Throwing dice

I love technology and science. I worked in some sort of science rich environment since I had finished college. It is no secret that Israel has become one of the leading forces in scientific and technological innovation in the world. Well, it might be a secret for the BDS crowd, but I promised myself not to get into politics on this blog (I know, I know, this is pretty strange for an Israeli).

A book detailing the reasons behind Israel's success story had seen the light in US this year. I've written about it and linked to some articles on a thread at AbsoluteWrite. Today, there is an editorial in an NYT, by David Brooks on the subject. Not a bad one, and raises interesting questions about the future possibilities. Go and read it yourself.

Israel’s technological success is the fruition of the Zionist dream. The country was not founded so stray settlers could sit among thousands of angry Palestinians in Hebron. It was founded so Jews would have a safe place to come together and create things for the world.

This shift in the Israeli identity has long-term implications. Netanyahu preaches the optimistic view: that Israel will become the Hong Kong of the Middle East, with economic benefits spilling over into the Arab world. And, in fact, there are strands of evidence to support that view in places like the West Bank and Jordan.

But it’s more likely that Israel’s economic leap forward will widen the gap between it and its neighbors. All the countries in the region talk about encouraging innovation. Some oil-rich states spend billions trying to build science centers. But places like Silicon Valley and Tel Aviv are created by a confluence of cultural forces, not money. The surrounding nations do not have the tradition of free intellectual exchange and technical creativity.

Me? I think we are so successful in this field because we like to throw the dice.It isn't strange at all that the favorite Israeli phrase is "Yihie Beseder" which means "it'll be ok".