NWU hopes to stem CORONA’s surge

COVID-19. A denomination for a world epidemic that will live in infamy. In 1918 one-third of the world’s population became infected with a virus we now call the Spanish Flu. Millions died. More suffered. Endless story of those fateful years will forever be told.  

COVID-19 is the newest iteration of an age-old foe that…

Teaching and learning go online as NWU takes education to people

The Covid-19 pandemic has fundamentally disrupted teaching-learning activities in South Africa and across the globe. It also challenges how we think about education and assessment, in general.

“Disruptions are opportunities to reflect on assumptions made about teaching, learning and learners,” says Prof Robert Balfour, the North-…

NWU and Makwassie Spruit Enterprises sign MOU

With the youth unemployment rate in South Africa reaching a record time high, the North-West University (NWU) is pulling out all the stops to ensure that its students are employable after attaining their qualifications.

During 2019, 20 BSc Agriculture students spent numerous hours at Makwassie Spruit Enterprises, a large farming…

NWU alumnus’ project impresses at Royal Academy of Engineering

North-West University (NWU) Alumnus Sydwell Sihlangu recently attended the Leaders in Innovation Fellowship training programme on technology commercialisation from 18 January to 1 February 2020 at the Royal Academy of Engineering in the United Kingdom.

This academy brings together the most successful and talented engineers from across…

BRICS sponsors NWU visit to study Russian coal technology

Water is a scarce commodity in drought-stricken South Africa. One area where water can be saved is in the processing of coal, which traditionally uses large amounts of water.

Keeping this in mind, two engineers from the North-West University’s (NWU) School of Chemical and Minerals Engineering visited Siberia last year with the aim…

What's with the all the flies and mosquitoes?

Over the past few months, many South Africans have wondered why there is an excessive amount of mosquitoes and flies in their homes.

Prof Johnnie Van den Berg, a professor at the North-West University’s (NWU’s) Unit for Environmental Sciences, explains where all the flies and mosquitoes are coming from.

He says the drastic…

NWU student brings hope to community cattle farmers

A North-West University (NWU) PhD student has spent the last six years studying how the occurrence of reproductive conditions in cows can be prevented, thereby improving the fortunes of communal cattle farmers.

Keitiretse Molefe will graduate at the campus in Mahikeng in April 2020, and feels blessed to have been part of the research…

New-style star accretion bursts dazzle astronomers at NWU and around the world

The meaning of the term “accretion burst” is expanding. In a rare glimpse at how high-mass stars grow even larger, an astronomer from the North-West University (NWU) has been part of a 15-country research team that has observed star bursts – or growth spurts – previously unknown to humankind.

“It is a privilege to be at the cutting…

NWU Stalwart honored by the IFIP

Dr Lynette Drevin, Associate professor and subject chair at the School of Computer Science and Information Systems at the North West University (NWU) was awarded an IFIP Service Award during the International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP) General Assembly which was held from the 25th-28th June in Lisbon, Portugal

The…

MSc student embarks on research to prevent car theft in SA

Vehicle security is a major concern in South Africa, especially with the latest national crime statistics revealing that more than 48 000 cars and motorbikes were stolen in the last financial year.

While this is a slight reduction on the previous year, the figure remains alarming.

Mawonde Kudakwashe, an MSc computer science…