Israeli drivers are giving up on using Route 443 by the masses as the highway has become the center point of stone and Molotov cocktail throwing by Palestinians. 

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram

Every day, tens of thousands use the major highway, which separates Jerusalem from central Israel. But with the increased attacks in recent months, a disaster is just a matter of time. 

Video: Free usage under Israeli copyright law (Section 27A)

Dashcam footage that circulated on social media this week showed an Israeli vehicle driving on Route 443, when a Molotov cocktail was hurled onto the street, missing the car by an inch. 

Data obtained by Israel Hayom showed that from the beginning of 2023, a shocking 50 cases were reported on the highway. The actual number is most likely even higher as not every case is reported. 

The most recent incident occurred on Thursday, when Palestinians threw rocks at an Israeli driver, who was lightly injured, but, thankfully, managed to maintain control of the car. 

What complicates matters is that security in the area is lacking as the IDF only operates one squadron, which is abysmally little compared to the manpower it uses for the same areas territory-wise in Judea and Samaria.

Oftentimes, these units are underequipped and undertrained in tackling terrorism. Most recently, Israel Hayom learned that officers are not even equipped with bulletproof vests, which makes pursuing a suspect in nearby Palestinian villages almost impossible. 

Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!

The post Stones, Molotov cocktails, lacking security: Why has Route 443 become so dangerous? appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

Do they fishtail when they hit black ice? Do they carp about traffic? The jokes almost make themselves, but it's true – in new research from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, a goldfish has successfully "driven" a robotic car.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram

Hoping to discover whether animals' innate navigational abilities are universal or restricted to their home environments, BGU researchers designed a set of wheels placed under a goldfish tank. The wheels were tricked out with a camera to record and translate the fish's movements into wheel movements.

To test whether the fish was really navigating, researchers placed a clearly visible target on the wall opposite the tank. After a few days of training, the fish navigated to the target. Moreover, they were able to do so even if they hit a wall "en route." They also avoided being fooled by false targets researchers placed in their paths, making them more savvy than some Waze users.

Video: Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

The team discovered that a goldfish's navigational ability supersedes its watery environs.

"The study hints that navigational ability is universal rather than specific to the environment. Second, it shows that goldfish have the cognitive ability to learn a complex task in an environment completely unlike the one they evolved in. As anyone who has tried to learn how to ride a bike or to drive a car knows, it's challenging at first," says Shachar Givon, a Ph.D. student in the Life Sciences Department in the Faculty of Natural Sciences.

Givon conducted the study with Matan Samina, an MSc student in the Biomedical Engineering Department in the Faculty of Engineering Sciences, Professor Ohad Ben Shahar of the Computer Sciences Department and head of the School of Brain Sciences and Cognition, and Professor Ronen Segev ​of the Life Sciences & Biomedical Engineering Departments.

Their findings were published last month in the peer-reviewed journal Behavioural Brain Research.

Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!

The post Baby goldfish, you can drive my car appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

Israeli renewable energy company Phinergy has set out to reduce the amount of air pollution emitted by cars – among the world's heaviest polluters – with their innovative vehicles.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

According to CEO Avi Tzidon, Phinergy's cars use aluminum – one of the most common metals – to create energy, and as such, involve no pollution.

They are said to match the driving range of non-electric vehicles, reload to full energy capacity in less than 5 minutes, and are compatible with existing service networks.

"Phinergy's metal-air systems produce energy by combining metal, oxygen, and water. Oxygen is a key reactant releasing energy from metal," the company's website says.

The vehicles are set to be the most environmentally friendly on the market, as other electric alternatives are fueled with electricity provided by a polluting plant.

"Unlike conventional batteries that carry oxygen within a heavy electrode, metal-air energy systems freely breathe oxygen from ambient air, making the systems significantly lighter," Phinergy's website says.

Ahead of the United Nations climate conference in Glasgow in November, Phinergy presented their product to Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, "including metal-air technologies and range extenders for electric cars."

This article was first published by i24NEWS.

Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!

The post Israeli aluminum cars designed to cut down on air pollution appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

Aurora Labs, which has created self-healing software that enhances security for autonomous and electric vehicles, announced recently that Dr. Ing. Peter Mertens, a long-time veteran of the industry, has been appointed chairman of the board.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

"Peter is an authority in the automotive industry with more than 35 years of experience steering auto companies known for their technology leadership," the company said in a statement.

Following the announcement, Mertens said, "I am so enthusiastic to work with Aurora Labs. The team is delivering cornerstone technology helping auto manufacturers navigate through the industry's transition to a software world. Software has to be taken seriously and truly understanding how automotive software behaves with the ability to predict and fix software is key to the realization of connected, autonomous and electric vehicles," said Mertens.

Aurora Labs has "reinvented remote software management, remote diagnostics, and over-the-air (OTA) updates for the automotive and IoT industries," the company said. It was founded in 2016 by Zohar Fox and Ori Lederman, and has offices in Germany, North Macedonia and the US.

Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!

The post Aurora Labs appoints industry veteran as board chairman appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.