News
CSIR researchers in polymers and composites are making strides in the development of bioplastics that will be 100% biodegradable and suitable for recycling. This technology will contribute to the reduction of environmental pollution and could boost local job creation in manufacturing.
In November 2016, seven industry leaders and 19 students from Europe and South Africa participated in a newly developed Antennas for Radio Telescopes course at Stellenbosch University. The course is part of the European School of Antennas’ offering for which the CSIR provided technical, organizational, and financial support. The purpose of the course is to provide broad and detailed insight into specific challenges facing antenna designers and others working in radio astronomy applications.
CSIR Group Executive for Strategic Alliances and Communication, Dr Rachel Chikwamba, was recently appointed to the African Union (AU) high-level committee on Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy for Africa 2024 (STISA 2024) and to the South African Medical Research Board.
The Minister of Science and Technology, Naledi Pandor, has applauded a team of six students from the Universities of the Western Cape and Stellenbosch who will be representing South Africa at the International Student Cluster Competition to be hosted at the 2017 International Supercomputing Conference (ISC) in Germany.
The team was selected from 10 teams from various universities in South Africa, who this week battled it out to demonstrate their cluster building and high performance computing skills.
If you want to model weather systems, perform advanced computational mechanics, simulate the impact of climate change, study the interaction of lithium and manganese in batteries at the atomic level, or conduct the next experiment of your latest in vitro biomedical technique virtually — and you want to do it in Africa — then there is only one place to go; the Centre for High Performance Computing (CHPC).
Stephanie Fanucchi, a CSIR cell biologist, was awarded the 2016 L'Oreal-UNESCO Sub-Saharan Africa Award for her work involving the use of cutting-edge microscopes and synthetic biology tools to understand how immune genes are regulated. For the past 18 years, the L'Oreal-UNESCO for Women in Science (http://www.ForWomenInScience.com) programme has encouraged, promoted and honoured female scientists all over the world.
The Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA), in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF), has commissioned the CSIR to conduct a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) for aquaculture development in South Africa.
“The overall purpose of the SEA is to support the responsible growth of the aquaculture industry in South Africa,” says Lizande Kellerman, CSIR environmental scientist and project manager for the SEA.
The Sasol Solar Challenge 2016 comprising 14 teams, eight local and six international, will commence the eight-day event at the CSIR Pretoria campus on 24 September and conclude in Cape Town at the V&A Waterfront on 1 October 2016. CSIR scientists have again been asked to conduct inspections of the participating solar-powered vehicles.
The speed of technological innovation and the continual expansion of disciplinary knowledge leave little time in the curriculum of engineering students to formally study innovation. Speaking at the CSIR, recently, Prof Barry Shoop, President and CEO of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for 2016, highlighted this concern and the importance of formally studying innovation, particularly at undergraduate level.