Aug. 16, 2015 — Physicist Jacob Bekenstein Dies
Jacob Bekenstein, shown in his Hebrew University office in 2009, developed his theory about the entropy of black holes while working on his doctorate at Princeton University in the early 1970s.
Physicist Jacob Bekenstein, who advanced efforts to create a theory of quantum gravity, dies of a heart attack at 68 in Helsinki. Born in Mexico and educated in the United States, he joined the faculty of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in 1974. He theorized that black holes emit radiation, a finding Stephen Hawking rejected, then confirmed. That radiation is known as Bekenstein-Hawking radiation.
Aug. 17, 1949 — Herzl’s Body Is Reburied in Israel
Theodor Herzl’s casket is in place for his state funeral at what is now Mount Herzl in Jerusalem on Aug. 17, 1949. By David Eldan, National Photo Collection of Israel, CC BY-SA 3.0.
The body of Theodor Herzl, buried in Vienna, Austria, in 1904, is reburied with those of his wife and parents on the Jerusalem hill that now bears his name. Herzl, who organized the First Zionist Congress in 1897, asked in his will to be reinterred in the Land of Israel once the Jewish people had control there. Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion calls the state funeral “the triumph of a vision that became a reality.”
Aug. 18, 1994 — Intellectual Yeshayahu Leibowitz Dies
Yeshayahu Leibowitz speaks at the 1963 Israel Prize ceremony. After he was selected for the prize himself 30 years later, he caused outrage by comparing Israeli soldiers to Hamas fighters, and he refused to accept the prize. By Fritz Cohen, Israeli Government Press Office, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Yeshayahu Leibowitz, a controversial Jewish thinker and Israeli public intellectual, dies in his sleep at age 91 in Jerusalem. A native of Latvia, he taught biochemistry, neurophysiology and philosophy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem for almost six decades. He advocated the separation of religion and state, arguing that the state corrupted religion. He denied that Zionism had a religious element. He also criticized the IDF.
Aug. 19, 1856 — Writer Michah Joseph Berdichevski Is Born
Michah Joseph Berdichevski spent the last years of his life compiling Jewish folklore.
Scholar and writer Michah Joseph Berdichevski is born in Ukraine. He writes short stories, novels and essays in Yiddish and German, but he is best known for his Hebrew writings, including a lengthy debate with Ahad Ha’am about the nature of Hebrew literature. Berdichevski’s insistence on the value of secular Hebrew literature inspires younger writers. He also spends years recording Jewish folklore.
Aug. 20, 1920 — Yishuv Publishes First Medical Journal
The Hebrew-language medical journal Harefuah got its start in 1920.
The first Hebrew medical journal in Palestine, Harefuah (Medicine), begins publishing on a quarterly schedule under the auspices of the Jewish Medical Association of Palestine. The editor is ophthalmologist Aryeh Feigenbaum, who as a teenager in Poland told a friend that he would become a doctor, move to Palestine and found the first medical journal there in Hebrew. The Israel Medical Association still publishes the journal.
Aug. 21, 1982 — Troops Arrive to Oversee PLO Withdrawal
French legionnaires and U.S. Marines provide protection as PLO forces evacuate Beirut in 1982. Courtesy of retired Marine Maj. Fred T. Lash.
American, French and Italian troops arrive in Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, to supervise the evacuation of about 14,000 PLO fighters through Sept. 1. Yasser Arafat leaves Aug. 30. Eight countries agree to offer asylum to the PLO: Syria, Jordan, Iraq, South Yemen, North Yemen, Sudan, Algeria and Tunisia, the last of which becomes Arafat’s headquarters. Driving out terrorists and Syrian forces is one of Israel’s principal goals in the 1982 Lebanon War.
Aug. 22, 1952 — First Israel Bonds Mission Begins
The first Israel Bonds drive was launched in the United States in spring 1951.
The Development Corporation for Israel, commonly known as Israel Bonds, brings 22 U.S. Jewish leaders to Israel on a 15-day American Champions of Israel Bonds mission, the first of its kind. They report to the Economic Conference for Israel in mid-September in Atlantic City, N.J., where the 600 delegates pledge to raise $130 million in bonds. American-purchased bonds help stabilize the economy of Israel.
Items are provided by the Center for Israel Education (israeled.org), where you can find more details.