Review: asleep awake asleep: stories by Jo-Ann Bekker (Modjaji books) By Gillian Rennie Before digital cameras deluged us with thousands of images, there were slides: small squares of film mounted in a cardboard frame and loaded into a container, each slide in its own slot. As each image passed before the light of a projector, it sprang into glowing life on a screen. Instantly we were delivered to a moment, a place, an atmosphere – a beam of light that behaved like reality. Jo-Ann Bekker’s stories are like that. Quickly and suddenly – some stories in asleep awake asleep are…
Author: Gillian Rennie
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By Ncebakazi Ntsokota “Small scale mining is about people’s livelihoods and could very well be the backbone of our country’s economy if done properly.” These were the words of Tshiamo Legoale, geologist at Mintek and the 2017 International FameLab Science Communication Champion. Small scale mining is prevalent in Africa but it is physically intensive and often harmful – to both workers and environment. Unlike mainstream mining, small scale mining has still not advanced technologically. This is why Legoale is championing phytomining, as it is environmentally sound, less labour intensive, and it does not require huge amounts of capital. Phytomining is…
By Matebello Motantsi As SciFest 2018 drew to a close, I spoke to pupils from schools in Grahamstown about their experience at this year’s festival. They said they had attended each day of the festival since its start on Wednesday 7 March. Every day after their classes end, they cross town and go up the hill to the Rhodes University monument – on foot. They did this voluntarily as their schools did not organise official trips to SciFest. While most of them came solely for the purpose of playing games that the SciFest team offered, and to meet new people,…
By Chizi Katama and Sphumelele Ndlovu Who would have thought that the place to be on a hot Tuesday afternoon would be a small tent filled with various species of fish and aquatic insects? We are, of course, referring to Water World. Water World has been a recurring feature in the Scifest Africa programme for good reason. The exhibition houses a myriad aquatic lifeforms that inspire awe and wonder among the onlookers and encourages practical engagement for those who dare to get their hands dirty. As much as it is a great source of entertainment, Water World is also educative.…
These learners were the winners of the 2018 Science Olympics at Scifest. This year, participants were tasked with designing a protective container for an egg using strings, scissors, toilet roles and egg boxes. The eggs were then dropped from each floor of the building. The winning team’s egg was the last to crack. To design their container, they used a long toilet roll. They then tucked another toilet roll into one end of the first tube to seal it off. The learners then cut the top of the first tube shorter. They then inserted their egg into two segments of…
By Sphumelele Ndlovu and Chizi Katama Now that exhibitors have packed away their bright posters and the sugar high has subsided, here are a few notable things one should remember about the 2018 Scifest Africa. One came from the Sunset show that happened on Sunday, 11 March in the Olive Shreiner Hall presented by American chemist Dr Jeanita Pritchett. Pritchett spoke on the importance of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM subjects) mentioning that she was brought up by scientists herself and has always had a knack for all things science. She started the session by asking the audience, which…
It was all going so well in Sunday’s sunshine up on Monument hill. But then….. Photos: Chizi Katama
Moshiwe Mafongosi (left) and Mavis Kondile have been selling their bead wear at Scifest Africa for more than ten years. They make bead wear a month before Scifest commences to ensure that they have enough stock to make a profit. Most of their support at Scifest Africa 2018 came from high school learners although they mentioned that business was slow this year. Outside of Scifest, the pair can be found at Church Square. Photo: Meagan du Plooy
By Ikhona Mvaphantsi Nozipho Zikhali, award-winning scientist, enjoys playing with her two dogs, Jojo and Jayjay, but she would also love to own a cat one day. What does a scientist do in her spare time? She watches YouTube videos on science, and reads books – oh, and she enjoys eating! Nozipho’s advice to other young girls? “Follow your dreams and do what makes you happy.” I asked the scientist’s mom, Lungile Shobe-Zikhali, what she did differently to spark her daughter’s interest in on science. She explained that she started reading to Nozipho even before she was six months old.…
By Lelethu Tonisi After HIV/AIDS, cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the second cause of death. According to Professor Resia Pretorius, head of physiological sciences at Stellenbosch University, one out of six people die from heart disease and stroke in South Africa – about 215 people every day. In Why do so many of die from blood clots?, the title of her Scifest lecture this week, Pretorius said that Type 2 diabetes, stroke, and heart disease are prevalent all over the world and account for 31% of deaths globally. Environmental, lifestyle and genetic factors all work together to increase the likelihood of CVD…