"If there is one story that has been largely missed despite the extensive media coverage of Israel, it is that key economic metrics demonstrate that Israel represents the greatest concentration of innovation and entrepreneurship in the world today." That is the central thesis of Start-Up Nation: The Story of Israel's Economic Miracle, by Dan Senor and Saul Singer, out this week. It's one I saw again and again in my fortnight in the Holy Land, where my pilgrimages included not only trips to the Western Wall and the Dead Sea but to forward-thinking VC firms, boundary-pushing media/tech startups and industry gatherings of Silicon Valley-type geeks, except they code from right to left. (more...)

Shalom! I write this from balmy and bustling Tel Aviv, where I landed Thursday morning, marking my first-ever visit to Israel. I will be here for the next week or so and will be writing occasional dispatches from the Holy Land as I sightsee, get in touch with my People, and eat hummus. Seriously, whoever said this was the Land of Milk and Honey forgot to mention the hummus. (more...)