Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf): Open Journal Systems
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LEGAL ASPECTS OF THE FOURTH INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION (4iR) – (with specific reference to ChatGPT and other software purporting to give Legal Advice)
No full textIn the present article, the author explains the tremendous impact that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is likely to have on society in general. After a historical overview that covers the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the article also considers how the various legal disciplines are likely to be affected by the arrival of AI. This includes an evaluation of the legal advice likely to be given by new “experts” from these two disparate fields
AN EXAMINATION OF POLICIES REGULATING THE PARTICIPATION OF TRANSGENDER LEARNERS IN SOUTH AFRICAN HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS
No full textSouth African high schools typically adopt a sex-segregated approach to sports teams and, therefore, have “boys” sports teams and “girls” sports teams. This approach is complicated by the increasing number of high school learners who identify openly as transgender. Transgender learners experience the sports policies that South African high schools choose to adopt as falling into one of three broad categories. These categories are: the restrictive approach, the partially inclusive approach and the fully inclusive approach. These approaches vary in terms of what steps they require trans learners to take in order to participate in sports teams that are consistent with their gender identity. School policies must be consistent with the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act (PEPUDA) in order to be legally compliant. It is argued that the restrictive approach is inconsistent with PEPUDA, and, therefore, unlawful, as no legitimate purpose underlies it. As legitimate reasons exist for the implementation of partially and fully inclusive policies, it is argued that they are lawful. As both such policies are lawful, policymakers will have a choice regarding which set of policies to adopt. When making this choice, a school must consider which values it seeks to promote. On the one hand, there is the imperative to acknowledge the well-being and dignity of trans learners while, on the other hand, there are legitimate concerns about the fairness of competition. As dignity is both a right that is granted to everyone by the Constitution, and one of its founding values, it is argued that fully inclusive policies should be favoured as they result in the validation of trans learners’ dignity. Furthermore, it is argued that high school sports should serve broader educational goals, such as teaching high school learners that their trans peers deserve the chance to live their truth in full
The profile of postdoctoral research fellows in South Africa: Trends over the past two decades
No full textThe need for evidence on postdoctoral research fellows, or ‘postdocs’, has become increasingly evident globally, as many countries, including South Africa, lack information on these researchers. We used existing sources of quantitative data to provide a longitudinal profile of postdocs at South African public universities. These sources include national research-and-development surveys and data from the national Higher Education Management Information System. Our focus was on postdocs’ representation and research intensity (i.e. time spent on research) within the national research system, as well as on two key demographic features, namely nationality and gender. We draw comparisons with findings reported for other countries to situate our results within the global science system. Interpretation of our results leads us to comment on global and national developments and policies relevant to postdocs.
Significance:
This article provides, for the first time, longitudinal, quantitative evidence at the national level about postdocs in South Africa, a category of early-career researcher which has been growing in size and relevance but has remained largely invisible.
The findings provide the basis for a critical reflection on current discourses and policies related to postdocs in South Africa.
Interpretation of the findings allows us to identify priorities for future research on postdocs in South Africa that would be most useful to inform both national and institutional policy
The International Court System: A Solution to the Crisis in Investor-State Arbitration?
No full textMost known investor-state disputes are referred to a form of international arbitration known as investor-state arbitration (ISA) or investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS). The rest are referred to domestic arbitration or litigation before the courts of host states. The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) is the largest ISDS institution, having handled 829 out of 1190 cases by December 2021. However, in recent years the ISDS regime has faced challenges that have reached crisis proportions. States have responded to these challenges in different ways. For example, during 2014 the European Union (EU) intended to provide for ISDS in its anticipated trade agreements with the United States of America and Canada. In preparation the EU held public consultations wherein the public was invited to comment on whether ISDS could be used in these agreements. Over 90 per cent of the voters rejected the inclusion of ISDS therein. In response the EU abandoned ISDS and created a bilateral Investment Court System (ICS). The final death knell for ISDS in the EU came in 2018 and 2021 when the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that ISDS among EU states is unlawful and incompatible with its legal order. This paper aims to assess the legal nature of the ICS, as well as whether the ICS can resolve the challenges that face ISDS worldwide. The paper concludes that firstly, the ICS is a hybrid of a court and a tribunal; secondly, that the ICS fails to fully address all the challenges faced by ISDS. It is a work in progress that must be interrogated further and be improved upon over time
The influence of psychological readiness of athletes when returning to sport after injury
Full text linkBackground: Injuries are a common occurrence in sports participation; however, they have the potential to be accompanied by negative thoughts and feelings, which may play a part in the athletes’ state of mind when they return to their sport. Assessing the degree to which this occurs provides an opportunity to evaluate and address athletes’ state of mind before their return to play.
Objectives: To determine if athletes are psychologically ready to return to play after an injury and if there are differences in fear avoidance behaviour between those who were and were not ready to return.
Methods: Eighty-eight athletes participated in this descriptive survey. Athletes’ confidence to return to play was measured by the Injury-Psychological Readiness to Return to Play (I-PRRS) questionnaire and their fear avoidance was measured by the Athlete Fear Avoidance Questionnaire (AFAQ).
Results: Fifty injured athletes with a mean age of 23.3±4.0 years old responded to the I-PRRS and the AFAQ questionnaires. The average I-PRRS score was 46.5±9.1 AU. The evidence suggests that 60% of the athletes were not ready to return to sport (41.0±7.5 AU), whereas 40% were ready to return (54.8±3.1 AU). The difference in scores was not significant. The relationship between the AFAQ scores and the I-PRRS score for the ‘ready’ and ‘not ready’ groups was not significant (p=0.066). The mean AFAQ score (26.1±8.6 AU) for the ‘not ready’ group is marginally greater than the mean AFAQ score (21.6±7.5 AU) for the ‘ready’ group. There was a negative correlation between psychological readiness to return to sport and athletic fear avoidance (r =-0.508, p<0.001).
Conclusion: There needs to be a greater utilisation of psychological assessment tools like the Injury-Psychological Readiness to Return to Play (I-PRRS) questionnaire, which can assist the athlete’s support team, who can help identify athletes who are apprehensive about returning to sport after injury.
Keywords: fear avoidance, athlete confidence, psychological assessment tool
South African actinobacteria: A treasure trove of novel bioactive metabolites for drug discovery
No full textAlthough South Africa is known as one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, based on its unique plants and animals, microorganisms have received much less attention. Microorganisms in general and actinobacteria in particular are an underexplored source of new medicines. Recent studies have demonstrated the presence of diverse cultivable actinobacteria from various biomes. However, investigations of the natural product diversity associated with these microorganisms are lacking. We hereby present a review of natural products isolated from South African actinobacteria together with their biological activities. Many of these natural products are structurally novel and include compounds belonging to the following classes: anthraquinones, isoflavonoids, ketolides, macrolides, macrolactams, tripeptides and depsipeptides. They show a wide range of biological activities including antibacterial, antifungal, cytotoxic and antitumour activities.
Significance:
This review highlights the importance of actinobacteria in the discovery of new medicines and summarises the state-of-the-art on their research in South Africa.
We reveal a gap in the exploitation of this resource and emphasise the opportunities for multidisciplinary research
Fusarium and fumonisin in GM maize grown by small-scale farmers in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
No full textThe genetic modification (GM) of maize to contain proteins that act to control insects has become a widespread agricultural practice. Although the reduction of insect damage to maize ears could potentially increase crop yield, rural small-scale farmers might be reluctant to buy expensive GM seed every season even when the lower fungal infection of the GM maize might also result in health benefits. This study was conducted over 5 years in three districts of northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, to study the Fusarium verticillioides and F. proliferatum infection and fumonisin contamination levels in Bt maize, Roundup- Ready® maize, conventional commercial maize and traditional landrace maize planted by rural farmers following their traditional agricultural practices. Mean Fusarium infection rates varied between 3.0% and 38.3% with large standard deviations. Fusarium infection was not significantly different (p>0.05) between the various genotypes, possibly due to the wide variation in results and low sample numbers. Although the fumonisin results also showed wide variation, the trend of contamination was lower in Bt maize compared to conventional commercial genotypes. The mean fumonisin levels in Bt hybrids were mostly <300 μg/kg, ensuring a safe maize supply in populations consuming maize as a dietary staple. The wide variations in Fusarium and fumonisin levels within each district point to the influence of local agricultural practices, local environmental conditions, and seasonal variations. Reducing exposure to fumonisins in these communities requires both further attention to the possible influence of these factors, as well as the use of appropriate post-harvest strategies.
Significance:
This study was the first in South Africa to follow rural farmers planting Bt and commercial maize hybrids as well as open-pollinated landrace maize, according to their traditional agricultural practices. The results show that in some instances the Bt maize had the lowest fumonisin levels
Use of sulfur dioxide to reduce postharvest decay and preserve the quality of fresh tomatoes
No full textTomatoes are an important and versatile crop with a short shelf life. Postharvest losses due to fruit decay and handling are reportedly as high as 30–50% globally; therefore, the agricultural sector would benefit from solutions that target the preservation of crops such as tomatoes. In this study, we investigated the potential use of sulfur dioxide (SO2) to provide postharvest protection against fungal decay in tomatoes whilst maintaining the quality of tomato fruit. Three tomato varieties packed as bulk (3–5 kg) cartons were exposed to SO2-generating sheets applied as either a top sheet over the fruit or a bottom sheet placed on the base of the carton before packing the fruit on the top. The results show that the application of SO2-generating sheets reduced the natural progression of decay on ‘Roma’ tomatoes by up to 60% and up to 80% on ‘Rosa’ tomatoes. Only marginal decay control was observed on ‘Round’ tomatoes. The top sheet application rendered the best results, as the application of the bottom sheet resulted in phytotoxicity in the form of SO2 damage. SO2 application reduced fruit shrivelling, especially when tomatoes were stored at higher temperatures during their shelf life. The application of SO2 on the tomatoes did not have any negative effects on fruit firmness. The results of this study provide a case to further explore the use of SO2-generating sheets on tomatoes to prevent postharvest decay. Differences in varietal physiology may be key to the successful application of this technology.
Significance:
Tomatoes are a crop that is highly susceptible to postharvest decay. These effects lie mainly with the end consumer. Besides the monetary loss of buying a commodity that rots quickly, pathogens infecting tomatoes are known to produce mycotoxins that pose a risk to human health. With food availability and safety concerns, the application of a product that could reduce these concerns would be beneficial to the agricultural sector
Defluoridation of water through the application of carbonised bone as a green adsorbent: A review
No full textFlouride contamination of water is recognised as a serious challenge facing humanity. Consumption of water that contains excessive amounts of fluoride can result in fluorosis. Consequently, concerted efforts have been made to develop cheap, effective and green techniques/materials to remove fluoride from water, particularly potable water. Bone char prepared from bovine, swine, and equine bones has been used extensively in this regard, and is the most promising, cheap and green material for treating drinking water with high fluoride concentration, particularly in developing countries. However, research on bone char prepared from bones of animals in the wild, as well as those from domestic and semi-wild animals treated with antibiotics to enhance growth, has been scanty. Such research is important as the use of antibiotics may alter the composition of bones, and thus their potential as a green adsorbent to remove fluoride may be impaired. Furthermore, little attempt has been made so far to package char bones for easy application domestically, particularly in rural communities.
Significance:
Contamination of water by fluoride is a major problem globally.
Various techniques and materials have been employed for water defluoridation, including the use of bone char, which has several advantages.
Bone char prepared from bones of animals in the wild and those from domestic and semi-wild animals treated with antibiotics to enhance growth should be further investigated.
Cheaper and less elaborate processes and packaging are required to scale down the use of bone char at domestic level