African sci-fi: body hopping, artificial wombs and angry ghosts in a future Botswana: Tlotlo Tsamaase has already proved her talent for African science fiction. Her masterly short stories, one previously shortlisted for the Caine Prize, are helping put Botswana on the literary map. Her debut novel, Womb City, interweaves the mythological and digital expanses of …
African wild dogs will soon have their own sperm bank – how artificial breeding will help them survive: Scientists from the Institute for Breeding Rare and Endangered African Mammals have been working in southern Africa for over 15 years to protect endangered African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus). They’ve now decided to freeze sperm from as …
Alcohol, artificial trees and ‘granny dumping’: why Christmas is such a busy time in A&E: Christmas day is actually the least busy day in A&E during the holidays. Medical-R/ Shutterstock Christmas is a time for families and friends to come together, relax and enjoy themselves. It’s a time of giving and receiving and of feasting …
Why OpenAI developing an artificial intelligence that’s good at maths is such a big deal: Daboost / Shutterstock With the recent sacking and swift rehiring of Sam Altman by OpenAI, debates around the development and use of artificial intelligence (AI) are once again in the spotlight. What’s more unusual is that a prominent theme in …
Artificial wombs could someday be a reality – here’s how they may change our notions of parenthood: Artificial womb technology could eventually make it possible to grow a foetus from conception to "birth" wholly outside the human body. Marko Aliaksandr/ Shutterstock Our reproductive lives are considerably different from those of our ancestors, thanks in part …
AI: the world is finally starting to regulate artificial intelligence – what to expect from US, EU and China’s new laws: Have a nice day Photo / Shutterstock Most mainstream applications of artificial intelligence (AI) make use of its ability to crunch large volumes of data, detecting patterns and trends within. The results can help …
Artificial coral reefs showing early signs they can mimic real reefs killed by climate change – new research: Alexey UW/Shutterstock Earth’s average temperature in September 2023 was 1.75°C above its pre-industrial baseline, breaching (if only temporarily) the 1.5°C threshold at which world leaders agreed to try and limit long-term warming. Persistent warming at this level …
World’s biggest bat colony gathers in Zambia every year: we used artificial intelligence to count them: Straw-coloured fruit bats at Kasanka National Park, Zambia. Fabian von Poser/Getty Images Everybody who visits Kasanka National Park in Zambia during “bat season” agrees that the evening emergence of African straw-coloured fruit bats from their roost site is one …
Space colonies: how artificial photosynthesis may be key to sustained life beyond Earth: shutterstock Supamotionstock.com/shutterstock Life on Earth owes its existence to photosynthesis – a process which is 2.3 billion years old. This immensely fascinating (and still not fully understood) reaction enables plants and other organisms to harvest sunlight, water and carbon dioxide while converting …
Edit your photos with open source artificial intelligence: Edit your photos with open source artificial intelligence Don Watkins Sat, 04/15/2023 – 03:00 I’ve been interested in photography ever since I co-opted my father’s Kodak 620 camera as a young boy. I used it to take pictures of the flora and fauna of our neighborhood. My …
Artificial intelligence in South Africa comes with special dilemmas – plus the usual risks: 3rdtimeluckystudio/Shutterstock When people think about artificial intelligence (AI), they may have visions of the future. But AI is already here. At its base, it is the recreation of aspects of human intelligence in computerised form. Like human intelligence, it has wide …
Cheaper, tougher, less toxic: new alloys show promise in developing artificial limbs: Knee replacements can ease people's pain – but they are also often prohibitively expensive. Dragana Gordic/Shutterstock Titanium is a strong, resilient and relatively light metal. Its properties have also been well studied; scientists know a great deal about it. All of this makes …
Artificial intelligence is used for predictive policing in the US and UK – South Africa should embrace it, too: Predictive policing may be a useful addition to traditional policing in contexts like South Africa. Fani Mahuntsi/Gallo Images via Getty Images In the 2002 movie Minority Report (based on a short story by Philip K Dick), …
Artificial light may become a new weapon in the fight to control malaria: Artificial light may trick malaria-transmitting mosquitoes into changing their feeding habits, protecting people against bites. Professor Lizette Koekemoer/University of the Witwatersrand The world has not yet won the war against malaria. While the total number of cases has declined from about 81.1 …
Artificial intelligence carries a huge upside. But potential harms need to be managed: The increasing use of artificial intelligence and machine learning in public decision making is raising critical issues around fairness and human rights. Getty Images Artificial intelligence and machine learning have the potential to contribute to the resolution of some of the most …
Defining what’s ethical in artificial intelligence needs input from Africans: "Alfie", a moral choice machine, is pictured in front of an important question during a press conference in Germany. Arne Dedert/picture alliance via Getty Images Artificial intelligence (AI) was once the stuff of science fiction. But it’s becoming widespread. It is used in mobile phone …
Ice stupas: the artificial mini glaciers bringing water to some of the driest, coldest places on Earth: Nishant Tiku/University of Aberdeen, Author provided Glaciers are not just spectacular indicators of climate change as they shrink and disappear due to global warming. They are also, for many communities, an irreplaceable source of fresh water. During the …
Seti: why extraterrestrial intelligence is more likely to be artificial than biological: Are we listening in vain? sdecoret/Shutterstock Is there intelligent life elsewhere in the universe? It’s a question that has been debated for centuries, if not millenia. But it is only recently that we’ve had an actual chance of finding out, with initiatives such …