The University of Haifa is founding a research center in Shanghai – the first of its kind for Israeli and Chinese academia
The University of Haifa and the East China Normal University (ECNU) in Shanghai signed a memorandum of cooperation on the construction of the Shanghai-Haifa International Research Center, the first of its kind in Shanghai for Israeli and Chinese academia. The joint fields of research already agreed upon include neuroscience, mathematics education technology, computing and data management, and environmental management. The collaboration between the universities will enable Israeli and Chinese researchers to submit research proposals to Chinese research funds. “This is another step in the University of Haifa’s international activity, and it will open up new horizons for the university’s researchers, in terms of the growing academic knowledge and capabilities of the Chinese academia, in terms of research infrastructures, and in terms of resources,” said Prof. David Faraggi, the University of Haifa Rector, who signed the agreement with his Chinese counterpart, the President of ECNU.
For the first time, grape seeds from the Byzantine era have been found. These grapes were used to produce “the Wine of the Negev” - one of the finest and most renowned wines in the whole of the Byzantine Empire. The charred seeds, over 1,500 years-old, were found at the Halutza excavation site in the Negev during a joint dig by the University of Haifa and the Israel Antiquities Authority. “The vines growing in the Negev today are European varieties, whereas the Negev vine was lost to the world. Our next job is to recreate the ancient wine, and perhaps in that way we will be able to reproduce its taste and understand what made the Negev wine so fine,” said Prof. Guy Bar-Oz of the University of Haifa, director of the excavation.
A first of its kind genetic study confirms the history of the Druze community: The community began to form genetically in the 11th century AD, and there has since been no genetic impact of other ethnic groups on the community. This is according to a new study conducted by a team of researchers led by Prof. Gil Atzmon of the Department of Human Biology at the university, Prof. Jamal Zidan of the Ziv Medical Center, Zefat, and Prof. Eitan Friedman of the Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer. “This is the first genetic study to discover that the Druze community has genetic origins in the 11th century AD,” said Professor Atzmon. This genetic finding correlates with the Druze community’s beliefs regarding their origin.
Parents who very closely monitor their children’s Internet use in an attempt to reduce unsafe online behavior may actually be achieving the opposite effect, according to a new study conducted by University of Haifa researchers. “It seems that during adolescence, during which teens are seeking ways to achieve autonomy, overly restrictive monitoring actually motivates them to seek ways to circumvent the supervision,” say the researchers.
