About Us
Founded in 1944, the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science develops philanthropic support for the Weizmann Institute in Israel, and advances its mission of science for the benefit of humanity.
The main scientific instrument on board the Israeli Beresheet spacecraft, the SpaceIL Magnetometer (SILMAG), has now been successfully turned on in space and data returned to Earth. After its successful launch, Beresheet is circling Earth on its journey to the Moon. Prof. Oded Aharonson of the Weizmann Institute of Science is heading the team that is currently analyzing the SILMAG information to evaluate the health and accuracy of the instrument in space, as well as recording the magnetic signature of the spacecraft itself, which will then be subtracted from the measurements made on the Moon.
March 17, 2019
Antifreeze is life’s means of surviving in cold winters: natural antifreeze proteins help fish, insects, plants, and even bacteria live through low temperatures that should turn their liquid parts into deadly shards of ice. Strangely enough, in very cold conditions, the same proteins can also promote the growth of ice crystals. This was the finding of experiments carried out in Israel and Germany using proteins taken from fish and beetles. The results of this study, recently published in The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters, could have implications for understanding the basic processes of ice formation.
March 14, 2019
Lymphoid organs in the small intestines. Red: B cells aggregated in the “training centers.” Green: cells with the ability to secrete effective antibodies exiting the centers for the intestinal tissue
REHOVOT, ISRAEL—March 4, 2019—Only a few vaccines – for example, polio and rotavirus – can be given orally. Most must be delivered by injection. Weizmann Institute of Science researchers suggest this may be, in part, because the “training program” of the immune cells in the gut takes place under harsh conditions. Using a novel imaging method that captures all of the immune cells’ niches within a single organ, Dr. Ziv Shulman and research student Adi Biram investigated the training process for the gut-based cells involved in long-term immunity. Their findings, published in Nature Immunology, provide new insights that may, in the future, lead to the design of more effective oral vaccines.
March 04, 2019
Scientists are not generally required to display prowess in modern dance, but Dr. Roni Zohar of the Weizmann Institute of Science’s Department of Science Teaching recently showed her moves in an award-winning science/dance video. Her video placed first in the social sciences category of the “Dance Your PhD” contest held by the prestigious journal Science. The competition, now in its 11th year, selects its winners from entries in which PhD students and those who have received their doctorates describe their PhD subjects through dance. It comprises four categories – biology, physics, chemistry, and social sciences – and the winner are selected by a panel of judges that includes scientists and figures from the arts world.
February 19, 2019
After an enterprise lasting nearly a decade, the Israeli unmanned Moon mission “Beresheet” (“Genesis” in Hebrew) will soon take off from Earth, bound for the Moon’s rocky surface. Prof. Oded Aharonson of the Weizmann Institute of Science’s Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences is head of the international science team, and will be watching closely as the craft approaches the Moon and initiates the scientific part of the mission, which will start well before touchdown.
February 11, 2019
Prof. Rony Paz of the Weizmann Institute of Science suggests that our brains are like modern washing machines – evolved to have the latest sophisticated programming, but more vulnerable to breakdown and prone to develop costly disorders. He and a group of researchers recently conducted experiments comparing the efficiency of the neural code in non-human and human primates and found that, as the neural code gets more efficient, the robustness that prevents errors is reduced. Their findings, which appeared in Cell, may help to explain why disorders as ADHD, anxiety, depression, PTSD, and even autism are common in humans.
January 2019
Plants have control mechanisms that resemble those in human senses. According to a new Weizmann Institute of Science study, plants adjust their photosynthesis to rapid light changes using a sophisticated sensing system, much in the way that the human eye responds to variations in light intensity. This sensory-like regulation operates at low light intensities, when the photosynthesis machinery is most efficient but also most vulnerable to sudden light increases.
January 2019
To expand the ties between the Israeli and Czech scientific communities, their countries are developing new forms of collaboration among talented young scientists. One such project is the “Joint Prague-Weizmann Winter School on Drug Discovery.” This intensive week of professional lectures is attended by more than 120 scientists and students from around the world. The project provides a unique opportunity for young Israeli and Czech researchers to meet and discuss the latest trends and challenges in drug development, as well as to meet with world leaders in academia and experts from such multinational pharmaceutical giants as MSD, Roche, and Astra Zeneca.
January 2019
Grand Finale was the official name of Cassini’s last act: a risky orbit between Saturn’s rings and atmosphere in a daring attempt to view the planet up close, just before going down in flames. Prof. Yohai Kaspi and Dr. Eli Galanti of the Weizmann Institute of Science’s Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences led one of the studies on Cassini’s final mission: revealing the depth of Saturn’s jet streams ‒ the strongest measured in the Solar System, with winds of up to 1,500 km (about 932 mi) per hour ‒ and found them to reach a depth of around 9,000 km (about 5,600 mi). Teaming up with research partners in Italy and the U.S., their study also helped reveal the age of the planet’s iconic rings. The findings of these studies were published in Science.
January 17, 2019
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