Rehovot. JPost.com (5 Dec 2006) [FullText]

Could Pride Rally Tension Put Gay, Democracy Issues on Israel's agenda? Rehovot Scientist Thinks So

The rally turned into a demonstration for democracy as much as for gay rights. Many heterosexuals at the rally said the violent opposition had galvanized them to come. "When I saw where the violence could lead, I felt it was my obligation to be here," said Dvora Jacobi, 63, a chemist from Rehovot.

Gay issues have never been at the forefront of Israeli domestic politics -- unlike in the United States -- but some wonder if that will change after ultra-Orthodox protesters used violence to prevent a gay pride parade.

Confrontations with police and threats of worse violence to come forced gay-rights advocates to downgrade the Nov. 10 event from a parade through the city center to a rally, in a cordoned-off stadium on the edges of the capital.

"People are talking about the issue as part of a conservative agenda, where before it was never an issue," said Eran Hertzmann, 34, a high-tech worker from Tel Aviv who attended the rally with his partner, Uri Eik, 37.

The two belong to an organization called Hoshen that tries to educate the general public about Israel's gay community. "The idea is to destroy the stigma and show we are all simply people," Hertzmann said.

Noa Sattath, director of Jerusalem Open House, a group for gays and lesbians that helped organize the rally, said the violence surrounding it did not bode well for social change.

"The fact that people think they can act violently and trample on the rights of a minority," she said, "is a distressful sign."

Religious leaders claim gay activists caused the problem by not being sensitive to their concerns. Still, the violence and public statements by Muslim, Jewish and Christian clerics against the event stood in marked contrast to the general Israeli openness toward gay society.

Israel's army has a more liberal approach to homosexuals than the U.S. military, accepting openly gay soldiers as opposed to the Americans' "don't ask, don't tell" policy. Israeli gay couples are also allowed certain types of legal recognition.

"Still, there's a lot of work that has to be done with society at large in order to be accepted," said Rommy Hassman, a leading Israeli gay-rights activist. In secular Tel Aviv, gay life flourishes. But as one ventures from the center of the country, the acceptance level tends to drop off.

That became apparent in the run-up to the Nov. 10 event, including several long nights of rioting by ultra-Orthodox youth in Jerusalem's Mea She'arim neighborhood. Throwing stones and burning trashcans, they faced off against police to demonstrate their opposition to an open gathering of homosexuals in the city center.

Even the Vatican got involved, calling on the Israeli government to cancel the event, saying it would be offensive to all religions, given the sacred nature of Jerusalem.

The Supreme Court ruled the event should be allowed to take place. In the end, however, the street violence and threat of more to come, coupled with a heightened security alert following the deaths of 19 Palestinian civilians in Gaza from errant Israeli shelling, led to a compromise deal between gay activists and ultra-Orthodox leaders to hold a rally rather than a parade, and not in downtown Jerusalem but in a Hebrew University stadium.

There were roughly as many police -- about 3,000 -- protecting the event as there were participants. Participants were searched for weapons before being allowed inside.

As part of the compromise struck between the two groups, there were no ultra-Orthodox protests at the rally. The event went off without serious incident, but police detained five religious men found at a Jerusalem park with clubs, knives and a gun.

The rally turned into a demonstration for democracy as much as for gay rights. Many heterosexuals at the rally said the violent opposition had galvanized them to come.

"When I saw where the violence could lead, I felt it was my obligation to be here," said Dvora Jacobi, 63, a chemist from Rehovot.

"Today the police carried out one of the most important tasks in history by protecting you. Over the past several days, there was wild incitement against you, which does not reflect the position of most of the citizens of Israel," Sami Michael, director of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, said at the rally.

"Let us be free in our own country," a young Israeli man wrapped in a rainbow flag roared out to the cheering crowd.

The young man was Adam Russo, one of the three people stabbed at last year's gay pride march in the capital.

Until last year, gay pride marches in Jerusalem, generally small events, took place quietly and without major protests. But the idea of a gathering came under scrutiny last summer when an international gay festival was planned for Jerusalem, a move fiercely opposed by religious groups in the city.

That festival ultimately was canceled because of societal tension caused by the simultaneous Gaza Strip withdrawal, and after Israeli police said they would not be able to secure the parade and possible fallout from the withdrawal at the same time.

A local march was held instead, where Russo and two other marchers were stabbed by an Orthodox protester.

Hassman, the gay-rights advovcate, said the intense reaction by Jerusalem's ultra-Orthodox snowballed after the attention on last year's planned international event.

"Jerusalem is becoming more and more Orthodox and religious and I think political leaders were looking for trouble. The easiest way to arouse a public is to find an enemy," he said. This time the enemy was the gay community.

Nightly television footage of Jerusalem streets blazing and clashes with the police did not reflect well on the ultra-Orthodox, he said. "Now they look like the bad guys, and the gays look like the good guys," he said.

Among those at the rally who said the government should have spoken out against the violent demonstrations was Dana Olmert, daughter of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

Olmert, a lesbian who lives with her partner in Tel Aviv, was especially incensed by comments from Eli Yishai, a Cabinet minister from the Sephardi Orthodox Shas Party, who condemned the gathering and compared the gay community to the biblical residents of Sodom and Gemorrah, who were destroyed for their iniquity.

"I wish someone in the government had answered back to him," she told Israel's Channel 10 television.

Source: Dina Kraft. Could Pride rally tension put gay issues on Israel's agenda? Jewish Telegraphic Agency (23 November 2006) [FullText]