Science should be about answering the “what if?” questions, but is that under threat by the privatisation of science and the drive for results ahead of any competition?
The organisation Sense about Science advocates for openness and honesty about research, and ensures the public interest in sound science and evidence is recognised in public debates and policymaking.
Research institutes and “centres of excellence” exist around the world to draw talent and to share resources - all with the aim of solving important problems.
Sporting extravaganzas are a way for globalising cities in emerging market economies to try and play the “modernity game”. But they don’t make the rules, and so they can never “win”.
China is stepping into a soft power vacuum created by the new US administration. Since Donald Trump was elected president, the country has eschewed soft power.
In the age of ‘fake news’ it’s more important than ever to make sure that what’s being published is the truth – especially when it comes to reporting research and science.
All earthly and celestial things emit signals. The science of signal processing, born in the 19th Century and now greatly advanced thanks to computers, allows us to better understand them.
With studies from the past year exploring the relationship between smartphone use and mental health, sleep, learning and romance, a more nuanced portrait of the device has emerged.
A majority of white Americans now believe that white people experience racial discrimination, and memes like #ItsOkayToBeWhite are only fanning the flames.
Extensive research has been done on poverty and inequality in South Africa but more is needed to better understand the status quo and mainly inter-sectional factors that drive inequality.
Previous Vice President of the Academy of Science of South Africa and DSI-NRF SARChI chair in Fungal Genomics, Professor in Genetics, University of Pretoria, University of Pretoria