Thou Shalt Innovate: How Israeli Ingenuity Repairs the World Hardcover – March 1, 2018

When Israel became an independent nation in 1949, it faced many obstacles: lack of natural resources, small population but growing rapidly with hundreds of thousands of impoverished Holocaust survivors and expelled Jews from Arab countries, surrounded by enemies.Driven by culture that fosters independent thinking, respects knowledge, and a need to repair the world, it is now one of the major providers of products and techniques to help people throughout the world, especially in the areas of agriculture, medicine, water, and defense.In THOU SHALT INNOVATE, Avi Jorisch tells the stories behind fifteen of the innovations, developed and manufactured by Jews and Arabs and people of different religions as well as people throughout the world facing the same problems. He lists fifty of Israel’s greatest innovations near the end of the book.The first is Ambuicycle. Using motorcycles, trained responders located throughout the country are able to cut through traffic jams and reach victims in less time than a traditional ambulance. Several hundred volunteers of many religions and cultures work together to help people in their communities in both Israel and Palestinian territories. In 2014, the teams in Israel treated 245,000 Israelis (Arab and Jewish), including 27,000 children. One fourth of the calls are life threatening.Next is drip irrigation which produces more food with less water. The techniques has been taught to water-needy people throughout the world.When Ronald Reagan proposed the Strategic Defense Initiative (Star Wars) in the 1980s, it was dropped because of the complex technology necessary. Israel continued working on it with the resulting Iron Dome system to destroy incoming missiles. They cost about a tenth of a standard missile and use parts from Toys R Us which cost 80 cents. The Iron Dome also avoids deploying ground forces to combat incoming missiles which saves lives for all sides.About 1.3 billion tons of food are lost annually because of insect infestation. The Grain Cocoon can safely store harvested grain for several years to provide food during climate disasters stabilize the market so farmers can sell grain during the off-season.Romans used basic solar energy 2,500 years ago to heat their baths. Today, 90% of all Israeli households use solar panels (heating water) and many buildings powered entirely by solar power.The Exoskeleton, which forms a stabilizer outside of a body, allows paraplegics to walk.Using electrodes, Deep Brain Stimulation helps people control diseases like Parkinson’s, neurological disease, obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression, Alzheimer’s, Tourette Syndrom, chronic pain, post-traumatic stress disorder, epilepsy, and schizophrenia. The process was developed by Israeli-Arabs.In 2014, there were more than 1.5 internet hacking attacks annually, that was three a minute. More than 47% of the American adult population were victims. In 2013, 43% of American businesses were hacked, The cost of cyber-related crime was more than $400 billion. An Israeli company’s technology has successfully reduced those numbers.A traditional colonoscopy is limited in how much of the colon can be observed. The procedure can be uncomfortable and may damage the colon. A technique developed in Israel allows a complete examination of the entire colon without any discomfort via a small camera swallowed by the patient while patients can continue their regular lives..Robotic spine surgery enables doctors to do spinal surgery without having to do additional surgery to locate and repair the problem.One of the most widely-used innovations is an emergency band-aid which applies more pressure to staunch bleeding, even on traumatic head wounds. Less expensive and more effective than traditional emergency bandages, they are used by military forces including the US Army. They are manufactured at a Bedouin factory which employs 50 Bedouin women.Treatment for Multiple Sclerosis has improved through the use of foreskins, traditionally buried or thrown out. It is so effective that Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, head of the Chabad Lubavitch Hasidic movement approved its use.Evidence of cannabis to reduce pain was found in 4th century CE in a family tomb outside Jerusalem. Israel perfected itand It is now used for many conditions, including pain reduction.With more than a billion birds using Israeli airspace on their 5,000-6,000 mile migration, they have caused more damage to Israeli airplanes than all Arab enemy armies combined. Using motorized gliders to travel with and track their semiannual migrations and then banning planes to fly in their paths, the number of strikes has been reduced 76%. Jordan and the Palestinians have cooperated with and benefitted from this action.An Israeli agriculturist was able to grow an extinct date plant from a found seed.Among the fifty innovations listed are Krav Maga self-defense, cherry tomatoes, a natural mosquito repellant, flash drive, instant chat, and Waze.THOU SHALT INNOVATE is an informative book which mixes history, sociology, science, education, politics, and Jewish concepts in a compact, easy-to-read book.

This book tells the story of a part of Israel that we don’t often hear about. It’s informative and fascinating, and important to hear.

I saw the Author on television. it sounded like a very interesting book. I down loaded it to my Kindle. Started reading it and was very absorbed in it. Halfway though it said the end of the book. I contacted Amazon and they downloaded it again. Started to read where I think I left off. Again only half of the book. By this time I was upset. I would buy the book but being on S.S. I cannot put out that much money. Sorry I am missing what I'm sure is a great book.......I have no trouble downloading other books. So I don't know what the problem is.......

This is a tale about Israelis who have chosen repairing the world as a defining life purpose, so well written I could not put it down. As other reviewers have detailed, it's filled with interesting stories that are surprising, thought provoking and inspiring. But what stayed with me long after the details were forgotten was the little story near the end, when the author's 5 year old son repeats the 5 rules of their home: be a mensch, make the world a better place, try your hardest, never give up and have a good time. I googled the word mensch to find the definition "a person of integrity and honor".That's the lesson I hope to have passed on to my children, the lesson Avi Jorisch has obviously passed on to his son and the position that Israel represents in our world. This book offers a terrific balance to the debate about Israel's management of the Palestinian Arabs as it demonstrates what Israel is doing to make the world a better place. As he states "if it can contribute this much to the world while dealing with the current situation, imagine what the country would look like if it were not mired in war and constantly needing to defend itself and its borders . . . Israel's innovative success stems from . . .a culture that encourages its citizens to challenge authority, ask the next question and defy the obvious. Various factors . . .come together to explain how tiny Israel became a technological powerhouse".In addition to the fascinating individual stories, the book has a detailed Appendix of "Israel's Fifty Greatest Contributions to the World" which, in itself, is mind blowing. So now I am asking myself, my husband, children and grandchildren "what are the 5 rules of life in our home?'