IsraeliGirl

Digging the field where David fought Goliath

Overlooking the verdant Valley of Elah, where the Bible says David toppled Goliath, archaeologists digging the 3,000-year-old city, have uncovered what seems like the oldest Hebrew text, shedding light on David's kingdom and its importance.

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/30/world/middleeast/30david.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1

Sleepless in Teheran

Have you seen the reports that Iran’s president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is suffering from exhaustion? It’s probably because he is not sleeping at night. I know why. Watching oil prices fall from $147 a barrel to $57 is not like counting sheep. It’s the kind of thing that gives an Iranian autocrat bad dreams.

 

It was the collapse of global oil prices in the early 1990s that brought down the Soviet Union - will this be the fate of Iran.

 

Read more at this excellent column from Thomas Friedman:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/29/opinion/29friedman.html?ref=opinion

 

Jewish, Nazi objects found in dump near Berlin

Jewish objects from pre-World War II German Jewish homes, were found in a dump near Berlin, where the Nazis buried rejected loot from the the 1938 pogrom known as Kristallnacht, or "The Night of Broken Glass."

 

Items like a Passover ceremony bowl buried next to a Nazi swastika demand further excavation to shed light on these findings.

 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081028/ap_on_re_eu/eu_germany_kristallnacht_dump

Humans made fire 790000 years ago

A new study shows that humans had the ability to make fire nearly 790,000 years ago, a skill that helped them migrate from Africa to Europe.

 

By analysing flints at an archaeological site on the bank of the river Jordan, researchers at Israel's Hebrew University discovered that early civilizations discovered that early civilizations had learned to light fires, a turning point that allowed them to venture into unknown lands.

 

The new study, published in a recent edition of Quaternary Science Reviews, mapped 12 archaeological layers at Gesher Benot Yaaqov in northern Israel.

"The new data shows there was a continued, controlled use of fire through many civilizations and that they were not dependent on natural fires," archaeologist Nira Alperson-Afil said on Sunday.

 

Breakthrough: brain neurons used to build computer circuit

For all its sophistication and power, your brain is built from unreliable components – one neuron can successfully provoke a signal in another only 40% of the time.

http://www.newscientist.com/channel/being-human/brain/dn15019-computer-circuit-built-from-brain-cells.html

The secret ingredient

What's in the sauce? what's the secret ingredient that makes Israeli high tech companies successful? It's a fascinating tale of regional conflict which led to military and civilian innovation.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-10787_3-10073407-60.html

Spy pigeons and secret squirrels in Iran

Iranian authorities have arrested 2 suspected spy pigeons near the well guarded nuclear site Nantaz. Previous Iranian efforts have led to the arrest of 14 squirrels that were carrying spy gear and were stopped before they could act. Hopefully the Iranians will treat these poor animals well..

 

 

Israel has rejected the notion that these pigeons are part of the Mossad.

Jerusalem Light Show - a modern look at ancient history

The Tower of David might be in the shadows of its famous neighbors — the Western Wall, Dome of the Rock and Church of the Holy Sepulcher - but these days a unique light show at the tower provides the perfect snapshot of the city's past.

 

ISRAEL: How green is my army?

The IDF is training its officers to take care of the environment. From environmental lessons in officers' course to coordination of army moves with park rangers in the area.

 

"Respect yourselves and the environment too and your soldiers will respect you the more for it."

 

Well its good to know the army is taking care of our tiny country..

 

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/2008/10/israel-how-gree.html

At last, wines with chutzpah

With more than 170 wineries these days, Israel is producing some outstanding wines, winning high marks and the respect of wine experts world wide.

 

http://www.financialpost.com/money/story.html?id=889465