A hackathon is a fun, fast-paced, strenuous, yet highly rewarding event where developers/coders, designers, strategists, and enthusiasts come together to work on project ideas and build solutions. Hackathons are known for late-night coding in groups, with shared pizzas and screens – but not in these times of pandemic. This time, we do it remotely. This hackathon is co-hosted by the University … Read More
An initiative by Dr. Ryan Daniels at the Forensic DNA laboratory in the Department of Biotechnology at the University of the Western Cape, this month-long workshop takes the participants from the basics of using Unix, the most common computer platform for science, to characterising ancestry with DNA data using cloud computing platforms and software containerisation. The diversity of topics of … Read More
Carolina Odman of IDIA’s Development and Outreach office, and Kevin Govender from the IAU Office of Astronomy for Development explore how science and technology can fundamentally change the context in which human development is defined, through the lens of shared ownership and decentralisation. The reflection is a contribution to the United Nations Development Programme and International Science Council project on … Read More
I suddenly have to move my face-to-face physics/astronomy course online! What should I do? During this COVID-19 pandemic, many academic staff are being asked to quickly move their face-to-face classes online. This is challenging for many reasons: teaching online is quite different from teaching in person, many staff don’t have experience teaching online, transitioning quickly is difficult, and all of … Read More
University of the Western Cape (UWC) veteran scholar, Associate Professor Carolina Ödman, has been shortlisted for this year’s prestigious National Science and Technology Forum-South32 (NSTF-South32) Awards, popularly known as the “Science Oscars of South Africa”. Prof Ödman is a finalist for the Communication Award for her pioneering work in astronomy outreach, development and education. The Communication Award recognises a communicator … Read More
Two academics from the University of the Western Cape (UWC) have been nominated for the 22nd prestigious National Science and Technology Forum-South32 (NSTF-South32) Awards, popularly known as “Science Oscars of South Africa”. International renowned academic Associate Professor Carolina Ödman has been nominated for the Communication Award for her pioneering work in astronomy outreach, development and education. The Communication Award recognises … Read More
Sol Plaatje University hosted the Ilifu Big Data Hackathon from 12 – 13 March 2020. The Ilifu Human Capital Development and Outreach Committee in partnership with SPU’s School of Natural and Applied Sciences aims to promote active usage of ilifu (a big data infrastructure for data-intensive research) through hands-on activities, training and skills development. The aim of the Hackathon is … Read More
The impact of a social network of peers on academic achievement and dropout rates in minorities is a well- studied subject (1). While no formal study of this kind has been carried out in South Africa, generally, findings internationally agree that the less isolated minority students are, the more likely they are to succeed individually, and as a group (2). … Read More
The Inter-University Institute for Data Intensive Astronomy was honoured to have Prof. Ewine Fleur van Dishoeck, professor of Molecular Astrophysics at Leiden Observatory and president of the International Astronomical Union (IAU), who dedicated a whole morning out of her incredibly busy schedule to deliver a special colloquium at the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of the Western … Read More
IDIA’s Development and Outreach shines at international Science for Development meeting. An international, interdisciplinary workshop on “Science for Development” was be held on January 30-31, 2020 at the South African Astronomical Observatory in Cape Town, South Africa. The aim of the workshop was to create a space for interaction between natural scientists, technology experts, social scientists and development practitioners in … Read More
