Table Mountain

A mystery disease hit South Africa's pine trees 40 years ago: new DNA technology has found the killer

Retrieved on:

Thursday, October 26, 2023

In the 1970s and 1980s, pine trees growing in various forestry plantations in South Africa’s Western Cape province began to die in patches.

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In the 1970s and 1980s, pine trees growing in various forestry plantations in South Africa’s Western Cape province began to die in patches.
These trees succumbed to a mysterious root disease and the patches expanded gradually.
As in many other true crime dramas, the finger was initially pointed at the most likely suspect: the root-infecting Phytophthora cinnamomi.
Through a blend of perseverance, technology, and a touch of serendipity, it was possible to solve a decades-old mystery.

Tracking a killer

In 2020, the samples were revived by a team that included ourselves and several others who recently published a paper on the topic.
We sequenced the samples’ DNA to reveal their unique genetic code.
By comparing this code against genetic databases, it was possible to figure out exactly what was causing the tree disease.
And so, more than four decades after the disease was first described, the pathogen was finally identified as Rhizina undulata.

It pays to be patient

These fires can be accidental or due to what is known as slash-burning after trees are harvested.
Our work is also a testament to the timeliness of scientific progress and the importance of patience.
This underlines the need for continued investment into research and the development of new tools, both in South Africa and worldwide.

Andi Wilson receives funding from the National Research Foundation through a Scarce Skills Postdoctoral Fellowship.
Brenda Wingfield receives funding from South African Department of Science and Innovation.

Cape Town taxi strike exposes a deeply unequal city – and the legacy of apartheid

Retrieved on:

Friday, August 25, 2023

People, Apartheid, Cape Flats, Town, Travel, Food, Housing, Capitalism, Violence, Crime, Instability, Strike, Woman, History, Movement, Milk, Outline, Nature, Restaurant, Sanitation, Risk, Museum, Water, Table Mountain, Racism, City, Social, Bread, General store, Mail, Cereal, Drug, Tourism, Creative industries

On 3 August 2023 the South African National Taxi Council announced strike action in the city as well the rest of the Western Cape province.

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On 3 August 2023 the South African National Taxi Council announced strike action in the city as well the rest of the Western Cape province.
During the strike many people who were unable to get other transport out of the city centre faced long walks home on highways and roadways in the dark.

Legacy of apartheid

Yet the legacy of apartheid remains a spatial, economic and social reality.
Arriving in Cape Town, many travellers will take the N2 highway to the city centre.
Apartheid was a system of racialisation and segregation by the white minority government.

Violence of space

I frame the ongoing inequality as the violence of space.
Physical distance, poor infrastructure, and economic inequality cement divisions in the city and limit movement.
At the same time people living in townships are also more likely to experience physical violence.
This often means travelling in the dark and at greater risk of crime, a situation made worse by ongoing national electricity blackouts.

Taxi strike impact

Over the days of the strike five people died during sporadic violence.
As the strike and instability continued, dozens of women in the Philippi township marched for an end to the looting and violence.
The taxi strike was called off on 11 August after an agreement was reached between the taxi council and the Western Cape government, with tensions continuing.

The ‘best’ city for who?

The categories for deciding “best” city are typically based on food, nature and cultural spaces.
Who the taxi strike affected, where and how shows the violent reality of spatial injustice in the city.

Climate change increases the risk of extreme wildfires around Cape Town -- but it can be addressed

Retrieved on:

Thursday, April 20, 2023

This has led to questions about the extent to which climate change is to blame.

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This has led to questions about the extent to which climate change is to blame.
These studies quantify the links between global climate change, regional extreme weather events, and their effects on people, property and environment.
This branch of attribution science aims to inform climate change adaptation following extreme events.
We analysed the destructive April 2021 wildfire on the slopes of Devil’s Peak in Cape Town, South Africa under extreme fire weather conditions.

The April 2021 Cape Town wildfire

Within a few hours it had destroyed historical buildings and priceless materials in the University of Cape Town African Studies collection.
The event received widespread coverage, documenting the resulting losses and the factors responsible for its destructiveness.
Shortly after 10 am on that day, 18 April 2021, hot, extremely dry and windy conditions took hold.

How we came to this conclusion

This is important because our study area was the smallest over which a wildfire event attribution has been done.
Using temperature, wind, humidity and rainfall, we calculated the value of an index of fire weather (FWI) over Cape Town on 18 April 2021.
In addition to suitable weather conditions, wildfires require a source of ignition and fuel (vegetation that can burn).
Read more:
The Table Mountain fire: what we can learn from the main drivers of wildfires
We outline three avenues for risk mitigation.

Steps to mitigate risk

In the fynbos biome of south-western South Africa, fast-growing alien invasive species and low-density urban expansion into surrounding wildlands enhance the risk of megafires.
Timely and accurate forecasting and communication of extreme fire weather risk This must incorporate understanding of fire pathways that pose the greatest risk locally.
The ecology, climate and fire risk factors in the Lowveld are very different to those in the fynbos.
Consequently, this fire weather index appears not to have been able to identify unprecedented fire weather risk associated with recent extreme wildfires in the fynbos biome.

Vector Atomic Brings Picosecond Timing From Lab to the Real World

Retrieved on:

Monday, January 23, 2023

Vector Atomic is developing high-performance optical atomic clocks and synchronization hardware for picosecond-level timing on a global scale.

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Vector Atomic is developing high-performance optical atomic clocks and synchronization hardware for picosecond-level timing on a global scale.
On January 25th, Vector Atomic will present results and exhibit hardware from two real-world demonstrations of picosecond timing at the Precise Time and Time Interval Systems and Applications (PTTI) meeting.
The clocks operated with less than 10 picoseconds (0.00000000001 seconds) timing error for 2,000x longer than current rackmount atomic clocks used for GPS master timing and in data centers.
Building on NIST’s pioneering work on pulsed optical time transfer, Vector Atomic has also developed 40 L rackmount synchronization modules.

A World First - Cape Town Ring Just Launched

Retrieved on:

Wednesday, October 5, 2022

Family, Gold, Jewellery, GLOBE, Fifth Avenue, Friends, Yair Shimansky, Silver, City, Cape Town Ring Road, Love, Table Mountain, Founder, Cape Town, Platinum

CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Oct. 05, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Representing the majestic Table Mountain and the sea shoreline, The Cape Town Ring - specially designed by Yair Shimansky, founder of the Shimansky diamond and jewelry brand - is a ring like no other.

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CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Oct. 05, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Representing the majestic Table Mountain and the sea shoreline, The Cape Town Ring - specially designed by Yair Shimansky, founder of the Shimansky diamond and jewelry brand - is a ring like no other.
The ring is a brand ambassador for the City of Cape Town, capturing the essence of this beautiful South African city.
The Cape Town Ring is an iconic jewelry piece and an instant conversation starter, designed to celebrate Cape Town - a declaration of love for this city's unique energy, and an item that will instantly capture the hearts of whoever visits.
"It offers you the opportunity to share your visit and experiences with friends and family who will be drawn to follow in your footsteps and experience Cape Town for themselves", says Shimansky.

MultiChoice Showcase 2021

Retrieved on:

Friday, November 26, 2021

On Thursday(25 November),Africas biggest video entertainment company held its MultiChoice Showcase.

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On Thursday(25 November),Africas biggest video entertainment company held its MultiChoice Showcase.
Aptly themedAbout Tomorrow, the showcase presented the Groups forthcoming content attractionsand charted an evolutionarypath for the broadcaster.
MultiChoice is home to over 42 local channels across the continent, each designed and curated to cater for regional tastes whilst simultaneously creating a platform to cross pollinate regional content, says YolisaPhahle, CEO of General Entertainment and Connected Video at MultiChoice Group.
Customers do not have to leave the MultiChoice platform to access these streaming services and the uptake has been great.