When I arrived in Israel at the beginning of the summer for a ten-week research experience, I must admit that I was rather overwhelmed.  From daily slops of the mushy bean paste called hummus to confusing Hebrew characters, strange currency, and the pervasiveness of Jewish religion in the workplace, my whole being felt a bit off-kilter my first week abroad.  Given that I arrived midweek and the weekend in Israel starts on Friday with all businesses being closed on Saturday for Shabbat, my days were even more muddled than what jet lag typically entails!

During that first week and over the course of my summer abroad, I worked on analyzing data in Dr. Rony Paz's Neurobiology research lab at the Weizmann Institute in Rehovot, Israel.  Dr. Paz is a new faculty member whose interests involve the social and emotional aspects of the working brain in Rhesus monkeys.  As one of the few people in the world who studies the primate amygdala, an area of the brain attributed to emotion and attention, his research aspirations are directly in line with the data I've been collecting over the past three years in Dr. Katalin Gothard's lab at the UA.  By analyzing these data, which include recordings from neurons in the amygdala while the monkey slept and watched emotionally-charged videos, the two of us hoped to elucidate how neural activity is altered during different brain states and how the amygdala may be involved in the formation of emotional memories...two very exciting topics which have potential applications to comprehending post-traumatic-stress-disorder, the benefits of meditation, and unique techniques to stimulate motivational learning.

While most of my work this summer involved sitting at a computer desk, writing programs, and reading scientific literature, I also learned a lot from the weekly journal clubs and symposia sponsored by The Department of Neurobiology.  From talks on protein evolution to motor control by the brain, I was able to gain insight into the multiple fields of neuroscience both at the Weizmann Institute and around the world.  Having been invited to sit in on graduate school courses free of charge, I also attended regular lectures given by the Weizmann faculty on general statistics, introductory neuroscience, memory, and harmonic oscillations.  I must concede that I was really quite pleased with myself for being able to follow what was going on in these graduate-level classes; it was the first time I was able to truly recognize what an excellent education the UA has given me.

Excluding the fact that Jewish philosophy was a regular topic of conversation in the workplace and every door had a mezuzah (a small prayer box) nailed to it, the research aspect of my trip was remarkably similar to my experiences in the United States.  I always found it funny how the participants of the journal club were continually debating the validity of a paper being published in Science or Nature (two of the top journals in research of course).  I think this argument goes on in every journal club around the world!  I also felt at ease with the very relaxed atmosphere, where students were eager to help one another out with their research, but not so involved in their work that they forgot what it meant to be social human beings--enjoying leisurely lunch chats and exchanging pirated Hebrew music!

As one week folded into another, I felt more at home.  I guess I became in tune with the culture of Israel.  While once I had been concerned that the kosher separation of meat and dairy products would result in a severe lack of dietary protein, soon I discovered tasty Israeli dishes like falafel, shawarma, and shakshuka-all rich in essential amino acids and all incredibly foreign and delicious. 

Though my stomach somersaulted the first time I encountered all the young people my age donned in military garb carrying rifles around town, I soon realized that they as well as the metal detectors at the mall and cinema only made things safer for me.  Whereas I had first been wary of speaking to anyone since I was afraid they wouldn't understand my English, I soon relinquished this unwarranted concern and in turn discovered the refreshingly frank demeanor of the Israeli people (though sometimes I admit that the Israeli personality was a bit too harsh for the happy-go-lucky American attitude I'm so used to!).

During my weekends in Israel, I traveled with other students who had come to the Weizmann Institute for the summer through an Institute sponsored program.  As we drove through the country-side to places like the Druze village in Mt. Carmel and the ancient Roman sea-side port of Caesarea, I was surprised to see the similarities in terrain and plant-life that the Israeli desert shares with Arizona.  In addition to the native prickly-pear cacti, however, there were also massive fields cultivated with various fruits and vegetables ranging from bananas plantations to olive groves.  The other summer students and I all enjoyed a weekend away at the Sea of Galilee, where we swam in the lake and went on an early morning hike.  Of course, I made numerous trips to Jerusalem, visiting the Old City as well as the Holocaust memorial museum at Yad Vashem.  It was incredibly humbling to visit the Old City of Jerusalem, a city so ancient and so concentrated with spirituality.  Even for non-religious people, there's something to be said about the sheer beauty and candor that you observe in the Holy City-a place where three world religions come together and faith in intangible things seems to hover so delicately in such a precarious corporeal world.

Now that I've arrived safely back in Arizona, much to the comfort of concerned friends and family, I look back on my summer abroad with fond satisfaction.  Though I didn't accomplish as much as I'd originally intended in terms of research, I gained insight into culture and friendship...things, which are, in themselves, immeasurable.  While I may occasionally have an absurd craving for falafel or baklawa in the next few weeks, and though I hope to one day see Jerusalem again, I've come to realize something else-although Israel and anyplace abroad is host to various unique foods, landscapes, and sites, the thing I'll miss most about my trip are the friendships I made.  It is truly the people who I encountered that made my experience what it was and which define Israel for me.  And unlike these other aspects of Israel, the friendships I made and the science I performed transcend beyond the confines of a national border...souvenirs which I can carry in my pocket forever, notions which don't spoil nearly as quickly as a fanny-pack full of goopy Israeli hummus.

Clayton Mosher, UBRPer in Dr. Katalin Gothard's lab, Physiology