Forced labour in west African cybercrime academies: how fear traps young menSuleman Lazarus, London School of Economics and Political Science
AI regulation in Africa: why copying the European model won’t workKinfe Yilma, University of Leeds and Grace Mutung'u, Strathmore University
AI in nature conservation: powerful tool or dangerous shortcut?Jeran Cloete, Stellenbosch University; Dian Spear, Stellenbosch University; Jessica da Silva; Lavhelesani Dembe Simba, University of Fort Hare, and Peter J Carrick, University of Cape Town
South African telescope detects record-breaking signal from the early universeThato Manamela, University of Pretoria and Roger P. Deane, Inter-University Institute for Data Intensive Astronomy; University of Cape Town
AI offers promise for agriculture, but smallholder farmers risk being left behindAbiodun Olusola Omotayo, University of Maryland Eastern Shore; North-West University and Abeeb Babatunde Omotoso, North-West University
AI and journalism in southern Africa: editors are using it but balanced with human expertise and editorial judgementMandla J. Radebe, University of Johannesburg and Mbongeni J Msimanga, University of Johannesburg
Turtles finally have a place in the tree of life: X-ray study of South African fossils was a deciderValentin Buffa, University of Zurich; Jonah Choiniere, University of the Witwatersrand; Julien Benoit, University of the Witwatersrand, and Xavier Jenkins, American Museum of Natural History
In Senegal, a 2,000-year-old iron workshop sheds new light on the pastMélissa Morel, University of Cambridge; Anne Mayor, Université de Genève, and Ladji Dianifaba, Université Cheikh Anta Diop de Dakar
What are misfluencers and what can be done about false information online?Herkulaas MvE Combrink, University of the Free State and Phelokazi Mkungeka, University of the Free State
Lesotho’s mountain life was harsh for early humans: fire made all the differenceKyra Pazan, California State University, Stanislaus and Andrew Carr, University of Leicester
Poor pay is holding back Africa’s biodiversity research and reducing its contribution to global scienceHarith Omar Morgadinho Farooq, Lúrio University and Isildo De Nascimento Nganhane, Lúrio University
In Sudan, a migrant community reveals a resistance to malaria: the genetic study helping shape medicineDavid Comas, Universitat Pompeu Fabra; Instituto de Biología Evolutiva (IBE - CSIC - UPF) and Laura Vilà Valls, Universitat Pompeu Fabra; Instituto de Biología Evolutiva (IBE - CSIC - UPF)
Ghana’s transport system is chaotic: how it can move more people with fewer vehicles – researchJanet Appiah Osei, University of Ghana
South Africa’s AI policy cited fake research, created by AI: what lessons need to be learnedNomalanga Mashinini, University of the Witwatersrand
Humidity and heat are killers for tropical birds – waxbill and hornbill studies highlight the dangersAndrew McKechnie, University of Pretoria and Susan Cunningham, University of Cape Town
Africa has the world’s greatest genetic diversity, yet it’s missing from research: we’re filling the gapMichele Ramsay, University of the Witwatersrand and Ananyo Choudhury, University of the Witwatersrand
Bird and tortoise fossil tracks on South Africa’s coast – latest findings are world firstsCharles Helm, Nelson Mandela University
Magic mushrooms: new African species sheds light on the history of the famous fungusBreyten Van der Merwe, Stellenbosch University and Alexander Bradshaw, Clark University
Electric minibus taxis: the challenges and gains facing Cape Town’s transitionMJ (Thinus) Booysen, Stellenbosch University and Joshua Sello, Stellenbosch University
Embryo fossil found in South Africa is world’s oldest proof that mammal ancestors laid eggsJulien Benoit, University of the Witwatersrand; Jennifer Botha, University of the Witwatersrand, and Vincent Fernandez, University of the Witwatersrand
Life in fossil bones: what we can learn from tiny traces of ancient blood chemicalsTimothy G. Bromage, New York University
Early humans relied on simple stone tools for 300,000 years in a changing east African landscapeNiguss Gitaw Baraki, George Washington University; Dan V. Palcu Rolier; David R. Braun, George Washington University; Emmanuel K. Ndiema, National Museums of Kenya, and Rahab N. Kinyanjui
Arrow tips found in South Africa are the oldest evidence of poison use in huntingMarlize Lombard, University of Johannesburg
Ancient antelope teeth offer surprise insights into how early humans livedMegan Malherbe, University of Zurich
AI reveals which predators chewed ancient humans’ bones – challenging ideas on which Homo species was the first tool-using hunterManuel Domínguez-Rodrigo, Rice University
A Namib desert beetle runs to stay cool: how scientists solved the puzzle of this unique and speedy speciesDuncan Mitchell, University of the Witwatersrand and Joh R. Henschel, University of the Free State
Chimpanzees ingest more than the equivalent of one alcoholic drink a day – new researchStefano Kaburu, Nottingham Trent University
Whose turn is it? The question is at the heart of language and chimpanzees ask it tooKayla Kolff, Osnabrück University and Simone Pika, Osnabrück University
Humans and animals can both think logically − but testing what kind of logic they’re using is trickyOlga Lazareva, Drake University
We studied more than 500 giraffe skulls from all over Africa – and confirmed there are 4 distinct speciesNikolaos Kargopoulos, University of Cape Town and Julian Fennessy, University College Dublin
South Africa’s MeerKAT telescope is mapping previously invisible spaces between galaxies – and it’s found 60 new cosmic structuresKonstantinos Kolokythas, Rhodes University
Ransomware: what it is and why it’s your problemThembekile Olivia Mayayise, University of the Witwatersrand
A giant star is changing before our eyes and astronomers are watching in real timeKeiichi Ohnaka, Universidad Andrés Bello (Chile) and Jacco van Loon, Keele University
The great wildebeest migration, seen from space: satellites and AI are helping count Africa’s wildlifeIsla C. Duporge, Princeton University; Daniel Rubenstein, Princeton University; David Macdonald, University of Oxford, and Tiejun Wang, University of Twente
