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The Latest Breaking News from the National Research Foundation

Humidity and heat are killers for tropical birds – waxbill and hornbill studies highlight the dangers

Humans are not the only species negatively affected by increasingly hot and humid conditions. Intense heatwaves sometimes kill large numbers of wild animals. Eastern Australia’s giant fruit bats, known as flying-foxes, provide possibly the most dramatic illustration. In late 2018, two days of extreme heat in the far north of…

The Conversation

South Africans want solar power but they worry panels will be stolen – study

South Africa would seem like the perfect place for widespread uptake of solar energy.

The Conversation

Johannesburg has failed its informal traders: policies are in place, but action is needed

Johannesburg’s inner city is a bustling hub of economic life – a dense, dynamic web of informal traders, adjacent businesses and other users. Informal trading remains an essential survival strategy for many households. It is also a key source of affordable goods and services.

The Conversation

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Millennials enjoy creative tourism – new research uncovers a business opportunity for South Africans

Creative tourism is a growing form of travel where visitors learn by taking part in hands-on, culturally rooted activities. These can include classes in local cooking, craft workshops or music sessions. Tourism researchers Anneli Douglas, Gijsbert Hoogendoorn and Greg Richards investigated what kinds of tourism in this niche appeal to…

The Conversation

South Africans have lost trust in the police, in parliament and in political parties - what that means

For democracies to function well, citizens have to trust their institutions. Every incidence of bad service delivery or corruption will influence how much citizens trust institutions.

The Conversation

South Africans are going off the service grid: what happens when citizens replace the state?

South Africa’s constitution promises all citizens access to adequate housing and basic services – water, security, sanitation and electricity. In practice, people from rich to poor experience persistent water cuts, sewage overflows, electricity blackouts and uneven policing. Fiona Anciano, Charlotte Lemanski, Christina Culwick Fatti and Margot Rubin are urban researchers…

The Conversation

Hype and western values are shaping AI reporting in Africa: what needs to change

News media shape public understanding of artificial intelligence (AI) and influence how society interacts with these technologies. For many people, especially those who have not sought more knowledge about AI elsewhere, media platforms are a primary source of information.

The Conversation

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Southern Africa’s rangelands do many jobs, from feeding cattle to storing carbon: a review of 60 years of research

South Africa’s rangelands have always had great value for the country. These areas offer more than just grazing for livestock. They provide services like purifying water, storing carbon and conserving biodiversity.

The Conversation

23% of South Africa’s children suffer from severe hunger: we tested some solutions – experts

A 2024 Unicef report found that 23% of South African children experience severe food poverty, eating less than two of the recommended five food groups per day. Unemployment, food insecurity, limited access to basic services and a lack of knowledge about nutrition all contribute to this. The lead researcher of…

The Conversation

Sea-level rise: a new method to estimate the probability of different outcomes – including a worst case

Here is a depressing fact: over the coming decades, sea-level rise will continue to threaten ecosystems, communities and cities. No matter how quickly we reduce our carbon emissions, our past emissions commit us to ongoing sea-level rise, given the long-drawn-out impact of climate warming on the oceans and ice sheets.…

The Conversation

South Africa’s history uncovered: the 1,000-year gap they don’t teach in school

Were you told that gold mining in southern Africa started after 1852? Or that the export of iron, steel, copper and gold began in the late 19th century? Or that South Africa became integrated into a global trading system only after 1652? Or that the first powerful state in South…

The Conversation

Mosquitoes use gut bacteria to fight the malaria they transmit – scientists are exploring how to use this to end the disease

The months of September to May are an unfortunate season in South Africa: malaria season. The mosquito-borne disease is found in the north-eastern districts of KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and Limpopo provinces.

The Conversation

Air pollution in South Africa: affordable new devices use AI to monitor hotspots in real time

Air quality has become one of the most important public health issues in Africa. Poor air quality kills more people globally every year than HIV, TB and malaria combined. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Air pollution makes people less productive because they get headaches and feel tired.

The Conversation

Home solar systems in South Africa: more will be installed if households are given loans, free maintenance and security

South Africa is making efforts to increase the use of solar photovoltaic energy. But it’s happening at a very slow pace.

The Conversation

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The Conversation

20 years ago South Africa had 40 qualified astronomers – all white. How it’s opened space science and developed skills since then

South African astronomy started an important journey two decades ago, when an initiative to attract and train future scientists in the field welcomed its first group of students under the National Astrophysics and Space Science Programme.

The Hindu

National Research Foundation’s chance to bridge India’s science-society gap

The National Research Foundation, India’s new research funding agency with a Rs 50,000 crore budget, aims to boost research and innovation.

The Hindu

Proposed National Research Foundation to provide ‘strategic’ direction, generate private funding

The Anusandhan National Research Foundation Bill, which proposes to establish the National Research Foundation, a new body that will provide “high level strategic direction for research, innovation and entrepreneurship”, was tabled in the Lok Sabha. The National Research Foundation proposes a more expansive definition of research which includes science, engineering,…

The Conversation

Looking for work? 3 tips on how social media can help young South Africans

South Africa has a growing unemployment rate. Statistics show the unemployment rate to be above 60% for those aged 15-24 and over 40% for those aged 25-34 years. Rankings from the World Bank position South Africa as having the highest unemployment rate in the world.

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The Conversation

South Africa's cold weather has arrived -- some tips on how to stay warm and safe

Research shows that the world is undoubtedly warming. And, as the global average temperature keeps rising, heatwaves are increasing in their frequency, duration and intensity for most of the world’s regions.

The Conversation

Cognitive flexibility: the science of how to be successful in business and at work

The word “permacrisis” was selected as the word of the year for 2022, referring to a feeling of being permanently in crisis. The business world has certainly faced continuous and increasingly frequent disruptions over the last few years. These included COVID-19, lots of people leaving the workforce, geopolitical events and…

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