View from above of a man walking along a beach, carrying plastic bottles

View from above of a man walking along a beach, carrying plastic bottles

We tested if a specialised magnetic powder could remove microplastics from drinking water: the answer is yes

Riona Indhur, Durban University of Technology and Sheena Kumari, Durban University of Technology

World’s first known butt-drag fossil trace was left by a rock hyrax in South Africa 126,000 years ago

Charles Helm, Nelson Mandela University and Lynne Quick, Nelson Mandela University

Rock surface marked with two almost parallel lines and a lump between them

Rock surface marked with two almost parallel lines and a lump between them

Toxic pollution builds up in snake scales: what we learnt from black mambas

Cormac Price, North-West University; University of KwaZulu-Natal

Greyish snake on a sandy surface, with its head raised

Greyish snake on a sandy surface, with its head raised

Mushrooms may have been part of early human diets: primate study explores who eats what and when

Alexander Piel, UCL and Fiona Stewart

Baboon in a tree, holding a mushroom

Baboon in a tree, holding a mushroom

Nature’s not perfect: fig wasps try to balance sex ratios for survival but they can get it wrong

Jaco Greeff, University of Pretoria

Hand holding an open fig with insects inside it

Hand holding an open fig with insects inside it

A brightly coloured mural which can be viewed in any direction. It has several scenes within it: people in front of computers seeming stressed, a number of faces overlaid over each other, squashed emojis, miners digging in front of a huge mountain representing mineral resources, a hand holding a lump of coal or carbon, hands manipulating stock charts and error messages, as well as some women performing tasks on computers, men in suits around a table, someone in a data centre, big hands controlling the scenes and holding a phone, people in a production line. Motifs such as network diagrams and melting emojis are placed throughout the busy vignettes.

A brightly coloured mural which can be viewed in any direction. It has several scenes within it: people in front of computers seeming stressed, a number of faces overlaid over each other, squashed emojis, miners digging in front of a huge mountain representing mineral resources, a hand holding a lump of coal or carbon, hands manipulating stock charts and error messages, as well as some women performing tasks on computers, men in suits around a table, someone in a data centre, big hands controlling the scenes and holding a phone, people in a production line. Motifs such as network diagrams and melting emojis are placed throughout the busy vignettes.

AI in Africa: 5 issues that must be tackled for digital equality

Rachel Adams, University of Cape Town

An illustration of a hand holding a smart phone and letters of the alphabet flying off in all directions.

An illustration of a hand holding a smart phone and letters of the alphabet flying off in all directions.

One in three South Africans have never heard of AI – what this means for policy

Leah Davina Junck, University of Cape Town and Rachel Adams, University of Cape Town

Seated smiling woman

Seated smiling woman

Deepfakes and South African law: remedies on paper, gaps in practice

Nomalanga Mashinini, University of the Witwatersrand

We decoded the oldest genetic data from an Egyptian, a man buried around 4,500 years ago – what it told us

Adeline Morez Jacobs, University of Padua

Black and white photo of pottery tomb

Black and white photo of pottery tomb

How do bodies decompose? Cape Town forensic scientists are pushing frontiers of new detection methods

Victoria Gibbon, University of Cape Town; Devin Alexander Finaughty, University of the Witwatersrand, and Kara Adams, University of Cape Town

Pig carcass dressed in clothing lies on a metal frame outdoors

Pig carcass dressed in clothing lies on a metal frame outdoors

Who’s got the power? Studies of male and female primates show it’s not simple

Nikos Smit, University of Turku and Elise Huchard, Université de Montpellier

Two black primates, one sitting on its haunches, the larger one standing on all fours

Two black primates, one sitting on its haunches, the larger one standing on all fours

Our ancient planet

Supernova theory links an exploding star to global cooling and human evolution

Supernova theory links an exploding star to global cooling and human evolution

Supernova theory links an exploding star to global cooling and human evolution

Francis Thackeray, University of the Witwatersrand

We detected deep pulses beneath Africa – what we learned could help us understand volcanic activity

Emma Watts, Swansea University; Derek Keir, University of Southampton, and Thomas Gernon, University of Southampton

Lava spilling out of volcanic rock.

Lava spilling out of volcanic rock.

Africans survived 10,000 years of climate changes by adapting food systems – study offers lessons for modern times

Leanne N. Phelps, Columbia University and Kristina Guild Douglass, Columbia University

Man herding cattle

Man herding cattle

Stone tools from a cave on South Africa’s coast speak of life at the end of the Ice Age

Sara Watson, Indiana State University

Cliff with cave

Cliff with cave

Black holes spew out powerful jets that span millions of light-years – we’re trying to understand their whole life cycle

Gourab Giri, University of Pretoria

An illustration that shows something shaped like a zeppelin erupting out of a black hole against a backdrop of stars

An illustration that shows something shaped like a zeppelin erupting out of a black hole against a backdrop of stars

The Conversation Africa is powered by facts. And you.

Creature features

Two chimpanzees sitting together with playful expressions

Two chimpanzees sitting together with playful expressions

Chimpanzees ingest more than the equivalent of one alcoholic drink a day – new research

Stefano Kaburu, Nottingham Trent University

Whose turn is it? The question is at the heart of language and chimpanzees ask it too

Kayla Kolff, Osnabrück University and Simone Pika, Osnabrück University

One chimpanzee touching another

One chimpanzee touching another

We studied more than 500 giraffe skulls from all over Africa – and confirmed there are 4 distinct species

Nikolaos Kargopoulos, University of Cape Town and Julian Fennessy, University College Dublin

A lone giraffe in the wild looks off to one side

A lone giraffe in the wild looks off to one side

War, politics and religion shape wildlife evolution in cities

Elizabeth Carlen, Washington University in St. Louis

Man standing on boat releasing fish from a net into the water

Man standing on boat releasing fish from a net into the water

Humans and animals can both think logically − but testing what kind of logic they’re using is tricky

Olga Lazareva, Drake University

Rodent climbing the rungs of a small, colorful abacus

Rodent climbing the rungs of a small, colorful abacus

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Talking tech

Genetic tests for cancer can give uncertain results: new science is making the picture clearer to guide treatment

Claudia Christowitz, Stellenbosch University

Scientist hand holding test tube with blood in laboratory

Scientist hand holding test tube with blood in laboratory

Smart cities start with people, not technology: lessons from Westbury, Johannesburg

Rennie Naidoo, University of the Witwatersrand

People standing on a damaged and blocked road

People standing on a damaged and blocked road

3D printed food: yuck or yes? Researchers ask South African consumers

Oluwafemi Adebo, University of Johannesburg and Nicole Cunningham, University of Johannesburg

Layers of circular shapes underneath a nozzle

Layers of circular shapes underneath a nozzle

Ageing bridges around the world are at risk of collapse. But there’s a simple way to safeguard them

Andy Nguyen, University of Southern Queensland

A steel bridge crossing a river with a city skyline in the background.

A steel bridge crossing a river with a city skyline in the background.

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