SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION - The African Mirror

Mar

29

2025

First fossil hyena tracks found in South Africa – how expert animal trackers helped

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

“THE art of tracking may well be the origin of science.” This is the departure point for a 2013 book by Louis Liebenberg, co-founder of an organisation devoted to environmental monitoring. The connection between tracking in nature, as people have done since prehistory, and “Western” science is of special interest to us as ichnologists. (Ichnology is the study of tracks and traces.) We learned our skills relatively late in life. But imagine if we had learned as children and if, as adults, we tracked as if our lives depended on it? What additional visual and cognitive talents would we bring…

Mar

27

2025

By MARINA JOUBERT; LARS GUENTHER and SIMONE RÖDDER

New survey explores what people in South Africa expect of publicly visible scientists – why it matters

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

WHETHER it’s an astronomical discovery, news of a previously undiscovered disease or a major report about climate change, science is often making headlines. This means that it’s perhaps more important than ever for scientists to visibly engage with society. By becoming recognisable figures in the media, scientists can share new ideas and influence science policy. They can also shape public opinion, and build public trust in science, offering hope in times of crisis. They’re important players in the fight against misinformation, pseudoscience and anti-science sentiments. Some scientists have become publicly visible, regularly appearing in the media. Some have become media…

Mar

15

2025

By GUY PLINT and CHARLES HELM

Dinosaur tracks, made 140 million years ago, have been found for the first time in South Africa’s Western Cape

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

DINOSAURS have captured people’s imagination ever since their bones and teeth were first scientifically described in 1822 by geologist and palaeontologist Gideon Mantell in England. Dinosaur bones have taught us a great deal about these animals from the “age of dinosaurs”, the Mesozoic Era, which stretched from approximately 252 million years ago to 65 million years ago. However, there’s something especially appealing about a different kind of dinosaur fossil: their tracks, which show researchers what the animals were doing while they were alive. Ichnology is the study of tracks and traces and, since 2008, the Cape South Coast Ichnology Project…

Mar

08

2025

By GEMECHU BEDASSA TEFERI

Why does Ethiopia have earthquakes and volcanoes? A geologist explains

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

A swarm of earth tremors and fears of volcanic eruptions in January forced tens of thousands of people to move away from Awash Fentale, an area in the Afar region of Ethiopia. The area falls within a geologically active region of the Great Rift Valley that has experienced a number of earthquakes and volcanic events in the last 800 years. Two major volcanic eruptions occurred in 1250 and 1820 AD. What’s unfolded in Fentale in 2025 is part of an ongoing process millions of years in the making, deep under the earth’s surface. Scientists see it as a fascinating natural…

Mar

05

2025

By CECILIA BEMBIBRE

‘Myrrh, conifer oil and … breakfast tea’: my sniffer team’s surprise findings on what mummified bodies smell like

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

WHEN we see objects in museum display cases, it often doesn’t tell their whole story. One thing that tends to get ignored or even lost in the conservation process is the smell. We lose a lot of valuable information as a result, such as how the object was produced or how it functioned. My field is called sensory heritage, which relates to how we engage with heritage objects with senses other than vision. As part of this, I develop methods to identify and preserve culturally significant smells. For example, I have worked with St Paul’s Cathedral to recreate the scent…

Feb

26

2025

By ANNA M. KOTARBA-MORLEY and KATARZYNA KAPIEC

It’s the biggest Egyptian tomb discovery in a century. Who was Thutmose II?

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

ARCHAEOLOGISTS in Egypt have made an exciting discovery: the tomb of Pharaoh Thutmose II, a ruler who has long been overshadowed by his famous wife and half-sister, Queen Hatshepsut. The remarkable find is located in the Western Valley (a burial ground for queens rather than kings), near the complex of Deir el-Bahari, which houses the funerary temple of Hatshepsut. Both of us worked together as archaeologists at this spectacular site some 15 years ago. Thutmose II’s tomb has been labelled the first, and biggest, discovery of a royal tomb since Tutankhamun’s tomb was found just over 100 years ago. Despite…

Feb

25

2025

By MNCEDISI SITELEKI

Ancient stone walls and power: what data science tools can reveal in African archaeology

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

VISIBILITY has always been important in people’s decisions about where to live and how to arrange their spaces. People make connections with what they can see. Being able to see prominent landmarks, such as certain mountain peaks, rivers or ancestral sites, could help reinforce a community’s connection to its cultural and spiritual landscape. Some people prefer homes with scenic views, such as apartments overlooking parks or waterfronts, and businesses often choose locations with high visibility to attract customers. In both ancient and modern contexts, visibility plays a key role in how people position themselves in their environment. That’s why visibility…

Feb

20

2025

By SETH ONYANGO, BIRD STORY AGENCY

Wide range of tech firms scoop awards at top African industry summit

LIFESTYLE, SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

AT this year’s Africa Tech Summit in Nairobi, Kenya, innovators driving transformation were recognised for their impact. The awards reflect a shift in the continent’s tech scene: solutions are no longer just about bridging digital divides but about re-engineering industries, from financial services to agritech. Here are some of the winners: - Agritech Award – Mazao AgClimate Limited (Tanzania): Addressing soil degradation and over-reliance on synthetic fertilisers, MazaoHub helps smallholder farmers restore soil health and improve yields while reducing environmental damage. - AI Award – Cassava Technologies (South Africa): Developing AI-driven connectivity, cybersecurity, and cloud infrastructure, ensuring Africa’s digital economy…

Feb

03

2025

By NIKOLAOS KARGOPOULOS and JULIAN FENNESSY

We studied more than 500 giraffe skulls from all over Africa – and confirmed there are 4 distinct species

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

GIRAFFES are among the world’s most recognisable animals. With their elongated necks and long legs, their gracious movements and unique coat patterns, they have inspired people’s imaginations for centuries. But is a giraffe just a giraffe? Or is there more variety between the animals at a genetic level than is evident just from looking at them? For more than a decade many researchers have compared the DNA of giraffes from all parts of Africa. These studies have revealed that there are four distinct giraffe species: the southern (Giraffa giraffa), Masai (Giraffa tippelskirchi), reticulated (Giraffa reticulata), and northern (Giraffa camelopardalis) giraffe.…

Jan

30

2025

By TONGLIANG LIU

DeepSeek: how a small Chinese AI company is shaking up US tech heavyweights

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

CHINESE artificial intelligence (AI) company DeepSeek has sent shockwaves through the tech community, with the release of extremely efficient AI models that can compete with cutting-edge products from US companies such as OpenAI and Anthropic. Founded in 2023, DeepSeek has achieved its results with a fraction of the cash and computing power of its competitors. DeepSeek’s “reasoning” R1 model, released last week, provoked excitement among researchers, shock among investors, and responses from AI heavyweights. The company followed up on January 28 with a model that can work with images as well as text. So what has DeepSeek done, and how…