Academy of Science of South Africa
The World Academy of Sciences - Regional Office for Sub-Saharan Africa (TWAS-ROSSA)Not a member yet
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Social, Psychological and Health Impact of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) on the Elderly: South African and Italian Perspectives
Get PDFCite: Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf), (2019). Social, Psychological and Health Impact of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) on the Elderly: South African and Italian Perspectives,
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/assaf.2019/0064The elderly population has been included in the vulnerable population to the mental health risks of COVID-19. This group in our society is confronted with high rates of pre-existing depressive symptoms and the challenges of accessing mental health services. The elderly population has been reported to be more susceptible, especially those with underlying diseases, to COVID-19 infection and severe illnesses. Recent studies have showed a higher mortality of elderly patients with COVID-19 to those of young and middle-aged patients. The panel discussion explored the challenges confronting the elderly in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic.Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf
Statement in response to the article published in the South African Journal of Science by Professor Nicoli Nattrass with the title Why are black South African students less likely to consider studying biological sciences?
Get PDFCite: Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf), (2020) Statement in response to the article published in the South African Journal of Science by Professor Nicoli Nattrass with the title Why are black South African students less likely to consider studying biological sciences
The policy & practice of drug, alcohol & tobacco use during Covid-19
No full text1 MP4 video; Size: 524MB; Duration: 01:12:36This discussion formed part of the Science Forum South Africa (SFSA) 2020 event.
The World Science Forum will be held in Cape Town in December 2021 under the theme of “science for social justice”. As a precedent, this documentary examines the ethics of intervening in the lives of others under the lens of South Africa’s go-it-alone ban on tobacco and alcohol sales to tackle COVID-19. Leading medical, policy and civil society experts from at home and abroad weigh up the scientific evidence for and against. Taxation, jobs, sectoral interests, religious indoctrination, values and civil liberties all come into play. Further issues debated include concepts of recent history and subjugation versus today’s democracy and the rule of law. Have fundamental principles of autonomy, human dignity, freedom and equality been forced to give way? Is the medical profession’s “unconscionable collusion” acceptable? How must lawmakers navigate between the rights and responsibilities of individuals to look after themselves and the rights and responsibilities of States to look after their citizens? Above all, as this pandemic collides with the known syndemics of TB, malaria, HIV/Aids, hepatitis etc., the panel argues for the urgent acceptance and application of harm reduction science worldwide, if lives really do matter.Department of Science and Innovation (South Africa
Recognising individual contributions to collaborative research: limitations of proportional publication counts and proposals for alternatives
Get PDFCite: Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf) (2019) ‘Recognising Individual Contributions to Collaborative Research: Limitations of Proportional Publication Counts and Proposals for Alternatives’ doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/assaf.2019/0058This report was undertaken to determine whether researchers in South Africa who publish within large consortia are appropriately recognised in the South African context, including the systems by which authors are evaluated and rewarded, with specific reference to multi-authored publications. The study sought to establish the current practices in South Africa and compare these with international best practice. Lastly the report provides a number of recommendations to improve this aspect of the current system.Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf)National Research Foundation (NRF
Quest Volume 15 Number 4 2019
Get PDFCite: Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf), (2019). Quest: Science for South Africa, 15(4). [Online] Available at: http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11911/133Protecting Paralympians: Investigating injury and illness in Paralympic athletes - A helping hand: Prosthetic hands developed at local universities - Tukkies for the hearing Impaired: University of Pretoria
academics assist the deaf - Disability due to neuromuscular disease: Genomics research: Stephen
Hawking profile - High-tech aids for the blind and visually impaired: Exploring advances in assistive
Technology - MOOC pursues dignity for disabled learners: Online course for teachers and caregivers -
SALT observes super-fast spirals - Climate change - Soapbox science - Sunscreen from cashew nut shells? - Marine sciences curriculum - Chasing the rain in Jonkershoek: Retang Mokua samples a storm event - Woer woers: How our African ancestors made sound in the Stone Age – Shooting for the stars: Laser experiments replicate star conditions - Q&A with a nuclear Physicist: Interview with Dr Thabsile Thabethe - No touching please: Non-invasive physiological measurements in wild animals
Quest Volume 15 Number 2 2019
No full textCite: Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf), (2019). Quest: Science for South Africa, 15(2). [Online] Available at: http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11911/116MicroCT: An introduction to microcomputed tomography - Digital avatars new in taxonomers’ toolkit: Helen Swingler explains how microCT can be used in taxonomy - Looking inside a brooding brittle star: Jannes Landschoff used microCT to research reproduction of a marine invertebrate - Brittle stars in the Bokkeveld: Studying fossil echinoderms with microCT - Little Foot’s inner ear: MicroCT scans of the hominin fossil shed light on how she lived and moved - ‘Bakeng se Afrika’: Forensic applications of microCT - MicroCT for metal 3D printing: Anton du Plessis tells us how additive manufacturing benefits from microCT - Scarred Earth: The SALDi project aims to develop tools for monitoring land degradation - ZACube-2: South Africa’s latest nanosatellite will help protect the marine environment - Marine forecasting: The role of the South African Weather Service’s Marine Unit - Young scientists meet Nobel Prize winners: The annual Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting - Coding and robotics - Beating the Russians at their own game - The pen is mightier - Indigenous knowledge
Second Biennial Report on the State of Climate Science and Technology in South Africa
Get PDF73 pagesCite: Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf), (2019). Second Biennial Report on the State of Climate Science and Technology in South Africa. [Online] Available at: DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/assaf.2019/0038This is the second biennial report on the State of Climate Science and Technology in South Africa, commissioned by the Departments of Science and Innovation (DSI) and Environment, Forestry and Fisheries, and compiled by the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf). The first biennial report, completed at the end of 2016, covered the period 2005 – 2015. This second report covered the period of 2016 – 2017.These reports are to assist ensuring that South Africa has the necessary climate-related knowledge, skills, technologies and capacities to thrive in the 21st century, with all its changes and uncertainties. South African society as a whole, but especially government, needs to know that they are investing wisely and efficiently in order to gain essential human and institutional capabilities to detect, understand, and anticipate climate changes and their impacts; adapt to them; and mitigate further global climate change by reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in line with stated national intentions. These climate objectives are pursued alongside national development goals. A focus on climate-compatible development would position all sectors of the South African economy and society to be globally competitive in a changing world.This report put special effort into investigating research and development activities relating to climate change adaptation and mitigation in the private sector, including relevant state-owned enterprises (SoEs).Department of Science and Innovation (DSI
Twelve Years Later: Second ASSAf Report on Research Publishing In and From South Africa
Get PDFCite: Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf), (2019). Twelve Years Later: Second ASSAf Report on Research Publishing In and From South Africa (2018). [Online] Available at: DOI:10.17159/assaf.2018/0030The Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf) released its second major Consensus Report on a commissioned study of Research Publishing in South Africa in 2006, with detailed data analysis and a 360-degree view of the topic, including the impact of new technologies on the dissemination of research results and the world-wide open access movement. A second Consensus Report on scholarly books followed in 2009. The Department of Science and Technology (DST) endorsed the two reports and requested the Academy itself to oversee the implementation of the recommendations, and has funded the Academy’s Scholarly Publishing Programme (SPP) ever since. The Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) has supported the projects of the SPP in various relevant areas. Much has been achieved even though much remains to be done. In 2016, the Academy commissioned Professor Johann Mouton and his colleagues of the Centre for Research on Evaluation of Science and Technology (CREST) at Stellenbosch University to do a thorough, largely bibliometric study of scholarly publishing in and from South Africa (SA) in the period 2005 – 2014, with all forms of peer-reviewed scholarly publications included, whether in journals, books or conference proceedings. The group has become extremely well versed in the appropriate methodologies, using reliably indexed databases and cooperating with partners who have developed special techniques for sharpening the focus of
standard parameters such as citation counts and rates over time, demographic shifts in authorships and indicators of collaboration. The study was completed in 2017, and submitted to the Academy. Amongst a large number of interesting and relevant findings were disturbing indications of predatory publishing and questionable editorial practices. As the period studied by the CREST team coincided almost exactly with the period that has elapsed since the data-gathering for ASSAf’s above-mentioned first report, the Academy has decided to publish a second report on scholarly publishing in SA, to include concise but essential summaries of the two earlier ASSAf reports (Chapters 1 and 2); a review of the work of the SPP in the research publishing system over the past 12 years (Chapter 3); an analysis of the problems of access on the part of South African researchers to the problematic international
commercial research literature (Chapter 4); the concise version of the new CREST report (Chapter 5); a consideration of the threat posed by predatory publishing and questionable editorial and authorship practices (Chapter 6); a discussion of the main issues and unresolved problems still remaining in the system despite its
generally good progress (Chapter 7); and a set of headline recommendations for the future (Chapter 8). The Academy believes that the formation of public policy should involve a
longitudinal understanding of how systems behave over time periods that are sufficiently long to reveal both the trends and the underlying causes. We see no reason in this new analysis to depart from our original conclusion, that the highest possible quality of scholarly publishing within a country is important, but that only open access publishing of local journals will ensure the wide dissemination of their
important content, with all the benefits that that will bring. This standpoint is not at variance with the other conclusion that South African researchers should also actively contribute to the international literature and participate as fully as possible
in the world’s knowledge system.Department of Science and Technology (DST)
Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET
Annual Multi-Stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Get PDFPlease cite as: Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf) and Department of Science and Technology (DST) (2019) Annual Multi-Stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/assaf.2019/0044In 2015, South Africa joined other member states of the United Nations (UN) to sign and ratify the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030 Agenda). The UN consequently established the Technology Facilitation Mechanism (TFM) to leverage STI in realising the 2030 Agenda. The annual UN STI Forum (Multi-Stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for SDGs) was then established to discuss the inclusion of STI in the implementation of SDGs. The forum calls on for member states to develop and implement inclusive STI for SDG action plans/roadmaps or strategies as part of the national responses to the 2030 Agenda.
In the South African context, the DST has been tasked to coordinate the development and implementation of the national STI for SDGs action plan. This action plan is intended to enhance and position the National System of Innovation (NSI) to meaningfully contribute to national, regional, continental and global efforts and to implement and integrate the SDGs into STI policies, specifically the draft White Paper on STI.
The forum intended to solicit input from stakeholders to develop the national STI for SDGs Action Plan and reflect on its appropriate governance and coordination structure in preparation for the member states Voluntary National Review (VNR) report to be presented to the UN in 2019.Department of Science and Technology (DST), South Afric
