AFRICA'S PANDEMIC PUZZLE: WHY SO FEW CASES AND DEATHS?
14 August 2020, Science
Africa seems to have weathered the pandemic relatively well so far, with fewer than one confirmed case for every thousand people and just 23,000 deaths. Yet several antibody surveys suggest far more Africans have been infected with the coronavirus—a discrepancy that is puzzling scientists around the continent.
WHO GETS TO STUDY WHOM?
17 July 2020, Sapiens
As the field of anthropology struggles to shed its colonial past, the discipline has inadvertently put constraints on anthropologists of color who already face racism, bias, and discrimination.
SCIENTISTS STRUGGLE TO ACCESS AFRICA'S HISTORICAL CLIMATE DATA
24 October 2019, Nature
Better climate predictions require Africa’s weather agencies to open their archives. But commercial concerns and a lack of trust are holding them back.
THE ETHICAL QUANDARY OF HUMAN INFECTION STUDIES
19 November 2018, Undark
Sometimes infecting volunteers with a disease can lead to new treatments. But how much risk and compensation is acceptable for those in poor nations?
EUROPE’S BIGGEST RESEARCH FUND CRACKS DOWN ON ‘ETHICS DUMPING’
3 July, Nature
The practice of conducting ethically dubious research in foreign countries is under fresh scrutiny.
IN NIGERIA, A BATTLE AGAINST ACADEMIC PLAGIARISM HEATS UP
27 June 2018, Science
Six years ago, Emmanuel Unuabonah, a chemist at Redeemer's University in Ede, Nigeria, read a scientific paper that made him feel "betrayed." In it, four Nigerian researchers presented data copied from a paper by the German researcher as their own.
.jpg)
WHAT IS AFRICA’S REAL SHARE OF GLOBAL SCIENCE?
14 June 2018, Research Africa
Africa’s share of global research is often put at between 2 and 3 per cent. But this is probably an overestimate, a pair of Dutch scientists argue. Reports of Africa’s share being over 2 per cent do not take into consideration the proportion of African authors on a paper, they say. If this is done, Africa’s share is closer to 1 per cent.
AFRICAN SCIENTISTS CALL FOR MORE CONTROL OF THEIR CONTINENT’S GENOMIC DATA
18 April 2018, Nature
As the genomics revolution finally turns its attention to Africa and northern researchers flock there to collect data, scientists from the continent are demanding a larger role in projects.
ECOLOGISTS UP IN ARMS OVER CAPE TOWN’S PLANS TO EASE WATER CRISIS BY DRILLING INTO AQUIFER
February 26, 2018, Science
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA—In the mountains east of here there are plants so rare they are only found in an area the size of a soccer field. Some could be extinct in a matter of months, ecologists warn, if city officials proceed with plans to drill into aquifers to help ease a looming water crisis.
PANDEMIC OF HUNGER
12 October 2020, Nature
COVID-19 is straining African food security but also presents an opportunity for change.
AFTER RHODES FELL: THE BATTLE TO TACKLE A RACIST LEGACY
18 May 2021, Nature
Six years after a statue of Cecil Rhodes was toppled, students and staff at the South African university are still working to improve equity and representation.
WHY SOUTH AFRICA'S CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK COULD BE A 'CATALYST FOR TRANSFORMATION'
11 June 2020, National Geographic
The nation’s long experience with fighting HIV and TB has yielded both promise and setbacks in its battle against COVID-19.