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GSA Picks MetTel for $50B Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions Government Transformation Initiative

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The US General Services Administration (GSA) recently selected MetTel (Manhattan Telecommunications Corp.), a leading communications solution provider with advanced software-defined networking (SDN) skills and technologies, as a winner under the $50 billion, 15-year telecommunications infrastructure contract known as GSA Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions (EIS).  

The GSA for the first time included non-traditional communications companies such as systems integrators and communications companies classified as businesses with under 500 employees in its selection pool.

EIS is a comprehensive, solutions-based contract addressing all aspects of federal information technology, telecommunications, and infrastructure requirements. Federal agencies can realize the benefits of the contract through task orders for specific projects or needs that represent incremental steps in the government’s digital transformation. These building blocks enable the US Government to leverage innovative, easy to use technologies designed to improve agency productivity and cost-efficiency.

EIS replaces the existing 10-year Networx contract. Federal agencies currently spend approximately $2 billion per year on network infrastructure, according to the GSA.

“MetTel is on a mission to help the Federal Government complete its digital transformation,” said MetTel CEO Marshall Aronow. “Building on our service to the Department of Agriculture (USDA), MetTel looks forward to providing advanced solutions such as our EIS Portal, SD-WAN, cloud and IoT services, big data analytics and hyper connectivity. MetTel’s solutions will leverage our consulting and integration expertise and award-winning customer service to fulfill the unique communications needs of the Federal Government.”

Previous GSA awards focused exclusively on the largest, traditional telephone carriers. For EIS, the GSA opened bidding to all players, including systems integrators with specialized networking capabilities and small businesses. MetTel became the first non-traditional winner with its advanced solutions, skills and expertise. While MetTel supports its own facilities-based, global network covering 165 countries, it is best known for its unique ability to access the services of the four largest US carriers and aggregate them into one converged network that offers the strongest connectivity in any region, regardless of the locally dominant carrier. With this carrier integration capability, MetTel provides more coverage than any other single network provider. 

“We’re a new breed of hybrid carrier and solution provider, using software and advanced networking to access and amplify resources beyond the ability of traditional carriers and network equipment makers,” said Aronow.

Since 2011, the company has provided network and telecom expense management (TEM) management and big data analytics/business intelligence solutions, automating processes that allow agency personnel to focus on their core mission of supporting America’s agricultural goals.  In addition to serving the Federal Government, MetTel also provides solutions to many large commercial enterprises, including Fortune 500 members, a growing portion of its 10,000 customers.

MetTel is digitally bonded with more than 650 global, national and regional carriers, enabling the delivery of real-time provisioning, utilization, and billing data to customers. This automation reduces the time and cost of aggregating carrier data manually. Customers benefit from greater accuracy, speed of service delivery and costs associated with obtaining, reviewing, analyzing, and processing network infrastructure data.

In addition to its expansive portfolio of products and services, the company will provide a powerful tool, the MetTel EIS Portal. The portal enables customers to manage ordering, help desk, trouble tickets, SLA credits, billing, inventory, services, and reporting from one simple, user-friendly interface available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. The MetTel EIS Portal is purpose-built to FISMA moderate requirements from MetTel’s core customer portal that was awarded 2016 Internet Telephony Product of the Year.* The MetTel EIS Portal also distinguishes itself from others with its data analytics, enabling federal agencies to obtain detailed insight and business intelligence regarding their telecommunication configurations and budget management.

MetTel has assisted thousands of companies as well as federal agencies such as the USDA, Department of Defense (DoD), Department of Energy and Department of the Interior to digitize their infrastructure with advanced technology, skills and market-leading customer care. MetTel’s E-bonding enables automated transition of phone lines at the rate of thousands per day. Federal Agencies will be able to monitor conversion progress through the MetTel EIS Portal.  

MetTel’s market leading customer service has been recognized with a Stevie Award for Customer Service Department of the Year — Telecommunications for the past three years, due largely to MetTel’s proactive approach to predicting the probability of network strains and addressing them before they become major outages. 

Elon Musk & Other CEOS Call for Ban on Use of Killer Robots

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CEOs and researchers from 29 countries have joined forces to urge the United Nations to ban the use of killer robots, robot arms race and robotic weapons. Billionaire Elon Musk is among 116 founders who are acting with concern. The 46-year-old is a business investor, engineer and inventor well known as CEO of Tesla, SpaceX, SolarCity, and Neuralink. He called the artificial intelligence (AI) technology an “existential danger” and said its development was “summoning Satan himself.” He has united with other leaders in robotics & AI companies in signing an open letter warning that such weapons may bring “the third revolution in the war” (after gunpowder and atomic weapons). The letter was released by Toby Walsh, Scientia Professor of Artificial Intelligence at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, during the opening of the International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence in Melbourne. The conference is known as the world’s foremost assembly for top experts in robotics and AI.

As reported by Jewish Business News, the letter cations against the inception of new war technology. “As companies operating in the field and can be responsible for the development of autonomous weapons, we feel obliged to warn,” it reads. “Once autonomous weapons are developed, armed conflict can be conducted on a larger scale than ever, which can be captured. These can be weapons of terror that can hurt innocent populations, and weapons that are sensitive to hacker attacks and use of unwanted methods.”

“This is not a hypothetical scenario, but a very real, very pressing concern which needs immediate action,” said signatory Ryan Gariepy, founder of Clearpath Robotics, at a press release. “We should not lose sight of the fact that, unlike other potential manifestations of AI which still remain in the realm of science fiction, autonomous weapons systems are on the cusp of development right now and have a very real potential to cause significant harm to innocent people along with global instability.” Previously, Canada’s Clearpath Robotics was the only company to formally appeal for a ban on lethal autonomous weapons. This is the first time companies have banded together to press the issue.

The United States, Russia, China, and Israel are currently developing lethal autonomous weapons. These are operating at various levels in defensive and offensive systems, primarily unmanned aerial vehicles are used as decision-making aids for commanders. The use of autonomous weapons raises moral questions. The weapons remove a human controller from the equation, giving machines liberty to make moral decisions such as what is a target and how to respond. Combat and violence become simpler, potentially creating mass destruction.

By:  Hadassa Kalatizadeh

Israeli-Founded Pharma Company Kite Snapped Up for $11B

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American biopharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences has agreed to purchase Israel’s Kite Pharma Inc. for some $11 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.

Gilead agreed to pay $180 per share, equaling a 29 percent premium over Kite’s share price

American biopharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences has agreed to purchase Israel’s Kite Pharma Inc. for some $11 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.

Kite, founded by an Israeli professor in 2009, is among several companies working on technology that uses the body’s immune cells to recognize and attack malignant cells, with its main drug currently up for approval in the United States and Europe. Analysts believe the drug will have global sales of $1.7 billion in 2022, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Gilead agreed to pay $180 per share, equaling a 29 percent premium over Kite’s share price, according to the report.

While it was founded in Israel, Kite is headquartered in California, and its largest shareholders are American companies.

The company is run by CEO Ari Belldegrun, its founder.

“The acquisition of Kite establishes Gilead as a leader in cellular therapy and provides a foundation from which to drive continued innovation for people with advanced cancers,” said John F. Milligan, PhD, Gilead’s President and Chief Executive Officer.

“We are greatly impressed with the Kite team and what they have accomplished, and share their belief that cell therapy will be the cornerstone of treating cancer. Our similar cultures and histories of  driving rapid innovation in order to bring more effective and safer  products to as many patients as possible make this an excellent  strategic fit.”

(i24 News)

How to Really Grow During the Month of Elul

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No one can help you grow unless you take responsibility for yourself

A pious man encountered a group of triumphant soldiers coming back from a fierce battle, flushed with victory. “You have returned victorious from a minor struggle,” he said to them. “Now get ready for the major battle.”

“And what is that major battle?” they asked.

“The war within us, against the evil inclination. That is the great war. You just came back from three weeks of intense fighting, and now the enemy has been vanquished. But fighting the insanity of the yetzer hara, the evil inclination, never ends. Even after 100 defeats, he will never leave you alone. The battle is constant. He will not rest until he kills you. The moment you let your guard down, he will pounce and attempt to utterly destroy you.

“In a typical war there is a front line. Sometimes you are surrounded, but at least you know where the enemy lies. The yetzer hara, however, is a master of disguise. He knows how to mask illusions as reality, how to rationalize evil as good. He is so devious, he knows how to get you to harm yourself and your loved ones without your even realizing it.” (Duties of the Heart, Shaar Yichud Hamaaseh, chapter 5)

We are beginning the Hebrew month of Elul. It is time to intensify the battle against the yetzer hara and restock our supply of weapons.

The enemy’s first plan of attack is to knock out your sense of personal responsibility and get you to hand it over to someone else. “Let my teachers inspire me,” you think. Or, “Let my rabbi tell me what I have to work on.”

Stop waiting for someone to tell you what to change during Elul. You are responsible for yourself. You must do the necessary introspection, get in contact with yourself, and determine what you need to work on. As the Mishnah says, “If I am not for myself, who will be for me?” (Avos 1:14). No one can help you grow unless you take responsibility for yourself. Your teachers can give you the greatest tools in the world for self-transformation, but you will leave those tools on the bench if you don’t take responsibility for your own life.

You need to get clarity about what life means to you. What do you want to accomplish this coming year? What are you committed to tackling? If you don’t make these decisions, you might easily delude yourself into thinking that you are preparing adequately for Rosh Hashanah by listening to some inspiring talks and hoping that somehow these great rabbis will make you great.

No one can make you great. No one can turn you into a Torah scholar. There are no shortcuts; you are solely responsible for your own growth and learning. Toughen up and stop relying on others. No one can do it for you.

Judgment and Love

The month of Elul seem to be paradoxical. On the one hand it is the time for “Ani l’dodi v’dodi li – I am for my Beloved and my Beloved is for me” – an acronym for “Elul.” It is a time when we feel God’s intense love and closeness. Yet Elul is also the time to prepare for Rosh Hashanah, when the Book of Life and the Book of Death are open and the King of the universe sits in judgment, deciding who will live and who will die, who will have cancer and who will be cured, who will be crushed in an accident and who will survive. There seems to be a contradiction between “I am for my Beloved and my Beloved is for me” and the Day of Judgment. How are the two related?

Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto, the Ramchal, encapsulates in one paragraph the whole point of our existence, and in doing so gives us an answer. In The Way of God (1:4:6) he writes, “The root purpose of the service of God is for the human being to constantly turn to his Creator, to realize that he was created for the sole purpose of being drawn close to his Creator….” Everything that happens to us in this world is for one reason and one reason alone: to get closer to the Almighty, to feel that I am for my Beloved and my Beloved is for me. The Jew understands that everything God does is for our good; it is an expression of His love. Every judgment He renders – whether a windfall or a bankruptcy – is exactly what we need to grow closer to Him.

I am for my Beloved, if you love the Almighty and appreciate that He is your father, then my Beloved is for me, you will see that the Almighty loves you and that everything He does is for your good. But if you don’t appreciate what God has done for you and instead you have complaints, you will mistakenly think He does not love you.

The Ramchal describes the objective of the war against the yetzer hara: “Man was placed in this world only to overcome his evil inclination and subjugate himself to His Creator through the power of his intellect. He must overcome his physical desire and tendencies, and direct all of his activities toward attaining this purpose [of coming close to God]” (ibid). It is up to us to choose to cling to God by vanquishing our yetzer hara and rising above the vanities and confusion of the world.

Learning Torah

The Ramchal then identifies the primary weapon God gave us to fight the yetzer hara and achieve our purpose: “God gave us one means that is greater than anything else in bringing man close to God, and that is Torah study” (1:4:9). There is nothing more powerful than learning Hashem’s instructions for living. These are the actual words of our Creator.

But the Ramchal sets conditions: “For the person who reads them in holiness and purity, with the proper intent of fulfilling God’s will, these words have the unique property of causing the one who reads them to incorporate in himself excellence and greatest perfection.” We need to learn Torah with holiness and purity, which means that our learning has to be lishmah, unadulterated, for the sake of Heaven. Our motivation to get close to God cannot be mixed with the desire for approval or the need to conform to societal pressure.

Elul is the time to examine your goals and drives. Why are you learning Torah? Make sure it is for the right reasons. Keep it pure.

By: Rabbi Noah Weinberg
(Aish.com)

Excerpted from Wisdom for Living: Rabbi Noah Weinberg on the Parashah. Click here to order.

Connecticut Jewish Parenting Conference Stresses ‘Care of the Soul’

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Mrs. Jungreis-Wolff said it’s important to teach kids to be inclusive of the child that no one chooses on the team during gym class or for a playdate. “Teach your child that you can change the world that way, and that compassion makes the world a better place.”

An emphasis on values, empathy and quality time with their children, above all else

This year’s Chabad of Greenwich’s parenting conference took an introspective journey into parenting, benefiting both parent and child.

The annual event, held at Carmel Academy at 270 Lake Avenue, is designed to inform, empower and inspire parents in the Greenwich community to become the best parent possible as they encounter the many challenges involved in raising a child.

Over a decadent spread of kosher sushi and wine, parents and peers gathered for an evening of guidance and inspiration. As one mother in attendance, Cori SaNogueira, said: “My kids are the most important thing in my life—their positive growth is my life’s mission, but I need events like this to teach me and give me strength during the tough times to know I am on the right path.”

This year the theme focused on cultivating respect and how to raise a child with an “attitude of gratitude,” particularly in a community as materially well-off as Greenwich.

The first half of the conference was divided into two smaller seminars: one for parents of younger kids and one for parents of teenagers, each followed by a question-and-answer session.

(This reporter attended the seminar for teenagers, thinking she could gain some much-needed guidance about her rising sixth-grade boy, who already possesses all the fixings of a teenager. And she did.)

The quiet, steady focus of the crowd of teenage parents conveyed their anticipation of Chabad’s Rabbi Yossi Deren and his words of wisdom: He is the father of 10.

Deren smiled generously and started the discussion with his customary humor wrapped around a truth: “Without a question of a doubt, a parent of a teenager is not just a parent, but a hero.”

“We are in a unique position as a parent of a teen and must remember when they make mistakes that we have taught them well, but now they need to find their place as they figure out who they are and how to live on their own, unique path.”

Deren recommended three fields of empowerment and transition during these older years:

1. Transition from teaching our children to respecting our children. “Our job is to pull out their potential as they work to figure out their identity.”

2. Focus our parenting tactics from discipline to love. “As children grow older, their need for love grows even more as they encounter many difficulties in their lives, whether it be academically or socially.”

He said a parent’s reaction to a crisis in their child’s lives can completely change the trajectory of the relationship. If we react with “shock and awe” rather than showing our kids that we can identify and connect with their feelings, “the outcome will be vastly different.”

3. Move from “more talking to more doing.” The familiar adage, “Do as I say, not as I do,” does not hold up, according to the rabbi. “Teenagers are very, very smart today, and our actions as parents say everything—let them become the teenagers that we want them to become and set good examples for them.”

When asked what kind of impact social media has on teenagers, particularly with an increase in online bullying and constant exposure, he said: “Embrace its power for the good of life lessons [he referred to the recent suicide of a young boy whose friend had been an accomplice] and let them be exposed to the dangers of it in order to help them navigate through those dangers. It’s our job to create that safe space and promote our teenager’s peace of mind.”

Deren discussed the importance of Shabbat in the Jewish religion (Shabbat entails a full day of rest and spiritual enlightenment, devoid of all technology) beginning at sunset every Friday evening and ending at nightfall on Saturday.

“It’s a sacred time for people to be completely unplugged and just focus on talking and being with family and friends,” he said.

‘An Attitude of Gratitude’

The second portion of the night featured an inspiring talk titled “Raising a Child with Soul,” powerfully delivered by keynote speaker Slovie Jungreis Wolff, a noted author, teacher and lecturer, as well as daughter of Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis, founder of the Hineni Heritage Center, and an international inspirational speaker and mentor.

For more than 30 years, Wolff has been teaching weekly classes for couples and families, helping them focus on the meaning of kindness and gratitude in a fast-paced, complex society.

While guests grabbed a coffee and a cookie, the crowd instantly quieted when Wolff walked up to the podium and shared a painful story of loss: Many of her family members perished in Auschwitz.

“When you go through difficulties in life, don’t sit in the darkness,” said Wolff.

“It’s a gift to raise children, but kids need a spiritual foundation if we are to raise kids who stand for truth, honesty and have an attitude of gratitude,” said Wolff.

Wolff discussed how kids today are growing up in a disposable society where they are always wanting more. “Today, kids have no patience and have a need for instant gratification with too much of everything at their fingertips.”

She referenced the many parents who are quick to replace a lost sweater or pair of shoes, or continually provide their children with everything they want and desire, presuming it’s the panacea that will make them happy and peaceful.

Wolff shared the story of a family she had once worked with. They lived in a gorgeous mansion, filled with every game and toy imaginable, and yet their child would sit in the middle of it all and say to her parents, “I’m so bored. There’s nothing to do.”

As the crowd shifted in their seats, Wolff posed a question: “How are we going to fix this in our children’s character and create gratitude within them?”

Wolff says it starts with a simple “thank you.” The following are her suggestions for raising a child with soul:

• Teach kids to be thankful for all the people in their lives—to say thank you to one’s parents, grandparents, teachers, bus drivers, etc., for all that they do. Wolff said to encourage kids when baking cookies or challah to donate them to a charity or to the police, who are always helping others.

• Convey how time together with family is a privilege—one for which kids should have gratitude (Wolff mentioned that it’s often when we lose a family member what regret not having more time with them.) With too many material things to focus on, especially our phones, kids tend to stop appreciating the people in their lives.

Wolff went on to observe that the phone calls from the people on board the hijacked planes of Sept. 11 spent their last minutes confessing their love and their sadness that their time with loved ones would end—nothing else.

• Parents also need to show appreciation for one another in the home and set the example. When Mom or Dad thank one another for making a nice dinner, or for working a long, hard day—that has a huge impact on the family unit.

Fostering Compassion and Setting Priorities

• Wolff said it’s important to teach kids to be inclusive of the child that no one chooses on the team during gym class or for a playdate. “Teach your child that you can change the world that way, and that compassion makes the world a better place.”

• “We need to foster a home filled with ‘less presents, and more presence’ in the home,” Wolff said. “We live our lives in black and white, and lose the color by letting little things get to us.”

Wolff told a touching story about a young boy who kept asking his highly successful, yet preoccupied father how much money he made per hour. The parents were upset by this pointed question and were wondering where it came from.

So the father said $20.

The boy went away, and then came back holding his piggy bank and a $20 bill that he had saved up.

He gave it to his father and said: “If I give you this, then you can get off your phone for just one hour and spend time with me?”

By: Michelle Moskowitz – Greenwich Sentinel
(Chabad.org)

This story originally appeared in the Greenwich Sentinel on Aug. 4 and on its online version Aug. 9.

Parshas Ki Teitzei – Clarifying the Laws of War

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“When you will go out to war against your enemies, and Hashem your G-d will deliver him into your hand and you will capture its people as captives…”

Rashi teaches us that this verse from our parsha is talking about an optional war – for in the wars of the Land of Israel, it cannot be said, “and you will capture its people as captives”, because it has already been said, “you shall not allow any person to live”. From this we learn that there are two types of wars, a “milchemet mitzvah” and a “milchemet reshut, compulsory and noncompulsory war, respectively.

How unfortunate it is that so many of us do not know the difference between the two! As Rabbi Kahane HY”D writes: 

“To our sorrow, these concepts have been corrupted and confused by yeshiva students accustomed to the exile. This applies both to those in the Diaspora and those in the Land of Israel, the exile having had a pervasive influence in both places. They are ignoramuses in this regard, so much so that they have no idea what a ‘milchemet mitzvah’ is, what its parameters are, and whether such a concept exits today at all. And the Torah dons sackcloth.”

Let us start with the noncompulsory war – this is a war where the king wants to add greatness or renown or to capture land, where there is no outside threat against the Jewish people. This type of war can only be done with the authorization of the great Sanhedrin, the 71 judges – obviously no small matter. Interestingly enough, in last week’s parsha, we find the priest calling out to all the people who had gathered to go to war, that all those who have built a new house and not begun to live in it, let them go back home lest he die in war. Or any man who has planted a vineyard and has not redeemed its crops, let him go home. Or any man who has betrothed a woman and not married her, let him go home, etc. In all of these cases, we are talking about a noncompulsory war, for in a compulsory war everyone goes out to battle – even a groom from under his canopy.

And what is a “milchemet mitzvah”, a compulsory war? The Rambam lists three things that are considered a compulsory war: The wars against Amalek, the wars against the seven nations who lived in the Land prior to the conquest of the Land by Joshua, and troubles that befall the Jewish people. The Rambam clarifies concerning non-Jews who came to wage war against Israel, to collect tax from them, to steal land from them, or to force a decree upon them, even regarding a light mitzvah. In all of these cases we go out to war, as it is a compulsory war, a commandment. Even more than this: We find that no permission is needed to wage a compulsory war, as we have seen with the case of a noncompulsory war; rather, the king\government must go out to war at once, and any delay is considered as part of the bloodshed.

We even find in the Talmud that it states: In a border town, even where the non-Jews are not attacking to kill Jews but just to demand hay and straw, we go forth armed to attack them, even violating the Sabbath to do so.

Should we be so fanatical, that just for hay and straw we go out to fight and kill? Even disregarding the Sabbath for this? The answer is, of course – Yes, for it is a compulsory war, and in a compulsory war every ones goes out to fight, even on Sabbath.

Are there Jews, who even in a compulsory war, do not go out to battle, as we see today? Is this a good thing? Just hold on till next time, as we will try to answer these and other questions about Jewish laws of war. 

By: HaRav Yehuda Kroizer
(Yeshivah Hara’yon HaYehudi)

Parshas Ki Teitzei – Are You Prepared? 

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This parsha contains the most mitzvos of all the parshiot, and they encompass many areas that prepare us for Rosh HaShana and enable us to perceive that there is more to life than mere existence. 

The parsha opens with the stirring words, “When you shall go forth to battle against your enemies, the L-rd your G-d will deliver them into your hands.” (Deut. 21:10) These words are spoken, not only in regard to the battlefield, but more importantly, in connection with the personal struggle that each and every one of us must wage to conquer our most formidable enemy, the Yetzer Hara – the evil inclination. G-d promises us that if we make a decision to go forth and battle “that enemy”, He will deliver it into our hands – meaning that if we are truly determined to free ourselves of our negativity, G-d will do the rest and we will gain control of our passions rather than be controlled by them. 

The many and varied mitzvos in the parsha are here to sensitize our souls so that we might better fulfill our mission in our Avodas HaShem (service of G-d). For example, the laws pertaining to a rebellious son make us realize the critical importance of parents speaking with the same voice and avoiding the tragedies that can result when there is a lack of shalom bayis and parents send conflicting messages (Deut. 21:18). The laws pertaining to helping unload a burdened animal (Deut. 22:4) not only teach us that it is a positive commandment to lift the burden from the animal, but that closing our eyes to their suffering is to transgress the prohibition of Tsar Ba alei Chayim,” which means that we are not permitted to be indifferent to the distress of an animal. This law should compel all of us to re-think our relationships with our fellow man. 

If the Torah is so stringent in regard to the pain of an animal, how much more must we sensitize ourselves to the burdens and the pain in the hearts of our brethren. Nowadays, there are so many problems that afflict people, so many who are lonely and hurting, so many who are ill, so many who have lost their jobs and have difficulty making ends meet., and so many who are suffering in Eretz Yisrael. We dare not turn our backs on them and pretend that we do not see or hear their cries. A kind word, a listening ear, a smile, a helping hand, can all serve to ease their pain and lift their burdens. 

The parsha also admonishes us not to harness a donkey and an ox together to plow (Deut. 22:10). There are several reasons for this. 1) They have different energy levels, and harnessing them together would pit one against the other, causing undue pain and stress. 2) The ox chews its cud, while the donkey swallows quickly, leading the donkey to believe that the ox, who takes longer to consume his food, was given a greater portion than he. Once again, there is a lesson to be drawn in our human relations – Never pit people of different energy levels against one another. Never compare children, for each person is a star in his or her own right and endowed with unique gifts and talents. Furthermore, if we jealously think that someone has more energy than we do, just remember the donkey who foolishly thinks that the ox has more than he. G-d gives to each of us that which we need. We need only sensitize our hears to understand. 

By: Rabbi Osher Jungreis
(Hineni.org)

CAMERA Conference Helps Students Combat BDS at Home & Abroad

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CAMERA’S Director of Student Programming Gilad Skolnick

Some 80 students from 13 different countries participated in a high-level training conference that prepares students to respond to campus anti-Semitism and anti-Israel activism.

The seventh annual Student Leadership Training Conference, hosted by the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA), was held Aug. 4-9 in Boston.

Andrea Levin, CAMERA’s president and executive director, said the tools learned at the conference answer a genuine need for students, no matter where they are located.

“One of the things that’s so powerful about this program is the tremendous emphasis on high-quality training” that teaches students “real usable skills” and allows them to “come away with real serious content about how to be effective,” Levin said.

“There’s a global problem, which is attested this year by the many countries the kids are coming from. But the very good news is the spirit and positive energy of the wonderful students who care about Israel and its cause,” she said.

The program offered intensive training on how to make Israel’s case to various audiences, including anti-Israel professors and campus activists, many of whom lead the BDS campaign against the Jewish state.

“People often don’t realize how violent the BDS activists on campus can get,” said Khulan Davaajav, a student University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies, whose ethnic background is Mongolian. “When I became vocal on campus about my support for Israel, the BDS activists questioned my right to debate and take part in a discussion on Israel because of my ethnic origin. I was slurred with racist language in which they cruelly mocked my Asian heritage.”

Last year, dozens of police officers were called to a CAMERA event at University College London to protect Jewish students who were barricaded inside a room after a screaming anti-Israel mob burst into their private event.

“It was terrifying,” said Tamara Berens, a student at King’s College London, who witnessed the incident. “That’s partly why I came all this way to CAMERA’s conference, because I’ve seen firsthand what we’re up against.”

Ilana Sperling, a University of Florida senior, said the conference “prepared me to combat the lies prevalent nowadays on college campuses,” remarking that students not only received historical information about Israel at the conference’s many workshops, but also gained a global network of like-minded friends.

Rebecca Zagorsky, a junior at Ohio State, said she was eager to attend the international conference, saying she saw Jewish students “get bullied for supporting Israel.” Zagorsky and her friends have withstood insults and slander for standing up for the Jewish homeland, she said.

“Outright lies are told about Israel and its supporters—and, sadly, many Millennials are being deceived by these lies,” said Zagorsky.

According to a Pew Research Center study published last year, “today, Millennials are less likely than older Americans to sympathize more with Israel, and more likely to sympathize more with the Palestinians.”

Conference attendees came from diverse countries including the U.S., Canada, England, Ireland, Scotland, Israel, Hungary, Venezuela, Columbia, Papa New Guinea, France, Ukraine and Mongolia. Participants of the all-expense-paid conference, which was funded by CAMERA, spent six jam-packed days learning techniques for defending and promoting Israel in the upcoming school year.

Students role-played, learned debate skills, participated in public speaking exercises, learned how to write newspaper articles and trained in Israeli martial arts. They also attended lectures and studied academic papers on the Middle East conflict.

“Our conference develops the students’ intellectual and leadership skills,” said Aviva Slomich, CAMERA’s international campus director. “It’s an in-depth, detailed program that addresses the major challenges facing pro-Israel students today.”

Gilad Skonick, CAMERA’s director of campus programming, said, “What students get from the conference are practical strategies, lots of resources for handling discrimination and also a firm understanding of the moral case for Israel.” 

By: JNS.org
(JNS.org)

Charlottesville Campus Chabad Offers Support to Students

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Stressing light over darkness at the University of Virginia in the wake of recent violence

As Jewish students arrive over the next week for the new academic year at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries Rabbi Shlomo and Channa Mayer will be there for them. They will be there for them as they always are, but now even more so in the wake of the neo-Nazi march and ensuing terrorist car attack that have deeply impacted the city, its residents and the college campus.

Over the past week, the couple has connected with students, parents and alumni by phone, email and on social media—offering guidance, comfort and reassurance. Discussions are in the works about ways to address the issues that have come out of these very troubling incidents.

“Everybody is still trying to recalibrate because it’s been like a 180-degree turn of everything life has ever been here,” says Channa Mayer, speaking of their college town. “We want to make sure they know we are available to them,” she says, “and give the inspiration that Judaism can offer.”

Mayer says the community, in turn, is grateful for the encouragement and support they continue to receive. “It’s beautiful to see so many people rallying and supporting Charlottesville from across the United States. People outside the community want to hear your thoughts and feelings, but we are still processing it ourselves.”

Mayer saw that firsthand when she attended a vigil on campus Wednesday night, prompted by students, faculty and local residents.

Thousands gathered on the enormous lawn in front of the university Rotunda in a show of peace and solidarity following days of tension after a rally spearheaded by hate groups over the weekend resulted in street violence and the death of 32-year-old Heather Heyer. They walked the same route where torch-bearing white nationalists chanted anti-Semitic and racist slurs on Aug. 11 while protesting the planned removal of a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.

For several hours, people sang songs, held candles and stood side by side in unison as they walked across the grounds.

“It was really heartening to see thousands of people together,” says Mayer, co-director of the Rohr Chabad House of the University of Virginia with her husband since 2002.

With students returning to school—freshman arrive this weekend—Mayer has already heard from parents and alumni who want to do whatever they can to help their community. In fact, one alumnus is spearheading a fundraising effort to increase security in and around the Chabad House.

The acts of kindness and concern nationwide that have happened in the melee’s aftermath shows that “when darkness appears, bright light can appear ever larger,” says Mayer. “We are trying to bank on that—to harness good things we can do instead of being sucked into dark feelings of helplessness and hopelessness.” 

By: Faygie Levy Holt 
(Chabad.org)

100 Best Things to Do in New York – Part II

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The historical home of the Wickwire Family, the 1890 House Museum is 4 floors and 15,000 square feet of elegance
Designed to foster growth and imagination in kids, the Brooklyn Children’s Museum has a nature exhibit, an area specifically designed for toddlers and young children, curated sensory stimulating collections, and an imaginary street full of kid sized shops to play pretend
One of the most treasured landmarks of its region, Sonnenberg Gardens, greets 35,000 visitors annually.
Listed as a National Historic Place, the Big Duck is exactly what it sounds like – a building in the shape of a big duck
Though it is now surrounded by a mountain resort, the Kaatskill Kaleidoscope is still there and remains the largest in the world. Located in a silo, it won’t take long to visit. But you should spend at least a half hour getting this one of a kind experience.
Howe Cavern offers many different types of tours, including some overnight packages
A bird haven for injured and disabled birds, Berkshire Bird Paradise has helped eagles, hawks, pigeons, falcons, and chickens recuperate
A little bit of a hike that might not be ideal for beginners, Kaaterskill Falls drops over 260 feet and is worth the effort to see. Spend a morning getting here and bring your camera.
The Chelsea Market has more than 35 vendors this is one of the biggest indoor food spaces you will ever find

(Continued from last week)

51. Battenkill County Creamery (Salem)

At the Battenkill County Creamery, they bottle their own milk and make their own ice cream. It’s a beautiful place to stop and have a sweet treat. And, if you live in the area, they offer home delivery.

52. Rye Playland (Rye)

An amusement park that offers everything from kiddie land to thrill rides, Rye Playland also has a beach, a pool, a boardwalk, and mini golf. You could spend a whole day here with the family.

53. Legoland Discovery Center (Yonkers)

Legoland offers 15 different attractions for kids who love Legos. Kids can build and race cars, try to build a structure that can survive the earthquake tables, and attend Master Builder Academy. Spend the day letting your kids get into all the hands on activities.

54. Greenburgh Nature Center (Scarsdale)

With 33 acres of gardens, ponds, and trails, there is enough to keep you busy here for at least half a day. The have a playground for the kids, special holiday events like the model train show, and a lot of educational activities.

55. Muscoot Farm (Katonah)

Muscoot Farm is dedicated to preserving the heritage of the old fashioned country from prominent from 1880-1930. Here, you can spend a whole day if you take advantage of everything they offer – including blacksmithing workshops, artisan fairs, and holiday events. There’s also farmer’s markets, camps for kids, and 50 animals to see.

56. 1812 Homestead Farm and Museum (Willsboro)

Here, you can see what it was like living and working on a farm in 1812. There’s candle making, apple cider pressing, and wool spinning, along with a one room school house. Allow half a day to get your hands dirty.

57. 1890 House Museum (Cortland)

The historical home of the Wickwire Family, the 1890 House Museum is 4 floors and 15,000 square feet of elegance. 45 minute guided tours are given at specific times and there’s a scheduled time to visit and explore on your own. They have some special events, including a holiday tea for kids.

58. Amish Trail (Various)

Located in various areas, the Amish Trail takes you to a simpler place where the Amish use horses and buggies instead of cars and shut down their shops so the community can celebrate a wedding. They sell a lot of handmade and hand baked goods. Slow down and spend a day taking in the scenery and appreciating a quieter life.

59. The Big Duck (Flanders)

Listed as a National Historic Place, the Big Duck is exactly what it sounds like – a building in the shape of a big duck. Inside, you’ll find travel and tourism information. It won’t take long once you get there, but it is something to see!

60. Brooklyn Children’s Museum (New York City)

Designed to foster growth and imagination in kids, the Brooklyn Children’s Museum has a nature exhibit, an area specifically designed for toddlers and young children, curated sensory stimulating collections, and an imaginary street full of kid sized shops to play pretend. The also have summer camps and afterschool programs. Spend half a day here with your little ones!

61. Buffalo City Hall (Buffalo)

One of the tallest buildings in Buffalo, climb to the observation deck to get a glorious view of this city on your next visit. Getting to the observation deck and taking in the beautiful view should take around 45 minutes.

62. Ausable Chasm (Ausable Chasm)

Called “The Grand Canyon of the Adirondacks,” Ausable Chasm has a long list of outdoor adventures: rappelling, rock climbing, tubing, biking, and an adventure trail just to name a few. You could spend a day to a weekend here, depending on how many of their awesome activities you want to try.

63. American Valley BBQ (Hudson)

Serving wood smoked BBQ and American comfort foods, you can’t go wrong having a meal at American Valley BBQ. The have a wide variety of steaks, sandwiches, and sliders. The Hudson location is located in a renovated firehouse and gives a unique dining experience.

64. Catskill Scenic Trail (Various)

Covering 26 miles, hike, bike, walk, run, ski, or horseback ride your way along this gorgeous scenic route through the countryside. Spend a few hours to a day taking in the views.

65. Buffalo Naval Museum (Buffalo)

This museum is home to three ships – USS Little Rock, USS Croaker, and USS The Sullivans. It also houses numerous helicopters, jets, etc along with a museum full of military artifacts. This is a must see when in Buffalo, so make sure to save half a day to explore there and learn about our country’s military history.

66. Berkshire Bird Paradise (Petersburg)

A bird haven for injured and disabled birds, Berkshire Bird Paradise has helped eagles, hawks, pigeons, falcons, and chickens recuperate. The Paradise is open to the public seasonally and it’s worth spending an hour or two there.

67. Mohonk Mountain House (New Paltz)

It looks like a castle, come here and you’ll feel like royalty. You can come and spend the day or make a weekend getaway of it, but here you will find a lot to do – hiking, watersports, winter sports, gardens, a museum, and a spa, just to name a few.

68. Binghamton Zoo (Binghamton)

The Binghamton Zoo is home to many animals, including 8 critically endangered species. The kids will love the carousel, the train, and face painting, You could spend 2 hours here meeting all the animals.

69. Fort Delaware Museum (Narrowsburg)

A true depiction of pioneer life, Fort Delaware demonstrates the early settlers lifestyle and talents. Tour a blockhouse, a blacksmith shop, learn about candle making, spinning, and weaving. There’s so much to do on your morning or afternoon at Fort Delaware.

70. Canalside (Buffalo)

A visit to Buffalo is not complete until a visit to Canalside. Here you’ll find activities and games, ferries, boat tours, food, music, and shopping. There’s also seasonal fun, like an ice skating rink and tree lighting ceremony. Spend an afternoon seeing what all the buzz is about.

71. Griffis Sculpture Park (East Otto)

At 450 acres, this is one of the largest sculpture parks in the country. Take a long walk on their beautifully landscaped grounds and see 250 different sculptures. You could spend a whole morning or afternoon here. The also offer in depth art education.

72. High Falls Gorge (Wilmington)

A privately owned nature park, High Falls Gorge offers both summer and winter activities. In the summer, you can hike to see the waterfalls and stop to pan for gemstones. In the winter, go snowshoeing and treat yourself to some roasted marshmallows at the campfires. You will need at least a half a day to see this park.

73. Howe Caverns (Howes Caves)

Howe Cavern offers many different types of tours, including some overnight packages. A traditional tour is 90 minutes spent between walking and riding a boat. They also have 2 hour photo tours, family tours, and couples retreats.

74. Hunter Mountain (Hunter)

A beautiful ski resort with something for everyone, including skiing, a spa, a restaurant, and a learning center to being skiing or hone your skills. A perfect place for a weekend away.

75. Kaaterskill Falls (Hunter)

A little bit of a hike that might not be ideal for beginners, Kaaterskill Falls drops over 260 feet and is worth the effort to see. Spend a morning getting here and bring your camera.

76. Letchworth State Park (Castile)

Called the “Grand Canyon of the East,” at Letchworth State Park, the Genesee River goes over 3 different waterfalls and there are more than 60 trails to choose from. In the winter, you can cross country ski, go tubing, or just hang out in the inn and stay warm. If you’re a nature lover, you could easily spend a weekend here and never get bored.

77. Lockport Cave and Underground Boat Ride (Lockport)

Located on the Erie Canal and close to Niagara Falls, this is a great addition to a weekend trip.They offer 70 minute tours that include both walking and an underground boat ride.

78. Natural Stone Bridge and Caves (Pottersville)

In the summer, you can explore the caves and in the winter, they offer snowshoe tours of the unique natural stone bridge and the surrounding area. In the summer, there’s even more to do, like frisbee golf, gemstone mining, digging for dinosaurs, and a museum. Spend half a day here with the kids for a unique learning experience.

79. Rock City Park (Olean)

Take the 45 minute hike to see all the giant stone formations then check out the fluorescent rock room and gift shop.

80. Saratoga National Historical Park (Stillwater)

Visit the battlefield of one of the most important battles of the Revolutionary War and stop at the monument to to commemorate the victory. You can also take a walk through Victory Woods and see where the British forces occupied for their final defense. You’ll need about 3 hours here if you want to see everything it has to offer.

81. Selkirk Shores (Pulaski)

A beautiful place to watch the sunset, Selkirk Shores is also a great destination for fishing, hiking, and biking. Camp here for the weekend and immerse yourself in the outdoors.

82. Sonnenberg Gardens and Mansion Historic Park (Canandaigua)

Tour the 40 room Sonnenberg mansion walk through any of their numerous gardens.check out the roman baths, or spend time in their wine center. Half a day here will keep you busy.

83. Westcott Beach State Park (Henderson)

With campsites and a marina, this is a great place to take a day trip to fish. There’s also a playground, picnic area, and trails for hiking or cross country skiing. 

84. The Wild Center (Tupper Lake)

With a new Wild Walk, you can take a walk among the treetops that will last all day! There’s also an aquarium, a theater, and a long list of educational opportunities for both kids and adults. It’s truly a very unique place.

85. 5 Arch Bridge (Avon)

5 Arch Bridge is a park with a unique architecture, water to swim in, and rocks to climb. The park sprung up around the historic 5 Arch Bridge, which was once a part of Erie Railroad. You can spend an afternoon here playing in the water and soaking up the sun.

86. Bear Mountain Trailside Museums and Zoo (Stony Point)

The animals at the Bear Mountain Trailside Museum and Zoo are unique for a zoo – they’re all unreleasable to the wild. All have either been injured in the past or orphaned and unable to get by on their own. There are also museums to see so you could easily spend an entire day here.

87. Brotherhood Winery (Washingtonville)

Originally established in 1810, Brotherhood Winery has an extensive history. With tours, tastings, and an art space, it’s a nice place to come for a day to relax and unwind.

88. Anchor Bar (Buffalo)

This is the place where the Buffalo wing was born and as such is a must see when in the Buffalo area. Stop in for dinner or spend an evening having some wings and a few beers.

89. Dinosaur BBQ (Various)

What started out as a mobile concession stand soon developed into the original location in Syracuse. Now, there are several locations in New York and beyond. They’ve been featured in many TV shows and magazines, so stop in for dinner and see what all the fuss is about.

90. Kaatskill Kaleidoscope (Mt Tremper)

Though it is now surrounded by a mountain resort, the Kaatskill Kaleidoscope is still there and remains the largest in the world. Located in a silo, it won’t take long to visit. But you should spend at least a half hour getting this one of a kind experience.

91. Abbott’s Frozen Custard (Rochester and various)

Opened in 1926 at it’s original location in Rochester, Abbott’s is still going strong and has spread all across the state. The have cakes, splits, milkshakes, floats, and more. Stop by and get dessert.

92. Katz’s Deli (New York City)

A New York City staple, Katz’s has been in business since 1888. IN addition to their famous meats, sandwiches, and in house service, they also now show nationwide. Come here for a meal but leave some extra time – it gets busy!

93. Pizza (Various)

New York has it’s own style of pizza – thin, greasy, and delicious. There’s no way to pick who had the best, so pick a place that looks good to you and make it a point to sit down and have dinner there.

94. Hotel on Long Lake (Long Lake)

A hotel dating back to the turn of the century, the Hotel on Long Lake is central to places to hike, fish, climb, swim, and golf. There’s also a lot of nearby villages and opportunities to shop and see historic sights. Stay here for the weekend and see everything there is to offer in the region.

95. Amenia Farmers Market (Amenia)

This is a year round market with a long list of vendors serving everything from vegan indian food to homemade dog food to donuts to wines. Times and days vary with the seasons, so plan your shopping trip accordingly.

96. Chelsea Market (New York City)

The Chelsea Market has more than 35 vendors, this is one of the biggest indoor food spaces you will ever find. You can find mostly anything here – bread, sushi, wine, meats, tacos, and cheeses just to name a few. You could spend hours here seeing all that the have to offer.

97. Miss Master’s Closet (New York City)

An upscale vintage resale shop in Brooklyn, this shop also lists items on Ebay. Born from a long time love of vintage clothes, if you like looking for hidden gems, this is the place to go. Spend at least an hour looking through the vast collection. 

By: Jen Reviews 
(Jen Reviews)

https://www.jenreviews.com/best-things-to-do-in-new-york/

New Device Makes Going Under Sedation Safer

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Image of sedated patient by Marius Pirvu/Shutterstock.com
The BreatheVision team. CTO Ditza Auerbach is fourth from right. CEO Menashe Terem is on the far left. Photo: courtesy

An Israeli startup combines wearables and optics to provide the breath volume monitoring needed to keep patients safe in the operating room

Going under sedation for an operation can sometimes be riskier than the surgical procedure itself. It’s not a problem with the anesthetic.

Rather, “drug-induced respiratory depression [not breathing enough] is the primary cause of morbidity associated with sedation and analgesia,” the American Society of Gastroenterology Nurses and Associates reported with alarm in 2016.

Existing medical devices monitor a patient’s breathing rate or the level of oxygen in the blood, but not breathing “volume” – the depth of the breaths. A spirometer can do that, but it requires patient cooperation and cannot be used for continuous monitoring.

An Israeli startup is tackling the breathing gap with a new solution that combines wearables and optics to provide the monitoring that surgeons and anesthesiologists need to keep patients safe in the operating room.

The wearable part of BreatheVision’s SafeSed system consists of EEG-like patches and a belt that can be worn over the clothes. The optics part involves a camera that tracks infrared emitters attached to the belt or patches.

“Scientists have been trying for many years to measure volume from a simple accelerometer,” explains Menashe Terem, BreatheVision’s CEO, referring to the stickers and belts. “But the signal is too ‘noisy.’ Only the combination of optics and wearables can do the job well enough.”

SafeSed’s third component is an alarm system that informs the surgical staff immediately when a patient has a breathing problem. It has to be 99 percent accurate, Terem tells ISRAEL21c, so as not to cause “alarm fatigue” resulting too many alarms or false alarms that will be ignored.

In addition to accuracy, SafeSed is significantly cheaper than anything else in the market. Capnographs, which monitor breathing through carbon dioxide levels, run up to $3,000 per unit; SafeSed will sell for less than $700 when the product comes to market in 2018. That’s because the SafeSed technology is made up of off-the-shelf hardware. The secret sauce is the algorithms that make sense of the data.

The disposables – the parts of the device that touch the patient’s body – cost $5-$6 per patient vs. $15-$30 for disposables used with capnographic monitoring, Terem notes.

BreatheVision has identified its initial target market as the hospital gastroenterology department – with a particular emphasis on monitoring patients undergoing colonoscopy. And while SafeSed can be used anywhere sedation is required, going for the gastro is a smart business decision, Terem says.

“The gastro departments in the hospital or at a clinic are unique in that physicians tend to use their own equipment and do a large number of procedures – often four to six per day,” Terem says. “A gastro physician’s main focus is in looking for polyps or cancer. So he needs good alerts with an easy-to-read display. We don’t require any special training. That makes us very user-friendly.”

BreatheVision has been running a clinical test in the gastroenterology department at Meir Medical Center in Kfar Saba since November 2016.

BreatheVision is entering an already crowded market with a number of players, such as the US-based Respiratory Motion, which offers its own noninvasive approach to respiratory monitoring.

An Israeli company, HealthWatch, makes medical-grade smart clothing with ECG monitors sewn into a wearable tank top. Tel Aviv-based ContinUse Biometrics monitors not only breathing but heart rate and blood pressure by measuring the tiny “nanometric” vibrations the body emits.

Terem is the company’s CEO, but its heart and soul belongs to Ditza Auerbach, who invented BreatheVision’s technology and is the company’s CTO. “She’s leading R&D,” Terem says, “but practically, she’s leading the company.”

Auerbach, a physicist with a PhD from the Weizmann Institute, worked for 11 years at Applied Materials heading up the imaging and machine learning teams, as well as at Aspect Imaging where she wrote algorithms for advanced MRI systems.

BreatheVision is small – founded in 2013, it has eight employees. Terem works part-time, still holding onto his job as the head of Tri-logical Technologies, a company selling tracking equipment for trains, buses and fleets. Before that, he led the medical device company Common Sense.

The company’s offices are in Kibbutz Yad Mordechai, close to the border with the Gaza Strip, which allows BreatheVision to receive 75 percent of its budget from the Israeli Innovation Authority.

The long-term market for BreatheVision’s SafeSed is quite large. In the United States alone, “the sedation market has 60 million cases per year,” Terem says. Monitoring in the recovery room, post-operation, reaches up to 230 million annual cases.

Ultimately, Terem hopes BreatheVision will be able to manufacture an inexpensive device for home use. It would be ideal “for monitoring sleep apnea, for seniors who have difficulties breathing, for people suffering from COPD [chronic obstructive pulmonary disease], for patients who take opioid pain killers once or twice a week which can cause their breathing to become depressed, for babies who have a simple cold where their parents don’t want to sit up all night and watch their child,” Terem says. 

By: Brian Blum
(Israel 21c)

NYU Langone-Bklyn Names New Chief of Rehab Medicine  

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Jeffrey S. Fine, MD, has been named chief of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at NYU Langone Hospital – Brooklyn and vice chairman for network development for Rusk Rehabilitation at NYU Langone Health throughout the borough.

Rusk Rehabilitation oversees NYU Langone Health’s comprehensive inpatient and outpatient programs throughout the New York metropolitan region to treat and guide recovery from accident-related trauma; fractures and other types of injuries; arthritis; joint replacements; spinal cord injury; brain injury; stroke; multiple sclerosis; Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders; pain disorders; and cardiac and pulmonary conditions. Physiatrists (physicians trained in physical medicine and rehabilitation), coordinate care of teams of clinical specialists including physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists, audiologists and neuropsychologists to provide a wide array of services individually tailored for children and adults.

“Dr. Fine is an extremely accomplished clinician and administrator to lead our exemplary rehabilitation team in Brooklyn,” says Steven R. Flanagan, MD, the Howard A. Rusk Professor of Rehabilitation Medicine at NYU School of Medicine and chair of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine for NYU Langone Health. “The department does a great job of restoring patients’ functional abilities, enabling them to have a good quality of life after their initial injury or illness.”

About Dr. Fine

Fine previously served as regional director for rehabilitation services at Elmhurst and Queens Hospital Centers, both part of NYC Health + Hospitals, and coordinated the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation residency program as associate program director at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Earlier, he was assistant professor in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and clinically served as a staff physiatrist in the Denver Department of Veteran Affairs Medical Center; the University of Colorado Health Science Center; and Denver Health Medical Center, where he was director of Rehabilitation Medicine.

“As rehabilitation specialists, we assist patients and their families in setting realistic, individualized goals to help them achieve optimal physical capabilities,” Fine says. “Designing a concrete plan with daily goals can go a long way in improving a patient’s quality of life. I am actively involved in developing tools and smartphone applications that can help patients function more independently and adhere to recommended rehabilitation activity regimens at home.”

Providing Inpatient and Outpatient Rehabilitation

The specialized 30-bed acute care inpatient unit at NYU Langone Hospital – Brooklyn is a federally-designated and Joint Commission-accredited Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility (IRF), providing the most comprehensive rehabilitative care available. While most hospitals offer abbreviated therapy at the bedside following an illness or injury, NYU Langone Hospital – Brooklyn offers an intense three-hour daily therapy program. The unit cares for many patients transferred from other hospitals because of its use of innovative therapies and application of advanced technologies to achieve optimal goals designed for each individual patient.

In addition, Rusk Rehabilitation offers outpatient services at three locations:

Rusk Rehabilitation at NYU Langone Hospital – Brooklyn at 60th Street;

Rusk Rehabilitation at NYU Langone Hospital – Brooklyn at 7th Avenue; and

Rusk Rehabilitation at NYU Langone Hospital – Brooklyn at Shore Road. 

Dr. Fine’s office is located at NYU Langone Hospital – Brooklyn, 150 55th Street Brooklyn, NY 11220. To make an appointment, please call 718-630-7425.

History Made As Man Gets Bone Tissue Injected in Arm 

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Medical history was made at Emek Medical Center in Afula this week when semi-liquid live human bone tissue grown in a lab from a 40-year-old patientu2019s own fat cells was transplanted into the patientu2019s arm by injection. The patient had suffered significant bone loss in his arm as the result of a car accident and previously underwent several unsuccessful surgeries.

Procedure was part of early clinical trial of human bone tissue grown in the lab from stem cells of the patient, so there’s no risk of rejection

Medical history was made at Emek Medical Center in Afula this week when semi-liquid live human bone tissue grown in a lab from a 40-year-old patient’s own fat cells was transplanted into the patient’s arm by injection.

The patient had suffered significant bone loss in his arm as the result of a car accident and previously underwent several unsuccessful surgeries.

The procedure was part of an early-stage clinical trial of a revolutionary tissue-engineering technology developed by Bonus BioGroup of Haifa. A hospital spokeswoman told ISRAEL21c that it is too early to report results in this specific case.

In December 2016, Bonus BioGroup announced successful results of an early-stage clinical trial on 11 patients in which bone tissue grown from a small sample of each patient’s own fat cells was injected into their jaws to repair bone loss. Over a few months it hardened and merged with the existing bone to complete the jaw, according to the company.

Bonus BioGroup CEO and President Shai Meretzki said this week’s experimental procedure “sets a new standard of hope for rapid healing in a wide variety of cases.”

Emek Medical Center’s head of orthopedic surgery, Dr. Nimrod Rozen, is among three doctors on Bonus BioGroup’s scientific advisory board.

“The technology we developed allows us to grow a bone that is based on a patient’s biological tissue, so there is no danger that the patient’s body will reject the implant,” said Rozen, who also cofounded the Institute for Bone Repair at Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa and is a clinical associate professor at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology’s medical school in Haifa.

Bone can be damaged by a range of injuries, illnesses and medical procedures, Rozen explained. “For example, in bone cancer located in the bones of the hands or feet, if we remove the tumor together with the bone on which the tumor is located, it usually means that we will lose a leg or hand, because although the bone has traits that allow it to grow, it will not be able to grow the distance between the bone ends we removed by surgery.”

Bonus BioGroup’s technique involves growing bone under sterile laboratory conditions from stem cells in fat tissue taken from the patient in need of the bone transplant. After two weeks, the injectable bone graft is transported from the company’s lab and production facility in Haifa to the medical center performing the transplantation in a ready-to-use syringe. Over time, the injected cells multiply until sufficient material is created to fill the missing area.

Last April, the company raised $9 million in a private offering investment.

Rozen says the injectable bone-graft technique heralds a major improvement over traditional bone grafts, a complicated surgical procedure that is not always successful and requires a long recovery process.

“The special features of the implants enable preservation of cell properties during implantation and the creation of a high-quality bone functioning in the transplanted area,” he said. 

By: Abigail Klein Leichman
(Israel 21c)

New Cholesterol Drugs Vastly Overpriced, Study Contends

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Lipitor (atorvastatin) and Crestor (rosuvastatin) are examples of first-line statins doctors typically prescribe to patients with high cholesterol.

But drug maker, heart experts question methodology of analysis

Are new medicines for people with out-of-control cholesterol wildly overpriced? It’s a question that’s sparking debate among consumers and providers of care.

Now, researchers at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) report that the price of these drugs — called PCSK9 inhibitors — would have to be slashed by a whopping 71 percent to be deemed cost-effective.

PCSK9 inhibitors are a relatively new class of medicines for treating patients whose LDL (bad) cholesterol isn’t well-controlled on statins or who cannot tolerate statins. Lipitor (atorvastatin) and Crestor (rosuvastatin) are examples of first-line statins doctors typically prescribe to patients with high cholesterol.

The UCSF team didn’t question whether these new medicines are effective in reducing heart attacks and strokes.

“These are super awesome drugs, they really work,” said study co-author Dr. Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo.

But the price is “far in excess” of what would be considered a reasonable cost for the clinical benefit they provide, added Bibbins-Domingo, a UCSF professor of medicine, epidemiology and biostatistics.

The list price of these newer PCSK9 drugs is upwards of $14,000 a year per patient.

Dr. Kim Allan Williams, who was not involved in the study, is past president of the American College of Cardiology. He said some doctors have a difficult time with such studies because they compare patients’ lives and “events” — such as heart attack and stroke — versus dollars spent on these medicines.

The new study doesn’t change his view of the value of the PCSK9 inhibitor class.

“No one’s giving those drugs unless the patient is incapable of getting to the target [level of LDL cholesterol],” said Williams, who is chief of cardiology at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. “You’re only going to use it for a situation where you have no choice.”

Because the study is based on list prices, not what patients actually pay, it’s also “difficult to analyze the cost-effectiveness when [you] don’t know exactly what the cost is,” Williams added.

He said he’s had patients with co-pays of $380 a month and others who had zero co-pays because the cost was completely covered by insurance. He worries, though, that poor patients may not be offered the same access to these medicines.

The CSF researchers designed the study to find out how much bang for the buck these drugs actually provide.

Their study updates a prior cost-effectiveness analysis using current list prices as well as results of a recent clinical trial. That trial demonstrated the clinical effectiveness of Repatha (evolocumab), one of two PCSK9 inhibitors approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, in reducing the risk of heart attack and stroke.

Based on a simulation involving 8.9 million adults who would meet trial criteria, adding PCSK9 inhibitors to statins would prevent 2.9 million more heart attacks and strokes compared with adding Zetia (ezetimibe), another type of medication that blocks the production of cholesterol by the liver.

The new study was published in the Aug. 22/29 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. 

By: Karen Pallarito
(HealthDay News)

More Than Half of Americans Will Need Nursing Home Care: Study

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More short-term stays the biggest factor fueling the increase

More than half of Americans will find themselves in a nursing home at some point in their lives, a new study shows.

That eclipses the 35 percent estimate used by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the researchers added.

“Lifetime use of nursing homes is considerably greater than previously thought, mostly due to an increase in short stays of less than three weeks,” said lead researcher Michael Hurd. He is director of the RAND Center for the Study of Aging, in Santa Monica, Calif.

Increased nursing home care begs the question of who will pay for it and how will they pay for it, he said.

“Out-of-pocket spending is not particularly large, on average, but the risk of long stays and of correspondingly large out-of-pocket spending is fairly large — 5 percent of patients will spend more than 1,500 days in a nursing home, and 5 percent will spend more than $50,000,” Hurd said.

For married couples, the financial risks are even larger, he noted. As baby boomers start needing more nursing home care, costs will be staggering.

“Families need to take this into account for financial planning, and society needs to be prepared to assist families that cannot finance nursing home stays,” Hurd said.

The report was published online Aug. 28 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

One long-term care expert pointed to the driving forces behind the trend.

“An aging population, earlier discharges from hospitals to nursing homes for rehabilitation, higher incidences of dementia [all mean] that the risk of a stay in a nursing home is more likely for individuals,” said Lori Smetanka. She is executive director of the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care, in Washington, D.C.

With the costs of long-term care and services growing, most people and families will rely on programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, she said.

For the study, Hurd and colleagues analyzed 18 years of data from the Health and Retirement Study, which is a project sponsored by the U.S. National Institute on Aging and the U.S. Social Security Administration.

The investigators found that most Americans will be able to afford brief nursing home care with out-of-pocket costs of about $7,300. About one-third of adults between 57 and 61 will spend money on nursing home care, and 43 percent will have their care completely covered by private or public insurance, Hurd said.

Most people will have short stays in nursing homes at a relatively affordable cost, he noted.

Overall, the average nursing home stay was 272 nights, but for 10 percent the stay was more than 1,000 nights, the findings showed.

But for the 5 percent of older adults who needed long stays, out-of-pocket costs were $47,000 or more, the researchers found.

The shift toward shorter nursing home stays may account for higher estimates of nursing home use, Hurd said.

Nursing home stays of 21 nights or less rose from 28 percent in 1998 to nearly 34 percent in 2010, the researchers found.

The increase in shorter stays may be due to efforts to control Medicare and Medicaid costs by discharging patients from hospitals to nursing homes, where rehabilitation costs are lower, Hurd suggested.

Whether it’s worth buying insurance to cover long-term care isn’t clear, he noted.

Only 11 percent or 12 percent of people in their early 60s uses long-term care insurance, he said. Questions about what that insurance will pay for makes the buying of long-term health insurance iffy, Hurd explained.

People might be better off relying on Medicaid, he said. “It’s the best of a not-very-good situation,” Hurd added.

Although your children may not reduce the odds of your having to go to a nursing home in old age, Hurd said, their care of you may cut the length of your stay and its costs by about 38 percent.

If you have daughters who can provide in-home care, you can save even more money, he said.

“In addition to costs, individuals and family should also consider the quality of care and services provided by nursing homes,” Smetanka said.

Visiting facilities in advance, asking questions, particularly about the number of staff available to provide care and observing the interactions between staff and residents, is an important way to get a clear picture of what life would be like in a nursing home, she suggested.

Dr. David Katz, president of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, said that the best way to reduce the need for a nursing home stay is to live a healthy lifestyle that will reduce your risk of the chronic diseases that result in the need for nursing home care.

“We are increasingly prone to nursing home stays here in the U.S. because medical advances promote longer life, but we lack the corresponding cultural commitments to promoting better health,” he said. 

By: Steven Reinberg
(HealthDay News)

Taxpayers Spending Millions to Fund de Blasio’s ‘Special Assistants’ as ‘Hizzoner’ Bashes Them

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New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio over the past fiscal year has increased spending on his "special assistants
De Blasio sent the “phonetic spellings“ email on Jan. 24, 2015, under the subject line “Kehilath Jeshurun,“ which is a misspelled reference to Upper East Side synagogue Congregation Kehilath Jeshurun. “How can it be that none of you noticed the absence with the word Jeshurun. Work on quality control pls. Fix these remarks now pls. Example: pho-NET-ic,“ he fumed.
NYC Council Member Mark Levine, Rabbi Josh Rosenfeld, Rabbi Avrohom Marmorstein, Avi Fink, Mayor Bill de Blasio, and Michael Landau at Yom HaShoah ceremony

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio over the past fiscal year has increased spending on his “special assistants” by $4.6 million, expanding their ranks by 13 percent and handing out raises to those already on staff.

These employees, who are vaguely titled as aides and whose salaries are taxpayer-funded, make up 40 percent of de Blasio’s staff, the New York Post reported Sunday night.

His staff’s collective salaries were bumped by 25 percent, up to $23.3 million, from fiscal year 2016, according to payroll records.

Four members of his staff raked in more than $200,000 each, while those paid more than $100,000 each jumped to 84 individuals, up about 30 percent.

De Blasio had four of his special assistants transferred to the Department of Veterans Services, off-loading around $540,000 from the Mayor’s Office.

“When you want to give someone a big raise, it’s easier if you say they’re doing a different job,” a former city official told the Post.

The source said that de Blasio has greater flexibility to increase salaries, funded by taxpayer money, for aides by assigning them the title “special assistant.”

One City Hall spokesman said the use of this title gives the de Blasio administration “more flexibility in demanding varied types of work from senior officials.”

Chief of staff Kevin O’Brien is one of de Blasio’s highest paid special assistants; his annual salary increased from $175,000 to $220,652 since fiscal year 2016.

The Post first revealed last year that de Blasio increased the number of special assistants by 140 percent compared to his predecessor, former Mayor Mike Bloomberg; de Blasio responded by ignoring a Post reporter at a news conference and calling the paper a “right-wing rag.”

“It just shows a complete disregard for the taxpayers of the city and it also displays his mismanagement—because we’re not even getting results,” likely Republican challenger Nicole Malliotakis said of de Blasio’s staff salaries.

On August 9, the Washington Free Beacon reported that de Blasio treated his staffers poorly and often bullied them with harsh threats if they did not meet his demands, according to newly revealed emails.

“What do I need to get you guys to follow a direct order? Do you need to experience consequences?” he threatened in one 2015 email, according to the New York Post.

“I’m not raising this again: fix it, or I will [have] no choice but to find a way to penalize people. Not my preference, but I won’t have my instructions ignored,” he added.

The emails show de Blasio blowing up at nearly a dozen staffers for “failing to make sure phonetic versions of challenging words were included in his speeches and talking points,” according to the Post.

“This is literally the 100th time I am reminding you all that phonetic spellings require one syllable to be capitalized to indicate emphasis in pronunciation,” de Blasio wrote in one furious message.

“I have no idea why you guys can’t get it,” he said. “All of the folks in comms, speechwriting and my personal staff who looked at these remarks — it just takes ONE to catch it.”

A City Hall source told the Post that de Blasio’s emails reflect how he acts in meetings and that he has been known to kick staff members out of meetings. The source went on to say that he is “condescending” and “arrogant” with a micromanaging leadership style, in which he exhibits “no confidence” in those working for him.

“Part of it stems from the fact that he used to be [a political] operative, and he thinks he can outmaneuver his aides,” the source said.

De Blasio sent the aforementioned “phonetic spellings” email on Jan. 24, 2015, under the subject line “Kehilath Jeshurun,” which is a misspelled reference to Upper East Side synagogue Congregation Kehilath Jeshurun.

“How can it be that none of you noticed the absence with the word Jeshurun. Work on quality control pls. Fix these remarks now pls. Example: pho-NET-ic,” he fumed.

De Blasio’s email was directly sent to “special assistant” Elana Leopold, who is currently on leave from his office to work on his re-election campaign. It was cc’d to Avi Fink, now deputy chief of staff, and Amy Spitalnick, who left last October to become the press secretary for state Attorney General Eric Scheniderman, according to the Post.

“Guys, I’m fed up,” De Blasio fumed in a follow-up email on Feb. 6, 2015, after he blundered delivering remarks in Spanish.

“I have raised the problem of inconsistency in providing phonetic pronunciation and in providing clearly delineated Spanish (with emphasis on the proper syllable) many, many times,” he wrote. “And yet between all of you, you haven’t fix [sic] the problem, which is bluntly unprofessional.”

A former City Hall Staffer told the Post that de Blasio’s email rants were “par for the type of emails he sent.”

The Washington Free Beacon also reported on August 15th, that de Blasio took off for a family vacation in Rhode Island just days after he had convinced the city’s Campaign Finance Board to award him an additional $1.6 million in public matching funds for what he called a tough reelection fight.

De Blasio was automatically entitled to $958,000 in matching funds as part of the city’s campaign finance program—though he was not obligated to take the money—but requested more, claiming that the Democratic primary on Sept. 12 will be a tough reelection race, according to the New York Post.

The mayor is considered a heavy favorite in the race and it is rare for candidates to vacation so close to an election they expect to be a hard-fought battle.

“It’s unfortunate that the mayor made a strong case for additional matching funds by saying he had a competitive race and then took off on vacation,” Dick Dadey, director of the government watchdog Citizens Union, told the Post. “The argument that he needed it for a competitive election doesn’t hold together very well.”

De Blasio qualified on Aug. 3 for taxpayer matching funds, which are capped at 25 percent when a candidate is facing minimal opposition. However, he convinced the Campaign Finance Board (CFB) that his main Democratic rival, Councilman Sal Albanese, was a serious threat.

The board agreed and added $1.6 million in taxpayers matching funds on top of the $958,000 he would have already received, giving de Blasio $2.57 million.

“Public-funds payment determinations by the board are based on … objective criteria and nothing else,” CFB spokesman Matthew Sollars said.

Albanese believes de Blasio is taking advantage of taxpayer money and did not need the extra funds, the Post reported. Records show the current mayor had $4.9 million is his campaign account as of last week, while Albanese had $5,397 without receiving matching money as of yet.

“He has more than enough money to get his message out,” Albanese said. “His [public funds] could have gone towards improving city services.”

The WFB also reported that in July,  DeBlasio ordered the police to clear out homeless people from two subway stations ahead of his four-stop press event so that the stations “looked nice,” according to a new report.

Law enforcement sources told the New York Post that the police had until 11 a.m. on Sunday to eject those who were “hanging out” at the Fourth Avenue/Ninth Street and Jay Street/MetroTech F train stations.

Another source put it this way: de Blasio’s office let the police know ahead of time about his schedule “with the expectation that the subway stations would be free and clear of homeless people.”

De Blasio’s trip from his Park Slope gym to his new campaign office in Brooklyn was part of a publicity stunt to call out New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D.) regarding funding for the city’s transportation system, the Post reported.

Once aboard, Hizzoner — who was joined by a pack of journalists — launched into a diatribe against Cuomo and MTA Chairman Joe Lhota, who blamed de Blasio for refusing to spend the city’s $4 billion-plus budget surplus to fix the subways.

“Here’s the truth: They’re not even spending their capital budget,” the mayor said. “There’s a huge amount of money sitting there, including the money the city gave. We gave them $2.5 billion a couple of years ago. Almost 90 percent of that money is just sitting there.”

De Blasio vowed not to allocate any more funds, saying the state “has used the MTA as a piggy bank” by taking “almost half a billion dollars in money out of the MTA to use for the state budget.

“The governor and Chairman Lhota simply need to get in front of everyone [and] say, ‘We’re fully responsible, we have to fix the problem.’ They have the resources.”

Staten Island Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis (R.), the presumptive challenger to de Blasio’s reelection bid this year, ripped her potential opponent as a hypocrite, given his progressive views on income inequality.

“For someone who claims to care about the most poor New Yorkers, to have someone clear his path when he’s about to board the subway … tells you all you need to know about Mayor de Blasio,” she said.

A City Hall spokesman denied the allegations and said the Post‘s sources were making false claims.

De Blasio also found himself in an uncomfortable situation last week when a 63-year-old Queen resident began berating him over his treatment of New York police officers. One CBS reporter compared him to the “Cowardly Lion” in The Wizard Of Oz when he fled the confrontation.

By:  Katelyn Caralle
(Washington Free Beacon)