Night-time cooking with solar is possible with thermal energy storage

With the aid of thermal energy storage systems it is possible to use solar cookers to prepare hot meals at night. Some systems perform better than others though, and there is room for improvement. This is according to Prof Ashmore Mawire of the Solar Thermal research group at the North-West University (NWU).

He recently gave a public…

Organisational leaders can optimise their risk management investments by exploring new methods

All public and private organisations must deal with the systemic risks of our complex world. However, such inherent complex risks are difficult to manage even where significant resources have been utilised in implementing formal risk management frameworks and related processes.

It is therefore important for organisational leaders to…

Local energy solutions are best for Africa

Local solutions to the energy crisis are needed in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries, says Dr Pamelah Cheuka, an economics specialist whose PhD thesis has shed light on the energy challenges of the region.

Dr Cheuka’s recent study on the impact of energy efficiency and renewable energy generation on…

Study finds freshwater species at risk from threats linked to human activities

From climate change and associated extreme weather events to pollutants, over-utilisation and invasive species, human activities are the main threats to freshwater species in South Africa’s largest floodplain ecosystem.

This is according to the Water Research Group (WRG) of the North-West University (NWU), which for the past 10 years…

The cannabis conundrum: legal lines need to be drawn between home and workplace

In 2018, the Constitutional Court of South Africa legalised the cultivation and use of cannabis, provided that it is for private use by an adult person in a private place.

In her master’s-degree research carried out at the North-West University (NWU), Advocate Dineo Mongwaketsi looked at the legal implications of the legalisation of…

We lead through research at the NWU

At the North-West University (NWU), research not only plays a pivotal role in the daily functioning, but it is also where the university helps to change the world.

Beyond the NWU’s multitude of research centres of excellence, chairs, units, focus areas and niche areas, its hosted research entities and commercial research entities, the…

Prof Mels working towards the prevention of future cardiovascular disease

Following the completion of Prof Carina Mels’s postgraduate studies in biochemistry, she was offered the opportunity to start a lab at the Hypertension in Africa Research Team (HART), which she accepted, knowing that she had plenty of lab experience from biochemistry to draw upon. Her mentor at the time…

Prof Ramorola, aiming to optimise technology use in classrooms

As an expert in computer-integrated education and digital learning, Prof Mmankoko Ziphorah Ramorola firmly believes that, since learners in the 21st century are technology-savvy, they absolutely cannot be taught in the same way as learners before them. Whereas the children of today are – so to speak – born with digital competence, the same…

Exciting new era begins for the NWU

The inauguration of Dr Bismark Tyobeka as the third vice-chancellor of the North-West University (NWU) is the start of an exciting new journey for the university.

Dr Tyobeka, who started his five-year term as principal and vice-chancellor on 1 June 2022, was officially inaugurated on 26 August during a prestige event at the Feather Hill…

Machine and deep learning are a MUST at the North-West University

Our world is speeding up, and never in human existence have we been able to search as fast, travel as far or delve as deep. The last century alone has seen a meteoric increase in the accumulation of data and we are able to store unfathomable quantities of information to help us solve problems known and unknown. At some point the ability to…