![Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Curiosity 17_2200x800px.jpg)
Curiosity 17: #Democracy
Curiosity, May 2024: The 17th issue of Curiosity, Wits University’s research magazine, is themed: #Democracy, and very timely as we celebrate 30 years of democracy in South Africa. We turned to our academics and professional staff for their research, perspectives and commentary across faculties on both the progress and our shortcomings in our democracy. Their work interrogates democracy as a political system and its liberal, conservative, and other alternatives. We share research and expertise on hot topics including AI, religion, migration, social grants, and the National Health Insurance. Our feature stories explore how media maintain and support democracy in the 21st century, and how crime and corruption undermine it. Despite our shortcomings, there is reason to be cautiously optimistic about the country’s future. #WitsForGood #ResearchForGood #InnovationForGood
In this issue:
- The rise and fall and reform of democracy: A violent freedom (page 8): Despite the knife-edge upon which South Africans live, the country is not, in fact, a failed state – but a new form of democracy is required.
- How colonialism bastardised ancient rituals (page 18): Traditional rituals and practices such as lobola and initiation are often viewed through a Western lens and are misunderstood as misogynist or patriarchal.
- Social grants: A hand up, not a hand-out (page 20): The existing child support grant and proposed pregnancy grant both give children a healthier start in life, and they make democratic and economic sense.
- NHI: From aspiration to implementation (page 24): Access to healthcare services is a constitutional right but is equal healthcare in South Africa a reality in our lifetime?
- Playing the migration blame game (page 26): Blaming foreigners is merely a smokescreen for politicians' own failures.
- AI and democracy: For better and for worse (page 32): Today’s news and current affairs landscape, which underpins our democracy, requires both ethical content producers and discerning consumers.
- Religion and the state: A shifting cocktail of contradictions (page 36): Can political structures withstand the pressures of religious groups’ ‘New Right’ ideology?
- What environmental equality in Africa really look like (page 44): South Africa must urgently industrialise to ensure sustainability and a genuinely just transition.
Latest issue and story archive
![Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Curiosity 17_600x300px.jpg)
Curios.ty 17: #Democracy
This issue is very timely as South Africa celebrates 30 years of democracy, and heads to the polls again on 29 May 2024.
![Professor Lynn Morris | #Curiosity 17, #Democracy | www.curiosity.ac.za Professor Lynn Morris | #Curiosity 17, #Democracy | www.curiosity.ac.za](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Professor-Lynn-Morris_600x300px.jpg)
Celebrating 30 years of democracy
[Editorial] Wits continues to contribute towards advancing democracy, social justice, and human rights.
![US Capital insurrection | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ US Capital insurrection | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/US-Capitol-insurrection_600x300px.jpg)
The Untouchables: Crime and corruption
Corruption is not unique to SA as US and UK have shown. Democracy relies on holding authorities accountable, but no one seems keen to do that.
![Statue of President Nelson Mandela at the Union Buildings | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Statue of President Nelson Mandela at the Union Buildings | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Nelson-Mandela-statue_600x300px.jpg)
A violent freedom
Despite the knife-edge upon which South Africans live, the country is not, in fact, a failed state – but a new form of democracy is required.
![Protest and strikes | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Protest and strikes | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Protests_600x300px.jpg)
Reimagining democracy
Democracy, as a system of government by the whole population, seems to have had its heyday. Is ‘People Power’ a viable option?
![Fathers and sons | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Fathers and sons | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Father-and-son-on-scateboard_600x300px.jpg)
The social consensus revolution
[Column] To prevent South Africa from becoming a failed society, we must all rise and become active citizens.
![Streets of Braamfontein © Chanté Schatz | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Streets of Braamfontein © Chanté Schatz | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Streets-of-Braamfontein_600x300px.jpg)
Q&A: The South African Constitution
Constitutional expert, Professor Cathi Albertyn, answers your questions on the South African Constitution, the bedrock of South Africa’s democracy.
![Protest music | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Protest music | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Protest-music_600x300px.jpg)
Marching to new drums
A generation of ‘born frees’ are heading to the polls in 2024. What is the soundtrack, if any, that underscores this election year?
![Lobola and traditional weddings © Lombe K | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Lobola and traditional weddings © Lombe K | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Lobola-and-traditional-weddings_Credit_Lombe-K_600x300px.jpg)
How colonialism bastardised ancient rituals
Traditional rituals and practices such as lobola and initiation are often misunderstood in democratic societies where they are viewed through a western lens.
![ATM, money and economy | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ ATM, money and economy | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/ATM-money-economy_600x300px.jpg)
Social grants: A hand up, not a hand-out
The child support grant and proposed pregnancy grant give children a healthier start in life and make democratic and economic sense.
![Disability Rights | © Chanté Schatz | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Disability Rights | © Chanté Schatz | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Disability-rights_600x300px.jpg)
Realising disability rights in Southern Africa
People with disabilities still experience barriers to the realisation of their rights. A new view on disability is required.
![Healthcare and medicine | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Healthcare and medicine | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Healthcare-medicine_600x300px.jpg)
NHI: From aspiration to implementation
Access to healthcare services is a constitutional right but is equal healthcare in South Africa a reality in our lifetime?
![Migration and immigration | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Migration and immigration | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Migration-and-immigrants_600x300px.jpg)
Playing the migration blame game
Pushing a nationalist agenda and fuelling xenophobia is politicians’ way of disguising the causes of South Africa’s economic woes.
![Media and journalism | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Media and journalism | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Media-and-journalism_600x300px.jpg)
Stabilising the crumbling walls of the Fourth Estate
Journalism as an institution is facing a bleak outlook. It needs to dig deep to find ways in which to pull itself out of the well.
![AI and digital technology | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ AI and digital technology | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/David-Beckham-AI_600x300px.jpg)
AI and democracy: For better and for worse
Today’s news and current affairs landscape, which underpins our democracy, requires both ethical content producers and discerning consumers.
![Willem Cullen Library | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Willem Cullen Library | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Willem-Cullen-Library_600x300px.jpg)
Democratising knowledge through open access
More than half of SA’s academic publications appear in Open Access sources, with Wits University embracing this trend.
![Religion and the state | © Lauren Mulligan | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Religion and the state | © Lauren Mulligan | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Religion-and-the-state_600x300px.jpg)
Religion and the state: A shifting cocktail of contradictions
Many countries are grappling with religious challenges. Can political structures withstand the pressures of religious groups’ ‘New Right’ ideology?
![Busisiwe Kamolane-Kgadima | © Chanté Schatz | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Busisiwe Kamolane-Kgadima | © Chanté Schatz | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Busisiwe-Kamolane-Kgadima_600x300px.jpg)
Finding ubuntu in the word of the law
Busisiwe Kamolane-Kgadima, the Acting Director at CALS is driven by human rights, and the fight for social justice.
![Stockvel communities | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Stockvel communities | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Stokvel-and-community_600x300px.jpg)
Stokvels secure income and social capital
A stokvel research project at Wits could lead to greater financial freedom, transparency, and accessibility for members.
![South African Parliament | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ South African Parliament | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/South-African-Parliament_600x300px.jpg)
Who is accountable for environmental rights?
The lack of enforcement of environmental laws allow powerful entities to act without consequence. Where does the buck stop?
![Solar power farm in South Africa | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Solar power farm in South Africa | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Solar-power-farm_600x300px.jpg)
What environmental equality in Africa really looks like
As countries move to adopt green technologies to fight climate change, the Global South is left at a disadvantage in this new revolution.
![Service delivery and lack of services | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Service delivery and lack of services | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Service-deliver_water_600x300px.jpg)
A drought of political will
South Africans are still fighting for the right to basic water supply as enshrined in the Bill of Rights.
![Conservation, nature and animals | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Conservation, nature and animals | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Conservation-and-animal-rights_600x300px.jpg)
Conflicts of (natural) interest
The creation of conservation areas has become a tug-of-war between the needs of local communities and preserving critical natural resources.
![Animal rights | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Animal rights | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Animal-rights_600x300px.jpg)
Using Ubuntu to recognise animal rights
[Column] Under the SA Constitution, animals do not enjoy the same rights as humans. But Ubuntu principles can change that, writes Dr Sheena Swemmer.
![President for a day | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ President for a day | Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/President-for-a-day_600x300px.jpg)
Ethical conundrums of the great dictator
[Column] As elected president for one day, I struggle with the same ethical question as those who have come before me: To plunder or to serve?
![Rivonia Trial defence team at the Historical Papers Research Archives in the Willem Cullen Library Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Rivonia Trial defence team at the Historical Papers Research Archives in the Willem Cullen Library Curiosity 17: #Democracy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-17/Historical-Papers-Research-Archive_600x300px.jpg)
Democracy and Archives: A quest for truth
Archives are the custodians of evidence in the pursuit of truth and records of Commissions of Inquiry are fundamental to support democracy.
![Computer gaming, screen addiction | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Computer gaming, screen addiction | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Online-gaming_internet_digital_600xs300px.jpg)
Hooked on games and the silver screen
What is it about TV and film that’s so compelling that we can’t resist immersing ourselves in celluloid?
![Cigarettes and smoking | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Cigarettes and smoking | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Cicaretts-and-smoking_600x300px.jpg)
Seeing through the cigarette tax smokescreen
The high taxes on tobacco are counterproductive in decreasing smoking. It only benefits the illegal cigarette trade – and its political masters.
![Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Curiosity-16_600x300px.jpg)
Curios.ty 16 (#Drugs): Between hope and hell
In this issue, we highlight the diversity, scope, and multi-dimensional nature of drug-related research at Wits University.
![Professor Lynn Morris | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Lynn Morris | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Professor-Lynn-Morris_600x300px.jpg)
DRUGS!
Editorial: The word ‘drugs’ evokes a range of reactions – from the hopes of ‘miracle’ cures to the sadness of addiction and social harm.
![Medicine, health, medication | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Medicine, health, medication | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Medicine-and-health_600x300px.jpg)
The future of medicine
Imagine a world where medicines can be guided to the exact place that they are needed in the body – a world closer than you think.
![Leading the way to an HIV cure | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Leading the way to an HIV cure | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/HIV-Aids_600x300px.jpg)
Leading the way to an HIV cure
The battle to save millions of HIV-positive lives bears fruit in unexpected ways.
![Health, medicine and obesity | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Health, medicine and obesity | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Medicine_Health_600x300px.jpg)
Obesity – a new treatment frontier
Current treatments are complex and expensive but new studies reveal that obesity medication could be the answer to this epidemic.
![Alternative medication and health care | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Alternative medication and health care | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Health_medicine_cannibis_600x300px.jpg)
Alternatives to traditional cancer treatment
Opinions around cancer treatment options can be highly divisive, but many patients don’t have the luxury of choice.
![Pills and health care | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Pills and health care | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Medicine_pills_600x300px.jpg)
Jagged little pills or panacea for health?
Vitamin and nutritional supplements are big business, but are they effective or just a waste of money – or even dangerous?
![Sugar, sugar tax, obesity | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Sugar, sugar tax, obesity | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Sugar_600x300px.jpg)
The daily drugs in our diet
“We need to create an environment for people where the healthy choice is the easier choice.”
![Psychedelics and mushrooms | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Psychedelics and mushrooms | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Mushrooms_psychedelics_600x300px.jpg)
Inside the mushroom bubble
Psychedelics: Are they the magic bullet some claim for the treatment of conditions such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder?
![Alcohol, addiction, poverty | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Alcohol, addiction, poverty | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Alcohol_600x300px.jpg)
Cheers to SA’s most pervasive drug
Alcohol is so ubiquitous and its marketing so pernicious that there’s a tendency to underestimate its impact on public health. So, why do we drink?
![Studying, students and mindfulness Studying, students and mindfulness](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Study-stress_600x300px.jpg)
Getting into that natural study rhythm
Q&A: Academic stress and pressure can lead students to use unhealthy choices such as medication cocktails, energy drinks and supplements.
![Drugs, sugar, alcohol, coffee, smoking | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Drugs, sugar, alcohol, coffee, smoking | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Drugs_600x300px.jpg)
Your drug questions answered
From alcohol to cocaine, caffeine to cough syrup, Wits experts shed light on legal and not-so-legal drugs of choice.
![Constant Breckerling from AgiSmart Engineering | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Constant Breckerling from AgiSmart Engineering | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Constant-Beckerling_Credit_Wits-University_600x300px.jpg)
Turning green grass into gold
Academia can help show how the cannabis industry can be a thriving sector in the country.
![Drugs in sport | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Drugs in sport | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Drugs-in-sports_600x300px.jpg)
Beating the ʻpharmaceutical arms race’ in sports
Drugs in sport is eroding the public credibility of many sports heroes’ superhuman performances. Can trust be restored?
![Opioids, drugs, nyaope, addiction | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Opioids, drugs, nyaope, addiction | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Opioids-and-nyaope_600x300px.jpg)
Blocking the opioid pipeline
Treating opioid addiction is a painful, time consuming and often frustrating process. New medication can help solve this problem.
![Medications, pills, health and antibiotics | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Medications, pills, health and antibiotics | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Drugs_Pills_Medicine_600x300px.jpg)
Antibiotics: Too much of a good thing?
The complicated doctor-patient dynamic requires managing expectations to protect both drug efficacy and public health.
![Antibiotics in animals and the impact on human health | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Antibiotics in animals and the impact on human health | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Hormones_antibiotics_cattle_600x300px.jpg)
The antibiotic bully in your beef
The use of antibiotics in livestock threatens public health, the environment, and food security. Researchers explore plants as an alternative.
![Mosquitoes and malaria | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Mosquitoes and malaria | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Mosquito_malaria_600x300px.jpg)
Mosquitoes on birth control
Eradicating malaria in SA is a national policy goal, but is easier said than done. But sterile insect technique could take the bite out of mosquitoes.
![Dr Eve Kowalska | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Dr Eve Kowalska | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Eva-Kowalska_600x300px.jpg)
Down the rabbit hole to bring back some words
Profile: Dr Eva Kowalska shares what her research of drug literature and opioid biographies across time and space reveals.
![Medications, pills and health | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Medications, pills and health | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Medications_pills_health_600x300px.jpg)
Motivational messaging for medicine
Behavioural Linguistics is a new advanced area in healthcare that's especially critical to medication compliance and adherence.
![This image shows the 3D Bioplotter which is capable of 3D printing cellular matrices for applications in tissue engineering. The design and cells used in this equipment allow for the printing of artificial/replacement/regenerative tissue and organs. | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ This image shows the 3D Bioplotter which is capable of 3D printing cellular matrices for applications in tissue engineering. The design and cells used in this equipment allow for the printing of artificial/replacement/regenerative tissue and organs. | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/3D-Bioplotter_600x300px.jpg)
Printing 3D patches to heal wounds
New biotechnical treatments can fast-track recovery from traumatic injuries.
![Snake and venom | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Snake and venom | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Snakes-adn-venom_600x300px.jpg)
Sucking the venom out of the bite
Treating snake bite victims remains antiquated – hopefully a new way of creating antivenom can lead to a better solution.
![Ancient apothecary | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Ancient apothecary | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/ancient-medicine_healing_600x300px.jpg)
From ancient apothecary to modern medicine
How our early ancestors shaped our medicine use today. Throughout history, humanity has used nature's pharmacy for healing.
![Put a pill in it | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Put a pill in it | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/Drugs_Medicine_600x300px.jpg)
Put a pill in it!
Column: When it comes to health, we have grown into a society that is looking for a quick fix, rather than treating our lives holistically.
![William Shakespeare | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ William Shakespeare | Curiosity 16: #Drugs © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-16/William-Shakespeare_600x300px.jpg)
Doobee or not doobee?
Unravelling Shakespeare's Green Quill: Professor Francis Thackeray's quest for cannabis connection.
![Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Curiosity-15_Energy_Cover_600x300px.jpg)
Curios.ty 15 (#Energy): Igniting innovation
Wits' research magazine focuses on how our researchers are powering up their creativity and expertise to find sustainable energy solutions.
![Professor Lynn Morris, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Innovation | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Lynn Morris, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Innovation | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Professor-Lynn-Morris_600x300px.jpg)
Energising and futureproofing our world
Editorial: Energy cannot be created or destroyed, but for South Africans it feels like we are upending this fundamental law of physics.
![Border Cave © Lucinda Blackwell | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Border Cave © Lucinda Blackwell | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Border-Cave-excavation_Â-Lucinda-Blackwell.jpg)
The first to fuel the fire
The first fuel that enabled human beings to land on the moon was harnessed right here in Africa.
![Electricity and blackouts | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Electricity and blackouts | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Electricity-and-blackouts_600x300px.jpg)
Rolling blackouts: Light at the end of the tunnel?
SA’s could create a new model for many countries facing power shortages but it could also lead to more muddling in the dark.
![Dr Andrew Lawrence | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Dr Andrew Lawrence | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Dr-Andrew-Lawrence_600x300px.jpg)
How to spend $8.5bn correctly to energise and green SA
Dr Andrew Lawrence explores how funding received from the Just Energy Transition Partnership can most benefit South Africa.
![Koeberg Nuclear Power Station | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Koeberg Nuclear Power Station | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Koeberg-Nuclear-Power-Station_600x300px.jpg)
Clean, safe, controversial
Nuclear energy has had a bad rap, but in South Africa’s current energy conundrum, its importance in the mix is clear.
![Green Hydrogen | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Green Hydrogen | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Green-Hydrogen_600x300px.jpg)
The red flags in green hydrogen
Scientists can do better to take industry and government-driven hype out of green hydrogen so that its actual potential can be realised.
![Energy and electricity | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Energy and electricity | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Energy-questions-answered_600x300px.jpg)
Your 8 quirky energy questions answered
From Star Wars to hot curry to Einstein – we’ve got you covered.
![Sustainable cities | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Sustainable cities | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Sustainable-cities_600x300px.jpg)
Building sustainable cities
Long-term economic and social side-effects need to be considered when thinking about our cities’ energy solutions.
![Wits accountants paddling the Amazon River | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Wits accountants paddling the Amazon River | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Wits-accountants-paddling-the-Amazon_600x300px.jpg)
Woodlands and forests con-tree-versial
A tree is not just a tree. It is also fuel, paper, furniture, livelihood, and industry.
![Exercise and health | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Exercise and health | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/How-the-body-uses-energy_600x300px.jpg)
Energy in the body
How does the body convert food to fuel? How much do we need? And will running really help with weight loss?
![Dr Charles Sanyika | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Dr Charles Sanyika | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Cryoablation_600x300px.jpg)
Killing cancer with cryoablation
Freeze, fry, microwave, or obliterated – treating early cancer which can progress to advanced life-threatening cancer with cryoablation.
![The Wits Disability Rights Unit | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ The Wits Disability Rights Unit | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Disability-Rights-Unit_600x300px.jpg)
The energy it takes to navigate an abled-bodied world
The implementation of universal design and access could improve the lives of people living with disabilities.
![Mindfulness and mental health | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Mindfulness and mental health | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Mindfulness-and-mental-health_600x300px.jpg)
The psychology of energy
Wits researchers shed light on alternative energies and how to leverage them when we’re depleted and in the dark.
![The core structure of Earth | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ The core structure of Earth | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Earths-core-structure_600x300px.jpg)
A planet called 'Home'
Our home planet Earth is unique, not only in its position in space but in the way it manages energy to create a comfortable spot for us to inhabit.
![Lightning over Johannesburg | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Lightning over Johannesburg | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Lightning-over-Johannesburg_600x300px.jpg)
Finding facts in a lightning bolt
Lightning research will answer several questions about this lesser-known force of nature.
![Solar panels on Wits buildings | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Solar panels on Wits buildings | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Solar-panels-on-Wits-buildings_600x300px.jpg)
Can Wits go off the grid?
Cutting greenhouse gas emissions to almost zero is the next big thing on the global agenda, but academics agree it’s not feasible in the medium term on campus.
![Skills and labour | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Skills and labour | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Skills-and-labour_600x300px.jpg)
Skills for a green world
South Africa needs to reskill and upskill in the face of changing technology and shifting workplaces.
![Coal and clean coal | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Coal and clean coal | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Coal-and-clean-coal_600x300px.jpg)
‘Clean Coal’ could be a game-changer for SA
Q&A: Coal has a bad reputation, but ‘clean coal’ holds various potential opportunities, says Professor Samson Bada.
![Dr Wendy Panaino | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Dr Wendy Panaino | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Dr-Wendy-Panaino_600x300px.jpg)
On ant(eater) patrol
PROFILE: Living to find innovative ways to solve tough challenges, Dr Wendy Panaino digs deep into the lives of pangolins.
![Wits Optical Communications Lab | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Wits Optical Communications Lab | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Wits-Optical-Communications-Lab_600x300px.jpg)
Overcoming energy poverty
Researchers are developing innovative solutions to counter the energy poverty that impacts teaching and learning.
![Educating science-student teachers | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Educating science-student teachers | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Educating-science-student-teachers_600x300px.jpg)
Educating science student-teachers about energy
How good is a science curriculum that’s insulated from working scientists or that ignores climate change and sustainable development?
![Climate change | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Climate change | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Climate-change_600x300px.jpg)
Africa is getting hotter
Continued extreme heat exposure is affecting the health of vulnerable groups in communities.
![A Just Energy Transition | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ A Just Energy Transition | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/A-Just-Energy-Transition_600x300px.jpg)
Column: Ensuring a just energy transition is complex
Focusing on the dynamics in the electricity sector, Professor Imraan Valodia outlines the challenges South Africa is facing and what can be done.
![South Africa and Zimbabwe | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ South Africa and Zimbabwe | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/South-Africa-and-Zimbabwe_600x300px.jpg)
A country worth fighting for
Column: South Africa is a country on the ropes. Its critical infrastructure, including its energy supply, is crippled. Do we still have some fight left?
![Professor Friedel Sellschop | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Friedel Sellschop | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/Professor-Friedel-Sellschop_600x300px.jpg)
Sellschop’s neutrinos and an elusive energy
These ghost particles have travelled light years to where we are and are proof that humans are essentially stardust and sunlight.
![AI and Energy | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ AI and Energy | Curiosity 15: #Energy © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-15/AI-and-energy_600x300px.jpg)
Bridging the energy gap with AI
Machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) can help catapult South Africa’s energy distribution into the future.
![| Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Curiosity-Issue-14_Wits100_600x300px.jpg)
Curios.ty 14 (#Wits100): A century of doing good
Wits' research magazine celebrates 100 years of changing the world for good.
![Professor Zeblon Vilakazi | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Zeblon Vilakazi | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Professor-Zeblon-Vilakazi_600x200px.jpg)
100 Years of changing the world. For Good
Guest Editorial: Wits remains a beacon of hope in society. We continue to strive for excellence in all that we do and use our knowledge for the good of society.
![Professor Lynn Morris | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Lynn Morris | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Professor-Lynn-Morris_600x300px.jpg)
Stay curious – there’s a whole new world coming in 2122
Editorial: The stories in Curios.ty 14: #Wits100 showcase the University’s sustained participation, influence and impact in the lab, the classroom, and society.
![The University of the Witwatersrand The University of the Witwatersrand](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/wits100/Wits-University_600x300px.jpg)
How higher education can help heal us all
“We live in the most unequal country in the world. We can help bridge the divide and we don’t have any time to waste.” – Dr Judy Dlamini.
![Professor Laetitia Rispel | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Laetitia Rispel | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Professor-Laetitia-Rispel_600x300px.jpg)
Academic and science activism saves lives
Meet the Wits’ science superheroes whose research has saved lives.
![African genetic sequencing | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ African genetic sequencing | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/African-genetic-sequencing_600x300px.jpg)
Mapping African genetic diversity for better health
The contribution of the Sydney Brenner Institute for Molecular Bioscience to the field of human genomics is rewriting history on the African continent.
![Death and dying | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Death and dying | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Death-and-dying_600x300px.jpg)
Death makes us alive
Without death, there would be no life – this might sound like ancient mysticism, but Wits scientists are proving it.
![Research at Agincourt | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Research at Agincourt | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Research-at-Agincourt_600x300px.jpg)
Thirty years of the lab in the bush
Agincourt, one of the longest-running research centres of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa, tracks health and wellbeing over the life course.
![History of protests at Wits | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ History of protests at Wits | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/History-of-protests-at-Wits_600x300px.jpg)
The politics of protest
Protests are a hallmark of Wits’ history and have contributed to the University’s legacy of social activism, democracy and constitutionality.
![Political activism at Wits in the 1950s | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Political activism at Wits in the 1950s | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Political-activism-at-Wits-in-the-1950s_600x300px.jpg)
Wits at a time of national crisis: Then and now
South African universities should revisit their multiple publics and explore what a public university in southern Africa today should be.
![Wits Art Museum | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Wits Art Museum | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Wits-Art-Museum_600x300px.jpg)
Telling African stories through art
The Wits Art Museum covers 3 000 m2, housing more than 12 000 artworks, of which 5 551 comprise the Standard Bank African Art Collection.
![Structured Light Lab | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Structured Light Lab | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Structured-Light-Lab_600x300px.jpg)
The evolution of science and research practice
How has science and research practice at Wits has evolved over a century?
![Wits Planetarium - ZeissMKII | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Wits Planetarium - ZeissMKII | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Wits-Planetarium_ZeissMKIII_600x300px.jpg)
The Wits Digital Dome to light up the sky
It’s the end of an era as Wits Planetarium is reimagined as a ‘out of this world’ digital dome.
![Durban floods 2022 | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Durban floods 2022 | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Durban-floods_600x300px.jpg)
Facing climate change head-on
Climate change took nearly a century to become mainstream science. Wits is taking the lead in facing up to the challenge.
![Fossil hunting | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Fossil hunting | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Fossil-hunters_600x300px.jpg)
Digging for the truth of humanity
Wits researchers have over the past century changed, and challenged, the way we think about the evolution of humanity and our ancestors.
![Professor Marcus Byrne | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Marcus Byrne | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Professor-Marcus-Byrne_600x300px.jpg)
Navigating life through the eyes of a gogga
Curiosity about dung beetles could lead us into our future.
![WitsPress books | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ WitsPress books | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Wits-University-Press-books_600x300px.jpg)
Research by the books
Books based on research by Wits authors create a rare recording of history that tracks changes over time.
![Dr Nicholas Bacci | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Dr Nicholas Bacci | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Dr-Nicholas-Bacci_600x300px.jpg)
Identifying faces to recognise humanity
The development of the Wits Face Database: An African database of high-resolution facial photographs.
![XZbindza entrepreneurs | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ XZbindza entrepreneurs | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Xzbindza_600x300px.jpg)
Business for good
Wits is exploring the opportunities created by social enterprises that focus on addressing local, regional and global challenges.
![Inequality and water justice | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Inequality and water justice | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Inequality-and-water-justice_600x300px.jpg)
Beyond the Ivory Tower
Four Wits units demonstrate how translational research can respond to the needs of a world outside the academy.
![Research in the Cradle of Humankind | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Research in the Cradle of Humankind | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Research in the Cradle_600x300px.jpg)
The best job in the world
Column: Telling the stories of Wits’ research and academics might hopefully light a fire in the mind of the world’s next Einstein.
![Dr Dumisani Ephraim Khumalo | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Dr Dumisani Ephraim Khumalo | Curiosity 14: #Wits100 © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-14/Dr-Dumisani-Ephraim-Khumalo_600x300px.jpg)
A philosophy for good. A University for good
There is something significantly common in the way in which all good things are good.
![Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Curiosity-Gender_600x300px.jpg)
It’s complicated … but let’s talk about #Gender
Read the 13th issue of Curios.ty, themed: #Gender. We feature research across the gender spectrum that aims to ensure a more equitable and tolerant society.
![Professor Lynn Morris, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Innovation | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Lynn Morris, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Innovation | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Professor-Lynn-Morris_600x300px.jpg)
To live and love across a spectrum
EDITORIAL: The way we choose to identify ourselves provokes questions and demands interrogation to ensure a more equitable and tolerant society.
![Illustration of the Wits Great Hall | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Illustration of the Wits Great Hall | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/The-Wits-Great-Hall_600x300px.jpg)
STEM - not all are equal
Structures need to be put in place at higher education institutions to give women their rightful opportunities.
![Hopes and Dreams that Sound Like Yours: Stories of Queer Activism in Sub-Saharan Africa. © Taboom Media & GALA Queer Archive, 2021 | Illustrations by Lame Dilotsotlhe and Neil Badenhorst Hopes and Dreams that Sound Like Yours: Stories of Queer Activism in Sub-Saharan Africa. © Taboom Media & GALA Queer Archive, 2021 | Illustrations by Lame Dilotsotlhe and Neil Badenhorst](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Hopes-and-Dreams_No-reproduction_1_600x300px.jpg)
Beyond the binary
The gender binary has reached its expiry date but it still hasn’t been consigned to society’s dustbin.
![Hopes and Dreams that Sound Like Yours: Stories of Queer Activism in Sub-Saharan Africa. © Taboom Media & GALA Queer Archive, 2021. Illustration by Lamb of Lamila Hopes and Dreams that Sound Like Yours: Stories of Queer Activism in Sub-Saharan Africa. © Taboom Media & GALA Queer Archive, 2021. Illustration by Lamb of Lamila](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Hopes and Dreams_No reproduction_2_600x300px.jpg)
The politics of a woman’s body
The backsliding of women’s rights happening right now should be the clarion call that gender rights are still everybody’s business.
![Female Genital Mutilation | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Female Genital Mutilation | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Female-genital-mutilation_600x300px.jpg)
The knife between her thighs
Female Genital Mutilation - South African researchers and medical practitioners are increasingly seeing it in its most extreme forms.
![Finding Nemo | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Finding Nemo | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Finding-Nemo_600x300px.jpg)
Finding Nemo’s sexual identity
As a species, we are only starting to scratch the surface of our understanding of gender, sex, and identity.
![Women in sport | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Women in sport | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Women-in-sport_600x300px.jpg)
Levelling the playing fields
The competitive sporting world is playing catch-up with the realities of gender in modern society.
![Women and work | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Women and work | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Women-and-work_600x300px.jpg)
A woman’s work is never done
The work that women do in households is largely overlooked, yet it is critical for a well-functioning society.
![Mapping Motherhood © GCRO | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Mapping Motherhood © GCRO | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Mapping-Motherhood_GCRO_600x300px.jpg)
Parenting in the city
Building cities for women will make them more inclusive for all groups.
![Lesbian couple and love | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Lesbian couple and love | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Lesbian-couple_600x300px.jpg)
Older people do bonk
The notion that people older than 50 neither desire nor engage in sexual intercourse is a misnomer that demands further research, particularly in Africa.
![Lego Pride | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Lego Pride | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Lego-Pride_600x300px.jpg)
Monetising Pride
Responsibility and representation: Where does the buck stop for brands and business sales targeting the LGBTQIA+ community?
![Krotoa | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Krotoa | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Krotoa_600x300px.jpg)
Fractured histories
Coloured women find their centre beyond the whisper and gossip.
![](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/JHB-Pride-1996_ÂBev-Ditise-Collection,-GALA-Queer-Archive_600x300px.jpg)
Being queer in Africa
Despite a history of openness to queerness in pre-colonial times, Africa is now largely unwelcoming to LGBTQIA+ people.
![Khnumhotep and Niankhkhnum © Jon Bodsworth - The Egypt Archive Khnumhotep and Niankhkhnum © Jon Bodsworth - The Egypt Archive](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Khnumhotep-and-Niankhkhnum-Â-Jon-Bodsworth,-The-Egypt-Archive_600x300px.jpg)
Same-sexuality past and present
The notion that homosexuality is ‘unAfrican’ is totally false. People have engaged in same-sex relationships for centuries.
![Hopes and Dreams that Sound Like Yours: Stories of Queer Activism in Sub-Saharan Africa. © Taboom Media & GALA Queer Archive, 2021 | Illustration by Lamb of Lemila Hopes and Dreams that Sound Like Yours: Stories of Queer Activism in Sub-Saharan Africa. © Taboom Media & GALA Queer Archive, 2021 | Illustration by Lamb of Lemila](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Hopes-and-Dreams_No-Reproduction_4_600x300px.jpg)
An illegal failure of our criminal justice system
Hate crimes such as the so-called “corrective rape” of lesbians and trans women is a black mark against SA’s constitutional democracy.
![Dr Ahmed Badat | Photo by Shivan Parusnath | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Dr Ahmed Badat | Photo by Shivan Parusnath | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Dr-Ahmed-Badat_600x300px.jpg)
A heart for the queer and gay
Dr Ahmed Badat spends his life focusing on improving LGBTQIA+ mental health training for medical students.
![People | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ People | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/People_600x300px.jpg)
Let’s talk about sex (and health), please
Changes in sexual functioning are a side effect of many physical and mental illnesses, however, across genders, sexual health and behaviour are not addressed.
![GenderXSecure | Curiosity 13: #Gender - https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ GenderXSecure | Curiosity 13: #Gender - https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/GenderXSecure_600x300px.jpg)
Mobilising big data and AI to fight GBVF
Gender-based violence and femicide is a pandemic more insidious and endemic than a virus – how technology can help combat and prevent it.
![Corpse Bride | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Corpse Bride | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Corpse-Bride_600x300px.jpg)
Monstrous males/femme fatales
Gender portrayals in animated films have come a long way, which is important, as animation can be a tool for positive social change.
![Boys don't cry. Illustration by Boniswa Khumalo | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Boys don't cry. Illustration by Boniswa Khumalo | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Boys-dont-cry_Â-Boniswa-Khumalo_600x300px.jpg)
'Real' men lift others up and don't put them down
Men cannot be left on the periphery of conversations about gender-based violence and abuse.
![Men's Res at Wits University | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Men's Res at Wits University | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Mens-Res_600x300px.jpg)
Performing masculinity in Men’s Res
Q&A with Moeketsi Gordon Koahela on his research into masculinity and male university students.
![Volunteer and social work | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Volunteer and social work | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Volunteer-and-help_600x300px.jpg)
Philanthropy’s feminist future
Could a growing understanding of the role of women in African philanthropy spark the evolution of the charitable giving sector?
![FALF Fellows (top l-r) Ann George, Dineo Mapanya, Jillian Gardner, and (bottom l-r) Mohlalakoma Ngwako, Thama Duba and Veronica Ntsia | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ FALF Fellows (top l-r) Ann George, Dineo Mapanya, Jillian Gardner, and (bottom l-r) Mohlalakoma Ngwako, Thama Duba and Veronica Ntsia | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/FALF-fellows_600x300px.jpg)
Towards gender parity in academic leadership
Eight female fellows of the Female Academic Leadership (FALF) Programme at Wits share their experiences of breaking the glass ceiling.
![Not your victim | Illustration by Boniswa Khumalo | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Not your victim | Illustration by Boniswa Khumalo | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Not-your-victim_Â-Boniswa-Khumalo_600x300px.jpg)
We’re not your victims
COLUMN: Srila Roy says that feminists in the Global South are fighting the battle on two fronts, making a history of their own.
![Mary Susan Makobatjatji Malahlela © Adler Museum of Medicine | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Mary Susan Makobatjatji Malahlela © Adler Museum of Medicine | Curiosity 13: #Gender © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-13/Mary-Susan-Makobatjatji-Malahlela_ÂAdler-Museum-of-Medicine_600x300px.jpg)
SA’s first black female doctor was a Witsie
When apartheid became law in 1948, a black woman from Limpopo had already achieved a series of firsts …
![| Curiosity 12: #Solutions © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | Curiosity 12: #Solutions © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Curiosity-Solutions-1_600x300px.jpg)
Curios.ty 12 (#Solutions): Advancing society for good
Our cutting-edge research offers #Solutions to some of the most challenging problems facing society today.
![Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of Wits University | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of Wits University | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Professor-Zeblon-Vilakazi_600x300px.jpg)
Wits.For Good. solutions inspire hope
Editorial: From solutions to the structural, political, and socioeconomic challenges in South Africa, to those ‘moonshot moments’ that advance society for good.
![Woman and child © Curiosity Woman and child © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Woman-and-child__Â Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Reinventing higher education
We need to rethink higher education by asking what kind of society we want to create.
![Mining and construction © Curiosity Mining and construction © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Mining-and-construction_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
No place for politics in bricks and mortar
South Africa’s infrastructure seems to be falling apart at the seams. What needs to be done to save the country from further deterioration?
![City of Johannesburg map © Curiosity City of Johannesburg map © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/City-of-Johannesburg-map_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Building a better city
A ‘world class African City’ begins and ends with history and geography.
![Business, money and tax © Curiosity Business, money and tax © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Business,-money,-tax_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Pay the taxman his dues
A wealth tax could make a significant contribution to alleviating South Africa’s ailing fiscal situation.
![Maths and accounting © Curiosity Maths and accounting © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Maths-and-accounting_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
What adds up when teaching maths?
To help close the maths gap in South Africa, Wits experts believe the focus should lie on the teacher.
![Digital Arts and gaming © Shivan Parusnath | Curiosity Digital Arts and gaming © Shivan Parusnath | Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Digital-Arts-and-gaming_Â-Shivan-Parusnath-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Getting serious about gaming
Games from the Game Design programme at the Wits School of Digital Arts tell important stories, and allow for solutions to many real-world problems.
![Online work, internet © Curiosity Online work, internet © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Zoom_online_work_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Zoom in. Team up. The new era of therapy
Can online platforms help therapists and tutors transform teaching and care beyond the pandemic?
![Business, work, technology © Curiosity Business, work, technology © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Business_boardroom_work_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Love in the boardroom
Can love be the central guiding value in big business and in complex decisions?
![Maths and tourism © Curiosity Maths and tourism © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Maths-and-toursim_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Mathematics solutions to boost tourism numbers
Numbers in tourism translate into revenue for the sector. Mathematicians are now number-crunching creatively to solve tourism challenges.
![Professor Roger Deane, SARAO/NRF Chair in Radio Astronomy © Curiosity Professor Roger Deane, SARAO/NRF Chair in Radio Astronomy © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Professor-Roger-Deane_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Photographing ghosts in space
Photographing a black hole in space, 55 million light years from Earth, seems an impossible task but scientists went to unprecedented lengths to achieve this.
![Brain and mediciine © Celine Klinkert | Curiosity Brain and mediciine © Celine Klinkert | Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Brain-and-medicine_Â-Celine-Klinkert-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
How the brain solves problems
The connections among areas of our brain and how they interact is what counts when trying to find solutions to problems.
![Inequality, income and education © Curiosity Inequality, income and education © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Inequality_income_education_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Think big to heal South African society
The ructions caused by the pandemic are an opportunity to reconsider core values and spending priorities to address our social ills.
![Disability and sex © Curiosity Disability and sex © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Disability-and-sex_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Sense and sensuality in people with disabilities
Wits researchers are creating the space and support for people with disabilities to talk about sex.
![Deaf, sign language and hearing © Curiosity Deaf, sign language and hearing © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Hearing-and-deaf_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Enabling engagement
Breaking down the perceptual barriers between students and people living with disabilities.
![Nabeel Vandayar © Shivan Parusnath | Curiosity Nabeel Vandayar © Shivan Parusnath | Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Nabeel-Vandayar_Â-Shivan-Parusnath-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Engineering empathy
In search of ways to help his father recover from injuries suffered in a motorbike accident, Nabeel Vandayar enrolled at Wits to study medicine.
![Health and medicine © Curiosity Health and medicine © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Health-and-medicine_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Healing South Africa’s public health headache
Academia binds the public and private healthcare sectors in the move towards universal healthcare .
![Media, journalism © Curiosity Media, journalism © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Media-and-journalism_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Another brick in the pay wall
The media industry in South Africa has been sputtering along for several years. How do we prevent it from totally collapsing?
![Social media © Curiosity Social media © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Social-media_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Social media regulation: Can we trust the tech giants?
Some scholars consider these ‘liberating technologies’ because they empower citizens to speak back to power and hold leaders accountable.
![Climate Justice Charter © Curiosity Climate Justice Charter © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Climate-Justice-Charter_600x300px.jpg)
What the world needs now
As the world looks to COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland in 2021, it’s clear that the time for sitting on the side-lines is over.
![Drugs, medicine and health © Curiosity Drugs, medicine and health © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Drugs,-medicine,-health_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Repurposing drugs to treat dangerous diseases
In drug repurposing new uses are identified for a drug outside of its original scope of indication, resulting in more effective treatment.
Can philanthropy grow Africa?
Despite the fact the philanthropy is pervasive – benefactors and beneficiaries abound – relatively little is known about its practice in an African context.
![Braai and heritage © Curiosity Braai and heritage © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/Braai,-heritage_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Make South Africa great again!
Column: We don’t just have the ability to turn South Africa around, we have a responsibility to do so.
![The Nunnery © Curiosity The Nunnery © Curiosity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-12/The-Nunnery_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Weekend theatrics so the show could go on
The solution was to convert the school hall of the McAuley House convent, The Nunnery, into a theatre – over one weekend.
![Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Viral_2_600x300px.jpg)
Curios.ty 11 (#Viral): Covid-19 - An opportunity for a global reset
The pandemic demands a relook of how we connect with each other and the world.
![Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of Wits University | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of Wits University | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Professor-Zeblon-Vilakazi_600x300px.jpg)
How Covid-19 enabled a reset in the world
Editorial: The Covid-19 pandemic has gone viral and has severely impacted on how we interact, conduct our business, teach and learn.
![Covid-19 masks and countries | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Lauren Mulligan Covid-19 masks and countries | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Lauren Mulligan](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Face-masks_600x300px.jpg)
How national identity affects infection outcome
Could a country’s collective psychology determine the outcomes of a pandemic? A global cohort of researchers believes so.
![Covid-19 lockdown, economy and inequality | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Covid-19 lockdown, economy and inequality | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Poverty_600x300px.jpg)
CTRL-ALT-DELETE: Re-setting the post-pandemic South Africa
The Covid-19 lockdown has had a massive impact on South Africa’s economy, exposing profound weaknesses such as the country’s huge inequality.
![Vaccines | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Shivan Parusnath Vaccines | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Shivan Parusnath](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Vaccinations_600x300px.jpg)
How vaccines save lives
The story of how vaccines save lives is important to tell – now more than ever.
![Covid-19 app and statistics | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Covid-19 app and statistics | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Covid-19-stats_600x300px.jpg)
Second wave severity: What semi-saved South Africa?
South Africa has surprised itself and the world with fewer Covid-19 deaths despite a significantly higher infection rate as predicted.
![Covid-19 patient | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Covid-19 patient | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Covid-19-patient_600x300px.jpg)
The long haul to partial recovery
So-called Covid long-haulers afflicted with 'Long Covid' are showing how long and frustrating the journey to recovery can be.
![People, numbers and modelling | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ People, numbers and modelling | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/People-and-numbers_600x300px.jpg)
Making sense of the numbers
Modelling pandemics might be an imperfect science, but it is the best that we have.
![History of a pandemic | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Shivan Parusnath History of a pandemic | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Shivan Parusnath](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Pandemic-history_600x300px.jpg)
Pandemic history foretells a dismal future
If history has taught the world anything, it’s to ignore the warning signs and carry on catching diseases.
![Donald Trump and the US | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Donald Trump and the US | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/United-States_600x300px.jpg)
When the US sneezes...
Different nations’ responses to the pandemic should serve as a warning to exercise extreme caution in choosing leaders.
![Gender-based Harm (GHB) and violence against children | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Nechirwan Kavian Gender-based Harm (GHB) and violence against children | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Nechirwan Kavian](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Gender-based-harm_600x300px.jpg)
Virus wages war on women
Almost everyone has suffered in some way from the effects of the Covid pandemic – but women have suffered far more.
![Infodemic, fake news, misinformation | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Infodemic, fake news, misinformation | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Covid-19-and-fake-news_600x300px.jpg)
Understanding the infodemic
Covid-19 misinformation, mythology, and fake news has implications for public health.
![Professor Glenda Gray | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Shivan Parusnath Professor Glenda Gray | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Shivan Parusnath](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Professor-Glenda-Gray_600x300px.jpg)
Valour and the virus
Throughout her career, Professor Glenda Gray has focussed on one thing only – saving lives.
![Online teaching and learning | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Online teaching and learning | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Online-teaching-and-learning_600x300px.jpg)
Teaching in a Covid global village
It takes a village to raise a child but the global village is shrinking.
![Climate change and the environment | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Fred Rivett Climate change and the environment | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Fred Rivett](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Climate-emergency_600x300px.jpg)
A fleeting green moment in time
Scientists predict that an Age of Pandemics is imminent unless human beings change their ways.
![Pangolin | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Thilo Beck Pangolin | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Thilo Beck](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Pangolin_600x300px.jpg)
The blame game: Putting a pandemic on the pangolin
Is blaming a threatened species for a global pandemic not an indictment of our environmental conscience?
![Social media and online engagement | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Lauren Mulligan Social media and online engagement | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Lauren Mulligan](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Social-media_600x300px.jpg)
What we caught online
We need new rules of engagement on social media – even if we don’t know it yet.
![Big data | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © EV Big data | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © EV](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Big-data 2_600x300px.jpg)
Privacy and the dollars in you data
The balance between sharing personal data online and how it’s used and by whom is difficult to define and complex to regulate.
![Online attacks and cyber crime | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Online attacks and cyber crime | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Invection-online_600x300px.jpg)
Infection online
Online attacks and phishing surged during Covid-19. Is there a permanent solution to cybercrime?
![Social media | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Social media | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Social-media_TikTok_600x300px.jpg)
TikTok/WeChat: US and them
Banning popular apps like TikTok and WeChat is about more than a spat between the US and China.
![Artificial intelligence and big data | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Artificial intelligence and big data | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Big-data_600x300px.jpg)
Big data: A sword to wield or a knife in the back?
Competition policy will determine if big data is a tool for inclusion or exclusion.
![Xolani Radebe |Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Shivan Parusnath Xolani Radebe |Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Shivan Parusnath](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Xolani-Radebe_600x300px.jpg)
Keeping an eye on the virus from the sky
Profile: When Covid-19 hit, 21-year-old Wits engineering student, Xolani Radebe, knew that he wanted to be part of the solution.
![Postgrads: Tamlyn Naidu, Zakhele Ndala, Leigh Crymble | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Postgrads: Tamlyn Naidu, Zakhele Ndala, Leigh Crymble | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Postgraduates_600x300px.jpg)
Beating the pandemic through innovative thinking
Three Wits postgraduate students demonstrate how their research and innovative ideas contribute to addressing a pandemic.
![Structured light | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Structured light | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Structured-light_600x300px.jpg)
Finding security in the unseen
Messages carried in structured light can secure quantum communications in the future.
![Light bulb | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Rodion Kutsaev Light bulb | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ | © Rodion Kutsaev](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Light-bulb_600x300px.jpg)
Dimming the lights on malaria
The fight against the disease that kills hundreds of thousands of people in Africa each year could be as simple as changing a light bulb.
![Professor Lynn Morris, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Postgraduate Affairs | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Lynn Morris, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Postgraduate Affairs | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Professor-Lynn-Morris_600x300px.jpg)
Along came a virus…
Column: Professor Lynn Morris reflects on a lifetime of virus hunting, from HIV, through Ebola, to SARS-COV-2.
![Covid-19 and lockdown | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Covid-19 and lockdown | Curiosity 11: #Viral © https://www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Covid-and-crime_600x300px.jpg)
In the company of criminals
Column: Using the Covid-19 National State of Disaster to try to govern booze and cigarettes, is the wrong approach.
![Image credit & sources: Baragwanath Hospital, Soweto A History of Medical Care 1941-1990, Simonne Horwitz, Wits University Press, 2013 Image credit & sources: Baragwanath Hospital, Soweto A History of Medical Care 1941-1990, Simonne Horwitz, Wits University Press, 2013](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-11/Baragwanath-Hospital_600x300px.jpg)
The making of a hospital
How the Wayside Inn became the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital.
![Curiosity 10, #Mood © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Curiosity 10, #Mood © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Mood-cover1_600x300px.jpg)
Curios.ty 10, #Mood, explores mental health now and in the next decade
By 2030, mental health will be the single largest global challenge we will face (World Health Organization).
![Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Vice-Chancellor and Principal elect of Wits University © Lauren Mulligan © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Vice-Chancellor and Principal elect of Wits University © Lauren Mulligan © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Professor-Zeblon-Vilakazi_600x300px.jpg)
How are you really doing? #MOOD
Life as we know it has changed due to the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) which has irrevocably altered the way we live, work, behave, think and feel.
![A moment in time © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ A moment in time © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/A-moment-in-time_600x300px.jpg)
A moment in time
Wits postgraduate students in Medical Anthropology share the effects of living under lockdown amidst the global Covid-19 pandemic.
![Young man staring/student © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Young man staring/student © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Young-man_600x300px.jpg)
Is South Africa driving us mad?
We live in a state of constant high alert in South Africa. The effect on us is profound but an environment like this also builds resilience.
![Woman and Child © unsplash Woman and Child © unsplash](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/generic/2020-jan-june/Woman and child_Â unsplash_600x300px.jpg)
Putting a number on mental health costs
Mental health costs should be counted in people, not rands and cents.
![Mental gymnastics © Lauren Mulligan © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Mental gymnastics © Lauren Mulligan © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Mental-gymnastics_600x300px.jpg)
Mental gymnastics
What’s the best thing you can do for your brain today? Move!
![Woman sleeping © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Woman sleeping © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Sleep-health_600x300px.jpg)
Save you sanity with sleep
Lack of sleep can wreak havoc on your physical health and mental wellbeing – and may have implications for people living with HIV.
![Mike McCallum, student musician, entertains young patients in the Wits Donald Gordon Medical Centre © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Mike McCallum, student musician, entertains young patients in the Wits Donald Gordon Medical Centre © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Musicians-in-hospital_600x300px.jpg)
The comfort of the Arts
The arts evoke emotion. How do we harness them for wellbeing?
![Rock Art Research Institute © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Rock Art Research Institute © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Rock-Art-Institute_600x300px.jpg)
Rock on!
Music is thought to be one of the ways that our ancient ancestors expressed their emotions – and may well have led to early languages.
![Technology and mindfulness © Lauren Mulligan © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Technology and mindfulness © Lauren Mulligan © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Technology-and-mindfulness-health_600x300px.jpg)
Can tech save our sanity?
Promising technological and online innovations could be crucial in combating the world’s alarming mental health statistics.
![President Cyril Ramaphosa © GovernmentZA Flickr © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ President Cyril Ramaphosa © GovernmentZA Flickr © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/President-Cyril-Ramaphosa_600x300px.jpg)
Teaming-up at home
Our dependence on technology brought on by Covid-19 makes cognitive and emotional demands that, unaddressed, threaten our mental wellbeing.
![Human and the brain © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Human and the brain © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Human-and-brain_600x300px.jpg)
Over ruled – How the head trumps the heart
Our brain is a complex organ – it keeps us breathing, helps us pull our hands from a fire, and keeps our emotions, fears and dreams in check.
![Crocodile © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Crocodile © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Crocodile_600x300px.jpg)
The Crocodile Rock
Pay close attention the next time you play a Bach concerto to your pet crocodile. If you look closely, you might just see him tapping his toes to the rhythm.
![Traditional medicine © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Traditional medicine © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Traditional-medicine_600x300px.jpg)
Traditional answers to mind-body-spirit questions
Indigenous knowledge is critical in helping people cope with mental health issues that western medicine may not address.
![People cheering © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ People cheering © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/People-cheering_600x300px.jpg)
How your tribe affects your vibe
We are influenced by those with whom we most closely associate, in terms of our ideologies, political positions and prejudices. Covid-19 exposed who we are.
![Madness she wrote © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Madness she wrote © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Madness_600x300px.jpg)
Madness, she wrote
The feminisation of madness is persistent and pervasive as are forms of Othering across societies.
![Fathers and sons © Sebastian Prado Unsplash © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Fathers and sons © Sebastian Prado Unsplash © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Fathers-and-children_Sebastian-Prado-Unsplash_600x300px.jpg)
Feelings about fathers
The role of the father in the family or, more specifically, his absence, has profound implications for the mental wellbeing of his offspring.
![Dr Nomfundo Moroe © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Dr Nomfundo Moroe © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Dr-Numfundo-Moroe_600x300px.jpg)
Balancing two worlds
PROFILE: Nothing is more empowering than the feeling like you are being heard. Dr Nomfundo Moroe lends an ear and empathy to the Deaf community.
![Discovery's offices © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Discovery's offices © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Discovery-offices_600x300px.jpg)
Whiter workplace wellness?
Mental health is set to become a global crisis by 2030. Creating a caring, nurturing culture in your workplace can save employers and employees a lot of stress.
![Dementia © Lauren Mulligan www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Dementia © Lauren Mulligan www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Dementia-Â-Lauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Our ageing brains: Concentrating on dementia
Strong social networks can go a long way to assist people living with forms of dementia, such as Alzheimer's.
![Students/young people © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Students/young people © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Young-people_600x300px.jpg)
Understanding suicide
Suicide risk may start in the womb and studies also connect it to factors including smoking, social media and social inequality.
![ADHD © Jurien Huggins_unsplash © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ ADHD © Jurien Huggins_unsplash © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/ADHD_ÂJurien-Huggins_Unsplash_600x300px.jpg)
Concentrating on ADHD
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a long phrase to describe a short attention span. In students, ADHD can severely impact academic performance.
![Assisted suicide © Carlos Amato © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Assisted suicide © Carlos Amato © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Assisted-suicide_ÂCarlos-Amato_600x300px.jpg)
The right to die
Q&A: Professor of Philosophy, Kevin Behrens explains why euthanasia is not simply a matter of life and death.
![Disability © Charles Deluvio Unsplash © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Disability © Charles Deluvio Unsplash © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Disability-ÂCharles-Deluvio-Unsplash_600x300px.jpg)
Building a better understanding of disability
People with disabilities, be they physical or mental, are often treated differently, which may affect their mental wellness. How to remove the social barriers.
![Human rights in a digital world Human rights in a digital world](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-2/Data_600x300px.jpg)
Facing feelings that fuel power relations
Critical Diversity Studies scholar, Adanma Yisa, explains why automated emotional responses shield us from confronting criticism can undermine reconciliation.
![Lockdown © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Lockdown © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Lockdown-blues_600x300px.jpg)
Lockdown blues
COLUMN: Every lockdown has a silver lining, Schalk Mouton discovers as he roller-coasters through the emotional demands of living in isolation.
![Firoz Cachalia arrested during the 1980s © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Firoz Cachalia arrested during the 1980s © www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-10/Firoz-Cachalia-arrested_600x300px.jpg)
History has no end
Former student leader and now Professor of Law, Firoz Cachalia, reflects on the mood before Nelson Mandela was released from prison 30 years ago.
![Air pollution by power station © Daylin Paul | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Air pollution by power station © Daylin Paul | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Air pollution by power station  Daylin Paul600x300px.jpg)
Curiosity 9: #ClimateEmergency
2020: The year of extreme weather and how to mitigate the climate change.
![Professor Zeblon Vilakazi is the Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Postgraduate Affairs at Wits University | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Zeblon Vilakazi is the Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Postgraduate Affairs at Wits University | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Professor-Zeblon-Vilakazi_600x300px.jpg)
Green Cross needed to halt the climate emergency
EDITORIAL: We do not have a choice. It is incumbent on each of us to tackle the #ClimateEmergency.
![Universities and education | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Universities and education | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Universities and education_600x300px.jpg)
Universities cannot be neutral about climate justice any longer
With the world facing a climate emergency, higher education institutions should lead in securing a future for our children.
The burning issue of population control
Many are calling for increased population control but is this a solution to decrease the rate of climate change?
![Education and learners | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Education and learners | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Education and learners  Lauren Mulligan_600x300 px.jpg)
Teens feel the heat of climate change
Climate change not only threatens mental health in South Africa, but also heralds poorer matric pass rates as teens, in particular, inherit the Earth.
![Wits Braamfontein Campus West © Shivan Parusnath | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Wits Braamfontein Campus West © Shivan Parusnath | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Wits West Campus  Shivan Parusnath_600x300 px.jpg)
Sunny-side up as Wits goes green
Universities breaking new ground in climate research should be models of sustainability themselves.
![Fracking and energy | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Fracking and energy | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Fracking and energy_600x300px.jpg)
Finding alternatives to our favourite dirty words
An energy crisis built on an obsession with fossil fuels. Can alternative energy resources save the day for South Africa?
![Waste pickers in Johannesburg © Daniel Born Waste pickers in Johannesburg © Daniel Born](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Waste pickers  Daniel Born_600x300px.jpg)
The war on waste pickers
South Africa’s waste pickers are critical to our recycling economy and green future, yet they are marginalised, maligned, and discarded.
![Tyres and cars © Frank Kienhofer | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Tyres and cars © Frank Kienhofer | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Tyres and cars  Frank Kienhofer_600x300px.jpg)
Green is the new black
In our bid to save the planet from catastrophe, we have entered “the age of green”.
![Plastic pollution and waste © Bas Emmen Unsplash | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Plastic pollution and waste © Bas Emmen Unsplash | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Plastic pollution and waste  Bas Emmen Unsplash_600x300px.jpg)
Clean careers and greener pastures
The green economy could save South Africa in more ways than one – cleaning up the environment will contribute to the economy, too.
![Climate action by South African children © Gallo Images | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Climate action by South African children © Gallo Images | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Climate Action  Gallo Images_.jpg)
Never let a good crisis go to waste
Although we are facing a global climate challenge, there are hidden benefits and opportunities if we respond to this challenge sooner rather than later.
![Townships and pollution © Daylin Paul | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Townships and pollution © Daylin Paul | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Township and pollution  Daylin Paul_600x300px.jpg)
The subtle art of breaking the silence
Underneath the smoke and concrete, artists invite us to respond to changing climates.
![Mobile phone mining | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Mobile phone mining | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Mobile phone mining_600x300px.jpg)
The greenbacks in mobile phone mines
Consumer products rule our world. Period. And in our modern lives, electronic equipment is no longer a luxury – it is a necessity.
![Grasslands © Sutirta Budiman Unsplash | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Grasslands © Sutirta Budiman Unsplash | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Grasslands  Sutirta Budiman Unsplash_600x300px.jpg)
Hands off our grasslands
Grasslands are vastly biodiverse areas and vital for the sustainability of human wellbeing.
![Controlled grassland burning and fire © Schalk Mouton | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Controlled grassland burning and fire © Schalk Mouton | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Controlled grassland burning and fire  Schalk Mouton_600x300px.jpg)
How grass dances with fire
Grasslands have unique strategies that have ensured the enduring survival of southern Africa’s veld.
![African Pangolin © Thilo Beck | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ African Pangolin © Thilo Beck | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/African Pangolin  Thilo Beck_600x300px.jpg)
Changing the leopard’s spots
Chinese people and wildlife poaching: The Africa-China Reporting Project warns of “the danger of a single story”.
![Extinction accounting | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Extinction accounting | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Accounting_600x300px.jpg)
The changing nature of accounting
The days are gone where companies must only report on their financial bottom line. Now they should report on their impact on the environment too.
![Lungo Katete © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Lungo Katete © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Lungo Katete  Lauren Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
The beauty of a good green deed
PROFILE: An early fascination with the environment sparked an interest in its protection for Miss Earth South Africa 2019.
![Palaeosciences and fossils | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Palaeosciences and fossils | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Palaeosciences and fossils_600x300px.jpg)
An evolving understanding of extinction
Palaeoscientists are uniquely placed to interrogate the Earth’s geological records, the origin and development of life, biodiversity change, and extinctions.
![Plants in the office © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Plants in the office © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Plants in the office  Lauren Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Living yoga for the mind
Plants in the office are not there just to look pretty. They can lead to increased productivity, as well as improved mental health for workers.
![Climate engineering | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Climate engineering | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Climate engineering_600x300px.jpg)
Climate engineering: saving the world or smoke and mirrors?
Q&A with Professor Bob Scholes on a major project that is about to begin at Wits to look at potential and problems with four climate engineering ideas.
![Justice Edwin Cameron © Gallo Images | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Justice Edwin Cameron © Gallo Images | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Justice Edwin Cameron  Gallo Images_600x300px.jpg)
Rock steady, grassy green
COLUMN: Reflections on former Constitutional Court Justice Edwin Cameron’s critical jurisprudence and the environment.
![Eco-Warriors | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Eco-Warriors | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Eco-Warriors  Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Rise of the African Eco-Warriors
COLUMN: While there is paralysis from above, exciting new forms of movement-building from below in Africa are saying ‘No to climate genocide!’
![Shopping malls and consumers © Anna Dziubinska Unsplash | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Shopping malls and consumers © Anna Dziubinska Unsplash | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Shopping mall  Anna Dziubinska Unsplash_600x300 px.jpg)
Dare to care in an ocean of apathy and expenditure
COLUMN: Black Friday blues’ impact on my quest to go green, on my green backs, and the implications for Earth.
![The Great Hall at Wits University © Shivan Parusnath | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ The Great Hall at Wits University © Shivan Parusnath | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-9/Great Hall  Shivan Parusnath_600x300 px.jpg)
Jacarandas then and now
Monitoring the timing of recurring biological events is key to understanding the effects of climate change.
![Curiosity 8: #Code | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Curiosity 8: #Code | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Curiosity-Issue-8_600x300px.jpg)
Enabling the future by decoding the past
The eighth issue of Wits University’s research magazine, Curios.ty is themed: #Code, and is available download or read online.
![Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Postgraduate Affairs. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Postgraduate Affairs. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/ZeblonVilakazi_600x300px.jpg)
Decoding Wits’ innovations the past 100 years
EDITORIAL: It is only through understanding yesterday that we can shape today and create tomorrow.
![Big data, spectrometres and scientific equipment. ©Lauren Mulligan| www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Big data, spectrometres and scientific equipment. ©Lauren Mulligan| www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Big-data_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Surfing the data tsunami tomorrow
Humankind is facing an ever-growing data tsunami that could swamp us as a species – or provide us with unheard of opportunities.
![Security cameras | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Security cameras | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Security-cameras_600x300px.jpg)
Fair trade: Your soul for data?
In an increasingly data-driven world, are we just walking data sources for the benefit of giant multinational corporations?
![The Scilinx Research team. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ The Scilinx Research team. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/The-Scilinx-Research-team_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Plugging digital leaks
Data are gathering in pools and lakes. As we dip our toes into these murky waters, we see a sign that says, ‘Here be dragons…’
![Modes of communication | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Modes of communication | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Modes-of-communication_600x300px.jpg)
Why words make language
From hieroglyphics to emojis, and grunts to gestures, humans have always used multiple modes to communicate, including language.
![Children and coding, education and learning | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Children and coding, education and learning | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Children-and-learning_600x300px.jpg)
Do kids need to code?
Preparing for a digital revolution is as much about getting the basics right as it is looking to the future.
![Knitting as code | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Knitting as code | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Knitting-as-code_600x300px.jpg)
How knitting won the war?
Craftivists have been savvy cryptographers for aeons longer than any computing geek.
![Street art in Braamfontein. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Street art in Braamfontein. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Street-art-in-Braamfontein.-Â-Lauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Street talk: Behind the tag
Codes are changing and the rules of the game keep blurring as graffiti becomes a casualty of the era of social media.
![Gene editing | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Gene editing | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Gene-editing_600x300px.jpg)
Editing disease in South Africa
Gene therapy – there is a long road ahead to mainstream techniques and ensure that the technology is cost-effective.
![Diagnosing the dead | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Diagnosing the dead | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Diagnosing-the-dead_600x300px.jpg)
Diagnosing the dead and predicting mortality
A new generation of apps could soon help health professions to decode the causes of death, and predict the likelihood of dying.
![Earth and maps | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Earth and maps | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Earth_600x300px.jpg)
Recreating Earth through code
The first Earth System Model developed and based in Africa are creating one of the most reliable and most detailed modulations of climate change.
![Sungazers. © Shivan Parusnath | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Sungazers. © Shivan Parusnath | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Sungazers.-Â-Shivan-Parusnath_600x300px.jpg)
Reptile laundering
PhD candidate Shivan Parusnath plans to use social media and machine learning to help stop illegal reptile trade on global scale.
![The Golden Ratio, also known as the Divine Proportion. | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ The Golden Ratio, also known as the Divine Proportion. | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Golden-Ratio_600x300px.jpg)
Lingua franca of mathematics
Speaking to visitors from outer space would one day require a common language and one not found in a dictionary.
![Lauren Mulligan © Erna van Wyk | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Lauren Mulligan © Erna van Wyk | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Lauren-Mulligan-Â-Erna-van-Wyk_600x300px.jpg)
Visiting gayle
It might never be one of South Africa’s 11 official languages, but that would defeat the purpose of gayle – a language of secrets.
![Drama and theatre | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Drama and theatre | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Drama-and-theatre_600x300px.jpg)
Telling tales of ages on stages
For a Wits postgraduate drama student theatrical story-telling is a means to bridge generations and mutually empower seemingly disparate groups.
![Digital arts | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Digital arts | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Digital-arts_600x300px.jpg)
The invisible image
How animation depicts Bible stories: comparing panel-based image story-telling techniques against those of animation.
![Students and lectures | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Students and lectures | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Students-and-lectures_600x300px.jpg)
Decoding knowledge
Legitimation Code Theory (LCT) is not a magic bullet to transform education, but it holds potential for educators and students.
![Political code | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Political code | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Political-code_600x300px.jpg)
Navigating political land mines
Using text mining – a relatively under-utilised approach in South African humanities research – to unlock patterns and relationships.
![Albinism | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Albinism | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Albinism_600x300px.jpg)
Albinism inside out
People living with albinism endure parochial prejudice and medical scrutiny but their humanity is no less definitive than that of any other along the continuum.
![GAFA (Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple) | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ GAFA (Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple) | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/GAFA_600x300px.jpg)
Data and dominance
COLUMN: Data domination by Big Tech, both nationally and internationally, has ominous implications for economies – and privacy.
![Lotto | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Lotto | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Lotto_600x300px.jpg)
How not to win the lotto
COLUMN: Today, I am coming clean. Like most South Africans, I am in desperate need of cold, hard cash.
![Computer museum at Wits | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Computer museum at Wits | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-8/Computer-museum_600x300px.jpg)
When computers came to Wits
The University bought its first computer from IBM 59 years ago. Today, Wits and IBM are partners in quantum computing.
![Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Postgraduate Affairs. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Postgraduate Affairs. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/ZeblonVilakazi_600x300px.jpg)
Homegrown research crosses borders
EDITORIAL: Where do you belong? Where do you feel most at home? Curiosity explores these questions and many more in our latest issue.
![Klipdrift Cave and Shelter, located in the De Hoop Nature Reserve, southern Cape, South Africa. ©Magnus Haaland | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Klipdrift Cave and Shelter, located in the De Hoop Nature Reserve, southern Cape, South Africa. ©Magnus Haaland | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Klipdrift-Complex_Â-Magnus-Haaland_600x300px.jpg)
Places we once called home
Archaeologists and anthropologists peer into original homes of the past to see what made us who we are today.
![Utopian Village, designed in 2018 by first-year students from the School of Architecture and Planning| www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Utopian Village, designed in 2018 by first-year students from the School of Architecture and Planning| www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Utopian-Village_ÂKagiso-Morake_600x300px.jpg)
Homes of the future
In the age of densification, where will we sleep? Hyper-connected pods, embedded technology and micro democracies.
![Adam Pantanowitz, Wits biomedical engineer. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Adam Pantanowitz, Wits biomedical engineer. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Adam-Pantanowitz,-Wits-biomedicial-engineer_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px-1.jpg)
An eye on assistive tech at home
Eye-gaze devices as assistive tech have the potential to empower people with disabilities by improving their independence at home.
![Rusting Diamond. ©Meghna Singh | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Rusting Diamond. ©Meghna Singh | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Rusting-Diamond_ÂMeghna-Singh_600x300px.jpg)
Home in the Arts
When you are thousands of kilometres away, ‘home’ may be what you carry in memories, but it might also be what you choose to forget.
![Selling and renting.| www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Selling and renting.| www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Selling-or-renting_600x300px.jpg)
Owner or roamer?
Is buying a house still the solid investment once thought or is it time to turn nomadic?
![Home office, work, computer. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Home office, work, computer. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Home-office_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Feel at home at the office
If home is your castle, can the office be your palace? The need to ensure wellbeing at work is critical.
![Migration, land, school and education. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Migration, land, school and education. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Migration,-land,-school,-education_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
This is my land
Land ownership has historically been the great divider, and South Africa is no different. But is this the silver bullet to address our gross inequality?
!['Living inside a bridge', an photo exploration by Alon Skuy of the unusual and challenging spaces inhabited by people. ©Alon Skuy | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ 'Living inside a bridge', an photo exploration by Alon Skuy of the unusual and challenging spaces inhabited by people. ©Alon Skuy | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Living-inside-a-bridge_1_ÂAlon-Skuy_600x300px.jpg)
Address: Unknown
Home, health, identity and dignity - creating smarter solutions and symbiotic thinking for Jozi’s homeless people.
![Cities, urban, streets. ©Mark Lewis | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Cities, urban, streets. ©Mark Lewis | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Cities,-urban,-streets_1_ÂMark-Lewis_600x300px.jpg)
Home truths and storied streets
Understand Johannesburg’s challenges, opportunities and intricacies through the cultural microcosm that is Orange Grove.
![Migration study by GCRO. ©Paul Weinburg | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Migration study by GCRO. ©Paul Weinburg | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Migration-study-by-GCROÂPaul-Weinburg_600x300px.jpg)
Coming home to South Africa
Migration myths, human rights and the ongoing struggle to make a house a home.
![B Camminga. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ B Camminga. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/B-Camminga_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
For a million bucks, would you change your gender?
If you grew up accepting the gender written on your birth certificate, you’re cisgender and probably would’ve never given this question much thought.
![Homes, land, cities and towns. ©Jacob Knudsen | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Homes, land, cities and towns. ©Jacob Knudsen | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Homes,-land,-cities-and-towns_ÂJacob-Knudsen_600x300px.jpg)
How African homes impact health
Machine learning study finds housing have improved in sub-Saharan Africa but adequate water and sanitation remains biggest challenge.
![PhD-candidate Kirsten Doermann. ©Brett Eloff | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ PhD-candidate Kirsten Doermann. ©Brett Eloff | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/PhD-canditate-Kirsten-Doermann_ÂBrett-Eloff_600x300px.jpg)
Decolonising houses
PROFILE: A Wits study is the first to look at transforming Victorian/Edwardian bungalows into urban compounds in Yeoville and Rosettenville.
![Backyard and informal dwellings | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Backyard and informal dwellings | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Backyard-and-informal-dwellings_600x300px.jpg)
Backyard not backward
Intentional living, the rise of imikhukhu and urban densification for dignity.
![Socialble weaver nest. ©Mareike Dirnberger | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Socialble weaver nest. ©Mareike Dirnberger | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Sociable-weaver-nest_ÂMareike-Dirnberger_600x300px.jpg)
Kalahari communes
Sociable weavers are a rarity among birds. Not only do their massive nests endure for generations, but they house several other species as well.
![Plastic pollution. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Plastic pollution. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Plastic-pollution_600x300px.jpg)
Q&A: Are ecobricks the answer to plastic pollution?
Professor Herman Potgieter answers questions about whether the planet’s plastic trash tsunami can be stopped.
![Children swimming. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Children swimming. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Children,-swimming_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
The shape of the South African family
Migrant labour has intrinsically shaped family life in SA. Family structures and the concept of 'home' would be vastly different if it weren’t for this history.
![Migrant and mothers. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Migrant and mothers. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Migrant-and-mothers_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Migrant moms keep the home fires burning
How motherhood has been redefined through the feminisation of migration and maternal motion.
![Cyber security, surveillance | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Cyber security, surveillance | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Cyber-security,-surveillance_600x300px.jpg)
You and Big Brother @Home online
Technology and surveillance cause a sense of moral panic, but such scrutiny has the potential to enhance society.
![Adanma Yisa. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Adanma Yisa. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Adanma-Yisa_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
The mouth of a shark
COLUMN: Adanma Yisa shares her journey of being an African researcher in Africa today, but raised and educated in the Global North.
![Online privacy. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Online privacy. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Online-privacy_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Pushing privacy buttons
COLUMN: It feels like I am trapped in a scene of the Ferris Beuller movie. It is all a dream of the (near) future. Or a nightmare?
![Men's Residence 1929 | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Men's Residence 1929 | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-7/Mens-Residence-1929_600x300px.jpg)
The first homes at Wits
The history of housing, student accommodation and segregated living at Wits University.
![Curiosity, Issue 6: #Hungergames --- www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Curiosity, Issue 6: #Hungergames --- www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Curiosity-6_HungerGames_2_600x300px.jpg)
Curiosity, Issue 6: You are what you eat
Our online research magazine focuses on the socio-economic, political, physiological and psychological dynamics of food and nutrition.
![Professor Zeblon Vilakazi. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Zeblon Vilakazi. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/ZeblonVilakazi_600x300px.jpg)
The Hunger Games
EDITORIAL: It is tragic that we live in the midst of the fourth industrial revolution, yet we have millions of people who starve every day.
![Food gardens and disco soups. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Food gardens and disco soups. ©Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Disco-soups_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Disco soups and nutraceuticals
FOOD BITES: From a new form of food activism making gardening “cool” to developing new ways to deliver the medicines – or nutraceuticals – that our bodies need.
![Farmer David Rakgase in Northam. © Deon Raath | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Farmer David Rakgase in Northam. © Deon Raath | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Farmer-David-Rakgase-in-Northam,-Â_Deon_Raath.jpg)
Food takes root in Africa
Africa has the ability and resources to feed the world, but much needs to be done on a continent full of challenges, opportunities and pitfalls.
![Thrifty basket of food. © Nadette Voogd | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Thrifty basket of food. © Nadette Voogd | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Thrifty-basket-of-food_ÂNadette-Voogd.jpg)
Phansi, profiteers, Phansi!
The Constitution guarantees the right to food and there is enough for all but a system that prioritises profits over people undermines both society and justice.
![Restaurante Popular in Brazil. © Lianne Milton | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Restaurante Popular in Brazil. © Lianne Milton | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Restaurante-Popular-in-Brazil_ÂLianne-Milton_600x300px.jpg)
A healthy meal in every neighbourhood
Few Johannesburg residents enjoy the right to food and even fewer are aware that they have such a right. Community Food Centres could help change that.
![The Inala Forum marching against bread cartels. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ The Inala Forum marching against bread cartels. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Inala-marching-against-bread-cartels_ÂCuriosity_600x300px.jpg)
Appetite for dignity
Despite efforts to address hunger at Wits, ad hoc food security interventions cannot keep pace with increasing numbers of hungry students.
![The Wits Inala Forum, a student society. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ The Wits Inala Forum, a student society. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Wits-Food-Garden_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
No space at the table for food communing
Food commons promote returning food (and access to it) to a place where food exists for the public good, rather than to benefit private, commercial interests.
![A relative increase in food prices leads to an increase in certain types of crime. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ A relative increase in food prices leads to an increase in certain types of crime. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Food-prices_Â-Lauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
The fight in food prices
New research due this year show link between relative increase in food and beer prices with levels of crime and violent behaviour.
![The truth about mielies. © Vino Tinto | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ The truth about mielies. © Vino Tinto | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/The-truth-about-mielies_ÂVino-Tinto_600x300px.jpg)
Slave Maize: The truth about mielies
Most Africans consider maize (corn) to be their staple food but few realise it carries a history of slavery, colonisation, modernisation and globalisation.
![Termites and Mopane worms offer a good alternative source of protein. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Termites and Mopane worms offer a good alternative source of protein. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/A-bug-pizza_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Crunchy on the outside, squishy on the inside
Edible stinkbugs and pre-dawn insect hunts; only for the brave.
![Termites and Mopane worms pizza. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Termites and Mopane worms pizza. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Bug-pizza-slice_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
What not to eat
Although eating insects might stave off starvation in a survival situation, chowing down on foam grasshoppers or red-yellow-black bugs could be fatal.
![Obesity rat race. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Obesity rat race. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Obesity-rat-race_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
The rat race towards obesity
The fast food generation is trapped in an “obesogenic environment” due to international junk food giants and sugary sweet marketing.
![Eat to live. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Eat to live. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Eat-to-live_ÂCuriosity_600x300px.jpg)
Eat to live not to shrink
There are almost 10 billion people on Earth and possibly 9 billion ideas of the perfect diet but there is no scientific proof the latest fad diet will work.
![Body cravings. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Body cravings. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Body-cravings_Â-Lauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Body cravings
Adolescent South Africans increasingly struggle with eating disorders, unhealthy eating attitudes and body image issues, in both city and rural settings.
![Traditional meal at Roving Bantu Kitchen. ©Lauren-Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Traditional meal at Roving Bantu Kitchen. ©Lauren-Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Traditional-meal-at-Roving-Bantu-Kitchen_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
You are what your Ouma ate
The health of your mother when you were born is a known indicator of your prospects in future, but new research shows that you inherit your health even earlier.
![Breastfeeding advances society. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Breastfeeding advances society. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Nursing-and-breastfeeding_ÂCuriosity_600x300px.jpg)
Breastfeeding advances society
Breastfed babies are healthier and smarter than formula-fed babies yet these benefits still do not translate into policy and practice.
![Energy drinks, sugar, and sugertax on SSBs. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Energy drinks, sugar, and sugertax on SSBs. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Energy-drink_ÂCuriosity_600x300px.jpg)
Beware the monster in your energy drink
Q&A: Dr Aviva Tugendhaft, Deputy Director of PRICELESS SA sheds light on what energy drinks really do to the body.
![Misleading food labels. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Misleading food labels. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Food-labels_Â-Curiosity_600x300px.jpg)
Misleading labels and insidious ingredients
Only limited legislation protects us against incomprehensible, misleading and detrimental food labels.
![Professor Luke Chimuka with some of the Moringa products. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Professor Luke Chimuka with some of the Moringa products. © Lauren Mulligan | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Professor-Luke-Chimuka_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
The chemistry of chaos and the magic moringa
PROFILE: Professor Luke Chimuka developed a method to produce an extract from the moringa plant that is used as a dietary supplement.
![Diets, health eating, fast food and obesity. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ Diets, health eating, fast food and obesity. © Curiosity | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Sauerkraut_ÂCuriosity_600x300px.jpg)
For sauerkraut’s sake, teach our children right!
COLUMN: Sauerkraut. That is how I start my day. Fermented cabbage leaves served with two boiled eggs and a slice of juicy cucumber on the side.
![The British Royal Family (with the reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth second from right) during their visit to the 1946 Rand Show. © Rand Show and City Buzz | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/ The British Royal Family (with the reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth second from right) during their visit to the 1946 Rand Show. © Rand Show and City Buzz | www.wits.ac.za/curiosity/](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-6/Queen-Elizabeth-at-the-Rand-Show_ÂRand-Show-and-City-Buzz_600x300px.jpg)
Blue-ribbon bulls and agriculture
HISTORY: The annual Rand Easter Show has it muddy and beefy origins on Wits’ Braamfontein campus.
![Curiosity, Issue 5: #Mandela100 Curiosity, Issue 5: #Mandela100](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Curiosity-5_Mandela100_Cover_600x300px.jpg)
Living the Legacy
Editorial: This year marked the centenary of a remarkable leader who transformed our world and left a legacy difficult to emulate.
![Advocate George Bizos (foto left: ©Brett Eloff) and with President Nelson Mandela (©Wits University). Advocate George Bizos (foto left: ©Brett Eloff) and with President Nelson Mandela (©Wits University).](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Advocate-George-Bizos-and-President-Nelson-Mandela_2_600x300px.jpg)
A country for all its citizens
Opinion: Advocate George Bizos SC is proud to call Nelson Mandela his life-long friend.
![At the end of the rainbow. ©Jürgen Schaderberg At the end of the rainbow. ©Jürgen Schaderberg](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/At-the-end-of-the-rainbow_ÂJürgen-Schaderberg-ÂAyanda-Mabulu_600x300px.jpg)
At the end of the Rainbow
Nelson Mandela embodied kaleidoscopic reconciliation in 1994, but what is the prism fracturing his legacy in 2018?
![Commemorating Nelson Mandela, South African president and world icon. ©Lauren Mulligan Commemorating Nelson Mandela, South African president and world icon. ©Lauren Mulligan](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Its-in-your-hands_600x300px.jpg)
It's in your hands
Blaming Nelson Mandela for our current faults conveniently shifts introspection from the mistakes that the ANC and leaders subsequently made in power.
![Lightning strikes Johannesburg, economic capital of South Africa. ©Lauren Mulligan Lightning strikes Johannesburg, economic capital of South Africa. ©Lauren Mulligan](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/The-Brothers-Manhattan-captured-Mandela_600x300px.jpg)
The Brothers Manhattan captured Mandela
Three brothers captured Nelson Mandela shortly before he became South Africa’s first democratically elected President in 1994.
![](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/More-than-Mandelas-wife_600x300px.jpg)
More than Mandela’s wife
Winnie Madikizela-Mandela married Nelson Mandela on 14 June 1958, just six years before he was sentenced to life imprisonment.
![Wits University students enjoy the music at the Free People's Concert, held on 23 February 1973, on the Library Lawns, Braamfontein Campus East. ©Josh Spencer Wits University students enjoy the music at the Free People's Concert, held on 23 February 1973, on the Library Lawns, Braamfontein Campus East. ©Josh Spencer](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Free-Peoples-Concert-at-Wits-in-the-70s_600x300px.jpg)
Sustaining a legend through song
The oeuvre symbolising the life of Nelson Mandela is expansive. These are a selection of the most evocative.
![Dr Lindelwa Dalamba, musicologist and jazz historian in the Wits School of Arts. ©Lauren Mulligan Dr Lindelwa Dalamba, musicologist and jazz historian in the Wits School of Arts. ©Lauren Mulligan](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Dr-Lindelwa-Dalamba_600x300px.jpg)
Notes on South Africa through a jazz lens
A patriot at heart, Dr Lindelwa Dalamba is enchanted by South Africa’s cultural history.
![mARTdiba - the art of Mandela and Mandela as art. mARTdiba - the art of Mandela and Mandela as art.](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/mARTdiba_600x300px.jpg)
mARTdiba
In Nelson Mandela’s personal office in Houghton, there is a stately wooden desk covered in brightly coloured cattle figurines.
![The Nelson Mandela Children's Hospital. ©Lauren Mulligan The Nelson Mandela Children's Hospital. ©Lauren Mulligan](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Nelson-Mandela-Childrens-Hospital_300x600px.jpg)
A hospital just as Madiba envisioned it
Based at Wits University, the Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital is a true icon of the legacy that South Africa’s favourite son has left behind.
![Former US president Barack Obama delivered the 2018 Nelson Mandela Lecture in Johannesburg. ©Siphiwe Sibeko Former US president Barack Obama delivered the 2018 Nelson Mandela Lecture in Johannesburg. ©Siphiwe Sibeko](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Barack-Obama-delivers-the-2018-Nelson-Mandela-Lecture_Â-Simphiwe-Sibeko_600x300px.jpg.jpg)
The Mandela-Obama effect
Nelson Mandela and Barack Obama are widely seen as two of the greatest leaders in the world in modern history. What are their legacies?
![South African newspaper's reaction to the death of Nelson Mandela. ©Lefty Shivambu South African newspaper's reaction to the death of Nelson Mandela. ©Lefty Shivambu](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Newspapers-react-to-Mandelas-death_600x300px.jpg)
The making of Mandela in the media
From “dangerous” black anti-apartheid fighter to iconic leader hailed the world over, to bitter ex-husband and “sell out”.
![Women walking in the rolling hills of the Eastern Cape. ©Christiaan Kotze Women walking in the rolling hills of the Eastern Cape. ©Christiaan Kotze](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Mandela-and-land_600x300px.jpg)
A Long Walk to Freedom vs the Mthatha Archives
Taking a closer look at the documentary record of his father’s life and Mandela’s recollection in A Long Walk to Freedom.
![Memorial service for Nelson Mandela. ©Daniel Born Memorial service for Nelson Mandela. ©Daniel Born](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Memorial-for-Nelson-Mandela_ÂDaniel-Born_600x300px.jpg)
'Where does daddy live?'
To win the hearts of millions, Nelson Mandela paid dearly – with the hearts of those he loved most.
![Nelson Mandela at Wits University. ©Wits Historical Papers Archive Nelson Mandela at Wits University. ©Wits Historical Papers Archive](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Nelson-Mandela-at-Wits-University_600x300px.jpg)
The 46-year-long Wits LLB that never was
Nelson Mandela is among Wits University’s most famous alumni, but he is not a graduate of the University.
![Nelson Mandela meets military leaders during a secret tour of Africa in 1962. This picture originally appeared in the SPARK newspaper. Nelson Mandela meets military leaders during a secret tour of Africa in 1962. This picture originally appeared in the SPARK newspaper.](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Mandela-and-military-force_600x300px.jpg)
Mandela and military force
20 years since South Africa's military intervention into Lesotho - an opportune moment to consider the Mandela's position on the use of military force.
![Documents and clippings from the Historical Research Papers Archive at Wits University. ©Erna van Wyk Documents and clippings from the Historical Research Papers Archive at Wits University. ©Erna van Wyk](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Collective-memory_600x300px.jpg)
Creating collective memory
Creating a collective memory in a country with a fragmented past and persistent inequality needs money, skills and political will to preserve its history.
![The Nelson Mandela Foundation The Nelson Mandela Foundation](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/No-new-Mandela-yet_600x300px.jpg)
No new Mandela – yet
Sello Hatang, Head of the Nelson Mandela Foundation, shared some intimate moments with Madiba, and nostalgically shares what he beliefs is Mandela's legacy.
![Brand Mandela - What is in a name. #Mandela100 Brand Mandela - What is in a name. #Mandela100](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Brand-Mandela_600x300px.jpg)
Brand Mandela: What’s in a name?
From his name and image, to quotes, pictures, voice and artefacts, the Brand Mandela and the legacy of the ‘father of the nation’ is complicated to manage.
![](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Dare-not-linger_600x300px.jpg)
Dare not linger
The following excerpt from the book, “Dare Not Linger”, shows Mandela’s belief in education as the liberator of the human spirit.
!['Mandela - His Essential Life' - a book by Peter Hain. 'Mandela - His Essential Life' - a book by Peter Hain.](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Mandela_His-Essential-Life_600x300px.jpg)
Walk a mile in his shoes
Nelson Mandela and his colleagues walked a minefield strewn with political, economic and social traps to prevent civil war and set our democratic path.
![The Wits Choir. ©Wits University The Wits Choir. ©Wits University](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Wits-Choir_600x300px.jpg)
Facets of a legacy
Mandela recognised we live in a world that is, and not in a world we wish existed. To truly honour him we must be responsive to his entire political legacy.
![Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrica - South Africa's National Anthem. Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrica - South Africa's National Anthem.](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-5/Evolution-of-an-anthem_600x300px.jpg)
Evolution of an anthem
South Africa has the best anthem in the world, a product of a negotiated settlement intended as a measure of reconciliation for a new South Africa.
![Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Postgraduate Affairs Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Postgraduate Affairs](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Professor-Zeblon-Vilakazi,-DVC-Research_600x300px.jpg)
The vehicle of nature
Editorial: Future world wars will be fought over water – a resource that is scarce in many parts of the world, including sub-Saharan Africa.
![From crisis to opportunity From crisis to opportunity](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Lessons-learned_600x300px.jpg)
From 'crisis' to opportunity
Lessons from Cape Town’s water shortage.
![David Olivier and Paulose Mvulane David Olivier and Paulose Mvulane](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/David-Olivier-and-Paulose-Mvulane_600x300px.jpg)
Parched Cape Town, Johannesburg drowning
Water security is a complex challenge. Rain both alleviates drought but causes floods. David Olivier and Paulose Mvulane seek the silver lining.
![Visiting Adjunct Professor Mike Muller Visiting Adjunct Professor Mike Muller](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Mike-Muller_600x300px.jpg)
What makes waves in water crises?
Column: Water problems are in large measure problems of people and organisation, not problems of engineering.
![Simon Gear Simon Gear](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Simon-Gear_600x300px.jpg)
Big Bang, water, life
Column: We have had some tyrants in our time but not until the last century or so have we ever come up with the idea of taking a dump in our own drinking water.
![Acid-mine-drainage_©-Mark-Lewis Acid-mine-drainage_©-Mark-Lewis](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Acid-mine-drainage_Â-Mark-Lewis_600x300px.jpg)
The heat of acid mine drainage
Mining is a key contributor to South Africa’s economic development but its effect on the environment could spell disaster.
![Bonne-Esperance-rock-art-site-in-Limpopo_©Elijah-Katsetse Bonne-Esperance-rock-art-site-in-Limpopo_©Elijah-Katsetse](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Bonne-Esperance-rock-art-site-in-Limpopo_ÂElijah-Katsetse_600x300px.jpg)
Washing away our heritage
The effect of water on rock art is a major concern, particularly due to climate change.
![Lerato-Molekoa_©Lauren-Mulligan Lerato-Molekoa_©Lauren-Mulligan](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Lerato-Molekoa_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Hunting aliens from space
Wits researchers are using high-tech imagery and biological agents to save our water resources and economy from invasive alien plants.
![Lucia-Monge's-Planton-Movil-2011_©Jorge-Ochoa Lucia-Monge's-Planton-Movil-2011_©Jorge-Ochoa](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Lucia-Monges-Planton-Movil-2011_ÂJorge-Ochoa_600x300px.jpg)
A WATERSHED in arts and science
WATERSHED is a programme that enmeshes the arts and science to provoke new thinking about water.
![A People's Water Charter A People's Water Charter](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/A-Peoples-Water-Charter_600x300px.jpg)
A People’s Water Charter for South Africa
A social sciences course on Empire and the Crisis of Civilisation contextualises water, food and climate crises as systemic and demanding activist solutions.
![Lesotho Lesotho](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Lesotho_600x300px.jpg)
Whose water is it anyway?
South Africa’s hydrocolonisation of Lesotho.
![Bulawayo's water wars Bulawayo's water wars](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Bulawayos-water-wars_600x300px.jpg)
Bulawayo’s water wars
The history of water inequality in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, shows that the colonisation of land cannot be separated from the colonisation of water.
![GRACE experiment GRACE experiment](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/GRACE-experiment_600x300px.jpg)
(GRACE) unleashes Earth’s water potential
Satellite data helps to track changes in groundwater storage.
![Jetty in the sea Jetty in the sea](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Jetty-in-the-sea_600x300px.jpg)
Diving deeper in a time of dryness
Finding ways to explore water and oceans differently requires a new kind of fluidity, the kind proposed by Oceanic Humanities.
![Your right to water Your right to water](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Right-to-water1_600x300px.jpg)
Using the court to secure water rights
Access to sufficient water is a human right but failures of government often compel people to access this through law.
![Washing hands ©Shutterstock Washing hands ©Shutterstock](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Generic_Washing-hands_water_ÂShutterstock_600x300px.jpg)
WASH - a pipeline to saving lives
Diarrhoea is one of the leading causes of sickness and death in children under five in South Africa.
![The Good, the Bad and the Dirty The Good, the Bad and the Dirty](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/The Good, the Bad and the Dirty_600x300px.jpg)
The Good, the Bad and the Dirty
Column: Lessons unlearnt from a week in dry Cape Town.
![Rainfall-at-Wits Rainfall-at-Wits](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Rainfall-at-Wits_600x300px.jpg)
The 180-million year old quirk
The story of why rainfall at Wits dispenses to the Atlantic and Indian Oceans respectively is a tale as old as Africa itself.
![The seven Earth-size planets of TRAPPIST-1, an exoplanet system about 40 light-years away, based on data current as at February 2018. The image shows the planets' relative sizes but does not represent their orbits to scale. The art highlights possibilities for how the surfaces of these intriguing worlds might look based on their newly-calculated properties. Picture: NASA/JPL The seven Earth-size planets of TRAPPIST-1, an exoplanet system about 40 light-years away, based on data current as at February 2018. The image shows the planets' relative sizes but does not represent their orbits to scale. The art highlights possibilities for how the surfaces of these intriguing worlds might look based on their newly-calculated properties. Picture: NASA/JPL](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Pale-blue-dot_600x300px.jpg)
Our pale blue dot
Q&A with Professor David Block from the Wits School of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics.
![Busisiwe-Mashiane_©Lauren Mulligan Busisiwe-Mashiane_©Lauren Mulligan](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Busisiwe-Mashiane_ÂLauren Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Tech bytes
From slow sand filters and to towers that measure energy and gases.
![Dyani-Jeram_©Lauren-Mulligan_600x300px Dyani-Jeram_©Lauren-Mulligan_600x300px](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-4/Dyani-Jeram_ÂLauren-Mulligan_600x300px.jpg)
Thirsty for change
Profile: As a photographer, swimmer and researcher, Dyani Jeram’s life is all about water.
![Lord Peter Hain, Visiting Adjunct Professor at Wits Business School Lord Peter Hain, Visiting Adjunct Professor at Wits Business School](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-3/Lord-Peter-Hain_600x300px.jpg)
Tackling global crime networks
Interview with Lord Peter Hain about his efforts to bring British banks to justice for their alleged involvement in state capture.
![Apartheid Archives Apartheid Archives](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-3/Apartheid-Archives_600x300px.jpg)
The unfinished business of apartheid
Can we finally see beyond the hashtags, clever memes, and witty commentary that #StateCapture, the #Guptas and #EdwardsFather elicit?
![The average amount of sugar in 330ml fruit juice is 9 teaspoons. The average amount of sugar in 330ml fruit juice is 9 teaspoons.](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/generic/General_Fruit-juice_Sugar-tax_600x300px.jpg)
Bitter-sweet monopoly
Capitalising on consumers' sweet spot has dangerous implications for public health.
![Media monopolies Media monopolies](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-3/Media-monopolies_600x300px.jpg)
His master’s voice
What are the prospects for a free media in a captured state in 21st Century South Africa?
![Lessons from muckrakers Lessons from muckrakers](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-3/Lessons-from-muckrakers_600x300px.jpg)
Lessons from muckrakers
Let’s celebrate the work of investigative reporters in exposing state capture but also interrogate where they got it wrong, and how damaging this has been.
![Nhlanhla Nene, Honorary Adjunct Professor in Wits Business School Nhlanhla Nene, Honorary Adjunct Professor in Wits Business School](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-3/Nhlanhla-Nene_600x300px.jpg)
Guardians of the democracy
Public-private sector relationships should serve society broadly and when it starts serving the interest of a individuals it undermines our hard-won democracy.
![Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research](/media/wits-university/news-and-events/images/curiosity/issue-3/Professor-Zeblon-Vilakazi_600x300px.jpg)
SA will not escape this revolution
Professor Zeblon Vilakazi’s editorial in the latest issue of Curiosity, Wits’ new research magazine: