Amazing Facts about Israel

“If you go to the Middle East looking for oil, you don’t need to stop in Israel. But if you go looking for brains, for energy, for integrity, it’s the only place you need to stop when you go to the Middle East”.
Warren Buffet, Chairman, Berkshire Hathaway



What sets Israel apart for us is the spirit of the people and the commitment to innovation."
Steve Bolze, President and CEO GE Healthcare





"Israel is a major player in the high tech world. People in high tech are very aware that Israel - compared to its small size - has some amazing technological achievements. There is a greater concentration of talented high tech manpower here in comparison to other countries - almost to the extent of Silicon Valley." Bill Gates, Founder of Microsoft.

"This is a cutting edge community. If you look around the world, many of the countries that you visit are a few steps behind the cutting edge. If you come to Israel you feel you are right there."
Richard Lampman, Senior Vice President of Research in Hewlett Packard

"Israel is an incredible source of entrepreneurship and brilliant ideas."
Safra Catz, President of Oracle
"Israel is a hotbed of new raw technology and scientific developments."
Matthew I. Growney, Managing Director, Motorola Ventures
"Israel is a small country with a tiny population, yet it has many significant high-tech success stories"
Sven Lingjaerarde,Co-founder and general partner, Vision Capital

Characterized by groundbreaking entrepreneurship, Israel yields pioneering technologies, profitable business opportunities and high investment returns.
This is why have so many major multi-nationals - Microsoft, Berkshire-Hathaway, Motorola, Intel, HP, Siemens, GE, IBM, Philips, Lucent, AOL, Cisco, Applied Materials, IBM, J&J and more - chose to invest in Israel.
Voicemail, the Internet Fire Wall, instant messaging, VoIP telephony (internet phone calling), modern cellular billing and video endoscopy capsules were all conceived and developed in Israel.
If Israel, with her dynamic workforce from over 100 nations, did not exist, the world would be less advanced than it is today.
Here is a capsule of Israeli accomplishments you may not be fully aware of. Israel, the 100th smallest country, with less than 1/1000th of the world’s population, can lay claim to the following:
Israel is ranked:
1st for total expenditure on R&D *
1st for business expenditure on R&D *
1st for availability of qualified scientists and engineers *
2nd for venture capital availability *
2nd for information technology skills *
3rd for Quality of Scientific Research Organizations **
3rd for Registered Patents Per Capita **
3rd for flexibility and availability of the workforce *
4th for higher education achievements *
6th for overall innovation **
* IMD Global Competitiveness Yearbook 2007-2008
** WEF Global Competitiveness Report 2008-2009
The cell phone was developed in Israel by Israelis working in the Israeli branch of Motorola, which has its largest development center in Israel.
Most of the Windows NT and XP operating systems were developed by Microsoft-Israel.
The Intel Pentium chip technology was designed in Israel.
Both the Pentium-4 microprocessor and the Centrino processor were entirely designed, developed, and produced in Israel. In January 2005, an upgraded version of its Centrino chipset
was, like its predecessor, conceived in Intel’s development center in Haifa. The product features new graphics and audio capabilities, faster processing, and greater security features. Intel’s next major endeavor, a chipset to support the more advanced WiMax standard for wireless Internet, is also being spearheaded in Israel.
The Pentium microprocessor in your computer was most likely made in Israel.
Internet voice-mail technology was developed in Israel.
Both Microsoft and Cisco built their only R&D facilities outside the U.S. in Israel.
Four young Israelis developed the technology for the AOL Instant Messenger ICQ in 1996.
Checkpoint, the world's leader in online security and inventor of Firewall, is an Israeli company.
Nobel prizes have been awarded to 167 Jews and persons of half-Jewish ancestry, accounting for 22% of all individual recipients worldwide between 1901 and 2004 and constituting 37% of all U.S. recipients during the same period. In the scientific research fields of chemistry, economics, medicine, and physics, the corresponding world and U.S. percentages are 26% and 39%, respectively. Jews currently make up approximately 0.25% of the world’s population and 2% of the U.S. population. Yet they have won prizes in these fields:
CHEMISTRY: (28 prize winners, 19% of world total, 28% of U.S. total)
ECONOMICS: (21 prize winners, 38% of world total, 53% of U.S. total)
LITERATURE: (12 prize winners, 12% of world total, 27% of U.S. total)
PHYSIOLOGY OR MEDICINE: (52 prize winners, 29% of world total, 42% of U.S. total)
PEACE: (9 prize winners, 10% of world total, 11% of U.S. total)
PHYSICS: (45 prize winners, 26% of world total, 38% of U.S. total)
In 1955, Jewish doctor Jonas Salk gave the world the polio vaccine, which was composed of “killed” polio virus that retained the ability to immunize without running the risk of infecting the patient.
Jewish entertainers, musicians, artists, comedians, singers, and film producers have blessed the world in a percentage far greater than their proportion in the world’s population.
Israel has the fourth largest air force in the world (after the U.S., Russia, and China). In addition to a large variety of other aircraft, Israel’s air force has an arsenal of over 250 F-16s. This is the largest fleet of F-16 aircraft outside of the U.S.
Israel’s US $100 billion economy is larger than all of its immediate neighbors combined.
Israel has the world’s highest percentage of home computers per capita.
©2010 United With Israel www.unitedwithisrael.com v1.2
According to industry officials, Israel has designed the airline industry’s most impenetrable flight security. U.S. officials now look to Israel for advice on how to handle airborne security threats.
Israel has developed an in-flight cell-phone system that will allow cell-phone use on airlines at an affordable price.
Israel has the highest ratio of university degrees to the population in the world; 24% of Israeli workers hold university degrees, ranking third in the industrialized world, after the U.S. and Holland, and 12% hold advanced degrees.
Israel produces more scientific papers per capita than any other nation by a large margin—109 per 10,000 people—and have one of the highest per capita rates of patents filed.
In proportion to its population, Israel has the largest number of start-up companies in the world. In absolute terms, Israel has the largest number of start-up companies compared to any other country in the world, except the U.S. (3,500 companies, mostly in high-tech). And with both high-tech companies and start-ups, Israel has the highest concentration of high-tech companies in the world—apart from the Silicon Valley in the U.S.
The first PC antivirus software was developed in Israel in 1979, and Israel continues as the world leader in developing antivirus software programs.
Israel is ranked number two in the world for venture capital funds, right behind the U.S.
Outside the U.S. and Canada, Israel has the largest number of NASDAQ-listed companies.
Israel has the highest average living standards in the Middle East.
The per capita income in 2000 was over US $17,500, exceeding that of the United Kingdom.
On a per capita basis, Israel has the largest number of biotech start-ups.
Israel is the only liberal democracy in the Middle East.
In 1984 and 1991, Israel airlifted a total of 22,000 Ethiopian Jews, at risk in Ethiopia, to safety in Israel.
When Golda Meir was elected prime minister of Israel in 1969, she became the world’s second elected female leader in modern times.
Israel has the third highest rate of entrepreneurship—and the highest rate among women and among people over 55—in the world.
Israel has the highest density of startup companies in the world some 3,850, according to the Israel Venture Capital Research Centre
Relative to its population, Israel is the largest immigrant-absorbing nation on earth. Immigrants come in search of democracy, religious freedom, and economic opportunity.
©2010 United With Israel www.unitedwithisrael.com v1.2
Israel was the first nation in the world to adopt the Kimberly process, an international standard that certifies diamonds as “conflict-free.”
Israel has the world’s second-highest per capita of new books.
Israel is the only country in the world that entered the 21st century with a net gain in its number of trees, a remarkable feat because this was achieved in an area considered mainly desert.
Israel has more museums per capita than any other country.
In 1991, during the Persian Gulf War, the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra played a concert wearing gas masks as Scud missiles fired by Saddam Hussein fell on Tel Aviv.
Israeli scientists developed the first fully computerized, no-radiation diagnostic instrumentation for breast cancer.
Israel has two official languages, Hebrew and Arabic, with both English and Russian spoken widely.
An Israeli company developed a computerized system for ensuring proper administration of medications, thus removing human error from medical treatment. Every year in U.S. hospitals, 7,000 patients die from treatment mistakes.
Israel’s Given Imaging developed the first ingestible video camera, so small it fits inside a pill. It is used to view the small intestine from the inside to detect cancer and digestive disorders.
Israeli start-up, Veterix, has developed an innovative new electronic capsule that sits in the stomach of a cow, sheep, or goat, sending out real-time information on the health of the herd, to the farmer via Email or cell phone. The e-capsule, which also sends out alerts if animals are distressed, injured, or lost, is now being tested on a herd of cows, in the hopes that the device will lead to tastier and healthier meat and milk supplies.
Researchers in Israel developed a new device that directly helps the heart pump blood, an innovation with the potential to save lives among those with heart failure. The new device is synchronized with a camera and helps doctors diagnose the heart’s mechanical operations through a sophisticated system of sensors.
Israel leads the world in the number of scientists and technicians in the workforce with 145 per 10,000, as opposed to 85 in the U.S., over 70 in Japan, and less than 60 in Germany. With over 25% of its workforce employed in technical professions, Israel places first in this category as well.
©2010 United With Israel www.unitedwithisrael.com v1.2
A new acne treatment developed in Israel, the ClearLight device, produces a high-intensity, ultraviolet-light-free, narrow-band blue light that causes acne bacteria to self-destruct—all without damaging surrounding skin or tissue.
An Israeli company was the first to develop and install a large-scale, solar-powered, and fully functional electricity-generating plant in southern California’s Mojave Desert.
Israel is a not only a world leader in high tech, bio-technology, life sciences and computers but also in green technology involving agriculture, water treatment and solar power.
In response to serious water shortages, Israeli engineers and agriculturalists developed a revolutionary drip-irrigation system to minimize the amount of water used to grow crops.
Netafim changed the world of agriculture by developing drip-irrigation technology. Israeli companies continue to lead the world in this field.
Date palms have been growing in the Middle East for centuries. The average tree is about 18 to 20 feet tall (about 5.5 to 6.1 meters) and yields about 38 pounds (about 17.2 kilograms) of dates a year. Israeli trees are now yielding 400 pounds (181.4 kilograms) per tree each year and are short enough to be harvested from the ground or a short ladder.
Through Israel’s problems associated with water scarcity, they have helped several African farming communities with drip irrigation schemes as well as establishing 1,000 water projects in 500 Romanian villages.
Israel recycles 75% of its wastewater – a world record.
It will soon be possible to order rain in Israel. A group of Israeli, Belgian and American researchers from Ben Gurion University in the Negev hope to transform this myth into a reality. ”The Geshem Project” (‘geshem’ means rain in Hebrew) could significantly reduce world hunger. A virtual simulation is planned for the near future in the Negev: For 80 million Euros, the system put in place over a surface of 9 kilometers squared could bring rain to a region measuring 40 to 100 km2.
Israel airlifted over 14,000 threatened individuals to their country in the space of 36 hours who would have otherwise faced widespread persecution.
Israel was one of the first countries to respond after the Pakistani earthquake in 2005 even though they have still not recognized Israel as a legitimate state.
An award-winning scientist at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev developed a biological control for mosquitoes and black flies that cause malaria and river blindness, saving the sight and lives of millions of people in Africa and China.
©2010 United With Israel www.unitedwithisrael.com v1.2
Microsoft has one of its three "strategic development centers" outside the US in Israel. It is based on several startup companies that Microsoft has acquired in Israel, which are now part of this development center.
The Israeli company M-Systems developed the USB-Flash Drives, used for portable storage all over the world. The company was recently bought by SanDisk, an American company, the world's leader in the flash storage market, established by an Israeli guy.
IBM, Kodak, Cisco, HP, Google, Novell and many more, also have large scale research and development centers in Israel. Videos:
1. Israel – Defying the Odds
2. Israel - From Innovation to Freedom
3. Start-up Nation, the story of Israel’s Economic Miracle
4. Environmental technologies developed by Israel
5. Novel Efficient Water Technologies
6. Truly Amazing Advanced Solar Cell from Israel
7. Israel Boasts Agricultural Innovations
8. Eliminating Rural Poverty
9. eFuture of Israel
10. Israel - Your NEXT best investment
11. Before you boycott Israel
12. I am Israel
Articles:
1. Unmatched Israeli Innovation Praised in New Book
2. Israel’s impact on the world
3. Israel and the Arab World - Their Contribution to Mankind
4. Science and Technology in Israel
©2010 United With Israel www.unitedwithisrael.com v1.2
5. Israel – A World Leader in Agricultural Technology
6. Israel plows new ground in exotic crops
7. Innovations in Medical Technology
8. How Israel's NewTECH Is Watering The Economy
9. Israel ranked 17th-most competitive economy
10. Despite Rejection and Isolation, Israel Keeps Giving
PDF Documents:
1. Israeli’s Economy at a Glance
2. Israel Life Science Industry- The Wealth of Innovation
3. Israel’s Agriculture- Innovations Make the Land Boom
Books:
1. Start-Up Nation – The story of Israel’s Economic Miracle
2. Israel in the World: Changing Lives through Innovation
3. The Golden Age of Jewish Achievement
Rockets into Roses Project Videos:
1. New York Times - Rockets Into Roses
2. Rockets into Roses Slideshow
3. Watch Israeli Artist Turns Kassam Rockets into Roses
4. CBN News – Rockets into Roses
5. TV Interview – Rockets into Roses
6. Kassam Rocket Attacks in Israel Playlist
7. Operation Lifeshield Playlist

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facts

1. A cat can run about 20 kilometres per hour (12 miles per hour) when it
grows up.
2. A cheetah can run 76 kilometres per hour (46 miles per hour) - that's
really fast! The fastest human beings runs only about 30 kilometres per
hour (18 miles per hour).
3. The original name for the butterfly was 'flutterby'!
4. The largest frog in the world is called Goliath frog. Frogs start their lives as
'eggs' often laid in or near fresh water. Frogs live on all continents except
Antarctica. Frogs belong to a group of animals called amphibians.
5. Bears whose brown fur is tipped with lighter-colored hairs are called
grizzly bears . The smallest species of bears is called sun or Malayan
bears. Male bears are called boars. Bears are native to the continents of
North America, Asia, Europe, and South America. Alaskan brown bears,
world's largest meat-eating animals that live on land, can weigh as much
as 1,700 pounds (771 kilograms)
6. There are more than 50 different kinds of kangaroos. Kangaroos are
native of Australia. A group of kangaroos is called a mob. Young
kangaroos are called joeys.
7. A chameleon's tongue is twice the length of its body.
8. A chimpanzee can learn to recognize itself in a mirror, but monkeys can't.
9. A rat can last longer without water than a camel can.
10. A woodpecker can peck twenty times a second.
11. A cow gives nearly 200,000 glasses of milk in her lifetime
12.The world's largest mammal, the blue whale, weighs 50 tons at birth. Fully
grown, it weighs as much as 150 tons.
13. Dolphins sleep with one eye open!
14.A cat sees about six times better than a human at night because of the
tapetum lucidum , a layer of extra reflecting cells which absorb light.
15.A cat uses whiskers to determine if a space is too small to squeeze
through. The whiskers act as antennae, helping the animal to judge the
precise width of any passage.
16.A cat will clean itself with paw and tongue after a dangerous experience or
when it has fought with another cat. This is an attempt by the animal to
soothe its nerves by doing something natural and instinctive.
17.No two zebras have stripes that are exactly alike.
18.The smallest bird in the world is the Hummingbird. It weighs 1oz.
19.Insects do not make noises with their voices!
The noise of bees, mosquitoes and other buzzing insects is caused by
rapidly moving their wings.
20.The only 2 animals that can see behind itself without turning it's head are:
The rabbit and the parrot.
21.A snail can sleep for 3 years!
22.A giraffe can clean its ears with its 21-inch tongue!
23.Ants don't sleep.
24.A crocodile always grows new teeth to replace the old teeth!
25.Butterflies tast sensors are in their feet. They taste their food by standing
on it.
26.Many snakes never stop growing. That's one reason they must shed their
skin.

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POPULAR USE OF THE INTERNET

There are so many things that the Internet users can do and participate
in, once connected to the Internet;
Performing Research
Thousands of databases, libraries, and research institutions around the
world are available, to gather information on any topics of interest for
work or recreation. The information can be in the form of text, pictures,
or even video material.
Communication
Keep in touch and send things to colleagues and friends using
electronic mail, the Internet telephone, keyboard chat, and video
conferencing.
Obtaining News
The Internet users can stay up to date with news, sports, the weather,
and any current affairs around the world with information updated daily,
hourly, or instantly. www.sciencesnews.org and http://news,com are two
popular news sites.
Learning
Distant education (e-learning) is another possibility on the Web. Most
colleges now offer courses via the Web, enabling the Internet users to
earn college credit, diplomas, and degrees from home using the Internet
user's computer. http://www.worldwidelearn.com/global-education.htm
and http://www.uwex.edu/disted are two examples.
Shopping
People who can not stand parking hassles, limited store hours, and
check out lines, the Web provides a shopping alternative. For example;
www.ebay.com, www.theinternetmall.com link to online merchants
selling anything such as flowers, clothing, computers, andelectronics
are available on the Web. It is possible to find online shopping Web sites
for each country and city.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of online shopping?

Download is the process
of copying a file from a
remote computer to your
computer.

Freeware is software that
is available free of charge
for personal use.
Shareware is software that
is distributed free on a trial
basis with the
understanding that the user
may need or want to pay for
it later.

Playing video or sound in
real time as it is
downloaded over the
Internet is called
streaming. Streaming
requires a powerful
computer and fast
connection since the file is
not stored on your
computer.

Broadcast is the sending
of messages or video to all
points simultaneously.

Downloading Computer Software
Software and other products that are available in cyberspace. Internet
users can update their programs or download the freeware, shareware
and commercial version of the products. www.download.com and
www.shareware.com are two popular downloading sites. You should
scan all downloaded files and programs for viruses before opening
them.
Publishing
All type of information can be published on the Internet by uploading
information to the Web servers.
Entertainment
The Internet users can listen to sounds and music, and watch digital
movies, Streaming media technology permits to broadcast audio and
video to users across the Internet. Nowadays most of the TV and Radio
stations have the Internet broadcast. The Internet connection speed is
very important for receiving TV and Radio broadcasts. Besides the Web
browsers media programs also can be used for watching TV. such as;
Windows Media Player, iTunes, and Real Player.
There are also a growing number of interactive multimedia games in the internet.

 

Listening to Internet Radio Stations

Travel Plans
Using the Web makes possible to organize a travel plan while sitting in
front of a computer. The Internet users can search for flights, hotels and
book reservations through the Internet. Also, it is possible to have your
ticket delivered to your home. In addition, reviews of restaurant guides
and reservations are available on the Internet. The Internet also helps to
get information about the weather, maps, and regions of interests.
www.mobissimo.com, www.travel.com and www.hotwire.com are examples of such sites.

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INTERNET SERVERS

The Internet is made up of client computers, servers, cables and network
connection devices. Each has a different role in the Internet
infrastructures: connection devices are responsible for data traffic
whereas servers enable information and resources to be shared among
the computers. Servers are configured as high performance computers
and running special software to perform their tasks. They operate 24
hours a day for full time service to their clients.
Some of the Servers and Their Tasks
Web Servers
Web Servers are foundation of the Internet. The Web pages are stored
in Web servers. Whenever you open up your browser and type in a Web
site address, it is the server that gets you the page you request.
Mail Servers
Mail Serves are as crucial as Web servers. They move and store mails
over private networks and across the Internet.
FTP (File Transfer Protocol) Servers
FTP servers store text files, graphic files, sound files, etc, and let the
client download and upload them.
Database Servers
Database Servers are specifically configured to run database software.
A database is a collection of data that is organized so that its contents
can easily be accessed, managed, and updated.
Content Management Servers
Content management servers enable the process of creating, editing,
storing, organizing, and publishing content on the Web.
Real-Time Communication Servers
Chat, and IRC servers enable a large number of users to exchange
information in an environment similar to an Internet newsgroup but with
real-time discussion capabilities. Instant messaging servers, like chat
servers, facilitate communication in real time. However, instant
messaging generally involves one conversation between two people.
DNS (Domain Name Server)
DNS matches up the URL of a Web site (eg www.zambak.com) with its
proper numeric IP address. It translates www.zambak.com into the
unique numeric IP address 212.175.211.243. Whenever you request a
Web page the Web browser must consult the domain name server to find
out what the numeric translation of the URL is. This is necessary because
computers only understand the numeric IP address, whereas people
prefer to use meaningful and more memorable text.

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THE HISTORY OF THE INTERNET

The Internet was born in the sixties, as a result of the "Cold War"
between the former Soviet Union and the US. At that time, the defense
system of the US was built up on computers, which were
interconnected. A nuclear attack on this central unit could bring the
complete defense system of the US to a standstill.
If a nuclear bomb blew up one computer, another computer could
instantly take over; thus, the computer network wouldn't go down. So,
the Internet was created by the U.S. Department of Defense in 1969
under the name ARPANet (ARPA was the department's Advance
Research Project Agency). It was built to serve two purposes;
􀁺 To share research among military, industry, and university sources.
􀁺 To provide a system for sustaining communication among military
units in the event of nuclear attack.
At first each computer was physically linked by cable to the next
computer, but this approach has obvious limitations, which led to the
development of networks utilizing the telephone system. So the Internet
systems are based on the phone systems, The Internet traffic basically
travels over phone lines. Because of this reason the Internet and phone
system are similar. The pictures and table help to understand showing
the similarities:
After invention of the Internet, other organizations, such as colleges and
universities, home and office users started connecting their computers
to this growing network to share information.
In 1972 - when the network included 23 computers - electronic mail, or
e-mail, was developed. At the end of the 1970s,the discussion groups
called newsgroups came into existence.
Find the information about inventors of the e-mail and the WWW.
Research

Transmits data such as pictures, text, sound, and           Transmits data such as voice via standard
video via different types of transmission lines                         telephone lines

Requires that each participant system have a           Requires that each participant in the system has
unique ID, i.e., IP number, e-mail address               a unique ID, i.e., phone number

Uses various types of equipment to perform many  Uses various types of equipment to perform
functions-phones, computers, routers, modems,         many functions-phones, switches, and so on
and so on

                                        Comparing the Internet and the Phone System
Between the 1970s and 1983, the ARPANet was connected to further
networks. The large new network that resulted from these connections
was called the Internet since it connected several networks with one          
another. Also in this year, an address system (URL) that allowed
computers on the Internet to have names rather than the numbers by
which they had previously been identified was established.
Gradually, more and more countries connected to the Internet, and by
1988, more than 50,000 computers were connected to this network. Until
this point, the Internet was used primarily by the academic world. In 1989
Web pages were invented. Web page is a page on the World Wide Web

URL is the acronym for
"Uniform Resource
Locator," this is the address
of a resource on the
Internet. World Wide Web
URLs begin with http://              


A Web page is a
document designed for
viewing in a Web browser.
Typically written in HTML.

Web Browser is a
software that gives a user
access to the World Wide
Web. Web browsers often
provide a graphical
interface that lets users
click buttons, icons, and
menu options to view and
navigate Web pages.
Microsoft Internet Explorer
and Firefox are popular
Web browsers.
World Internet Usage and Population Statistics by March 2006
In 1993, a graphical Web browser was invented that allowed users to
navigate easily from one place to another on the Internet. More and more
people outside of the academic world began to use the Internet. At the
beginning of the year 2005, there were more than 300 million Internet
users

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M O D U L A R S Y S T E M INTERNET

The Internet is made up of millions of computers linked together around
the world in such a way that information can be exchanged between any
computer at any time. These computers can be in homes, schools,
universities, government departments, or businesses small and large.
The Internet is often described as 'a network of networks' because all
the smaller networks of organizations are linked together into the one
giant network called the Internet. All computers are pretty much equal
once connected to the Internet; the only differences will be the speed of the connection which is dependent on your Internet Service Provider
and your own connecting device such as modem, network card.
The Internet is the transport vehicle for the information stored in files or
documents on another computer. The Internet itself does not contain
information. It is a slight wrong statement to say a "document was found
on the Internet." It would be more correct to say it was found through or
using the Internet. What it was found in (or on) is one of the computers
linked to the Internet.
The Internet is also called Information Superhighway, Cyberspace, the
Virtual World or INET. INET is short form of InterNET.

The most important properties of The Internet

 Network dedicated,

 Based on the Internet suite of protocols (TCP/IP protocol),

 A non-commercial,

Self-governing,

Used for mostly to communication and research,

 No real center or central "Hub.",

Not an online service,

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