tag:theconversation.com,2011:/fr/topics/science-board-25828/articlesscience board – The Conversation2016-03-15T04:15:51Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/561562016-03-15T04:15:51Z2016-03-15T04:15:51ZScans and DNA tests reveal the secrets of a rare African mummy<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114912/original/image-20160314-11302-zachht.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A three-dimensional volume rendering of the Tuli mummy.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">SA Journal of Science</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>He lay alone in a shallow grave at the base of a cliff for hundreds of years. Then, in 2008, patrol staff at a game lodge stumbled across the man’s remains - and he became the <a href="http://repository.up.ac.za/bitstream/handle/2263/19039/Mosothwane_Tuli%282011%29.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y">first mummy</a> ever found in Botswana. Now a team of scientists from Botswana, South Africa and Switzerland has used <a href="http://www.fda.gov/Radiation-EmittingProducts/RadiationEmittingProductsandProcedures/MedicalImaging/MedicalX-Rays/ucm115318.htm">computerised tomography</a> (CT) scanning and <a href="http://www.sfu.ca/ipinch/resources/fact-sheets/ancient-dna-adna-what-it-why-it-important">ancient DNA</a> analysis to <a href="http://www.sajs.co.za/radiological-and-genetic-analysis-late-iron-age-mummy-tuli-block-botswana/frank-j-r%C3%BChli-maryna-steyn-morongwa-n-mosothwane-lena-%C3%B6hrstr%C3%B6m-molebogeng-k-bodiba-abigail-bouwman">uncover</a> some of the Tuli mummy’s secrets. The Conversation Africa’s science and technology editor Natasha Joseph asked two of the study’s authors, Maryna Steyn and Frank Rühli, to explain what they found.</em></p>
<p><strong>The Tuli mummy is one of a kind, so mummification obviously wasn’t a common practise in Botswana. Was it common elsewhere in southern Africa?</strong></p>
<p>Mummification was not common in southern Africa, but it did happen. This is the first mummy found in Botswana. A few have been found in neighbouring South Africa, like the 2000 year old <a href="http://repository.up.ac.za/bitstream/handle/2263/5758/Steyn_Kouga(2007).pdf?sequence=1">Kouga mummy</a>.</p>
<p>Ethnographic literature, particularly focusing on Zimbabwe, <a href="http://stpxml.sourceforge.net/Sites/Stilbaai/KRK/pdf/front.pdf">suggests</a> that after a leader died, his body was not immediately interred but may have been treated by
usually slowly drying it over a low fire. This may have assisted in the preservation of such a body. The body would then be wrapped in a cloth or bull hide and buried at the same time that the leader’s successor came to power. </p>
<p>The Tuli remains were not intentionally mummified - they mummified by accident. The dry conditions led to the drying out, or dessication, of the remains. This contributed to the mummification or preservation of soft tissues such as skin and tendons. So the remains were naturally mummified.</p>
<p><strong>How does one perform a CT scan on a mummy? It must be quite risky, given the fragile condition of the remains. Is it a common procedure elsewhere in the world where mummies are found more frequently?</strong></p>
<p>Modern imaging techniques have opened up a whole new world when it comes to mummy studies. CT scans are frequently used, though it can be a risky process - the mummy can be damaged during transportation and scanning. The scientists involved usually wrap the mummy and wear gloves as much as possible so that the mummy isn’t physically damaged.</p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114913/original/image-20160314-11288-1nzzvew.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114913/original/image-20160314-11288-1nzzvew.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114913/original/image-20160314-11288-1nzzvew.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114913/original/image-20160314-11288-1nzzvew.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114913/original/image-20160314-11288-1nzzvew.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114913/original/image-20160314-11288-1nzzvew.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114913/original/image-20160314-11288-1nzzvew.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The intact mummy, covered with animal skin, as it was discovered at the base of a cliff in Botswana.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">SA Journal of Science</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Also, as these mummies are not in the same position a living patient would be - supine, straight or on their back - it is sometimes difficult to fit them into the scanner. The Tuli mummy, for instance, was found curled up into a foetal position. These unusual body positions sometimes make it difficult to interpret the scans’ findings.</p>
<p>But CT scans give us the chance to get really important medical and archaeological information through non-invasive examinations.</p>
<p><strong>What did the CT scans and DNA analysis tell you about the Tuli mummy? Who was he?</strong></p>
<p>In the initial study his age was estimated to be between 40 and 55, but the new information from our scans suggests that the Tuli mummy was definitely older than 50. He lived during the Iron Age or, more specifically, the <a href="http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/pdf/10.1146/annurev.an.11.100182.001025">Late Iron Age</a>, and suffered from degenerative disease, especially of the spine. We could tell this because of the osteophytes along his spine. These are bony projections that suggest degeneration of the joints.</p>
<p>The scans didn’t reveal any preserved organs, which means they either degenerated after death or were removed before burial. The second is unlikely, since it would be unusual practice in the area.</p>
<p>We also did aDNA analysis, which stands for ancient DNA. It is old, and therefore difficult to extract. One has to do this in a specialised aDNA laboratory. One of the co-authors on our paper in the SA Journal of Science was Molebogeng Bodiba, who travelled to Switzerland to work in a dedicated aDNA lab.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/X3OF5HsfN5g?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Extracting ancient DNA is a delicate, fascinating process.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The Tuli mummy marks the first time that ancient DNA has been extracted from a southern African mummy. Generally speaking, this helps scientists to get a better understanding of things like local population genetics.</p>
<p>His aDNA revealed that Tuli was related to modern day <a href="http://www.sahistory.org.za/people-south-africa/sotho-south-sotho-or-basotho">Sotho-Tswana</a> and <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/09/120920141139.htm">Khoesan</a> people. This is what we would have expected, but it’s great to have it confirmed and to see that the technology works.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/56156/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Maryna Steyn receives funding from the National Research Foundation</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Frank Rühli does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Modern techniques such as CT scanning and ancient DNA analysis have allowed scientists to discover a great deal about a mummy found in a shallow grave in Botswana.Maryna Steyn, Professor; Head of the School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the WitwatersrandFrank Rühli, Director of the Institute of Evolutionary Medicine, University of ZurichLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/560272016-03-14T04:23:57Z2016-03-14T04:23:57ZWhy African scientists must be champions for democracy<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114462/original/image-20160309-13689-c2n5iz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Science and innovation can improve the world –but scientists have to help ensure strong democracies too.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Reuters/Kumerra Gemechu </span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Hundreds of people were murdered in my home town during three bloody days in December 2015. They were victims of what’s come to be called the <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/zaria-massacre-u-s-joins-calls-investigation-deaths-kaduna-state-n480981">Zaria massacre</a>, killed by soldiers who were supposed to protect them. A baby girl, scores of children, university students and journalists were among those killed in the Nigerian town where I grew up. If I had been home in December, I could have been among the victims. </p>
<p>This incident – one of many stories of <a href="https://www.hrw.org/africa">human rights violations</a> in Africa – may not sound like it has anything to do with science or maths. But it’s actually inextricably linked with an ongoing drive to find the <a href="http://nef.org/">next Albert Einstein</a> right here on the continent. For what is the point of finding this new Einstein, or many Einsteins, if they cannot do their work safely or actively contribute to building democracy on the continent?</p>
<h2>Scientists and humanity</h2>
<p>There is <a href="https://theconversation.com/maths-and-science-are-the-keys-to-unlocking-africas-potential-55237">no doubt</a> that scientists and mathematicians have an enormous amount to contribute to Africa’s future. They can develop vaccines and cures for disease, find ways to purify drinking water, create mathematical and statistical models, and engineer infrastructure.</p>
<p>That is only one side of the coin, though. African mathematicians and scientists must play an equally active role in establishing and protecting a democratic continent where basic human rights are respected in principle and practice. This notion of a science-humanity connection isn’t unprecedented. Benjamin Franklin <a href="https://www.fi.edu/benjamin-franklin-faq">invented</a> bifocals, the lightning rod and swim fins, among other things. But he was also a leader of the American revolution and one of the founders of the United States. </p>
<p>There are more recent examples: German Chancellor <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/how-angela-merkel-became-the-most-powerful-woman-in-the-world-2015-2">Angela Merkel</a> has a doctorate in physical chemistry. In Asia, it’s <a href="http://campaignstops.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/13/why-dont-americans-elect-scientists/?_r=0">common</a> for politicians to be trained scientists.</p>
<p>So how can scientists be equipped with the tools to become activists for democracy?</p>
<h2>Learning beyond science</h2>
<p>In 2003 I was honoured to be among the first cohort of students at the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences’ <a href="https://www.aims.ac.za/en/about/about-aims">(AIMS)</a> South African centre. Such a space wouldn’t have been possible before the country became a democracy in 1994 under the leadership of Nelson Mandela – young scientists of different races wouldn’t have been able to mix, share ideas and learn from each other during apartheid. Other centres have opened in Senegal, Ghana, Cameroon and Tanzania; a sixth will be opened in Rwanda soon. The organisation’s purpose is to develop young scientists and mathematicians. But it goes further.</p>
<p>One of the most exciting aspects of my curriculum back in 2003 was the sessions set aside for exploring contemporary social and political issues. We were taught how to be creative and critical not just in our own scientific research but in all matters. This offers a valuable model: where young scientists gather, there must be discussions about democracy and human rights alongside those about physics, maths, chemistry, biotechnology, innovation and so on.</p>
<p>For instance, the 2018 Next Einstein Forum (the second of its kind after 2016’s March <a href="http://nef.org/">meeting</a> in Dakar, Senegal), should organise spaces for such discussions. This platform is a chance for questions and problems to be raised and possible solutions to be analysed. Politicians, NGOs and other non-scientists should be welcome, too – their input and influence are crucial for implementation. But such work can’t only happen at special, occasional gatherings. It needs to be carried out on a smaller scale, too.</p>
<h2>Developing activist scientists</h2>
<p>Mathematicians and scientists are not members of some secret cult with hidden ideas or agendas. Young people must be taught from school that there’s more to these disciplines than remaining cloistered in a laboratory or absorbed in theoretical work. They need to understand that their work can be applied to real change, and that they have a role to play in African democracies.</p>
<p>There are a number of politically active scientists around the world who could drive this process. I met several at AIMS, among them applied scientist and engineer <a href="http://web.mit.edu/sanjoy/www/">Sanjoy Mahajan</a> and <a href="http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/david-mackay-appointed-regius-professor-of-engineering">David MacKay</a>, the former chief scientific advisor to the UK Government’s Department of Energy and Climate Change. Many others exist who could play a valuable role in educating scientists about their social obligations. Activists, journalists and humanitarians can also get involved in teaching scientists about the world beyond their laboratories.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/56027/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Shehu AbdusSalam has been affiliated from childhood with the Islamic Movement in Nigeria. </span></em></p>African mathematicians and scientists have an important role to play in establishing and protecting a democratic continent.Shehu AbdusSalam, Assistant professor, high energy physics, Shahid Beheshti University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/560302016-03-10T09:20:00Z2016-03-10T09:20:00ZIt will take education, not just legislation, to tackle cybercrime<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114439/original/image-20160309-13704-13qbymd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Cybercriminals take advantage of computer users’ lack of education about their methods.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>South Africa’s government is taking cybercrime seriously. The revised version of its <a href="http://www.justice.gov.za/legislation/invitations/CyberCrimesBill2015.pdf">Cybercrimes and Cybersecurity Bill</a>, which was published in August 2015, is set to be released during 2016. </p>
<p>The bill is a crucial and welcome step in the fight against phishers, hackers and online identity thieves. It defines various offences that relate to data, messages, computers and networks. It makes it criminal for anyone to acquire, possess, provide or use personal or financial information to commit an offence. Unlawfully acquiring, possessing, providing, receiving or using passwords, access codes or similar data also constitutes an offence. </p>
<p>It doesn’t stop there. The bill provides for the ministers of police, defence, telecommunications and postal services to set up various new structures and positions to improve computer security. For instance, the government will be empowered to establish a Cyber Response Committee, a National Cybercrime Centre, Incident Response Teams and other mechanisms for reporting and investigating cybercrime. Importantly, the legislation also grants extensive powers to the police and the <a href="http://www.ssa.gov.za/">State Security Agency</a> to search, access and seize anything related to investigating such matters.</p>
<p>But legislation alone cannot stop cybercrime. Education is key so that individual computer users learn not to respond to phishing emails. This bill does not force computer users to do or not do something: it simply cannot influence human behaviour on its own. A number of <a href="http://www.scopus.com/record/display.uri?eid=2-s2.0-33745816410&origin=inward&txGid=0">studies</a> globally have indicated that individual computer users remain a weak link in the online security chain. </p>
<h2>South Africans hugely at risk</h2>
<p>User education is more important than ever. Research suggests that South Africans are being increasingly targeted by cybercriminals. In January 2016, the country jumped from 67th to 22nd position on cybersecurity firm Check Point’s live <a href="https://www.checkpoint.com/ThreatPortal/livemap.html">Cyber Attack Threat Map</a>. Doros Hadjizenonos, Check Point’s country manager in South Africa, <a href="http://www.fin24.com/Tech/Cyber-Security/sa-jumps-up-cyber-attack-target-list-20160226">told</a> a news website that the company had seen “an increase in phishing attacks targeting video-on-demand users, who are tricked into handing over their passwords under the guise that their accounts need to be updated”.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, internet security company Trend Micro’s <a href="http://www.trendmicro.com/us/indexnight.html">latest report</a> shows that unsolicited bulk email or spam, a popular method used to launch email phishing attacks, peaked at 2,269,039 in December 2015. The company also reported that 6,185 personal computers in South Africa protected by their technology had banking malware installed on them during 2015. This is software that’s downloaded onto a computer without the user’s knowledge to perform a malicious act – such as stealing passwords and account numbers.</p>
<p>Phishing remains an extremely popular method of identity theft. Cybercriminals try to trick computer users into divulging personal financial information. This can then be used to steal money or commit fraud. Victims can lose enormous amounts of money. Computer network and security firm RSA’s Online Fraud Resource Centre <a href="http://www.emc.com/emc-plus/rsa-thought-leadership/online-fraud/index.htm">estimates</a> the global cost of phishing attacks for December 2014 at US$4.5 billion. In South Africa alone, <a href="http://southafrica.emc.com/microsites/rsa/phishing/index.htm">about $49 million</a> was lost to phishing during 2015.</p>
<p>The practice of phishing is becoming more common as more and more services become available online. People can bank, shop and watch movies online, creating a number of new opportunities for cybercrime. Cyberattacks are also becoming increasingly sophisticated and less easy to spot.</p>
<h2>Educating computer users</h2>
<p>This evolving and growing threat certainly requires legislation that defines offences and establishes structures for reporting and investigating cybercrime. But, as we’ve outlined, user education is equally important. </p>
<p>It is essential that computer users be educated about the risks that cyberattacks pose. This includes developing training and awareness about how to prevent and detect such attacks. These initiatives could range from placing relevant information on financial institutions’ websites to generating media awareness through newspapers, magazines, radio and TV. More formal training sessions and education could also play a role.</p>
<p>Our research group at Stellenbosch University is currently examining ways to improve online security in South Africa. This involves gauging people’s understanding of the threat of phishing and the steps they take to avoid falling victim to such attacks. Whether you think you’re vulnerable to phishing, believe you’re well protected or genuinely have no idea, you can contribute to this research by clicking <a href="https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GTTMXPK">here</a> to complete the survey.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/56030/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Cyberattacks are on the rise in South Africa. New legislation is important, but it won’t solve the problem if it’s not accompanied by user education.Rika Butler, Associate Professor in Auditing at the School of Accountancy, Stellenbosch UniversityMartin Butler, Senior Lecturer in Information Systems Management, Stellenbosch UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/558762016-03-08T04:38:45Z2016-03-08T04:38:45ZWomen in science: equality is impossible unless society shifts<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114037/original/image-20160307-30471-1j5xyo8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Women scientists are far more common today than they were in the early 1900s.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Reuters/National Photo Company Collection/Library of Congress</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>There’s a lot more good news for women in science than you might expect. Research shows that the landscape for women working in scientific disciplines – including maths, engineering and technology – has <a href="http://www.springer.com/br/book/9783319086286">improved dramatically</a> over the past 50 years. </p>
<p>Gender representation and sexism are taken far more seriously than used to be the case. Behaviour that may once have been swept under the carpet is now openly and roundly condemned. </p>
<p>A Nobel Prize-winning scientist, Sir Tim Hunt, resigned in 2015 from University College London in the wake of a <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/jul/09/tim-hunt-sexism-controversy-ucl-attempts-to-draw-a-line-under-saga">sexism row</a>. Also in 2015, renowned astronomer Geoff Marcy quit the faculty of the University of California, Berkeley, after being <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/15/science/geoffrey-marcy-to-resign-from-berkeley-astronomy-department.html?_r=0">found guilty</a> of sexually harassing women students. And the world’s most important science journals have dedicated <a href="http://www.nature.com/news/specials/women/index.html">entire issues</a> to gender and equality concerns. </p>
<p>These sea changes have been largely driven by three factors: the general advancement of women in society; the implementation in many countries of gender-sensitive <a href="http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/egm/gst_2010/Lee-EP.6-EGM-ST.pdf">policies</a> designed to attract more women to the sciences; and, as illustrated above, a growing awareness in the global scientific community about the realities of gender bias.</p>
<p>But, as the world celebrates <a href="http://www.unwomen.org/en/news/in-focus/international-womens-day">International Women’s Day</a> on March 8, it’s worth exploring what still needs to be done – and whether science can ever be a truly equitable space while society more broadly is not.</p>
<h2>No gender parity yet</h2>
<p>The United Nations’ 2016 theme for International Women’s Day is:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Planet 50-50 by 2030: Step it up for gender equality. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>This is linked to the UN’s <a href="http://www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/post-2015">Agenda 2030</a> and its <a href="http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/">Sustainable Development Goals</a>. Scientists still have a long way to go before hitting the 50/50 mark for women’s representation. </p>
<p>The problem starts from student years: women are significantly more likely to <a href="http://www.nature.com/news/inequality-quantified-mind-the-gender-gap-1.12550">drop out</a> of science careers at doctoral level than their male counterparts. </p>
<p>Beyond university, women scientists remain in the minority. The most recent UNESCO Science Report shows that only <a href="http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0023/002354/235407e.pdf">about 30%</a> of the world’s researchers in science, technology, engineering and maths are women. </p>
<p>Their under-representation is even more pronounced when one considers rank – women are <a href="http://www.nature.com/news/science-and-gender-scientists-must-work-harder-on-equality-1.19064">far less likely</a> to become full professors in these fields, to become members of the prestigious Academy of Science or to sit on scientific journals’ editorial boards.</p>
<p>So what is holding women back in university classes and research labs? A <a href="http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/unofficial-prognosis/study-shows-gender-bias-in-science-is-real-heres-why-it-matters/">number of studies</a> have suggested the following factors:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>gender bias at <a href="http://www.pnas.org/content/109/41/16474.full">graduate</a> level;</p></li>
<li><p>unconscious gender bias in applying <a href="http://www.pnas.org/content/111/12/4403.full.pdf">performance</a> and promotion evaluation criteria;</p></li>
<li><p>a disparity in <a href="http://www.nature.com/news/gender-balance-women-are-funded-more-fairly-in-social-science-1.18310">funding awards</a> – men get more funding to conduct research that will go on to boost their professional reputation;</p></li>
<li><p>a lack of institutional support for women; and</p></li>
<li><p>more personal and <a href="http://mg.co.za/article/2016-01-05-the-great-lobola-disappointment">cultural aspects</a> such as the idea that women must put their families first and take on more domestic responsibilities than their male colleagues.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>So: we know that gender bias in science <a href="http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/unofficial-prognosis/study-shows-gender-bias-in-science-is-real-heres-why-it-matters/">is real</a>. We know that it must be addressed. But are scientists focusing too much on trying to patch up what is actually broader societal damage? Scientific research and endeavour doesn’t exist in a vacuum: it is being conducted in a world full of gender bias.</p>
<h2>Women must feel free to take risks</h2>
<p>As a student, I was extremely shy and barely ever asked questions during lectures. </p>
<p>I see the same thing happening now that I am a lecturer. Female students don’t ask a lot of questions. Nor do they take risks by challenging my assertions or questioning me closely about something they don’t understand. This is what happens when you’ve been raised in a patriarchal society – and most are – that discourages women from asking questions or standing out in any way.</p>
<p>It has been <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/mar/05/girls-lack-self-confidence-maths-science-oecd-school-engineering">reported</a> that girls’ lack of self-confidence directly impacts their performance in school maths and science. </p>
<p>This doesn’t surprise me. After all, science is based on engaging with a process of trial and error. Self-confidence gives a person the freedom to allow themselves to fail, take risks and not fear <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-its-crucial-that-young-scientists-are-taught-the-value-of-being-wrong-54839">getting things wrong</a>. </p>
<p>Those risks are bound to increase as one climbs the ladder to become a principal investigator or group leader on a research project. Leadership and decision-making are based on both competence and self-confidence.</p>
<p>Women certainly don’t lack the former. Employers, institutions, lab managers and colleagues all have a role to play in making work a safe space for women scientists to take risks without feeling judged.</p>
<h2>A far bigger battle</h2>
<p>This is the heart of the matter. As long as scientists focus only on individual episodes of gender bias in their fields – or in any other facet of human life – not much will really change. </p>
<p>Science exists in a social and cultural context that prioritises men over women. While women are still undermined, discriminated against, <a href="http://en.unesco.org/gem-report/sites/gem-report/files/girls-factsheet-en.pdf">denied</a> access to education and <a href="https://theconversation.com/women-are-still-paid-less-than-men-in-south-african-companies-45782">paid less</a> than men, there cannot be true equality in science.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/55876/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Emanuela Carleschi receives funding from the National Research Foundation of South Africa and the University of Johannesburg. </span></em></p>Women have come a long way in science, but plenty of work remains. After all, gender bias in science doesn’t happen in a vacuum.Emanuela Carleschi, Senior Lecturer in Condensed Matter Physics, University of JohannesburgLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/548392016-03-01T04:28:34Z2016-03-01T04:28:34ZWhy it’s crucial that young scientists are taught the value of being wrong<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/113252/original/image-20160229-4066-s7g3sr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Children are natural scientists. They learn from their mistakes, then try something new.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Albert Einstein is the most famous scientist of all time. From Calgary to Cape Town the image of the wild-haired, contemplative lone genius holed up in a messy office, changing the universe, has evolved into the archetype of how society sees scientists. More than that, it has shaped the social perception of the whole scientific endeavour. </p>
<p>True science, we are led to believe from a very young age, is never wrong. True scientists – the <a href="http://www.history.com/topics/galileo-galilei">Galileos</a>, <a href="http://www.biography.com/people/isaac-newton-9422656">Newtons</a> and <a href="http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/1903/marie-curie-bio.html">Curies</a> – stare into the abyss and return with deep truths about the universe we inhabit. Anything less and, well, you might as well throw in the towel. And so scientists spend their careers desperately trying to be right in every classroom, seminar and paper. </p>
<p>But this is not how science works. It’s not even how science is <em>supposed</em> to work. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.livescience.com/20896-science-scientific-method.html">scientific method</a> is built on four cornerstones: observation, hypothesis, experiment and the revision of the hypothesis based on the results of the experiment. The last is just a fancy way of saying “admitting that you were wrong”. </p>
<p>And since it is this sequence by which hypotheses evolve into theories which grow into paradigms, science itself cannot progress without scientists admitting – to themselves even more than to society at large - to being wrong.</p>
<h2>Even Einstein erred</h2>
<p>By now, few people are unaware of the recent monumental detection of <a href="https://theconversation.com/gravitational-waves-will-the-global-south-provide-the-next-pulse-of-gravity-research-54583">gravitational waves</a> by the LIGO team. This was heralded as the final great test of Einstein’s General Relativity. </p>
<p>But many people probably don’t know that in 1936 Einstein himself, together with Nathan Rosen, <a href="http://dafix.uark.edu/%7Edanielk/Talks/PhysRev.pdf">submitted a paper</a> for publication claiming that such gravitational waves could not exist. The paper was rejected. Einstein was wrong! It wasn’t the first, nor the last time either. </p>
<p>More recently, in 2014, the <a href="http://bicepkeck.org/">BICEP</a> collaboration announced that it had detected evidence of gravitational waves from the <a href="http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-is-the-cosmic-microw/">cosmic microwave background</a>. After much fanfare in popular media and back and forth in the scientific community, it emerged that they, too, <a href="http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/2014/sep/22/bicep2-gravitational-wave-result-bites-the-dust-thanks-to-new-planck-data">were wrong</a>. </p>
<p>So, why is it so important to realise that scientists being wrong is not a bug but a feature of science? </p>
<h2>Guarding the future of science</h2>
<p>First of all, we live in an age where information has never been more <a href="http://google.com/">accessible</a>. Ironically, with this growth of access to information has come a commensurate distrust in the expertise of scientists and even in the very science that has brought humankind to this juncture. </p>
<p>One has only to think of the surge of the anti-vaccine movement, resistance to GMOs, anxiety around wi-fi and even the raging non-battle between evolution and intelligent design. </p>
<p>In each of these cases, a small but vocal body pursuing its own agenda latched onto uncertainties and doubts expressed by scientists. Instead of appreciating this as the natural progression of the scientific process, these groups painted it as a dramatic failing of science and of scientists. </p>
<p>In some cases, as in former South African president Thabo Mbeki’s HIV/AIDS denialism, these views can have <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/nov/26/aids-south-africa">life or death</a> consequences. </p>
<p>A second, perhaps more important reason, is for the very future of science itself. Even scientists sometimes don’t take the importance of being wrong seriously enough. This is due in no small part to the <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/terms/confirmation_bias.htm">confirmation bias</a> that seems built into our humanity. We are more likely to seek out and place value in information that confirms our own existing beliefs.</p>
<p>These views and the culture in which they form are then passed on to the next generation – our students pursuing science degrees at university.</p>
<h2>The way forward</h2>
<p>The current generation of students go through their degrees petrified of being wrong or of looking “stupid” among their peers and lecturers. This is particularly true in patriarchal environments that pervade Africa, where indeed many young people are taught not to question anything they’re told by elders.</p>
<p>And so no questions get asked. No guesses get made and no risks get taken as students grow more and more uncomfortable with being uncomfortable in lectures. For a continent that’s striving to produce the <a href="http://nef.org/">next Einstein</a>, this is a cycle that desperately needs breaking.</p>
<p>Fortunately breaking the cycle is not as difficult as it might seem. As much as we’d like to think otherwise, being wrong is something we as humans are inherently very good at. It is something that is manifest in how young children learn about the world, through play.</p>
<p>Natural scientists learn by trial and error, without fear of getting the answer wrong. Perhaps we as adults, students and teachers alike ought to take some lessons from them, cast aside our egos and embrace losing to nature. </p>
<p>But what do we know – we’re probably wrong anyway.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/54839/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jeff Murugan receives funding from the National Research Foundation of South Africa. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amanda Weltman receives funding from the National Research Foundation of South Africa and the Department of Science and Technology of South Africa. </span></em></p>Scientists being wrong is not a bug or a glitch – it’s a feature of science and mistakes can actually lead to new, deeper discoveries.Jeff Murugan, Associate Professor of Mathematical Physics, University of Cape TownAmanda Weltman, South African Research Chair in Physical Cosmology, Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics, University of Cape TownLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/552372016-02-26T04:02:58Z2016-02-26T04:02:58ZMaths and science are the keys to unlocking Africa’s potential<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/112511/original/image-20160223-16447-11f8azp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">It's time for Africa to produce the technology it needs, rather than being largely a consumer.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">EPA/Nic Bothma</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Angelina Lutambi was born into a peasant family in Tanzania’s <a href="http://dthd.org/who-we-are/about-tanzania/">Dodoma region</a>, where HIV/AIDS has decimated much of the population. Her future could easily have been bleak – but Angelina had a keen aptitude for maths. She financed her own schooling by selling cold drinks with her siblings and was awarded a grant to study at the University of Dar Es Salaam.</p>
<p>In 2004 she went to the South African <a href="https://www.aims.ac.za/en/about/about-aims">centre</a> of the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences <a href="http://www.nexteinstein.org">(AIMS)</a>. Since then, Angelina has obtained her PhD in epidemiology from the University of Basel in Switzerland. </p>
<p>Today Angelina is a senior research scientist at the Ifakara Health Institute in her native Tanzania. There, she devises mathematical, statistical and computational models to inform and advise public health decisions on HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and other major diseases.</p>
<p>Africa has many other deep-rooted problems, including poverty, corruption and war. Could these also be tackled through the sort of work that Angelina and her colleagues are doing? Could Africa’s problems be solved through mathematical science?</p>
<h2>Africa must produce its own technology</h2>
<p>Such a proposal might sound outlandish while so many people still lack basic necessities like food, clean water and medicine. In the long view of history, however, mathematics and science have served as the foundation of modern society because they underlie every technology – from plumbing to telecommunications, medicine to satellites. </p>
<p>But the continent has another problem. It is largely a consumer rather than a producer of the technologies it needs. If this doesn’t change, Africa will remain dependent and subject to outside control, its economies dominated by others’ exploitation of its natural resources. Africa will never escape from its reliance on international aid until it builds the capacity to develop itself.</p>
<p>Computers, mobile communications, and medical technologies are the modern engines of commerce, prosperity and public health. Africa will remain sidelined in these areas unless it nurtures its own experts, pioneers, and innovators. </p>
<h2>Attitudes towards maths in Africa</h2>
<p>This is the motivation behind AIMS, a network of training centres across the continent created to empower brilliant young Africans to become agents of change through advanced maths and science.</p>
<p>Our slogan – that the next Einstein should be African – is a signal of how high we are aiming. </p>
<p>It is not an easy task. As a native South African, I have travelled widely in many parts of the continent. Across Africa, maths is often viewed as an ivory tower pursuit, an impractical study with little connection to the real world. University maths departments are often the shabbiest on campus. </p>
<p>Many students only take the subject as a second choice. From primary school onwards, maths is all too often taught by rote learning and memorisation. But it is critical analysis, independent thinking and creativity that are the <a href="http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/journals/ed_lead/el_196010_mallinson.pdf">real keys</a> to maths and science excellence.</p>
<p>These attitudes linger even beyond school and university. Elsewhere in the world, the most successful companies – Google and Facebook, for example – recruit top maths graduates straight out of university to write the complex codes that define our experience of the digital world. From big data to artificial intelligence to intelligent cities and communities, the gears of prosperity are increasingly powered by mathematical algorithms. </p>
<h2>Bringing African scientists together</h2>
<p>AIMS is a pan-African initiative. There are five centres so far, in Senegal, Cameroon, Ghana, Tanzania and South Africa. Ten more are planned over the next decade, creating a powerful network that will span the continent. </p>
<p>Every centre has a fantastic, highly motivated, pan-African student body. AIMS’ classes are incredibly diverse – a mosaic of languages, ethnicities, languages and religions. More than 30% of the students are women.</p>
<p>Through their common interest in maths, science and the future of Africa, the students are able to transcend the cultural and other differences that have historically divided them. </p>
<p>Over the past decade, AIMS has graduated a thousand students at Masters and PhD level. But its centres don’t just train brilliant young Africans in Africa. They also serve as a magnet attracting those who have studied abroad back to Africa, to work as scientific researchers. </p>
<p>Wilfred Ndifon from Cameroon is one: he took his PhD at Princeton but has returned to AIMS as a junior research chair. Wilfred has just <a href="https://theconversation.com/africas-answer-to-70-year-old-problem-of-how-to-beat-repeat-infections-50920">solved</a> a 70-year-old immunological puzzle called original antigenic sin, which has implications for improving vaccines. </p>
<p>AIMS also brings top international scientists to Africa to share and propagate their knowledge. This international reach is important, because the whole globe has a stake in Africa’s future. </p>
<p>Our globalised, interconnected world means that Africa’s challenges – whether starvation-driven migration or diseases like <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-africa-cant-afford-to-have-an-outbreak-of-the-zika-virus-53738">Zika</a> or <a href="http://www.cdc.gov/chikungunya/">Chikungunya</a> or terrorism – quickly become challenges to all. These problems will only worsen with climate change, population growth, unemployment and insecurity unless Africans are encouraged and empowered to improve their countries’ conditions.</p>
<p>In March 2016, more than 500 bright scientific minds and international leaders will gather in Senegal for the inaugural <a href="http://nef.org/">Next Einstein Forum</a>, organised by AIMS. The three-day summit will highlight emerging scientific and technical talent in Africa and elsewhere, and fuel collaboration which puts this talent to work in the cause of human development. </p>
<p>The summit’s theme is “Connecting Science to Humanity”. It will be an occasion for the most enlightened African and international scientists and leaders to strengthen their commitment to helping young people help Africa.</p>
<p>The problems facing Africa are complex and there are no easy answers. But one of the lessons we’ve learned in science is that the hardest problems are the ones that eventually yield the most important – and the most wonderful – solutions.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/55237/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Neil Turok is affiliated with AIMS – serving as the Chair of its Board of Trustees.</span></em></p>Africa has deep-rooted problems: poverty, disease, corruption and war. Could these be solved through mathematical science?Neil Turok, Director and Niels Bohr Chair, Perimeter Institute for Theoretical PhysicsLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/494712016-02-15T04:04:26Z2016-02-15T04:04:26ZHow fruit flies can help keep African scientists at home<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/111121/original/image-20160211-29190-158k5gm.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Tiny fruit flies under a microscope are a powerful weapon for science.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Dr Martha Vicente-Crespo</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The humble fruit fly is being put to an unusual use in sub-Saharan Africa: it’s being used as bait. Its intended lure? It’s hoped that the tiny creature, whose scientific name is _Drosophila melanogaster, _can stop the exodus of researchers from Africa.</p>
<p>At the moment most of the biomedical research being done in African laboratories is performed using rats. Now a <a href="http://drosafrica.org/home">project</a> called DrosAfrica is underway to promote the use of the fruit fly as a model organism for research into human diseases.</p>
<p>There are several reasons for this. Firstly, rats are far more expensive to keep than fruit flies. As an affordable alternative, the fruit fly requires fewer resources to maintain and not as much expensive preparation for experiments.</p>
<p>Also, as a model system, <em>Drosophila</em> enables researchers to perform sophisticated genetics, live imaging, genome-wide analysis and other state-of-the-art approaches. <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25624315"><em>Drosophila</em> research</a> has identified thousands of genes with human equivalents. This has provided key insights into cancer biology, pathology, neurobiology and immunology.</p>
<p><em>Drosophila</em> is a prime model organism with tens of thousands of researchers working on every aspect of their biology. This work is aided by electronic open resources such as <a href="http://flybase.org/">Flybase</a> and stock <a href="http://flystocks.bio.indiana.edu/">centres</a> like the one in Bloomington, Indiana in the US. The centre will send <em>Drosophila</em> to any lab in the world for the cost of shipping. These stock centres are funded by governmental grants enabling 100 000s flies to be kept alive in warehouses. </p>
<p>An entire research unit has been built with a focus on understanding a specific aspect of the fly. The most famous is called <a href="https://www.janelia.org/">Janelia</a> Farm, founded by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in the US. </p>
<h2>A bigger agenda</h2>
<p>The project that’s using fruit flies as bait for scientists is known as DrosAfrica. It wants to drive the paradigm shift from rats to flies as experimental organisms. To do this, project leaders have organised workshops to share fruit fly techniques with universities and research institutes across sub Saharan Africa.</p>
<p>But there’s more to the work than merely extolling the virtues of fruit flies.</p>
<p>We also try to provide basic equipment such as dissecting microscopes, buffers, slides and antibodies for labelling proteins to facilitate the creation of local research communities. Such strong communities will ultimately be able to provide PhD programmes and research opportunities for African researchers. This will mean students don’t automatically feel they have to emigrate when seeking research opportunities.</p>
<p>Powerful local research programmes will also help to place the continent in the spotlight of international research. This could ultimately lead to a return of expatriates with a strong scientific background.</p>
<h2>Activities organised by DrosAfrica: Past and Future</h2>
<p>During the last three years, DrosAfrica has organised three workshops at the Institute of Biomedical Research <a href="http://shs.kiu.ac.ug/">Kampala International University-Western Campus, Uganda</a>. Two focused exclusively on the use of <em>Drosophila</em> for biomedical research. The other concentrated on image and data analysis techniques. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/107786/original/image-20160111-6981-1akcr6a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/107786/original/image-20160111-6981-1akcr6a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/107786/original/image-20160111-6981-1akcr6a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/107786/original/image-20160111-6981-1akcr6a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/107786/original/image-20160111-6981-1akcr6a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/107786/original/image-20160111-6981-1akcr6a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/107786/original/image-20160111-6981-1akcr6a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/107786/original/image-20160111-6981-1akcr6a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Attendants and faculty members of the first DrosAfrica workshop ‘Drosophila in Biomedical Research: Affordable AND Impacting!’ (Summer 2013)</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The workshops’ participants came from sub-Saharan Africa and included Nigerians, Kenyans, Ugandans and a delegate from South Sudan. They were able to work on several common projects and then networked after the workshops using information and resources on a dedicated website. These interactions planted the seed for developing an African <em>Drosophila</em> research community. At this institute, we’ve been lucky to build on the work that the non-profit organisation <a href="http://trendinafrica.org/">Trend</a> has already done. Their team of volunteer scientists equipped the institute’s lab and introduced insect research models to the local scientists.</p>
<p>In 2016 the project plans to deliver workshops at Kenya’s <a href="http://www.icipe.org/index.php">International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology</a>. The team is also visiting Nigeria during the second half of February to pave the way for future research collaborations.</p>
<p>The work done over the past few years has already paid dividends. Alumni from the workshops have presented their work at international scientific conferences and supervised undergraduate, Masters and PhD projects. Undergraduate and MSc candidates have graduated on the basis of their research done on flies. One student has submitted an abstract to the <a href="https://www.asbmb.org/">American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology</a>. </p>
<h2>DrosAfrica vision</h2>
<p>The DrosAfrica project is taking important steps to increase the African contribution to scientific advancement. In the coming years we hope to further boost local research opportunities to promote genuine African research led by African researchers, all of them investigating matters of interest to Africans.</p>
<p>And to think: it all started with a tiny little fruit fly.</p>
<p>*DrosAfrica would like to acknowledge the generosity of Faculty members and sponsors, without whom the workshops described above wouldn’t have been possible. They are:</p>
<p>(<a href="http://www.cambridge-africa.cam.ac.uk/">Cambridge Africa</a>, <a href="http://sayansiixd.blogspot.co.uk/">Sayansi</a>, <a href="http://www.wellcome.ac.uk/">Wellcome Trust</a>, <a href="http://twas.org/">TWAS</a>, <a href="http://shs.kiu.ac.ug/">KIU</a>, <a href="http://www.pem.cam.ac.uk/">Pembroke College-Cambridge</a>, <a href="http://www.joh.cam.ac.uk/">St John’s College-Cambridge</a>, <a href="http://www.emma.cam.ac.uk/">Emmanuel College-Cambridge</a>, <a href="http://www.embo.org/funding-awards/fellowships/short-term-fellowships">EMBO</a>, <a href="https://fruit4science.wordpress.com/about/">Fruit4Science</a>, and very specially to FRS <a href="http://www2.gurdon.cam.ac.uk/%7Ekouzarideslab/">Tony Kouzarides</a>).*</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/49471/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Fruit flies aren’t just a remarkable organism for research. They are also central to a project that aims to provide more at-home research opportunities for African scientists.Silvia Muñoz-Descalzo, Lecturer in Biology & Biochemistry; Developmental Biology Theme, University of BathTimothy Weil, Lecturer, Department of Zoology, University of CambridgeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/545832016-02-12T09:26:15Z2016-02-12T09:26:15ZGravitational waves: will the global south provide the next pulse of gravity research?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/111285/original/image-20160212-29192-16yu5pg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">This is a new era of physics and astronomy - and scientists all over the globe, including in Africa, have a role to play.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">NASA</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>A little over a century ago, on 25 November 1915, Albert Einstein published a paper entitled <a href="http://www.academia.edu/375613/Einsteins_Original_Paper_on_General_Relativity">“Die Feldgleichungen der Gravitation”</a>. Its contents would change the world forever. </p>
<p>Like any good scientific theory, Einstein’s General Relativity not only explained the shortcomings of its predecessor, in this case <a href="http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr161/lect/history/newtongrav.html">Newtonian gravity</a>, it also made predictions of new and unexpected phenomena. These included the bending of light by massive objects, the existence of black holes, the slowing down of time in strong gravitational fields and the very framework for the cosmology of the universe. All of these have withstood a century of <a href="http://physics.ucr.edu/%7Ewudka/Physics7/Notes_www/node97.html">intense scrutiny</a>. But for 100 years one particular prediction in Einstein’s theory of Gravity eluded the most ingenious testing.</p>
<p>That changed on 11 February 2016 with the <a href="https://www.ligo.caltech.edu/news/ligo20160211">news that gravitational waves</a> have been discovered. As so often happens in astronomy research, the real event took place over a billion years ago. The detection was in September 2015. But the full gravity of the situation is only being revealed now: this is a new era in astronomy and physics. </p>
<h2>The signal that started it all</h2>
<p>On 14 September 2015 the <a href="https://www.ligo.caltech.edu/">Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO)</a>, a newly upgraded, purpose-built gravitational wave detection experiment based in the USA, received a signal from a binary system of two massive black holes merging into a single larger one, 1.2 billion light years away. The final front’s here.</p>
<p>This event was so cataclysmic that the gravitational wave released in the final moments of the binary system’s mortal dance produced the first ever observed gravitational wave signal. It was so large that LIGO scientists report being able to visually <a href="https://twitter.com/PhysRevLett/status/697815592062074881">“see” the signal in the data</a>. </p>
<p>To put this in perspective, the level of accuracy needed to see this tiny ripple in spacetime required measuring a change in length of a 4km long channel the size of a fraction of the diameter of a proton! The level of certainty in this result is given, in physics terms, as a 5.1 sigma event. In simple terms, the likelihood that this is a coincidence is less than 1 in 3.5 million. </p>
<p>And it all goes back to Einstein.</p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/111282/original/image-20160212-4413-474ify.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/111282/original/image-20160212-4413-474ify.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=789&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111282/original/image-20160212-4413-474ify.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=789&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111282/original/image-20160212-4413-474ify.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=789&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111282/original/image-20160212-4413-474ify.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=991&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111282/original/image-20160212-4413-474ify.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=991&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111282/original/image-20160212-4413-474ify.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=991&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Albert Einstein.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Reuters</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Evasive waves</h2>
<p>Although their existence had never been directly detected, gravitational waves - ripples in the very fabric of spacetime - are so-well studied that they are <a href="http://www.aei.mpg.de/%7Eschutz/download/lectures/AzoresCosmology/Schutz.AzoresLecture1.pdf">taught even to undergraduate students</a>.</p>
<p>So why are they so difficult to detect? One reason is that, unlike light, gravitational waves are incredibly weakly interacting and can pass through most matter, of arbitrary density, unhindered. A second one is that, unlike the electric force field which can be felt by individual charges in a detector, the gravitational field is <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tidal_force">tidal in nature</a> and requires extensive apparatus to detect it. </p>
<p>Taken together, these would merely imply that any detection of gravitational waves would take some of the largest, most sensitive experimental apparatus ever built. Difficult, but surely not that difficult. After all we’ve built the <a href="http://home.cern/topics/large-hadron-collider">Large Hadron Collider</a> and discovered <a href="http://science.howstuffworks.com/higgs-boson.htm">the Higgs</a>. No, there is one more crucial element to this detection: luck. </p>
<p>Producing a gravitational wave large enough for us to detect out here in the galactic suburbs takes some of the most cataclysmic events in the universe, events matched in their violence only by how rare they are. Until now.</p>
<h2>Could Africa be next?</h2>
<p>Today, thanks to the remarkable work of more than 1000 scientists involved in LIGO, there is certainty: Einstein was right, again. </p>
<p>His theory about gravitational waves sparked a huge debate when it was first published, engaging some of the world’s most famous scientists. The <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWqhUANNFXw">beautiful chirp</a> heard across the world on 11 February 2016 was the final word in this particular century-long conversation. However, the next phase of the conversation is far from over. </p>
<p>Physicists and astronomers have learnt so much, yet our work is far from done. The next frontier is here. Where will be the next big announcement be made in this new era? Who will write the next chapter in this intergenerational dialogue? Today is a day for boldness. So allow us, as African scientists, to be bold. With the <a href="https://www.skatelescope.org/">Square Kilometre Array</a> project to be constructed across Africa and Australia, the global South and indeed Africa itself is poised to provide the next pulse of gravity research. Our time has come.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/54583/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amanda Weltman receives funding from the National Research Foundation of South Africa and the Department of Science and Technology of South Africa. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jeff Murugan receives funding from the National Research Foundation of South Africa. </span></em></p>The discovery of gravitational waves has ushered in a new era in astronomy and physics. Where will the next big discovery be made? There’s no reason for it not to be Africa.Amanda Weltman, South African Research Chair in Physical Cosmology, Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics, University of Cape TownJeff Murugan, Associate Professor of Mathematical Physics, University of Cape TownLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.