Good News

BULLETIN 4 August

Good afternoon, here is your Good News:

# South African-born professor Michele Dougherty has made history as the first woman appointed Astronomer Royal in its 350-year history. Born in KwaZulu-Natal, Dougherty’s journey began under southern skies, inspiring her passion for space. Her groundbreaking work on NASA’s Cassini mission and Europe’s Jupiter exploration earned her global recognition. She now holds one of the United Kingdom’s most prestigious scientific titles. Dougherty hopes her appointment encourages young girls to dream big.

# A new world record has been set in Cape Town as one-thousand-276 marimba players performed in unison at the Grand West Arena. The event smashed the Guinness World Record for the largest marimba ensemble in the world. The previous world record was 550 players at an event in Guatemala. The ensemble brought together talented musicians aged between eight and 62. The children represented over 70 schools from South Africa and two from Zimbabwe. The group played a ten-minute medley that included Waka Waka and Jerusalema.

# University of Pretoria researchers bagged five major honours at the prestigious National Science and Technology Forum-South32, often described as South Africa’s “Science Oscars”. The awards celebrate excellence in science, engineering,  technology and innovation. One of the winners is professor Namrita Lall, who received the Innovation Award for SMMEs. She was recognised for her ground-breaking work in developing and commercialising pharmaceuticals and cosmeceuticals derived from medicinal plants. Professor Lise Korsten was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award for her exceptional contributions to food safety and plant health.

# With it being National Science Week, 33 City of Cape Town libraries will host a series of events including science demonstrations, talks and chemistry experiments. The theme for this year is Science, Technology, and Innovation are for Everyone. Mayoral committee member for Community Services and Health, Francine Higham, says they have an exciting programme designed to spark curiosity, foster learning, and open doors to innovation for participants:

# And finally: Marvel’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps, starring Pedro Pascal as scientific genius Reed Richards, who leads a space expedition with his wife, stayed atop the North American box office chart in its second weekend. Universal/DreamWorks Animation’s new family pic The Bad Guys 2 came in second, with Paramount’s The Naked Gun starring Liam Neeson opposite Pamela Anderson debuting at number three. James Gunn’s Superman descended to fourth place with Universal’s Jurassic World Rebirth rounding out the top five.

Stay tuned for more news………….