Through a blend of perseverance, technology, and a touch of serendipity, it was possible to solve a decades-old mystery.
- Previous Vice President of the Academy of Science of South Africa and DSI-NRF SARChI chair in Fungal Genomics, Professor in Genetics, University of Pretoria, University of Pretoria
For the past 13 years I’ve focused on sequencing one plant pathogen’s genome. Here’s where that scientific journey has led.
Technology is allowing scientists to better understand fungal viruses, with the aim of managing them more effectively.
These plants play a crucial role in a delicate ecosystem. If Cape Beech trees or in fact other native tree species are wiped out, that whole ecosystem shifts.
While there are various good reasons for doing research and funding research, the chief reason is that research provides essential insurance against catastrophic events.
If South Africa focuses on getting more PhDs, universities will also increase other graduates in the pipeline.
An urgent discussion is needed around the cost of research publications.
Scientific articles are the way in which scientists communicate their results to their peers.
Research institutes and “centres of excellence” exist around the world to draw talent and to share resources - all with the aim of solving important problems.
South Africa must act to halt the decline and save its universities’ well deserved global reputation of excellence.
South Africa’s National Research Foundation will dramatically scale back “incentive” funding to rated researchers, both those who already have a rating and those who will be rated in the future.
Scientific truth is based on a body of research which has been tried and tested by many researchers over time. Peer review filters the good science from the bad.
It’s important that South African teachers, lecturers and professors develop curricula that build on the best knowledge skills, values, beliefs and habits from around the world.
There is a very real risk that South Africa’s major research projects will stumble and the whole research machine will be shut down by ongoing student protests.
How successful a mother or career scientist one can become depends on how one’s available time is divided between the two activities.
Contact Brenda for
- General
- Media request
- Speaking request
- Consulting / Advising
- Research collaboration
- Research supervision
- Location: Pretoria, South Africa
- Article Feed
- ORCID
- Joined
