2 • Section B • INTERMOUNTAIN JEWISH NEWS — Passover Edition • April 15, 2011
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Bioexplorers detects terrorists — via mice!
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Mice get it right every time; also less invasive than x-rays By DAVID SHAMAH Israel 21c sraeli startup Bioexplorers has developed a new and unique way to sniff out terrorists — literally. After years of research, company CEO Eran Lumbroso says, Bioexplorers has hit upon a foolproof, non-invasive and easy method to detect contraband in purses, luggage and even cargo — using mice. It’s no joke. “Mice have an excellent sense of smell, and they’re relatively easy to train. And they’re easier to use for odor detection than other animals traditionally used for their olfactory capabilities.” Dogs are most often used by security forces to detect drugs and explosives, says Lumbroso, but they generally respond to the directions of their trainer, making their work more of an art than a science. “I was looking for a way to automate and mechanize the training process, so it could be duplicated easily and installed in a variety of settings. And we have been able to achieve that goal using mice.”
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MICE GET IT RIGHT EVERY TIME ere’s how it works: A person passes through a passageway in which a Bioexplorers system is installed. A fan passes air into a sensor receptor, and delivers it into a chamber with several mice. The mice, having gone through intensive behavioral training, sniff the air. If the odor is one associated with items the mice have been trained to recognize, like drugs or bombs,
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they move into another chamber — setting off an alarm. Security officers can then move in and stop the appropriate suspect.
There’s no radiation, no concern about being seen naked, and the use of mice avoids the use of intimidating dogs
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“The mice rarely make an error, and the entire procedure is far less invasive or intimidating than the alternatives, like using dogs or Xray machines,” says Lumbroso. “There’s no radiation, and no concern about being seen naked,” he adds. The system is appropriate for use in any setting — airports, government buildings, shopping malls. In fact, the company has conducted several tests at sites in Israel to ensure that the sensors work in real situations, including at Tel Aviv’s Azrieli Mall. More than 1,000 people passed through a Bioexplorers sensor — some having been given “suspicious” objects and substances to hold —
To use the system, people pass through a Bioexplorers system and a fan passes air into a sensor receptor and delivers it into a chamber with four to eight mice.
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and the mice made the right call every time, says Lumbroso. The rodents employed on this security detail are specially raised lab mice, “which are very clean, and there is no chance that they will transfer diseases to humans, since there is no contact between the mice and the people passing through the sensor,” says Lumbroso. The mice are trained over a period of about two weeks using a patented computerized program based on Skinner-style behavior theory and methods, “which we have tweaked using our own special technology and methodology,” Lumbroso says.
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RODENTS TRAIN EASIER THAN CANINES e stresses that the mice are treated well; they “work” for four hours, and then rest for eight, to ensure they don’t experience sensory overload. Each mouse’s “career” can be expected to last for about two years, and each sensor installation is staffed by four to eight mice. In order to prevent “false positives,” more than one mouse has to respond to the odor and move into the second chamber. Lumbroso, who has a background in biology, has been working on the Bioexplorers system since 2004. “Most animals have senses of smell that can detect the items we search for, but it’s easier to train mice than many other animals,” especially dogs, the four-legged mainstay of the smell-detection industry. “The main advantage of mice is that they can be integrated in a standardized training program, easily duplicable and deployable in numerous settings,” Lumbroso says. With the product ready for market, the four-man Herzliya-based company has seen a great deal of interest, says Lumbroso, who is also looking for investors. Until now, funding has come from several angel investors, and Lumbroso hopes to secure new funding “to bring the project to the next
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level.” The first systems will most likely be deployed in airports and public buildings, and a version for cargo examination has been developed as well. The system, which has not yet been priced, will be turnkey for buyers, and the company will carry out the necessary staff training. “We are also looking at develop-
Until now, funding has come from several angel investors
ing systems for medical use, in which the mice can detect growths or other problems by smell, without the need for invasive procedures,” Lumbroso says. Meanwhile, the company is close to closing some deals for deployment of the system. “Chances are good that in another year or so, you’ll be passing through a Biosensor system when you travel somewhere,” predicts Lumbroso.
New face onSECTION Israeli currency: Tchernichovsky If the mice sniff explosives or drugs they move into another chamber, setting off an alarm.
ERUSALEM (JTA) — A new series of Israeli banknotes will feature some beloved national poets. Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fisher in March announced the personalities who will grace the new notes in denominations of 20, 50, 100 and 200 shekels: Natan Alterman, Leah Goldberg, Shaul Tchernichovsky and Rachel the Poetess. The list was finalized following more than a year of heated debate and still must be approved by the government. Others considered for notes’ appearances were writer Shai Agnon and former prime ministers Menachem Begin and Yitzhak Rabin.
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The members of the Committee for the Planning of Banknotes, Coins and Commemorative Coins, and Fisher said in a statement that featuring these personalities on the banknotes will “help to instill in the younger generation of Israelis an appreciation of their contribution to Israeli society and to the
state.” Alterman, an author, playwright, poet and newspaper columnist who died in 1970, won the 1968 Israel Prize for Literature. Rachel, who died in 1931, is a leading poet in modern Hebrew whose works have been set to music. Goldberg, who died in 1970, was a poet, author, playwright, literary translator and researcher of Hebrew literature who translated “War and Peace” into Hebrew. Tchernichovsky was a two-time winner of the Bialik Prize for Literature. The current faces on Israeli currency are former Prime Minister Moshe Sharett on the 20 shekel note;
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Didn’t make the cut: Shai Agnon, PMs Begin and Rabin
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Agnon on the 50 shekel note; and former presidents Yitzhak BenNew Israeli Currency
Zvi and Zalman Shazar on the 100 shekel and 200 shekel notes.