An Underwater Salute to Grandma Vera
Marine biologist names new species of sponge after Holocaust survivor grandmother, turning 95.
There are many ways to make a beloved grandmother feel special on her birthday, and Tal Idan, a doctoral student in Prof. Micha Ilan’s sponge lab at TAU’s School of Zoology, did something quite unconventional: She scientifically named a new sponge that she herself discovered, after her grandmother, Vera. And as Israel is observing the national Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom HaShoa), Tal found her own way of eternalizing her grandmother’s identity as a courageous Holocaust survivor.Finding a Needle in a Haystack
The process leading up to the naming of a new species of animals is complex and lengthy, and the naming is considered the icing on the cake. Tal Idan researches sponges on the Israeli coast of the Mediterranean. Detecting and identifying new species for science is part of her research. “One of the benefits of working in deep waters and in new environments, is that there will always be new species – simply because these places have not yet been reached by anyone,” she explains. “There are a number of sponges that we have not yet been able to identify. These three, however, we discovered back in 2018, and since then we have been working to identify them.”
Vera the Sponge
Tal explains that this is a lengthy and intricate part. “Animal characterization is usually done by examining the genetic differences in the animals’ DNA. This won’t work with sponges, that have a really good DNA-repairing ability and their differences are not that big. One literally needs to characterize the structure of their body: “The skeleton of the sponges consists of skeletal needles in very beautiful shapes. You have to check the structure of the needles, measure and compare these to those of the other species that exist in the same genus. It took several years to produce good enough characterizations.”
Grandma Vera’s Love for the Sea
Like Tal, Vera loves the sea very much. Throughout many years, Vera and her late husband, Otto, used to swim in the sea in all weathers. Otto was Vera’s childhood sweetheart from the Czech Republic, who survived the Holocaust with her and immigrated with her to Israel. Even after his death and up until very recently, Vera would continue to go to the sea alone.
Tal and Vera, photographed during a trip in celebration of Vera’s 90th birthday
So far, Tal has successfully defined three new species for science. After consulting with her research colleagues, they decided that one of the sponges would be called Hemiasterella verai , named after grandma Vera. Tal explains that when a new species is named, it is common practice to include the origin of the name. Thus she was able to memorialize not only her dear grandmother’s name, but also the fact that she courageously survived the Holocaust. Tal says that it was important for her to do this for Vera while she is alive, and also to include this important fact.
Today, grandma Vera has three sons, seven grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren, who all plan to attend her upcoming 95th birthday celebration. She always says they are her biggest victory over the Nazis.
Featured image: Tal Idan in the depths of the Mediterranean
Struggling in a Toxic Workplace?
TAU researchers hope to save farmers from snakebites in their fields.
Did you know that about 1.8 million instances of snakebite envenoming occur around the world annually, killing about 94,000 people? Snakebite envenoming is a potentially life-threatening disease that typically results from the injection of a mixture of different toxins (“venom”) following the bite of a venomous snake. In some areas, snakebites are considered a major cause of death, especially among farmers who encounter snakes in their fields. The World Health Organization has even launched a strategic plan to reduce snakebites by 50% by 2030. TAU researchers, as part of an international research group, created an innovative simulation model for predicting snakebites, based on an improved understanding of interactions between farmers and snakes.Mapping Snakebites
The purpose of the model is to determine the probability of a snakebites occurring in certain places (i.e. in rice fields vs. tea fields) at various times (hours of the day and months of the year). The study is founded upon extensive research and data from Sri Lanka, where about 30,000 envenoming snakebites kill roughly 400 people every year. It focused on 6 types of snakes – Cobra, Russell’s viper, Saw-scaled viper, Hump-nosed viper, Common krait and Ceylon krait – and the farmers who grow the 3 most common crops in the area: rice, tea and rubber. The model predicts that the bites of Russell’s viper, one of the world’s most dangerous snakes, peak in rice fields during February and August, while the less lethal hump-nosed viper prefers rubber plantations in April and May. It was also found that in the southeastern part of the studied region, the largest number of snakebites are inflicted by Russell’s viper, while in other parts of the region snakebites of the hump-nosed viper are the most common.Interdisciplinary Model
Eyal Goldstein of the TAU School of Zoology explains: “We built a first-of-its-kind interdisciplinary model, which includes the behavior patterns of both sides – snakes and humans, identifying risk factors at various times and places and warning against them. The model can for instance differentiate between low-risk and high-risk areas – a difference which can be manifested in double the number of snakebites per 100,000 people.”
Eyal Goldstein
Dr. Kris Murray of Imperial College London and the School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in London explains that “Snakes and humans both go about their business at different times of the day, during different seasons and in different types of habitats. Our model factors in all these elements to predict encounters between humans and snakes in areas where farmers are working. We consider the degree of aggressiveness of different snake species when we calculate how likely an encounter is to result in a bite.”
Dr. Takuya Iwamura (currently at Oregon State University) emphasizes that “Our approach is to mathematically analyze interactions between snakes and humans, with an emphasis on the ecological perspective. This is a completely new approach to understanding the mechanism behind snakebites. Unlike most studies, which have so far focused mainly on social and economic risk factors, we chose to focus on the ecological aspects – such as snakes’ movements and habitats, the impact of climate and rainfall, and the respective behaviors of farmers and snakes – as a key to predicting potential encounters.”
Scalable Model
About 1.8 million envenoming snakebites occur around the world annually, killing about 94,000 people. In tropical areas, especially in Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, snakebites are considered a major cause of death, especially among farmers who encounter snakes in their fields. In response, the World Health Organization has launched a strategic plan to reduce snakebites by 50% by 2030. An important basis for attaining this goal is expanding relevant scientific research. Verified against existing data in Sri Lanka, the model was proved very accurate in predicting snakebite patterns in different areas and different seasons, as well as the relative contribution of various types of snakes to the overall picture as documented in hospital data. The researchers plan to implement the model in places that do not yet keep accurate snakebite data. They will also use it to predict future changes resulting from climate change – such as increased rainfall leading to greater snake activity, as well as changes in land use and habitats available to snakes. Dr. Iwamura concludes: “Our model can help focus the efforts of snakebite reduction policies, and serve as a tool for warning, raising awareness and saving human lives. We regard this study as a first stage in a broader project, and plan to develop more complex models of encounters between humans and wildlife, to support both public health and nature preservation policies in the real world.”
Farmer and snake – better off apart
The study was led by Dr. Takuya Iwamura (currently at Oregon State University), Eyal Goldstein of the TAU School of Zoology, and Dr. Kris Murray of Imperial College London and the School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in London. Other participants included researchers from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Lancaster University and the University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka. The paper was published in February 2021 in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.
Antisemitism During the Pandemic: Less Physical Violence, Upsurge in Online Antisemitism
On the Eve of Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day, the Kantor Center for the Study of Contemporary European Jewry publishes the Antisemitism Report for 2020.
The Antisemitism Report for 2020 – the year of COVID-19 – published today by the Kantor Center for the Study of Contemporary European Jewry at Tel Aviv University’s Faculty of Humanities in cooperation with the European Jewish Congress – indicates contradictory trends: On the one hand, a decrease was seen in physical violence resulting from the reduced encounters between Jews and violent anti-Semites due to the lockdowns. On the other hand, accusations against the Jews (allegedly responsible for the global disaster), were manifested in a rise in blatant antisemitic expressions on the internet in general and on social networks specifically. In addition, new phenomena developed on the internet, such as zoom bombing and the darknet, which are difficult to quantify. The Report is based on thousands of testimonies from different places around the globe, received throughout 2020 from the international network established by the Kantor Center several years ago – which includes about 60 participants who regularly send in information about antisemitism worldwide. WATCH the interview with Prof. Dina Porat, Head of the Kantor Center: According to Prof. Dina Porat, Head of the Kantor Center: “The coronavirus pandemic and the resulting reality dictated both the nature and extent of antisemitism in 2020, which was an unusually tense and turbulent year all over the world. Prejudice, superstition, primordial emotions, and bizarre theories surfaced on the scene, and manifestations of antisemitism, both verbal and visual, were vicious and outrageous. Blaming the Jews and Israelis for developing and spreading the coronavirus (or the ‘Judeovirus’), was the main motif in this year’s antisemitic manifestations. This notion is rooted in a deep fear of the Jew/Israeli as a spreader of disease in both the past and present.” Blaming the Jews and Israelis for developing and spreading the coronavirus (or ‘Judeovirus’) is a graver accusation than any previously made against Jews throughout history: As the pandemic began to spread across the globe, it was immediately followed by accusations that the virus had been developed and was being spread by Jews and Israelis: they are the ones who would find a cure and vaccine for the disease, selling it to the ailing world and making a huge profit. Over the following months this libel spread rapidly. We received reports to this effect from dozens of countries, in the form of aggressive messages and numerous malicious caricatures. Moreover, the accusation was heard not only from extremist circles, such as white supremacists, ultra-conservative Christians, or the usual accusers like Iran, Turkey and the Palestinian Authority, and especially Iran, that invested efforts in disseminating the accusation. It also spread to populations without well-defined political or ideological identities.”Fewer Encounters, Fewer Violent Events
As noted above, lockdowns in the various countries reduced encounters between Jews and their ill-wishers, and consequently the number of violent events declined from 456 (in 2019) to 371 in 2020 – a number that was typical of 2016-18. No one was murdered this year for being Jewish (although physical attacks could potentially have had fatal outcomes), and the number of bodily injuries decreased from 170 in 2019 to 107 in 2020. Damage to private property was also reduced from 130 to 84 incidents, simply because people mostly stayed at home. In most countries a decrease was registered in the number of violent incidents, attacks on both people and their property, threats and arson. However, vandalism towards Jewish communal property and institutions remained as frequent, and in some cases they became more frequent (see table). The number of desecrations of graveyards, Holocaust memorials and other Jewish monuments (open and unprotected sites) rose from 77 (2019) to 96 (2020) incidents worldwide, and the number of vandalized synagogues (being closed, they became easy targets) also increased from 53 (2019) to 63 (2020).
Got Beef? Your Ancestors Were Likely VERY into Meat…
TAU researchers: Humans were apex predators for two million years.
Whether you are a tofu loving vegan, a vegetarian (however you choose to define it – eggs, no eggs; fish, no fish), a flexitarian, a devout paleo dieter or a strict Atkins dieter, researchers at TAU were able to reconstruct the nutrition of Stone Age humans and can tell you quite a bit about your ancestors… You may want to sit down for this one: Your ancestors specialized in hunting large animals and were, in fact, hyper carnivores (and not just for two short seconds, more like for about two million years). Contrary to the widespread hypothesis that humans owe their evolution and survival to their dietary flexibility, allowing them to combine the hunting of animals with vegetable foods, the picture emerging here is of humans evolving mostly as predators of large animals. The multidisciplinary reconstruction conducted by TAU researchers for almost a decade proposes a complete change of paradigm in the understanding of human evolution. In their paper, which was published in the Yearbook of the American Physical Anthropology Association, Dr. Miki Ben-Dor and Prof. Ran Barkai of TAU’s Jacob M. Alkov Department of Archaeology, together with Raphael Sirtoli of Portugal, show that humans were an apex predator for about two million years. It was only the extinction of larger animals (megafauna) in various parts of the world, and the decline of animal food sources toward the end of the stone age, that led humans to gradually increase the vegetable element in their nutrition, until finally they had no choice but to domesticate both plants and animals – and became farmers. “Our study addresses a very great current controversy – both scientific and non-scientific,” says Prof. Barkai. “For many people today, the Paleolithic diet is a critical issue, not only with regard to the past, but also concerning the present and future. It is hard to convince a devout vegetarian that his/her ancestors were not vegetarians, and people tend to confuse personal beliefs with scientific reality. Our study is both multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary. We propose a picture that is unprecedented in its inclusiveness and breadth, which clearly shows that humans were initially apex predators, who specialized in hunting large animals. As Darwin discovered, the adaptation of species to obtaining and digesting their food is the main source of evolutionary changes, and thus the claim that humans were apex predators throughout most of their development may provide a broad basis for fundamental insights on the biological and cultural evolution of humans.” Our Body Remembers – A Multidisciplinary Affair “So far, attempts to reconstruct the diet of stone-age humans were mostly based on comparisons to 20th century hunter-gatherer societies,” explains Dr. Ben-Dor. “This comparison is futile, however, because two million years ago hunter-gatherer societies could hunt and consume elephants and other large animals – while today’s hunter gatherers do not have access to such bounty. The entire ecosystem has changed, and conditions cannot be compared. We decided to use other methods to reconstruct the diet of stone-age humans: to examine the memory preserved in our own bodies, our metabolism, genetics and physical build. Human behavior changes rapidly, but evolution is slow. The body remembers.” In a process unprecedented in its extent, Dr. Ben-Dor and his colleagues collected about 25 lines of evidence from about 400 scientific papers from different scientific disciplines, dealing with the focal question: Were stone-age humans specialized carnivores or were they generalist omnivores? Most evidence was found in research on current biology, namely genetics, metabolism, physiology and morphology. “One prominent example is the acidity of the human stomach,” says Dr. Ben-Dor. “The acidity in our stomach is high when compared to omnivores and even to other predators. Producing and maintaining strong acidity require large amounts of energy, and its existence is evidence for consuming animal products. Strong acidity provides protection from harmful bacteria found in meat, and prehistoric humans, hunting large animals whose meat sufficed for days or even weeks, often consumed old meat containing large quantities of bacteria, and thus needed to maintain a high level of acidity. Another indication of being predators is the structure of the fat cells in our bodies. In the bodies of omnivores, fat is stored in a relatively small number of large fat cells, while in predators, including humans, it’s the other way around: we have a much larger number of smaller fat cells. Significant evidence for the evolution of humans as predators has also been found in our genome. For example, geneticists have concluded that “areas of the human genome were closed off to enable a fat-rich diet, while in chimpanzees, areas of the genome were opened to enable a sugar-rich diet.” Evidence from human biology was supplemented by archaeological evidence. For instance, research on stable isotopes in the bones of prehistoric humans, as well as hunting practices unique to humans, show that humans specialized in hunting large and medium-sized animals with high fat content. Comparing humans to large social predators of today, all of whom hunt large animals and obtain more than 70% of their energy from animal sources, reinforced the conclusion that humans specialized in hunting large animals and were in fact hypercarnivores. Not an Afternoon Hobby “Hunting large animals is not an afternoon hobby,” says Dr. Ben-Dor. “It requires a great deal of knowledge, and lions and hyenas attain these abilities after long years of learning. Clearly, the remains of large animals found in countless archaeological sites are the result of humans’ high expertise as hunters of large animals. Many researchers who study the extinction of the large animals agree that hunting by humans played a major role in this extinction – and there is no better proof of humans’ specialization in hunting large animals. Most probably, like in current-day predators, hunting itself was a focal human activity throughout most of human evolution. Other archaeological evidence – like the fact that specialized tools for obtaining and processing vegetable foods only appeared in the later stages of human evolution – also supports the centrality of large animals in the human diet, throughout most of human history.”
The multidisciplinary reconstruction conducted by TAU researchers for almost a decade proposes a complete change of paradigm in the understanding of human evolution. Contrary to the widespread hypothesis that humans owe their evolution and survival to their dietary flexibility, which allowed them to combine the hunting of animals with vegetable foods, the picture emerging here is of humans evolving mostly as predators of large animals.
“Archaeological evidence does not overlook the fact that stone-age humans also consumed plants,” adds Dr. Ben-Dor. “But according to the findings of this study plants only became a major component of the human diet toward the end of the era.”
Evidence of genetic changes and the appearance of unique stone tools for processing plants led the researchers to conclude that, starting about 85,000 years ago in Africa, and about 40,000 years ago in Europe and Asia, a gradual rise occurred in the consumption of plant foods as well as dietary diversity – in accordance with varying ecological conditions. This rise was accompanied by an increase in the local uniqueness of the stone tool culture, which is similar to the diversity of material cultures in 20th-century hunter-gatherer societies. In contrast, during the two million years when, according to the researchers, humans were apex predators, long periods of similarity and continuity were observed in stone tools, regardless of local ecological conditions.
Could Your Smartphone Be Damaging Your Teeth?
Your FOMO may be compromising your physical and mental health.
Do you often find yourself checking your social media nonstop, so you won’t feel out of the loop? You may want to become more mindful of this habit – a new study from Tel Aviv University’s Maurice and Gabriela Goldschleger School of Dental Medicine shows that the excessive use of smartphones and social media can lead to sleep issues; drowsiness and fatigue during the day; teeth-grinding and pain in the mouth muscles and jaws.
The study was conducted as part of Dr. Yitzhak Hochhauser’s dissertation and was led by Dr. Alona Amudi-Perlman, Dr. Pessia Friedman-Rubin, Prof. Ilana Eli, and Prof. Ephraim Winocur. It will be published in the journal Quintessence International.
About 600 participants, including a group of secular people (smartphone users) and a group of ultra-Orthodox people (most of whom use a “kosher” phone without an Internet connection), were asked to address a number of aspects that typify overuse of the phone, including feelings of stress and tension throughout the day, a tendency to wake up at night, a need to be available to the cell phone, teeth-grinding and jaw pain.
More Screen Time = More Sufferings
The findings of the study show that 54% of secular smartphone users have a moderate to high incidence of night wakings, compared with only 20% among the ultra-Orthodox. In addition, half of the secular respondents (50%) feel a moderate to high level of stress due to the cell phone, compared to only 22% among the ultra-Orthodox. The disparities between the groups are also reflected in the question of how available they feel they need to be to their mobile devices – 45% of the secular respondents answered that they had a moderate to high need to be available to their phones, compared to only 20% in the ultra-Orthodox group. These gaps are even more marked when examining damage to the chewing muscles and jaw joints: 45% of the secular group reported teeth-grinding (24% during the day and 21% at night) and 29% of them claimed that they suffered pain in their jaw muscles, in comparison to only about 14% of the ultra-Orthodox who described these symptoms (13.5% reported teeth-grinding and 14% pain in the jaw muscles). Dr. Friedman-Rubin and Prof. Eli explain that “In today’s day and age people live with a sense of FOMO (fear of missing out) and so they want to stay constantly updated and know ‘what’s new’ every moment. This need naturally creates a growing dependence on cell phones, which leads to feelings of stress and anxiety – ‘someone might write something on social media and I’ll miss it and not be in the loop.’” Dr. Friedman-Rubin explains, “The current study has demonstrated a link between the excessive use of smartphones that enable surfing on social apps and a significant increase in night wakings (which lead to fatigue during the day), facial and jaw pain, tightness in the jaw during the day and teeth-grinding at night – physical symptoms that are often the result of stress and anxiety and which may even lead to physical injury such as dental erosion and joint damage. We are of course in favor of technological progress, but as with everything in life, the excessive use of smartphones can lead to negative symptoms, and it is important that the public be aware of the consequences it has on the body and mind.”
COVID-19 Vaccinations at TAU
400 students received their second COVID-vaccine on campus this month.
While an impressive number of Israelis (close to 5.2 million) have received at least one Covid-19 vaccine dose, there are individuals that do not belong to any of the Israeli health providers who have found themselves ineligible for Covid-19 vaccine.
Maureen Adiri Meyer, Director of TAU International had overheard some of her students voicing concerns about being unable to get vaccinated and decided to take action. In cooperation with Magen David Adom (Israel’s National Emergency Pre-Hospital Medical and Blood Services Organization), TAU International organized two Covid-19 vaccination days three weeks apart, open for all TAU students including for the university’s international students and students from the Palestinian Authority.
The vaccination conveniently took place in an auditorium right here on TAU campus. The turnout was great on both days; over 400 students were very grateful for the opportunity to get vaccinated.
Gradual Return to Campus
Maureen shares that “vaccines were made available to all those of our students who wanted to be vaccinated, including to students from the Palestinian Authority. After a full year of Corona, we miss all of our students, and look forward to a return to campus life in accordance with the ‘Green Pass’ directives.” TAU International have students from all over the world, including India, Colombia, Brazil, China, the USA, England, France, Germany, Australia, and Japan. Many of the international students expressed joy and gratitude for the opportunity to get vaccinated. Paola Gutiérrez from Columbia, is one of TAU’s international students. She arrived in Israel five months ago and is studying for her master degree in biochemistry. She tells us that her stay in Israel has been great so far, but she is happy that things are opening up again after the lockdown. In the video below, Paola had just received her 2nd jab of the Covid-19 vaccine. She tells us she’s the first among her friends (back in Columbia) to get fully vaccinated.Featured image:
Covid-19 Vaccination of Nursing Mothers May Protect Babies
Promotes production of important antibodies in breast milk.
We may have some good news: Covid-19 vaccination of nursing mothers might actually work to protect not only them, but their babies as well. This was found in a new study conducted jointly by Tel Aviv University and the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center – Ichilov, in order to find out whether Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine was effective in producing antibodies in breast milk, and also to determine the qualities of these antibodies (whether they have the potential to neutralize the virus). The study was conducted during the months January and February 2021, shortly after the vaccines arrived in Israel, and included 10 breastfeeding mothers. The volunteers received two shots of the vaccine, 21 days apart, and the levels of antibodies in both their blood and breast milk were tested at four points in time, following vaccination. Blood and breast milk, it was found, are well synchronized with regard to the rise of the levels of the specific antibodies generated by the vaccine. In both blood and breastmilk, the significant increase occurs 14 days after the first shot, and continues 7 days after the second shot. The antibodies that develop in breastmilk hold the potential to neutralize the virus, and thus prevent the disease, by blocking the virus from binding with receptors on host cells. The leading research team at Tel Aviv University included Dr. Yariv Wine and the PhD student Aya Kigel from the Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research at the Faculty of Life Sciences. The team at the Lis Maternity and Women’s Hospital at the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center was led by Dr. Michal Rosenberg-Friedman and Prof. Ariel Many. The paper is currently undergoing peer review and can be read here >>
“Arabic for Beginners” – TAU’s Most Popular Course“
With hundreds on waiting lists.
Two and a half hours was the time it took for a sizeable number of people – as many as 907 – to enroll in TAU’s “Arabic for Beginners” course, from the moment its registration opened. Hundreds more asked to be added to the waiting list.Huge Demand
“Arabic for Beginners” has been offered by the Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies for many years. Each year, several dozen students interested in the Arabic language and Islamic culture have enrolled. An online version of the course has now been developed and TAU’s President, Prof. Ariel Porat, made the decision to open the course, free of charge for every employee and student at the University. The decision reflects a conviction that every citizen in Israel should have a basic command of the Arabic language, and recognizing the special status of the Arabic language on campus. Of the enrollees, 60% are students, 20% members of the university’s administrative staff and 20% are from the academic faculty. The demand for the course is university wide, with enrollees belonging to all faculties and fields, inluding: chemistry, medicine, theater, computer science, literature, biology, and more. Due to the high demand, TAU’s management and the Humanities Faculty Management made the decision to expand the project and open up additional groups. The course comprises the Arabic alphabet, a vocabulary of about 200 words, declensions, and expressions in spoken Arabic, and an introductory lecture on the foundations of Islam and religious holidays. Prof. Uriya Shavit, Head of the Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies and the initiator of the course, comments that, “There is an across-the-board agreement in Israeli society that Arabic studies should be promoted. The huge demand is a pleasant surprise indicating a welcomed and in-depth change in the attitude to the language.”