Trump at the Davos Forum
U.S. President Trump spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on January 25th, 2018. He informed the crowd that he was devising a Middle East peace plan that would be beneficial to both Israel and the Palestinians.
Israeli Astronauts practice living on Mars in Negev
According to Israel's Science and Technology Ministry, a team of six Israeli researchers completed an experiment in Israel's Negev desert, where they replicated the living conditions on Mars. The experiment took place in Mitzpe Ramon, a small town that resembles Mars in geology, temperature, and appearance. The participants were researching fields relevant to future space expeditions, including satellite communications, radiation, and signs of life. Guy Ron, Nuclear physicist professor from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, said the project was intended to increase public interest. The project was in coordinating with the Israel Space Agency.
Underground tunnel
Israel has begun working on a 40-mile underground barrier around Gaza in over to prevent attack tunnels from entering southern Israel. The barrier, covered with sensors and topped by a 26-foot metal fence, will plunge hundreds of feet underground and will be completed in mid-2019. Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus, Israeli military spokesman, discusses the Hamas tunnels that have been destroyed by the IDF and the goal of the new barrier.
Nikki Haley
U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley defended Israel for shooting the Iranian unmanned aerial vehicle that entered into Israeli airspace, as well as the subsequent attacks on Syrian and Iranian targets. She then warned of the intent of Iran and Hezbollah to remain in the war-torn country.
Netanyahu's Address
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed foreign media in his annual question and answer event in Jerusalem. Referring to recent comments made by U.S. President Trump, he said it was self evident that Jerusalem should be home to the U.S. Embassy. He also suggested a gradual shift of funds currently going to the U.N. Relief and Works Agency to other agencies that support genuine refugees, such as UNHCR, and claimed UNRWA was supporting fictitious ones.
Israel Archeology
Israeli archeologists discovered a 2700-year old clay sculpture near the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem which had belonged to a Jerusalem governor in biblical times. The artifact is the size of a small coin and shows two men facing each other and wearing striped garments. Dr. Shlomit Weksler-Bdolah, archaeologist and site excavator from the Israel Antiquities Authority, discusses the unique findings of the excavation.
Hedgehog
An overweight adult hedgehog was brought to the Israeli wildlife hospital in the Ramat Gan Safari Zoo when he could barely move. After receiving a full checkup, the medical team determined there was nothing wrong with the animal's legs; he was just too overweight to walk, weighting 1.6 kilos. The hedgehog, named Sherman, was put on a strict weight watchers diet with a personal exercise regimen. In just two months, he has lost over 120 grams, and medical specialists are hopeful that he will be released back into the wild by this summer. Israeli Zookeeper, Becka Rifkin, discusses Sherman's phenomenon, which has become familiar over the past few months, due to the mammals' access to meals left for street cats in residential neighborhoods.
Alternative Fuel
Israeli researchers have discovered that chicken feces can be used to generate energy, potentially replacing 10% of coal used in power stations. Professor Amit Gross from the Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research at Israel's Ben-Gurion University says that the fuel from chicken waste has a similar make-up to coal and burns in the same way. He discovered that hydrothermal carbonization, the process of heating wet poultry litter to a low temperature under pressure, results in lower emissions of methane gas and ammonia and increased emissions of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. This fuel could potentially replace 10% of coal used in electricity generation, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and providing an alternative energy source.
