English is big and baggy, a good language of science, but precision is tough
English is the international language of science, for better or for worse, but most of the world’s scientists speak it as a second language. We shoulder an extra career challenge: not only must we gain command of our science, but we must also be able to write to professional standards...
Kenyan filmmakers, artistes pile pressure on president to relax rigid Covid protocols
Rendered helpless and idle by the recent rigid Covid-19 containment measures, stakeholders in Kenya’s entertainment and hospitality industries want the government through the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth to bail out artistes and film-makers who depend on them for a living. In a statement, Kisima Music and Film Awards,...
AstraZeneca vaccine causes blood clots but cases are few and far between: regulators
The European Medicines Agency has concluded there is a link between AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine and “very rare” but dangerous clotting events reported in a number of countries where the vaccine has been used, events which in some cases have been fatal. A safety committee, the agency said on Wednesday (April...
Sorry state of reforestation: ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few’
After collecting seeds, they are usually sent to nurseries, where they are grown into seedlings for planting. The number and size of nurseries around the world are becoming fewer and smaller, raising the concerns about the future vegetation cover and some tree species. A study in which we interviewed over...
In race to raise forest cover, scientists discover the world’s running out of seeds
Dean Swift has gotten really good at spotting where squirrels hide their seeds. In the forests of Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico and South Dakota, he looks for a moist shaded area with a small grove of trees, sometimes near a ravine. Here, he will find a cache of chewed cones...
Africa’s urban rot: ‘We treat human beings like waste by ignoring or brutalising them’
A report presented to South African Tswane city in June 2019 highlighted the need for economic growth and job creation. It specifically addressed “the problem of informal recyclers sorting waste in an uncoordinated manner across the City,” and made a commitment to “extend their waste management systems in order to...
Human ‘scavengers’ in Africa exist because cities, residents create ‘garbage economy’
For the “Bagerezi” – informal recyclable material reclaimers – Covid-19 was just one extra thing to worry about. They face many more immediate dangers every day and are subject to every kind of disadvantage: homelessness, hunger and exposure to the elements, ostracism, exploitation, harassment and threats of eviction. The Bagerezi...
Gender and race still determine salaries at American universities – women association
Women account for just 24 per cent of all top income earners at US universities, according to a study from the Eos Foundation. The study, conducted in association with the Washington DC-based American Association of University Women, found that highly compensated women are especially scarce at the tenured and tenure-track...
Like Yellow Fever certificate before it, it’ll soon be a must to get a Covid passport
Sometime soon, you might arrive at an airport or a stadium or a restaurant, open an app or flash a card, and be admitted to a place or experience that was denied you during the pandemic. You will have just deployed a vaccine passport, a certification of either vaccination status...
Most scientists believe Covid spread from animals, some say it’s lab-engineered
After the breakout of coronavirus in Wuhan city, Chinese researchers collected nearly 1,000 samples from the Huanan market in early 2020, swabbing doors, rubbish bins, toilets, stalls that sold vegetables and animals, stray cats and mice. The majority of the samples that tested positive were from stalls that sold seafood,...
