The potentialities for industrial development must be surveyed and harnessed...by the State as one of the supreme tasks. We have a mighty weapon which we must utilize with ingenuity and skill, with every means available to us. Science is that weapon, a vessel of strength and our source of defense, stated Chaim Weitzmann. The scientist and statesman was to become Israel's first President.
To the above we could easily substitute the word "technology". Essentially it was the need to establish military materiel that led to the founding of a technology basis that resulted in a powerful industrial and scientific base and infrastructure.
Now the Weitzmann Institute of Science has achieved world renown in basic science.
A local English language daily provided me with the platform for extensive regular coverage of science and technology.
Scitex, founded by Efraim Arazi, provided a classic foundation for manipulation of printed photographs.
A short distance away, at the Weitzmann Institute of Science, Professors Michatel Sela and Ruth Arnon laid the foundation for Copaxone, Israel's first blockbuster pharmaceutical.\
As we begin our 30th decade of publication of the IHTIR we expect to give coverage to science, research and development and ultimately marketable products.
Chaim Weitzmann's dreams for a scientifically based State will continue to be realized.
and as for the future
The strength of the country's economy results in providing capital for investment. We believe that this is an ongoing trend which will continue into the foreseeable future.
Every day we read in the press of startups succeeding in raising new funds for their activities. The managers at Pitango, one of Israel's leading venture companies, are also upbeat. Management expects a slew of new public offering as well as acquisitions. Notably we see takeovers rising in value. An upward trend is also to be noted in the number of companies raising money on the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange. Investors are willing to pay for a piece of the companies.