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 future of humanity.
Apr 02, 2017...
Optogenetic research shows promise for erasing memories of fear. Image via Shutterstock.com
Erasing unwanted memories isn’t yet possible. However, Israeli scientists are now reporting that they have succeeded in erasing one type of memory in mice – fear.
This new technique may one day help extinguish traumatic memories in humans – for example, in people with post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD.
Nov 02, 2016...
“The composition of intestinal bacteria affects the decisions made by our brain. The more I learned about intestinal bacteria, the more it kept me awake at night,” says DayTwo founder and CEO Lihi Segal. Her company is using the breakthrough science of intestinal bacteria for commercial purposes.
The composition of intestinal bacteria is set in most people by age 2, and thereafter changes only slightly. DayTwo’s technology is based on research at the Weizmann Institute led by Prof. Eran Segal and Dr. Eran Elinav, which was first reported in “Globes” in 2013. This research showed that the composition of intestinal bacteria, which is unique for each person, has a differential impact on how that person responds to certain food, and specifically on his blood sugar levels. Eating a banana might greatly increase the blood sugar level for one person with a certain intestinal bacteria composition and eating an apple would not, while another person might have opposite responses to the two fruits.
Mar 24, 2020... “Vaccination is life.” Weizmann scientists give us a quick history lesson on the vaccine. Dr. Ziv Shulman, Prof Ruth Arnon, and Prof. Ido Amit explain humankind’s long knowledge of the immune system, Edward Jenner’s discovery of the vaccine, and the public-health implications of vaccination.
Feb 15, 2018...
Photo by Jesse Orrico on Unsplash, Science continually proves the pliability of our creativity.
I have an obsession and it is human creativity. It's why I'm in the advertising business. It's why I started an idea-generating company. And it's why I crave scientific studies that may give us clues as to how we can improve our creativity. Since 2013 I've been reporting here on Forbes.com the most interesting of those scientific studies and let's just say those scientists have been busy.
Sep 17, 2014...
Sugary sodas have come under fire for contributing to obesity and diabetes, but new research suggests artificial sweeteners may also raise blood sugar levels. Photograph by Sam Hodgson, Reuters
There's no such thing as a free lunch, or at least a free artificially sweetened one, a new study suggests. Saccharin and other artificial sweeteners may raise blood sugar levels – a condition the sugar substitutes aim to help prevent – by altering digestive bacteria, Israeli researchers reported on Wednesday. (Related: "What Lives in Your Gut?")
https://weizmann-usa.org/news-media/news-releases/weizmann-house-reopens-to-the-public/
Jul 03, 2017...
Renovations to the Weizmann House include repairing the courtyard pool, dry for decades. This restores famed architect Erich Mendelsohn’s vision that the central tower be reflected in the pool. Credit: Mikaela Burstow
REHOVOT, ISRAEL—July 3, 2017—A water tank concealed below the eastern patio, cork insulation inside the walls, and a drainage system hidden in the columns of the pool – these are just a few of unique features uncovered as Weizmann House underwent an extensive restoration and conservation process over the past year. The house has now reopened to the public.
Sep 19, 2017...
Abraham Druck spent a month at the Weizmann Institute of Science as part of the Dr. Bessie F. Lawrence International Summer Science Institute (ISSI).
Last month, one of New Jersey’s budding scientists, Abraham (AJ) Druck of Englewood, returned from four weeks on the Weizmann Institute’s campus in Rehovot, Israel. The Weizmann Institute of Science is one of the world’s leading scientific research institutions, with nearly 4,000 researchers making a global impact in areas ranging from health and medicine, to alternative energy, to space exploration.
Dec 28, 2017...
Manot Cave in northern Israel.
Archaeologists have discovered that prehistoric tools and artwork from western Europe owe their existence to an even earlier culture in the Middle East. Carbon dating of a cave in Israel supports a theory that the Ahmarian culture of the Levant predated the Aurignacian culture of Europe by thousands of years, according to Haaretz.
The Ahmarian and Aurignacian cultures were the first two modern human cultures, according to Haaretz. They did coexist, but it’s been unclear if one was borne from the other. Now, archaeologists have dated the Ahmarian-inhabited Manot Cave, in northern Israel near the Lebanon border, which shows that Ahmarians lived in the region around 42,000 to 46,000 years ago—earlier than Aurignacians are known to exist.
https://weizmann-usa.org/news-media/news-releases/the-scent-of-a-handshake/
Mar 03, 2015...
REHOVOT, ISRAEL—March 3, 2015—Why do people shake hands? A new study from the Weizmann Institute of Science suggests that one of the reasons for this ancient custom may be to check out each other’s odors. Even if we are not consciously aware of this, handshaking may provide people with a socially acceptable way of communicating via the sense of smell.
Not only do people often sniff their own hands, but they do so for a much longer time after shaking someone else’s hand, the study found. As reported today in the journal eLife, the number of seconds the subjects spent sniffing their own right hand more than doubled after an experimenter greeted them with a handshake.
https://weizmann-usa.org/news-media/news-releases/turning-down-the-brain-to-erase-fearful-memories/
Mar 15, 2017...
An entire mouse brain viewed from above: Neuronal extensions connect the two amygdalas (the brightest green spots on both sides of the brain) with the prefrontal cortex (top)
Erasing unwanted memories is still the stuff of science fiction, but Weizmann Institute of Science researchers have now managed to erase one type of memory in mice. In a study reported in Nature Neuroscience, they succeeded in shutting down a neuronal mechanism by which memories of fear are formed in the mouse brain. After the procedure, the mice resumed their earlier fearless behavior, “forgetting” that they had previously been frightened.