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Examined self-concept, self-esteem, and life satisfaction among 119 immigrants to Israel from the former Soviet Union and 135 Israeli classmates. Immigrant adolescents reported less satisfaction with their lives and less congruence between their self-concept and the ways in which they were perceived by others. (SLD)

Routine quarrying activity at the Nesher-Ramla Quarry, in the Judean Lowlands, Israel, has recently exposed a new Early Holocene archaeological site located in a small natural sinkhole, one of many dolines scattered in the area, dated to the Early Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (EPPNB). It is the first site of this period to be uncovered in the narrow strip of land between the Judean Mts. and the coastal plain. This site, dubbed NRQN, contains lithic artifacts, groundstone tools, shells and beads as well as botanical and faunal remains. Here we combine data from a series of studies on the site's stratigraphy and radiometric dating, paleoenvironment, sediments and material culture, with the aim of understanding the role of the site in the EPPNB sphere. Various human activities took place in or immediately adjacent to the sinkhole, predominantly domestic in nature, including stone-tool making and food consumption. However, some of the sediments deep within the sinkhole underwent intense in situ combustion, possibly associated with episodes of lime-plaster production. The filling of the sinkhole appears to have occurred rapidly, not exceeding a few hundred years (ca. 10,500–10,300 cal. BP) and was driven by both geogenic and anthropogenic sedimentation processes. Good preservation of microvertebrate, macrovertebrae, short-lived plants and wood remains at the site, provides a unique opportunity to study the environmental characteristics of this geographical area during the Early Holocene, which appears to have been of an open grassy landscape with patchy Mediterranean forest, resembling the current environmental conditions. Studying the characteristics of Early Holocene human activity at the site, its paleoenvironment, and the site formation mechanisms, also provides useful comparisons with the nearby NRQ Middle Paleolithic site (this issue). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article addressed the key psychological issues that arise in encounters between the world of analytical psychotherapy and the inner world of patients belonging to the ultraorthodox (Haredi) community in Israel. The ultraorthodox community is characterized by isolationism and withdrawal, whether as a means of protecting itself from the influence of unacceptable lifestyles or as an ideal that eschews mingling with secular or semi-secular communities. Thus, the community maintains itself apart from the mainstream Israeli public in terms of its religious beliefs and independent culture. Ultraorthodox leadership has been instrumental in building fences around the community in order to preserve its unique identity and clear-cut rules of conduct. The article reviews the internal conflicts that exist between the ultraorthodox belief system and the values of dynamic psychotherapy, the presence of the "analytic third"—God—in the therapeutic space occupied by the therapist and patient, and the fear of "knowledge" that exposes members of the community to existential questions over unquestioning acceptance of the community's social authority. Two case studies are presented that shed light on the incongruity that exists between sanctification by the ultraorthodox community of the halachic (Jewish law) authority of its rabbis and the psychoanalytical viewpoint that upholds self and subjectivity as prime goals in therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last two decades, much of the recent efforts dedicated to the Levantine Middle Paleolithic has concentrated on the role of open-air sites in the settlement system in the region. Here focus on the site of ‘Ein Qashish as a cases study. Located in present-day northern Israel, the area of this site is estimated to have been >1300 m2, of which ca. 670 were excavated. The site is located at the confluence of the Qishon stream with a small tributary running off the eastern flanks of the Mt. Carmel. At the area of this confluence, water channels and alluvial deposits created a dynamic depositional environment. Four Archaeological Units were identified in a 4.5-m thick stratigraphic sequence were dated by Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) to between—71 and 54 ka, and probably shorter time span–~70-~60 ka. Here we present the diverse material culture remains from the site (lithics, including refitted sequences; modified limestone pieces; molluscs; faunal remains) against their changing paleogeographic backdrop. Skeletal evidence suggests that these remains were associated with Neanderthals. The large-scale repeated accumulation of late Middle Paleolithic remains in the same place on the landscape provides a unique opportunity to address questions of occupation duration and intensity in open-air sites. We find that each occupation was of ephemeral nature, yet presents a range of activities, suggesting that the locale has been used as a generalized residential site rather than specialized task-specific ones. This role of ‘Ein Qashish did not change through time, suggesting that during the late Middle Paleolithic settlement system in this part of the southern Levant were stable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South-western Samaria is emerging as a major province of Paleolithic cave sites. Most recently discovered caves have been naturally filled with terra-rossa type colluvial deposits when the hillslopes above the caves were stripped from vegetation during late Quaternary times. Site formation processes differ significantly between caves with pit-like openings, such as Qesem, Emanuel, and Rantis caves, vs. those with cliff-side entrances, such as Shukbah, Tinshemet, and Deir Kaddis caves. The former favored accumulation of colluvial debris, while the latter were relatively protected from these deposits. Caves discovered in the 20th century were mainly of the latter, cliff-face type, while in the 21st century new discoveries commonly occur where construction works intersect previously unnoticed filled caves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A karst survey of the western upper Galilee in Israel shows that karst has been a dominant geomorphic factor throughout the Cenozoic. We discuss the geomorphic character of Manot Cave on the background of other karst features of the region, in order to decipher the preferences of the humans who favored this cave over others. Tens of caves distributed over the study area demonstrate that phreatic and hypogene isolated voids and conduit segments are more abundant than vadose shafts, sinking stream caves and spring caves, although all these types are present. Most caves belong to old stages of landform development, prior to Plio-Pleistocene uplift and stream entrenchment. Manot Cave is a relict chamber cave, which corresponds to a plaeo-water table and the erosion plain above it. Subaerial denudation and slope processes have opened the cave to the surface during the mid-late Pleistocene. Manot Cave is compared with other caves in the region, demonstrating its unique character. It may have been selected due to the small entrance facing to the SW, and the large inner chamber which could be used for non-domestic purposes. This suggests a possible role of a unique behavioral and cultural suite of characters which influenced hominin preferences. The cave was used by hominins and animals until being closed again by colluvium and possibly collapse, ∼30 ka. Clastic, chemical, archaeozoological and anthropogenic accumulations reflect the various stages of cave development and gradual sealing of the entrance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) is an autosomal recessive recurrent episodic inflammatory disorder that occurs with high frequency in certain populations in the Mediterranean area. Using extended pedigree data of 90 FMF probands, we calculated the FMF gene frequency in various ethnic groups in Israel by analyzing the frequency in a total of 2,312 first cousins. The heterozygote frequencies were as follows: 1:4.9 (0.2 +/- 0.06) for the Libyan subgroup, 1:6.4 (0.16 +/- 0.03) for the other North African countries subgroup, 1:13.3 (0.07 +/- 0.04) for the Iraqi subgroup, 1:11.4 (0.09 +/- 0.06) for the Ashkenazic subgroup, and 1:29.4 (0.03 +/- 0.03) for the remaining ethnic groups. The observed number of affected parents and offspring of the probands was in agreement with the estimated gene frequency. Thus, the FMF gene frequency is very high in all Jewish ethnic groups in Israel, especially those originating in North African countries. This also explains the parent-to-off-spring transmission of FMF reported in North-African Jews.

To identify a specific heterozygote advantage in familial Mediterranean fever (FMF), responsible for the high carrier rate of 1/6 in North African Jews, we studied the morbidity and mortality of 148 parents of affected patients and of 148 ethnically matched control persons. Our data demonstrate an apparently reduced prevalence of asthma in the heterozygotes compared with the control persons (3 vs. 6). There were no significant differences between the 2 groups in fertility rate, number of pregnancies and deliveries, or the prevalence of common diseases. Our data are in agreement with previous studies which demonstrated decreased asthma prevalence in FMF patients. It further confirmed, these findings suggest that identification of the FMF gene on 16p may provide an insight into asthma.