Country gets two new nanotech research centers in one day

Bar-Ilan, Ben-Gurion Universities open centers simultaneously.

By JUDY SIEGEL
BarIlanNewNanotechnologyCenter311 (photo credit: Courtesy Bar-Ilan University)
BarIlanNewNanotechnologyCenter311
(photo credit: Courtesy Bar-Ilan University)
On the same day that Bar-Ilan University opened its $150 million, 7,000-square-meter nanotechnology research center in Ramat Gan on Monday, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev opened its own $42.5m., 5,000-square-meter nano research center in Beersheba.
Today, every university except for the University of Haifa, which does not offer science studies, has a nanotechnology center. The universities say that one center does not come at the expense of the other.
They add that the field of nanotechnology – which deals with materialsin the range of 100 billionths of a meter or smaller in at least onedimension – has endless possibilities in a wide variety of fields frommedicine to energy and will transform the world.
BGU invested $20m. in the building itself and the rest in researchfacilities and personnel. Both universities dedicated their centers asa part of their annual board of governors activities.
In preparation for the new building in Beersheba, BGU offered a specialprogram aimed at preparing technical personnel and support staff fornanotechnology research in a variety of fields. This is being done toprepare trained manpower for integration into nano research and hi-techdevelopment.
BGU president Prof. Rivka Carmi said her university has invested about$90m. in the last few years in its national biotechnology institute toestablish an effective academic platform for a successful biotechnologyindustry in the Negev and Israel and to contribute significantly to theinfrastructure of applied biotechnology in life and medical sciences,which will benefit from nanotechnology research.