SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION - The African Mirror

Apr

15

2021

Archaeology in West Africa could rewrite the textbooks on human evolution

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

OUR species, Homo sapiens, rose in Africa some 300,000 years ago. The objects that early humans made and used, known as the Middle Stone Age material culture, are found throughout much of Africa and include a vast range of innovations. ELEANOR SCERRI, Independent Group Leader, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History Among them are bow and arrow technology, specialised tool forms, the long-distance transport of objects such as marine shells and obsidian, personal ornamentation, the use of pigments, water storage, and art. Although it is possible that other ancestors of modern humans contributed to this material culture…

Jul

07

2021

By The African Mirror

An African woman in aerospace engineering

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

MERCY WANGARE VENTURING into space, like the world of startups, is not for the faint-hearted. For aerospace engineer Wanjiku Chebet Kanjumba, however, space is a place for adventure, with unlimited possibilities. Having trained for space and even donned the full space garb, she is determined to make her mark in space exploration. Even if she doesn't make it all the way into space. “As a child growing up in Kenya I was always fascinated by space, planets and our solar system. So, in high school, I studied sciences and that’s how my journey began,” recalled aerospace engineer Wanjiku Kanjumba from…

Jul

07

2021

By The African Mirror

African scientists on the rise

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

SETH ONYANGO AFRICAN scientists are staking a claim at the world’s scientific high table, generating cutting-edge breakthroughs in the fight against malaria, HIV/AIDS, maternal health and TB and boosting agricultural productivity. Despite little global spotlight − at home where it matters, as well as overseas – African scientists are creating home-grown solutions to some of the world’s biggest maladies. The World Bank has released a report indicating that despite an increase, Africa’s contributions to the world’s research remains at a measly 1.1 per cent. But there are caveats. One is that the research that IS created is extremely wide-reaching, showing…

Jul

03

2021

By The African Mirror

How to help entrepreneurs adopt cutting edge technologies to grow their businesses

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

ENTREPRENEURS are known to drive innovation and progress in various fields. The Fourth Industrial Revolution has provided an unprecedented platform to do so. SEAN KRUGER, Coordinator Strategic Innovation, University of Pretoria ADRIANA ALETTA STEYN, Senior Lecturer in Informatics, University of Pretoria This global concept was coined in 2016 by Professor Klaus Schwab. He said that this revolution entails “nothing less than the transformation of humankind” because it is the integration of technologies across the digital, physical and biological spheres. Moreover, the speed at which this is happening is influencing work, services, educational needs and people’s everyday activities. Entrepreneurs have the…

Apr

20

2021

By The African Mirror

Oyewusi Ibidapo-Obe: Nigerian academic mentor and researcher who made an impact

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

OYEWUSI Ibidapo-Obe, who passed away earlier this year, was the former president of the Nigeria Academy of Science. He was also a former vice-chancellor of both the University of Lagos and of Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike. OLUMUYIWA ASAOLU, Associate Professor of Systems Engineering, University of Lagos He pioneered the study of stochastic methods in mechanics and the development of computer algorithms, applying Martingale Concepts to the control of nonlinear dynamical systems. That is: how to monitor and control seemingly random events in engineering via computer programmes. He was also a great mentor who made a notable contribution to deepening…

Jun

27

2021

By The African Mirror

Google searches for new measure of skin tones to curb bias in products

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

PARESH DAVE ALPHABET Inc's Google told Reuters this week it is developing an alternative to the industry standard method for classifying skin tones, which a growing chorus of technology researchers and dermatologists says is inadequate for assessing whether products are biased against people of color. At issue is a six-color scale known as Fitzpatrick Skin Type (FST), which dermatologists have used since the 1970s. Tech companies now rely on it to categorize people and measure whether products such as facial recognition systems or smartwatch heart-rate sensors perform equally well across skin tones. Critics say FST, which includes four categories for…

Jun

24

2021

By The African Mirror

Techpreneur turning Africa’s e-waste into power banks

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

DORCAS BELLO IN African dumpsites, the sight of faulty smartphones, television sets, laptop parts and broken accessories like phone chargers have become all too conspicuous. In Jos, Nigeria, Luka is turning trash into cash, making power banks from e-waste. Peering into the gutters of any Nigerian city including the capital Abuja, a stream of filth greets you — used nylon, plastics bags, tins and cans are all clogging up the drainage system. But in Jos city, tech-enthusiast Zag Luka Bot, 29, is turning this mountain of trash into cash. His ingenious innovation of making power banks out of used laptop…

Jun

24

2021

By The African Mirror

AI is watching: What to know about workplace surveillance

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

ARTHUR NESLEN FROM Swedish retailer H&M being fined 35 million euros ($42 million) for recording employees' private data to Britain's Barclays bank accused of spying on its staff, workplace surveillance has come into the spotlight in recent months. On Wednesday, the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI), the European Trade Union Confederation's research arm, said planned regulation by the European Union (EU) to improve privacy does not do enough to stop companies from snooping on their workers in the name of security and efficiency. As artificial intelligence (AI) technology becomes ever more accessible and sophisticated, here's why unions are worried: What kind of surveillance are we…

May

12

2021

By The African Mirror

African countries must embrace the concept of good food as good medicine

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

FRESH impetus is being directed into identifying and advocating for scientific priorities in the area of food security and nutrition across Africa, with a particular focus on health implications. CHARLES WAMBEBE, Professor Extraordinaire, Tshwane University of Technology At the centre of these efforts is a five-year project initiated by the Alliance for Accelerating Excellence in Africa, a partnership between the African Academy of Sciences and the African Union Development Agency-NEPAD. This project aims to identify the continent’s most urgent research and development questions, and to advocate for investments in these areas. This will go a long way in helping the…

May

11

2021

By The African Mirror

We live in our smartphones, anthropologists say

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

Umberto Bacchi ACCORDING to the saying, there's no place like home. But a group of anthropologists argue that smartphones have become so fundamental to human life, they are like places people live rather than mere tools of communication. The researchers at University College London (UCL) say smartphone users are like "human snails carrying our homes in our pocket" in a study analysing use of the devices across Africa, Asia, Europe and South America. "You have one room for watching entertainment, another one for socializing with your friends, another one for organizing your life," Daniel Miller, the study's lead author, told the Thomson Reuters…